Review: Beam Me Up party mainstays the Patchouli Brothers impressed with their first outing on Basic Fingers earlier in the year, so hopes are naturally high for this speedy follow-up. The Toronto siblings predictably hit the ground running on "Shout On", an urgent, celebratory chunk of disco-funk perfection where incessant male vocalizations and party yelps add extra energy to a bustling workout dripping with crunchy Clavinet lines, rasping horn riffs, jazzy guitar solos and jangling piano lines. There's a pleasantly groovy - but no less energetic - feel to the peak-time disco bounce of "My Love", where more urgent vocals and sweeping strings bob and weave around a more low-slung disco groove.
Review: Depending on your predilection, The Brown Brothers are either an elusive duo of siblings from Brooklyn with a deep love of disco and a craft for edits which has surfaced on the now defunct Jiscomusic imprint or a neat excuse for Million Dollar Disco boss Al Kent to drop some rare disco heat without fear of legal action. Regardless, this second volume of Brown Brothers Secret Disco Sessions is just as essential as the first edition which MDD dropped earlier this year. Plenty of vintage and very obscure underground disco sounds from the height of 70s NYC discotheques here, all neatly edited for ease of mixing and maximum dancefloor potential. The low slung boogie of "Feel It Baby" and the recognisable organ funk of "Got Gear" particularly impress.
Review: No matter how much rare stuff gets released in this information age, there's always some even more obscure cool material yet be unearthed. Here obscure 70s LA outfit 4th Coming get the re-issue treatment: an out-there musical core consisting of Henry 'Hank' Porter, Jechonias 'Jack' S. Williams and a rotating cast of musicians, they released a handful of rare 7"s before disappearing. It wasn't until the 90s when fan DJ Shadow started bigging them up, and now we get a full collection that enables us all to finally enjoy their weird and wonderful grooves.
Review: Those with an encyclopedic knowledge of house history will tell you that 4th Measure Men was one of a number of alternative aliases used by Mark "MK" Kinchen during the early '90s. In fact, "4 You" was first released way back in 1993. This much-needed digital reissue not only includes a swathe of versions from the original 12" - the rumbling, proto-UK garage vibe of the original mix and Kinchen's own bouncy garage Dub tweak of B-side "Given" included - but also 2011 remixes from 2000 And One (bustling, MK garage-on steroids) and Maya-Jane Coles (woozy '90s garage meets deep and slinky tech-house). There's also what appears to be a fresh 2018 remix from DJ Steaw, who wisely layers even more vintage, basement-bothering garage elements to Kinchen's killer original groove.
Review: This second sampler for Craig Smith and Graeme Clark's excellent debut album once again sees them in fine form. While three of the four tracks stick to their tried-and-tested formula - rock-solid deep house built on heavy, head-nodding loops, long, lazy builds and cute, killer hooks - there's plenty to get excited about. The distinctly old skool "Back To Me" (check that analogue bassline) and hynotic head-nodder "Deep C" stand out, with "BURT (The Journey)" not far behind. The most revelatory moment, though, is "Settle", a dreamy downtempo concoction crafted from syrupy soul samples, echo-laden beats and sinewy strings that sounds like an updated version of Minnie Ripperton's more sensuous moments.
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