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JAZZ - FUNK - SOUL - DISCO (January 2011)

Reviewed by Aleem Bhatti

Andre Zimma – The Calm In The Turbulence, Swedish Brandy Productions, Released 14/01/2011.

The team at Swedish Brandy Productions bring together Andre Zimma’s new album which crosses that well trodden terrain of broken beats and electronic soul/jazz. Some of you may remember many of his excellent productions under the guise of SLOPE which consisted of the duo Daniel Paul and DJ Honesty, but the attack here is altogether more soulful with a smattering a lovely down-tempo productions that remind us of re:jazz. Sandwiched in between these and the broken beat boogies we have delightful latin-infused Jazz Funk breaks that could be considered George Duke-esque! Who said broken beat was dead?

Brief Encounter – The Brief Encounter (Introduction), Jazzman, Released 27/12/2010.

This soul and funk re-issue on Jazzman is causing a bit of a stir in certain circles. Rumours that the original print on Seventy Seven records would fetch somewhere over $2000 makes this re-issue music to the ears of collectors. This LP follows the usual mix of funk anthems and silky sweet ballads, which were ever present on a lot of similar albums at the time, but these may be little to treacly for some palates. Stand out tracks “Got A Good Feeling” and “We’re Gonna Have A Good Time” are worth a purchase alone. Crate diggers listen up!

Casandra Wilson – Silver Pony, Blue Note Records, Released 22 /12/2010.

Vocalist Casandra Wilson needs no introduction but it’s worth mentioning, that since her 1993 debut on Blue Note Records, she has barely put a foot wrong. This album, her  9th release for the legendary Jazz label, really is exquisite; it effortlessly blends material from Live recordings with Studio productions all backed by an incredibly tight and funky band that appear to be as easily at home recreating classic soul covers, such as their delightful version of Stevie Wonders mellifluous “If It’s Magic” or playing grittier covers of Muddy Waters. The album concludes with a duet with John Legend and is something a little bit different for these pages. If you love music, buy this album…

Breakwater – Splashdown, Arista, Released 17/01/2011.

A classic rare groove re-issue of this 1980 album that includes the classics “Say You Love Me Girl” and “Release The Beast” samples by Daft Punk. This band reminds me and has similar qualities of other great bands around at the time such as Pleasure, Rhyze and Starship Orchestra. From the opening bars of track one its not long before you’re reminded of the why music recorded around this period was just so good; tight vocal hooks and excellent musicianship were allowed to flourish with plenty of attention to the sound engineering and quality of the recording. If you missed this one first time around, this is simply a must for all collectors of rare groove.

Krystal Klear – Dekryptic, All City Dublin, Released 14/01/2011.

Who’s wearing the “Synth-Funk Crown” these days? LA’s Dam-Funk had a pretty strong case for it last year and Swedish electronic genius Opolopo is definitely staking his claim to it this year, but he shouldn’t rest on his laurels as an excellent contender is also on the horizon in the form of Manchester based Dubliner, Krystal Klear. This track has all the synth goodness you would expect from someone in this class of company with a set of changing boogie chords beautifully layered throughout. Lots of influences here, notably Cameo and there seems to be subtle nods to the revered Ital-NY soul band, Change. Looking forward to more things in 2011 from this guy.