Demon Music Group Schallplatten & CDs

Review: Scottish funk legends Average White Band knew exactly how to present themselves to the world when they burst onto the scene in the early 70s. Funk was reaching a peak of global popularity, but after failing to make an impression with their debut album Show Your Hand, AWB were under pressure to deliver the goods for their follow up. Relocating to LA and breaking the US market was pivotal, and their so-called 'white album' exceeded expectations when all-time classic jam 'Pick Up The Pieces' became a worldwide hit. The track even received a tongue-in-cheek riposte from The JB's, high praise indeed. This half-speed remastered version marks 50 years since the album came out and it still sounds as fresh and funky as ever.

Review: Arthur Baker is an American producer and DJ known for his work with monumental dance acts such as New Order, Afrika Bambaataa and the Pet Shop Boys. While coming up as a DJ and studio producer, he also made a name for himself as a remixer over the years, and this box set, released by reissuing specialists Demon Music, goes the extra mile to do solid justice to his reinterpetive efforts. They're not the choices you'd expect, either, with the comp proving that Baker opted to remix the likes of Cyndi Lauper, Bruce Springsteen and Tina Turner, in among choices you might also expect like Huey Lewis, The Psychedelic Furs and The B-52's.

Review: Few electronic music producers can claim to have made quite as big an impact as Arthur Baker. During the 1980s the New Yorker was involved in creating (or mixing) a string of ground-breaking electro, freestyle and proto-house records, before becoming one of the most in-demand remixers on the planet. This vast box set, which includes six weighty slabs of vinyl and an informative insert, celebrates his legacy, offering up a mixture of pioneering productions (Afrika Bambaata and Soulsonic Force's 'Planet Rock', 'Walking On Sunshine' by Rockers Revenge, 'Confusion' by New Order), dancefloor anthems (Freez's 'I.O.U', his enormous rework of Fleetwood Mac's 'Big Love') and a string of essential but lesser-celebrated revisions - all presented in full-length, DJ-friendly form. In a word: essential.

Review: This album might well be best known for its title track being used as a source of inspiration for a lovely trip-hop tune by genre-pioneers Massive Attack but the rest of it is just as good. To mark its 50th anniversary, it now gets a special reissue having already sold over two million copies at the time of its first release. D.C. native and soulful stalwart William DeVaughn was backed by some of the best session musicians in Philadelphia with MFSB men Norman Harris, Vince Montana and John Davis all impressing. The hit single 'Give the Little Man a Great Big Hand' is well worth checking.

Review: The Human League signed to the Papillon label after a compilation of their greatest hits in the late 90s. At that time the band consisted of Philip Oakey, Susan Sulley and Joanne Catherall and together they recorded the Secrets album along with assistance from Neil Sutton, who not only played keys but also took care of plenty of the writing. It was released in 2001 but didn't get much promotion as the label got into financial difficulties. This new double album version has been mastered at half speed and pressed in its original sleeve. It's the sound of Human League as you know and love it, but better.

Review: Reissued on vinyl for the first time, here comes Juno Reactor's 1997 LP Bible of Dreams, also newly remastered and available on double black vinyl. Juno Reactor's fourth album, Bible Of Dreams came with a staunchly different sound compared to the group's previous albums, and moved away from the traditional dance beats by implementing tribal influences. The band collaborated with Amampondo, a traditional South African percussion act, on the single 'Conga Fury'. Watkins and Amampondo went on a five-week tour of the US, opening for Moby. With many of its tracks appearing in acclaimed pop culture soundtracks - the likes of The Matrix Reloaded, Animatrix, Mortal Kombat Annihilation and Beowulf - its composer, producer, musician and performer Ben Watkins has gone on to become an essential innovator of modern electronic music and a pioneer of trance.

Review: Celebrating a decade of Kirsty MacColl's iconic album Electric Landlady, this special edition boasts half-speed remastered tracks that sound better than ever. MacColl's distinctive vocals and songwriting prowess shine through in every track, from the infectious energy of 'Walking Down Madison' to the poignant storytelling of 'My Affair.' With its fusion of pop, folk, and rock influences, this album remains a timeless classic which will reinstate with new audiences as well as once again chiming with those who fell for it first time round. MacColl's musical legacy and the brilliance of one of the most influential singer-songwriters of her generation cannot be overstated here. Fun fact: MacColl was once Johnny Marr's landlady.

Review: Demon Music present a career-spanning collection of 25 of Kirsty MacColl's most popular recordings on a 2xLP set. Between her June 1979 debut single 'They Don't Know' and her tragic death in 2000, Kirsty released five studio albums and seventeen singles, a succinct but consistently high quality body of work, much of it self-written or in partnership with notable collaborators like Graham Gouldman or Johnny Marr. Whether exploring themes of love and loss, or applying her original and often witty worldview, Kirsty's talent as a songwriter and singer is instantly apparent on this new compilation. She was equally adept at throwing new light on old favourites - look no further than her (some might say better than the original) covers of The Kinks' 'Days', and Billy Bragg's 'A New England', both included here.

Review: The name 'Ocean Colour Scene' is an amalgamation of the eponymous band's three favourite words. This direct-democratic approach to band-naming should be an example to us all. But what of their music? 'Yesterday Today 1992-1997' compiles the West Midlands band's most eminent songs, which largely fall in the category of Britpop and indie. While commercial success for the group was limited (indeed bands like Oasis, Blur and The Verve were monopolizing the market), that says absolutely nothing about the quality of the music on this retrospective. Quite the contrary, actually; with selections spanning over ten studio albums, songs like 'Sway', 'Talk On' and 'Blue Deep Ocean' sound equally nostalgic and optimistic for a better musical future than now.

Review: Here at Juno HQ, we are great believers in the idea that you cannot have guilty pleasures when it comes to music. If you like something, you like it, and you should own that. Still, that didn't stop Sean Rowley from serving up a bumper collection of what he thinks to be sounds you might enjoy but not what to shout about from the rock canon. He first did so two decades ago and so here comes this 20th anniversary edition on double vinyl with umpteen catchy, feel good and singalong classics from the likes of Captain & Tennille, Electric Light Orchestra, Andy Fairweather-Low and many more.

Review: Their latest release in the Marc Bolan Songwriter series, following on from the success of Songwriter: 1970 and Songwriter: 1971, Demon Records are introducing Songwriter: 1973 to their catalogue. An intimate, vinyl-only look into the influential artist's prolific output, Songwriter: 1971 delves into a period of change during which Bolan was more active than ever, recording music incessantly in recording studios in both the US and Europe - an era in which the distinctive T Rex sound was becoming increasingly limiting for the artist. Over the course of this in depth sixteen-track compilation, featuring a fascinating selection of finished recordings and working versions, this next chapter charts Bolan's attempts to develop and ultimately move away from the sound he had invented for himself.

Review: If you ever need to demonstrate the queer foundations of dance music, just reach for this authoritative compilation - case closed. Demon Music Group have gathered together a mighty 24 tracks of seminal hi-nrg, synth-pop, proto house, Eurobeat and more besides to paint a picture of the vibrant culture which set the tone for house and techno to come. There are some monster hits in this four-vinyl set including Whitney Houston's 'Love Will Save The Day', Frankie Goes To Hollywood's 'Relax' and Dead or Alive's 'You Spin Me Round (Like A Record)', all presented in their finest extended mix forms. There's also more than enough deep cuts to satisfy the more seasoned diggers out there and the artwork is on point, making this a fitting tribute to the 80s gay nightlife which incubated a new kind of dance music.