Hip Hop / R&B Recommendations Best Of 2014

Review: The Lost Tapes Vol. 1 draws together material spanning some twelve years of unreleased four and eight track recordings from Houston-born Seven Davis Jnr. "once lost in storage via a lengthy hiatus due to drug addiction and depression". Plucked by Kutmah to appear on the Worldwide Family Vol 2 issued on Brownswood last year, Davis Jnr. has subsequently self released material via bandcamp, dropped a killer house focused 12? on Jay Simon's Must Have Records and has a record with Funkineven on the way . Brandishing a rough and rugged mastery of drums and a truly soulful vocal, Seven Davis Jnr has the capacity to cover a broad range of styles (a cover version of Prince's "Controversy" that can be found online is a notable highlight). This much is more than evident on the newly issued collection of works for IZWID, with the bugged out mutant soul of "Sorry" being a stand out track.

Review: Joseph Deenmamode first surfaced under the Mo Kolours guise back in 2011, dropping the inaugural release in a trilogy of 12?s for the One-Handed Music label. Across this trilogy, the Mo Kolours sound cross-referenced the Sega Music native's homeland of Mauritius with a dope-addled appreciation of Theo Parrish, dub, dreamy pop, hip hop and more, and has found favour with everyone from Gilles Peterson through Hot Chipper Joe Goddard and the Future Times crew. Deenmamode now returns to One Handed with a self titled debut album that further expands on his already expansive style across a weighty kaleidoscopic eighteen tracks, with his rhythmic prowess really coming to the fore. One of the most enjoyable albums released so far this year!

Review: Well, well, this is a far too dope box set collecting eleven of Kenny Dope's classic breakbeats for your seven inch shaped needs. The Juno review team already have several of these heaters in our collective record horde but since the box set arrived there hasn't been a day passed without an admiring glance thrown in it's general direction. For those unfamiliar with the likes of "Supacat" and "Gunshot", they are fine examples of the Jeep Beat sample heavy instrumental hip hop sound Dope dabbled in during the early nineties. It's the presence here of both the thunderous "Blood Vibes" and the Minnie Ripperton sampling "Get On Down" that makes this box set nigh on essential.

Review: Krush's eighth - and last - album Jaku is up there with Endtroducing and Donuts in terms of seminal, influential and forward-thinking beat longer players. 10 years since its release and it still sounds as timeless, unique and exciting as it did in 2004. The slick licks of a young Mr Lif on "Nosferatu", the post-apocalyptic tension of "Univearth" the sludgy, swampy cosmic hip-hop of the Aesop Rock-featured "Kill Switch" and the unashamed sax sex of "Slit Of Cloud"..... Do we need to go on? Limited edition, 180g transparent vinyl; even if you already have this in your collection this is a very, very appealing investment.