Review: A new mix from perennial party faves Soul Clap is always a cause for celebration, but there's something extra-special about this particular exercise in dancefloor nostalgia. Nice 'N' Ripe Allstars sees them revisit the bulging back catalogue of Grant Nelson's Nice 'N' Ripe label, an imprint that has tracked the rise, fall and subsequent rebirth of UK garage since its' birth in 1993. Soul Clap's mix - an action-packed 30-track affair featuring some of their own edits and remixes of classic cuts - does a great job in showcasing the best the label has to offer, flitting between early US garage style jams, loose soulful house, sturdy two-step, bass-heavy speed garage and the kind of long-lost jams which should be bitten by today's retro-minded house producers. In doing so, it offers an impeccable history lesson.
Review: It has been quite the musical transformation of Australian west coast legend Greg Packer. A veteran of Perth's electronic music scene, who long time championed the sounds of drum & bass/jungle for a couple of decades, he created the the Dr. Packer alias as an outlet for his new found love of disco and has since enjoyed some of the biggest success in his career thus far. Ahead of a full-length album coming on Glitterbox Recordings, the reigning king of disco re-edits presents four of his versions of soulful dancefloor favourites old and new, giving a flavour of what's to come from the LP. From the uplifting soul power of LaTrece's "I Want To Thank You" (Dr Packer Re Edit), a downright electrifying slo-mo take on a funky house classic to "Bad Habit" by ATFC featuring Lisa Millett, and Soul Rebels powerful 'I'll Be Good" featuring Lisa Miller.
