STEVE SPACEK Schallplatten & CDs

Review: The Sound In Color label dip their toes in the future soul pool with this single from producer GB’s upcoming debut album. GB, whose sound is similar to Dabrye in style and DJ Krush in mood, provides a minimal, filtered backdrop for Spacek front man, Steve Spacek, to float above. The b-side features a remix by the Sa-Ra Creative Partners who have been working with everybody from Common and Pharaoh to Dre and N.E.R.D. As a good contrast to the airy a-side, their mix bounces the track in a more swinging direction, complete with ragtime brass and piano arrangement plus a great walking bass line.

Review: There's been a fair amount of hype in soul circles regarding Space Invadas, the modern soul project from scene veteran Steve Spacek and Australian producer Katalyst. Listening to Soul:Fi, their debut set, it's easy to see why! It effortlessly blends a myriad of influences - from West Coast hip-hop and noughties funk to classic 60s soul, reggae, jazz-funk and even string-laden disco - on a slick, sun-drenched journey. Like previous single "Done It Again" (one of numerous highlights here), Soul:Fi is never less than triumphantly joyous. If you're looking for outstanding vocals, great songs, fat beats and impeccable production, you can't go wrong.

Review: It took Steve Spacek almost 13 years to deliver a follow-up to his acclaimed 2005 debut album "Space Shift". Happily, he's not made us wait nearly as long for "Houses", his sequel to 2018's brilliant, Eglo-released "Natural Sci-Fi". More importantly, it's arguably even better than its predecessor, with Spacek combining his weary, soft-focus and effortlessly soulful vocals with a rich, warm and woozy musical palette full of echoing Rhodes electric piano chords, sci-fi electronics, sub-heavy basslines and grooves that largely - but not universally - tend towards the deeper and more experimental end of the house spectrum. The results are every bit as inventive, enjoyable and forward thinking as you'd expect.