Artist: M. Miller
Title: Forward EP
Label: Villanova Recordings
Format: Vinyl
Release Date: 6/30/05
Audio Sample: Listen

Perhaps a bigger name in his native Germany, the boys here at FunkyHouseMusic.com were caught off guard by this influx of three super chunky, driving house funkers – all on one plate!

It’s always wonderful to discover a new artist with potential in an era of dance music where we are saturated with so much mediocrity.

The feature track on this record – ‘Come On’ – is a quality piece of dubby, tribal, hip-shaking groove with a bass bin rocking bass line. At first listen, you think this tune is heading towards the 80′s remix route, but the artist only uses hints of 80′s influences as just a tool to his palette of variety. Nice one!.. Read more

Artist: Jose Nunez, Steve Angello & Sebastian Ingrosso
Title: subliminal Sessions 8
Label: subliminal
Format: CD
Release Date: May 2nd, 2005
Audio Sample: Listen

Subliminal Sessions 8
nMixed by Jose Nunez, Steve Angello, & Sebastian IngrossonnLeave it to Subliminal Records to quickly snatch up current Swedish spotlight-holders, Steve Angello & Sebastian Ingrosso. Business-minded label owner – Erick Morillo – did the same thing with Benni Benassi (Subliminal Sessions 6), when he came out of nowhere to top the charts. You can always count on Subliminal to be on top of their game with signing great talent, but do they deliver the goods? Let’s find out.nnThis double-disc mix features a set by label mate, Jose Nunez, a Subliminal Sessions regular. His mix is of the upbeat funky variety, featuring plenty of vocal-laden tracks, and quirky melodies. This mix features plenty of Subliminal records, from Mr. Nunez’ recent “Lust 4 U”, to Lino D. Meglio’s “swaRED”. The mix moves along at a nice groovin’ pace, occasionally taking interesting twists here and there.nnDisc Two features the aforementioned Swedish duo on the one’s and two’s. Their set mainly consists of the new breed of dark, techy, yet funky house that has been popping up recently. Angello and Ingrosso are responsible for the majority of the tunes on this disc, with recent releases such as Mode Hookers’ (as they are collectively known) “Instrumental”, and Sebastian Ingrosso’s remix of Tony Senghore’s “Peace”. The way this disc opens is very smart; they use the intro of Angello’s “Acid”, (simply a brooding pad) and mix in Cirez D’s (aka Eric Prydz) “Teaser”, which is one of the most simplistic and repetitive tracks we’ve ever heard. The obviously bland opening allows for a feeling of great release when the ‘real’ tracks finally come in. From that point forward, the set flows nicely, with only a few awkward moments.nnWhile the tracks on both CD’s are of high quality, both mixes unfortunately come off as somewhat soulless. The problem stems from the fact that literally every mix on this disc is kindergarten-level intro-to-outro mixing. We get the impression that they are not even trying; it seems that this release is meant to be nothing more than a collection of tracks. What makes it worse is the fact that almost every track is either a property of Subliminal, or created by the mixers themselves. Yes, this is a good business model for the label, but results in a wholly uninteresting product for the listener. To give them some credit, the tracks are good, and are generally put together in a good order. But remember, variety is the spice of life!nnTracklisting:nnnDisc One mixed by Jose Nunez.. Read more

Artist: DJ DLG
Title: Epiphany EP Part 3
Label: Eyezcream
Format: Vinyl
Release Date: 6/6/05
Audio Sample: Listen

A brilliant house producer, Huge Records CEO, and part of the A&R team for Eyezcream Recordings, DJ DLG gives us his third installment of the “Epiphany EP” series.

nnThis feature offers up two funky floor stompers that are sure to tingle your inner groove, get the fists pumping, the heads bobbing, and the trainspotters salivating. From “Got You Moving” – which features MC Flipside lending his vocal genius, adding to the ever growing discography of hip-house donations that primarily US producers have been serving up, to “Back For More,” with it’s tribal funk feel, we have two slammin’ peak-time tracks that will be tearing up dancefloors across the global.

nnThis is an excellent offering. You don’t want to pass this up! The FunkyHouseMusic.com crew is looking forward to his future projects. n

nnnTracklisting

nGot You Moving (Featuring MC Flipside)

nBack For More

nGot You Moving (Acappella)

Artist: Jerry Ropero & Denis The Menace Present Sabor
Title: Coracao
Label: Nero
Format: Vinyl
Release Date: 6/8/05
Audio Sample: Listen

The Swedish label, Nero, is back again with another dance floor stormer. This label has been serving up the heat lately, with distinctive, instantly recognizable anthem-quality productions. “Coracao” is honestly another addition to the label’s library of gems.nnBoth Axwell and Jerry Ropero / Denis The Menace have both been BIG names in the house production arena recently. Axwell steps up to plate with his signature production, creating a sound that can easily be played in any intimate environment, yet still cause damage on any superclub main floor as well. An interesting reinterpretaionnof the latin house original, that should appeal to a variety of house djs.nnThe big winner here though is the new 2005 remix provided by Jerry Ropero and Denis The Menace. After my first listen, my head was banging against the wall in astonishment of how proper of a house track this remake is. Such a classy effort of creating a blissful, funky percussive latin vocal stormer, that will have the island of Ibiza to the terraces of Miami dancing at any hour this summer. And the breakdown, I mean, let me repeat myself, the BREAKDOWN is to die for! An unreal build up blowing up into an unstoppable funky house groove screaming to be heard. nnSimply put, this is proper house music. Highly recommended!nnTracklisting nnCoracao (Axwell Remix)nCoracao (Jerry Ropero & Denis The Menace 2005 Remix)

Artist: Bryan Cox Featuring Dutch
Title: Tell’em I’m Good
Label: Elixir / Dancerecords.com
Format: Vinyl
Release Date: 6/6/05
Audio Sample: Listen

New labels = fresh sounds & that is exactly what we have here my friends!nnBryan Cox has been a strong name over the last two years appealing to the funky house scene with his aggressive, house/techno hybrid productions. Quite honestly, the man has literally been quoted as “creating his own sub-genre of house + techno.”nnBut just as soon as some thought Bryan Cox had bit the “formula bug”, with a few recent remixes that sounded similiar, he blows the masses away with a straight ridiculous original production featuring the vocalist rhyme stylings of Dutch. The tune features a nasty, NASTY synth, funky licks, percussive goodness, and hip-house leanings that make for an instant summer anthem!nnOutside of the original mix, and the dub, is a Jon Pegnato remix that surprisingly sounds like a Pegnato/Cox hybrid. Talk about some insane energy! It truly is challenging deciding which mix on this disc receives trumps, but sadly, Pegnato’s remix is pressed poorly, and the sound quality lacks on his feature. nnBig ups to Elixir & Dancerecords.com for this truly banging choon!nnTracklisting.. Read more

Artist: Utada
Title: Exodus ’04
Label: Island
Format: Vinyl
Release Date: 6/2/05
Audio Sample: Listen

Typically, it is rare that a commercial release such as this appears in the review section of funkyhousemusic.com. With production credits to Timbaland of Missy Elliot fame on the original production of this release, we like to leave these tracks for the more commercially minded music reviewers to analyze.nnBut take a closer look, and funky house producer legend from Chicago – JJ Flores – has dropped three different mixes. Infamous for his work on Bad Boy Bill productions, and partnering with Steve Smooth on numerous large dance numbers in recent times, we had to check this out!nnObviously, JJ Flores accepted this offer to make a little $$ for his 401K. His first two mixes do not resemble his typical music outputs, and fall with the other mixes on this disc as “commercial garbage.”nnBut good things come to those that wait, and JJ does not let his loyal fans down, and we mean truly loyal if you’re still listening after hearing all the other mixes on this release. So erase any interest in hearing about any of these mixes accept “Dub #2″.nnJJ Flores comes correct on his dub #2 mix, bringing that proper, driving peak time Chi-town funky house sound, sampling the original vocal by snippits, and keeps the tune focused on 4/4 & break-beats. A phat bassline, hard hitting drums, and pure class take us the rest of the way. Those of you who are avid fans of the JJ Flores / Steve Smooth sound, will surely not be disappointed with this. nnnTracklistingnn”Exodus ’04″ (JJ Flores Double J extended remix) n”Exodus ’04″ (JJ Flores dub #1)n”Exodus ’04″ (Peter Bailey dub)n”Exodus ’04″ (Kriya vs Velez electro house mix)n”Exodus ’04″ (Kriya vs velez progressive trance mix)n”Exodus ’04″ (JJ Flores dub #2)

Artist: Kid Massive Featuring Tiger Lilly
Title: Bring It On / 7th Day
Label: Blow Media
Format: Vinyl
Release Date: 05/25/2005
Audio Sample: Listen

Blow Media continues on it’s conquest as “that new label”, rapidly rising up the ranks of well respected house outfits. Hatiras is running a tight ship in his native Canada, recruiting artists left & right, and the addition of Kid Massive only pushes the quality meter even higher for the squad.nn”Bring It On” is a wonderful piece of groovy, vocal house music, combining the soulful vocals of Tiger Lilly and a dancehall reggae sample, creating a true to form peak house choon capable of grabbing the ears of deeper & more uptempo house fans alike. Top marks on side A of this 12′. nn’7th Day’ is a decent B-side to this release, as it provides a gospel like preacher vocal layed over 4/4 rhythms that seem to build as the track glides along. A good set opener, but we have a feeling the A-side will be getting most of the attention on this slab of wax.nnTracklistingnnBring It Onnn7th Day

Artist: Basement Jaxx
Title: Oh My Gosh
Label: XL
Format: Vinyl
Release Date: 5/4/2005
Audio Sample: Listen

One of the largest names in house music, Basement Jaxx, continue their assault on the dance scene with another unique standout, but with more of a “pop” appeal for the not so educated EDM listener.nnAt first listen, “Oh My Gosh” features female vocals in a traditional “valley” girl style, reminding me of someone who might find “In Touch” magazine extremely interesting, balanced with a male counter vocal in a very urban sense. In an attempt to block out my immediate stereotypes, the lyrics do show a touch of creativity, as the tune belts out lines such as “forget about the sugar & have a spoon full of me” in a sexy, UK female form. Perfect for the clubbers & the grinders! nnThe original mix by the Jaxx contains all their creative studio techniques behind the vocals, and will work perfectly in a variety of house dj sets at any point of the night. The Knee Deep remix builds upon the original mix, with a phatter kick, thicker bassline, and a more uptempo house vibe for the harder djs. Lastly, Bugz in the Attic come through and lay down there signature sound for the deeper minded.nnThumbs up from this corner, as this tune will most likely be turned away from by the more underground opinionated. But sometimes we need to skip past our first impressions, and let the music grow on us, as this tune, similiar to other works by the Jaxx, is different from the norm, and that deserves props any day of the week!nnTracklistingnnOh My Gosh (Original Mix) nnOh My Gosh (Knee Deep Remix) nnOh My Gosh (Bugz In The Attic Remix)