Review: MCMLXV might be on your radar for its quality output in the realms of dub techno. This time out though it veers more towards club tackle and is less heavy on the dub via the work of label head JS Zeiter. 'Outline' stars in a deep, pensive groove with glistening hi-hats cutting up the smooth bass. 'Taken' is another mid-tempo plodder that comes alive with nice heady synth curlicues that add some scale. 'Navigate' keeps these serene vibes flowing with more deft and wispy pads colouring the rooted beats and 'Resistance' shuts down with more swaggering bass.
Review: Increasingly vital Brazilian artist Zopelar is back with more of his twisted house concoctions, this time with plenty of 909s and 808s defining everything from samba jack to Chicago swing. 'Fornix (feat Martinelli)' is a caustic, acid-laced sweat-box tackle, then 'Conga Master' is more dubby and roomy with fizzy cymbals almost acting like ASMR. 'Gon Hard' is a proto-house scuzz-fest that morphs into zoned out depths and 'Zwing' is a collision of drum loops and hits, balmy pads and fuzzy pads that fires many different feelings at once. '909 Samba' is just that and is a clear standout and 'Do It Wild' is raw and dusty house with detuned synths bringing an eerie edge to the party.
Review: Laurel Aitken's High Priest of Reggae album is an early classic of the genre from 1969, and it captures the ska pioneer at a pivotal moment when he was blending his Jamaican roots with the evolving UK reggae scene. It came on Pama Records and shows Aitken's versatility with cuts like 'Jesse James' and 'Landlords and Tenants,' both a testament to his storytelling lyrical prowess over inventive rhythms down low. Songs such as 'Haile Selassie' reflect his engagement with the burgeoning roots reggae movement, while the classic crossover jam 'Skinhead Train' nods to his influence on the skinhead subculture. This album earned Aitken the status of the "Godfather of Ska" and it's easy to hear why listening back to this reissue.
Review: Fusion five-piece Aldorande are no fustians when it comes to full-length LPs. These self-styled groove adventurers remain radically open to the sound, thanks to their stylistic touchstone, 70s funk, and its diachronic conduction of future styles. Recorded on tape in a top Parisian studio, their third record Trois brims with trifect textures, bold phrasing, and soaring choral waves. Mathieu Edouard's precise drumming is glued to the spot by Erwan Loeffel's plaited percussion, all the while Laurent Guillet's fingertips and Florian Pellissier's splayed hands make the best uses of Fender Rhodes, axe and Minimoog.
La Condition Masculine (English extended version) (4:32)
Quand Le Soleil Est La (alternate Drum Machine version) (3:02)
Ganvie (3:55)
Kikadi Gromo (3:48)
Immigration Amoureuse (4:10)
Where Are You? I Love You (4:14)
Dash, Baksheesh & Matabish (3:40)
Je Vous Aime Zaime Zaime (alternate Drum Machine version) (3:00)
Agatha (alternate version) (3:53)
L' Amour Malade Petit Francais (3:09)
Ndolo (3:04)
Chant D'Amour Pygmee (3:47)
Funky Maringa (4:13)
Crocodile - Crocodile - Crocodile (4:03)
L'Ile De Djerba (2:31)
Kitibanga (4:24)
Asma (alternative Tape version) (3:42)
Savannah Georgia (alternative version) (3:08)
Review: Tresor Magnetique is a treasure trove of unreleased tracks by the late great Francis Bebey-an international artist whose visionary work defies time and continues to add standout energy to eclectic DJ sets everywhere. These recordings have been digitised from fragile tapes found by his son and restored at Abbey Road Studios and blend pygmy flutes, drum machines, folk guitars and electronic textures in daring, genre-defying ways. Rather than a retrospective, this feels like an ongoing conversation that keeps Beby's work urgent and vital and prove Bebey wasn't just ahead of his time, he transcended it, from the lo-fi drum track magnificent of 'Quand Le Soleil Est La' to the raw, textured tropical funk of 'Where Are You? I Love You.'
Review: With a title inspired by the utterances of The Oracle of Delphi, a cult of female priestesses who reportedly "changed the course of civilisation" by inhaling volcanic vapours, it's clear that Lee Burtucci and Olivia Block's first collaborative album is rooted in paganistic visions and experimental mysticism. It's comprised of two lengthy tracks, each accompanied by edited 'excerpts', and combines Burtucci's experimental synth sounds and tape loops with Block's processed vocalisations and hazy field recordings. Dark and suspenseful, with each extended composition delivering a mixture of mind-mangling electronics, creepy ambience and musical elements doused in trippy effects, it sits somewhere between the charred "illbient" of DJ Spooky and the deep space soundscapes of the late Pete Namlook.
Review: Originally released in 1990, Love Dub is a landmark in the dub landscape that reimagined the group's iconic material through a deeper sonic lens. With the legendary Prince Jammy at the controls, the album strips the majority of the vocals and amplifies the essence of the Black Uhuru sound-throbbing basslines, hypnotic rhythms and masterful use of echo, delay and reverb. Each track unfolds into a spacious, atmospheric journey that pushes the boundaries of reggae into more experimental terrain. Love Dub is more than a reinterpretation-it's a testament to Black Uhuru's legacy and Prince Jammy's visionary touch.
Review: The Blackbyrds, Washington Direct-Current pioneers of jazz-funk from the early 70s, overloaded the jazz circuit with City Life, a hair-frying album renowned for its flowing, fulminous rhythms. Core tracks 'Happy Music' and 'Rock Creek Park' set the stage for a long sampling legacy: the latter was famously sampled by both De La Soul and Nas, on 'Bitties In The BK Lounge' and 'Fried Chicken' respectively. This reissue, cut from the original tapes (AAA) by Kevin Gray and pressed on 180-gram vinyl at RTI, reupholsters the Blackbyrds' debut worm-catching funk pecks for the world's ears to witness once more.
Review: Don Blackman's 1982 self-titled debut is an underrated jazz-funk gem that fuses soul, funk and jazz-fusion into a sophisticated groove-laden journey that was produced by Dave Grusin and Larry Rosen for GRP Records. The album showcases Blackman's keyboard wizardry and soulful vocals across standout tracks like 'Heart's Desire' and 'Holding You Loving You.' With playful cuts like 'Yabba Dabba Doo,' it balances polish with joyful experimentation and though not a commercial hit, its influence has quietly grown and ir has been sampled by hip-hop greats and revered by collectors alike. This reissue reaffirms its status as a cult classic and a crucial slice of 80s funk.
Review: Originally released on cassette in 1984, Borghesia's Clones album now resurfaces on vinyl courtesy of the dons at Dark Entries. It's a fine glimpse into early electronic experimentation from 1980s Ljubljana, all created using borrowed gear and recorded live without overdubs. The results are an album of hypnotic proto-techno and acid-inflected instrumentals intended for video installations and performances, all of which speak to the raw, pioneering spirit of the scene in Yugoslavia at the time. The A-side has driving club energy, while the flip drifts into more immersive ambient territory. It might be four decades old, but this album still has a visceral impact on mind and body.
Review: This has been described as Shelflife for Calibre's 120-140 material. If you know the means, methods and magic of Dominic Martin, you'll already have this in your basket. But in case you need a little extra info or new to the abyssal vaults of Calibre, the Shelflife series is a regular collection of projects and unreleased material he's made over the years. While best known for his d&b, his house, techno and dub material is just as prolific, deep and mesmerising. As is the case here as we range from steppy, curmudgeonly techno ('Front Loader') to funky electro style breaks ('The Saki') to bumping shufflesome house ('Ukrained') to vast spacious dub ('Come With Me') Complete with many other deep and reflective shades between, this is yet another fantastic body of work from one of electronic music's most unique and revered artists.
Review: Calibro 35 recalibrate with Exploration, a fresh dive into cinematic jazz-funk marking their first full-length LP on the independent since 2023's Nouvelle Aventures, continuing the path set by last year's 'Jazzploitation' EP. Yarning vintage soundtrack stylings with contemporary groove, the Milan group balance reverent covers - like Roy Ayers' 'Coffy' and Bob James' 'Nautilus' with bold, golden originals. Lead tune 'Reptile Strut', not to mention 'The Twang' and 'Pied De Poule', twine round taut rhythms, lush horn lines, and evocative cinematic textures. The band tips its hat to touchstones like Herbie Hancock, Lalo Schifrin, and Italian great Piero Umiliani, whose 'Discomania' appears on the accompanying limited clear blue 7" single, backed with 'Jazz Carnival'.
Review: Chilean-born, Bristol-based Shanti Celeste has always brought a unique colour and emotion to her often bass-heavy sounds. She's a party-starting DJ, too, but delves into whole new realms with her wonderful sophomore full-length. Romance sees her exploring themes of love and friendship through shimmering pop textures and emotionally resonant songwriting. Her vocals take centre stage for the first time and lead single 'Thinking About You' is a heartfelt tribute to a late friend with a glowing groove and airy falsetto. Crafted between Bristol and London, the album features collaborations with Batu and harpist Miriam Adefris, whose delicate touch enhances its celestial tone and following last summer's acclaimed 'Ice Cream Dream Boy,' Romance is a luminous return and smart evolution.
Review: NRG 4 is the latest instalment in drummer and producer Chiminyo's boundary-pushing series and it captures the raw improvisational spirit of London's jazz-adjacent underground.The album is a communal outpouring of pure energy that was recorded live at the iconic Ronnie Scott's with no rules, no scripts, just spontaneous creativity and featuring a powerhouse ensemble including James Akers, Marysia Osu, Daniel Casimir, Lyle Barton and Tile Gichigi-Lipere. The set moves between frenzied burners like 'Levitate' and serene pieces like 'Sonder.' With surprise guests like BAELY and Regis Molina, NRG 4 is a genre-defying celebration of live collaboration and musical intuition that's electric, ephemeral and deeply alive.
Review: Cicciolina. Now there's a character. Disco-pop singer, porn star, politician, and ex-wife/muse of legendary shiny balloon artist Jeff Koons i it's fair to say the Italo-Hungarian icon has worn a few hats over the years. Perversion features a selection of reissued tracks from her 80s heyday, including the magnificently titled 'Sexy Porno Shop', which in itself renders the record worthy of consideration. If you hadn't already guessed from the preamble, the music is kitsch, to say the least, with bubblegum vocals, earworm synth lines and generally pulsing tempos. But there are hidden gems: the (ahem) innocent vocals and twinkling melodies of 'Goccioline', the rousing congas and inspired 'no drugs, I love sex, much more sex' vocal of 'No Drugs', and the brilliant cover of the Rolling Stones' 'Satisfaction'. Echoing far, far simpler times, it's either politically incorrect nostalgia or pioneering, sexually liberated abandon. Either way, it's bags of fun.
Review: Amsterdam-based duo Maarten Smeets and Lars Dales - Dam Swindle - offer us their album, Open, prying ajar our otic tract with 14 quixotic tracks. After years of introspection, Open marks a rupture, as the pair break from their preeminent deep house for an even-deeper-down embrace of the lower tempi, with them now incorporating synthwave, hip-house, and ambient elements. A first taster comes with the smoothly lavished 'Girl' with Faye Meana, while 'Bloom' with Joep Beving develops the theme of self-analysis through well-shovelled deep house chords. Still reining in some four-to-the-floor precepts, Dam Swindle have nonetheless presented their most heartfelt and least harried detour to date.
Review: Over the course of two fine, full-length excursions, Don Glori (real name Gordon Li) has perfected a warm, breezy and frequently life-affirming trademark sound that cannily joins the dots between jazz, samba, MPB, jazz-funk and soul. He leans into the latter elements more on summery third set Paper Can't Wrap Fire, drawing on the talents of a wealth of Melbourne music friends across nine sublime tracks. There's much to admire throughout, from the sun-soaked jazz-funk/soul fusion of 'Brown Eyes' and summery head-nodder 'Janet', to the spiritual jazz joy of 'Song For Ants', the Brazilian brilliance of 'Precious' and the oceans-deep nu-jazz shuffle of 'Saturn's Return'.
Review: The third album from Melbourne/Naarm multi-instrumentalist Don Glori merges jazz, soul, funk and r&b and marks a confident leap forward in his songwriting journey. Anchored by a Chinese proverb about truth, Paper Can't Wrap Fire explores themes of honesty and introspection across standout tracks like the silky 'Brown Eyes,' the sharp-witted 'Disaster' and the meditative 'Flicker.' It was recorded with close friends and longtime collaborators and radiates warmth, spontaneity and rich musical chemistry. While nodding to influences like Azymuth, SAULT, and Jordan Rakei, Don Glori delivers a sound entirely his own and it is wonderfully intimate.
These Weeds - The Ones That Do The Impossible (7:06)
The Same Is Different Every Day (3:44)
Saturated Memory Of A Rooftop (6:01)
M Net 103's Impossible Turn (13:37)
Review: "Instead of escaping somewhere else, this time I want to be here." We're not 100% sure if that's Fabiano or E35 Netherlands quoted, and woe betide anyone who thinks they can interpret such cryptic (not to mention borrowed) quips without asking the person who said them what they meant. Nevertheless, Landmarks very quickly presents itself as an ambient beauty born of this planet and nowhere else. At times the sounds are challenging - heavily textured tracks rather than the lush dreamscapes we often associate with the rather reductive 'ambient' label. Sometimes things are quite eerie, like the disquiet that materialises around halfway through 'Flowers On The Hospital Grounds', and the dense static waves of 'Saturated Memory On A Rooftop'. At other moments, tones invoke the mystery of night skies over Earth, or the rhythm of a world filled with enough life to mean we're still finding new species today.
Review: In the wake of unprecedented flooding that devastated Rio Grande do Sul in May 2024 - claiming over 170 human lives and countless animals, and submerging entire cities -local artist Carlos Ferreira created Flux as a means to survive. Composed and recorded in just one week during the height of the crisis, the album began as a personal coping mechanism but soon evolved into something more: a sonic document of a region in trauma. Born of catastrophe, Flux manifests as a twinkling sonic blanket despite it, buoyed by dreams of alterity and belonging, its incredible Max granulations matching the pockets of hope implied therein. Stark, urgent textures mirror the patent despair of the moment, yet embedded within are quiet meditations on endurance, reflecting a labile openness to change from the guitarist-composer and longtime AvantRoots resident.
Review: Built on two decades of collaboration between drummer Sam Hobbs and bassist Neil Innes - no relation to the Monty Python and Rutles man of the same name - the pair's new ATA project blends rootsy Jamaican groove with the syncopated strut of New Orleans funk. Though technically a new release, it's more a continuation than a debut: the lineup includes jazz organist Bob Birch and session guitarist Chris Dawkins, drawing from deep wells of soul, rocksteady and r&b. Tracks like 'Grafter' and 'Bust Up' land squarely in the crossover zone between Studio One and The Metersiraw but slick, with a tight pocket and loose-limbed flair. 'An Autumn Sun' leans sweet and sentimental, while 'Strong Fish' pays organ-heavy homage to Jackie Mittoo's Hot Milk-era work. Elsewhere, 'Power Cut' and 'Night Bus' arrive with horn motifs that seem tailored to I Roy-style toasting, and 'Tough Swagger' is a heavy-lidded jam that could've wandered in off a Bunny Lee tape. But it's 'Iron Fist' that best captures the group's method: groove-first, melody-second, built on intuition and the friction of mismatched rhythms. Despite the vintage touchstones, it never feels like pasticheithe record balances reverence with invention, keeping one foot in Kingston and the other in Treme. For a group with so much history, it sounds impressively fresh.
Review: Multiple Angle Distortions (M.A.D) is the second of two EPs previewing The Future Sound of London's upcoming 2025 album. It dives into darker, more percussive terrain than before and blends acidic 303 textures with brooding orchestral layers as the cult FSOL continue to expand their sonic palette. Grammy-nominated Daniel Pemberton guests on the striking 'Improvisations,' which is a live recording from a London fashion show, while closing track 'Northern Point' showcases FSOL's own custom-built synths. The result is a heady fusion of house, electronica and techno with an experimental edge that is both cerebral and immersive. M.A.D affirms this outfit's legacy while still pushing boundaries decades into their career.
Review: Recorded in collaboration with Nils Frahm at Berlin's Leiter Studio, Ganavya's fourth album is destined to carve its own path to recognition due to its unique quality. A follow-up to last year's acclaimed Daughter of a Temple, which drew praise from many music outlets, Nilam - probably best known her for her appearance alongside Sault at their recent live show - continues her journey into music as devotion, meditation and memory. Born in New York and raised in Tamil Nadu, she moves fluidly between traditions, channeling pilgrimage trails, harikatha storytelling and jazz improvisation into something uniquely her own. Her voice is unhurried, intimate and full of clarity, conjuring stillness even in motion. It's a sound that invites stillness but never feels static, where every breath carries the weight of generations and each silence says as much as her lyrics. The songs on Nilam feel distilled from years of lived experience, shaped by years of live performance as tracks like 'Sees Fire' blend Eastern tonalities with meditative jazz, fusing introspection with emotional firepower. The album traces the patterns of gratitude, loss and rootedness meanwhile anchoring the listener in a place beyond the physical. Rather than chase genre, ganavya reaches toward essence. Nilam isn't just an album, it's a moment held in reverence. A sonic altar where memory, spirit and sound meet. In her hands, song becomes a ritual of listening.
Review: Greatest Fits is a deep dive into the superb sounds of German avant-garde new wave pioneer Gina X on the cult Dark Entries label. This double LP compilation spans the whole of the bold, boundary-blurring career of Gina X Performance, which came together first in 1978 when singer Gina Kikoine and producer Zeus B set out to create "the absolute union of music, poetry and travesty". With selections take from four of thieves albums, you'll find their signature blend of icy electro, camp theatrics and subversive pop throughout, and it all ranges from the pulsing 'Nice Mover' to the decadent 'No G.D.M.' Greatest Fits is both a musical time capsule and a vital reminder of how far ahead Gina X always was while also serving as a celebration of queer culture and synth-driven hedonism.
House Call (feat Big Tone, Anna Wise, Jonathan Hoard)
Don't Worry It's Fine (John Hodgman & Michael Che)
Gold Purple Orange
Peacock
Doing Better Than Ever (feat Ashok "Dap" Kondabolu)
The Smoking Man (feat Denmark Vessey)
Breakfast Of Champions
Scoop Of Dirt (feat Your Old Droog)
Zero
Everything's Still Fine (feat Nick Offerman)
Waiting For The Moon (feat Mosel & Anna Wise)
River (feat Anna Wise)
Review: Jean Grae and Quelle Chris come together brilliantly here on Everything's Fine, a sharp, satirical and refreshingly non-toxic hip-hop album from two of the genre's most unique voices. Superbly blending Jean's razor-sharp lyricism with Quelle's introspective wit, the project takes aim at societal absurdities with intelligence and humour and comes with notable Cameos from comedy heavyweights like Nick Offerman, Michael Che, John Hodgman and Hannibal Buress who all add an extra layer of punch. Politically charged, deeply self-aware and sonically adventurous, this is essential listening for fans of boundary-pushing rap, and it comes on a stunning tri-colour vinyl that is as bold as the music itself.
Review: Oskaa-born but truly otherworldly producer Daichi Furukawa, aka Ground, is back with a new album that is here to bend your mind and distort your reality with his fourth world follow-up to 2018's cult favourite Sunizm. This experimental odyssey truly defies genre, logic, and linearity as it assembles a chaotic yet mesmerising fusion of organic samples, synthetic textures, tribal rhythms and cosmic noise that are fantastic and freaky. Yaoyorozoo is one of those records that feels both ancient and futuristic as it taps into beautiful and unsettling, inviting and disorienting rhythms and sample sources. Across 73 minutes, it mutates like a dream-always shifting, never settling, so it makes for a cerebral collage for wide-open minds and ears only.
Review: LA based Black Market Dub like to rework great artists of decades gone by through a new sound system lens. This time it is the great 80s pop duo Hall & Oates who get the treatment with six of their most well-known tunes all reworked at slower tempos, with natty guitars, horns and rolling rhythms bring a new and sunny perspective. 'Private Eyes' in particular sounds superbly laid back and sun kissed for Balearic sessions and 'Maneater' also does the business with the original vocals soaring over lazy chords and amidst oodles of echo and reverb.
Michael Prophet - "Righteous Are The Conqueror" (4:21)
Al Campbell - "Respect" (2:56)
Rebel Regulars - "Jah Love" (2:41)
Wailing Souls - "Busnah" (4:06)
Ranking Dread - "Shut Me Mouth" (3:46)
Johnny Osbourne - "Mr Marshall" (3:44)
Mystic Eyes - "Perilous Time" (3:17)
Hugh Mundell - "Run Revolution A Come" (2:31)
Barry Brown - "Give Another Isreal A Try" (2:48)
Toyan - "How The West Was Won" (3:07)
Roots Radics - "Conquering Dub" (4:19)
The Revolutionaires - "Respect The Version" (3:04)
Rebel Regulars - "Iregular Dub" (2:58)
Roots Radics - "Busnah" (Dubwise) (4:05)
Ranking Dread - "Shut Up Shut Up" (3:52)
Roots Radics - "The Dub Marshall" (3:05)
The Revolutionaires - "Roots Man Version" (3:11)
Augustus Pablo - "Revolution Dub" (2:51)
Roots Radics - "Give Another Dub" (3:16)
Roots Radics - "How The Dub Was Won" (3:43)
Review: Leeds' Iration Steppas have spent over three decades reshaping dub into a raw, high-voltage force, blending classic roots selections with futuristic, bass-heavy energy. Here, Mark Iration delves into the Greensleeves archives, curating a deep selection of foundation cuts that have fuelled their sets since the early 90s. The first disc centres on heavyweight vocal performances - Michael Prophet's 'Righteous Are The Conqueror' and Johnny Osbourne's 'Mr Marshall' embody roots reggae at its most defiant, while Ranking Dread's 'Shut Me Mouth' and Wailing Souls' 'Busnah' channel the militant energy of early dancehall. The second disc turns up the pressure, diving into dub with Roots Radics' 'Conquering Dub', Augustus Pablo's 'Revolution Dub' and The Revolutionaires' 'Respect The Version'. Following the success of Down In Dub From The Vault, this latest Soundsystem series instalment reframes vintage selections through the seismic weight of Iration Steppas' vision.
Review: Though they've trodden remarkably different paths through music so far, the coming-together of UK singer-producers Allysha Joy, Hidden Spheres and Finn Rees makes for a latent talent condensation of the "of course!" kind. Solina hears them freshwater rock pool their shared ear for groove and space, weaving motifs of Balearic house, jazz, broken beat and 90s street soul through a vivid whole; long after each artist's works across in veins of future beats, chillwave, deep house and UK bass. From the tremulous Rhodes overwash of 'Promised Me Love' to the sophomoric sunstroke 'Trust The Feeling', Joy's vocals usually only appear lately, like a vocal forest spirit peeking its head out on the ecotone between wood and sea. Not a showcase of chops, but a case of layered restraint, unfurling unhurriedly.
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