quick audio picks: 12
Diplo's adopted Brazilian siblings are all grown up, and here's their first release on Domino to prove it! "Solta O Frango(1)" is a certified favela smash (got the ringtone on my cell) and if you missed out when we had the limited...
expand review tour 7", this is your chance to make right. If you've seen them live, you know this is the Bonde track that really tears it down - everyone chants along to that brainworm of a hook, Marina wrecks it on the verses and Afra from the Incredible Beatbox Band even provides some sick background effects for the head-nodders. And if you're wondering what they're saying in Portuguese over that heavy Playskool beat, "solta o frango" means "release the chicken" - you can connect the dots. Another live favorite, "Rap do CB(2)" is on the flip, along with the instrumental and acapella for "Solta O Frango." Nice full color artwork by Pedro's cousin. Recommended! -Chris Lemon-Red
quick audio picks: 123
Straight up: this is the best track from CSS' album and I'm really happy to see it getting a proper single release. Their first single was nice and dancey and all, but this is the realness! CSS are no joke and "Alala(1)"...
expand review shows their harder side, perfectly contrasting the shimmery disco guitar and synths from "Let's Make Love" with buzzsaw guitars and a thick-as-fuck beat. I can't get enough of that little noise in the chorus – sounds like the girl from The Grudge! Maybe I'm a bit biased, but Bonde do Role's remix(2) basically rips shit up. Gorky and Pedro throw some baile drums under the dark, spooky keyboard sound from the original track and then proceed to chop the hell out of Lovefoxxx's vocals ("b-b-b-b-bitches!") while fading effects in and out of the mix. Awesome shit, and infinitely more mixable than the original version. Princess Superstar contributes a remix(3) as well, and the girls are kind enough to tack the acapella on the end for you lunkheads. -Chris Lemon-Red
quick audio picks: 12
Deize Tigrona is one of Rio De Janeiro's meanest funkeiras, has been for a minute now too. She's probably best known 'round these parts for her guest spot on Edu K's "Sex-O-Matic," but "Bandida(1)" is all about Deize, front and center, straight...
expand review wrecking a punked-out baile funk beat from Diplo. These two make a good team, I'm hoping for more collabs in the future. Flipside features another nice guitar sample on "Me Chinga(2)," this time produced by DJ Rafael. -Larri Byrd
quick audio picks: 12
Okay, so you got your DJ Rectangle box set, your Dirty South beats, even Titts & Ayres' Bmore club locked grooves ... but it just feels like something's missing from your collection of regional party music breaks, no? Man Recordings has you...
expand review covered! Label head Daniel Haaksman, long-running funk DJ Sandrinho and DJ Beware have compiled on this one record basically every single loop or sample you could possibly desire for your carioca set/production. Sandrinho's side has some classic hard-hitting funk beats plus tons of rare acapella snips, like "A VEM!" and "TOMA QUE TOMA TOMA TOMA!" Even got some funky JB drums and (best of all) a locked inner groove of the boilerplate funk drum rhythm. Haaksman & Beware's side is lighter on vocals, heavier on super useful breaks and tones. This was way overdue, real glad Man did it right. -Chris Lemon-Red
quick audio picks: 12
With Germany's Man Recordings officially blowing up after releasing Edu K's crazy popular singles and full-length, we thought it was time to bring you back to the beginning – all the way back to 2005. This was Man's first 12" release, and...
expand review what better way to kick things off than with the man known to many as the godfather of modern baile funk, DJ Marlboro. (Get it – "D.M. Project"?) "Habibi(1)" flips a sample from (wait for it) Disney's Aladdin, throwing baile drums under a winding middle-eastern flute sample, with a gang of strings popping up now and then to guide the way. Cool thing about this track is the inclusion of some dialogue from the movie – don't worry, it's not too corny – since it's in English, and one of the main complaints from American crowds about this stuff is the language barrier. On the flip, DJs Moreno and Danny give "Habibi" a reworking(2) that would fit snugly in your electro or freestyle set. -Chris Lemon-Red
quick audio picks: 1234
We're finally seeing some official Favela singles coming in. This one is headlined by Diplo remix(1), chopping all sorts of samples including The Cure's "Let's Go To Bed." The original mix(2) is pretty decent too, sounding like some late nineties hip-hop with...
expand review electric guitar samples and an 808 beat. Also includes the original acapella, instrumental, and two additional remixes by DJ Sandrinho(3) and Edu K(4). -the mgmnt
quick audio picks: 1234
Man Recordings with another Baile Funk release done proper. They've gone a similar route as their first single, enlisting a big name producer for the spotlight remix (on the first one, they had a Diplo remix). This time, it's the currently hot...
expand review Solid Groove, whose twisted style blends perfectly with the choppy Baile delivery. In addition to the original version, there's an extra three remixes here. I think the DJ Mavi version steals the show, as it samples a guitar hook which sounds like it was lifted from "Sweet Child O Mine." Also includes the acapella, so you can do the Wesley. -the mgmnt
quick audio picks: 123
Ku Bo is the new incarnation of Vienna-based producer Stereotyp, who previously teamed up with Joyce Muniz for Man's Funk Mundial series. The two make a good team, and they're back together for "Um Korpo(1)," which is less baile and moreso a...
expand review deep, percussive club track with enticing Portuguese vocals. On the flip we get the even rave-ier "Rebola(2)," replete with weirdo MIDI keys and chilly, almost spoken vocals. Also includes an instrumental dub version of "Rebola." Plays at 45. -Larri Byrd
quick audio picks: 1234
Fania gone baile funk! Bonde Do Role's Brazilian style take on Lenny Sesar's "Morris Park" was one of the highlights of the recent Fania remix comp, and here we're treated to four (count 'em) different versions. Funk afficionados should proceed directly to...
expand review the stripped down vocal mix(1), though Pedro's off-kilter raps sound just as nice over the main remix(2), which leaves more of the original's piano and honking horns intact. Instrumentals are included for both, though only one is listed on the center label. Londoner Sinden takes the spotlight on the flip with his hype, buzzing electro mix of the Peggy Lee classic "Fever(3)," as performed by Fania's La Lupe. Also includes a dubby midtempo version of Fania All-Stars' "The Click(4)" by Kashmeer Brothers. A-side plays at 33, B-side at 45. -Chris Lemon-Red
quick audio picks: 123
Baile funk continues to spread its influence - this time it's Londoners Sinden and the Count of Monte Cristal (aka Herve) teaming up with Rio-based MC Thiaguinho (tee-ah-gween-yo), recording for the consistently great Man Recordings' Funk Mundial series. (This is #2, if...
expand review you're counting.) "Tamborzuda" is a straight 4x4 monster with Sinden & Herve lacing the already jacked-up drums with heaping buckets of bouncing bass and rave synths. In fact, the "Rave New World" mix(1) that kicks the single off doesn't hold many ties to funk carioca at all, besides the Portuguese lyrics and replayed "I LIKE TO MOVE IT MOVE IT!" sample on top. On the flip, the "Sin Rave" mix(2) starts out much the same, but adds more bass, subtracts the sample and then freaks the fuck out with about 2 minutes left. Also includes a "beats & bass mix" and the rare baile funk acapella. A-side plays at 33, B-side at 45. -Chris Lemon-Red
quick audio picks: 12345
More of that cumbia heat from our favorite new label. Their debut release having quickly evaporated, Cali's Bersa Discos is back for round two with another limited single (1,000 copies, no repress-o). This time they've got Buenos Aires young gunna DJ Negro...
expand review at the fore, putting a new spin on some true Colombian classics. Negro is a regular at the notorious club Zizek (recently spotted killing it with DJ/rupture and others) but this 12" represents his "official" debut. On the A-side, he sets things off with "Andres Landero vs. The Roockie(1)," a tuff mash featuring Screwed vocals from the cumbia legend and Luny beats. "Lluvia(2)" keeps more of traditional cumbia sound, dubbed out in all the right places, while "Mundo Querido(3)" comes with hard raps over a dark and stormy beat that brings to mind "This Is Why I'm Hot." Meanwhile on the flip, Bersa label head Oro11's "Pibes Walk Out(4)" injects some Dirty South into the proceedings, dusting a little of Unk's "Walk It Out" over "Que Calor" by Pibes Chorros (arguably the biggest 'cumbia villera' - gangster cumbia - band ever). Alex Pasternak of much hyped SF band Lemonade seals the deal with the midtempo bumper "Pajariton(5)." Definitely recommended. -Chris Lemon-Red
quick audio picks: 12345678
First off, props to Philly's Flamin' Hotz on release #10! Things seem to have come full circle - their very first release was the (long out-of-print) Sou Funk EP and on #10 they've assembled another gang of baile bangers for Funkeiros e...
expand review Progresso. The obvious jam here is Cabide DJ's funk remix of "My Neck, My Back(1)," but if you're not afraid of some Portugese, try Beto De Caixa's minimal "Blindao(2)" or Cabide's "Que Delicia(3)." There's also breaks galore on Zezinho's "Battle Break Funk(4)," DJ Edgar's soulful, female vocal'd "Aperta Um Quebe(5)" and funk superstar Mr. Catra with "Eu Fui de Todas Elas(6)." Green vinyl with great design from Bustbright as always. -Larri Byrd
quick audio picks: 123456789
Lagos Shake is the culmination of Honest Jon's long-running Tony Allen project, which spanned almost a dozen 12"s and racked up remixes from a long list of diverse talent. This comp rounds up 10 of the series' finest moments on a deluxe...
expand review gatefold double vinyl set, with a globetrotting roster of artists like Bonde Do Role(1), Hypnotic Brass Ensemble(2), Carl Craig(3), Newham Generals(4) and Moritz von Oswald(5) putting their own spin on tracks from Fela Kuti's legendary kitman. Also includes Diplo's storming club track "Fuji Ouija(6)" and a killer version of "Reggae Land(7)" by Honest Jon's own dub masters Wareika Hill Sounds. And anyway, that cover is worth the price of admission on its own. Is that a fucking hyena?? 12 tracks total, including Waajeed's outstanding "Kilode" rework and Terrence Parker's "One Tree" remix, neither of which are available on the CD version! Recommended. -Chris Lemon-Red
quick audio picks: 123456
ZZK -- the new label from forward-thinking Buenos Aires club Zizek -- comes with its first vinyl release. It's a smattering of the best cuts from their recent "Cumbia Digital" comp, which featured some of the most unique nu-cumbia coming out of...
expand review Argentina and beyond. Whether your like your cumbia sped up(1) or slowed down(2), with vocals(3) or even a little "piano triste(4)," there's a joint for you on here. 6 tracks total. -Chris Lemon-Red
indepth
