Yo. Playing in my turntable lately: Gotan Project "El capitalismo foraneo",
Matthaus "Scat Box", Dj Food "Quadraplex" and Zero DB "Click". They all kick
serious ass. Check them out (if you haven't already).
Paz: James Park
----Original Message-----
From: Gen Kanai [mailto:gkanai@earthlink.net]
Sent: 15 February 2001 18:57
To: acid-jazz@ucsd.edu; Deepness
Subject: February 2001 vinyl hunt report
Hi everyone,
It's been months since I've gone vinyl hunting here in NYC and while I've
found a few new gems (OM's new Andy Caldwell is GORGEOUS!) most of this
stuff was late 2000 or even older stuff.
The "Swell Session" 12" is sold out everywhere I've gone and the buzz on
this one is growing quickly.
* * *
Andy Caldwell feat. Gina René "Quiet Nights" (OM Records, om-054sv)
This is a beautiful track that everyone HAS to check out. Gina sings the
lyrics from Jobim's "Corcovado (Quiet Nights of Quiet Stars)" on top of
Andy's deep house. It's a got that "summertime" feel to it and would fit
really well on Hed Kandi's "Beach House 2" if they're planning it (I'll
wager that they are :) I like the Original Mix but there's a "Chiquito
Pacheco Remix" that has the broken beat thing going on too.
Hat's off to OM because they keep on raising the level of quality of the
house they're releasing and finally spending more than a little time and
money on the cover art/design too. The new OM vinyl really stands out
among the faceless vinyl that's out there and the music is EVEN BETTER than
the sleeve art (which is as it should be.) I know I have some of Andy
Caldwell's older vinyl but this record is deep house at it's most
beautiful. If I find one track of this quality a month, I'm doing
well. Does anyone know if Gina Rene is Gabriel Rene's sister? (That would
be pretty cool...)
Uschi presents "Tiramisu (Deep Joy/ Expression Mix)" (Released 4 Pleasure
Records)
Uschi Classen is more famous for her Compost releases but has worked with
such luminaries as Ballistic Brothers, Black Science Orchestra, Ashley
Beedle, Maria Nayler and Andrea Parker in the past. This one is a groovy
medium-tempo house track, not to be missed if you liked the Classen
Collective stuff (although these remixes are more house than jazz oriented.)
gerardo frisina "descarga" (Schema, SCEP 327)
This is a strong jazzy 12" in the Schema style. Very groovy and uptempo
with nice keyboard solos and solid percussion. No lyrics. Definitely
worth checking out if you like it very jazzy. It's hard to think of this
track as "dance" music per se but it's certainly danceable!
Shazz & Alexandre Destrez "Hermosa Maria" (Epic/Sony)
The "Latin Hip House Mix" is getting a lot of mentions on deep house DJ
playlists. I think it's a great deep Latin house track but kind of subtle
to a certain extent. No specific "hook" per se, just a good groove and
deepness. My friend DJ Desmond likes the "Original Mix" for use in his
downtempo/acid-jazz sets, so this is a versatle 12"
Shazz featuring Alexandre Destrez "Afrodisiac" (DeNote Records)
Not broken beat but not your typical 4/4 either- maybe classify it as
break-house? ;) This one's infectious in a subtle way. Some very groovy
basslines and of course some very smooth Rhodes by Destrez. Shazz is
pretty busy with the releases these days! This one is worth checking out.
Da Lata "Pra Manha Remixes" (Palm Pictures Promo)
(Patrick Forge/Toni Economidies P&T mix & bonus beats, KV5 remix &
instrumental, Blaze remix & instrumental, IG Culture remix & instrumental)
This is a Brazilian House goldmine! 2 Remixes each by Blaze, P&T, I.G.
Culture and KV5. You gotta check this one! As if the original wasn't the
most gorgeous Da Lata track- the remixes give you more options when you
want to kick it up yet remind everyone of the beauty of the original. The
Blaze remixes are great 4/4 tracks while the I.G. Culture ones break it up
a bit. I've seen this 2x12" for $14 and $10 so shop around.
B.M.R. Pres. Level 42 "Starchild" (Peppermint Jam)
Those of you who remember Disco first-hand will no doubt remember this huge
Level 42 disco anthem. It's been given a new house remix in a very
friendly style by B.M.R. (Boris Dlugosch and Miki Lange.) I'm not
necessarily a Dlugosch fan so even if you aren't check out this one- it's a
really fun house track which everyone will recognize because of the Level
42 track. I have the original on the "Francois Kevorian: Essential Mix,"
CD which is really good in it's own right.
Mondo Grosso "Butterfly" (Epic/Sony)
There's a niche segment of dance music fans (I'd have to include myself in
this niche :) that gets _a_little_insane_ every time there's a new Monday
Michiru 12" or LP. They somehow congregate around Dub Spot Records in New
York City, but that's a story for another day :) Anyhow, this is Monday's
clear voice singing on Shinichi Osawa's Mondo Grosso project. The two have
a long musical relationship and history together. The original is a broken
beat house track, but my favorite is the "Francois K Jazzy Vibe Mix." Some
people think FK is over-rated. I personally think he's under-rated but
that's yet another different story :) Don't get caught paying $30 for this
import, but don't miss it! Some shops are carrying the Japan vinyl which
is outrageously expensive. The English pressing is just as good and is
only $9.98 where I found it (Throb in NYC.)
Glücklich IV LP (Compost)
I doubt I have to explain much about one of the best Brazilian-influenced
dance compilations around. Buscemi, Kyoto Jazz Massive, Minus 8, Gotan
Project, Mark De Clive-Lowe, what are you waiting for! I'm dying to find
out what kind of VW they'll use for the next LP's cover :) Maybe it'll be
a VW airplane or truck?
Glücklich IV 12" (Compost 083)
This is a 12" from the Glücklich IV album that was released separately from
the vinyl release (I don't have the CD version to compare it to.) It has
the Truby Trio track "Alegre" and Wei Chi's "Heaven" and Coisa Nossa fea.
Salome de Bahia's "Procurando O Caminho." This 3 track sampler along with
the LP gives you all 14 tracks that are on the CD.
A:xus Feat. Naomi "Baghdad Cafe" (Guidance, GDR054, 1999)
An oldie but a goodie. My friend Desmond thinks it's the only strong song
from the A:xus album and I'm inclined to agree. I'm sure you've heard this
one before- it's on a bunch of compilations. Breathy female vocals, groovy
house beat, better than "typical Guidance," if you ask me. It's a quiet
record though- moody and contemplative (if you can call a dance music
record that ;)
trio electrico "coconut groove" (Stereo Deluxe)
This is an older (2000?) Stereo Deluxe release that fits into my Latin
dance collection well. Pretty eclectic and groovy with a lot of varying
sounds and not a straight house sound by any means. Not lounge-ish, but
not 4/4 either. Some of this almost sounds cinematic at times. It has a
Latin flavor, but pretty electronic at it's core. I'm usually a fan of
Stereo Deluxe releases so I'm happy with this one too.
* * *
So that's what's on my turntables this month. How about you?
Gen
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b30 : Mon Feb 19 2001 - 18:02:24 CET