A really beautiful record by young Chilean pianist Enrique Rodriguez – a set that's got little more going on than piano and keyboards, but which really makes the most of those elements! Rodriguez plays in a style that's not entirely jazz – maybe more moody instrumentals with a slight bit of rhythm in the background, but always at a gentle pace – so that the tunes have a flow that's really driven by the keys, which sound equally great, whether acoustic or electric! Some tunes glow with a soundtrack theme style, others have a deeper soul vibe – and titles include "Chao", "Estamos Bien Aqui", "Una Pared", "Mantener El Arriba", "Ambos", "Lograr Decidirnos", "Lo Que Somos", and "Ni Siquiera Se Si Quiero Encontrarte". (Jazz, New Grooves) LP, Vinyl record album

A real shift for Corduroy, who are opening their sound a lot here from earlier releases – showing that the group was way more than just one of London's many retro funk combos at the beginning of the 90s. The set includes the sublime track "Something In My Eye", a breezy bossa number that would almost put Brasil 66 to shame, and which we can guarantee will have you hitting the repeat button on your CD player again and again! Other tracks include "The Corduroy Orgasm Club", "Breakfast In Love", "Nobody Move", "Very Yeah", "Clearing Up Music", "Lovely Lonely & Loaded", and "The Frighteners". CD

A seminal set from Everything But The Girl – even if the record has them leaving behind everything that made them so unique back in the 80s! Gone are the jazzy riffs and retro elements – and instead, the lovely vocals and impeccable songwriting of Tracey Thorn are tied to more contemporary beats and rhythms – the real flowering of Ben Watt as a producer, as he mixes together spare, subtle elements into grooves that turn out to fit the EBTG aesthetic every bit as well as before! Titles include "The Heart Remains A Child", "Single", "Wrong", "Before Today", "Good Cop Bad Cop", "Mirrorball", and "Big Deal". LP, Vinyl record album

The title certainly gets it right – as there's a strongly unified sense of spirit here from Family Atlantica – even more so than on their debut album! As before, there's a range of global elements moving through the mix – currents of South American and African styles, given a slightly more contemporary European presentation – but somehow these guys have really found a way to put everything together with an even tighter, more cohesive sound – one that expands through jazzy solo work on tenor, alto, trumpet, and trombone – and which really draws a lot from the wide range of percussion and other instrumentation used by co-leader Jack Yglesias. The lovely Luzmira Zerpa handles most of the vocals – and some percussion too – and the album also features guest appearances from 70s legends Orlando Julius on tenor and Marshal Allen on alto sax. Titles include "Baiao Infinito", "Near The Ocean", "Efik", "Cosmic Unity", "Canto De Pilon", "El Rio", "Cacao", "Okoroba", and "Neti Neti". (Global Grooves, New Grooves) LP, Vinyl record album

Flying Lotus wastes little time seizing the senses on Cosmogramma – bursting with thick, bubbling wave of electronics that float off just as quickly and make room for hypnic harp and buzzing eastern string sounds – and gets more adventurous and unrelenting from there! We've been on board with FL all along and Cosmogramma might be the best ride yet – it's bigger, spacier and more instantly gratifying than earlier efforts – mixing bright, buoyant electronics, waves of textured atmospherics, strings that range from lovely to spooky and other live instrumentation. 17 tracks in all: "Clock Catcher", "Nose Art", "Zodiac S**t", "Recoiled", "Dance Of The Pseudo Nymph", "German Haircut", "Do The Astral Plane", "Galaxy In Janaki" and more. Guests vocalists include Laura Darlington and Thom Yorke (!!!). CD

The title cut to Kyoto Jazz Massive's Mission album – given a whole new live here by Jax Medicine! The original tune builds in this really lovely modal style – grooves leaping over themselves, with a great piano solo in the middle – and warm horns from the group! The remix moves in a Larry Mizell sort of way – layering sound over beats, then making way for a very cool keyboard solo in the middle! (Jazz, New Grooves) 12-inch, Vinyl record

A nice amalgam of club beats, funky fusion and jazz groove from Mokadi – another fine record from the ever-reliable Perfect Toy label! The group is centered around the lovely vocals of Dita von Aster, and wonderful work on keys by Ralph Kiefer, who worked similar magic with Hipnosis. There's a genuine group vibe to the proceedings, too – which lends the groove an appeal that stretches well beyond the club jazz/dancefloor circuit! This record will sit well with similarly strong albums on labels like Compost and Schema! Tracks include "Voodoo Chant", "Human Natures", "My Favorite Things", "A 1000 Times", "Always Now", "Butterflies", "Rock The House" and more! CD

Spacey soul soundscapes from Nicolay – another big step for the unpredictable, but always soulful beatmaker, producer, and artist – inspired by a consciousness awakening trip to Tokyo on Shibuya – City Lights Volume 2! When we were first tipped to Nicolay's sounds, it was from a soulful hip hop perspective, and he still carries that vibe, but the scope of colors he's composing with is broad – using them to craft material that's both intimate and hypnotic. Fresh beats, Rhodes, Moog, bass, strings and drums flavor the sound. Much of the material on this set is instrumental, but several tunes featuring lovely vocals by Carlitta Durand – with lyrics penned and vocal arrangements by frequent collaborator and Foreign Exchange partner Phonte Coleman. Titles include "Lose Your Way", "Saturday Night", "Wake Up In Another Life" and more with Carlitta Durand, "Shibuya Station", "Crossing", "Rain In Ueno Park", "A Ride Under The Neon Moon", "Bullet Train", "The Inner Garden", "Departure" and more. CD

A really lovely little record from Small Circle Of Friends – the very small circle that features the duo of Japanese musicians Riki Azuma and Satsuki Mutoh! The record's got this spare, lyrical vibe – beats, keyboards, and other elements – but never overdone, and almost used in that best sort of spacious way we loved from the Japanese scene back in the 90s – music that never needed to be for the clubs, but was also never too chilled-out either. Titles include "Chime's Ren", "Ride Jet On The Slope", "Stroll Along In A Daydream", "Dopey", "Indigo Bubbles", "Inside Chimney", and "View Of Cathedral" – all as groovily poetic as they sound! LP, Vinyl record album

We've always loved vocalist Cecilia Stalin, no matter what the setting – but here, she might be in the best company ever – working with jazzy backings from Khari Cabral Simmons and other members of the Atlanta scene – on a record that's drenched in soul from the very first note! Stalin hails from London, was born in Sweden, and worked with Koop and other overseas acts – but she's also got this strongly soulful quality that's always made her a favorite with American listeners too – and here, working with Khari, she's almost returning the favor by giving a special sort of Atlanta spin to her music! The music's based on strong basslines from Simmons, and features lots of warm keyboards – and all the rhythms are live, with a spontaneous jazzy undercurrent that works perfect with Cecilia's lovely vocals. Our only complaint might be that we would have loved a full record from the duo – but the four songs here offer maybe more than most other full LPs. Titles include a great reworking of Jon Lucien's "Sunny Day", plus "He Loves You", "The Story Of Love", and "Norwegian Wood". LP, Vinyl record album