Compilation Recommendations October 2014

Review: Given the infamous depth of Nick The Record's vinyl collection, you'd expect this contribution to Z Records' excellent Under The Influence series to be packed to the rafters with unheralded gems. Predictably, it is, delivering 22 cuts that should be thrillingly new to all but the most dusty-fingered collectors. Picking out highlights from such an excellent and in-depth collection is tough, but try the steel drums-laden celebration of Boogsie's "Can't You See Me", the synth-laden jazz-funk badness of "Keep Your Shoes" by MC and His Great Googa-Moogas, and the fizzing, melody-rich 808 electro of Ronnie Jones "Video Games". If that's not enough there's also a swathe of DJ-friendly re-edits from Nick himself.

Review: The first installment of Kelvin Andrews & Balearic Mike's Down To The Sea & Back series, released back in 2010, was something of a classic - a Balearic compilation that largely eschewed the tried-and-tested in favour of deliciously wide-eyed obscurities. This second edition, expanded to two discs, is another belter. Highlights are naturally plentiful, from an eccentric French cover of reggae classic "Chase The Devil" (Dou Dou's "Chocolate Out Vanile Reggae") and the shimmering electronics of Chris and Cosey, to Ned Doheny's stoner-rock cover of Tata Vega's disco classic "Give It Up For Love". There's also some thrillingly wide-eyed slo-mo disco in the shape of Clout's brilliant "Sunshine Baby" and a chunk of African drum voodoo from Guem Et Zaca Percussion. Perfect.

Review: It's taken Defected a while to get round to putting together a Masters at Work retrospective for their popular House Masters series. Given the New York duo's legendary status, this is something of a surprise. This CD edition does a good job in rounding up some of their highlights, touching on forgotten gems as well as well-known anthems ("The Nervous Track", the brilliant "The Ha Dance"). It's nice to revisit the MAW-produced 1994 cut "Voices in My Mind" (effectively a side project featuring regular vocalist India), and, in particular, the stomping, piano-laden soulful house flex of Kenny and Louie's classic Dub of Lood and Donell Rush's "Shout N Out".

Review: Prins Thomas' first commercially available DJ mix, 2007's Cosmic Galactic Prism, was something of a masterclass in dancefloor-friendly eclecticism, effortlessly joining the dots between a myriad of sounds and styles whilst retaining a decidedly intergalactic feel. Pleasingly, Rainbow Disco Club Volume 1 - released in celebration of the annual Tokyo festival of the same name - is similarly inspirational. Featuring some 26 tracks crammed onto one disc, it impressively joins the dots between the demented space disco of DJ Fett Burger and Speckgurtel, the fuzzy house intensity of Theo Parrish's rework of Helium Robots, the spiralling loop techno of Surgeon (here remixing Bee Mask), and the sweaty, bass-driven broken house brilliance of General Ludd. And that's just for starters.

Review: Danny Tenaglia is a stone cold legend, but his profile has waned significantly over recent years. Given that it's 25 years since the release of his first production, this first contribution to the Balance series - and his first DJ mix full stop since 2008 - is well timed. Pleasingly, it seems Tengalia still "has it it". Throughout the two discs, the veteran NYC DJ maintains a fearsome energy level, mixing things up via a track list that spans chunky tech-house, darkroom tribal, heavily percussive fare (see Michel Cleis' dub of Basement Jaxx's "Mermaid of Salinas") and intelligent techno revivalism (Dax J's brilliant "Dreamscape" and Ho's "Deletion 3"). It is, of course, mixed impeccably, as you'd expect from a man with Tengalia's undoubted pedigree.

Review: [Emotional] Especial looks back at the first 9 releases since its inception to provide a
selection or "Eleccio" via a special dubbed out DJ meets studio mix from label stalwart
Jamie Paton. Ever since the first white labels appeared at the end of Summer 2013, [Emotional] Especial
has been busy putting out music that are their own warped take on club music. Mixing the
influences of dub, electro, disco, proto-house, house and techno, a sound appeared without any preordained plan. To celebrate the end of the first series of releases come EES10CD - a DJ meets studio
compilation mix created by label artist, remixer and even in-house designer, Jamie Paton. Freaturing tracks from every EP, including two unreleased remixes are the tight productions
of Richard Sen; the wiggle of Scott Fraser; deep, chugging Cage & Aviary dubs; the Eastern
influences of Baris K and newcomers Khidja; the quirky discoid wonk of Maurice & Charles and finally not forgetting of course, the stand out Timothy J Fairplay touches. Whether
alongside Mr Weatherall, Andy Blake or in solo remix mode, young "Junior"s skills (and name)
grows and grows.
All this is perfectly put together by Jamie Paton, the man who launched the label with his
Bizarre Feeling EP. As well as the inclusion of several unreleased cuts, Jamie has edited the
"selection", adding live studio dubbing, FX and the odd mega-mix to make it truly (E)special.

Review: Summer may be officially over in the UK, but in the world of Hot Creations, it never stops. Here, Jamie Jones and co. delivers a collection of Hot Summer Jams - tracks that have been doing the business around the festival circuit during 2014. With all the label's major players contributing fresh new cuts, there's plenty to tickle the fancy for fans of the imprints. Musically, it saunters between deeper, woozier fare (see Jamy Wing's "Attention" and Jamie Jones deep acid chugger "People From The Moon") and more upbeat, bumpin' concoctions (DJ Le Roi, Patrick Topping's standout "Too Much"), all the while retaining the label's trademark powder house sound.

Review: Yes! The Godson is back doing his thing for Rush Hour! Detroit legend Rick Wilhite first put his compiling skills to play for the Amsterdam empire back in 2010 with the excellent Vibes New & Rare Music, an 11-track release that celebrated the role the esteemed selector and producer played in moulding local Detroit tastes as the head of the Vibes New & Rare Music record store. Theo Parrish, Glenn Underground and Marcellus Pittman all contributed, whilst the compilation also worked as a platform to introduce newer names such as Kyle Hall and Ricardo Miranda. A second volume is most welcome and expands Wilhite's remit to include music by producers from Detroit, Chicago and New York. This CD edition kicks off with a sublime production from Blaze's Josh Milan and doesn't let up on the heat, with Jovonn, K Alexi and a collaborative cut from Wilhite and Norm Talley amongst the highlights.

Review: The third instalment of Hyperdub's expansive tenth anniversary series is probably the most surprising volume yet. Having already celebrated their roster's dancefloor credentials and song writing skills, HYperdub 10.3 suggests the UK operation has plenty of artists capable of crafting ambient, experimental electronics. In practice, that means two discs of woozy, dreamy, sparse and occasionally melancholic beatless fare - all drifting synths, dusty textures and far-sighted electronics. While you'd expect Dean Blunt , The Bug or Burial to produce quality ambience (the latter's "Night Bus" being a compilation highlight), it's more of a surprise to find pitch-perfect contributions from Darkstar, Kode9 (the creept "Pink Sham Pain Down The Drain") and Cooly G, whose "Trying" is a comforting wash of spacey chords, ricocheting hits and fluttering vocal samples.