Serious collab business as Simon Splice returns to his Exile alias for two big old bruisers on DJ Hybrid's Audio Addict. 'Rattle Speaker' sees him linking with the ubiquitous Manchester MC, man like Madrush for a stripped back and spiky thumper that's all gritty and growling. Deeper again we slurp down some premium uncut jungle juice as Exile links with the bossman DJ Hybrid for 'Junglist Sound'. Expect nothing but high grade bubbly subs and breezy detuned synth tones. Vibes for miles.
The 10th release from Javi Frias' Night Shift label comes from Ibiza-based Solazz, who serves up four very solid disco/funk jams. 'Work It Out' kicks things off in decidedly Rick James-esque mode, before 'Time's Burning' takes us down a slightly more soulful route while rocking a 'Disco's Revenge'-like bassline. 'Roller Skate INC' comes next and calls to mind Vaughan Mason & Crew's 'Bounce, Rock, Skate, Roll', before finally we come to the title track, the unsurprisingly Afro-inspired 'Highlife Music'. Whether these four cuts should be framed as re-edits or original productions isn't entirely clear, but there's no doubting their dancefloor appeal.
Masters of melodic, atmospheric and - whisper it quietly - progressive house music All Day I Dream can always be relied upon to deliver the goods, especially on their twice-yearly 'sampler' compilations. The imprint's latest volume, the fourth winter-themed set in total, is another expansive, action-packed affair featuring no less than 16 cuts capable of warming the cockles of your heart. After starting with an ear-pleasing chunk of bouncy, tuneful sonic bliss from Sebastien Leger and Tim Green, the set confidently rolls between richly percussive deep house warmth (LEGATO, Double Touch), hazy early morning wooziness (Zone+), glassy-eyed vocal loveliness (David Orin), fluid broken house (Padre) tech-tinged, dubbed-out hypnotism (Ramiro Drisdale).
A truly outstanding 100th release on FORM Music, French techno veteran POPOF celebrates the milestone by bringing together some of the biggest names in electronic music to remix his iconic 2009 anthem "Serenity". Esteemed German production duo Booka Shade bring their idiosyncratic sound into the mix on their splendid rework, the one and only Vitalic brings the power on his truly roaring rendition, while Grenoble's finest Oxia hands in a soothing minimal/tech house perspective which is generous on the melody, and Pig&Dan close it out with their breakbeat fuelled version that's perfect for those heads-down moments on the dancefloor.
Following on from releasing a brace of EPs last year - including a fine collaborative release with Flug on Drumcode - Dubfire teams up again with a like-minded artist for his first material of 2022. Issued on IPSO, which has already hosted collaborations between Kolsch and luminaries like Michael Mayer, Sasha and Tiga, Ulm is a one-track release that shines majestically. Powered by dubbed out beats and hissing percussive textures, the track's centrepiece is the shimmering synth line that swathes the arrangement in a swirling tapestry of melodies. Working with Kolsch has revealed a deeper side to Dubfire's sound, which he will hopefully interrogate further this year.
First featured on long-serving British band Osibisa's 2021 album New Dawn, 'Yo Luv is Betta' is a glistening, life-affirming chunk of Afro-soul cheeriness rich in shuffling, Tony Allen style drums, sparkling High-Life guitars and warming horns. Who better to remix it, then, than Masters at Work man Louie Vega? He joins forces with Josh Milan on a handful of fine revisions, including the deliciously percussive Afro-house bounce of the pair's main remix and a 'Celebration Mix' that sticks more closely to the band's original version (which, frustratingly, isn't featured on this remix set). Vega's own musically detailed, Sitar-sporting 'NYC Expansions Dub' and a variety of instrumental revisions make up a rock-solid package.
