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So here it is then – Queen Alone – surprisingly only the second solo LP from the artist formerly known as Nicole Wray (back in the 90s when she was known for being a young musical associate of Missy Elliott) who subsequently (though more than ten years later) transformed into one half of a duo called Lady with Terri Walker and now travels by a name which combines both
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LADY WRAY: Queen Alone (2016)
BACAO RHYTHM & STEEL BAND: P.I.M.P b/w Police In Helicopter (2016)
Rating: Yet another re-release for the track that made their name – the third to date and almost certainly not the last. Yes – Bacao Steel & Rhythm Band put out their steel drum cover of Fiddy’s P.I.M.P. again – correctly, on wax. This is the track that, when it originally came out on Mocambo eight years ago (of which release even VG+ copies are now trading for north of £30) used
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STEPPIN’ TONES: Shadow Of A Trout (2016)
Rating: He’s not your steppin’ stone – he’s your steppin’ tone. Who? Steppin’ Tones of course – a man who’s waited a full eleven years between supporting the MustBeat Crew in Budapest and releasing his debut Shadow Of A Trout EP on MustBeat. Still – it was worth the wait as Tones plunders the back catalogues of the likes of Barbara George and Carla Thomas to light some vintage big beat fire on this which, without a
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TOSSES: Papa’s Gonna Brand New (2016)
Ale Tosses continues his post-‘Tosses & Varvez’ career with this funky new three-tracker – the Papa’s Gonna Brand New EP. In doing so he raids the back catalogues of none other than than New Orleans’ The Meters, L.A.’s The Doors and Atlanta’s Godfather Of Soul himself. Is this an exercise in adding extra heavy breaks and FX to certain notable works by all the above? It certainly is –
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BREAKBEAT PARADISE RECORDINGS: Swing That Funk (2016)
This year already they’ve done old (the retro breaks of the Badass Funk EP), they’ve done new (the grinding, glitchy breaks Big Fat Mama Ep) now it’s time to swing with BBP on the Swing That Funk EP. Yes, Badboe invites along a cast of thousands – well, six – to try their hand at funking up the swing. Which means that BBP is broadly essaying an electro-swing EP on the world. Of
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THE NICEGUYS: Joy EP (2016)
Rating: Nice to see you, The Niceguys, The Niceguys, to see you nice! As Brucie might well say – especially if he heard this new Bomb Strikes booty business as the label initiates its autumn onslaught. Get Up provides chugging heavyweight synth-funk to conjure with while Pride & Joy finds a slice of early Marvin Gaye injected with an industrial dose of the twenty-first century –
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A BAND ON HOPE: A Band On Hope (2016)
A Band On Hope? See what A Band On Hope – a.k.a. Scribes emcee Ill Literate and producer Kristian Sharpe have done there with the title of their new project? Punningly managed to communicate utter despair whilst simultaneously conveying the notion of a band high on a sense of optimism. It’s a paradoxical evocation that pervades the entire album – and, after all, why not
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SADAT X feat. R.A. THE RUGGED MAN & THIRSTIN HOWL III: Industry Outcasts (Prod. WILL TELL) (2016)
Industry Outcasts is the latest single from former Brand Nubian rapper Sadat X off his summer-released Agua LP on which he plays up his hip-hop renegade status. Hmm – I wonder if he can find a couple of like-minded individuals to do a couple of guest turns on the mic with him? He can! Step forward R.A. The Rugged Man and Thirstin Howl III
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CHARLIE BEALE: Medley: Groovin’ The Blues/ Funk Jam (2016) Free download
One-man electro blues whirlwind Charlie Beale has been working on a couple of tunes it seems – the glitch-blues monster that is Groovin’ The Blues and the stomping great beast that is the Parliament-infused Funk Jam. The only trouble is – he hasn’t been able to finish either one. But hold on a minute! What if he spliced the two together? Yes…that might work! Cop the Frankenstein’s
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THE URBAN RENEWAL PROJECT feat. CAMP LO: Don’t Ask Y (2016)
Are you a thirteen-piece musical collective with a ten-piece live horn section called The Urban Renewal Project? Are you rockin’ live funk drums and brassy hooks? Does your new tune evoke the summer of 1973? Yeah? What you need on those beats are a brace of emcees with a finely developed pimp style and retro slang slinging sense of verse! Step forward Sonny Cheeba and
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