Back catalogue: Broken Beat/Nu Jazz/Nu Soul

Review: "Everything Can Wait", by 4T4, features London singer Nina Babet. Remixes include a very deep house remix with a kicking TR-808 by Bobby Ewing of Shameboy and Discobar Galaxie fame. There is also a great disco-not-disco remix by 4T4 himself that sounds like a re-edit of some 1978 club classic.

Review: This is still only just the beginning of all things Wax On; call it the second chapter maybe. With this 2nd 12" teaser
for the upcoming Wax On label compilation 'Nightmares On Wax presents WAX ON records', (Coming in March 2008)
NoW mastermind DJ E.A.S.E. introduces the next wave of blessed Waxonians to the world of the good groove. By
now, you should have heard about our man Guts, from Paris, conquering both airwaves and hearts on a global scale.
Would the indestructible Stereo MCs deliver a killer remix for him if he wasn't the sh1t? See. And here it is: crafted to
make you look around before you start to wiggle your butt to the Stereo's beat... And as for Wax On's very own
Negghead from Leeds, all things gotta have that certain funk anyway. Negghead's 'Reporter' is sure to appear on
90% of the better compilations out there over the course of the next year, you bet.

Review: This summer sees the second release of the "Swedu.s.h Connection" series. This time Texas-based DJ Chicken George compiles a stunning four track EP with various artists from all over the US, stretching from San Francisco in the west to Philly in the east. Following the success of his release "The Swedu.s.h Connection 1", DJ Chicken George has emerged as a globetrotting groove merchant whose diverse sessions are unpredictable, energetic and heartfelt.

Review: The first track to be taken off the debut album "Territory: World", "Out Of Money" features one of the hottest new UK talents: Sean Leander (aka Master Slim, aka The Good Samaritan), alongside his partner Nico, delivers some irresistibly positive raps about being outta wonga. "Money makes the world go round, Although for me it is the root of all evil." explains Slim: "This is a song with a slight comical twist meaning as funny as it comes across, it's as serious as it can get. The message is that almost everybody has experienced what it's like to go without money; but it's up to us to teach ourselves how to deal with that and not to see it in a negative way. In other words, don't let money rule your life. Money rules the world. Well sadly it does. But my interpretation on this record is supposed to encourage others to see money from another angle or a different perspective. Of course we all need money nowadays to survive but it should not be our main goal as it can very suddenly create greed, unhappiness and destroy lives quicker than we think. There are enough examples out there in the world right in front of us. A few outsiders asked me why I was rapping about being outta money and not about bling bling! Like the majority of rappers. They couldn't understand which just goes to show how corrupt our world really is."

Review: Former Bugz In The Attic crewmember Alex Phountzi first joined forces with fellow broken beat pioneer IG Culture four years ago. Together, they launched the NameBrandSound project with a tidy EP of bass-weight business on Ninja Tune's Technicolour offshoot. Here the experienced twosome return with their first - and presumably only - missive of 2018. A-side "Shrunken Heads" is something of a percussive, off-kilter dancefloor beast, as the duo re-imagines Talking Heads classic "Once In A Lifetime" as a rolling, bruk-up floor-filler. Over on side B, "Bebop" sees them pepper another swinging, house-influenced bruk-up rhythm with lashings of synth-sax and some suitably shimmering chords.

Review: Earlier in the year, crate digger and radio host DJ Oonops put together a collection of early works by Japanese nu-jazz trio Nautilus for Agogo Records. It's perhaps unsurprising, then, that he's managed to tease a previously unheard track out of the band for his forthcoming Oonops Drops compilation. That track, "Root Down" is showcased here. Featuring the Bajka-like vocals of German chanteuse Fleur Earth, the track is a low-slung chunk of jazz-funk/soul fusion blessed with rubbery bass guitar, warm organ licks and some crispy drum breaks. The quality of the trio's instrumentation can be admired further on the vocal-free B-side version, which Agogo says will only ever be available on this 7".

Review: An awesome and super catchy cover of the Stevie Wonder classic. It's a great mix of soul and 60's pop with a dash of electronic flavour. Includes vocal and dub mixes. "A truly refreshing update of a Stevie classic. a long term beauty!"

Review: Nick Nack, best known for his scratch records and instrumental hip hop releases, gives us this well-rounded EP of breaks and scratch sounds. It includes Latin-sounding breaks, funky drumming, and a great range of material for manipulating at the end of side B.

Review: "Back From Africa" is the third 12" from the fine "Endangered Species" full length album by Nickodemus. The A-side gives us the two album mixes of "Back From Africa" & "Peace Pipe". Both have been favorites amongst DJ's over the Globe. "Back From Africa" is a festive African dance groove with guitar & lots of percussion. The Derek Sessions remix takes it a notch deeper into Broken beat deep dancefloor house.

Review: "Funky In The Middle" is a midtempo groove that features Jay Rogriguez of the Groove Collective on sax & Victor Axelrod of Antibalas on clavinet. The remix by Haaksman & Haaksman drops into a steady reggae stepper groove & deepens it a notch. On the flipside, the critic's choice cut on the album, "Crazy Stranger," takes us on a 125 BPM trip from the Blakans to Jerusalem and beyond. Featured musician, Harel Shachal of the group Anistar brings in textures of Turkish flute, sax & melodica while Tortured Soul's Ethan White on the keys locks into the heavy rhythms.

Review: "Give the Drummer Some" is the second 12" from the fine "Endangered Species" full length album by Nickodemus. It features the vocal stylings of Dionysos & Stimulus of the underground NYC group Real Live Show & the one & only Nappy G on percussion. Real Live Show has been tearing up the live hip hop scene in NYC for the past 2 years with raw, undiluted rhymes. Nappy G was the percussive backbone of Giant Step, the Repercussions & Groove Collective for many years & is currently the third member of Turntables On The Hudson for the past 7 years. This collaboration of beats rhymes & percussion make this a positive jem for both the radio & dancefloors. On the flipside, we have the funky Fort Knox 5 out of Washington DC with another heavy dancefloor remix. Also included on this 12" is the deep Balkan, middle eastern, hip hop instrumental called "Global Village". Global Village is an extension of the classic Nickodemus style of beats like "Cleopatra In New York" & "Desert Dancer".

Review: Second single release from Nicolette's current album, "Life Loves Us". Melodic and funky yet deep and hard with superb remixes by Filewile, Electric Blanket, Plaid.

Review: Get down to some groovy mid paced funkiness on the A-side with its 70s horns and vocal snippets straddling a very phat beat. Flip it for a similar vibe with some serious P-funk attitude going on. The whole thing has an almost old school Daft Punk feel and is perfect for bars, warm-up sets and house parties.

Review: Kindred Spirits turns on things Afrobeat and chooses a new band called Nomo from Michigan, USA to start off a new series called "Afro Soul". They released their debut album last year independently in the USA and Kindred Spirits has licensed its favourite four tracks from this album to present you this killer afrobeat EP. This EP brings you Afrobeat in the best Fela tradition and even goes beyond that adding new flavour. For those who have been into Antibalas Orchestra (some members also feature in this band), this will definitely hit you hard! Nomo has already received a wealth of praise from critics: the record received a four-star rating from All Music Guide. They will release an album on Ubiquity later this year. Nomo's debut harnesses the raw powers of seventeen Detroit area musicians into a post-afrobeat dance party in shiny disc form. The album, written and arranged by Elliot Bergman and produced by Detroit studio wizard Warn De Fever, is a booming testament to the power of hot horns and heavy percussion. Nomo sets the room on fire with four drummers, wah-wah guitars, fender rhodes, organs, and a deep horn section, all contributing raw and soulful performances. This diverse group of men and women come together under a flag of dance beats and adventurous collective improvisation. "The seven piece brass section led by Bergman is commanding from start to finish, shining on the fiery opener "Discontinued" and cutting a deep groove on "Moving in Circles".

Review: Includes previously unreleased cover of Sun Ra's "Rocket #9". Made with the dancefloor in mind. Nomo's horn section and percussion blaze into gear after a noisy intro and the track never lets up. Michigan's Matthew Dear (Ghostly) steps up with a Detroit tinged remix on the flip. Bounding along with the rhythmic feel of the original, Dear crafts an electronic, minimal but very dance floor friendly techno mix comparable with his best output. For your Theo Parrish, Carl Craig, Hawtin, Kompakt fans.

Review: Over the course of four years, two solo albums and a handful of singles, Benedic Lamdin (aka Nostalgia 77) has gradually allowed his passion for the music of the free jazz era to come to the fore. A fast developing talent for composition and arrangement soon overshadowed his prodigious studio-based production skills, prompting him to form a live incarnation of the Nostalgia 77 sound. In February 2006, just as their debut "Sevens & Eights: Live At The Jazz Café" album was released to widespread acclaim, The Nostalgia 77 Octet locked themselves away for a week in a cottage in the Welsh valleys. In addition to an albums-worth of rehearsed material (due for release in late 2006), the trip resulted in a series of spontaneous free jazz pieces. "The Impossible Equation" is an engrossing 22 minute catharsis (it was the final recording the group made during their time in Wales.) This deeply atmospheric piece sounds incredibly coherent; especially considering that it was entirely improvised. Beginning quietly with the sound of a single shaker, 'The Impossible Equation' gradually builds into a swirling groove of cacophonous drums and horns. The arrival of the double bass signals a change in time, daring others to follow suit. As the trombone soars high over the mid-section, passing the baton to the piano, a trance-like state descends over the piece, setting the mood for a beautiful, bittersweet finale. On the B Side, the Octet perform a cover version of a modal jazz piece originally recorded by Horace Tapscott's Pan-African People's Arkestra. Inspired (aesthetically as well as spiritually) by their great reverence for the pioneers of jazz, the Octet recorded the album using vintage equipment, capturing the warmth and atmosphere of the classic '60s albums. Even the minimalist sleeve design was inspired by the 'no-frills' look of the golden era. "The Impossible Equation" is something truly special from the Tru Thoughts camp - an impulsive and fiercely inventive album steeped in the traditions of improvised jazz music. Fans of Ben's music will be enthralled by the new territories explored by the Octet, newcomers will recognize them as luminaries of the UK jazz scene.

Review: Nova Dream Sequence bestows his fans with an another fine three track EP including two remixes only available on this 12".

Review: The name and music of Ntjamrosie is fast becoming more and more popular in Holland. With performances supporting the likes of Erykah Badu in Paradiso, Roy Ayers at the Seven Bridges Festival and a slot at the Pure Jazz Festival, Ntjamrosie is melting the hearts of a growing number of people. "Patience" is a top single that should keep you all going until the album is released.

Review: You'll struggle to find a more gorgeously summery cut than "Space Above Us", the opening cut from Marc Mac's latest EP under the Nu Era alias. The track's genius lies in its surging positivity, as bright synthesizer lines and rich, Motor City influenced chord progressions dance across a jazz-fuelled house groove. There's much smiling cheeriness to behold elsewhere across the EP, too, from the classic Detroit techno-goes-deep house bliss of "Lines Between Us", to the space funk-inspired broken house brightness of "Octahedron" and loose, string-drenched breakbeat workout "Heartstrings". In other words, it's another fine collection of musically rich dancefloor cuts from the reliable 4 Hero man.

Review: Under the Nu Era alias, 4 Hero's Marc Mac has delivered his best material in years. Earlier in 2017, he served up the Geometricks EP, which boasted arguably one of the most overwhelmingly positive and melodious tracks of the summer ("Space Above Us"). There's predictably plenty of similarly sublime and life-affirming material on this follow-up 12". Check, for example, the vintage techno sounds, spacey Herbie Hancock style synth solos and bustling jazz-house rhythms of "Phoenix", the rush-inducing, synth-heavy deep house positivity of "Galaxian" and the 8-bit electro/jazz-funk fusion of "Atari 800". "Afroboticks", a luscious and loved-up fusion of Detroit techno futurism, sumptuous deep house and spiraling synthesizer lines, is also superb.

Review: Legendary jazz label Blue Note has tapped up the super hot nine-piece Afro-jazz outfit Nubiyan Twist for their own new version of Donald Byrd's song 'Through The Noise.' It features on the 16-track Blue Note Re:imagined II collection that is due soon, but first also gets its own pressing here. Heavy swing, garage and 2-step all colour their version with broken-beat, afrobeat and bebop also colouring the fresh sounding grooves. The lyrics build the reimagined concept and make for a stunning new piece. On the flip is another gem in the form of Swindle's 'Miss Kane.'

Review: Tobias Meggle (aka Sandboy) has built up a musical universe, which has earned him the respect of many colleagues. With infectious ease he blends broken beat with Afro and Latin influences and dresses the result up in an ethereal sound-robe full of depth. His musical style has not only impressed listeners and the international press but also companions like Peter Kruder, LTJ Bukem and Makossa. "Night Song" unites all of the Sandboy trademark sounds: exotic instruments (balaphone) integrated in a sound-scape as natural as it is elegant, a luscious, intelligently grooving back-beat, flowing basslines, horns and of course the voice of Nanar Vorperian.