DJ John Kelley Albums (7)
'A Night in the Park'
Release Date 8/23/2005
Tracks 10
Label Ball of Waxx
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What The Critics Say
This is one of those albums that is kind of hard to review simply because there's not much you can say about it. DJ John Kelley is a well-established figure on the West Coast breaks scene, and what he serves up here with his first artist album is a solid 46 minutes of pure funk pleasure, all of it instrumental and all of it written by Kelley in collaboration with a variety of friends and colleagues, mainly Brian Saitzyk and Brian Golub. Kelley knows how to mix up the flavors and textures without sacrificing his groove, and he also knows when it's time to let a fleet-fingered turntablist come in and spice things up, which Spider does brilliantly on both "Dye Sky Drive" and the heavyweight "Funkasaurus." There's also a nice cameo by rapper Dynamite Jive on "Eighty Eight." Those who don't have a natural affection for breakbeats may find things getting a bit tired by the end, but they're probably off dancing somewhere else anyway. Highly recommended. ~ Rick Anderson, All Music Guide
'United DJs of America, Vol. 19: John Kelley'
Release Date 9/11/2001
Tracks 15
Label Razor & Tie
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'HighDesertSoundSystem, Vol. 2'
Release Date 6/27/2000
Tracks 14
Label Moonshine
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What The Critics Say
With the second volume in his Highdesertsoundsystem series, John Kelley moves away from the breaks sound of his Funkydesertbreaks albums and the hard house sound of his first volume in this series in favor of a more trance-influenced sound, instantly evident just by the track selection. Take for instance Trancesetters' "Roaches," Killahurtz's "West on 27th," and two Timo Maas productions, "Riding on a Storm" and "Eclipse." ~ Jason Birchmeier, All Music Guide
'HighDesertSoundsystem'
Release Date 7/27/1999
Tracks 16
Label Moonshine Music
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What The Critics Say
Several years after his breakthrough with the Funkydesertbreaks series, John Kelley returns to his roots in tribal-house and funky techno with spotlight tracks from Jan Driver ("Drive By"), Mac Zimms ("Silicon Valley"), DJ Dan ("That Zipper Track") and Dave Randall ("Bombay"). ~ Keith Farley, All Music Guide
'Funkydesertbreaks, Vol. 2'
Release Date 6/24/1997
Tracks 15
Label Moonshine Music
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'Funkydesertbreaks'
Release Date 8/6/1996
Tracks 15
Label Moonshine Music
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What The Critics Say
An album of typically American funky breakbeats and psychedelic trance from the cream of the crop, including Uberzone, the Crystal Method, Electric Skychurch, Omar Santana and Psychedelic Research Lab. John Kelley's mixing is more than proficient, but the generally unexciting flavor and lack of subtlety in the material drags the compilation down a bit. ~ Keith Farley, All Music Guide
