ANDRES Vinilo y CD

Review: Andres, or DJ Dez, is a beat-maker extraordinaire. His Cuban heritage and background as a hip-hop DJ for Slum Village mean that he comes at house music from a slightly different perspective than most. Couple that with a vast record collection and next-level ear for samples and he rarely turns out a dud tune. Enter Address V, his latest album on Moodymann's Mahogany label and another masterful one that straddles moods and grooves with effortless ease and rare style. There are crisp house kickers like 'Cybermate,' heavyweight funk beatdowns like 'Funky 2Step' and slouchy and low-slung joints like 'Detoxfromtheworld' amongst dirty hip-hop jams and so much more. Another timeless album from a Motor City great.

Review: Get ready for a rush-inducing dose of proper soulful vocal house from the mighty Dames Brown. On this record for Defected, Detroit's foremost trio of Athena Johnson, Lisa Cunningham and Teresa Marbury linked up with the mighty Amp Fiddler and Andres for a rip through house music as real as it gets. The original 12" mix of 'What Would You Do?' is hard to beat for raw, heavy-hitting groove and production, but there are some choice remixes included here for those who have different needs, whether it's the bouncy jazz funk of Two Soul Fusion's version or the smoother sound of Folamour creating a sleek disco house variation for the peak time crowd.