DJs: Most Charted - Disco - Most Charted May 2012

Review: The consistently excellent ESP Institute reach into their sizeable archive of material to re-evaluate Sea Power & Change, the 2010 release from Portuguese producer Tiago under the same name, calling on some of their celebrated friends and contemporaries to rework the tracks. Long term ESP aficionados Soft Rocks man the A Side with a supreme revision of "Strangefruit", realigning the track to a spine tinglingly good, smacked out dub boogie main frame that immediately brings forth a craving for relaxed summer nights with a bottomless jug of sangria for company. Fresh from a stunning turn on the fledgling Beats In Space label, Secret Circuit brings his mangled analogue stylings to "Wild Combination" which takes on 23rd Century visions of the Wild West as it canters forth. Finally a glistening, dubwise horizontally inclined re-appropriation of "Yesterday Is Dead" is delivered courtesy of Johnny Nash, providing a sumptuous end to another fine release from one of our favourite labels.

Review: REPRESS ALERT! Spearheaded by Stuart Leath, Emotional Rescue is a label committed to unearthing forgotten gems and giving them the exposure they richly deserve, with all releases officially licensed by the artist and remastered in full. This 12" sees two classic tracks by the world music collective Suns of Arqa take pride of place. Incorporating elements of raga and dub, "Brujo Magic" is a much more straightforward dancefloor number than its description would suggest, with its rolling bassline and vocoder effects fusing irresistibly with its psyche-rock styles. On the B-Side, "Ananta Snake Dance" combines traditional Indian percussion and harmonium with conventional drumming to create something completely unique. A strong start to what will no doubt be an indispensable label.

Review: ISM Records drop this tasty 12" sampler of what to expect from their forthcoming Midnight Riot compilation that showcases the finest slo mo cuts, boogie joints and late night takes. The four tracks included here represent the DJ friendly contributions with Drop Out Orchestra, Ajello, The Legendary 1979 Orchestra and Mr Chicago present. The latter steps up first with "Bad Dub" which expertly submerges a mid 90s US rock n roll classic in all manner of echo and delay, whilst fellow Scandinavians Drop Out Orchestra provide an equally inventive electro groove rendition of a Sylvester standard with "Get Up". Dinner City Sound contributor The Legendary 1979 Orchestra brings some effervescent disco vibes to the B Side with "The Living" notable for its rough drum programming as much as the slick sample looping. Little needs to be said about Italians Ajello other than they know how to construct a disco groove that combines classic and contemporary touches and "That Groove Again" is a perfect example of this talent.

Review: Repress of the debut Sofrito Super Singles which celebrates the Afro-disco and boogie scene of South Africa, - where Salsoul meets Soweto. Comes housed in a new look Sofrito house sleeve. The three track EP features Teaspoon & The Waves - led by veteran alto player Teaspoon Ndelu. They released one album in 1980, covering a mix of disco and funk sounds for the SA dancefloors. Oh yeh Soweto is a cheeky version of Lamont Dozier's Going Back To My Roots - changing the lyrics and toughening up the beats, but with the same killer riffs. Saturday Night Special is from the same LP, a spaced out Afro Disco groove with excellent percussion and psychedelic synths, re-edited by the Sofrito team. The B side features a track by the Nzimande Allstars - another mysterious group of session musicians. The drawn out groove of Highway Sporo Disco fuses a heavy disco backing with jive guitar and stellar horns and organ for a unique taste of the underground sound of the Cape.

Review: The Sccucci Manucci label has done a fine job of handpicking artists on the rise for their releases to date, collaring the likes of Casino Times, Francis Inferno Orchestra and Toomydisco as well as the odd established name like Jacques Renault. The label's fourth release Forza Quattro is still grounded in the disco/house sensibility that has served them so well, though the presence of Waze & Oddysey demonstrates the Sccucci A & R team are willing to deviate. The elusive US pair are in the midst of a hot patch right now with releases already burning on Body Work and Southern Fried and plenty more due over the coming months, so their presence here is a real coup. "I Can't Hear You" sounds vaguely like a extra bouncy cover of the classic "RIP Groove" and definitely ranks alongside their output to date. Alongside this the white vinyl EP has tempo traversing contributions from Fil Lavin, Sellouts and Deadly Sins, with the latter's slow and chuggy "Don't You Know" a particular highlight.

Review: The deliciously named duo Boys From Patagonia step forwards as the latest additions to International Feel's roster of pan-continental contemporary balearica with the sublimely sounding Rimini '80. The cousinly duo of Davide Armour & Philippe Mascerano form Boys From Patagonia, bonded by blood, a love of vintage synthesisers and vaguely cheesy Italian pop from the past - with Mascerano's home base in Patagonia influencing their moniker. The title track "Rimini '80" sits proudly alongside Lindstrom's finest moments as a producer, deftly aligning a strident mid tempo beat with all manner of glowering synth manipulation which sounds undeniably authentic in its approximation of a summer's night on the floor of a Rimini hotspot. On the flip, "It's So Exciting" (High Jingo Love Love rework) adopts a slower, digital beat which clearly gets the female vocalist a bit hot under the collar.

Review: Potent test pressing dancefloor weapons in the hands of FunkinEven and like minded soul Kyle Hall since last summer, the prospect of owning "Chips" and "Sweets" has been high on the Juno review team want list for far too long! Finally arriving in strict numbers - one per customer people - the second Apron release is fully worth that wait. Housed in a hand stamped candy-stripe paper bag, this twelve comes in lucky dip style three different colours - ensuring full attention from a vinyl hungry public. But it's the music that's truly special here, with "Chips" a raw, simplistic yet wholly potent disco jacker - lifting an almighty sample and dropping it intermittently over a big fat kick drum that makes you go boom boom, whilst "Sweets" flips the flex to a PPU friendly 80s roller boogie mainframe. Don't sleep!!

Review: Faze Action have never been comfortable with the nu disco tag, and in an age where it's dominated by digitally designed and somewhat pedestrian in its tempo the Lee brothers return with a dynamic live sound that sets them apart. "Freak for Your Love" is the lead track from their forthcoming album Information Overload and straddles a sick dubbed out punk funk groove that brings to mind the sort of incessantly sweat inducing music DFA was releasing in the label's first few years. A pleasant new direction for Faze Action is explored further on the accompanying "New Wave Disco Dub Mix" that delves further into the realm of echo and delay over that strident groove. The mysterious ST holds court on the flip with two rerubs that switch the emphasis up towards a throwback bumping 90s house flex without loosing the original's charm.

Review: Golf Channel engages in London Bus tactics once more with no less than two killer plates from Dr Dunks and The Rhythm Odyssey arriving this week. Whilst the accompanying Instrumental Fantasy 12" is on a bonkers Chi town jack and industrial disco tip, this Circles 12" finds our transatlantic pairing in a more horizontal midtempo mood. Each of the four tracks are ostensibly stylistic variations on a musical theme, with the title track a wondrously hypnotic delight described all too accurately by Golf Channel as a long lost remake of "E2-E4". Stripping away the drums, the Long Drive Home take on "Circles" tugs at your emotions even more, while on the flip "Glow" takes the same musical ingredients but channels them through early 80s disco dub with equally worthy results.