Broken Beat/Nu Jazz/Nu Soul charts

Review: Back in 2016, legendary Afrobeat drummer Tony Allen approached techno pioneer Jeff Mills with the idea of working together. A series of live gigs and off-the-radar studio sessions followed, with the first fruits of their joint efforts finally appearing on this must-have 10". As you'd expect, the duo's collaborative work combines Allen's traditional Nigerian polyrhythms, traditional Afrobeat instrumentation, and the far-sighted, sci-fi inspired electronic futurism that has always marked out Mills' work. The result is a quartet of cuts that could arguably be described as retro-futurist Afro-tech - all delay-laden beats, basslines and organs subtly sparring with gentle acid lines, Motor City electronics, beguiling deep space textures and shimmering, 31st century motifs. It's arguably Allen's stylistic contributions that dominate, but that's no bad thing.

Review: As fast-rising underground stars in their own right, you'd expect any collaborative album from soul-fired South London singer/songwriter/beat-maker Tom Misch and prolific jazz drummer Yussef Dayes (best known for his now long-running collaboration with Kamaal Williams) to be rather good. "What Kinda Music" is, with the pair mixing and mangling elements of soul, jazz-funk, electronica and jazz, a set that defies easy categorisation. Both musicians exceed themselves throughout, with tipsy electronics, sweeping strings, bass, effects-laden guitars, woozy synth lines and Misch's heartfelt, soul-flecked vocals offering a perfect foil for Dayes' loose-limbed, headline-grabbing drumming.

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: Oscar Jerome, Oscar Worldpeace and Franc Moody have got new music coming on the latest Blue Note Re:imagined compilation this year which is already getting us hella excited. Before we hear what is sure to be a contemporary great, we get treated to a couple of singles from it on this tidy 45 rpm. Jerome Oscar & Oscar Worldpeace go first with '(Why You So) Green With Envy' which fuses jazz styles for across the age with Worldpeace's tight and thoughtful bars. On the flip side is Franc Moody with 'Cristo Redentor' which balances jazz's traditional past with its freshest future.

Review: A few years after its release this Robert Glasper gets a well deserved deluxe edition. Black Radio is a landmark album that boldly stakes out new musical territory and transcends any notion of genre, drawing from jazz, hip-hop, R&B and rock, but refusing to be pinned down by any one tag. Black Radio also features many of Glasper''s famous friends from the spectrum of urban music, seamlessly incorporating appearances from a jaw-dropping roll call of special guests including Erykah Badu, Bilal, Lupe Fiasco, Lalah Hathaway, Shafi q Husayn (Sa-Ra), KING, Ledisi, Chrisette Michele and many more.

Review: Black Radio is a future landmark album that boldly stakes out new musical territory and transcends any notion of genre, drawing from jazz, hip-hop, R&B and rock, but refusing to be pinned down by any one tag. Black Radio also features many of Glasper''s famous friends from the spectrum of urban music, seamlessly incorporating appearances from a jaw-dropping roll call of special guests including Erykah Badu, Bilal, Lupe Fiasco, Lalah Hathaway, Shafi q Husayn (Sa-Ra), KING, Ledisi, Chrisette Michele, Musiq Soulchild, Meshell Ndegeocello, Stokley Williams (Mint Condition), and yasiin bey (Mos Def).

Review: 20 years after delivering her debut album, GRAMMY award-winning singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Me'Sgell NgegeOcello returns with her first album since 2018. Meant as a kind of re-set on her career and featuring nods to a wide array of musical influences, The Omnichord Real Book is a genuinely life-affirming affair with few, if any flaws. NgegeOcello makes use of a massive list of guest musicians and vocalists (Brandee Younger, Joan as Police Woman, Jeff Parker and Ambrose Akinmusire included) on tracks that variously mix, match and fuse everything from deep and spiritual jazz, soul, hip-hop and P-funk to highlife, gospel, jazz-dance and much more besides. The sound of the summer!.

Review: "It's a little bit of all of me, my travels, my life," says Meshell Ndgeocello, speaking of her latest album The Omnichord Real Book. Referring to the 'first real book' she ever read - the experience of life after her father's passing - the album is a testament to free-flowing, lived sensoriality in time. An antistatic rip-roar through memory and decay in blue, this is a stunning two-sided jazz-esque album packed with features and far-flung stylisms. In the artist's words, the LP slippily rails against the confines of the word 'jazz' itself. And if you can pull that off, well...

Review: A winningly presented live experience, Robert Glasper and his partners in time signatures perform a whirlwind set of favourites from the Black Radio collection. Highlights include the mindboggling rhythm and dexterity of "Stella By Starlight", the throaty monologue of the legend that is Harry Belafonte on "Got Over" and the softer, more reflective "The Worst". Live recordings go one of two ways; they either alienate you from the fun or they make you feel like you're right there in the front row. This is, without question, the latter. Beautiful.