Review: Benny Sings' eighth studio album, Music, is a breezy and charming collection that showcases his knack for crafting catchy pop-soul tunes. Collaborations with artists like Mac Demarco and Emily King add depth to the album, highlighting Benny's songwriting strengths, while the album's sound gravitates towards blue-eyed soul and yacht rock, characterised by sunny melodies and hip-hop-infused beats. While Benny's songs exude a feelgood vibe, their lyrical content is special when particularly he is exploring themes of love. Standout tracks like 'Rolled Up' and 'Miracles' benefit from the infusion of personality brought by guest artists like Mac Demarco and Emily King, who add depth and dimension to Benny's compositions. The album's collaborations and Benny's signature style make for an enjoyable listening experience.
Review: Merge Productions comes through with a special red vinyl release here of a new version from the album originally recorded by Earl Sixteen and Brazilian producer Lucas Kastrup. 'I & I' is a timeless bit of roots lovers' rock with gentle percussive tumbles and earthy guitar riffs detailing a fat bottom reggae rhythm with some sweet and soulful vocal sounds up top. It's rich island music and flip it over and you will find a deep and warm dub version for even more stoned late-night sessions.
Review: South London's Slick n Bobby arrive in time for sound system season with a heavyweight debut that marries live dub chaos and hefty low-end sonics. Their double-sided single delivers two jolts of bass-driven, earth-shattering menace, both pressed loud and built for serious systems. The A-side, 'Belly Dub,' channels Boy In Da Corner-era sino-grime with eerie precision while 'OSOTB' dives into deeper dub territory-it has fluid, hypnotic and bass-loaded rhythms no one can ignore. Both tunes are nicely gritty, raw and finely tuned for chest-rattling impact so make for a bold and blistering entry into the UK dub underground.
Review: One of the more surprising trends of the early 1990s was the fusion of contemporary club culture - or at least the slow-motion end of it - with what would have once been considered 'church music'. While it was made famous by Enigma's global hit 'Sadness', Sloopey G's 'Domine' EP was reportedly recorded and released first. Certainly 'This Is The Day (Notre Dame Remix)', which naturally heads this THANK YOU reissue, sounds like a prototype of the Enigma sound - think British street soul beats, dreamy ambient pads, sampled monk chants, tactile bass and spoken word vocals. The EP also includes both similarly formed original bonus cuts, 'Victime' and the house-influenced 'Cathederal Dance', as well as previously unheard bonus cut 'Love In Heaven', a deliciously, shuffling and saucer-eyed affair.
Review: Flower Records fusion masters Masato Komatsu and Ryo Kawahara are Slowly and are adept at everything from dub to disco, soul to post-rock. They have been turning it out at a steady rate recently on labels like Oscarson but mostly Flower. Following a couple of standout 7"s in 'Tripping Out' and 'Let Some Love In' already this year comes 'Time Trip.' It is a lush bit of slow motion big beat and dub, with heavily treated Japanese language vocals over a fat, churning rhythm. An instrumental is also included on this crucial 7".
Review: Tabou has decided to press this to both 7" and 12" so it's up to you to choose your weapon from Jamaican rhythm legends Sly & Robbie who showcase their unmatched talent for crafting dub soundscapes. 'Ogun Dub' opens with deep, resonant basslines and intricate drum patterns while paying homage to the Yoruba deity Ogun. The track seamlessly blends mysticism and spirituality and on the flip side, 'Rise of Shango' delivers another transformative journey while offering a cathartic and meditative experience that reaffirms Sly & Robbie's legendary status in the game.
Review: Jamaican rhythm section legends Sly & Robbie have an unparalleled ability to craft immersive dub soundscapes. This timeless duo of delights on Tabou shows that once more. 'Ogun Dub' kicks off with deep, resonant basslines and intricate drum patterns and is designed to pay homage to the Yoruba deity Ogun, is blends mystic and spiritual themes with hypnotic grooves. Layers of reverb, echo, and stripped-down instrumentation ankle add to the trip while 'Rise Of Shango' on the flip is another journey deep into the heart of dub that is utterly cathartic.
Review: This cracking Leroy Smart tune was recorded at Wackie's and has never been on its own 45rpm before. It was cut to the killer Love Joys' 'Studio Man' rhythm and is a mid-tempo jam with tumbling sou bass and natty chords hanging in the air above the rhythm. The vocals muse on the power of reggae music while some nice tinkles on the keys bring a bit of light to the dusty drums. Flip it over for a more paired-back dub version, 'Reggae Man.' Two timeless sounds for sure.
Review: You can always count on Capracara to bring something a little spicy to the table, but the results are even more unpredictable when you throw UK house magician Simbad into the mix. If you like your house music extremely grubby, blippy, analogue and slightly unhinged, but still soulful, you're in the right place. 'Roubaix Cube' jerks and bumps along with all kinds of bleeps and rugged beats, and the pads sound delirious but still inject some real heart into the track. 'Prowler Report' heads further off into discordant freakiness, but there's still plenty of punch down low. 'The Ozone' is the smoother offering, with some gorgeous keys, chords and pads interweaving for a still-rugged but oh-so-sweet strain of deep house music.
Review: The Nunorthern Soul label heads into its second decade of operation and does so by welcoming back label regular Benjamin J Smith. He's a multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and producer whose sound tick all of the textbook Balearic boxes but with a little extra magic. He shows that again here with 'Marina Del Rey', a gloriously sunny sound with lavish and lush strings and gently swaying grooves with a mix of 60s and Library vibes. On the flip is the even more horizontal 'Big Sur' with its romantic melodic breeze and intoxicating instrumental leads all backed by rich vocals.
Review: Second time around for Sneaker Pimps' Six Underground, the lesser-celebrated follow-up to the duo's renowned 'Spin Spin Sugar' single (famous, of course, because of Armand Van Helden's influential 'Dark Garage' remix). While the revisions included here - all initially released in 1996 - did not make as big an impression, all four have stood the test of time impressively. The headline attraction is a pair of Two Lone Swordsmen rubs, which are amongst the earliest reworks Weatherall and Tenniswood laid down under the alias. The vocal and instrumental takes are low slung trip-hop tracks overlaid with heady electronic elements. Elsewhere, Nellee Hooper channels the spirit (and sound) of his work with Massive Attack, and Hull boys Fila Brazillia lay down a typically deep, dubby and slowly evolving downtempo workout.
Seven More Minutes Of Funk (original Strobe Life mix) (7:37)
Rhodes To Nowhere (8:09)
Seven More Minutes Of Funk (Richard Sen remix) (7:23)
Seven More Minutes Of Funk (The Veteran Delinquents remix) (8:39)
Review: Beyond Paradise releases tend to achieve that most difficult of tricks, ticking both danceable and laid-back boxes, but when you see the pedigree of names they've got on board it's no surprise they're able to. Solid State aka Richard Hardcastle has a history which stretches back to Sheffield's post-punk scene and releases on 90s tech/deep house label Toko, not to mention running the All Out War and Society labels. There's more than a hint of the Steel City's industrial funk/pre-house sounds in his two tracks, be that the muted nightdrive that is 'Seven More Minutes Of Funk' or the wonderstruck new beater 'Rhodes To Nowhere'. Richard Sen joins The Veteran Delinquents on the B-side, the former laying down a carpet of impeccably classy electro grooves, the latter going for a slightly more sinister remix of the A1, all arpeggiated neon rainshowers and chiptuney waves of synth respectively.
Higher Meditation - "Dreader Than Dread" (version) (3:48)
Review: Nia Songbird teams up with producer Higher Meditation for a powerful new roots 12" straight out of Leicester. Featuring the stirring tracks 'We Are Warriors' and 'Dreader Than Dread', this release is a great window into Nia's evocative vocals paired with Higher Meditation's hard-hitting production. The record delivers four compelling versions that blend conscious lyrics with deep, brutalist rhythms that echo the essence of modern roots. With its commanding message and richly layered soundscapes, this release pushes boundaries while staying true to the genre's soulful and revolutionary spirit.
Review: Japan is well known for doing things with a truly distinctive and often slightly out-there twist. Reggae and roots are no different and are sounds that have long been explored by artists in the Far East. Muffin is a new label from Japan that will allow us to Delbert into the scene's latest works and now they return with a second curious and lovely 7". It opens with Sonia's 'Cloudy' (feat Emi & Gel) which has angelic pop vocals and a nice earthy dub rhythm below next to bright synth chords. The flip features 2shanti with 'Bongo Dub' (feat Goja Bongos) which slows things down to a nice heady crawl.
Review: Ian Weatherall and Duncan Gray's Sons Of Slough project has done plenty of tinkering in the intersection between club and dub music, and somewhere between all that Scottish rock perennials Primal Scream often find their own comfortable nook to stretch out. As such, this 12" seems like a natural course of events, even if it came about through the pure whimsy of a day-dreaming muso (Weatherall) wondering what would happen if an obscure bonus track got stripped down and sent through the echo chamber. Bobby Gillespie was into the idea, and this record was the end result. One for all Balearic head nodders and soundsystem meditators alike.
Chapelle XIV Music, Yoyaku's art gallery label, signs up Shaun Soomro for this beautiful EP which combines elements for mind, body and soul. 'Rage & Harmony' kicks off with some dusty breakbeats and is doused in silky pads awash with subtle euphoria. 'The Laughing Heart' is a blissful ambient interlude full of texture and timbre and 'Illusions Of You (dub)' is a moment of go-slow loveliness on a codeine-paced rhythm. 'Dusk God' shuts down with more misty, grainy, lo-fi ambient and dub fusions.
Review: The return of Sorrow, characteristically with a gracefully morose new six-tracker, 'Unrequited'. "How can I forgive?" goes the rheum-smeared vocal sample opening out the Bristolian artist's new opener 'Monologue', after which amnestic choral lines follow like heavenly flights, singing thee to thy rest. Many a temporal restretching of the 2-step grief-garage paradigm follow, as on the slo-mo dancehall of 'Fallen Angel', the pan-fluting, blossom treeing dubstep of 'Unrequited', and an unlikely future downtempo saudade, 'Hedron'. It's nice to hear Sorrow back in action; without his continued presence, we might otherwise drown our own in other, less musical liquids.
Review: Three generous portions of blissful beats on the Electric Shrine imprint, kicking off with the downbeat (in BPM terms) but lively 'Solar Visions' coming on like a dub mix of a lost Chic classic, 'What You Love' more like prime-era John Carpenter remixed by a mischievous Orb and 'Un Amore Supremo' a slow motion (one of the slowest we've ever encountered) reverb-fest, designed for more eccentric chillout rooms. And that's all before the opera singer pitches in.
Review: Soul Revivers are a UK-based project of musicians and producers spanning seven decades, including Nick Manasseh and David Hill from Rootikal. Played off as a reissue of two classics (the design of the 7" is convincing enough), this actual fresh single has got two lovably layered numbers on it: 'Shouting Dub' and 'Furthest Version'. The former is an attention-grabbing yet leisurely plod through the smoke-hazed forestreets of yore, graciously alternating between two-toned basses and globular guitars. The B is much more spacious and phat.
Review: Soul Revivers return with 'Holding it Down', the lead single from their highly anticipated follow-up to the acclaimed debut album 'On The Grove'. Teaming up with West London's keyboard maestro and producer Ash Walker, along with vocalist Lyn Gerald, the pair of Nick Manasseh and David Hill deliver an ethereal yet captivating tune that brings to mind Jackie Mittoo's legacy and the essence of balmy summer evenings. As expected from Soul Revivers, the release includes a dub version by Manasseh on limited edition 7".
Review: Soul Sugar's signature, fruitful blend of reggae and soul once more oozes forth with 'Top Of My List'. Featuring the vocals of Shniece McMenamin, the track is a liquefyingly dreamy song, unhesitatingly letting in the sunny rays of rocksteady through the Venetians. But in contrast to the mood, it also tells the dubious story of our protagonist placing their self-respect and self-love in the hands of a former lover, with social-fabric-tearing consequences, a funk from which McMenamin sings to help pick up the pieces. The dub version helps; it's a refractive and soft version, emphasising more atmosphere than hardness or forward propulsion.
The Soundstealers - "Steal It An' Deal It" (Sahara dance mix) (5:35)
The Soundstealers - "Steal It An' Deal It" (Sahara dub mix) (4:59)
Amazonia - "Amazonia" (dance version) (5:52)
Amazonia - "Amazonia" (Good Block remix) (7:10)
Review: After a debut release that got plenty of people talking, Heels & Souls now serve up a reissue 12". It explores the work of Frankfurt's under the radar production trio Manfred Holz, Michael Buchner and Jurgen Blomke who work under two different names here. The EP is a real treasure trove of gold for deep diggers, with obscure synth and electro disco flavours on the 80s tinged ''Steal It An Deal It'.' It comes as two different versions and both are hugely characterful. 'Amazonia' that draws on dreamy Italo house and Balearic bliss bout beats for a new age trip that is first class.
Review: 10000 Lions Sound System brings some serious heat to their final release of 2024. It's a various artists affair with four artists offering up one heavyweight tune each. Spectacular's 'Big Bold & Brave' opens up with raw, guttural vocals over mid-tempo digi-dub rhythms. Bulby Yorke's 'Big, Bold Dub' stirs it back to a more low-end heavy roller but the bright melodies remain. Reemah's 'Run Dem Down; adds some nice female vocal soul next to big horns and raw percussion before a final dub again pairs things back to the rich basslines.
Review: French label Irie Ites has been busy of late and has put together a great bunch of new versions of classic reggae rhythms and pressed them all up to 45 rpm. This one takes the form of a brand new roots vocal cut over the classic 'Murderer/Hot Milk' rhythm with an instrumental version on the flip from the legendary backing band The Roots Radics. Their take is a more heady and carefully reduced one that allows the rich drums and bass to roll endlessly and hypnotise as they go.
We use cookies to personalise content and ads, to provide social media features and to analyse our traffic. We also share information about your use of our site with our social media, advertising and analytics partners who may combine it with other information that you've provided to them or that they've collected from your use of their services.