Mint Royale: On The Ropes

The racks are cluttered with overdriven dance-pop collections by a mostly interchangeable assortment of DJs and remix artists, each aiming for clubland success, if not the chart-topping riches of Fatboy Slim or The Chemical Brothers. On The Ropes, the domestic debut of British dance duo Mint Royale, is one of those albums, packed with agreeable, sampledelic instrumentals like the sitar-driven opener "From Rusholme With Love." But two perfect songs follow, crashing in like a walloping sucker punch. "Don't Falter" and "Show Me" are among the most unstoppably infectious, glorious songs of this or any summer. The former, a smash in Europe, features a career-reviving vocal by Kenickie singer Lauren Laverne; it's an irresistible slab of sugar-coated cheese that ought to fit nicely into the American summer-pop landscape. The latter, driven by an insanely catchy sample and a characteristically joyous, charismatic rap by De La Soul's Posdnuos, is such a giddily thrilling confection that it's hard to believe it hasn't already conquered pop and dance playlists around the world. If a better summer single is released in 2001, it'll be a huge surprise. As for the danceable but mostly undistinguished filler that fills out On The Ropes Not hitting the replay button after "Show Me" is so difficult that the other tracks might as well not exist.