Freshmess are fast, likable and homegrown. The company, which brings together dancers from various corners of the Scottish dance community, mixes hip-hop with contemporary style, performing with attitude but turning down the volume just enough for us to appreciate what they are doing. Founded by Allan Irvine, a dance school graduate, the group of five make a happy crew.
The double bill, which toured earlier this year, lands at Dance Base relaxed and polished with success. Frank McConnell's Innit . . . Innat begins lyrically. Slow moves slide through a heartbeat into a pulse. Finally, they're off: Jillian Thomson breaks and Matt Foster spins. Against a soundtrack that mixes a full emotional range of folk music, the performers take a trip round the houses of dance styles. Although he is an experienced contemporary choreographer, McConnell is new to hip-hop and he takes it easy, creating a dreamy B-boy of the Isles dance that blends bounce with jig, glide with spin and ends with a reel.
Irvine's Maintain swings the balance the other way, with street dance taking the lead. It culminates in a rapping conclusion. Each dancer takes his own stance: Wallace Sulley is wiry, Thomson bouncy, Tara Hodgson quick, Irvine generous and Foster a star spinner. It would be good to see just a little more of his considerable skill as a breakdancer.
· Until Saturday. Box office: 0131-225 5525.
