Review: Paris-based artist Peki Momes follows up her breakout debut with another stunning double-sider, fusing Turkish lyrics, outernational funk and sun-drenched psychedelia into something wholly her own. On the A-side, 'Yildiz' reimagines Marcos Valle's 'Estrelar' in Turkish, retaining the buoyant groove and crystalline melodies of the original while layering in new emotional shades through Momes' airy, expressive vocal delivery. It's a bright, radiant cut-joyful without being naive. On the flip, 'Bahar' dives into deeper territory: a psychedelic disco burner that captures the tension between hope and fatigue, longing and movement. Anchored by a slow-simmering groove and subtle cosmic touches, it invites dance as a form of resistance, joy, and release. Rich in texture and intent, this is global pop with a rare emotional clarity.
All In You (feat Obi Franky - Athens Of The North mix) (4:33)
Take It Back (feat Mousse T & Davie - Athens Of The North mix) (4:08)
Review: Well, we certainly did not have Ben Westbeech appearing on disco and soul revivalists Athens of the North on our 2025 bingo card. But the best things are often a surprise and so it proves as the Brit serves up alternative remixes of his most recent album tracks in a style befitting this great label. Collaborating with Glitterbox, he carved out two weeks in the studio to flesh out the sounds and the A-side transforms 'All In You' into a modern soul dancer, where Obi and Ben's vocals blend over a groovy, upbeat arrangement. On the flip, 'Take It Back' featuring Mousse T and Davie gets a club-ready twist with heavier percussion but still anchored by its irresistible pop-soul hook.
Review: Crate stuff! Mister Mushi kicks off his Disco Donuts series with two sly flips of ultra-obscure disco-soul cuts, both victoriously dug and reworked with a specialist ear. On the A-side, 'Can't Buy Soul' takes Hebrew Rodgers' near-forgotten 1973 Original Sound release and spins it into a straight four-bar burner without losing the grit of the original's broke-backbeat funk. The B-side, 'Feet Don't Fail Me Now', pulls a similarly shadowy gem into the light, provenance unclear, but groove undeniable. Mushi's edits rewire the tunes with surgical patience, turning overlooked source material into usable dancefloor tools: two bullets for heads who like their disco rare and their kicks on time.
Fred Prescott & The Jeff Band - "Come Fly With Me" (3:50)
Review: After an upsized Volume 4 in the series - which last heard a reissue of Golden Flamingo Orchestra's 'The Guardian Angel' and Carol Grimes' 'Uphill Peace Of Mind' respectively - this is one US music crew who, unlike other phonic firms, don't intend ever to stop Messin' About. Named in spirit after a Prince song but in reality focusing on those uncut soul seams for whose exposure most lightweights would need to dig far deeper into the earth to dredge, this latest edition ups the lux on two further formerly receded funk and soul de-lights. First, The Joubert Singers 'Stand On The Word' through hull-rocking callout funk, while Fred Prescott & The Jeff Band deal a snappy blow with 'Come Fly With Me', popularly renowned for the question mark over the date of its recording: 198?.
Review: Dutch club jazz band New Cool Collective returns with a tasty 7" featuring two cinema classics. On the A-side, they serve up their own fresh and super funky cover of 'Enter the Dragon,' the iconic theme associated with Bruce Lee and his martial arts masterpiece of the same name. The B-side features their take on 'Misirlou' which is a legendary surf rock track by Dick Dale & The Del-Tones that was made world famous when it was used as the theme from Quentin Taranto's chef d'ouevre, Pulp Fiction. This double-sider is standout for its nostalgic movie associations but also on a purely musical level it oozes class.
Review: London soul-jazz composer and producer Andrei Nikolsky - formerly of the equal-parts Palace Records favourite The Kanpai Quartet - now broadcasts yet two more heavy-hitters from straight from the label whose logo pulls from the iconographic Crystal Palace Transmitter. 'Botchit & Scarper' is heard far and wide, hijacking the airwaves with what sounds at face value like an unsound moral principle - but on second listen to its slack-shouldered ease, whimsied brass and scaphoid drumming, might function just as well as a principle for free living. Of course, if something's worth doing then it's worth doing "botched", though Nikolsky currently hasn't botched this one. 'Wafty' follows as the blue piano sojourn, replete with plinking ninths and a hiss-hummed rhythms section.
Review: Panarama's follow-up to Cartagena! delivers another essential slice of Colombian musical history with Michi Sarmiento y sus Bravos: Salsa y Descarga 1967-1977. A new 16-track compilation, it captures the fierce, joyful energy of Michi's golden era on Discos Fuentes, a label synonymous with Colombia's explosive tropical sound. Born in 1938, Michi was a saxophone prodigy who led his Combo Bravo with swagger, blending cumbia, guaguanco, boogaloo, and salsa into relentless, percussion-heavy grooves. Backed by two blazing trumpets and a young Joe Arroyo on vocals, Michi's sound is rich with tumbling congas, sharp montunos, and wild sax riffs. Two choice cuts from the comp, 'Mirame San Miguel' and 'Cumbia Raja', come pinched from the wider bag, displaying characteristic stridency, a charisma that peeks through even on high-lopped, vintage recordings such as these.
Review: Long buried and now finally pressed to 7", 'Drug Story' is a curious outtake from Joe Bataan's post-Riot! hot streak, recorded in the late 60s, when studio time came easy and inspiration even easier. Originally shelved by Fania execs, who balked at what they misread as an endorsement of drug use, the track sat forgotten until a reel surfaced in a New York thrift store and eventually made its way into Vampisoul's hands. First released on the eponymous Drug Story LP in 2022, it now appears in its firstly intended single format. The track unspools slowly, with Bataan on lead vocal and keys, eventually flipping into a looser Latin funk section with Bobby Rodriguez, Pete Quintero and William Howes Jr.
Betty Crutcher - "Sleepy People" (Old Chap Alteration) (4:46)
Gwen McCrae - "Move Me Baby" (SanFran Disko Transformation) (4:42)
The Sisters Love - "Give Me Your Love" (Fingerman Remodel) (4:48)
Clydie King - "Punish Me" (Bully Boy Makeover) (2:58)
Review: French funk lovers Acts of Sedition love double dropping 7"s, and after several fine outings in the last year comes this latest under the title 'Feemes Fatale.' It features some disco classics reworked by mysterious names, starting with Betty Crutcher's 'Sleepy People (Old Chap Alteration)', which is a swooning sound with strings of lament and funky drums. Gwen McCrae's 'Move Me Baby (SanFran Disko Transformation)' is a more stirring and upbeat sound, The Sisters Love's 'Give Me Your Love (Fingerman Remodel)' is a blissed out and cinematic soul and disco fusion and Clydie King's 'Punish Me (Bully Boy Makeover)' ends with a more raw and guttural soul sound and big horns driving the pain onwards.
Betty Crutcher - "Sleepy People" (Old Chap Alteration) (4:46)
Gwen McCrae - "Move Me Baby" (SanFran Disko Transformation) (4:42)
The Sisters Love - "Give Me Your Love" (Fingerman Remodel) (4:48)
Clydie King - "Punish Me" (Bully Boy Makeover) (2:58)
Review: French funk enthusiasts Act of Sedition return with another killer double 7", this time titled Femmes Fatale and as well as a plain back version, it also lands on translucent orange vinyl. Following a series of sought-after edits, this latest drop delivers four deep-digging disco reworks by a cast of shadowy edit masters. Betty Crutcher's 'Sleepy People (Old Chap Alteration)' opens with moody strings and dusty funk grooves, while Gwen McCrae's 'Move Me Baby (SanFran Disko Transformation)' kicks things up with uplifting soul-disco energy. Fingerman turns The Sisters Love's 'Give Me Your Love' into a load up and widescreen sound that is brilliantly symphonic and Clydie King's 'Punish Me (Bully Boy Makeover)' closes with raw horns and aching vocals.
Get Lucky (unreleased instrumental 45 edit) (4:49)
Spacer (Chic instrumental Funk Re edit) (4:36)
Review: One very handy 7" single and two monumental disco instrumental edits surely destined to get butts waggling on any given dancefloor. The A-side is swept along by a propulsive funk guitar line, neatly switching from classic 70s lushness to 21st century robotics and vocodered vocals and back again, while the flip goes for a more soul-driven vibe, the tight drums and bass pairing polished off by some delicately applied Rhodes piano, definitely the glitterball cherry on top. DJ weaponry so deadly it should probably be outlawed by some international treaty.
Just A Lil' Lovin (unreleased Exclusive instrumental) (4:01)
Review: As championed by DJ Koco......Mukatsuku Records keeps the spotlight on Japan once more here with a fresh 7" from SMOKIN' the JAZZ, a jazz-hip-hop trio made up of Sugames Japon on piano, guitarist Shu Fujiyama and NOBUdaDREAD, who is a turntable wizard. They've been working together since 2018 via their own Loud Minority Productions imprint and here they keep it deep and seductive with two laid-back, jazz-soaked instrumental hip-hop covers full of warmth and plenty of musical finesse. 'Gypsy Woman' is a delightfully gentle groove with conversational horns while an exclusive instrumental of 'Just A Lil Lovin' on the B-side is full of soulful, head-nodding goodness tailored for jazz heads, beat lovers and crate diggers alike.
Review: A nice mix of funk, hip-hop and reggae influences go into the melting pot on the latest SuckaSide, with 'Even After All' proving to be a laid back, blunted jam that's backed up with some hard hitting, sturdy beat manouevres. On the edgier sounding flip, meanwhile, a female MC spits with impressive ferocity while a lovely warm - and somewhat familiar - analogue-edge loop works its magic. Both are key components for use at different points in the jam, some badly needed heavy weaponry that Donald Trump can't withdraw from service here.
Review: Unearthed from the vaults of funk veteran Tim Tucker, this fantastic Got That Energy EP delivers two unreleased boogie gems from the 80s that have been reworked by SoCal DJ and producer Knoe1. A lifelong musician and unsung hero of the scene, Tim always brought raw authenticity, while Knoe1 sharpens the sound for modern dancefloors. Title track 'Got That Energy' is a high-octane ass-shaker packed with punchy bass and irresistible swagger. On the flip, 'Don't Hesitate' slows the pace by blending emotional vocals and synth-soaked soul. This is pure summer heat for a range of different settings.
Review: Venice-based DJ and collector Zaffa is next up on the ever-superb Scruniversal label with a couple more delightful disco dancers. 'Trip Through The Galaxy' is a slow-motion cosmic trip that is vast in scale and high on soul thanks to the warm vocal that floats amidst funky riffs and glowing keys. Things stay just as sensuous and steamy on the flip with 'Supernova Child', another fluid and funky jam with oodles of synth magic and gentle grooves all soothing mind, body and soul. The real kicker is the vocal samples that add extra spaced-out funkiness.
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