Back catalogue: Funk Soul & Jazz

Review: 'Thermae' feels like a track that's more about the spaces between the notes than the notes themselves. Featuring Andy Baxter on guitar, bass, and drums, along with Jim Piela on saxophone and Francesca Uberti on piano, it's a laid-back, almost meditative piece that brings to mind the warm, smooth vibes of Khruangbin and Glass Beams. The track is sparse, but not in a way that feels emptyithere's a certain tension in the way it unfolds, with each instrument carving out its own space. The saxophone, in particular, stands out with an FX-laden part that evokes the mood of Robohand's 'Palms' LP from 2023, adding a touch of depth and atmosphere that lingers in the background. There's a nice balance between the organic and the electronic here, which shows in how the track was recorded between London and New York. It's all mixed and mastered with care by Sean Woodlock and John Webber, ensuring that each element, no matter how subtle, shines through in its own time. It's a reflective piece that doesn't demand attention, but invites it when you're ready.

Review: In celebration of 50 years in the performing arts, Idris Ackamoor presents Artistic Being for Record Store Day 2025-a powerful blend of jazz, spoken word and activism. Featuring the voices of acclaimed actor Danny Glover and stage legend Rhodessa Jones, this record captures highlights from the Underground Jazz Cabaret, which was performed during Black History Month 2024 at The Lab in San Francisco. Co-produced by Ackamoor's Cultural Odyssey, the release fuses poetic storytelling with evocative musical textures while reflecting on social justice, identity and resilience. Artistic Being is a profound statement from a visionary artist.

Review: One of the most iconic voices of the past 60 years blends heartfelt covers with original material on his latest album. Each track is carried by Robinson's eternally smooth and expressive voice. His take on William DeVaughn's 'Be Thankful For What You Got' radiates gentle optimism, while his rendition of Bill Withers' 'Lean On Me' feels like a personal reassurance that is intimate, direct and comforting. Robinson doesn't just revisit the past, he breathes new emotional life into it. From the uplifting tones of 'What a Wonderful World' to the classic soul lean of 'Be Kind To The Growing Mind', re-recorded with The Temptations, the album serves both as a tribute and a call for compassion. The covers of Carole King and Bob Marley deepen the album's message who, like Smokey, have long advocated for love and understanding through music. You will find Smokey communicating soul-deep truths with elegance and feeling. In uncertain times, this is feel-good music delivered by one of the most meaningful voices of any eraia soft-spoken reminder of our shared humanity.

Review: After the seismograph shattering success of their last 45, 'Samba De Flora', in the summer of 2024, Argentina's Romero Bros (Xavi and Remi) have since followed an unignorable inspirational impulse, that is and was, to finish a collection of jazz and Latin-infused club tracks, ones that had been in the leftover works for years. The result is a seven-tracker of gracefully cosmic proportions, incorporating drunken piano house and a percussively soft excitability, not to mention a remix each of the very track that sparked the entire duo project, 'Samba De Flora'.

Review: Two Is One (1974, now 2025) recaptures saxophonist Charlie Rouse at the peak of his rabble-Rousing powers, commanding the popular will (through steering clear of sonic demagoguery) through effortless funk, soul jazz, and post-bop, all while orbiting that distinctive cosmic ring-edge that defined the Strata-East catalogue. Best known for his long tenure alongside Thelonious Monk, Rouse steps into a new light here, leading a stellar ensemble made up of guitarists George Davis and Paul Metzke, Cal Scott on electric cello and Stanley Clarke on bass. Together they stretch out across a set both grounded and exploratory, with a spiritual undercurrent running through the grooves. Newly issued on 180-gram vinyl, the record comes packed in a tip-on gatefold with fresh liner notes from Syd Schwartz and rare archival photos, bringing fresh focus to one of Rouse's most compelling records.

Review: A singular force in European jazz, Norwegian guitarist Terje Rypdal emerged from Oslo's late-60s underground, swapping out psychedelic rock theatrics for a more searching, cinematic mode of improvisation. This early work catches him mid-morph, just 21 and already pulling away from the fuzz of his band The Dream to chase a colder, more expressive language. 'Dead Man's Tale' sets the toneigritty, restless, stretched to its limitsiwhile 'Wes' offers a moment of reverence in its loose, lyrical swing. There's a quiet narrative elegance to 'Winter Serenade', its three-part structure marking snowfall, storm and thaw, and 'Bleak House' and 'Sonority' lean darker, flirting with the avant-garde. Closer 'A Feeling Of Harmony' tilts things back toward resolution, leaving behind a kind of luminous melancholy that points forward to his landmark ECM work.