As you’re still singing along to ‘Get Better’, what better time to release the new album by the most unlikely duo of them all as they explain The Logic Of Chance.

Best known as the bassist with the Esbjörn Svensson Trio, Dan Berglund’s new band Tonbruket is eagerly awaited and as you might guess from the cover, this album should be called Heart as that would be rather appropriate on a number of levels.

Thomas White is The Maximalist! In fact, everything about this album is taken to the maximum so don’t be put off by the cover.

Its back! The Modern Highlife, Afro Sounds and Nigerian Blues of 1970-6 that is Nigeria Special; if you really love me, take me to your house and do me how you like (as Fubura Sekibo might say).

Agoria (aka Sébastien Devaud) is a producer with his own unique twist that has had the call up for the latest edition of Balance on Australian based EQ Recordings and its all aller retour and rising sine!

As this CD was in the window of Universal Sounds this week, that was enough of a recommendation for me and they didn’t let me down.

“I was in the booth at the Ministry Of Sound watching ‘Little Louie’ Vega….the MoS Weekly Saturday nigh, it was Louie’s third appearance of the year and each time was better than the last…”

“You can’t take yourself too seriously dressed in a silver cape” says Jerry Dammers but make no mistake, the Spatial A.K.A is fantastic jazz, ska and fun all wrapped up in a Sun Ra tribute; who could want for more?

Ben Watt’s Buzzin’ Fly Records celebrates its 50th release with new single ‘Bright Star’ that’s out today and its blindin’!

Now the Winter Olympics are over and the Canada picks up the most gold medals ever, what are the chances of the return of Cobblestone Jazz with a new EP?

Brainfeeder in London! Red Bull Music Academy has done the unbelievable and have hauled all of the Brainfeeder crew over for a massive bash this week.

Be part of the Dub Pistols’ chart hijack and download their latest ‘Ganja’ NOW!!!!!!!!

Polar Bear is one of Seb Rochford’s many projects but their latest album out this week, Peepers is just as much of a band effort that will open your eyes.

There was a time that folks were thinking we’d heard the last of Bomb The Bass (aka Tim Simenon) but this is the second album in 18 months and he’s back to light with loads of guest pals on vocals.

Far Out release the Original Sound Track to the brilliant film Garrincha ‘Estrela Solitaria’ on CD and they couldn’t have timed it better.

“Hey!, that’s not a new album!” I hear you shout but this album has been effectively “out of print” since 2002 and it is certainly great to have it back.

Clint as in Eastwood of course, is Oddjob’s tribute to the best known of his film themes as written by the greats of Ennio Morricone, Lalo Schifrin and others.

The Boogiebytes are back with Seth Troxler and he wants to bite ya boogie nites groovin’ ass; one for the dancefloor then!

With a new album out soon and a very lengthy gig list over the next couple of months, can the duo of Dan Le Sac vs Scroobius Pip get any better?

As you might guess from the cover, this album is inspired by the music of Ethiopia and when it’s done by Ben Lamdin, you know it’s going to be jazz of the highest quality - put it down as a must have.

We’ve had a bit of a just of jazz vocalists of late but here’s something a bit different that is taking some well known popular songs out of their comfort zone.

This is a bit of a surprise, it’s not often that you’re able to mention Mission Of Burma and João Gilberto in the same review, but then ‘The Last Blast’ is an unusual EP.

The sticker on the cover of this one doesn’t really cover the variety and intensity of the compilation of Michael Fakesch remixes; “Michael Fakesch?” I hear you say.

Coming outta Ottawa, Canada, this group is the modern embodiment of soul-jazz Afro funk and I’m a little guilty that we haven’t given them as much credit as they deserve in the past; lets put that to rights with their new album Rising Sun!

First off, don’t let the title of this 2CD compilation put you off as the 23 tracks are not in any way second rate - this is Zero dB after all!

If you’ve not got into the new album yet, try the first single taken from I’m New Here, it’s Gil Scott-Heron and the devil!

Next Stop… Soweto, sub-titled “Township sounds from the golden age of Mbaqangwa” is the first of a three part series by Strut’s finest in the underground sound of South Africa in the 60s and 70s.

Once there was Disco and on the other side of the ocean there was Prins Thomas - this is his debut album and it’s fantastic, what else do you need to know?

RQM steps out with his own label, Baby Sumo, so listen to the colour fade on the debut EP.

Asseteria! is the Sunday night bash for New York’s most house hungry crowd of hedonists where Chriss Vargas can DJ for hours, even as long as it takes to get to Uranus!

So you think you know an artist, especially one that made his name in the post bop/free jazz era? Well here’s Don Cherry with a world-funk fusion that’s as Here & Now as it was in the mid 70s!

A special release in the Atlantic Masters series of re-issues as this is Joe Zawinul’s debut solo album from the mid 1960s - Money In The Pocket you could say.

Bustin’ Out is set in a time went the punks limelight was dimming but in its place, the independent DIY label ethic took hold and a whole new generation of musicians started to experiment a little deeper than 3-chord wonders.

How do you get to grips with Tudor Acid’s Merri Portland? It’s a good question but the answer is simple (sort of), just enjoy it.

As all readers of FLY Global Music will tell you, it’s very rare that any of the major record labels know what is what; and he’s another case in point, the fantastic Eva Be.

Announced this week as the “Godfather of Rap” on Radio 4, at last there’s a brand new album from Gil Scott-Heron and it’s on XL of all labels; talk about I’m New Here!

When Gilles Peterson announced on his show “this is my favourite track from the new José James album”, it was time to wake up and pay attention as the voice of jazz is back!

Don’t be put off by the strange Cluedo-esque imagery of the cover, this CD by Spanish guitar virtuoso is as Española as you can get.

We have loved every single BBE compilation in the Kings Of series as their formula is simple, two ‘Kings of’ a genre select tracks for a double CD/LP set; nothing can go wrong and the Drum & Bass selection is no exception.

This is so much more than a one track album but you must be warned, there is an absolutely fantastic track that’s going to make you drop your funky rocks like hot stones.

Been a bit slow on this one since Carlos Niño recommended it in Rough Trade late last year but on the basis of the first track you could see why the Spaceways guru would be attracted to this one.

No love for Jellybass featuring Brother Culture? Yeah, we love this one big time like dubwise rockers! Should have a health warning as it could trash you speakers (in a good way of course).

There’s been a load of brilliant compilations lately but Strut have linked up with DJ History to keep ahead of the games on some mighty fine gems from a decade of experimentation.

The Moons will be supporting Ocean Colour Scene on their forthcoming tour in February so there’s no better time for the debut album to come out.

With a new single and a line up of gigs in February, are Chapel Club the next young things of the moment?

It’s a good job the music on the 12 tracks on this compilation more than outweigh this early candidate for ‘Most Unispired Title’ of the year; musically, 2010 looks like a very good year for Soma Recordings indeed.

The new album by Rory Simmons’ Fringe Magnetic is big band leftfield jazz at its best and no doubt the highlight of the forthcoming Loop Collective Festival at the Vortex.

If you’ve been waiting for the follow up to Tom Stephan’s Asseteria! Live From New York, the latest in the ‘Nervous Nitelife’ is testiment to how his DJ set is progressing.

Even if you’ve never heard of John Morales, the subtitle of this massive compilaton NYC Underground Disco Anthems + Previously Un-Released Exclusive Salsoul Mixes should give you a clue that this is a very tasty release.

Following the worldwide success of Deadmau5 (aka Joel Zimmerman) last year, with more big gigs coming up in the UK next month, here’s the second edition of the At Play album.

You won’t be surprised to hear the Ceephax Acid Crew is just one bloke and United Acid Emirates is nothing to do with UAE or Arsenal, it’s pure acid baby.

Don’t be put off by the cover as the debut solo album from the bassist in Gogol Bordello’ band is far-I more than anything that Bordello has done for a long time; a new world star!

If your in any doubt, the way to start 2010 is the Bibi Tanga & The Selenites’ Dunya way; what a brilliant start to the new year!

The noble attempt to fix the shifting sands of music from around the world has been likened to the book equivalent of Apocalypse Now. A project whose twists and turns continually threaten to overwhelm its resources makes it all the more welcome and cherished as it arrives

Once again, the house of Nervous Records brings us the finest in New York’s nitelife with this stunning collection by DJ/Producers Peter Bailey & Richie Santana.

Fans of Isaac Hayes’ Shaft soundtrack will recognise the title, but would they recognose this version from Brighton’s Richie Phoe?

In the post-New Year rush, more than happy to agree with Gilles Peterson’s choice last week of Album Of The Week but this week, it must be Sun Circle’s debut Reborn?

The Imagined Village’s debut won many accolades including the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards but their latest, Empire And Love is definitely their best yet!

It’s been a long time since we’ve heard from the every excellent Dr. Rubberfunk but the start of 2010 finds him with a Trouble Woman!

To celebrate the UK arrival of Memory Tapes for a couple of live dates in the UK, here’s a ‘pocket sized’ single release that’s out on soon.

It’s that time of year when the printed and online press get obsessed with “the band you need to hear ” lists so we’re going to join in with throbbing beat dance popsters Neon Circus.

The second Agnes Milewski album Learn To Swim takes the listener on a journey across the limitless wonderland that is her mind

You know what they say about hot as toast? Well, Bullion is that hot and has made it onto ‘Ones to Watch 2010’ - trust me, he’s the gold standard.

Matthew Halsall sets the tone for jazz in 2009. This is music to chill with a loved one to, an early morning ipod journey to work soundtrack, or the score to a jazz dance in a little basement dive

The world of leftfield hip-hop neofolk is the realm of this 2econd Class Citizen and a world without his debut album A World Without would be a very second rate planet to be on indeed.

Hard to believe that these guys’ last release was with Malawian singer Easu Mwanwaya but don’t worry, Secousse All Stars is full of Afro-centric rhythms for the dancin’ season.

OMG! What is going on? This is absolutely incredible; The CB’s ‘Misdemeanour’ is Motown meets funk, soul and hip hop that’s just the bet jam for your festival buns.

Bush Doctors have got their PhD certificates from the Royal School of gynaecologists of breaks with this bit of dancefloor goodness.

Canada’s Queen of Sleaze turns up to the party with the most appropriately entitled anthem ever; she is white, trashy and (not naturally) blonde!

Stanley Brinks (aka Andre Herman Dune) teams up with The Wave Pictures for his new single ‘End Of The World’ released on Ciao Ketchup.

“Would you go and see a band called The Boombombs?” I don’t think so either but I would like to see The So So Glos - especially as their new mini-album has the promising title of Tourism / Terrorism.

This track has been picked up by 6Music and Kiss but mention of an Aaron Jerome remix and “21st Century beats fused effortlessly with exotic gypsy flavours, tango rhythms and timeless Sufi Soul” and FLY Global Music won’t be far behind.

If you’ve ever been moved by a J-Rocc mix, if you’ve ever been amazed by a sample expert like Madlib, The Clonious or Kira Neris, if you just like lots of different types of music, The Music Scene is the album of the year.

Perhaps the title of his album Pending actually best describes an eary, downtempo, electronic ambiance that is ‘Pending’; but can Hectic do better than that?

It’s been a while since I’ve been seduced by anything on the Laboratory Instinct label, but this double CD set of selected works by Nikakoi is something that’s quite different and not to be ignored.

When Gilles Peterson played a new Osunlade track on his show last night, you could almost hear the folks say, “is that Osunlade?”

Not content with pulling off album of the year, can Emanative really have got the double with EP of the year?

Frankie Knuckles and Eric Kupper are back on form with a ‘Come Back’ by Sophia May that’s big enough to make anyone nervous.

For some folks Christmas can’t come soon enough but here’s something that will even make bar humbugs happy as Strut get some real groovin’ tunes on this brand new compilation.

The term ‘anthem’ is much overused but if you’ve got Yolanda on vocals, you’re a step ahead of the game and if you add the dubstep perfection of Pinch - ‘Get Up’ fits the anthemic bill.

Now this is the best compilation of the year, just fantastic in every respect.

Wow! Those boys at Soundway are really too good for us folks as here’s the third release in the Panama! series and there’s a hell of a fire down below.

With the 30th Anniversary tribute album reminding us how good ZE Records was, this Re-edit package show us how good the label (and the music) still is - Strut do it again.

We’ve had so many great dance floor centred mix CDs of late, could Watergate04 be as good as Watergate03? And who is Sebo K?

The Brazilian jazz equivalent of “dolphins, seals, birds, fish, sharks, cliffs, moonlight, glassy water” is The Wave; that means it’s another Far Out Recordings slab of excellence.

“Conceived and executed in Nottingham” is the proud boast of this debut CD on the Oeuvre label and it proves there’s more going on in the city’s bedrooms than you might think.

South African vocalist Miriam Mekeba was known as “Mama Afrika” and this beautiful double CD of her best work is a fitting celebration of life in music.

It’s time to be nervous as Frankie Knuckles is in the mood to get some Motivation and you will too when you here this!

Crimea X brings us the second instalment of their nu-Balearic Italo-cosmic disco as funded by the “NASA of Sound”, Hell Yeah Recordings.

If this Ghana Special was a train, you would not want to get off as this is the highlife of Ghana in the 70s (plus a little bit either side) that is proper Afro-Sounds and Ghanaian Blues!

I’ve been having the “What is Jazz?” conversion quite a bit lately and then this week, we get CD/DVD set of Poly Styrene and the X-Ray Spex live concert from last year - Is this Jazz?

This week my specs got damaged but I really thought I was seeing things when this one turned up, could that really be Kleeer on Eglo Records?

Fancy some autumnal sunshine and great free music then you should be here at Womad’s Gran Canaria festival!

In these days of global warming apocalypse warnings, what we need is a Solar Life Raft for emergencies, luckily DJ /rupture and Matt Shadetek are here to rescue us.

With a live show at Cargo on the 19th November, it’s time we had some love from the magnificent Build An Ark; yes - yes!

For fans of the Tal M. Klein, this is going to be a bit of a surprise in some ways as nearly everything he’s done to date is so FLY; but Magical Horses sees him take off.

Caravan Recordings is a forward looking label and have released some of the best electronic music over the past couple of years, could their new signing Emptyset be an exception; I don’t think so.

The one thing that Unbalanced isn’t, that’s unbalanced but it’s so powerful, it moves tectonic plates with bass.

Back in the day, a t-shirt with the Nervous Record label logo on it was the hipest street wear in town; thankfully the records were rather good too but is there anyone better to have a session with than Danny Krivit?

With the press full of Michael Caine this weekend, there’s no better single to look at than Jah Wobble’s latest, the cover version of ‘Get Carter’.

You may know Filewile from their recent EP Number One Kid but Mouthwatering Records have a winner with the album Blueskywell.

The last in the trilogy of tribute albums called Dillanthology is even more proof that James Yancey’s untimely passing was such a great loss to the world in so many respects.

Spreading the word about Hudson Mohawke has been as easy as a hot knife cutting through butter over the last couple of years but has his debut album come to a sticky end (or should that be loop)?

French-Algerian four-piece Speed Caravan is the brainchild of oud virtuoso Mehdi Haddab, whose other groups - DuOud and Ekova - have also fused the Arabic lute (electrified) with cutting edge contemporary sounds. However compared to DuOud’s experimental 2009 release, Ping Kong, Kalashnik Love is a blast of anger that reveals Haddab’s radical side.

To take liberties with a well known tune, you could say “New York, Addis, London, Munich everyone’s talkin’ about Ethio-jazz music”.

So granted, Gabriel Prokofiev is a visionary, experimentalist and all round clever bloke but if you are about to attempt a ‘Concerto For Turntables & Orchestra’, you couldn’t have picked a more suitable double act of DJ Yoda & The Heritage Orchestra to do it.

The latest edition in the Inspiration Information series finds the original beat of Afro-beat Tony Allen paired with the cosmic saxophonist from Finland, Jimi Tenor.

Next year will be dominated by all things South African but I can’t wait and as “Best Female Vocalist” Thandiswa Mazwai is releasing her latest album, let’s kick off now.

For students of all things theology, you’ll know that on the fourth day it all got a bit elemental and here’s some space inspired beats from a man who is out there, Mr. Beatnick!

Koby Israelite’s fifth album is no back handed tribute to the hot dog Papaya King’s of New York; no, King Papaya is in a world of its own.

We’ve got Leo Gandleman to thank for this as it was his foresight to make the call to his musician chums in 1999 to record some Brazilian inspired boogie as the Brazilian Groove Band as they got down to explore the Anatomy Of Groove.

Ursula Bogner isn’t exactly a household name compared to, say, the BBC Radiophonic Workshop but the rare discovery of her DIY set up makes this album even more remarkable?

Omar Puente is a regular on the pages of FLY, but From There To Here is actually his debut album and it couldn’t come soon enough; produced by a certain Fitzgerald Courtney Pine OBE no less.

Noel McKoy is best known as the vocalist with Acid Jazz legends The James Taylor Quartet but if you want soul, you’ll want Brighter Day.

This year our man on the ground is James Barrie, aka the Global Souljah. Join him as he checks out the best of this global scene and then drinks all the free wine

“Without our stories or our songs, how will we know where we come from?” The lines from Show of Hands favourite ‘Roots’ sum up a central tenet of the Show of Hands creed.

Students of Norwegian nu-disco will know that Ytre Rymden Dansskola translates as ‘Outer Space Dance School’ and their self-titled debut album, is an education!

So we finally come to the last in this Disco Discharge set and perhaps Gay Disco & Hi NRG is the epitomy of the three previous versions rather than a genre inself; but if it is, it’s time of come out of the disco closet.

When worlds collide sometimes you get something unusually magical. And guess what? Saiyuki is such magic.

There debut album was Mercury-nominated so for a jazz band’s follow-up, Isla has been getting much attention for your more popular press; and even better than that, it’s fantastic!

They say, “Part techno, part jazz, part house - boundary blurring bomb from German dons” and I can’t argue with that; just watch it go off.

We know Mixmag loves Future Disco and the like, but you can at least double that when it comes to Claude VonStroke. So can you imagine what they think of his latest album, Bird Brain?

Future Disco brings together the best of the new exponents of disco from Hercules & Love Affair to original DJ innovators like Greg Wilson as the The Extended Future Disco Mix is a new experience of quality disco dance.

The Ninja Tune label have a bit of an obsession with dark, moody, cinematic, bass heavy albums and yes, thankfully Let The Night Roar is another great one!

As the title and cover suggests, Suicide Beauty Spot reflects both the dark and lighter sides of Point B’s take on beats, 2-step and dubstep that’s a very individual outlook with lots to recommend it.

I can’t believe the original New Morning was released back early last year as it still sounds fresh as a ‘new moring’ so what’s with the Deluxe Edition re-issue? We’ll it’s lots more than a new sleeve, DON’T over look this one!

Fenech Soler announced themselves on the world six months ago and on Friday they are supporting Groove Armada on tour; and I’m not lying!

OK, so even if the cover is a bit scary and the title includes the dreaded ‘e’ word, there’s absolutely no connection to the extremes of Vision or Trash that have followed Euro in the past, this is proper Euro Disco!

One of the year’s undisputed highlights so far. A joy from beginning to end. Diverse, funky, challenging and fresh

Perhaps the one musical genre that got the ladies the overdue foothold into the music business post the nominal 60s diva appearances, it was the Disco Ladies. And here’s a proper double CD celebration on Harmless.

As this is on the Sound Way label with a sub-title of “Biguine, Afro & Latin sounds from the French Caribbean, 1964-74” can you imagine that this CD is totally excellent from start to finish? Well, I think I can say that it’s even better than that!

Thavius Black ensures that the hip-hop beat goes on with a debut album on Big Dada that’s his Dialogue.

The well informed will know that the literal translation of ‘forro’ is ‘party’ where like minded folks get together to have a good time and dance; so can Forro In The Dark light a candle to past masters?

Anti-Pop Consortium are back with a new label and a new album to light up hip-hop with some Fluorescent Black.

For those with good memories and sharp eyes (and ears) will recall that in-between the Rockers Hi-Fi, Lightning Head and BiggaBush tracks on Lion Head Compilation Volume One, there was a certain nugget by the Magic Drum Orchestra and now there’s the full In The Studio album out on Lion Head Recordings; time to bang the drum.

Happy Birthday to Tru-Thoughts, 10 years young, a major achievement for any independent record label especially in these turbulent time of falling record sales, thoughtless free loaders/uploaders and distributors going bust (which happened to the label last year).

Jazz and Milk is now officially THE reliable home of great soul, funk, jazz and Afrolatin breaks and I’m glad to report they are they are back with another welcome compilation full of dancefloor winners for those more groove-enlightened dance floors

Mary Anne Hobbs is now officially the queen of the electronic new school with her weekly radio show offering a portal to the freshest electronic experiments and cutting edge urban sounds from across the globe. Wild Angels is her third compilation for the cutting edge Planet Mu label and is another great album showcasing where new electronic music is at in 2009 and a good pointer to where it’s going.

Peter Kruder is a bit of a compilation king racking up six and seven figure sales with some of his previous outings and once you’ve listened to this album you’ll know why they sold so well. The concept with this private collection is that Peter Kruder invites us into his living room to listen to some of his favourite records. Great! Milk, two sugars, thanks Pete

Correct me if I’m wrong but I’m guessing that late 60s Estonian jazz pop folk doesn’t play a big part in your record collection? Well it’s time to change all that with this inspired re-issue from Wool Recordings of the genre fusing group of students known as Collage

Kelpe is back with a new album and it’s another studied exercise in lovingly stitched together beats with more references than Wikipedia

Architeq is a young Scotsman called Sam Ammand now based in London where, after a minimum amount of fuss and not a lot of previous form, he has just unleashed one of the most accomplished beat driven debut albums that I’ve heard in a while

You will know that Breakestra is the L.A. funk band “orchestra” that have been blowing up for over 10 years and their latest release is their debut album for the fantastic label Strut; and these guys will funk up from Dusk Till Dawn.

A double CD compilation mixed by James Hillard, Jim Stanton, Severino and Luke Howard speaks quality in itself and if you know how to party; this is Horse Meat Disco!

Since Impossible Ark Records started, not only have they shown a flair for modern jazz, they’ve also been very adventurous but no more so that with the strange faith and practice of Jeb Loy Nichols.

If you even wondered what a minimalist Talking Heads/David Byrne would sound like? Let The Kindness smother you with their debut single, ‘Swingin Party’.

After Gilles Peterson interviewed Bonobo (aka Simon Green) a couple of weeks ago on his Radio 1 show, on the basis of the first hearing of the forthcoming single, ‘The Keeper’; the album could be the best he’s ever done!

If the question is in the title, UMEK? The answer is in the name of the label, Hell Yeah! Once again, the pride of Italy introduces us to another expert in dance floor excellence via the mixing and selection abilities of techno icon UMEK.

Here’s one of the premier jazz pianists is an unusually setting of a trio on an album with a load of cover versions (and a daft title) but this is not old news.

I’ve been promising loads of disco for a couple of week and to paraphrase the house scene moto, it’s “Disco, Disco and more fantastic Disco”; all dance to the disco discharge as this is Classic with a capital C.

Calexico’s guitarist records solo album with his mates in Arizona and it sounds as good as you’d expect, a fantastic debut for DePedro!

This cat has got the cream with this slow groover called ‘Winterslow’ that’s out on Playtime that’s as much fun as a big ball of string and a scratin’ post.

The truth is, we’re liking The Heavy more every time we hear them and this new single does fail us on that score.

It’s claimed by the record label that they persuaded Italian electronic musician Phonat to swop living in Florence for the delights of a bed-sit in London’s East End with just his guitar and PC for company; two years on, Phonat the album is proof it was all worthwhile.

Twisted Tongue have the spirit of 70’s funk and psych soul in their veins so there’s no surprise that the debut album is coming out on the Acid Jazz label.

Even by Eskimo Recordings’ high standards, Cosmic Balearic Beats Vol. 1 was a bit special so they’ve surpassed themselves with Cosmic Balearic Beats Vol. 2; its time to dance.

Kaloomé follow up the 2004 debut album Sin Fronteras with 13 tracks drenched in Catalan heritage that’s De Otro Color.

Now anyone who thought they heard Deborah’s vocals on the Gilles Peterson show the other week would be spot on, but now you’ve got the chance to hear as well as see, The Light.

Now when Gilles Peterson drops the latest track by Jazztronrik, like he did the other week, it’s going to get this office a little excited so it proved to be the track of the night; Disco : Boogie at its best; we love you Ryota!

Ol’ big ears is back with his partner in crime as Deadmau5 and Melleefresh crave you attention.

We’re used to ESP-Disk finding classic re-issues but the Talibam! are very much in the here and now with their latest killer album, Boogie In The Breeze Blocks!

Now, how cool is a name like diskJokke? It’s got all the mysticism of Scandinavia and the pun on Disc Jockey; Tony Blackburn/Chris Molyes need not apply as this guy is hot with his new Moshi Moshi single, Rosenrød.

Admittedly the cover is a little scary and for an album that starts with a track called ‘Army Of Misfits’, can previous outings with R&B royalty like The Roots, J*Davey, Erkyah Badu and Common (to name just a few), find love rather than war on this new album from The Rebel Yell?

Referencing Star Wars and Star Trek in an opening song is surely not a wise move?

I’m just dropping off to sleep a minute into the first track of Led Bib’s latest album - all dirgy and ponderous bass and piano and a touch of whispery sax - and wondering why I’m bothering, when all hell breaks loose and I realise I’ve been drawn into the false sense of security of a first time log flume rider.

With “the saviour of world music” on keyboards, that’s Damon Albarn, the new single from Amadou et Mariam keeps the duo at the top of thier superstar status.

Madrid based imprint, Vampisoul return to their roots with the second collection of Spanish soul, r’n’b and funk from the mid 60s to the early 70s.

Bosnian singer Ljiljana Buttler is hailed in many quarters as one of the great re-emerged voices of gypsy and Balkan soul, and her startlingly low and darkly evocative voice again astonishes on this collection of sevdalinka and Balkan folk songs.

Recorded in Lyall Bay, Wellington and recently showcased live at WOMAD, the best reggae, dub, soul, jazz band in the world present their latest album… and its a grower.

Oh! how we love a track with ‘horn’ in the title? And then combined with ‘rash’, it makes it unbeatable for us; but then Nick Verwey’s debut is out on the Playtime label.

Alarm Will Sound are a 20-member group described by the New York Times “one of the most vital and original ensembles on the American music scene,” so with a debut release on the Nonesuch label, a/rhythmia was an essential listen this month.

We find Wave Machines somewhere between Arctic Monkeys and the Big Chill as Liverpool’s likeliest look for their punk spirit in a catchy sing-a-long.

We love culture from marginalised communities around the world, but what of our own? 100 metres from where I write this, Roma live in a crook of a flyover, their children had never known asthma until they were moved there. Some of their fellow children have been involved in writing a book for other children to enjoy

With the Mercury Prize nomination, there’s no more apt single title than ‘Better Days’ for the latest star of hip-hop, Speech Debelle!

Any track with the lyrics “much too hectic” is going to get my ears a throbbing and here’s the ‘First Lesson’ on the remix with Juice Aleem, MCcccccccccccccAhhhhhhh Superstar!

James Yorkston, master of deadpan delivery folk, puts aside his own lyrical musings for reinterpretations of traditional folk tunes in the inventively titled, umm, Folk Songs

Brecon Jazz Festival is now all about the music and it shows. We went off to Wales to see for ourselves

Zombies and Woodstock were at the centre of the first day of this years’ Big Chill Festival that this year is celebrating its 15th Birthday and was hoped to be the best yet!

The festival experience isn’t what it used to be. Spending a lost weekend in a god-forsaken muddy field, dining on overpriced chips from a cardboard carton and watching an ageing rocker on a big screen is no longer the only way to do festivals

Tired of lugging those 12s around in your box? Need a handy CD with all your favourite R.E.-Edits on plus an exclusive new track? R.E.-Edits Volumes One To Five is just what you need!

Elecktralux have nothing to do with a certain “major appliances and home care products” corporation but will they miss out on vacuuming up with their debut single?

Even if the idea that ZE have been hot for 30 years is a bit of a non-sense, when they were hot, they were scorching as this new compilation proves.

So we’ve got a follow up to Session 1 as The Herbaliser (in their ‘Band’ incarnation) take forward thinking hip-hop further into jazz, funk, soul soundtrack; huge album!

This you’ve never heard ..now here this..the sounds you’re about to hear, can be devastating to your ear…We Here You is the pride of Planet Mu.

Wow! This is an incredible debut solo album by Juice Aleem who won’t be unknown for much longer, this is Mercury Prize winning material!

I like multi genre producers the best. There has to be sense in keeping your ears and mind open whilst knowing your roots. Not only does genre hopping and moving with the times keep you fresh and young, listening only to drones or house kick drums your whole life music must send you a bit mad eventually and I for one need to look after my few remaining brain cells.

This is an album of two halves

If you’ve had any interest in modern bass line music the last couple of years then there has been no escaping the justifiable rise and rise of the floppy haired Sheffield youngster, Toddla T

Gondwana is my jazz label discovery of this year. A brand new independent label hailing from Manchester they have just released their second album, a spiritual jazz opus from little known sax stalwart Nat Birchall

Karizma remembers the days when DJs had to be versatile and play a range of styles from soul and hip hop to funk and reggae and despite his early house obsession and rising popularity in the still green world of UK funky this album is a reflection of a beat loving eclectic soul.

Obba Supa make tunes for the hip hop community who know who The Last Poets and Mike Ladd are rather than those concerned with putting big rims on their cars. I’m also guessing this album was conceived mainly when the world was sleeping in a smoky studio using old Elvin Jones records as skinning up trays.

Yep, it’s that time of the year when summery summer sonics often have a Tour de France reference. And this is the best of this years’ bunch from the Memory Tapes is ‘Bicycle’.

Once more our favourite rickshaw captain steers us around the world on a globetronica trip of his own favourite beats.

This is such an all-winner! It’s been a “go to” track since this time last year with plays on Gilles Peterson’s Radio 1 so it’s definitely about time we had some nightlife!

Given that this was only its fourth outing, Latitude Festival is much more firmly established than it has right to be, but it is not hard to see why. Few summer festivals can offer a setting as bucolically beautiful as Suffolk’s finest.

Fulgeance is the French wiz of the MPC and his releases on Musique Large found him fans from far and wide; included the guys at One Handed who went that one step further and here’s the debut Smartbanging EP for the label.

The debut release from this multi-faceted cross-cultural collective from Newcastle-upon-Tyne is one of the most surprising and consistently engaging treats of the year.

With Gilles Peterson celebrating 10 years at the BBC and Far Out Recordings having a 15th birthday celebration, what better party animal partnership is there to bring you this compilation of the finest Brazilika there is?

Yet another superb double CD from the master chefs at the Supperclub, this time mixed By DJ Marcello.

The geek fact about this album was that it was recorded from start to finish on 2” analog tape but is that enough for Rob da Bank’s latest signings on Sunday Best as they release their debut album?

This is a debut vinyl EP of “rock edges and quick edits, Japanese progressive epicness and a heavy dose of Fela Kuti inspired eternal groove. East African guitar practise hotwired to Zappa-like subversions” - YEAH!

Electro popsters from Paris, Koko Von Napoo follow up last years’ debut single ‘Polly’ with with a 4-track EP called ‘June’.

The top tracks on this CD are ‘1985’ and ‘Arp’ so you’ve got a fairly good idea where Ryan Lee West is coming from?

A swamp-ape from panhandle Florida, Michael Johnson arrived in Philadelphia to teach music technology at a downtown arts university; thankfully he had enough spare time to work on a number of projects including Ape School.

The Ninja Tune label have never been afraid to go out on a limb when it comes to genre mixing from a turntable culture and sample happy hip-hoppy trip so there could be no better home for DJ Food’s latest experiment, One Man’s Weird Is Another Man’s World!

With a gig lined for Dingwalls on Wednesday, it’s time to return to Addis with the astonishing sound of Dub Colossus.

The nu-Balearic future begins right here with the sound of Italo duo Crimea X who take us on a round trip of electro cosmos courtesy of the crew at Hell Yeah Recordings.

If you’ve not come across Brackles, now’s the time for some forward thinking as this is his debut 12” release comes on the ever cutting edge Planet Mu.

Young Swedish singer Sofia Jannok has a voice as clear as the Nordic air she sings about with such wistful warmth on this evocative album.

Born in South Africa, a doctor by profession, and former lead singer of a rock band, Katia Guerreiro has perhaps taken a slightly different route to Fadista stardom.

‘Mercy’? Yep, it’s a cover of the summer pop hit by Duffy from last year but this version is so much better.

What would it be like to be sixteen again? What would Screaming Jay Hawkins give to be sixteen again? The Heavy give us some sort of clue on a huge summer hit.

Ninja Tunes’ off-shoot label, Counter Records are raising the bar of late and they are at it again with a new EP from Ape School.

Even if you had no idea that this double a sided single was on Sunday Best, you could guess that this would satisfy the finely tuned ear of Rob da Bank; he being the head of Sunday Best.

Yet more bangin’ electro house funk so you’re either going to love it, hate it, kiss it or kill it; and if you don’t, you can just Fukkk Offf!

Cromagnon on ESP! That’s what I thought but it’s not Cro-magnon so the question now is, has extremes of NY psych-no-wave of 1969 lasted the test of time?

naRa means ‘a fire’ in Arabic but will Serenity get Hectic as hot as a July?

Craig and Von Oswald might not have invented reworking classical music but I guessed their album would inspire loads of other musicians to re-assess the old masters, and here’s one by Private Domain.

Here’s a winning combination, the Strut label is one of the UK’s leading record labels dedicated to unearthing the lost gems of dance music and DJ Cliffy, is one hell of a DJ that’s dedicated to finding dusty samba grooves for today’s dancefloor; say no more, it’s Black Rio 2 (Original Samba Soul 1971-1980).

Heavy, industrial, darkstep, dupstep - what! Legion Of Two is a new project of Alan O’Boyle and David Lacey in an electronics vs. live drums collaboration that is all about Riffs.

Pepe Bradock is a French musical maverick who doesn’t follow trends and has uncompromisingly ploughed his own house music furrow since the early 90s to emerge as one of the true originals of the genre

Another hot single from our favourite husband and wife pairing from Mali, the unbeatable Amadou & Mariam with a couple of killer remixes.

The review of this in NME this week by legend of New York no wave, jazz poetry and spoken word, wasn’t too glowing; Hectic redresses the balance a little.

The latest Roots Manuva single is one of the album’s big tracks, ‘Do Nah Bodda Mi’ along with Roots Manuva meets Wrongtom, Xrabit and Redlight versions.

It’s been some time since we’ve had some proper old skool space-beat hip hop so it was brilliant to find that ESL’s latest signings, Ancient Astronauts have finally got their spaceship shape for the debut album with a collection of legendary old and new friends as they are to answer.

Charlie GIllett scoops up yet again the tracks you loved but never got round to owning and those that would otherwise have entirely slipped past you unnoticed like so many logs floating down the Niger in the middle of the night

When your Dad is as well known and in the public eye as much as Kyle Eastwood’s, what can you do to when those are such huge footsteps to follow? What about being a professional jazz bassist?

You’ve got to hand it to TIRK, they could never be accused of sticking to any formula as The Time And Space Machine are well off their usual radar.

“This album of wigged-out psychedelic next-level hip hop beats will appeal to fans of beatsmiths like Jay Dee and Madlib!”

We know about Cookin’ on 3 Burners but who’s this girl called Kylie Auldist?

The Mars Volta are on tour in Europe promoting the new album at the moment and what do you think, the same as the last one?

If you’ve read the latest edition of Jungle Drums you’ll have spotted we’ve review all the album they have apart from this one which they didn’t like too much; will the Cubanistas fare any better on the FLY sound system with Hectic?

We love Lizzy Parks and whilst This And That is a collection of this and that, in some ways it’s all the better for it; how’s that you say?

This album explores the combination of the traditions of flamenco, comtemporay jazz and orchestral arrangements; could that possibily work?

Back on Planet Mu, after some detours of late into the lands of acid rave, dupstep and the bass scene, the New Folder gets us back into techno and IDM with an unusual flip.

Veteran German pianist Joachim Kühn is not the first free-jazz artist to look to North Africa for inspiration — sax legend Archie Shepp recorded with Algerian and Tuareg musicians at the Pan African Festival — but to find such an electric collaboration between two such distinct musical worlds is exciting

This is the single of the week, rather EP as the previously unknown Parallel Dance Ensemble re-incarnate a ESG, Liquid Liquid, Tom Tom Club crossbreed.

Its official, Prog Rock is back and it’s hip; of course nobody wants to be labelled ‘prog’ ever lone the next Rush, Genesis, Yes or Supertramp. So I won’t, but I think you’ll find others will.

If you look at the vast array of contributors to Ojos de Brujo’s fourth album, you might be forgiven for expecting another over-ambitious and slightly over-egged release in the mould of its predecessor Techari. Such fears prove unjustified. Aocaná finds the Catalan band back in fine form

The mighty Dub Pistols are back with a new album that’ll satisfy you thirst as it’s been a couple of years since Speakers & Tweeters; and you can make mine a double!

Modeselektor’s buddy Siriusmo personally invited himself to be the very first artist on Monkeytown Records and what a smart move that was for all concerned.

Here’s something from the edge of the pool off, John and Peter Sampson, Andrew Wright, Jonathon Spittlehouse and Blake Pearson (aka Swimming) were personally invited by Emily Eavis to play at Glastonbury last year after a digital release on Brighton’s Izumi Records, it time to preview the debut album.

Yet another monster release from Hell Yeah Recordings as “East Berlin’s perennial bad boy” gets his hands on some classic house that you won’t be able to resist.

They both possess impressive CVs when it comes to collaborations, and this charming, eloquent mix of Indian and US roots music will surely take its place amongst the most satisfyingly creative results for both artists

Nippon Nik ‘Mukatsuku’ Weston swops continents as he’s sigined up some sons of Afrobeat so we we are plesed to report, The Spirit Of Fela Is Alive & Well!

Don’t let the cover fool you, this is a heavy CD for those jazz dancers; this is sambalanço!

Some stories never get to be told properly. At last ours has been.

Milanese (aka Steve Milanese) is a big name in “Bass Music” and the producer from London knows one or two of our favourite baseline homeboys!

When Little Boots burst onto the scene at the start of the year, it looked like we had a new electro popster who could walk the golden mile; a less than glowing review in the metro got me interested enough to check it out the debut album for myself.

This summer the ground breaking dance duo Orbital will be appearing at some big festivals and are undertaking their own UK headline tour. And along with that comes a double CD of their most well known tracks plus some new mixes to celebrate 20 years; Orbital 20.

Their first album Eletrificação was released in 2004 and as good things come to those who wait, this is a 12” three track “teaser” for the new A Bossa Elétrica album.

This album was the talk at Phonica Records this week, well whilst I was there at any rate, so what’s Konrad Black up to in Berlin?

Fans of Tru-Thoughts with instantly recgonise Shapes 09:01 as a Robert Luis labour of love with the massive 29 track double CD showcasing all what’s best about the label and its wide range of artists.

Once more The Voodoo Trombone Quartet produce an album of upbeat joyous funky reggae pop sounds to get you in a happy frame of mind; all bow to the VTQ…and again!

We’ve loved everything on One-Handed Music that they’ve released so far and now they’ve release their first album by their prime dreamer, Paul White.

General Midi plugs in the leads for the new album as he starts Operation Overdrive with the latest gear crashing single, ‘Four Million Ways’.

“Consious rap failed us” he proclaims at the start of the latest album by Busdriver but as one of our favourite rappers, Jhelli Beam is just what we need to re-affirm our faith.

“Big tunes include the skanking 8bit cod reggae pop perversion of ‘Check Out My Keychain” so you’d I’d Have To Be High not to want a remix 12”?

Pop goes Iggy on the retro-Detroit punk thrash, I say damn, police sign as Levi releases the first results from the recording the forthcoming album on a two track 7” single.

After the success of Light In The Attic’s first official reissue of Cold Fact, an album co-produced by Motown’s Dennis Coffey and Mike Theodore and featuring members of legendary Motown players The Funk Brothers, they’ve dipped back into the Rodriquez back catalogue for another ‘lost’ gem, Coming From Reality.

Matching up a compilation of tracks from the first 20 releases of Finders Keepers Records with ace producer, DJ and all-round Dublab expert The Gaslamp Killer is not only a good idea, its now a fantastic CD!

To imitate Charlie Gillett last week, to be honest, I’ve been sitting on this one for a while with the expectation that the remix version wouldn’t be too good as I didn’t particularly enjoy the original version that was a bit sub-Blur vs. Madness (first time around and not there respective current Lords of the Festival greatness); but what was I thinking?

If you were getting concerned that after the singles that there wouldn’t be much left for the debut album by Speech Debelle, don’t be as the Speech Therapy continues.

Yet another essential compilation album that concentrates on the 60s-70s but this time it’s hot out of Panama on the always excellent Soundway label.

Viagem 2 is the next in a series of DJ compiled albums celebrating 50 years of Bossa Nova (circa 1962-1970) selected by Blue Note & Schema recording artist and all round man of cool, Nicola Conte.

It’s about time the Drumattic Twins realeased a follow up to their Drumattical album and Hammer & Tongs is it; unsurprisingly, they go at it Hammer & Tongs from the start!

It’s the bloke with the ears and they are so tuned into what moves the big room, he’s back with the vocal talents of Billy Newton-Davis to give you 12 inches of all you ever wanted in your dreams!

Hip-hop funks and breaks is what these guys are into and when they say more, they mean more guests on the album than is reasonable to expect.

Banks, Institutions, Relgion, Industry, Army; nobody escapes the Blatta & Inesha ‘Revolution’ (as aided by Congorock) as they prepare to blow it all up!

Following on from the ‘One By One’ EP but before the release of 2econd Class Citizen’s new album Madrugada, here’s a 5-track remix 12” of ‘Step Inside’.

A special 7” taster from Deborah Jordan on Futuristica Music before a new 12” of remixes and the debut album, it’s all happening for the girl from the sunny south coast.

Already requested by WAWA for a future Universal Music compilation, Tom Belton latest single ‘Irresistible’ is just that, irresistible!

The release of the King Roc debut album Chapters was a big winner in the FLY offices but this set of remixes if definitely for where King Roc made his name, in the clubs and on the dancefloor.

This is been a big one we’ve been waiting for as Toddla T gets a full album release on 1965 Records; but be warned, there’s nothing mid 60s about this at all!

Speech Debelle has been getting some great reactions to her new single, ‘Go Then, Bye’ but she’s not going to get rid of her new fans that easily.

Whilst the dubstep forums have had this one on their radar for a while, there’s much more to this album than you’d usually find in a Croydon basement.

With news of a Jazz dance festival coming soon, there’s been no better time for the European launch of Ray Harris & The Fusion Experience album that’s exactly that, the full fusion experience!

We’ve been keeping an eye on the Bear Funk label for a while and this new 12” from Soirée is definitely one of their best.

The King is still on his thrown but there’s a new crew in the Spanish court and all without a revolution; what is Hectic on about?

Being prolific by name and prolific by nature, MJ Cole exploded into the UK garage scene as the ‘garage man’ so it’s about time that the label was re-launched and what a better way that a new single that you’ve just gotta have it.

With a full UK/Euro/World tour to coming up, Fink will be performing songs from his new album Sort Of Revolution and it’d be a good idea to catch him before he gets even bigger than he already is.

K-Scope (aka Geoff Woolley) has been a longstanding project releasing quality tunes on various labels like Earth Records, Cookin’ Records, Further Out Records and now, the latest EP now 4Lux out of Holland.

A debut single from the new project by Annabel (lee) featuring Richard E is out on Monday and it’s well up to their high standards

Bassline warriors unite. Senseless Records have just dropped two CDs of bass bin battering dubstep, dancehall, grime, bassline and garage vocals and versions to make your granny’s teeth rattle and they weren’t even born anywhere near Croydon

Gilles Peterson was only last week moaning about the lack of soundtrack releases these days and whilst there’s a football element to this, based on the book Run With The Pack by Kevin Sampson, you wouldn’t have thought the post-punk soundtrack would be his thing?

An absorbing evening of Chinese music with central Asian folk origins in London’s delightful Union Chapel to close The Barbican’s intriguing Beyond The Wall programme of new Chinese music.

WhoMadeWho are determined to put me in my place with this catchy grower that’s coming out soon - but what’s ‘Keep Me In My Plane’ about?

Hard to keep the lid on the box of this EP as our favourite Chilean’s of the moment give us another 4 great tracks.

Not really known for big vocal deep house, Freerange Records have found a big one hear with ‘Will Be Mine’ that truly deserves that 12” extension as it’s BIG!

89 is the sum of many musical parts welded together in idiosyncratic style by New York musical maverick, producer and drummer Chad Curlow. Comparisons to Pharrell and Beck, although partly justified, also do him a disservice as his sound occupies its own unique corner of the sonic spectrum defying easy categorisation and I for one like it loads

27 Devils actually consists of 14 tracks so I’m thinking the title might relate to Flevans exercising his love of samples and moving to a full live instrumental; whatever it is, he’s back at his Tru-Thoughts ‘home’ with a stunning album of funk, soul and jazz.

Lo Recordings are back with another collection of cosmic disco rays entitled, in true Hollywood style, Milky Disco II and it’s a fine collection of interstellar musical collisions reflecting the diversity and energy of the cosmic disco scene in recent times

Fans of DJ Vadim will be more than the master has lost none of his imaginashun after his recent illness, even if his spelling is bad, U Can’t Lurn Imaginashun is well up to his musical standard with loads of special guests.

When you’d mention “Boomshadow” in the circle of Nino Moschella and his friends it was an in-joke for a fictional super hero to come and save anybody from whatever the problem was; and if you’re problem is a lack of proper funk and soul, his sophmore album Boom Shadow is here to save you.

If you told me a few weeks ago that we would be reviewing an album that “draws on a cultural heritage that took in My Bloody Valentine alongside hip hop and which is heavily influenced by various forms of electronic music, psychedelic soul and rock” I’d have said, I don’t think so; but Yppah’s second album is not one to dismiss so lightly.

Dub Pistols was founded by Barry Ashworth in 1996 and spent much of the past 10 years releasing breaks, big beat, dub, reggae, house on Distinct’ive Records but this latest single is the preview for the sophomore album coming out on Sunday Best and it’s brilliant.

The mellow side-project of Guillermo Scott Herren (better known as Prefuse 73) and this is his first Savath y Savalas release on Stones Throw Records and this llama is up in the Spanish mountains having a bit of a chill-out.

Homecut won’t be news to the good folk of the Leeds hip-hop community, but freedom only comes with the sacrifice of hard work and with this album, he shows that he’s put in the graft to gain get the freedom to preach his words.

With the 30th anniversary of 2-tone, The Specials reforming and Madness announcing Madstock, it seems like a good time to check out the young upstarts that are The Voodoo Trombone Quartet that are powered by the prevailing winds of ska.

General Midi leads from the from the front with his latest statement of intent, Four Million Ways that’s going to blow up.

The second album from Berlin’s Russian émigrés takes us further into a dark and atmospheric world where post-Communist languor meets arch bohemian East German cabaret.

With a little help from their friends, the Easy Star All-Stars’ latest album takes on The Beatles much respected Sgt. Pepper´s Lonely Hearts Club Band for their own brand of retro reggae re-make.

Now, when I bumped into Gilles Peterson last week (prepare yourselves for his new haircut), I suggested the winner of album of the year. Like the old sage he is he replied, “We’ll see”. Now, was he thinking of Raphael Saadiq’s album that he was raving about last week? Well, I’m now thinking it’s another one of his favourite artists, Emanative’s debut Space!

Last year Mr. Westbeech was everywhere but so far this year, there’s only been a couple of singles but they’ve both been brilliant and what with Kraak & Smaak on production, quality is guaranteed.

Will the album coming soon, here’s yet another great single put together with Toddla’s pals Herve and Serocee.

Ken Hayakawa was born in Salzburg but clearly has heritage from Japan, perhaps that’s why he feels ‘Outside The Walls’?

Sean Worthington “Worthy” Williams and John McIver (aka Worthy & Yankee Zulu) get on the Bad Side with a extended play in playtime.

“This Is Belgium, This Is Belgium, This Is Belgium” now if this was anything other else but R&S you’d have to laugh, but as it is R&S, it’s serious stuff.

Get The Blessing’s debut album, All Is Yes picked up Best Album at the 2008 BBC Jazz Awards and the Bristol-based quartet have come back with the follow-up Bugs In Amber that’s even better!

No jazz fan worthy of the description wears sensible shoes and the music on this album is the antithesis of the concept of sensible shoes; this is Led Bib’s finest hour!

German tech house with big respect to the king of the melodica, Augustus Pablo; it’s a winer!

The new single by Two Fingers and their cohort Sway is the crazy, crazy ‘That Girl’ that’s going off the rails with a couple of heavy remixes.

Shitmat (or Henry Collins to his mum) might be getting on but “I don’t believe it”, he’s still got One Foot In The Rave

Sub-titled “Collected selections and produced by Glyn Bigga Bush”, that’s a “must have” in our book and not only that, it features some previously unreleased tracks!

The morning the after the night before sees Manny Pacquiao definitely the hottest “For President” candidate in the world right now but on a music front, its Peyoti For President that leads the way as he surfs the rising tide of conformity with a mix of world beats and political pop-punk!

Alan Braxe’s is about as good as it gets when it comes to electro house goodness so when it comes to a debut single on his own Vulture label, its got be be worth picking at the bones.

So you’re in a massive tent nearing the end of a fabulous Tom Middleton set, the crowd are going mental screaming “One More Tune”; can the CD version be as good?

Admirers of Daniel Haaksman will know that anything on his Funk Mundial imprint is baile funk quality and this album is a compilation of 16 of the best of them.

If you’re not familar with the “hammock sound” of guitar guru JJ Cale, roll with his latest album Roll On and be prepared to mellow out.

Everybody has an opinion on Lady Sov and most seem to be bad; does the best known under dog deserve to be so universally slated? Let’s have a look at the pieces of this jigsaw.

The Black Dog is regarded as one of the most influential groups in UK electronic music and they are back with some further vexations that they need to exercise from their system.

Big Stereo blog favourites Wave Machines come back with vaguely go-go synth-pop stunner for the summer.

Trevor Loveys’ Good To Be Here EP is his first since Outside in 2004 but that’s not to say he’s not been busy or out of touch, even if this is a ‘back to my roots’ of house.

It would seem that when credit card companies want some sort of credibility, the TV ad men look to plunder the wealth of Northern Soul hits for their soundtracks - and here’s another one.

Koko was packed to the rafters with an impatient Brazilian crowd, keen to get past the DJ and onto the fabulous Vanessa da Mata, who burst onto the stage with such vibrancy and life that the already excited venue cranked up to notches rarely seen outside of Brazil

Loads of people are saying that the inspired pairing on Mulatu Astatke and The Heliocentrics have produced their favourite album of the year and I’m joining that happy band of folks; this is sensational!

After a musical upbringing Henry and Olli Keen formed Soundspecies and released their first single way back in 2000. Geographical differences interfered in the development of the project until 2004 when they both found themselves immersed in London’s musical vibrancy and the opportunity to combine their musical ideas into this fantastic debut album

If ever an album title summed up its musical contents ‘Interstellar Commute’ is it. Launching from somewhere in the Nevada desert just after ram raiding an ethnic musical instrument shop, chief astronaut Enemy Earth attains an other worldly musical orbit pretty quickly with no intention of return.

There was a time when dub was confined to the island of Jamaica but slowly its presence began to be felt in the world of disco when the art of the remix started to gain recognition and credibility. During the late 70s and early 80s dub techniques were embraced by a number of forward thinking remixers. Francois Kevorkian, Larry Levan, Tee Scott & Shep Pettibone amongst others, realised that these sing along disco anthems could be turned into a new musical beast ideal for the hedonistic, late night drug fuelled dance floors.

From the cover, you might expect Brooklyn based Nate Campany would be into soul/funk or hip-hop but you’d be wrong as The Only Bridge I Need EP is four tracks from alt.country rock/popster Campany and his legion of serenaders.

Dealmaker are one of the homes of forward thinking beats with a touch of soul and they have delivered once again with their new signings Keaver & Brause. Future Hip Hop beats with a gentle lilt narrate a sunnier urban story away from inner city decay, free market meltdown and the classic drum breaks of the 70s.

It’s been harder and harder to ignore the Scandinavian contribution to quality underground music these last few years. All that time staying inside during the outdoor unfriendly winter months is well and truly paying off. If you don’t believe me then just listen to this compilation.

Greco-Roman follows up the signing of Rob da Bank’s favourite (and excellent) Drums Of Death with the equally spuriously named Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs.

“We’ve handed over the keys to the Roundhouse to a bunch of creative young people for a three-day festival of music, fashion, circus and more”, that sounds like a happening!

No Hassle is the new album by Viennese soundscape masters Tosca and it’s the nu-balearic sound of the summer.

José Roberto Bertrami is a legend as a musician and as member of Azymuth so this guy just doesn’t do back albums, he doesn’t brilliant albums and his modern sound adventure is a trip for sure.

Abraham the Gypsy had two sons, to Flamenco he said, ‘guard the purity of your sound, it will see you through some bad shit’ and to his other son Rumba Catalana he said ‘mix it up, add a little from here, leave a bit of your sound over there, let’s see how it works out.’ His descendant Peret is the undisputed king of the Rumba shakedown.

Now there’s probably only two labels with the foresight to say, “Hey, that’s a great idea to mix jazz sax, Portishead’s guitar and bass with old skool rave - lets do it”. I’d say one would be Ninja Tune (who haven’t) and the other, Tru-thoughts who have. And they’ve pulled it off?

Boxcutter (aka Barry Lynn) is from Lurgan, Northern Ireland and Arecibo Message is his third album release on Planet Mu and there’s quite a few folks saying it’s his best yet.

When you think about 70s krautrock, apart from Tangerine Dream and Kraftwerk who defined themselves, probably the most sited group that bands say are an influence (apart from Can) is the duo NEU! (please note, not Neu!) With this is mind, Feraltone have pulled out all the stops for this really excellent compilation cover version tribute album cleverly entitled BRAND NEU!.

So the last time I saw Hint (aka Jonathan James) he was chilling out at the Bill Chill festival last year with his Serato Scratch with some laid back ambient sounds; this year Hint’s got a one woman army comin’ at ya and it’s goin’ to hurt!

Flevans is another musical genius who manages to transcend different genres and eras and if you’ve been eagerly anticipating the follow-up to the fabulous Unfabulous album, you’ll have to hold on a little longer after the single ‘Hold On’ comes out.

Miles Davis made so many brilliant albums throughout his long career but Collectors’ Items sees him in a pre-Birth Of Cool period that’s essential for any jazz fan or student.

The wait is finally over as Thunderheist presents the debut album Thunderheist!

The “Album of the Month” sticker on the cover of this CD with a 5/5 rating in DJ Mag only briefly distracts from the stunting cover artwork and the music inside doesn’t disappoint either.

Alec Empire strikes back with a new mini album called Shivers that’s a heaven and hell horror movie soundtrack and gets some help from some of his muso mates.

King Cannibal (aka Dylan Richards) is ready to boil us all in his big pot with this 12” on Ninja Tune; why do we enjoy being murdered like this?

Like a the old London Bus scenario, here’s the second shoegazing compilation turning up in as many months and this time it’s from the vaults of the leading experts on the subject, Sonic Cathedral Recordings

Just when you think that the bass is a low as you can go, the Alternative Blueprint find some deep basslines that are true as their name with Optikatechniqua’s debut album Sinister Dub.

Yppah (pronounced “Yippah”) is a Mexican-American from Texas aka Joe Corrales, Jr. and he’s back on Ninja Tune with an brand new EP prior to the new album coming out and it’s stunning!

Ayọ is the real thing. A big, big voice hints at something that someone so young should not really know

For the past seventeen years Su Hart and Martin Cradick have been quietly and assiduously building a collection of recordings based around the Baka tribes of the Cameroonian rainforest.

Regular readers will remember we were very impressed with the 12” by Robert Logan, Accurate Spit Boy and were very keen to get hold of the album; and here it is as it is out today!

Andes Music hits the holy ghost of Afro-deep techno house minimal dancefloor action with a new classic track, ‘Espiritu’ as played out by Agoria, Danny Tenaglia, Josh Wink, Karotte, Butch, Shinedoe, Laurent Garnier, Ramon Tapia and Gerry Hectic!

I think it’s safe to say this is the most anticipated album of the year so far and every second of the 14 track Sessions album has been worth waiting for; a true meeting of fantastic jazz minds!

Original, soulful recordings that are fresh and and direct from Jamaica that have been hand picked by the one and only David Rodigan makes the second edition of Real Authentic Reggae as essential as the first.

Soothsayers’ third album sees them teaming up with the The Red Earth Collective in an old skool reggae ‘Meets’ connection but delving into the roots ‘n’ jazz with loads of afro-funk that’s really FLY.

Lucky 7 in the Nomads series finds BBC Radio Asian expert take over for a new selection of global music beats to put you in the travelling frame of mind.

Self-proclaimed absurd electronic provocateurs, Wevie Stonder have moved to the Cack label for their latest album release that find’s them at the forefront of glidstep!

For a special 10” release, here are a couple of the best tracks off the latest album by Iain Archer to savour.

Thunderhiest (aka MC Isis and Grahm Zilla) jerked it with the last single and now get even more club friendly with loads of cow bells as this is ‘Nothing 2 Step 2’.

Super group Two Fingers (Amon Tobin and Joe “Doubleclick” Chapman) featuring UK Mobo winning artist Sway have been busy distorting the sound of hip hop for the debut album Two Fingers

Yeah, Disco is big again. Not the old Disco but the nu-Disco and Future Disco is your guide to better sounding disco than ever before.

Two great musical heroes and World music fans get together for the first time in years on this album that was released last year as Byrne takes to the stage in the UK.

The new single released is out on 9th April 2009 and finds the Solar Apple Quarktette more further out than usual with an Australian female in Soho after dark!

Tah Mac set the tone with previous singles as “the next Kanye” prepares to hit the album charts around the world and not just in Tahland.

Mungo’s Hi-Fi is a dub reggae, dancehall and dubstep soundsystem in the original roots tradition based in Scotland so don’t be surprised that the 12-track album features some of the finest old and new MC talent.

You don’t have to be Carlos Niño or Gilles Peterson to get excited about news that Far Out have a new CD coming out of a previously unreleased 1976 project recorded in Paris by three giants of Brazilian music, so get excited and rush to purchase a collection of 33 years old ‘new’ recordings!

Big excitement about this King Roc album called Chapters because this is not the usual in any sense.

You can’t write anything about Gomez without mentioning that their debut album Bring It On won the Mercury Music Prize but 10 years on, A New Tide finds them on a new label and is a bit of a fresh start.

Smoking Gun is Angus Stone’s debut album and it’s the definitely the ‘crime scene’ compared to the sunny folk-pop he is known for as half of the duo with his sister, Angus & Julia Stone.

There’s certainly some sort of anomaly going on here as the album follows the recent single, ‘Oldskool’ as their sound is nothing like old skool as there’s been nothing with as many influences as these lot ever before; so very difficult to classify but it’s future-familiar also.

El-B (aka Lewis Beadle) had a couple of tracks featured on Tempa’s Ammunition And Blackdown Present: The Roots Of Dubstep so what a good idea to have a whole CD retrospective that shows there’s more to this guy than just ‘Express’ and ‘Buck & Bury’.

In poker, what is known as the nut hand is the strongest possible you can have and for this compilation, a certain Mr. Nut has made the equivalent with these 22 tracks that he’s dealt us from the top of the beat pack.

If you’re going to see Bonobo’s DJ set in Brighton tonight, watch out for members of the band that played at Koko to be in the audience as Audio is the place to be and to celebrate two new releases, the live DVD and a special 10” remix that are both due out on Monday.

There’s no letting up for the Serbo-Croat superstar as he gathers his Wedding and Funeral Band for a mighty blast of Romany polyphony

Celebrating 10 years of “the UK’s only soul, funk and hip-hop label”, top producer Ghost returns with some suitably mature beats for these thoughtful times.

Transformer are the latest four-piece electro disco outfit from Brighton and ‘Cinema Car’ is their first single.

Sei A (aka Andy Graham) finds his second release in the dark passages of ‘Knowing Innocence’; it’s so deep!

OK, so I got this just because it wa recorded on the mixing desk of producer and Krautrock legend Conny Plank (the very desk that Kraftwerk used to make those albums back in the day), but is Nonsense In The Dark analogue electro-indie-kraut-pop nonsense?

First Sessions is what it says on the tin as Kindred Spirits repackage the early (and best of), Heavy for renewed pleasure.

Spring has sprung and so once again a young (oh alright then, middle-aged) world music fan’s fancy turns to the theoretically incongruous but in practice pretty successful agglomeration of disparate artists that make up the African Soul Rebels concept.

You can’t really give Carlos Nino too much praise as he’s gone and done it again with a little help from some of his closest friends, it’ll make you feel mighty high indeed!

With half a dozen of these magnificent 12ers under his belt, the king of the R.E.-Edit is still showing the rest of ‘em how to do it, a must have for every conscious DJ that knows his stuff.

Back in 1965, five upstart Americans say to themselves “Let’s Start A Beat” but these devoted monks don’t keep a vow of silence; quite the opposite!

Fans of mix CD’s from Fabric will recognise Buraka Som Sistema as they keep cropping up on the remix credits but it’s a unusual step for them to release a 12”, but then again, the ‘Sound Of Kuduro’ is a bit special.

Getting attention with plays from Kissy Sell Out and Annie Nightingale, the new Deekline & Wizard single ‘Back Up, Coming Through’ includes remixes by the trio of Krafty Kuts, AC Slater and TRG.

Not the most attractive title for this new 12” but it’s one way to get attention for experimental IDM’s ‘next big thing’.

They call it Rock and Roma - a frenetic gypsy-rock that recreates the energy of Kal’s popular live performances in their native Serbia.

Mixed reviews for this one which is not that surprising considering the lenghts that Erol Alkan and Richard Norris (aka Beyond The Wizards Sleeve) go to re-animate tracks for a Re-Animations Vol. 1.

Could you believe what Gilles Peterson said about this guy last week? And GP isn’t the only one impressed with the debut album from the man called Oliver Thomas Johnson (aka Dorian Concept).

So the story goes that Iain Archer is out in Schwarzwald (that’s the Black Forest) with the rather musical in-laws and whether something gets lost in translation, the location inspires this collection of songs that reach out To The Pine Roots.

Air France are not an airline nor French, Joel and Henrik are a pair of musical dreamers from Sweden who are more nu-Balearic than nu-Baltic, so much so Radio 1’s Blue Room guru Rob da Bank said of No Way Down, “Brilliant”.

Planet Mu have been on a roll of late but can they keep going like a 303 on heat? Remano Eszidn steps up to the plate with the debut album that’s certainly different.

After the fantastic reception for debut single ‘Killin Em’, the buzz for the debut XRABIT + DMG$ album has been big in the bass bin underground - Hello World is some new understand of hip hop’s future.

Have you ever asked yourself what song you’d like to be played at your funeral? Or, more powerful still, what song you’d most like to hear just before you die? Here is a chance to get some ideas from the guys at Get Physical first the first Final Song.

Jazz&Milk have a big reputation for funky breaks ‘n’ jazz that’s digs deep into dusty treasures, no wonder Dusty Keep It Raw

Speech Debelle is back and after all that searching, has this youngster found the key?

Cuba is the inspiration for the music on this album called Camará so expect some percussion dominated techno from London based DJ/producer, Ariel.

Dutch DJ, music producer and remixer from Amsterdam, Joris Voorn sets a new level for the compilation mix CD for deep house and techno in the ultimate state of balance.

If you still haven’t found The Long Lost, this is the place to find them in their lovely brilliance

Multi-instrumentalist Tenor and his buddies from Finland join up with Afro-Berliners Kabu Kabu with obvious resuls, a magical world of Afro-Ra from the 4th Dimension that’s on a different level of “must have”.

If you start a series called Inspiration Information with Amp Fiddler, Sly & Robbie you better have a good idea for the follow up; and boy do Strut have a good idea matching up reggae legend Horace Andy and DJ/producer Ashley Beedle and neither disappoint.

This is a big one from Dorian Chavez’ Superclub, ‘Tia Anita’ is Chilean house and it’s so FLY, Dani Casarano and Felipe Valenzuela are now our favourite South American duo.

Tim’s Lighthouse Trio is augmented by The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra on Libra where jazz meets classical and classical meets jazz

Confused 90s? Not as much as the 00s are Sicilian knob twiddlers get dirty with nineties techno supergroup Ramirez!

The six DJs/producers known as Jazzanova have been satisfing ears and feet for years with their German based label Sonar Kollektiv, but it’s about time that they sorted out their own affairs and they’ve hit us with a monster album with Of All The Things.

Talk about double take when I first saw this one in Universal Sounds, a new Carl Craig album on Deutsche Grammophon! And on closer inspection, it’s a double act with Moritz Von Oswald with recomposed music by Maurice Ravel and Modest Mussorgsky! It all looked too good to be true.

OK, I will - “Akemi Kakihara, I love you” but in all honesty, I love her dubside even more”.

This ain’t no Fat Freddy’s, it ain’t nowt in the ocean, this Drop is pure d’n’b madness that kicks off with an anthem of a tune for a Hospital release, ‘Heaven Sake’

We’ve been keeping half an eye on the Filthy Dukes for some time now and finally they’ve got it together with ‘This Rhythm’ single before the album comes out next month.

A new recruit to the Ninja Tune family, don’t be put off by the cover, this guy’s musical pallet is so much more than mere 2-tone.

Instrusions’ ‘Little Angel’ featuring the vocals of Paul St. Hilaire is a heavenly track that’ll linger long in the memory.

“One of us could be somewhere. Some of us could be elsewhere. All of us could be everywhere. UBIQUITY is being somewhere, elsewhere and everywhere - always”, can you dig it?

The Drumattic Twins are clearly obsessed with the beat of the drum and just to prove it, here’s a 12 inch dedicated to it.

Unsurprisingly Charlie Gillett is a fan already but there’s going to be many more with this latest album release from Thierry ‘Titi’ Robin.

“Let the 303 do the talking” say IDJ when reviewing this bit of acid techno but that is exactly what ‘Wasp Cocktail’ is all about.

“It’s not what you know, it’s the who you know” is a well worn phrase but with Mr. Montague it’s more of both as he’s mates with Formula 1 boss Eddie Jordan and not one but two drumming legends, Roger Taylor and Nick Mason!

Not sure what shoegazing is? Well let Radio 1’s expert Rob da Bank guide you through the best of 1985 - 2007 on the latest Sci-Fi-Lo-Fi compilation from Soma.

Anthony Joseph was called Bird Head Son when he was growing up in Trinidad. Now it’s the name of his second album with his mates from South London, the Spasm Band, that find all of them in a unity of poetry and music; and that means, album of the year candidate!

Babel (pronounced “Bay-bull” and not “bar-bell” or “babble”) are back with a full-length album for what they’re calling folk’n’roll!

If you thought Joe Davis (he of Far Out Recordings) had samba’d off his leftfield trolley with the genre defying Binario, well he’s gone and done it again with this lot that call themselves Rabotnik.

The Big Chill Festival has grown from the friends listening to a seminal Global Gathering album to the initial Big Chill get together of a mere 700 in 1994 to 30,000 in Eastnor Castle Deer Park last year; so to celebrate 15 years here’s a compilation selected by some Big Chill big movers.

The finest modern sambas featuring exceptional talents Seu Jorge, Roge, Teresa Cristina alongside legendary artistes Elza Soares, The Ipanemas, Trio Mocoto and Azymuth.

You’re told never to mix the grape and the gain but don’t expect any headaches from these beautifully crafted tunes by guitarist Leo Abrahams.

Former Global Goon collaborator Syntheme (aka Louise Wood) shows that there’s more acid at her disco than you can shake a shit at (Ed. is that typo?)

You don’t have to was born and raised in Detroit to know this is a great album as Harmonic 313 is none other than Mark Pritchard!

“Just listened to the Qemists Album…It’s SH1T! Pop Drum ‘n’ Bass covered in shreddy guitar for the same type of ‘anker that can’t get enough of the Chemical Brothers. It is, therefore, going to be HUGE!”

You’ll recall Gianmarco Liguori released a rather special album called Stolen Paintings back in 2006 along with the (now well worn) single, ‘Penta’ so it’s a great start to the year with a really new CD called Ancient Flight Text.

The best bit of The Mars Volta is Omar Rodriquez Lopez’ guitar so his solo album has got to be a bit special? You can bet your last thru penny bit it is.

Screaming d’n’b mix by Danny Byrd that’s sure fire treatment in the Hospital mix No. 7.

If you thought John Coltrane was only about A Love Supreme, think again as here are five other reason why he is regarded as the one and only true spirit of jazz.

Those Crosstown Rebels go even further out of thier comfort zone to get two gloriously different remixes on Riz MC’s big tune, ‘Radar’.

It would be very amiss if you missed ‘Amiss’ by the pair of lovers called The Long Lost.

With mates from the hip-hop, crunk and B-more scenes Diplo’s reputation spread and he has now worked full time with every ‘name’ you could possibly think of as all he wants is Decent Work For Decent Pay.

The Lafayette Afro-Rock Band are one of the most well known unknown funk bands of the 70s as they seemed only second to James Brown as a source of samples and breaks for the hip-hop community; so well worth getting back to the roots so to speak.

Kindred Spirits’ Dorian Concept is a late entrant on tonight’s Gilles Peterson Worldwide Awards gig at Cargo before jetting off around the globe before the When Planets Explode album launch late next month.

The latest Northern Faction is another great compilation album of modern dubby electronic downtempo grooves that clears out any recessionary tenancies and gives us a more balanced view of things

Rough Trade favourite, Alela Diane returns for a new album next month but will it match her Pirate’s Gospel album of the year in 2006?

Now you’ve probably been thinking that Nicola Conte has been quiet of late but over the past 2 years, instead of bashing out 12s on Schema, he’s been working on his latest album and it’s definitely been worth the wait.

Somewhat of a clumsy name and title here but it’s time to take that first step on the road to some hot Brooklyn based soul-jazz-funk as it’s not to late to catch up with this Worldwide All-winner top 20 album.

As part of a new series of studio recordings from the excellent Strut label, Amp Fiddler teams up with musical heroes Sly and Robbie for an accomplished, if somewhat cautious, session

Etalon’s new 12” is certainly unique but still manages to retain the common touch; suggest we investigate further as this is the latest release on Caravan Recordings.

You may recall the last Broadway Project’s album was In Finite on Grant Central Records. That was in 2005, so it’s about time Dan Berridge (who is the Broadway Project) released a new album on the eagerly awaiting public.

There’s no point beating yourself up about it, just let the Plump DJs do it for themselves on the remix; ouch! It’s so hard it hurts.

Did you see what they’ve done here? Disco + Techno in Munich is Munich Disco Tech and the Vol. 3 edition is made up of three massive tunes that shine bright under the glitter ball.

The Qemists have been plugging away for years so who’d have thought they’d get busy with Rolex boy himself, Wiley on a very early track of the year? Dem Na Like Me but we like it lots.

The original version of Dan Le Sac Vs Scroobius Pip’s ‘Thou Shalt Always Kill’ was one of the oddest hits ever, not only because its so good but for how these two guys connected with different types and generations of music fans. So all praise Rob da Bank at Sunday Best for getting a new version together to start 2009 on a high.

Wow! This is a bit of a monster release as Fluid Ounce compilation Presents… is a DVD with 90 (yes that’s ninety) tracks on it. That’s 7 hours of totally “NEW” music on one disc; now that’s what I call music!

This peanuts is as in the cartoon series as this CD is sub-titled, ‘A Retrospective Of The Charlie Brown TV Themes’; get ready to jig around the piano to a little bit of jazz.

Forever struggling to sift out the Christmas cheese from the jingle bells it was an act of musical kindness that Verve got their Unmixed / Remixed series into the festive spirit of things.

Up My Alley have gone up our hip-hop alley by putting together Berlin based producer Robot Koch (Jahcoozi/The Tape) joins forces with San Fancisco based MC Cerebral Vortex with the further adventures of future bass hip hop music.

Get ready for some modern electro go-go arcade game boogie from the latest out of DC Recordings, Arcadion is the name you’ll be hearing a lot of next year.

That’s certainly not a name to forget. Don’t forget Jesse Rose as you’ll be needing this 12” for the festive season as it’s going to be massive.

This is the fourth helping from the Supperclub from their ‘nine sins’ menu. Compiled and mixed by Supperclub’s own DJ Alan Luna with artwork by Krijn van Noordwijk, you can guarantee the 2CD set is a something your friends will be jealous of you having it.

Who says the youth of today are a bunch of wasters? Rotherham’s The Tivoli have started their own drive to put National Service at the heart of the nations consciousness next year; so what are they going on about?

Who says the Internet is killing music? Certainly not us or “high quality MP3 download” site Bleep.com as they launch a FREE compilation download album (available from 15-24 December).

Kellerkind is nothing to do with Florian Keller Party Keller but there is a link with Florian Meindl, time for Hectic to check out this new producer from Switzerland.

Oh! my ‘The Governor’s Daughter’ is sweet but the Danny J Lewis is a blow-up! Coming in as Record Of The Week all over the place, the return of Afro Art sees them steppin’ to the left and hittin’ on a Jazz Room explosion; monster!

The Five Corners Quintet made a sizeable first impression a few years back with a series of three highly sought after 10”s which had one foot in the classic soul jazz tradition and one foot in the new. Coupled with some brilliant and well designed covers, The Five Corners Quintet let you imagine a thriving modern jazz scene in their native Finland

Those ever imaginative folks at Breakin’ Bread know when to bring out a single called ‘Dance Move Shake!’ but they’ve surpassed themselves with this double 7” slice of funk rock!

There’s a touch of irony in the title of Cassette Jam’s latest single as the duo won Cream’s Search For A DJ competition with an 8 deck set up; how didn’t they lose control?

What an achievement for Sonar Kollektiv reaching their 200th release! Congratulations if not chapeaux as it’s such a milestone and not only that, it’s another brilliant compilation for the label.

Eclectic former PiL bass man Jah Wobble teams up with wife Zi Lan Liao to produce his best post-Invaders of the Heart album yet, a dubby yang to the yin of Damon Albarn’s Journey to the West Chinese opera

By this time next year, everyone will know about Latin Dub Soundsystem and their genial host Nico Suave, we’re just lucky to have got in first (well nearly first).

As you will gather from Gilles Peteson’s ramblings on the radio, he’s the not the only person in the music biz to have found a home in North London’s N4 post code, Dirty Fingernails are a duo from Finland who send you musical greetings on their debut album.

Hey, it’s never too late for another ‘Album Of The Year’ contender so let’s take a look at Motorcitysoul’s technique!

For those that thought ‘new look’ Metro had got their facts wrong today with Riz MC, think again, a MC on Crosstown Rebels? It’s true and it’s geat!

Update’s Album Of The Week, full marks in M8 mag and Resident Advisor going overboard, it’s about time we got into Ramon Tapia’s amazing debut album called Mini Jack.

Planet Mu’s picked up on some twisted electronica from Neil Landstrumm that’s already got Mary Ann Hobbs in ravestep heaven.

Occasionally an album starts on such a high note and builds such a sense of anticipation of what is to come that surely whatever follows must be a disappointment.

A Little Piece of England could be a collection of personal letters set to music, letters to past lovers and friends.

Need2Soul is a London based club-night and the Need2Soul label set out in 2005 to release tracks that rocked their decks. For the new V.02 double CD compilation they’ve called up a heavyweight DJ and young(ish) pretender to get mixing and it’s definitely FLY!

When the paths of house and sweet vocals of an African sunset meet, we’re going to say we love this; and what a great title for this EP!

Jackmate has been DJing for over 20 years and producing for over ten years so it’s no surprise that the new 12”, ‘Malawi Dub’ is getting lots of attention right now as it’s so good.

So a bit late on this one but as it’s just been announced that the LSO is only British orchestra in list of world’s best, thought we’d better have a listen.

To celebrate the launch of the new Daedelus web site, Ninja Tunes have got a 12” and download packages all ready to go on sale.

If you want to know what Deadmau5 did before his hit world domination, At Play is his early works repackaged and it’s easy to see how he got global recognition in such a relatively short space of time.

If you’re into the modern room of Soul Togetherness I’m sure you’ll find enough room for Ralph Tee’s compilation of sixteen 70s and 80s gems; lets go all the way!

Talk about double take when I first saw this one in Universal Sounds, a new Carl Craig album on Deutsche Grammophon! And on closer inspection, it’s a double act with Moritz Von Oswald with recomposed music by Maurice Ravel and Modest Mussorgsky! It all looked too good to be true.

He is no longer the beautiful young man he once was but the voice can still charm the birds from the trees and the gentle humour of the man can keep them entertained once they are sitting on his shoulders

The latest duet between Hebden and Reid is their tribute to NYC, how big an apple is it?

Florian Keller is one of the most respected jazz, funk, boogie, soul and Afrobeat DJs around and here is a special CD of one of his sets recorded live in Kagoshima, Japan.

MC Isis and Grahm Zilla together are Thunderhiest are the leaders in ‘Rave Rap’ and ‘Jerk It’ is the clubbers No. 1 pick of the moment.

So it’s a tough call to follow-up ‘8 Bit Romance’ but if anyone can do it, Florian Meindl can and ‘Aorta’ is the one.

The Sheffield based duo of The Only Michael and Soyo have been working together since 2004 and Big Chill Recordings is the label to release their debut album, Earplay.

A must see artist, Rachael Bell is a multi talented singer, acoustic guitarist and pianist

This is a journey into British musical culture with Windrush at its starting point with second and third generation Black Britanyaa’s at its centre today.

Barbara Morgenstern is a new name to me but BM is her sixth full album release and it’s about time we got to know her better; and her special guest!

Dripping point? Some sort of wet tipping point? No way. Shahrokh Sound Of K (aka Andreas ‘Sound Of K’ Köhler and Shahrokh Dini) turn in a really great soulful jazzy house album dripping to the point of excellence.

Yet another jazz trio album with cover versions of not one, but two pop classics! Perhaps even more, and definitely worth further investigation.

Los Desterrados are to be found where Sephardic music meets its flamenco and balkan neighbours and that’s a vibrant, spicy place to be as they mature their contemporary rendering of a traditional repertoire for their third album.

You’ll have heard ‘Goodbye Dancing Hello God’ on Gilles Peterson’s show a while back in its magnificent synth and string Big Chill-ness; bar-do, ba do ahh! But what’s the rest of the album like?

Brian Sanhaji has been releasing techno music since 2001 and has had plenty of time to work out what his stereotype sound is and Stereotype is it.

A double album on Great Stuff Recordings is always something to look forward to and Butch’s debut is no exception.

A. Skillz’ timing is spot on with this money can’t buy you happiness timing in these credit crunchin’ days with this party shakin’ monster.

Jazz Ninja Chris Bowden delivers a sinuous and enjoyable album of familiar tunes in original treatments

Listeners change the way they read and react to music all the time. Mid 70s punks surely reassess the Ramones and Pixies now their songs have become daytime Radio Two fodder.

It was only the other week that Gilles Peterson was interviewing Mr. Scruff (aka Andy Carthy) and he definitely said there was no forthcoming album, well he was wrong because here is the first plate of hot Ninja Tuna

ROUND THREE: AfroRegae back at The Barbican, this time for the launch weekend of the Cultural Olympiad.

Not content with making the album of the year, Daedelus (aka Alfred Weisberg-Roberts Darling) has found time to get together with his wife Laura Darling to serve us an exquiste taste of love of woebegone times; this is brilliant!

Against The Grain are true to their name as they’ve gone and got Deekline & Wizard with some magic dust from the heavens for their new single ‘Angel’.

There’s Me and There’s You is the second Matthew Herbert Big Band album eagerly awaited since 2003’s Goodbye Swingtime; it has been worth the wait?

Trickbaby’s last album Hanging Around produced a No. 1 hit in India and tracks featured on numerous Bollywood soundtracks; that makes the follow-up one of the most eagerly-awaited albums of the year.

Hey! This is something a bit different from Far Out Recordings, Ipanema Beach bad boys Binario turn up with their self-titled debut, Binario

If you’re going to re-launch a classic label like R&S, there’s no better way than with a double CD, one with all the original classics and the other with specially commissioned remixes from current kings of the dancefloor.

Here’s a couple of prime examples why Finger Lickin’ have been at the top for the past ten years; Soul Of Man man and Lee Coombs doing the buisness on two sides of a 12” - this is their 100th release after all!

Imelda May’s last minute addition to Later…with Jools Holland is one of those trips of fate that abound in rock’n’roll and it’s got the Dublin born singer loads of attention and the release date of the debut album rushed forward.

If you haven’t managed to fall in love with Jóhann Jóhannsson’s modern classical music yet, this is the album that will convert you as it’s monumental!

Adriano Adewale was born in Sao Paulo, Brazil who moved to London in 2000 and now leads his own group with a massive album for late 2008; Sementes.