Only sensical transitions are to be found on Renaissance Ibiza, the new mix album from deep house virtuosos Deep Dish. Also bi-monthly residents at Twilo (as well as other big-name clubs around the world), the Washington, D.C.-based duo of Ali Shirazinia and Sharam Tayebi has been DJing and producing together since 1991. Their new double-CD (out now on their own Yoshitoshi label) takes its name from both the British club Renaissance, where Deep Dish DJ every other month, and the Spanish party island of Ibiza, where the duo set up shop this past summer. Their years of DJing play out into an album that flows seamlessly from track to track. Of course, they're aided by the fact that they've culled each of their selections from the deep house canon. Still, they've picked some of the year's best, from Everything but the Girl's "Tempermental" to Moby's "Porcelain" to BT's "Dreaming" (never mind that they're featured here in remix form). Those of you with sharp ears will notice Timo Maas popping up throughout the album, with both his new single, "Ubik," and several remixes (some of which also appear on Maas' own CD).

Lest you should think that Twilo is the only club around producing record-worthy DJs, Gatecrasher -- one of England's hottest dancespots -- has cajoled nearly its entire roster of resident DJs into compiling its own double discs, Gatecrasher: Global Sound System (out in the States on Epic, of all labels). The CDs are one half of Gatecrasher's scheme to infiltrate America; the other half involves a Gatecrasher DJ tour that's crisscrossing the States as we speak (check your local listings). If disc one of the album is any indication, the tour should be a floor-packer: Easily the best of the three mixes mentioned here, it packs in the kind of high-quality breakbeat and trance tracks that make for all-night DJ sets. Highlights include the keyboard-thick "Keep Moving" by Terra Ferma and After Burn's "Fratt Boy," as well as "Love From Above" by Paul Van Dyk, who's practically peerless when it comes to spiritually vital trance. Unfortunately, the Gatecrasher clan stacked all its hits onto disc one, leaving its counterpart with very little to say for itself. Even "Voices" from Bedrock, the recording project of the almighty John Digweed, can't save disc two from its destiny with the trash bin.

Before you rush out to buy any of these CDs in hopes of recreating a DJ set right in your own living room, be advised of one important thing: Not even the best mix CD can substitute for seeing these DJs live. Let the albums serve as an appetizer only. The main course awaits you inside the clubs.

Nina Pearlman is the Senior Editor of The Rocket, a Seattle-based publication devoted to covering music in the Pacific Northwest. Her work has also appeared in such publications as Magnet, AP and New York Press.