Review: Bristol's Shall Not Fade presents this awesome DJ mix by label staple Carlo. The Berlin-based producer serves up several of his own jams amongst some of the label's biggest hits (and near misses!) across 12 tracks. Highlights include Cologne's Djoko with the lo-slung minimal of "Lost In Time", Tilman's disco-tined deep house groove "Say Good Bye", as well as the dream team of Marcel Vogel, Alexandre Arslan & Tim Jules serving up some proper late-night mood music on "If You Don't Love" and ending with KaySoul & Gustavo Martinez's sensual and evocative "Africanus".
Review: Black Loops may well be amongst the most prolific production outfits around - the Italian pair has released over 30 singles and EPs over the last 9 years - but they're quality level never seems to dip. For proof, check their latest three-tracker. Opener 'Proto/Emotions' is simply delicious: a gorgeous, sun-kissed slab of post-boogie/pre-house loveliness in which sun-soaked chords, drifting melodies and starry electronics rise above a tactile, turn-of-the-90s Italian house bassline and tough machine drums. 'Don't Think About It' is a more bumpin' chunk of retro-futurist late-night deep house, while 'Ballo De Solo' is a dreamy, breakbeat-driven chunk of Balearic deep house wooziness.
Review: While it may have been designed to reflect the evolving nature of the label's sound over the last half-decade, Shall Not Fade's fifth anniversary compilation is nevertheless packed to the rafters with previously unheard treats. It begins with a techno-tempo blast of garage-influenced deep house warmth from DJOKO and ends with the dark, squelching and ghostly bounce of Dart's 'Transformations'; in between, you'll find 19 more reasons to be cheerful with plenty of serious dancefloor chops. Undisputed highlights include the crunchy, head-nodding pleasure of GVRL's instrumental hip-hop jam 'Love Game', the angular and acid spiked tech-breaks of Harrison BDP's 'The Powerful Play', the drowsy deep house dreaminess of Mutual Attraction's 'MPC Live Track 1' and the rushing rave revivalism of Baltra's killer re-fix of Earth Boys' 'I'm Not Afraid'.
Review: Ibiza institution Cafe Mambo needs little introduction. Starting as a sunset hangout, it soon became a perfect venue for the island's pre-parties and has developed an iconic status worldwide. It has served up thousands of sunsets since it first opened it's doors in 1994 and here's Sunset to Afterdark: an expertly crafted collection compiled by the team behind the successful Future Disco series and Needwant label. This one takes you from those unforgettable sunsets to, like the name suggests, the nighttime where things really heat up. If there is one essential soundtrack required this summer, this is it. Highlights not limited to: Zero 7's sublime drifter "Last Light", Dutch trio Kraak & Smaak's emotive and bittersweet little ditty "Stumble" (Blue Hotel Mix) through to the gorgeous remix of Tempelhof & Gigi Masin's "Blue 13" by Declasse main man Steve Coby. There's even a bit of slinky and uptempo tech house from hot UK duo Dusky. Comes with two continuous mixes for your convenience: Sunset and Afterdark, naturally.
Review: The second volume in Toy Tonics' occasional Jockey Jams series is something of a gift to DJs. Although naturally rooted in deep house, each of the showcased tracks offers something distinctively different. So, while Felipe Gordon's "Rinogal" is an funk-fuelled house bumper built around an elastic, acid-fired synth bassline and trippy late night effects, Metropolitan Soul Museum's "Saab" is a delicate, warm-up friendly fusion of lilting synths, bubbly electronics and the kind of twinkling pianos frequently found on vintage Italian dream house records. The eclecticism continues elsewhere, too, from the Adonis-via-Rimini thrills of Jacky Mingo's wonderfully positive "Brothers Cup", to the jazzy warmth of Black Loops and analogue house bleeps of Jad's "Overpriced Kaiser Chips".
Review: Berlin's Toy Tonics latest trick is Jockey Jams, the first in an 'irregular series of various artist EPs'. They've rustled up an interesting mix too, starting with the warm mid-paced throb of "Sex' by Black Loops, which features the voice of Scarlett Johansen (from the movie Her). Elsewhere "Waterfalls" by Moritz Butschek, which has that sleazy DJ Hell sound, Portugal's Pixel82 sees his diva house jam Going On given a choppy, hypnotic rework by Australian surfer dude Jad & The Ladyboy. Lastly New York's Doug Gomez wraps things up nicely with the clavinet-driven old school funk joint "Make Your Body Move".
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