Kompakt's Total 7 is the labels best effort to date. Whereas many have thought the label has seen better days, it would be ashame not to give this release your full attention. It's not hard to tell that somewhere between the German polished Minimal Pop and boombastic Techno comes a fine triple vinyl compilation from this label. I think the label was aware of the fact that they needed to step up their game and they did a fone job doing just that.

Zero fluff, timeless tracks. In my 10 years of ear-to-the-ground all-around electronic dance music fandom I will say that pound for pound this is the best compilation I've ever heard.

As a force in the world of music, Kompakt have never been stronger. But don’t fool yourself if you think it’s got anything to do with the sound they’re pushing. In fact, the great irony of Kompakt is that even though it’s nearly a spent force creatively, the label has got distribution so thoroughly sorted that we’re probably going to see the release of Kompakt Total 25, regardless of its contents.
The Total series’ strength was always in its diversity. When it peaked with the third annual, it felt like almost anything was possible and everything was to be done. Even at its’ weakest moments though, you always felt the presence of the ‘Kompakt’ sound. Fast-forward four years though and the ‘Kompakt’ artists sound ill-at-ease on their own label. Total 7 sees some capable, interesting producers come up with limp, out-of-date, flat facsimiles of sound fads being done better on other, more vibrant labels.
All the old-skool members come out to bat: we have the obligatory Reinhard Voigt track (still talentless after all these years), Tobias Thomas and Michael Mayer half-heartedly fanny-farting out their old formulas on ‘Sweet Harmony’, Superpitcher justifying another infidelity on ‘Tonite’ and Thomas Fehlmann offering some b-grade ‘jazzy’ beats with ‘Saft’. None of the big tracks littered throughout the compilation like Gui Boratto’s ‘Aquipélago’, Hug’s ‘The Happy Monster’ and Wighnomy Bros’ ‘Wombat’ seem to fit either, not together, and not with the overall Kompakt ‘thing’, if there is such a thing anymore. There are some gems here though – Kontrast’s ‘Grey Skies to Blue’, the Field’s ‘Over the Ice’ and Jonas Bering’s ‘Melanie’ are all lovely. But even the best moments here struggle against tired and ruined formulas failing to make sense and new noises creating dissonance among them.