Review: This evergreen favourite gets another reissue, this time on coloured vinyl. Cool Million's 'Tonight' featuring the legendary Glenn Jones mixes up lush 80s soul and funk with a modern twist. Jones's soulful vocals seamlessly float as he serves up smooth lyrics that perfectly complement the infectious groove crafted by Cool Million. There's a nice balance of nostalgia throughout as retro influences kiss up with modern production which means that the tune carries a timeless appeal and always stands out in any set. This remains a must-cop, especially as we head into summer.
Review: Brooklyn-born street soul artist Martine Girault was an epitomal artist in the genre, and her extended stopover in the UK would prove instrumental in its development, despite her American origins. She was fittingly also a favourite of many international label staples from Eskimo Recordings to Opaz; while in the UK, she collaborated with producer Ray Hayden of Opaz for her standout single 'Revival'. A significant underground hit, 'Revival' veers on the aspirated side of the downbeat street soul sound. Girault's style is both angelic and hoarse, and riffs on the temporal bubbles of the contemporaneous genre new jack swing, while getting at something much higher than either style alone can peg. This reissue reproduces the song in pristine stereo, and brings out the ghost-noted piano hook to extra pop-out effect.
Girls Of The Internet - "Someone Somewhere" (6:35)
James Alexander Bright & Girls Of The Internet - "Where Is Your Love" (6:54)
Review: Hot since day, Girls Of The Internet have widened the eyes and perked the ears of many a squabbling listener since 2017, deploying many a nu-disco nutcracker through imprints such as Drab Queen and Palm Recs. The duo now stop by Athens Of The North, surveying a wide polar acropolis of deep repetition and strung sampledelia. 'Somewhere Someone' delivers peak energies crafted about a mystery sample, while the flipper, 'Where Is Your Love', hears a roomy linkup with James Alexander Bright, straining the A's comparatively full, gluey mien into a much stringier slice of vocal disco minimalism.
Review: A true Chicago veteran with over 100+ releases to his name(s) steps into a fresh chapter with this first EP on a new label, delivering four cuts that reaffirm his mastery of deep house expression. 'Lush' opens with silky, melodic textures, driven by emotive keys and a warm, jazzy touchipure late-night soul. 'Magic (Gherkin Syndrome Mix)' ups the energy, blending jackin' rhythms, funky basslines and a misty atmosphere, while still rooted in deep house sensibility. Flipping to Side-B, 'Showing Off' cools things down with a laid-back piece that is a worth alternate to all the heat elsewhere on this disc. Closing track 'U Don't Own Me (Destructive Beauty Inst)' dives deeper still, a spacious, textured instrumental that has a timeless, defiant spirit. Every track feels like a personal statement from an artist still pushing forward, rooted in tradition but reaching more great emotional heights.
Review: No, this is not a long-lost jam from popular British songsmith David Gray, but a sought-after underground Italo-disco anthem from 1987 fronted by an uncredited Italian singer and produced by a duo called Scarface. In typical Thank You/Sound Metaphors style, this fine reissue boasts all three versions from the original 12": the glossy, synth-pop 'extended mix', a vocal-free instrumental, and the 'special mix'/DJ friendly dub mix style 'extended instrumental' - a version that sounds like a tweaked and extended backing track to a Shep Pettibone produced Pet Shop Boys album track from 1986. We also get a fresh, effects-laden 'Bonus Dubeats' take from label affiliate Castro which is arguably the best of a strong bunch.
Review: Over the years, Chicago house DJ Mark Grusane has prospected for treasure with such success that he has more or less marked *himself* out as one such treasure. Such high praise, of which there is much online, offers a kind of eternal gilt return. This second edition in Grusane's Tape Edits series stocks a select six of his much-envied "disco tape to tape edits", made in Chicago between 1988-1999. Emphasising the fullest, most maximal quixotisms in disco, all the tracks here brim with seething compressed energy, with the limitation of tape transfer serving to squash and squeeze far more out of the disco genre than the simple, ostensibly humble mylar medium might suggest. Most arresting is 'Mapouka Dance (Non Stop)', an animalistic fire dance and lusty attention grabber, serving whipping snares and whooping crowd jeers; sexy spectatorship by the dance.
Move Your Body (A Fire House Chicago Classique) (6:01)
Marisa (GU edit) (5:33)
Tell You (Today) (GU edit) (6:40)
Hurry Up & Wait (GU extended version) (6:34)
Review: GU (which is of course an alias of Chicago favourite Glenn Underground) is back with a 20th volume of his Classiques series. It once again finds him adding his own special studio magic to come stone-cold classics from the funk and disco world. First, he flips Le Cop's 'Move Your Body' into a funky percussive sound with steamy vocals. Then Machine's 'Marisa' becomes a jazzy and expressive sound with busy leads and funky guitars and Loose Joints's 'Tell You Today' is a wild horn-led sound with a busy arrangement and pumping drums. Last of all are the sunny and soulful sounds of The Isley Brothers's 'Hurry Up & Wait' with cool house drums.
Review: Rahaan is an absolute don when it comes to disco done right and with genuine soul. He's been rolling it out in original and edit form for many years and none of it ever goes out of date. Here he presents Gregory Carmouche & Cherelle Cherisoul Sullivan on the second release on the Yellow Taxi label. 'It Is What It Is' is a lovely loose jam with noodling chord work, rolling drums and magnificent vocals that bring plenty of sunshine next to playful whistles. Those vocals are more centred on the B-side opener while an instrumental remixes peels them away entirely.
Review: There is no stopping the prodigious producer Felipe Gordon who turns out huge amounts of work, without ever sacrificing artistry. He brings soul and jazz to his deep house sounds and this is the fourth time he has landed on Clone. 'Profundo' gets things underway with singing synths and shuffling deep beats, then 'Hold On' centres escapist and sunny melodies that take you to the Med. Elsewhere 'I Don't Know Why' brings spoken word vocals to lavish house and 'Takes Time' oozes sex appeal with its steamy sax notes and gentle piano tinkles. All of these cuts are laden with great musicality that puts many producers to shame.
Review: Future Rootz has collaborated with Canal Sounds and EGREM for a gem of a reissue here that goes all the way back to 1977 when producer and bassist Jorge Soler stepped out as Grupo Yoyi for Yoyi, an album that marked his only known solo project. The record now sits up there as one of the rarest and most desirable albums from the Cuban musical canon as it is such a sublime fusion of Afro-Cuban rhythms with jazz, funk and disco. The musicianship throughout is exceptional with mesmeric synths and evocative horn solos all tethered to the sort of grooves that will either chill you out or heat you up depending on the setting.
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