Category Archives: Reviews

Marseilles’ fabulous ambassadors bring us more musical sunshine and smiles as they sing to us in a mix of French, English and the local Occitan language. Good time music that is fired along by Blu’s distinctive banjo and Tatou’s vocals, a terrific live band, this set captures that enthusiasm just right. Well good.

Graham Radley

Now 78 but still delivering rich music from the soul, that celebrates her status as Cuba’s musical diva. ‘Nuestro gran amor with Cachaito and Chucho Valdes is wonderful as is her duet with Richard Bono but I think my favourite has to be the track with Chico Buarque ‘O que sera’. Superb.

Graham Radley

Brazil’s ex Minister of Culture is back now concentrating on his music and it’s a joy to have him back. His laid back vocals are given a wide range of musical settings to wow us with, from the  beats of ‘Le Renaissance Africaine’  to the simplicity of an acoustic guitar on ‘Outros Viram’. Magic.

Graham Radley

The idea behind this CD started 14 years ago as Dean Brodrick travelled through Africa playing music in small villages and townships with the  inspiration for the lyrics being water and sanitation. Vocalists come from  UK, Brazil, Mozambique and Spain providing a musical journey that combines many influences far beyond Africa but with the reassuring message that. Pump Aid-Water For Life gets £1 from each CD sale.

Graham Radley

Great second album from this exciting big band, as before based in folk but not afraid to rock and jazz it up as they draw in global influences. They gel together to make the music a natural development of their enthusiasm as they deliver shanties, drinking songs and more. Exciting and adventurous.

Graham Radley

On his Blue Note debut, pianist Aaron Parks creates an acoustic jazz gem with cinematic soundscapes of the highest quality. Parks weaves between melodic piano excursions and spontaneous improvising that will captivate any listener that appreciates atmospheric free jazz. The musicians listed here are on the A-list of rising stars, particularly guitarist Mike Moreno. His soloing on “Peaceful Warrior” is spirited and hypnotic. “Nemesis” is a rock infused tune of boundless energy. “Harvesting Dance” is another winner that starts off with a beautiful piano solo before Mike Moreno takes us on a journey of harmonic explorations that is fluid and rhythmic. Drummer Eric Harland does a great job of laying down the rhythm that allows room for everyone to create. Aaron Parks is one of a handful of forward thinking musicians that are pushing the boundaries of jazz. “Invisible Cinema” displays his enormous talent as a composer as well as a pianist with great tonality. Once you come along for the ride of this wonderful disc you will not want to get off.

Reg Dancy

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Phonte and Nicolay have the task of following up a classic in “Connected”. Four years after its release, I still can’t get enough of it. So how do they follow that up? They respond by delivering another winner that met my approval within minutes of the fist spin. Simply put, “Leave It All Behind” is a great record that meshes soul, hip-hop, electronica and immediately generates good vibes while marveling at the cohesion that exists among this group. On the opening track “Daykeeper”, you’re instantly drawn to the warm dreamy chords and the soulful beats. Phonte opens the track not rapping but singing in a soft tone while Muhsinah blesses the chorus with her dynamic vocals. “Take Off The Blues” is blissful soul sung by camp member Darrien Brockington. “If She Breaks Your Heart” provides more soulful melodies while Yahzarah provides her customary sweet soulful vocals. You may be a little disappointed that Phonte only raps on two tracks here but once you get past that, you’ll be rewarded with an inspired hip-hop soul banger that was definitely worth the wait. Phonte and Nicolay complement each other so well that you expect nothing less than the outstanding work that exists on this disc. Highly Recommended.

Reg Dancy

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For some bands it can take years to develop cohesion, when several members become one unit. The Hi-Fly Orchestra have been together since 2005 but the chemistry that exists between them on “Mambo Atomico” suggest a much longer union. Throughout the nine track disc the six member band flawlessly performs danceable Latin jazz tunes and a couple of slow tracks as well. The opening tune, “Afro-Boo” finds the band swinging hard right out the gate. The sweet horn soloing by Johannes Herrlich on Trombone dances over the percussion work of Norbert Kupper and sounds superb. “Chove Chuva” is a wonderful bossa tune features the soothing voice of Miriam Aida, who also sings on “Polonesa”. “Mrs Shing-A-Ling” is a nice mid tempo samba tune that finds the group locked in the groove and having a good time without showing off. They’re just simply creating quality music that you can dance to or just kick back and nod your head to. “Mambo Atomico” is an impressive record by a band that is firing on all cylinders. If you like Latin jazz you certainly enjoy the music of the Hi-Fly Orchestra.

Reg Dancy

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‘A Life of Consummate Ease’ comes to us on ATIC Records, the label set up by Andy Turner (better known as Aim) upon leaving Grand Central, and the influence of both Aim and the wider Grand Central stable is heard throughout Gripper’s music. This is to say that there is a plethora of styles and sounds at work on this album and you never quite know what’s coming next. ‘The Interpreter’, for example, is a frantic trumpet blast of Latin Jazz, whilst ‘Zombie’ is a bouncing, Trackmode-esque slab of synth-house and ‘Backwater Prophet’ takes up Rae & Christian’s instrumental Hip-Hop mantle. Amazingly, though, the quality is consistent right across the board and so it is this impressive variety that is the making of this album. For me, the high point is the return of Niko, another Grand Central stalwart, putting in a powerful performance when providing vocals on ‘The Daddy’.

Tom Breslin

In the world of Drawbar the Hammond organ is undoubtedly king. For the humble Hammond is the musical centrifuge around which every one of the eleven tracks on ‘Flight of the Tempest’ rotates and that, as it happens, is no bad thing. Admittedly, I wasn’t immediately taken with the Drawbar sound – thinking that I had heard it all somewhere before – but I can now say that it’s a definite grower. It’s a simmering stew of soul, jazz, a little Hip-Hop and a lot of funk that’s been bought to the boil under the heady influence of film scores and library music. Not at all bad for a crew of organ fanatics from Hastings!

Tom Breslin

Lulu Rouge consists of Danish DJs Buda and T.O.M., long-time cohorts of Denmark’s other well-known House-master, Trentemoller, who contributes here on ‘Lulu’s Theme’.  Unsurprisingly then, the music on ‘Bless You’ is, for the most part, techy, minimal (in the meaningful sense of the word) House music, under-pinned by big, reverberating bass-lines that are the result of a strong Dub Reggae influence. ‘Melankoli’, with vocals from Alice Carreri, is much like Eva Be’s Best7 productions, whilst the aforementioned ‘Lulu’s Theme’ has a definite Basic Channel meets Get Physical vibe about it. ‘Bless You’ certainly isn’t happy, sunshine music; it’s haunting, eerie music for the night, but, with Winter well and truly on its way, this could be just what you’re after.

Tom Breslin

As Nottingham’s answer to Flying Lotus, Lone is an expert in the field of surreal, off kilter, wonky-tonk Hip Hop beats and with song titles like ‘Green Sea Pageant’, ‘Sea Spray’ and ‘Buried Coral Banks’ it is hardly a major surprise that much of his work evokes a warm and unmistakably oceanic feeling. Every sound has been tweaked, compressed and manipulated to within an inch of its life, creating the slightly unnerving, but nevertheless very welcome, sensation that the music (without wanting to borrow too heavily from Alan Partridge’s ‘Deep Bath’ metaphor) really is just washing over you. You get the idea. This is top-drawer ambient, electronic music and the initial comparisons with Boards of Canada are altogether justified.

Tom Breslin

Just when I thought I had heard everything, along comes a disc out of nowhere to truly mess my head up. The music I’m referring to is Blaktropolis Vol 1 from Deepblak recordings. This compilation features futuristic soul in an array of styles from house, spiritual jazz, tribal and broken beat that will have you asking yourself, “Where did these guys come from?” Well mostly from Oakland where Deepblak is based. There are a number of contributors here that make this record a huge success. Let’s start with the opening track “Valentina”, a downtempo ethereal gem that sounds as if the African rhythms and the deep moaning voice are swirling around you and pulling you inside the music. The Aybee remix of Dozie’s “Sensuality” gives this track the total package, lush vocals combined with deep and soulful grooves. “Track II” by Trinidadian Deep is a deep house dish with gorgeous chords and soothing synths. There are other prime cuts by the likes of the Black Jazz Consortium, Mattski and Erik Rico that make “Blaktropolis” cutting edge future soul with deep grooves that you’ll find irresistible. This is not to be missed.

Reg Dancy

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Tru-thoughts has a new songbird on their roster and her name is Lizzy Parks. The promise that Lizzy displayed on her 2005 release “Watching Space” is shining through on “Raising The Roof”. With production from Ben Lamdin of Nostalgia 77, you know that the musicianship here is top notch. In addition, Riaan Vosloo does masterful job on string arrangements. As for Ms Parks, she displays a sultry voice and flawless phrasing on this eleven track disc. The disc starts out with the title track, what immediately stands out is the synergy that exists within Lizzy and the trio, particularly the crisp playing on double bass and the sparse drum beat. On a great sound system you would think you were at a live concert. Lizzy shows that she can groove on the soul jazz tune “All That”, a swinging tune that is aided by the funky riffs of the Hammond B-3 organ. On “Prayer”, Lizzy’s voice is so tender and yet so powerful as she weaves through an orchestral aesthetic of wonderful soundscapes. This is a climatic ending for a wonderful record that should catapult Lizzy to star status. Highly recommended.

Reg Dancy

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The presence of the rnb soul group has become a dying breed in today’s music playing field. So when a group comes along with a back to basics approach to their music you have to lean back and take notice. Say hello to Soul:Id whose debut cd “Sex, Love & Philosophy” has been making noise ever since they hit the scene back in 2005. One of the strengths of Soul-Id is the diversity of musical talent they bring to the table. Three quarters of the group originate from Africa (Burundi, DR Congo and Rwanda) and the fourth member, producer Urban Deep from Belgium. Soul:Id brings an array of musical styles to the table. One of the qualities that stand out is the soulful harmonies from each member that filters throughout each song. Highlights include “Believe” a soulful track that features Dad’D on vocals. “Is This Love” features the soothing soulful voice of Tchai’, the lone female of the group. “Whatcha Looking For” finds Dad’D and Tchai’ trading verses on the funky hip hop flavored beat. I generally frown upon a disc that has as many as seventeen tracks but there’s no filler here. Just sixty minutes of enjoyable soulful music that will keep your body movin’. This is exceptional work by Soul:ID and it would be shameful for you to pass it up.

Reg Dancy

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