New Joints for April

There is a lot of heat coming out right now, it’s making the warming weather feel even better. Really looking forward to playing music outdoors again soon (keep your eye on this space or follow @jetpartyservices on Instagram. Here are some of the new jams I will be running out….

Moodymann – Taken Away – KDJ Records

Various Artists – Parabellum Detroit – Vibes New And Rare Music

Both of these came out last year digitally, but I find it’s very hard for me to really even listen to music that I know is coming on wax later as that’s how I will be purchasing it. So these are still basically brand new to me, and both are sounding really good.

Moodymann’s first widely available LP since 2014’s eponymous album (I think of Sinner as more of a DJ focused double 12”) sees him continuing his distinctive style of neo soul and house fusion, mixing samples with live playing so convincingly that almost any element in a track could be based in either technique. The (not original mix, apparently) first version of “Taken Away” that appears on here is the highlight for me, with its synth bass and swelling strings laying down a smoked out foundation for the vocals that will surely make this a big hit. The third disc here consists of the Demos, Cassettes, ADATs & Floppies Pt. 1 digital release, and features early versions of “I Got Werk” and “Should’ve Known” as well as other raw house jams from Kenny’s vault. All in all a really solid package.

On Parabellum Detroit, the new compilation selected by Rick Wilhite and Delano Smith that is released through Norm Talley’s Upstairs Asylum label, Kenny’s track is possibly the least essential, throwing back to his KDJ-16 track (it might even be the same jam? I haven’t checked them side by side) but if you missed that one, this will come in handy. The rest of the comp is just full of great tracks by some of the best cats doing house and techno music right now. Jon Dixon and Gerald Mitchell have been on fire of late and their tracks here will keep up that dancefloor pressure. Delano and Norm lay down the deepness they are known for, while Rick is strictly in collabo mode here, dropping an edit of Omar S and some minimal and funky jams with Delano. The best cut though is (unsurprisingly!) Marcellus Pittman’s “Everybody Party” with its shuffled rhythms and deep synth bass. This definitely has the feel of a 00s era Detroit house comp along the lines of In The Dark or Detroit Beatdown but updated for the 2020s.

Kyle Hall – MPC Dreams – Forget The Clock

Every new Kyle Hall record feels like an event for me at this point. He has mastered the art of creating EPs full of tracks that work together to elicit a feeling that the artwork matches. Here he has a backstory about a dream involving Pete Rock and the Sega Dreamcast, but you don’t even need that to appreciate the jazz inflected broken beats etched in the grooves. Amp Fiddler lends his hands on “Expression”, which is my top pick, but Kyle more than handles his own on keys on the other tracks as well. Also, the colored variants he has been dropping look and sound excellent, and this one on transparent vinyl is no exception.

Shamis – Believe (LCSM Versions) – Dopeness Galore

For those who can’t remember, LCSM is IG Culture’s band Likwid Continual Space Motion that was responsible for last year’s outstanding Earthbound album that was one of the best albums of 2020 and one of the soundtracks to the summer for me. While that will surely continue to get mad play, they have thankfully hooked up this remix that has summertime killer written all over it. The vocals and instruments are all restrained and mellow, but the funky drum rhythm gives it a very infectious energy that forces you to move your ass.

EDB – True Stories – Mother Tongue

Here is the portion of this post where I talk about how absurdly consistent Mother Tongue has been. This one is courtesy of a newcomer, Italian cat Edoardo Della Bitta, whose skills appear to be quite considerable despite his being a younger dude. “This Can’t Be Life” features Swaylo on vocals (whose work should be familiar to Glenn Underground fans) and it is the immediate standout with its lush and organic take on soulful house. But EDB proves he is no one trick pony by taking on jazzy broken beats with “The Bow Chock” and “Indulge in Nostalgia”, and modern funk on “Viridis”. The whole EP is lovely and most importantly shows the ability to cross stylistic boundaries without sacrificing a distinctive personal style. I’m really looking forward to what this cat has in store for us next.

Stefan Ringer and Ash Lauryn – Expressions EP – FWM Entertainment

The title of this EP is taken from Ash and Stefan’s night at the now closed Atlanta underground club institution Sound Table, and the music included reflects the atmosphere they were aiming for. For Ash’s first appearance, she lays down spoken word vocals on “Let’s Get The Rhythm”, eventually trading lines with Stefan about a night out at a party. On “Me” and “How I Like It”, shorter portions of her spoken vocals are used more like samples, but the effect of the whole record feels like it is all about the interaction between the music and the words. The grooves here are a bit more straightforward house than some of Stefan’s more recent releases, but they are full of that synthed out bounce you are looking for from the ATL. There is also a slick new FWM slipmat that is pictured at the top of this post; it’s nice to see things building so steadily for these two artists.

Rahaan – NeighbourSoul Edits – NeighbourSoul Rhythms

Rahaan is one of the best and most well known disco DJs out there, and his name was built on his deep crates as well as his skills with the (virtual) razor in chopping funky disco tracks into something great. Here he hits us with four soulful and uplifting jams, each of which would sound at home in a Ron Hardy set circa 1984. “To The Point” is the lead cut for good reason, with its big strings and percussions break. “Cuttin Loose” is more funk based, while “Black Magik” has a bassline that propels the whole track forward with big energy. Another essential selection of cuts from the disco don!

Afrikan Sciences – “The New Dun Language” b/w “In His Convenient Way” – ESP Institute

The first Afrikan Sciences record on ESP Institute dropped at the beginning of 2020 and included some of my favorite work from him. The A side here “The New Dun Language” is even better, flipping his synthesizers and funky drum work into something new that feels like deep house on psychedelics. While far from straightforward, this one can easily be dropped by DJs for adventurous dancefloors, you just gotta watch out for the beat deconstructing itself near the end. The flipside “In His Convenient Way” starts out more abstract before forming into an almost latin influenced broken beat towards the end.

Scott Grooves – “Always 001 Red” – Natural MIDI

Scott is one of our favorite producers here at infinitestatemachine, with very few missteps over the years. This is not one of them; in fact, it is even better than the first dubby 45 he released recently. This one is really deep and heavy and has a nice intro, which is why I used it to open up my recent DJ mix.

MGUN – Node – Self Released

Last but certainly not least is this self released CD from the dude Manny Gonzales aka M GUN. His IG is one of my favorites, simply because he is always posting tracks in progress as he is working on them. And that could be anything from hiphop to electro to house to techno and more! Here he gives us 11 new tracks, each of which comes coated in his signature grime. There are twisted acidic jams as well as funky electro tracks. As far as I know, this is currently only available directly from the man himself or from a few shops in Detroit. As such, I will post the snippets here so you can reach out to him.