JOSE MANUEL Vinilo y CD

Review: Utilising the same hard-to-pigeonhole approach as his previous (and excellent) Magic Carpet Ride compilation, Milagros Del Ritmo is effectively a showcase for the depth of DJ/producer Jose Manuel's record collection. That's no bad thing though, because the cuts on offer here - mostly European, but some Middle Eastern, and all made between 1988 and '91 - is full of arresting, ear-catching gems. For proof, check the chugging, arpeggio-driven late-night sleaze of 'Yoshua' by Danton's Voice, the Balearic deep house tactility of Debbie McKayle's 'Necessito Del Amor', the Arabic EBM throb of Bandana's 'Ganzo', the glassy-eyed dream house of Ambiosonix's 'Waves', and the body-popping Middle Eastern freestyle excitement of 'Radio Arabesque (Saudi-Club Version)' by Ethno League. A genuine must-check release.

Review: The latest clutch of dancefloor destroyers to emerge from the Optimo Trax camp come from well-traveled producer Jose Manuel, AKA Black Pepper founder Domenico Cantarella. Rather curiously, the EP begins not with one of Cantarella's own productions, but rather his brilliant - and previously unheard - remix of Andrew Liles' "The Great Beast In Outer Space". It's a thrillingly loose but percussively dense affair, where flamenco guitars, ethnic melodies and satanic growls weave in and out of the producer's heavy tribal beats. This high standard is maintained throughout, from the exotic, nu-disco-meets-tribal-meets-acid oddness of "Folklore", to the clarinet-laden, stretched-out goodness of "Ritual".

Review: Purveyors of fine underground music, Joe's Bakery, present undiscovered balearic beats, cosmic curveballs and obscure oddities from around the world. Limited to 300 copies worldwide, the next release features three tribal, exotic & leftfield tracks from Italian producer Jose Manuel with an added remix from the Joe's Bakery Band. Music to be played by the pool or under the discoball

Review: Italian producer Domenico Camarilla has hit a rich vein of form under the Jose Manuel guise of late, supplementing output on his own Black Pepper label with feted appearances for Tusk Wax, Is It Balearic?, Lectric Sands and Citizen Kane's Disques Sinthomme. Given his profile, a union with the Soft Rocks affiliated Kinfolk label makes utmost sense and Jose Manuel fans will find much to enjoy about Ajna. Both the title track and "The Clear After The Storm" are steeped in Eastern mysticism and feature heavy percussion from the man Manuel, whilst the accompanying Soft Rocks remix will appeal to fans of Rabih Beaini's "Tanki Tanki" edit.

Review: It certainly says something to be part of a label run by Japanese disco maker KZA, that JD Twitch, Eddie C and Jacques Renault have all been a part of. That's exactly what Jose Manuel has done by debuting on Let's Get Lost with a two-track 12". "A", for A-side, is a reverberating, string lead disco production that sounds as if it should be played in the midst of fire dancers thanks to its tribal percussion and late night oriental vibe. While "B", for B-side, is a gurgling analogue bassline mixed with obscure pipe playing, Roisin Murphy-sounding vocals spoken in another language and wood block knocks and tocks.

Review: Having firmly established themselves in the affections of the vinyl buying public, the ever expanding Tusk Wax operation don't rest on their laurels with this eighth release. The mysterious Jose Manuel - we presume an established producer operating under a pseudonym - is at the controls, and the Latin name should inform you with regards to the style within. The two A Side tracks from Manuel are essentially flamenco centric Balearica driven by strident mid tempo grooves - sort of like Quiet Village decamping to Sintra, Portugal and getting inspired by their mystical surrounds - while murky B Side jam "Obsession" is something altogether different. North East troupe Last Waltz step up to remix this latter track, invoking the spirit of John Carpenter with aplomb. Kudos to Tusk Wax for looking to expand on their sound!

Review: Black Pepper is a new independent label from Italy that combines cosmic disco, disco house and psychedelic rock.
The first release is signed by José Manuel and titled 'Fascino Di Altri Tempi', with remix of DJ and producer Fabrizio
Mammarella, known for his notorious productions on Bear Entertainment and Bear Funk. José Manuel , Italian DJ
and producer, has already produced 2 singles 'El Sonido De Pamela' on Eskimo and 'Il Giardino Dei Terrocchi' on
Kill The DJ.

Review: Eskimo Recordings is proud to welcome a new artist to its mansion. Domenico "José Manuel" Cantarella is a young Italian producer (only 24 years old!) and "El Sonido De Pamela" is his very first record. Expect some delicious spaced out cosmic disco grooves for those warm summer nights! Reactions: "Both tracks are cool. Perfect for weirdish warm-up. Eskimo Rules OK!" - Jerry Bouthier (Seven Magazine), "I dig both. slightly prefer the A-side" - Keith Mcivor (Optimo), "Very nice trax, deep and interesting. both are good but I prefer track 1" - Zak Frost (Nodisko), "Great! playing it out a lot." - Jonnie Optimo.

Review: Summer sounds couldn't soothe more.... Above Machine unite some of their most creative slo-mo vibe maestros for an ultimately sedate, sexy, sun-kissed set. Highlights include Jonny Nash's take on "Summer Wind"; a stark, piano and vocal led moment of solitude that whisks you off to faraway lands by way of expertly placed instruments, and Slo's subversion of "Another Day"; a misty early August morning that trembles with delicate guitars and yearning vocals that aren't dissimilar to Yannis Philippakis. Dig deep.

Review: The Cocktail D'Amour nights in Berlin overseen by DJ Boris - also a resident at Berghain - and Italian duo Discodromo make their first steps into the record label business with this fine sampler including input from Bottin, Hard Ton, Ichisan and Massimiliano Pagliara. Discodromo open proceedings on the Moustache Side with a delightfully crunchy version of Jose Manuel's "Vampyros In Love" all live sounding percussive patterns and dramatic arpeggiated bass throbs which lay down the scene for a full on acid freak out midway through. Bottin's contribution is just as impressive, once again turning to compatriot Miss Plug Inn for inspiration, adding a shuddering proto house feel to her track "Chanson D'Amour". On the flip, Hard Ton gets the remix treatment from Pagliara, whose treatment on the former's IDJ Gigolo B Side "Earthquake" brilliantly twists between a shimmering bed of synths and the tracks acid house origins and back again several times over. Ichisan completes this impressive clear vinyl pressing with the crazed synth funk vibes of "Neli".

Review: Last year discerning digger Jose Manuel gifted us with a first compilation of 'Obscure & Rhythmic Tunes', searching for deep cuts which fused the best of various cultural percussive styles with the emergent dance music of the early 90s. Now he's back for a second round, drawing further into the breakthrough years of the late 80s and coming up with some astounding cuts well outside the usual narrative around the advent of house music. Just check the bass heavy, piano laden thumper 'Sombras Na Calcada (Def Dub Mix)' by Civil and you'll hear exactly what we mean.