Lady Blackbird – Lost and Looking (Colleen ‘Cosmo’ Murphy Cosmodelica Remix)

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Foundation Music is a project between seasoned A&R man Ross Allen, and long-time collaborator Andy Thompson. Going back to the 80s, they met when Andy sold Ross records out of Holborn’s City Sounds. With a shared love of Black Music of all persuasions, these twisted soul boys bring their wide-ranging skills and contacts to the table, seeking out hidden artists and tracks that lurk about in the fringes.

Foundation has presented some killer releases over the last year from London’s Bruise, KDA, Baltimore’s DJ Oji, with more gold in the pipeline from Crooked Man, Greg Foat, and New Jersey’s Foremost Poets. Lady Blackbird is the LA based chanteuse, born Marley Munroe who took the radio airwaves by storm last year. Once in a blue moon a singer comes along that stops you in your tracks, Lady Blackbird is one such talent. This force of nature released her debut single on Foundation, with remixes that followed by jazz and house heavyweights Bruise, Greg Foat, Ashley Beedle, KDA, Calibre, and face of the moment Emma Jean Thackery.

Dubbed by Gilles Peterson “the Grace Jones of jazz”, her album Black Acid Soul dropped in September 2021. Lady Blackbird has received glowing reviews in The Guardian and in the New York Times. A headline act at Gilles Peterson’s We Out Here festival last summer, she performed live on Jools Holland, and played London’s 100 Club, with her much anticipated Round House date planned for this month. ‘Lost and Looking’ is a cover of Sam Cooke’s sparsely arranged original, where Lady Blackbird builds the track with her haunting vocal that floats over percussion-less bass, and sparkling piano notes performed by Deron Johnson. On this version Foundation Music bring onboard Classic Album Sunday’s originator, co-founder of the Lucky Cloud System parties, presenter of Worldwide FM’s Cosmodelica & Balearic Breakfast, and David Mancuso protégé, Colleen ‘Cosmo’ Murphy. This connoisseur of sound recently showcased her remix chops on Roisin Murphy’s incendiary single ‘Murphy’s Law. The much respected selector this time turns in her ‘Cosmodelica Remix’, where ‘Lost and Looking’ is muscled up for the dancefloor, with demon bassline, funk fuelled bass guitar, and cosmic acid lines. There’s also a dub for those who prefer a more stripped down but equally pumping affair.

Out now via Beatport

Out For You – Birds Of Pandæmonium

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If we dare to be optimistic, there’s a chance we’ll be back at gigs, clubs and festivals sometime soon, this is a good thing for the guys who’ve just released these big, anthemic VERY arena friendly bangers. This big guitar lead stadium house sound hasn’t been hammered like this since the golden days of the KLF!

Self confessed ‘Hippy Goths’ Birds Of Pandæmonium are a nomadic psychedelic collective led by Millennium Culkin and Hazy James. Taking simple songs of raw emotion then refracted through their maximalist, tripped out lens. The Birds are out to craft sonic collages for the new love renaissance. Exploring the darkness while pursuing light.

First up on the EP, title track, “Out For You” is an anthemic belter filled with ripping guitars (two solos….wtf?!), pounding arpeggiated bass, 808 drops, plus a dreamy break filled with slide guitars that rumble, build and explode underneath Hazy James’ airy falsetto. Designed for arena madness and soundtracking your moments of catharsis.

Not satisfied with just arena filling vibes, Each Other (Justin Strauss and Max Pask) take the original and twist it into a different experience which should really only be beamed down from a DJ booth orbiting the Earth to a fully global dance party. File this in the “Peak Time Festival” folder.

Flipping over to the b-side, the energy is high but the feeling a little colder on “The Night” – a chugging, introspective, escapist anthem for anytime the sun goes down. Sonically it’s a little goth-punk and a little bit acid house.

NY icon, Juan MacLean picks up remixing duties and turns in a taut, lean, dark, body moving machine. Shimmering synth lines cascade over a rough hypnotic beat

Available on May 28, 2021 vinyl & digital via Bandcamp link above or here…

Beam Me Up Remixed – Midnight Magic

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Stunning 10th anniversary remix package of Midnight Magic‘s much loved ‘Beam Me Up‘ from Razor-N-Tape with Prins Thomas, Kim Ann Foxman and Each Other (that’s a Max Pask & Justin Stauss collab) on the knobs & faders.

Even before we get to the remixes, how can we not love Midnight Magic? Describing themselves as ‘A nine person ensemble bonded by the unwavering desire to make you, the listener, and the rhythm become one; the secret love children of Donna Summer and George Clinton serving up an orgasmic feast of funk, disco, electro and soul.’ You had me at ‘Donna & George’…

Norwegian space-disco don Prins Thomas delivers a sprawling and elegant mix, grounding melodic and psychedelic elements over a bumping percussive disco rhythm treatment, stretching out over 8 minutes of blissful breakdowns, delays and driving bass lines. Kim Ann Foxman takes the song to a darker and dubbier place with her “Beam Me To The Basement Mix,” layering samples of singer Tiffany Roth’s vocal and insistent acid synths over a heavy and pulsing low end. Each Other, a new project by Max Pask and NYC club royalty Justin Strauss, crafts an extended peak-time stormer of a mix, with churning analog drum and synth production that is somehow ravey, New-Wavey and lush all at once.

These three mixes truly capture an entire club night in one record, each a beautifully unique interpretation that showcases the inimitable talent and creativity of the remixers, and is also a testament to the enduring perfection of the original. Grab this record immediately and beam yourself back to the dance floor!

Buy / Listen via Bandcamp link above or here.

Midnight Magic

Rudy Norman – Back To The Streets (Flying Mojito Bros Refritos)

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This is a big one, Americana disco wizards the Flying Mojito Bros have worked their magic on Rudy Norman’s cult AOR track, and in so doing have, in the words of Rudy himself, “brought Back To The Streets to the future”. Perfectly timed for the arrival of the Spring sunshine and our tentative and hopeful return to communal dancefloors, this is a proper cosmic treat for Balearic heads everywhere

For the first time, Back To The Streets (1980) finds itself remastered on 12” vinyl alongside official remixes commissioned by the artist, in a welcome new package that will please lovers of glistening disco reworks as well as those seeking a vinyl copy of the original track. The sun-baked electronic disco ‘refritos’ arrive in three versions to suit all occasions – straight up, extended dub and radio edit – and no doubt have the potential to resonate with the huge worldwide desire to get back out there and bond meaningfully with our fellow brothers and sisters in public.

It looks the part too, with Flying Mojito Bros also directing a colourful and cosmic reimagining of the original cover art via illustrator Nick Potts, reflecting the bros’ transportation of Rudy’s West Coast vibes into one of their own Southwestern desertscape settings.

The original track Back To The Streets has long been a cult crossover disco track, known and played by notable diggers on the scene such as DJ Shadow, in addition to the exquisite opening solo Rhodes lines becoming a choice sample for underground producers.

And the Flying Mojito Bros, what’s their take on the release? “We can’t tell you how ace it was receiving an email from Rudy out of the blue a while back not only saying he digs our work, but asking us to remix Streets. One of those dope moments that you could never predict happening but serves to remind us one of the amazing reasons why we do what we do – to make connections with people. We love the way the timing of this release has fallen at the time of mankind returning to the streets to physically reconnect. It’s gonna be emotional playing this out the first time to a dancefloor, let us tell you!”

This release is getting a full 12″ vinyl pressing and digital too, both available from Bandcamp here, and have listen via the player below

READY IN LED / UNREAL EP & REMIXES / PRINS THOMAS, GERD JANSON, KENNETH BAGER & LOVELOCK

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New artist presents slamming synth pop debut EP with a heavyweight remix package, don’t miss this!

Electronic project Ready in LED has to be the Ukraine’s answer to Roisin Murphy. She is the multi-talented goddess Olya Dibrova, a singer and sound producer out of Kiev, with a penchant for vintage synths. The Ukranian scenester’s music is driven by neon pop, powerful synth-wave, analog bass, the romantic piano solos of Tchaikovsky, and just a little bit of Kylie.

The ‘Unreal’ EP features a wide range of disco. From NYC garage inspired ‘TMO’, to the highly sensual ‘Feel’. The main disco bangers are ‘Whatever’ and the super mega – ‘Only Tonight’, surely a Harvey future classic that’ll have you reaching for the sky and looking up at the Disco ball.

The four original cuts are treated to some killer remixes from a star-studded line up that kicks off with a monstrous banger from Gerd Janson. The Running Back boss delivers a prime- time bomb with shades of New Order throughout. Norwegian Disco don Prins Thomas, goes full on synth cascades and percussion with live bass and cowbells on his dancefloor deadly Diskomiks of ‘Only Tonight’. Music For Dreams boss man Kenneth Bager applies his beautiful Balearic touch to a more downtempo version of ‘Feel’. Lovelock tackles ‘TMO’ and goes in the direction of epic space funk, adding live drums and guitar strings. This is New York musician Steve Moore (Kompakt) in his solo synth-disco project moniker. All four originals are included for your listening pleasure. They were recorded in 2020 at the Kiev studio, Artreform Records. The mixing engineer is no less than New York’s Justin van der Volgen.

Release date:26 March 2021 – Buy via Bandcamp link below