Oscar G

Longtime Miami DJ Oscar G has a penchant for driving the city's dance culture forward. He's been the resident DJ at Club Space for years and has a faithful following that packs the club every weekend he's in town. This is not just because of its early-morning debauchery but because Oscar is behind the decks. But it's not always automatic that a good live DJ can crank out an even better studio album. So it's good that Oscar G's newest project, Nervous Nightlife, was done live. It not only captures the DJ in his element but it also gets him inside the club that made him famous. While all of that's a great safety net, the 17-track disc isn't the grand opus his fans have been waiting for. The selection of tracks here is solid; DJ Bruno's "Strange Dub Mix" and "Components" from the Southern Brothers could make any crowd go apeshit, but some of the tracks run just too long. The album builds slowly like any DJ's set, and it gets better as Oscar slides into Ralph Falcon's "I Need Someone." And Christian Falero's "Deep in South America," with its whistles and surging drums, is a solid example of good live house done right. Still, something is missing. The mix is funky at times and dull at others. Don't expect to be blown away by this one. Then again, all it takes for the culture to keep progressing is for young DJs to hear new releases that aren't perfect and strive to do better.