what happens when a house-music icon takes a small, talented bunch of musicians and mixes it with a savory blend of jazz, funk, dance, and soul music? you get a hearty serving of e.o.l. soulfrito, who make their single debut with upright love on vega records. e.o.l. soulfrito, led by musical director and conductor louie vega, is the condensed version of vega’s elements of life live-band project, which over its tenure has released three albums, won a grammy award in 2006 for best remixed recording, non-classical (curtis mayfield, superfly (louie vega eol mix), and performed for a globally-televised audience during the 2007 superbowl pre-game show. e.o.l. soulfrito’s name is a play on the popular latin-caribbean seasoning sofrito, which serves as a nod to vega’s own puerto rican heritage. earlier this year, the band played their first show at gramps in wynwood, miami during miami music week. upright love embodies the organic energy of e.o.l. soulfrito’s live performances. with a runtime of more than ten and a half minutes, it’s a steady groover that slowly blossoms into a blissful symphony of sprightly chords, jazzy bass, crisp percussion, pattering tambourine courtesy of kat ayala, and cindy mizelle’s vocal ad-lib serenades. easygoing yet refined, the single plays out like a summer afternoon jam session between vega and his friends: axel tosca on fender rhodes & synth upright bass, josh milan on synth jazz guitar & synth percussion. start swaying those hips and let the rhythm carry you into the sunset. i wanted to create a more condensed band, since the elements of life band has ten members, it’s always been a little difficult to do smaller venues. i also wanted to create music inspired by groups and artists like war, cymande, johnny hammond, and herbie hancock’s headhunters, but with the vega e.o.l. twist and style. i then created e.o.l. soulfrito with my studio musicians and rhythm section of elements of life and nuyorican soul. i want to take this band and perform in festivals and venues like the blue note, jazz café, ronnie scots, and bb kings. e.o.l. soulfrito will bring you future grooves with a tinge of the musical landscape from our rich past, and yes, there will be experimentation get ready for it.

brill deep groovin / jazzy detroit house mover

after the last lessizmore release found san proper and maayan nidam crossing swords for the simmering, jammed-out tones of it was a night like this, now the label turns to another close ally for a slice of discerning, upfront house music. louis mcguire lives many different lives in music, from drumming with indie pop outfit ballet school to playing bass for lo-fi electronica group the waves & us. now though his own solo productions are being noticed in the house and techno world, with this new ep following on from a well-received debut on supply records. the diversity of mcguire’s musical leanings feeds into his distinctive sound, as his own take on stripped down, sensual house music bristles with unconventional energy to make for an unforgettable experience that steps up to the most creative frontiers of dance music. live drum sounds rattle around the mix free from quantized safety, while the melodic tones come on warm and fuzzy, capturing the hazy romance of a late morning session as much as the early part of the evening. it’s apparent that mcguire’s weapon of choice is the mpc, channeling his love of gritty beats in the grand tradition of point g and j. dilla. you can hear the spirit of the most adventurous micro house pioneers in the quirky funk of light hearted, while Óreitha revels in the transcendental qualities of a sustained groove without even a whisper of monotony. even with these unusual qualities the music is resolutely built for the dancefloor, and that mcguire manages to be so creative and so focused in the same beat is reason enough to keep tabs on this multifarious and unpredictable operator.

funktionalitätsdampfer der woche ! im original ein minimal jackender groover mit latin flavour und im foog remix ein peaktime techno brett. wer hier nicht tanzt dem kann nicht geholfen werden...

electro / pop / house

powerful deep and dubby techno on white vinyl. repress incoming!

gatefold, solid white 2lp, deluxe verison mit 6 bonus tracks

debut ep

2001 longplayer from seed in a gatefold cover 2x12inch

a gentle descent into washed out shoegaze memories, swallowed by windswept drones and distortion. march 2020, lockdown no. 1 ”i don’t believe that this music was actually created by myself. in fact isolation established the environment for its appearance. instead of thinking about music, as i went pacing the floor, i fell to counting my footsteps until i felt about to go mad. a body needs at least three points of support, not in a straight line, to fix its position. a body does not tip over when the force holding it upright in place is stronger than the force pushing it over. lawfulness of the material.”

hand-numbered purple vinyl 12inch in spray-painted sleeve limited to 200 copies

bill gould, jared blum and dominic cramp are back as talking book with their second album.

double vinyl in gatefold sleeve with download code included.

minimood extra s forthcoming release is a vinyl only, red 12- affair that features two novel reworks of dub techno wizard david hausdorf s legendary salo release space walk . germany s david hausdorf has been turning out expertly crafted deep techno since the late nineties. he did so on labels like synaptic waves as well as styrax leaves, and in 2002 served up his classic space warehouse found! last copies ever.. walk on the epic berlin based imprint salo. first up is the 2015 version. it is a ten minute piece of heady, hypnotic techno with soft rubber drums, gently propulsive percussion and icy high-hats that add a real sense of scale and depth to the track. with slick boom- bap bite in the claps and hits, this is the sort of expertly reduced track that will lock dance floors in for hours. then comes the 2015 reshape, which again makes full use of its 10 minute length. there is a little more edgy reverb in this one, the drums are more upright and the pads are a little more rippling and rolling. it s a liquid groove as a result, and one that is near faultless for the way it rolls on and on without any friction.

third release on mont lake records

piano day is an official body created in 2015 by berlin-based composer nils frahm and his closest friends to house various exciting, piano-related projects for everyone to participate in.
the first project revealed by the piano day team in 2015 was the building of what will be the world’s tallest piano: the klavins 450, designed by piano builder david klavins who also created nils’s upright stage piano, the una corda. with over 70 per cent of the 120.000 euro target reached, the piano building is already underway and fans can continue to donate via www.pianoday.org.
it was on the 3.7 meters high klavins m370 that nils recorded eight improvised piano motifs in one sitting, which formed his 2015 album, solo.

losouls another picture label follows on from eps in 2017 by honesty and the label boss himself with a new two tracker by japanese artist sasaki hiroaki. the yotsume label owner is based in tokyo and his sleek sounds take cues from 80s new wave and look for a soulful vibe in electronic music. 2018 has already seen him release on open recordings and now he offers up some warm house rollers for another picture. ‘eo1 is eight minutes of rubbery drums and loose, scattered percussion, tumbling toms and clicks. dreamy chords light up the background and the whole thing drives ever deeper into the night, always evolving as it goes. on the flip, ‘plain song is just as heartfelt, but icy hi hats and metal stabs are more upright, getting you on your toes and keeping you there for another eight minutes of organic, authentic deep house bliss.

with the introduction of eol soulfrito, upright love has become a sureshot jam, played by many worldwide. now comes soulfrito burnin, with inspirations from groups like war & atlanta is burnin this record is a true dancers record. it embodies the essence of a union dance, whether you play soulfrito chase or soulfrito burnin you are sure to get them sliding and twirling on the floor.

spanish techno artist aiken is back on his own timeline label with another ep that offers up four more of his evocative takes on the genre. it comes after previous outings on non series and semantica and is his label’s first release since 2016. “basic principles” is up first and mesmerises with a pulsing lead synth line that forever changes shape. pummelling drums power along below and add up to a disorientating and hypnotic overall effect. “theory” is deeper and more rubbery, with manic synths and pads all racing along and pilling on the pressure while “midline” is right out fo the jeff mills playbook with its molten sci-fi synths journeying through outer space. clean, crips drums are upright and taught and get you on your toes, then “restriction” closes things out in superb minimalist fashion. this ep covers plenty of ground, and all of it is utterly compelling.

a new duo launches by the name of ghost vision. joining forces with an introspective, uplifting debut slice on kompakt, the pair are two well-known figures thomas gandey aka cagedbaby, member of matom alongside matt edwards, and daniel mclewin, half of uk-based production duo psychemagik. fruit of these blissful moments when no imaginary wall obstructs the vision and the stream of consciousness gives up to the entrancing magic of the creative flow, saturnus is an upright mano a mano between two musicians and their gear, unchained from all preconceptions and biases, real (machine) talk as the hip-hop heads would say.

new music by hailu mergia, featuring tony buck (drums) and mike majkowski (upright bass). the culmination of mergias remarkable worldwide tours over the past few years, these new recordings celebrate an evolving, youthful soul. lala belu completes a realistic portrait of hailu mergia

the solar phenomena label welcomes achim maerz for its fifth ep. the hamburg producer is an associate of labels like don’t be afraid, where last year he released his mini-album of rough and ready house tracks that are improvised and innovative. the four cuts he serves up here are just as special and have an ethereal air to them.
in my house opens things up with serene synth work and lush detroit stylings. it’s a deep and widescreen track that encourages you to dream. fresh air is a little more upright, with rattling hits and pixelated, long tailed synths lingering above the rooted drums. as the title suggests, leaving this planet is a cosmic exploration, with ambient keys and meditative atmospheres joined by only the most subtle and suggestive sense of rhythm way down below. last of all is two times, a beautiful deep house track with deft synths drifting, bleeding and wandering off into a starry night sky. all in all, then, these are truly thoughtful house tracks.

amsterdam label taped artifact has lined up an ep from merv aka brian oldenborg and jan christiansen. after the re-melted reissue on styrax in 2015, this is the pairs third new ep in three years since coming back after first making music back in the mid nineties. their warm dub and techno style is still very much fresh and arresting. blueprint opens the ep with eight enthralling minutes of percolating drums and shuffling hi hats. frosty yet warm, it’s a cavernous affair with a hypnotic riffs sucking you in over and over. shine is more upright techno, but the rock solid kicks are still draped with rippling, static coated chords that ripple out in all directions. rotundum closes things out with synth waves gently breaking over hunched drums that build the pressure. it’s tense and engaging while remaining thoroughly atmospheric.

was auf oracle ungeschliffen passiert, ist der erste output einer deutschen jazz supergroup. zunächst wollte man ein unperfektes spiritual jazz album aufnehmen, das vorbildern aus den siebzigern fröhnt (strata east, black jazz et cetera), einfach mal der leidenschaft nachgehen. und man wollte eine fiktive band erfinden, die es nicht gab, und rausposaunen, es handelt sich um ein unveröffentlichtes album von namhaften und beseelten typen aus den 70ern. nun ja: dann hätte man nie live konzerte geben können, von interviews ganz zu schweigen. kurzum, es wäre schwierig gewesen, das geheim zu halten, also hat man sich entschlossen, die identitäten preiszugeben: web web sind: roberto di gioia (piano, synth, percussion), tony lakatos (tenor- und sopranosaxophone), christian von kaphengst (upright bass) und peter gall (drums).

rude operator’s dissonant intro on witchdoctor synthesizes a half-time beat with jazz undertones before bouncing into a percussive bassline. constantly evolving drum patterns, punctuated with horn bursts and upright bass from ornette hawkins, keep the dance floor moving.
gunman’s blissed-out atmospherics pave the way for a heavy combination of chopped up breakbeats and a juked-out drumline. equally influenced by early jungle and contemporary footwork, 808 percussion and congas punctuate the undulating bassline.
arrowhead fuses dubbed out elements with a running apache break and ominous synths. percussive vocal stabs propel the song forward, while a deep, driving bassline and amen cuts bring the pressure.
war diamond pays homage to dc’s indigenous sound, go-go. a hypnotic conga drum workout rinses oscillating bass with nature sounds, taking you above the canopy with a relentless swing. lightly toasted by born i music, this fresh take on jungle delivers a heavy, tribal perspective.

merc return with the latest instalment in their celebrated e-versions series. no. 8 is classic mark e business, proven king, as he is, of the slow-burner train tunnel is a beautifully unhurried deconstruction of a jazz classic, upright bass, piano flourishes and horns picked fresh from the speakeasy and popped in the slow-cooker for a deeper, mesmerising flavour on the flip give it time is a glorious celestial and atmospheric workout, which - as the title would suggest - implores you to ignore the demands of accelerated culture and pace your journey to dancefloor nirvana accordingly. merc to the future !

repress - without dl code - susso, aka bassist / producer huw bennett, creates music inspired by, and directly sampling, the magnificent sounds of the mandinka people, recorded during a recent trip to gambia. initially travelling with the aim of gaining perspective as a musician and to discover a new world of music first hand, huw found himself humbled by such a welcoming community of artists, mostly belonging to the celebrated susso and kuyateh griot families.
the tracks are composed entirely from original source material, field recordings and huw’s talents as a multi-instrumentalist, performing tuned percussion from the region including the mandinka balafon, kutiringding drum, aswell drawing on his skill as a professional upright / electric bassist. the music produced has a contemporary electronic sound, whilst still paying homage to a traditional gambian aesthetic. keira (meaning peace) guides the listener through huw’s journey up the river gambia, being welcomed into remote dusty villages, where your people are the most important thing in life

nice price deal !!! unn music is a new label based in portugal. for the first release, the artist is julian from romania. julian is a owner of elliptic. the ep is composed of 2 minimalistic tracks. no wars, no fights, no bulshits. its all about music. vinyl only.

minimood welcomes copenhagen based master duo merv for two tantalising new tracks, and thus continues the reductionist dub techno stance the label has been advocating lately. after 2 decades of silence, this new ep marks merv s first new material and suggests that they have lost none of their magic touch. blank i is nine minutes of expert and exquisite dub techno. the kicks ping with an infectious thump, the dub chords are fantastically crisp and well crafted as they float in space and swallow up the drums. widescreen and edgeless, warm dubby techno. blank ii is a equally stripped-back and elegant dub techno affair as blank i, yet with a more upright and direct twist. slapping hits and lively chords are riding above the rolling, loopy drums. a ride that will guide through the deepest nights. vinyl only!

nice price deal !!! like his creator (julien decoret), opium factory is a vision of what electro rock is today. the idea is minimal and with no artifice , a hairy drum and bass combo serving nonchalant vocals in a raw sound environnement. this music refrains itself from any form of radio edit and seeks on the contrary to emphesize on the hypnosis element of voodoo. upright bass player for nouvelle vague and bassist for la boétie, julien decoret is not at his first shot and delivers here an original and matured sound.

hauschka is a composer, songwriter and experimental musician who has brought an exciting new perspective to the prepared piano. the prepared piano – a technique for getting new sounds from the acoustic keyboard by resting pieces of paper or drumsticks on the strings of the instrument - has been used for centuries, but hauschka was unaware of the tradition when he began exploring ways to get new sounds out of his bechstein grand upright.
the vinyl release of “abandoned city” includes a code for free download of the full album and bonus ep “i close my eyes”.

vinyl only - round 2 for neukolln based boutique imprint xk after hauke freer s phenomenal first volume left heads baffled all over the place. this time, the label hands the a side to retro spook maniac matthias reiling, who opens with hand of hope, a tune that fuses an attitude-heavy, upright bass / piano theme with a cold hearted drum workout. strongly physical, sensitive, yet somewhat arrogant as we feel here. reiling twangs up his stratocaster on melodioso and explores the possibilities of sequencer based surf rock. you know, like a computer trying to be a backing band or the other way around. we can t help but imagine chris isaak singing under the shower to this one. the b side is freer territory once again, and hauke takes us deep into his realm of hypnotic, druggy dub-disco sculpting. reach out sucks you in, leaves you utterly disoriented and makes your mind paint a picture you would not have painted elsewhere. when you try to tell your friends, you can t find any words, yet it feels right and you all smile at each other.

with songs for tova dolly introduces a brand new producer called afik naim. this rough diamond was pulled out of a cave near jerusalem. he has a cinematic experimental take on what you would call techno but he is rather hard to classify to be honest. exactly what we like, somebody who stands out with his typical sound pallet! another perfect player on this songs for tova team is the never disappointing kassem mosse with a killer remix to wrap up this high class 4 tracker!

retro-futuristic upfront jungle revivalism in oldschool-not-oldschool mode.

we met below the fig tree! panta rhei 003.1 is the first third of niccolò cupo s trinitas series, starting with pater & panta relics ii on the upright side. luv*jam s anthemic xylo remix of panta relics i concludes the well-rounded opener. strictly limited to 300 blue 7 inch vinyl, neither will it ever be repressed nor digitally available!

kiwanuka, a 25 year-old uk native of ugandan heritage, was raised in north london where he split his time between session work and local gigs. along the way, having found footing as a solo artist, he was signed to communion records, then polydor, and has since performed throughout europe and north america too touring in direct support of adele. he made his way through nashville this past summer with just enough pause and aplomb to commit these morsels to tape. the a-side *you ve got nothing to lose* is an original composition, featuring the buzzards dominic davis on upright bass and cory younts on piano, joined also by fellow balladeer lillie mae rische on fiddle. their contributions transform his work into a stone-cold groove with almost orchestral underpinnings, making it a fitting extension of their previous blue series. the single also features a chilling rendition of townes van zandts infamous *waitin round to die* on the b-side, the perfect compliment to the timbre and mood of the a-side.

warm and crispy as always, the third monday night - mixed, structured and recorded live on tape. the whole ep is a cutting-edge merger between old school and modern, carefully crafted sounds, to forge an outstanding collection of deep house tracks with a timeless fashion.the opening track on side a serves a gentle two-chord loop, locked with a groove beat progression, whilst track two builds up a dense swarm of rapid drums, with synthetic bursts twirling on an energetic bassline. on the b side, a bare, rampant one note bass leads a haunting, gloomy first track, whose main theme is surrounded by recurring confused, scatterbrained vocal samples, while the second one is characterized by the simplicity of an upright, stabbing rhythm directing an emotive one note chord. the ending track develops around a big, serious bassline, pleasantly contrasting with a succession of dreamy, floating melodies and noises

up next on scubas hotflush recordings is the stunning debut ep >forever for now< from 20 year-old duo shelter point. through the use of field recordings, upright pianos, their own chopped and screwed vocals and a varied palette of synths, the pair have created a lush and elegant four track love letter that is bound to make their contemporaries stand up and take note. >braille< sets the scene, its wistful, haunting vocals delicately slinking along to emotive and complex analogue synths, only slightly changing course on the vibrating and discordant 80s inspired >hold on me<. on the flip is the title track, a compelling and experimental piano ballad, rich with vinyl crackle and a bittersweet lyrical flow (forever burned your picture in my mind) followed by the pop-inspired >sleep easy<, a sweetly composed bedroom soul production kitted out with filtered synths and dubbed out atmospherics. a unique and memorable debut from a very bright new talent, shelter point is here to stay.

straight from germany, this talented producer delivered some of the best deep house music around. entitled >the first floor ep<, it starts with >show me< which is one of those eminently soulful house tracks with a sparse approach to production, all the elements sounding so crisp and distinct in the mix but judged perfectly. whilst >rooted< is a louche head nodder supreme. on the flip side, with >got that< hes creating an all-enveloping atmosphere with its oven-warm pads and rich analogue bass, punctuated with jazzy chords and vocal murmurings. >defense< showcases hes excellent knack for crafting moodymann style textures with the depth to boot, combining a solid rhythmic snap with drawn out vocal landscapes and detroit-referencing melodies. and to last,>trouble< is all brisk, upright percussive layers splayed over swooping disco filtration. nicks approaching house from various angles and tempos and naturally theres plenty of deft usage of samples, such an ep just demonstrate how on top of their game skylax / wax classic is right now - big tip!

cessas third release on their missing link sounds imprint is another typical blend of styles that evades characterization. having recieved massivee support from the likes of mary anne hobbs, laurent garnier, sbtrkt, geiom, mr scruff, and top a & r man ross allen amongst others, cessa return with their strongest release to date. >recon< sounds like a blend of the best of good looking/ promised land-era d & b with more immediate 2 step/dubstep sensibilities that produces a great mix of rolling beats and a melodic soundscape. recon was given the sbtrkt treatment on an earlier mls release and returns here in its fine original form. >down & out< opens with an eerie acoustic double bass intro that descends into an upright synth-led floor filler, while still maintaining cessas love of restless arrangements and beat programming that strays away from the usual.

we love the way of leeks experimenting with sounds, some are quite edgy others are electronic sounding and not necessarily pleasing sounds as we get them in nearly every production these days. >qwerty< for example does not subdue to the daily routine of >todays techno< but moves upright and proudly. ever listened to jeff mills? you will then understand a bit about whats going on here.&#8232,,,,,

aniligital music is back at it with anthony mansfield and tal m. klein and their evil ways! building upon the successes of their previous collaborations, the villainous duo raises the stakes and take things deeper with this enigmatically titled three tracker. ciento ocho is spanish for 108, the tempo of the first track on the ep. a creepy crawly builder with 8-bit roots that culminate in a huge funk breakdown with an insidious bass hook (if you have any doubt,just fast forward 3 minutes into the track) next up is desayuno en timpanis which we think means breakfast at timpanis in spanish. needless to say this ones heavy on the percussive elements, including of course lots and lots of timpani drums. desayuno en timpanis gets going pretty quickly and doesnt let up. check the flanged upright bass breakdown for extra bigness! purely non-stop huge sound system busting dancefloor action. speaking of floor fillers, have we shown you our tiger bomb? bomba de tigre is the definitely the deepest track on the ep, but lest anthony and tal rest on the laurels of their 808 kicks and 303 basslines, this tigre is a stalking beast that explodes in a vicious classic house attack!

the 2nd release of french producer anthony collins on mule electronic. anthony collins have released from get physical, freak n chic, bangbang!, curle and name a few. his biggest track >reeves< was included to the compilation of 10 years anniversary of circoloco@dc10. after the successful of last 12inch >upright bass< inc great foog remix, he came back with two modern deep house stuff. a side, >away from home< is early 90s house sound. its associated with the updated nuyorican soul sound or recent dj sprinkles release. if you like the recent underground us house like underground quality or that kind of release,you will like this song even if its more modern taste than them. bside, >hanging on< is jazzy, tribal minimal house sound. its a modern dj tool.