The world of Dexter Story just keeps getting bigger and bigger – not just because he's a richly collaborative player, but also because he's got this musical style that really opens up to so many different elements – but without ever sounding like he's trying to crash them together in any sort of inorganic way! Instead, Dexter draws evenly from spiritual jazz, Ethiopian rhythms, underground soul, and some of the best strands of 21st Century grooves – opening up the door for his own wonderful lead lyrics, while creating and exploring a planet of his own. Guests on the record include Carlos Nino on percussion, Te'Amir Sweeney on drums, Miguel Atwood-Ferguson on strings, and Randal Fischer on tenor – and the set features guest vocals from Haile Supreme, Marie Daulne, Endeguena Mulu, Sudan Archives, Jimetta Rose, and Kibrom Birhane – although Dexter gets plenty of time in the lead too. Titles include "Mamdooh", "Buna Be Chow", "Gold", "Techawit", "Shuruba Song", "Bahir", "Abebaye", and "Jijiga Jijiya". CD features the Japanese only bonus track "Wejene Aolo" – which features work from Kamasi Washington! (New Grooves, Global Grooves) CD

A mad mix of sounds from the glory days of Indian cinema – served up in a package that offers up a much broader blend of styles than other Bollywood collections – as it features numbers from the late 50s all the way through the early 80s! Some of the tracks here have a rockish vibe that's great – romping rhythms, organ and guitars, and a sharp vibe that's contrasted by some of the fuller numbers from later years – including a few nuggets from the heyday of Bollywood funk! The whole thing is upbeat and grooving all the way through – with work by Mohammad Rafi, Asha Bhosle, Kishor Kumar, Kamal Hasaan, Geeta Dutt, Lata Mangeshkar, and others – from films that include Ek Phool Char Kante, Sholay, Aazhi, Bhoot Bungla, Intinti Raamayanam, Blackmail, Junglee, and Howrah Bridge. LP, Vinyl record album

Heavy funk from the Bahamas – a whole bunch of groups that will show you that Nassau had a lot more to offer than The Beginning Of The End! The groove here is totally wonderful – somewhat like American funk of the late 60s and early 70s, but served up with some very unusual rhythmic patterns too – a bit Jamaican at times, but certainly not reggae – and somewhat sunny and Caribbean styled, but not in a way that's cheesy or filled with any hokey island-styled stereotypes. Instead, the tunes are deeply funk and soulful – grooving with plenty of dark edges and gritty instrumentation that's often heavy on the guitar. Many numbers have vocals, and those are great too – and as usual with the Numero label, the whole thing's put together with amazing notes and packaging, so that you get a full history lesson and a heck of a lot of photos to support the music too! Titles include "Gonna Build A Nation" by Cyril Ferguson, "Mustang Sally", "I Am The Man For You Baby", and "Funky Fever" by Jay Mitchell, "Theme From Shaft" by Esquires LTD, "Gimme Some Skin (inst)" by Frank Penn, "Words To My Song" by Dry Bread, "People Won't Change" by Willpower, "Take Five" by Ozzie Hall, "Watcha Gonna Do Bout It" and "The Time For Loving Is Now" by Mustangs, "Honesty Is The Best Policy" by Gospel Chandeliers, and "Don't Touch That Thing" by Sylvia Hall. CD

The great drummer Tony Allen left our planet all too soon – but not before cutting this fantastic album as part of the Jazz Is Dead series – a killer record that may be one of the best he's given us in the past decade or so! The format here is different than some of Tony's other records, but also different than the other Jazz Is Dead records – as the instrumentation is fuller than those, with a brace of horns that really fills things up – while Tony delivers these amazing rhythm patterns on the bottom, supported with basslines from Adrian Younge, who also adds in all sorts of very cool keyboards! There's more noise and darkness at times than we've heard on some of Allen's bigger label sets – and we mean that in a really great way – and the drummer is maybe most up in the mix of all the instruments, so you can really hear Tony going to town at his funky best. Titles include "Don't Believe The Dancers", "Steady Tremble", "Ebun", "Oladipo", "No Beginning", "Lagos", and "Makoko". (Deep Funk, Global Grooves) CD

The great drummer Tony Allen left our planet all too soon – but not before cutting this fantastic album as part of the Jazz Is Dead series – a killer record that may be one of the best he's given us in the past decade or so! The format here is different than some of Tony's other records, but also different than the other Jazz Is Dead records – as the instrumentation is fuller than those, with a brace of horns that really fills things up – while Tony delivers these amazing rhythm patterns on the bottom, supported with basslines from Adrian Younge, who also adds in all sorts of very cool keyboards! There's more noise and darkness at times than we've heard on some of Allen's bigger label sets – and we mean that in a really great way – and the drummer is maybe most up in the mix of all the instruments, so you can really hear Tony going to town at his funky best. Titles include "Don't Believe The Dancers", "Steady Tremble", "Ebun", "Oladipo", "No Beginning", "Lagos", and "Makoko". (Deep Funk, Global Grooves) LP, Vinyl record album

One of the coolest collections of underground Thai rock we've seen – and it certainly is The Heavier Sound Of the Luk Thung Underground – including a uniquely Thai vision flavored with a Black Sabbath riff, psych makeovers of Thai folklore, and a bunch great tunes that meld Bangkok life with western garage and psychedelia masterfully! All of the tunes are heavy in their own way, but it's by no means heavy in a simple hard rock way – loads of impassioned vocals, astounding percussion, tripped out guitar and other strings and woozy organ keep the arrangements exciting, and the otherworldly aspects play nice with accessible melodies. Titles include "Kuen Kuen Lueng Leung" (the aforementioned heady take on Sabbath's "Iron Man"), "Ruk Kun Samong" by Plearn Promdan, "Pai Joi" by Rung Petchburi, "Nam Mun Pang" by Sroeng Santi, "Dub Fai Kui Gun" by Sroeng Santi and more. 14 massive slabs of heavy Thai psych in all! LP, Vinyl record album

A really mind-bending collection of African grooves – one that digs deep into the West African scene of the early 70s – and comes up with a massive batch of tunes that really opens up our understanding of the music! The sound here isn't just 70s Afro Funk – as the tunes include a range of tripped-out styles that make the best use of electric instrumentation, psychedelic production, and important influences from American soul artists at the time. There's some amazing guitar on some of the best tracks – ringing out with a sound that's chromatically complex while also being tripped-out and funky – in a way that complicates the rhythms without totally taking them apart. If you've dug the tunes on previous sets like Africa Funk or Ghana Soundz, this is one to take that sound to the next level – and really open up your ears! Titles include "Keleya" by Moussa Doumbia, "Love's A Real Thing" by The Super Eagles, "Minsato Le Mi Dyihome" by Orchestre Poly-Rhythmo De Cotonou Dahomey, "Porry" by Sorry Bamba, "Allah Wakbarr" by Ofo & The Black Company, "Sanjina" by Orchestre Regional De Kayes, "Ifa" by Tunji Oyelana & The Benders, "Zinabu" by Bunzu Sounds, and "Awon-Ojise-Oluwa" by Gasper Lawal. CD

One of the coolest collections of underground Thai rock we've seen – and it certainly is The Heavier Sound Of the Luk Thung Underground – including a uniquely Thai vision flavored with a Black Sabbath riff, psych makeovers of Thai folklore, and a bunch great tunes that meld Bangkok life with western garage and psychedelia masterfully! All of the tunes are heavy in their own way, but it's by no means heavy in a simple hard rock way – loads of impassioned vocals, astounding percussion, tripped out guitar and other strings and woozy organ keep the arrangements exciting, and the otherworldly aspects play nice with accessible melodies. Titles include "Kuen Kuen Lueng Leung" (the aforementioned heady take on Sabbath's "Iron Man"), "Ruk Kun Samong" by Plearn Promdan, "Pai Joi" by Rung Petchburi, "Nam Mun Pang" by Sroeng Santi, "Dub Fai Kui Gun" by Sroeng Santi and more. 14 massive slabs of heavy Thai psych in all! LP, Vinyl record album

Classic guitar highlife music from Ghana! Guitarist Eric Agyeman helped revive the moribund style, reinventing with the electric guitar and injecting some of the liquid magic of Congolese rumba. Beginning in the early 60s he worked with a bevy of great bands, including Dr. K. Gyasi & His Noble Kings and the mighty A.B. Crentsil & the Sweet Talks. Crentsil and Agyaaku – another of the great vocalists of the modern highlife era – sit in on lead vocals for one track each, leaving the lion's share of the vocals to Thomas Frempong – who contributes one of the most killing tracks to the great Ghana Soundz collection – who handles them with soul and grace. Agyeman's fluid guitar here contributes some sublime solos, but the real treat is the stellar rhythm work. Tracks include "Matutu Mirika", "Abenaa Na Aden?", "I Don't Care", "Nea Abe Beto", and "Odo Bra". CD

This group is probably best known to the world by their name Lafayette Afro Rock Band – which was their first incarnation, when they were turning the Paris funky jazz scene on its ear in the early 70s! This album's of a later vintage, and the band's tightened up their act a bit – but the groove is still quite strong, and all the right elements are firmly in place. Lafayette Hudson's still on funky bass, Frank Abel lays down wonderful keyboards – and tracks include "Hi Fi Woman", "The Gap", "Funky Bunch", "Funky Lovin", "Quick", and "Passing Dreams". (Soul, Global Grooves) LP, Vinyl record album