Kat Vinyl & CDs

Review: Rising edits label Kat enlists UK legend Ashley Beedle for their latest release and he obliges with two heavyweight reworks. On the A Side Beedle gets busy with "Conscious Of My Conscience", the underappreciated late 80s gem from Womack & Womack. Pressed ultra loud on a nicely chunky slab of vinyl, this one has end of the night set closer written all over it. On the flip, Steve Winwood's "Time Is Running Out" gets stripped of its overt dad rockisms and redressed as a psychedelic funk rock odyssey!

Review: 3 off cuts from the personal archives of Mr Frank Booker make for another worthy 12" transmission from the KAT label. First up Booker reworks the 1983 gem "Synchro System" from King Sunny Ade, adding a mid tempo groove to the original's lilting array of guitars, horn riffs and vocal hooks that locks you right in. This is matched on the flip with the wonderful edit of Fela Kuti's classic "Egbe Mi O" that has a similarly crunchy feel to it and funks wholeheartedly. The final track "People Must Jam" showcases Booker's cut and paste skills, sitting snugly between, p-funk, boogie and house music and is dominated by that wondrous filtered groove.

Review: UK edits imprint Kat jumps from Chicago to the Far East for their latest release, following that excellent twelve from the legend that is Rahaan with some equally fine reworks from the mysterious Shanghai duo The Horses. They kick off with a subtle take on the Vangelis smoothy "Let It Happen", with the gentle 4x4 kick transforming the track into an upright position. "Backed Up" kicks off with a brilliantly phased filtered intro that drops into a rare groove classic from the Three Pieces that's been bumped up with a nice groove and plenty of neat editing tricks. The best is reserved for the B Side sunshine of "Do You Remember" a mid tempo monster filled with echoed female harmonies and delightfully reverberant melodies!

Review: The UK's Kat is back with yet more tasteful edits of forgotten gems. From disco to house, folk to funk and balearic nuggets: these guys know the score. This time around it's over to New York City's Jason Kriveloff aka Jkriv, who works that magic razor once again on these wonderful re-edits. On the A side we've got Red Sharon (see what he did there?) with "Handle It" (JKriv RNT dub) which takes a right diggers delight into sultry, late night territory and sure to burn up any dancefloor. On the flip is Marashal (oh come on already!) with "Socket Rockin". No guesses what's going on here but just for the record: it is one funky and soul filled celebration and most of all, a respectful edit.

Review: The Kat Edits label have scored a real coup here, licensing a pair of tweaks the legend Domu originally committed to a super-rare Japan only CD compilation for the ESP DJ Classics series back in 2009. Domu's always been a classy producer no matter what he turns his hands to and this pair of edits really do deserve to be preserved on the vinyl format - kudos to Kat! Up top, "Love Vibes" by The Emotions is given a slightly upwards pitch adjustment by Domu, with plenty of skilled filtering to boot, whilst the B-side sees Claudia Barry's classic 1978 jammer "Give it Up" is embellished with some extra raunch sauce.

Review: Last seen dipping into the highly-regarded archives of one Dominic 'Domu' Stanton, the KAT label now turn their attentions back to another London selector and producer of the highest repute: Johnny Miller. As the title suggests, this is the third Kat 12" in an ongoing series of edit 12"s from Miller and features three prime cuts that will excite any self-respecting discotheque. Veering from jazz dance to early deep house via mid-tempo afro funk, this is one of those records that will offer optimum deployment for the more skilled selectors out there. The brushed Bradock-style deep house of "Kalimba Tree" is a real highlight.

Review: German funk collective let loose on Kat with two stunning authentic jams. "Runnin Out" is a slow and steady stomper with big horn harmonies and great backing on the chorus that's not dissimilar to Alice Russell's early material. As the title suggests "Heartbreak" comes with a tad more romance and just a touch of the Springfields. Swinging on more of a breakbeat rhythm the groove mutates from soulful in the verses to full-on funky on the chorus.