Hello,
It's the last day of the month and we trust you have postponed your planned trip to the beach in eager anticipation of our July 2010 Essentials. Traditionally a slow month, July has yet produced a number of outstanding releases that should make your sacrifice more than worthwhile.
This of course includes Mount Kimbie, whose highly recommended debut album now includes a sweet video as well. We've also witnessed the return of Jimmy Edgar this month - his 'XXX' album claims our top spot, and his 'Hush EP' shouldn't be left by the wayside either. Modeselektor have further compiled their '50 Weapons' series, and techno/house fans should check the latest from Wolf + Lamb, Soul Clap, and Âme. |
FEATURED RELEASE
Album released 27-07-2010 on !K7
What a big month for Jimmy Edgar, whose long anticipated new album 'XXX' follows hot on heels of his warmly received recent 'Hush EP'.
Four years have passed since the Detroit wunderkind had dropped 'Color Strip' via Warp, one of the most accomplished electro albums of the decade, which managed to marry classic electro-funk with futuristic electronica.
For the release of 'XXX' Edgar has left Warp in favour of !K7, and listening to the new album, this is not the only thing that has changed for the now 26-year-old producer.
Once known for his cerebral glitch hop, 'XXX' is certainly his most physical production to date. Tracks titles like 'Vibration', 'Hot, Raw, Sex', and 'Physical Motion', along with their suggestive lyrics, leave little doubt as for the album's central theme. Ubiquitous electro funk references, and Edgar's vocoded, Prince-style singing further up the sleaze factor.
Yet, 'XXX' is never in danger of feeling nostalgic. When Jimmy Edgar looks back, he does so with one foot firmly planted in the future. His years of producing cutting-edge electronica can be heard in every synth sound, every sample, every kick-drum, lending 'XXX' a crystal-clear audio quality that would make Timbaland proud. In its finest moments Edgar moves between electro, future r'n'b and techno with a grace only he seems capable of at the moment. Stand-out album.
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TECHNO / HOUSE ESSENTIALS
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Brooklyn duo Zev Eisenberg and Gadi Mizrahi deliver their much anticipated debut album, which lives up to the underground vibe of their popular Wolf + Lamb parties: Low-key, lo-fi deep house, mixed and recorded with an abundance of soul and atmosphere. Recommended.
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One of the most ambitious audio-visual projects in electronic music, 'Rüts' features over two hours of audio plus 21 videos by cutting-edge visual artists. Exclusive tracks by Move D, Terrence Dixon, and many more.
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One of the finest releases in STL's astonishing catalogue, 'Klangbewegungen' (Sound Movements) is now available in digital format for the first time. Theo Parrish-inspired deep house with an experimental, otherworldly edge, but definitely suited for the dancefloor. Incredible music.
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New tracks by Âme! Both 'Rrose Sélavy' and 'Junggesellenmaschine' have a grungier feel to them than the duo's previous hits, almost as if they were assembled from live-played acoustic instrument samples. First class hypnotic deep house, with a nod to electro-acoustics. Excellent.
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Compilation released 12-07-2010 on BBE
Sublime compilation + mix by Parisian DJ icon DJ Deep, whose eclectic taste shouldn't need any further introduction. Perfectly blending the old with the new this is a timeless mix, which will stick to your stereo like glue and will get better with every listen. Essential purchase!
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After more than 15 years in the business, Der Dritte Raum still delivers cutting edge techno music - this time even drawing on occasional Swing influences for a varied album, balancing minimal and Detroit-influenced techno and electro styles. Fine full-length by one of Germany's longest-standing techno acts.
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Boston duo Soul Clap drop 'Action/Satisfaction', a meandering, summery house track with nice vocals and a nod to The Night Writers 'Let The Music (Use You)'. Comes with a more up-tempo Lee Jones mix and bonus tracks 'Break 4 Life' and 'Noneadawhitestar'.
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Jimmy Edgar precedes his highly anticipated 'XXX' album with an EP for newly founded imprint Glass Table. Four subtle tracks of reflective, electronica house serve as a counter-point to the steamy electro-funk of 'XXX'. Includes a great jacking Kyle Hall remix. Essential!
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Argentinian techno hotshot Jonas Kopp and New York's Brendon Moeller share the third volume of exclusives taken from Ben Klock's recent Berghain mix. Kopps' 'Michigan Lake' is subtle dub techno on top of a massive bassdrum, while Klock himself strips down Moeller's 'Dirt' for an extra edge. Perfect.
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Berlin underground heroes Ancient Methods and New York's techno pioneer Adam X team up for four slices of killer industrial techno. 'Proarrythmia' and 'Mitral Regurgitation' should drive any dancefloor into submission.
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Maxi-Single released 26-07-2010 on Green
Radio Slave once again celebrates the art of epic remixes with his take on Ripperton's 2008 hit 'Leonor's Lanugo'. Part 1 + 2 of his remix weigh in at over 18 minutes total playing time of subtle and hypnotic Detroit techno. 'The Hill' is added on top as a more abstract bonus track. Nice.
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EP released 05-07-2010 on MD2
Low-key undercover exclusive by none other than Berlin techno hero Mike Dehnert. Two tracks constructed in no-bullshit floor-tool fashion - 'MD2.3' is a grungy, percussive affair, reminiscent of Jeff Mills' 'Waveform Transmissions', while 'MD2.4' is a more spacious affair, ideal for cavernous clubs.
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Rush Hour presents two slices of classic, fashion-resistant Detroit techno by Swedish newcomer MRSK. Just the right balance of jacking beats, dubby chords and wild-pitch strings make this a perfect slice of timeless techno. Highly Recommended.
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A stone-cold Robert Hood classic from 1996, 'Funky Souls' started off Hood's Floorplan series, which applied the man's minimalist production style to the realm of soulful disco sample-house with amazing results. Jacking, warm and hypnotic, this is still highly playable today.
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Excellent house tracks by Wandering's latest signing Goldwill, who already left a deep impression with their mesmerizing formula of hypnotic house on their previous releases. 'What Is Behind' stands out among the rest and should belong in every serious house set. Recommended!
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Split release on Cocoon: Our artist of the week, Chymera, convinces with an 8 minute filter-techno epic that strikes a similar note as Golden Girls' R&S classic 'Kinetic'. Hit! Martin Dawson & Glimpse on the flip turn quiet a silly bass-line into a nice modern house track, no small feat by itself.
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Toronto's Stuart Li, the creative mind behind the jacking House sounds of Basic Soul Unit, displays his versatility in the studio with a new alias... Herman. Drawing influence from broken-beat and Techno, there is no mistaking that this is Stuart Li's own made up sound.
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James Kumo has been increasingly raising attention with his marriage of quality techno and melancholic synth lines. Curle provides the platform for this latest offering 'The Rex EP' with the two original tracks' sweltering bass lines and drifting melodies lead nicely on to Peter Van Hoesen's remix. Recommended.
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The collaboration of Echocord's Kenneth Christiansen and Resoe drops its forth release - the third on its own dedicated Pattern Repeat imprint. 'A' is a minimalistic dub stomper reminiscent of Marcel Dettmann or Peter van Hoesen, while 'B' features melancholy strings and cool rolling snares. Great!
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Great Chicago house reissue coming from the Clone camp: Harmony Funk's 'Can't Let You Go' gets treated to a deep and sensual remix by Marco Bernardi and a great dub techno reshape by the elusive Ovatow. Excellent and highly recommended.
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Brandt, Brauer & Frick are starting to become a driving force amongst the higher tiers of electronic music, with each artist bringing their highly tuned musical attributes to the table. This latest release on Tartelet is a perfect example of their jazz-infused live-techno vision.
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Maxi-Single released 05-07-2010 on Desolat
This surely has been echoing out over the most recent Sónar weekend. 'What About The Vice' on Loco Dice & Martin Buttrich's Desolat label fully encompasses Squillace's wide range of musical styles, from the free flowing percussion of 'On The Road' to the warped space-funk of 'The Other Side Of The Road.'
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Maxi-Single released 05-07-2010 on Areal
What better place for Fairmount's latest EP than the ever unpredictable and versatile Areal records. The title track is a frantic race of acid tinged madness and galloping hats, its counter-part 'Puppet With Glass Eyes' a more subdued affair with its chiming bells, enticing the listener to lose their self in the loop.
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Maxi-Single released 19-07-2010 on EevoNext
Veteran of 'Brighton techno' Justin Berkovi returns to production with his new Nightrax project: Four cuts of deep yet pumping Detroit-style techno, reminding of Quince or Joris Voorn. Nice one.
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DUBSTEP / HIP HOP / 2STEP ESSENTIALS
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Mount Kimbie drop their highly anticipated album debut, and as expected it's a wonderful slice of music. It swiftly moves between endless dub echoes, sparse r'n'b structures, and even indie pop references, with its ingenious use of guitars certainly being a first for the dubstep genre. Must have.
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Bar its first volume (ask 50 Cent's lawyer), this compiles all the highly sought after remixes for Modeselektor/Moderat in the 50 Weapons white label series. Incl. Siriusmo, Phon.o, T++, SBTRKT, Shakleton's e_p_i_c take on 'Rusty Nails', and Roska's 'Art & Cash' mix as an exclusive bonus. Absolute must.
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Machinedrum, has been cooking with gas lately for stellar release on Hotflush Recordings (with Praveen, as Sepalcure) and with this exceptional LP for LuckyMe (home of Mike Slott, HudMo, Rustie). Not confined to any simple genre classifications, 'Many Faces' is an unhinged exploration of synth and bass.
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Compilation released 12-07-2010 on Tectonic
Bristol-based studio and publishing company Multiverse is the city's first address in all things dubstep related, with brilliant labels like Tectonic, Kapsize, and Caravan under its wing. 'Dark Matter' is an essential guide to the Bristol scene, featuring Joker, Pinch, October and many more.
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EP released 16-07-2010 on !K7
Kode9 continues his recent explorations of funky house with this exclusive single for K7!. Save the echoing rave sirens, Spaceape's vocals, and its slightly stumbling groove, 'You Don't Wash' could easily pass as a German deep house production - albeit a very good one!
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FaltyDL on a future garage tip for Planet Mu: Three massive cuts combining deep house vibes with bleepy basslines, early jungle cues, and soulful vocals on 'My Friends Will Always Say...'. Big release.
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Bristol's Peverelist drops his follow-up release to his acclaimed album, 'Jarvik Mindstate', which arrived late last year on his Punch Drunk label. His new single sees Pev reaching further into his junglist roots, conjuring up a pair of sparse, percussion-driven, instrumental tracks. Recommended.
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The second volume of remixes for Jahcoozi's recent album has an all-star assembly of producers revamping their 'Barefoot Dub' and 'Read The Books' originals: Vienna's Stereotyp, London's Ikonika, and last but in no way least, Ramadanman, who contributes an instrumental as well. Strong stuff.
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This masked London-based producer, who was recently outed as nu-jazz, breaks producer Aaron Jerome, has been raising a ruckus lately under his new pseudonym, SBTRKT. Ramp reveals a collaborative release with vocalist Sampha, 'Break Off', which has the future garage / UK bass evangelists hot and bothered.
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Since appearing on the scene in 2006, SpectraSoul have succeeded in re-contextualizing the classic sounds of DNB, which continues to be their hallmark achievement. dBridge (Autonomic, Exit) contributes his sultry vocals to the brooding 'Glimpse'.
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'What Makes You So Special' is Roof Light's follow-up EP to last month's album on Highpoint Lowlife, 'Kirkwood Gaps'. The latter focused on the home-listening experience, while the former exerts considerably more dancefloor pressure of the UK Garage variety - definitely one to keep an eye out for!
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Brooklyn production talents, Machinedrum and Praveen, join forces as Sepalcure finding inspiration in recent developments in UK Bass/Garage/Dubstep. Their first efforts yielded stunning results that got the attention of Hotflush Recordings, who quickly snapped up the duo for the EP, 'Love Pressure'. Impressive.
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Cloak & Dagger is 27-year old US-born, Tokyo resident, Evan Gach. Producing d'n'b for a number of years, Evan now finds himself experimenting with lower tempos, while still wearing baring shades of his junglist roots, as displayed on this release on Bristol's Immerse Records, 'Crimewaves' b/w 'In The Cut'.
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Maxi-Single released 19-07-2010 on Hyperdub
Ill Blu has been hustling UK Funky hard in the underground for quite some time, getting support on pirate radio and clubs, as wells as from big names like Marcus Nasty and Kode9. Unless you count their exclusive CDRs sold only direct to DJs, 'Bellion / Dragon Pop' on Hyperdub is their first official release.
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Being a label artist on Apple Pips and occasional collaborator with Appleblim, Alex Storey has been getting a well-earned amount of attention for his prolific, high-quality output as Al Tourettes. Here he contributes 2 hard-edged, electro-tinged steppers for the If Symptoms Persist imprint.
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ELECTRONICA / AMBIENT ESSENTIALS
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Barely over three months since their 'Oversteps' album, one can infer possibly that the 10-track 'Move Of Ten' is a continuation or epilogue, of sorts. However, 'Move Of Ten' is able to stand on it's own with dubstep-inspired tracks like 'pce freeze 2.8i' instantly demanding attention. Must have, of course.
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First album release on one of the most exciting labels around at the moment, and as expected, it is a real gem. ASC delivers his very own definition of drum & bass / dub-step / techno hybrids, taking you on long journey into unknown sonic territories. Highly recommended!
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After three years Scott Edwards returns to Border Community with the programmatically titled 'Poppy EP'. Of course it wouldn't be Border Community if its four tracks weren't of the left-field electronica techno pop kind. Fat synths, classic beats, nice EP.
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Album released 28-06-2010 on Infiné
The mesmerizing album debut of anonymous producer Arandel, 'In D' consist of ten tracks ranging from minimalist techno to cosmic krautrock and neo-classical ambiences, all composed in the key of D and constructed using only self-recorded sounds. A concept album it may be, but one that's a joy to listen to.
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Ex-Von Spar member Thomas Mahmoud and Gerald Mandl of Mediengruppe Telekommander present 'Tannhäuser Sterben & das Tod' - a collection of four experimental music short films. Also available are an audio-only version and a remix single featuring Zero Cash.
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Compilation released 19-07-2010 on LOaF
The seventh volume in LoAF's highly vrecommended Explorer's Club series features the talents of Hauscka & Stefan Schneider, Nils Frahm and Johann Johannsson: Three pieces of beautiful piano-neo-classic / electronica crossover, perfect for those chilled out moments. Lush.
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The multi-disciplined mind of Christopher Willits issues forth his second album for Ghostly International. Weaving a sophisticated palette of acoustic/organic elements into subtle melodies and lush ambient atmospheres, Willits' envelopes the listener into a bold and imaginative journey.
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After last months lush synth works by Emeralds and Oneohtrix Point Never, Editions Mego returns to more abstract grounds with Australian sound artist Robin Fox. 12 tracks of exquisitely mutilated machine sounds for the discerning listener.
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Album released 30-07-2010 on MiG
Klaus Schulze is without a doubt one of the most influential figures in contemporary electronic music and his pioneering synth works are finally due for digital reissue. Vol. 7 compiles well over 3 hours of advanced ambient, electronica, and drifting cosmic pieces. Essential music.
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ALTERNATIVE / POP / DISCO ESSENTIALS
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Long gone are the days of Martina Toplay-Bird lending her spectacular voice to Tricky's dystopian trip-hop visions. With 'Some Place Simple', Topley-Bird finds her natural home on Honest Jon's presenting an album of finely grained indie-pop. Highly recommended summer listening.
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Feindrehstar are one of the hottest German bands at the moment, a 7-piece live band playing soul, hip-hop, jazz and deep house music. This might sound a bit random, but on their debut album 'Vulgarians Knights' it's a highly convincing mix. Definitely give this one a listen, and go see the guys live if you can.
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Hugo Capablanca (Discos Capablanca) and David Ducaruge (Sex In Dallas) pay homage to the disco era: Sampling glam rock and revamping 'Bananasmania' by Roots, this is one of the finest and most knowledgeable neo-disco productions in recent years. Get!
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Album released 16-07-2010 on BBE
Mind-blowing album that straddles between Soul, Hip-Hop, Funk and pop - hence dissolving all genre boundaries. After releasing just three EPs the trio from New Zealand shows its enormous talent in delivering an all in all coherent and harmonious album. Definitely an act to keep an eye on!
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Compilation released 02-07-2010 on Verve
South African trumpet icon Hugh Masekela receives a well deserved retrospective mainly focusing on his works from the 60ies and 70ies. Also comes with a superfine remix by Moritz von Oswald taking the original even further. Deadly combination and absolutely essential.
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Jamie Lidell wants to be our telephone, and who are we to deny him this small favour. Bill Youngman and Tiga are equally happy to oblige, contributing two fine electro-funking remixes, fit to cause havoc on any freestyling dancefloors around. Recommended.
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Maxi-Single released 23-07-2010 on Carpark
Bright young talent Toro Y Moi follows up his hugely acclaimed album 'Causers Of This' with his new single, 'Leave Everywhere', a grungy piece of 60s style pop. Surprising yet accomplished and intriguing, this is backed by the instrumental 'First Date'. Check.
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Siriusmo drops his second EP on Modeselektor's Monkeytown label, and once again it's an eclectic mix of synthie-disco flavours, g-funk riffs, and ravey breaks across the release's five tracks. Well plastered!
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The latest member of the Shitkatapult family is Pan/Tone's Sheldon Thompson, creating intriguing techno-pop under his Sid Le Rock alias. The albums melancholy songs like 'Still Life' are our faves, but the sad electronica feel of 'Tout Va Bien' is recommendable throughout.
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Den Haan hail from Glasgow, but their hearts beat for Italy, and, as their name suggest, the Netherlands, where people like i-F and Alden Tyrell have originally fattened Italian disco with modern sounds and production. Four hi-energy anthems, cheesy, yes, but lovingly executed and highly effective.
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Originally recorded in 1981 for their own label, Jelly Records, 'Jive Baby...' was saved from falling into musical oblivion first by Thurston Moore (who allegedly played the track 10 times in a row in a DJ set) and then by Trunk Records, who reissues its first recording from the 80's. Seriously jiving disco!
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Another sweet slice of Norwegian disco from DiskJokke and Prins Thomas, who delivers a great club-ready 'Diskomiks' of 1987, leaving the cosmic escapades to DiskJokke this time, and his trippy 'Takt Raver'. Hamburg housers Ost & Kjex contribute a mix of 'Interpolations' as well. Recommended.
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EP released 18-07-2010 on Rekids
Rekids' disco master Toby Tobias is back with a more than solid EP. Title song 'You Know It's Something' features subtle vocals by Marcus Marr along lush synth riffs, and four more tracks explore diverse disco house moods. Featuring Kathy Diamond on 'A Little Bit More'.
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Norwegian freestylers Jaga Jazzist's recent album get's treated to some nice remixes courtesy of Ninja Tune: Prins Thomas might be the most prominent contributor, delivering one of his famous 'Diskomikses', but check out the other versions as well by Skwee artist Sprutbass, FINAL and Cuckoo.
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