BeatCaffeine’s Favorite EP Releases of 2025
For our second year-end list, we spotlight 10 standout EP releases from 2025. As in recent years, this list notably includes some superb selections from two standout UK-based labels that continue to put out forward-thinking jazz fusion and peak-time dancefloor material in Steve Conry’s Ten Lovers Music and Colin Curtis Presents imprint. This overall selection of EPs are arguably up their with the year’s best full-length albums, when it comes to quality and impact.
Here are BeatCaffeine’s Top 10 Favorite EP Releases of 2025
10. Marcello Cassanelli / Caruso & Helen McCormack – ‘The Coin EP Vol.3’
(Ten Lovers Music)
Steve Conry’s Ten Lovers Music further refines its EP craft with Volume 3 of The Coin series, spotlighting Italian pianist-producer Marcello Cassanelli on the A-side with “Starlight,” “Tropical Breeze,” and “Dream Horizon.” The flip side features Caruso and vocalist Helen McCormack on “Have and Hold” and “Love You More,” with percussion from Takashi Nakazato, before closing on the deep, dancefloor-aimed house cut “Central.”
09. Brian Jackson — ‘EP One’
(BBE Music)
Jazz legend and Gil Scott-Heron collaborator Brian Jackson teams with house pioneers Masters at Work (Louie Vega and Kenny Dope) to reimagine the 1974 jazz-funk classic “The Bottle,” featuring UK soul singer Omar. The vibrant rework preserves its groove while delivering a modern dancefloor edge, part of a 2xVinyl EP with dubs, a new “Winter in America” with Rich Medina, and a downtempo “New York City.” It previews Jackson’s highly anticipated forthcoming 3xLP on BBE Music, titled Now More Than Ever.
08. Various — ‘Best of Various TLM038’
(Ten Lovers Music)
UK producer, DJ, and radio host Steve Conry celebrates Ten Lovers Music‘s 50th vinyl-only release since 1996 with the latest “Best of Various” mini-compilation. The five-track EP delivers deep, jazzy house from Canada’s Mike Perras, England’s Craig Bratley, and Mark Turner, alongside a relaxed jazz piece from Argentina’s DFRA Experience Jazz Band, plus new original work from Markus Enochson’s early-2000s project Suedojazz.
07. DFRA Experience Jazz Band — ‘The Human Discard’
(MATE)
Buenos Aires-based producer and bandleader DFRA (Diego Ruiz) continues his ascent with The Human Discard, a new EP for Madrid label MATE that follows his breakthrough release Jazz In. The project features three originals—two with the DFRA Experience Jazz Band plus the solo cut “Inside The Club”—alongside a remix of the title track by Spanish DJ-producer Dubbyman, fusing soulful jazz instrumentation with deep house grooves designed for maximum dancefloor impact.
06. The Earthsouls — ‘Soul De Verano EP’
(Colin Curtis Presents)
Over the last few years, legendary UK jazz dance and soul DJ, and now radio broadcaster, Colin Curtis has been releasing a slew of superb EPs under his Colin Curtis Presents imprint. UK collective The Earthsouls—Born74, Onj, and Mark Paul Norton—return with their highly anticipated second EP for Curtis’s label, Soul De Verano. Across four tracks, the release channels peak-time jazz dance energy, blending funky Latin rhythms, pulsing synth bass, soulful sax and flute lines, cosmic keys, and bright electronic textures into a cohesive, club-ready statement.
05. Gerardo Frisina & Toco feat. Luzia Dvorek — ‘Deixa Passar’
(Schema Records)
Schema Records stalwarts Gerardo Frisina and Toco (Tomaz Di Cunto) reunite with vocalist Luzia Dvorek for the EP Deixa Passar. The release offers two originals—“Deixa Passar” and “llê”—plus Frisina’s entrancing reworks, weaving samba, nu-jazz grooves, and Brazilian folk into a sun-drenched, feel-good escape.
04. Nicola Conte & Nico Lahs present Tema Due — ‘EP1’
(Schema Records)
One of two EPs from the duo, Italian nu-jazz pioneer Nicola Conte joins fellow Bari-based producer Nico Lahs for the new project Tema Due. Their debut for Schema Records, EP1, delivers two dancefloor-ready cuts: “Macumba De Oxalà,” a potent blend of Afro-jazz percussion, deep house, and exotica, and a slower, hypnotic Balearic track featuring soulful vocals from Oakland’s Lalin St. Juste of The Seshen.
03. Michel Cury — ‘Brain Sync EP’
(Colin Curtis Presents)
Another highlight from Colin Curtis‘ Presents label — Across six tracks, Brazilian pianist Michel Cury channels the adventurous spirit of 1970s jazz fusion while folding in vibrant elements of jazz, samba, rock, and wider world influences. Featuring guest appearances from Flora Purim, Airto Moreira, and Bob Mintzer, the project was recorded with vintage gear and analog mastering for a warm, nostalgic feel.
02. Kyoto Jazz Sextet — ‘Dosojin No Uta’
(Lawson Entertainment)
Pioneering Japan-based DJ and producer Shuya Okino returns with a new three-track EP from his Kyoto Jazz Sextet, Dosojin No Uta. The release features a fresh version of the Nozawa-Onsen folk song “Dosojin no Uta,” the Pharoah Sanders-inspired favorite “Extra Freedom,” and a newly re-recorded jazz take on his jazz dance anthem “Still In Love” with vocalist Navasha Daya and saxophonist Tomoki Sanders.
01. The Sultan’s Swing — ‘Colin Curtis presents The Sultan’s Swing Sessions II’
(Colin Curtis Presents)
Representing the second EP on Colin Curtis’ label (see The Sultan’s Swing Sessions I), this brilliant 5-track recording from Tom Funk‘s cosmic jazz-fusion project The Sultan’s Swing fuses together jazz-funk, cosmic and balearic grooves, and Latin and Brazilian-influenced rhythms with a strong nod to the dancefloor. On this session, Tom Funk (aka Aziz Mustafa) handles much of the instrumentation, including keys, guitar, and programming with contributions from a number of percussionists in Ozan Nidayi (also plays bass on the record), Filippo Galli, Tansay Omar, Malte Saabye From, Carlo Valenti and Valentina Russo.
