Maledetta Discoteca Italy Vinyl & CDs

Review: Rome's Maledetta Discoteca Records continues to explore the lesser-celebrated fringes of Italian dance music culture from the 1970s, '80s and '90s. Here they dip into the vast back catalogue of singer Lu Colonbo, who delivered a string of dancefloor-focused disco and synth-pop gems in the 1980s and early 90s. A-side 'Er Mar (Submarine remix)' dates from 1993, when Colombo's work was being re-framed for Italo-dance and Euro-house dancefloors. Blessed with a deliciously slow, saucer-eyed build-up, it's a Latin-infused chunk of Balearic-minded deep house pleasure in a classic Italian style. On side B, 21st century Italian producer Feel Fly delivers his 'Onda Erotica' remix of 'Nuda' (itself a 1993 translation of an earlier Colombo cut), turning it into a ten-minute trip through dubbed-out, mind-altering cosmic disco territory. Blissfully brilliant!

Review: Funkool Orchestra's debut album Latin Freaks arrived a year ago and delivered an exotic blend of Neapolitan funky disco, Latin soul and boogaloo grooves. Following a string of buzzworthy singles, the full LP lived up to the hype with its mix of rare grooves and coastal Italian flair and so it sold out in quick time, which its why it now, a year on, gets reissued for another summer of fun. Infused with warm basslines, tight horns and infectious rhythms, it's a sun-drenched celebration of vintage sounds with a modern twist that is perfect for fans of global funk and feel-good dancefloor energy.

Review: After their hair-dropping debut LP Latin Freaks, Funkool Orchestra keep the stovetop hot with a high-energy 7" vinyl, bridging the delta between their first and second albums. A Maledetta Discoteca production, 'Tengo Che Ffa' blends Mediterranean funk, disco, and Neapolitan groove into an allusive proto-P-funk prance, especially if, at least, the B-side's title is to be believed. The latter alternately named 'Dance With Pezz', we hear them pick up the pace with a clav-spiced, conga-crammed number. Take it from us: the record is a clavi-net good.

Review: Maledetta Discoteca closes out its year with this special blue vinyl featuring a mix of brilliant Italo disco artists. They all hail from Italy and Argentina and are editing originals that span disco, electro, proto-house and more. Hararis' 'Si No Pagan' is the first under the scalpel and is a funky cut with raw drums. Lance's 'Yo Quiero A Lucy' is a more slowed down and seductive sound with 80s synths, Marta Paradise's 'Calling' (edit) is a direct and sugar synth laced house stomper and Alan Strani's 'Tension Salsable' brings things to a closer with a nice stomping disco grove with mysterious synths and lush percussion.

Review: After a decade since the success of Obscure Cuts: Italian Arabic Disco, legendary DJ Beppe Loda returns with a new EP. This time he has assembled a collection featuring carefully selected Middle-Eastern-influenced Italian disco gems from the genre's golden era. This superb selection offers a fresh take on obscure tracks that highlight Loda's signature style. So, step onto a magical carpet and soar through this release here you will be lost amongst or gazing into wild rhythms and rich cultural influences. Fans of Loda's distinctive blend of disco and Middle Eastern sounds will be delighted by this exciting return to form, as well as what it does to your record crate credentials.

Review: LA trio Moorea Masa, Tommaso Cappellato and Steve Watkins turn to Italo-disco flamboyance as their main point of departure on 'Rosmarina', a shimmering single powered by springy basslines, tight percussion and a bold, lovestruck vocals sung in Italian. Full of retro-activations of the modern vintage kind, Masa's delivery balances contemporary lyrics with an authentic throwback thizz. Dextrously picked guitar and burbling acid basses spring up with a measured but apical fecundity; the instrumental suggests a flowerbed in monstrously teeming bloom, suggesting an insatiable drive beneath the elegant vocal veneer. A power moving debut through Maledetta; though they've never come together under this name before.