Back catalogue: All genres

Review: In celebration of their tenth birthday, Selador marks the occasion in style with a four-track collaborative EP, featuring tracks from 3D, Robert Owens, Olivier Giacomotto, Quivver, Dave Seaman, Hernan Cattaneo, Argia, and Jepe. The opening track, 'Known Love', is a deep, pulasting house tune that feels like an instant classic, perhaps thanks to the soulful, pop-tinged vocals - think LCD soundsystem meets Four Tet. 'Snailblazer', the second track on the EP, takes a much darker turn, with a chugging, EBM-esque feel. Full-bodied and complete with obscured vocals, this is the kind of track to pull out your bag when it's time to really get stuck in. On the B-side, 'Napkin Knowledge' draws on the glistening synths of eurodance, yet still securing the melodies to a grounded bassline and rhythm section. 'Salitre' is the perfect closing track, rising up in a gleaming, ecstatic melody, before delicately returning to ground level. A varied yet firmly cohesive collaborative release - the perfect way for Selador to kick off their 2023 catalogue.

Review: Hot Creations has now been rolling out the club friend, crowd pleasing jams for over a decade and well over 200 releases. But still they manage to unearth new names and potent sounds to keep people going back for more. It's Jay Farina and Quinzi who combine on two slammers here. First up is 'Pumpin The Junk', a fat-bottomed house cut with robust drum wallops, raved up horn stabs and a sleazy vocal. On the backside is a more tribal cut. 'The Buzz,' which layers up the percussion with steamy and sizzling summer intent next to a potent vocal that has got summer Ibiza classic written all over it.

Review: Toolroom Records are partly responsible for the recent upsurge in jackin' deep house in the early 2020's; this sampler record, the second in their compilations EP series, serves as yet another tour of their grand new deep house estate. Delusions of grandeur are expressed on 'You Are A God' - which, for a track so deitylike, measures itself with rather a lot of restraint - while 'Talking To Myself' contains a vocal sample that is so mouthy and infectious that we really are beginning to believe ourselves to have been possessed by Metatron. 'Mallet' swerves into tribal territory, while ESSEL's 'Try' could be a contender for dance-chart-topper, assuming its piano weaponry is effective enough at swaying the radio pluggers. Joyous stuff.

Review: In amidst a veritable deluge of seven inch-shaped sharpness from Japan's crucial Soul Garden label this week comes this absolute must grip 45 session from Q.A.S.B. The nine-piece Tokyo funkateers have been holding it down since 2005 and this seven picks out a horn heavy highlight from last year's Q.A.S.B. III LP in the shape of "Good Guy." Throwing down a similar vibe to the Quantic Soul Orchestra, this track is all about the lead vocal from Amy A and those warm, tooting horns. Face down and QASB engage flipmode, slowing the tempo down and cranking the sass up on "Bad Boy". If seven inches were vegetables this would be one hot pepper!

Review: For well over a decade Japanese combo Q.A.S.B has been serving up slices of soulful goodness that variously join the dots between James Brown, Kool & The Gang, Sly and the Family Stone and slower, more thoughtful moments. Here they return to regular home Soul Garden with their first single of 2020. A-side "Thank You" is suitably and summery, with sweet female vocals, glistening guitar riffs, sustained organ chords, hazy horns and simmering strings rising above a skittish, jazz-fired groove. The party intensifies on flipside "Week-End", a Japanese language vocal number that makes the most of a more disco-centric, jazz-funk style soul backing track.

Review: Qeta and Inkipak show off their respective skills on this fine split EP on Sound Synthesis's Wave Function label. Qeta takes care of the a-side with a serene opener in the form of 'Idream' which pairs lush ambient designs with pristine breakbeats. 'Revved Orb' is a more dubbed-out and trippy post-jungle rhythm with 'Redawn' bringing soulful Detroit techno style to the floor. With his trio of tunes, Inkipak offers stripped-back breaks and celestial chords, heavenly moods on 'Schedule' and a cosmic comedown soundtrack with 'Wetlands.'

Review: Japan has an always eye opening and left of centre take on most of the world's most established genres. Urban Discos save sup plenty of it and this time it is a Far Eastern take on lover's rock that is in the sights. Here we have two cuts from Qimygo who also records as KIMIGO. Up first it is 'Aitai To Omoeba' with its shiny dancehall beats and glistening, innocent melodies all topped off with the pure and clean vocals of Qimygo. After that upbeat opener comes the swagger and ever so slightly more tradition dub of 'Abatina (Calypso Rose)' but still served up through a bright melodic lends.

Review: It's been a while since we heard from R&S Records, so we're more than chuffed at news of this latest EP, which this time hears them extend their prolific, ravenous taste for new music ever-further, into what could be described as halftime drum & bass. This time the productions come courtesy of British producer Quartz, and perhaps a name like 'Deity Spear' tells you all you need to know; this is an angelic, synaptic, rapturous EP. Megadeep subs underlie snappy, endlessly-varied hat combos on the openers 'Lilac Cobwebs' and 'Deity Spear', which recall the contributions of Djrum or Lone to the label in recent years, with their cavernous space and extra attention to detail. 'Cosmic Horror' and 'Switchable Groove' refuse to let up on this overarching atmosphere, but lend it a new light altogether, fleshing out evermore sinister contours.

Review: Quince makes fluid and timeless techno music influenced by the soulful high tech sounds of Detroit. His latest release is a four-track EP on the Nowhere series which features tracks like 'Udon', a hypnotic and pulsating tune with a synth melody and a vocal sample that create a heady atmosphere, as well as 'Noodles', a more upbeat and groovy track with a catchy keyboard stab and a sultry bassline that add some energy and funk. 'Anthology Of Interest' is a solid EP that showcases the veteran Dutch producer's talent and style.

Review: While Hell Yeah! Recordings may be best-known these days for exploring the relaxed, sun-kissed world of Balearic beats, the Italian label's early releases were far bolder and more focused on peak-time dancefloors. They're back on that tip on this must-check 12", which comes courtesy of label regular Quiroga (AKA long-serving producer Walter de Vecchio). In its original form (A1), 'Once Again' is a prize chunk of mind-mangling, post acid house sleaze - all rambunctious, brain-melting acid bass, sweat-soaked drums, ultra-psychedelic TB-03 lines and breathless vocal samples. It comes accompanied by two contrasting remixes - the pitched-down, slow acid-with-pianos sunshine of the 'Ambient Mix' and DMX Krew's funky acid-electro pass - and the star-fall electric/nu-disco/acid fusion of the quirky 'Freak The Funk'.