Поиск:pia

Jasper Street Co. is one of the House Music community’s signature artist endeavors. Produced by Baltimore’s legendary production team The Basement Boys, and consisting of a collection of singers who can emote on the highest level of gospel, soulful and peak hour house, this collective has been riding high for years and is now going next level with the recent release of the “Rejoicing” album on Nervous Records. Prior releases from the album have skyrocketed to the top of DJ sales and club charts, with “Praying For You” being nominated for a Grammy for the Louie Vega remix in the Best Remixed Recording (non-classical) category.

Up next is a cover version of a song originally recorded by Teddy Pendergrass. Written and produced by Gamble & Huff, “You’re My Latest, My Greatest Inspiration” was originally released on Philly International Records in 1981. It was a massive R&B & Disco hit back then, and now has been updated by Jasper Street Co. for the house music community. The single package has an outstanding collection of remixers on board who make the project something even more special for the purists but also will launch into the larger worldwide music community. Teddy Douglas produced the original album version, but comes back for another take while adding some serious bass / kick drum juice with his Teddy Douglas Bass Intro Remix. Micfreak and DJ Spen put a highly creative spin on the original with some added effects on the vocal and a piano line that soars into the highest level of peak hour house energy with their Higher Love Remixes. Tensnake also gives it a very distinctive and infectious groove, while Dr. Packer takes all the original elements and uses his great talents and appreciation for soulful house and disco to make this project even more essential for house purists than it already is!

Double Vinyl package on Feb. 5 on Nervous Records. Includes custom jacket and yellow vinyl.

Cuban virtuoso pianist Roberto Fonseca, former member of the Buena Vista Social Club, announces his new album "La Gran Diversión". A voyage into Cuba's roaring twenties, an invitation to party and dance, in a subtle blend of traditions drawn from his training with the greats, his incomparable talent, and wild modernity. "Together we'll laugh, cry and enjoy the mystery and magic of the rhythms and melodies I bring from my roots."

Maria Rita is a musical pioneer that was ahead of her time. On first hearing her song, 'Cântico Brasileiro No.3 (Kamaiurá)’, we thought it sounded like a contemporary remix that an artist such as Carl Craig could have produced. In fact, it came out in 1988 and was taken from Maria's 'Brasileira' album, released on the Brazilian, independent Acorde imprint. The song would go on to gain cult status with its inclusion on John Gomez's superb 'Outro Tempo' compilation, released on the Music From Memory label in 2017.

The album fuses new-age electronics with indigenous vocals and Amazonian rhythms. It is beautiful and unique and takes you on a journey through different moods, textures and ethereal planes. Through the sounds Maria created, you join her on a timeless voyage gazing into the future whilst embracing her powerful roots.

Maria Rita Stumpf was born in the southern inland of Brazil, in the mountains of Aparados da Serra. She started writing music at the age of 14, and through participation in festivals and song contests, she developed her material and sound. A move to Rio de Janeiro in 1985 furthered her career and led to the release of the 'Brasileira' album. The record features the legendary pianist Luiz Eça, alongside the group Uaktí and Ricardo Bordini.

1993 saw the release of 'Mapa das Nuvens (Map of the Clouds)' on CD via the Leblon label, but soon after, Maria would have a hiatus from the music industry, dedicating herself to her cultural and arts agency, Acorde. She left the stage and recordings behind, but quality always shines through and years after its original release, international diggers, producers and DJs rediscovered the greatness of Maria's music. This would lead to a re-issue of the ‘Brasileira’ LP, and later Optimo Music/Selva Discos released a 12” EP of ‘Brasileira’ remixes by Selvagem, Carrot Green and Joakim. Maria also spoke at the Red Bull Music Academy Festival in São Paulo, performed at both the Kino Beat Festival and the Brazilian leg of the Dutch festival, Dekmantel. Her two latest albums received critical acclaim, ’Inkiri Om’ in 2020 and ‘Ver Tente’ in 2022. At last, Maria has got the credit and kudos she deserves, inspiring new and future generations of producers and music lovers.

Though previously re-issued, it was after a conversation with Maria that we learned that she wanted to keep this sublime record in press, and this was something that we couldn’t wait to put into action. So here it is, the Mr Bongo pressing of ‘Brasileira’, housed in a gatefold cover.

First aired by Ratpack on Centreforce , this first collaboration by Col Trixta &Dubble Dunk has already become a classic in-the-making
Much like the hugely popular 'Dubble Dunk Vol 1', both tracks bridge genreshouse, breaks and old skool - with slammin' old skool pianos, stabs and familiarvocals.
Colin and Duncan have been plying their trade on the UK rave DJ circuit since theearly 90's and both held residencies at Slammin' Vinyl, United Dance, Freedom@Bagley's and now Strawberry Sundae together.

Mannequin Records is proud to present the official reissue of Caroline K's outstanding 1987 album, "Now Wait For Last Year."



This haunting, wistful work of post-industrial synthesizer music sees the late Nocturnal Emissions co-founder only solo record, which has accrued a fervent cult following over the past 40 years, and copies of the original pressing are today extremely rare and sought-after.

The music on "Now Wait For Last Year" seems to exist firmly outside of it. Tags like industrial, minimal synth or proto-techno can't really do justice to the richly cinematic sound-world that Caroline K describes: from the sustained ambient tension of sidelong opener "The Happening World" to the future-primitive rhythms and stately piano flourishes "Animal Lattice", and the melancholic, deep-frozen synth sequences of "Cheart".



For fans of Throbbing Gristle, Chris Carter, Nocturnal Emissions and even early Detroit techno lovers should pay special attention to it.



All selections composed, arranged and played by Caroline K

Recorded and produced by Caroline K



Photograph by Jake Kirkwood

Original design by Nigel Ayers



The first five tracks of Now Wait For Last Year were originally released as a vinyl LP by Earthly Delights in 1987

Ten years after his first full-length effort ‘Man Is Deaf’ landed him firmly in the runnings for DJ Mag’s album of the year, prodigal son Michael Anthony Wright AKA Brassica returns to Civil Music with a deeply accomplished, painstakingly whittled LP of hydraulic electro slickness, rich synthscapes, and hooky, peak-time tearjerkers for the most discerning front-left lifers. ‘Tribeless Gathering’ is a barnstorming testament to Brassica’s stylistic and timbral deftness, touching down in the elusive epicentre of the club/home listening venn diagram with ease.

From the elastic, neon acid pointillism of opener ‘Hop Kweng’ to the mardy, miasmic plod of closing chugger ‘Changa Hill’, Brassica seamlessly segues between avenues of influence, his notoriously omnivorous musical knowledge roadmapping each turn. Raised on a diet of everything from early rave standards to metal, and schooled in avant garde sonics as a student of sound design at LCC, Brassica does a peerless job of sublimating his countless influences into a record of refined, heterogeneous, and most crucially, catchy, club moods.

Less spartan than his more recent oeuvre on Feel My Bicep, and less baroque than his technicolour experiments in postmodern synth pop with vocalist Stuart Warwick, Tribeless Gathering represents Brassica’s triumphant return to the main room, replete with rushy hooks primed for the planet’s finest soundsystems, and passages of heads-down tension bound to draw listeners right to the edge of their seats. Overall it is a concise and refined testament to Wright’s command of spectral sonics and effortless ability to pressurise a dancefloor. It is no surprise that he has also worked as a prolific mastering engineer, tuning music from a plethora of dance disciplines for maximum club impact. This work extends to his own projects (including this one), cementing them as rare expressions of complete artistry from studio to turntable.

As we delve deeper into the record, we are ushered through a series of accomplished and varied club moods, each channelling a unique cocktail of influences, but retaining a warm, ebullient analogue sensibility unique to Brassica’s work. This playful scope of influence calls to mind James T Cotton or Machinedrum’s experiments in dance music form, but Wright manages it all under one roof, wrangling everything from sashaying wub-laden two step to snarling Dillinja-esque FM damage into something inherently his.

Choice cut ‘Change Yourself’ layers an almost Cerrone-like piano refrain over radiant surges of saturated bass, dubby, strobing chords and a jagged, driving break, building to a jaw-clenching apex of dancefloor elation, while the rude, playful half-step of ‘Elevation’ breaks down the vintage speed garage formula into linear fragments, utilising a tight palette of resonant bass slugs, infectious synth leads and Papua New Guinea-style vocal strobes. The aptly named ‘Hold Tight’ fuses heart-in-mouth UK ‘ardkore pads with glissando acid disturbance and surgical snare fills in a formula which recalls the ethereal grit of Nubian Mindz’ 00s experiments in big-smoke break science, while the questing melodic arcs and arpeggiated squarewaves of ‘Pinball Marinara’ could easily have soundtracked an 80s sci-fi epic, beset with sparkling, bare-bones drum programming and hazy beds of sub sediment.

With ‘Tribeless Gathering’, Brassica both irreverently fuses and pays homage to the many unique and weird permutations of UK dance music. The short lived gathering of junglists, ravers and house hotsteppas of a similar name may have long since dissipated, along with the tribes themselves, but across these 11 tracks, he lays a blueprint for a new sound of togetherness.

Our eighth chapter of Small Great Things is introduced by our resident, David Silver. The limited vinyl and digital release, titled the 'My Japanese Friend EP,' features four exquisite original tracks. This EP seamlessly blends deep and classic house vibes with contemporary beats, ensuring a refreshing dance floor experience.

Starting with the A1 side, 'Trademark' initiates the journey with a solid house groove complemented by stabs and a robust bassline. Transitioning to the A2 track, the title piece 'My Japanese Friend' assumes center stage with its infectious groovy bassline, piano chords, and captivating drums, enveloped by ambient jazzy melodies.

Turning over to the B side, we encounter two more enticing house compositions. On B1, David's 'U Move' delivers a fresh, dance floor-ready cut, featuring vocals and guitars. B2 takes the spotlight with 'Peace & Low,' a finely crafted deep house gem.

The superduo formed by two authentic stars of the Italian dance scene is back with the ‘Rolling Wave’ EP on Mondo Groove. Daniele Baldelli needs no introduction; he has made a fiery mark on DJ history worldwide with his legendary sets. He built his eclectic and visionary style at the Baia Degli Angeli in the 1970s and Cosmic in the early 1980s, to the triumph of recent years, in demand at every latitude on the planet. DJ Rocca is one of Italy’s most inspired producers, his art forged in a mix of technique and passion, versatile enough to work alongside artists as diverse as Baldelli, Dimitri From Paris or one of the giants of Italian jazz, pianist Franco D’Andrea.

Daniele Baldelli & DJ Rocca are on fire in the four tracks of this new EP on Mondo Groove, which starts with the bleep sounds of the title track ‘Rolling Wave’, goes into orbit with the deep boogie of ‘Funk Infusion’ and a party number like ‘Marchin On’, and culminates in the refined disco-jazz digressions of ‘Focused Image’. A record that will be a future classic.

Just a few months after the release of "Shine," his debut solo album featuring some of the finest R'n'B voices of the moment, Stefano Cosi presents his new single "That's On Point" on Angis Music, already home to the HUMA project of which he is part along with pianist Alberto Lincetto. The single, which boasts the important collaboration with UK soul legend Omar, was written and produced remotely during Covid, waiting for the right moment to be released. Now it seems that the moment has finally arrived and to complete the offer alongside the original version are two remixes by Abacus, prominent figure in the deep house scene since the '90s, plus a mid-tempo dub version by Italian talent Edoardo Della Bitta aka EDB. Don't miss out on this future classic!

Chamber music masterpiece with electronics

Albert Alan Owen was born in Wales in 1948 to parents of Welsh and Latvian heritage. His family later moved to Zimbabwe, where his father took up a teaching position. There, Owen was deeply influenced by local music and culture, while also exploring American RnB and jazz. It was during this period that he became acutely aware of the harsh inequalities under British colonial rule, which instilled in him a lifelong aversion to discrimination and racism.
In 1967, Owen returned to Europe to pursue his studies and enrolled at the Royal Academy of Music in London. He went on to spend time in Paris, studying composition with the eminent Nadia Boulanger and piano under Jacques Février, a favorite pianist of Ravel’s and Poulenc’s. Owen's focus shifted almost entirely to composition, and the acquisition of a Fender Rhodes electric piano marked the beginning of a divorce from his classical Western training. This transition allowed him to merge his passion for African and African-American music with the impressionistic styles of Ravel and Debussy while exploring the innovative realm of electroacoustic composition.
These formative experiences framed Owen’s career as a composer and educator at the Royal Academy of Music and London’s Working Men’s College. He eventually returned to Wales, where he continues to reside.

In 1979, 29-year-old Albert Alan Owen released Keyboards & Strings, a light magical chamber music masterpiece.
Transcending the formal conventions of its era, Keyboard & Strings is an acoustic and electric piano piece, where the violin is met by synths and electronics.
As is often the case in Albert Alan Owen’s most intimate works, there is a sense of ethereal beauty that emerges from the music, akin to the emotional state one might experience while contemplating a Félix Vallotton landscape or the unfathomable mystery of dawn’s first light.
Quiet, profound, and immersive, Keyboard & Strings stands out as an electronic-age tone poem, a rare gem that transcends time and place.

Manuel Parravicini, born in Germany and raised in Italy, continues to make waves in the electronic music scene. His upcoming EP on Subtil Records promises an electrifying journey with four tracks that artfully blend House grooves with minimalistic elements. Adding to the excitement is a powerful remix from Romanian DJ Lizz, whose signature style is sure to elevate Parravicini's already captivating sound to new heights. Stay tuned for an EP that promises to ignite dance floors and leave listeners mesmerized.

Multi-award-winning singer-songwriter and leading UK jazz vocalist Zara McFarlane releases Sweet Whispers – Celebrating Sarah Vaughan on 14th June. The album honours the jazz great who inspired her on her own artistic journey and whose centenary year is marked in 2024.

‘Sweet Whispers’ is more than a run-through of some of Vaughan’s most popular songs. It’s not hard to imagine the immense task in selecting those songs, after all, Vaughan’s recording career spanned 50 years notching up almost 60 albums (plus nearly 30 again in compilations and box sets). Through a thoughtfully chosen selection of songs, formed across months in collaboration with producer, and the album’s clarinettist and saxman, Giacomo Smith – Zara journeys through the musical life of Sarah Vaughan, from her first to last recording, bringing to life and breathing new life into some of her best and less familiar songs. But importantly, the songs that mean the most to Zara.

Zara McFarlane said “It was when I started to listen to Sarah Vaughan that I really began to appreciate jazz vocals. She had such control across her range and a vocal command that was cheeky, playful and fun yet sophisticated and articulate. I really wanted to pay homage to her as I feel she has been somewhat overlooked amongst the jazz singers. Although I do love Ella and Billie, it's all about Sarah for me.”

‘Sweet Whispers – Celebrating Sarah Vaughan’ was recorded analogue at Durham Studios, London. Giacomo assembled a stellar cast of musicians - Joe Webb on piano, Ferg Ireland on double bass, Jas Kayser on drums, Marlon Hibbert on Steel Pan and Gabriella Swallow on cello – to record 11 tracks live to tape; with minimal overdubs, the recording has retained a live, vintage feel. A celebration of Sarah Vaughan could be in no better hands than that of Zara McFarlane, who makes an inspired homage to the ‘Divine One’. Beautifully performed in Zara’s own inimitable style, with her own playful swoops and slides, she has added her own
touch to the music. With a silken voice and timbre that bring emotional depth, attitude and personality to this collection of SaraH Vaughan songs, this is a masterful celebration

2024 Repress

Straight in the wake of their eponymous debut LP released on the label back in 2016, Weval return to Kompakt this year with their sophomore album, 'The Weight', breaking their pop-mellow, nostalgia-friendly facet further out in the open as they arrive "at this place again were everything felt spontaneous, new and exciting, like we had in the beginning". Orbiting around that ever luminous yet wistful melodic halo that surrounds their music, this second full-length effort sweeps an extra-wide and languidly woven palette of emotions and moods, making for a uniquely ambitious and generously coloured mosaic of sound. If the recording sessions "often started grumpy and emotionless" by Harm and Merijn's own admission, the pair was "surprised by the joy it gave us, which can be compared to the emotions we felt back in the first days of making music together"; subsequently reconnecting with that fresh, naïve feeling of "absolute creative freedom" they were after. The album is also the fruit of a whole new working process for them - more playful and unpredictable - which saw them switch from "guitars lying around to piano, onto our own synths and the most cheap quirky toys synths you can imagine", and involved "recording all of our own samples, voice and almost every instrument out of the box - which for us was a totally new way of working". "We've always wanted a narrative for the album, and finding the right order perhaps took the most effort" they explain; "we felt anxious, felt insanely positive, felt heartbroken again, felt in love again, and there was death, and even suicide around us. It was quite chaotic. As a whole, 'The Weight' breathes with that transformative richness, free of limits and rules, except perhaps to "do quick and not think too much". Amidst this collection of songs and instrumentals that live by Weval's singularly positive take on music - one that can "lift you up, and make you feel hopeful without being necessarily straight out 'happy'" as they define it, the title-track and lead single stays true to the duo's dynamic approach, putting on a fine balance of floor and dream inducing adaptability that sound engineer David Wrench (Frank Ocean, The XX, FKA Twigs, Caribou… etc.) subtly made palpable. There's heavy showers of funk drops pouring from endless bars of thunderstorm clouds and laid-back riffs beating a restrained poolside-party kind of pulse, but also sensual vocals rising from beneath the sheets and rueful polaroid-filtered ambiences to soundtrack all possible moments in life - from the most euphoric to those when music seems the only viable healing potion. More on the post-KLF, BoC-inflected electronica side of things, 'Are You Even Real' takes its listener for a round-trip across the star-studded dome and beyond, before songs like 'Someday' and 'Same Little Thing' head back down to a state of pulsating, earthly organicity, tense and mercurial as get. An arpeggiated slice of piano-strewn kosmische, 'Heaven' is another invitation to an epic-scale odyssey from the inner-spheres into the distant fringes of the outer-world. Weightless and airy, yet texturally dense and widely magnetic overall, Weval second LP is a synthesis of the duo's multi-angle take on electronics: blissed-out, heartening and infinitely free.
Nur zweieinhalb Jahre nach der Veröffentlichung ihres selbstbetitelten Debutalbums finden sich WEVAL zurück "an jenem Ort, an dem sich alles spontan, neu und aufregend anfühlt - so wie als wir anfingen zusammen Musik zu schreiben". An diesem Ort entstand "The Weight", ihr zweiter Longplayer, auf dem Weval sich ganz den Pop-verliebten, Nostalgie-freundlichen Facetten ihres Sounds öffnen. Stetig um den sehnsuchtsvollen Strahlenkranz ihrer Melodien tanzend, legt diese Platte noch vielschichtigere, mit feinster Präzision gewobene Gefühlswelten frei.

Obwohl die Aufnahmesessions nach eigenem Bekunden oftmals "miesepetrig und emotionsarm" begannen, so war das Duo überrascht darüber, wie schnell sich bei der Arbeit jene Freude einstellte, die sie aus ihren künstlerischen Anfangstagen kannten, eine Woge des frischen, naiven Gefühls der "absoluten kreativen Freiheit". Dieses Album ist die Frucht eines verspielteren und unvorhersehbareren Arbeitsprozesses innerhalb der Band, in welchem alles zum Einsatz kam, was ihnen in die Finger kam - von der ollen Gitarre, die in der Studioecke stand, über ein Piano und den bandeigenen Sythesizern und den sonderbarsten Spielzeuginstrumenten, die man sich vorstellen kann. All dies sowie zahlreiche Vocalaufnahmen dienten als alleinige Samplequelle - "was für uns eine völlig neue Arbeitsweise war". "Es war uns wichtig für das Album den perfekten Erzählbogen zu spannen. Die richtige Reihenfolge zu finden war ein extrem aufwendiger Vorgang", erklären Harm und Merjin. "Uns war bange, wir fühlten uns total selbstsicher, uns zerbrach das Herz und wir verliebten uns erneut. Wir waren sogar von Tod und Selbstmord umgeben. Alles war Chaos. Insgesamt atmet "The Weight" die Reichhaltigkeit dieser sich ständig verändernden Gefühlslagen, frei von Einschränkungen und Regeln - außer vielleicht "mach es schnell und zerdenke die Dinge nicht." Inmitten dieser Ansammlung von Songs und Instrumentals, die aus Wevals einzigartiger, von Zuversicht geprägter Herangehensweise entstanden sind - "Musik, die dich hochzieht und Hoffnung spendet, ohne dich notwendigerweise happy zu machen. Der Titeltrack "The Weight" steht exemplarisch für Wevals ambivalenten Ansatz, die feine Balance zwischen Dancefloor und Traumzuständen, perfekt in Szene gesetzt von Soundengineer David Wrench (Frank Ocean, The XX, FKA Twigs, Caribou… etc.).

Der schwer aus gewaltigen Gewitterwolken tropfende Funk, die eine verhaltene Poolparty suggerierenden Riffs, die sinnlichen, geisterhaften Vocals und ein verwaschenes Ambiente, das wie ein Album alter Polaroidaufnahmen alle erdenklichen Momente des Lebens festhält - von den euphorischsten bis hin zu jenen, in denen Musik der einzige Trank ist, der Linderung verheißt. Das post-KLF und Boards of Canada evozierende "Are You Even Real" führt den Hörer auf einen imaginären Flug ins Sternenzelt, während organisch-klingende Songs wie "Someday" oder "Same Little Thing" wie Quecksilber am Boden haften. "Heaven" ist eines jener "kosmische" Stücke mit wilden Arpeggios und Pianosprengseln, die Weval in den vergangenen zwei Jahren zu einer Live-Sensation werden liessen. Wevals Musik ist schwerelos und luftig, aber gleichermassen von dichter Struktur und von einer magnetischen Anziehungskraft. Ihr zweites Album "The Weight" ist eine Synthese aus dem multi-perspektivischem, kaleidoskopischen Verständnis von elektronischer Musik: Herzerwärmend, alles umschmeichelnd und unendlich frei.

2023 was a breakthrough year for EABS in many ways. It was all thanks to the well received, fully self-produced album entitled In Search of a Better Tomorrow, recorded in collaboration with the Pakistani band Jaubi. EABS' forthcoming sixth album is a return to their roots – literally and figuratively. It is an in-depth study on rhythm, which materialised in the form of the album titled Reflections of Purple Sun.

The back to the roots part not only manifests itself in the lack of guest instrumentalists, but also in a renewed focus on the history of Polish jazz. The band's debut album Repetitions... was dedicated to Krzysztof Komeda. This time, the band picked up the entire Purple Sun album, which Tomasz Stańko recorded half a century ago. From the POV of Purple Sun fans, a hard-to-find and somewhat forgotten album, it may seem like a doomed undertaking. However, in order to pay tribute to one of the most iconic figures of Polish jazz, it was worth embarking on this mission and attempting to engage in a non-verbal conversation with the Slavic spirit that Master Tomasz Stańko undoubtedly was.

You can learn more about Reflections of Purple Sun through the comprehensive booklet accompanying the record. The cover art was created by the label's regular collaborator, Animisiewasz, whose design pays tribute to Pia Burri's original Purple Sun concept. Release date is 10 May 2024.

Yes, *that* Al Hirt record. Featuring the godlike "Harlem Hendoo", looped unforgettably by De La Soul for the legendary Buhloone Mind State cut, "Ego Trippin' (Part Two)"!

Al Hirt's infamous Soul In The Horn is inextricably tangled up in crate-digger lore. Originally released in 1967, the album has been in heavy, heavy demand for over 30 years, entirely down to the majestic soul-jazz fire of "Harlem Hendoo". And it's a song so good, so vital, so timeless, that it will always tower above everything else in its proximity. This one track alone is worth the price of admission - even if the cost of entry were $100 or even $1000.

However, it would be an error to dismiss this record as merely a one tracker, loaded as it is with dope samples for adventurous beat makers. Certainly the funkiest Al Hirt record, it definitely lives up to the "soul" in the title. Thanks to composer Paul Griffin and arranger Teacho Wiltshire, Hirt got uncharacteristically free and groovy throughout. It comes on more like an obscure KPM library funk record than the easy listening Al was notorious for.

A Louisiana trumpeter and band leader who made Allen Toussaint’s “Java” famous, Al Hirt was also known for TV themes, Dixieland, Swing and being a minority owner of the New Orleans Saints. Unlike every other Al Hirt record - and despite most "diggers" claiming otherwise - this here gem is genuinely hard to come across "in the wild". Normally, you can't give Al Hirt records away, except this particular one, which raises pulses in the crate digging community to life-threatening levels. For every owner claiming to have found their copy for a dollar, there's scores more claiming to have *never* unearthed one in the field. So, paradoxically, you can consider this the most tricky-to-pull "thrift store record", ever. This is why we're finally making it available for everyone, not just those with endless hours to spend scouring the global goodwills!

Soul In The Horn represented an expressive detour into authentic soul-jazz for Al Hirt. Throughout, we're struck by a fierce, fiery energy that's otherwise absent from his typically easy listening work. Without question, the slinky, magical "Harlem Hendoo" is the standout, here. It's also the reason why the record is so scarce and commands awe among crate diggers, sounding like something from an obscure and deeply revered spiritual jazz record. As is often the case, the true genius of the song is tricky to do justice to; it's like a minor miracle of songwriting and performance that simply swooned down from the heavens on the back of horns, bells and harpsichord. It's one of the sweetest musical compositions ever recorded inside a studio - it's only failing is that it's just too short. Sampled brilliantly by De La Soul, it has also been used by The Roots for "Stay Cool" and Nightmares On Wax for "Damn".

The rest of the record makes for a mighty fine listen. From the opening cover of Booker T. & The MG's "Honey Pot", to the propulsive, ultra-funky "Mess Around", it's nothing but a good time. Given its title, the elegant stepper "Calypsoul" sounds exactly as you'd hope whilst the melancholic, wistful "Long Gone" hurts so good. Truly, this is just dying to be looped up, Al's muted playing capturing a soulful longing only horns can often achieve. The bluesy, slo-mo swing of "Sweetlips" oscillates between cool disaffection and swelling pride whilst the graceful, low-key funky "Girl" closes out the A-Side in the fine style. Ushering in the B-Side, the brief but brilliant strut of "Love Ya' Baby" shines brightly before the skipping funky-jazz of true highlight "Sunday-Goin' To Meetin' Time" demands both your attention and your dancing shoes. The mellifluous piano-funk of bass and horn-drenched "Snap Back" serves as the sumptuous prelude to "Harlem Hendoo"'s main character energy before the irrepressible, upbeat R&B of "Ludwig" closes out this quite remarkable album. An album deserving of a place in every serious record collection.

The audio for Soul In The Horn has been carefully remastered by Be With regular Simon Francis, ensuring it sounds better than ever. Cicely Balston's expert skills have made sure nothing is lost in the cut whilst the records have been pressed to the highest possible standard at Record Industry in Holland. The original sleeve has been restored here at Be With HQ as the finishing touch to this long overdue re-issue. This is after-hours music. Let it speak for itself. Listen. Listen to the soul in Al Hirt's horn.

Vivendum est ut ea libertate utamur, quae prosit amicis, noceat nemini.
We must live to enjoy the freedom that can benefit our friends and harm no one.

Live artist Innellea dropped his limited vinyl deluxe album . ‘The Belonging’ including two bonus tracks, poster and colored vinyls. The LP forms part of a conceptual storytelling project. The album features focus track ‘Shelter’ w. CamelPhat & Monolink, along with diverse and significant collabs with Grammy winner Flowdan, Swedish indie singer/songwriter Karin Park, live musician Juan Hansen. Additionally the deluxe vinyl album includes Innellea´s feature with Paris Paloma 'under Earth'

‘The Belonging’ project is a cohesive multi-media concept, comprising the album heralded by a series of singles, multiple music videos. All of this will evoke a ‘collective catharsis’ after charting a personal and universal journey. This says Innellea: ‘As personal crises are part of life, we want to go through this journey collectively, from a silent, burned out state of ‘Where do we belong?’ Together, we will go forward forever through all the insanity until the certainty that ‘We belong here!’ as each track charts a step away from crisis, towards this feeling of belonging.

Vocal house duo Bäs Noir’s ‘My Love Is Magic’ receives edits from British DJs Bushwacka! and Mark Broom on Nu Groove. Hailing from Philly, the female duo of Morie Bivens and the late Mary Ridley first released ‘My Love Is Magic’ as Bäs Noir in 1988, with the Rhano Burrell production going on to chart in the UK. Today, the record remains a favourite of tastemakers everywhere, with Big Love label boss Seamus Haji dropping the OG at Defected Croatia in 2023. The hugely influential British DJ and producer Bushwacka! now returns to the legendary NYC label Nu Groove, following his four-track EP ‘House Sounds Vol. 1’, to bring out the percussive power of ‘My Love Is Magic’ with its distinct piano bassline and modern synth work. Also a Nu Groove returnee, the seasoned DJ Mark Broom delivers a techno A-12 Edit and house Dub Re-Touch of the Bäs Noir vocal house staple.

"Creation" is the debut album by British songwriter, singer & pianist James Sayer and includes the three singles "Living It Up", "Chemistry" and Cherry".

After spending many years playing for others, Sayer says that "writing my own music happened completely by accident. But I'm so glad I recorded that one demo which ultimately spurred me on to create a full album all this time later." Sayer, often called an old soul due to his love of classic song writing and bygone eras comments that although technology has changed the landscape of the musical world today, making a record organically was still a must for him.

Originally from Birmingham, Sayer's fascination and love of music began at a very young age when he learnt all thing rhythm & blues and rock'n'roll from his dad's music collection of artists such as Elton John or Jerry Lee Lewis, later also finding a love of soul artists such as Michael McDonald, Aretha Franklin, Van Morrison and Earth, Wind and Fire. Sayer moved to London in 2012 where he began performing almost every night in piano bars, clubs and pubs; spotted by the likes of Tom Jones whilst holding down a residency at the world-famous American Bar at the Savoy hotel.

About recording "Creation" he says: "I've tried to capture all the styles I love - Soul, Rhythm & Blues, Gospel and classic pop music – but still create a sound that is all mine".