MINT

Betino Records has released a new record by Parisian band The Big Hustle, "The Tokyo EP". This is the result of a meeting in Tokyo between of French bass player, composer, producer Sébastien Levanneur and Japanese musicians. It's an ambitious work that incorporates a wide variety of musical styles, as well as plenty of Japanese elements, elevating it to pop. Several Japanese top musicians are guests on the record, trumpet player/vocalist jazz legend Toku, the modern city pop singers Junk Fujiyama, Michael Kaneko.The selection offers various grooves from classic city pop to funky instrumental, AOR with lush strings and synths, airy ballad spiced with some koto added on top. If you never been to Japan here's your easy way to get a glimpse of it.

Pleasure of Love reissue imprint, New Islands, is back with another stunning restoration of a sought-after 12” gem. Originally produced by Paul Robb of Information Society in 1987, Venus II emerged as an otherworldly girl group in the Minneapolis scene. The mysterious duo wrote, programmed/sequenced, and performed everything live in the studio and on stage, including their local hit “Oh Boy.” Over the years, balearic heads have come to know and love this rare 12”. Now New Islands, sourcing from the original multi-track tapes, delivers a wicked, lush reissue of the original songs along with a pair of Justin Strauss remixes. Recommended if you like Nu Shooz, Tom Tom Club, and Torch Song.

Daniel Monaco Band is an international group led by Italian bassist Daniele Labbate. Blending jazz, funk, house and disco with live energy, their debut EP ‘Get Naked and Fly’ captures years of collaboration and experimentation. The result is a warm, analog-driven sound crafted by seasoned session musicians who’ve toured the world and are now channeling their creativity into original music as a group.Lead track ‘Love Ago’ delivers modern disco with the authenticity of the golden era, ‘Mimouna’ has a psychedelic edge, with the WHODAMMANY remix taking the original into a more electronic direction. ‘The Devil Left Dancing’ takes a subtly off centre path, nodding to Brazilian influences, while the title track ‘Get Naked and Fly’ is raw and instinctive blending live instrumentation with electronic sensibilities.The project is a testament to what happens when musicians trust each other enough to explore freely without chasing perfection. A live band speaking house, funk and jazz with one voice — analogue, soulful, and free.Personnel : Percussion by Yannick Van Ter Beek, Drums by Robin van Rijn, Sax by Alessandro Russo, Guitar by Simone Cesarini and Bass by Daniele Labbate.Designed by Bradley Pinkerton.

140gram pressing in 3mm spine Disco SleeveTwo lost Disco classics appearing for the first time on a single 12” featuring soul legend Leon Ware and Jo Ann Harris, a little known backing singer for Bob Dylan throughout the 80s.Both songs originally appeared on the ‘20 Minute Workout’ Video and LP released in 1983 by Canadian label Ronco, ‘What Does It Take’ providing an uptempo crescendo to the third part of the workout and ‘Never Gonna Give You Up’ the final warm down track. Licensed from producer Ira Newborn, Hollywood soundtrack royalty who composed the scores for an incredible run of films including The Blues Brothers, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, The Naked Gun trilogy, Weird Science, Ace Ventura and Uncle Buck. Ira’s lawyer persuaded him to get involved in the project for Ronco and it was Ira who hand picked Leon Ware and Jo Ann Harris to add vocals to two tracks to aid the commercial potential of the album. There are two original versions backed with extended instrumentals sourced from a rare Lazer Disc Version of the album.It feels right to shine a light on one of Leon Ware’s lesser known performances, whilst the Jo Ann Harris cut has a distinct Balearic air featuring sultry keys and sax at a tempo of 98 BPM.