Review:
Breakbeat Paradise instigate another funk quest... But if you follow them for more than a minute you'll know the funk never left them. Label founder Badboe takes the lead, working a Bussa Bus vocal over a warm upbeat summer jam groove. Father Funk follows with a Natisni vocal and a '70s-style Lalo Schifrin OST groove. Dig deeper for piano-pumping diva-driven soul on Timothy Wisdom's "Bad Mother" and a superior EP-closing ode to Grand Puba via Tom Showtime. Brought the funk back recently?
Review:
Got your freak flag? Well fly it high, baby, Tru Funk are kicking off the year with five slick and simple nu funk nuggets that ooze sample magic while riding with their own original flavour. Label newcomer Bezum ignites proceedings with a fruity flute jam while Father Funk follows in hot pursuit on a smoother west coast style attitude and a very sneaky vocal sample. Funkanizer provide the halftime sounds with a wah-wah guitar-snapping block party joint while Robinson Groove and Telephunken bring up the rear, the former boasting a flute-fuelled p-funk homage, the latter a brazen Hammond basher. Each one of them will set your floor off in style.
Review:
However many new directions dance music goes in, there will always be a place for simple-but-effective bootleg mash-ups of familiar grooves and hip-hop acapellas. To be fair to the Booty Fruit camp, they do it better than most, offering reworks that balance dancefloor playability with a tasteful approach to production. There's a distinct hip-hop feel throughout, with Roast Beatz's harmonica-laden Beasties booty "Hick Stick" and Livingstone & Conosis' bumpin' "Tuna Salad" - a Charli 2na rework - standing out. Check also the head-nodding disco-skank of El Bomba and Hidden Riddim's "Miss Discoflex".
Review:
An EP that really does live up to its name: Everything about Father Funk's first full EP for Scour genuinely is phenomenal. Bursting at the seams with a full flavoured rainbow of grooves, we're spoilt for choice: the Bootsy-level chaos of "Love Shack", the Cuban heel clicking fiesta fire "Gringo Lingo", the surprisingly salubrious disco licks of "Filthy" and, of course, the Van Helden salute that is the title track. "Phenomenal Funk" = phenomenally funky. More please daddio.
Review:
After signing with legendary agency and former label Finger Lickin', Father Funk quickly became one of the biggest names in breakbeat and ghetto funk. Fresh off the back of two Canada tours earlier this year and the 1st anniversary of his own successful Bristol based night 'Father Funk's Church of Love', the father has cemented himself as one of the freshest taste makers in the UK right now. Taking huge inspiration from the disco and funk sounds of the 70's and 80's, this debut record is the first full release that is completely original and free from his best-known sampling work. It captures the energy of the funk and soul golden years whilst combining it with modern dance music and disco culture, not sticking to one particular genre. With over three years in the making the father has been able to collaborate with some of the freshest names in the scene, including London rap duo Too Many T's, Ghetto Funk legends WBBL and Slynk, Canadian hip hop group Illvis Freshly and neo-soul singer Hilary Beckett.
Review:
Pater party starter Father Funk shows us who's the daddy with four more slinky, sample-soaked nu-funk jams. Ranging from the ballsy swing of "Jungle Strut" to the more salubrious, well-oiled slinks and winks of "Start Movin'", once again FF's EP lives up to its title in every way... Climaxing with a smoky-eyed shake up of Dusty Springfield's "Spooky". Sexy.
Review:
When most daddies get home, you know you're in for it over some misdemeanour or other. Not this one, when he gets home it's all about the party. Father Funk wouldn't know deep or dark music if it came up and slapped him in the face Tango-style. Instead he does what he does best, like here where he presents five fruity, happy tunes to make us all forget our woes. Some of our faves include the buzzy-electro-bas-and-go-go-beats of the title track, the frantic funk workout of "Block Party" and the 80s soul-sampling hip-house sing-a-long "Soul City".
Review:
After Father Funk positioned his place as a serious contender for Funk Therapy's best new artist, he teams up with Bear Twists for an absolutely rocking episode of electro-heavy badness! The pair first roll out "Love Is The Answer", an absolutely rocking bass nugget, followed by the "Disco Biscuits" itself, a broken beat groove with nothing but funk dripping from its off-kilter flex. "Flutter" is a slower, bleepy head-nodder that certainly nods to the downtempo moments, and "Child's Play" comes through with the veritable jazz vibes, strumming those riffs and blasting those horns to fill us with that inimitable FriYAY feeling..!
Review:
Booty Fruit goes in for the kill on the second helping of the Cherry Bomb series, a twisted fusion of boogie breaks, sample-heavy chops and house-flavoured grooves. This time it's Roast Beatz, El Bomba and Father Funk who teams up to spray the madness out in full effect. If you're into the combination disco, funky and breaks, then look no further...
Review:
Swiss booty dealers Tremendo launch a new series and the title says it all. The label's established funk sound is still in abundance, but it rolls with a heavier bass twist. In some places the low end urgency is more obvious than others - DJ Soo and Tim Livingstone's earworm bassline rips through "Boom!" with true musical mischief while Father Funk's "Feel The Beat Y'All" is less dirty and more cheeky with its classic swing motifs and occasional wobbles. Elsewhere we hear Jayl Funk pay homage to classic 60s funk, Trotters and Telephunken munching on raw squidgy bass and El Bomba getting all slinky and sexy. Get dirty.
Review:
Bringing new levels of heat to the nu-funk fire, Rise Above returns with three more surefire party ruckuses. WBBL kicks off with a pitch-perfect update of Bomb The Bass's "Bug Powder Dust" on "Buggin", Sammy Senior looks further back and taps into the deepest pool of classic jams with a savage bass-scorched "Sweet Funk", and finally X Ray Ted closes the show with a cool homage to Al Jarreau, complete with a cameo from Mr Biggie Smalls himself. New blood? Bloody great, more like.
