The idea behind this disc is simple: combine a wide range of big beat, house, and techno music into a seamless party for the ears, while using creative images that flow with the beats to stimulate the eyes. Global Vision succeeds in that goal—watching/listening to this disc makes you feel as if there's a rave right in your living room.

Sadly, however, the first thing I noticed wasn't the groovy sounds or the psychedelic imagery. Nope, the first thing I noticed was the lack of a 5.1 Dolby Digital track. How disappointing. I mean, c'mon people. I want my music DVDs to rock. I want the grooves to enter my soul and I want the bass to shatter the windows. To do this, all we need is a 5.1 Dolby Digital track. Anything less is asking for failure. And although Global Vision doesn't fail, it doesn't live up to its potential, either.

The feature offers six videos from DJs (the music specialists) and VJs (the video specialists) from around the world. As with any good mix, it starts with a slightly more mellow pace, created by Le Hammond Inferno and visuals by Giraffentoast. It moves to a more frenzied pitch through the sounds of Leonard de Leonard, who uses a bit of disc scratching to get the party hopping. By now, if you're not feeling the groove, you're in a coma and you should seek medical attention. The music takes off from there, going up and down the fast track, but with a few slower moments to let you get your breath.

As for the visuals, the cool thing about them is the fact they have no narrative. There are no rules. Instead, the artists use a wide spectrum of images and graphics that move fluidly with the music. They use shapes, colors, photos, stock film footage, drawings of dancing nuns, and of course my favorite, the dancing robot. Regardless of the VJs resources, the sound and images blend beautifully to create something that can simply be described as fun. These really are a feast for the eyes.

Perhaps the only drawback to this combination is the possible difficulty of enjoying both the sights and sounds at the same time. The music all but commands the body to get up and get down, yet the visuals beg for attention too. But you can't sit on the couch while the music is playing, and there in lies the problem. Do I try to enjoy the music to its fullest extent, or the images dancing around on screen? That's a good dilemma for a music DVD to have.

Even without the 5.1 sound, this disc would be a great addition to a raver's library, especially if you plan to put on a little party yourself. And for those who aren't fans of techno/dance music, well, you probably haven't read this far anyway. But just remember, if you're rhythmically challenged like me, be sure to turn out the lights and shut the blinds before popping this DVD into your player.

For those who are interested, here's a track list for Global Vision:

"Bungalow Mix" by Le Hammond Inferno (visuals by Giraffentoast)

"Musiques Hybrides Mix" by Leonard de Leonard (visuals by e movie)

"Wait Not" by Alejandro de Valera (visuals by James Graham)

"Moonshine Mix" by Christian (visuals by Thomas Trail)

"23 Records Mix" by Fila Brazillia (visuals by Fortune Cookies)

"Dannoura" by Share the Fantasy (visuals by Tomographer)

THE VIDEO
The video quality of Global Vision is across the board, but rightfully so. Featured in full frame, the videos are sharp when they're supposed to be, and fuzzy when they're not. Colors are very vivid, or they're subdued, depending on the particular visual style. DVD is the only format worthy of these wonderful graphics, and the producers of this disc did a mighty fine job.

THE AUDIO
Tsk. Tsk. Another music DVD with only a 2.0 track. It sounds fine, with the beats coming through loud and clear, but sometimes all I could think about was how good it could've sounded. It's a shame, really.

THE BONUS FEATURES
This disc doesn't offer much in the way of extras. Basically, it just features a brief interview with the artists involved with each piece, and I do mean brief. Each interview runs for about 1.5 minutes and does little more than allow audiences to put a face to a name. Unfortunately, there's not much insight into either the music or the visuals.

The DVD also has a few trailers for other films and albums produced by Moonshine.

FINAL THOUGHTS
Global Vision features some really kickin' beats along with psychedelic imagery. The music will make you nod your head and want to get your groove on, while the images are great to look at. Casual fans of this musical flavor will enjoy this one, but will probably locate it in the "DVDs for making dinner and cleaning house" pile. Serious fans will get much more play out of this one. But no matter how good the music and visuals, the nagging question remains: where's the digital sound? This missing element is disturbing if not downright disappointing.