Here we go with the Part Two of the Miami 2006 Reviews.

 

After the massive "Spirit", the Jersey Katz drop another gospel house bomb with "Gotta Have Hope" alongside the legendary Joey Washington (remember "Just us" on Strictly Rhythm?). It is an uplifting song with a positive message that is spreading an old school feeling, featuring classy jazzy piano lines alongside a wicked Hammond organ and a beautiful soulful vocal performance by Joey Washington, with a saxophone coming in later on. More mixes to follow featuring the London Community Gospel Choir.

 

It has been quiet about the Jersey Maestros for some time, but they are ready for a big return with some fresh and hot productions. "Summertime" displays the sweet and soulful vocals of Karla Brown over a deeply thumpin' backing groove that is enriched with jazzy keys, warm chords and a lovely guitar riff. The dub adds a tribalish touch to the groove, giving the track a bit of a tougher edge while keeping the underground vibe alive.

 

Alicia Key's "Diary" gets a subtle re-intepretation by the French Connection who add a funkily stormin' groove underneath the incomparable piano line of the original, while giving the vocal a little bit of a smoky touch. A splendid deep house rendition of a timeless song.

 

Geoffrey C turns out a real banger here with his reworking of Mary Mary’s "The Real Party" using a deeply stompin' groove as base for the magnificent vocals from the original that are perfectly accompanied by warm melodic chords and keys, creating a respectul interpretation.

 

Jazz legend Nina Simone sees her classic "Black Is The Color Of My True Love's Hair" transformed for the dancefloor by the Klearvision Crew who turn it into a driving affair that has a deep and moody vibe to it, feautring both laminar and spacey keys that give the track a laidback feeling.

 

The massive Roy Davis Jr. production "Closer 2 U" gets the Deepsouljah reworking, taking the track to another level with various layers of deep elements and sweet percussion coming in as the time progresses, letting the track build into a deeply grooving affair.

 

"Message in the music" is the debut release for the brand new swiss label Digital Funk, produced by Dario D'Attis and featuring singer Sabrynaah Pope who sadly passed away in September 2005. "Message In The Music" is an uplifting production that keeps it soulful from the beginning to the end, having a funky edge thanks to the bassline and guitar. The dub mix emphasis the funky elements, while the reprise strips the beats to let the vocals and guitar shine.

 

The classic Whitney Houston track gets a welcome update by Bacchini & Ionescu who rework it into a groovy monster that uses a heavily funkin' bassline and classy piano hook, with the vocals aligned perfectly. The dub is more of a stomping affair that brings the jazzy keys to the front.
 

Ron Carroll presents the follow to his Peppermint Jam smash "The Only Way Is Up" under his RC Groove alias. Featuring vocalist K. Ladawn, "Too Much For Me" is a fiercly thumpin' production featuring sultry vocals, a hot funky guitar riff, jazzy saxophone and wicked keys. With only one mix available at this time, I can't wait to hear the full project.

 

Behind Royal Plastic Records is Lorenzo Al Dino (7th District) who has build an impressive catalogue of releases on the label although it is not easy getting hold of them. "Love U More Everyday" was released around summer of last year. However it did not generate the buzz it deserves. The original is a stompin' affair featuring some clever effects and breakdowns, however it is the Morten Trust remix that is the highlight, giving the track a jazzier and more laidback outfit with a summery feeling.

 

Audiowhores take on the shinning Sunshine" by Raul Midon that features a wonderful acoustic guitar alongside incredible vocals and a harmonica solo, adding a smoothly driving groove and laminar keys to it. That's all it neets to transform this beautiful song for the dancefloor while keeping the vibe of the original alive.

 

This is a sample mix of a project that is currently under development, but it already showcases what direction Lorenzo Al Dino will take with it. "Sunrise" is an organic production featuring warm and sunny melody created by sweet percussion, lovely guitars and harmonic keys. A delightful taste maker for the full project.

 

Paul G " ?" (CD-R)

Paul Garavellos, a Toronto native that moved to New Jersey not too long ago, handed out a CD in Miami with some of his productions of which this track caught my attention. It is a jazz house track featuring sweet percussion, a smooth and funky bassline and glorious jazzy piano line together with melodic keys, alltogether creating a laidback feeling perfect for afterhour or early morning play.

 

Dom Navarro, one half of Sueno Soul, has been getting busy lately with his solo projects that include various productions and remixes. Among them is his remix of Tom & Joyce's "Outro mundo", a Latinesque reworking featuring a lovely instrumentation that gives the song a live feeling with an orchestral touch.

 

Souvent Records present this lovely track courtesy of the team of DJ MFR & Haldo. The 'Deep Mix' is a deeply thumpin' affair featuring melodic chords, lovely guitar and jazzy piano solo, while the 'Original Mix' is on a completely different tip, featuring a tribalish groove somewhat similar to the classic "Break 4 Love" and acidic keys.

 

Two very different mixes of this track are available at the moment. The 'DJ Pippi Rasta Deep Mix' is a fiercely rumblin' affair using a deep bassline groove that has influences from reggae and dub, topped with synth chords and a male spoken message. The 'Pierre Ravan & Uranus Deep In My Soul Mix' takes the track to the chill out territory, using a downbeat groove and laminar keys together with the male spoken message.

 

Karizma and DJ Spen have undoubtly created an house anthem with "4 The Love" that has been rocking the dancefloors since its initial release a year ago. Now Halo & Duane deliver fresh mixes of this incredible track, taking it deeper than you could imagine, featuring irresistible keys, a rumblin' bassline and not to forget the incredible spoken message.
 

After two releases on Funk La Planet Records, Alex and Reverend P present their latest production on the French Stalwart label. "Keep Blazin' Up" is a hip house track that features a wicked organ, catchy hook and acidic tones over a deeply thumpin' groove in its original form. DJ Rork adds an old school groove and twists the beats around nicely, while Fudge uses a funky 4/4 house groove and replaces the acidic tones with spacey keys and a lovely guitar riff.

 

Iwanai Music surprise us again with something fresh and different: "Naeema" by Benjamin Boles is a deep techy track with a touch of acid, featuring irresistible keys and a catchy hook, growing on you with every listen. Three mixes to choose from, with the first one being on a deep rumblin' tip, spreading a moody vibe. The other two mixes sharpen the beats and bring them to the front, giving the track a bit a tougher feeling.
 

The title - "Mixed Emotions" -  already gives you an idea what you can expect on this EP: a variety of different styles, brought to you by Mel Hammond. "Feelin' Sexy" is a deeply stompin' house track spiced with a catchy piano hook, sexy female vocals and nice breakdowns and builds, while "Thump'n'Grind" is a simple but effective track with few keys and sparse female vocals over an irresistiblly rumblin' groove. Lastly there is "Delusional Beats", which is a simple drum track.

 

MiCasa are ready to get busy with a couple of new releases. First off is the "Music 4 You EP" by Stacy Kidd featuring Ice Mike L and Matthew Yates. "Music 4 You" kicks off with just the piano before the female vocals and pumpy backing groove come in. "Music 4 You Dub" features the pumpy backing groove from the beginning to the end and replaces the female vocals with a male spoken message. "Let's Go Dancing" is a groovy track sampling "Ooh La La La (Let's Go Dancing)" by Kool & The Gang. Lastly there is "MF...", a stomping track featuring discoish strings and lyrics that would very likely require the 'Parental Advisory' label.