OKINAWA DELAYS Vinilo y CD

Review: Okinawa Delays came through a few years ago with a captivating, modern update on the City Pop sound that made Japan as smooth as possible back in the late 1970s and early 80s. The second release on Archipelago sees them turning out more beautifully rendered pop in the form of "Just A Little Lovin'", a melancholic downtempo track to swoon to. DJ Pippi and Willie Graff are first up in the remix department with a respectfully gentle house treatment that offers up a different angle on the track. Seahawks get the run of the B side to create a beguiling, heavily reverbed take that casts adrift for distant, imaginary shores in a shower of strung out, soulful bombast.

Here are a few which are less of a priority, these need to be done by the end of the week:

Review: Japanese Balearic crew Okinawa Delays have long been friends with Tokyo-based Brit Max Essa, while the latter previously remixed one of their tracks for Mudd's Claremont 56 label. Now they've taken their musical partnership to a whole new level by offering up their first joint single. In its original form, "I Can't Sleep" adds an attractive female vocal to a sparkling, ear-catching backing track rich in bubbly nu-disco bass, White Isle-ready piano riffs, swirling synthesizer pads, typically Japanese melodies and mid-tempo beats that boast just the right amount of dancefloor weight. The accompanying remix package is strong, too, with a wonderful dream house interpretation by Italian veterans Leo Mas and Fabrice being joined by a funky Balearic disco take from nu-disco master Pete Herbert.