Search results: Paris Underground

Review: DVDE is an alias that reminds us of the TV wind-up merchant Phonejacker, and there sure is plenty of jack to the beast cooked up by this emerging artist. Their Ultralucid Paris EP is an old school house workout that starts with the acid-laced title track with its early Chicago drums and dark vocals. 'Good Morning England' then winds up the energy levels with more wonky synths and brain-frying acid lines and then the EP closes with flip-side jam 'Dramacid' featuring the one and only San Proper. It's an uneven and sleazy house cut with crunchy drums and San's vocals and funky guitar riffs bringing to life the prickly 303s.

Review: Global Underground's' Select' series acts as a kind of annual nod to all the club-focused and after-hours music they love, mixed together by an un-credited DJ or studio engineer to keep things moving. 2024's edition - the ninth to date - is naturally packed to the rafters with tasty tracks from both established producers and rising stars. That means an attractive, immersive and frequently emotive mix of ambient-tinged deep electro (Pablo Bolivar & Nacho Sanchez), evocative tech-house (Dixon re-working Nandu's 'Around', Guy J's hypnotic, acid-flecked 'State of Trance'), pitched-down neo-trance dreaminess (Joris Voorn editing Solee), grandiose big room workouts (Fur Coat & Lexur), 21st century acid house (Phunkadelica remixing Damon Jee) and uplifting progressive house (D-Nox).

Review: Having previously shone a light on lovers rock via two volumes of his For The Love of You compilations, dusty-fingered selector Sam Don has turned his attention to 'underground UK soul'. In practice, that largely means - though not uniformly - street soul of the late 80s and 90s. It's a simple idea, executed brilliantly, with Don working tirelessly to get the blessing of all the artists involved. Sweet, synth-heavy and lusciously loved up, the 12 tracks on show are undeniably excellent, with the many highlights including the piano-sporting, breakbeat-driven dancefloor pleasure of Kofi's 'Step By Step', the sax-sporting shuffle of Jenny B's 'Sexy Eyes (Club Mix)', the bubbly 80s soul cheeriness of Cavalier's 'Don't Touch' and the bustling post-boogie brilliance of 'Passion' by Taffy.

Review: After his hugely well received lovers' rock compilations for this label, Sam Don digs deep into the rich world of UK sweet soul on this - typically - excellent new compilation from the wondrous ashes of the North. He comes up with plenty of mega hard to find and expensive musical treasures that have all been painstakingly researched and tracked down. It was a short lived but fertile scene in the underground back in the 90s and if you didn't; know that already you will after one listen through of this - the sounds are highly danceable with silky, low-lit melodies and steamy and seductive vocals for loved up late night dancing.

Review: Caravan are notable pushers of the early 70s Canterbury scene, a unique subgenre of prog rock that found its start in the 1960s but which continued to be fleshed out well into the following decade; and in this case, in London, away from the scene's original inception. In The Land Of Grey & Pink now hears a reissue via Deram, once again recalling Caravan's whimsical sensibility and their overarching fit into the Canterbury sound at large. Whether nailed by its the frank and boxed-in vocals by Richard Sinclair, or the channel-surrounded guitar licks of Pye Hastings - as well as a whopping 22-minute epic track, 'Nine Feet Underground' - this is a bowler-overer of pastoral, humorous and fantastical sounds.