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Review: Black Key return from a four year hiatus in style, with 4 sublime tracks from Australian ultra deep house don, Planisphere, aka David Swatten. Following an incredibly well received LP on reissue label, For Those That Knoe, Swatten returns here with more expansive, smokey and utterly consuming deep house cuts, stamped with his unique sound but offering a different flavour from his Definitive Transmission LP - one which immediately stands out from the crowd. Being only his third release in 20 years, there's an understandable sense of anticipation around Swatten's output. This release undoubtedly puts Black Key firmly back on the map, picking up their deserved reputation for releasing only the very best deep house, aimed well and truly at the heads.

Review: A tasty pair of chunky, beefed and dubbed up disco delights courtesy of the Cardiology label and every bit as likely to get the heart rate pumping as the name would suggest. The Owl's 'Groove Engine' steps up to the breach on the A-side, the slightly slower of the pair but blessed with a thumping framework of four-to- the-floor sturdiness on which funky keys and an almost Afro vibe are tastfully and decoratively hung. Flip track 'I'm Gonna' by C Da Afro is constructed from more archetypically traditional old skool disco ingredients, from the Sister Sledge-esque female vocals to the shooting, strings. There's a nice amount of dub behaviour via the desk, enough to elevate it into orbit but not so much that the song elements of the track are obscured. Nice work all round.

Review: Teddy Powell and Zee Desmondes are The Jack Moves, a contemporary disco and hip hop outfit who here link with unknown newbies The People Of Newark and Larry Hamm for this tidy new 7" on Star Creature. 'Horror Games' has a squelchy synth bass line that carries the loose drum work and bustling methane of background vocals and found sounds. A lead singer takes charge up top as various chatting crowds play out in the background. It's a busy tune that also comes as an instrumental for those who prefer the focus to be on the well crafted drums and bass.

Review: Hot on the heels of 2021's stellar release of The French Connection's "Speechless" LP, Balance head honcho and legendary producer and DJ Chez Damier teams up again with Camille and Adeen Records for another trip around the the world with Lima, Peru's Surco's Groove, "The Lima Project." This beautiful release titled "What Is Love?" delivers hard hitting versions of the track in the original, dub, instrumental, and an acapella with stellar remixes from Snad and German producer Damien Rausch. Be it France or Peru, Balance and Adeen knows how to take you on a musical journey. We can't wait to see where they go next!

Review: Thomas Xu tends not to release much music, but when he does it tends to be musically rich, rhythmically complex and very, very good. That's certainly the case with "Places In Time", his second EP on Steady Flight following an inspired 2017 debut on Theo Parrish's Sound Signature imprint. There's much to set the pulse racing across the EP, from the heavily analogue, synthesizer-powered, intergalactic jazz-funk looseness of "Easin", and the slipped 21st century instrumental space-jazz of "Tired A Being Tired (What Are We Here For)", to the densely layered, piano-driven ambience of "Promise 2", and the hard-to-pigeonhole eccentricity of closing cut "Let's Go See Roy".

Review: Al Kent takes on Japan’s answer to Vince Montana for another extended disco mix, with the emphasis - as always - on disco! Judging by the popularity of the pair’s last outing this release should once again please those DJs and music lovers with a penchant for the percussion, strings and traditional instrumentation that underpins the best disco music, bringing it up to date with one eye firmly on the past.

Review: The second release on Lempuyang comes courtesy of Tomoki Tsukamoto. In the late 90s Tomoki put out releases on Gez Varley's G Records, i220, and of course ran his own Metrojuice Records imprint; putting out some of the most sought-after deep & dubby techno records under his alias W-Moon. After a hiatus of over 20 years he now returns with four new tracks under his own name, still retaining that deep signature sound.

Review: Italian label Spittle have launched their new Dependance sub label to champion all things Italo, and they're following up on reissues of Zed's 'Plastic Love' and Trophy's 'Slow Flight' with this gem from fabled Italian DJ and producer Massimo Barsotti. Originally released in 1983 on Alexander Robotnick's Fuzz Dance label, we're absolutely treated to a peak Italo version of Led Zeppelin's 'Whole Lotta Love', which takes the original and runs with it in the best possible way. As well as the original we get the killer 'W.L.L.' version excursion on the flip, which rocks out just as hard.

Review: ***B-STOCK: Sleeve damaged but otherwise in excellent condition***


Having built their reputation through 12" singles for the likes of Crosstown Rebels and Poker Flat, Dan Berkson and James What deliver their debut album, on their freshly minted imprint Modelmaker. Interestingly, Keep Up Appearances is an altogether warmer, melodious and more evocative set than you'd perhaps expect, with a smattering of rich downtempo cuts joining a solid selection of dancefloor-friendly deep house. You can hear a classic dub techno influence in cuts such as "Keep Up Appearances" and "Shadow Theory", while the acid-flecked, soul-soaked "Make It True" sounds like classic Osunlade. Best of all, though, are the more forthright efforts, with the ragged "Seraphim" standing out.

Review: Odopt have been responsible for some serious, sinewy heaters on labels like Born Free, 777 and Discos Capablanca. That should give you some idea of the kind of sonic sphere they operate in - rugged hardware house with a wavey bite and a playful instinct. It makes total sense then to see them sidle up to [Emotional] Especial with this four-tracker of surefooted deviant dance. 'A14' opens up proceedings on an ominous bassline and plenty of mechanical grind, while 'Keylat' jacks things up a smidge while resolutely wallowing in the muck of Odopt's studio practices. 'Sample Commerce Shot' is the catchiest cut on the record, riding a slinky beat and featuring a powerful lead hook that sounds beamed in from somewhere in a distant galaxy. 'Holy Motor$' finishes the record off on another brooding, death disco groover, bringing things full circle with the nocturnal offerings of 'A14'.

Review: It's been a while since the Albion stable graced our platters, but they're back in style with more of that on-point house music voodoo for the heat of the night. This single is a vessel for the various sides of Tommi Vicari Jr, who rolls out his Czevski alias to deliver a bruising remix of "57 Hertz" by 76-79. It's a reverb-soaked, dubbed out affair with a rock solid rhythm section and plenty of trippy FX tweaking on top. On the flip it's a different story with a similar feeling as we get the straight up Tommi Vicari Jr material in the shape of two killer tracks crafted for transcendental moments of dancefloor hypnosis.

Review: ***B-STOCK: Torn sleeve & record has light surface marks/scratches, otherwise in excellent working condition***


It's been a while since we last heard from Kinfolk, but the broad-sweeping label with cosmic chuggery in its bones is back with this powerful dose from Ess O Ess and Saulrichards. "Totem" is an epic track that rolls around in the muck somewhere between shoegaze extravagance, post-rock heaviness and psyched-out electronics. The "Swamp Crawl" version of the track keeps the guitars bedded deep within the mix, but there's space for more expressive synth work. Hardway Brothers take the track on a similarly rockist journey, but take their time building up to a climax. Otologic wrap things up with a deadly dub that will have low tempo trippers rubbing their hands with delight.