Review: Here two of Situationism's compilation strands combine: 2up 2down, which focuses on high-grade deep house, and the In The Bag series of floor-friendly catalogue favourites. There's naturally plenty to get the blood pumping throughout, from the thrillingly off-kilter Afro-house rhythms of Mike Agent X Clark's 'My Journey Thru Afroism', and Javontte's sensational recent single 'Soul People', to the sparkling synths of BRS's 'Chance Not Choice' and the rushing, jazz guitar-flecked summer house swelter of Groovement Inc's 'Firstdraw'. Further highlights come courtesy of Bittersuite, who swap broken beat for jazz-funk fired deep house on 'Curbed Communications', and Ourra, whose 'Can't You See' is a brilliantly bouncy and bumpin' slab of early morning goodness.
Review: A split EP here from West Country nu-disco stalwarts Situation's Situationism label, with Birmingham's Danny Kane and Brussels crew Groovement Inc supplying a track apiece and BRS (also sometimes known as British Rhythm Services) remixing both. This fairly extensive list of cooks have come up with a broth that most definitely isn't spoiled, and that's actually remarkably coherent: all four tracks operate in the same kind of hazy, blissed-out soulful house territory as Dave Lee's The Sunburst Band, with 'Whispers' featuring a female vocal and 'Hxl' biting a chunk from a David Bowie interview. Classy stuff that will repay repeated listening.
Review: The idea behind Situationism's new "2Up2Down" series is devilishly simple. Each volume contains two tracks a piece from a pair of artists, in the case of this debut release West Country stalwarts BRS and Brighton-based Frenchman L'Aroye (real name Thomas Arroyo). It's the latter who kicks things off with "Best Girfriends (Soulful Mix)", a superb, gospel-sampling number that adds layers of rich instrumentation to a wonderfully bumping beat. Arroyo returns later in the EP with a groove-based Dub Mix that wisely makes more of his ear-catching synth stabs and the killer bassline. BRS's "Chance Not Choice" is a little more loose-limbed and synth-heavy than some of their cuts, sitting somewhere between proto-house, electro and deep house. Frank Situation's accompanying remix smartly re-casts it as a sprightly chunk of synth-heavy nu-disco.
Review: Is there a more on-form label right now than Boogie Cafe The Bristol-based imprint is certainly in a rich vein of form, as this second compilation of previously unheard treats proves. In fact, it's such a fabulous collection of cuts that singling out just a few tracks for praise is particularly tough. Even so, our current favourites include the slinky, synth-laden deep house/jazz-funk fusion of BRS's "Get In There", the drowsy downtempo hip-hop beats of Chezz's "Yeah Baby", the late '80s New Jersey garage revivalism of Goshawk's "Got You All Night", the Seiji style broken beat business that is Lord Leopard's "Magic Hands" and the Latin-fired disco-house bump of J Morrison's "Mullet Frenzy".
Review: Calling all 21st Century funkateers: you need this record in your life! 'Check It Out' finds BRS serving up a very authentic-sounding homage to sleazy, squelchy 70s funk, complete with liquid geetar licks, a lightly Latin-tinged stop-start rhythm and "check it out!" female shouts, while Groovement comes with a remix that's a little more overtly house-ified but keeps the headnodding, Blaxploitation vibe intact. Conjuring visions of stack-heeled, purple-suited hustlers hawking sherm sticks around Times Square circa 1975, this is one to check even if - especially if - much of Situationism's other output is a little on the "light and polite" side for you.
Review: West country veterans BRS have been going since the daw of the millennium, so it's perhaps unsurprising that their latest superb single sounds a little like some of the material they released on labels like Imperial Dub and Cyclo 20 years ago. "Night To Remember" has a distinctly hazy, dubbed-out San Francisco deep house feel to it, with jazzy guitar solos, liqujid bass guitar, enveloping chords and sultry female vocal snippets all catching the ear. It's terrific all told, as is the accompanying remix by Bittersuite. This is, if anything, even deeper and warmer, with a greater emphasis on echoing synth riffs and hypnotic grooves. In a word: essential.
Review: It appears that contemporary DJs and label owners are finally twigging that BRS made some killer deep house in the early 2000s. Here, Wolf Music serves up a freshly remastered reissue of 2003 EP "Spring Dom", which follows hot on the heels of Situationism's new edition of outstanding 2000 cut "Lovin' Me". It remains a superb collection of cuts, with the bumpin' UK garage-influenced/San Francisco deep house fusion of "Clubtronic" and the more analogue-rich "Miss You" being joined by the wonderful dub house/piano house/boogie fusion of title track "Spring Dom". This time round, there's also a fresh remix of the latter cut, with Wolf Music regular Medlar re-casting it as an all-action chunk of boogie and electro-tinged proto-house goodness.
Review: Third time around for BRS's deep house classic "Lovin' Me", which first appeared on Dubtribe Sound System's Imperial Dub imprint way back at the turn of the millennium. Speaking of Dubtribe, the San Francisco duo's brilliant remix - a near perfect fusion of Idjuts style, delay-laden percussion hits, dub disco bass, echoing vocal samples and rich chords - takes pride of place on this Situationism reissue. Then follows a slick and sumptuous late night soulfulness of Harley & Muscle's overlooked 2006 rework. Speaking of soul, check the brilliant positivity of Bitasuite's remix (taken from the same '06 Peng reissue), which effortlessly joins the dots between British deep house, modern soul and New Jersey garage. finally, UK edit maestro Situation himself pulls up his sleeves to conclude this essential to have EP.
Review: In conjunction with the London based label celebrating its eighth birthday, Wolf Music return to the various artist format that sees them releasing forgotten gems and exclusive tracks from label mates. BRS' "Bouncing" was originally released back in 2000 on Sunshine Jones' Imperial Dub and is a firm favourite of the label for many years now. They see it as an opportunity to introduce it to a new generation of record buyers. Slovakia's Paradiso Rhythm self released "Greetings & Salutations" early in 2016 but Wolf have reissued it because it is, in their own words a 'killer record in every way.' Also of note: Ishmael & Medlar supply a collaboration recorded last year at the Red Bull studios and finally an updated version of KRL's "I Wanna Be With You" that was originally released on WOLFEP003.
Review: 10 years on from its initial release, Groove Armada's contribution to the Anotherlatenight series gets a new lease of life. For those searching for deep, downtempo and vaguely Balearic fare, it's well worth a look. While Groove Armada's mix is enjoyable enough, it's the unmixed tracks that are most worthy of attention. Amongst the familiar classics (Kleer's boogie classic "Tonight", Mr Fingers' "Can You Feel It" and Metro Area's "Muira"), you'll find hot curiosities from the likes of Shuggie Otis (the decidedly acid-fried "Strawberry Letter 23"), Loose Ends ("Feel The Vibe"), Good Together (forgotten super-deep house jam "Work It Out") and Don Ray (the heady disco grooves of "Standing In The Rain").
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