Rocafort Spain Vinilo y CD

Review: The Circle of Confusion are a Swiss dub production duo, who, adding to their fast-growing repertoire of releases, now drop 'Soul Of A Lion', which features Wayne Paul, an English reggae singer who was mostly active in the 90s and 2000s. Though Paul disappeared from the scene towards the end of that period, he now returns with a defiant message of big-feline hope and reminiscence, sung against a modern reggae backing with a polished, 80s roots feel. "How you feeling right now... now that you're older and wiser?" he asks in the song. Alll the better now you're back, thanks for asking.

Review: Electro-disco bordering on future funk from Kokoro Disco San, the Barcelona trio behind the excellent 'Isla Fantasia' released a few years back. On the A-side comes 'The Brightest Light', corralling enchanting female vocals (those of Brigitte Emaga) on a driving, French-house reminiscent accompaniment, amount to a watery poolside bounce. The B-side's 'Mistura Magica', meanwhile, is skewed to be more organic and comes as an impactful but relaxed foray through tropical futurisms and technicolour flute soarings by Irene Reig.

Review: Germany's Mighty Mocambos are one of the flagship funk outfits on the scene right now and this new 45rpm on Rocafort Records shows why. It was recorded live on tape during the Queen 16 B-Girl battle in Berlin back in 2022. Opener 'International Cypher' brings a fresh take on funk with oriental overtones thanks to an electric Phin, which is a Thai guitar, being heavily deployed throughout over bristling drums that are raw and hit hard. On the flip, 'Queen 16 Theme' is more lively and loose limbed with a jumble of drums and expressive horns leading the charge.

Review: Rocafort Records took a trip to LA last summer to meet Dan Ubick, a multi-instrumentalist, composer, producer and DJ who is also an original member of Breakestra and founding member of reggae bands The Lions and Night Owls. They decided to hook up on this project which he devised as a couple of instrumentals which then changed form and became the Brazilian-inspired hip-hop sounds you can hear on this 7". Percussion player Bobby Easton, singer Diana Purim and Sadat X from NYC's Brand Nubian also helped add some extra colour.

Review: The popular Spanish ensemble Pyramid Blue come back, and do so in brilliantly fantastic fashion with this red-hot new 7" featuring a captivating mix of Afrofunk and Ethio Jazz. Oscar Martos is the composer and producer who heads up this group and is fresh off big collabs with Tito Ramirez. He manages to draw from modern sounds as well as classic genre tropes here and push both into all new ground with 'Lince Rojo' opening up with an enchanting lead and raw rhythms. On the B-side, 'Doctor One' brings a hint of hip hop edge to psyched-out guitars and cosmic synths.

Review: The love affair between Colombia and African music tracks back to the 17th Century and the establishment of San Basilio de Palenque, the first free town in colonial Latin America which offered refuge and commune for Black slaves. It was a place where African culture could thrive and joyously intermingle with local customs, and centuries later the Afro-Caribbean communities in Colombia established their own twist on Jamaican soundsystem culture in the 20th Century known as 'picos', where styles such as Kenyan Benga music were able to wow crowds on homemade rigs. This compilation takes a loving look at the unique guitar-picking style which developed its own distinct qualities that could only come from one time and place at the intersection of vibrant cultures.