Boca 45 / Mohawkestra - Bear Pit

Boca 45/Mohawkestra - Bear Pit
Bomb Strikes

Bristolian beat King Boca 45 is a man who knows a thing or two about dusty breaks and 7" records. The 45 Live lynchpin has been integral to the recent revival of 45 culture, and here teams up with fellow Bristolians Mohawkestra to deliver another killer record. The A-Side, Bear Pit, references one of Bristol's infamous institutions, the Bear Pit - a place where artists, anarchists, tramps, pissheads, punks, crusties, rastas and drug dealers intersect with shoppers and office workers in the centre of Broadmead. 

Fittingly, Bear Pit oozes punch-drunk swagger, gritty funk and psychedelic swirls. Utilising the exceptional musicianship of enormously popular local live act Mohawkestra, Bear Pit delivers on many levels.

Featuring Kelvin Swaby, B-Side Round & Round feels like a blend of The Meters, The Rolling Stones and The White Stripes. Rousing, idiosyncratic and just brilliant.

Straight in at No.1 on the Funk chart, get it below

Dream Division - Mosura

Dream Division - Mosura

Polytechnic Youth

All analog John Carpenter-esque Synthwave from Dream Division, who get their first vinyl press thanks to the good folks at Polytechnic Youth. It's revivalist and thus not the most original music, but among the soft-synth copyists going for this sound, Mosura has a convincing air of authenticity. Sonically, the 4 tracks feel more like a soundtrack than an EP, which is not a criticism. Don't expect catchy, Kavinsky-style hooks. Do expect grainy, biting synths oscillating eerily over pulsing, simple rhythms that will have you playing out laser fights and flying car chases in your mind's eye.

Available on cassette from the band's Bandcamp, or 7" through Polytechnic Youth. Which brings me to Polytechnic Youth's rather curious (and effective) model of delivery. A combination of email, Twitter and Facebook updates lead up to a chronologically precise launch time - usually 9pm GMT - at which point said record goes becomes available in a quantity of precisely 111, usually with some sort of hand-stamping, limited edition signature, lathe-cut or other collectible feature. These puppies then sell out within hours to a clearly devoted and satisfied customer base. It's the sort of brand loyalty any company would kill for and must have been exquisitely cultivated in today's ultra-competitive landscape. 

The label also stock through regular outlets on longer run presses, but these collectible launches are particularly eye-catching.

Anyway, back to the matter at hand... with Blade Runner 2049 and Halloween in the same month, Dream Division have a record that neatly joins the dots between the two. I'd muster more enthusiasm if I weren't so jet-lagged. Just buy it.

MNP - Ratto Nero / Beard

Delights (APDLT666)

Brightonian psych-funk trio MNP release their sophomore 7" on Delights, and it's a barrage of sludgy grooves and melon-twisting melodies. Grungy as hell, menacing and lo-fi, it's music right out of a Tarantino fight scene. So intensely evocative is A-side Ratto Nero, it provokes vivid scenes in the listener's imagination, wherein bearded outlaws lay waste to a sleepy desert town until the alcoholic-but-righteous Sheriff enters the fray, spilling the blood of the hoodlums one slo-mo frame at a time  - or have I just had too much coffee this morning? Alternate A-side Beard is no less evocative, this time with a creeping, almost Pink Panther-esque jaunt to it's wistfully abrasive broodiness. Suggestions for genre descriptions as follows: Grunge-funk. Instrumental Death-Hop. Slasher-Soul. Spur-gaze.

OK, definitely too much coffee.

Pre-order here!

Kingdom of Kaffa - Dawa Ya Moto Ni Moto (reissue)

Kingdom of Kaffa - Dawa Ya Moto Ni Moto
That's Why Records (reissue)

Groovy, psychedelice African funk on a limited 100-copy colour vinyl repress from That's Why records. It's sleazy, it's got a low-slung funk vibe on both A-side and B, and it can be yours for a range of prices - £15 on ebay, £26 on Discogs, and most palatably £9.75 on Juno... better be quick! 

Ikebe Shakedown - Supermoon

Ikebe Shakedown - Supermoon

Colemine Records

Bold, brassy, full of classic library flavour and on a fetching 'moon-coloured' vinyl, the new 45 from Ikebe Shakedown is here, and it's tasty. Limited to 300 copies, fans of the golden era of library grooves should move fast before it's gobbled up by hungry beat-freaks.

Buy it here

The Eminent Stars - Bar Shift

Release date: 1 September 2017

Genre: Funk / Soul / R&B

Label: Tramp Records

Format(s): 7" EP / Digital

Cat #: TR1043

The Eminent Stars were founded by saxophonist Ben Mendes and drummer Toon Oomen. They both share the love for the great music emerging from cities like New Orleans in the ‘60s and ‘70s: Dr. John, Freddie King, The Meters and many more! Just mix up some soul, rhythm & blues, funk and blues and there you have it: a sound that consists of authentic elements: danceable, intriguing, vibrant and fresh!

Their debut Sittin' In With was released in February 2014, accompanied by a single. In the past three years The Eminent Stars heavily toured in their home country Netherlands and in Europe. They kept writing new songs and here we go with two new, fresh cuts. “Bar Shift” features guest vocalist Bruce James while “Brown Thang” is a smokin' blues-funk instrumental. These two sides give you an excellent foretaste of their second full-length album, scheduled for release in early 2018.

Check out this awesome live performance on video 

 

Pre-order now available from the Tramp Bandcamp store
https://tramprecords.bandcamp.com/album/pre-order-bar-shift-b-w-brown-thang

The Brasileiro Treasure Box of Funk and Soul 7inch Box Set (Cultures of Soul)

I'm having a massive case of Deja vu right now. I feel like I'm in the car trying to leave that town in The Returned but every time I turn the corner I'm right back where I started. Or I'm Bill Murray's news anchor in Groundhog Day. Either way, I have fucking blogged this already! I swear it... am i going mad? Have I lost my mind and started fabricating memories of inconsequential activities?

Maybe GCHQ snooped on me and deleted it in the night for inciting booty-shaking. Maybe the CIA are planting memories in my mind as part of a wider experiment on unsuspecting proles. Someone call Mulder and Scully!

Since the only record of my blog post exists in my mind, let's try again.

I want to tell you about a wonderfully tempting box set of Brazilian funk from those good folks at Cultures of Soul. If the CIA let it past, maybe this time my post will stick.

To my shame, I've run out of enthusiasm for writing a dedicated piece (and it's nearly home time) so here's what they have to say about it:

Greg Caz and Deano Sounds have teamed up once again to bring you another fine package of vintage Brazilian music. This one stretches across the scope of funk, soul, and psychedelic music from Brazil. Some highlights include: the extremely rare and funky "Labirinto" by 2001 & Beto, the blistering psychedelic funk of Antônio Carlos & Jocafi's "Quem Vem Lá," the essential rare groove track "Bananeira" by Emilio Santiago, Osmar Milito E Quarteto Forma's rare "América Latina" sampled by Madlib, Tom Zé’s unstoppable riff on “Jimmy, Renda-Se,” and many others. Here are some words on the project from co-compiler and Brazilian music aficionado, Greg Caz:

"Without necessarily having a central theme other than funky nuggets from the first half of the 70s, we believe this compilation displays its own particular sense of logic, and that these songs ultimately all sound fantastic together. Regardless of one's familiarity, or lack thereof, with artists like Antonio Carlos & Jocafi, Os Incríveis, Toni Tornado or Celia, the material on these 45s speaks its own truth and justifies their inclusion here. Many of these were originally available as singles, while others were taken from albums, but all are guaranteed to find their way into many DJ boxes and playlists."

The 45 box set version comes in a durable glossy case with 7 x 45s, a poster containing the original artwork for the album, and a booklet printed on thick paper. 

All I will say is that it's beautifully packaged and ultra-funky...

Have a good old listen below or buy it here (UK) or here (worldwide)

Nik WESTON presents KIKI GYAN/TUNJI OYELANA (Mukatsuku Records)

Mukatsuku Records are one of my personal favourites - I've bought so many releases over the years and almost all of them are still regular selections. A heady blend of really, really good remastering and a great ear for a funky gem make Nik Weston's releases essential purchases for many Funk, Soul, Jazz, Afrobeat and Disco DJs. If, like me, you play a lot of all those genres, you'll be hard pushed to find a more consistently excellent label for your needs. Some tracks are hitherto unknown, but what i like is that the first criteria seems to be 'is it really fucking good?' rather than 'is it really fucking rare?' - so we also get Fela Kuti, Grant Green and other well known artists featuring in the catalogue.
Every purchase comes with some stickers and a genuine-sounding note from Nik that displays a heartfelt gratitude to his customers. It's the little things, and marks Nik out as the sort of chap one would enjoy a good pint with. I've never met him though, He could be a psychopath. Or a Tory voter.

The latest offering is a welcome installment in my Afrobeat/Afro-Funk education, featuring, as it does, a couple of artists whose work is new to me. Kiki Gyan delivers an extremely happy slice of Ghanian Disco with Love To Love You, which is followed on the flip by Tunji Oyelana's wonderfully jaunty It's Not Your Fault. Both are Nik Weston edits and his sure touch make for killer afro-funk cuts. Get in my basket.

Chicago - I'm a Man (7" version 1969)

The eagle-eyed may notice that Week 3 and 4 have been announced on the same day. Your CMFCP correspondents were sunning themselves in Turkey last week so you'll excuse our poor time-keeping...

Continuing with the Chicago theme, middle of the road Dad-rockers Chicago step up for Week 4's instalment of Charity Shop Gem of the Week. Except on this record, found in a charity shop bin for 99p, they're about as far from middle of the road as can be!
1969 single I'm a Man, a cover of the Spencer Davis Group hit, is a brutal, almost tribal freakout that has been a mainstay of my DJ sets for 10 years. I just had to share it with you as it has possibly the greatest drum solo of all time. Where the later studio recording is clean, polished and by comparison unremarkable, this is an assault on the ears from a band going full throttle!
The first drum solo lasts about 90 seconds and starts about a minute into the song... it's a fucking bold move but the intensity and raw energy is astonishing. I haven't found this version anywhere on the web so I may upload it to youtube myself, but in the meantime, here's a similar live recording from about the same era. You get the gist, but trust me the 7" version is bonkers!