Disco/Nu-Disco

Tropical Disco have made a remarkable impression on contemporary disco, earning global notoriety with infectious edits and a distinctive, far-reaching sound that’s caught the ear of heavyweight selectors including Marshall Jefferson and Soul Clap. Their output hasn’t gone unnoticed: with Volume 7 hitting number 1 in sales at Deejay and two digital releases this year reaching Traxsource number one slot, and a string of consistently successful 2018 releases continuing to receive substantial airplay, 2019 is Tropical Disco’s year.Sartorial quickly generates an inexorable momentum with ‘Key Me Up’, a propulsive cut based around a highly infectious piano riff, offset by swirling synthesizers. Moodena swiftly follows with ‘Dumplings Over Flowers’, a fluid exhibition of studio mastery that’s driven by a gnarly bass guitar part, quickly joined by classy keys and epic saxophone. Each element blended with a glittering synergy, Moodena puts forward the most organic and effortless track on the record.‘Vamos Baby’, from Mexican producer and label newcomer Sould Out, is a more than worthy addition to the Tropical Disco catalogue. An unruly bassline underpins a futuristic disco sound that arouses hedonistic sentiments, with the slick addition of classy vocal chops (“come on, baby!”) sealing the deal. Peak-time at Barbarella’s, this would absolutely boot – enough said! Label heads Moodena and Sartorial team up for ‘Come Get It’, a certified DJ tool that’s anything but simple. Whispering vocals, flashy piano and a frenzied bassline make for a cerebral mix of tender-loving filth and swish sign off to the EP.

Z Records much-loved label sampler series continues with Vol.12 of their Attack The Dancefloor 12" vinyl releases.This latest volume sees a JN remix of the classic Bobby D’Ambrosio track ‘Moment of My Life’ featuring the incredible Michelle Weeks on vocals and killer hammond solos galore. Alongside this, an expertly extended JN edit of American electro-funk duo The APX’s boogie bomb ‘Lose Yourself To The Groove’, ready set for the dancefloor.Also housed on this release, a Doug Willis raw edit of Carlos Romanos - 1 2 1 and a remake of one of Joey Negro’s most played disco cuts ‘K – Jee’. A track which holds a special place in JN’s heart – the MSFB rework nestled on the Saturday Night Fever Soundtrack which happened to be the first LP Dave Lee (JN) ever bought.

The boys from Munich are back on RNT with a 4-tracker of serious flavor! 'Express Lane' launches the 12” on the disco highway for a wild ride of cheeky vocals, horn stabs, and vocoded synths, then veers south for some North-African New Wave with 'Libyan Sun'.The B side kicks off with the Afro-disco monster 'Don’t Oho', already a staple in RNT sets and then finishes with the minimalist electro-soul bounce of 'Emergency Loop'. Sure-shots, the lot of 'em!

Felipe Gordon and Vagabundo Club Social (aka Jaime Tuiran) deliver 3 excitingly unique edits in their first 12” outing on RNT, sourcing the Afro-Carribean sounds of their native Colombia.From the Latin-Afrobeat flavor of 'Shakala', to the Salsa-funk swing of 'Los Bareteros', or the Cumbia-inflected romp 'El Cateter', this 12” is something quite different than the typical edit fair, and a likely new staple for any box!

Marcel Vogel aka Em Vee joins the RNT roster with a 4-pack of unsurprisingly heavy edits. The Lumberjack In Hell label boss takes us on a little trip through one of his own eclectic sets, starting with the oddball boogie of You Move Me and then moving on to the hands-in-the-air positivity of Spreading Energy. On the flip it’s the uptempo afro burner Don’t Be Sabi Say, with the 12” concluding on the whimsically catchy I Wish I Knew The Words. Tried and tested and found true!

Record store owner, DJ, producer, and digger extraordinaire Tom Noble comes to RNT with a superb edits EP of sought-after Caribbean and African sounds. The A side burns hot right out of the gate with the explosive and percussive Soca-disco pulse of They Came To New York, then settles into the laid back lilt of Zouk Pour Esa.On the flip, Disco Massamba is a wild ride of an Afro-disco burner and Parang-A-Teng brings it back to the Western hemisphere for some Latin-tinged funk from Barbados. Well worth it for the value of the original source material alone, this 12” is nothing short of dance floor destruction!

Tropical Disco plucks out a spellbinding salvo of heaters for Tropical Disco Volume. 7, dished out on suitably heavy wax.Moodeena’s “The Horns” boldly kicks off the record, effortlessly weaving together elements of funk, soul and afro, influenced by a myriad of far-reaching regions. The earworm of a bassline subtly leads the piece, morphing, dipping and then reassembling as the brass resurfaces, creating a tender, palpable sound palette. On the flip “What Da Funk”s playful track title doesn’t reflect its cultivated build, and no doubt lethal functionality on a dancefloor.Titillating strings are the driving force for Tropical Disco newcomer Sammy Deuce’s input, bringing a burning, high-energy ode to golden-era disco with “Smack My Strings Up”. Hot on the heels of a series of well received releases on labels such as Glasgow Underground, Club Session and Big Love, Sammy deuce offers up a rare guest track on the label that pairs perfectly with a recipe Sartorial and Moodena have refined so successfully.Sartorial closes the EP with “Little Love”, a carefully plotted symphony and formidable sign off for the release. Hustling a creamy bass and slowly swooning vocal, this audio aphrodisiac will have dancers headed straight to the bedroom…Tropical Disco’s back-catalogue of quality nu-disco obscurities is building thick and fast, and the latest package is a diamond in a gleaming gold mine.

Ted Scotto began his musical life as a trumpet player, but got his foot in the door of production soundtracks when he composed the theme for the 1968 French animated series “Les Shadoks”. Soon taking on the pseudonym Yan Tregger (chosen for its nonspecific, English-sounding connotations), Scotto wrote and recorded more than thirty library records, ranging from funk and R&B tunes to deep dives into the then-prevalent Italo-Disco sound. He also continued to record commercial music (including two albums with his disco act M.B.T. Soul and the under- water trumpet novelty hit “Bubble Bubble”), and work on film scores.In 2018, Mark Grusane adapted the track “Riff On” from Catchy LP for BBE Records, which later decided to reissue Catchy and Duck & Drakes on vinyl. For this new 12inch release, Yan Tregger has done us the honor of reworking two unpublished tracks from the M.B.T project. You will have a bliss listening to two originals tracks, slightly transformed, and two reworks that will make you travel through Balearic and Dub atmospheres, preserving to the maximum the soul of the original grooves.This release announces a turning point in the production. Parisian Soul converges on an exclusive and unique dimension with a live sampler concept on stage to remix their Maxi-vinyl in real time. Surrounded by pianist Alexandre Destrez (St Germain, Dimitri from Paris and Dj Yass), and percussionist Edmundo Carneiro (St. Germain, Bob Sinclar, De La Soul).