by K. Ross Hoffman\r Rex the Dog is responsible for some of the most infectious and exuberant '80s-inspired electro house singles in a decade chock-full of them. Before veteran producer Jake Williams (aka JX) stepped forward to officially confirm rumors of his involvement, the mystery surrounding Rex the Dog's identity garnered a fair amount of attention in electronic circles -- but it never overshadowed the music itself, with its recognizable, impressively durable template of simple, sturdy midtempo beats, buoyant burbling bass, and melodic but constantly mutating portamento synth riffs (and occasionally vocals) flanged and filtered into delirium. Williams scored multiple mainstream house hits (including several top 20 U.K. singles) throughout the '90s under the monikers JX, Mekka, and Oblik, and as a member of Planet Perfecto, but sometime after the turn of the millennium he struck out in a less overtly commercial direction, adopting...