Compilation Recommendations June 2012

Review: Chicago based imprint Still Music earn a hearty slap on the back from all at Juno by reissuing the killer In The Dark: The Soul Of Detroit compilation they originally put out back in 2005. This CD version contains all twelve tracks from the original release as well as some must see bonus material in the shape of a previously unreleased documentary on an accompanying DVD. "In the Dark: Voices" is a 30-minute piece on the Motor City scene at the time of the original album release, featuring the testimonies and footage of some key figures, such as Ron Trent, DJ 3000, Wilhite and Huckaby on two slabs of vinyl. On the CD are seminal tracks from Motor City deities like Delano Smith, Moodymann & Rick Wilhite and Keith Worthy. For our money it's the cuts from Malik (aka Marcellus) Pittman and Mike Huckaby that elevate this release from the merely very good to the downright brilliant. Essential.

Review: In recent years, Endless Flight has proved to be one of the more reliable sources of off-kilter deep house, melodic techno and touchy-feely electronica. Their catalogue is stuffed full of hard-to-pigeonhole fare that puts melody and atmosphere above straightforward dancefloor thrills. This fifth volume of their label collection series, I'm Starting To Feel OK, delivers plenty of high grade material that fits the formula. See, for example, the heartbreaking pianos and lazy bump of Roman Rauch's "Feelings", the disco-flecked chunkiness of Eddie C, or the Flamenco-inspired Balearic deepness of Kuniyuki's "Cairn". With heavyweights like Lawrence, Vakula and Creative Swing Alliance also involved, there's barely a beat out of place.

Review: Whilst the diggers might sneer, the ongoing series of Larry Levan Garage Classics unmixed compilations has always been a good source for those wanting some insight into the sounds that drove the floor in the halcyon days of New York's legendary Paradise Garage. This fifth edition sticks to tried and tested method of jams Levan caned at his peak, offering up a clutch of well known disco and boogie standards along with one or two surprises. You should never turn down the chance to own the still amazing "Love Tempo" by Quango Quando, and there is further certified dancefloor heat from War, 52nd St and Stargaze.

Review: There's been plenty of online chatter about this collection of slo-mo groovers, pitched-down disco edits and soft-focus midtempo deep house from Yam Who's ISM label. It's not hard to see why. It pretty much features all of the artists making their name on the slo-mo scene - Matthew Kyle, Rayko, 78 Edits, Sleazy McQueen, Heion etc - alongside familiar names pitching it down a notch or two (Yam Who, Trujillo, Ajello etc). There are some great slow house contributions, from the touchy-feely goodness of Martin Ruez' "Golden Sugar" and the low-slung stoner funk of Mr Chicago's "Bad Dub", to the snugly 80s soul/AOR flex of Magnetic Soul's "Head Over"

Review: We've had five consecutive days of blistering sunshine in the UK, so it must be time for the annual Hospitality Summer Drum & Bass CD. Now something of a staple in the release schedules, it rarely fails to please with its sweet, soulful, energetic and, above all, funk-laden take on jungle. This year's edition is mixed by Hospital bossman London Electricity (aka Tony Colman), who squeezes 30-plus tracks into an hour of mid-price, festival-friendly fun. There's little in the way of surprises - by now, we should all know what to expect from Hospital and their shimmering brand of 'disco drum and bass' - but plenty of bangers, making it a snip at L4.99.

Review: While rooted in drum and bass and dubstep, there's always been an "anything goes" vibe to the bass-centric releases of Shy FX's Digital Soundboy label. As if to prove a point, this collaborative label mix for the FabricLive series - put together by Shy FX, Breakage and B.Traits in the Digital Soundboy studio -touches on all corners of contemporary bass music in a whirlwind 70 minutes of madness. There's juke, UKG, two-step, rave, D&B, dubstep, tropical, UK funky and even a dash of Nina Simone amongst the 40-odd tracks effortlessly blended into one energetic, anything-goes mix-up. It's pretty breathless stuff, but there's enough depth and melody amongst the rump-shaking rhythms to impress even the most miserable anti-bass crusader.

Review: Along with label mate Henrik Schwarz, deep house/techno stalwarts Ame were one of the first to realize the full potential of Ableton Live as a performance tool. For the best part of a decade, they've been using the software to perform bespoke live shows featuring "on the fly" reworks of their productions and remixes. Those who've witnessed their live shows will attest to their undoubted quality. Here, they recreate those performances on Live, a seamless mix CD featuring live recordings mined from their extensive vaults. As a "best of", it's unsurpassed, featuring a mix of anthemic classics ("Rej", "Envision", "DPOMB", "Where We're At" etc), recycled accapellas and tweaked remixes - many in stunning new revised form.

Review: Disco Discharge's seemingly inexhaustible surge through the ripe archives of disco continues unabated with the latest instalment Midnight Shift. This ongoing series has never been afraid to dip its toes in the camper end of the disco spectrum, but as you can tell from the muscle rippling cover art Midnight Right unashamedly dives right in! Taking diva supreme Bette Middler as the starting point, this twenty track selection begins with her most famous disco anthem "My Knight In Black Leather" and keeps the tempo bicep flexingly upbeat throughout. As with previous instalments the accompanying sleeve notes from disco documenter Alan Jones provide the sort of fascinating insight and context that seperates Disco Discharge from its many compilation pretenders.

Review: While snappy compilation titles clearly aren't their thing, New York's Plan B Recordings have been responsible for some good quality techno over the past four years. Their sound is particularly interesting, sitting somewhere between classic Detroit sounds, the retro-futurism of Aril Brikha, the space-obsessed contemporary noodlings of Jeff Mills and sparkling electronica. This first label compilation of 2012 offers all of those things and more, including a dash of bassy electro (Marshallito's "Meltdown"), Meat Beat Manifesto-ish techno-breaks (DJ Spider's excellent opener) and spoken word-laden ambient with a message (Spider Bites' paranoid closer "Crawling Towards Chaos").

Review: Considering he's been releasing records for the likes of Planet Mu and Apple Pips since 2009, it would be something of an understatement to say that Brackles' debut album has been a long time coming - but it couldn't have been better timed. Although his sound - a rough hybrid of UK garage and funky styles with echoes of dubstep - is very much of the now, there's an obvious love for the classic sounds of 90s UKG which many of his more inexperienced contemporaries lack - assisted by the inspired vocal contributions from Lily McKenzie and Terri Walker. But it's not just a throwback record - be it the slightly offbeat bass and calypso vibe of "Walkin' Out" or the churning subs of "Squarehead", Brackles nevertheless manages to twist the template into weird and unique shapes. That this album has been released on Rinse isn't a surprise - he's encapsulated nearly twenty years of the station's sound into one record.