A brilliant album from Kaidi Tatham – deeper by far than anything we've ever heard from him, and way more than you might expect if you only know his singles from the London scene! This set's got a very strong jazz component – monstrous keyboard work from Kaidi that stretches and soars with the kind of sound you might expect from George Duke on MPS – coupled with some leaner, more rhythmic elements that show Tatham's strong ties to the London scene – yet still in ways that really break from its conventions! There's mostly a great groove to the tracks, but there's also a warmth, depth, and spirituality to the record that's really amazing – the kind of new territory that others have found on the excellent Freedom School label – a place that offers a rare outlet for creative expression in times like these. The whole thing's instrumental, and Kaidi played all instruments himself – mixing acoustic percussion with beats, electric keyboards with piano, and coming across with a sound that's far richer than the sum of its core elements. Titles include "Simiya", "I'm High", "So Amazed", "Swift Inspiration", "In Search Of Hope (part 1)", "Do What You Gotta Do", "On A Vibe", "These Things Will Pass", and "He Laughs She Cries". CD

A wonderful collection of modern Brazilian grooves lifted from the legendary Far Out label! The set is much more than a regular compilation – as it's now the only place you can get some of the out-of-print singles on the label, plus a few rare mixes that aren't available elsewhere! The groove is nice and smooth, with a good mix of Brazilian roots and modern production, all with the high quality you've come to expect from Far Out. Includes the stellar groover "Ponteio", done here in an excellent remake by Da Lata – plus the tracks "Consteleacao" by Tutty Moreno, "Canto De Libertacao" by Aricia Mess, "Amazon Adventure (Jazzanova rmx)" by Azymuth, "Freio Aerodynamico" by Marcos Valle, "Times Before (Ape rmx)" by Azymuth, "Quem Com Quem" by Azymuth & Marcos Valle, "Os Escravos Do Jo (Jos Slaves)" by Friends From Rio 2, and "Soberana" by Wilson Das Neves. (Brazil, New Grooves) CD

An incredible full length debut from vocalist Mario Biondi – a jazz singer we'd rank right up there with the legendary Mark Murphy – supported here with great backings from the High Five Quintet! The grooves here are in a soaring, tightly-stepping style – very much the best club jazz mode of the contemporary European scene – with all-acoustic instrumentation, and rhythms that move along at a really great dancefloor pace! Mario's vocals are really unique too – with a little rasp that catches slightly, and really brings a timeless quality to his voice – mixing personal feeling into the lively numbers on the album, with an unexpected depth that really makes the album stand out from similar sessions of this type! There's echoes of hip vocal jazz work from years past by artists like The Peddlers, Bobby Cole, or Mark Murphy – and titles include "A Child Runs Free", "No Mercy For Me", "This Is What You Are", "I Can't Keep From Cryin Sometimes", "Rio De Janeiro Blue", "Handful Of Soul", "On A Clear Day", "Never Die", "No Trouble On The Mountain", "Slow Hot Wind", and "Gig". LP, Vinyl record album

DJ Kawasaki has given the world plenty of great club tracks over the years – but here, he reworks his music in a variety of different styles – sometimes funk, sometimes soul, sometimes a bit of jazz – all with a level of expression that really takes us back to that moment when the Japanese scene was really crossing over with American soul! The vibe here is much richer than if you've just caught some of Kawasaki's tracks floating around the digital world – and the whole thing works really well as a whole – with guest work from Bird, N'Dea Davenport, Karin, and others – on titles that include recreations of the tunes "I'm So On Your Mind", "Let The Music Play", "Shooting Star", "Blazin", "Ain't No Mountain High Enough", "Bright Like Light", "So Far Away", and "Planetary Track". LP, Vinyl record album

Quite an unusual project from Jazzanova – a mixture of older tracks and newer ones, all brought together for an erotic German stage production! The theme of the show really unifies the tracks in a great way – bringing out qualities in Jazzanova's music that we've never noticed before, especially as their own tracks come into play with other numbers from different Sonar Kollektiv artists. There's a groove here that's straightforwardly slinky, and often a bit funky too – one that shakes off some of the too-abstract moments that sometimes get in the way with recent Jazznova projects, and focuses on the most cohesive part of their groove! Titles include the Jazzanova tracks "Behold These Days (Berlin 74)", "This Is The Place", "Glow & Glare", "Theme From Belle Et Fou", "That Night (Live At The SK Office with Clara Hill)", "Keep On Making Me High", and "Am I Losing You" – plus "Maybe Now" by Clara Hill, "Just A Lil Lovin (DJ edit)" by Outlines, "Flickermood" by Forss, "Sun In My Candlelight" by Wahoo, and "Caprice" by Extended Spirit. CD