Brokenbeat / Nu Jazz Recommendation November 2014

Review: We're unsure who Walter is, but we do know that this EP is the end result of Swindle looking after his grandparents' house for a summer between international shows, and how he turned their living room into a studio fit for a horn section. The end result features some of the funkiest, jazz-jacked, unique instrumentals he's ever recorded (which is saying something). Muted trumpets, big piano slaps, heavyweight beats, infectious hooks and an overall sense of fun, Swindle remains the funk champion of dubstep-related music. For something a little more chill switch for the dreamlike "Summer Fruits". In terms of an appropriate seasonal release, the timing is terrible. In terms of everything else about the track, it's perfect. Essential Swindle.

Review: Jazzanova and the whole Sonar Kollektiv crew have always retained strong ties to Japan's Djing scene, so it's little surprise to see a 12" featuring some of the country's finest talents reworking the German group. Issued in collaboration with Especial Records, the label owned by Kyoto Jazz Massive's Yoshihiro Okino, this 12" sees Jazzanova and Paul Randolph collaboration "Now There Is We" remixed no less than four times and the results are sublime. Sapporo Future Jazz apostle Kuniyuki Takahashi bends the track into a compelling new shape dominated by some excellent piano work, whilst Mano Arriba mutates Jazzanova's production into a killer salsa workout. DJ and beat digger Yosuke Tominaga transforms mattes into a dirt laden funk out, whilst Takahiro Uchibori, aka Metome, drops perhaps the most drastic revision. Here forward thinking broken beats rule whilst Randolph's vocals are twisted into new forms reminiscent of early Jamie Liddell.

Review: Grammy winning Husayn lays down three originals and their instrumental counterparts on this 12" debut for Eglo ahead of a mooted LP for Alexander The Nut's label and it's yet another lesson in exemplary contemporary soul. "It's Better For You" rolls out with Amp Fiddler-level jauntiness, complete with a heavenly chorus, "Re-Incarnation" is a dirtier, heavier jazz-riddled number that's not dissimilar to a Child Of Lov joint while "Twelve" is instant feel good a la Sun Ra or Stevie Wonder circa Innervisions. Beautiful. If you like Husayn's output as part of SA RA Creative Partners you need to check this and then start hassling Eglo to drop the LP!

Review: After a couple of quality 12"s by Moomin and one tape release, Closer throws the net wide open to invite in a host of contemporary house heads to deliver outside of their usual remit with great results. Mr Tophat and Art Alfie spread themselves over the A side with the wildly processed and loosely stitched freak-out sample fest of "Vacation Bye Bye", which piles the drama on high with use of dusty old rips and riffs while keeping everything very distant indeed. On the flip Wun Two, FloFilz and Hubert Daviz have dropped a whole host of winsome beats enriched with soulful licks from old records (or at least it sounds that way), taping more into the Brainfeeder mood than anything, and it all fits together perfectly. If you dig the crossover styles of the Box Aus Holz crew then get on this.

Review: Church is jazz keyboardist, broken beat legend and future jazz producer Mark De Clive-Lowe's latest album for US label Ropeadope.For those who dig his musically rich blend of jazz, hip-hop, downtempo beats, global influences and club-friendly rhythms, Church is certainly well overdue. Predictably, it's a fine set, dripping with winding horns, intense rhythms, skewed electronics, impeccable keys (naturally) and heady, late night soul. Highlights are naturally plentiful, from the head-nodding soul-jazz bagginess of "Now Or Never", and languid lounge jazz of "Sketch for Miguel", to the voodoo rush of "Nova Rhoda", which comes layered with tribal chants and dense African percussion.

Review: A powerful self-released debut from South London jazz funk quartet The Expansions. Apparently the dramatic, almost Mancini-like "Aubergine's Escape" tells the tale of a mistreated missus who's on the hot shoe shuffle from her nasty fella. This concept being the case, the crazed drum crescendo is definitely the moment when she crosses the state border and disappears forever. "Mess Up Your Mind", meanwhile, is a deft homage to San Fran psych-funk band Aura. Fuzzy, freaky and oozing raw funk, it's a fantastic jam that sports some of the craziest keys and sturdiest drumming we've heard in a long time. Expand your mind, the rest will follow.

Review: The first fresh material to appear ahead of their long-awaited second album, it's clear ROJ are still tighter than mosquitos tweeter and thrice as funky with this pant-blazing Aspects collaboration. A slick car chase groove, garnished by equally firing lyrics, it's a great come-back single. Each remix kills it, too; Skeewiff does what he does best on a classic 60s swing flex, Smoove goes loco with a Bassey vocal shot and Caiden get freaky on an electro boogie vibe. Some fires don't need putting out... Feel the heat.

Review: Uncanny Valley invite everyone to participate in some local music history with the focus on the past decade's output from one of the label's main artists. Before Robert 'Cuthead' Arnold became part of the Uncanny Valley family, he formed part of Kunst:stoff Breakz, another local collective that threw parties as well as issuing a series of free to download digital releases. Cuthead was responsible for a large majority of this output and Total Sellout sees the artist revisit this archive of material for a self curated retrospective. Some 18 tracks deep, the album really conveys the depth and breadth of Arnold's production capabilities, covering hip hop, dubstep, house music and all the sonic crevices inbetween,

Review: It would be fair to called Joined Ends, Oliver Thomas Johnson's second album under his familiar Dorian Concept alias, "long-promised". It was being touted for release back in 2011, soon after he signed with Ninja Tune. Interestingly, it's a very different beast to his 2009 debut album, When Planets Explode, and the club-friendly singles that followed. A veritable technicolour blast of warm chords, shimmering synthesizer melodies, dream-pop vocals and skittering low-end rhythms, Joined Ends ripples with unfussy positivity. It's far from a straightforward set - Johnson is too imaginative a producer for that - but it certainly has a singular vision. It may not be the album we were expecting, but it's an impressive set nonetheless.

Review: With a sizable legacy on One-Handed Music behind him, Paul White moves over to R&S to deliver this sumptuous album of exotic experimental fare that draws on plentiful amounts of found sound, organic instrumentation and pop vocal abstraction to create a wondrous listening experience. Whether it's the seductive chimes of "Where You Gonna Go?" or the sultry blues thrum of "Honey Cats", there's a whole world of music fuelling this truly distinctive sound, and it's one that never gets dull or repetitive. With a comforting approach to song writing woven into the adventurous sonic processes, this is a masterful album that appeals on many different levels at once.

Review: Some would argue Bonobo is the most popular act on the Ninja Tune roster, and use this live album as compelling evidence. Following the release of his most recent album The North Borders, Simon Green embarked on an extensive three month world wide tour with his live band, commencing in Washington, DC and ending in Moscow. Those wishing to relive the experience, or indeed get a taste of how Bonobo are in full flow having missed out, can do so via this double LP brandishing fourteen tracks recorded live off the sound desk as Bonobo wowed the audience at Camden's Roundhouse venue. Download codes included of course!

Review: Osunlade seems to be mellowing with age, or at least gaining an appreciation of the potential of pop music. While Peacock, his seventh album, still boasts plenty of his usual influences - think shuffling, African-tinged rhythms, Balearic acoustics, hazy jazz, complex electronic melodies and soulful vocals - it seems an altogether tighter and accessible set than much of his back catalogue. Its' eight tracks are all crackers, with "Change" - in which he does a passable impression of Prince, both vocally and musically - standing out from the crowd. Best of all, though, is "Better Man", a loose chunk of jazz-flecked broken soul that recalls the eccentric producer's finest moments.

Review: Congratulations to Brighton-based Tru Thoughts, who here celebrate 15 years in the business with a double album of highlights picked by A&R man, co-owner and face of the imprint Robert Luis. Wisely, Luis has chosen to largely steer clear of well-known highlights (Quantic Soul Orchestra's ubiquitous "Pushin' On" being the obvious exception), instead selecting cuts that accurately represent the label's soulful, wide-ranging remit. So, alongside confirmed club rockers from the likes of Zed Bias, Hot 8 Brass Band and Drumagick (turning an old London Posse rap jam into a jungle roller), there are hazy jazz, modern soul and hip-hop-influenced grooves aplenty. Luis also sneaks in a few exclusives, including a deliciously jazzy Paul SG remix of early Bonobo fave "Terrapin".

Review: Few artists who've been active for all but five years can command a best of compilation. But few artists have propelled themselves into jazz consciousness as distinctively, creatively and charismatically as Gregory Porter. Here we find him rounding up a great collection of edits and collaborations that his fans may not have picked up. Balancing the well-known with the unheard, covering his rich broad sound, it ranges from the tight, slippery contemporary disco funk flexes of his Zbonics work ("Issues Of Life", "Nowhere To Run") to a slew of great dancefloor remixes... including THAT Opolopo version that introduced him to a whole generation of house heads. Essential.