The first six months of 2001 has seen a plethora of major dance acts, such as Daft Punk, Faithless, Stereo MCs and Orbital, release long players.
The latest act to join this roster of heavyweights are Simon Ratcliffe and Felix Buxton, aka the Basement Jaxx.
It's taken them three years to follow their debut album, Remedy, and naturally a lot has happened over that time. Not least the duo have grown from being a much hyped underground production team to become a major International chart act.
What makes the Basement Jaxx stand out is the distinctiveness of their sound, which manages to combine the sense of chaos and energy rush underground dance music with eminently radio friendly tunes.
But their music is also deeply influenced by the sounds that surround them. On Remedy this meant the basic element of driving house was infused with funk, twisted disco, techno and, more importantly, R&B, ragga and Latin.
In the years between then and now their musical surroundings have obviously changed and there's been a fair amount of speculation about their new material. Not least there's has been an expectation the Jaxx would embrace two step.
The only other clue to their new material was the release of the limited edition 'Camberwell EP', which saw them return to their dirty, chop 'em up and churn 'em out sounds.
As it turns out Rooty does have some rough and raw edges and there are some nods towards two step. But overall it's very much a sequel to Remedy, continuing the Jaxx's own musical path, rather than following anyone else's.
As with Remedy, most of these are definite songs, but the subject matter, sex, love and, er, sex, is less philosophical than the pre-millennial tensions on their debut.
As with the last album, there's a vast stable of collaborators here. As well as the home grown talent, such as vocalists Caffie, Mandy and Cherokee, there are guest appearances from star US DJs and Kele Le Roc, who sings on the current single, 'Romeo'.
On 'Where's Your Head At' the anthemic, football chant chorus is supplied by an unlikely line up of Erick Morillo, Junior Sanchez and Michael Moog, while Derek Carter contributes backing vocals to the raunchy sex-fest of 'Work Me Off'.
But the big vocal surprise comes from Felix, who sings (albeit heavily plastered in effects) on 'Breakaway', the eminently poppy 'Jus 1 Kiss', 'Crazy Girl' and the dreamy 'All I Know'.
The album misses the addictive funk of 'Red Alert', the off beat quirks of 'Yo Yo' and the engulfing production depth of 'Same Old Show'. But it's a powerful package and a proof that the Basement Jaxx have the confidence and vision to pursue their own path.
And like Remedy, which churned out radio hit after hit, Rooty is destined to become the sound track of the next two years.
