Juno Recommends International May 2019

Review: To mark the label's 50th release, the team behind Names You Can Trust has snagged a fresh cut from the band that started it all back in 2007, Greenwood Rhythm Coalition. Fittingly, it also happens to the Afro-Caribbean-Latin-Funk fusionists' first single of any sort for nigh on five years. "Jewels" is delightfully hard to pigeonhole: a suitably tropical excursion that giddily melds elements of tropical disco, dub, cumbia, funk, soul and Afrobeat into something warm, addictive and floor-friendly. It's lopped into two parts on this seven-inch release, with the second being notably more percussive and heavy than the already weighty A-side.

Review: German-Ghanaian group the Polyversal Souls have previously collaborated with a number of bands and solo artists from West Africa, so this hook-up with Northern Ghanaian outfit the Bolga All Stars - a collective made up of leading local kologo and frafra-gospel singers and musicians - should not come as much of a surprise. Separated into two parts for the seven-inch release, the track blends the Polyversal Souls' lolloping, late '60s style Afro-funk grooves - complete with fuzzy, period style production - and sharp horn section with glistening guitars, snaking solos and fine vocals from the Bolga All Stars. It's one of the Polyversal Souls' finest releases yet, and that's saying something.