DJ Bacon, a valuable best friend when it comes to modern breaks remixes of old skool hip-hop and funk, is back. 'Ladies Quest Vol. 1' focuses solely on revered hip hop group A Tribe Called Quest, flipping two of their most revered instrumentals, 'The Jam' and 'Check The Rhime', with vocal acapellas from legendary femme lyricists Lauryn Hill ('Lost Ones') and Bahamadia ('Uknowhowwedu'). The effect is powerful.

The British Jazz Explosion series continues to shine a light on the finest records to come from the yesteryear of jazz in ol' Blighty. On this occasion we're taken deep into the folds of John Surman and John Warren's thrilling, high-drama opus Tales Of The Algonquin. It's a widescreen affair taking big band ensemble pieces like 'With Terry's Help' and more delicate, Gil Evans-inspired pieces like 'The Dandelion'. It's a bold and brilliant record, sounding all the better for a plush 180 gram pressing that helps the music truly leap from the grooves.

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!

London jazz star Oscar Jerome proves he can bend spoons with jazz on his latest LP 'The Spoon'. Like a red-pilled soothsayer, he reduces all metal to its constituent molten parts, largely through the mode of lo-fi, dreamy pop jazz and neo-soul. Paeans to lockdown ('Sweet Isolation'), flourishingly spiritual harp and guitar interludes ('The Soup', 'Aya & Bartholomew') and impeccably produced singles ('Channel Your Anger', 'Feed The Pigs') make this a thoroughly difficult-to-pin-down yet texturally deep album, reminiscent of the production mastery of electronic fusion greats like Morgan Agren or Burnt Friedman. It's Jerome's best yet by far.

As Californian punk absurdist heroes NOFX prepare to embark on their farewell run of touring in 2023 following the release of their swansong project Double Album; what better time to celebrate the twenty-fifth anniversary of the group's seventh and third best (according to the liner notes) album, 'So Long & Thanks For All The Shoes'. If that sounds like a Hitchhikers' Guide reference, that's because it is, but also a sly nod to their fans prevalence to throw shoes at them whilst on stage. Originally released in 1997, primary songwriter, Fat Mike, has gone on record many times to state that the project is his personal favourite, while the semi-controversial cut, 'Kill Rock Stars', would begat a feud between the sardonic bassist and Bikini Kills' Kathleen Hanna, with Le Tigre responding on, 'Linoleum', but that's a whole story for another day.

Composer, arranger, producer and pianist Webster Lewis is widely celebrated for his work with Epic Records from the seventies and on through the eighties. His sound is a luxuriant one that is hugely polished, dense and accomplished in its fusion of jazz, funk and soul. He recorded four albums during those years and this collection pulls the best bits including his well-known classic 'Barbara Ann' as well as the likes of 'Give Me Some Emotion' and 'El Bobo' as well as more newly uncovered gems from the vaults like 'Reach Out' and 'Japanese Umbrella.'

RZA has become something of a wise old social media elder who often shares tips for a mindful and meditative life. He is of course also the leader of the iconic hip-hop band Wu-Tang Clang and back in 1998 he debuted his Bobby Digital alter ego on the Bobby Digital In Stereo album. Now it's back with another record under the same name. Bobby Digital and the Pit of Snakes is a soundtrack written for an upcoming graphic novel and was produced by DJ Scratch. It is musically diverse with plenty of hip hop, orchestral soundscapes, playful beats, and plenty of great bars and insightful lyricism.

Trident is dropping a couple of top EPs this month. One is from Derrek Carr, and one is this double white 12" that finds Deltamaxx and O En One join forces. They take us on a storytelling trip through cosmic techno that varies in mood and tempo. 'Conexxion' rides a nice rubbery, bumpy groove with incidental and wispy synth sounds, then 'Delta Pavonis' seems to soundtrack a beach party up amongst the stars. There are darker, more heady cuts like 'Donnager' and icy electro cinematics on 'Isonoe' to make for a worthy collection of sounds that work on the dancefloor and beyond.