The My Rules imprint was set-up by prolific re-editor Justin VanDerVolgen as an outlet for his wares, whilst retaining an element of mystery. This occasional NYC outlet has unearthed two more hidden gems and rewired them perfectly for modern dancefloor destruction. ‘Closer’ is the pure, distilled essence of the Disco strut, powered up and laid out over an unrelenting, insistent groove. ‘Dig Dag’ keeps the energy levels high with a pulsing, sci-fi, Euro Disco extravaganza.
Pure badness all over this 1979 Jamaican Disco-Funk odyssey. King Sporty should be no stranger to those of you with a keen ear for esoteric underground Disco sounds, his tracks have been getting serious play by top shelf, discerning jocks since the 1970’s & his Konduko label has dropped many a left-field bomb on unsuspecting dance floors. “Fire Keep On Burning” is one such bomb, an LP crammed full of unstoppable stripped back island sounds, too many killer cuts to mention but just check out the OG version of “get on down” for starters. An essential & extremely rare record & one that deserves a spot in any self respecting Disco lovers collection. %100 heat on here, party jams from start to finish.
Food Pyramid align with Especial for a remix EP based around “Oh Mercy”, a track from their 2012 album Mango Sunrise. The warped breakbeat jam-fusion of the original is ripe for reinvention and gets the remix treatment from Especial in-house team Apophenia (aka Piers Harrison, Stuart Leath, Tim Fairplay), Inhalt and Jamie Paton.
Reinforcing the way things happen since the beginning on Macadam Mambo, London new comer George Kamm has selected and adjusted 4 cuts of Weirdo synth-pop, alternating dance floor killers and experimental nuggets. No need to say that its again high digging level, and extremely well done edits.
‘This Is How It Started’ focuses heavily on the early days of the Chicago sound, especially in the formative years at Ron Hardy’s Music Box. Vinyl Sampler 3 of a comprehensive journey in the essence of Chicago House Music, features Gene Hunt, Chicago Blues Orchestra, Yam Who & GG.
Emotional Rescue returns to the early 80’s Downtown NYC post punk / new wave scene with Plus Instruments – collecting their best and rarest songs on one groove laden EP. 4 tracks of pure Downtown punk-dub-funk, all with the nonchalant Euro-style delivery of Truus de Groot. Coming with extended unreleased versions, the originals were collected from sought after EPs, an obscure compilation LP and fiishes with a never before released song – this is history.
Antoni Maiovvi makes his Tusk Wax debut with this four tracker of neon tinged sci-fi soundscapes made for high speed chases, robot showdowns and replicant love scenes. Treating fans and newcomers to a sound they’ll surely love, Maiovvi balances between some kind of tech lounge and danceable electro on this soon-to-be sought-after two track vinyl.
Marvin & Guy with 3 tracks that push boundaries between disco culture & techno spirit. Ranges from hypnotic warm analog bass to pumping Italo-disco to obscure trip built around psychedelic synths & rolling bass topped w/spooky vocal samples.
Released by Pizzico for the first time in 2009 with the moniker “Erre”, Marco Antonio Spaventi was one of the most pleasant surprises about what an excellent techno producer can do with his beloved background: Italo disco. Influenced by soundtrack masters as Vangelis, John Carpenter and most of all Italian maestro’s like Nico Fidenco, Pino Donaggio, Francesco De Masi, and appearing in the sky like a laser beam in a post-atomic Bronx filmed by Enzo G. Castellari, the positive first album of MA Spaventi called “Viaggi” is landing. A real journey into obscure worlds, dirty streets, atomic sunsets, broken hearts and analog feelings, a blessing for your most romantic and cinematic essence. Could this folding full length fit the modern dance floors? Maybe It could be better for the outcast clubs of a near future: synths atmosphere are sweet and pressing at the same time, the melodies and beats fit together in a succession of deep emotions, the “tape” sounds old school and totally irresistible. Pizzico is proud to present MA Spaventi’s VIAGGI: nine exclusive tracks for a brand new album, invoking and evoking dusty Italo vibes, analog synths and written soundtracks for unwritten movies.
Cosmic Club 16 in the house, and for this one Skylax have delved deep into the mystic universe of the ever enigmatic Violence FM with a four track EP quite simply out of this dimension… Etoiles EP is an inconceivable work of art from Violence FM that will leave listeners stargazing for more, not to mention an extraterrestrial remix of Chez Damier’s ‘El Fin Esta Cerca’ on the flip.
Black Booby is back on it with the Disco NoT Disco Summer release. First up on the A-side there’s ‘Sun Lab Export’ from Richard Rogers’ mystery partner, an edit of the super-unknown ‘Laxton Superb’ by Dutch 80’s electronic outfit Spectral Display. Next up is ‘I Need Somebody Raw’ a new take on disco’s campest hero Sylvester’s ‘I Need Somebody To Love Tonight’. Then moving on to the B-side, we have ‘Jungle Booby’ which is already attracting some underground heat, as this reworking of late 70s French disco group Kikrokos’ track ‘Jungle D.J.’ sees Rogers take the original’s intro for a long session on the dancefloor in its own right. Finally, ‘And She Walks’, a take on Kazino’s ‘Binary’, sees them revamp the original B-side (of Around My Dream) by highlighting its darker sonic sensibilities.
Albion is back with a 6 track EP of delightful cosmotropical disco edits. In true Rotating Souls tradition only the freshest cuts make it to the table. Bursting out the A1 like a chrome clad sapce pimp, “Veni Vidi Voodoo” blasts psychedelic synths all over the shop before exploding into a crazy cosmic disco funk number. Somewhere between an obscure 1970s italian space opera and a sleazy blaxploitation jam. Next up, “Turning On” sees the vocoder in full effect as Albion turns out a percussive Italo disco chugger perfect for the pitch black warehouse. A3 ‘Mind Confusion’: outdoorsy psychedelic festival synth disco sounds. As we saunter over to the B-side, “Nightliner” gets properly cosmic with some totally galactic jazz-funk leanings. If you need some funky guitars, moog melodies, sweet strings, and tropical sounds in your set, throw this one on. “Shangri La” beams us down from the stars to the sun and fun of Miami thanks to a true electro disco stomp. Rocking Balearo-Beach style guitars and funky synth solos, this is undoubtedly one for the synth funk freaks. Last but not least, “All We Need Is Each Other” is a catchy vocal number which seems to blend the infectious guitar part from Barrabas’ “Woman” with another breezy Euro-pop gem for all out Balearic dancefloor destruction.
Andre-Marie Tala is one of the father figures of African music. Born in the western Provence of Bandjoun, Cameroon, his early years were plagued with tragedy. He lost his mother at 4, his father at 12 and then when on to lose his sight 15. Thankfully, the love of music stayed with him throughout his career and with the help of Manu Dibango he made his first recordings in 1972 and had two hits in Cameroon with Sikati and Potaksima. He created a group, the Rock Boys, later the Black Tigers, with Sam Fan Thomas as guitarist. At this time, Africa was immersed in music from overseas and many American acts toured all over Africa. Whilst touring Cameroon, Tala handed James Brown a demo of his song ”Hot Koki”. Seemingly, the Godfather liked it a lot, he actually re-recorded it and released it as his own song, entitled ‘Hustle’. In doing so, he took all credit for composing, which meant Tala had to sue Brown and luckily he won the case! We had so many great LP’s to choose from Tala but we decided to start with ‘Arabica’ where we find Tala in experimental mode. We hit the ground running with the lead track ‘Arabica’, disco drums, phased guitar licks and sweet soulful backing vocals, what’s not to like? ‘Black Gold’ takes the same path as laid out on ‘Arabica’ but we see the introduction of the Moog Synthesizer and the funky Rhodes Piano. ‘Sugar Lump’ is once again up-tempo and has bassline to get your body moving in the right direction. ‘I know what you want’ has a more traditional song approach Tala simply asks his love interest ‘not to let him down’. ‘Soweto’ is a Balearic DJ classic! Beautiful layers of guitar and flute ease you through this one. Soweto was a troubled place and high on the thoughts on African people around this time, this song reflects that. We end with ’20 ans’ a more tradition song with some Hammond organ and super sweet guitar playing from Tala once again. This record demands a high fee for obvious reasons so don’t miss your chance to own this official reissue which has been made with love.
Albion, the “continental Disco” King, is back on Macadam Mambo with a new EP, reinforcing, with those 4 killer nuggets, that he is definitely the boss to put out weirdo obscurities. And giving us again, the feeling that the level of the tracks is getting higher record after record.
The Skylax affiliated Warehouse Classics series has always taken an authentically old-fashioned approach to the humble re-edit, serving up chopped and looped versions inspired by the loose, drum-machine heavy reworks of original Chicago house masters such as Ron Hardy and Frankie Knuckles. This fourth volume, the first from label boss Hardrock Striker, continues in this vein. Amongst the four tracks you’ll find a slamming early house gem (the clean kick drums, metallic hits and chiming melodies of “Mano a Mano”), a brilliantly teasted and tweaked Ready for the World revision (“Shyla”, where the French producer builds the drums before dropping into the vocals), and what sounds like a Paul Weller/Jam/Style Council rework (the undulating Balearic funk of “Precious Thang”).
The Hipodrome Of Music 