Tags: Latin House

Review: RECOMMENDED
The remix album is probably pretty hard to crack in terms of putting it together. On the one hand, you want a broad selection of producers to take the work and make it new again. But there's also a very real risk of winding up with a bunch of random tracks with no real coherent thread to ensure the LP is actually going to get enough people buying to warrant engineering, mastering, and pressing costs.

Khruangbin have certainly cracked it with these takes on tracks from their most recent and perhaps most lush long form outing to date. We have sophisticated micro house, percussive slo-mo disco, slick-to-the-touch downbeat grooves and surrealist pop, all of which work both individually and together, the result being a record that not only knows its own mind, it can easily convince others, too.

Review: Here's something of a pleasant surprise: Studio Barnhus co-founder Kornel Kovacs turning up on Glasgow's masters of all things dancefloor-friendly, Numbers. While there's a little more of a garage swing to opener "Lighthouse" - think darting string samples, booming sub-bass and energetic deep house drums - the Swede doesn't seem to have wandered that far off-piste. So, we get some undeniably classy, jazz-flecked deep house (the rubbery and flexible "Gangsta"), a surging, saucer-eyed dose of piano revivalism ("Malon", featuring Marcus Price, and some suitably jumpy drums), and, best of all, the late '80s Paradise Garage Latin house brilliance of "Pantalon". Stellar stuff, all told.

Review: This glorious package of remixes of the BaianaSystem band draws together contemporary Brazilian sounds with plenty of modern dance floor flourishes. A?gua is the standout track from their 2018 LP and is a poem to the bands native Bahia people with the legendary Antonio Carlos & Jocafi. It is perfect material to rework for different settings and deep house don Jimpster does that with his fat bottomed, tropical remix then stripped back dub. Brazilian producer Diogo Strausz joins forces with RNT boss JKriv on the flip for a more drawn out and cosmic exploration that pumps up and down on weight bass and that lovely loose jumble of percussion.

Review: It's a while since we last heard from Bruno 'Patchworks' Hovart's Afro-disco focused Violaaa project, so this surprise set of remixes of back catalogue tracks is more than welcome. Fittingly, three of the versions come from Hovart himself under different aliases. There's a fine, tropical-tinged, sun-splashed Violaaa revision of 'Tu Mens Divant Moi' that doffs a cap to zouk music, and two deep house-tinged Patchworks versions of classic cuts. The mix of the outfit's underground hit 'Spies Are Watching Me' is a brilliant alternative take on a familiar favourite (it certainly breathes new life into the track), while the samba-house-in-Ghana revision of 'Ben Bene La' is brilliant. Throw in a quality J Kriv deep nu-disco version of 'Ku La Foon' and you have an excellent EP of tasteful, club-ready cuts.

Review: Diogo Strausz has previously released on Razor-N-Tape as part of the duo Balako but now steps up as a solo artist to kick off the label's 2021. A Sao Paulista now living in Paris, he brings plenty of musicality to the slick 7", firstly with 'Emancipacao,' which is awash with melancholic keys and rich bass but also plenty of fantastic leads from both synths and sax. It's splashy and splashy and colourful disco. '50 Anos Em 5' then gets playful and funky with a Latin twist as the salsa beats an squelchy bass all make you want to spin on your heels.

Review: Gold standard house label Razor-N-Tape looks back to Guinu's modern LP of Brazilian jazz-funk, Palago^, and has some key cuts from it remixed by a selection of assured studio hands here. First up, Jose Marquez reworks the title track into a heavy and hypnotic jam with big percussion. The Faze Action remix of 'Haha Fe' brings some fresh disco sounds and RNT stalwart Diogo Strausz brings big room synth energy and cosmic vocal filters. Last of all, Brazilian Carrot Green brings the 80s boogie brilliance to 'Porao de Ferro.'

Review: BBE is the kind of label you can trust with any kind of reissue project, and when they call upon DJ Spinna and Kai Alce to look back over the foundations of house music, you know you're about to get a masterclass. This intermittent series has seen the two US DJ/producers picking through seminal house joints, editing the most crucial mixes to fit on a 7" as a neatly presented series for anyone wanting to point out exactly what house music really is. This time around they've turned to Sandee's 'Notice Me' - a Latin house joint from 1988 which rocked clubs like Tunnel and Palladium in NYC and Riviera in Chicago upon its original release.

Review: Sadeira - a trio made up of members based in both Brooklyn and Brazil - previously impressed with a handful of high-grade releases on Let's Play House. Now they've transferred to London-based Leng to showcase their latest colourful, cross-cultural musical fusions. Lead cut 'Luzes Ca Didade' is undeniably brilliant: a swelteringly humid slab of samba-nu disco brilliance rich in fluttering flutes, layered Brazilian percussion, squelchy synth bass, glistening guitars and life-affirming bi-lingual vocals. It's backed with two tidy reworks - a flute-heavy instrumental take, and the band's own sweaty, percussive, and sub0heavy broken house revision, which drags the track further towards peak-time dancefloors. The EP's final track is fab, too: a synth-heavy, early '80s influenced dub reggae rework of previous single 'Deixa Tudo Fluir' that may well be the EP's standout moment.

Review: The unstoppable and irrepressible Louie Vega has commissioned a bunch of remixes of Tony Touch's 'Sacude' for his own Vega label. The man himself opens things up with a Brooklyn mix that is heavy on raw beats, percussion and Latin rhythm. Manoos goes for something a little more smooth and shuffling, while Oscar G's 305 remix is a deep, elastic groove with eerie synth work. He also serves up a dub, Tony Touch reworks his own original into something full of fire and a dark Louie Vega Bronx mix closes out the package.

Review: Razor-N-Tape's Family Affair series makes a welcome return here with a third great instalment. This series is something of an annual end-of-year tradition by now (OK, it's arriving a touch late) and this one hits as hard as any with five tracks taken from the full and standout compilation. It is two great remixes of classic RNT material that gets things underway with Ezel offering a dub of Cor.ece and Bruce Leroys sublime deep hose mix of Guinu, then JKriv's 'Better Than Her' is a fat bottomed bit of deep cut electro funk and elsewhere Kim Anh gets raw and cosmic, and Cody Currie's 'Ghost' is broken beat perfection.

Review: Populous's Moonbaton Vol. 1 marks a strong return to Wonderwheel Recordings, offering a tantalizing glimpse into the darker realms of instrumental reggaeton and moombahton. With tracks like 'Flauta Magica, which intricately weaves brooding synths and dembow beats with ethereal flute melodies and 'Sapo,' a foreboding journey layered with monstrous basslines and whimsical melodies, Populous demonstrates his mastery in crafting atmospheric soundscapes. Hailing from Southern Italy, Populous's global approach to music-making shines through, reflecting his diverse influences and musicological background. With previous releases like Night Safari and Azulejos, Populous has established himself as a versatile artist, while also making waves in the fashion world as a sound designer for renowned brands. Moonbaton Vol. 1 sets the stage for an eagerly anticipated series, promising an enchanting fusion of cosmic inspiration and rhythmic exploration.

Review: Let the speculation begin, because here we have a new EP from an artist about which we know nothing on a similarly anonymous new label. T Recs has pressed up these two house cuts on alluring green wax and riddled them with big samples. The first will be familiar to fans of Donald Glover's 'This Is America' which has the vocal samples and crowd chants layered into a chunky tribal house cut. On the flip is a similar tune with tweaked vocals. Both will bring big reactions to the club.

Review: Top tier US house head Stefan Ringer has many different styles up his sleeve and many of them come to fore on this new dance floor heater on his FWM Entertainment. 'Fever' is built on fat, mid-tempo drums with rattling hits and congas peppering the beats next to snippets of vocal that bring a sense of sensuality and sexuality as pixelated synths also make their mark. On the flip, the remix by Ben Hixon has jazzy, live-sounding percussion and deft drum patterns that are organic and loose. Vamping chords build some energy while steamy vocal words layer in intimacy and emotional intensity. It's a brilliantly original sound packed with real heart.