Search dance music

Review: ***B-STOCK: Creasing to corner of outer sleeve but otherwise in excellent condition***


Decades after he died, pioneering rapper Christopher Wallace aka Biggie aka B.I.G remains a hip hop giant, not least for us here at Juno HQ. He had the flow, the character, the lyrics, and showed all of it on his masterclass album The Notorious BIG. It is now getting a well deserved reissue on double vinyl, with all the original tunes included. There are uber-hits like the ubiquitous 'Juicy', tracks that make astute social commentaries about the black experience such as 'Everyday Struggle' and then some darn right killer grooves like 'One More Chance' and 'Big Poppa.' RIP to the greatest to ever do it.

Review: Alive She Cried is The Doors' electrifying second live album from 1983, available for the first time on vinyl since its original release. The first live album to be released following the band's explosion in popularity after their incendiary song 'The End' was lucky enough to be featured in the timeless Ford-Coppola movie Apocalypse Now, Elektra Records were more than compelled to pursue the release of more Doors material; this one homes in on various concerts between 1968-70, spanning shows performed in New York, Boston, Detroit, LA and Copenhagen. This 40th anniversary reissue is on emerald vinyl and features 'Light My Fire (including Graveyard Poem)', 'Moonlight Drive', and 'Love Me Two Times', among other Doors hits and favourites.

Review: When Air's Moon Safari first landed on terra firma in 1997, it was a revelation that flipped the French touch boom on its head. Swapping discoid thrust for sensual lounge, Nicolas Jean Godin and Jean-Benoit Dunckel kept a certain sophisticated nostalgia in their sound which tracked with their compatriots, but they absolutely weaved their own spell with it. The hits caught on for good reason, from the dirty grind of 'Sexy Boy' to the swooning romanticism of 'All I Need' featuring Beth Hirsch on vocals, but the moments in between merely added to the spectacle, lodging Air in the hearts and minds of a whole generation. This special anniversary edition adds a second disc of B-sides, remixes and session tracks, plus a Blu-ray disc featuring the iconic videos and a documentary from the Moon Safari era.

Review: The ninth studio album by the Grateful Dead, Terrapin Station came after a two-year hiatus by the band, who afterward returned to live touring and high-concept jazz-rocking. Something of an achievement in defining the more mathematic elements of prog at the time, several of the songs heard across the album deal in time signatures less common to the Westernized ear, with perhaps the most enduring of them all, 'Estimated Prophet', having been recorded in septuple time. Perhaps mirroring this sense of rhythmic ambition verging on megalomaniac grandeur, the album, seemingly springing forth from this central song, deals throughout with themes of false-prophetic grandiosity - cultic self-aggrandisement - that seemed to emanate from California and the West Coast at the time, especially in the immediate aftermath of the counterculture and in the more musical annals of history in the then-unfurling latter half of the 20th Century.

Review: Rhino recently acquired the worldwide rights to The Beat's catalogue, and is marking the beginning of this exciting partnership with the release of an expanded version of the influential ska group's 1980 debut, I Just Can't Stop It. A fixture of ska and two-tone in their day, The Beat laid down an infectious toe-tapper with I Just Can't Stop It, imbuing the natural compulsion to dance with the hidden materiality of class struggle; with deeply socially charged lyrics skirting over the jubilant instrumental likes of 'Best Friend', 'Mirror In The Bathroom' and 'Twist And Crawl', to contrasting but convincing effect. This acclaimed fixture of British ska comes reissued as a 2-LP set on magenta vinyl, following up the RSD crystal clear edition released earlier in 2023.

Review: Years before anyone had ever heard of CBGB, Max's was *the* place in New York City to see cutting-edge rock acts (and mingle with Manhattan scenesters). Near the top of that list was The Velvet Underground, whose final show with bandleader Lou Reed (until a brief 90s reunion) is documented on the live album Live At Max's Kansas City. The quartet mixed such older favorites as 'I'll Be Your Mirror,' 'Femme Fatale' and 'I'm Waiting For The Man', with new songs like 'Sweet Jane' and 'New Age' from their soon-to-be-released Loaded, with plenty of venue atmosphere heard throughout (there is an audible conversation in which Jim Carroll hits up an audience member for pills). Rhino's Expanded & Remastered Edition of the seminal collection includes both sets performed by band that night in their entirety.

Review: We for one are perfect happy to revisit this iconic debut solo album of the legendary singer Chaka Khan. Originally released in 1978 and now arriving once more as a deluxe edition, the record showcases the disco diva's incomparable vocal prowess and genre-defying style. With hits like 'I'm Every Woman' and 'Life is a Dance,' it solidified Khan's status as a powerhouse in the realms of funk, r&b, and disco. This deluxe edition has newly remastered tracks, rare bonus content, and further insights into Khan's artistic journey. It serves as a timely reminder of her unparalleled talent in one essential package.