Back catalogue: Disco/Reediciones

Review: After an absence of a few years, 40 Thieves return to Leng Records with one of their most special releases to date: a hook-up with long-time Patrick Adams collaborator Gary Davis and long serving soulstress Cinammon Jones. What's on offer is a re-make of one of Jones' songs, 'The Gift', whose sweet lyrics celebrate the arrival of a new day. 40 Thieves take, explored first in the A-side 'Disco Mix', sounds like it was designed to be danced to during a San Francisco sunrise - think dub disco delays, hypnotic grooves, bubbly electronics, languid guitar licks and gentle melodies. Over on the flip, they take the track further into 'woozy 6am open air dancing territory' on a superb, stretched out 'Disco Dub' mix, before peppering a killer drum track with spaced-out electronics on the 'Beats' version.

Review: Bongo Joe and Sofa Records' third instalment of the Maghreb K7 Club Disco Single series dives deep into Algeria's vibrant 1980s scene, offering four tracks that shine a light on the region's overlooked gems. The A-side is led by two irresistible pop-boogie-funk tracks from Khaled Barkat: 'Galouli Enshara' and 'Zourini'. Self-taught and self-produced in 1983, Barkat's music was a hit at the time but got overshadowed by the rising tide of rai. His dynamic collaboration with Yazid Fentazi, Redouane Ayoub, and Mhenni Benlala resulted in a sound that blends infectious grooves with local flair. Now, for the first time, these tracks are on vinyl, offering fresh ears the chance to rediscover a key player in Algeria's pop history. Cheb Tati takes over on the B-side with 'Dub El Hammam', a heavyweight dub number that showcases his range as a rai vocalist. Tati was flown to London in 1989 to work with dub pioneer Denis Bovell, and this track is a standout from their sessions, merging the pulsating rhythms of reggae with a distinctly North African flavour. Closing out the release is the Kabyle band Asif, whose only known recording, 'Tafsut', serves as a fitting finale. Formed by three brothers in Lille during the late 70s, this beautifully crafted pop-boogie track captures the band's unique sound, bringing a sense of nostalgia and triumph to the collection.

Review: Periodica sublabel Serie Pegaso launched last year to carry further works from the network of artists related to the Italian groove stable. After a mini album from Rosa and an LP from The Funkin' Machine, the latest drop features a new project called Capinera. If you're into any of the sounds Periodica are known for, you're sure to find a lot to love about this sunny slice of synthy, yacht-ready disco funk. 'Il Volo' is nestled on the A-side in a swirl of smooth sax, mellow chords and a supremely laid back rhythm section. 'Suonno' on the flip has a slightly peppier step, but it's still chilled enough to keep from breaking a sweat. This is sophisticated party music, after all.

Review: Parisian crew Discomatin have come up with some little known boogie brilliance here from Belgian producer Jay Alansky, with lyrics by Jacques Duvall and falsetto vocals from Clara Capri. It's a fine fusion of Italo disco basslines, shimmering electronics and 80s pop and r&b, with more than a hint of early house vibes also thrown in for good measure. All remastered from the original tapes, the tracks are loud and crisp and are perfect dance floor hymns. The long version is the one DJs will reach for, with its sleek lines and hypnotic leads all finished with some elastic bass.

Review: The Shaketown series returns with Caribbean Shaketown EP, an energetic blend of zouk classics, each track reimagined with a vibrant twist. Noema and Magic Jams guide this release, continuing the legacy of Noema's celebrated edit of Ata Kak's 'Daa Nyinaa'. The EP is a rhythmic journey across four tracks, each radiating warmth and life, making it a perfect addition to any Balearic-leaning set. 'Zisou (Magic Jams' Dub Edit)' kicks things off with smooth percussion and layered synths that simmer beneath the surface, giving just enough room for the bassline to shine. The magic continues with 'Soleil Choco (Magic Jams' Extended Club Remix)', blending deep grooves with expansive melodies to create a sun-drenched anthem, the type that transports you straight to the beach at twilight. On the flip, Noema's 'Love Energy' edit slows the pace slightly, balancing nostalgic vocals with dreamy pads, maintaining that irresistible pull towards the dancefloor. Closing things out is 'Cha Cha (Magic Jams' Rondo Edit)', a joyous, percussion-led workout that weaves playful rhythms with a Caribbean flair. Proceeds from this EP will support the Love and Hope Music School in Haiti, adding a heartwarming layer to this already exceptional release. Four tracks that deliver both musically and ethically, ensuring Caribbean Shaketown stands as a must-have for lovers of Balearic beats and zouk-inspired grooves.

Review: Priscilla Chan's critical Cantopop stylings return to the fore with a brilliant reissued EP through German label Thank You. It's proven admittedly impossible to track down any info on the motive for this one, save for its faithful unearthing of Chan's 1998 classic 'African Dance', which fuses the lively call-and-responsive musical motifs heard on the Continent with the dance-pop sensibility of her very own. Thereafter come three much more balladic bowl-overs, which reach their zenith on the unnamed 'Track 4', an incredible instrumental production that pits an undeniably eighties instrumental palette against a frankly heartfelt piano line.

Review: We're promised Mellow Magic and that's precisely what we get, across four tracks emerging from disparate corners of the globe but united in a common mission to provide beats that work on the more relaxed end of the dancefloor. Belgian duo Charlotte & Reinhard of Rheinzand fame kick things off with a slow motion Balearic version of a well known 80s MOR classic. Ollie Loudon's 'L.M.T.' finally makes it to vinyl after long being a secret weapon in Gratts' DJ sets, where handclaps and languid strumming meet a gentle but infectious groove. Flip it over for the more tracky affairs, as Japan's Lily Ko makes an impressive debut with 'Pure Rubber', an original mix of disco foundations and always snazzy but never showy 80s synth play. Melbourne's Biancolato finishes things off with understated deep house shuffling that adds just a touch jazzy keys and dreamy, wispy pads.

Review: Clarita y Los Pecho Lobo's Marcelo EP encapsulates a mesmerising nightlife narrative through diverse mixes. The original version unfolds with evocative imagery of strobe-lit trajectories and cocktail-fueled allure, set against a backdrop of pastel shirts and Cuban-heeled boots. The Energy Mix amplifies the pulse with its extended dancefloor vigor, while the Club House Version infuses a deeper, rhythmic groove. The Makina Mix adds an edgy, experimental flair, contrasting with the stripped-back intimacy of the Acappella. Each iteration enriches the nocturnal saga, where encounters like Marcelo's magnetic presence and seductive allure unfold effortlessly. This release not only celebrates musical diversity but also paints a vivid tableau of desire and escapism, echoing through the pulse of the night.

Review: Although their collaborative releases as Black Spuma are more sporadic than we may like, Fabrizio Mammarella and Phillip Lauer never fail to deliver the goods on the rare occasions that they get together in the studio. The Hypercall EP is their first joint effort for two years and sees them pitch up on Live at Robert Johnson for the first time following a series of inspired outings on International Feel and Futureboogie Recordings. After opening with the rugged by colourful Italo-disco revivalism of 'Station to Station', the pair variously offer up synth-heavy high-energy excitement (the Bobby Orlando-influenced 'Transpork'), bleeping, rave-igniting hedonism (the pleasingly throbbing, camp and masculine 'Miracoli'), and squelchy, acid-flecked electro ('Data Life').

Review: It is time to succumb to the sounds of the Magic Wand label once more and this eighth sonic spell is another one that will leave you happily helpless. It finds the Coyote lads step away from their fine work on Is It Balearic? to cook up two top edits. First up they offer 'Lonely' - a broody, steamy and shimmering tropical Balearic workout and then comes the organic and lazy drums of 'Western Revolution' with an iconic gravelly vocal. There are folk-tinged Americana sounds on 'Love Home' and laid-back disco licks on the seductive 'Luca' to make this a summer party essential.

Review: Don't let the "Coldwave" tag fool you: this EP from Dutch archival imprint Music From Memory is every bit as glassy-eyed and loved-up as the rest of their left-of-centre, Balearic-minded catalogue. German drummer and composer Curt Cress first released "Dschung Tek" in 1992, layering his own dense tribal drums across a tropical, ambient house and dream house influenced backing track on the brilliant "Long Version", before stripping it back to a loved-up, Ibiza-friendly house cut on the "No Live Drums" version. Both mixes can be found on this reissue, alongside a trio of similarly percussive, tropical-minded cuts from the artist's 1983 LP, "Avanti". All three are ace and almost as good as the more floor-focused title track.

Review: Earlier this year, French disco and jazz-funk combo Chatobaron joined forces with fellow Parisian Dimitri From Paris for the rather good 'I Like (The Music That You Play)'. While that was a wholehearted disco workout, this speedy sequel sees the band (and their high-profile collaborator) explore their West Coast jazz-funk influences via an inspired workout full to bursting with killer instrumental solos, dusty grooves, memorable motifs and a genuinely killer, cowbell-sporting percussion brerak. This time round, there are no Dimitri From Paris remixes; instead, dubbed-out disco favourites the Idjut Boys are on hand to smother the track in tape echo and dub delay. The result is a typically spaced-out, low-slung affair that naturally makes the most of the band's killer bassline and layered percussion sounds.

Review: Midnight Riot help the listener carve out their own personal Balearic headspaces with their new compilation Balearic Headspace, likening the "experience" of Balearic not just to a sound, but an affect, one that cannot be experienced without specific records or specific times and places. Do we believe it to be true? We may or may not, but that doesn't distract from the whopping curation job here, with most tunes on offer consisting of both total newness and reworks/revisions by the Midnight Riot crew; this 12" is a four-track selection of a wider 19-track digital comp. Our highlight has to be the ultra-smeary Tom Moulton mix of 'This Is Caribbean Disco' by Fsq, which floats atop a serious floe of stretched-out axe bubble and echoing crosstick, as its lyrics deal in word-painted themes of being held underwater. As mindfully, cognitively Balearic as it gets!

Review: While this fabulous album may sound old - as if it was an obscure, jazz-funk-tinged Italian disco release from 1982 - it is in fact brand, spanking new, making it the first new LP of original material released by legendary Italian imprint Best Record in over four decades. Created by Raffaele 'Whodammy' Arcella and Cosimo Cosmo Mandorino, it offers the same kind of boundary-blurring fusion of early '80s boogie, electro, low-tempo Italo-disco, jazz-funk, disco, Afro-cosmic and colourful Balearic pop (with a few cheeky raps and spoken word vocal passages thrown in) as the Neopolitan albums of the early-to-mid 1980s that inspired them. It's a brilliant set all told - one that authentically pays tribute to their influences and inspirations while offering something genuinely new and exciting.

Review: While it's a cliche to describe Balearic-minded releases as being "sun-soaked" and "sunset-ready", they're both descriptors that accurately reflect the gorgeously warm, melodious and laidback sound of Japanese outfit Coastlines. Their second self-titled album is every bit as inspired as its predecessor and offers a range of tracks built around layered, intricate instrumentation, gently shuffling rhythms and vivid daydreams about beachside walks in sunnier climes. Our picks of a very strong bunch include the Andreas Vollenweider-inspired slo-mo Latin shuffle of 'Tenderly', the blazed deep jazz-funk of 'Alicia', the piano-laden early morning wonder of 'Night Cruise' and the squelchy future boogie of 'Sky Island'. In a word: sumptuous!

Review: Balearic scene stalwarts Chris Coco and DJ Rocca are old pals, with the pair first working together five years ago on an EP released by Faze Action's FAR imprint. Cocorocca, though, is their first collaborative full-length - a set that cannily combines Coco's love of fluid pianos, tactile downtempo grooves and sun-soaked ambient textures with DJ Rocca's passion for dubby basslines, moon-lit low-tempo nu-disco, starry Balearic synth-pop and the trippy and psychedelic ethos of Italy's 1980s Afro-cosmic scene. As a result, there's plenty of subtle variety on show - compare, for example, the dubbed-out slow acid oddness of '303/808' with the sunset-ready dancefloor colour of 'Sunshine Love' and the slap bass wielding dub disco madness of 'Night Dubbin' - as well as plenty club-ready material.

Review: Best known for producing chart-topping disco anthems like the Sylvester-fronted 'Do You Wanna Funk?' - that still crop up in DJs like Juan Atkins' sets to this day, Cowley died in 1982 due to an AIDS-related illness. He left an incredible body of work but since 2009, the Dark Entries label has been working with Cowley's friends and family to uncover the singular artist's lesser-known sides such as his soundtracks for gay pornographic films. Malebox brings us six more recent discoveries from the hidden archives, very much in the churning disco-funk and hi-NRG areas that we've come to know and love as trademark Cowley. Recorded from 1979-1981, one of Patrick's most creatively exciting periods, this bumper pack includes early Paul Parker demos 'If You Feel It' and 'Love Me Hot', a demo version of 'Low Down Dirty Rhythm' with Jeanie Tracy's vocals, plus 'Floating', 'Love and Passion' and 'A Wicked Tool', all infectious and brimming with joyfulness and futuristic exploration. Also included is an air mail envelope containing a letter from Patrick Cowley to French disco producer Pierre Jaubert as well as liner notes and hand-written lyrics. Malebox will be released on November 12, the 40th anniversary of Patrick's passing.

Review: Legendary DJ Guy Cuevas has his own music compiled here by Libreville Records. It's a magnificent showcase of his sounds which range from disco to jazz to afro. The French-Cuban writer, musician, and DJ has one been a mainstay on the Paris scene as resident at the mythical nightclub Le Palace. His ability to take crowds to euphoria knew no bounds and in the 80s he managed to turn out plenty of tracks that also help get you there. His most famous tune 'Obsessions' gets a new remix here amongst loads of other gems.