VA – 1st Unit: Underpass Records EP [RH-STOREJPN12]

April 23, 2024April 23, 2024 hipodromehouse, junichi soma, katsuya sano, rush hour, rush hour store jams, shuji wadaLeave a comment

All musical movements require a spark to set them alight; in the case of Japanese house music, that spark was provided by the forward-thinking resident DJs of The Bank in Roppongi, Tokyo. In 1989, to celebrate the ground-breaking club’s first birthday, the venue released a 12” EP featuring first-time productions from three of its DJs, Junichi Soma, Shuji Wada and Strong Katsuya AKS Katsuya Sano. Widely considered to be one of the first ever EP of house music produced in Japan, 1st Unit was never officially released. Instead, 500 of the 1000 copies pressed were given away at The Bank’s first birthday party, with the rest initially being sold not in local record stores, but rather the venue’s own in-house shop. Three decades on, the 12” is finally set to get its first worldwide release via Rush Hour’s Store JPN Series.

Kamma & Masalo – Brighter Days [RHMC007]

December 20, 2023December 19, 2023 hipodromecompilation, disco, discotheque, haroumi hosono, house, hugh bullen, kamma, masalo, mr. fingers, peffa, rush hour, yasuhiko teradaLeave a comment

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.

Miles Spilsbury – Light Manoeuvres [ND012]

November 26, 2023November 27, 2023 hipodromealbum, carlos nino, jazz, milespilsbury, new dawn, rush hourLeave a comment

Debut album from UK jazz saxophonist and composer Miles Spilsbury, featuring Carlos Niño. ‘Light Manoeuvres’ is about warmth, generosity and openness. The music which would become Light Manoeuvres was sketched in fragments, but began to take shape in earnest during a period of living under the Marseille haze in the South of France. The specific character and opacity of the light in Marseille inspired the album title which imagines the movement of light passing over different subjects and spaces in intricate motion. Sand blows over from the Sahara on the Sirocco wind and is whipped up by the Mistral, the Marseille sky becomes golden and vapoured, then intermittently pastel blue. That image stuck while shaping this body of work, and became integral to the function of the compositions – which act as jumping off points for the players and myself, vehicles for improvisation and gateways to something else entirely.

Bang The Party – I Feel Good All Over [RHRSS32]

November 7, 2023November 7, 2023 hipodromebang the party, chicago house, house, re-release, reissue, rush hour, rush hour reissues seriesLeave a comment

Before British house and techno found its’ distinctive groove at the turn of the 1990s, one act led the way: Bang The Party, a trio who emerged from London’s vibrant underground party scene in the mid 1980s and proved, beyond any doubt, that UK producers could make music every bit as magical as the pioneering productions put forward by their counterparts in Chicago, Detroit and New York. By the time long-running DJs and party promoters Kid Batchelor and Leslie Lawrence joined forces with trained engineer Keith Franklin at legendary North-West London reggae studio Addis Ababa in 1987, they’d spent years as DIY dance music activists in Britain’s capital city. They channelled these experiences and their love of imported house and techno sounds into a new project, Bang The Party. The latest Rush Hour Reissue Series release offers a snapshot of some of the numerous gems nestled in the Bang The Party catalogue, delivering a much-deserved celebration of one of Britain’s most significant early acid house collectives. It features four fully remastered cuts recorded and released between 1987 and 1990 – on-point and far-sighted club workouts that sound as fresh and timeless now as they did when Britain was sweltering under its infamous ‘second summer of love’.

Manabu Nagayama – Light And Shadow [RH-STOREJPN11]

October 13, 2023October 11, 2023 hipodromehouse, manabu nagayama, masalo, rush hour, rush hour store jamsLeave a comment

Manabu Nagayama’s ‘Light & Shadow’ was released back in 2015 but never really got picked up. Rush Hour co-founder Antal Heitlager knew it had more potential than it had shown so asked Masalo to remix it. He elevates the track to new levels with subtle tweaks of the arrangement.

Djosa – Botanica Obscura [RH-STOREJAMS020]

July 15, 2023July 13, 2023 hipodromeafrobeat, disco, djosa, house, ronald snijders, rush hour, rush hour store jamsLeave a comment

Amsterdam based musician/producer Djosa (long time band member of Arp Frique & The Family) joins the Rush Hour Store Jams imprint with two uplifting songs. The legendary Ronald Snijders is featured on ”Vampiro” with whom he (together with Arp Frique) made the documentary Easy Man and the album The Nelson & Djosa Sessions.

Daniel Monaco – Life Lessons EP [RH-STOREJAMS023]

July 3, 2023July 3, 2023 hipodromeafrobeat, daniel monaco, disco, house, rush hour, rush hour store jamsLeave a comment

Amsterdam and Naples based bassist Daniel Monaco (bass player for Nu Genea, Mystic Jungle & Capinera) joins the Rush Hour Store Jams imprint. A strong disco heavy two tracker featuring vocals from Mame N’Diack Seck Thiam and a wink to Cerrone, including instrumental versions. Released in conjunction with Utopia records London.

Gigi Testa – Jinja [RH-STOREJAMS024]

June 19, 2023June 16, 2023 hipodromeafrobeat, gigi testa, house, rush hour, rush hour store jamsLeave a comment

Gigi Testa, a bona fide Neapolitan hero whose work not only draws inspiration from local music of the last four decades – think Pino Daniele, Tullio de Piscopo, Tony Esposito, James Senese & Napoli Centrale, Nu Guinea, Mystic Jungle Tribe and rising stars such Fabio Fattore, Daniel Monaco and Raffaele Attansio – but also high-quality deep house and African music in all its forms.

Awanto 3 – Party volume 1 [RH-STOREJAMS025]

March 20, 2023March 20, 2023 hipodromeawanto 3, house, rush hour, rush hour store jams, steven de pevenLeave a comment

Awanto3 (also known for his work with Aardvarck and Kid Sublime on Rednose Distrikt) returns to Rush Hour with “Party” Volume 1. Moody and rolling MPC work outs with live accompaniment from a solid cast (Jos De Haas (New Cool Collective) on percussion and Stefan Schmid (Zuco 103) on keys).

Soichi Terada – Asakusa Light Remixes [RHM046]

March 7, 2023March 7, 2023 hipodromealex attias, byron the aquarius, house, rush hour, soichi teradaLeave a comment

Heavy hitting remixes by Alex Attias and Byron The Aquarius of tracks from Soichi’s ‘Asakusa Light’ on Rush Hour.

Arp Frique – Analog People Digital World [CW005]

March 4, 2023March 2, 2023 hipodromeafrican, afrobeat, album, americo brito, arp frique, colorful world, disco, funk, mariseya, outernational, rush hour, sumyLeave a comment

Arp Frique returns with a new album after a string of releases, leaving the cratediggers and dancefloor tastemakers with underground classics like Nos Magia, Voyage and Nyame Ye. On ”Analog People Digital World’ he embraces the digital coldness of Yamaha’s classic DX7 synthesizer to create a refreshing listening experience using only the FM synthesis-based sounds from this machine to find new heat for an analog world, reflecting on the digital revolution we are living through. The album features Ghanaian songstress Mariseya (Omampam, Jah Kingdom, Digital World, Roi Salomon), Cape Verdean OG Americo Brito (Go Now Wetiko) and Surinam funkstar Sumy, who joins the record on the opening track “Spiritual Masseuse”. Arp Frique closes the album with “Duncan Truffle”, a very intense and wobbling instrumental echoing Bootsy and Bernie Worrell on a solo exercise. Expect an analog-digital exploration of lofi funk, highlife, zouk and reggae.

Relmer – H2O [RHSTOREJAMS021]

November 22, 2022November 21, 2022 hipodromehouse, relmer international, rush hour, rush hour store jamsLeave a comment

Rush Hour-affiliate and Amsterdam local Relmer is back with what may well be his best work so far. ‘H2O’ expertly displays the vibrant energy he’s known for around these parts with two Amazon-inspired deephouse groovers, a melancholic walk through the jungle, a Detroit-infused progressive anthem and a hypnotic midtempo floorwarmer.

Terrence Dixon & Jordan GCZ – Keep In Mind I’m Out Of My Mind [RHM038]

October 1, 2022September 29, 2022 hipodromealbum, detroit techno, jordan czamanski, jordan gcz, rush hour, techno, terrence dixonLeave a comment

Double LP documenting a realtime collaboration between Terrence Dixon (Metroplex/Tresor/Rush Hour) and Jordan GCZ (Off Minor/Minimal Detroit/Rush Hour). In September 2019, Motor City techno legend Terrence Dixon made a rare trip to Europe. He was introduced to Jordan Czamanski AKA Jordan GCZ. The pair hit it off immediately, so Czamanski powered up his studio and the pair began to jam. Over the following five days, the pair improvised extensively, stopping only periodically to drink coffee and discuss music, life and much more besides. While in the studio, they barely uttered a word to each other, instead responding almost psychically to the rhythms, grooves, riffs and musical motifs the other was spinning into the mix. The results of these surprisingly magical 2019 studio sessions are showcased on “Keep In Mind, I’m Out of My Mind”.

N.A.D. – A Day In May [RHM036]

September 16, 2022September 16, 2022 hipodromehouse, mustafa ali, n.a.d., new age dance, rush hour, technoLeave a comment

The legendary N.A.D. follows up the aptly titled ‘Electro EP’ with the punishing ‘A Day in May’, a scorching hot four track technofunk monster that marries the Detroit and Kalamazoo techno traditions with classic UK techno. Absolutely exceptional high-octane material destined to set any dancefloor on fire.

VA – Beyond Space & Time Vol. 2 [BEST002]

June 26, 2022June 24, 2022 hipodromeantal, beyond space and time, compilation, dam funk, dianne mower, disco, funk, house, jazz, rainbow disco club, rush hour, trio zeroLeave a comment

Internationally recognized and much-loved festival from Japan, Rainbow Disco Club’s offshoot project ”Beyond Space And Time” record label presents their sophomore release. Their second compilation has been compiled by none other than Antal. Also known as the festival’s headliner and the man behind Amsterdam record shop/label Rush Hour, all 11 tracks are selected by Antal in a 2 x 12-inch + bonus 7-inch format. From local Dutch newcomers to ’80s Japanese cult music, rare grooves to danceable house music, and rare Caribbean soul, this compilation is a portrait of music enthusiast Antal Heitlager’s enormous collection and 30-year DJ career, a work of art that can be enjoyed by all music fans.

Gigi Testa – Esoteric Paradise [RHSTOREJAMS018]

June 20, 2022June 20, 2022 hipodromedisco, downbeat, gigi testa, house, rush hour, rush hour store jamsLeave a comment

Napoli has long been one of Italy’s most musically vibrant cities – a metropolis famed for colourful, atmospheric and vivid dance music, with a rich and diverse sonic history stretching back to the disco era. For the last 36 years, it has been home to Gigi Testa, a bona fide local hero whose work not only draws inspiration from Neapolitan music of the last four decades but also high-quality deep house and African music in all its forms. Testa has become the latest artist to contribute to the Rush Hour Store Jams series, delivering a four-track EP that takes his self-proclaimed world music-meets-club music approach in kaleidoscopic new directions. Inspired by a mixture of 1980s, post-boogie African music, the sounds of the Caribbean, Testa’s love for dance music from New York and his own Neapolitan musical roots, the Esoteric Paradise EP is an entertaining, each-catching collection of cuts the effortlessly blurs existing musical boundaries. Rich in synthesizer and drum machine sounds, it should delight all those who love melodic, tropical-tinged electronic music.

Mark Grusane – Dance Intensity [RHSTOREJAMS017]

May 17, 2022May 17, 2022 hipodromeamiruz, chicago, jakbeat, mark grusane, rush hour, rush hour store jams, synth waveLeave a comment

Thirteen years after his whopping ‘Time and Space’ EP, Chicago ‘O.G.’ Mark Grusane returns to the Rush Hour imprint with his ‘Dance Intensity’ EP. Combining trademark electro, wave, synth-pop and disco elements into three modern dancefloor cuts.

N.A.D. – Electro EP [RHM037]

May 4, 2022May 3, 2022 hipodromedetroit, electro, mustafa ali, n.a.d., new age dance, rush hourLeave a comment

Doing exactly what it says on the tin – a tough four track electro set from Mustafa Ali under the N.A.D. moniker, with influences coming from what sounds like vintage L.A. and Miami bass styles to UK bass and deep space techno. An all killer no filler affair of exceptionally high quality as per usual.

2021 Best Albums

January 7, 2022September 12, 2022 hipodromealbum, an anomaly, artificial dance records, axis records, chris & nogi, claus fovea, dead wax records, deathtrippers, egyptian empire records, egyptian lover, electronic emergencies records, exterminador, hipodrome, june, les filles de illighadad, lux rec, offen music, phormix tapes, place no blame, plant43, ratsnake, rush hour, sahel sounds, tatat, terrence dixon, the hipodrome of music, tom carruthersLeave a comment

From the long overdue debut albums of LeRon Carson and Steve Summers, to the revelation of An Anomaly, from the roughness of Filmmaker and Ratsnake to the meditative music of Les Filles de Illighadad, from the established Greek artist June to the very limited synthwave album of the unknown Greek artist Tatat, here are our favorite albums from 2021, compiled in chronological order.

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One On One Crew – Give It Up [RHRSS31]

December 29, 2021December 28, 2021 hipodromechicago house, danny arno, leslie lawrence, one on one crew, re-release, reissue, rush hour, rush hour reissues seriesLeave a comment

ONE ON ONE CREW - Give It Up

One On One Crew are Leslie Lawrence & Danny Arno. They experimented with various styles and directions with the aim of creating different music; a deep house sound. There are strong influences from Detroit and Chicago, but still with an unmistakable London style and identity. Both tracks were produced in 1989, and this is the first time either are released on a full length 12”.