If you haven’t already been giving this one heavy play, prepare to be introduced to one of your favorite records of 2011. Thundercat (aka Stephen Bruner) is playing an absolutely authentic blend of smoothed-out jazz and funk from a bygone era. This shit just sounds too good, too pure to be from 2011. Bruner is [...]

Happy Friday everyone, some pretty big records on the site today. I’ve been waiting for Scott Tuma’s “Not For Nobody” on vinyl for what seems like forever, and it’s finally available for purchase. A masterful piece of Americana, this one is beautifully sparse, down to the audible creeks of the floor. We can’t recommend this [...]

If you are into funk and soul reissues, consider this one essential. 13 years in the making, Now-Again’s expansive box-set chronicling the 60′s-70′s output of Little Rock, Arkansas’ True Soul Records has finally been released on vinyl. It’s exciting that such an important label is receiving the retrospective treatment for the very first time, leaves [...]

If you’re deep into the reissue scene, you already know that the Analog Africa label is almost impossible to beat. Their “African Scream Contest” compilation is one of my favorites of all time. This time pulling from Ghana, they’ve unearthed “Funky Rob Way”, the stunning debut album from ROB. Long out of print and highly [...]

To help celebrate their 15th anniversary, Stones Throw started a new series of live recordings for vinyl release. The records from the first event have now been released, courtesy of Mayer Hawthorne & The Country and Rick, respectively. Vinyl-only and minimally packaged, these shows are bursting with authentic soul and funk passion. You’ve gotta love [...]

Lost in the shuffle between eight and ten, the ninth entry in the Madlib Medicine Show series has finally shown its face. “Channel 85 Presents Nittyville” is a straightforward collaborative rap album from Madlib and Frank Nitty. There are some guests here and there, but those two pretty much run the show on this one. [...]

Always nice to see some familiar faces still hanging around from my high school daze. Ninja Tune is such an amazing label, it’s comforting to know as I get older that they aren’t going anywhere – the equivalent of a male-pattern bald spot on the pate of the modern electronic music scene. Wagon Christ aka [...]

If you don’t know by now, Chicago’s Numero Group is one of the best reissue labels running. They’ve got two new vinyl releases available, both well worth your attention. Willie Wright’s “Telling The Truth” is an interesting journey through the mind of a doo-wop/soul prodigy from the city who moved to Nantucket in 1976 to [...]

Stones Throw is the best hip-hop label in the world, fact.  They’re selling a stunning debut record from J.Rocc, “Some Cold Rock Stuf”, and they went all-out on the packaging.  As the label puts it, “This is not a “DJ album”.  Not a “beat album”.  Not a mix tape.  This is an original work of [...]

It seems like it’s been awhile since we covered any Stones Throw releases, but let’s be clear, they’ve still been cranking out the goods.  First up in the new batch is the “Psych Funk Sa-Re-Ga!” compilation from the always-impressive World Psychedelic Classics crew (they’re also behind the Psych Funk 101 and Brazilian Guitar Fuzz Bananas [...]