Hip-Hop Vinyl New Releases - News

Mobb Deep is an American duo from the Queensbridge Houses in New York City that consist of group members Havoc and Prodigy. The group is best known for its dark, hardcore delivery and became one of the most successful rap duos in hip hop.Murda Muzik is the fourth album released in 1999 by the rap duo. It is their most successful album ever, selling over 1 million copies in the USA and was certified Platinum. It reached to #3 on the Billboard 200 album charts, #2 on the US R&B/Hip-Hop Billboard album chart and entered solid positions in Germany, Holland and the United Kingdom.Mobb Deep cleverly uses old and new samples and even a part from a speech by Ronald Reagan. The standout track is 'Quiet Storm' which samples 'White Lines' by Grandmaster Melle Mell and 'A Quiet Storm' by soul crooner Smokey Robinson.Additionally tracks like 'It's Mine' featuring NAS, 'The Realest' featuring Kool G Rap plus guest appearances from Raekwon, Big Noyd and Lil' Kim altogether guarantee the sound of Mobb Deep with hardcore yet thoughtful lyrics.

How do you follow up a stone-cold Afro Funk classic like Village Boogie Simple. Gather together some of the hottest players in Nigeria, take them down to the Phonodisk studios in Ijebu Igbo and let them loose on a bunch dancefloor fillers you spent the last four years 'road testing' in Kaduna. And don't forget to get Lady Franka and Mariam Pledge in on backing vocals. Those girls know how to fire up a party. It helps, of course, if you're Steve 'Dudu' Black. Steve had a God-given knack for writing combustible dance tunes and the contacts in the industry to get the likes of Willy Nfor, Willy Roy and Felix Lebarty to make them explode. From the opening track, 'Osasuima', the heat never stops. On 'No Stopping Me Now' and 'Ololufe/ Stay The Night', it's almost too hot to handle. Polished in a studio in London while Musical Youth recorded Pass The Dutchie in the next room, Happy Birthday To U is the gift that keeps on giving - an irresistible blend of Highlife, Afro Beat and Afro Funk that is guaranteed to start a party on any dance floor. - Peter Moore.

How do you follow up a stone-cold Afro Funk classic like Village Boogie Simple. Gather together some of the hottest players in Nigeria, take them down to the Phonodisk studios in Ijebu Igbo and let them loose on a bunch dancefloor fillers you spent the last four years 'road testing' in Kaduna. And don't forget to get Lady Franka and Mariam Pledge in on backing vocals. Those girls know how to fire up a party. It helps, of course, if you're Steve 'Dudu' Black. Steve had a God-given knack for writing combustible dance tunes and the contacts in the industry to get the likes of Willy Nfor, Willy Roy and Felix Lebarty to make them explode. From the opening track, 'Osasuima', the heat never stops. On 'No Stopping Me Now' and 'Ololufe/ Stay The Night', it's almost too hot to handle. Polished in a studio in London while Musical Youth recorded Pass The Dutchie in the next room, Happy Birthday To U is the gift that keeps on giving - an irresistible blend of Highlife, Afro Beat and Afro Funk that is guaranteed to start a party on any dance floor. - Peter Moore.

It's hard to get a handle on Nigerian musicians Nash Dodoo, Charlie Cuul and Jonas Caulley. In 1980 they released an album of face-melting gospel boogie as the BML chapels. And in the same year, calling themselves the Beta Yama Group, they put out Free Love, a belated love letter to San Francisco's Summer of Love and an album altogether focused on more worldly concerns. Free Love is a small slice of Haight-Ashbury transported to the Polygram Studios in Lagos. 'Te Revoir' is Mamas and Papas jamming with Sergeant Pepper's Beatles. 'Free Love' offers a respectful nod towards Je T'aime-era Serge Gainsbourg. Sure, 'Revolution' gets hard and funky and 'Rain' flirts briefly with a calypso reggae sound, but the majority of the album is cheesecloth and flowers in your hair. Insanely rare - and worth buying for the freaky cover art alone - Free Love is a funky, reverb heavy call for love, peace and sweet, sweet loving. What more could you want from an album - Peter Moore.

It's hard to get a handle on Nigerian musicians Nash Dodoo, Charlie Cuul and Jonas Caulley. In 1980 they released an album of face-melting gospel boogie as the BML chapels. And in the same year, calling themselves the Beta Yama Group, they put out Free Love, a belated love letter to San Francisco's Summer of Love and an album altogether focused on more worldly concerns. Free Love is a small slice of Haight-Ashbury transported to the Polygram Studios in Lagos. 'Te Revoir' is Mamas and Papas jamming with Sergeant Pepper's Beatles. 'Free Love' offers a respectful nod towards Je T'aime-era Serge Gainsbourg. Sure, 'Revolution' gets hard and funky and 'Rain' flirts briefly with a calypso reggae sound, but the majority of the album is cheesecloth and flowers in your hair. Insanely rare - and worth buying for the freaky cover art alone - Free Love is a funky, reverb heavy call for love, peace and sweet, sweet loving. What more could you want from an album - Peter Moore.

Its early 2015. Welcome to Africa Seven. We are a new record label. We may be based in Paris and London but our hearts firmly rooted in the universal motherland. We love African music, we want everyone to hear it and we want to spread the love. We are a collective of crate diggers, afro music-heads, label spotters and vinyl buying obsessives. We don't have any particular musical release agenda apart from, "is it of African origin, does it have a beat, do we like it". For the first few releases on Africa Seven we are exploring a rich seam of creativity and groove from the 70's. Stand by for re-issues from Manu Dibango, Jake Sollo, Jo Tongo, Pasteur Lappe and Tala AM to name but a few.

Trying to decide our first release was a long drawn out affair. Everyone had their favorites...;. Would it Manu, Tala, Ray, Jake or Jo In the end we just couldn't decide. To keep the peace we settled on a taster compilation called "African Airways Vol 01". Think of it as a statement of intent. A sample of aural treats in store. As for the cheesy name, well...;.. we like African Music, who doesn't like air hostesses and we are aeroplane geeks. It was a no-brainer really.

Volume 1 of Africa Airways focuses on the funkier side of 70s African music. We can't think of any better way to start an African compilation than some pounding, powerful, masterful African drumming. Thank you Ekambi Brilliant, you sure know how to set up an opening track. Next up we jump to the Cameronian king of the Tchamassi dance, Tala Andre Marie (Tala AM is his snazzier moniker). "Black Gold" is a track that really says it all. Cant-sit-still grooves, masterfully jangly guitars and a really cool nascent use of synthesizers. Is it possible to play a song over and over again 300 times - we think so. Elvis Kemayo is next up with the funky assault. Big brass, big basslines and happy times. Cameroonian native Jo Tongo, now lives in New York but back in the 70s he was part of the Fiesta label massive who were cranking out great records in Paris. "Jangolo" is quite possibly his finest moment. Keeping things Cameroon to finish up side one is the Saxophone master Manu Dibango. "Mimbo" is jazzy, darty gem. Manu recently turned 80 and celebrated with a series of gigs. A true afro legend with over 30 albums to his name. Quite a few have never been re-issued since the 70s and they are now patiently queued up on our release schedule.

Opening side two of our vinyl is Jo Bisso. Give It Up is a funky, brass however from 1977 on the Disques Esperance label. Next up is "Mbongui". Did you think a flute in African music could sound this funky Nigerian Jake Sollo met with an untimely death but his music lives on. Jake was a leader of one of the first wave of funky afro bands to come out of Nigeria in the early 70s, "The Funkees". "Father Time and Mother Nature" retains all those key elements of what made his band so successful. Sookie are next up with their US style funk...; but with an African twist. To finish up the LP Paris based "African Soul Band" bring out the dark strings, chanted Senegalese vocals and mirroring marimbas for their epic closer "Nande" from 1978.

Stay tuned for more Africa Seven releases on CD, Vinyl and Digital. Our next release is from the Cameroonian Saxophone master Manu Dibango with a rare 1977 Film Soundtrack "Ceddo". Think thoughtful, brooding afrobeat meets Shaft.

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We are more than ten releases in here at Africa Seven. It has been a wild ride... It was eight months ago that we launched our label and released our debut release the Compilation "Africa Airways 01: Funk Connection". It did better than we ever imagined and we had to repress the darned thing twice... So predictably for a follow up we humbly present you with "Africa Airways 02: Funk Departures 1973-1982". We have unashamedly stuck to the formula of our debut; keeping the funk deep and the groove pan-African. Heading straight for the afrobeat, dance-funk jugular.

We open up Volume Two with an absolute corker... "Na Real Sekele Fo Ya" from Cameroonian-in-Paris Pasteur Lappe. Produced by Jacob Desvarieux of Kassav fame, this track is an instant grabber; Think of the Blockheads "Rhythm Stick" goes Afro chant with deep, soulful moog grooves and on-point brass stabs. Next up is M'Bamina an Italian / Ivory Coast band who swing things heavy with "Kilowi Kilowi". Sweeting strings, funky bass lines wrapped around a late 70s style disco groove.

Ekambi Briallant is next up with his floor tappingly catchy afro soul "Aboki (Mon Copain)", produced by one of our favorite producers Slim Pezin. To round off the A-side of the vinyl we present the first outing from the Makeba family. Here the (sadly prematurely departed) Bongi Makeba, daughter of "Mama Africa" Myriam Makeba, shows the world just what an amazing artist she would have developed into. Bongi wrote a fair number of her mother's tracks in her later years and "Don't Do It" shows us what true talent for the song she was blessed with. The track her powers along with wah-wah guitar and masterful alto sax. A real treat.

Friend of Africa Seven and Cameroonian native Jo Tongo opens thing up on Side B. Jo now lives in New York but back in the 70s he was part of the Fiesta label collective who were cranking out great records in Paris. "Piani" is his purest dancefloor moment, here again in full glory.Next up we bend our African remit ever-so slightly and head off to Holland for a James Brown style fuelled funk stomper "Relax.. Before Doing Sex" from Oscar Harris and his crew. Its big, its bold, its brassy...;.. It's fun.

The power trio of Bozambo are next up. Between them they have released over 12 solo LPs and here together with "Get it On The Music" they power through with a keyboard/synyh driven afro-funk groove years ahead of its time...; made in 1978 but sounding like 1984. Misse Ngoh is one great guitarist and a masterful adaptor of the Makossa rhythms of his native Cameroun. The title track from his Esperance 1979 LP "Tata Ngoh" mixes in his trademark rhythms and grooves with slap bass and striking brass lines. One heck of a catchy song too.

In 1991 Baritone Tiplove released the highly acclaimed 'Young Ladies Drive Me Crazy' 12' on Easy Street Records introducing the world to the bizarre minds of this fictional duo. The 12' was well received and followed up by the cassette only LP 'Livin Foul' which has gone on to be a highly sought after rarity and has
even been called the greatest cassette only rap album. Now in 2017, In Effect Recordings and Diggers With Gratitude are proud to announce the release the first of three planned EPs comprising vintage Baritone Tiplove material recorded across the late 80's and early 90's.

Many people know Baritone as the alter ego of the multi-talented Phill Most Chill (aka Soulman) who has been enjoying somewhat of a resurgence in popularity of late amongst hip-hop vinyl fanatics. Recent collaborations with DJ Format ('The Foremost') and Paul Nice ('The Fabreeze Brothers') have been widely acclaimed, as have his numerous guest appearances, and our previous release of vintage material from Phill, 2011's 'All Cuts Recorded Raw', remains our best selling release to date and is now highly sought after. Suffice it to say we expect these to sell out quickly, don't say we didn't warn you!

The inimitable Big Maybelle, born, Mabel Louise Smith, had worked for nearly 2 decades in the music business before even releasing her first single, Gabbin' Blues' in 1952, although, to be fair, she started at the age of 12. The 1958 LP Blues, Candy & Big Maybelle, collects singles from the mid-50s on, including one of her biggest hits, Candy'. Killer jump blues and R&B from one of the finest, Jackson, Tennessee's own Big Maybelle. Reissued on 180 gram LP with download code and 2 bonus tracks.

This is the highly antcipated re-press of the much sought afer and long unavailable sophomore album from South American producer Chancha Via Circuito who molds local South American rhythms into global artstry.
Rio Arriba bubbles up from the Andes like percussive lava, seething as it is soothing. Layers of drums play out like water and earth batling heat on Rio Arriba, where South American folklore takes the reins and, under Chancha's steady hand, obscure backwoods rhythms take on a top shelf lifestyle as folklore hits the club. Cumbia made Chancha's frst album Rodante a stand out, Rio Arriba takes his sound primal, rooted in rhythm, but worldwide in scope. The album mingles remixed songs with instrumentals that apply clubland aesthetcs — sampling, patent repetton, isolaton of individual elements — to folky rhythms and
sounds.' The New York Times The sophomore album from Chancha Vía Circuito ofered shufing Latn rhythms, pastoral
melodies, hints of Latn folk, and, above all, an exquisite listening experience.' XLR8R Rio Arriba is a dreamy, neo-primitve mix of chopped-up pan futes, folk guitar, Coke-botle percussion, and booming, electronically treated drums-- an almost shamanistc sound that carries its own landscape: underbrush, riverbanks, campfres.' Pitchfork

Repressed! Great album from founding member of NYC ska/reggae/soul legends THE SLACKERS. A fantastic mix of original Jamaican ska and reggae channeled through a blues/jazz mindset, featuring legendary Jamaican percussionist LARRY McDONALD, EDDIE OCAMPO, and RICH GRAIKO.

Blue vinyl.

Deluxe Violet coloured Vinyl Version!
Vocalist/bassist/songwriter Glenn Hughes is a true original. No other rock musician has carved such a distinctive style blending the finest elements of hard rock, soul, and funk. That astonishing voice is Hughes' calling card. He's known as a singer's singer. Stevie Wonder once called Hughes his favourite white singer! 2016 was his busiest year yet with summer festivals and solo shows in the USA, UK, and Europe and the recording of his first solo album in over eight years! Resonate' is a triumphant return to form for "The Voice of Rock"!

The CD "Stories" collects unreleased songs deipi 'great Italian singers hip hop, produced by Overall Pictures, Keep Hold, Blue & Blue Music, Sound Pills, President Dogo Gang and SDT events among the music makers creators, Andrea Fresu Michele Sghembri. Many participants: J-ax, Jack the Smocker, Bat, Kuno, Gotik, Romeo, Montenero, Dynamite, Andrea Rock, Gea,, Amir, Gea, Nero and Cima. After the release of the CD will be 'realized a concert event in Milan where Ill Popes and The President will sing in featuring with many artists. For the occasion will be 'presented the brand new video clip of Jake La Furia.

As the sixties came to a close, Laurel Aitken was firmly established as Britian's favourite Jamaican performer, enormously popular with members of both the country's West Indian ex-pat communities and its rapidly growing Reggae-loving Skinhead population. Unsurprisingly, competition to gain rights to his works among the country's leading Jamaican music companies was fierce and often bitter, so when, early in 69, Pama Records acquired his signature, the achievement was rightly regarded as a major coup by the London-based operation. Over the weeks that immediately followed, Laurel duly provided Pama with a number of best-selling singles, and while single artist compilations by Jamaican artists were still considered a rarity, such was the demand for the singer's music the company wasted little time in issuing a long-playing collection: Scandal In Brixton Market. Featuring a handful of previously released sides along with seven recordings exclusive to the collection, the LP also featured guest appearances from two of the UK's most popular Jamaican acts, Girlie and celebrated trombonist, Rico Rodriquez. A must-have collection for all Reggae fans, Scandal In Brixton Market quickly sold out at stores the length and breadth of the country, and over the years that have followed it has become increasingly scarce. It is therefore with great pleasure that some 45+ years after its original release, Radiation Reissues is able to present it again on vinyl.

Los Angeles based producer Nick Alvarado and vocalist EVeryman have teamed to form Little Giants, who aim to make proper hip-hop music for your mind, body and soul. Pairing inspired, thought-provoking lyrics set over crisp, funky beats, the sounds of Little Giants harken back to the golden era of hip-hop. This release commemorates the memory of Nick Pumpkin' Alvarado, who touched thousands of people with his signature music productions and acclaimed DJ sets at top music festivals and clubs across the US and abroad. He tragically passed away in early 2016, but his generous spirit and magical music will continue to live on.

To honor his memory, Nick's best friend and Little Giants production partner, Evan Everyman' Shafran, started The Little Giant Acorn Foundation for The Arts, a non-profit organization that helps children get started in music or the performing arts who
otherwise could not afford to do so. Nick absolutely loved to share his passion for music and performance art with the next
generation and nothing gave him more joy.

By purchasing the new LITTLE GIANTS LIMITED EDITION 7" VINYL you are helping to ensure that Nick's spirit continues to shine while ensuring that the next generations of little acorns' have the means to pursue their creative passions. It was always a dream of Nick's to have a vinyl record of his own. It serves as a symbol to our community that Nick Pumpkin' Alvarado will never be forgotten and to always let your light shine bright. <3

Otis Junior & Dr.Dundiff release the follow up album to their critically acclaimed 'Dubplates from Jakarta #5' release.

In Effect Recordings and Diggers With Gratitude are proud to finally release a full 15 track album by PHILL
MOST CHILL entitled "ALL CUTS RECORDED RAW" (all tracks recorded in 1987-89 era). This will be
released as a double vinyl gatefold sleeve package and CD in late June 2011.

Multi talented Phill has previously collaborated with DWG on the highly sought after "BE INTELLIGENT EP"
(DWG001) and the Paul Nice "NEVA STOP DIGGIN" 7" (DWG7004)... "ALL CUTS RECORDED RAW" is the
album you have been waiting for, don't sleep!

A replica of the inaugural release from the Nutmeg label, with the original's music and cover transported intact from 1989 Tokyo. Recorded live-to-tape in a small bar in Shimokitazawa, this release features two loosely swinging, loving covers of the classic songs "Just You Just Me" and "South of the Border". The melodic and wistful melodica of Pianica Maeda, who appears on the Tomatos 7" (EMC004), is accompanied here by a group billed as Good Baites, which was organized by Kiyoshi Matsutakeya, the leader of Tomatos. Also present, supplying some fine upright bass work, is the renowned Takayoshi Matsunaga. A lovely, pleasing record.

Few artists have created a body of work as rich and varied as Prince. During the '80s, he emerged as one of the most singular talents of the rock & roll era, capable of seamlessly tying together pop, funk, folk, and rock. Not only did he release a series of ground breaking albums, he toured frequently, produced albums and wrote songs for many other artists, and recorded hundreds of songs that still lie unreleased in his vaults. With each album he released, Prince has shown remarkable stylistic growth and musical diversity, constantly experimenting with different sounds, textures, and genres. Occasionally, his music can be maddeningly inconsistent because of this eclecticism, but his experiments frequently succeed, no other contemporary artist can blend so many diverse styles into a cohesive whole.

Few artists have created a body of work as rich and varied as Prince. During the '80s, he emerged as one of the most singular talents of the rock & roll era, capable of seamlessly tying together pop, funk, folk, and rock. Not only did he release a series of ground breaking albums, he toured frequently, produced albums and wrote songs for many other artists, and recorded hundreds of songs that still lie unreleased in his vaults. With each album he released, Prince has shown remarkable stylistic growth and musical diversity, constantly experimenting with different sounds, textures, and genres. Occasionally, his music can be maddeningly inconsistent because of this eclecticism, but his experiments frequently succeed, no other contemporary artist can blend so many diverse styles into a cohesive whole.

Few artists have created a body of work as rich and varied as Prince. During the '80s, he emerged as one of the most singular talents of the rock & roll era, capable of seamlessly tying together pop, funk, folk, and rock. Not only did he release a series of ground breaking albums, he toured frequently, produced albums and wrote songs for many other artists, and recorded hundreds of songs that still lie unreleased in his vaults. With each album he released, Prince has shown remarkable stylistic growth and musical diversity, constantly experimenting with different sounds, textures, and genres. Occasionally, his music can be maddeningly inconsistent because of this eclecticism, but his experiments frequently succeed, no other contemporary artist can blend so many diverse styles into a cohesive whole.

The Muggs Presents The Soul Assassins (Chapter 1) album was originally released in 1997 and is produced by DJ Muggs. It features tracks from a veritable 'who's who' list of rappers like Dr. Dre & B Real, Mobb Deep, RZA/ GZA & Genius (Wu-Tang Clan), Krs-One (Boogie Down Productions), Goodie Mob plus contributions from his Cypress Hill fellow band members B-Real and Sen Dog.

DJ Muggs is Cypress Hill's official DJ and producer and the leader of LA art collective Soul Assassins. He also produced tracks for Funkdoobiest, House of Pain, Dizzee Rascal, U2, Depeche Mode, Die Antwoord and more.

The apocalyptic grooves on Muggs Presents The Soul Assassins (Chapter 1) steal the show, while the street beats and stark lyrics bring an eerie trip-hop feel to the whole album.

Earning critical praise from the hip-hop community, fans and censors, the Muggs Presents The Soul Assassins (Chapter 1) album reached #86 on the Billboard 200. Highlights of this diverse LP are 'Puppet Master' by Dr. Dre & B Real, 'Third World' by RZA/GZA & Genius plus the hidden gem, only to be found on the European release, 'Runnin' Wild' from the LAArt Soul Assassins crew.

A reproduction of one of the first releases on Japanese label Nutmeg, the Tokyo band Tomatos with their urbane, wistful cover of George McCrae's early disco classic "Rock Your Baby", backed with one of the earliest remixes by now-celebrated engineer Izumi Miyazaki. This 1990 recording features Takayoshi Matsunaga, a renowned bassist in the Japanese reggae/club music scene, who was also a member of Mute Beat, on bass. With the lyrics delivered in a mix of English and Japanese, the recording also features some plaintive melodica work from Pianica Maeda. Smooth and sweet, a low-key treat.

Expansion commence each year with one of the label's most anticipated collections, Luxury Soul'. The success of the series comes down to the quality of tracks sourced from independent soul music artists, often unsigned or with recordings previously unissued or on limited release elsewhere. This year's set includes brand new music by Breakwater and Pockets, two major artists from the 70s/80s appearing at the UK's Luxury Soul Weekender in January. Both tracks appear on CD for the first time on CD within this collection of other current favourites, exclusives and sought after songs.

Night Visions is a collection of stories which dance alive over an infectious blend of Afro-Latin rhythms and contemporary dancefloor beats. Told by a variety of characters, drawn from the vibrant imagination of Chico Mann, these stories take place in an endless night, where we move through dimly lit clubs, jungle moonlight, pitch black desert plains, and the internal shadows of personal darkness. While the characters often stumble and search blindly in the dark, the persistent presence of a distant light provides an underlying direction and hopefulness to all the songs. Captain Planet's production, informed by his regular crowd-moving DJ sets, keeps the album sounding effortlessly danceable & contemporary. Meanwhile, Chico's vocals have an instant classic appeal, hinting at old Cuban rumba and vintage Afrobeat LP's. The two are aided by guest vocals from regular collaborators Kendra Morris & Brit Manor, as well as some talented friends who contributed additional horns, guitar & marimba.

Night Visions highlights the creative symbiosis of two of the biggest names in contemporary alternative Latin sounds. The result is a truly unique album that speaks as much to listeners who don't understand Spanish as it does to old abuelos. The feelings and rhythms that flow through these songs are universal, appealing to hearts and hips all around the world.

Chico Mann has created a musical time machine that simultaneously fuses the sounds of 1970s Afrobeat, 1980s Freestyle and Afro Cuban in a hybrid beast of culture and tone. Its the big 'what if' Freestyle, Afrobeat & Afro Cuban converged and hit the mainstream for an army of Chicos to pick up where Stevie B, TKA, George Lamond, Sa-Fire, Information Society, Noel, and Cult Jam, and Expose left off. Chico's choruses of multi-layered vocals with funky guitar lines helps to cool off the heat created between the bass and rhythm... creating a unique conversation of color and value that pays homage to the past but raises the bar for the future.

Captain Planet is a world travelling DJ & music producer who blends global roots music styles with forward-thinking hip-hop, dancehall and electronic beats. After cutting his teeth in the competitive New York City club scene, he went on to host a popular radio show on WNYU Radio, and started the globally renowned music blog www.MixtapeRiot.com. He has released 3 full-length albums featuring his trademark "Gumbo Funk" sound on Bastard Jazz Recordings, and can be heard on the soundtracks to multiple popular TV shows such as "Orange Is The New Black", "Entourage" and "CSI:NY" to name a few. In 2016, his song "Un Poquito Mas" featuring Chico Mann was featured in a major Honda ad campaign and passed a million plays on Spotify. The success of that song, in conjunction with Chico Mann relocating to Los Angeles, encouraged the two artists to focus on a full collaboration album together.

Night Visions is a collection of stories which dance alive over an infectious blend of Afro-Latin rhythms and contemporary dancefloor beats. Told by a variety of characters, drawn from the vibrant imagination of Chico Mann, these stories take place in an endless night, where we move through dimly lit clubs, jungle moonlight, pitch black desert plains, and the internal shadows of personal darkness. While the characters often stumble and search blindly in the dark, the persistent presence of a distant light provides an underlying direction and hopefulness to all the songs. Captain Planet's production, informed by his regular crowd-moving DJ sets, keeps the album sounding effortlessly danceable & contemporary. Meanwhile, Chico's vocals have an instant classic appeal, hinting at old Cuban rumba and vintage Afrobeat LP's. The two are aided by guest vocals from regular collaborators Kendra Morris & Brit Manor, as well as some talented friends who contributed additional horns, guitar & marimba.

Night Visions highlights the creative symbiosis of two of the biggest names in contemporary alternative Latin sounds. The result is a truly unique album that speaks as much to listeners who don't understand Spanish as it does to old abuelos. The feelings and rhythms that flow through these songs are universal, appealing to hearts and hips all around the world.

Chico Mann has created a musical time machine that simultaneously fuses the sounds of 1970s Afrobeat, 1980s Freestyle and Afro Cuban in a hybrid beast of culture and tone. Its the big 'what if' Freestyle, Afrobeat & Afro Cuban converged and hit the mainstream for an army of Chicos to pick up where Stevie B, TKA, George Lamond, Sa-Fire, Information Society, Noel, and Cult Jam, and Expose left off. Chico's choruses of multi-layered vocals with funky guitar lines helps to cool off the heat created between the bass and rhythm... creating a unique conversation of color and value that pays homage to the past but raises the bar for the future.

Captain Planet is a world travelling DJ & music producer who blends global roots music styles with forward-thinking hip-hop, dancehall and electronic beats. After cutting his teeth in the competitive New York City club scene, he went on to host a popular radio show on WNYU Radio, and started the globally renowned music blog MixtapeRiot. He has released 3 full-length albums featuring his trademark "Gumbo Funk" sound on Bastard Jazz Recordings, and can be heard on the soundtracks to multiple popular TV shows such as "Orange Is The New Black", "Entourage" and "CSI:NY" to name a few. In 2016, his song "Un Poquito Mas" featuring Chico Mann was featured in a major Honda ad campaign and passed a million plays on Spotify. The success of that song, in conjunction with Chico Mann relocating to Los Angeles, encouraged the two artists to focus on a full collaboration album together.

It's fair to say that the inclusion of Iganda's sole 7" single "Mark of Slavery" / "Slow Down" spread across the first two volumes of the "Midlands Roots Explosion" series, has not only greatly raised the profile of the band, but also sent the price of the original release through the roof. At its heart, reggae is a singles based music and although we've made the two tracks available on vinyl, CD and digital download, there are many reggae lovers who would like "Mark of Slavery" and "Slow Down" available again on the original format.

An obscure double sided roots gem from the golden age of the Midlands reggae scene.

With a rare combination of powerful vocals, honest song writing and dynamic live performances, Izo FitzRoy's music is a unique and captivating blend of soul, gospel and blues.

Album Promo feedback:

RADIO: 6Music Craig Charles Funk and Soul Show, KCRW (Garth Trinidad), NPR Radio, Robert Elms BBC Radio London live show and interview, Radio 1 (Holland), Jazz FM, Radio One Italy

Radio 1 Prague, Solar Radio, Radio Nova - Porto / Portugal, Kiss FM Ukraine, WCLK Atlanta 91.9 FM, KaneFm, Açik Radyo, WUTK-FM 90.3, WPRK 91.5 FM, Republic 100,3/Thessaloniki, eastside radio, THE MELTDOWN SHOW, Radio Z 95.8 Nuernberg, WBAI 99.5fm, WHCR 90.3 FM, Radio Kraków, Black Country Radio, Ibiza Sonica 95.2FM, Rado Tomek, Pioneer DJ Radio, Scanner FM, Juice FM

PRINT PRESS: Blues & Soul, Echoes, R2 Magazine, Music Republic, Blues In Britain, Uncut, Vents Magazine

ONLINE PRESS: Clash Magazine, DJBooth, Indie Shuffle, Eton Messy, La Belle Musique, Sound Control, Bear Toons, Monkeyboxing, elitemuzik.net, soulandjazz.com, Ok-Tho, Withguitars.com, The Listening Post, Rockstone Sessions, Backseat Mafia

Repress!

With a rare combination of powerful vocals, honest song writing and dynamic live performances, Izo FitzRoy's music is a unique and captivating blend of soul, gospel and blues.

Album Promo feedback:

RADIO: 6Music Craig Charles Funk and Soul Show, KCRW (Garth Trinidad), NPR Radio, Robert Elms BBC Radio London live show and interview, Radio 1 (Holland), Jazz FM, Radio One Italy

Radio 1 Prague, Solar Radio, Radio Nova - Porto / Portugal, Kiss FM Ukraine, WCLK Atlanta 91.9 FM, KaneFm, Açik Radyo, WUTK-FM 90.3, WPRK 91.5 FM, Republic 100,3/Thessaloniki, eastside radio, THE MELTDOWN SHOW, Radio Z 95.8 Nuernberg, WBAI 99.5fm, WHCR 90.3 FM, Radio Kraków, Black Country Radio, Ibiza Sonica 95.2FM, Rado Tomek, Pioneer DJ Radio, Scanner FM, Juice FM

PRINT PRESS: Blues & Soul, Echoes, R2 Magazine, Music Republic, Blues In Britain, Uncut, Vents Magazine

ONLINE PRESS: Clash Magazine, DJBooth, Indie Shuffle, Eton Messy, La Belle Musique, Sound Control, Bear Toons, Monkeyboxing, elitemuzik, soulandjazz, Ok-Tho, Withguitars, The Listening Post, Rockstone Sessions, Backseat Mafia

The tracks on this compilation certainly demonstrate Lloyd Park's
gifts as a conscious lyricist and soulful vocalist, who fully deserves to be ranked in the frontline of Jamaican singers.

Critics and concertgoers love his live performances and call him a living blues legend. Record collectors of soul and funk 45s consider many of his early recordings on wax as a "must have", some even as "holy grails". No matter what Roy Roberts means to you, an album which collects his sought after 45rpm single tracks was long overdue.

Roy Roberts became hooked on music while growing up in a small town in Tennessee, listening to blues and R&B on radio stations WLAC out of Nashville. When he turned 18, he moved to Greensboro, North Carolina to live with an uncle. Roy sharpened his skills while playing in makeshift bands until he landed a job with local hero Guitar Kimbers' Untouchables. Before long, Roy was backing up major artists who came through town. One of those artists, Solomon Burke, took young Roy under his wing after letting him sit in as a bass player during a local gig. He was soon handling the guitar chores behind the future soul legend on tour. Roberts subsequently picked up touring gigs with such luminaries as Eddie Floyd, "Little" Stevie Wonder, and Otis Redding, while fronting his own band, The Roy Roberts Experience, on the regional club scene and South-eastern beach town circuit.

Roy began to cut records in the mid-sixties, staying mostly behind the scenes as a session man. The tragic death of Otis Redding inspired him to step up to the microphone with a song dedicated to the late crooner. The record was released on Nina Simone's NinaAndy label and backed by an ace studio band. Roy followed this successful effort with a string of 45's that carried him well into the seventies. During the disco years, Roy turned his talents to country music. After a brief hiatus from the music scene, Roberts got the blues fever once again in the early 1990s. Besides recording his own material Roy continues to record and produce records for his label, and tours the U.S. and Europe regularly.

Lester "Groovebug" Sterling - January 2017

Most bands with a history that stretches back four decades are content to go through the motions, their creative peak somewhere in the past, not Talisman. Their new album includes some of the strongest material they've ever recorded, with seven brand new songs and the corresponding dub counter parts, this is their finest album to date.

With such strong material we knew we had to pull out all the stops when it came to the final mixes and who better than legendary musician, producer, engineer and all round British reggae genius Dennis Bovell (Matumbi, Steel Pulse, Linton Kwesi Johnson, Aswad, Madness, Orange Juice, The Slits) who has taken the songs to the next level and given us the strongest British reggae album in years.

The album kicks off with "Relijan", a roots anthem with lyrics that resonate with contemporary relevance whilst the music has the timeless feel of the best seventies roots. This track raises the game for Talisman and puts them on par with such British greats as Aswad, Steel Pulse and Misty in Roots at their best, without doubt destined to be seen as a classic of the genre. The pace and the lyrical intent doesn't let up: "Talkin' Revolution" is a brand new song yet imbued with the feel and vibes of early eighties Talisman."She Look like Reggae" is a charming piece of observational song writing that rewards repeated listening with hidden depths and use of a full horn section.

It's hard to overstate Dennis Bovell's contribution to British music, reggae in particular and we can't think of anyone more qualified to mix these tracks. Dub mixes really are his forte and the seven dub versions here, deliver in every way, true dub re-imaginings and not mere afterthoughts

Most bands with a history that stretches back four decades are content to go through the motions, their creative peak somewhere in the past, not Talisman. Their new album includes some of the strongest material they've ever recorded, with seven brand new songs and the corresponding dub counter parts, this is their finest album to date.

With such strong material we knew we had to pull out all the stops when it came to the final mixes and who better than legendary musician, producer, engineer and all round British reggae genius Dennis Bovell (Matumbi, Steel Pulse, Linton Kwesi Johnson, Aswad, Madness, Orange Juice, The Slits) who has taken the songs to the next level and given us the strongest British reggae album in years.

The album kicks off with "Relijan", a roots anthem with lyrics that resonate with contemporary relevance whilst the music has the timeless feel of the best seventies roots. This track raises the game for Talisman and puts them on par with such British greats as Aswad, Steel Pulse and Misty in Roots at their best, without doubt destined to be seen as a classic of the genre. The pace and the lyrical intent doesn't let up: "Talkin' Revolution" is a brand new song yet imbued with the feel and vibes of early eighties Talisman."She Look like Reggae" is a charming piece of observational song writing that rewards repeated listening with hidden depths and use of a full horn section.

It's hard to overstate Dennis Bovell's contribution to British music, reggae in particular and we can't think of anyone more qualified to mix these tracks. Dub mixes really are his forte and the seven dub versions here, deliver in every way, true dub re-imaginings and not mere afterthoughts

Dub Communication: A new label with a mission to push the sound of Dub music. Focussing on the more electronic variants from Dub Techno to the modern day Steppers.

For the first release, DUBCOM001V, we have a 7" containing 2 tracks from Frenk Dublin. Founder of this new label aswell as the founder of Dubstep Rotterdam Records.

'Analog Dub Sessions' is where Frenk's music hits vinyl for the first time, while he's using analog synths to come up with some catchy, unique basslines. In both tracks the stepper riddim provides a solid groove, a deep 4 x 4 kickdrum, halftime phasing and reverbing snares, offbeat snares for a polyrhythmic feel and hihats for some steady top end while the chords and FX sounds are completing the mix and applying even more depth and texture. 2 unique sound system bangers!

Tearaway sufferers anthem, roaring out of the blocks in 1989.
Piercing, unforgettable song-writing by the Tetrack spar — jam-packed with anecdote, observation and warning — over a sick, breakneck, apocalyptic rhythm, with an ace dub. A digi classic.