by Stephen Thomas Erlewine Renaissance is an album that never should have been released. Appearing a year after the Can't Stop the Music debacle and after the collapse of Casablanca Records, Renaissance finds the Village People trying to find a foothold in a world that no longer likes disco. They now lack their top-notch producers and songwriters, so they have to settle for dreck like "Diet," "Fireman," "Jungle City," "Big Mac" and "Food Fight." It's music so lifeless and flat that it lacks kitsch value, even with years of hindsight. It's simply an embarrassment that never should have seen the light of day.