Dance music compilations, especially when presented in a nonstop DJ-mix format, are utilitarian by design, but this one gives the term "instrumental music" a whole new level of meaning. It's a brilliant idea, really: club music is great music to exercise with because it's designed for dancing, which is really just like exercising except that it's more fun. Pure Fitness takes that idea a step further: it's an hourlong DJ mix on which the songs gradually increase in tempo (from 131 to 151 beats per minute) and on which the energy level is kept deliberately high throughout. It doesn't work very well for running (you'll have to either sprint or plod in order to keep in sync with
Freeloader's 131-bpm "Pure Devotion"), but for other kinds of aerobic workouts it will serve just fine to help you get your heart rate up and keep it there. Some of these tracks even work for just sitting down and listening to -- like
Jessy's lovely "I'll Get Over You" and an excellent collaboration between
Damae and
Londonbeat (remember them?) titled "I've Been Thinking About You." The boring stuff (Corrie's "2 Souls") is briefly annoying, but fades into the background soon enough if you just focus on your breathing. Recommended.