Back catalogue: All genres

Review: Few artists have had such a global impact on electronic music than Thomas Bangalter, the legendary DJ, producer and songwriter who is best known as one-half of the former dance titans Daft Punk. He has many more skills up his sleeve though as he has proven since leading the duo. One is writing soundtracks such as this one, Chiroptera, for Acte 2: Retour a la Caverne, which was a JR creation with choreography from Damien Jalet. It was performed in Paris in front of the Opera de Paris (Opera Garnier) on November 12th, 2023 and involved more than 150 dancers. You can now relive it musically with this limited 12".

Review: Two proper peaches from the melodic end of the house/techno spectrum from Samantha Poulter aka Logic1000. 'Perfume' sees the Sydney-born, Berlin-based DJ and producer adding several layers of bittersweet vocals to a chunky and lightly-embellished-breaks house groove. Flip track 'Blossom' comes up equally smelling of roses with a more progressive-slanted instrumental vibe that's equally playable. The sweet smell - and sound - of success.

Review: An intriguing project here from perennial Euro disco legend Cerrone, who joins forces with the Symphony Orchestra of Cannes to reimagine 21 of his best-loved and highly influential dance classics. It would be difficult to overstate the Frenchman's contribution to contemporary dance music, having released and produced scores of timeless records in the halcyon days of continental disco. Tracks like 'Supernature', 'Love in C Minor' and 'Give Me Love' are beyond iconic and still appear regularly in the sets and mixes of today's dance heavyweights. They're all here, presented live in all their magnificent glory by the orchestra of 50-plus musicians, directed by the legendary Randy Kerber. As expected, all of the music sounds glorious, with lavish strings, pristine horn sections, and limber percussion bringing every piece to life magnificently.

Review: All hail the mighty Cerrone, one of the most important figures in the development of a European disco sound distinct from what was happening in the US. His run of LPs in the late 70s introduced a new, synth-driven sound which spawned some monumental hits, the biggest of which undoubtedly being 'Supernature'. Now the veteran disco machine is celebrating 50 years of active service in music by revisiting his former glories with new versions of much-loved favourites. Alongside these productions, Cerrone has also invited some more contemporary players to produce remixes, including Dimitri From Paris and The Reflex.

Review: 50 years have now passed since Marc Cerrone made his recording bow as part of Kongas, so to celebrate the percussionist-turned-disco pioneer has revisited some of the greatest tracks in his collection, not only recording new versions, but also handing over the parts to some similarly minded remixers. There's some modern production trickery and effects, as well as freshly recorded replacement vocals, but the key ingredients of his sound - the grandiose orchestral arrangements, driving kick-drums and sweaty percussion workouts - remain in-tact. The plentiful highlights include the glossy and uplifting 'Got To Have Lovin', the Reflex's wonderfully low-slung interpretation of 'Look For Love', Dimitri From Paris's fizzing take on 'Love in C Minor' and a sterling new version of Cerrone's most famous hit of all, 'Supernature'.

Review: Pascal Comelade's Le Non-Sens Du Rythmefinds the French artists play almost all of the many instruments it features. He has been active since the 1970s, crafting ever evolving and ways moving rhythms from a mix of toy instruments, French chanson, folklore and underground sounds. The sometime painter has worked with the likes of PJ Harvey, Robert Wyatt and The Liminanas ever since goring up as a child of the frenzied rock sounds of there 60s. Here he fuses the Rickenbaker e.bass, Indian harmonium, keyboards and a tin can into something utterly unique and strangely compelling.

Review: Every time you get hold of a new album from Django Django, or even just a single, the rush of excitement is real. Formed of friends who met at Edinburgh School of Art, there's always been something unique, highly creative and resolutely fun about their output, straddling dancefloor material with rougher edged alternative rock and plain experimental oddities, leading to the kind of results we've not been lucky enough to experience much of since the demise of the Madchester scene.
In many ways, the quartet have already given us more replay value than the baggy indie era, and Off Planet is arguably the finest hour, and certainly the broadest offering, to date. Tracks like the light and au naturel 'Come Down' contrast the club-ready breakbeat piano rave of 'Complete Me' (which features none other than Self Esteem) or the classical-jungle hybrid 'Osaka'. 'Lunar Vibrations' goes for hypnotising synth pop, 'Galaxy Mood' brings in acidic squelch, 'Dumdum' belongs on DFA. Another triumph.

Review: With this new sophomore album, East London's Jeshi faces challenges head-on and embraces chaos as a catalyst for creativity. He explains that he is driven by the desire to fully experience life and art, no matter how difficult and Airbag Woke Me Up captures this energy with a mix of tunes meant to provoke reactions and start conversations. Drawing from his global stage experiences, the dynamic sound shifts moods and tempos as Jeshi's versatile voice ties everything together with multiple layers of expression. This is a record which explores transformation after hardship and marks Jeshi's arrival as a defining artist of the day.

Review: Justice's original soundtrack for A Cross The Universe, the 2008 documentary film charting the French house duo's rise to just power. Lady justice smiles on Romain Gavras and co.; classics such as 'D.A.N.C.E.', 'We Are Your Friends', and 'Genesis' all appear, complementing isolated yet dreamy moments captured from the band's 2008 tour.

Review: If there was ever a duo with the bombast and flair to pull off the 18-minute electro-rock-opera, it's surely Justice. Gaspard Auge and Xavier de Rosnay created Planisphere in the wake of conquering the world with their debut album Cross, initially for use on the catwalk but subsequently shared on their MySpace. Of course such releases now attain a kind of cult mythos, and Planisphere is no exception. In the Ed Banger era of dirty French touch, this is a fans dream come true - the gnarly monster that keeps on giving, now pressed up on a single side of vinyl for continuous listening, with a classy etching on the reverse.

Review: In recent interviews, Justice explained that fourth album Hyperdrama - the wildly successful French duo's first for seven years - was born out of the idea of getting elements of disco, funk and electronic music to "fight with each other" (rather than smoother co-existence). Given the forthright and sometimes abrasive nature of their work, it's an idea in keeping with their career to date. Musically, what we get is a mixture of their usual electroclash and rave-inspired riffs and motifs, and basslines, strings and other instrumentation rooted in black dance music of the 1970s and '80s. When the fusion lands - as it does much of the time - it's a unique and thrilling fusion. For proof, check Tama Impala hook-up 'One Night/All Night', the Italo disco/jazz-funk/electro-house fusion of 'Incognito', and the wonderful slow-boogie mutation 'Saturine'.

Review: Mother is Logic1000's debut album. An alias of Samantha Poulter, the Berlin-based DJ and producer explains it has been insured by her becoming a parent. "I felt so much love and inspiration entering into motherhood that I just needed to create something really powerful," says the producer who hails from Sydney and has collaborated on the lad single 'Grown On Me' with her husband and long-time creative partner Thom McAlister. It is an album that runs that gamut from broken beats to smoky soul, shuffling basement grooves to heady and hypotonic, dubbed-out rollers.