Deep Funk -- Recently Added  

A cool change for the great keyboardist Ino Hidefumi -- set that's still as spare and funky as previous releases, but in some very different ways! The keyboard groove here shifts a bit from the early 70s vibe of his start, into more of a spacey 80s sort of way -- not tinny or dance oriented, but ...

Plenty of drum magic here -- a highly rhythmic outing that's built from the talents of a battery of great percussionists, working without any other instrumentation at all! There's a romping, funky sensibility to the music on most numbers -- drums and percussion handling not just the grooves, but ...

An amazing deep funk combo from Japan -- one that almost rivals Osaka Monaurail for classic-styled grooves! These guys have a sharpness that reminds us of the late 60s James Brown Band at their best, touched with a bit of JBs instrumental riffing -- all produced with just the right gritty edge to ...

Cinematic funky soul instrumentals from the El Michels Affair -- the loose NYC collective's long awaited full length nod to the Wu Tang Clan! The crew brings their tried and true slow rolling and dirty funk to their interpretations of classic Wu Tang tracks, with some straight up beautiful ...

Cinematic funky soul instrumentals from the El Michels Affair -- the loose NYC collective's long awaited full length nod to the Wu Tang Clan! The crew brings their tried and true slow rolling and dirty funk to their interpretations of classic Wu Tang tracks, with some straight up beautiful ...

The debut full length from Heliocentrics -- the cosmic funk project from Malcolm Catto and a tasteful group of players -- touching on funky drummer hip hop beatcraft, hazy psychedelia, leftfield jazz and global accented grooves! The Heliocentrics have backed DJ Shadow on occasion, and Catto has ...

A wonderful tribute to the genius of the late Weldon Irvine -- one of the greatest keyboard players in jazz funk history, and a masterfully cosmic talent who's touched our life for years! Weldon tragically took his own life in 2002, stunning any of us who'd met him, and who'd been touched by his ...

There's kind of a dodgy cover on this one that might make you think the set's the lowest ebb of James' 90s career, but the record's actually a pretty decent live set -- recorded in 1999, with tracks that mostly hearken back to the jazzed up glory of the early days. James wails on Hammond on a few ...

The deepest jazz funk material Madlib has ever laid down -- possibly the best album yet from Yesterday's New Quintet -- featuring turns at freewheeling avant funk, electro jazz groove, furious sound library styles, a few chill moments, and a boundless sound overall! Yesterday's Universe features ...

Breaks, beats and funky drums from Bumps -- aka Dan Bitney, John Herndon and John McEntire of Tortoise -- a mightily thumping set that sounds very little like their much vaunted flagship operation -- serving up raw, funky beatcraft all the way through! Tortoise has always worked with bottom heavy ...

The amazing full length debut of Hypnotic Brass Ensemble -- a cool combo from the Chicago scene who've been making some big waves around the world over the past few years! The brass-heavy group have a family legacy that links them to the Artistic Heritage Ensemble of Phil Cohran -- and an approach ...

An amazing deep funk combo from Japan -- one that almost rivals Osaka Monaurail for classic-styled grooves! These guys have a sharpness that reminds us of the late 60s James Brown Band at their best, touched with a bit of JBs instrumental riffing -- all produced with just the right gritty edge to ...

Funky keys, hard grooving southern steeped soul, and all around energetic grooves from Deep Street Soul -- uptempo, exciting instrumentals and a couple choice vocal numbers -- and another throwback funky win on Freestyle Records! The band really smokes, and takes a forceful approach to the funk ...

An amazing deep funk combo from Japan -- one that almost rivals Osaka Monaurail for classic-styled grooves! These guys have a sharpness that reminds us of the late 60s James Brown Band at their best, touched with a bit of JBs instrumental riffing -- all produced with just the right gritty edge to ...

Funky keys, hard grooving southern steeped soul, and all around energetic grooves from Deep Street Soul -- uptempo, exciting instrumentals and a couple choice vocal numbers -- and another throwback funky win on Freestyle Records! The band really smokes, and takes a forceful approach to the funk ...

Plenty of soul shaking out here -- a wicked collection of contemporary funk tracks that sound every bit as great as originals from the 60s and 70s! The set's filled with killer numbers that cook up heavy rhythms, searing instrumentation, and some sock-soul vocals that really round the whole thing ...

Greyboy goes rollerskate funk on a great cover of the classic Whatnauts track "Help Is On The Way" -- quite convincingly, thanks to a little help from Rodney Mathews of the Mighty Ryeders and Elgin Park of the Greyboy All Stars! Mathews is really the deepest factor here, contributing ...

Space funk specialist Mr Chop takes on the beatcraft genius of Pete Rock on For Pete's Sake -- blueprint Pete Rock singles and benchmark beats -- refashioned as fuzzed out psychedelic funk instrumentals! It works out masterfully, and very much in the mold of some of our other favorite material by ...

The funky first set from UK drummer Harbans Srih -- a wicked batch of jazz funk tunes with a very unusual twist! At some level, the sound here is very much in the mode of the London funk scene of the late 90s -- inspired by American roots, but taking things in a fresher, tighter approach overall. ...

The grooviest work so far from the Hi-Fly Orchestra -- a set that moves even farther past the sublime territory of their debut, into a really classic blend of soul jazz and Latin rhythms -- produced to perfection with a wonderfully solid feel! Instrumentation here is all live -- a blend of sax, ...

Heavy funk from Speedometer -- one of the coolest combos cooking in the contemporary deep funk underground! The album offers a great chance to hear the group live -- playing with a sound that's every bit as sharp as on their studio records, with an edge that's even grittier -- proof that these ...

Great grooves from Jackson Conti -- not a dude, but a duo -- one that features Madlib teamed with Mamao, drummer from the legendary Azymuth! The album's got a really unique feel -- one that mixes Madlib's chunky, fuzzy style of production with some of the cleaner, jazzier Azymuth grooves of late -- ...

One of the most legendary albums of recent years finally gets an official release -- and about time, too! The set is a loving tribute to the genius of Stevie Wonder -- and features a batch of instrumental readings of Stevie's 70s classics, all performed by Madlib with a sweet mix of keys, vibes, ...

Real funk from an unreal film -- the rarest blaxsploitation gem never made -- the non-soundtrack to Bad Bad Jimmy Ruckus by Philly crew Big Pimp Jones! Bad Bad Jimmy Ruckus is an homage the lovably seedy funk sound of 70s soul cinema -- as well as the looping groove of breakbeat funk -- very well ...

Funky madness! This one's exactly what is says -- a live mix, recorded by this hip funky combo, sort of a mixtape of classic funky tunes, all slammed together in one massive performance! Breakestra run through some of the biggest funky 45s of the 60s and 70s, jamming hard in one live to tape ...

The first full LP from Lack Of Afro -- a name that's been showing up on a fair bit of funky singles over the past few years! The tunes here are very much in the same territory as those great singles -- a slightly assembled approach to deep funk -- one that features some live instrumentation mixed ...

Greasy grooves from The Grits -- a sackful of funk that more than lives up to its raw image on the cover! The group work in a very classic style here -- tight quartet jamming with a heavy instrumental groove -- clearly steeped in the best sounds of the funky 45 underground of the 60s and 70s, but ...

Great stuff from one of those groups who just keep on grooving over the years -- always hitting hard with their own unique take on deep funk! We first loved Soulive back when the group were issuing music on self-produced CDs -- and they've really come a long way in their sound, and have learned a ...

A deep funk reading of Gary Numan's "Cars" -- and every bit as great as you'd guess! The tune is spare, stark, and plenty cooking -- just organ, guitar, and drums -- riffing along without any vocals, in a core reading of the groove that's mighty, mighty nice! Other cuts are wonderful ...

Nothing robotic here at all -- as the groove is fluid, moving, and plenty darn organic -- a heavy dose of deep funk from the mighty Impellers! The group seem to mix in a good deal of Afro Funk elements with their straight ahead funk -- particularly in the way the horns come together, the rhythms ...

Funky club soul and spacier funk from the Baker Brothers! "Family Tree" features vocals by Vanesa Freeman, and it has a nice uptempo groove, with nice drums, guitar and bass in the mix, kicked up by some funky flute and hand percussion> "Space Funk" brings the funk with ...

A landmark album -- one that has the beat-heavy Quantic transform into the Quantic Soul Orchestra, for a stunning deep funk performance! The record sounds like nothing Quantic have done in the past -- and shares a sound with work from the Soul Fire/Daptone underground, with a tight blend of hard ...

Whomp! These guys bring it all down on the beat -- hitting harder than Cassius Clay at the Rome Olympics in '60, packing bass, guitar, and drums into one funky punch -- pounding out a hard heavy groove all the way through their entire debut LP! Of course, these guys have the talent to do it right ...

Hard grooving throwback funk, mod jazz, and 60s r&b flourishes from the mighty Fantastics -- a pretty deft mix of instrumental funk & soul with a mastery of classic styles! The core combo features organ & piano from Greg Boraman, who has roots in fellow UK funk combo the Soul ...

Nothing messy here -- as the Burners are tighter than ever, and bat this one out of the park with a massively funky groove! The core combo features organ, guitar, and drums -- with occasional horns added from time to time -- and most numbers here step off with a really badass instrumental groove ...

Dang! These guys just keep on getting better and better -- easily our favorite act on the ESL label these days, serving up a record that really furthers the promise of their previous efforts! As with their last release, there's a heavy dose of Afro Funk in the mix here -- a shifting of the ...

Heavy Latin funk from Brownout -- a group who've really carved out their own unique space in the deep funk underground -- a rich blend of Latin rhythms, funky instrumentation, and razor-sharp production -- never slick, but totally tight all the way through! One of the group's key members is Adrian ...

One of the best ever sets of sprawling, spacey soul funk and jazz from the impossible to pen in Burnt Sugar Arkestra Chamber -- never an easy group to describe in a nutshell, and that's a good thing -- their best work in years and their first effort for the Livewired label! Making Love To The Dark ...

The amazing full length debut of Hypnotic Brass Ensemble -- a cool combo from the Chicago scene who've been making some big waves around the world over the past few years! The brass-heavy group have a family legacy that links them to the Artistic Heritage Ensemble of Phil Cohran -- and an approach ...

A mighty take on the music of Isaac Hayes -- put together by the El Michels Affair! The album's every bit as funky as the combo's own work -- and it's an amazing rework of familiar funk favorites from the 70s -- redone here with a slightly leaner feel by the group, and without any vocals at all! ...

Funky soul galore -- all of it current, and all of it plenty darn great as well! Back when the first volume of this series was released, the idea of contemporary funk was a bit of a novelty -- but now, the deep funk underground is really getting some key exposure on a global level -- and a ...

Plenty of soul, and plenty of shaking -- a hip collection of contemporary funk and soul, all of it served up with a very classic groove! The work here is mostly new, but it echoes the best sounds of the 60s and 70s -- those wonderful years for soul music that are being revived strongly by key ...

Hard grooving funky soul from the Australian scene courtesy Randa & The Soul Kingdom -- with powerhouse female vocalist Randa Khamis out from front a killer combo! The group rolls in the hard charging school of the international deep funk underground, but Randa's soulful, passionate vocals ...

Modern funk greatness from one of the core combos in its resurgence -- the unstoppable Breakestra! "Joyful Noise" is a funky soul anthem from the group -- taking it to the next level, and hitting you that much deeper thanks to some nice vocals and a catchy chorus. "Dark Clouds Rain ...

Textural mood funk from the team of Shawn Lee and Clutchy Hopkins -- the second collaborative batch from this dynamic and well matched duo! We loved Clutch Of The Tiger, but they take a profound step forward on Fascinating Fingers -- if they were feeling each others styles out on that set, and ...

Killer work from leading lights of the neo classic funk scene -- the mighty Breakestra -- their debut for Strut Records and some of the best work they've ever done! Music Man Miles & the crew knock us out each time, and the 4 years between the stellar Hit The Floor LP and this one was worth ...

Real funk from an unreal film -- the rarest blaxsploitation gem never made -- the non-soundtrack to Bad Bad Jimmy Ruckus by Philly crew Big Pimp Jones! Bad Bad Jimmy Ruckus is an homage the lovably seedy funk sound of 70s soul cinema -- as well as the looping groove of breakbeat funk -- very well ...

Nasty, funky, hard, and heavy -- an incredible second set from Lefties Soul Connection -- even more on the money than the group's debut! The quartet have a lot more grit in their grooves than some of their deep funk contemporaries -- lots of fuzz on the guitar, a real rumble in the bass, and a ...

A feast of funky mod instrumentals from the great Bongolian! This grooooooovy London combo takes the best bits of the 60s and 70s, rolls them into a tight retro approach that includes organ, clavinet, flute, guitar, timbales, vibes, and of course, plenty of bongo work -- with a sound that's lean, ...

Sax-heavy soul from The Soultwisters -- a group who clearly draw strong inspiration from the sound of King Curtis on Atlantic Records -- and who do a pretty good job with his sound on this sweet little set! Instrumentation is nice and lean -- lots of heavy drums, mixed with guitar, bass, and the ...