Endless Flight Japan At Juno Download

Review: The reinvention of former nu-disco producer Maelstrom continues apace, as he drops his second EP of early 90s house jams for Endless Flight under the Arthur James Denton moniker. "An Odyssey" looks further back for inspiration. The lead track fuses the early deep house sounds of Nu Groove with a dash of original Chicago acid, resulting in something that's but rough and glisteningly smooth. "Loon" pairs Lone-ish revivalism with DJ Gregory style Afro-house, whilst Legowelt weighs in with a shimmering remix of the title track. His version is gloriously Balearic - think Nacho Patrol on Red Bull, and you're close.

Review: Sometimes taking on a new pseudonym can be just the fillip an artist needs to create his best work. That's arguably the case here, as the Glaswegian formerly known as Maelstrom reinvents himself with a delicious two-tracker for Endless Flight. Where his previous releases - and those on his Solardisco label - flitted around the edges of nu-disco and nu-Balearica, these tracks are raw, heavy, druggy slabs of late night 90s US house. Both "Lost In The Dance" and "In Vision" rock hard, working a selection of bass-heavy grooves, riffs and samples that should cause ructions in dark basements and dimly lit warehouses the world over. Bravo!

Review: Endless Flight slip out this gem of a debut from Combo with little to no fanfare, which is odd because it's probably their most potent dancefloor weapon since last year's mammoth "Swept Away" from Mark Seven. "Stocktown" is no doubt a homage to Combo's hometown Stockholm and lifts a healthy melodic portion from a Lovin Spoonful classic - but it's how this piano refrain is worked into a modern beatdown house rhythm that really impresses. This is guaranteed to kill it every time! Up next Combo twists the track inside out via the Downtown version that discards with the pianos in favour of a mind-warping acid lead that combines perfectly with the low gravity bass rumble. Proceedings are finished in fine form with the 90s leaning vocal bomb "Uptown". Serious business!

Review: Last Waltz is just one creative outlet for a North East collective whose fingers are also in party throwing and record releasing pies via the nomadic Dada warehouse events and the fledgling Objects Of Distraction imprint respectively (we suspect a few meat pies may be handled by them too). After taking the helm with the debut release on Objects Of Distraction late last year, the trio behind Last Waltz score a real coup in turning up on the ever excellent Endless Flight label. "Tangiers" deftly showcases how Last Waltz have fed creatively off the many strands of dance music covered at the Dada events, adopting a smudgy Balearic poise and bristling with cosmic undertones throughout. It's complemented by a typically slow burning remix from Preston's finest, Cottam, which implements one of his trademark stutter house rhythms amidst well chosen elements of the original and features a gloriously gaseous analogue wobble.

Review: It's rather hard to pin down US production outfit Strategy, and particularly their odd but alluring take on house music. Take "The Fixer"; while it bubbles, pulses and grooves to almost jackin' analogue percussion, its chiming melodies, carefully-chosen guitar and bass samples and cute synth touches suggest both Norwegian dub-disco (see Prins Thomas etc) and classic Italo-disco. The weirdly glacial "Another Rain", meanwhile, sonically references both early 80s alternative rock and experimental kraut-disco, yet it starts off feeling like a lost Julio Bashmore production. It's house, Jim, but not as we know it - and all the better for it. If you enjoy alt-house, The Fixer is a must.

Review: As collaborations go, this is more than a little tasty. It sees former Chicken Lips man Dean Meredith don his Rhythm Odyssey alter ego for a delay-laden hoedown with New York's finest, Eric 'Dr Dunks' Duncan (he of Rub N Tug fame). Given both producers' fondness for dub disco and raw Chicagoan jack tracks, "Zoo-Ma-City" was always likely to be a sweaty late night beast designed to wreak havoc in dimly-lit basements the world over. It's all that and more - a fearsome dubwise acid jacker full of hissing hi-hats and snappy snares, built around a rock solid analogue bassline and twisted vocal samples. File under "delightfully grubby".