Record Shopping Etiquette
The do’s, the don’ts, and best practices when it comes to shopping for vinyl.
UK’s Mr Bongo reissues two essential Brazilian gems
For over the past 30 years, the Brighton-based record shop and label Mr Bongo have been at the forefront of reissuing rare Brazilian gems from the past, from their Brazil 45 series to full-length albums, notably Arthur Verocai’s 1972 self-titled “holy grail”. Over the last month, they have recently added two more must-own releases to the list in Minas‘ 1983 private press bossa nova recording Num Dia Azul, and Mário Castro Neves and his group, Samba S. A.‘s 1967 breezy samba self-titled classic.
Energy Exchange Exchange releases highly collaborative jazz dancefloor-focused debut
Residing from Berlin, London, and Melbourne, the Energy Exchange Ensemble (EX Ensemble) has been making waves throughout 2023 with a number of dancefloor-focused digital single releases that have regular rotation from notable DJs like Gilles Peterson, Kev Beadle, Colin Curtis and others. In much anticipation, the highly collaborative collective have recently released their debut, simply titled Energy Exchange Records Vol 1.
Tommaso Cappellato’s Los Angeles-based cosmic jazz trio Explorare release debut album
Italian drummer and producer Tommaso Cappellato, who is also the visionary behind the superb label Domanda Music and a frequent collaborator with Mark de Clive-Lowe, Dwight Trible and others, has just released the debut album from his new Los Angeles-based trio Explorare, which includes bassist Tony Martin and keyboardist Diego Gaeta.
French saxophonist Léon Phal releases superb new jazz-funk album ‘Stress Killer’
French saxophonist Léon Phal follows-up his 2021 debut recording Dust to Stars on Kyudo Records with a superb new LP, titled Stress Killer on Heavenly Sweetness, which brings together jazz and club culture.
Jazzman Records unearths rare private press gems on Spiritual Jazz 14
Over the span of the last two decades, in which Jazzman Records has been issuing their incredible Spiritual Jazz series, the London-based label has issued a number of volumes that have focused on some of the most groundbreaking and prolific jazz labels, including Blue Note, Prestige, Impulse!, and Steeplechase. For the latest release, titled Spiritual Jazz 14: Private, label owner Jazzman Gerald dives deep into the well and unearths rare gems that didn’t come out on a label and were ultimately released as a private press recording.
Acid Jazz pioneer Max Beesley returns with long-awaited ‘High Vibes’ debut full-length
UK-based multi-instrumentalist, composer and producer Max Beesley, who has performed alongside notable artists like Incognito, The Brand New Heavies, Jamiroquai, Paul Weller and others, has returned with his ‘High Vibes’ and releases the project’s debut full-length on Légère Recordings, titled Zeus. This marks the first release for the project since he put out two classic 12inches under the same alias on Boogie Back Records during the height of the acid jazz movement in 1993-1994.
Jazz Room Records reissues rare 1977 jazz-funk private press from Danny Ward & Reality
For Jazz Room Records latest release, Paul Murphy has dove deep into the jazz dance well and unearthed the extremely rare 1977 private press self-titled album from Seattle-based Danny Ward & Reality.
Legendary Idris Ackamoor & The Pyramids return with cosmic jazz explorations on ‘Afro Futuristic Dreams’
Celebrating 50 years as a pioneering group led by the legendary bandleader Idris Ackamoor, and as a follow-up to their most recent retrospective box set release, The Pyramids return with a highly-anticipated and adventurous new full-length on Strut, titled Afro Futuristic Dreams.
UK trumpeter Matthew Halsall releases new explorative album ‘An Ever Changing View’
With over 15 releases to his name since 2008, and the running of his fantastic label Gondwana Records, composer, trumpeter and bandleader Matthew Halsall has been one the most active and prominent jazz artists of his generation. It seems like with each release, the Manchester-based musician continues to push his sound to new heights, and that certainly is the case with his latest brilliant full-length, titled An Ever Changing View.
Luaka Bop releases expanded reissue of Pharoah Sanders’ classic 1977 album ‘Pharoah’
On September 24, 2022, the entire jazz world and beyond mourned the passing of the late great Pharoah Sanders, who was one of the most influential and groundbreaking artists of our time. Almost a year later, in what has become one of the most highly anticipated reissues of 2023, Luaka Bop has re-released an expanded edition of Pharoah Sanders’ classic 1977 album Pharoah.
