Review: Following outings on DeeVu, Pogo House, Plastic People Digital and Fruity Flavour - amongst others - Kindred Soul pops up on Slightly Transformed. In typical fashion, 'True Love' delivers a boundary-blurring vocal workout that happily sits at the aural intersection of Dave Lee style organic house, bumping US garage, soulful house and deep house. It's a musically rich affair, with live bass, sax, vocals and electric piano riding rolling, bongo-laden club beats. DJ Passion provides the obligatory remix, giving the track a classic disco-house feel via the addition of stirring strings, funkier bass, soaring chords and a serious of impressive musical build-ups. It's a fine remix that should appeal to all those who love the output of the Groove Culture and Z Records imprints.
Review: Well here's an interesting one! 'Last Forever' centres around a couple of lyrical couplets that are lifted straight from Rod Stewart's early 80s hit 'Baby Jane', and I've spent the last few days trying to work out whether it's been resung or is just a sample that's been fed through the FX mangle several times over. Eventually came down on the side of the former, but you can never be sure in these days of advanced studio wizardry... anyway, provenance aside, 'Last Forever' ends up as a plenty playable, 80s-leaning nu-disco oddity that's served up in fairly self-explanatory Edit, Extended and Dub flavas.
Review: With just a handful of releases to his name so far, Ronald Koon hails from Dresden, Germany and describes his musical remit as "nu-disco and jacking house". This EP for Slightly Transformed packs three contrasting disco cuts: 'Off The Rayls' would cross over quite nicely to the 'new old' funk and soul scene, 'Uh Boy' sits somewhere between nu-disco and contemporary pop, but the killer to these ears is 'Good Luck Boy', a far quirkier affair that, with its bitchy spoken vocal, calls to mind all those borderline-novelty dance hits of the early 80s - think 'Clouds Across The Moon', 'Kissing With Confidence' or 'Murphy's Law'.
Review: Slightly Transformed bring us a long-player from New York-based DJ, producer and re-editor Patrick Sullivan, better known professionally as P-Sol, that's quite staggering in its musical scope, as he flits back and forth seamlessly between house, disco, broken beat, Balearic, funk, boogie, soul, lounge and hip-hop - sometimes in the course of a single track, and pleasingly without simply reaching for a big box of over-familiar samples. From the cinematic jazz-funk nouveau of 'Donuts' to the druggy slo-mo soul of 'Down The Lane' via the smooth, Sunburst-esque contemporary disco of 'Sunnin', 'Dean Street' is an album that packs many musical delights and is best served whole - so do yourself a favour and grab a copy.
Review: There are records that come along and change the musical landscape single-handedly: records that shift paradigms, push envelopes and rewrite rulebooks. Sometimes, though, it doesn't actually matter if you're not doing anything new or groundbreaking, just as long as you're doing what you do well. This two-tracker from Clean Is Good falls into the latter camp: the two disco/house fusions presented here do precisely nothing you haven't heard 1,000 times before, but just you try not dancing to them! A cheeky, familiar-sounding horns riff just nudges it for 'Midnight Joke' but both cuts are quality. If it ain't broke, etc...
Review: Slightly Transformed bring us the latest installment in their occasional compilation series, which follows on from 'Summer Numbers 2019' and 'Summer Numbers 2020'. Regular visitors to this page should need no introduction to the respected London-based label, and with the album packing a whopping 26 tracks, there's certainly no space to give you a full blow-by-blow rundown: suffice to say that whether you're a fan of sparkling boogie nouveau, sumptuous string-drenched disco, deep 'n' groovy house, headnoddin' Balearica or any combination thereof, this is a comp you're gonna want to check for. Standouts for yours truly include Kiosko 33's Chuck Roberts-biting 'Theory Of House' and Kristoff MX's 'Funk With Me', but you'll find your own I'm sure...
Review: Disco house from the sultry n' sophisticated side is the order of the day on this latest salvo from the Slightly Transformed camp. In its Original form, 'Burnin' Up' goes straight for the jugular - think peaktime at Glitterbox, though the sheer quality of the vocal and the deceptively complex funk bassline ensure it stays well clear of the cheese board. Jean Jacques Smoothie opts for a slightly deeper, chunkier feel but the standout for yours truly is the stripped-back Monsieur Van Pratt Redub, wherein the pianos get a chance to really shine, while a radio edit completes the package.
Review: The ever-reliable Mathmos returns with five typically high-calibre disco cuts. First up is 'Addio Ragazzo Ciao', which is laidback, lounge-y and summery, with an Italian vocal and an overall late 70s vibe. That's followed by 'Ragazza Dub', which tones down the lounge/pop elements and brings the bass to the fore, while elsewhere 'Feel It' reworks The Jones Girls' 'Nights Over Egypt', 'You And Me' is redolent of mid-70s barrio funk outta Spanish Harlem, while 'Where Is The Party' is another more funk-oriented workout with a little added Madhouse-style wonk. Whether these are best regarded as re-edits or simply as sample-heavy productions may be in doubt - their sheer danceability is not.
Review: Iberican native Mr Doris teams up once more with occasional partner-in-crime D-Funk, AKA Sydney-based Brit Doug Masters. With a robot-voiced spoken intro giving way to huge keyboard vamps and an in-your-face, looped/chanted "you got the right to dance with somebody" vocal, 'Dance With Somebody' is a surefire attention-getter and as such probably best reserved for peaktime play, while The Owl supplies two fairly self-explanatory Nu Disco and Slo Mo remixes. The latter will slot nicely into chilled/Balearic sets, but you can't beat the Original for sheer infectious danceability. Some rather lovely lil' jazzy keyboard licks in there, too.
Review: In just a few short years, Argentinian producer Alexny has racked up releases on some of the most respected disco and house labels in the game, from King Street to Moiss Music, Furious Mandrill and Spa In Disco. Now you can add UK stable Slightly Transformed to that ever-growing list, as he steps up with a supremely checkable five-tracker that ranges from the discofied deep house of 'If You Missed The Groove', via the authentically 70s-sounding mirrorball vibes of 'When You Need Me', to the rawer funk strut of 'The Funkeenator', 'The Monkey Do' and 'The Trumpeter'.
Review: French producer Vigi returns to Slightly Transformed with a three-track EP. 'Show Me' itself is up first and has a late 70s/early 80s feel, with classic disco strings married to a more boogie-esque male vocal. 'Feel This Love', which follows, drops the tempo and has a hazy, laidback feel that means it would slot well into Balearic sets. The package is then completed by 'Sundown', wherein a full male soul vocal and understated beats are served up in wobbly, warping fashion ? la Lemon Jelly, Bent et al. Classy stuff all round, but 'Show Me' takes the gold.
Review: Two very playable disco-house/nu-disco cuts here from Boogietraxx, AKA Brandon Keeks, a New Yorker and self-described "rhythmic renovator of retro funk" who's now based in Austin, Texas. Whether they're original cuts or re-edits isn't entirely clear - if they're edits, then Keeks has dug impressively deep for source material - but no matter. 'Dancin' is a pleasant lil' filter disco groover with a looped female "don't stop dancing" vocal, while 'Soothing Groove' sits somewhere between late 70s disco and early 80s boogie and sports a suitably smooth male vocal - and either should keep disco floors groovin' along nicely.
Review: Despite the artist name and album title, this is far from being the collection of 15 limp, same-y soul ballads you might be fearing! Instead, Secret Soul Society - AKA Neon Heights front man Cal Gibson and friends - serve up veritable smorgasbord of Balearic delights, from the dusty, looped disco-soul of 'Better Get To Know You' and the folksy Laurel Canyon vibes of 'Groovy Coconuts' to the 80s soul redux of 'Find Our Way', the bonkers 'Leeping For Joy' which should appeal to fans of 4hero, Four Tet et al, and the Stevie Nicks-biting 'Stevie Loves Bettye'.
Review: Austrian producer Manfred Kling, AKA Mannix, has a CV that takes in labels such as Midnight Riot, Peppermint Jam, Black Vinyl, Duff Note and Favouritizm. Now, he makes his Slightly Transformed debut with two original disco productions that capture that late 70s vibe while still sounding up-to-date. 'Find A Love' has the surging, looping feel of filter disco and sports a hefty b-line, near-falsetto male vox and euphoric brass, not to mention some subtle but impressive Rhodes work towards the end, while 'Stay Stay Stay' nudges even closer to disco-house territory with trumpet parps, soaring strings, Blaxploitation-esque guitar squalls and a boogie-style male vocal.
Review: There's much to admire on this first full outing from newcomer Ferdinand Debeaufort, whose only previous outing was a sole track on Slightly Transformed's recent Summer Numbers 2020 compilation. By and large, the re-edits are bouncy and floor-focused, with the lavishly named Debeaufort adding a bit more percussive pressure to a variety of disco-centric cuts. He starts in confident mood with a brilliantly chopped-up and rearranged version of an old Fantastic Aleems cut ('Funny Feeling'), before dancing his way through a rubbery disco-boogie number (the synth-sporting 'Make Love'). Elsewhere, 'Casou' is a killer version of a mid-80s French synth-boogie number, 'Can't Do It Alone' is a horn-sporting disco celebration built around short, subtly changing loops, and 'Show Me How' is a low-slung treat.
Review: With 23 tracks to choose from, there's no faulting the value for money offered by this summer compilation from London's Slightly Transformed label. Such an extensive tracklist also offers plenty of scope for stylistic variety, with tracks ranging from laidback, groovesome boogie/soul jams like opener 'What Are We Gonna Do' to the mellow Balearic haze of 'Summer In The City', via the strident 80s attitude of 'Edgy', the looping filter disco of 'Something About Love', the authentic-sounding Blaxploitation funk of 'Mac And Carly Go Uptown', the Zapp/Cameo-isms of 'Firebabe' and even a bossa nova cover of Bill Withers. Serve poolside, accompanied by several mojitos, for maximum impact!
Review: It's been a long time between drinks for Oliver Dexx. According to our records, this Slightly Transformed label debut marks the producer's first solo outing in almost 18 months. It's well worth picking up, if only for the down-low, Clavinet-fuelled strut of sweaty, funk-fuelled opener "The Get Down", which is the nearest thing to an instant party-starter we've heard this week. That said, there's plenty more to set the pulse racing elsewhere across the EP, from the pitched-up, soulful disco-house sweetness of "Do For Love", to the tidily beefed-up Brazilian disco-funk re-edit "Copacabana", via the rolling grooves, jazzy guitars and swirling vocal samples of "Do You Believe".
Review: London producer Ash Reynolds brings us vocal cut on his own Slightly Transformed that straddles the divide between deep house and garage - as so many records used to, but as so few, sadly, do today! The Extended Mix of 'Everytime' has a New Jersey-ish feel, while Siente sprinkles a little disco dust over a remix that's purpose-built for Iberican terraces. The Nine Lives Remix is a funkier pass and possibly the pick for deep house jocks, before Sons Of Satin throw us something of a curveball, in the form a breakbeat-led remix that harks back to the glory days of rave. Sterling work all round.
Review: Somewhat remarkably, nearly two decades have passed since Jean Jacques Smoothie tore up the charts with "2 People", a cheery, Minnie Ripperton-sampling number that was featured on a prominent Levi's commercial. He's had mixed fortunes in the years since, but - as this surprise appearance on Slightly Transformed proves - is still capable of delivering the disco-fired goods. "Night Jet" is warm, tactile and dreamy, with colourful synth flourishes, short vocal snippets and occasional chords rising above unfussy house drums and a squelchy, thickset nu-disco bassline. On "Atlantic Highway", the experienced producer moves further towards jazzy deep house pastures with significant success.
Review: Australia's Dave Mathmos brings us a five-track re-edit EP that digs impressively deep for inspiration. 'Slick Talk' revisits Asha Puthli's 1976 Indo-disco nugget 'Space Talk' (a favourite at The Loft) and is every bit as hypnotic and sensual as the original. 'Just... A Lonely Soul' reworks Labi Siffre's 'I Got The' from 1975 (the source for Eminem's 'My Name Is') and comes in hazy, druggy Part 1 and more immediately floor-friendly Part 2 forms, while finally 'Sell The House' and the fairly self-explanatory 'Sell The Dub' are based on a 1976 Ashford & Simpson album cut of the same name.
Review: Chuggin Edits still chuggin' for the best of dancefloors. The slamming of kick drums, snap of white noise and all matter of loops, sounds and samples sent through the filters in this latest release for the discofied Slightly Transformed. This newest streak of funk, disco and boogie bangers sees strings and soul vibrations layered over the top slap of a Daft Punk inspired bassline (in "All You Wanna Do Is Party") to the piano led disco romances of "Come On Over To My Place". Even housier still is "Now That I Have Found You" and don't be afraid of the '70s leisure suite that is "Times". Still Chuggin'.
Review: Following early outings on Electric Friends and Spa In Disco, fast-rising producer JMMSTR (no relation to Freerange boss Jimpster) makes a first appearance on Slightly Transformed. There are two tracks to set the pulse racing. Opener "New York" is a confirmed mid-tempo treat: a woozy, 112 BPM shuffler that layers flash-fried guitars and piano-laden snippets from a swirling, string-laden disco classic atop thickset bass and bongo-heavy nu-disco beats. Virtual B-side "You Took" employs bouncier and crispier beats, with the producer utilizing filter effects to tease in elements of a female-fronted disco-funk number. The vocal breakdown is life affirming, but it's the trippy treatment of the sample source's hard-wired guitars that catches the ear.
Review: It's a while since we last heard from Waterford-based producer Jay Ru (real name Jay Roche). In fact, according to our records this collaborative outing with Stephen Richards is his first single since 2014. In its original form, "Vibrations & Temptations" is something of a slow burning delight: a head-nodding deep nu-disco outing full of Loleatta Holloway vocal samples, punchy beats, twinkling pianos, eyes-closed guitars and shifting synth lines that builds up in stages. It's decent, but the remix by fellow Irish producers Get Down Edits is even better. Doffing a cap towards Detroit beatdown, the pair re-imagines Roche and Richards' track as a bubbling, bass-heavy chunk of deep disco-house hypnotism rich in twinkling melodies and swirling vocal samples.
Review: No slapsash edits here, just some cheery nu-dsco positivity from sometime Re-Loved re-editor Conan The Selector and guest vocalist Sherie. Her lead vocal is superb - think classic soulful house meets screaming disco diva - while Conan's backing track on "Disco Lights" is rich in twinkling piano motifs, handclap-heavy percussion, rich disco grooves and clipped, Chic style guitars. Conan's original version comes backed with two solid reworks, too. First Andy Buchan gives the track a slightly more electronic feel on his synth-laden nu-diusco revision, before Ash Reynolds layers delay-laden vocal snippets above a deep and dreamy disco-house groove on his headline-grabbing remix.
Review: If you're gonna give your EP a title like that, you'd damn well better HAVE 'da funk' to back it up. Thankfully, Mexican producer Van Pratt most assuredly does. 'Nothing But Funk' itself kicks off the EP, opening with a full-phat bassline before ushering in an 80s boogie-style vocal and some VERY 80s-sounding synth chords. That sets the tone for the rest of the EP, with 'Groove It' marrying white-socked 80s soul vibes to a liquid-y funk geetar line while 'All Night Long' is a straight-up boogie number built for cruising along Ocean Drive with the top pulled down and your Wayfarers on, baby...
Review: Italy's Paolo Vecchiato serves up four authentic-sounding slices of retro funk. 'Street Pocket' itself is up first, a sax-tastic, laidback jazz-funker reminiscent of The Crusaders or (dare we say it) Shakatak, particularly when the girly chorus arrives halfway through. 'Never' is in a similar vein but has more of a sultry, late-night feel, while 'Funky Doo' takes us into more stomping, silver-jumpsuit-clad Ohio Players/Commodores territory and barrio funker 'Nao Poche' plays us out on a Latin-tinged note. An EP that could easily have been made some time around 1981 - and in this case that's a compliment, not a complaint!
Review: I Gemin has been busy this year, contributing to compilations and multi-artist EPs from such labels as ISM, Midnight Riot and Editorial. Here the Russian producer strikes out on his own via what we believe to be his first outing on Slightly Transformed. The title track is a great example of his self-proclaimed "intelligent house" approach, combining woozy, sun-kissed soul, disco and jazz-funk samples with occasional filter trickery, a warming bassline and relaxed (and some would say rubbery) house beats. The slightly bolder and more up-tempo "Easy Love" is similarly groovy, with the producer wrapping punchy horn lines, wah-wah guitars, jazzy horns and occasional female vocal snippets above a more rolling house rhythm.
Review: 10 months on from his last solo outing - a four-track missive of "Good Vibes" on Midnight Riot - South London's Shit Hot Soundsystem makes his belated bow on Slightly Transformed. There's much to enjoy on opener "Playground", a buzzing, low-slung chunk of mind-altering dub disco full of trippy electronic noises, intense bass, funky guitars and well-placed samples from a New York disco classic. On accompanying cut "Oh My My" he whips off his shirt and runs giddily towards sunny and summery disco pastures, adding his distinctive touch to a glassy eyed early '80s cut full of chopped-up rifts, celebratory vocal snippets and excitement-building filter sweeps.
Review: With the sun finally making its presence felt in the UK, it seems a fitting time for Slightly Transformed to unleash this epic compilation of "Summer Numbers" - cheery, disco-fired chunks of positivity tailor made for al-fresco sets and celebratory shindigs. Featuring a mixture of tried-and-tested re-edits and sample-heavy original compositions, the 19-track set boasts a pleasingly high number of highlights. These include - but are no way limited to - the talkbox-sporting '80s disco/jazz-funk fusion of Shit Hot Soundsystem's "Be With You", the warm and woozy, synth-laden bliss of Chuggin Edits' "Floating", the slow and steady head-nod of Old Chaps wonderfully soulful "Flight With Love" and the fizzing disco rush of Limpdisco's "Gimme Mo". Get To Know's "Music" - a chunky revision of a jazz-funk era dancefloor destroyer by Dayton - is also excellent.
Review: London re-edit label Slightly Transformed bring us a two-tracker from French producer Vigi. No idea what the original source for the strings-drenched, male-vocalled 'Acid Lies' might be, but the track presented here is simply dripping in 80s soul/boogie goodness, while a gentle dash of 303 freakery adds a little more contemporary appeal towards the end. 'Because Of You' is similarly boogie-inspired, but has a pacier, more disco-oriented feel. Good stuff, but be careful out there, people - a couple of spins and you may find yourself overcome by a sudden yearning for shiny suits and enormous shoulderpads...
Review: Based in St Albans, Hansi has been breathing new life into dusty old tunes for some time. This two-tracker for Slightly Transformed appears to be his first outing on a well-known label, with previous missives being self-released. Both tracks here - subtly tooled-up re-edits - are an excellent showcase for Hansi's productions. Our pick of the pair is "Some Thang", a sweeping, funk-fuelled, party-ready revision of what sounds like an AOR disco classic rich in swirling orchestration, crunchy Clavinet lines and blue-eyed soul vocals. "Nature's Super" sees the Hertfordshire DJ/producer get to work on Cerrone classic "Supernature", expertly blending elements of the original with some fittingly funky new instrumentation. The synth bassline is, in particular, delightfully heavy.
Review: Since debuting a few years back, Oldchap has delivered some quietly impressive re-edits and original productions. Here he makes his bow on Slightly Transformed following previous outings on such labels as Editorial, Boutade Musique and Puro Music. First up is "What's The Use", a hustling swamp funk revision where dubbed-out, filtered instrumental sections make way for chunkier slow house passages in which Oldchap showcases the killer guitar, bass and electric piano solos featured on the disco-funk track that inspired it. Similarly impressive is "Watching You", which sees the self-proclaimed wrinkly gently tool up and dub-out a rasping chunk of Blaxploitation-era funk.
Review: It's been a bumper year for fans of Chuggin Edits trademark band of sample-heavy disco revisionism and throbbing, mid-tempo edits. This outing on Slightly Transformed follows on from fine EPs for Alpaca Edits, FKR, Midnight Riot, Hot Digits and Bandolier. "I Know I Know" is, naturally, something of a loopy chugger; a spacey, AOR disco/Italo-disco style throb job that radically transforms a much-loved cosmic disco classic in mesmerizing fashion. Limpdisco is on hand to provide the obligatory remix, providing a revision that's closer in tone and style to the Gaz Nevada classic that inspired the Chuggin revision.
Review: Put on your gladdest of drags and hit the main thoroughfare; for his debut album Reynolds is taking us to town and he's doing it with serious sonic style. Down To The Strip is a hazy, dusky balmy LA Miami night circa 1985. An album built up around the warmest filters, clever samples and velvet synths cruising at a smooth mid tempo and surprising with plenty of twists in the tale; highlights include the bending chords and slouching breaks of "Hold On", the sublime hypnosis of "Under The Moon", the strange jazzy spring of "Oh!" and the Roule style loopy finesse of "Chuggin Edits". Time to strip things back.
Review: The UK disco boy Ash Reynolds follows up his last EP for Slightly Transformed with a new LP for the label, a diverse and all-encompassing disco-house gem for the small hours. The opener "Mysterious Vibe" is the grooviest piece of house funk that we've heard in a while - not to mention its glorious array of synths - and the dude follows up rather spectacularly with the rest of the release. We're particularly into "Play The Game" for its Detroit sensibility that reminds us of Kyle Hall's funkier output. Dopeness, indeed!
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