Strange combinations of artists are becoming increasingly prevalent in dance music and the 'Playgroup' debut album is no exception. In this exciting concept noted hip-hop producer Trevor Jackson teams up with a who's who of Scottish post-punk stars to unleash a volley of early-80s influenced disco tunes. Edwyn Collins is credited with guitar on most of the tracks (but at times you'd scarcely notice beneath the thumping dance music), whereas Aztec Camera's Roddy Frame and Paul Haig contribute a guitar solo and sample respectively. Thankfully it all seems to have turned out all right, particularly in the beginning where the bass thump and sheer danceability of 'Pressure' and 'Front 2 Back' dismiss all notions of this being just a vanity project for Jackson. At times the nostalgic feel of the music and its use of samples is comparable to The Avalanches. Later on there's dabbling in dark, dub-based atmospherics which probably seems less fresh as this style has been done to death by - to name but one group - Massive Attack. What works best on this record though, is the skilful blending of genres and generations which reveal Jackson to be an eclectic talent.