Tags: Disco House

Review: Put simply, Loose Ends' 1985 hit 'Hangin' On A String' is not only a peerless UK soul classic, but also one of the greatest boogie-era dancefloor cuts full stop. You should really already own a copy, but if you don't, then this South Side reissue should be on your shopping list. Not only does it contain the band's brilliant original extended mix (B2) - a sing-along gem rich in hazy organ sounds, jazzy guitar solos and bustling electro-era beats - but also two celebrated 1992 remixes from Frankie Knuckles. Both are amongst the late, great DJ/producer's finest remixes, with the more instrumental and impeccably loved-up 'Reprise' version, in which Knuckles builds gently before eventually unleashing chorus vocals, being our pick of an incredibly strong pair.

Review: In 2007 Juno Records is ten years old, and we've decided to celebrate by releasing 10 singles throughout the year. Each one is a classic dance track featuring new remixes from the some of the most exciting and established names in the business, including Julien Jabre, Spirit Catcher, Dimitri from Paris, Lindstrom, Troy Pierce, Cobblestone Jazz and many more. These releases will initially only be available from www.juno.co.uk and www.junodownload.com. To launch the series we have pulled out all the stops with the re-release of the timeless "In The Trees" by Faze Action, featuring remixes from the legendary Carl Craig and Jerome Sydenham & Tiger Stripes, as well as the brilliant 1996 original mix. A genuinely huge release, this could be the first of 10 future classics! ***Stop press 19/12/07: the Carl Craig mix has been voted #3 in residentadvisor.net's "Top 5 Remixes Of 2007".

Review: In 2009, longtime collaborators Frankie Knuckles and Eric Kupper made their production partnership official via the Director's Cut project. This epic retrospective gathers together the best tracks and remixes the duo completed prior to Knuckles' death in 2014. Disc one offers up original productions, including ear-catching re-makes of some of Knuckles' most famous early works (we're particularly fond of the versions of "The Whistle Song", "Your Love" and "I'll Take U There"). On the second disc you'll find the best of their remix work, with standouts including a sublime take on Candi Staton's "Hallelujah Anyway" and a storming, previously unreleased version of Lou Rawls' "You'll Never Find Another Love Like Mine". As a bonus, the third disc mixes the best of the lot together in one suitably gorgeous, non-stop journey.

Review: Z Records' ongoing 'Attack The Dancefloor 'series of compilation style vinyl EPs has long been a reliable source of disco-fired excellence, and this 21st edition is another high-quality affair. We're first treated to a superb Jimpster revision of recent Mistura single 'Want Me Back', where Jemini's spoken word vocal, jazzy keys and spacey synth sounds rise above loose-limbed deep house beats and wiggly TB-303 lines, before Birdee drops a genuinely joyous, organic-sounding disco-house take on 1991 classic 'Do What You Feel' (now credited to Joey Montenegro, rather than his now retired Joey Negro alias). Elsewhere, Lee's own rework of Lakeshore Commission's Bluey collaboration 'In The Light' is a smooth, soulful, string-drenched delight and the veteran producer's 'Destination Boogie' tweak of Destiny II's 'Play To Win' is a revivalist '80s electrofunk delight.

Review: Considered "the absolute Don of Italo piano house", Don Carlos is up next on esteemed NYC label Razor N Tape with an EP of rare vintage house from the archives - 30 years old in fact. For the uninitiated, Don (Carlo Troya) and S-Tone (Stefano Tirone) released two records on Italian imprint Calypso in the early '90s under the alias Montego Bay. Features the emotive, late-night garage of 'Music All Night' (Deep In Milano mix) followed by the low-slung dancefloor heater 'Keep Dancing The Boogie' on the A-side. The flip offers the life-affirming vocal cuts 'Waited So Long' and 'Gotta Keep Dancing' respectively which perfectly capture the zeitgeist of house music's golden era in the early '90s.

Review: Italian soul legends Jestofunk released the classic 'I'm Gonna Love You' back in 1991, it was their first single, in fact. Comprised of northerners Alessandro Staderini, Claudio 'Moz-Art' Rispoli and Farias, they went on to release six albums until disbanding in 2005 after 'Mama Blues'. A zeitgeist of the early '90s acid jazz sound, featuring new jack swing styled beats, a killer sax and soulful vocals, it was the MC Turbo Sax Mix which undoubtedly gained the most popularity, and became an essential track on the playlist of many a hair salon throughout the rest of the decade. Some of you may even know the track from its inclusion on 2011's Knights Of The Playboy Mansion, mixed by French Touch icons Bob Sinclar & Dimitri From Paris. The version featured here is a nice modern reshape by Groove Culture heads Micky More & Andy Tee, taking the track into sensual and emotive territory with their deep house style remix. Proper mood music.

Review: Cleveland City is the place to go for some of those old school house flavours and Chubby Chunks's Testament One: The Remixes is another fine offering from the 90s. The originals got plenty of plays back in the 90s with their acid, pianos and fluid grooves all finding a perfect sweet spot between warmth and depth but also party time. Cream resident Paul Bleasdale teams up with Mr Jay on the first mix, a joyous one that never lets up, then Loveface ups the disco dazzle and finally the original brings that steamy house heat.

Review: Has there ever been a more significant nu-disco release than Metro Area's 1999 debut? It was certainly an outlier on its original release in 1999 and inspired countless others to attempt (and usually fail) to follow in their footsteps. All these years on, it still sounds fantastic - as this remastered reissue proves. Opener 'Atmospherique' effectively defined their timeless, NYC-inspired sound - think the warmth of deep house mixed with spacey synths, disco percussion and squelchy bass - while the subtly Latin-tinged 'Pina' sounds every bit as incredible in 2023 as it did at the turn of the Millennium. 'Rainy Street Feeling', which didn't make the cut on their celebrated debut album, is a real treat, too - a classy hybrid of loose-limbed deep house, sultry strings and nu-disco electronics that's worth the admission fee on its own.

Review: King Sporty is something of a chameleonic artists, not that many people know. He started out int he 70s making reggae and soul 7"s, then moved into disco, boogie, hip-hop and electro 12"s during the 80s, and then when house music hit in the 90s he evolved once more. This new drop from Emotional Rescue takes a tune from that late era. 'Computer Music' is four to the floor with electro influences and a lazy break that pull you in deep. Far-sighted chords bring a serene sense of cosmic majesty while a filtered vocal adds space age vibes. A dub is included as well as the Universal Cave Discomix by the Philadelphia DJ and production crew. A retro-future EP indeed..

Review: Last year, Whirlpool Productions' most renowned moment, throbbing 1996 jam 'From Disco To Disco', reappeared on 12". Here the track, which was produced and released by the trio of Justus Kohncke, hans Nieswandt and Eric D Clark (who provided the song's distinctive vocals) in 1996, transfers to 7" single for the very first time. It remains a fine chunk of disco-not-disco, with warming electric piano motifs and Clark's idiosyncratic vocals rising above a deep, throbbing, Italo-inspired bassline and crunchy house drums. This 45 edition also boasts what appears to be a previously unreleased instrumental edit, which does a fantastic job of building and releasing energy while giving the sometimes-wild Rhodes licks a chance to shine. A stone-cold classic!

Review: Stand by for a big reissue of a classic 1990 single from a couple of bona fide legends here: Junior Sanchez and Dajae combined to beautiful effect on 'Be With U' for the Club Sweat label and now offer a new 2.0 take. It's got the sort of huge diva vocal that you just don't get so often the days with simple but effective house production bolstering the good time feels. The original is included and next to version 2.0 sounds of its time, but then Yolanda Be Cool goes for the main room with more twisted synth work and sweaty, tech tinged drums. The final Dance System remix is pure fun.

Review: Some high-grade South African gold here, as the admirable AfroSynth imprint offers up a fresh pressing of an obscure - but utterly magnificent - set first released back in 1991. Like a lot of black South African dance music from the period, Living For The City, Citi Express's sole full-length, brilliantly blurs the boundaries between kwaito, deep house and what was then called garage-house, with a few nods to the breakbeat-driven roll of hip-house and the glassy-eyed low-warmth of UK street soul. Highlights include the MFSB-sampling, piano-sporting rush of 'Love Is The Message', the Club Zanzibar-friendly 'Victim of Your Love' and 'It's Too Late', and a superbly loved-up kwaito cover of Stevie Wonder's 'Living For The City'.

Review: Dance Reaction's 'Disco Train' is one of those eternal classics revered by dedicated heads and it's had its fair share of versions over the years. On this release for High Fashion we get treated to two fierce and fabulous interpretations of the track from producers who know a thing or two about how to set the party alight. Martin Boer steps up first, bringing a soaring set of piano chords and melodic vocoder magic to the locomotion of the rhythm section, while DJ Pucko keeps a generous spoonful of funk in the mix for his own take on this evergreen dancefloor monster.

Review: Dave Lee's Z Records looks back to go forward as it offers up a spiffing new 12" of contemporary reworks of 4 classics cuts of various vintages from the ZR back cat. Kicking things off in fantastic fashion is a slap bass and wah clav powered take on Raven Maize's 'Forever Together', originally released in1989, this was the first house cut to feature the now iconic keys riff. Dave's Heavenly Star mix of 'One Kiss' (first out in 1991) is pure hip-swinging soulful disco. Joey Montenegro (who could that be?) offers two classic cuts on the flip side. 'Make A Move On Me' (Original Disco mix) sees the crossover hit from 2005 get a Chic like makeover with its zippy leads and timeless diva vocals. Whilst the special 25th Anniversary Mix of 1998's 'Can't Get High Without U' closes things off with some peak time, tension filled, disco house action!