Review: Known for his cheeky sample art, Mr Bird has delivered serious party vibes with every release so far. The cheekily titled "Champignon Sound" is less of a floor jammer and more of a mood setter with what could quite possibly be a low-swung, head nodding homage to Mark Farina's Mushroom Jazz project. The end result is a super smooth vibe that's perfect for headphones and warm ups alike. If you need more pep then jump on Jayl Funk's slapbasstastic remix that comes complete with a flutter of flutes. DJ Tzinas' remix pays respect to Bird's original vibe but with more jazz sensibility. There's plenty more we could write about this release but there's not mushroom left to fit the text!
Review: Budapest beat conjurers MustBeat tether up 21 of the finest remixes they've commissioned over the past four years. The end result is a widescreen romp that explores - and consequently tickles - every nook, corner and cranny of funk's thick-shag underbelly. From the swampy glitch dub of Sammy Senior's remix of "Unreality" to the sunshine skanks and crisp nylon string plucks of Niles Philips' take on "Cop Dat Shit" via the midrange squiggles and sweaty swagger of Trotter's twist on "Supernature", there's a clear consistency and clarity on this package that's seldom seen on a remix collection. A neat testament to the label's toil and great opportunity to fill any gaps in your collection.
Review: Hailing from Newcastle upon Tyne, Steve Bird AKA Mr. Bird is the latest artist to land at Matasuna Records' nest. The label is run by the DJ / producer Alex from the SoulBrigada crew out of Zurich, in Switzerland. Beginning with the sweltering spiritual life music of "Dance Away" (feat Chief Commander Yaaba) this takes it cues from exactly the kind of Afrobeat we like! As does the splendid soul funk explosion of "Floating Funk" - now that definitely needed an edit! Well played too. He then merges said Afro aesthetics with the classic sounds of The Windy City's deep on the evocative jam "The Sasquatch" while "Carnival Beat" lives up to its name: working those funky and hypnotic Angolan polyrhythms that rise into a right frenzy. Bird has been based in Lisbon, Portugal for the last seven years and has released four albums and many other digital releases - including the album 'Low-Fi Classics' which was released by BBE Music in July 2014.
Review: Aptly described by British producer Mr Bird as "rollerboogiespacediscofunk", latest tune "Skate Dancer" is indeed a b-boy banger that takes in a wide-range of influences - right down to the Funkadelic-esque group chorus. With some excellent boogie/cosmic funk remixes included from Azaxx, DJ Unite and B-Dub, this is a must for fans of hip-hop production and classic '70s funk.
Review: There are plenty of words to describe producer Mr Bird and most of them are variants of the word 'funky'. This guy lives and breathes funky music, particularly re-edits and bootlegs. This newie features three different mixes of the one vocal funk track, "Everybody Knows". The original, "Nobody", is laid back 70s-style funk with fresh, modern production. The "Rambolage Space Is The Place mix", is a livelier outing with disco claps, bouncing bassline and luscious strings, and finally the Bird dub mix is a tweaked instrumental of the "Nobody mix".
Review: A nu-funk remix of The Mommas & The Poppas' "California Dreaming". Just writing those words seems preposterous. But trust us, Tim McVicar's take on the 60s hippy classic really works! Squidgy bass and chop-slapping beats a-go-go, by the end of the summer it will be illegal not to play this in BBQ and beach sets. Law will also be upheld on anyone not exploiting the utterly funky charms of the other three cuts. DJ Tiznas & Mr BiGK's take on Kenny Dope and Screechy Dan's "Boomin In Ya Jeep" is like Fatboy Slim circa 98, Dedy Dread & Mr Bird take Missy Elliot into Hammond organ heaven while Mr Fresh's "SOUL" is a trip head nod so heavy it falls over into massive sticky pile of jazz.
Review: Savages T Suefo are a larger than life Hungarian duo who recently saw their work remixed on one collection. Now, to address the balance we get another collection, Remixes Y Reworks, which sees the very best SYS remixes of others compiled onto one album. There is a whopping 15 tracks on here with plenty of thrills and spills included. Some of our faves being the sassy rag-time strut of "Wonder" by Anima Sound System, the slinky worldbeat grind of "Ait Oumrar" by WDR Big Band and the gently soulful reggae-pop of Marcel's "Make It Alone".
