Review: Resense serve up two tracks that owe a clear debt to party-style hip-hop from the 90s: think A Tribe Called Quest, Arrested Development or more specifically Jurassic 5, whose vocal from 'In The House' forms the basis for Lord Funk & Moar's 'Hip Hop Control' (even if that track did come out in 2006), with the original's electrofunk backdrop replaced by a jazzier groove complete with breathy flutes. Gelatine Thugs' 'Do The Don't Stop' then takes us into jazzier pastures still, while biting a snatch of vocal from a certain Mr M. Jackson. Floors that move to the likes of The Allergies or Speedometer will lap these two cuts up.
Review: Drop your pants, shake ya hair! Smoove's ode to thy has landed (RIP Phife Dawg). Replete with vocal snippets from both Dave's Letterman and Chappelle, to all matter of rappers, talk show hosts and MCs, Smoove's two-part A Quest Called Tribe EP cuts a stroll through the funk and sample-based pastures of instrumental hip hop and beatmaking. Acid jazz and mixtape progressions to boot!
Review: Though known mostly for jazz- and swing-infused grooves, French producer Minimatic takes a detour into hip-hop pastures here, albeit there are also noticeable bossa/lounge influences in play. 'That Golden Bossa Hop' brings to mind the output of Bristol crew The Allergies, 'Drop It Like It's Hot' reworks the Snoop Dogg classic of the same name in a Latin jazz stylee, 'Cognac Wanksta' is a laidback, blunted affair, 'De La Bossa' recalls vintage Galliano from the early 90s, and bonus cut 'Ladi Dadi Doo' has a rawer, demo-like feel. If you love both golden age hip-hop and jazz, you'll dig this EP for sure.
Review: More Good Things come... Phil and Dan Brookes return to the black and yellow brand with a seriously sultry summertime bliss-out. Opening with a halftime vibe, the smoky jazzy vibes are amplified by Amahla's soul-searching vocals while the naked piano does its hypnotising thing in a way that few artists beyond Calibre can manage in D&B. As for the jazzy rim-shot switch to 170? Don't even get us started: pure soul heaven.
Review: The latest in the Lost Angeles re-edit crew's series of self-titled EPs/albums marks something of a departure from the script. Earlier releases were straight-up dancefloor re-edits, #14 was made up exclusively of Steve Wonder reworks: now on #15 they shine a similar spotlight on the funk output of the late, great Curtis Mayfield, but overlay each edit with bars from the likes of Nas, Rakim, Ice T and Lauryn Hill. It's an interesting approach that works best on 'It Ain't Hard 2 Funk', which is based on stone-cold classic 'Pusherman', though it does mean this EP's more one for the hip-hoppers than straight-up funkateers.
Review: On their two previous albums, Texan trio Khruangbin have explored a wide range of stylistic pastures, from funk and soul, to indie and psychedelia, to Middle and Far Eastern music. Long player #3, however, finds them largely in reggae/dub mode. There's definitely still an eclectic slant - 'How I Love', for instance, has an Afro-French feel, while 'A La Sala' sounds like ESG jamming with Talking Heads - but it's the sounds of Jamaica that are by far the overwhelming influence here, with the inclusion of a couple of dubs by the legendary Scientist underlining the point. A sofa-based delight.
Review: When we see new releases land in the store, we like to explore the names aren't as familiar with first, which is why we instantly fell in love with this latest drop from the Vantage crew. We kick this one off with the trap-like drum rolls and bubbling 808 bass tones of 'Days End' before 'Don't Sleep' combines unusual digital signals with more bassy goodness. We dive down a smoother avenue next as 'Quelle Vie' showcases some excellent melodic sampling, before we touch down on the chilled out harmonies and lingering bass textures of 'Persan Beaumont' to wrap this one up.
Review: Smooth neo-soul grooves with an eclectic, experimental twist are what you get here, courtesy of Dutch singer-songwriter/producer LYMA and Amsterdam label INI Movement. 'It's Ti' recalls the likes of Omar or Finlay Quaye, while 'Hibernate' is a jazzier groove and has a vaguely Tru Thoughts-y feel. 'Bigger' is a more downtempo number and definitely built for those late-night one-on-one moments, before "Surinam soca soul" jam (their description) 'Fading' ups the tempo considerably. 'Bagdadway' then closes out proceedings on a squelchy bruk beat tip, with the EP as a whole marking out LYMA as a talent worth keeping an eye on.
Review: Not much is know about JM edits, but considering this EP is released on the well established Gamm, it's fair to say this was always be something from the classier end of the re-edit spectrum. Here we get four slick and smooth re-teaks of quality soulful house ("Africa"), soul ("I Love You") Afro beat ("Flea") and dobby, bluesy funk ("Who Is He"). Top class!
Review: After honing his skills with a series of well-regarded re-edit releases, DJ Butcher changes tack here, delivering a devilishly sweet fusion of deep electrofunk, B-boy breaks and old skool hip-hop vocals. Clearly designed as a tribute to late '70s/early '80s hip-hop (check out the Sugarhill Gang/Furious Five style vocals), "Sol Wrap" has enough about it to suggest that it will easily slip into contemporary party sets. There's an instrumental, too, for those who can't be doing with the vocal, while Leftside Wobble offers up a slick remix that replaces the bass with pulsing vintage synth hits. The Latin-flavoured Timewrap Remix is pretty tasty, too.
Review: The Broken Circuit album from Brighton's future soul duo is proving to be the gift that keeps on giving, as here we get two more LP tracks coupled with two new titles. The previously heard "Broken Circuit" and "Atom Bomb" are sugary lo-fi soul-pop and a seductive broken beat lament respectively. Of the fresh tracks, "World In Room" is garage-influenced fizz-house at its best and the prayer-like enchanting digi-soul of "Blessings" wraps things up nicely.
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