The track ‘Abyadh Aswad’ is a manifestation of Ali’s self-described Middle Eastern beats with Southeast Asian twists, specifically influenced by Indonesia. It offers tropical cruising vibes and tranquil melodies, incorporating Arabic lyrics and repetitive desert-like riffs. Floating melodies and background vocals inject a psychedelic element into the track. The lyrics themselves translate to ‘Black and white in one vision.’ On the B-side, there is an instrumental track titled ‘White Stallion.’ It’s a simply cinematic funk track with psychedelic elements and hypnotic repetitive riffs. This track aims to capture the adventurous landscape of Indonesia through music, offering a flat, chill, and contemplative vibe that would suit a cinematic soundtrack.
The Debut Album “Latin Freaks” by Funkool Orchestra is finally out. Get ready for another dose of Neapolitan Funky Disco Boogie madness with a Latin touch. The Long Playing is a mixture of Rare Grooves, Napoli Sound, Disco Boogie, Latin Soul and Boogaloo, ideal for a trip to Nueva York and back to Naples just to say hello to your Puertorican uncle Manolito “Gennaro” Marròn.
Sao Paulo’s Rafael Cancian steps up with 2 brilliant edits on Hot Pot. ”Heaven” takes up the A-side, a cosmic disco groover for midtempo dance floor ecstasy. Over to the B-side, ”Nigeriac” is a syncopated Afro Funk Rock joint for those rare groove moments.
Optimo (Espacio) started life as a weekly club night. It was born at The Sub Club in Glasgow on a wet, windy, wintry November Sunday night in 1997. Run by JD Twitch and partner in crime Jonnie Wilkes. Optimo was a reaction against what felt like an increasingly conservative musical soundtrack in clubs here at that time. Clubland felt as if it had become very bland and a bit too serious; it was the era of the dawn of the Superstar DJ. Clubs often felt like bastions of male energy. It seemed dance music and culture was going somewhere far, far away from where it was meant to be. The notion of fun had got lost. It was no longer the world they had devoted ten years of their lives to already, and lots of their friends felt the same. When the opportunity came up to do a Sunday night at The Sub Club it felt like the perfect opportunity to rip it all up and start again. So they did. There was nothing in the city (or possibly anywhere) like it. As the club believed wholeheartedly in what they were doing, there was no pressure from The Sub Club to fill the club. So, they embraced the freedom. Groups of people who had never been in the same room at the same time before came together. A community of kindred spirits started to emerge. The core of the Optimo idea was to embrace music they loved that might work on the dancefloor from whatever era or genre they thought felt right. It might not seem very radical now but at that time it was revolutionary. After about a year and a half, the club went from having 100 people attending most nights to suddenly one week having 500 people turn up. It was very weird. It was as if a collective light bulb went off in people’s heads in Glasgow. From that week on, until the very last weekly Sunday night at the Sub Club, in 2010, over a decade later, it was packed. There were 550 Sunday Optimo nights. Optimo have always loved a good slogan. The most long lived, and fitting Optimo slogan is “We Love Your Ears”, which is in essence what it is all about to them.
‘Instrumental Dubs #2’ is a deep dive into the world of the Dub version and beyond. The A side has a distinct boogie feel, starting slow with a George Kerr produced cut from 1984 followed by a Brit Funk-esq instrumental from Harold Melvin & the Bluenotes originally released on the Philly World label (home to ‘Voice of Q’). The A side closes with the ‘Sweeter’ instrumental mix of Boogie bomb ‘Loving Sweet Devotion’ by Idiater Edwards. The B side opens with ‘H2S04’ from Mad Professor that defies categorisation, sitting somewhere between Electro, Disco and Dub. Last but by no means least there’s an uptempo Dub mix of Original Rockers ‘Push Push’ making its first appearance on Vinyl having only been on the CD single release first time around.
(Emotional) Especial looks to the emergent producer that is Chez De Milo for a new EP that collides the energy of Glastonbury, historic echoes of the free party scene and the psychedelic electronics of Bristol and the West Country into four fresh new cuts here. ‘Et Al’ is a mystic late-night house cut with crisp hits and spooky synths keeping you on edge, while ‘Gieser’ is dark and paranoid as the churning beats and snaking leads tempt you into the shadows. ‘Kremer’ keeps you locked in a synth-heavy and transcendental suspense at the heart of the dancefloor with Egyptian folk samples and ethnic grooves and ‘Thus One’ is a razor-sharp electro closer.
Members Only is back with the 8th volume of The Worst Edits. Four edits chopped in & turned out for the mechanically insame minds. from the vaults of the baked tapes scenario 2000 era.
Joe Lewandowski is back on Skylax, trying to find the subtle balance between new wave, italo, rock completed by the sepulchral voice of Stolt and a deafening remix of the brilliant Mufti.
The last of the Konduko series from Emotional Rescue arrives now. His ‘Fantasy’ saw him work with Larry Dermer aka Der Mer on what is an effective and catchy electro jam that operates at the higher end of the tempo chart with some classic vocoder vocal action to really make it pop. Despite being released originally in 1984 this one still bangs with its emulated TR-808 beats and nagging melodies. The instrumental heightens that and then the Jonny Rock Discomix shuts down with long-form rework that shows why the DJ, editor and all-round amiable bloke is so well regarded.
Höga Nord Rekords presents “Totem Och Tabu”, the debut album of Swedish electronic psychedelia artist Datasal. The sound is built around repetitive sequencer loops and programmed beats where electric bass, electric guitar and flute improvise around a theme, creating a sound that is best described as cosmic flute house.
The original single from Escape From New York finally gets an official reissue. Originally released in 1983 ‘Save Our Love’ was released a year before ‘Fire in My Heart’ and sets out their highly effective fusion of New Wave, Disco, Italo and Post Punk. Featuring Jaki Graham and D.C Lee on backing vocals, the 12” also includes an instrumental mix and cult classic ‘Slow Beat’ (Dance Mix). Escape From New York were short lived and disbanded in 1984 following the release of ‘Fire in My Heart’, ultimately buckling under the pressure of commercial expectations for their innovative brand of pop music.
Since 2014, Brighter Days has been a part of the rich tapestry of Amsterdam nightlife – a semi-regular party promoting positivity and inclusiveness run by resident DJs Kamma and Masalo. On the back of the platform provided by the party, the duo has notched up a string of memorable club and festival appearances, a regular Brighter Days show on Gilles Peterson’s Worldwide FM, and a memorable Boiler Room set streamed live from Dekmantel Festival. Now Kamma and Masalo have taken the next step and curated a Brighter Days compilation for Rush Hour, a collection that does a terrific job in offering up slept-on and unreleased gems – including a clutch of their own tried-and-tested re-edits – while also accurately representing the sound, style and ethos of the event that inspired it.
The first outing of the new label Way to France records comes from none other than Robert Johnson legend Lauer with some analog sounding nu-disco stompers. The release is rounded with two remixes by Charlie and Janthe.
Vacanze di Natale! Four party jams by Alberto Melloni, Luca Bacchetti and Modula feat. Carmen Lubrano from Italy and Red Woodchuck, the Dutch cherry on top.
The Hipodrome Of Music 