Brokenbeat / Nu Jazz Recommendation February 2015

Review: Renegades Of Jazz return with their long-awaited second album... And, as the Gustave Dore artwork suggests, they've taken a turn for the deliciously dark somewhere along the way. Their ability to carve hooks from the hardest funk granite is still more than evident (see the smoky big band jazz of "Flemish Cap", the unfettered funk of "Cannibal Royal" and the foggy blues of "Imperial") but the real twists are the cinematic, white knuckle rides such as the Arabian attitude of "Hellesons" and demonic devil laughs of the Chima Anya-fronted "Death Grip". An awesome return.

Review: Super-prolific contemporary jazz maestros Soil & Pimp Sessions's 11th artist album is an emphatic reminder of how tight, creative and forward-thinking the Japanese sextet truly are. Available on vinyl for the first time, each cut expresses their dynamism with delicate, deep and daring attention to detail. From the ultimately euphoric builds and free-thinking piano cascades of "Love Immediately" to the dense, immense horn explosions of "Sonido Del Mar" via the dainty piano narrative and lean rhythm backbone of "I Wanna Love You", the entire album grabs you by the shortest of short curlies and keeps you locked until the very last crescendo.

Review: Troublemaking Frenchman Oil returns to album format for the first time in three years with the utterly captivating Phantom. From the moment the slinky blues bassline of opener "Yes It Is" ignites you know you're in for a treat as we flick from trippy, head-bending vocal loops ("Afrotress") to rigid guitar and drum gymnastics ("Echoism") to block-party-busting b-boy breaks ("Le Rythme De La Vie"). Seamless, slick and soulfully subverted, this is a carefully crafted exercise in futuristic funk that works just as well on the dancefloor as it does deep in headphone mode.

Review: After a well-received digital release in the summer 2014, the Ubiquity label has responded to public demand with this immaculate double 12 vinyl delivery. A contemporary collection of Brazilian reversions from the likes of Joe Clausell, John Beltran, Bosq, The Echocentrics and many more, Brasil Do Brazil is rich in range and breadth. Stretching from deep space psychedelia ("Brazilian Bubble") to slick, snappy jazz boogie ("Bota Foga") via dense star-gazing dreaminess ("Boss Bossa") and right back again, creativity seeps from every chapter. Whether you caught this digitally or not, this really needs your attention.

Review: Mndsgn aka Los Angeles-based producer Ringgo Achetta comes through with another shimmering selection of sultry, quasi-psychedelic broken beats on Leaving Records after last year's fine outing for the affiliated neo-hip-hop stable, Stones Throw. Sparse and varied, the LP travels between fading shades of exotica such as on "Due Mantra", lo-fi drum machine tracks as seen on "Goodbye Wavs", and even touches of noise-filtered, electro-acoustic madness on "Purrspective". A wonderful conglomeration of sounds, for real.

Review: Miyako's finest funk foursome Black Wax return with their second album On Black Wax. Embracing all the best roots from reggae to cumbia, the band flex their musical muscles in all directions... Bluesy dub ("Loose Groove"), sun-skanked reggae ("Bang A Muli"), star-gazing funk soul ("Song For My Father") smoky Rio-roving jazz ("Moliendo Cafe") and straight up blues ("Just A Little Bit") are just some of the areas explored across these eight highly accomplished tracks.