Review: Native Soul Recordings has been around a long old time in dance music terms and now it looks back over some of its finest works with this first in a new series of Best Of comps. Music writer Harold Heath is first up with 'Slipstream,' an effortless smooth late-night house cut with introspective chords and silky pads bringing real depth. The Candy Dealers get more lithe and elastic with the spraying bass and jumbled percussive house of 'Train Of Thought' and last of all, Asad Rizvi remixes Jevne's 'Moderize' with a funky little bassline and chord vamps that keep you on edge. A tasteful package of timeless house grooves.
Review: Demon's 'You Are My High' ignited a frenzy upon its release in 1999, becoming an iconic track synonymous with the French Touch movement. Now, 25 years later, the timeless allure of 'You' remains as captivating as ever. This summer, fans can rejoice as the track celebrates its anniversary with a special collector's edition vinyl release. With 150 million streams and a platinum disc to its name, 'You Are My High' soared to success, fuelled by its unforgettable music video featuring a three-minute French kiss. Despite initial attempts at censorship by the CSA, the track ultimately found its place on television screens 24/7, leaving an indelible mark on French pop culture. Demon's masterpiece not only defined an era but also influenced a new generation of artists, from Agar Agar to DJ Snake and beyond. As a quintessential symbol of the French Touch legacy, 'You Are My High' continues to enchant listeners with its irresistible charm and infectious groove.
Review: Tatsy Recordings is up to a fifth release and it wants you to sample what it is all about with this fine sampler. It kicks off with Disko Junkie's 'I Like To Party' which will indeed get you ready to party with its lavish grooves. A Nu Disco Mix of Discotron's 'September' then brings more good time feels with its colourful synths and vibrant rhythms. Flip it over and HP Vince has got the sauce with 'Got The Groove' with its loopy bass and classic samples, House Punkz then rework another super smooth soul sample into some disco house beats and Serial Thrilla end it all with the slamming 'More More More.'
Doni & Leo Young - "Rebelion In The City Of Gangia" (6:03)
Pastaboys - "On & On" (Panna mix) (6:32)
Hiver - "Magic Crusade" (5:51)
GPM, Steve Mantovani, Dan-E-MC, Daniele Mad - "House In Full Effect" (9:21)
Feel Fly - "Armaduk" (6:08)
Review: Rebirth is thrilled to announce the release of three bonus parts of the 'Ciao Italia. Generazioni Underground' album in 2023, available on limited edition vinyl. 'Ciao Italia' Bonus Quattro, Cinque and Sei continue to connect two generations - the trailblazers of the early 90s and those continuing the legacy today, with a futuristic perspective and renewed energy. Bonus Sei includes classic tracks from legends like Doni & Leo Young, Pastaboys, G.P.M., Steve Mantovani, Dan-E-Mc, Daniele Mad, along with unreleased material from newer Italian artists such as Hiver and Feel Fly.
Review: Big Love's popular compilation-style A Touch Of Love series returns for a sixth instalment, with boss man Seamus Haji once again showcasing a quartet of tried-and-tested treats. Fittingly, he kicks things off with 'Serious', a kind of hbrid heavy garage-house/disco house affair featuring organ solos aplenty and vocals from Chicago legend Mike Dunn, before Moon Boots joins the dots between sweet 80s soul and nu-disco on the synth-powered vocal number 'In My Life'. Heavy, French Touch-inspired disco-house vibes are provided by DJ Fudge ('Escapade'), before Dutch rising star Danou P - with a little help from pal Jamie 3:26 on vocals - delivers the organ rich deep house/garage-house fusion of 'Fly'.
Review: The self-titled Hard Drive Library production outfit is back with a fifth offering of raw-assed house music. This latest three-tracker is another direct-to-dance floor offering that starts with the rickety loops and endless reverb of 'Extra Wet' which has thumping kicks, serrated electro-house synths and yelping vocals. 'Another' is a much more smooth and feel-good groove with summary, uplifting French house synth loops and last of all 'Less Euphoric' is actually more euphoric with plenty of pent-up energy, bumping drums and happy melodic loops that cannot fail to bring a smile to your face.
Review: The deep house maestro that is Ron Trent has been tapped up for some of his remix expertise by the good folk at Leng. He is charged with tackling Harks & Mudd's 'Susta' and turns out two versions. His opening remix is all grown up Balearic sounds. Gentle percussion is scattered over the leggy house drums, noodling Rhodes chords bring colour and a breathy female vocal layers in the sun kissed soul. It's an immediate classic. On the flip comes his dub, which is more fleshy and elastic, but with just as much soul and warmth.
Help Me Find My Way (feat Seta - Pontchartrain remix) (5:47)
Elevate (The Carry Nation remix) (5:06)
Review: Heidy P is a long time associate of the Rocksteady Disco crew and now she treats them to her first ever solo release in the form of Elevate. It is, as you'd expect of her, a house record through and through, but one packed with plenty of her own charm and personality. Opener 'Elevate' is a classy and jazz-tinged, Latin-styled groove that will electrify any floor. Next is the hugely emotive, soulful and gospel drenched 'Help Me Find My Way' with uplifting vocals from Seta. Pontchartrain then steps up to remix 'Help Me Find My Way' into something deeper and Carry Nation close out with a more freaked out sound.
Herd & Fitz/Hannah Wants/Abigail Bailey - "I Just Can't Get Enough 2024" (6:39)
Herd & Fitz/Jakkob/Abigail Bailey - "I Just Can't Get Enough 2024" (5:26)
Herd & Fitz/Abigail Bailey - "I Just Can't Get Enough 2024" (5:16)
Herd & Fitz/Abigail Bailey - "I Just Can't Get Enough 2024" (H&F Sunrise mix) (6:00)
Review: Back in 2006, Jason Herd and Jon Fitz scored a colossal club hit with 'Just Can't Get Enough', a funky and chunky house number featuring impassioned lead vocals by Abigail Bailey and a prominent sample from Kariya's late-80s dancefloor classic 'Let Me Love You For Tonight'. 18 years on, the track has been given a makeover. Hannah Wants steps up first, retaining the vocals and Kariya synth samples while combining it with a beefy, tooled-up house groove, before Jakob reaches for mid-90s organ bass, a grandiose breakdown and even bigger builds. Flip for two reworks by Herd and Fitz - a rushing, peak-time friendly, radio-ready big room house re-wire, and a bouncier, piano-sporting 'Sunrise' revision.
Review: Vega Records finally drops this EP from Honeysweet having teased tunes from it on the Vega Records 5 Pack Unreleased III. It's a superb house offering with lashings of soulful groovers, all produced by Josh Milan. First out of the blocks is 'Last Night Changed It All' featuring Lawrence Clark on sax. It's a jam that will pack out the floor but brims with real musicality from the magical Rhodes, picked bass guitar, rhythm guitar and drums. 'Crazy' is a more raw, textured percussive sound but then come plenty more feel-good grooves for sun-kissed dance floors such as 'Being Free.'
Review: Ah, Hot Creations, home to the hippest house music that cites disco and 25 year-old club anthems as its inspirations. Here, label head honchos Jamie Jones and Lee Foss revived their Hot Natured project for a sweet stroll through smiley vocal house territory in the company of one-time electrofunk revivalist Ali Love. "Benediction" is good for what it is - a vaguely deep, pleasant Hot Creations record - but the real killer here is the remix of former single "Forward Motion" by crusty old US garage head Mark "MK" Kinchen. He recalls those glory days of tough but groovy MK dubs with a rework straight out of 1993.
Please Take Me There (Makez vocal House remix) (6:30)
Please Take Me There (Sizmo A Capella dub mix) (6:39)
Review: House of Spirits made a fine debut on this label back in summer and now quickly follows it up with more sumptuous house sounds. It is an alias of Tom Noble, a mind full of soulful and blissed out musical ideas that he translates fantastically. 'Please Take Me There' is irresistibly cool and catchy with its funky bass riffs and many great guitar motifs all causing over a smooth groove. The Makez vocal House remix is deeper and has a hint of shuffling US garage to it, then the Sizmo A Capella dub mix ups the blissed out feels with new age melodies and supple, dubby drums.
Review: The second in the HouseHeadz00 Series, The Black Edition, is "a masterful exploration of house music's rich and varied landscape." The EP take in four tracks that combine seamlessly blend different subgenres into one complete listening experience. 'Recuerdo' goes for classic house with its vibrant pianos and uplifting melodies, 'Desire' heads deeper with hypnotic beats and lush textures. On the flip, 'Dream' does what it says on the tin, enveloping you in a woozy, dreamlike state with intricate layers and ethereal sounds, before 'Ever' introduces a soulful dimension with smooth vocals and emotive harmonies. Something for everyone, pretty much.
Review: Over the last three years, DJ/producer Mimmo "MoBlack" Falcone has turned MoBlack Records into arguably the World's leading label for African house music. Defected clearly thinks so, because the label has decided to put out this EP featuring tracks from remixes from Falcone and some of his regular collaborators. On side A Falcone joins forces with Armonica to deliver two sparkling, rubbery, positive and heavily electronic reworks of Fela Kuti classic 'International Thief Thief'. Both hit the spot, though it's the Dub, with its extended vocal breakdown and trippy effects, that floats our boat. Over on the flip we're treated to two versions of MoBlack, Emmanuel Jal and Henrick Schwarz hook-up 'Chagu': a bouncy Afro-tech take from Schwarz and a warmer, deep Afro-house interpretation by Falcone.
JR From Dallas & Justnique - "Detroit Drums" (4:27)
Review: The Lisztogrooves series is back and we're glad about it. The first one was essential and this follow-up from Igor Gonya's label features a blend of heavy hitters next to some cool emerging talents. Opening with Manuel Sahagun's smooth deep house track 'Get Yourself' things move on to a taste of US house from Human By Nature, who serves up a rich atmosphere and nostalgic 90s piano riffs. The A-side finishes strong with Gramophonedzie's high-energy jackin' filter workout then on the B-side, French producer Naux creates a deep groove built around chord stabs. Stogov follows with the soulful 'Walking Wide' while JR From Dallas and Justnique wrap up the EP with a seductive deep house finale.
Review: Young South London dance veteran Ben Hauke delivers a worthy full-length LP for Touching Bass, Club Cute, a self-described love letter to the city's club culture. Feeling outwards from his establishing, Rye Wax-adjacent EPs and 12"s - which sounded more rooted in 4x4 house, albeit with an unmistakably SE-tinged wonky bent - Hauke's latest here leans further into the broken beats and UK garages more befitting of a full-length dance record. Welcoming a star cast of vocal and production plus-ones to the party (Jadasea, Brother Portrait, Shy One, even Katy B (!)), the effortless feel of UK club culture, particularly the midnight moods endemic to quote-unquote 'SELDN' and its many nighttime haunts in centres like Peckham, Deptford, New Cross and Bermondsey, is felt lightheartedly - cutely - throughout.
D:Ream - "U R The Best Thing" (Def club mix) (7:56)
Stereo MC's - "Good Feeling" (Mr G Turn On dub) (6:51)
Black Joy - "Untitled" (Solid Groove remix) (6:21)
Scott Richmond & John Selway present Psychedelic Research Lab - "Keep On Climbin'" (mix 2) (8:25)
Charly Brown - "Freaked Out" (11:11)
Maydie Myles - "Keep On Luvin'" (West Tribe beats) (11:07)
Johnny Dangerous - "Dear Father In Heaven" (Mr Marvin House Of Dreams mix) (7:34)
Review: Honey Dijon is the perfect artist for the DJ-Kicks series given the breadth of her knowledge and she delivers a killer mix with tracks from Blackjoy, Art of Tones, Shaboom, Kiko Navarro, and an exclusive new cut of her own. A Grammy-winning DJ, activist, and fashion icon, Dijon has found success in various fields while staying true to her Chicago house roots. The 19-track mix, her first commercially available compilation, highlights her deep knowledge of house music and blends forgotten classics, rare finds, and modern gems. This vinyl sampler includes one of her own original tracks, definitely one of the best of the lot.
D:Ream - "U R The Best Thing" (Def club mix) (7:56)
Stereo MC's - "Good Feeling" (Mr G Turn On dub) (6:51)
Black Joy - "Untitled" (Solid Groove remix) (6:21)
Scott Richmond & John Selway present Psychedelic Research Lab - "Keep On Climbin'" (mix 2) (8:25)
Charly Brown - "Freaked Out" (11:11)
Maydie Myles - "Keep On Luvin'" (West Tribe beats) (11:07)
Johnny Dangerous - "Dear Father In Heaven" (Mr Marvin House Of Dreams mix) (7:34)
Review: ***B-STOCK: Sleeve damaged and LP1 label on wrong side but otherwise in excellent condition***
Honey Dijon is the perfect artist for the DJ-Kicks series given the breadth of her knowledge and she delivers a killer mix with tracks from Blackjoy, Art of Tones, Shaboom, Kiko Navarro, and an exclusive new cut of her own. A Grammy-winning DJ, activist, and fashion icon, Dijon has found success in various fields while staying true to her Chicago house roots. The 19-track mix, her first commercially available compilation, highlights her deep knowledge of house music and blends forgotten classics, rare finds, and modern gems. This vinyl sampler includes one of her own original tracks, definitely one of the best of the lot.
Johnny Dangerous - "Dear Father In Heaven" (Mr Marvin House Of Dreams mix)
Psychedelic Research Lab - "Keep On Climbin'" (mix 2)
Blow Out Express - "You're Mine" (Sound Factory Bar mix)
The Dance Kings - "Climb The Walls"
Buika X Kiko Navarro - "Mama Calling" (Tedd Patterson remix)
Cassio The Cassmaster - "Getting Hot" (Broad Market Street mix)
Maydie Myles - "Keep On Luvin" (West Tribe beats)
Michi Lange - "Brothers & Sisters" (radio mix)
Shaboom - "Bessie"
D:Ream - "U R The Best Thing" (Def club mix)
Sir Lord Comixx - "Soul House"
Honey Dijon - "Finding My Way" (feat Ben Westbeech)
Art Of Tones - "Praise"
Waajeed - "Right Now"
Black Joy - "Untitled" (Solid Groove remix)
Review: Honey Dijon is exactly the sort of artist you want to hear from in the DJ-Kicks series. And she more than comes through with tracks by Blackjoy, Art of Tones, Shaboom, Kiko Navarro, and a brand-new cut from Dijon herself. Known as a fashion icon, activist, Grammy winner, and DJ, Dijon has achieved success on many fronts but always brings with her a sense of authenticity and a through line to the roots of house in Chicago. The 19-track mix marks her first commercially available compilation and showcases her deep knowledge of house music as she blends forgotten classics, dollar-bin finds, and modern tracks, including one of her own.
Review: Heels & Souls Recordings marks its tenth release with a reissue of Hot Slot Machine, the pioneering 1992 album by South African prodigy Makhosini Henry Xaba, also known as Joe Nina. Created when he was just 16, this six-track LP merges US and UK influencesihouse, hip-hop, soul and reggaeifiltered through a distinctly South African lens that set the stage for the emerging kwaito sound. Drawing inspiration from the bass-heavy rhythms of artists like Blackbox and Ten City, Hot Slot Machine goes beyond the bubblegum pop of the era, delivering a richer, synth-laden sonic landscape that resonated deeply with early 90s South African audiences. Tracks like 'Rhythm', 'Unchain My Heart' and 'Shake Ya Down' hit with chunky hip-house energy, while 'Lookin' Mix', 'I'll Be Ready' and 'Lovin' Mix' showcase a low-slung, infectious groove. The album, long lost to history, has been carefully remastered by Sean P and Justin Drake, who restored the tracks from surviving rips. Licensed from Gallo and featuring liner notes and unseen photos, Hot Slot Machine is a vital reissue that celebrates a crucial moment in South Africa's musical evolution.
Review: The London-based House Gospel Choir vocal group founded by Creative Producer and singer Natalie Maddix came together in 2014 and made a much-talked-about debut at Glastonbury Festival. Merging house and gospel music which are of course very comfortable bedfellows, the choir caters to those who love to sing, even if they don't always know the lyrics. Their sounds are high on emotion but also pack plenty of club-ready punch and their shows invite audience participation through call-and-response, handclapping, and dancing. This album is a must for anyone who loves the roots of house with everything from deep cuts to gospel anthems via garage swingers with collaborations from Rudimental, Afronaut Zu, Joe Smooth, Janice Robinson, and Beverley Knight.
Review: Initially founded by Natalie Maddix ten years ago to reconnect house music with its gospel roots, the House Gospel Choir wowed critics and listeners alike with their 2020 debut album, Re/Choired - a set of radical and universally excellent covers of dance classics. On this belated sequel, they combine genuinely inspired covers - see the album opening gospel choir translation of Joe Smooth's Chicago classic 'Promised Land' and a deliciously sparse, piano, organ-and-voice take on Livin' Joy's 'Dreamer' - with takes on deeper selections and a smattering of original compositions. Highlights come thick and fast, from the gospel house sweetness of 'No Better Friend' and the sub-heavy Rudimental X Afronautzo collaboration 'Glow', to to life-affirming sweetness of 'Optimistic', featuring the great Beverley Knight, and the spoken word-sporting 'A Vow (Love is the Message)'.
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