Tags: Leftfield Disco

Review: Perel's sophomore album Jesus Was An Alien continues in some ways from the themes she brought to her debut, 2018's Hermetica on DFA. The tracks are rich, lush in design and multi-layered with plenty of emotional uplift. While inspired by a raft of the best indie hitmakers she has her own sound which is perfect for the dance floor but also suited to listing away from the club. "Jesus Was An Alien is a discourse about whether Jesus was an actual alien" she explains, amusingly. When the debate sounds this good, no one cares about the answers.

Review: DJ Soulist and Fulgeance aka Souleance are a formidable French pair who serve up their impressive new album here on First Word Records in collaboration with Heavenly Sweetness. Beautiful is an apt title, too, because that describes their particular take on disco sounds with plenty of lush synth lines and sophisticated melodies all accompanied by a range of influences from jazz to Afro to funk. Some killer basslines define the likes of 'A Onda' and guests heighten grooves like the summery and laidback 'Out Of Touch' (feat Kit Sebastian) and shimmering broken beats of 'Lightweight' (feat Jenny Penkin).

Review: When DFA Records first released 'Compilation #2' back in 2004, the label was arguably at the peak of its powers, consistently delivering killer cuts that blurred the boundaries between post-punk, early '80s NYC no wave, and more traditional forms of U.S dance music. It remains a brilliant snapshot of James Murphy's label (and, to a lesser degree, NYC's alternative punk-dance scene of the period), as this surprise first vinyl edition proves. Slimmed down to 18 tracks, all of which are presented in full length form (the original CD edition was mixed), and stretched across four weighty slabs of wax, it contains countless highlights from LCD Soundsystem, The Juan MacLean, Black Dice and the Rapture, as well as a handful of classic DFA remixes and a banger from original punk-funk heroes Liquid Liquid.

Review: Gomma played a vital role in the popularisation of the indie-dance explosion that happened some 20 years ago now. Best known for being spearheaded by US indie outfit LDC Sound system, it combined dance, disco, wave, post-punk and more into a party-ready sound that found favour with both ravers and guitar heads. This second collection from the German label highlights the best of music they put out back then with names like In Flagranti, label co-founder Munk, Nancy Whang & Bonar Bradberry and many more all present and correct.