Back catalogue: All genres

Review: Anorax has got a vital 10" here featuring a stone cold classic Balearic house tune from Don Carlos in two different mixes. First is the Paradise mix which is as Ibiza as house music gets - the swirling pads, the subtly joyous feeling in the piano chords, the blistered bassline. It all immediately transports you to the White Isle and gazing out to see as the sun sets and the party ratchets up a gear. On the flip is a Lute Mix which brings some more mellifluous melodies and makes the drums a little more bouncy. Both are brilliant.

Review: Don Carlos should by now be known to most house music crate-ologists as Carlo Troja from Verase, Italy -not Euvin Spencer from Kingston town. Alas, confusion still runs rampant over the ambiguity surrounding the Don Carlos name; if only they'd heard just how great this new EP from the former North Italian nuff-sayer truly was, they'd never forget the difference, of course! 'Italian Paradise' is a fresh, still dripping-wet house EP out via Groove Culture; its lightweight organ triplets, electric piano smears, and lens-fogged sunglass strings are what makes it *it*: a more than suitable release for hammock skygazing and/or wooly garment shedding.

Review: Groove Culture taps into an effortlessly timeless house sound with this new remix 12". It sees the in house production team step up on the B-side to remix Micky More & Andy Tee, Don Carlos, Taka Boom's 'The Music Of Your Mind' and the result is a super smooth, soulful roller with passionate vocals and disco sprinkled percussion. Ahead of that, Centric House's 'Alright Alright" (Micky More & Andy Tee remix) is a piano-laced and joyous house bumper with elastic bass and hands in the air energy.

Review: Italian house didn't need the glitz of Ibiza or the muscle of Chicago and Detroit. It carved out its own spaceismoky, dreamlike, and effortlessly cool. This collection captures the full spectrum of that golden era, from the hypnotic tribal rhythms of Progetto Tribale's 'The Sweep' to the shimmering, euphoric synths of Onirico's 'Echo'. There's the deep, rolling pulse of Don Carlos' 'Boy', the jazz-infused elegance of Lady Bird's 'Jazzy Doll (Odyssey Dub)', and the raw energy of Green Baize's 'Synthetic Rhythm'. Elsewhere, 'Titanic' by Mato Grosso offers an atmospheric voyage, while 'The True Underground Sound of Rome' delivers deep, sophisticated grooves. These weren't just club tracks; they were portals to another world. Whether it was the funky shuffle of Alex Neri's 'The Wizard', the soulful pianos of Carol Bailey's 'Understand Me (Free Your Mind)', or the after-hours pulse of MCJ's 'Sexitivity', this was music made by studio obsessives who understood that house wasn't just a soundiit was a feeling. Underground, inventive, and deeply emotional, this collection is a snapshot of an era where the Italian touch brought warmth, sensuality and an undeniable groove to dancefloors worldwide.

Review: Whereas the first volume of Italian house pioneer Don Carlos's retrospective of Italian house, Echoes of Italy, largely stuck to the picturesque but chunky and organ-rich "Italo-house" template, this second volume expressly focuses on "paradise house" - what Young Marco and Christiaan MacDonald dubbed "dream house" on their superb Welcome To Paradise series. As you'd expect given his association with the sound, Carlos's selections are notably different (and arguably less well known) than theirs, even if some of the same artists feature. It's cultured, tactile and loved-up dancefloor dreaminess all the way, with highlights including the slow-build wonder of Onrico's saucer-eyed 'Echo Gimini', the low-slung groove of Alex Neri's 'The Wizard (Hot Funky Version)', the piano-laden, breakbeat-driven shuffle of Moto Grosso's 'Titanic', and Carlos's own gorgeous, organ-heavy 'Boy'.

Review: Don Carlos will always be best known as the legendary Italian producer behind the enduring Balearic and Italo/dream house classic 'Alone' which was, rather impressively, his first ever release. Here we get to hear some of his favourite tunes on another vital volume of this series from his longtime home label Irma Records. All the tracks on this essential double pack have been re-edited by Don Carlos himself, especially for this occasion with highlights from the likes of Deep Aural Penetration, Love Nation and Outdance.