Tags: 90s House

Review: Z Records' ongoing 'Attack The Dancefloor 'series of compilation style vinyl EPs has long been a reliable source of disco-fired excellence, and this 21st edition is another high-quality affair. We're first treated to a superb Jimpster revision of recent Mistura single 'Want Me Back', where Jemini's spoken word vocal, jazzy keys and spacey synth sounds rise above loose-limbed deep house beats and wiggly TB-303 lines, before Birdee drops a genuinely joyous, organic-sounding disco-house take on 1991 classic 'Do What You Feel' (now credited to Joey Montenegro, rather than his now retired Joey Negro alias). Elsewhere, Lee's own rework of Lakeshore Commission's Bluey collaboration 'In The Light' is a smooth, soulful, string-drenched delight and the veteran producer's 'Destination Boogie' tweak of Destiny II's 'Play To Win' is a revivalist '80s electrofunk delight.

Review: Released in 1996, 'Super Discount' is the debut album by Etienne de Crecy, an influential figure in the French electronic music scene. De Crecy's influence helped to propagate certain genres, from the good old scratchy filter-house beloved of Daft Punk to the jazzier take on the house genre that St Germain and others gave it, all while establishing France's national identity on the global electronic music market. Packed with early collaborators from DJ Tall to AIR, this is more than just 'fun' music - it's got that classic French Midas touch.

Review: On the long-serving deep house label's latest reissue, Large Music takes us back to 1997 and one of the most beloved (and these days, hard to find) EPs by Washington, D.C duo 95 North (AKA Doug Smith and Richard Payton). As it did first time around, the EP contains four contrasting versions of 'Jazz Ascension'. The EP-opening 'Red Soul Mix' lives up to its name by wrapping breezy flutes, syynths, pianos and spoken word samples around a bumpin' bassline and classic-sounding US deep house beats, whilst the 'Red Dub' delivers a stripped-back and groove-focused take on the same musically expansive mix. Over on side two, the slightly darker and more bass-heavy 'Hard Dub' compares favourably to the then contemporaneous work of fellow Washington, D.C-duo Deep Dish. A handy, spoken word 'Washapella' rounds of an essential reissue.

Review: New York's Joe Claussell offers three blistering takes on 'So In Love' by Black Rascals, the early 90s project from Blaze. This red-label 7" is a pricey one, but the contents justify it: deep house from the source, reworked by one of its most spiritual selectors. 'Rough Mix 1' leans into swirling vocal loops and expansive FX, full of Claussell's signature dynamics, while 'Rough Mix 2' dials back the drama slightly for something more floor-focused. Flip it for 'Drums', a stripped-down tool that reimagines the track as raw percussive hypnosis. Essential NY house lineage, revived in style and pressed loud-just don't expect it to hang around.