Review: R&b and funk singer, rhythm guitar musician and songwriter Rickey Calloway hailed from Jacksonville, Florida but earned himself a global reputation. His style borrowed from James Brown but brought something new, inspired by his time playing in clubs from a relatively young age. He was active in the 70s and much of his music has been reissue do newer audiences since and now comes his King Of Funk album on Funk Night which, from the title down, pays homage to the aforementioned Brown. It features his most well known tune - the wonderful 'Tell Me' - as well as plenty of other big hitters like there particularly hard hitting 'Shake It Up, Shake It Down.'
Review: Penza Penza, led by Misha Panfilov, is back with a fourth LP, Alto E Primitivo, which was recorded at private events in Funchal, Portugal, and Tallinn, Estonia. The album underscores Panfilov's genre-blending prowess on Detroit's Funk Night Records across 14 tracks that blend deep grooves, intricate guitars, and soulful rhythms from psychedelia to garage rock. The dynamic tracks showcase the groups' newly matured sound with refined production that will find favour with fans of Khruangbin and The Budos Band. Tracks like 'Wacky,' 'Pterodactyl,' and 'Boo Hoo Boogaloo' highlight their instrumental prowess while occasional distorted vocals add texture. Alto E Primitivo then is another gem from Penza Penza.
Review: Shawn Lee steps into untamed territory with Toe Rag Rhythms, a perc-ky odyssey trading in polish for pulse, spontaneity, and raw funk energy. Departing from his usual tightly composed fare, this session hears Lee, a seasoned multi-alias musician and composer from London, joined by four more percussionists, losing himself in a jungle of drums, shakers, bells, and earthbound textures. Lee adds tinkerbell piano lines to ground-lift the otherwise swirling, syncopated chaos, finishing each tracks with a loose-limbed, hypnotic charm. Whether the humid bounce of 'Tropical B Boy', the cinematic swirl of 'Dance Of The Pharoahs', or the laid-back snap of 'Rainforest Hum', this record easily earns its place alongside global groove rarities. Wild, rhythmic, totally addictive.
Review: A decade in the making, the long-awaited new album from Smith & The Honey Badgers gathers analogue sessions recorded by the band over a ten-year stretch, from early risings in Marietta and makeshift setups in a Hackney bedroom to recent studio time at Echo Ray in Wood Green. Lead vocalist Marietta Smith fills out each mix with clarity and vavavoom, the likes of 'Better Times', 'Don't You Doubt It Baby' and 'Echo's Theme' marking a terrific rouser soul record following four early-career singles released via Lunch Money and Fnr.
Review: Funk Night returns with this magnificent new album Vibrant Kaleisdosonic Rhythms from Zanzibar. It is well infuse by a wide range of worldly sounds, rhythms and moods and kicks off with a melange of incidental jazz keys and raw horn sounds that are super exotic. 'Night In Casablanca' is as steamy as you would expect with a low slung groove, 'Badmington Baobab' is another flute lead sound with mystery and intrigue and 'Hologram Water' is more reflective and inward in its lush keys and delicate organic percussive layers. A nice escapist instrument funk album for laid back times.
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