Hot mustard mix deep funk instrumentation with hip hop inspired beats – really linking together two generations of funky sounds with a very unique approach! The core of the group is Nick Carusos on bass and Jack Powell on guitars – yet the later also serves up all these breakbeats throughout – the spare, lean kind that people where first pulling from records in the early years of hip hop – then layered with live instrumentation from the pair, plus work from others on trumpet, trombone, and a whole host of cool organ and keyboard lines! Alanna Royale sings on the final track – "The End Of Time" – and all other cuts are instrumental, and include "Whole Grain", "Stono Hustle", "Gravy Boat", "Butcher Block", "Low Boy", and "The Golden Beet". CD

Guitarist Eddie Roberts is a legend in contemporary funk – famous first for his work in the New Mastersounds, then for some great records on his own – now working here as a key part of The Lucky Strokes – a group who open up a whole new chapter in Eddie's career! The group's a lean quartet, and features vocals from Shelby Kemp – a raspy-voiced singer who's clearly versed in the more soulful sides of the blue-eyed rock spectrum – working here in modes that evoke The Face and some hipper currents of southern rock – but all delivered with the lean funky style you'd expect from Roberts! The rest of the lineup just features bass and drums – which makes for a mighty spare, guitar-forward album – with titles that include "Whiskey Makes Me Stronger", "Holy Fire", "Grits Ain't Groceries", "Rambler", "Gonna Get In My Way", "Home Sweet Home", and "Gonna Get In My Way". CD

Drummer Tim Carman is best known for his work in the bluesy trio GA-20, but here he's in much more of a jazz-based mode overall – leading a trio that features some stunning organ work from Ken Clark, a player we don't know at all, but who clearly knows how to channel the best soul jazz styles of the 60s! There's a fierce, freewheeling vibe to the cuts – not funk, but more classic organ jazz – supported throughout with equally strong work on guitar from Steve Fell. If we had to come up with a reference for the vibe, we might go back to the 60s trio work of Don Patterson with Pat Martino and Billy James – and that's a heck of a compliment from us! Titles include "Blues For Bob", "Buster Rides Again", "Insomnia", "Sonnymoon For Two", "Not A Tear", "Key Lime", and "Scoochie". CD

Hard to hold your horses with music this great – a really great moody take on deep funk territory – nicely laidback, and served up in a way that really lets the group enjoy all the rich tonal colors they produce along the way! The lineup is spare, and nicely kicked back – chromatic guitar riffs, watery keyboard lines, slow-stepping bass, and drums that kind of jitter nervously at points – all of which creates a nice sense of tension in the grooves! The whole thing's definitely a standout set in the world of instrumental funk – and titles include "One Hand One Bounce", "8th Movement", "Incredible Wonderful", "Not For The First Time", "Eyes On The Prize", "The Early Bird Catches", and "All Aboard". CD

The killer debut of a group we hope are going to be huge – as they definitely bring a whole new vibe to the world of funk – by combining lean combo instrumentation with some much larger arrangements, all at a level that's almost more in the David Axelrod side of the spectrum! There's a really majestic quality to the record – as the slow funk elements are expanded with strings in all the right ways – deepening, darkening the sound incredibly – so that there's way more going on here in terms of colors and tones than on the usual funk record! And if you're worried about things sounding too soft, don't – because the drums are heavy throughout, even when slow – and arranger Lou King really knows how to balance the elements perfectly. Titles include "The Web", "Ligurian Dream", "Shades Of Silver", "Violet Vanished", "Outlines", "West Wind", "Changing Light", and "A Return From Ashes". CD