Playlists News

We're kicking off the new year in fine style with another set of Belters by none other than Dominik Marz. Some have been tried and tested - with HURT appearing on vinyl for the first time. Others are unheard, until now.

Michigan Band EJ & the Echoes: Rediscovering a Soul Legacy

The story of EJ & the Echoes represents a remarkable chapter in Michigan's music history and the early American soul scene. Its origins date back to the late 1950s, when Everett J. "EJ" Gronda was already active as a young musician. While studying at Central Michigan University in the early 1960s, he met the talented vocalist Manuel "Manny" Holcolm. Together with other musicians, they formed vocal groups that soon performed throughout the state and even recorded near Detroit's legendary Motown studios.

In 1963, Gronda founded EJ & the Echoes, a band that quickly gained popularity at dances, clubs, and weddings across Michigan. With Manny Holcolm as lead singer, the group developed a distinctive harmony-driven sound, blending influences ranging from the Beatles to James Brown. The band served as a house band in Traverse City, opened for national acts, and performed regularly at well-known Detroit venues.

Between 1964 and 1967, EJ & the Echoes released several singles on the Diamond Jim Records label. Although major commercial success eluded them at the time, their recordings later found international recognition. Today, their songs remain staples of the British Northern Soul scene.

After the band dissolved, the members pursued different paths. EJ Gronda became a schoolteacher but remained devoted to music throughout his life. In 2006, the musicians reunited for an emotional jam session. EJ Gronda passed away in 2022, followed by Manuel Holcolm in 2024. Their musical legacy endures-on this vinyl release, dance floors, and in the memory of a remarkable era.

Our sincere thanks go to author and blues historian Fred Reif. He wrote the accompanying text and provided all the pictures of the band printed in the gatefold cover. Without him, this project would not have been possible.

effgee returns on his own imprint fellice with three deep house cuts, warm, soul-inspired and topped with dreamy sampled vocals. fellice 005 comes as a special edition: each sleeve is hand screen-printed by the artist, limited to 250 copies.

Another special feature is the label's first remix: a greeting from sunny Bari to the dance floors by Italian deep house fratello Nico Lahs.

"Your Light" reaches back to effgee's production roots - soulful sampling, dreamy textures and groove-heavy. "Birds" shifts into a fresher club direction, while "Roland Bass" brings together the essentials of his production recipe: analogue synths, sampling, and a punchy kick at the core. fellice 005 is a deeply personal record - both musically and visually.

Brand new Emika EP ‘Frames’ just for RSD25.

* Comes with two remixes from the hugely adored Italian DJ Producer Adiel, and Ukrainian Electronic sound artist Hanna Svirska, who is newly signed to Emika Records.

* Brand new bass-heavy, moody pop songs, taking it back to her Bristolian roots: Emika delivers 4 tracks ‘Frames’ which documents her life in sound, lyrics and minor chords as she transitioned from Berlin after 17 years, to The Black Forest. Having unknowingly let the devil in the back-door, the EP tells the story of how self-taught spirituality and meditation brought no light, and a return to nature saved her. ‘Frames’ is about putting hard experiences into a frame, to respect and remember them. Emika put them here into some heavy songs.

* Emika included an instrumental and vocal acapella like in the good old days.

10" series

Exos inaugurates the new sub-label on SHDW's Mutual Rytm with four 90s techno cuts, with offshoot imprint X building on the main imprint's DJ-friendly tools to delve deeper into a broader spectrum of electronic music.

Founded in 2022, SHDW's Mutual Rytm label has quickly become one of techno's most supported labels, with wide-reaching love and well-earned hype following a series of carefully curated VA offerings and solo EPs from a wealth of the scene's best. Continuing to push the pace, with more records capturing high-quality, fresh soundscapes, April brings a new project to the mix with the launch of a new sub-label X, with techno pioneer Exos drafted to deliver the first instalment.

Hailing from Iceland, the Planet X boss is a master of crafting perfect dancefloor weaponry. Over the last twenty years, his high-octane sounds have come via vital labels like Figure and X/OZ, never failing to make an impact with both DJs and dancers. Whether dubby or hard, his techno is always authentic and channels the purity of the 90s sound, and he brings this signature sound to four fresh productions across his 'Infrared' EP, marking an impressive debut for both label and artist.

The title cut 'Infrared' opens up the package in style and showcases a track that looks set to be a go-to anthem for many in the months ahead. With searing synth lines and drilling bass, the blistering production delivers a thrilling, high-impact techno sound that will devastate the dancefloor. The well-designed 'Kaldur Klaki' ups the ante even more with tightly coiled loops of drums, rusty hi-hats and stuttering synth lines that canter along with a muscular feel. 'The Bad' is twitchy and paranoid, anxiety-riddled techno that is perfect for dark warehouses and freaky dancers before digital bonus 'DS4BR' lands with a more stripped-back aesthetic with dubby undercurrents and static electricity fizzing across the face of the cut.

Each of the releases on Mutual Rytm X will be available on limited edition, coloured 10" vinyl, hence the Roman numeral X, and Exos' 'Infrared' EP kicks off the series on 19th April ahead of a new wave of killer releases scheduled across 2024.

Mystic soul supernova, 'Based On A True Story' aka BOATS is the debut studio album from Fat Freddy's Drop unleashed in May 2005. The BOATS album features 10 fresh slices of future funk, with surprises, fakes & freaky sidesteps throughout. BOATS is Aotearoa’s longest-charting album with 111 weeks in the Top 40, won eight NZ Music Awards and took out Gilles Peterson’s Worldwide Music Awards in the UK.

On debut in Aotearoa, the independent released BOATS debuted at #1 and went Gold on its first release day. The tracklist featured six completely new tracks, as well as reworked versions of previously released singles like 'This Room', 'Hope' & 'Ernie' also known as 'Willow Tree', alongside 'Flashback'

Music springs eternal. Recognising the enduring power of timeless albums to guide us through life, Forever Records is a reissue series dedicated to rediscovering lost musical treasures from across the spectrum of head-feeding, heart-rending electronic music.

Established by Rush Hour co-founder Christiaan Macdonald and Delsin founder Marsel van der Wielen, Forever Records places heartfelt faith in a carefully curated sequence of seminal, largely forgotten records from disparate eras, scenes and spaces within electronic music history. Tipped towards the mellow and introspective, these are albums that stop time when the needle hits the groove, stirring only when it's time to flip over before you sink back into the experience. That's what albums were always meant to be about, back then, right now, always and forever.



The Release:
Striking the sweet spot between sampledelic downtempo and earth-rooted deep house, Fila Brazillia's Old Codes New Chaos is a maverick patchwork of grooves and soundscapes. Crafted in North East England in the vibrant period before chill-out was co-opted by advertising, Steve Cobby and Dave McSherry's sharp-eared funk formula remains a cult classic suite of exquisite productions spanning deep house, broken beat and ambient shot through with wry humour.
Last physically released in limited quantities in 2002, Forever Records are revisiting this 1994 gem with an extensive reissue led by a triple vinyl pressing. As well as a new LP edition of the album, there will also be a uniquely numbered, limited edition housed in a gatefold sleeve that comes with a bonus 10" featuring two previously unreleased tracks.

'Chemistry' and 'Rankine', plus an exclusive print of Catherine Brennand's watercolour painting that graces the front of the album. All editions also features liner notes by veteran music journalist John McCready.

Press response to Old Codes New Chaos:
"The album that made the world finally sit up and take notice of the avant funk grooves coming from Hull's immaculately stoned tech funk magicians." Frank Tope, Mixmag, UK 1994.
"This album… stands out a mile from most of its peers as a work of untouchable genius." Bill Brewster, DJ Mag UK 1994.

"Fila works because they fit into that no man’s land, the space in your record collection where ambient seems too much like wallpaper and house seems just too braindead for your bedroom " Frank Tope, Mixmag, UK 1994.

"Having already created the perfect desert island disc, "Mermaids" and explored the darker side of sub bass on the 17-minute extravaganza "Fila Funk", Fila Brazillia have just unleashed their moving debut LP, "Old Codes New Chaos", and to be quite honest, you'd be fool to miss out this time around." Mandi James, Melody Maker, UK 1994.

“Where Cobby and Man rip up the rulebook on the four to the floor and probably make the greatest afterhours house album in the word”. Tony Marcus, Mixmag, 1996.

Finetune — Impulse LP

Singeley Wax presents the third installment of the Russian Series — Finetune's "Impulse" album by electronic musician and media artist Mikhail Komisarov (Michael Dop), co-founder of Slowdance Records.

__About the Music

Finetune is a project through which Mikhail explores and experiments with a sonic palette encompassing ambient, electronic music with elements of jazz and neoclassical. His medium combines modular synthesis, acoustic instruments, field recordings, and deliberately crafted effect chains. He creates distinctive compositions that guide listeners through various emotional states.

The "Impulse" album brings together ten tracks of experimental electronica: hypnotic synthesizer sequences, polyrhythmic structures, cinematic textures, and subtly shifting modulations blend into sonic landscapes where time becomes relative.

__Art Concept

The album's visual identity is based on the multidisciplinary neuro-performance "Impulse," created at the intersection of art and neurotechnology in collaboration with neurovisualization pioneers NeuroLab, digital art studio STAIN (working with algorithmic abstraction since 2009), and physical theatre project "Dancing in the Dark" — Russia's only company featuring visually impaired artists.

During the performance, the brain activity of visually impaired dancers was captured in real-time via neurointerface and transformed into generative graphics. This visual content, born from electrical impulses of consciousness in moments of musical perception, became the foundation for the album's artwork — both static and motion graphics.

2024 Repress

Fratelli Malibu is an original idea of Andrea De Fazio with the cooperation of Paolo Petrella, drummer and bassist for the “Nu Guinea” live band. Their love for synthesizers and drum machines brought them together to create the shiny world of Ciro Miami.
We could think of Ciro as a neapolitan expat in the american dream, where he discovers a world of excess, flashy cars, cocktail bars, beautiful women, cocaine, gambling, spaceships and videogames that erodes all of his money forcing him to go back to Napoli
completely broke, but with a fistful of wonderful memories.

Fulltone is warmly welcomed back to Lee Burridge’s esteemed imprint to unveil his newest body of work, the four track Alba EP
In crafting the Alba EP, Fulltone embraces the endless expanse of creativity. Reflecting on the elusive nature of inspiration, he compares it to the act of fishing, where patience and persistence are essential to reel in moments of brilliance. "Sometimes you catch a fish immediately, sometimes it takes hours or days, but you won’t catch any fish unless you go to the sea with a fishing line. In my case, the sea is my studio and the fishing line is my instruments."

2026 Repress

Techno mainstay Gary Beck drops hugely sought-after cut 'Hopper' on SHDW's Mutual Rytm sub-label Spectra, with remixes from KiNK.

Glasgow-born Gary Beck is a primary figure in techno and has been for well over a decade. Dropping seminal
underground classics and cultured full-lengths on an array of leading labels, as well as his own BEK Audio imprint,
he has also led the way as a revered DJ as his legacy continues to build. Now, adding to his standout 'Upside
Criminal' EP as well as his well-received track 'Fold' on the 'Federation Of Rytm III' VA, he returns with a record that
has often featured in both his and Mutual Rytm boss SHDW's sets, stepping out on the label's Spectra series with
a cut that has long been sought-after by those who know.

A spontaneous studio moment turned club weapon, the timeless 'Hopper' merges a syncopated disco bassline with
subtle nods to funk and classic dancefloor energy. It's one of those tracks that lingers in your head long after the
night ends - a pure embodiment of Beck's raw energy and production finesse built on an infectious groove full of
contrast and character.

Bulgarian synth wizard, hardware genius and tireless innovator KiNK delivered Spectra's inaugural release, so he
lands as the perfect person to remix. His first interpretation stays close to his roots with a house-leaning, slowed
down take that channels warmth and groove in equal measure. On the B2, however, he flips the script with a high
octane fusion of techno and UKG. It's a peak-time anthem engineered to ignite dancefloors and closes out a
standout EP with the third release in the Spectra catalogue.

Gary Beck 'Hopper' drops via Mutual Rytm Spectra on 20th June 2025.

2026 Repress
Gockel steps out with Otorongo - a 4-track EP of deep, dub-infused techno touched with Detroit spirit. Heavy low-ends, driving rhythms, and atmospheric layers make this one built for heads and dancefloors alike. Each track carries its own depth and character, yet together they form a powerful and immersive journey. Released as the second chapter on Patent, this record showcases the label's evolving sonic identity.

Hilit Kolet debuts on Rekids with ‘Hot Mess’, including remixes from the legendary Mike Dunn.

Following her remix of Terry Farley & Wade Teo’s ‘Why We Dance’, Hilit steps up to the Rekids plate with her debut EP for Radio Slave’s label with her single ‘Hot Mess’. A relentlessly driving drum machine werqout, ‘Hot Mess’ sees her masterfully mixing compulsive, marching rhythms with a fiercely impassioned spoken word vocal.

With added raw jackin’ energy in the ‘Even Hotter Mix’, this has the kind of late night runway energy that demands the
Sound Factory be rebuilt. On the B-side, Chicago house legend Mike Dunn’s remix of ‘Hot Mess’ is a deep groove that adds a wriggling earworm bassline, while still embracing the enchanting vocal of the original.

Hilit Kolet has been an integral part of London’s house scene ever since she started slinging vinyl at Soho’s legendary Black Market Records. Her distinctive, energetic DJ style then established her behind the decks everywhere, from high fashion shows to some of the most celebrated underground clubs in London. 2023 saw Hilit going global with shows from Ibiza to Shanghai via Printworks, Warehouse Project and Ministry of Sound.

Her summer single on the Faith imprint ‘POV Siren’ has been embraced by DJs as diverse as Robert Hood and Paul Woolford, and her edit of Laurent Garnier’s ‘Crispy Bacon’ was rinsed by many from Carl Cox to Patrick Topping, before seeing an official release by Garnier himself. ‘Hot Mess’ sets Hilit Kolet up as a serious name to watch out for in 2024.

Hip Hop grooves & battle beats.

Ilario Liburni returns to Invade Records with a driving new release built for deep, late-night floors. Raw grooves and hypnotic energy, staying true to the Invade sound. Alexander Skancke steps in with a powerful remix, adding his signature atmospheric depth and pulsating momentum.

Inox Traxx joins Somov, drifting between deep melancholy and moments of peak-time reflection with her signature sound. Label head Ignez closes the release with a reinterpretation of Circle.

A closing chapter for Iro Aka: ambient introspection and precise IDM meet in a deeply personal, memory-driven LP.
Barcelona-based duo Iro Aka present "Memories Exploration" (GLOSSY025), a record that marks the closing of a creative chapter. Set for release on May 29th via Glossy Mistakes, the LP unfolds as a personal archive-tracing ideas, influences, and emotional states shaped over time.
The A-side moves through ambient-leaning territories, building meditative landscapes where time seems to dissolve and blur. Through tracks like "Frozen Sun" and "Golden Sea", the duo showcase a refined approach to sound design, shaped by carefully distilled emotion. Meanwhile, "Gendo" and "Intervertert" lean further inward-sketching moments of deep introspection through soft textures and a minimalist sensitivity that invites contemplation.
On the B-side, the record shifts. Rhythmic structures come into focus, drawing from IDM and broken beat patterns with a precise, understated touch. "L", "Ozadene" and "Phased9" introduce movement while maintaining the album's introspective core. Closing track "We Felt in Love with a Loop" brings the album to a gentle, open-ended close.
The artwork by Jack Anderson reflects this sense of fragmented memory and process, complementing the album's emotional tone.
Rather than a definitive ending, "Memories Exploration" feels like a transition-an understated way of closing one chapter before the next begins.
"An autumn evening - without a single tear, things come to an end."