Black Vinyl. A trio of Kansas City soul sweepers, from the sprawling midwest burg's storied Cavern, Damon, and Forte concerns. Bump and the Soul Stompers' 1970 sweet soul double sider "I Can Remember" was a tail pipe-dragging, low rider classic in the making, had it ever been released. A few years later Jerald "Bump" Scott took his new group to Cavern's subterranean confines to cut the group harmony masterpiece "Living In The Past," but remained unissued prior to Numero's discovery of the Cavern tapes. As disco was cresting at the top of the next decade, Sharon Revoal tracked her James Brown meets James Bond stepper "Reaching For Our Star"_ the last 45 released on Marva Whitney's peerless Forte label.
Two musical giants, guitarist Lionel Loueke and bassist Dave Holland, unite their individual talents into one harmonious recording,igniting creativity, honouring cultural roots, and showcasing music's powerful role in fostering unity amidst societal division.
United is an inspiring testament to the power of collaboration, blending Loueke's masterful guitar work with Holland's deep,resonant bass. Both musicians have profoundly impacted the global jazz scene—Loueke, known for his innovative fusion of WestAfrican traditions with modern jazz, has played with a who’s who of virtuosic and celebrated artists, most notably serving asHerbie Hancock’s guitarist for over 15 years, and collaborating with legends like Wayne Shorter, Sting, Terence Blanchard, MarcusMiller, and Esperanza Spalding. Holland, one of the most influential bassists and composers in jazz, has shaped contemporaryjazz since the late 1960s, performing with icons like Miles Davis, Chick Corea, John McLaughlin, Pat Metheny, Sam Rivers, andJack DeJohnette. Though Loueke and Holland have worked together many times in various groups, this album marks their firstcollaboration as a duo. The result is nothing short of extraordinary.
Since Outlaws in 2020, Ludivine Issambourg's flute has not cooled down. How could it have, when with that album of Hubert Laws covers, it had reached incandescence? Still panting, burning despite the lid of its case left wide open, it awaited the opportunity to continue the adventures that Master Laws himself had praised.
A continuation? Above The Laws isn't quite that.
Although his name still appears, Hubert L. is no longer the sole guide in exploring the vast galaxies of jazz-funk. Through covers but especially as an enhancer of her own compositions, Ludivine has invoked the spirit and intangible presence of Jeremy Steig, Ronald Sneijder, and Bobby Humphrey—the legends of the flute.
Guided by an unescapable groove, with a musical dial set to the late 70s and early 80s, Ludivine has enlisted the help of a brass section this time, a true propulsion engine for funk that can also shift to a soulful breath if the moment calls for it. Supporting the keyboards, there's a Moog laying down its rich layers or twisting tones.
The flutes are used like levers to stabilize the flight or, conversely, to make it soar even faster through the measures. The alto version, which Ludivine had previously used sparingly, adds the necessary velvety note when it’s time to embark on smoother destinations. Speeding up the tempo to make passengers rise from their seats as if danger were imminent; calming the atmosphere to put them in a reassuring cocoon where they can let their thoughts and spirits wander, the improvisations find their place in the compositions observed from the porthole. Detached from gravity, yet still very much in tune with the vibe of cities marked as hot spots on the current jazz scene radar, it's the scent of these streets that permeates some tracks of Above The Laws.
Directed from the control tower by Eric Legnini, Chassol, Alex Finkin, and Michaël Lecoq, Above The Laws benefits from a few stops along the way where precious connections are established. Nils Landgren and his trombone in the colors of the Swedish flag, Laurent De Wilde for a chase between flute and Fender Rhodes, Céline Bonacina’s saxophone for an Afrobeat detour.
But it's at the edge of a journey where organic intensity has continued to assert itself without losing power that Ludivine connected with Brian Jackson for a cover of "Angel Dust," a track from the era when he and his partner Gil Scott-Heron were creating soul masterpieces. One of them featured a flutist by the name of Hubert Laws.
The starting point of Ludivine's latest jazz-funk explorations also becomes the endpoint. Elevated by the ten tracks of Above The Laws, Ludivine Issambourg closes a loop where she has placed her flute and its flourishes in an undeniably leading role. Opening the doors to ambitious orchestrations, unexplored horizons, she weaves into her compositions the experiences, places, and encounters that have shaped her.
After a string of ambient and experimental releases across labels such as Bedroom Suck, Best Effort, Ken Oath and Analogue Attic, Matthew Hayes - veteran bassist of Z*F*E*X, welcomes his latest project Xpress Point, designed to keep your hips moving rather than kicked back on your couch. Born out of jam sessions and collaborations with artists such as Dreamcastmoe, Jitwam, Ziggy Zeitgeist, Finn Rees and Allysha Joy and an obsession with reclaiming the nostalgic sound sounds of the Korg M1 and Yamaha DX7, Xpress Point, which takes Its name from a local surf break off the coast of Phillip Island, draws heavily from the boogie tradition with a nod to vapourware, downtempo, balearic and funk breaks.
Assembled in 2023 across Melbourne/Naarm, London and Berlin, from surf breaks to crusty drum breaks, Xpress Point is a vehicle for Hayes to search for the perfect bass line, explore funk minimalism, continue nurturing longtime musical relationships with close friends and offer his own take on music to make you move.
Leng’s San Francisco connection has long been strong, with the 40 Thieves collective – and their friend Cole Odin – providing some of the label’s most memorable releases of the last decade. That Bay Area connection comes to the fore once more on the imprint’s latest release, which sees Odin join forces with fellow San Francisco resident Marshall Watson, a long-serving producer, engineer and live performer known globally for his Balearic-minded productions.
‘Voyager’, the pair’s first collaborative single, is a genuine meeting of minds. It combines Odin’s love of low-slung dub disco, dancefloor psychedelia and low-tempo cosmic house with Watson’s
picturesque Balearic synths, sparkling piano riffs and immersive sound design. It’s this blend that dominates on the EP-opening Original Mix, an infectious workout that gets progressively more blissed-out and saucer-eyed as it progresses. Listen carefully and you’ll hear some suitably psychedelic guitar solos nestling amongst the heady washes of sound, sun-bright piano riffs and weighty bass.
Those languid, stretched-out guitar parts naturally take a more prominent role on the Extended
Guitar Mix. On this alternative take, the pair deliver a lightly tweaked take on the original groove, stretching it out while overlaying eyes-closed guitar solos, pots-and-pans percussion and a more DJ-friendly outro. It’s effectively an extended club mix – the club in question being a Bay Area basement at 5am. To round off the EP, Odin and Watson dust off their dancing shoes and pay tribute to San Francisco great Patrick Cowley. On the appropriately titled Cosmic Rave Mix, the pair swap their bass guitar for a pulsating sequenced bassline, trance-inducing synth sounds, and locked-in electronic loops designed to take you to a higher state of consciousness. By the time the track’s familiar piano refrain drops midway through, you’ll be reaching for the lasers in no time at all.
DJ Support: Workforce, Lenzman, LSB, Doc Scott, Jubei.
Rosebay Music returns with its 4th release: a signature soul record from label boss Submorphics and LA soul artist Upper Reality. Two unique slices of D&B funk for the late summer.
We’re teaming up with ELUCID and Fat Possum for a limited edition of 300 copies of a Rush Hour black ice coloured edition.
E L U C I D, one half of the illustrious duo Armand Hammer, is here with the full-length follow-up to 'I Told Bessie'. Further experiments in the sonic, expanding on the 'live' side of music paired with the embracing of chaos. Something you haven't heard, or not so for a very long time. E L U C I D is here to reveal the bleakness of reality.
''There is never time in the future in which we will work out our salvation. The challenge is in the moment; the time is always now.''
James Baldwin
A raw, crackling urgency runs through rapper-producer ELUCID’s new album REVELATOR like an underground power line. There is no space here for sepia-toned reminiscences or indulgent self-mythologizing. Intellectual rabbit holes have been filled in with concrete and rebar ; there is nowhere to hide and no off ramp from the audio Autobahn that ELUCID has fashioned—a renegade Robert Moses with gold fronts, bulldozing the homes of the powerful and the complicit. REVELATOR brims with the energy of now, with a refusal to look away. Carpe diem in a murder one mask.
Born in Jamaica, Queens, ELUCID has been on the cutting edge of New York’s underground scene since the mid-2000s. From the beginning, he has defied both convention and expectation. He ran with Okayplayer darlings Tanya Morgan, but his own music eschewed their throwback charm for glitchy noise experiments and bass-swamped culture jamming. His 2016 debut studio project Save Yourself (re-released in a deluxe edition last year) announced him in earnest. But in recent years, his Armand Hammer releases with partner-in-crime billy woods have received significant attention and acclaim. Serving as a followup to his last solo album—2022’s comparatively balmy I Told Bessie—ELUCID hoped to “re-distinguish” himself with REVELATOR, setting himself apart amidst the increasing attention around the music he and his friends are making together.
For ELUCID, this meant setting bold new challenges for himself. One of these was diving further into live instrumentation than ever before—”getting my Quincy Jones on,” as he puts it. The testing ground for this approach was Armand Hammer’s most recent project, 2023’s We Buy Diabetic Test Strips’ Möbius strip soundscapes, warmed with instrumental flourishes and skin-shedding beat progressions. With REVELATOR, though, ELUCID strove to create an atmosphere of chaos, embracing experimental electronics and atonal sample bursts. He worked on much of the album with co-producer Jon Nellen, who comes from a background in avant-garde and Indian classical music. “I wanted to get as freaky as I could at this moment. I wanted people to hear things, maybe for the first time, or in a way they haven’t for a long while,” the rapper explains.
ELUCID arrived at the studio with a collection of noise sources: non-referential samples, glitches and noises. Together he, Nellen, and others created forms out of them and, as ELUCID recalls, “just started playing drums with it.” Their fried, distorted sound was directly inspired by Miles Davis at his most uncompromising—specifically, the tone-clustering funk track “Rated X” from his 1974 double LP Get Up With It. At times, the pairing of rap with avant-fusion sounds also brings Emergency! from The Tony Williams Lifetime to mind, perhaps in an alternate timeline where the late drummer was listening to Ice Cube’s AmeriKKKa’s Most Wanted.
“The World is Dog,” REVELATOR’s lead single, functions as the album’s aesthetic thesis statement. Like the Davis track, the textures are punishing, the tonality is in free-fall, and the driving breakbeat of a groove cuts in and out unceremoniously. Avant-jazz bassist Luke Stewart, who appears throughout the record, holds the whole thing together just long enough for ELUCID to tightwalk over the beat. This tension is exactly where REVELATOR sets itself apart; in a time of drumless loops, and safe soul samples, this is a high-wire act with no safety net. Similarly, the song announces the themes of the album within just a few phrases, evoking the way societies accept and adjust to new levels of debasement and brutality while suffocating under the weight of history: “Can’t clock the kill, all a mystery/Forced past will eating everyone eventually/The world is dog.”
Many of the songs on REVELATOR grapple obliquely with dissolution and disenfranchisement in America and across the world—the grim realities of our domestic sociopolitical climate and our involvement in foreign conflicts. “Much of my artistic and political sensibility comes from the Black arts movement here in New York,” ELUCID explains. “Recognizing the interconnected global struggles against oppression, artists and thinkers created works and actions in solidarity with freedom movements in South Africa and Palestine.” ELUCID cites intellectuals like Amiri Baraka, Kwame Nkrumah, Audre Lorde, Sonia Sanchez, and Nikki Giovanni among his heroes. (One track on the album is specifically inspired by Lorde’s work, “SKP,” citing the scholar’s paper “Uses of the Erotic: The Erotic As Power.”) Songs like REVELATOR’s insistent closer “ZIGZAGZIG,” find ELUCID applying up-to-the-minute messaging, making explicit reference to the conflict in Gaza: “Feed a war machine…from river to sea, in lieu of peace.”
Despite ELUCID’s preference for cacophonous system overload here, the rapper also provides moments of respite. Recorded at The Alchemist’s Los Angeles studio, the laid-back, wheezing “INSTANT TRANSFER” is a collaboration with billy woods, which crystallizes their shared sense of creative determination. “With much momentum behind us and even more on the horizon, I knew a purpose, and that every step was ordered to that purpose,” ELUCID said of the experience. Meanwhile, the jittery “HUSHPUPPIES” is a playful anomaly on the track list, providing a snapshot of ELUCID watching his grandparents in the kitchen while preparing for Friday night fish fry dinners.
“Love still rules over on this side,” ELUCID says. ”I’m raising a family. We are making meaning and finding joy in the midst of all the fucked up-ness of everything around us because the alternative is cowardice and slow death. We remain rooted. We celebrate our people and our wins. Struggle is necessary.”
“IKEBANA” is one of ELUCID’s strongest statements of purpose on the record, blending the record’s heaviest themes with its most hopeful sentiments. supported by a shoutalong refrain and an urgent prog-funk groove. Breaking away from images of dissolution and crumbling societal systems that populate REVELATOR, ELUCID notes that the only way to navigate life’s bleakest landscapes is to cling to love and believe in those around you—to look forward toward something better that may or may not be possible. For the rapper, one of the album’s most trenchant lines comes during a centerpiece of a beat drop: “Being alive/I must look up.”
“The lyric ‘being alive I must look up’ is important especially in the context of this album. Much of the album imagery is harsh and reflects the actual doom some of us experience. But still I/we exist,” ELUCID explains.
Every artist is, in one way or another, the product of their time, bound by life’s leaden gravity to operate within the space of that which is already known. But there are some who are able to shake free of these ties, to shape the culture as it unfolds, to make the present their own.
Revelation, as a concept, points to the scales falling from people’s eyes—something that has been hiding in plain sight becoming clear. “The revelator relates to things that have been talked about, things that have been forecasted,” ELUCID adds. “And now they’re really here, and everyone sees it. And there’s no escaping.” REVELATOR plays out with the unmitigated power of those storms, laying waste to any genre conventions in pursuit of a certain physicality. Here, ELUCID develops a wholly distinctive musical language to explore our fractured modernity.
REVELATOR's packaging was designed by longtime Armand Hammer / Backwoodz art director, Alexander Richter.
Secondo's awaited return comes in the form of Unlikely Companions — a growling, alien rhythm from the warmer tropics of technofunk. Marco Passarani’s wild take flips the mood with some skittering Aphex-style darkness, primed for the late, after hours dancefloor.
Following appearances on our first three releases and on Chez Damier's latest label 'House Of Chez', El Kazed is back with his first solo EP !
Over the years, El Kazed's sound has become more refined, but you can still recognise his own touch.
On that matter, the A side is a prime example : DeePulse and Yunni perfectly blends that famous FM bass with dreamy pads and a strong 90s Italian house influence.
On the B-side, The Positive stands out with a more club-friendly vibe. Our friend Lea Lisa did her own version of it, driving it even more in that direction.
Paddan's Sigtryggur Baldursson and Birgir Mogensen are lifelong friends from Kópavogur, Iceland, who started as mates on the local football team, then graduated to making music together as teenagers, and even later as young men doing time in the experimental punk collective KUKL, from 1983 - 1986.
KUKL was populated by survivors of the post-punk scene in Iceland in the early 80s, which is well documented in the film Rock in Reykjavik from 1982. The band was released by the Crass collective in London and featured members, apart from Birgir and Sigtryggur, like Guðlaugur Óttarsson, Einar Melax, Björk and Einar Örn, some of whom would become better known later in outfits like the Sugarcubes and their respective solo work and other collaborations.
Sigtryggur has a long career in music, having worked with among others, Emiliana Torrini, Howie B, Les Negresses Vertes, Tomas R. Einarsson, Petur Ben, KK, Kaktus Einarsson, and many many others. He also produces an award-winning documentary music show for RUV called Hljómskálinn.
Birgir Mogensen is a classically trained classical guitarist and bass player who has worked through the years with artists ranging from KUKL to Killing Joke to Spilafifl and Inferno5.
Birgir and Sigtryggur formed Paddan during the 2010s, and are now preparing to release their EP Fluid Time, which has been inspired by their perception of time and space. Birgir Mogensen says, "As a duo, we trusted our musical intuition and were guided by allowing the first idea to remain unchanged during the recording process"Recorded, produced, and arranged by the pair, Sigtryggur and Birgir play basses and drums along with various other instruments.
All recordings are played on live instruments except a modular synth which is programmed in the background of two tracks The duo is joined by the great harmonica and lap steel player Gaukur Davidsson on "Vaguely" and "Bug," and trumpet player Eirikur Orri Ólafsson on "Splash," not to mention the mixing expertise of Vaccines bassist Arni Hjörvar Árnason on "Bug," "Splash," and "Kokka," and sound-mixer Albert Finnbogason on "Vaguely."
Fresh off a rework of Papa Levi with single Ribena, London’s jungle pioneers 4am Kru drop their highly anticipated debut album Incognito Rhythm featuring all the tracks that have cemented their reputation as the go-to act for raw, live jungle music.
Having already taken the 2024 festival circuit by storm with appearances at Outlook Origins, Boomtown, Boardmasters, Reading+ Leeds, The Blind Tiger, Parklife Waterworks, Boundary and a milestone Saturday night closing set at Glastonbury’s Temple Stage, 4am Kru continue to draw audiences into the madness of their raucous blend of 1993-1994 influenced jungle. First bursting onto the scene post-lockdown, the falling monitors and flying bodies of their shows were particularly thrilling for ravers who had turned 18 in isolation.
Originally developing their live sound in indie bands while sharing a studio in Tottenham, the duo quickly realized that the traditional DJ set couldn’t contain the energy of their act. They have since surrendered to the chaos of their incredibly physical performances, nursing chipped bones and back injuries, deep finger taping, chalking up and wearing shoes designed for skipping rope whilst rewiring what it meant to move their bodies. Their innovation extends to the equipment, with the duo reinventing a way to deliver their signature throbbing basslines with a Roland SPD SX drum pad as thick as a car tire. Their upcoming UK tour this October promises to further showcase their immersive, disruptive sound.
4am Kru’s latest single Ribena breathed new life into Papa Levi’s iconic British reggae classic Militancy following the release of hard-hitting Wutt this past July, setting the stage for their most ambitious project yet. Their debut album draws from a wide range of influences in addition to 4am Kru’s signature blend of 90s jungle flavours, from obscure slow jam R&B like Angela Bofill, Janet Jackson and Prince, early hardcore bands like Hüsker Dü, off kilter Scottish folk, and even classical music. The project is a snapshot of the incognito, nocturnal world that the duo have dwelled in for the past two years, a time capsule of well-worn songs played between midnight and 4am. An extraordinary debut, 4am Kru’s Incognito Rhythm is an immersive, razor sharp, face melting journey through their show-stopping live sound.
A third Punctuality enters the chat; its latest member Maara proclaiming Drama On for Spray’s ever-evolving label. The Montreal maverick cues up a psy-eyed sesh for the ages, 5 wily thumpers shaded sapphic for those enthralled by the mischievous dance.
Since 2021, Maara has operated on an ‘all pills, no frills’ basis. Her prolific run of EPs for the likes of Kalahari Oyster Cult, Step Ball Chain and Radiant Records has cemented her rightful place within the club pantheon of the prog and divine. Spray and his Punctuality cohort reside there also, teasing clubland salvation for those who dare. Maara giddily joins for the ride, offering a gift in the name of Drama On; an EP of direct dancefloor transmissions that map out kinetic paths to sordid euphoria.
The curtains rise as What U Do 2 Me skips, gallops and jumps across theatrical plains, breaking for a titular reflection before reuniting with its ravey chaos. Drama On swings sharper, riding a sleazy donk through a dimly lit groove of pulsating vulgarity. An outright sassier affair celebrates Sigmund Freud’s Big Day Out; an unconscious slip of the hard house tongue that feeds an otherwise techno-driven delirium with wry glee. Give Me Ecstasy eases the tempo while raising the temperature, commanding your gaze with a noxious roller that seductively writhes in sexed-up delight. The house lights beckon, and Not My Web, Not My Problem she retorts with an unforgiving groove thrusting its charged-up rump through a cauldron of salacious murmurs and groans.
It’s Maara’s world, and we’re all just dancing in it.
DJ Support: Louie Vega, Danny Krivit, Tedd Patterson, DJ Harvey, Folamour, Michael Gray, John Morales, Simon Dunmore, Terry Hunter, Melvo Baptist, Seamus Haji,Art Of Tones, Birdee, Sophie Lioyd, Hector Romero, CjMckintosh, Moodena, Dr Packer, Da Lukas, Derrick Mckenzie, Danism, Reel People, DJ Pope and more
Part 1 of the remixes from the House Of Glass Album by Italian Master Gianni Bini incl. Versions by UK disco king Dave Lee, Groove Culture owners Micky More & Andy Tee and USA soulful talent Emmaculate. A must have for the lovers of quality Disco Nu disco with live instrumentation.
Barkley Bandon’s debut album “Love Machine” is a sexy concept album, perfect pop record and an experimental look at club music all in one.
Hard to pin down stylistically, it’s visiting multiple spaces on a colour spectrum, with hues of Sophie’s hyperpop, Hudson Mohawke’s cheek, the nostalgic shades of Oneohtrix Point Never, a nod to Dean Blunt’s DIY aesthetic and maybe flirting a little with the of Teaches of Peaches. But really, it’s carving out a sound all for itself that is like nothing else out there.
The mysterious London producer recently contributed a song on CASISDEAD’s chart topping, Brit Award winning debut album ‘Famous Last Words’ and has worked with London RnB vocalist Gloria on her release Metal, which came out on Gaika’s label The Spectacular Empire.
Working here, on in his own playpen, he shows off his pop production skills on tunes like ‘Green Light’ and ‘Nails’ (collaborations with rising artist Kaleab Samuel from Aurora, Colorado) and ‘You Decide’, a collab with pig$ - the incredible producer from LA who makes up the other half of their joint project Parking Big. Then he flips the approach, stuffs a bunch of percussion sounds in a box, shakes it and lets clanky club bangers like ‘Vertigo’ and ‘Eye Candy’ tumble out.
Fronting the cover we see Barkley’s real life wife as a teen dream - his ultimate Love Machine.
The album will be released on 25.10.2024 on his own label Laterhosen Records on digital and limited cassette tapes.
“That bass… absolutely filthy” Tom Ravenscroft, BBC Radio 6
Nottetempo are welcoming a new artist into their fold. Caramel Chameleon will be known already to many, his fluid brand of braindance having graced imprints like 030303 and Undersound’s NOUN sublabel. The sonic shapeshifter, Francesco Pio Nitti, arrives at the Milan label with Compact Demons.
Distorted beams and a steady kick introduce “…And You Feel So Lucky.” Drums descend into a glitchy soup of snare rolls before gentle notes take hold, a melody of soft synth warmth is dappled with breathy samples. Pound and thump are given a full workout in “Monologue Duetto,” echoes of glowsticks glimmer before the floor is calmed by silken keys. “d-_-b Future Is Blind” opens with oozing basslines and skittish beats. Tender pads and playful melodies bob and weave, breaks creating generous spaces for string-filled meditation to bloom in this absorbing work. Kicks return for “Inter27wined (cottage mix)”, a nervous energy soothed by globular synth-lines. A late evening feel permeates the piece, a comfort countered by Nitti’s bending and stretching of percussive patterns. For those needing a little more, Nottetempo have drafted in Legowelt for a remix of “…And You Feel So Lucky.” The track, available digitally, sees Wolfers sideline his own trademark sound to focus on the essence of the original. The result is considered interpretation, beats are relaxed and steady with a touch of analogue dreaminess coming to the fore.
There’s a sense that Caramel Chameleon is building up a head of steam. With each release, the Italian artist is further honing his sound as he crafts ever more intricate melodies and structures. Compact Demons is proof of this. In the same breath, Nottetempo continue to fortify their catalogue and roster with a release of excellent electronics. Quality cuts from Milan.
Playful Italo-Disco project by Florentine Marzio Benelli, originally released in 1984. "Life Is Now" delivers a number of what seem to be almost very important life-teachings over a rather sloppy beat. The hi hats, although very present also make it clear "Spanish Crash" is in no rush to get anywhere any time soon, sounding almost off beat. What strikes the listener even more than the smudges of highly valuable advice in some form of English language is the creative usage of what might have been some of the latest studio recording toys to reach Italy in 1984, an array of rather unorthodox synthy effects, vocoders, trippy delays all topped off with imposing guitar riffs for good measure. Very much sounding like what could be the soundtrack to a bootleg Disney comic strip on acid. Castro's "Paella Crash" shifts the original lazy gear into a dubbier, high BPM, striped down version of the original that is more club oriented.
Occasionally an album comes along that seems to capture the mood of the time. "The K&D Sessions" was one. In the late 1990s no afterparty, smoking session or languid Sunday afternoon was complete without Kruder & Dorfmeister blasting from the Bang & Olufsen. Now approaching it"s 25th anniversary the lore around this iconic release, steeped in a silvery cloud of smoke, retains a star quality which only shines brighter as time hurtles on. With the original having sold well over a million copies by this point in time, it"s hard to imagine a mix or remix compilation being able to inform a movement like "The K&D Sessions" has. To celebrate this monumental milestone, we"ve created a limited boxset in 6LP and 3CD of "The K&D Sessions", mastered and cut by LA luminary Bernie Grundman for a luxurious listening experience, with newly designed inner sleeves using unseen photos from the original photo shoot. Inserted in the box is a forty-page booklet containing multitudes more never before seen photos from the same shoot and notes which recount humorous tales surrounding the duo and the people who spent time with them in this epoch. Included on the 6th LP is their legendary 11 minute shimmering remix of Madonna"s "Nothing Really Matters". The 6th LP also contains Peter Kruder"s Powercut Mix of Roni Size"s "Heroes" and K&D"s remix of U.F.O, "L.O.V.E.". In addition there are two cerebral alternate remixes of Lewis Taylor, one being completely dubbed and the other the using the vocal line for this beautiful gem, "Lucky" and a special remix of "Speechless" by Count Basic. These have been staples in K&D"s sets and now take their rightful place collected in the canon of "The Sessions".
From London to Ibiza via Berlin, inspired by Chigago and Detroit, Ceri finds her truth in proper house music. ‘Can’t Pay My Bills’ EP provides a message of hope during uncertain times. Acknowledged as a “rising selector” by Crack Magazine, producer, label boss and record digger Ceri steps into 2024 with a brand-new EP ‘Can’t Pay My Bills” via her imprint “Find Your Own Records”.
“The title track is inspired by the current economic situation in the world, and also features a positive message that reflects the values and true origins of house music, reinforcing the belief that we can overcome our circumstances and improve our situation” - Ceri
The new four track EP drips with Chicago, New York and Detroit jackin’ house with garage influence, and a sprinkle of ripping UK breakbeat for good measure. The people’s producer D'Julz steps up, on remix duties, contributing not one but two remixes to the label’s ongoing message of artist authenticity and collaboration. The remixes will be vinyl only, and the originals will see a digital release later in the year.
“I have collected D'Julz music for many years, his label started around the same time I started DJing, and it was and still is, one of the few labels that I buy on sight. I know it will always be quality. Something I aspire to do with my label too.”– Ceri
As an artist led label 'Find Your Own Records’ has become a home for genuine house legends Mr G, Fred P, Alex Arnout, and has rightly gained support from Mixmag, Resident Advisor, BBC Radio 1, BB6Music and BBC1Xtra.
Support for the label so far comes from the likes of:
Midland, Ben UFO, Move D, K-HAND, Fumiya Tanaka, Fred P, Paranoid London, Steve O'Sullivan, Tristan Da Cunha, Ryan Elliot, Lakuti, DJ Deep, Kerri Chandler, Chloe Caillet, Fred P, Jeremy Underground, Cici, D’Julz, Chez Damier and more…
As a DJ Ceri has performed marathon sets at Fabric, Corsica Studios, Pikes Ibiza, Thisishaven, and recently made her debut at the legendary Panorama Bar/Berghain. Confidently sharing the booth with club favourites Ryan Elliot, Jeremy Underground, Paranoid London and Objekt it’s certain the next year of live shows will be ones to remember for the UK artist. Inspiring far beyond the dancefloor, Ceri also regularly steps up as a masterclass host / panelist on creativity, mental health, meditation and wellness with renowned platforms Beatport, ADE, RedBull, Point Blank and Native Instruments, earning her a distinctive reputation as a multifaceted artist and
thought leader.
Ceri – ‘Can’t Pay My Bils’ EP is out on Find Your Own Records. Vinyl end of Feb tbc. The remixes re vinyl only. And the originals will be released digitally in the summer.
Emerging producer Très Mortimer dishes out eight huge heaters on the highly-anticipated ‘M1 City’ release, a dedication to the mighty Korg M1, coming to Seth Troxler’s Slacker 85 on 25th October.
Kicking off ‘M1 City’ is the simplistic, but refined and booth-rattling ‘Work That Body’. A crisp M1 stab is the main character in this, amplified by thunderous and high energy drums.
Then there’s ‘Secrets’, a house jam inspired by the likes of MK that utilises TR-909 drums, a subtle rolling bassline, intimately whispered and soulfully sung vocal shots, and, of course, classic Korg M1 synth stabs. Together with dramatic contemporary builds, a highly danceable house smasher is formed.
‘No More’ is pure gasoline for the dancefloor. Très pairs another barrage of clean M1 stabs with a rousing vocal sample that leads into, with the help of a rolling snare, another highly effective house drop. Following the extremely saucy ‘Big Daddy’ skit, we’re dropped straight into ‘One Of Those Nights’, a show-stopping track complete with cutting, sharp stabs, a bulging bassy synth and a West Coast-esque synth sound.
‘Bitch I’m From Chicago’ feat. Gleebz is, as the title suggests, a dedication to the city where house music found its name. Batting off all the poser cities like LA and Miami in the sassy lyrics, it embodies the spirit of Chicago with hefty kick drums and weighty chord stabs.
At the tail end of the release, ‘Let Me Go’ and ‘Love’ (featuring vocalist 7000 (7K)), bring things to a rousing emotive close. Both tracks see Très put clean vocals over piano riffs, giving off differing moods – the former is euphoric, the latter melancholic. Synths bubble beneath, and each track funnels their own respective house grooves, resulting in two tracks fit for both the dancefloor and headphones.
Très Mortiner explains: “The M1 sound is classic. It automatically transports you back to those timeless house songs that never get old. For me, house music is all about connection. People experiencing a little moment of euphoria together when they hear a riff that they all know on the dance floor. That’s what it’s all about. With this project I wanted to tap into that 90s rave sound and spirit. I wanted it to sound like the OG Chicago rave scene.”
“M1 City is my first project to be released on vinyl. I think vinyl is very much alive. It’s essentially for music connoisseurs now. I don’t expect people to have a vinyl collection when all music is always available to everyone on their phones. Nevertheless, I love the idea of some random DJ finding this record in a shop in 10 years. Who knows what I’ll be producing then?”
Très Mortimer is a key figure in Chicago's house scene, steadily building a strong following with his no-nonsense, dancefloor-driven sound. Drawing inspiration from his Polish roots, Trés has signed with major labels like Mad Decent, Insomniac’s IN/Rotation, and Ministry of Sound, while also launching his own imprint, Optics Records. He made his mark with a clever rework of Zombies' 1968 hit ‘Time Of The Season’ (1M+ streams). Standout releases include his downtempo collaboration with plumpy, "BAMBU," and his latest single, "At Night I Think Of You," which was recently given a remix makeover by Seth Troxler and Nick Morgan.
Slacker 85, launched in 2023, is the record label behind ‘M1 City’. Founded by Seth Troxler, it aims to give a platform to "oddball, esoteric and diverse sounds," positioning itself as a counter to the polished, refined dance artists dominating the scene. Troxler, upon the label’s launch, declared that he wanted to create something for "the anti-hero, the kids who could have done it but didn’t care to try”—essentially, "the slacker." So far, it’s delivered a range of releases from artists like Jackmaster, Danny Daze, Dan McKie, and Andre Salmon, offering tracks rooted in house music's past but evolving within its present boundaries.
‘M1 City’, this ode to a piece of gear that consistently finds itself at the heart of house music history, highlights Très Mortimer’s respect for and knowledge of the scene and its key gear. Trè combines this admiration and inspiration of house music’s greats with a modern sensibility, resulting in eight tracks worthy of today’s dancefloors and today’s ravers.
FREDDIE TERRELL & his Blue Rhythm Band struck gold in 1970 with the perfect slice of Crossover Soul “You Had It Made”, co-written with rare soul legend Herman Hitson. It failed to hit outside of his home town, Atlanta, Georgia and remains a highly sought-after and rare original, reissued here for the very first time. Terrell returned a couple of years later with the Soul Expedition releasing one of the most collectabhle soulful-funk albums of the decade.
CHARLES WILLIAMS also hailed from Georgia and relocated to Finland in the Seventies. In 1975 he released his debut album, the socially conscious, Love Is A Very Special Thing and the breakout single “Standing In The Way”. With it’s easy, soulful, jazzy groove and obscure heritage it caught the imagination of the UK scene and remains a midtempo favourite to this day.
Originally released on one of Bruton's extensive library albums but later used as the theme song to a UK drama series dealing with the intrigues of a family motor business and the world of rally driving from the 80s, "The Winning Streak" is another production by the now late library music maestro Alan Hawkshaw. A downtempo track with remarkably trippy use of percussion elements via electronics and drum machines with entertaining accents and "exotic" vocals. Another wonderful example of library music tickling the fancy of diggers and collectors with a dancefloor inclinations thanks to its highly distinct sound -- everybody loves a winner. 1 to 1 official re-issue, remastered.
Have you ever been to Miyazaki? It’s a prefecture on Japan’s southern island of Kyushu, facing the Pacific. Palm trees. Humid subtropical climate. This is the home of Maple Fyshh, a musical artist whose late-80s/early-90s recordings have been collected and reissued here. Liberated by the advent of 4-track cassette home recording technology, inspired by a love of 60s pop oddball production mavens like Phil Spector and Joe Meek, as well as American hot rod and surf music, these Maple Fyssh songs glow with an outsider’s love of the transformative power of newly-available sound technology, allowing him to pull his inspirations across decades and oceans to his 1990s Miyazaki home studio. The tracks here are a d.i.y. dream-pop wonderland, compiling songs from his first LP “Mariko” and second LP “Dokitto Station!!”, both self-produced, both released in 1995. The A-side of this release features tracks from the concept album “Mariko”, a masterpiece of daydream pop introspection, recorded in 1994-95, inspired by a poem submitted to a manga magazine. The B-side features tracks from “Dokitto Station!!”, slightly earlier recordings that draw inspiration from a range of 60s pop including girl groups, surf music and acid folk. All the music here demonstrates Maple Fyshh’s deep understanding and appreciation 60s pop moves, and also his mastery of the limited technology at his disposal.
Remastered in 2024, the sound of Miyazaki has been reborn for a new audience. Available on Vinyl LP and download, with a DL card, English/Japanese lyrics and entertaining and informative English/Japanese liner notes by the artist.
Small Great Things proudly presents its latest release, SGT009—a meticulously curated selection of deep house grooves featuring a lineup of exceptional talent. Available on both vinyl and digital platforms, this release showcases a diverse range of deep, soulful, and groove-driven tracks designed to captivate any dance floor.
Opening the release on A1 is Luca Olivotto with "Let Me Go," a track that sets the tone with its rich, melodic layers and piano chords.
Olivotto’s masterful production effortlessly blends emotion and groove, making it an essential opener for this compilation.
Following up on A2 is Quadrakey's "Do It Right," a track that encapsulates the essence of deep house. With tight percussion, smooth basslines, and an irresistible groove, this track demands attention and will undoubtedly resonate with both DJs and listeners alike.
The B-side kicks off with a deep vocal cut from resident duo Nephews titled "Between Your Soul." This track takes listeners on a soulful journey, combining warm pads, driving basslines, and emotive vocals to create an immersive listening experience.
On B2, Peter LC delivers "We Were Alright," a deep, vocal-driven track that stands out with its smooth chords and heartfelt lyrics. The subtle groove and deep melodies make it a standout moment on the release. Rounding off the release on B3 is HAbibi Groove with "Groove Box Grooves." As the name suggests, this track is all about the groove.
With its infectious rhythm and intricate sound design, it provides the perfect closing note to this diverse and captivating compilation—a dancefloor-ready tune.
SGT009 is a must-have for any deep house enthusiast, offering a rich blend of styles and moods that showcase the depth and versatility of the genre. Available now on vinyl and digital platforms, this release is a testament to Small Great Things' commitment to quality and innovation in electronic music.
(incl 40p fanzine written by Matt Annis with photographs by Simon Pyke and Ian Brodie) Postpunk Theory is a meticulously curated compilation by the legendary Tony Thorpe, known for his work with The Moody Boys, 400 Blows, and The KLF. These classic tracks were played at parties by Thorpe at the time, making them his personal classics. The compilation features 16 rare and sought-after tracks from the post-punk era, including works by Mark Stewart and The Maffia, Basement 5, 23 Skidoo and more.
Defining post-punk is no easy task. While punk was defined by a raw, rebellious simplicity, post-punk (1978-1986) expanded into a diverse array of sounds and ideas. It maintained punk's independent spirit but embraced experimentation, incorporating influences from various musical and cultural traditions, resulting in a movement far more eclectic and fragmented than its predecessor.
At its core, post-punk broke away from traditional rock structures, blending genres like industrial, goth, and punk-funk with emerging dance music cultures. This era's spirit of innovation and defiance against musical norms continues to inspire, making post-punk a pivotal moment in music history that defies easy categorization.
Tony Thorpe presents Postpunk Theory - Alpha ? is a meticulously curated compilation by the legendary Tony Thorpe, known for his work with The Moody Boys, 400 Blows, and The KLF. These classic tracks were played at parties by Thorpe at the time, making them his personal classics. The compilation features 16 rare and sought-after tracks from the post-punk era, including works by Mark Stewart and The Maffia, Basement 5, 23 Skidoo, African Headcharge, and more.
Growing up in a vibrant musical environment in South London, Thorpe was deeply influenced by the eclectic sounds around him, from jazz-funk to Brit-Funk, and later, the post-punk records he discovered. As Thorpe recalls, "Post-punk was a mishmash of different cultures and ideas. Out of post-punk came dance music culture. That period was the most creative time because the culture was in its experimental phase." This compilation captures that innovative spirit, offering a glimpse into the era that shaped Thorpe's musical journey.
The album comes as a limited 2xLP set, accompanied by an extensive 40-page fanzine. The fanzine, written by Matt Annis (Join The Future), dives deep into the post-punk movement, offering insight and context enriched with striking photographs by Simon Pyke and Ian Brodie.
Limited Edition! The "LaBush - Temple of House" Volume 2 Vinyl Box Set for the 30th Anniversary of the Legendary Club!
Barely six months after the phenomenal success of the first box set, La Bush - Temple of House makes history once again, celebrating its 30th anniversary with the release of Volume 2 in a limited edition 10x12" vinyl box set. A true must-have for collectors and electronic music enthusiasts!
This exclusive box set features no less than 35 tracks, an incredible number for a vinyl collection, offering unparalleled pressing quality that guarantees an exceptional listening experience, perfectly suited for any turntable. Each track has been meticulously remastered, preserving the essence of the original versions while enhancing every sonic detail.
The deluxe packaging of this box set is a work of art in itself, designed to captivate the most discerning vinyl lovers. Moreover, with tracksfrom legendary artists like Paul Kalkbrenner, Paul van Dyk, David Guetta, Tomcraft, Oliver Lieb, Matthew Herbert, and La Bush resident Mr. Sam, this box set is an essential treasure.
For those who already own the first box set, this new volume is the perfect opportunity to complete your collection in the best possible way, adding a new centerpiece to your La Bush ensemble.
Don't miss this unique opportunity to add a masterpiece to your vinyl collection. Order now before it's too late!
DJ Support: David Morales, Louie Vega, Hector Romero, Dave Lee ZR,Tony Humphries, Kevin Yost, Jimpster, Atjazz, Ron Trent, Dj harvey.
Considered the Master of Italo piano house, Don Carlos is up next on friends Micky More & Andy Tee's label Groove Culture Deep with an EP of Finest Classic Piano house.Features the amazing, warmup Classic House of ‘Italian Paradise Piano’ followed by the Deep heater ‘Soul Emotion' and The Garage Late-night ‘Good Emotion’(Vocal Mix) on the A-side. The flip offers ‘Paranoia’(Piano Edit) and ‘Good Emotion’(Paranoia Mix) both tracks perfectly capture the zeitgeist of house music's golden era of late 80’s early 90’s.
Trance Pandemic is back with new full cover EP - masterpiece of Dima Phase designer.
The musicians' solo sound is changing, they continue to search for themselves, thereby releasing without losing the atmosphere and drive in their music.
Komponente takes its rhythm from 707 drum machines and 80s synths, adds a TB 303 and wraps it in long pad melodies in Boston Dynamics.
In Acid Explorer, he builds electro-trance with the sound of a nuclear siren using Elektron machines and packs everything into his favorite voice presets from Korg. New and old music technologies are intertwined into one whole, giving birth to new sounds from the late 20th and early 21st centuries.
Kurilo continues to work with modern sound machines, drawing on the best and creating a smooth, even groove.
If you like trance synthesizers, mysterious melodies, then your choice is Eating Raoul, nothing more, a sound inspired by the New York night where Evgeniy currently lives.
Not From New York carries a different trip, but no less atmospheric, deep bass and acid accents - everything you need for a dense sound on your sound system, be it a club or rave party or a home sound system or headphones.
In general, although the release is different, it is united in one thing: atmosphere and melody.
DJ Support: Grant Nelson, Dr Packer, Purple Disco Machine, Cj Mackintosh, Mark Knight, Sam Divine, Jamie Jones, Funkerman, Vanilla Ace, Roog/Hardsoul
Birdee has managed to carve out quite a path for himself, remixing luminaries such as Aeroplane and Michael Gray, collaborating with legendary singers Barbara Tucker and Angela Johnson, as well as releasing on Glitterbox, Big Love, Nervous and of course Tinted. On his latest single Birdee remakes the Jomanda classic 'Don't You Want My Love' (As sampled later by Felix) in true Birdee style, as a complete disco reinventio, crafting an all original backing of dynamic drums, funky bass and some classy synth and string arrangements that glide across this timeless ear-worm.
In July 2019, eleven years after Jay-Z became the first hip-hop artist to headline Glastonbury, Stormzy became the first English rapper to follow suit. Wearing a customised stab-proof vest designed by Banksy, the South London rapper delivered an explosive performance and finished by thanking the “legends for paving the way,” name-checking Wiley, Dizzee Rascal, and Giggs. Despite how unlikely it seemed for decades, UK rap was now firmly a part of pop music and the greater hip-hop canon.
Rich, nuanced, and often misunderstood, the history of UK rap is a story of music that refused to stand still. Factoring in socioeconomics, gender, identity, music industry disruption, and innovation, What Do You Call It? charts the artform’s first four decades, beginning when rap landed on our island in the early 1980s. Shaped by sound system culture, inspired by punk, and accelerated by rave, it has evolved from Britcore, UK hip-hop, and trip-hop of the late twentieth century to garage, grime, and drill.
Through cultural theory, historical research, and original interviews with key figures and collaborators in the UK rap scene, from pioneers like Malcolm McLaren, Soul II Soul, Tricky, Roots Manuva, and Roll Deep to modern artists like Dave, CASISDEAD, Little Simz, Loyle Carner, and Skengdo x AM, adds a rich human dimension to the UK rap story — one that helped change British music and culture forever.
“A long overdue exploration of rap music in the UK and its longstanding – albeit overlooked – legacy and influence. In an era when UK rappers dominate the charts, star in major movies and TV shows and front huge advertising campaigns for multi-national corporations, Kane traces back the arduous journey from maligned sub-culture to celebrated mascot of neoliberal capitalism.” Jehst
“David Kane writes with a deft touch and possesses a disarming and deeply insightful interview style. Sparking life, humour, and sorrow across every page of more than three decades of UK rap history.” Charlie Dark MBE
“Kane builds bridges in a rich musical universe full of heroes and villains—and plot twists. With an inimitable style, he merges culture high and low to bring new meaning to the music. What Do You Call It? is a landmark tome for UK rap music.” Brian DiGenti, Wax Poetics
“A mind rich in ideas” Stanley Ledbetter, The New Yorker
White Lunar, an underground electronic music label from Seoul, South Korea.
Founded by Lyumin and Oho, is excited to release its first project.
This debut features four talented artists in the world Oho, ffrvnco, Stefano Andriezzi, and Jucid. Each artist brings their own unique sound, creating a diverse and powerful collection of tracks.
Get ready to experience a fresh and energetic mix of electronic music from these rising artists.
Little introduction for Nils' latest vinyl release, where tech house grooves intertwine with atmospheric sonorities of reggae dub. No need for more details, this release is only about the essentials !
This October Jamiroquai celebrates the 30th anniversary of ‘The Return Of The Space Cowboy’. Their second album, it will be reissued as a double-LP set on 140g “moon grey” vinyl and includes Michael Gray’s Good Vibe Zone edit of ‘Space Cowboy’ - which has never been released on a physical product. The packaging has also been re-designed for this anniversary release including foil enhancement of the original cover design.
‘The Return Of The Space Cowboy’ is the follow up album to the band’s huge 1993 debut, ‘Emergency On Planet Earth’. Selling over 3 million copies globally, ‘Emergency On Planet Earth’ put the band on the map with their distinctive sound standing them apart from other popular acts of the time.
‘The Return Of The Space Cowboy’ was released just one year later and was met with great critical and public acclaim. Certified Platinum in the UK, Japan and France, it achieved chart success in multiple countries and spawned the single ‘Space Cowboy’ which remains one of their biggest tracks to date. Critically the album was lauded with Rolling Stone saying "Jamiroquai parlay jazzy soul pop so tight it crackles… Nowadays, when most funk comes out of cans, Jamiroquai's live spark glows", The Guardian said “... this second album sounds like vintage Stevie Wonder and Johnny 'Guitar' Watson, but Kay's vocals are as snappy and engaging as his extrovert persona" and Q magazine said it “combines intricate arrangements with several long, free-form workouts crammed with virtuoso performances".
For many, this album is defined by some of the most complex songwriting the band have ever produced and Jay Kay called it “one of our most creative and accomplished albums”. The process of making the album came with many challenges. Having to recruit a new drummer (after Nick Van Gelder failed to return from holiday), the band were met with second-album syndrome with Kay proclaiming since that lyrics weren’t coming "... because suddenly I wasn't homeless, I had everything I needed. So I found myself creating problems to write about." The songwriting process was complex for the band as Jay Kay was often dissatisfied with the results, leading songs to be scrapped or rewritten, but half-way through recording Kay wrote ‘Space Cowboy’, a song which reflects darker times during the recording session, and it became the catalyst of creative inspiration helping them finish the record. On this 30th anniversary edition of the album Space Cowboy gets a modern dance makeover courtesy of DJ Michael Gray, shedding new light on the track and emphasising it’s already infectious groove.
The album built on the success of ‘Emergency On Planet Earth’ and Jamiroquai have become one of the UK’s most pioneering and ground breaking bands of the past 30 years. Pushing boundaries and bringing jazz and funk to a mainstream audience, their sound is not only unique, but immediately recognisable.
Rag’n’Bone Man is ready to accept joy into his life. Born Rory Charles Graham, the Sussex-born singer known for his gravelly blues vocals, took the world by storm with his debut album ‘Human’ in 2016. Now multi award-winning, the British vocalist is embracing newfound balance, returning to his creative foundations while building anew.
It’s the most vital chapter to date in one of British music’s defining stories. A truth-telling voice that has framed an era, Rag’n’Bone Man’s success speaks for itself: his debut album ‘Human’ went platinum four times over in the UK and multi-platinum in a further twenty-seven countries - becoming the fastest selling male debut album that decade. While his latest release ‘Life By Misadventure’ debuted at #1 and spent seven weeks in the Top 10, making it the fastest-selling album by a solo artist in 2021. With over nine-billion worldwide streams (and counting) over his entire catalogue, Rag’n’Bone Man is a voice that can be heard across the globe. Now he’s ready to eclipse this: assured, and built with love, his uplifting new album “What Do You Believe In?” finds the multi award-winning British artist (with three BRITs, two MTV Europe awards, and an Ivor Novello to his name) facing the future with passionate excitement.
‘What Do You Believe In?’ is anchored in the blossoming of confidence and the enduring support network he finds in family life. It’s taken time, but Rag’n’Bone Man is in a secure, loving place - and he wants to share that feeling. The period surrounding second album, 2021’s ‘Life By Misadventure’, was marked by self-doubt, with troubles weighing down on the singer’s shoulders – but then things changed - As a result, new album ‘What Do You Believe In?’ has a bold, yet radiant touch.
With the pairing of the poignant and ubiquitous themes and the sonic brightness of both 00s hip-hop and the youthful memories they prompt, the release of the albums title track ‘What Do You Believe In?’ sets the tone for the for the thrilling musical journey Rag’s is preparing to take fans on.
The second volume in the "Lisztogrooves" series from Igor Gonya's label Lisztomania is packed with both heavy hitters and emerging talents. Across both sides of the vinyl, you'll find some exceptional tracks, starting with Manuel Sahagun's slick deep house groove "Get Yourself." There's also a taste of US house from Human By Nature, enriched with a rich atmosphere and 90's piano riffs. The A-side concludes with a high-energy, uptempo jackin' filter workout from Serbian mainstay and the MTV Europe Music Awards winner Gramophonedzie. The B-side offers a more stripped-back yet deep and solid groove. French producer Naux builds his arrangement around chord stabs, which serve as the foundation of the track. Stogov delivers a soul-drenched, late-night cruiser with "Walking Wide," while JR From Dallas and Justnique close out the EP with a perfectly seductive slice of deep house, complete with smooth chord work and warm, sneaky vibes. This is another hugely effective and stylish release.
Remastered reissue of this seminal EP by Speedy J originally released on Detroit's Plus 8 records. Taking his inspiration from the early Detroit and Chicago imports that landed on the Dutch coast in the late 80's Speedy J ended up creating a classic that innovated and embodied the raw energy of the then still emerging sound of Techno. After all these years this is the very first repress of this landmark release!
Tim Bourne gets the sub-label rolling with a hard-hitting four-track release!
The Bali-based producer leaps head-first into concocting the sounds he knows and loves best, resulting in an ornate collection that gleams on the dancers as they blossom through the late hours.
The Allergies return to their 100% sample-heavy roots, with a reworked slice of dancefloor friendly Southern soul on 'Knock Me Off My Feet'. Flipping a much sought-after 45 from the late-sixties, they take an already pumping Motown-influenced arrangement and bolt on fat drums, beefy bass, percussion and horns, taking it further than the OG band could ever imagine.
'Let Me Hear You Say' on the b-side takes us way back to New York club scene of the early 80s. Re-working old school MC chants over strutting disco loops, this finger-snapping slice of retro realness is packed with sleek and slinky grooves, and a beat that won't quit.
A sense of destiny hangs over Sentir Que No Sabes, Mabe Fratti’s fourth solo-credited album released in a five year span. Her work has always possessed a finely tuned sense of drama capable of expressing a range of emotional states, and across this new album, she conveys the struggle to process various relationships or situations–and the actions that come next. Sentir Que No Sabes is urgent and clear, poppy, generous and approachable, while showcasing a considerable emotional hinterland. It is also, as Fratti is quick to mention, “groovy.”
Written and recorded with her partner, multi-instrumentalist, and co-composer Héctor Tosta (I.La Católica, Titanic), Sentir Que No Sabes is the result of an intense, detail-oriented process. Fueled by a new confidence gained in their collaborative project, Titanic, and its critically acclaimed 2023 LP, Vidrio, the two hunkered down in the familiarity of their studio (aka Tinho Studios) to bash out the initial sonic coordinates of her new record. “We talked and talked, and discussed ways of playing and recording, until things became inevitable,” Fratti explains. “We recorded a bunch of demos at our home studio and that meant we had a lot of time to re-edit and experiment. We really dug in. We were super focused on detail.” Tosta also took up the controls as producer and arranger-in-chief for all additional instruments. The album was later completed at Willem Twee Studios in Den Bosch in the Netherlands, and Pedro y el Lobo Studios and Soy Sauce Studios, in Mexico City.
For the final studio recordings, the pair were joined by drummer Gibran Andrade and trumpetist Jacob Wick to fill out and expand on Tosta’s percussion and brass arrangements. This small group of friends were able to work quickly and openly, and without fear: a testament to the exhaustive groundwork put in at Tinho Studios. This can be heard in three short, intermediary tracks that also manage to be the most aggressive on the record: “Kitana” (a scratch-laden instrumental that acts as a strange prelude for the last track, “Angel nuevo”) and a pair of two-minute instrumental interludes, “Elastica” I and II. None are throwaway mood pieces; rather they act as emotional cue cards, and hint at the way Fratti and Tosta created the overall atmosphere of Sentir Que No Sabes.
A strong sense of rhythm irrigates the sound from the jump, as heard on the glorious opening track, “Kravitz.” Here, the brilliant plucked cello line acts as a bassline and props up the steady thump of the kick drum. The cello’s growl serves as a conduit for a set of slightly paranoid lyrics that tell us “Quizás haya oídos en el techo” (“maybe there are ears in the ceiling”), while the song also introduces another staple of the record: the clever brass stabs, whistles, parps, and other interjections that paint a canvas of traffic in a city. It’s a postmodern, widescreen sound that for some might recall The Blue Nile’s Hats.
Sentir Que No Sabes is a record full to the brim with a modern pop sensibility, invoked by the sort of magpie spirit that ensnares anything it can find, repositioning sounds for the here and now. The keys and melody on the melancholy “Pantalla azul” (“Blue screen error”) transport us back to the glossy mid-1980s. “Oídos” (“Ears”) is a beautiful slice of contemporary, hybrid pop, in which Fratti’s vocal lines delicately spin themselves around the lean structures erected by the brass and drums, and the descending “plink” of a set of piano chords. Then we have a gloriously strong ending with the swell of “Angel nuevo” (“New angel”), another cinematic track full of gentle, instrument-rich swells and eddies that manages to be almost endless in its range–and yet intensely personal, as Fratti’s voice is close, almost whispering in your ear. A much needed lullaby for our fractious times.
The lyrics, for their part, have a stop-start quality to them, and hint at the small, incremental emotional taxes we pay through just living our lives. They circle around the music like birds waiting to swoop. There is something of the spiritual in all of Fratti’s work that expresses itself in a form of yearning: she looks to new horizons while personal dramas find themselves internalized, contextualized, and then dealt with through metaphor. Here, she was keen to mention Tosta’s constant encouragement in her finding a path to best sing or phrase her words to impart their maximum effect. “Hector was super inquisitive about my lyrics and asked me questions about what I meant, which sometimes is something you don't wonder so much about in isolation,” Fratti explains. “Besides, he is a great poet, and you can see that in what he did on the Titanic record. This made me go deeper into my lyric writing and definitely transformed it into something that I feel super happy about now.”
Take “Enfrente” (“In Front”), a track that initially comes across as a languid, glossy number, with plucked cello strings standing in for a bass line and brittle synth parts. Soon we catch on to a brilliant minor chord switch, which mirrors the fear and doubt expressed in the lyrics as someone “trembles up to the podium” in a “search for meaning.” There’s also the startling introduction of a vocoder in “Quieras o no” (“Whether you want it or not”); it comes precisely at the point Fratti sings “Quieras o no es un desastre” (“Whether you want it or not, it's a disaster”). Moments like these leave room for interpretation and, over time, create a strong bond between the listener and the record.
In fact, across Sentir Que No Sabes, each phrase–whether instrumental or vocal–becomes at some level emblematic of acts and moods that impart deep emotional significance. We see this best on “Intento fallido” (“Failed attempt”), which could be the score to feeling trapped in self-doubt, only to suddenly be sprung free by the song’s gloriously upbeat ending. On “Márgen del índice” (“Index margin”), the quicksilver switch between initial disharmony and a beautiful melody is breathtaking, all augmented by evocative arrangements, textured production, and the slightly playful, gnomic lyrics. The track’s emotional ecosystem allows another brilliant ending, which uses the simple repeated phrase, “Cómo lo va a ver?” (“How are you going to see it?”).
So what to make of Sentir Que No Sabes? High gloss Pastoralism? The sound of a city-bound, post-post modern soulscape? No matter the emotions evoked, it's the work of an artist coming into their own, and creating a benchmark record.
DJ Support: Massimiliano Pagliara, Lauren Lo Sung, Make A Dance, ADMNTi, Jeremy Sylvester, Locky, SUCHI, Daisy Moon, Martyn Bootyspoon, Storm Mollison
Beeyou Records proudly presents False Promises, the latest EP from Dennis Quin, an artist known for his timeless, soul-moving House music.
First up on the A side Reactivate delivers a high-energy garage vibe with punchy basslines and crisp percussion. This is then followed by Diamond Hunting is a bumpy 4x4 track that works on every dancefloor.
Flipping on the B side Dennis opens up with Accidentally that blends classic House grooves with playful modern production, followed by False Promises (Original Mix) bounces with a lovely vocal and vibrant House energy. The EP finishes off with Well Conducted a track that howcases Dennis’ other styles with a downtempo, chilled vibe.
After an extensive catalog of digital deep, minimal and tech house releases, Mole Music makes its debut in the realm of vinyl with a fresh selection of dancefloor weapons from a fine array of artists, each offering their unique takes on deep house, tech, and minimal sounds. The A-side kicks off with JHNS "Nevermind", a minimalistic, low-end heavyweight groove driven by rubbery drums and a tight bassline. Steve End & Colau follow with a silky late-night hypnotic track, while El Funkador closes the A-side with an uplifting, drum-shuffling deep house cut, complete with funky synths and chord progressions. On the B-side, "Night Strobe", a collaboration between Alben, LAJE, and Erratic, brings a retro-futuristic feel with a fast-paced, garage-tinged vibe. This sets the stage for HOT DLVRY's "Friction", a thumping deep groove led by spacious chords and keys, all anchored by an analog bassline. To round off this well-balanced compilation, Craftsmanship delivers a warm, humid deep house sound featuring bold chords and punchy drums - one of the defining motifs of this standout EP.
