House News

2nd Lego Special with a jam packed with good time grooves, heavyweight licks and insatiable melodies take centre stage once again!

Legendary producer Dave Lee returns as AC Soul Symphony with the “Metamorphosis” LP - his most ambitious production project in his 35-year career.

With an inimitable CV and discography that includes over a thousand production credits to his name, hundreds of singles under renowned pseudonyms including Joey Negro, and three UK top 40 hits as Jakatta, Dave Lee is one of the UK’s most revered producers of disco and house music, defining each genre with a signature sound. Always looking to push the boundaries of what it means to make music, his latest project sees Dave return to one of his lesser-known pseudonyms – AC Soul Symphony – to deliver an epic disco record that takes the sound back to its roots in every way possible.

“A few years ago, I produced a remake of David Shire’s orchestral disco masterpiece Manhattan Skyline under the alias of AC Soul Symphony. I really enjoyed reworking that classic track in a way that retained my favourite parts of the original but also writing new musical sections that gave it more my own flavour.”

Comprising 15 beautifully arranged disco tracks that effortlessly span almost two hours, “Metamorphosis” is an album by definition, but at its core, much more than that – it is a labour of love, meticulously composed, arranged and crafted through a very tangible and human creative process which is unmatched by many modern producers.

“I do it because I love the process of creating something. My aim is to come up with an end result I genuinely think I’d want to buy, play and listen to if it wasn’t me.”

Inspired by happy memories from the golden era of TV and the soundtracks of his favourite childhood shows, “Metamorphosis” was borne of a desire to put the strings center stage and recreate the same analogue sounds that brought instrumental albums by Love Unlimited, MFSB and Salsoul Orchestra to life.

“I thought making a whole album of this mainly instrumental, string heavy, tv theme like music would be a really enjoyable project and one that would play to my strengths as a producer. It was also slightly new territory musically and a bit of challenge.”

Taking disco back to a physical place, “Metamorphosis” was an organic writing process that saw Dave lay down his ideas digitally, before reshaping the MIDI strings into a proper arrangement and recording them live with a 20-piece orchestra at RAK Studios. By his own admission, it is an album of pure indulgence, but by relying on digital production methods, it can be easy to lose sight of the soul that makes music such a unifying entity. Backing up the immaculate strings with catchy vocals and enough groove to level a discotheque, it’s this soulful energy that Dave has captured and expertly delivered with “Metamorphosis”.

Disco Segreta makes another dream for italo-disco hardcore true!

The first ever 12” officially licensed repress of this Yamaha DX-7 and Polysynth arpeggiated 1985 italo-disco masterpiece, previously released only as a b-side of a 45 on the tiny italian Discokkio label.

The 12” edition – made in collaboration with Metastasio himself – will feature the original version plus an alternate instrumental and vocal versions of “With You”, recovered from the original demo tape.

DSM009 will be strictly ltd. to 300 copies.

Three timeless tracks from the esteemed D.C. LaRue back catalogue get brand new remixes from three equally exciting producers to give a modern spin to these ‘70s classics.

LaRue joined the music industry by recording two top 40 pop records influenced by the teen-idol era. In his early adulthood, he began writing songs about the fast-growing club and bar subculture he frequented where the most outcast of society’s young and marginalized could safely congregate after being ostracized in work, church, school, and often family. In this relatively brief selection of LaRue classics, contemporary remixes paradoxically bring out the timelessness of his songs, in tone, message and musicality.

First up, ‘Do You Want the Real Thing’ gets a fresh update from re-edit royalty Opolopo in the style of the lush yet sharp Motown and Philadelphia production pieces that inspired the arrangement originally, still resonates as a nightly inner dialogue or negotiation, another of LaRue’s literary signatures.

‘Let Them Dance’ greeted in its time as a one of the breakthrough moments of new music technology, is reinterpreted by Dr Packer mainly with its live acoustic tracks, also retaining bright, rhythmic synthesizer hooks with results that are still true to his intentionally oblique lyric, a novelistic portrayal of the drug dealers, the LGBTQ+ underground community, and the powerful upper class elite that made up the multi-racial, socially integrated crowds on the dance floors at the height of disco.

Last up, ‘Indiscreet’ from LaRue’s 1976 concept album, ‘The Tea Dance,’ tells much of the story about how disco had already birthed its own far more popular and influential successor form, Hip-Hop, by the time it was declared dead by the superannuated establishments of the radio, media, and record businesses. Released in a highly limited, personally inscribed 12-inch 45 rpm edition for a select list of top disco DJs, its complex, elastic polyrhythm made it as irresistible to younger black DJs and breakdancing teens as any of the year’s other big street breakouts. Only Good Vibes Music head honchos and Scotland’s finest The Knutsens give it the magic touch for the modern dancefloor.

Fronted by former South London lovers rock vocal harmony group, Alpha (sisters Jackie & Jean Heron and Marlene Richardson), Take Three was the brain-child of writer/producer trio "S.H.E." - Steve Sinclair, Peter Hinds & Kevin Ellis.

Meeting each other at The Factory community centre in Paddington (now known as the Yaa Asantewa centre and in the last few years, The Yaa Centre) Steve & Kevin began a partnership writing and directing their own theatre productions as part of The Black Theatre Co-Op, which called the centre home at the time. When a song they had written together for one of their productions received praise and plaudits, the path toward writing and producing records began, bringing in more seasoned hand Peter Hinds - formerly a member of key brit funk groups Light of the World and Beggar & Co, and player with Incognito, Imagination & Loose Ends - to complete the circle.

Following on from Freestyle's reissue of the group's first single around this time last year, in the form of 1983's Tonight's the Night, we decided to drop another killer 12" from the Take Three vaults - this time it's their last single released as Take Three in 1985. Can't Get Enough (of Your Love) was originally licensed out to, and released by Andy Sojka's seminal Elite label. It features two super extended mixes - the A side's "Soul mix" showcases the girls's harmonies pinned down by a big & heavy synth bass groove before moving into boogie-dub territory, while the B side "Reggae mix" introduces an ofbeat skank heightening the vocal stylings' lovers-esque tendancies.

2023 Repress!

Kalita are proud to announce the first ever official reissue of the holy grail of disco 12” singles, Vance and Suzzanne’s ‘I Can’t Get Along Without You’

Repress!

Another entry into Unidisc's mammoth 40th anniversary celebrations is this sublime prime piece of 1983 boogie pressure from Ingram, boasting a refix from the mighty Mark Knight & Michael Gray.

James Ingram's evergreen jam was an anthem at 80's soul weekenders in the UK, as well as being a crossover record that found favour with B-boys and ravers alike with it's easy electro funk groove. A true classic in every sense of the world, 'DJ's Delight' is one of those tracks that just doesn't stop - watch that bassline! In the spirit of celebration, Unidisc has invited remix heavyweights Knight & Gray to bring their vision of the track into the year 2021 with their modern peaktime version appearing here in both extended and single versions alongside the OG mix. Absolutely essential repress, beautifully presented by your friends over at Unidisc.

Returning for Volume 4 of the sought-after series, Glitterbox Jams is back with another red-hot delivery of dancefloor gems, ready to become a record box essential for all discerning disco DJs. The A-Side features two remixes of an early noughties dancefloor gem, as two esteemed disco editors Moplen and Dr Packer both take on ‘Love Will Be Our Guide’ from Mark Picchiotti presents Jersey Street. On the flip come two productions from Italian-Belgian producer Vito de Luca, donning his Aeroplane alias for a disco-infused remix of Marco Faraone & Greeko’s hip-house pumper ‘Armaghetton’, before swapping over to his Flush pseudonym to deliver the playful Balearic joy of ‘Come Back Baby’.

Setting out to create a future Balearic anthem while doffing a cap to street soul and synth-heavy Italo-disco B-sides of the early 1980s, Orbs of Light’s debut single, ‘Billion Days’ lands on Leng after a tip-off from Mind Fair duo Dean Meredith and Ben Shenton, who booked the duo to play live at their Rotation festival last summer.

Orbs of Light’s Baz Bradley and A Girl Called Kate have been friends for decades and have collaborated musically in the past, though it was only a couple of years ago that they dreamed up this project. It was first trialled via a 2021 remix for Andres y Xavi on Hollis Recordings (‘Perfect Timing’) on which Kate added new vocals to Bradley’s interpretation of the track. Since then, regular recording sessions have taken place, with the duo first crafting tight instrumental tracks before – in Bradley’s words – “dream up the best songs we can” with “melodies that will hopefully stay in your head all day”.

It would be fair to say that they’ve achieved that goal on ‘Billion Days’, a hooky and addictive affair whose vocal hooks and strong chorus could well inspire Balearic sing-alongs in the months ahead. Their original mix (B1 on the vinyl version of the EP, track 2 on the digital EP) is joyous, cheery and kaleidoscopic, with steel pan style melodies, bouncy synth stabs, jaunty lead lines and Kate’s wonderful lead vocal riding a shuffling, post street soul beat and a bubbly bassline.

The accompanying remix package is naturally very strong too. San Francisco crew 40 Thieves, fresh from dropping a killer single of their own on Leng (‘The Gift’, with disco legends Gary Davis and Cinnamon Jones), step up first with a take that stretches out and builds on Orbs of Light’s original mix – think wobbly nu-disco synth bass, fresh flute sounds, dubbed-out vocal snippets and a locked-in groove that’s just perfect for sun-soaked alfresco dancing.

Fittingly, the second and final revision comes from Mind Fair, whose email to Leng HQ about Orbs of Light got the ball rolling. Opting for a rubbery, body-popping beat inspired by vintage electro, they deliver a joyful, effects-laden Balearic dancefloor ‘Dub Mix’ that somehow makes a genuinely life-affirming record even more loved-up and saucer-eyed – despite the presence of only a fraction of Kate’s addictive lead vocal.

For its first release on newly launched, fully licensed label DISCOLIDAYS, The Reflex tackles two underground disco cuts remixed from the original multitrack for the very first time.

‘The Voice of Q’ is a leftfield electro disco gem originally released in 1982 on Philly World records. Produced by the studio team behind the label, the track has become a cult classic but had never been remixed from the stems until now. The Reflex brings it up to date with the added discovery of a pre-vocoder vocal and a full rap vocal that were left unused in the tapes, highlighting the funk bass to the max while pushing the cosmic vibes envelope even further.

‘Everybody Loves A Good Funk’ is a rather obscure ghetto disco-funk produced by none other than John Davis (of the John Davis Orchestra fame) that was recorded at Sigma Sound studios in Philly in 1980 for the Midsong International label. Heavy synth bass, super punchy horns and a devastating groove make up for one hell of a dancefloor killer revision. Again remixed strictly from the tapes for the first time, The Reflex gives this Ruth “Silky” Waters track the shine it always deserved.

With both tracks running at 118 bpm, this release will speak to a wide range of DJ’s and music lovers, from the disco-house contingent to early electro disco fans alike and beyond.

This is the first vinyl release on DISCOLIDAYS (with digital to follow), a new label by remixer extraordinaire The Reflex, fully licensed from the copyrights holders, with more exciting releases to come.

DJ Support:
Dave Lee / Gilles Peterson / Dimitri from Paris / François K / Glitterbox / Skream / The Blessed Madonna / Bill Brewster

a A1 - The Voice Of Q The Reflex Revision
b B1 - Everybody Loves A Good Funk The Reflex Revision

This latest instalment of ARTHUR BAKER Presents DANCE MASTERS finds the production/ song-writing/ remixing maestro taking the spotlight for a long overdue snapshot of his own classic 12” mixes during a crucial evolution of dance music, club
and pop culture.

“I’ve always felt like I was on a mission to make music from the time I heard Motown, Philly and Sly and the Family Stone. My mission started as a hobby and still feels like one now. You’ve got to keep on pushing and hustling. It can be a drag sometimes but
if you really love what you’re doing, it’s worth the work. I still really love what I do.”

Arthur Baker helped codify the remixer as artist. His genre-fluid approach to projects
has resulted in a joyous myriad of classics that spans many decades. This ’80’s focused DANCE MASTERS collection offers a welcome glimpse at Baker’s illustrious career and many long out-of-print 12” versions and previously unavailable mixes.

This 35-track, six LP expanded edition includes a wide array of selections from the likes of Robbie Nevil’s “C’est La Vie,” Fleetwood Mac’s “Big Love,” Neneh Cherry’s “Buffalo Stance”, Jeffrey Osborne “Soweto”, Freeez “I.O.U”, Rockers Revenge “Walking On Sunshine” and of course the juggernaut “Planet Rock” with Afrika Bambaataa & Soulsonic Force.

Complete with in-depth liner notes by Bill Coleman, track by track notes written by Arthur Baker himself, previously unseen session photos from Arthur’s personal archives and a signed insert.

All tracks remastered by Nick Robbins at Sound Mastering

Another baby from Legofunk series will make your body shake!

In 2001 legendary Japanese outfit Kyoto Jazz Massive put out the ‘ Spirit Of The Sun ‘ album for Munich based Compost Records. 22 years later Echoes Of A New Dawn Orchestra who have been the live international band members for Kyoto Jazz Massive over the last 2 years got to do their own rendition of this classic.
In this particular version, 3 members of Echoes Of A New Dawn Orchestra also happen to be part of Jéroboam who record for buzzing Dutch label Space Grapes and in this Mukatsuku release feature from Agyei Osei (vocals),Carel Cleril (bass), Kevin Le Bellec (guitar)from Jéroboam .
It’s a funky slap bass jazz flex affair with seductive horns that make for an irresistible dancer. On the flipside an unreleased exclusive instrumental version.

Andrea Pellegrinelli and Davide Brugola are two men born and bred in the traditions of italo and electro disco. The duo, as Forklift & Saw, release their debut 12', Regression, as they melt past influences into the present. Meandering hooks, emotion soaked keys and snapping rhythms are at the centre of this Milan partnership's music. Across four tracks the pair delivers crashing snares, starlit synths and rumbling arpeggiators. Infectious full bodied funk oozes from this fledgling outfit, crisp percussion supporting their night gazing melodies. Welcome to the world of Forklift & Saw.

repressed !

2024 Repress

Another episode of the notorious 'You Can Trust A Man With A Moustache Series. Containing 4 crazy electro house energizing nu-italo top hits! A1 The mysterious super hit wanted and sought after by many DJs, played at numerous clubs and festivals by Moustache records label boss David Vunk, the mega anthem by the super collective ; Tending tropic - Hondebrok!!! A2 Cafius the super talented electronic music producer hailing from Ukraine is part of Moustache family now. He Delivered a massive club banger for the dancefloor: Cafius - Tonight is the night. Already played by DJs around the glove! B1 Im Kellar the infamous project by 30 years friends David Spanish and David Vunk ebm electro, dark and pure from the analogue cellars of downtown Rotterdam city, Im Kellar known for their super rare always sold out 12inches. Im Kellar - Not to be compromised dont miss this killer track with that strange melodie ;) B2 Moustache is super pleased to have the boss of Barca on board. Italo moderni label ceo Adrian Marth with his electro house hi energy track: Icon of the night! Expect deep basslines and peaking party drops. You can trust a man with a Moustache Vol. 5 comes in a super great designed 12inch sleeve full colour Artwork. Dont sleep on this ultra rare vinyl super limited only 500 copies no repress! Don't play this record underwater!

This compilation takes you on a trip through trance/dance tracks from the era where music clubs in Belgium & Europe were hot and trend setting.

This will be a limited edition, pressed on 180 gram high quality 12" black vinyl.

When you see Dr. Packer’s name on the tin you know you are in for a treat! He takes BB&Q Band’s classic “Main Attraction” and turns it with his magic into a Nu-Disco boogie-down floor fest.

Produced by Kae Willams II and with vocals by the great Curtis Hairston, the Dr. from ‘down-under’ manages to encapsulate the 80’s funk soul feel from BB& Q Band’s seminal original to carry those heady days of dancing till the sun’s up into 2023 and beyond.

The Jolisa EP marks a significant shift in Luca dell’Orso’s sound. Although the electric hooks and rolling rhythms that characterise the dutchman’s signature style are still present, new avenues are explored. One notable change is the addition of vocals, care of the EP’s namesake: Jolisa. The opening, “Sixteen”, smoulders with a palpable intensity. Steady beats and textured pads support synth stabs as impassioned vocals recant a tale of past lessons. “Reach Out”, on the flip, is a different animal. Big and daring, chords chug next slicing snares while lyrics brim with hope. Two instrumental works balance the four tracker. “Nighttime” is perfectly sculpted with a soulful melody and clean percussion, vocoder lyrics giving a sorrowful slant to track. A true epic closes: “Tomorrow’s Already Here.” Bold keys and racing rhythms collide in this 80s steeped extravaganza, electro-disco and car chases in this incredible end. A defining EP from Luca dell’Orso.

Summertime sunshine, soaked up across two stunning tracks from Things You Say on Palm Recs. Bursting at the seams with festival energy the A side ‘Thank You Baby’ is a disco house belter, with that fist pumping feeling deep down in its soul.

On the B, ‘Play The Drums’ a hypnotic Italo disco flavoured foray into the depths. Space echoed vocals, punchy synth bass and a crisp beat will have the dancefloor in the palm of your hands.

Reissue of this italo disco classic from 1985. Comes with Flemming Dalum and Victor Ark remixes.

AirFunk is back with a very special third release AirFunk 003! The first tracks from the collaboration between Maxime dB & Aline Umber has found a home on the A side : Tribute to Malibu and Disco Sex Machine. On the B side we have two stellar groover from Sweely and Man/ipulate aka Welwert.

The 4 tracks are stamping once more the color of the label’s imprint with Pop & Disco influences!

Random Color VInyl !

Büchsenöffner Vol. 5 - Summer Is Here To Spreiz!

Sometimes you go to take a step back to go forward. What sounds like a Ferris Bueller quote and can be as easily applied as a seatbelt, also holds true for the long over-due and outright return of Tiger & Woods. Four tracks that are as classic as they are catchy and as simple as the monochrome label that carries their titles. Drawing conclusions from an extended period as a DJ team and before going back to their esteemed and critically acclaimed live set, it’s all made for dance floors and with their conductors in mind. Going back to their roots, it marks the start of a series with raw takes and an authentic aesthetic. The job of feet is walking, but their hobby is dancing.

Sue Me and License To Vibe (featuring long-time collaborator ’Em) sound like they were ripped straight from an unreleased Editainment reel. On the other side, Chicken Bone and 16 Red are even straighter on the DJ tip: turning French House Italian. Powerful and punchy. No samples were harmed during the filming of this record!

Following on from our previous Gladys Knights & The Pips 12" ('Love Is Always On My Mind'/'Bourgie Bourgie' Cat No: DISCO115) it gives us great pleasure to re-issue her most expensive and in-demand 12" - the Canadian only Walter Gibbons remix of "It's A Better Than Good Time" backed with the full version of "Saved By The Grace Of Your Love".

This is a legendary and super-rare 12" which was only ever issued in Canada and has become something of a holy grail for serious dance music collectors over the years.

A decent condition copy will currently set you back £300+ and that's only if you're lucky enough to find one! it's a Gibbons master-class like you know he can.

Fully remastered on limited edition 180 gram heavyweight vinyl.

Following the intergalactic odyssey of their first release, Hi Quality Records are back for round two. Switching to hyperdrive for another blast round the sun with two feel-good, cosmic channelling, disco burners from the mighty More Amour aka Artwork and Jon Solo.

Cruising out across the cosmos ‘Solar Flair’ is a sublime slice of boogie brilliance, with an infectious bassline and keys to match. Turning the heat up to 10 with Jon Solo on the solos, spiritually working those keys as Artwork conjures up his magic at the production controls. If you could drop the top on this spaceship and roll those windows down, this is definitely the groovin’, head bobber you’d have soundtracking your beam across the interplanetary highways.

With that non-existent breeze flowing over your spacesuit, ‘Heatwave’ ramps up proceedings on the B side. A funk-fuelled trip where sweltering Rodgers-esque riffs and slap basslines dance around string stabs and smile-inducing chords, with a signature spellbinding synth solo to top it all off. Break glass in case of emergency, this is your ticket out of any subdued dancefloor.

Ricardo Baez draws on many influences. Electro, house, synth-pop and italo are pillars of the Italian artist’s unique style. The Florence based musician arrives at the Bordello with On and On. Featuring Curses, the opener is a floor-filler. Known for his EBM-stained wave works, this vocal mix is a late night Summer romp. Crisp percussion and warm bass lines usher in addictive hooks and throaty vocals from Luca Venezia.

The original version follows. Lyrics are stripped back allowing the upbeat synth play to take the limelight. Cascading notes announce the flip. “Sfida Notturna” is built on delicate drum patterns and arc of string before breaking to a heady dawn.

“Dietro L’orizzonte” brings the curtain down. Toms and cinematic synthlines introduce rasping rhythms and vocoder samples. The piece is perfectly measured, fragile keys ascend next cymbal crashes and computer voice. Sumptuous sounds from the north of Italy.

Opening up the Pop Shop in style, one side sees Norway’s Twson reworking a disco hit into an 10 minute 35 second epic whilst the other lets loose London’s Ron Bacardi (aka Ben Sims), dropping a slick edit of a hellarare MJ cover.

Red Vinyl

Tooflie is a vinyl-only label based somewhere on the shores of the Baltic Sea that brings authentic music from all over the world right to the dance floors. For the first release, we have collected four oriental DJ edits and original tracks with the smell of saffron and the taste of curry, seasoned with a passion for industan.

Italian dance band Reverendos Of Soul, formed by Giovanni Ceccati & Andrea Tonici, have been lighting up the scene since 2013. The ‘So Special’ EP includes four of their best tracks showcasing a signature and euphoric blend of disco, soul and house. Label heads Micky More & Andy Tee serve up three mixes of Reverendos Of Soul hits, with White Soul Project also sprinkling their magic on proceedings.

DJ Support:

Dimitri From Paris, Dave Lee, Simon Dunmore, Brian Tappert, Mello Baptist, Seamus Haji, Terry Hunter, DJ Spen, Hector Romero, Dr. Packer, Kenny Carpenter; Marc Cotterell, Husky, Birdee, Derrick McKenzie, Angelo Ferreri, Joe T. Vannelli.

Life is a party. Never miss a chance to Dance. Shake what your mama gave you!

We present to you Blkmarket Underground Music Party Edits.

New sub label for Blkmarket Music focusing on DJ edits.

First up on the edit series we present one of our favorite edit masters, DJ and West Coast legend
that needs no introduction...DJ Spun.

Since first joining forces in the studio at the dawn of the 2000s, Danielle Baldelli and Marco Dionigi have released countless collaborative singles and albums, each showcasing distinctively different take on the “cosmic sound” that Baldelli did more than anyone else to define in the early 1980s.

Alloteva marks the pair’s first joint release for Leng Records, and Baldelli’s return to the label following last year’s acclaimed full-length collaboration with Marco Fratty, Oil Painting. It boasts a quartet of cuts that further refine the pair’s now-familiar joint style, which combines elements of dub disco, space rock, Italo-disco, funk and Afro-cosmic (another style which Baldelli arguably created via his DJ sets at the legendary Cosmic Club).

Those who’ve followed the experienced Italian pair’s career over the last two decades will enjoy the heavy and sweaty title track, a cowbell-sporting chunk of funk-fuelled cosmic disco decadence piled high with loose-limbed drums, throbbing synthesizer arpeggio lines, flanged guitar riffs and rubbery, low-slung bass.

The pair’s love of dub disco is further explored on the deliciously deep and warming ‘Deflector’, a pitched-down delight in which intergalactic chords, snaking saxophone motifs and echoing percussion hits rise above a metronomic beat and another headline-grabbing bassline.

‘Sonora’, which opens the flipside of the vinyl version of the release, is arguably even more cosmic and spaced-out. Light and airy thanks to a sparse, clicking drum machine rhythm, hypnotic bassline and gently pulsing synth chords, the track is marked out by some near horizontal, echo-laden jazz guitar solos that seemingly tumble down across the sound space.

To round off a strong EP, Baldelli and Dionigi deliver ‘Time is Plastic’, whose icy ambient intro and blazed spoken word samples quickly segue into another elastic cosmic funk groove. This time round, the star attraction is the duo’s classy combination of liquid bass guitar and excitement-packed slap-bass. Throw in some gnarled, flash-fried funk guitar riffs and a heady, hypnotic mood, and you have another deep space gem from the most cosmic duo in the business.

NEXT UP FOR KOLOUR LTD IS AN EP FROM 4 UP & COMING NAMES ZOO LOOK / DEADLY SINS / THE GLUE & 78 EDITS PRESSED ON BLUE VINYL.

Boo Williams comes thru with the 4th entry in his Disco Runnerz series. The 3 cuts, "DISCO FEVER", "CALLING LOVE" & "LET NO MAN" all deliver more of the classic disco edit fire that the imprint is known for.

Hand stamped & limited underground heat.