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November 5th, 2018 would have been Charles Bradley’s 70th birthday. In celebration of his extraordinary life, Daptone imprint Dunham Records will release his fourth and final album, Black Velvet, on November 9th—featuring ten studio recordings never before included on any full length album.Black Velvet is a celebration of Charles Bradley, lovingly assembled by his friends and family at Dunham/Daptone Records—including four entirely new tracks recorded during sessions from each of his three albums, heard here for the very first time in all their scorching glory. Though chronologically the material spans Charles' entire career, this is no anthology, greatest hits or other shallow rehashing of the songs that already made him famous. Rather, this album is a profound exploration through the less-travelled corners of the soulful universe that Charles and his longtime producer, co-writer and friend Tommy "TNT" Brenneck created in the studio together over their decade-long partnership.

Back in stock! Repressed as red vinyl! / The world moves faster than ever these days, and even in the digital age, things can always be counted on to go in cycles. Despite all of the advances in computer recording technology, home studios, and electronic instruments, there is a flourishing interest in analog recording techniques and in recreating the mood and sound of vintage soul records. With one foot in the past but their eyes firmly set on the future, El Michels Affair are among the leaders of a resurgent funk & soul movement from New York City that’s sweeping both the music community and the charts.Led by saxophonist/organist Leon Michels and producer/engineer Jeff Silverman, El Michels Affair began as a loose collaboration of session musicians (including members of top-selling acts Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings, the Budos Band, and Antibalas) that looked to blend some of the vibrant quality of soundtrack records with the recording aesthetic of early reggae, and the rawness of 60's rock--they called it 'Cinematic Soul.' This delicate balance was evident on their 2005 debut album Sounding Out the City, which earned critical acclaim and acted as the inaugural full-length release for Michels and Silverman’s burgeoning label Truth & Soul (also the moniker for the duo as a production team).The buzz generated from the album and a series of moderately successful 7” vinyl singles from Truth & Soul led to an invitation by Toyota’s Scion division for El Michels Affair to accompany the rapper Raekwon of Wu-Tang Clan for a promotional concert. As avid Wu-Tang fans, not only were the band leaders thrilled with the opportunity, but Michels found that the ‘Cinematic Soul’ sound was consistent with the moods of RZA’s gritty soundscapes on the classic Wu-Tang releases. The concert was such as success, El Michels Affair went on to play several more concerts nationwide backing Raekwon and other members of the Clan, and the shows led to the recording of two smash 7” singles featuring instrumental reinterpretations of the Wu-Tang classic songs “C.R.E.A.M.” and “Bring Da Ruckus.” The singles combined to sell an extraordinary amount of over 7,000 units worldwide, and their success led to a contract in 2007 with indie hip hop powerhouse Fat Beats Records to record an entire album of Wu-Tang Clan interpolations entitled Enter the 37th Chamber.Since the contract was inked, a worldwide explosion of retro soul led by Amy Winehouse, Mark Ronson, and Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings has transformed the pop music landscape, and the Truth & Soul production duo have been in strong demand, recording with everyone from breakthrough Grammy-nominated artist Adele to punk rock innovator Iggy Pop. They’ve been commissioned for official remixes of Amy Winehouse and Dinah Washington (for the popular Verve Remixed series), and produced for Australian multi-platinum acts Jet and Gabriella Cilmi.Despite the eclectic group of clients for the Truth & Soul production company, El Michels Affair continued to build an audience within the hip hop community. A track from Sounding out the City was sampled for Ghostface Killah’s 2007 track “Shakey Dog Lolita,” and a horn part written and performed by Michels (for Menahan Street Band) was famously lifted for Jay-Z’s smash single “Roc Boys.” Truth & Soul also worked in the studio on original productions with multi-platinum producer Just Blaze (T.I.’s “Live Your Life,” Jay-Z, Usher).With their increasing presence behind the scenes in the industry, El Michels Affair looks to have their status as recording artists rise significantly in 2009. With the release of their finally-completed album Enter the 37th Chamber, they can finally step out of the shadows of the retro-soul trend and establish their status as one of the most exciting and versatile bands in modern recorded music.

Madly rare album of Disco funk and reggae oddities from Rob (Ghanaian , Funky Rob, of 'Make It Fast, make It Slow' fame). US import." After many years the long lost Apocalyptic Disco Funk offering has been unearthed and re-released for the world to hear. Rob’s prophetic pre-apocalypse disco message, Hellfire, was originally released as a promotional LP by Nigerian label Taretone. Though a seminal work by Rob, disco stylings had fallen from vogue on the Nigerian dance floors. With the local airwaves dominated by artists like Félix Lebarty, Rob’s promotional release was shelved, and never got to see a full-scale commercial issue. Ultimately the master tapes were lost by Taretone and the album was doomed to obscurity for decades until its recent rediscovery by Tambourine Party Records.Hellfire is both a disco burner and a frantic warning about the impending end of the world. From the downtempo title track Hellfire to the floor-filling Glory be to Jesus, Rob will be sure to get his message across. Once the needle is dropped it is hard to deny that even if the world is coming to and end you can die happy listening to this album."

Faces Records proudly presents "Cross Section", the debut album of Kez YM, the Berlin based japanese producer.It's been a long way since his debut EP at 4Lux Recordings was played by Moodyman back in 2008. Since then he also received support from influential people like Theo Parrish, Rick Wade and Cassy, just to name a few.Strongly rooted on his Detroit/Chicago Deep House/Funk/Disco/Afro he rocks dancefloors from Berlin to Tokyo, and he's one of the current leading deep house dj's from Japan.From downbeat to more uptempo tracks, this album is a perfect extension of Kez's path until now. Classy and lustful synths pave the way for a combination of elements that draw inspiration from his jazz masters, his motorcity heroes and a strong percusssive connection to Africa.

The return of the Zanzibara series: a Deep Taarab masterpiece from legendary singer Zuhura Swaleh, recorded in Nairobi in 1981.Taster for the forthcoming Zanzibara double vinyl compilation: Taarab experiments in 70s Mombasa - due Spring 2019Zuhura Swaleh & Party initially rose to fame on the Mombasa scene in the 1970s with a new fast-paced taarab style led by the electrically amplified tashkota (actually a Japanese instrument correctly spelled as taishokoto), that resembles a mix of electric guitar, slide guitar and sitar.Zuhura’s chakacha-styled taarab sound and stinging lyrics became popular up and down the coast, leading to invitations for performances all over Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda throughout the 1970s.Her no-nonsense way of speaking out openly and voicing women’s concerns helped pave the way for the new “modern taarab” sound that came to fore in the 1990s.While playing a wedding in Nairobi in 1981 Zuhura & Party were approached by the local Polygram studio to record some songs, but the record did not catch on as the lp format was not suited to the tiny portable record players in use in Kenya back then, and the record industry as a whole collapsed in the wake of the 1982 coup d’état attempt and the resulting economic slump. Only a few records were pressed and have since become collectors’ items. Locally the songs survived and remained popular as pirated dubs (first on cassette now on CDR).Buda Musique is proud to present one of the few Taarab LPs ever recorded for the first time on vinyl outside of Kenya.

Hypnotic percussion tracks and organic soundscapes drawing on Africa, Asian, Indian & South American traditions, recorded deep in the French countryside in 1984.Komos Records are proud to present the first-time reissue of a cult French private press rarity at the intersection of jazz, percussion and experimental sounds.Founded by long-time friends Gerard Kurdjian and Stéphane Olivier alongside compatriot Christian Berthier in 1983, Nakara Percussions was a trio from the south of France, fascinated with percussion instruments, rhythms and textures from across the world.Steeped in Jazz and ethnographic recordings, the trio designed and built their own instruments and played across the South of France throughout the 80s, recording a single album in the tiny village of Alliens in 1984.Self-produced and mainly sold at gigs, the record reflects the inquisitive, experimental approach of the group and has become a cult album among DJs and music lovers for its blend of complex rhythms and organic soundscapes, taking in everything from Brazilian batucada to Indian tabla rhythms by way of West African thumb pianos and the drums of the Maghreb.The track “Balimba” has become a dancefloor classic, finding a home in the sets of open-minded techno DJs as well as on the jazz dance and tropical scenes.Press kit contains interviews with Gerard and Stéphane and vintage band and concert photos.

Rain&Shine continue the love for Steve Elliott’s self-produced music by giving his second LP ‘Completion Of A Miracle’ (1982) another lease of life.Remastered from the original reel-to-reel tapes. Includes dancefloor cut ‘Wake Up’. Another essential release from Rain&Shine, set to become a future collector’s item.