Back catalogue: All genres

Review: The mysterious Medieval Man is joined by Thomass Jackson, Mytron & Ofofo and Barry Sunset on this new split EP from the fledgling Culted label. Their edit series tackles plenty of interesting dark disco source material with beguiling results. The freaky future sounds of Mytron & Ofofo's 'Machinenhimmel' opens up with phased bass and spooky leads. Barry Sunset's twisted sci-fi disco stomper 'Hit The Drums' then takes off to the cosmos and Thomass Jackson twists and turns on loose, jangling percussion that is underpinned by fat bottomed bass. The brilliantly entitled 'Humble Frodo' is a weird and wonderful closer.

Review: Jimetta Rose and The Voices of Creation's new album, Things Are Getting Better, via Day Dreamer Recordings, is a soul-stirring devotional that blends house, funk, soul, r&b and hip-hop influences. The album opens with the lead single 'Portals,' an invitation to a new way of thinking. With a shuffling groove and soaring vocals, it breaks traditional gospel molds, introducing soulful r&b runs and syncopated verses. Things Are Getting Better is fantastically crafted studio sound, evolving from their raw debut, How Good It Is. The album is composed of non-professional singers and embodies Jimetta's mission to demystify the ministry and spread faith in music's power for positive change. Featuring instrumentalists Isaiah Collier, Ryan Porter, and V.C.R., and recorded at Sunset Sound studios, it encapsulates Jimetta's vision of "Black spiritual classical music". A prolific collaborator with artists like Anderson .Paak and Angel Bat Dawid, Jimetta leads the choir, delivering new mantras for our times. Things Are Getting Better is an example of the power of music, faith, and community.

Review: Dimitri has been very generous with his edits this year, having unleashed some of his finest DJ weapons in the form of the "Brooklyn Edits" EP and this refreshed trilogy of classic Salsoul revisions. They need little introduction as we take off with the iconic harmonies and horns of "Ooh I Love It" land with the incredible soul fusion of Love Committee's oft-covered (never bettered) feels odyssey "Just As Long As I Got You". With trips to New York for silky disco with Skyy and a synth boogie freak-out from The Jammers, it's once again another reminder that no one does edits quite like the man from Paris.

Review: 'Music & Time, 1983-1985' by Take Three brings together the soulful sounds of former South London vocal harmony group Alpha, fronted by sisters Jackie & Jean Heron and Marlene Richardson. This compilation, produced by the trio S.H.E. (Steve Sinclair, Peter Hinds, and Kevin Ellis), showcases their work during the mid-'80s, including both released and previously unreleased tracks. From the infectious groove of 'Tonight's the Night' to the reggae-infused 'Can't Get Enough (Nice Up Reggae Mix)', this collection captures a rich blend of UK soul, funk and dance, spotlighting an era of underground brilliance.

Review: By now, most should know Gloria Ann Taylor's "Deep Inside of You", a sublime chunk of rare disco-soul that's been reissued several times in recent years. Fewer will be familiar with Taylor's other work in the same period for the similarly obscure Selector Sound label, which is gathered together on this fine compilation. Evocative, tear jerking and largely heavily orchestrated in the "wall of sound" production style of Phil Spector, the heart-aching songs benefit greatly from Taylor's fragile but forthright vocal style. Ironically, the finest single moment - "Deep Inside of You" aside - is also the most sparse and bluesy: the near perfect "Burning Eyes". "Love Is A Hurting Thing" sold out when it first appeared in stores in 2015, so this reissue is bound to be popular. Don't sleep.

Review: Known for their cover versions - having re-read Sly Stone, Plastic Bertrand, Les Chats Sauvages, and many more over the years - Telex managed to tread a fine line between comedy and innovation. Focusing heavily on a lo-fi synthesised sound, the Belgian alt-poppers would use plenty of humour in their work, but never allowed this to outshine or overshadow the musicality of it all. Released in 1980, Neurovision is a case in point. According to the band, this was their tongue-in-cheek entry to the Eurovision Song Contest, for which they were chosen as representatives for their home country in the same year. Deliberately banal lyrics, mostly referring to the competition itself, married to the glittering wonder of a proto-electronic soundtrack, mark it as a work of bold daring and a little genius. Sadly, it failed to secure them last place in the tournament, as they hoped, forcing them to settle for 17 out of 19.

Review: He's taken his time, but finally Norwegian nu-disco legend Todd Terje has delivered a debut album befitting his immense talents. While there are plenty of examples of his vibrant, synth-heavy dancefloor style on It's Album Time - see "Delorean Dynamite", "Inspector Norse", "Strandbar" and the Lindstrom-ish grandiosity of "Oh Joy" - what really makes it such an essential set are the curious turns and oddball moments. Samba, jazz and easy listening get the Terje treatment on "Alfonso Muskedunder", "Leisure Suit Proben" and "Svensk Sas", while there's a welcome dose of wide-eyed Balearica on the tweaked "Swing Star" (one of a string of previously released cuts on the album). Most interesting of all, though, is "John & Mary", a woozy, Roxy Music style cover of a Robert Palmer classic featuring the effervescent Bryan Ferry.

Review: The Unreleased Album by The Horne Section, originally recorded during the years of 1983-1985, offers a vibrant fusion of funk, soul, disco and boogie. This US boogiefunk studio project stayed unreleased for a few decades until 2010, when these gems were collected for release. Each track exudes infectious energy and groove, with funky basslines, soulful melodies, and irresistible rhythms. The seamless integration of horns adds depth and texture, elevating the overall listening experience. From start to finish, the album delivers a captivating blend of retro charm and contemporary flair. Disco, house and funk fans can now enjoy this amazing find.

Review: Rose Robinson's debut album as Tigerbalm, 2022's International Love Affair, was a genuinely glorious affair in which she wrapped indigenous instrumentation and all manner of global music influences around grooves rooted in cosmic disco, nu-disco, proto-house, Italo and Balearic beats. This palette of influences once again comes to the fore on this remixed version, which boasts some of her favourite artists rework tracks from the LP. It's all killer, no filler - as the old saying goes - with our picks including Session Victim''s percussive deep house fix of 'Cocktail D'Amore', Isaac Soto's devilishly dubbed-out interpretation of 'La Brisa', a hybrid jazz-funk/Balearic soul re-build of 'Cosmic Camel' by Mystic Jungle, and a predictably proto-house leaning vocal interpretation of 'Tokyo Business' by Andrew Meecham AKA The Emperor Machine.

Review: 'Available Forms' is the latest masterwork of the musical project Tobor Experiment, led by Giorgio Sancristoforo, an Italian sound artist and music software designer based in Milan. Active since 2007, Sancristoforo's work has largely centred on highly technical odysseys in avant-disco, exploring surreal takes on the ambivalent promises made by the tide of technological advancement, channelled into a that has been described, perhaps quite cleverly, as 'moogsploration'. Coming after a 12-year hiatus on gatefold LP, Sancristoforo returns to his go-to label Bear Funk for yet another foray into this retro-modernist vision, mixing genre-bent jazz, electronica, nu-disco, and psychedelic influences.

Review: Since shifting his focus more towards atmospheric, Balearic-minded sounds a few years back, Tornado Wallace has delivered some of the most deliciously humid and glassy-eyed music around. Hopes are naturally high, then, for this long-anticipated debut album. It picks up from where his sublime ESP Institute, Beats In Space and Second Circle releases left off, delivering a warm, evocative, sun kissed blend of shuffling Balearic grooves, horizontal soundscapes, gentle tropical workouts, and rich, synth-laden explorations. There's a pleasing haziness throughout, with live percussion and instrumentation rubbing shoulders with glistening synthesizers, ear-pleasing electronics and pulsing drum machine hits. In other words, it's a fine debut album.

Review: Before finding global fame as the Weather Girls, sometime Sylvester backing singers Izora Armstead and Martha Walsh recorded a couple of albums as Two Tons O Fun. This, their eponymous 1980 debut, is the strongest of the pair and here gets a much-needed reissue. Like many disco albums of the period, it combines up-tenpo, peak-time-ready workouts - some, such as the ace 'Earth Can Be Just Like Heaven', 'I Got The Feeling' and 'Do You Wanna Boogie, Hunh', swim in similar sonic territory to Sylvester, while others such as 'One Sided Love Affair' are more NYC style stompers - alongside smoother, more soulful mid-tempo workouts and sugary slow jams.

Review: The Mellophonia label offshoot Fusion Sequence won us over with its well-presented and great-sounding first EP, and now a quick follow-up does the same. This one is another various artists affair that starts with some nice futuristic robot disco from Vanity Project. There is more organic and lush Balearic from Bobby Bricks and Pacific Coliseum follows that spine-tingling Ibiza sunset vibe. On the flip side, there is everything from late-night electronic house to lazy disco via Sorcerer's blissed out 'Just For Love' which would entrance any dance floor. There's as much quality as there is variation on this one, which makes it a useful EP indeed.