Suff Sakoor feat. Anna-Marie Johnson - Need The Funk (Pretty Chief Records)

Pretty Chief Records and The Mange Le Funk Collective are back with another high quality house music single featuring the sweet soulful voice of the amazing Anna-Marie Johnson. The finest soulful house label on England’s southern coast, Pretty Chief Records has been going strength-to-strength with releases from the core label family of Suff Sakoor (AKA DJ Suff) and Maurice Bird (AKA Beathaven) who, together, form Mange Le Funk. Anna-Marie Johnson — lead vocalist for Drizabone Soul Family and the hot single “Tranform” on Rhemi Music — has returned to the label to lend her voice magic to Suff Sakoor’s “Need The Funk”, the latest Pretty Chief release.

The single launches with a remix from another member of the Pretty Chief family, Richie Blax. His version is an uplifting vocal soiree, incorporating UK garage-inspired beats, funky disco flavors, and melancholic undertones. DJ Suff then lends his own potent re-rub, the SS Old Skool Ivory Mix. It’s a veritable soul shakedown, featuring sweet, sultry orchestral strings, quirky piano licks, funky guitar, and the emotive vocal from Anna-Marie. The single closes with Maurice Bird’s Beathaven Remix which introduces a touch of funky tech. This mix has an essence of early ‘90s dub house, Latin-tinged percussive beats, and a deep, resonating body-shaking bass line. “Need The Funk” is the soulful business!

Lenny Fontana (Ministry of Sound) – “The Richie Blax Mix is a real classic.”
Craig Stewart (DCSTrax) – “All mixes are very strong. Superb dance music, brilliant.”
Michael Fossati (Spirit Of House Web Zine) – “Smooth and soulful summery vibes.”
DJ Craig C (Peace Bisquit) – “Sexy track with a great vocal!”
DJ Nova (Rodon FM 95) – “The piano stamped SS Old Skool Ivory Mix is the one here, with it’s hypnotic bassline, bongos, cool summer vibes all over.”
Richie Roberts (The Dance Factory / BBC) – “This is absolutely wonderful … tracks like this don’t come around every day.”
Alan Powell (The Midnight Mix on Solar Radio) – “Very nice tune. One for the peak time slots.”
Curtiss Logan (Jersey Soul) – “Very nice release. I like the Beathaven mix, it has good energy. Good job on this one.”
DJ ARCH (Pressure Radio) – “Lovely deep, soulful house. Great production and nice vocals.”
Jonny Layton (The Saturday Soulmine) – “This track has got the FUNK! Love it.”
Jon Manley (hOUSEwORX) – “Outstanding Soulful, bumping House right here from Suff Sakoor. Classy vocal from Anna-Marie. Difficult to pick a favorite mix, they all work so well. Supporting for sure!”

Available Now From: Traxsource, Beatport, iTunes, And Spotify.

Alex Kolodziej - Workaholic (forTunea)

Alex Kolodziej, a German with Polish roots, now firmly based in Vienna, has been one of the most in-demand techno and house DJs in the Austrian capital since the early 2010s. With a limited number of productions released to the public, Alex’s DJ sets have been the main avenue for others to hear his tracks. Now Alex has revealed a crucial three track single for the forTunea label. Leading with “Workaholic”, the release quickly establishes a hallucinatory deep house vibe, thanks to the pulsing bass drone and enigmatic spoken vocal that open the track. Crisp percussion and building melodies develop throughout the dream-like affair without ever losing grasp of the dance floor. “Slacker Attitude” gets into down-and-dirty territory, introducing a throbbing, funky bass line under the cut’s slinky tempo. Strange vocals pop in and out, and various treatments and tone splashes imply a covert operation in progress. Viennese DJ/producer Peletronic (Hungarian Hot Wax, Underluxe Records) provides a spacey remix of “Slacker Attitude” to close the single, showcasing strategically placed sonic hits and flourishes that compliment the steadily reverberating pad and insistent kick drum. Late night satisfaction guaranteed.

Dean Facer (Resident Advisor) – “Very nice indeed!”
Chris Udoh (Tigerhook) – “That (Peletronic) late night dub though!”
Tony H (Viva Recordings) – “I really dig the Workaholic track.”
Simon G (Volcano Radio) – “I love Workaholic’s bumping, heavy bass line. Winner!”
Larry Tee (Carnage Music) – “Hot one!”
Makossa (Makossa & Megablast) – “Some solid tracks here.”
Jamie Topham (CD Pool UK) – “Cool production across the whole EP. Peletronic’s Late Night Dub of Slacker Attitude grabbed my attention the most on here though.”
Greg Fenton (Magazine Sixty / DMC Magazine) – “Good Dub by Peletronic.”
Andrew Duke (Andrew Duke in the Mix) – “I’m very impressed with this label.”
DJ Tronic (Dancefloor Mayhem Blog) - “Really like the Late Night Dub. Will play on my radio show.”

Available Now From Beatport, Traxsource, Apple Music, And Spotify.

Mustafa Akbar - Get Down Wit It (Super Hi-Fi Recordings)

On the distant planet Funkatron a man was born to the cosmos under the name Mustafa Akbar. His voice is reminiscent of an amalgamation of several classic funk icons, like George Clinton and Gil Scott Heron, yet he’s distinctly fresh. Mustafa has been featured on tons of releases, such as Fort Knox Five’s “Funk 4 Peace”, on solo projects, and with various bands for nearly twenty years. Mustafa Akbar is a true musician, living and breathing funk into the world every single day.

“Get Down Wit It”, Mustafa Akbar’s new single on Super Hi-Fi Recordings, is a fully pumping party inside a straight-forward, funky dance tune. Co-written by Tony Ozier and featuring Pete James on guitar, Art Dixie on synth bass, Farnell Newton on trumpet, and Kyle Molitor on trombone –along with additional production from All Good Funk Alliance’s Frank Cueto – the groove builds up and sustains nicely. Like Mustafa says in the intro of the song, “I need dancers tonight”! Qdup (ESL Music, Bombstrikes) drives his remix toward a more heavy electronic route, yet keeps the heart and soul of the original intact. All Good Funk Alliance make the horn lines shine as they contribute an electro-disco boogie vibe to this party. Deela – the latest project from the creative mind behind Kabanjak and Ancient Astronauts – strips back the song’s feel and delivers a percussive afrobeat-electro remix.

Mustafa Akbar’s “Get Down Wit It” refreshingly upfront and fun, sure to inspire good times in the boogie zone. Ten thousand DJs agree: dance music needs more songs like this!

Ursula 1000 (Insect Queen Music) – “This is hitting all the right buttons. Boogie meets Minneapolis funk meets some Mothership madness!”
Double-D (Funky Fresh Radio Show) – “Super dope! Super Hi-Fi’s funk is back again with a great funky banger.”
Quincy Jointz (Timewarp Music Radio Show) – “Awesome EP. All versions are rocking.”
Graham Scullin (The Back Room) – “Funky as heck. The drums on the original are spectacular.”
Dogu (Ancient Astronauts) – “I’ve always loved the voice of Mustafa Akbar. The Deela Remix levels it to another afro dimension!”
Aja Allsop (Ketch A Vibe Radio Show) – “If this does not make your shake your stuff and give you a huge smile, you must be dead!”
Soul of Man (Finger Lickin’ Records) – “Authentic FONK! Great mixes, it’s hard to pick a favorite.”
Sleazy McQueen (Whiskey Disco) – “So damn funky!”
Morphosis (The Hong Kong Ping Pong Club) – “Some proper funky business right here. The remixes are top notch as well.”
misterG (Green Arrow Radio Show) – “I’ll get down, but I’m not sure I’ll stop … the remixes are taking over!”

Available Now From Bandcamp, Juno Download, iTunes, And Spotify.

Litex - Vessel (Harmonious Discord)

Litex, AKA Eric Reeves, is a staple in the seams of Harmonious Discord Recordings history. Alongside Pointbender, Eric was half of production duo Grey, releasing notable music in the early 2000s on the likes of Guidance Recordings, Fair Park, and Blunted Funk. Since the duo ceased efforts, Eric has crafted his unique sound with undertones of progressive rock, crystal clean production, and a knack for syncopated bass lines. Eric ended his hibernation last year, crafting a collection of original productions slated as an upcoming album. Also, he remixed Pablo del Monte for Harmonious Discord’s acclaimed 50th release.

One stand out production on the forthcoming album is “Vessel” – a warehouse-relevant, steamy techno machine. “Vessel” wraps together modern synth design, spacial placement, and percussive maturity. It’s a perfect taste of the onslaught of new Litex productions coming out in 2018.

On remix duties is New York resident and master of subtle brilliance Menahan Project. Dub-laden and packed with urban rumble this permutation offers a slow burn with character. Texas’s own Daniel Allen (Denied Music) returns to close the project with carefully crafted accents, rich synth sweeps, and ever more percussive layers. Daniel’s contribution helps build into any abstract territory the listener wishes to venture.

Nick Warren (The Soundgarden) – “The original mix is a bomb!”
Spettro (Get Physical Music) – “The Daniel Allen remix is excellent!”
Atish (Desert Hearts) – “I’m really enjoying the Menahan Dub.”
DJ Electric (Megapolis 89.5 FM) – “All of the versions are very good.”
Colin Dales (Abstrakt Dance Records) – “Cool project, I really like Daniel’s remix.”
Thelonious Funk (Thelonious Funk Sessions) – “All about the Menahan Project Dub.”
Zach Van Lue (91X) – “Love the subtle weaving of textures.”
Snooba (Radio Panik) – “Nice project, infectious remixes.”
André Bisseck (sHIFT Radio Show) – “Nice pads and bassline.”
Jon Fugler (XLNT radio show) – “Both the original and the Menahan Project Dub are sounding very strong.”

Available Now From Beatport, Traxsource, iTunes, And Spotify.