Rezpektiva Vinyl & CDs

Review: As you will well know if you are reading this, prog house is back and it has been for ages. As always with any revival, there is good stuff and weak stuff. This EP is very much the corner from Forces of Nature, with authentic 90s soundscapes mixing up lush ambient synth designs, dreamy Italo drums and real musical depth. 'Jupiter' is super smooth and seductive as it cruises at high altitude, then 'Tripping' is a downbeat workout and 'The Bomb' takes you to the heavens on gorgeous melodies while the bass plunges low. 'In Your Mind' is perfectly comedown music to close the EP in style.

Review: Rezpektiva looks to Berlin and the considerable skills of the enigmatic Mario Panagiotis for REZ24twentyfour. Rather than offering up new cuts, the producer has dug back into his discography to unearth four previously released gems from two separate EPs that were originally put out back in the mid-90s. There is some pretty wild variation as a result with opener 'Step 2' being a twitchy and dense early French house cut and 'Autumn' being more dusty breakbeat groover. There is plenty of funk and swing to the kinetic 'Do It Again' then 'Lost' closes out with some more bristling tech house beats this time overlaid with eerie synth phrases.

Review: The third album on the Rezpektiva label is a superb album compilation across four sides of vinyl by the "nutty French sonic wizard" by the name of Professor Oz. The eight tracks are devastatingly futuristic even now despite the fact they were all written 1986 and 1995. They are considered to be lost experiments, hence the album title, and have been remastered from the original DAT tapes. They bottle up dusty breakbeats and proto-techno grooves with tribal drumming and trance tinged synth overtones, proggy progressions and acid basslines that will never go out of fashion.

Review: Not to be confused with Arnie's character in Total Recall, this Quaid was best known for weaving delicate and deep d&b around the late 90s/early 2000s on labels such as Return To The Source and Seraphim. While his time in the scene was relatively short-lived, Quaid (AKA Ben Naylor) left a prominent mark on the deeper, 'chill' side of breakbeat and d&b. He also left a whole box of unreleased tracks on DAT, many of which you can enjoy right here for the first time ever. Atmospheric, at points almost ambient, but still kicking when it needs to. These stand the test of time incredibly well.

Review: The latest addition to the Rezpektiva catalogue, REZ17seventeen sees Chris Fielder (Incog-Needle and Razorblayd) in his Rhythm Workshop guise, offering a heady, wonderfully tripped-out five-track EP. Originally recorded for Canadian label Blast Records in 91, it's a time capsule taking us straight to the heart of an era where house and techno were changing the face of music. 'Don't Let Go', the second track on the A-side is a sizzling track steeped in an infectious groove with vocals that transport us right back to the hazy glamour of early rave culture. 'R U Ready', on the B-side, features a satisfying combination of woozy synths and a playful wonky bassline. While 'Aftershock', the final track, following the spliced sample of someone drawing breath, overlaid will chiming bells and deliciously breaksy rhythms is the ideal track for pulling things apart, for momentarily easing the intensity. A welcome return for this classic EP.