NDATL Muzik US Vinyl & CDs

Review: Underground and Black is the name of Detroit via Atlanta artist Ash Lauryn's well regarded blog, as well as being the title of her breakout 2023 tune alongside Kai Alce via his much hyped limited NDATL Special Edition. It has been played by tons of DJs all summer long and it arrives back on vinyl with mixes and remixes from another Atlanta native in the form of Leonce. The dubbed out and dusty deep house original, which shouts out all of Lauryn's influences, appeared first, and here comes a smooth dub before the percussive and lively Leonce Vocal Remix and a fleshy vocal dub. A super package - house doesn't get more authentic.

Review: Kai Alce's faultless NDATL label brings us more goodies direct from his base in Atlanta, which might be best known for its rap but also packs a punch when it comes to house music. This one is from Rasheeda Ali, a new name that might be familiar to anyone who heard Kai's 'Sheed's Move' tune from a previous EP. She has also been on stage with none other than Jeff Mills and here her flute skills come to the fore with production from Kai. 'Libra Ascending' has a snappy bounce, then 'Sheed's Rising' showcases Rasheeda's gymnastic flautist abilities. A fine debut.

Review: Atlanta's leading deep house outlet NDATL welcomes DJ Aakmael for its next outing and - as always with this producer - the results are smoky and seductive. His signature sound is all about cuddly, dusty drums with deft little melodies, horns or gospel samples that lodge in your mind while you move to his compelling grooves. That's true again here with a Latin-jazz-infused opener in the form of 'Track 109.' 'Imagination' is a truly hypnotic house sound and on the flip are 'This Is Not A Game,' a killer collab with label head Kai Alce, and '102.5' which has a bassline smoother than chocolate. Another doozy from Aakmael, then.

Review: It might be November but June is Jazzin with this new EP to close out another faultless year for Kai Alce's NDATL. The South African producer starts off with 'Funky Monkey' which is a deep and sumptuous house groove embellished with subtle but real melodies from Oliver Portal. 'Gogo's Stove Smoke' rolls just as deep, with balmy pads drenching the groove in soul and on the B-Side 'Valerie' layers up shuffling beats and heady pad work with a fantastic bassline. It's meditative stuff for cosy basements then 'Harming Man' brings a little more bounce as it closes the EP with sweet synth stabs, steamy vocal coos and warm rolls from the Rhodes.

Review: NDATL continues with the return of Kayenne, Rain Fall Down originally produced by Chris Brann is the first single from Kayenne's forthcoming full length, produced by various Atlanta based producers, Kai Alce, Stefan Ringer, DJ Kemit, Salah Ananse & Chris Brann. This first offering bring forth Kayenne's sweet melody over atmospheric rhythms & pads over driving drums brought together on Anthony Nicholson's rewerk. Next an unexpected late night groover from Plastik Recordings, Marc Cotterell where his deep chords transport you deep into the dancefloor. This last mix comes from Groove Victim aka Jay Brown (whom we unfortunately lost late 2021) simple but elegantly effective very reminiscent of the early 90' MAW dubs! Once again NDATL blazes forward!

Review: Connoisseurs of the European underground will be well-tuned to the sounds of quality operator Nico Lahs. And as for house operations over in the States, they don't come much finer than Kai Alce's NDATL Muzik, which means this a superb coming together. And so it proves with 'Over Me', offering slouchy, low-slung deep house beats with nice aloof, soulful samples. 'Searching' has a zoned-out late-night feel with swirling pads and a super smooth groove, then 'Overcome' brings a little more percussion and jazzy key work which Alce flips into one of signature and smoky shufflers.

Review: Few labels have as unique a house sound as Ka Alce's Atlanta imprint NDATL. It is deep, smoky, warm and with jazzy chords and soulful vocals that are all rooted in Black music. Miranda Nicole is next up with a new single that comes with some superb remixes. DJ Beloved's BPM mix is a supple roller that lets the vocal take centre stage. As well as an instrumental is the gorgeous original with its loungey chords and plaintive melodies. On the flip is a more driving but just as deliciously musical Jihad Muhammad Bang The Drum mix plus a final dub. Exquisite.

Review: Mr G is indeed a real-life G. The long-time underground servant is famous for crafting impossibly hypnotic house tracks that are deep, smoky and dusty. He mostly does so on his own label but also takes trips to some of the finest other imprints out there, and NDATL sure is one of those. He once again voyages into the depths here with opener 'One4Cath' setting a heady tone from the off as the razor-sharp hi-hats cut up the muted, mirky low ends. 'Twist' brings some euphoric vocal stabs that inject raw soul to the menacing grooves and 'We All Feel Something' brings some signature toms and congas to the mix as sultry vodkas this time bringing the human element. 'Dub In The System' is a final heads down, back room marcher for those who like it stripped back and raw.

Review: Kai Alce's pretty much faultless label NDATL looks to a fellow American house heavyweight here in Detroit soldier Norm Talley, who is head of his own Upstairz Asylum label. First up is a textbook hard edge but deep house sound from Norm on 'Gonna Be' He then keeps things brilliantly deep on 'Power' which is laced with insightful spoken words. Things are just as essential on the flip side with 'The Bounce' making sure dancefloors do just that thanks to Norm's next level drum sounds, then comes the hypnotic 'The Truth' before Norm shows a different look than usual with the more soft and tender delights of 'Dearly Beloved' ft Jerald Dameyon.