Deep Funk — All Formats  

Wonderful work from this New Orleans combo – a Latin act that feels like they'd be much more at home in the Spanish Harlem scene of the 60s, especially given the soulful undercurrents of this set! On previous releases, the group already showed a great talent for crafting just the right sort of classic Latin groove – tight percussion and sharp instrumentation, all honed down with the rhythms in a way that really carried a strong old school punch. But this time around, they've got all that and more – a stronger Latin soul spirit than before, which really comes through in the pacing and presentation of the songs – holding back sometimes to give the listener more, in ways that few young Latin groups seem to get! The style is wonderful – and in addition to older New York modes, these guys bring in a few other elements as well – always without any hoke or gimmick at all. Titles include "Dejame", "Mary Wants To Boogaloo", "Oye Mamacita", "Hasta", "Sad Eyes", and "Swahili Baby".

The Alone Together project from producer, beatmaker and instrumentalist Karriem Riggins – who's a brilliant jazz drummer, when that's what he wants to do – and he's also a beat-heavy hip hop production guru when duty calls! Alone Together finds Karriem wearing his hip hop instrumentalist hat, and he wears it very well – in a way that reminds us a bit of fellow Detroit-raised maestro J Dilla. Karriem's pedigree as a live drummer informs his MPC 3000 experimentation very nicely, too – as he holds an insistent jazzy soul beat underneath boundless sampler atmosphere. Alone Together has 34 tracks in all: "Round The Outside", "Moogy Foog It", "Orbitz", "Forward Motion", "Esperanza", "Africa", "Double Trouble", "Ding Dong Bells", "Belle Isle Reprise", "Tom Toms", "Because", "Boy Is Doin It Right", "Back In Brazil", "Live At Berts", "Voyager 5000", "Matador", "Bring That Beat Back (Next Time)", "J Dilla The Greatest" and more.

The Together sides of the Alone Together project from producer, beatmaker and instrumentalist Karriem Riggins – who's a brilliant jazz drummer, when that's what he wants to do – and he's also a beat-heavy hip hop production guru when duty calls! Together finds Karriem wearing his hip hop instrumentalist hat, and he wears it very well – in a way that reminds us a bit of fellow Detroit-raised maestro J Dilla. Karriem's pedigree as a live drummer informs his MPC 3000 experimentation very nicely, too – as he holds an insistent jazzy soul beat underneath boundless sampler atmosphere. In vinyl, the Alone Together project is released separately in halves – and Together titles include "Belle Isle Reprise", "Tom Toms", "Because", "Boy Is Doin It Right", "Back In Brazil", "Live At Berts", "Voyager 5000", "Matador", "Bring That Beat Back (Next Time)", "J Dilla The Greatest" and more.

A sweet 10 year anniversary round-up of some of the best timelessly soulful releases from he Melting Pot Music team to date – and it's the best kind of "best of" compilation – one that's carefully curated and released as a limited 5 X 7" box set! It's a pretty solid representation of the MPM stylistic reach – with crackling underground soul and modern takes on classic era hip hop – with strong vocals, smart rhymes and jazzy soul beatcraft – and some tunes that blend a bit of all the above. Great stuff from Miles Bonny, Suff Daddy, DJ Day, Twit One, Eric Lau and others. Includes "Four Hills" by DJ Day, "Gnac" by Suff Daddy, "Ausdruck" by Fleur Earth, "Gil Scott-Heron Lament" by Miles Bonny, "Soul 69" by A-Ko, "Hornoxn" by Twit One, "Planet Rock (Jazz)" by Breakout, "Moog Boy 4 Life" by Dexter, "The Light (Eric Lau Remix)" by Funkommunity and "Droptop (Hade Remix)" by TBRCK.

It always feels like we're waiting a long time for a new record from Hypnotic Brass Ensemble – but it's always well worth the wait! This time around, they've found a way to focus their energies even more than before – still sticking strongly in the horn-heavy groove that we love, but also opening things up a bit more on the rhythm tip, too – and going for production that, if anything, makes them sound even more earnest, honest, and spontaneous than before! The record really preserves the live energy that makes the group so compelling – that razor sharp criss-crossing of jazz traditions and styles – steeped in a Chicago legacy that includes Sun Ra and Phil Cohran, but coming across with a hell of a lot more groove than either of them too. Titles include "Touch The Sky", "Kryptonite", "Pluto", "Black Boy", "World Champions", and "Starfighter".

Plenty of rhythm here – tight small combo funk, or funky jazz if you prefer – played in a great no-nonsense style! The group's just guitar, bass, and drums – but they've got energy that's much more that of a funk combo than a jazz trio – thanks to arrangements from Japanese groovemeister Farah, who also produced the set! Lots of the tunes echo a sweet 70s style of funk, and the lean presentation makes the whole thing sound even better – as you'll hear on cuts that include "Real Love", "Boy You Knock Me Out", "Right Here", "Angel", "You Gotta Be", and "Summer Bunnies".

It always feels like we're waiting a long time for a new record from Hypnotic Brass Ensemble – but it's always well worth the wait! This time around, they've found a way to focus their energies even more than before – still sticking strongly in the horn-heavy groove that we love, but also opening things up a bit more on the rhythm tip, too – and going for production that, if anything, makes them sound even more earnest, honest, and spontaneous than before! The record really preserves the live energy that makes the group so compelling – that razor sharp criss-crossing of jazz traditions and styles – steeped in a Chicago legacy that includes Sun Ra and Phil Cohran, but coming across with a hell of a lot more groove than either of them too. Titles include "Touch The Sky", "Kryptonite", "Pluto", "Black Boy", "World Champions", and "Starfighter".