Tags: Latin House

Review: Diogo Strausz has previously released on Razor-N-Tape as part of the duo Balako but now steps up as a solo artist to kick off the label's 2021. A Sao Paulista now living in Paris, he brings plenty of musicality to the slick 7", firstly with 'Emancipacao,' which is awash with melancholic keys and rich bass but also plenty of fantastic leads from both synths and sax. It's splashy and splashy and colourful disco. '50 Anos Em 5' then gets playful and funky with a Latin twist as the salsa beats an squelchy bass all make you want to spin on your heels.

Review: Daniel David (FKA Trailer Limon) makes a great impression on Bastard Jazz with his first solo record. This 7" finds him link with the Jazz Mafia for a feature after he has done plenty of work with the legendary San Francisco duo the Pendletons. Because of that he is credited with helping to kickstart the Bay Area's modern funk resurgence but here he shows he has plenty of his own skills too. 'Tambor De Cura' (with Guinu) is bustling jazz that is vibrant and vivacious with big horns, steamy jungle atmospheres, humid pads, bird calls and many other great details that form a hefty groove. 'Devotion' is then a funky jazz fusion with cosmic pads and lush vocals.

Review: Coming to Trad Vibe, French music production duo Boar & The Badlibs impress us to no end with their 7" singles, of which their latest 'Bossa Nova Rico Suave' now becomes a part. The track is a clean nuevo-bossa-nova exercise, underlaid by a pumping backbeat making it equally as worthy of an eclectic hip-hop or downtempo mix. We're sure the nominal pun on 'Madlib' isn't without its inspirations. The King Most remix on the flip side is just as neat, drawing on samba while pinning down a bustlingly percussive groove.

Review: 'Debes Llorar' is the second of two super limited 7"s being dropped by Dez Andres on the fledgling Future Rootz label this month. Like the other one, this 45 pulls out plenty of the Cuban influences Dez is known for. A-side 'Debes Llorar' is all life-affirming chords that fans of his classic 'New 4 U' will recognise, but stitched over ticking and raw drum beats with a Latin shuffle and Spanish vocals. 'Aqui Estamos' takes things down a notch with a more sunset sound, hip-hop flecked deep house beats and seductive vocal sounds next to gorgeous little acoustic guitar riffs.

Review: BBE is the kind of label you can trust with any kind of reissue project, and when they call upon DJ Spinna and Kai Alce to look back over the foundations of house music, you know you're about to get a masterclass. This intermittent series has seen the two US DJ/producers picking through seminal house joints, editing the most crucial mixes to fit on a 7" as a neatly presented series for anyone wanting to point out exactly what house music really is. This time around they've turned to Sandee's 'Notice Me' - a Latin house joint from 1988 which rocked clubs like Tunnel and Palladium in NYC and Riviera in Chicago upon its original release.

Review: This latest addition to the Legofunk series is sure to precipitate somatic reactions, whether floorbound crowds like it or not. On the A, Voodoocuts pins down a massive Latin / Afro-funk boogaloo edit for 'Ray's Delight', topped off by trilling trumpets and palm-outstretched piano chords. On the B, Tommy Manero gets samplier with it, collapsing the spatial-temporal plane between breakdance and salsa for 'B-Boy Chunga'.

Review: Los Disco Duro are all about offering up "analogue synthesizer interpretations of Latin classics" and have been doing so now for almost a decade, most often on the Disco Bas label in the US. Their reworks and reimaginations know no stylistic bounds as price here with an intergalactic-sounding take on kiddie-disco fav 'Macarena.' The vocals are reusing through a talk box, the vamping chords and drums are fat the synths pixelated. 'Musica Chiquita' is then a fresh deep house cut with starry eyed synths and planning bas that is, frankly, brilliant.

Review: This is a global single with a great story that starts with an afro-funk groove made by Italian Jah Sazzah. He wanted a vocal for it so turned to Nickodemus who handed his own touches and then sent it Grammy-nominated Colombian vocalist Jimena Angel. The result is a vibrant Afro tune with vivid melodies. Remixer Poirier is a legend in Latin music circles. The Montreal man has formerly been associated with Ninja Tune and is synonymous with lots of classy remixes and fresh takes on a modern Afro-Caribbean sound. This is another one that reworks the ring into a more bouncy and infectious sound with gorgeous vocals and a clean arrangement that allows the drums and perc to shine.