"Wave after wave of succinct guitar and bowing refrains cascade through the speakers, improvisatory string work largely nudged to the side lest it muddy the hypnotic waters"

"bares Selkie's soul for all to see and the fact that is accompanied by production that would stand on its own two instrumental legs really marks her out as a talent"

"the outfit instead wind their way through buttery soul, vintage library music, smooth orchestral jazz and general twentieth century musical lushness. One for the nostalgics and easy listening massive"

"Perhaps it's an antidote to the long grey Berlin winter's but "Vulture" radiates warmth and sun kissed lands, real and imagined from the off."

"if you want to hear what jazz, beats, soul and deep house sound like in the hands of people that know the roots and care about the future then tune in."

Self taught, Or Kantor is a respected tatoo studio head, multidisciplinary artist and craftsman by day, with a nice line in evocative, ethno-ambiguous, " Surfterranean " music making by night. I do wonder how some people fit it all in. A visit to his tattoo studio by an Anova Records A&R person saw his 2024 debut album Sarda Sarda  signed to the label, and a year later his sophomore is on the shelves of your favourite music store. This time round he's dialled down the surf

Jowee Omicil has been around. sMilLes is the eleventh album no less from this nomadic Canadian-Haitian composer and multi-instrumentalist who can turn his hand to saxophone, clarinet, flute, pocket trumpet, Rhodes, piano, voice and more. The album is an eclectic jazz ride with some choice guests and throws in some tropical vibes as well to keep you on your toes and maybe even get you moving, but the real standout track is "Should I Smile", mainly due to the always impeccable

"If that wasn't enough whispered, Sun Ra reminiscent, voices drift in at the end like ghosts from the world's battlefields to add spectral weight to the message."

"It’s a curious, comforting listen and highly recommended."

"Undeterred, a minimal piano pierces the machine sounds at the halfway mark, tentatively at first - note by gentle note, before being inevitably swept up and along by the impatient electronica"

"if I told you the track was fifty years old you wouldn't argue, and there's no greater soul compliment than that"

"If you're in need of some late night, hazy urban soul then look no further."

"leftfield leaning, 80s vibing, soundtrack nodding jazz fusion "

"This time round the arrangements largely eschew the barely conscious drones and ambient jazz of their debut to take more familiar, gravity beholden forms"

"The EP is guided by Grassie’s impressive picking, and augmented by some perfectly judged double bass, pedal steel and vocals"

So it was with trepidation that I clicked play on these versions of two Talking Head's classics - "Once In A Lifetime" and "Psycho Killer"

"Every sonic detail, and there are many, perfectly judged and synergising for the greater ambient good. "

"raw, sample strewn, beatdown house that although somewhat unpolished, has more fresh ideas than Traxsource’s top 100 house chart put together."

"It's a fine slice of cinematic neoclassical music that unusually stands on its own sonic feet, but I'm sure works wonders during the accompanying film scene"

"Familiens Muligheder is a beautifully crafted, constantly surprising album that deserves far more attention than it's currently receiving."

"encourage you to pay more attention to life's ambient soundtrack as you go about your business"

" Further sonic decay creeps in on the ambient infrastructure of "Kvitøya", so the lads introduce some languorous trip hop drums to hold the fraying synths"

"with deep roots in the soul, funk, jazz and disco scenes from last century to keep the soul essence whilst making the tracks fit for twenty first century sound systems"

"If good natured, short and sweet nu-jazz meets instrumental hip hop is your thing then look no further"