Upstairs Asylum US レコード& CD

Review: You always knew that when Norm Talley started his Upstairs Asylum label is was going to be pure quality. The Detroit man is one of the many contemporary flag bearers for the much loved original 313 house sound and as his DJ sets attest, heinous how to pick out the best work from others on a similar tip. He does that here with a various artists four tracker that kicks off with a brace of soul fuelled and jazz laced deep house cuts from Felipe Gordon. Stefan Ringer then brings that lo-fi house goodness and exquisite synth craft with 'You Know' while Deepset's 'U Got Dat' is a late night number with a low slung sense of sleaze.

Review: Don't be misled by the facetious title, there's no handbag house to be found on Hed Kandi Vol. 1. Instead, you'll be treated to some real proper beatdown vibes by some right legends of the Detroit underground, curated by scene stalwart Norm Talley. The ever impressive Delano Smith gets the Mixmode vibe in effect on the hypnotic back room dubs of 'The Lost Synth' parts 1 & 2 respectively which cover the A side. Over on the flip, Sistrum Recordings main man Patrice Scott gets some emotive Motor City soul going on in his inimitable style on 'Better Days' followed by the heads-down basement beats of Deepset's 'Soltek'.