channeling a love affair with classic 90 s hip hop, an affinity for otherworldly themes and an ear for raw funk, barclay crenshaw uses his given birth name to bare his soul and deliver a slowed-down, emotive collectiob of collaborations and instrumentals. this self-titled debut album is a left-field deperature from his better known allias, claude von stroke, but the quality is undeniably the same. the themes of alien abductions and exploring of time and space are discovered and brough to life over ten tracks that sound like a mixture of gold rope chains and new age enlightenment. modern organic beats mixed with gorgeous melodic movements and underlying grittiness create an experience that is eclectic, expressive, and expansive. coded art furthers the sense of mystery and the unkown. harking back to the past while gazing into the future.

touching down for the inaugural release on the newly formed label, north of 7 sounds, is the mighty rumbleton - a true heavyweight with over 2 decades immersed in sound system culture, running the stand firm hi-fi label and releasing music on scientific wax, rupture ldn, outsider, and samurai music to name but a few. a true master of his sound, we are extremely proud to have rumbleton set the bar for future north of 7 excursions. “a new day” takes you on a journey filled with haunting pads, razor-sharp drum kit clashes, and infinite amounts of low-end. bottomless swathes of atmospherics respire in and out of the mix, culminating in a breathtaking breakdown - crafted with utmost devotion to the godfather of soul himself. a truly honourable homage to jungle’s roots in sample culture and breakbeat science. “conscience” on the flipside is weightiness refracted in minimalism. rumbleton fully submerges your mental space in a cavernous, dubwise fog, while militant, scorched-earth drums power the tune forward. a warm, subterranean bassline churns endlessly beneath, all the elements occasionally exhaling and collapsing under their own weight, only to regenerate once again…

if you are looking for an example of how beautiful an independent soul production can sound, this should be your choice. tighten up your love bone and is this really love is probably one of don gardners best releases. due to the fact that even mint original copies play with crackle throughout on both sides this legitimate reissue is even something for hardcore collectors who usually do not buy reissues.

mark rae is the man behind one of the key uk music movements of the last 25 years. as a founder of the shop fat city records and the label grand central, mark worked with some of the worlds biggest artists going on to earn several platinumm discs with his work as one half of the highly respected production duo rae & christian. this project is a worlds first autobiography and album, the release is packaged as a gatefold 10 inch which opens out to the book held within. the 40 000 word book covers the author mark rae s journey through the music industry. it follows the creation and dissolution of fat city and grand central records, rae & christian and yesking. the underground club scenes of manchester, gang wars, success, failure, working with bobby womack, jay z and the pharcyde. the project has been supported by whosampled, dj magazine, vice and the tate modern. the artwork is exceptional featuring an historical montage throughout the inner gatefold sleeve. the music features guest vocals from tony d who was a big influence in the original grand central records sound, soul king pete simpson, multi instrumentalist shawn lee and kate rogers.

our first normals welcome v/a 12” sees some familiar faces as well as some freshies to hit the label. the a side represents two vancouver, bc based projects: esb and ambien baby (a new collab group from sophie sweetland aka d. tiffany, and daniel rincon). the paronomasiac aka nik kozub, head honcho at nw starts off the b side, with london, uk duo metropolitan soul museum rounding it all off.

jacques bon motions through the day’s early energy dawning light. true to the record’s title, bon composed the four tracks for his debut ep on beats in space records in the morning sun, reflecting and refracting the colors of daybreak from his compositions. burning spheres aside, bon draws inspiration from his past in paris, where he slung records at daphonics and started the label, smallville with pantha du prince, and his current life in hamburg, where he frequently helms the legendary decks at golden pudel. both cities and their scenes offer crucial cues for bon’s productions across dawning light and past releases for smallville and mule musiq. beginning with licks from his juno 106, filtered through the glide of a tb303 and foundational fits of his roland drum arsenal, bon embraces simplicity in setup to allow for maximum melody. opening track “island” assembles the palette of dawning light, infusing the ep with a warm glow. “we are” twinkles like the first blinks of awakening, dusting away night’s sleep with golden beams trickled onto tangled bed sheets. “aurora” evokes the first rush of the refreshed energy, shaking off yesterday and centering the mind, body, and soul to power through the hours. the record’s title track bounces with youthful optimism, a fitting end for the four-tracker’s mission of morning praise. each 12&#8243,,, on beats in space records features original artwork in considerate and serial form. andrew kuo’s prismatic painting holds dawning light in good polychromatic company, the geometric colors soft-coded entry point for bon’s music.

the new york-based (u)nity is made up of michael valeanu, axel tosca laugart, chris smith, max cudworth and amaury acosta. they formed the band in 2006 as a project to explore afro-cuban jazz, funk, soul and contemporary electronica. they say they ve been influenced by everyone from chucho valdes to art blakey to led zeppelin to kendrick lamar, and you can definitely hear all of that in this jawdropping work. guarapachanga is special in that it was the first song written by the band back in their days as music students at the new school. it s derived from the style known as guarapachangeo the most advanced form of cuban rumba, heavily improvisational and based on very complex rhythms and melodies. on this recording, (u)nity is graced with a guest performance by grammy award winner pedrito martinez, a master rumbero, one of the greatest conga players ever, an innovator who has left a permanent mark on cuban music. martinez is also a priest in the yoruba religion and a historian of cuban culture. over its eight and a half minutes, guarapachanga twists and turns and journeys through a mind bending array of different tempos and modes, from latin jazz to hip hop, ultimately ending with a trippy ambient soundscape. the whole thing is overlaid with free spirited melody, soul and the afro-cuban essence that is the bands lifeblood. the white-hot live playing gives it the feel of the best early-morning jam session, yet it packs a sonic punch that will make it sound incredible on a good sound system in the hands of adventurous djs in the world-beat or spiritual-house vein. if you didnt know guarapachanga was a contemporary work you might mistake it for a loft classic, yet it s also as fresh and exciting as anything you ll hear this year.

a personal selection of electro classics, compiled by joey negro.

amazing longplayer by 3kz. dreamy, romantic, and pure. >parallel reflections< is the debut album from 3kz, the collaborative project between z.i.p.p.o and kaelan. this retro futuristic composition will elevate your mind, move your body, and touch your soul. 180g.

a tribute to andreas gehm (1972 - 2016), german producer, king of acid and inspiration to many including the artists in this compilation. all proceeds will go towards funding andreas gehm s post-mortem affairs, managed by his best friend, joe kurta. long live the king. vital sales points: tribute album to acid king, andreas gehm, who took his own life in 2016. andreas released one of his last few eps with midnight shift. all artists in this compilation have been influenced by and are deeply saddened by his passing. all proceeds will go towards funding andreas gehms post-mortem affairs, managed by his best friend joe kurta

nebraska comes to razor-n-tape reserve with a 3-tracker of soul-laden sampley goodness primed for the floor. the title track drills deep to the depths of primal funk for an extended disco-house workout that stretches over the full a side. on flip we have a pair of slow-burners, with instant pressure juxtaposing modern r&b vocal flavor over a hypnotic rhythm track, and then keep on keeping on takes us back to the classic soul side with its gritty and gospel-infused groove.

new fina output

one day back in end of the eighties, a pair of friends began sharing a deep love for music, the music we have been supporting, playing and now, able to put it out for your listening pleasure: ‘mind merge lp’ is a beautiful quintessence of detroit electro, funk and techno, partially blending with contemporary electronic contaminations and we believe it’ll be as timeless as many of their records before.

mit spannung erwartetes debütalbum des kanadischen wahl-new yorker dj/produzenten jacques greene, der nach releases auf uno, 3024, night slugs und luckyme und remixes für tinashe, radiohead(!) und shlohmo, nun ein modernes, von unterschiedlichen 1990 er styles inspiriertes werk aus hiphop, r&b, house und techno vorlegt. “feel infinite” enthält den soul-techno-smash “you can’t deny” aus 2016, den euphorischen nachfolger “afterglow”, sowie ein vocalfeature des us-singer/songwriters how to dress well.
das doppelvinyl erscheint inklusive downloadcode und poster.

in 1978, famed latin jazz percussionist willie bobo released a promo-only 12” single featuring a “special disco version” of “always there”, a cut from his most recent album hell of an act to follow. pressed in extremely limited quantities and never available commercially, this 12” quickly became a highly sought-after rarity for djs and collectors. now, this lost treasure is back in print while supplies last, complete with an exclusive a new multitrack edit of “always there” from dj / crate-digger extraordinaire kon (bbe / soul clap) on the b-side. released in partnership with the bobo family, this official pressing revisits a dancefloor-ready masterpiece.

clutchy and fatty....high desert crunch meets city life punch for this collaborative project in sound. instrumental elements of soul, jazz, hip-hop, rock and more resonate throughout the record. just what any clutchy hopkins or fat albert einstein fan would ask for, track after track of laced up loveliness. these two gents pair banging rhythms with lush melodies and top them off with their signiture low brow high fi sound. guaranteed for some straight nasty. acoustic and electric instrumentation set the tone and in their individual stlyes, clutchy and fatty navigate your journey through psych folk caverns of cactus dust and marine layer funk with bloodshot rust. it is distinctive, original and fresh, paying homage to the past, present and future. visionary folk funk.

an incredible, funked-out live show and production team with their own modern take on boogie, philly soul, and ny disco. xlr8r the possé are a new face to many people. the five piece run by andrew elston and ross ferraro is comprised of veterans from all over australia’s music scene. after a year of knuckling down in the studio and a string of sold out shows they’ve boiled down their favourite influences into an in-credible, raw, funked out live show and production team. watch out for the posse’s debut ep, our thing, featuring contributions from andrew elston (phy-sique/toni toni lee/catcall), ross ferraro & jarrol renaud (the goods), michael di francesco (touch sensitive/van she) and nz jazz keys prodigy andrew bruce.

danilo braca (danyb) arrived in brooklyn from his native rome in 2011 playing around town, running sound at the output events & slowly allowing these edits - informed by many years working the floors across europe - to evolve on and off the dancefloors of new york city busted vol. 2 continues the journey with a fine foot-stompin slap bass jam, followed by a foot-workin & vibe heavy jazz funker. the b side gives us some top drawer psychedelic soul and another awesome cosmic cut that wraps up a package of the finest obscure floor-shakers around one hell of a 12- ladies & gentlemen !

imagine being dropped into a spiralling warehouse of acid and sub-base pressure with only four tracks to lead you into the light. the he-men compress three hours into a key change driver, stabbing and bubbling as you reach the surface gulping for air, bathing in the strings, dripping in acid-wash. before you know it you’ve been whisked away to the halcyon days of yore, creeping around castle corridors. leeds native djpc then kidnaps your soul for a spin in acid mundae (24 master) bombarding you with high hats, rolling baseline and old school pads and synths that take you to the dark underbelly of house music and beyond the black rainbow. the shadow of dawl’s electro powered hand then commands you with telepath, breaks and bleeps morse code that compel you to dance. the menacing sample, “i know what you’re thinking,” crawls around your skull until it finally shakes you loose from his imperious grip. dawl isn’t finished yet. his apache spirit breaks loose in freestylin’, a controlled dash of a tune that scratches all over your body, hauling you to his hip hop roots before dumping you, used and abused back on the dance floor waiting for an uber to teleport you to the darkest after party you can find

another year, and another birthday has come for steyoyoke. this year marks our 5th anniversary, and as such we would like to present our 5th anniversary compilation, filled with unique remixes and new faces on the steyoyoke map.

fokuz recordings proudly presents the better world lp by powerhouse duo macca & loz contreras. with their classic liquid funk inspired sound the leeds/portsmouth based duo have built a steady reputation as djs and producers pursuing the more soulful end of the drum & bass spectrum. no bombastic kicks and snares here. they tend to stay true to their uplifting ethos through reworking iconic soul samples into danceable feel good grooves underlined by natural-sounding breaks that roll with ease. the better world lp showcases the duo’s best work to date. in addition to a string of new cuts also 4 previous released tracks are included in the package. these works are some of their most highly regarded tracks which obviously couldn’t be left out. the new tracks include a vocal featuring by hannah eve + remixes by lenzman, fd and s.p.y. in addition to their work as a duo this extended album also includes solo efforts by both macca and loz contreras.

mystica tribe is the musical alias of tokyo-based producer, taka noda. drawing on a wide range of influences from dub, soul, bass music, rhythm and blues mystica tribe has quickly been developing a very distinctive sound that exists in a weird, freaked out zone between dub and techno. noda is especially interested in deep, psychedelic music, and this is reflected in his productions, which are equally suited for late night listening sessions or bent, broken in dancefloors. his first track, meditation stick, was released in 2011 on dutch label sd records, backed by two remixes from label owners syncom data. this was followed by two more eps on sd records in 2013: stars are mine and flowers. artists like gilles peterson and 2562 have supported these well-received releases, and his track. his temple recently appeared on pangaea s fabric live 73 mix cd. in 2014, noda is launching his own label, mystica tribe records, through which he plans to continue developing his uniquely psychedelic take on dub and techno. his recent ep, lizard, was released on his label in 2014. jade eye ep was released on his label in 2016.

following up his tender, soul-searching, journeyman 12” on lobster sub-label mörk last year. the northern hemisphere’s drum fanatical enigma roza roza returns with another round of heavily swung, choppy drum jams, all shrouded in a smooth aura of glistening hi ends, smooth carpeted pads and rankling, chiming basses.
“-”was by far one of the most off-kilter eps we’ve released so far, and sadok sudei picks up where the frenetic drum skits left off, reaching further afield for inspiration and providing a refreshing angle on core elements and ideas distilled from detroit techno, arp-led ambient and uk dub and bass influences.

you should already know who porter ray is (but you probably don’t.) the machines that seek to control your perception don’t want you to. he is too much of an anomaly. porter skews the modern experiment that is contemporary rap music wildly. he is in a word: authentic. porter ray is a natural… he sounds like east seattle feels.
from the same wet blocks that spawned quincy, jimi and ishmael, comes porter ray. having previously penned six projects showcasing dexterous wordplay, unflinching honesty and vulnerability, tempered with equal degrees of braggadocio and charm, porter is an old soul, a story teller par excellence, a griot possessing insight beyond his years.
double vinyl release with download code included.

omar has a totally unique, individual style and sound still marks him out as a future thinking and utterly unrivaled artist, who has collaborated with so many legendary names that it would be foolish to deny his worldwide reputation - who would dare contradict the likes of stevie wonder, erykah badu, carleen anderson, angie stone, common and fellow fans and followers like maxwell and jarrod lawson?
following on from 2013’s album the man, 2016 sees his new long player further cement this undeniable reputation. love in beats is omars 8th studio album of his long, illustrious career and may just be the most eclectic & varied to date. somewhat more electronic in it’s conception and sound than it’s predecessor, love in beats incorporates soul, caribbean rhythms, an undercurrent of funk, with touches of zouk, a jazzy waltz, spoken word and also features collaborations with us soul legend leon ware, blue note pianist robert glasper, grime mc ty, guadeloupe born singer jean-michele rotin, and uk soultress natasha watts, the floacist and mayra andrade, the cape verdean born singer who lives and records in paris.
co produced by scratch professer, omars grammy winning brother, this collection should create excitement worldwide, the sounds are varied - but all have omars’ unique fingerprint on them, style and substance beautifully merged!

ben bix is a multi-instrumentalist and producer renowned for his curiously charismatic work with the band meltybrains? feather is a familiar vocal presence from loah, whose voice ranges from a shy whispers to jazzy soul.

super rare (pretty much unknown) mid tempo vocal modern soul / disco floater with a great sweet soul flip. i have been looking for this one for a long while, its got that outsider soul lo-fi vibe that i love. remember and always check the flip, the ballad goes double time near the end and is one for the more sophisticated dance-floors

wizards of ooze was a belgian band that released 3 albums between 1994 - 1999 and toured the whole of europe. the bands sound is a mixture of different genres, combining elements from primarily soul, fusion and psychedelica. their thirdalbum almost ? bikini is regarded as the more open and accessible one.

the wizards sound is a mixture of different genres, combining elements from primarily soul, fusion and psychedelica. for this album the unheard tales of ..helga schröder, the two front-wizards wim tops and peter revalk put together acompilation of un-released tracks from the recording vaults

wizards of ooze was a belgian band that released 3 albums between 1994 - 1999 and toured the whole of europe. the bands sound is a mixture of different genres, combining elements from primarily soul, fusion and psychedelica. the dipster waswas the bands debutalbum.

who whom is a new label from paul rose. the artists are various, the sound particular. the first 12” comprises tracks by isaac reuben, bleak, markus suckut and antonio ruscito, and is titled ‘curse of sherwood’.

zwei alltime-klassiker des northern soul back 2 back auf einer 7”: die erste soul-nummer des großen dean parrish von 1965, sowie die erste vinyl-reissue von j.b. troys “live on”.

the series go way back to 2002 and has been championed by sadar bahar, theo parrish, lee collins, red greg, hunee, antal and many more connoisseurs of all things funky. this time its again a wild mix of soul disco boogie fusion and gospel wich sets the label apart from others within the scene. number 10 is also on its way...we never know wich one will be the very final one, so let’s enjoy while it last...

for the past four decades, a growing cult of soul music collectors have sought two obscure lps and a handful of extremely rare 45s released on the vanity record label lad productions, inc. between the late seventies and the mid eighties by the mysterious south side chicago singer/song writer larry dixon. larry s raw songs capture the transition from r&b to boogie-down as disco was rapidly becoming extinct. they also perfectly illustrate larrys ability to overcome his environment and discrimination, transcended by his determination to write and produce music. with the support of his faithful musicians, larry s success was only hindered by lack of airplay and promotion, but his talent shines through. this is the story of larry dixon, his label lad productions, inc., and his friends and family throughout four decades of music in chicags toughest neighborhoods. jerome derradji is proud to reactivate past due records the boogie funk division of still music to release this fantastic archive what many consider to be the holy grail of chicago funk, boogie and soul.

too many possibilities can also mean a tyranny of the what if.... in this light, celebrating less becomes vital. and thats exactly what swedish producer and studio barnhus affiliate simon haydo does in redux. all of the sounds in the albums nine tracks come from just one synth: the korg ms20. as simon puts it, the idea was to maximize the use of less, basically. less gear, less effects, less input from other people , less everything.using only between 2 and 6 channels for every track, the result is a stripped but surprisingly rich sound, that delineates spatial techno vignettes coated with the unmistakable charac- ter of the ms20 filters. even more interestingly, this restraint is not only applied gear-wise, but also from an emotional point of view. instead of involving my own feelings, i let the voice of the ms20 take care of it, says simon. all this makes redux an expression of techno in its purest form. after all, its a kind of music that has always gravitated around simplicity, austerity and, of course, the believe that the machines have their own soul.

for their first vinyl release, the collective reel beetz feature mc’s possibility and sa mood as well as singer david zürcher. the five tracks on this ep are a colourful mixture between rap and neo-soul and aspire to offer a contrast to the radio tunes that are today’s hits. the lyrics are deep and meaningful, the music from dreamily harmonious to hair-raisingly grasping. indulge yourself in the sounds or catch up on some self reflection. in any case enjoy the trip...

it really feels like we (aka mad mats & tooli) have been around way longer than 5 1/2 years with local talk, but it s really true what they say, time flies when you re having fun! from what started as a somewhat simple and almost primitive urge to create a small house imprint has now grown into a much bigger affair. we really tried hard to keep the label from getting stuck in any genre (remember 90s house?) and to always keep the local talk relevant, curious, diverse and with a healthy dose of underground mentality. from our very first release with bassfort s excellent moon shadow in the summer of 2011, we had a crystal clear vision of what local talk should represent... house music in any way, shape or form! over the years we released soulful, disco, jack, afro, vocal, deep, jazz, tech, latin, old school, acid, uk, berlin, new jersey, detroit and of course chicago inspired house music. if it made us bump...we put it out! this brings us up to today and about +80 releases later. we thought about how we best could sum up these first 5 1/2 years and immediately the image of blaze s classic album 25 years later popped up. besides the fact that it s an amazing album cover it also a good representation when different musical genres fuse together. it s not strictly a house album but just as well a r&b, reggae and soul album. this fusion and variation of house sounds is something that we ve tried to capture on our 5 1/2 years later compilation, split into two parts. on part 1 you ll find a dark bassline driven house jam from art of tones (check the mad sax!), a proper deep journey jam from nyc s dj spinna, a blaze homage with that classic new jersey sound from sean mccabe, and a bumpy world/jazz inspired cut straight outta brescia from wonder kid corrado bucci. all in all we think we got most angles covered and hopefully this album will make you spread that chalk on the dance floor and get down...local talk style!

not every story has to always start at the beginning. an unforeseen prequel to an existing story can deliver new meaning and create fresh excitement. vega records’ latest release “a new day” features the r & b music legend, vocalist caron wheeler, and visionary, producer jazzie b. they are widely known as soul ii soul, “keep on moving” and “back to life (however do you want me)” are just a few of their mega-hits. the latter won the group a grammy award for best r&b performance by a duo or group with vocal. this new release on vinyl “a new day” by vega records features unreleased remixes from an all-star cast that consists of producers louie vega, joe claussell, ron trent, timmy regisford, adam rios & tiger wilson. a double pack vinyl of unreleased versions by the talented cast of remixers, nuff said! let the music take you there!

much interest domestically and abroad has been generated over the years about an indie soul label in san diego, ca called musette records, whose short life span (1965-1968) only produced less than 20 singles, and no full albums. more than 40 years later, musette would achieve the collectible status among record buyers of northern soul, who recognize and appreciate the r&b grooves that pulsated on these now extremely rare singles.
the vinyl release includes a download code.

moody records is proud to present their second release by lucky charmz (lehult). seaside greetings is not a typical dance record - after the house banger on a1 lucky charmz is diving deep into disco, downtempo and soul chops until the dissolution into space.

repress schlepp geist returns on underyourskin with another pearl. deep and hypnotizing grooves are getting remixed from nico stojan (dantze, upon you, bar 25) and greenville massive (initials, soul sheep).

peacefrog präsentiert einen neuen namen in der britischen electronica-szene: mined aka kofi holmes attivor, londoner sohn einer ghanaischen familie, wuchs mit den soul/r&b platten seiner eltern auf und ließ sich von brian eno, spooky black und den foals inspirieren. mined produziert einen vokalen, eskapistischen electronic-pop voller ländlicher schönheit, der irgendwo zwischen den kosmen von james blake, caribou und boards of canada seine bahnen zieht.

no light at the end of the tunnel. no helping hand to pull you out of the hole. no second chances. no god to cure this deadly disease. no heaven to save your soul after your final seconds... hope will hold on, but in the end, death shall claim it. all this, we understand a little more, day by day.
we will experience our absolute zero, and the stages of life that come as close. we think that we will never recover and that we are not strong enough to fight against it. our immaculate, peaceful souls, that we begin our lives with, start to bleed, and slowly get torn into, bit by bit by the cold hard truth that breaks our protective walls. we learn to handle and accept this even as pieces of us shatter and die every time a little bit more inside us. to give light, we must endure burning. but what if everything we are able to burn is gone?
there is no other way... we are falling apart a bit more, every day.

identitatem ep is a perfect falling point in marco bruno s dimension, old-school shades meets a powerful wave of basses and 909 drums for an outstanding work composed by three original tracks and a remix by roberto clementi. let introduce you this guy who already detains brilliant releases on decoy, flash rec, sk black, and many more. we re waiting for his debut on dynamic reflection.

lynn williams may not be someone you have heard of but her pedigree is strong. her father was hank ballard (of king and james brown fame) and her mother was 60s miami radio personality and dance group leader vanilla miss boom boom williams. lynn cut 5 excellent 7inches for various henry stone owned miami labels in the 70s here we present her two most collectable. the first it takes two is a smokey deepfunk killer. on the flip dont be surprised is one of miamis best ever deep soul records period, a dark serious ballad pulled off with amazing emotion considering her young years at the time of recording.

the mighty shadeleaf pull in a seriously strong u.s team for their twelfth release damon bell from oakland, is a chief connoisseur at heralded deepblak recordings, and stands strong offering a complex variety of sounds that ebb and flow through all of his productions. known for his polyrhythmic, organic, and soul-filled musical releases on deepblak recordings & sound of speed records japan, he has also scored critically acclaimed releases recently on burek, meda fury, and don t be afraid. this collaborative ep with the vocalist (good friend and former oakland, and now berlin resident) khalil anthony, features a production collaboration with shadeleaf s own thatmanmonkz, and a remix from the mighty afrikan sciences as always, top drawer isht another shadeleaf sureshot

repress 2017 , allez! as the curtains come down on another crazy summer of love, apollonia drop their latest release courtesy of io mulen - the ukranian rude boy who appeared on the label at the beginning of the year with ‘unknown to the unknown’. he’s back with a hefty six-track package which is sure to please his fans, and win him a whole new army of supporters. we get straight to business with the first track, ‘rdm37’, one of those trusty apollonia bouncing bombs. skittish beats work off a sublime groove, while io keeps the background full of interesting sounds, boings, cheeps and all manner of whimsical effects, introducing more and more as the track progresses. by the midpoint you’re so gripped by the track that your whole body is moving uncontrollably, super glued to the rhythm. next up, it’s ‘xdt54’ coming through with a deep, persuasive bassline that jigs around in the low end luring you into its web. simple, polished percussive elements keep things moving at a pace while subtle keys and barely-there vocals add further layers to this catchy little number. the third track in on this lengthy ep is ‘mpc13’, a walk on the sensual side. vocal snippets are interspersed among sultry pads, skipping four to the floor beats and a sleazy b-line to create a delectable slice of dance floor naughtiness. this one flirts with you as it writhes around, taking you ever deeper…four tracks in we have ‘zgb41’, another alluring cut that has all the hallmarks of a deep house classic. those shimmering pads, a bassline that feels like it was born in nineties chicago, diamond-cut beats and a general feeling of what we would call ‘true house music’. there’s soul, there’s funk and there’s realness, what more can you ask for?ypt58’ keeps us locked in to that hypnotic groove with an insistent b-line holding things down - together with the infectious rhythm cultivated by the drum arrangement, it’s a killer combo. put those together with the smooth atmospherics plus synth lines staggering in and out of the background and you’ve got yourself a roller. last but definitely not least is ‘zxy22’, a wistful slice of technoid funk which has a delicate melody at its foundation. as it develops we get sucked in to layer upon layer of beauty, from the analogue low end to the electric guitar riff – each layer complementing the other and creating a symphony of sounds that acts as a perfect way to close out the ep and will no doubt end plenty of dj sets, when it’s released. so monsieur io (mulen) returns to apollonia with an instant classic, make sure you snap it up right away. magnifique!

the last couple of years have been huge for pomo, going from a relatively obscure canadian producer to releasing his debut ep on hw&w, remixing for the likes of janet jackson and mark ronson, producing am i wrong? on anderson paak s debt album and touring the globe with disclosure as their opening act. bastard jazz has commissioned pomo to be next in line for the fourth volume of their tempo dreams compilation series, following on the heels of the hotly contested soul clap compiled vol. 3. as with other tempo dreams records, pomo has curated a slick and well polished album full of exclusive tracks from friends and collaborators such as lindsay lowend, aloka, exmag, syre, daniel crawford, fvlcrvm and more. touching on the shimmering nudisco sound, plodding deep electronic vibes, funky instrumental hip-hop, and even a hint of drum n bass, tempo dreams vol. 4 takes it s rightful place in the series as one of the most forward thinking compilations showcasing emerging young talent.