Disco Bits Schallplatten & CDs

Review: More from the cheeky scamps behind the Disco Bits label, an imprint whose releases regularly blur the boundaries between re-editing, re-making and remixing. Here they welcome back imprint regulars Cannon & Mirrorball (we laughed, at least), who once again serve up two guaranteed disco floor-slayers. A-side 'Hot Lovin (Don't Stop, Don't Quit)' sits somewhere between disco-house and hip-house, with excitement-building raps lifted from vintage hip-hop cuts sitting atop a non-stop beat crafted from tooled-up elements from a celebratory disco favourite. As the title suggests, 'Shack Attack' cheekily blends elements from Banbarra classic 'Shack Up' and B-52s hit 'Love Shack', adding some other choice samples to create a tidy, well-made mash-up that sounds tailor-made for disco dancefloors.

Review: Cannon & Mirrorball may not be the disco edit scene's answer to moustache-sporting 1970s/80s comedy heroes Cannon and Ball, but they certainly serve up tracks that will put a big goofy smile on your face. Their latest Disco Bits adventure begins via "Black Rhythm Rap", a chunky, hip-hop friendly rework of an obscure, late 1970s disco-rap bomb rich in funky guitar licks, cut-glass strings and party-starting MC flows. On the flip they get even cheekier, placing Loleatta Holloway's incredible "Love Sensation" vocal over a stomping, Blaxploitation-era disco-funk backing track and all manner of familiar soul and funk samples. Purists will no doubt sneer, but they really shouldn't: this is tastefully produced disco heat of the highest order.

Review: Beard-strokers look away now, everyone else hit the dancefloor... Cannon & Mirrorball have just unleashed two very witty pieces on Disco Bits. As the name suggests, these anonymous editors are having some serious fun on both sides as they laced together two slews of tracks and make them sound like they should have always existed in bed together. "At The Disco" swoons with a sultry, mirrorball twinkle while "Disco Bunny" fires all over the place like a loose cannon. Both include so many references we reckon if you took a shot every time you heard a sample you recognise you'd be drunk within 30 seconds. Brilliant fun.

Review: The first post-lockdown release from Disco Bits is a fat one. It tackles the oft-overlooked but vital hip-house genre with two super talented MCs delivering their tight bars over some tech-ed out disco beats that come back from the future. BDK opens up with the powerful 'Rok The Disco-Tech,' which is built on a strident disco beat with plenty of cosmic synth work and chattery drum fills. On the flip is the more teeth grinding and stark 'Ritmo Italo' with its machine-gun synths and hip-swinging claps. The verses hit harder here and again help make this one a different kind of dark disco thriller.

Review: Night or day, we're always happy to receive a new version bundle from the mysterious (not to mention brazen) editors Disco Bits. For their latest excursion "Party Time" takes things out of control with a massive vocal hook every dancefloor knows and loves, "Wick & Lazy" is a ticket on the express to funk town while "Ain't No Cruel Intentions" brings a cruel twist to a Khan and Rufus joint. Finally "Jubilation" brings us all a little closer with solid strums and campfire chorus. Less disco bits and more disco wholes; these will pep up any flagging floor.

Review: Anonymous editing crew Disco Bits follow up Cannon & Mirrorball's killer party piece with their second release of the year; the exceptional "Funk Freak" EP. Four tracks deep, each one prodding a different corner of the dancefloor and riddled with references and samples, we run the gamut from the vibesome hip house of the title track to the silky boogie funk of "A Thousand Megatons" with all shades of funk and freakery in between. Will we ever find out the identity of these mysterious editors? Probably not. But to be honest we're all too busy getting down to care right now. Get your freak on.

Review: Few edit labels have made quite as big an impact with their first release as Disco Bits, whose spring 2016 debut sold out in record time. This follow-up, featuring authentic scalpel reworks from the mysterious DJ S and DJ TS, is every bit as essential. Arguably the most headline-grabbing edit is a tasteful extension of Alicia Myers' oh-so-short, end-of-night classic "I Want To Thank You", which is almost doubled in length. Arguably almost as impressive is their wild, solo-heavy rearrangement of BT's slap-bass wielding killer "Tighten It Up", though the cowbell-laden interpretation of lesser-known disco-funk bumper "Disco Power" is equally vibrant. The glistening disco sweetness of "Let's Do It Again" completes a fine package.

Review: Those who remember the first wave of funk breaks mash-ups and floor-filling hip-hop cut-ups in the late 1990s should be aware of J-Large; the mysterious DJ/producer has been remixing and reworking tracks (most notably by the Herbaliser) on and off ever since. His latest 7" escapade is suitably sizable, with A-side "Get Your Own" fusing Christina Aguilera's best-known vocal with loops and grooves lifted from a certain horn-toting jazz disco-funk classic. On the flip you'll find "J Zimbra", a bustling and floor-friendly tool-up of heavyweight Afro-funk slammer from 1979. As you'd expect, both are guaranteed to get the party started... and then some.

Review: Four years have passed since Breakin' Bread alumnus Kazahaya last appeared on Disco Bits with a tasty edit of a lesser-known version of the Jackson Sisters' "Miracles". This follow-up is therefore well overdue. A-side "High Enough" is an absolute dancefloor bomb - a tidy fusion of musical elements from Rare Pleasure's string-laden disco classic "Let Me Down Easy" and breathless vocal samples seemingly lifted from one of the many versions of "Ain't No Mountain High Enough". Flipside "Forever" is another driving disco workout built around another heavily orchestrated, everything-but-the-kitchen sink 1970s production. It's as breathless and life affirming as the A-side, which is no bad thing.

Review: Serious Japanese Steel editry from Kazahaya: "Miracles" takes two recordings of the classic "I Believe In Miracles" (Mark Capanni and the Jackson Sisters) and deftly plays between the two to incredible effect with some really cool double-ups on the fills. Flip for a twist on a classic immortalised by Marlena Shaw where a thumping northern soul kickdrum drives us wild beneath the big orchestration. No messing around here.

Review: There is some class edit and mash up business going on here with the latest one from the Disco Bits crew. The 45 takes the form of of classic cuts reworked with an all new and contemporary edge with the dancefloor very much in mind. First up, a Patti Job classic gets taken apart and rebuilt with new vocals and a more stepping beat. The Chopper's 'People Hold On' is a more smoochy sound with classic vocal refrains singing out and twanging guitar riffs powering along a groove that is suited for everything from weddings to late night shenanigans.