One of the hippest sets we've ever seen on Spanish Harlem – a collection that goes way past the Latin Soul hits, to dig deep in the uptown underground at the end of the 60s! The package is compiled with gems from the Fania catalog, but rally moves past the obvious – going for some of the more obscure artists who recorded singles for some of the smaller Fania-held labels – and often focusing on tunes that drew more from late 60s soul and funk than they did from any Latin rhythms of the time. The singers are especially wonderful – and often hit a vibe that's right up there with some of Joe Bataan's best of the period – richly soulful, but often deeply personal too – never as polished as chart soul, and often showing a grittier, more realistic style that's totally great – especially when mixed with instrumentation as tight as this! Titles include "Reflections Of My Life" by 125th Street Candy Store, "On Old Broadway" by 107th Street Stickball Team, "Don't Be Afraid" by Lebron Brothers, "Central Park" by Harvey Averne Dozen, "Heaven" by Tito Ramos, "Your Smile" by Parris, "Some Lonely Heart" by Ronnie Marks, "There's No Girl" by Olivieri, "Maria Maria" by King Nando, "Already Satisfied" by Tony Middleton & Bobby Matos, "Nitty Boo Boo" by The Nitty Sextette, "Lonely Has Been My Day" by Ralphie & The Latin Lovers, "I'm Gonna Leave You" by Russell Cohen & The New Yorkers, and "Ain't No Big Thing" by Ralfi Pagan. LP, Vinyl record album

A very different entry in the DJ Kicks series than usual – as Theo Parrish has created a whole new set of exclusive tracks – working with his underground contemporaries to make a record that's bristling with energy at every twist and turn! And although this series usually comes across as a various artists collection, this entry is more a "Theo Parrish & Friends" sort of record – filled with wonderful tracks that push the energy of the Detroit scene forward into the global cosmos – on titles that include "Full" by John C & Meftah, "Simba's Theme" by Donald Lee Roland, "When The Sun Falls" by Meftah, "Psalm 23" by De'Sean Jones, "Moonlight (Duality/Detroit live version)' by Ian Fink, "Surrounded By Trees" by Jason Hogans, "Hudsons" by Raj Mahal, "Don't Know" by Whodat & Sophiyah.e, "Again (T's edit)" by Mbthelight, "Janis" by Sterling Toles, "Green Funk" by Raybone Jones, "The Upper Room" by Specter, and "Experiment 10" by Howard Thomas. LP, Vinyl record album

A jazzy trio, and one with lots of cosmic inclinations – which is maybe no surprise, given that drummer Tommaso Cappellato has played on some great club tracks in recent years! Here, though, he's recording in LA in a combo with Tony Martin on bass and Diego Gaeta on keyboards – the latter of whom brings in all sorts of great phrasing to the set – almost handling the keys at times as if he's blowing a reed instrument, with a real smoothness of flow – offset by other moments that are more punctuated next to the drums. Titles include "Nautilesque", "All Knowing Smiles", "Melody Lounge", and "April In Parrish". LP, Vinyl record album