Fantastic sounds from Flying Lotus – an artist who just keeps on pushing past any conventional expectations, to a point where his music is almost a genre unto itself! The record's got this very tripped-out sort of vibe – very much in keeping with the image on the cover – and while many others are exploring this territory of late, few ever even get close to the right sort of mix that's going on here – subtle elements of soul, funk, jazz, hip hop, and maybe a million other influences – all flowing through the double-length space of the set, as it Flying Lotus redefines the sound of soul in the modern age. The set's got guest work from Thundercat, Shabazz Palaces, David Lynch, George Clinton, Anderson Paak, Little Dragon, Solange, and others – and titles include "Post Requisite", "Takashi", "Spontaneous", "More", "Burning Down The House", "Actually Virtual", "Find Your Own Way Home", "The Climb", "Debbie Is Depressed", "Black BAloons Reprise", and "Land Of Honey". CD

Fantastic sounds from Flying Lotus – an artist who just keeps on pushing past any conventional expectations, to a point where his music is almost a genre unto itself! The record's got this very tripped-out sort of vibe – very much in keeping with the image on the cover – and while many others are exploring this territory of late, few ever even get close to the right sort of mix that's going on here – subtle elements of soul, funk, jazz, hip hop, and maybe a million other influences – all flowing through the double-length space of the set, as it Flying Lotus redefines the sound of soul in the modern age. The set's got guest work from Thundercat, Shabazz Palaces, David Lynch, George Clinton, Anderson Paak, Little Dragon, Solange, and others – and titles include "Post Requisite", "Takashi", "Spontaneous", "More", "Burning Down The House", "Actually Virtual", "Find Your Own Way Home", "The Climb", "Debbie Is Depressed", "Black BAloons Reprise", and "Land Of Honey". LP, Vinyl record album

Adam Rudolph works here with a whole host of instruments of his own, then opens the door for a huge amount of guests – all of whom help the proceedings come across with an organic, earthy blend of both acoustic and electric instrumental elements! Rudolph himself handles kalimba, keyboards, and a global mix of reeds and percussion instruments – and the set features guitar from Eivin Aarset, Fender Rhodes and organ from Alexis Marcelo, and drums from Hamid Drake – plus more contributions on sitar, tablas, wood flute, and other instruments that really echo the post-jazz, pan-global approach that Rudolph has brought to his work, both as Hu Vibrational and in other settings too. Titles include "Psychic", "Hittin", "Space", "Timeless", "Honey Honey", and "Proto Zoa Gogo". LP, Vinyl record album

A shapely collection of glittering diamonds from the Tru Thoughts label – an entry in their excellent series of rare cuts, special remixes, and other gems – all issued here on vinyl for the first time! Titles include "Loveline (Jesse Fischer rmx)" by Space Captain, "Too High (Jam City rmx)" by Rhi, "Table For One" by Ego Ella May, "Listen" by Pices Of A Man, "Let Me Ride (Stro Elliot rmx)" by Sly5thAve, "ZBRA" by Nikitch & Kuna Maze, "Welcome To London" by Flowdan, "Them Changes (Magic Drum Orchestra rmx)" by Animanz, "Testimony (Letherette rmx)" by Anchorsong, "Message Beats" by Lightning Head, "Flinch/Quiver" by Werkha, and "Parade Skank (Blood Wine Or Honey rmx)" by Magic Drum Orchestra. LP, Vinyl record album

A contemporary group, but one who do a stunning job of cooking up 80s-styled club cuts – just the right balance of boogie, funk, and soul – all handled with a lean vibe that's like some of our favorite rare 12" singles from back in the day! Another Taste are a real group, not just a producer with beats, keyboards, and samples – and you can definitely hear their live interaction throughout – an extra-special sort of warmth that really knocks things out of the park, and which easily makes the album stand next to our favorites from the Capitol Rare generation! Titles include "Perfect Night", "Mad Honey Theme", "Time Is On Our Side", "Turn Up", "It Takes Time", and "Anything You Want". LP, Vinyl record album

Natalie hails from Sweden – despite the California title of the set – but her music has a sweet, soulful sparkle that would be right at home in the US! The record's got a bit of the feel of some of the more cosmic soul coming out of the west coast underground – never too tripped-out or beat-heavy, but often with a sense of rhythm and timing that's left of mainstream soul – and the vocals are often processed slightly, so that they fold slightly into the Fender Rhodes and gentle beats of the grooves. Pacing runs from mellow to midtempo – and lyrics are in English throughout – sung by Natalie with a nice blend of feeling and restraint. Titles include "Summer Rain", "Bittersweet", "Don't Mean A Thing", "Honey", "Lonely Coming Home", "Come Find Me Again", and "Let's Not Worry About Tomorrow". (Neo Soul, New Grooves) CD

A fantastic trip through the archive with Volcov – even if most of the cuts here are a bit more recent than those that usually get archival status! And yet in a way, many of these cuts almost went to the archives directly – especially in this digital age for modern soul and club, where so many great singles and albums don't make it onto vinyl – and fade fast in the fast rush of new music hitting the internet. That's why we love collections like this so much – as Volcov's done a great job of grabbing the best bits from the past decade or so, and weaving them together as a strong reminder of how much wonderful soul music is being created on this planet – most of it still waiting to be discovered. There's a few older bits here, but most tracks are contemporary – and titles include "Caterpillar" by Rebirth, "All That Glitters" by Carleen Anderson, "Let The Music Play" by Collective Peace, "Spiraling Prism" by Ian O'Brien, "Ori Space" by Ron Trent, "Turn It Around (Eric Lau rmx)" by Ruth Koleva, "Planet Birth (Xantone Blacq rmx/Volcov edit)" by Intuit with Andy Bey, "Lawra (Volcov edit)" by Tony Williams, "Blue Room (Kaidi Tatham's shokazulu rmx)" by Quentin Kane & Simon Sheldon with TK Blue, "Finding The Peace" by Skymark, "I Put A Spell On You" by Honey Sweet with Cindy Mizelle, and "After Life (part 2)" by Harry Whitaker. (Funky Compilations, New Grooves) CD

A really joyous collection of grooves selected by Alex Attias – work that's maybe even more uplifting than the first volume in this series – and we really liked that one a heck of a lot too! Most of the tracks are relatively contemporary – selected by Attias from the work of underground colleagues over the past few years – and they're put together in a way that's even more than the sum of their mighty parts – the kind of careful ear for a well-selected track list that reminds us of the sort of albums that made us first fall in love with the BBE label many years back! In a world of dark corners and uncertainty, this is a set that will help you find the way forward, and have a hell of a good time doing it – thanks to tracks that include "Gwotet (Alex Attias LillyGood Party edit)" by David Murray & The Gwo-Ka Masters with Pharoah Sanders, "Open Up Your Mind (Honeycomb voc mix)" by Universal Tongues feat Elle, "Star Child Going Home" by MJ Lallo, "Freedom Flight (Alex Attias LillyGood Party edit)" by Mausiki Scales, "Children Of The World (Ben Brophy edit)" by Elements Of Life feat Josh Milian, and "How Bad I Want Ya (GU peak tru time mix)" by Stacy Kidd with Peven Everett. LP, Vinyl record album

You may not know the name of Dicky Continental, but you might recognize his work as drummer Rich Thair in Red Snapper – stepping out here on a solo project that takes the groundbreaking sound of that legendary group and really pushes it further! Things are maybe more abstract at times here, but no less funky – as once the clouds of sound at the start of a track begin to part, funkier beats come into the mix and really move things ahead – all in a nicely evolved version of that moodier territory that Red Snapper gave us many years back! Jo Sims adds in soulful vocals to two cuts – "Make Them Disappear" and "Split" – and other cuts include "Simon Says", "Honeysuckle", "Evolution 2", "Graveyard Of Ambition", "Hammersmith", and "Chico Flores". CD