Already something of a Chicago house veteran when he became one of the pioneers of electroclash, with Kittenz And Thee Glitz in 2001, Felix Da Housecat has still proven more long-lived than some of his peers. (Whatever happened to Fischerspooner and does anyone still care?) But, while his work doubtless influenced many newer acts such as New Young Pony Club and Justice, the man born Felix Stallings seems keen to move on rather than living off past glories.

Virgo Blaktro and the Movie Disco is something of a concept album, with a story of sorts running through the near-seamless tracks. What this means in practice is mostly the occasional annoying voice over though only ‘Pretty Girls Don’t Dance’ objectionably breaks the flow, before observing that they “just pose to techno”.

For the most part, this is indeed an album more suited to posing than dancing, with the Prince-like laidback funky electro of the early tracks retaining the cool vibe of Felix’s work but mostly lasting not much more than two minutes – if that! It seems Felix has opted to veer towards commercial pop songs, rather than ten-minute dance floor epics, yet cleverly most of the tracks flow almost seamlessly, so that you could almost be listening to a DJ mix.

The result is also something of a mixed bag. While the catchy first single ‘Like Something For Porno’ is probably the most immediate, it gets a bit repetitive, and other tracks like ‘Mad Sista’ seem over before they begin but some, such as ‘It’s Been A Long Time,’ prove to be growers. Like any good set, the album builds towards a climax, with ‘Tweak’ and ‘Future Calls The Dawn’ being the only two tracks beyond four minutes in length and in the more familiar techno sound.

If Felix’s aim was to graduate from classic singles and mixes to a classic artist album, then this isn’t it, but if he was just out – as his press quotes suggest – to make songs telling stories with good melodies – then that’s what he’s done.

(3½/5)