Kool & The Gang - "Give It Up" (DJ Soopasoul edit) (4:02)
Aretha Franklin - "Rock Steady" (DJ Soopasoul edit) (3:30)
Review: Jalapeno jive maestro Soupasoul had another standout year, in 2024 and only heightened his reputation for crafting exceptional edits that bring new life into funk standards and hidden gems. With a sharp focus on the groove-rich breaks, he is back once again with another instalment that will ignite dance floors everywhere. This time his scorching rework of 'Give It Up' spotlights dynamic horn interplay and soulful jazzy choruses and 'Rock Steady' celebrates Aretha's powerful vocals paired with a killer breakbeat. These finely tuned edits honour the originals while adding fresh energy.
Review: Kaymany & Asestar hail from Rome, a city where many musicians spend most of their days producing sounds for the television industry and even shopping malls. That's part of the reason the country has such a reparation for great jazz-funk sounds and now adding to that cannon are Kaymany & Asestar. 'Effimera' is glossy and feel good disco with retro future chords, while 'Digressione' has a Bob James style energy to it with its high speed funky bass and incidental chords. 'Capao' closes in Latin fashion with manic keys and more plucked and funky bass slaps making you shake every limb.
Review: Dewey Kenmore clearly knows the pains of unrequited love and irrelationship better than most artists. The enigmatic soul singer's new single 'Before We Say Goodbye' channels the denial stage of grief: "you know it's just you and I, do or die", he opines, desperately grasping after the former ecstasy of a now fading relationship. The song is full of doomy minor chords and Hammond organ-ic reverie, laying on thick the mood of irreversibility around life's milestones.
Review: You might well have caught wind of Kenny Dope's exhaustive Wild Style Breakbeats box set which came out in 2014. It found the New York legend offering up six 7"s carrying iconic breaks used in seminal hip hop movie Wild Style. Well now you can cop something from that highly sought after box and enjoy it for yourself as the first disc gets its own individual release. On the A side we've got the low slung bass and dusty groove of 'Down By Law', and on the flip it's 'Subway Beat' with a sweet low funk groove. Both should evoke strong memories for anyone versed in the roots of hip hop culture, but regardless they're just kick ass beats you could have a lot fun juggling and blending into other people's music.
Review: This delightful 7" features a collaboration between two Star Creature veterans from Northern and Southern California who deliver a raw, uncut boogie track. The wonderful 'Girl Ur Freaky' is both breezy and laidback but irritably dance. The vocal harmonies are heart-melting, the wispy synths bring cosmic cool and the drums and squelchy bass sit together perfectly. The vocal version really is where it's at with this one but if you want it more subtle then the flip-side instrumental is the one for you.
Review: REPRESS ALERT!: Funkyjaws Music is back to make your body move with the latest instalment in its ongoing edit series, Let's Dance, this time with a sixth sizzling volume. Monsieur Van Pratt's loose and languid 'Besame' opens up with some gorgeous strings and funky guitar licks then Kiko Navarro brings a rich Afro flavour with the shuffling and percussive rhythms of 'Bosinga'. Bogdan Ra's 'Get On The Floor' is a fresh take on a disco classic with irresistible vocal charm and swooning pads. Last of all, Zaffa demands you 'Shake It' and you surely will as he layers up wet claps, sliding hi-hats and lively drums into a big-hearted party starter.
Review: Spanish producer Kiko Navarro has joined up with veteran Beninois vocalists and musical powerhouse Kaleta and the next level skills of The Ibibio Horns for this vibrant new 12". It's an inspired and Afro-infused groove exploration with funk, disco and acrobat all bottle dup in the beats that traverse Afria from East to West. The Ibibio Horns are on fire of course as they blaze up the sounds with their expressive horns and red hot keys while the vocals from Kaleta add further fuel to the fire. Instrumentals are also provided for more direct to dancefloor business.
Review: Dynamite Cuts brings the heat once more with a second volume of their Sound Music 45s series. Siegfried Schwab takes care of the A-side with 'Getting High', a scorching funk workout with hard-worked guitar chords and precise percussion over lots of wah-wah effects. 'Feel It; flip the script with a superbly stripped-down jazz-funk lounge sound. Klaus Weiss then steps up on 'Time For Rhythm' with some loose, percussive funk beats that are raw and organic, then Peter Thomas closes down with 'Documentation', a more richly instrumental and multi-layered jazz-funk sound that conveys real grandeur.
Review: Is there a more genuinely eclectic producer than Kalbata operating right now? We certainly can't think of one. Over the last decade and a half he's turned his hand to everything from dub, techno, dubstep and electro to Balearic beats, downtempo grooves and inspired musical fusions that simply cannot be categorized. His latest excursion - made in cahoots with five-piece Israeli band Tigris -falls into the latter category, offering up a brilliant blend of African and Caribbean rhythms, Turkish psych-funk organ solos, off-kilter electronics, wavy ambient chords and glistening guitars. It's hard to accurately describe but brilliantly produced and hugely entertaining. Don't sleep on this one!
Review: High school band directors used to press up their bands' performances to vinyl, & none made as much sweet noise as this "Texas Thunder Soul." Deluxe gatefold package as well as some previously unreleased live music, plus a bonus documentary.
Review: Late, great Japanese guitarist Ryo Kawasaki is behind this classic bit of jazz-funk fusion from 1976. It was recorded originally in New York and now gets a reissue form the hard working Mr Bongo crew. It is a record that has picked dup cult status over the years for those looking for samples and has been pillaged by everyone from Diamond D, Puff Daddy, and Kool G Rap. Playing on the sessions were drummer Jimmy Young as well as rhythm guitarist Hugh McCracken and bassist Stu Woods who all help bring every track to life.
Review: During the late 1970s and early '80s, Miami was a hotbed of percussion-rich disco-funk that blended popular Black American grooves of the day with nods to the drum-heavy rhythms of Afro-Cuban music. Herman Kelly & Life were amongst the outfits at the vanguard of this movement, though unusually they only released one album, 1978's Percussion Explosion! Here it gets a remastered CD reissue. It's naturally best-known for boda-fide disco anthem 'Dance To The Drummer's Beat', but there are plenty of other hot, break-heavy classics on display - not least the low-slung, high-octane brilliance of 'Who's The Funky DJ?', the string-drenched disco-soul sweetness of 'Share Your Love' and the low-down, extra-heavy funk rinse-out that is 'Do The Handbone'.
Review: Vibraphonist Khan Jamal has made many fine albums over the years, though few are quite as revered within the jazz scene as Infinity, a self-released set from 1984 that has been near impossible to find for years. While Jamal's fluid and attractive vibraphone playing is given an airing throughout the album, it never dominates the sound space, with the storied members of his backing sextet - including scene legends Byard Lancaster (alto sax, flute) and drummer Sunny Murray - all being given a chance to shine. Musically, it sits somewhere between spiritual jazz, jazz-funk and Latin jazz, with hectic dancefloor numbers (see the superb 'The Angry Young Man') being joined by a wealth of deeper, more laidback compositions.
Review: Choice Cuts 1978-1983 gathers eight tracks from four of Mimi's early albums-Sea Flight (1978), Coconuts High (1981), Nuts Nuts Nuts (1982), and Tropicana (1983). Opening with a funky, syncopated take on Sergio Mendes' 'Mas Que Nada' and the crisp techno-pop of 'Coffee Rumba,' all of which mean the compilation showcases Mimi's eclectic style. It also features the synth jam 'Quiet Explosion' and the piano samba 'Espresso.' Two standout tracks from Coconuts High-the sultry 'Crazy Love' and the lively 'Palm Sr'-highlight her playful Latin-tinged jazz fusion. Released on Takanaka's Kitty Records, this collection reveals Mimi's vibrant and innovative artistry.
Review: Kokoroko have been on all world music lovers' radars since their very first and very impressive EP on Brownswood back in 2018. Now we are treated to an expansive and adventurous debut album on the same label that sees the group build on their great early start. Could We Be More has been preceded by new single 'We Give Thanks' and draws plenty of inspiration from the highlife and jazz sounds of West Africa, the Afrobeat and psych-funk sounds of the 70s and plenty of modern broken beat styles. Each tunes swells with emotion and evokes good times.
Review: Nigerian Afrobeat composer, bandleader, and multi-instrumentalist Fela Kuti has a vast catalogue that dates back over half a century. Roforofo Fight is one of the many standouts and it was recorded in Lagos in 1972 on the Jofabro label with the legendary Tony Allen on drums as well as Christopher Uwaifor on tenor, Lekan Animashaun on baritone and many other key players alongside the main man. The lyrics convey Fela's frustration at intolerant and violent behaviour as told through the story of a street fight.
Review: There are a bunch of reissues of classic Fela Kuti albums dropping right now which is always going to be good news for collectors and Afrobeat lovers a like. As was often the case with his music, this album Kalakuta Show from 1976 was a way of him taking revenge on the military regime that attacked and brutalized him two years prior when the police mounted a large scale raid on Kalakuta Republic incoming Fela's own heavily guarded compound. They were the second raids in eight months and left Fela with scalp wounds and a broken arm, and us with this most remarkable musical retort.
Review: Rather bizarrely, Fela's London Scene was recorded at Abbey Road Studios in 1971, but didn't get a UK release until the mid 1990s. This is the first time it has appeared on wax since. While the legendary Afrobeat pioneer and his equally revered backing band, Africa '70, may have been in unusual surroundings, the music showcased on the album was pure Nigerian Afrobeat gold. With Fela in fine form on the mic, and Africa '70 providing typically punchy, horn-heavy backing, tracks such as "E Gbe Mi O", "Buy Africa", and "Fight To The Finish" are every bit as good as anything they recorded in their Lagos studio. "Who're You", with its' changes of intensity and gentle progressions, is particularly good.
Review: Destination Nigeria, 1975, Fela and Africa 70 are indelibly locked into a hugely prolific groove with well over 10 albums behind them. Then they release this, an LP comprised solely of two wondrously extended work outs from the troupe. "Expensive Shit" famously tells the tale of Fela's brush with the jaded law while "Water No Get Enemy" speaks - or rather sings - for itself. One of Fela's many notable and hugely influential releases; your collection isn't complete without it.
Review: Regarded by many as Fela and The Africa 70's zenith, Confusion is 26 minutes of total Afrofunk immersion delivered over two sides. Gradually building - thanks largely to Tony Allen's dynamic drum work that's as delicate as it is powerful, Fela's dreamy, almost jazz-like keys and a rigid, spine-like rhythm guitar - the groove and narrative is developed with a natural sense of well-instrumented drama. A genuine classic, if your collection isn't blessed with this now is most certainly the time.
Review: Unlike previous instalments in the 180g label's Wamono series, this isn't a compilation in the strictest sense of the term, but rather a retrospective. It showcases a range of killer jazz-funk and rare groove tunes recorded at Nippon Columbia studios in the mid 1970s by arranger Kiyoshi Yamaya, koto legend Toshiko Yonekawa and shakahuchi master Kifu Mitsuhashi. Highlights come thick and fast throughout, from the mellow, slow-burn lusciousness of 'Nanbu Ushioi-Uta' and the up-beat, guitar solo-laden brilliance of 'Hohai-Bushi', to the all-time Japanese jazz-funk classic that is 'Saitaro-Bushi' and the solo-laden brilliance of 'Asadoya Yunti', whose dazzling Fender Rhodes solos are reminiscent of the early '70s work of the late, great Billy Preston.
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