The name Electric Stew no doubt conjures up images of a dish served up by fat tongued Essex tosspot Jamie Oliver. But this painfully hip Capital based night out is an irregular occurrence that thankfully hasn't succumbed to the lucrative lures of a superclub brand. Based at the grandiose, Great Eastern Hotel, it's an evening where a couple of thousand carefully turned out, style obsessives show up to (over) indulge in an array of contemporary arts from music to film to spoken word and beyond. Jarvis is a regular and you can expect to bump into all manner of Brit-artists and the occasional US styleite of the Chloe Sevigny, Vincent Gallo breed.
So eclecticism is the key and this soundtrack follows suit. Disc one, 'Dancefloor' is a sleazy, rough around the edges mix that disappears up its own arse (Rework's ultra cool 'Amoureuse'), inspires (the sublime, silky hip hop of N*E*R*D) and confuses (Linda Lamb's filthy 'Hot Room') in equal measure. Predominantly a voyage through the PVC wrapped, eighties styled modernist pulses of electroclash (a genre so 'of the moment' it sounds dated already) it does have its moments. But without the opulent setting and atmosphere of the club, sounds a little too cold for a night in.
Disc two, 'Afterhours' is far more suited to such an evening. Many will be familiar already with the inclusion of PJ Harvey's heartstring tugging 'We Float' and Spiritualized's stellar 'I Think I'm in Love'. Elsewhere Nick Drake gets a look in alongside the Doves, Iceland's Sigur Ros, and for some unknown reason Siobhan Fahey.
Ultimately an exercise in style over substance (check the blank modernist packaging) there are still enough classics, curios and clued up, cutting edge cuts to entertain and add flavour to this expansive two hour mixture. In the words of TV's most nauseating chef it's PUKKA, well, just about.
