Review: Germany's Bacao Rhythm & Steel Band's profile skyrocketed in 2024 when their hypnotic steel pan cover of 50 Cent's 'Pimp' became a surprise emotional core in the Oscar-winner Anatomy Of A Fall. So pivotal was the track that steel pans would here make their first ever Academy Awards orchestra debut. But for longtime heads, 'Pimp' first turned heads in 2008, where it was pressed on Bjorn Wagner's Mocambo label and was often mistaken afterwards for a 50s sample source. The 'Big Crown Vaults' series now swoops in to save and preserve the group's best contributions to the music world, in addition to and in excess of the 'Pimp' version. A true archive-delving if we've ever heard one, the tracks so preserved include Bob James' breakbeat classic 'Nautilus' and a thunderous take on Khruangbin's 'Maria Tambien'. Then there's the B's funked-up flips of the Jackson 5 and Billy Jones, plus one original, 'Kaiso Noir'.
Review: Following the cinematic jazz-funk of 2021's 'Ufo Bar', Banda Maje returns with a new 7" single via Four Flies, which serves as a preview of their upcoming sophomore album Costa Sud. Composer Peppe Maiellano deepens his Mediterranean sound here while honouring his Italian and Neapolitan roots with a heartfelt cover of Peppino di Capri's 'Mo...' on Side A. On Side B, Maiellano explores Brazilian influences with '(Roda De) Samba Maje' featuring Amor Pela Roda and infused with vibrant percussion and cavaquinho. This lovely 45 rpm reflects a rich blend of South-inspired sounds while bridging Italy, Brazil, Africa and modern grooves.
Review: Long buried and now finally pressed to 7", 'Drug Story' is a curious outtake from Joe Bataan's post-Riot! hot streak, recorded in the late 60s, when studio time came easy and inspiration even easier. Originally shelved by Fania execs, who balked at what they misread as an endorsement of drug use, the track sat forgotten until a reel surfaced in a New York thrift store and eventually made its way into Vampisoul's hands. First released on the eponymous Drug Story LP in 2022, it now appears in its firstly intended single format. The track unspools slowly, with Bataan on lead vocal and keys, eventually flipping into a looser Latin funk section with Bobby Rodriguez, Pete Quintero and William Howes Jr.
In Alto Mare (Adriatique remix instrumental) (7:13)
In Alto Mare (Adriatique remix radio edit) (3:25)
In Alto Mare (4:23)
Review: Loredana Berte's unmistakable voice meets the glittering finesse of French touch as Dimitri From Paris spreads her 1980 hit 'In Alto Mare' across a hot griddle of club-ready disco. The track launches a new remix series celebrating Berte's legacy through the lens of contemporary producers and DJs: Dimitri, known for his stylish refits of Jamiroquai, Chic and Dua Lipa, now leans into a comparatively classic funk groove, elevating it with a cinematic glide and streamlinear post-prod polish. Long a staple of his DJ sets and broadcasts in bootleg form, this official release feels fated. "It's melodic, disco-flavoured, cinematic, and emotionally powerful - all the things I love," he says, as it manifests as the first of seven reworks dropping over the course of May 2025.
Best Friend Around - "It's So Good To Know" (Muro Diguma edit) (4:36)
Foster Jackson Group - "Feel The Spirit" (Muro Diguma edit) (4:10)
Review: Given his reputation as Japan's "king of digging", you'll be unsurprised to learn that DJ Muro's latest scalpel-style Diguma Edits are of thoroughly obscure, hard-to-find disco cuts. For example, an original copy of Best Friend Around's hard to find modern soul-goes-disco number 'It's So Good to Know' - a warming and glassy-eyed cut full of hazy grooves, super-sweet vocals and spacey synth sounds - would cost you hundreds of pounds; Muro's shortened, light-touch edit seems a bargain at a fraction of the cost. Foaster Jackon Group's similarly rare 'Feel the Spirit', a carnival-ready slab of Brazilian influenced jazz-funk/disco-funk fusion, is given the Muro touch on the flip, with equally as exemplary results.
Review: For seven years, Matasuna Records has been dedicated to uncovering musical gems from the past. Now, they introduce a thrilling contemporary find: Barcelona-based band Bidaide. Their debut 7" vinyl single features two unreleased tracks, 'Batua' and 'Love Me & Give Up', both of which showcase their eclectic blend of soul, funk, psychedelic rock, reggae-dub, and library music. 'Batua' on the A-side delivers an energetic fusion of funky rhythms, agile guitar dialogues, and vibrant brass overlays. On the B-side, 'Love Me & Give Up' offers a soulful, relaxed vibe with Motown-esque charm. Bidaide's evolution from a duo to a vibrant band culminates in this dynamic release.
Review: Pam Bowie is still a somewhat rough diamond of the late 60s Chicago soul landscape. Her sole single release came through Aquarius in 1969, and now apparently comes reissued through the reinvigorated label a whopping 50 odd years later. A gutted swill of soul-astalgia, 'Everlasting Love' hears the relatively culturally undocumented Bowie sideline personal greatness and climactic soul joie de vivre, instead offering us listeners a lyrical "shoulder to cry on". The track's singular legacy would be otherwise dwarfed by her labelmate Candace Love weren't it for this reissue.
Betty Crutcher - "Sleepy People" (Old Chap Alteration) (4:46)
Gwen McCrae - "Move Me Baby" (SanFran Disko Transformation) (4:42)
The Sisters Love - "Give Me Your Love" (Fingerman Remodel) (4:48)
Clydie King - "Punish Me" (Bully Boy Makeover) (2:58)
Review: French funk enthusiasts Act of Sedition return with another killer double 7", this time titled Femmes Fatale and as well as a plain back version, it also lands on translucent orange vinyl. Following a series of sought-after edits, this latest drop delivers four deep-digging disco reworks by a cast of shadowy edit masters. Betty Crutcher's 'Sleepy People (Old Chap Alteration)' opens with moody strings and dusty funk grooves, while Gwen McCrae's 'Move Me Baby (SanFran Disko Transformation)' kicks things up with uplifting soul-disco energy. Fingerman turns The Sisters Love's 'Give Me Your Love' into a load up and widescreen sound that is brilliantly symphonic and Clydie King's 'Punish Me (Bully Boy Makeover)' closes with raw horns and aching vocals.
Betty Crutcher - "Sleepy People" (Old Chap Alteration) (4:46)
Gwen McCrae - "Move Me Baby" (SanFran Disko Transformation) (4:42)
The Sisters Love - "Give Me Your Love" (Fingerman Remodel) (4:48)
Clydie King - "Punish Me" (Bully Boy Makeover) (2:58)
Review: French funk lovers Acts of Sedition love double dropping 7"s, and after several fine outings in the last year comes this latest under the title 'Feemes Fatale.' It features some disco classics reworked by mysterious names, starting with Betty Crutcher's 'Sleepy People (Old Chap Alteration)', which is a swooning sound with strings of lament and funky drums. Gwen McCrae's 'Move Me Baby (SanFran Disko Transformation)' is a more stirring and upbeat sound, The Sisters Love's 'Give Me Your Love (Fingerman Remodel)' is a blissed out and cinematic soul and disco fusion and Clydie King's 'Punish Me (Bully Boy Makeover)' ends with a more raw and guttural soul sound and big horns driving the pain onwards.
Review: Cumbias En Moog's Cumbia De Sal is an exemplary psychedelic cumbia single - from the main pushers of the niche South American genre, Vampisoul - which this time offers a distinct usage of the Moog synth. The Cumbias En Moog project began in Colombia as a wilfully unique vision that combined traditional cumbia rhythms with vintage synthesizers; two of the group's choicest cuts make it to vinyl here, 'Cumbia De Sal' and 'Cumbia Sobre El Mar'. Far more synthy than guitarry (most cumbia falls into the latter camp) the tracks pit an offbeat, goofy rhythm with stark Moogs, resonant leads and happily crude playing, while their haunting choral vocals add a human touch to said robotics.
Review: Sound Essence has got there rights to a real rare gem from East Germany's early 70s jazz scene here and it features the Horst Kruger Septet. Known as one of the top soul-jazz and beat combos of their time, they recorded two previously unreleased tracks that exemplify their unique sound. 'Ich will die Zeit nicht bereuen' is a standout German-language soul-beat hit with hard-hitting, rocking beats, enhanced by a bold brass section. The second track, 'Sonderbar,' is a soulful jazz sounds with repetitive lyrics and groovy bass topped with guitar, drums and organ. Add in a flute solo and dreamy Hammond outro and you have a real doozy.
Review: Moscow's premier instrumental outfit the Diasonics return with a limited clear vinyl 7" drawn from their forthcoming second LP Ornithology. The A's 'Oriole' locks into a crisp disco-funk rhythm, combining icy Soviet-era synth motifs with the kind of motorik groove that could've come straight off a 70s Eastern European library session, its minimalist melody mimicking the oriole's call while nodding to the Moscow commuter train of the same name. Flip it for 'Chickadee', all break-heavy thump, plucky bass and streetwise swagger straight from early 80s NYC.
Review: TakeFingz returns with its seventh release and offers up a double A-side 7" tailored for dancefloor devastation. On Side A, DJ Katch reworks classic funk breaks into a groove-heavy party igniter that betrays some seriously sharp turntable skills and crowd-moving instincts. It's a surefire weapon for any set in high-energy settings. On the flip, DJ Toby Gee drops a bass-driven boogie funk jam packed with vintage chants and break-heavy grooves. Both tracks are precision-crafted with nods to B-Boy culture among them perfect for bodypoppers and lockers alike.
Review: When it comes to new funk, it doesn't get much raunchier or weird than this. Packed with rhythmic rodomontade, DJ Koco Shimokit and Southpaw Chop - both from Japan - bring an adroit right and sinister left hand respectively to the art of vinyl flipping and sampling, staying true to the rule of primary sourcing: "always sample straight from the original wax." Though it's a moot point as to whether sample mileage should be legitimated as a concept in the same sense as food mileage is, we can see and hear the appeal, as this loopy chef-d'œuvre hears its samples chopped and braised to the crispest degree, sating even the most dulled of tastebuds, and letting no indelicacy past the noise gates. Side B offers a special treat for heads too: the demo version of the pair's debut single, 'Funky Soul Brother'.
Fogo No Chap (Fire In The Ground) (DJ Muro edit) (4:26)
Casino Bangu (Lembrancas Do Lincoln) (feat Banda Utopia - DJ Muro edit) (4:32)
Review: .You'd be hard pushed to find a more lively collision of sounds than this one from Friends From Rio. The Brazillian outfit mixed up jungle funk, samba, Latin, soul and plenty more on their 2014 album Friends From Rio Project. 'Fogo No Chap (Fire In The Ground)' is one of the single rom it and here it gets an edit job by DJ Muro who draws out the good bits, lets the loose rhythms flow and gives plenty of room to the steamy wind leads. Flip over this fine 7" and you'll find another summer ready sound in 'Casino Bangu (Lembrancas Do Lincoln)' (feat Banda Utopia - DJ Muro edit) which is more percussive and just as vibrant.
Review: Hip Hop Legends is a limited 45 series that reissues classics from the classic era of 90s rap and 'I Am I Be' comes with silky bars and storytelling lyrics over warm melancholic chords and subtle boom-bap beats. On the flip, things get stripped back a little as the same cut gets an instrumental. It's a version that allows those chords and some gentle horns as well as big guitar licks to really shine while the groove continues to roll on.
Review: For Fourth Wave Record Factory, MURO has put together a couple of new and exclusive 7" releases that feature two classic Japanese AOR tracks by artists who very much played a part in defining the sound. Firstly, Ginji Ito's smooth and soulful 'Heart and Soul,' originally from his tenth album, shines with mellow mid-tempo vibes and glossy vocals and melodies. On the flip side is 'Uwaki na Kare,' a beloved cover of a classic US disco track from Ritsuko Kazemi's third album that comes correct with a catchy, laid-back Saturday love groove. This release marks the first time these iconic songs have been pressed on 7".
Review: The late king of pop sees his most defining album - and the best-selling album of all time - reissued once more. It's got everything you could possibly want: 'Beat It', 'Thriller', 'Billie Jean'... on its 40th Anniversary, this one gets a repress by our friends over at Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab, who have endeavoured to make this version perhaps the best-sounding to ever be set to wax. Of course, the legacies of kings must be preserved in the best format possible, even if their own waking lives lead them to ruin...
Review: J Daisuke Kuroda is one of Japan's celebrated curators of funk and soul in the Far East. He has been digging in the vast and vital vaults of Miami's T.K. Records and come up with this superb 7" reissue for the latest in his much loved "Kickin" series. It takes the form of a first ever single cut from the cult 1971 psychedelic funk album Black Knight by James Knight & The Butlers. They are one of the label's most iconic outfits among many and the super killer funk of 'Fantasy World,' is irresistible while the hauntingly beautiful yet more mellow "Just My Love For You' is on the flip.
Review: Discos Quilombo's next 45 is a reissue of 'El Amor Es Un Bicho' (you can work out our own translation) by Los Martinicos, and it's a scorching hot and rare gem from 1969, originally recorded by Henry Nelson in Spain. 'El Amor Es Un Bicho' is all big energy and playful vocalisations, South American rhythms and bold horns, the moody 'El Diablo' has a darker bassline and more menacing energy but is packed with late 60s Latin flair. Both of these are wonderfully infectious South American soul tracks that will not be around for long, so make sure you snag them fast.
Review: Secondhand copies of this record from 1983 have exchanged hands for up to as much as 400 quid, just to give you an idea of how highly it's valued. As is often weirdly the way with these cult old scuts, The Mobley Gang aka Dennis Mobley, only ever released this one tune, which he wrote while Dave Ogrin and Lou Gonzales did the production. It's a boogie-fried disco cut with sizzling synths and harsh drum sounds as well as playful pianos. The club mix is more funky and pared back and will have your hips swinging in zero seconds.
Review: Danny Krivit remains in a class of one when it comes to meticulous and masterful edits of classics. He puts out a fair few of them too, but the quality levels never dip, as is the case again here when he throws it back to the energy of his native New York's most legendary dancefloors. Opener 'Flying Machine' by War was originally composed for the 1978 film Youngblood and is a dramatic Latin-infused instrumental packed with swirling flutes, fierce perc and a breakbeat that's fuelled countless Afro house tracks. It's a fiery dancefloor weapon that hasn't been on 7" before and it comes backed with 'How Much Are They', which dives into deep dub territory with help from post-punk legends Jah Wobble, Jaki Liebezeit and Holger Czukay. It's a real mind melter packed with mad effects.
Review: Yuji Ohno's live performance in Tokyo captures the essence of his musical legacy with fresh intensity. Leading a 54-piece ensemble, Ohno brings his iconic compositions to life, weaving jazz improvisations with cinematic flair. The orchestration adds a new dimension, turning familiar tracks into vibrant experiences. Each note feels purposeful, with emotional depth that engages both the mind and the heart. This performance is a compelling reminder of Ohno's enduring influence and his ability to breathe new life into his timeless music.
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