The third and fourth albums from Atomic Rooster – back to back in a single set! First up is Made In England – a really striking album in the career of Atomic Rooster – one that's a little bit groovier than most, and maybe a bit funky as well! The drums are great, and have plenty of soulful currents – and the Hammond, piano, and electric piano work of Vincent Crane almost seem to echo earlier UK beat group currents, but turned towards a much hipper 70s vibe – one that's followed by an equally extended range from vocalist Chris Farlowe, who seems to fold together both his mod and prog experience in the vocals! Steve Bolton brings in some tight, riffing guitar – and titles include "Time Take My Life", "Never To Lose", "Breathless", "People You Can't Trust", "All In Satan's Name", "Close Your Eyes", "Little Bit Of Inner Air", and "Stand By Me". On Nice N Greasy, Atomic Rooster definitely get a bit greasy – using some funkier elements at times, and bluesier currents at others – all at a level that really lets singer Chris Farlowe hit some of his most expressive modes! The group's got a fresh guitarist this time around, Johnny Mandala on lead – and his presence gives some of the cuts a harder rock edge than before, often taking the lead more than the keyboards of longtime member Vincent Crane, which helps shape the sound of the set. Titles include "Voodoo In You", "Save Me", "Satan's Wheel", "Can't Find A Reason", "Take One Toke", and "All Across The Country". CD set features the bonus tracks "Moods" and "What You Gonna Do". CD

Mndsgn adds an extra x to the title here, which might cause a bit of confusion with the previous Snaxx set – yet we can definitely say that he seems to have only deepened his groove since that record, opening the door for some soul-drenched elements that almost have us wishing someone would snatch him up, and have him work with some of the bigger-name soul singers of our generation! But as before, maybe it's the leanness that serves Mndsgn best – his way of finding a groove, snaking a bassline, gently nudging a keyboard, and all those understated elements that really do more with less – an approach that even extends to the vocals that visit some of the tracks on the set. Titles include "Luv Mirage", "Papercrane", "My Pleasure", "Fillsmeup", "Living Colours", "MakeU", "Finallyalone", and "Midnitesnaq". LP, Vinyl record album

The album that finally made the world sit up and notice that Solange is a completely great artist on her own – and hardly needs to ever be spoken of in terms that involve her sister! The set's got a vibe that's as personal and put out there as Solange's image on the cover – music that's more openly expressive than you'd expect for a mainstream soul record, and linked together with these really creative interludes that continue the unique spirit of the songs and really makes the whole thing work together as one. Solange is clearly the leading attraction, but the set also features guest appearances from Q-Tip, Lil Wayne, Sampha, Kelela, Nia Andrews, and Kelly Rowland – on titles that include "Rise", "Cranes In The Sky", "Mad", "Don't Touch My Hair", "Junie", "Don't Wish Me Well", "Scales", "Tina Taught Me", and "The Chosen Ones". CD

There's a 4AD-styled image on the cover – and the set looks at a moment in late 80s music when things were nicely swirling together – when production was getting a bit more layered and sophisticated from a few years before – yet not in a way that was overly polished or commercial! Instead, the style represented a new level of sonic sophistication – ways of taking core sounds and spinning them out with greater depth – which made for some really wonderful textures and shapes in the music – pushing things forward in ways that helped the vocals a lot too! The title references a few styles of the time, but there's plenty more going on within – a huge array of work on a special book-style, 4CD package that comes complete with loads of detailed notes on the music. Dozens of tracks in all – work by Ultra Vivid Scene, This Mortal Coil, Shelleyan Orphan, The Chameleons, Louis Philippe, Cranes, Breathless, Kitchens Of Distinction, The Wake, Lush, His Name Is Alive, Lycia, The Sweetest Ache, Smashing Orange, Sweet Jesus, Cranberries, Telescopes, Innocence Mission, Mazzy Star, St Etienne, Low, Dubstar, Pale Saints, and many others. CD

A collection that's maybe unlike anything we've heard before – music that's acoustic, but groovy – easygoing, yet funky – served up by a really wide range of artists, but presented with a style that's a really unified whole! Just about every artist here is completely obscure, but together they represent this amazing underground that's dedicated to crafting work that goes far beyond the obvious, and way past any sort of cliches you might expect! The vibe is almost as if a bunch of folk and acoustic musicians were hipped to spiritual jazz of the post-Coltrane generation – then set out to make music from their new inspirations – on titles that include "Let Me Ride" by Peter Campbell, "The Ballad Of Ho Chi Minh" by Mike Glick, "Morning Brings The Light" by Grand Union, "Wild Canada" by Dan Donahue, "Song Of Creation" by Chris Rawlings, "Turn On Your Lovelight" by Summer Rain, "Prospect Of Wealth" by Henry Parker, and "Change Is Me Change Is You" by Harris & Crane Band. LP, Vinyl record album

Psychedelia meets British pop – in a really special musical moment that's forever come to be known as shoegaze! The work here comes from a time when the UK scene was really moving past punk rock, and starting to let its guitarists open up in the kind of longer, fuzzy solos that were big in the late 60s – along with all the sort of heady production modes that made such music sound even better, but always with the kind of leaner, more focused lessons learned from the post-punk years! The result is a special sort of sound that can trip out as needed, but never get too overindulgent to lose the tune – the balance that first came to play on the early singles of Creation or 4AD, then found flower in so many other UK groups as the years went on. These glorious years are presented here in a big 5CD set – one that comes in a book-styled package with loads of notes on the music – alongside 87 tracks by artists who include Blow Up, The Honey Buzzards, Submarine, Bailter Space, The Curtain Society, Mercury Rev, An April March, Spacemen 3, The Hinnies, Spiritualized, Moose, Spitfire, Moonshake, Bark Psychosis, AR Kane, Jesus & Mary Chain, Lush, Ride, The Darkside, Velocity Girl, Bleach, Catehrine Wheel, See See Rider, Cranes, Chapterhouse, Telescopes, Sun Dial, Medicine, Sweet Jesus, Luna, Astrobrite, and many more! CD

The first of 3 LA EPs from Flying Lotus – rich, textural and sublimely soulful tunes from one of the more inventive soundscape makers on the Warp label! LA EP 1 features a couple of the best tracks from the fine Los Angeles LP, plus four worthy non album tracks that meld Asian string accented grooves, layers of crackling beats and synth, spare atmosphere and heavier dynamics when the mood fits. Titles include "Sleepy Dinosaur" and "Roberta Flack" from the album – plus "Rickshaw", "My Chippy" , "Paper Crane Gang" and "Interference". LP, Vinyl record album

A really striking album in the career of Atomic Rooster – one that's a little bit groovier than most, and maybe a bit funky as well! The drums are great, and have plenty of soulful currents – and the Hammond, piano, and electric piano work of Vincent Crane almost seem to echo earlier UK beat group currents, but turned towards a much hipper 70s vibe – one that's followed by an equally extended range from vocalist Chris Farlowe, who seems to fold together both his mod and prog experience in the vocals! Steve Bolton brings in some tight, riffing guitar – and titles include "Time Take My Life", "Never To Lose", "Breathless", "People You Can't Trust", "All In Satan's Name", "Close Your Eyes", "Little Bit Of Inner Air", and "Stand By Me". LP, Vinyl record album

An easy-going, openly-swinging set from British reedman Sandy Brown – long live tracks that feature lots of deft clarinet work from Sandy, plus some tightly swinging rhythms from a combo that includes Ray Crane on trumpet, Brian Lemon on piano, Phil Bates on bass, and Mike Scott on drums! There's certainly trad roots to the music, but the execution is much more bop-inflected overall – especially given the long tracks that allow plenty of room for solo work – which almost gives the record the feel of a Buddy DeFranco appearance in a Verve Jam Session! Titles include "Splanky", "In The Evenin", "I Got It Bad", "Royal Garden Blues", and "Roll Em Pete". LP, Vinyl record album

Ward performs with a stellar ensemble led by Bucky Pizzarelli, including Steve Jordan, Bernie Privin, Pee Wee Erwin, Ruby Braff, George Masso, Vic Dickenson, Phil Bodner, Al Cohn, Mickey Crane, Tony Monte, Warren Chiasson, Milt Hinton, Slam Stewart, Butch Miles, and Bobby Rosengarden. Titles include "I've Got The World On A String", "Pennies From Heaven", "Goody Goody", "Jeepers Creepers", "S Wonderful", "Sweet Georgia Brown" and more. LP, Vinyl record album

A split album – featuring work from Seattle up-and-comer AJ Suede, and longstanding resident artist Specs Wizard! There's a strong sense of history that runs through the AJ Suede titles – vintage soul snippets and historical recordings – laced together carefully to accompany AJ's down to earth lyrics on titles that include "Blood Cruzzins", "Democrazy Manifest", "The Plane", "Majora", and "Ten Times Plus". Things are a bit more lean on the Specswizard side – lots of fantastic soulful tones and textures, mixed together with a spare sound that never gets in the way of the muted voice that delivers the rhymes – some biting commentary on his city and scene – on titles that include "Floyd", "The President", "Legend", "Pirate Tax", "Another", and "Empty". LP, Vinyl record album