Horizons

OM Records is often found guilty of releasing half-baked dance records that only pretend to true spirituality. But even though the package of Horizons includes a message about "the healing power of music" and thanks to "the universal light that is all of us," Marques Wyatt has proved himself in the past by constructing uplifting deep house mixes capable of transcending acres of buzzwords. Fans who loved 2002's For Those Who Like to Get Down will find to their delight that Wyatt is ready to break even more crucial tracks that they'll be hearing all summer. (His classic predecessor is "Don't Change" by Osunlade, originally aired on For Those Who Like to Get Down.) Horizons charts his usual favorites of deep house with plenty of Latin and African influences, but also a growing '80s inspiration. "Never Again" by Kathy Brown is an immediate anthem, driven by '80s keys and sax and bass, as well as a false ending that precedes Brown's storming back into the track with gusto. Walter Jones' "G.C.'s Theme" is a masterpiece of throwback synth-disco, and E-Man's "Slangin'" begins a miniset of tribal-house that crests with an Osunlade track ("Same Thing") before slipping back into deep house courtesy of Ms. Keisha G's excellent send-off, "Sun Will Shine." The record that arrived just in time for the 2004 Winter Music Conference in Miami, as well as warmer weather throughout the rest of the country, brings a vision of summery party music wherever it's played.