Tag: Disco
This week’s BeatCaffeine Record Rundown includes the return of 2023 Mercury Prize winning band Ezra Collective with their highly-anticipated new album, a dancefloor primed EP from Quantic, saxophonist Nubya Garcia’s incredible 12-track Odyssey, and beautifully haunting live album from Polish pianist and vocalist Hania Rani.
Nik Weston’s superb Mukatsuku label kicks off the new year with a highly-anticipated limited-edition new twelve-inch single of Echoes Of A New Dawn Orchestra covering Kyoto Jazz Massive’s 2001 classic “Substream”.
Following up their superb breakthrough 2022 debut album Transforma, the Italian-rooted Collettivo Immaginario, which is led by Italian-born Los Angeles-based drummer, producer and DJ Tommaso Cappellato, turn up the dancefloor heat on the group’s brand new limited-edition 12″ single Tempo Al Tempo.
Following a string of sought-after 12inch releases and re-dits on labels like Barefoot Beats, Cocada Music, Kampana and others, Pará-based producer Bernardo Pinheiro has recently released an incredible new rendition of Marcos Valle and Azymuth’s classic jazz dance gem “Virabrequim”, from the 1973 soundtrack “O Fabuloso Fittipaldi”.
An all-star Trans-Tasman collaboration of multi-instrumentalists and producer in Julien Dyne, Horatio Luna and Surprise Chef’s Lachlan Stuckey, along with vocalists Mara TK and Toby Laing have come together as The Lahaar to release an incredible self-titled debut EP on London’s Soundway Records.
London’s Kalita Records, who consistently unearths essential gems, has recently reissued the obscure 1980 soulful disco-funk masterpiece Ultra/Sound from The IgG Band, which was made up of medical students at Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Tennessee.
Following five superb releases last year, German DJ/producer tag team Delfonic and Kapote return for their sixth volume of their Illegal Jazz series, featuring jazz-funk edits aimed at the dancefloor.
French label Favorite Recordings has recently released an incredible new 12inch spaced-out dancefloor heater from producer Björn Wagner’s latest project Magic Source. Known as the mind behind both the Bacao Rhythm & Steel Band and The Mighty Mocambos, this brilliant feel-good single explores the more unusual facets of left-field disco.
Following up on last year’s reissue of Esperanto’s rare 1980 jazz-funk self-titled masterpiece, French label Favorite Recordings has recently re-released the second LP from the Venezuelan group, titled Vegas.
The production tag team The Magic Twins, made up of Shiho and Yuhiro, have put together two phenomenal new jazz dance re-edits for a debut release on the UK’s Basic Fingers label.
With the massive new album from STR4TA and other recent releases from Koji Ono (w/ members of Atmosfear), The Expansions (2018 track “Mariposa” specifically) and others, it feels like their is bit of a Brit-funk revitalization that is brewing. The momentum to take this DIY new-wave-jazz-funk sound, that originated in the UK during the late 70s and early 80s, into the future continues with an incredible new twelve-inch single, titled ‘Life Is A Mirror’, from the French group GALXTC.
“Do you remember?” … Over the years, September 21st has kind of unofficially become Earth, Wind & Fire Day due to the opening lyrics to their 1978 smash disco-funk hit “September” where bandleader and founder Maurice White references this exact date: Do you remember the 21st night of September? / Love was changing the mind of pretenders /
While chasing the clouds away.
Edinburgh’s Athens of The North puts out the first release from the label’s house band East Coast Love Affair, featuring a brilliant new version of Sky’s The Limit’s highly obscure 1976 soulful funk gem “Don’t Be Afraid”.
