Back catalogue: All genres

Review: In celebration of their tenth birthday, Selador marks the occasion in style with a four-track collaborative EP, featuring tracks from 3D, Robert Owens, Olivier Giacomotto, Quivver, Dave Seaman, Hernan Cattaneo, Argia, and Jepe. The opening track, 'Known Love', is a deep, pulasting house tune that feels like an instant classic, perhaps thanks to the soulful, pop-tinged vocals - think LCD soundsystem meets Four Tet. 'Snailblazer', the second track on the EP, takes a much darker turn, with a chugging, EBM-esque feel. Full-bodied and complete with obscured vocals, this is the kind of track to pull out your bag when it's time to really get stuck in. On the B-side, 'Napkin Knowledge' draws on the glistening synths of eurodance, yet still securing the melodies to a grounded bassline and rhythm section. 'Salitre' is the perfect closing track, rising up in a gleaming, ecstatic melody, before delicately returning to ground level. A varied yet firmly cohesive collaborative release - the perfect way for Selador to kick off their 2023 catalogue.

Review: Toolroom Records are partly responsible for the recent upsurge in jackin' deep house in the early 2020's; this sampler record, the second in their compilations EP series, serves as yet another tour of their grand new deep house estate. Delusions of grandeur are expressed on 'You Are A God' - which, for a track so deitylike, measures itself with rather a lot of restraint - while 'Talking To Myself' contains a vocal sample that is so mouthy and infectious that we really are beginning to believe ourselves to have been possessed by Metatron. 'Mallet' swerves into tribal territory, while ESSEL's 'Try' could be a contender for dance-chart-topper, assuming its piano weaponry is effective enough at swaying the radio pluggers. Joyous stuff.

Review: QASB's Kono Machi De single, released on Soul Garden Japan, is a vibrant blend of Japanese soul with jazz funk and city pop influences. Side-1 features the Shuya Okino edit of 'Kono Machi De Aka In This Town,' which emphasises a groovy rhythm, enhancing the track's infectious energy. Side-2, has the original version which delivers a feel-good mix of disco strings and a lively horn section, reminiscent of Taste of Honey. Written by Moritaka as a tribute to her hometown Kumamoto, the song includes a nod to Tomari River, a location tied to collaborator Yuichi Takahashi. Having the option of both versions make this 7" a great little 45 to have.

Review: Fad-free French house label Skylax has always done its own thing, and always to a great reception amongst serious heads. This new one from Quasar is an impossibly perfect mix of physical drums and heart-aching vocal hooks. The pitched up female vocal conveys such bittersweet pain it doesn't matter the words she sings as you're immediately drawn in for the ride. 'For Your Love' is another hugely emotional cut with floating breakbeats and nagging vocals that really get you where it hurts. 'Morning Bells' is a deep house cut with a spritely groove and blissed out vocal, and 'Inside My Love' closes with more heavy analogue drums but no less of a heartfelt sound thanks to the melancholic pads.

Review: More house heat here directly from the home of the genre, namely the Windy City, courtesy of Chicago Vinyl. As soon as the first bar unfolds it oozes Mid-West house charm - the warm, soft-edged chords over the deep but driving beats complete with a nice light percussive sprinkle. 'I Need To Feel It' has a more laidback and soulful vibe with funky bass riffs and swirling pads. 'Let Em Blow' then rides on more elastic basslines that plunge down low and has colourful synth up top. 'The Weight Of Dependance' has a chunky feel with bold bass notes taking centre stage next to rising chord work and organic hits.

Review: Unusually adept, jazzdancey sonic handicraft from new Rekids signee, Quiet Village. If we at Juno could issue some kind of official rosette or emblem for 'wicked production skills'- on par with a master builder's sextant-engraved headstone - then we'd award Quiet Village with one such memento in a heartbeat. 'Reunion', pressed onto vinyl for the first time here, hears a loose yet effortlessly rhythmic drum break furl, dance about a smooth, nighttime jazz progression for sax and piano. It's giving visions of a down-and-out PI in an 80s neo-noir/romantic drama genre fusion, except this protagonist has just tuned into Rinse FM for the first time - and Rinse FM, in this alternate reality, exists in the 80s. The 'Reprise' version is equally as evocative, sans-ing the drums to allow space to listen to just the melodics, just the overarching ambiences. It's as if Quiet Village know that the true force of the tune, its essence, rests in the core mystique of the aforementioned instrumental combo; the ghost of the drums may continue to play back only in our minds, yet we continue to dance.

Review: Beeyou Records proudly presents False Promises, a captivating EP from Dennis Quin, a renowned artist known for his timeless, soul-moving house music. The A-side kicks off with 'Reactivate,' a high-energy garage track that immediately captures the listener's attention with its punchy basslines and crisp percussion. Following closely is 'Diamond Hunting,' a bumpy 4x4 track that is guaranteed to get any dancefloor moving. On the B-side, Quin offers a more introspective sound with 'Accidentally,' a track that blends classic house grooves with playful modern production. The EP's title track, 'False Promises (Original Mix),' is a standout, featuring a lovely vocal and vibrant house energy. Finally, 'Well Conducted' showcases Quin's versatility with its downtempo, chilled vibe. False Promises is a must-listen for fans of house music. Quin's talent for creating timeless tracks is evident on every track on this EP.

Review: PIV Limited is one of those white-hot labels that has its own universe of artists, dedicated fans, and even parties soul in places like Ibiza. The vibes are rooted in house with a slick future feel. Dennis Quinn is behind this new one which has a serious nod to the deep house don Kerri Chandler on opener 'Treat You Right (feat Cheshy)' with its bulky kicks, chord vamps and diva vocal. 'Impressions' has a more heady and blissed out feel with sunny chords and Roy Ayers style vibes. 'Touched' brings some raw, heavy house sounds for the warehouse and a Classy dub mix of the opera brings things to a sweaty close.

Review: Quince makes fluid and timeless techno music influenced by the soulful high tech sounds of Detroit. His latest release is a four-track EP on the Nowhere series which features tracks like 'Udon', a hypnotic and pulsating tune with a synth melody and a vocal sample that create a heady atmosphere, as well as 'Noodles', a more upbeat and groovy track with a catchy keyboard stab and a sultry bassline that add some energy and funk. 'Anthology Of Interest' is a solid EP that showcases the veteran Dutch producer's talent and style.

Review: Last year, Quiroga (real name Walter Del Vecchio) returned to Hell Yeah! Recordings with an impressive dose of TB-303-laden dancefloor psychedelia, the superb 'Acid Dropout EP'. 'French Kiss', the title track from his latest EP for the popular Italian imprint, is a more immersive, warm and hazy affair, where sweet female vocal snippets, warming Rhodes riffs and dreamy electronics rise above a shuffling, mid-temp deep house beat and organic-sounding bassline. His trademark acid lines naturally feature on the accompanying 'Baia Club Ambient Version', a shuffling breakbeat affair that takes cues from Italian 'ambient house' (IE dream house) rather than beat-free soundscapes. It is, though, genuinely superb. Turn to the flip for two bonus cuts: the vintage Jazzanova-esque broken house brilliance of 'Ask Coppede' and the deep, Balearic-fired electro shuffle of 'Cala Ventosa'.

Review: First released way back in 1999, Raphael Saadiq's Q-Tip-sporting "Get Involved" is a warm and woozy, retro-futurist chunk of soul/hip-hop fusion that harked back to an earlier musical age. It remains an arguably underappreciated dancefloor bomb and here gets the reissue treatment courtesy of the freshly lauched 45 Jams imprint. It comes backed by another stone cold classic from Q-Tip, "Vivrant Thing" - a cut first featured on the flipside of the Tribe Called Quest member's much more celebrated "Breathe Don't Stop" single. It's a little more stripped back than the A-side, with Q-Tip delivering his distinctive flows over a crunchy and fuzzy, Jay Dee produced backing track crafted from samples from an old funk record.

Review: This release features four club tracks from the recent Cold Blow fifth anniversary CD compilation. It includes contributions from Matti Turunen of the renowned electro group Morphology who does a good job of serving up his signature while the EP also highlights a funky electro collaboration between Qwerty and Ed DMX. Additionally, there's a true minimal techno banger from the legendary Mono Junk and last but not least is the introduction of an enigmatic new producer named Sleep Mathew. He adds an intriguing touch to this diverse collection that marks five years of Cold Blow in style.

Review: Waage is a firm favourite amongst dub techno fans. The Icelandic producer has long been turning out icy and atmospheric rollers for the heads and here he works alongside a fresh name, Quantal, who is sure to go on to big things. Here they land on Thule Records, a legendary label in its own right with roots going back to 1995. They kick off with the textured dub of 'WQ1' which has glitchy sounds paying over the rolling drums. 'WQ2' is much more smooth and streamlined, with an underwater current that sweeps you off your feet, then 'WQ3' leans into the wind with hypnotic techno drums and vamping chords that melt the mind. Last of all comes 'WQ4', a timeless dub with infinite horizons and the most frictionless drum loops.