An amazing record from Kyoto Jazz Massive – and about time, too! The Japanese collective has been bubbling under for years – doing some of the most groundbreaking production, remix, and single work of the current Japanese scene – and this album is really their first true full-length, a massive set of tracks with a soulful approach we never knew they had! The whole thing's amazing from the word "go" (which actually isn't the first word on the album!) – and the first few tracks are especially strong, all soulful numbers with vocals by guest singers that include Vanessa Freeman, Victor Davies, and Maiya James. After that burst, the album takes off instrumentally – stretching for the sky in a jazz-infused blend of beats and keyboards, occasional other instrumentation creeping into the mix at just the right moments. Titles include "The Dawn Introduction", "The Brightness Of These Days", "Mind Expansions", "Stargazer", "Eclipse", "Between The Lights", "Substream", "Shine", "ME Outroduction", and "Behind The Shadow". CD

A heavier, darker prime era set from Massive Attack – and rightly remembered as a classic! The grooves are still really strong, but the trip hop pioneers are delving more deeply into a bass heavy dub trip with a deep, rumbling bottom running throughout the tracks and some distorted guitar and reverb drenched key and sample bits punctuating the cuts. Stunningly strong to this day – which is no mean feat given the rapid musical evolutions of the 90s onward! Includes "Angel", "Risingson", "Teardrop" (which features vocals by Cocteau Twin Elizabeth Fraser), "Inertia Creeps", "Exchange", "Dissolved Girl", "Man Next Door", "Black Milk", "Mezzanine" and "Group Four". CD

The record that put the Bristol sound of the era on the map – and pretty much delivered the opening salvo for the coming trip hop movement! Heady instrumental hip hop clashes with dub and new school soul on this seminal set, one that really existed outside of most early 90s trends, even if it relished the technical possibilities, so it really stands the test of time and sounds fresh to to this day. Shara Nelson and Horace Andy provided some well placed guest vocals on a few numbers, and titles include "Safe From Harm", "One Love", "Blue Lines", "Be Thankful For What You've Got", "Five Man Army", "Unfinished Sympathy", "Daydreaming", "Lately" and "Hymn Of The Big Wheel". CD

Strong second album from Massive Attack! Protection sets the stage with stunning one-two punch of the title track and "Karmacoma" – 13+ minutes of flawless, hypnotic trip hop with a strong sense of moody soul, thanks in the always impeccable (to this point, anyway) production and all the more wonderful thanks to some strong guest vocals by Tracey Thorn. If the opening couple tracks set the bar a little to high to be sustained to the end, there's still a lot to love here, and the other titles include "Weather Storm", "Spying Glass", "Better Things", "Eurochild", "Sly", "Heat Miser" and "Light My Fire". CD

Excellent single off the Mezzanine LP, an album filled with great cuts by the godfathers of the Bristol trip hop scene. Liz Fraser of the Cocteau Twins vocals float over the dense, bass heavy beats, which gets a spacy modern dub treatment by the Mad Professor and as well as another nice remix courtesy of Primal Scream. CD

Heavy dubs by the Mad Professor of Massive Attack's great Protection LP. The Professor takes the trip hop pioneer's album into uncharted territory with some great atmospheric dub renderings of the tracks. 8 tracks in all, including "Radiation Ruling The Nation (Protection)", "Bumper Ball Dub (Karmacoma)", "Trinity Dub (Three)", "Cool Monsoon (Weather Storm)", "Eternal Feedback (Sly)", "Moving Dub (Better Things)", "I Spy (Spying Glass)" and "Backward Sucking (Heat Miser)". CD

... 12-inch, Vinyl record

A massive record – and an instant legend the day it was released! Masters At Work host the beautiful meeting of a host legendary artists – Roy Ayers, George Benson, Eddie Palmieri, Tito Puente, Jocelyn Brown, Vince Montana, and others – all united in a magical session that brings Latin firmly back to the dancefloor with the power and majesty of the best 70s recordings! The whole thing's amazing – a fantastic mix of Latin, funk, jazz, and house that's inspired a whole new generation of musicians – and which has still yet to be duplicated years later! Includes the massive remake of "I Am the Blackgold of the Sun", plus "Runaway", "Sweet Tears", and the great cover of Bob James' "Nautilus". CD

Diviniti sings on both cuts here – adding in some mighty soulful vocals! "Shine" is a great clubby groover from a few years back – and definitely showcases the warmer side of dancefloor work that Shuya Okino has been bringing to the world since his days in Kyoto Jazz Massive – a wonderfully uplifting tune! The flipside's a great take on Shuya's excellent "Sun Will Rise" anthem – again with excellent vocals from Diviniti! (Funky 45's, New Grooves) 7-inch, Vinyl record

Massive mix put together by Dimitri From Paris – two CDs plus a bonus disc – featuring tracks by D Train, Grace Jones, Tortured Soul, Fat Larry's Band, Change, Stereo Mutants, Incognito, Gato Barbieri, India, Jafrosax, Sylvester, and more. (Funky Compilations, New Grooves) CD

The genius of Nicola Conte gets the remix treatment – in this wonderful new album that steps off heavily from his massive Jet Sounds set of a few years ago! If you know Nicola, he's the wunderkind behind the Schema label – and, probably more than anyone in the world right now, one of the few producer/musicians who can really handle a retro-sounding groove. Conte's steeped in classic jazz, soundtracks, and bossa nova – all of which come into play in his music – and this set has him working with a host of able talents who help to take his unique creative vision even farther than before! US version features a slightly different track list than the European one – with titles that include "Arabesque (vocal version)" done by Micatone, "Forma 2000" reformed by Les Gammas, "Tema In Hi Fi" by Nicola Conte & Gianluca Petrella, "Jet Sounds" by Nuspirit Helsinki, "Bossa Per Due" by Thievery Corporation, "Fuoco Fatuo" by Koop, "New Standards" by Nicola Conte & Gianluca Petrella, "Love Me Till Sunday" by Nicola Conte, "Dossier Omega" redone by Espen Horne, "The In Samba" done by Kyoto Jazz Massive, "Missione A Bombay" by Eddy & Dus, and "Mambo De Los Dandies" by Gerardo Frisina. CD

A limited edition CD from Compost Records – one that features titles never before issued on CD, as well as some hard to find remixes! The set's a great treat to you fans of Compost without a turntable – as it compiles some of the best cuts from singles of the past few years, and throws in a few more strong cuts from the Compost catalog, giving you a 12 track sampling of cuts from one of the hippest labels around! Titles include "Eclipse (Afronaught Nocturnal dub rmx)" by Kyoto Jazz Massive, "A Go Go (DJ Muro rmx)" by Truby Trio, "Sound Of The Samba" by Victor Davies, "Human Patterns (Blackfish rmx)" by Beanfield, "O Preguicoso (new version)" by Intuit, "Cold Fusion (Dr Rockit rmx)" by Minus 8, "Everything (Beanfield rmx)" by Forest Mighty Black, "Love Unlimited (Capries rmx)" by Les Gammas, "Citizen" by Procreation, "Alone" by The Amalgamation Of Soundz, "Ten" by Fauna Flash, and "Bird Song" by The Underwolves. CD

Massive grooves from Schema Records – a special Japanese-only collection that features some of the best recent work on the label, mixed in with a few key classics from the early days! There's a simple, elegant feel to most of the tracks here – a sound based in older jazz and bossa roots, carried off in a blend of acoustic instrumentation with slight contemporary programs and processing – but never too much to obscure the warmth of the sources! Most titles have a warmth that's undeniable – far more than you might guess from the stark black cover image – and tracks include "Stay In Mood" by Paolo Fedreghini & Marco Bianchi, "This Is What You Are" by Mario Biondi & High Five Quintet, "Samba Royale" and "Afro Impression" by Paolo Achenza Trio, "Cortante" by Gerardo Frisina, "Missione A Bombay" by Nicola Conte, and "Cinemaroma 3", "Destination Moon", "No Problem", and "Driving" by The Dining Rooms. CD

DJ Muro takes on a host of killer soul, funk, and jazz tracks from the deep deep EMI catalog – all in a mighty mix that's even more compelling than some of his other sets of this nature! The collection's filled with rare gems in a variety of genres – and Muro's definitely got the right sort of ear to mix things up perfectly – always with just the right sort of care to avoid crashing grooves together, unlocking some great musical combinations in the process! There's a few moments which are more Muro-mixed than others, but the core vibe of the tunes mostly shines through overall – on a massive set list that features 26 cuts that include "I'm In Love" by Nancy Wilson, "E-Carnival" by Tania Maria, "You're Welcome Stop On By" by Lou Donaldson, "A Little Bit Of Love" by Gentle Persuasion, "Think About Me" by Marlena Shaw, "Love The Way You Make Me Feel" by John Lee & Jerry Brown, "Family (live)" by Hubert Laws, "Why Can't We Be Friends" by Jacob Miller, "To See A Smile" by Ronnie Foster, "It's The Real Thing" by Monica Higgins, "Rhythm Rhapsody" by Ramona Brooks, and "Gift Wrap My Love" by The Reflections. (Funky Compilations, New Grooves) CD

The original version of this groundbreaking bit of funky soul – the first British recording of the Brand New Heavies album, heard here with original vocals by Jay Ella Ruth – who was replaced on the record for the more famous US recording! Ruth's got a jazzier style than N'Dea Davenport, the singer better known with the group – and her work on the set is in keeping more with the rare groove/jazz funk underground from which the group emerged – sweetly singing in a classic 70s style that works perfectly with the combo's excellent instrumentation! The album's all massive all the way through – and cuts include "Dream Come True", "Stay This Way", "Ride in the Sky", and "Gimme One of Those". (Neo Soul, New Grooves) LP, Vinyl record album