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A groovy little set – one that mixes up Afro Funk influences with bits of Italian sound library grooving – but all with a contemporary twist that's mighty nice! Guglielmo Pagnozzi handles alto sax, farfisa, and even some percussion – and his horn really dominates the sound on most of the best tracks – snaking out in ways that echo other Afro Funk alto work, but also with some hip retro touches too – a slight dose of European sex that really helps give the record a feel that's different than usual! Instrumentation is mostly live, although it feels like there's a bit of programmed rhythms at points – but again, this helps give the whole thing a nice sound of its own. Titles include "Ogun", "Leo", "Music For Sale", "Slow", "Voodoo Strange Fruit", and "Afroderrick".

A groovy little set – one that mixes up Afro Funk influences with bits of Italian sound library grooving – but all with a contemporary twist that's mighty nice! Guglielmo Pagnozzi handles alto sax, farfisa, and even some percussion – and his horn really dominates the sound on most of the best tracks – snaking out in ways that echo other Afro Funk alto work, but also with some hip retro touches too – a slight dose of European sex that really helps give the record a feel that's different than usual! Instrumentation is mostly live, although it feels like there's a bit of programmed rhythms at points – but again, this helps give the whole thing a nice sound of its own. Titles include "Ogun", "Leo", "Music For Sale", "Slow", "Voodoo Strange Fruit", and "Afroderrick".

The sun shines brightly on Mario Biondi – really making this record sparkle with a charm that goes way beyond Mario's previous albums – a quality that's less retro than before, and which shows Biondi as a growing soul star with really universal appeal! There's still some of the old school jazz in the mix that we love from Mario's Schema work – but the album's also got a fuller production style at times, one that really expands the palette of Biondi's colors, and which has him working here with help from key guests who include Omar, Leon Ware, Al Jarreau, Incognito, and Chaka Khan – and even a bit of organ from the James Taylor Quartet! Jean-Paul "Bluey" Maunick helped co-write a good number of tracks on the set – and titles include "Shine On", "Come To Me", "Woman Woman", "What Have You Done To Me", "Never Stop", "La Voglia La Pazzia L'Idea", "Girl Blue", "Light To The World", and "Catch The Sunrise".

Cool compressed grooves from Raoul K – music that's offers up a really unique blend of African roots and contemporary club – but in ways that are a lot more abstract than others working in the genre! Raoul really abstracts the instruments in his music – so that the core elements fuse together as the set rolls on – with a sound that's contemporary, yet has an earthiness too – kind of timeless roots buried somewhere in the background – not in ways that hit you over the head, yet which really inform the music! Titles include "Somassi", "Bardot", "Sierra Leone (Deetron mixdown)", "Belebeleba", "Rainforest (Chicagomix)", and "Mande (Griotmix)".

Cool compressed grooves from Raoul K – music that's offers up a really unique blend of African roots and contemporary club – but in ways that are a lot more abstract than others working in the genre! Raoul really abstracts the instruments in his music – so that the core elements fuse together as the set rolls on – with a sound that's contemporary, yet has an earthiness too – kind of timeless roots buried somewhere in the background – not in ways that hit you over the head, yet which really inform the music! Titles include "Somassi", "Bardot", "Sierra Leone (Deetron mixdown)", "Belebeleba", "Rainforest (Chicagomix)", and "Mande (Griotmix)". Features a bonus DVD – "Still Music Presents Mr Raoul K" – a film about Raoul in the Ivory Coast!

The sun shines brightly on Mario Biondi – really making this record sparkle with a charm that goes way beyond Mario's previous albums – a quality that's less retro than before, and which shows Biondi as a growing soul star with really universal appeal! There's still some of the old school jazz in the mix that we love from Mario's Schema work – but the album's also got a fuller production style at times, one that really expands the palette of Biondi's colors, and which has him working here with help from key guests who include Omar, Leon Ware, Al Jarreau, Incognito, and Chaka Khan – and even a bit of organ from the James Taylor Quartet! Jean-Paul "Bluey" Maunick helped co-write a good number of tracks on the set – and titles include "Shine On", "Come To Me", "Woman Woman", "What Have You Done To Me", "Never Stop", "La Voglia La Pazzia L'Idea", "Girl Blue", "Light To The World", and "Catch The Sunrise". CD has a great package – hardcover book-style, with pages inside!

One of the most righteous albums of the 21st century so far – and an instant classic we'll be loving for years! Build An Ark are a seriously heavy soul jazz ensemble, with roots and traditions that stretch back to the most righteous days of the 70s underground – the brainchild of producer Carlos Nino and vocalist Dwight Trible – and featuring work by soul jazz stalwarts that include Phil Ranelin, Nate Morgan, Derf Reklaw, Adam Rudolph, and others – all coming together in a fresh, new expression of the righteous ideals that first motivated their original work! Under the guidance of Nino, the group really gels together nicely – working in a loose mode that's a nice change from the tighter cosmic 21st century soul of the European scene – and returning to the organic, almost folksy forms that first emerged on 70s independent labels like Tribe, Strata East, and Nimbus. LA luminary Nate Morgan plays some great Fender Rhodes on many of the album's best tracks – and singer Dwight Trible has a soulful range that's somewhere between the style of Terry Callier and Leon Thomas. This EP features 5 tracks in all – including a massively beautiful remake of Pharoah Sanders "You've Got To Have Freedom", plus Phil Ranelin's "Vibes From The Tribe", and the original tracks "Pure Imagination/Tortoise & The Hare", "Door Of The Cosmos (take 1)", and "Marcia" – the last 2 of which weren't on the full LP!

Shawn Lee draws from a deep wellspring of global funk influences and instrumentation for his Ping Pong Orchestra's eclectic World Of Funk – featuring Clutchy Hopkins, Curumin, Elliot Bergman of Nomo, Michael Leonhart and others! Lee weaves a tapestry western funk and soul instrumentals with strains of Ethio jazz, Brazilian soul, Thai and Cambodian psych, Afro grooves and more – making it all work with his own personal vision, informed by years of crate diggin' and un-compromised music making. We don't know how he does it – balancing such a diverse array of influences and doing it all justice. Wonderful stuff from the indefatigable Mr. Lee and his stellar roster of guests. Includes "Bina", "Ghosts In The Rain" feat Clutchy Hopkins & Chhom Nimol, "Ethio" and " Booya" feat Michael Leonhart, "Nao Vacila" feat Curumin, "La Eterna Felicidad" feat Bardo Martinez, "Nanny Jee" feat Nanny G, "Mi Ilusion" feat Cava, "Accelerate, "Hairy Krishner" and more.

A powerful tribute to the work of horror film director Lucio Fulci – served up in a package that's even more striking than his original movies! The super-deluxe effort is way more than just a single – as the whole thing is wonderfully put together, with a solid feel of a full soundtrack – especially in the way the music recreates themes by Fabio Frizzi and Walter Rizzati from original Fulci films – all with very bold, spooky instrumentation that very much in the best Italian horror mode of the 70s! Way better than we even expected – and a record that's a perfect complement to a collection of rare spooky soundtracks.

Not just bossa, but some other older jazz modes too – presented by a young Italian combo with plenty of depth and feeling! Most of the instrumentation is acoustic, and although the group goes for a groove at a few points, they're much more concerned with straighter jazz than a dancefloor approach – really making the best of the deep acoustic basslines in the rhythm trio, which brings great life to the tenor and soprano sax of Alessandro Scala and trumpet of Leonardo Carboni. The piano of Michele Francesconi is mighty nice, too – with a sparkling quality that really energizes the album nicely – and titles include "Bossa Mossa", "Alex Groove", "Tension", "Waltz For Vale", "Easily", "Sogni Felici", and "Minghe".

The sun shines brightly on Mario Biondi – really making this record sparkle with a charm that goes way beyond Mario's previous albums – a quality that's less retro than before, and which shows Biondi as a growing soul star with really universal appeal! There's still some of the old school jazz in the mix that we love from Mario's Schema work – but the album's also got a fuller production style at times, one that really expands the palette of Biondi's colors, and which has him working here with help from key guests who include Omar, Leon Ware, Al Jarreau, Incognito, and Chaka Khan – and even a bit of organ from the James Taylor Quartet! Jean-Paul "Bluey" Maunick helped co-write a good number of tracks on the set – and titles include "Shine On", "Come To Me", "Woman Woman", "What Have You Done To Me", "Never Stop", "La Voglia La Pazzia L'Idea", "Girl Blue", "Light To The World", and "Catch The Sunrise". CD has a great package – hardcover book-style, with pages inside!