Back catalogue: Hip Hop/R&B

Review: Freestyle Records reissues The Apples Kings a full decade and a half after its first release. This version has been fully remastered and re-cut for an even more dynamic sound to remind why the landmark album was so special. It was a first for the band who crafted it with specific collaborators in mind and worked with funk legend Fred Wesley and Israeli world music icon Shlomo Bar In fusing elements of The JB's funky foundations, soul, dub, and Middle Eastern influences, they cooked up a genre-defying mix filtered through The Apples' unique decks-horns-bass-drums lineup. These unmistakable, floor-shaking grooves are just as potent today as they were in 2010.

Review: The third studio album by the Nigerian artist Asake comes to vinyl through Empire, homing back in for a second time on the artist's pioneering flurry of several modish, "now" genre fusions for 2024. Asake has already garnered a name for himself as a neo-fuji artist, building on the classic Nigerian Yoruba dance genre in electronica fusion form, as well as incorporating elements of amapiano and funk. Lungu Boy was met with critical acclaim on its digital release, and now you can hear it in its fullest physical quality on marbled vinyl; the record's best moments have to be 'Worldwide' and 'Suru' featuring none other than British rap whiz Stormzy.

Review: DJ Motive hails from he charming city of Gifu, Japan, and has spent 20 years crafting a signature blend of Latin, jazz and hip-hop both solo and with DeadBundy. His latest release draws on all that experience to cook up a tasteful soundtrack that will transport you from dawn to dusk. Tracks like 'Sunrise' offer dreamy broken beats and nostalgic samples, while 'Chill On A Lotus' melts vocals and chords into an ambient haze. Jazz drums meet Balearic vibes in 'Howling 2 You' while 'Walker grooves with squelchy synths. This reflective, escapist trip rewards deep listening and is another high class album from sophisticated Italian label Hell Yeah.

Review: MF Doom's 2004 release marked a high point in the hip-hop don's discography, brimming with his signature blend of inventive production and intricate wordplay. Across the album, he uses food-related metaphors to delve into themes of vice, violence, and the complexities of ego. 'Beef Rapp' opens the record with a sharp critique of conflict within hip-hop, while tracks like 'Hoe Cakes' and 'One Beer' explore indulgence, escapism, and excess with Doom's trademark wit. The track 'Rapp Snitch Knishes' is a direct jab at the contradictions of self-incrimination, highlighting the absurdities of some rappers' behavior. With its blend of humour, sharp social commentary and a deft lyrical style, this album remains a standout in the genre, demonstrating Doom's ability to layer serious themes with a playful touch.

Review: Michi Guerrero aka Michi sets upon unleashing her debut album Dirty Talk unto the world. The LA-based singer-songwriter begun in pop before finding her truer feet in making warm neo-soul, in which discipline she has remained. Backing up a recent throng of exquisite Knxwledge flips of her earliest singles, the new record documents productions of a near-equal calibre from Blake Rhein (Durand Jones & The Indications) and Paul Cherry. Retroistic, channelling a Motown-reminiscent sound, the lyrics deal in interpersonal dilemmas unique to the modern day; hear the a-romantic de-subjectvations of 'If You Want Me' and the existentialisms of 'There's No Heaven', the latter being a prize house music cut, not to be missed by DJs.

Review: A track per year is said to have gone into the making of Quasimoto's 2013 hip-hop 12-tracker. The long haul is documented across a quirky, frequency-surfing selection, which at times veer from the usual wonky, tongue-in-cheek, nasally prod-rap flows and into subvertised sound collage. 'Seasons Change', for example, detours into a bolshy sample tapestry about alcoholism and the substitution of natural highs for synthetic high. Even so, it's the irreverent, conversational miasmas of 'Youngblood', 'Planned Attack' and 'LAX to JFK' that really define this mixtape slash compilation from the yellow Madlib alter-ego.

Review: Smoove props up his rep as a highly consistent big beat, funk and disco crossover producer with a freight-class shipment of 'Heavy Goods'. Somersaulting out from his Geordie soul group Smoove & Turrell - on top of his sought-after multi-track vinyl re-edits, as well as his remixing prowess across hip-hop, soul, and funk - this Jalapeno Records follow-up continues Smoove's recent favourite postal theme. Indeed, the postal system is what keeps us afloat (and cue the boundless irony of Royal Mail's latest sale to a Czech billionaire, the name of whose LLC is, apropos of online music retail, "EP Group"). Betty Black & The Family Fortune, Emma Noble, Kraak & Smaak, Izo FitzRoy, The High & Mighty, and Bahama Soul Club, all are all loaned Smoove's Pygmalion hand, honing a musing work of art from many a die-cut classic. Whirlwind D's 'Labels', Izo Fitzroy's 'Blind Faith' and TGH Collective's 'Higher Collective' are special versions too. Assuming you didn't already know the songs in question, you really wouldn't be able to tell the edit jobs from the originals. Mint condition!

Review: Portland's contemporary music makers and the city's historic Black music community come together on this new remix project which draws from the Albina Music Trust's archive. Across the long player, the artist reinvents the sounds of Portland's Black musicians with a modern beat-based sensibility, all of which subtly pay homage to the 1968 "Soul Assembly" program by the Black Student Union which educated audiences about Black Portland's cultural identity. Among many standouts are reimagined works by Jonny Cool, Jumbo of The Lifesavas and Tony Ozier who do a fine job of bridging generations and highlighting Portland's rich heritage.