Back catalogue: All genres

Review: Keeping firm to the now well-trodden "Scientist meets" formula, this release through Convent once again hears Joseph Alpern aka. J Gabriel absorb the dubbing wiles of Hopeton Brown into his own minimal techno laboratory. 'Fly Again' follows up the first Scientist collab 'Too Far Gone' from 2023 with yet another red snapper, and comes backed by heated reworks from Steve O'Sullivan and Bluetrain, each of whose generosities know few bounds (they offer two and three remixes each!).

Review: The spectroscope of Cool Million's soundworld doubles in width, as 'One Of A Kind' marks a new phase of innovation in their patented boogie funk sound. This latest single hears Danish soul singer Seest - a longtime collaborator with the Danish production duo - add her doubled, tripled, nigh quadrupled vocal overdubs to the already well collieried disco track. With the ensuing EP packed with allusive, fiery effrontery, bringing inspirations from Earth, Wind & Fire, Kool & The Gang and The Crusaders, we must warn you: this is a volatile disco 7", one that should really come with a fire hazard warning.

Review: ***B-STOCK: Sleeve damaged but otherwise in excellent condition***


Volume One of a label retrospective of pioneering early 90s Prog House label Interactive Test Compiled by Alex from Utopia Records and enigmatic Interactive Test founder Franco Falsini. Falsini, responsible for many of the underground classics on the label he founded in Florence in 1991 was first known for his 70s Italian Prog / Cosmic group Sensations Fix. A trailblazer who continued to push the boundaries of electronic music two decades later with Interactive Test, accompanied by the up-and-coming talents of Trance hero DJ Miki the Dolphin, his brother Riccardo and an host of cult Italian music producers. Here we start with 5 tracks from the archive, all highly collectable, remastered for DJs and psychedelic music enthusiastic alike from the best sources possible. Authentic and original dance sounds still hitting the spot in our times.

Review: After last year's standout 'E2-E4' rework, in-form producer Alex Kassian returns to Test Pressing Records with the next instalment in the series i this time turning his attention to Spooky's 'Orange Coloured Liquid', taken from their 1993 debut album Gargantuam. Alongside acts like Underworld and Leftfield, UK duo Charlie May and Duncan Forbes helped shape the early 90s progressive house sound under their Spooky moniker. Now, decades later, Kassian delivers two versions designed to serve dancefloor and sunset respectively, with the rolling breaks of Part I beautifully complemented by the ambient swells of Part II. John Beltran dons his Placid Angles alias for a sumptuous remix pitched somewhere between the two, while the still-fresh original rounds out an essential EP i no surprise, given the calibre of those involved.

Review: ***B-STOCK: Record slightly warped***


A top value for money opportunity here, as Moiss Music deliver the latest in their sweet and sticky Jam series of various artist 12" line ups, bringing you no less than six bubbling, vivacious disco triumphs from six artists. Khemir's 'Disco Bandit' kicks off proceedings, a production that sounds like it was made by a band of around 45 musicians, a proper cavalcade of strings, brass, brazen disco thump and beautifully bold vocals. Wurzelholz's 'Prince' goes for a bit more economy but with a slinky funk bassline like that - not to mention the occasional exclamation from the purple overlord himself - it's equally devastating in dancefloor terms. Among the other highlights, 'Golden' by I Gemin has the feel of a lost Daft Punk flip tune and Cosmocomics' 'Glamorous Garcon', boasting 70s-style synth bubbles that are as cute as they are retro. Tasty as ever.

Review: Theory Of Swing Records and Club U Nite Records are well loved outlets that themselves have a big love for authentic 90s house. They come togther for this special various artists release which opens with Mellow Man and his side project Black Chunes Productions. Opener 'Soul Groove' brings bright xylophone melodies and US garage drums, while, 'Daddy, Are U Ready' is organ-laced New York swing with great style and vocal stabs. Theory Of Swing main man St. David then hooks up with pal Wildbox from No Hype DJs for the same heavy and sweaty house of 'All Nite.' Their second jam 'Feeling Free' is more stripped back and cool with balmy pads swirling round cool drums kicks.

Review: Reborn Italo-disco label Fulltime Production's ongoing remix series, in which contemporary producers tackle gems from the vaults, reaches its tenth instalment. Da Lukas steps up first, re-imagining Rainbow Team's lightly funk-fuelled, string-laden 1982 disco jam 'Bite The Apple' as an action-packed disco-house anthem, before long-serving Italian producer Massimo Beradi turns Michael Baker's 1983 workout 'Don't You Want My Loving' into a hybrid boogie-soul/deep house treat. Over on side B, Souls Groove successfully 're-vibe' Say When's 'Save Me', an early house era European synth-pop anthem (and yes, you'll know it), while GAMM regular Black Truffle's take on Ma Gi C's 'Shampoo' is a gritty disco-funk delight.

Review: Ryan Sadorus joins forces with vocalist Simon Black to craft a track that distills the essence of Detroit house into a modern, infectious groove. The production pulses with a deep, steady rhythm that evokes the city's legacy of soul-tinged, dancefloor-driven sound, adding a fresh sense of clarity and precision. There's a tension between the track's smooth, forward-moving momentum and the rawness of its elements that capture the city's spirit of innovation within the confines of a familiar, yet evolving, form. Sadorus's blend of modern sensibilities with classic Detroit influences makes this track feel both fresh and timeless. The accompanying remix from Delano Smith further enhances the original, adding his signature deep, rolling style. Smith's version takes the track in a more expansive direction, with subtle intricacies and a hypnotic build that brings an even greater sense of tension and release. His seasoned approach to Detroit house transforms 'Hot in the D' into something even more immersive, ensuring the track will continue to dominate dancefloors globally. It's a perfect example of how the city's legacy lives on through its new wave of artists and producers.

Review: Analog Recital's new album fantastically collides the worlds of lo-fi house and jazz-synth sounds on Inner Tribe Records. Clearly drawing inspiration from early jazz-house production but adding new ideas to that, the record combines dynamic dancefloor rhythms with crusty drums reminiscent of classic hip-hop and live horns as well as traditional African drums. It features Adrian M Nation from Antigua and Barbuda and Millicent from South Africa on vocals, while Aussie Horatio Luna is on bass to make this a truly pan-global and richly musical affair. By merging live instrumentation with late-night club vibes in this way, Analog Recital really impresses.

Review: The No Fuss label has been busy of late and is now dropping the many fruits of their labours with several EPs landing in quick succession. The 13th outing is a various artists affair that features two cuts from Saison on the A-side, though it's a Ross Couch remix of 'The Riff' that opens up. It's feelgood house with nice dancing piano chords and a Balearic feel while 'Feel This' brings more summery chords and dusty drum loops for some open-air dancing fun. Vertigini then offers the 90s-tinged 'Box Of Pandora' and Mo'Cream closes out with the already classic 'I'm Sure.'

Review: Finland's Common Labour label unites four different producers on the fourth volume of its Odd Jobs series, and each of them goes deep in their own inimitable way. Omar Santis begins with an unhuried and smoky dubbed out house with wispy pads and subtle vocals on 'Pinoki.' Flabaire ups the energy with some slick, tightly programmed but smooth drum loops that bounce freely beneath warm pads which infuse the mix with soul. Thomas Wood's 'All It Takes' has molten bass and liquid synths for a dub house delight on 'All It Takes' and Potholes's 'Bromsman' is the headiest of the lot with DJ Koze-style melodic whimsy.

Review: Dusky techno disco tools on this fifth new one from Shadow Pressings, a UK outfit who've here nonetheless titularly alluded to the Chicago house scene. Of course, not all of us can afford to fly out to Illinois on a whim, and many of us prefer instead to let the city's long-release intoxicant effect run its course on the collective ear from a distance. The label-artist here proffers the gruffer stuff, from the grunting percs of 'Tears' through to the smoother high piquancies of 'Lost In The Dance', both of which nail that irreverent, not-too-much mood innate to all the best dance music.

Review: Silat Beksi hails from Ukraine and has been serving up finely tuned minimal grooves for some time. This outing takes him to the young Duboka label for a trio of deft, lithe, sinewy sounds. 'Recognition' kicks off with a weighty and dubbed out low end but plenty of drive in the silky pads that loop in colourful patterns. It's a graceful groove which leads into the more lumpy and bubbly dub-tech of 'Sparkling Mouth', a Melchior Productions adjacent sound that is seductively smooth. 'Speak In A Whisper' gets more bitty and abstract with late-night afterparty energy and vinyl crackling bringing it to life. Fedo remixes it with more direct drum funk.

Review: The eighth instalment in Running Back's playful Hits! series arrives with a globetrotting batch of quirky dancefloor charmers, spanning interstellar disco, Italo throwbacks and Berlin School eccentricity. Kicking things off, Skatman leans into sleazy synth funk and smoky melodrama with 'What I Am Feelin'', a crooning synth-pop number pitched somewhere between space cabaret and Metro Area. Baron Von Traxian Australian prince of peaktime pompibrings glitzy melancholy with 'If I Only Knew', layering ascending Italo arps and soft pads over a chugging disco pulse. Janis Zielinski and Sowhy3 (both Berlin-based) turn in 'In Your Eyes' twiceifirst as a vocal daydream of euro-pop yearning, then as a sleek instrumental. Morphena's 'Venus Underworld' dials up the noir with icy stabs and new wave propulsion, while Zoe Zoe's 'Palikau Dzemperi' signs off with a Tangerine Dream-style glide repurposed for the club. There's no unifying concept, but as with earlier volumes, that's the point: a polychrome snapshot of Running Back's curious, cosmopolitan world.

Review: Much like vital Detroit label Moods & Grooves, The Solid Gold Playaz are a beloved force in the house scene. They tragically lost their co-founder Kenny Gino in 2021, but by then had already assured the legacy with deep house grooves that exude funk and class. In honour of Kenny's memory, surviving member Mike Theus carries on the journey with a new EP that, across four tracks, demonstrates real unity. Each one is built on nice lo-fi dusty drums, with undercooked synth lines bringing the unusual soul, bass adding the all-important low-end interest and plenty of smart samples finishing in style.

Review: Boston pair Soul Clap land on UK staple Crosstown rebels and bring their signature E-funk sound across a quarter of tunes that also draw on garage and deep house. 'Gone Stumblin' is effortlessly breezy with swirling, aloof vocals up top, a knotted bassline and dusty drums and percussion making a nice late-night vibe. The dub version is bigger, with twisted stabs and frazzled leads rewiring the energy and 'Unifying Force' is a swirling, gooey sound with an old school FM bassline and classic vocal sample bringing the heat. 'Gone Stumblin (bonus version)' is a second take on the original with some fun drum patterns and big raw snares to amp up the vibes.

Review: Originally pressed in 1997 on Manchester's Pleasure Records, this reissue of James Zeiter's 'Spacer IV' EP marks a detour from his dub-techno calling card into richer house-rooted terrain. A pivotal figure with deep ties to trance, ambient and the deeper ends of techno, Zeiter's work here sheds the fog of his more monolithic material, turning instead to emotional clarity and rhythmic warmth. 'Sirocco' is the opener and the standoutia halcyon blend of dubbed-out breaks and airy pads that drift and glimmer above a slow-motion acid line. 'Mono' edges further into house, with its loopy Detroit swing and sunset-kissed bassline nodding gently to Italian dream house. On the flip, 'Jetson' steps back into more familiar, trance-inflected territory: spacious, hypnotic and driven by crisp, propulsive drums. 'Dust' closes the set with writhing acid lines and spaced-out FX, balancing tension and lift with Zeiter's signature restraint. All four cuts, originally sequenced with just an Akai S950, ESQ-1 and a Novation Bass Station, still sound uniquely vitalimelodic but unshowy, club-focused but never rigid. Slush's remaster preserves the nuance while the full-fat 2x12" format gives these deep cuts the dynamic range they deserve. A stunning archival rescue from a true underground operator.

Review: Enshrining its 20th release with a reverent new one from STBR, 'Atelir' on Daydream murks our expectations, bringing a thrilling lowercase slosher to classic black wax. 'Lloyd' and 'Homer' hear two named characters hog the studio, as STBR seizes many an interstitial productive moment in which to vary and excite the mix, though not *too* much. 'Session', meanwhile, brings a parallactic view of the prior two moods, acids squelching and spurting between relatively driven beats, while a closing paroxysm, 'Tourtour', insists we climb back down from our cloud.

Review: New York City's underground stalwart Sweater On Polo returns with the debut release on Signal Route. His Mechanical Confusion EP draws inspiration from early 90s Chicago techno and basement house so it echoes the gritty, raw style of labels that dealt in that sort of stuff, like Dance Mania and Relief Records. Across the six cuts there is an intergenerational dialogue between past and present with acid house, techno and synth punk all capturing a familiar old-school angst and texture but with a fresh twist. 'Land of Code' is one of our favourites with its rising percussive tension, deeply buried bass pulse and dusty analogue drums.