manchester s rainy city music continues to celebrate 20 years of the record label in 2016 and continue the success of the last two vinyl releases by dele sosimi afrobeat orchestra, via their own label and also with berlin s innervisions label. the 20 year celebration is also riding high on the current huge success of the re-issue of their second ever release from 1996 by city people it s all in the groove , now available again by the hugely popular artist motor city drum emsemble. this new release by artists irfan rainy & rex leon is a 4 trk ep from their digi lp titled cross step drag, a reference to the house dance culture from new york city. the four tracks released here highlight the huge variety in styles of house music created by the mancunian duo. the a side s track one vodun is simply voodoo / tribal house music for lovers of the old school jovonn sound. track 2 smash the silence is a brand new version of previous digital only release where afrobeat & house music are combined. it features the rasping vocals of lagos based nigerian actress vera e and the definite influence of fela kuti. flip to the b side and get to the deep dark twisted underworld of black america via snoop story (ode to the wire) and you hear one of the moodiest dance records you will ever hear and a tragic story of snoop, one of the wire s best performers from the cult tv series. the final track on the ep manc union dub is a dub house groove where ghostly brazilian candomble vibes meet the electronic dub beats of rhythm and sound. rounding off a hugely varied four track sampler receiving support from a huge cross sections of djs including danny krivit, at jazz, rahaan, kai alce, mad mats, osunlade, karizma, severino (horse meat disco), dj spinna & marcellus pittman.