New Jersey house don Kerri Chandler is rightfully lauded as a hero of the scene. He continues to pour his heart and soul into every record and imbue his music with real-world emotions that elevate his tunes. He is of course a master of a deep but driving sound that borrows from soul, funk and jazz in ignitible ways. The third volume of his Lost & Found EP series on his own label Kaoz Theory is packed with more gold, from the slinky depths of 'Let It (Give Me Back My Love)' to the soul staring vocal work of 'Another Dawn' via more paired back sounds on 'The Bassline' (Kerri Dark mix) and the percussive energy of 'The Breeze.' Yet another essential Kerri 12" for your collection.

Swiss producer and DJ Lea Lisa gathers together some of her favorite tracks to play out with in a double pack compilation for Favorite Recordings. As you might be able to tell from some of the artists and tracks on here, Lea likes her house music deep, tracky, sometimes soulful and verging on proper techno. Featured here are key tracks like 'Ekeyz' from Pure Science, the club mix of 'Be There' by Kerri Chandler and 'Blax Thanxs' by Abacus. One very desirable addition is the early 90s gem 'Emotional' by Think. This very strong gathering of deep house tracks may be one of the best this year. Act quick and grab a copy.

Having previously delivered a box set dedicated to the early-to-mid 70s singles produced by legendary Jamaican studio don Niney The Observer, Doctor Bird has now moved on to the next stage of his career. This two-disc set focuses on seven-inch singles he produced and released on his Observer label in 1976 and 1977, supplementing vocal cuts with flipside alternate versions and his own 'riddim'-focused takes. It's a fine collection of often hard-to-find Jamaican reggae gems from a golden period in the country's musical culture, with headline-grabbing contributions from such scene staples as Gregory Isaacs, Horace Andy, Clint Eastwood, I-Roy, Big Youth, Junior Delgado and Bobby Ellis.

Manchester mavericks A Certain Ratio have been on a rare run of form of late, with 2023's 1982 counting as one of their most vibrant and endlessly entertaining albums for decades. Of course, all their albums are of a consistent quality, but It All Comes Down To This genuinely crackles with energy. From the word go, the veteran band's inherent funkiness is present, but this time it comes cloaked in fuzzy funk-rock guitar riffs, acid-fried effects, and vocals that are amongst the most forthright they've committed to wax (or, in this case, CD). In many ways, it is - as the band and producer/Sopeedy Wunderground boss Dan Carey intended - a 'back to basics' sound that focuses on the key aspects of ACR's sound. When those 'basics' are so strong, it's no surprise that the results are this impressive.

For their latest deep dive into Italo-disco history, ZYX Records have enlisted the help of Guiseppe "Joey" Mauro - an Italian producer, songwriter and keyboardist whose career stretches right back to 1984. His "Italo-disco legends" selection is heavy on his own work - no bad thing given his credentials - and contains a wealth of material that has never appeared on CD before. Highlights are plentiful, with our picks including Mauro and Ventura's sparkling and uplifting 'You & I', Italowarriors' throbbing and colourful crew cut, 'The Warrior (120 Italo Version)', the bubbly cheeriness of 'Crazy (Classic Mix Version)' by Malcolm & The Bad Girls, and the effortless Italo funkiness of Raf Coney's 'Horsepower'.

Adam Wiltzie is an American-born, Belgium-based ambient composer, sound designer, film soundtracker and one half of A Winged Victory For The Sullen. His latest album-length suite was inspired by two things: a recurring dream in which people die after listening to his music, and a fascination with sodium pentathol, a barbiturate routinely used as a general anaesthetic. It's a kind of musical exploration of - to paraphrase his label's accompanying press release - tiptoeing between beauty and oblivion, or sleepiness and wakefulness. Mixed by Loop man Robert Hampson and featuring strings recorded in Budapest, the album ebbs and flows majestically, with billowing orchestral moments nestling side by side with creepy ambience, immersive and dream-like soundscapes, simmering melodic motifs and the kind of arty but enveloping fare that reminded us a little of the Orb and Robert Fripp's mid-90s FFWD project.

Naya Beat's modus operandi is to champion the OG sounds of the South Asian underground through the lenticular funnel of dance music. Their latest in this effort is a breakout wonder in V/A form, herding together three contemporary club titans for a jolly trans-national dialogue over the original stylings of an inimitable key player in proliferation of Bhangra music, Manjeet Kondal. The late great Kondal hears one original piece, 'Pyaar', reissued, alongside two exclusive versions of 'Ishkaan De Mamle' by digger extraordinaire Mr. Scruff, followed by a closing, straight-from-the-stems downtempo acid dub tribute by modern day remixers and DJs Turbotito & Ragz. This is an honorific tribute to the crossection of late 80s to early 90s Bhangra music with acid house, carefully modelled after the aesthetic sensibilities of the time.

Vinyl Fanatiks latest deep dive into British dance music's rave-era past takes us back to 1993 and an early EP from Dave 'Aquasky' Wallace under the Rave Doctor alias. All four tracks were originally released - minus titles - on Stu J's influential Adrenalin Records imprint via the 'I' EP, which in recent years has become something of an in-demand item amongst collectors. Now fully remastered, the tracks sound as rushing and energetic as ever, with Wallace flitting between sub-heavy 4/4 breakbeat hardcore (the thumping 'Live With The Hardcore'), blistering breakbeat hardcore ('Shake Your Rump', which features a typical-for-the-period chords-and-sped-up-vocals breakdown), proto-jungle insanity from the 'jungle-tekno' period ('Annihilating Rhythm') and an 'Apache' break-driven slab of sub-heavy breathlessness ('Ruff In The Jungle', with its jangling pianos and hands-aloft approach).