LAST BONGO IN PARIS レコード& CD

Review: This is the debut release by the French duo Last Bongo In Paris, also known as Cleon & Jazzy Pidjay. Both are DJs and producers with a background in Latin funk and jazz-funk, and these influences more than strongly shine on 'Green Season', a release whose priority is heavy breakbeats backed by a whismical, live-instrumental flavour. The title track swims and sways through meandering kazoos and psychedelically-filtered falsettos, while the B-side brings up the flip with yet three more incredible live-but-edited-in-post numbers, plus a really weird, never-heard-before 'Bonus Scratch'.

Review: Last time we heard from Cleon and Jazzy Pidjay, otherwise known as Last Bongo In Paris, was back in 2013 on EDR...and here they are back on the same label, and out the bottom of a hat. Similarly to last time, "Bahia Swing" manages to conjure the right balance between jazz, funk and something a little more tropical, a sound and panache that is carried through to the following four cuts of juice. Our favourites are "Ritmo Loco" for its Latin energy, and the delightfully broken "Jarumba". If you're looking for something a little jazzy and saucy, but that pushes beyond the genre's natural confinements, this is it.