Review: Having delivered a seventh studio album of a long and productive career as Nightmares On Wax last year, George Evelyn has been treated to the full retrospective programme by Warp in 2014. Earlier this year the label issued a best of, artfully punned NOW Is The Time, this week has seen Warp reissue in deluxe format all of Evelyn's six previous and widely loved long players. All of them are in stock at Juno and worthy of your time, though Carboot Soul is a particular favourite amongst the review team here. The Quincy Jones sample on opener "La Nuit" never sounded so good!
Review: Over the years, George 'E.A.S.E' Evelyn has made some very good downtempo music as Nightmares on Wax, as well as some killer club cuts. Even so, he's previously made little quite as musically refined as Shout Out To Freedom. Made in cahoots a giant cast-list of guest performers, the album's 15 tracks rarely surprise - we know by now that Evelyn will blend elements of soul, hip-hop, jazz, reggae and smooth grooves - but are still capable of genuinely taking your breath away. Basically, Evelyn is doing what he does best, only better than ever, with more extensive use of live instrumentation and some genuinely stirring orchestration. Highlights include the Balearic ambient jazz brilliance of 'Wonder', the low-slung, flash-friend soul shuffle of 'Own Me' and the sunrise-ready bliss of 'Imagineering'.
Joe Dukie & DJ Fitchie - "Midnight Marauders" (7:12)
Ian Brown - "The Gravy Train" (NOW mix) (4:57)
Tony Allen - "Every Season" (feat Damon Albarn) (4:07)
The Rootsman - "Show Some Love" (5:34)
King Kooba - "California Suite" (Vagabond mix) (6:04)
Quincy Jones - "Listen (What It Is)" (4:13)
Cortex - "La Rue" (4:22)
Tom Scott & The LA Express - "Sneakin' In The Back" (4:22)
Search - "Action Tape 1" (Madscope mix) (5:15)
Large Professor - "'Bout That Time" (4:01)
Tranquility Bass - "Cantamilla" (4:31)
Mad Doctor X - "Intergalactic Throwdown" (6:07)
Dusty Springfield - "Spooky" (2:40)
Focus - "Having Your Fun" (3:40)
Nightmares On Wax - "Brothers On The Slide Dub" (dub) (4:57)
Brian Blessed - "The White City" (part 1 - Exclusive Spoken Word) (10:17)
Review: A welcome reissue of Nightmares On Wax's now classic Late Night Tales curators' mix comp. First released in 2003, this new LP edition is naturally the unmixed version and demonstrates the timeless bleep-era dance selector's funkiest and hippest influences, all of which demonstrate that this is an artist whose love for music extends far beyond the popular; the likes of Cortex, Quincy Jones, Search, Dusty Springfield, Large Professor, and even Brian Blessed prove this to be a diggers' delight that goes well beyond your average postie's job-lot. Ending on two original numbers, too - 'Brothers On The Slide (Dub)' and 'The White City (Part 1)' - you can be sure that George Evelyn's talents don't extend just to the decks either, bringing an original organic hip-hop and electronic funk source to an otherwise madly layered set of sonic flavours.
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