End of April and yet comes our new selection of albums. From those Blue Note Revisited jazz classics and a new collection of sweeties brought to us by Thievery Coportation's ESL imprint to some more energetic vibes provided by UK pair, Groove Armada. Making a short trip to the famous Motorcity with a comp called… Detroit Soul prior to the Movement Festival. Have a garden party in the Devonshire county where The Riurals hail from. See how broken beat champions Big Bang are doing with their collection of reworks. Get the latest Fila Brazillia's deliriums and discover France Dimitri from Paris and Troublemakers second elpees. Welcome to our issue#52 !

Quite a hectic agenda in May diarywise with a bunch of festivities not to be missed all around the world. How lucky the travellers will be from The Southport Weekender, to the Santa Lucia Jazz Festival in the West Indies prior to the famous Detroit festival better (now) known as the Movement. And if that wasn't enough for our wallets, good albums keep on being around the bent…

It finally took quite a while to have this Blue Note Revisited album available. A bit of a shame considering the parties that have been settled up around this project, from Miami to Paris more recently during the… Blue Note festival !!! Uuuurgh, those majors ! Anyway, the delay was worth the wait, as one may have guessed with some sensuous rework of Wayne Shorter's "Oriental Folk Song by French vet La Funk Mob in full effect. Got some real cool and shiny groove on Bobby Hutcherson's "La Malanga" by the likes of Kenny Dope and get ourselves ready to go to heaven while listening to the immensely fluid DJ Spinna remix of Donald Byrd's "Lansanna's Priestess", but also Bugz In The Attic working on some soulful downtempo, covering Gene Farris's "LosalamitosLatinfunklovesong. Meanwhile, 4Hero provide us with some waltz rhythm on Horace Silver's "Won't You Open Up Your Senses". Other works worth to mention include DJ Cam & Erik Truffaz collab on Donald Byrd's "The Emperor" as well as the contributions from Jazzanova and Osunlade on what definitely stands as a chill out collection.

On this cool kinda trip, stands the latest collection from Thievery Corporation's label (and DC spot), Eighteenth Street Lounge called Den Of Thieves, including works from an array of international names : Argentinian Federico Aubele, Italian combo, Les Hommes (with an unmissable tune) and Austrian outfit the Sofa Surfers to name but a few. Really cool stuff indeed too on this collection, with a bit of psyche elements and a drop of breakbeat and D&B here and there (eslmusic.com).

Time to get back on our feet and hardly shake our asses with the first installment of Doin' After Dark series left c/o UK pair Groove Armada. Those of you who've been lucky enuff to see them live will surely understand what I'm saying when I'm taking about enregetic vibes at their very best. Those Brits have incorporated a bit of everything on their music as it's the case on their selection, providing a solid collection of… grooves featuring Unknown DJ, Chicken Lips, Tiefschwarz, DJ Gregory , Playgroup and Iz & Diz's material, thus making of booming result (ragbull.com). We almost could say the reverse way as compared to The Rurals, champions of cool'n'floating atmospheric house, although they gain a bit of tap in their combinations. A bit of groovy Brit soul on the opening cut of their Messages nu LP, a bit of abstract on the following one. Could sound like the crossing path between Sade and Naked or Om (peng.co.uk).

Never heard of Big Bang ??? No more excuse as this pair comprizing Italian Simone Seritella and Londoner Pete Herbert deliver their first collection of remixes with a list of customers that aptly speaks for itself, from Xantoné Blacq to Domu, 4Hero, Alex Attias, IG Culture, and Volcov amongst others. And what we got of the day is a solid collection of contemporary soul/jazz/phonk grooves with an extra bit of sharp broken beat, house and progressive drum & bass beatz although sometimes a bit too abstract for my tastes (arision.net).

There have always been anarchists in the UK, I mean people strongly standing apart from the others and the rules. Ever seen Fila Brazillia's members's faces ? Naaaa. At least, achieved to interview Steve Cobby back in the daze where he and his partner was signed to Pork Recordings. Gotta say that what followed was not so inspired as these abstract atmospheric jazzy grooves that made their reputation at the time. Seems today like the twosome are back in full effect with their new album called The Lifes & Times Of Phoebus Baumal. Good times indeed with this blend of electro grooves made of a bit of this and a bit of that (rock, folk, funk, psyche and da kitchen sink) with the addiction of vocalists, this adding a bit of jamaican flavas to their work (23online.co.uk).

Got to remember nearly a year ago when I attended the Detroit Movement festival. I was like : yaow, it's so soulful over there. Hmmm ! Dwele was just releasing his awaited debut EP, Amp Fiddler had a stunning live performance as Malik Alston had a couple of years before. Not to mention Lathun elsewhere on the R&B field… Well we almost got everyone there (except the latest), alongside Slum Village, Detroit Experiment, Innerzone Orchestra, Jay Dee, Ayro and Def Con 5 to name but a few and guess what ! Dis-is-pure hea-ven ! (unisexrecords.com).

Not so easy to be aware of what's happening on the Japanese market (thanks to Nik Weston who now provides us with the proper infos on his Japan Corner column) and even harder to get their releases. People searching Louie Vega's remixes of Pushim's "Like A Sunshine" would understand what I'm talkin' about. So what we've got there is Dimitri from Paris's second album – Cruising Attitude - which, a year after its release in Japan (on JVC via Soul Source) finally gets ready for a European release as licensed by French distributor Discograph on May 25. As diverse as its predecessor although quite different, it shows the many facets of Dim, this with a stronger production and more fluidity varying from easy listening to cinematic vibes with a drop of disco. Meanwhile former Guidance licensees, Troublemakers make their awaited debut on Blue Note with Express Way. Those others of you who've managed to get a listen to one half of the pair – DJ Oil – 's sets would also guess what we're talking about mentionning the influences of them, creating psychedlic atmospheres made of contemplative/cinematic/blaxploitation blends with the right emphasis at the very right moment, with a special mention to African singer Sandra N'Kéké providing us with an absolute blues standard with her rendition of the title cut, and a brilliant wink to the late Marvin Gaye on "Link" to name but a few. Another unmissable collection where you'll also find here and there subtle reminders of the late Serge Gainsbourg. Last but not least, a word about Del Amore's LP called Tome 1 on that same versatile and chilling vein, with a delicate production and subsequent atmospheres made of jazz, blue eyed soul and a bit of pop attitude (djcenter.com). MFSB

IDM Album Tracks TENNERZ
BOBBY HUTCHERSON La Malanga/Kenny Dope Remix – from V/A: Blue Note Revisited (Blue Note)
TROUBLEMAKERS Lemon – from Express Way (Blue Note)
LES HOMMES Hommage – from V/A: Den Of Thieves (ESL)
PYROMANIAC GARDNERS Poppin' & Pimpin' from V/A: Doin' After Dark vol. 01 – Groove Armada (Ragbull)
THE RURALS Rebel – from Messages (Pêng)
FILA BRAZILLIA featuring PAPA V Bullshit – from The Life & Times Of Phoebius Brumal (23 Records)
ANETRIA WRIGHT Feeling Of Love - from V/A: Detroit Soul (Unisex
DIMITRI FROM PARIS featuring DANIEL WANG Vénusienne Dance - from Cruising Attitude (Discograph)
VIPER SUAD Another Day – from Big Bang Rework Project (Arision)
DEL AMORE Bop (DJ Center/BMG) )