It"s hard to argue with super-stylin" French DJ Dimitri from Paris. Between selling a couple hundred thousand of his debut, Sacrebleu, and then scoring hot and heavy with 2000"s A Night at the Playboy Mansion and the three-disc workout Disco Forever, Turkish-born Dimitri seems to only spin gold, and House of Funk is no exception. Recorded originally in 1997 as a compilation for Mixmag magazine, the CD does have its rough spots, but even as a colorless house beat pile-drives the party right up to Mondo Grosso"s "Vibe PM," Dimitri"s skill in weaving disco strings and horny vocals together with unique tracks makes it all work like a charm. Per usual for him, Dimitri goes further than the average ignorant and insular DJ in finding his mix material. Forget spinning another house track from another unknown "producer," Dimitri blends "80s funk, Latin rhythms, Algerian Rai, new disco, and electro-pop under his beat-heavy banner. Bob Sinclar, Björk, Brand New Heavies, and Cheb Khaled (as well as unknowns Teddy G and Switchblade Sisters) all receive the Dimitri treatment, losing their identity to his in the process. Equal parts sentimental disco cheesemeister and crafty beat-matching style explorer, Dimitri from Paris invites you to shake it under his world-class mirror ball. --Ken Micallef