It's been nearly 20 years since Natalie Cole first sang duets with her father through the magic of technology – so the time's long overdue to throw a host of other talents into the mix! The style here is a bit like the Verve Remixed albums – in that the record takes older classics by Nat from the 40s and 50s, and updates them strongly with contributions from a host of contemporary mixers and producers. However, there's also a key difference here in that the album also features a fair bit of extra vocals too – from Bebel Gilberto, Natalie Cole, Nas, The Roots, and Izza Kizza – all of whom help to make the album a bit more than the simple remix effort you might expect. Nat's own vocals are a bit buried in the mix at times, but that's no problem if you're eager to hear more from the younger generation – or re:generation, as the case may be! Titles include "Day In Day Out" with Cut Chemist, "Straighten Up & Fly Right" with Will I Am & Natalie Cole, "Lush Life" with Cee-Lo Green, "Walkin My Baby Back Home" with The Roots, "The Game Of Love" with Salaam Remi & Nas, "El Choclo" with Brazilian Girls, "Pick Up" with Just Blaze, "Nature Boy" with TV On The Radio, and "Anytime Anyday Anywhere" with Amp Fiddler. CD

A beautiful record – and probably the best attempt by the Far Out label to mix older Brazilian styles with current abstract rhythms! The record features the lovely vocals of Celia Vaz, superbly blended with the mellow funky backing of the new group Ape – who mix samples, guitars, saxes, and keyboards into a sweet soulful vibe that's got a little bit of jungle and a little bit of abstract electronica, but which still also has an older jazzy feel to it. The results are great, and of all the projects like this we've heard in recent years – this album is an instant favorite! Titles include "Obrigado Donato", "No Deserto", "Nas Aguas Do Rio", "Fadas E Gnomos", and "Na Fabrica". (Brazil, New Grooves) CD

Brazilian percussion mixed with 21st Century sounds – all served up sublimely in the hands of Kirk Degiorgio – one of the few artists we could ever expect to get a project like this just right! The album follows nicely off Kirk's previous collaboration with Azymuth – but has an even starker sound overall, as core acoustic percussion bits are worked into contemporary rhythm programs – then topped with some of the crackling electric touches that you'd expect – often with a warmer sound than other projects of this nature, but a groove that's plenty driving overall. Titles include "Babilonia", "Morro Da Formiga", "Dende", "Borel", "Vidigal", "Rocinha", "Prazeres", and "Complexo Do Alemao" – plus remixes "Babilonia (Rick Wilhite dub)", "Borel (Jonas Kopp my vision of samba rmx)", and "Borel (Nxi rmx)". CD

The classic debut of Air – one of the fresher avant pop albums of the late 90s to say the least, and one of the best since then, too! Perhaps the greatest achievement here is how they deftly layer such broad influences of the preceding few decades – from soaring string film schools, to nascent electronic pop, to fusiony jazz keyboards and much in between and beyond – into a wholly original vibe all Air's own that's as breezy today as it was at the end of the 90s. Includes "La Femme D'Argent", the standout classic "Sexy Boy", "All I Need", "Kelly Watch The Stars", "Talisman". "Remember", "You Make It Easy", "Ce Matin La", "New Star In The Sky" and "Le Voyage De Penelope". (Rock, New Grooves) LP, Vinyl record album

The great Roy Ayers joins Soul Society for this classic 90s set – a record that was really forging deep funk territory years before Daptone, Colemine, and all the contemporary labels got into the game! Soul Society's a German collective of musicians and singers with a great ear for 70s grooves, but who also do just the right job of updating the music too – and they wisely chose Roy Ayers' vibes to help shade in all sorts of great aspects of this albums – bringing Roy back from almost-retirement, at a time when most of the rest of the world wasn't giving him a chance to record! Titles include remakes of "Everybody Loves The Sunshine", "Funky Nassau", and "Smiling Faces" – plus "Feed Me Your Love", "Spaced Out", "Pusher", and "Money Mad". CD

The classic debut of Air – one of the fresher avant pop albums of the late 90s to say the least, and one of the best since then, too! Perhaps the greatest achievement here is how they deftly layer such broad influences of the preceding few decades – from soaring string film schools, to nascent electronic pop, to fusiony jazz keyboards and much in between and beyond – into a wholly original vibe all Air's own that's as breezy today as it was at the end of the 90s. Includes "La Femme D'Argent", the standout classic "Sexy Boy", "All I Need", "Kelly Watch The Stars", "Talisman". "Remember", "You Make It Easy", "Ce Matin La", "New Star In The Sky" and "Le Voyage De Penelope". (Rock, New Grooves) CD