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I Found LovePREORDER
Review: Midnight Magic brings some hot and love-filled vibes to Razor-N-Tape's new EP. Kicking things off is a sensational remix by Perel of their hit track 'I Found Love,' which is a powerful and emotional disco-house anthem that will have you reaching for the sky with a rush of energy. The original version of the track is a bit more subdued but still exudes an infectious party spirit. Next up, Dimitri From Paris & DJ Rocca offer their cosmic touch with a subtle but groovy Erodiscotique remix. Finally, Sophie Lloyd takes the reins with her glossy synth work on her remix, adding her own spin to this already sensational release. Get ready to experience a musical journey filled with passion, energy, and pure disco magic!
Review: Last heard collaborating with Horse Meat Disco on Glitterbox (2021's 'Sanctuary'), New York collective Phenomenal Handclap Band have decided to showcase their new material on a growing NYC institution: Aaron Dae and J Kriv's popular Razor N Tape imprint. They're in fine form on title track 'Burning Bridges', a squelchy, lyrically bittersweet chunk of disco-boogie revivalism that's as stylish and classy as they come. Norwegian master Prins Thomas provides a pleasingly extended, Clavinet-heavy dancefloor tweak for those that want bolder disco thrills, before the band offers up the psychedelic and Balearic experimentation of 'It Was The Summer'. That, too, comes backed by a fine remix: the squelchy, mind-mangling, TB-303 driven acid thrills of the Each Other mix.
Review: Two mixes to choose from of this latest bullet from 79.5, a New York outfit whose line-up includes Dap Kings drummer Homer Steinweiss. In its Original form, 'Club Level' sits somewhere between 80s boogie and the smooth jazz-funk of the same era, being a languid affair that's driven along by a moody bassline, haunting keys and airy fem vox with a "say you wanna, say you wanna fly" chorus, while a droning sax lends proceedings an almost cinematic air. Eli Escobar's remix swaps out the beat for something a tad livelier, drops the sax drone and adds analogue synth sparkles to give the track a more straight-up nu disco feel.
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Played by: Kraak & Smaak, DJ LAUREL, Pete Herbert, Sol Power All-Stars, Juno Recommends Disco, BRENDON P, LEGO EDIT, Problematic Disko, Saint-Loup-en-Bray
Review: Pedro Guinu's first album for Razor N Tape, 'Palago', was a wholehearted tribute to Brazilian music of the 1970s and '80s that we'd argue is one of the slept-on sets of 2021. This follow-up EP brings the Brazilian's trademark sound bang up to date via a wealth of quietly impressive remixes. Jose Marquez kicks things off with a fine revision of the title track that sits somewhere between classic Azymuth, nu-disco and samba, before Faze Action deliver a groove-driven, Clav-happy Balearic disco rework of 'Haje Fe'. Elsewhere, Diogo Strausz steals the show with a percussion and synth-laden revision of 'Electromandinga' hat straddles jazz-funk and synth-boogie, Carrot Green dances his way through a squelchy house-not-house revision of 'Portao De Ferro', and SekoBass opts for a hot-stepping, sun-soaked sound on a fine re-wire of 'Palago'.
Review: Sometime Honey Dijon collaborator Cor.Ece impressed us back in the summer with the 'Dance To Keep From Crying EP'. This speedy sequel sports a mixture of extended takes of tracks from that set, and remixes of others. The extended take on the title track, made in cahoots with Razor N Tape co-founder J Kriv, is simply gorgeous: a fine mix of proto-house, boogie and nu-disco sounds topped off with a genuinely soulful lead vocal. Acid-flecked, piano-sporting soulful deep house cut 'What's The Word' (with Danny Kane) is tastefully extended before Bad Colours delivers a sub-heavy, Todd Edwards-inspired revision. Dave Giles II hook-up 'Possibly Impossible', a squelchy bass-propelled nu-disco-meets-house number, is not only extended by also remixed by Crackazat, who gives it a jazzy, Rhodes-laden, Afro-tinged deep house flavour.
Review: Here we have the debut long player from Pedro Guinu, a Brazilian artist who's currently based in Rio De Janeiro. The album, intended as a tribute to the greats of the Brazilian scene of the 70s, was recorded live in the studio and as such captures the raw, organic feel of recordings of that era well. Obviously, it'll be of most interest to Brazilian music buffs, but good places to start for the rest of us would be the slightly funkier 'Raridade', the hip hop-leaning 'Joana Joa' or the bruk beat-ish 'Electromandinga', the latter making great use of what sounds like a feedback hum.
Review: The 54th release on Razor 'N' Tape's original production-focused 'Reserve' offshoot is a belated digital edition of Nenor's first outing for the imprint, On That Day, which first surfaced on vinyl nearly two years ago. It remains a brilliant four-tracker all told, with the Israeli producer confidently strutting between jazzy, jammed-out and pleasingly organic disco/deep house fusion (spacey synth solo-laden opener 'And Others'), analogue bass-propelled early morning deep house bliss ('Gonna Do'), jazz-flecked sunshine brilliance (the jazz-funk leaning, life-affirming giddiness of the title track) and low-slung, late-night goodness (the slightly dubbed-out, filter-sporting haziness of 'Fire & Water').
Review: The Brooklyn-based producer, DJ, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist JKriv steps in on his own label Razor-N-Tape to deliver a trio of all-original cuts on his Something Else EP. Starting with the late night boogie-down vibe of 'Something Else' featuring totally electrifying vocals by Brandon Markell Holmes. Following is the low-slung disco heater 'Try Again' featuring Phenomenal Handclap Band and another irresistible vocal courtesy of Nic Hanson. Carry on and it's all about 'Shoulda Been Me' (feat Toribio) which receives a spiritual deep house rework by the one-and-only Alton Miller that's worth the admission alone.
Review: Two tracks in a total of five mixes make up this EP from Kokoro Disco-San, AKA the Barcelona-based trio of Lalo Lopez, Miguelito Superstar and Thompson. In its Original form, 'Sunshine' is an unsurprisingly summery and mellow nu-disco joint that, as we move on up through the Beach Bum Edit and SPF76 Mix rubs from label boss JKriv, gets progressively more electronic, the former adding an 80s squelch b-line and the latter throwing in some fine stabs, while 'Jungle Deep' is a slice of moody tropical disco served with or without a spoken female vocal. I'd go 'with' if I were you...
Played by: DJ Mau Mau, Kraak & Smaak, Vincent Inc, FINGERMAN, Mirror People, Romanto (YSR / DISCO MACHINE), Pete Herbert, Juno Recommends Deep House, Tonbe, Rayko, Andy Downtown Science, D-Funk, Dave Mathmos, BRENDON P, Citizens Of Vice, FRAN DEEPER, Paper Recordings, DiCE_NZ, Problematic Disko, The Magic Track, Clive From Accounts, Manqo
Review: Razor 'N' Tape Reserve's latest release is a label debut from Nenor, an Israeli producer previously best known for being one half of Mahogani Music-signed duo Rabo & Snob. He begins by offering up two cuts featuring vocalist Jenny Penkin: the attractive nu-disco/deep house fusion of 'How Can I Be Free' and the giddy nostalgic rush of revivalist number 'Do You Remember', which joins the dots between rushing piano house and late '80s Larry Heard productions. Red Axes provide a fantastic rework of the latter cut, retaining some of the dreamier and more life-affirming elements while also giving it their usual chunky grooves and psychedelic tinge. Elsewhere, 'Gonna Take My Time' is a locked-in late night delight full of sharp stabs, and 'Work That' is a restless, energy-packed late-night delight.
Played by: Pete Herbert, Juno Recommends Disco, Fredeverything, BRENDON P, LEGO EDIT, Paper Recordings, Clive From Accounts
Review: A decidedly pop-tastic release from Razor-N-Tape here, coming from Underground System, a multiracial, NYC-based indie-dance live band who cite Fela Kuti as a primary influence and whose work has previously appeared on Soul Clap Records, Planet E and Hell Yeah Recordings. Both 'Into The Fire' itself and the vaguely new wave-tinged 'He Said, She Said' have something of a Hot Chip-ish kinda feel, while on 'Desnuda' the band take a left turn into more reggae-leaning territory. The standout for this writer, though, is Yuksek's remix of 'Desnuda', which packs lashings of fat, squelchy 80s bass.
Review: Here's an EP that's been on fairly constant rotation since landing in this reviewer's inbox on Monday morning - and if your tastes lean towards the deepest and spaciest of house grooves, your experience of it may be very similar! 'Transmission' will provide the perfect accompaniment to those late-night, sofa-bound excursions into inner space, while 'Sable Sun' has a mellower vibe and 'Red Light' takes us into the 4am deep jackin' zone. The real killer, though, is 'Tremors', which rocks the kind of bassline (so sumptuous and warm you could swim in it) not often heard since all those classic Italian dub house records on Irma and Antima 30 years ago. Absolutely outstanding.
Review: Fresh from hitting the headlines thanks to a couple of killer collaborations with Honey Dijon, vocalist and songwriter Cor.Ece pitches up on Razor N Tape for the very first time. 'Possibly Impossible' was produced by label co-founder JKriv and sees Cor.Ece deliver layered, superbly soulful vocals over a backing track rich in squelchy, spacey synth-bass, twinkling electronic motifs and beats that sit somewhere between futurist deep house and the classier end of nu-disco. Musical polymath Crackazat takes the track to whole new heights on his accompanying remix, which combines live jazz and jazz-funk instrumentation with tougher, more locked-in house beats and a weightier bassline.
Played by: Superbreak, Juno Recommends Disco, Juno Recommends Funk, Tonbe, VIGI, Ravanelli Disco Club
Review: Diego Strausz's first outing on Razor-N-Tape, a vinyl-only offering released in early 2022, was a thrillingly vibrant and hard-to-pigeonhole affair, with the Paris-based Brazilian joining the dots between Batacuda, South American disco, boogie and deep jazz-funk. Here the EP finally lands digitally, albeit in expanded form. We get previously unheard extended versions of the single's two tracks: 'Emancipacao', a kind of extra-squelchy, rhythmically rubbery and deliciously dreamy tribute to Azymuth, and '50 Anos Em 5', a TB-303 acid-sporting slab of Latin jazz-fusion with bonus spacey synths. Perhaps the package's most notable moment though is Ron Trent's inspired remix of the title track, which in typical fashion sees the legendary deep house producer add extra layers of musicality, sun-kissed positivity and plenty of killer house-not-house beats.
Review: Man-of-the-moment Felipe Gordon was little more than a Columbian producer with promise when he first appeared on Razor N Tape Reserve back in 2019. Since then, he's chalked up impressive, jazz-funk influenced deep house releases for all manner of high-profile labels including Heist, Local Talk and Shall Not Fade. This belated return to Razor N Tape is great, too. Opener 'Strings of the Afterline' is pleasingly hazy and dreamy whilst boasting Gordon's usual synth-heavy squelch, while 'The Fall of a Withered Empire' is a rare vocal number with a deep jazz-house feel. Elsewhere, 'Classico' is a bouncy, classic-sounding deep house bounce-along rich in sparkling synth riffs, while 'Julia Y Lewis' is a more languid and laidback chunk of jazz-sampling, funk-fuelled deep house haziness.
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Review: It's taken a while, but Razor N Tape has finally decided to drop a compilation after years spent serving up tasty EPs. Made up entirely of previously unheard fodder, Family Affair Volume 1 giddily flits between delay-laden proto-house brilliance (Dimiti From Paris and DJ Rocca, JKriv dubbng out Sentimental Animals), slo-mo deep house/deep nu-disco fusion (Clive From Accounts), jazzy head-nodders (Ben Sun), dubby hypno-house (Misiu), string-drenched peak-time house creepiness (Eli Escobar and Lauren Flax), Escort style disco-boogie revivalism (Saucy Lady), Afrobeat (Jungle Fire), extra-percussive tropical disco (Daniel T in re-edit mode) and loopy, acid-fired breakbeat house deepness (Lay-Far). In other words, it's a fantastic collection of cuts tailor-made for sweaty dancefloors.
Played by: Herbie Hatchback, FINGERMAN, Superbreak, Romanto (YSR / DISCO MACHINE), Matt Masters (Freerange), Juno Recommends Deep House, Ash Reynolds, Fredeverything, Dave Mathmos, Sebb Junior, Stephen Richards (DiscoDaze), Iner, Igor Gonya, The Magic Track
Review: With this entertaining EP, former Outplay contributor Clive From Accounts becomes the latest producer to contribute to Razor N Tape's excellent Reserve series of original productions. He's delivered a sublime EP all told, with opener 'Tell Me' providing a near perfect blend of driving disco-house, saucer-eyed deep house and foreboding, warehouse-ready motifs. He opts for a breezier, jazzier and more colourful deep house sound on bona-fide ear-pleaser 'Without Your Love', dives into deeper waters via the dusty deep house/jazz-funk fusion of 'Strictly Business' and looks skywards on spacey closing cut 'Yukon', a thoroughly emotive and intergalactic breakbeat roller.
Review: The latest artist to join Razor N Tape's original production-focused Reserve imprint is UC Beatz, a storied deep house producer whose bulging discography contains all manner of warming, club-ready treats. There's plenty of subtle variety to be found on the Midnight Swing EP, with the Brussels-born artist flitting between hazy, organ-sporting late-night chunkiness (the classic-sounding title track, which makes use of some vintage vocal snippets), airy colourfulness (the ultra-positive electronic melodies, lo-fi machine drums and tactile chords of 'Blue Ciel', and revivalist, mid-90s New Jersey garage/New York deep house fusion ('Broken Idyll'). Label regular Cody Currie provides the sole remix: a gorgeously airy, warm and sun-kissed revision of 'Blue Ciel' that's simply sublime.
Played by: Black Hawks of Panama, DJ Mau Mau, Kraak & Smaak, Craig Charles Funk And Soul, FINGERMAN, Juno Recommends Disco, LEGO EDIT, Stephen Richards (DiscoDaze), Kongisto, FRAN DEEPER, Andy Buchan, Alexny
Review: Three years after Jungle Fire joined Razor N Tape Reserve, the label has decided to offer up a swathe of new remixes of some of the band's classic cuts. It's a simple idea, executed brilliantly. Man of the moment Felipe Gordon excels on a jazz-funk and nu-disco-tinged deep house re-frame of 'Atomico', before label co-founder J Kriv delivers a thrillingly squelchy, driving disco dub of 'Le Krossa'. Legendary turntablist DJ Nu-Mark offers a superbly funky rework of 'Atomica' that embraces the track's Afrobeat roots, band-member Patrick Bailey joins the dots between electro and Afro-funk on his deliciously spacey 'Snake in Da Box Dub', and Samuel Miles opts to layer up breathless, energetic percussion on his fine remix of 'Biri Biri'.
Played by: Black Hawks of Panama, Dicky Trisco, FINGERMAN, Pete Herbert, Juno Recommends Disco, Tonbe, Rayko, Shaka Loves You, CHEWY RUBS, Stephen Richards (DiscoDaze), That Needs an Edit/Pete Le Freq, DJ Amir, Downunder Disco, VIGI, FRAN DEEPER, D.S.D., Andy Buchan, Or, The Owl, Vaudafunk
Review: If you're not familiar with Sentimental Animals, there's a good reason for that: it's a brand-new Transatlantic collaboration between old pals Dicky Trisco and Razor N Tape Records' co-founder J Kriv. 'Love Vibration', their debut single, is simply superb, offering an attractive, colourful and addictive trip through hybrid disco-boogie territory complete with dextrous bass guitar, authentic turn-of-the-80s beats and a fine lead vocal from Nicki B. The pair also offers up a superb, proto-house inspired 'Basement Mix' (think Paul Simpson, Winston Jones, Boyd Jarvis etc), and 'Loose Rules', a more organic slab of disco warmth smothered in Chic-style guitars and mazy piano solos. To complete a superb package, Yuksek offers up a slightly tougher and more driving disco-house rework of 'Love Vibration'.
Played by: DJ Mau Mau, FINGERMAN, Juno Recommends Disco, G-Blaster (Memorie Cluster), CHEWY RUBS, JAMES ROD, Problematic Disko
Review: A decade ago, New York band Midnight Magic delivered arguably THE greatest disco anthem of the 21st century, the sing-along classic that is 'Beam Me Up'. Fittingly, Razor 'N' Tape has decided to mark the record's anniversary by delivering a trio of fresh remixes. Full Pupp boss and Scandolearic disco king Prins Thomas leads the charge with a richly percussive, constantly building peak-time revision that adds wriggling acid lines and delay-laden horn solos whilst retaining the original's core elements (think walking bass, celebratory vocals and cheery piano stabs). Elsewhere, Kim-Ann Foxman re-imagines the cut as a sleazy, mid-tempo acid disco chugger and Each Other re-frames it as a surging, arpeggio-driven dance through camp Italo-disco pastures. Ace!
Played by: Carlos Nilmmns, Flash Atkins, Juno Recommends Disco, Ash Reynolds, Dave Mathmos, Marina Trench
Review: For their latest trick, Razor-N-Tape Reserve has decided to breathe new life into 'Agua', one of the standout cuts from Brazilian band Baianasystem's chronically overlooked 2018 album O Futura Nao Demora. Freerange main man Jimpster delivers two wonderfully breezy and life affirming reworks: a fully-formed remix that wraps Antonio Carlos' vocal and splashes of the original's samba-soaked instrumentation (jazz guitars, warming horns, vintage synth sounds and so on) around a tactile deep house groove, and a deeper, dreamier and especially groovy Dub. After that Diego Strausz and JKriv take over, first re-framing the track as an extra-percussive chuck of acid-speckled nu-disco (their remix), before brilliantly stripping back the cut on their disco instrumental style Dub mix.
Played by: Dicky Trisco, Superbreak, Pete Herbert, Juno Recommends Disco, Tonbe, Monsieur Van Pratt, Mr Doris, Stephen Richards (DiscoDaze), Downunder Disco, Kongisto, FRAN DEEPER, Paper Recordings, Problematic Disko, James Bright
Review: They might hail from Israel, but much of Rabo & Snob's music is not influenced by Middle Eastern musical culture, but rather the rhythms, vocals and instrumentation of the African continent. The pair continue this approach on their first Razor 'N' Tape outing, with opener 'Yom Yom' cannily combining squelchy synth bass, fizzing electronics and slick Afro-synth drums with Ghanaian vocals and distinctively West African melodic phrasing. Later in the EP you'll also find a more hypnotic, percussion-rich Dub Mix of the same track that's also well worth checking. Elsewhere, 'Have You Seen My Lady' is darker and sleazier, with low-slung bass, creepy chords and warehouse-ready stabs, while the similarly weighty and locked-in 'Adjinu' makes great use of Acid Arab style electronics and a very 'LFO'-esque analogue bassline.
Played by: Craig Charles Funk And Soul, FINGERMAN, Jayl Funk, Pete Herbert, Juno Recommends Disco, Juno Recommends Funk, Conan The Selector, Tonbe, Quincy Jointz, X-Ray Ted, LEGO EDIT, Stephen Richards (DiscoDaze), DJ Amir, Kongisto, Problematic Disko, Clive From Accounts
Review: irst released on vinyl three years ago and now finally available on digital download, this must-check EP showcases a quartet of killer re-rubs of back catalogue tracks by L.A-based Afro-Latin funk fusionists Jungle Fair. The headline attraction is undoubtedly a pair of reworks by Ashley Beedle and Rob Mello's reborn Black Science Orchestra project - their first revisions for over 15 years. They first serve up a wonderfully percussive, analogue bass-propelled deep Afro-house remix of 2014 cut 'Culebro', before reaching for the delays and delivering an arguably even better dancefloor 'Dub'. You'll also find JKriv re-imagining 2013 single 'Firewalker' as a bumpin' chunk of horn-heavy dub disco, and a cracking Latin disco take on 'Village Hustle' courtesy of Bosq.
Review: Almost three years after it first appeared on wax, Juan Maclean's Razor 'N' Tape Reserve debut has finally landed on digital download. It's an excellent collection of club-focused, often sample-heavy cuts, no doubt drawn from his personal stash of cuts created for his DJ sets. There's plenty to set the pulse racing from start to finish. Check first the percussive pump of peak-time disco loop-jam 'Fine Time', before getting your ears around the classic boogie-meets-NYC house fusion of 'Don't Stop For Nothing', which offers sly nods towards a number of classic cuts including Toney Lee's 'Reach Up'. Elsewhere, 'Everybody Clap' is a dustier, looser and hazier deep house excursion, while 'Panic In Fort Greene Park' sees MacLean smother a trippy and hypnotic groove in spacey motifs and acid-style electronics.
Review: The latest producer to pop up on Razor 'N' Tape's Reserve sub-label is Detroiter Pontchartrain, whose previous outings on Lovedancing, Whiskey Disco, Kolour Ltd and Soul Clap Records were all mighty impressive. There's much to enjoy here, too, as he swaps tooled-up re-edits for colourful original productions. Check first 'I-80', where bubbly and emotive melodies cluster around a tactile house groove and deliciously dreamy chords, before wrapping your ears around closing cut 'Love & Madness', an off-kilter late night number rich in undulating synth-bass, drifting electric piano chords, atmospheric vocal samples and spacey synthesizer flourishes. This comes accompanied by two reworks: a jazzy, sensual and squelchy Demuja Remix that should get deep house heads in a spin, and the producer's own sunrise-ready Friends & Lovers Dub.
Played by: Superbreak, Romanto (YSR / DISCO MACHINE), Juno Recommends Disco, 80's Child, Andy Buchan, Kongisto
Review: There aren't many producers working on the soulful and jazzy end of the dance music spectrum with quite as a strong a discography as Alexander Lay-Far. Whatever label he's operating on, the Russian producer always delivers the goods. He's done it again here on his first Razor 'N' Tape Reserve outing. Over the course of four must-check tracks, he confidently bounces between jazz-funk-flavoured broken beat/deep house fusion ('Searching For Your Love', with its' ace slap-bass and starry keys); deep and jazzy breaks (the head-nodding, toe-tapping 'Trinity'), warehouse-ready late night hedonism ('What It Is', with its Yorkshire bleeps, raw analogue bass, bouncy beats and soulful vocal samples) and bluesy, sample-heavy jazz-house ('You Can't Stop The Profit'). In a word: ace!
Played by: Black Hawks of Panama
Review: Man-of-the-moment Felipe Gordon returns to the Razor 'N' Tape camp with a fresh selection of sample-heavy house cuts following a collaborative re-edit outing on the imprint alongside pal Vagabundo Club Social in 2019. He hits the ground running with blissful and tactile opener 'Those Quiet Eyes of Yours', where effortlessly jazzy and laidback guitar licks and woozy synth sounds ride a squeezable TB-303 bassline and dusty deep house drums. The acid bass remains on the more boisterous and bustling 'There's a Part of Me That's Always True', while 'Now That You Caught My Heart This Evening' makes great use of jazzy electric piano flourishes, sampled orchestration and eyes-closed, samba style vocal snippets. More warming, glassy-eyed fun can be found on toasty deep house closing cut 'That Night at El Bukowski', where twinkling motifs, jazz-funk and bubbly electronics catch the ear.
Played by: Superbreak, 80's Child, Stephen Richards (DiscoDaze), Andy Buchan, Kongisto, Young Pulse, GalgoDK
Review: There's no doubt that Danny Krivit is the best in the business when it comes to crafting purist re-edits that focus on rearrangement rather than cheap production trickery. This two-tracker on hometown imprint Razor 'N' Tape offers further proof of the veteran scalpel fiend's undoubted abilities. He first turns his attention to a starry, space-age disco number with jazz-funk influences, brilliantly teasing in the song via sax-heavy loops before unleashing the song's verses, choruses and punchy, horn-heavy grooves. It's nine-minutes of top-quality deep disco bliss. In contrast, 'Story' is ultra-deep, slow and immersive, with "Mr K" making merry with a super-sweet, string-laden number full of Philly Soul style orchestration, eyes-closed backing vocals and sumptuous disco grooves. Delicious!
Review: Razor 'N' Tape's first missive of 2021 is a confident and ear-catching affair from Brazilian musician/producer Diogo Strausz, who previously released on the Brooklyn-based imprint as one half of Balako. We're particularly enjoying opener 'Emancipacao', a warming and gently breezy, carnival-ready affair that makes great use of both an infectious, bouncy rhythm and the kind of mazy synthesizer motifs that were once the preserve of Brazilian jazz-funk legends Azymuth. The influence of Azymuth can also be heard on squelchy, spacey and piano-rich virtual B-side '50 Anos Em 5', which is every bit as colourful and rhythmically addictive as its' predecessor.
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Review: Label regulars Dirtytwo make a welcome return to Razor 'N' Tape Reserve, the Brooklyn imprint's sub-label dedicated to original music and sample-heavy productions. The begin in stunning fashion with 'Ain't The Way', a warming, positive, glassy-eyed loop jam that's as colourful as joyous as the Tiger & Woods jams it most resembles. Speaking of joy, you'll find plenty of that on 'Found Love', a piano-sporting, breakbeat-driven deep house jam that makes great use of a vocal snippet from a live version of Maze classic 'Joy & Pain'. Elsewhere, they pay tribute to their hometown via two versions of 'Hageby in Your Eyes', a wonderfully evocative fusion of Balearic boogie and pitched-down house made in cahoots with Roman Andren.
Played by: Black Hawks of Panama, Dicky Trisco, Craig Charles Funk And Soul, FINGERMAN, Chris Coco, Jayl Funk, Juno Recommends Disco, Tonbe, Quincy Jointz, J&M BROTHERS, Rayko, Mr Doris, Hober Mallow, Andy Buchan, VIGI, Problematic Disko
Review: Here's something special from Razor 'N' Tape: a fresh set of remixes of two lesser-known 1970s "Tropicalia" classics from Colombian duo Elia Y Elizabeth. Unknown artist Demi Riquisimo kicks things off with a brilliant cowbell-driven, acid-flecked tropical house re-imagining of 'Alegria', before Yuksek re-imagines the same track as a humid, piano-sporting dub disco number. Elsewhere, Bosq gently toughens up the 'Soya Una Nube' while adding tons of delay and reverb, before Vagabundo Social Club steals the show with a rubbery disco take on 'Alegria' that's as celebratory as they come.
Review: If you're in the mood for some lazy, languid, sofa and warm-up friendly grooves, we'd heartily recommend this second Razor N Tape outing from Los Angeles crew Pools. Utilsing their trusty MPC, a wealth of hazy disco and jazz-funk samples, and complimentary sun-baked instrumentation, the beat-making combo saunters between confirmed head-nodders, hypnotic mid-tempo grooves and seductive slow house - all crafted with one eye on musicality and the other on capturing a mellow vibe. It's a fine collection all told, with the pair's slow-motion dancefloor grooves sounding just as good at home as they do on a club soundsystem. Musical vitamin D for the lockdown generation: what's not to like?
Played by: Titeknots, Juno Recommends Funk, Gouranga, Dave Mathmos, 80's Child, Stephen Richards (DiscoDaze), Kongisto
Review: The latest missive on Razor N Tape's original production-focused Reserve offshoot should delight all those who love revivalist instrumental funk-fusion. It comes courtesy of Nashville combo Magic In Threes, who offer-up four original tracks: laidback and jaunty groover 'Chupa Cobra', Blaxploitation style wiggler 'Work Tapes', high-octane spy-chase dancer 'Come On Down' and the Jimi Tenor style lounge funk tease of 'Finnish Funk'. Each comes accompanied by a killer remix. We'd recommend checking out Bruno 'Patchworks' Hovart's Fela Kuti-inspired afrobeat rework of 'Work Tapes', COEO's loopy, bass-heavy house interpretation of 'Finnish Funk' and Fouk's sparkling jazz-funk take on 'Chupa Cobra' - all are utterly inspired.
Played by: Smoove, Superbreak, Kisk, Juno Recommends Disco, Ash Reynolds, ANORAAK, Dave Mathmos, 80's Child, Paul Older, Delfonic
Review: First released on wax almost three years ago, Hade's first edits EP for Razor 'N' Tape has finally made it to digital download. This is undoubtedly a great thing, because it's arguably one of the Brooklyn imprint's strongest collections of cuts to date (and that's saying something). He opens via the sweaty, occasionally dubbed-out disco-funk goodness of "Say What You Wanna Say", whose combination of killer grooves and slowly building heaviness guarantees good times. He flips the script entirely on "Jeep Cherokee XJ", crafting a killer hip-hop jam out of dusty jazz samples and boom-bap beats, before dancing his way through an early slab of harmonica-laden disco-rap ("My Thang"). To round things off, Hade once more joins the dots between hip-hop and jazz on hazy closing cut "Range Rover HSE".
Played by: Kisk, Juno Recommends Disco, Michael The Lion, Dave Mathmos, BRENDON P, JAMES ROD, Stephen Richards (DiscoDaze), Kongisto
Review: Almost three years have passed since Philadelphia duo Superprince debuted on Razor 'N' Tape with a vinyl-only EP of rather good re-edits. Here that four-tracker finally makes it to digital download. It's worth picking up, if only for the flute-laden, horn-heavy bounciness of down-low disco-funk rework "Strong Feeling" (a fine revision of Morning, Noon & Night's "Feelin' Strong"). The highlights down end there, either, with "Down On Bitter End" providing a chunky, peak-time-ready revision of a Vicki Sue Robinson disco anthem, "Start Again" offering a breezy new spin on a lesser celebrated One Way cut and "Up Up To The Sky" turning Silver Convention's "Fly Robin Fly" into a hypnotic chunk of mid-tempo disco hedonism.
Played by: Juno Recommends Disco, Ash Reynolds, Dave Mathmos, JAMES ROD, Stephen Richards (DiscoDaze), Andy Buchan, FRAN DEEPER
Review: Golden Dawn Arkestra, an Austin, Texas-based collective led by Ethiopian-American Zapot Mgwana, come to Razor-N-Tape touting a couple of tracks taken from their 2018 long-player of the same name, complete with a bunch of new remixes. In their original form, both 'Children Of The Sun' and 'Cosmic Dancer' are authentic-sounding homages to 70s Afro-funk, with the latter adding a little Theremin-fuelled lounge-y flavour. Austin Ato's remix takes the title track into deep, dreamy house territory, while JKriv and Dicky Trisco rework 'Cosmic Dancer' into a psychedelic nu-disco jam ? la The Phenomenal Handclap Band and a midtempo disco-Balearic roller respectively.
Review: On the releases he's offered up to date, Cody Currie has barely put a foot wrong, delivering a swathe of top-notch tracks that effortlessly join the dots between dusty, soul-flecked U.S deep house and hip-hop style sample-based beat jams. This time round he's on a more disco and boogie-centric tip, though his trademark production style remains. We get the rolling, sun-kissed warmth and gentle filter tweaks of wide-eyed disco house shuffler "Movin' Smoke", the slack-tuned jazz snares, swirling chords and bubbly synth samples of "Infinity I & II" and the string-drenched orchestral disco-house glee of "Magic City". Our pick of a very strong bunch is "Make Love", where Currie's ability to manipulate samples within a bumping deep house framework once again comes to the fore.
Review: Escort frontwoman Adeline is in fine form on "When I'm Alone", a revivalist leftfield disco cut that she co-produced with Morgan Willey from Brooklyn band Midnight Magic. With its walking bass, crunchy clavinets, woozy synths and fine lead vocal, it reminded us a little of Midnight Magic classic "Beam Me Up". Jacques Renault delivers a slightly heavier, house-influenced remix with subtle Italo-disco style arpeggio lines, as well as a percussion-heavy "Dubstramental" that's arguably even better. Dirty Channels offers "Remix" and "Dub" revisions that wrap the original's killer bassline in sweaty disco-house beats, while Adeline's sometime band mate JKriv joins forces with Underground System Afrobeat Peter Matson on a remix that sounds like vintage Escort with added dub delays.
Review: First released on vinyl two years ago, Henry Maldonado's Razor 'N' Tape Reserve outing as Son of Sound is finally available on digital download. It's worth a listen, for sure, not least for the mind-altering electronic bass, locked-in drums, mazy synth melodies and hazy vocal samples of quirky (but superb) opener "Your Voodoo's Broken". Naturally there's plenty to admire elsewhere across the four-track excursion, from the spacey peak-time bustle of "No Bullets Left", to the slipped disco house bliss of "What Do You Feel", via the spiraling electronics, early Chicago house style bass and pumping beats of "Nude Jerzee".
Played by: Dj XS (FVUK), The Allergies, Kraak & Smaak, C. Da Afro, Mirror People, YAM WHO?, Juno Recommends Disco, Ash Reynolds, Tonbe, Rayko, Sophie Lloyd, BRENDON P, 80's Child, Stephen Richards (DiscoDaze), Sould Out, Ruff Diamond
Review: Much has changed for Eli Escobar in the three years that have passed since this edits EP first appeared on wax. In that time, he's released umpteen albums of original music and found himself an in-demand DJ and remixer. Naturally, the four edits showcased on this Razor 'N' Tape outing have undoubtedly stood the test of time. Check first killer opener "Bullfight of Love", a percussive and occasionally foreboding revision of a Chaz Jankel classic jam rich in elastic slap-bass, punchy horns and eyes-closed guitar solos, before turning your attention to the bongo breaks, dub effects and heavy disco-funk bottom end of "Everybody". Elsewhere, "The Music" is a Clavinet-sporting disco-funk bounce-along and "Seven Eleven" is a breezier chunk of glassy-eyed disco sleaze.
Played by: Kraak & Smaak, Juno Recommends Disco, Tonbe, Gouranga, CHEWY RUBS, Stephen Richards (DiscoDaze), Sould Out, SEEN ON TV
Review: First out as a 12-inch only release in 2017, this three-tracker from Nebraska, AKA UK producer Alistair Gibbs, packs funked-up fun by the trunkload. 'Drill Deep' has a looping "deep within it" male vocal sample, brass fanfares, a full-phat bassline and soaring Philly strings. 'Instant Pressure' is a hazy, lazy affair that centres around a muffled, throbbing bassline and chunks of the vocal from Jhelisa Anderson's 'Friendly Pressure' (albeit without the "bada-bada-ba" bit), and finally 'Keep On Keepin' On' is a sumptuous midtempo disco-funker that could've beamed straight in from 1975, complete with full female vocal about suffering in the ghetto.
Various
Review: For their latest trick, Razor-N-Tape chiefs J Kriv and Aaron Dae have decided to take a trawl through the horizontally inclined parts of the label's bulging back catalogue. "Chill Cuts Volume 2", then, is packed to the rafters with blazed and blunted beats, from the woozy hip-hop deepness of Tall Black Guy's head-nodding rework of Lovebirds' "Icarus" and the bluesy, turn-of-the-millennium downtempo beats of J Kriv and Free Magic's "Eleanora", to the Moon B style slow P-funk revivalism of Kan Sano's "Music Overflow" and the Rhodes and Moog-laced sumptuousness of "Penwick Pool" by POOLS. If it's warm, toasty and laidback dancefloor disco you're after, The Groovers "Make Me Feel" is also well worth a check.
Various
Review: Although famed for delivering killer cuts of vintage disco and boogie jams, Razor-N-Tape has released plenty of life-affirming house jams, too. As if to prove the point, JKriv and Aaron Dae's Brooklyn-based imprint has decided to release a second selection of back catalogue house highlights. Highlights come thick and fast throughout, from the bluesy bounce of JKriv and Free Magic's "Eunice" and the classic deep house warmth of Jimpster's killer remix of Mr V's "Something Wit Jazz", to the fizzing synth riffs and life-affirming percussive shuffle of "Stretchin" by Luvless and the groovy, jammed-out musical headiness of Lay-Far's tidy remix of "Just One" by Body Music. Also worth plenty of peak-time plays is Chrissy's chunky revision of Ragtyme's rap-laced 1987 Chicago jam "Fix It Man".
