SHUYA OKINO 黑胶唱片和CD

Review: Defected's disco-minded Glitterbox offshoot has decided to dip a toe into the choppy waters (sorry) of the re-edit scene. The man at the control is fun-time rework specialist Dr Packer, an Australian scalpel specialist who has spent the last few years contributing tidy edits to a variety of well-regarded labels. First, he adds a little late '80s house shuffle to a soul-fired, boogie-era disco classic, before turning the equally familiar "Still in Love" into a bouncy, club-ready chunk of disco-house full of swirling strings and Chic-style guitars. On the flip the good doctor gets his hands a much-sampled electrofunk workout, retaining the drum delays while adding a touch of nu-disco swagger, before brilliantly dubbing out and tooling up the synth-heavy swagger of 1985 hit "I'll Be Good".

Review: ***B-STOCK: Record has very light surface marks/scratches, but otherwise in perfect working condition***


Defected's disco-minded Glitterbox offshoot has decided to dip a toe into the choppy waters (sorry) of the re-edit scene. The man at the control is fun-time rework specialist Dr Packer, an Australian scalpel specialist who has spent the last few years contributing tidy edits to a variety of well-regarded labels. First, he adds a little late '80s house shuffle to a soul-fired, boogie-era disco classic, before turning the equally familiar "Still in Love" into a bouncy, club-ready chunk of disco-house full of swirling strings and Chic-style guitars. On the flip the good doctor gets his hands a much-sampled electrofunk workout, retaining the drum delays while adding a touch of nu-disco swagger, before brilliantly dubbing out and tooling up the synth-heavy swagger of 1985 hit "I'll Be Good".

Review: Deep house producer Shuya Okino shows his class once more on another tasteful outing, this time via the Extra Freedom/Village Again labels out of Japan. For this one he revisits his 2011 album Destiny which was made with help from the Japanese funk, boogie and jazz-funk outfit Root Soul and replays and remakes the tunes. The originals become more disco-leaning and horn lead jams here with Okino's warm, rubbery basslines, P-funk synths, loose live beats and cute keys. The result is an album that sounds like Earth, Wind & Fire making modern soul and it will improve your life no end.

Review: Second time around for Kyoto Jazz Massive man Shuya Okino's "Still in Love", a swelling, string-drenched slab of life-affirming disco-soul, featuring the fine vocals of sometime Fertile Ground chanteuse Navasha Daya. This version is not the same as the epic - and now insanely in-demand - original 2011 version, which came out on legendary Japanese label Especial. This time round, it's been given the seven-inch edit treatment by storied scalpel fiend Ryuhei The Man. His chops, nips and tucks are naturally well-judged, allowing the track's chunky, DJ-friendly drum breaks a chance to do their thing before dropping in Daya's vocal and Okino's stirring strings. It's a suitably respectful and on-point edit, as is the rework of original B-side "Look Ahead" featured on the flip.

Review: The At Home Sound label welcomes the mightily talented Shuya Okino back for another special 7" release after the excellent "Summer Love" release earlier this year. Okino is best known as one half of Kyoto Jazz Massive with his brother Yoshihiro, but this release focuses on his solo productions, and more specifically tasteful covers of all time classic disco and funk gems. First up is a take on Narada Michael Walden's buttery groover "Give Your Love A Chance", but our pick is the flip side version of Don Blackman's "Holding You, Loving You", which brings a tasteful modern RnB edge to the vintage 80s jam.

Review: Shuya Okino and Pirahnahead, two Japanese producers of soulful house and jazz, present the first of a bundle of new releases, 'Shine'. A subsequent two versions of the eponymous track, which flaunt the lilting vocals of the divine Diviniti, hear a driving yet heavenly song play out over two sides, with its echoic calls of "the sun will rise..." calling out over an impressive instrumental dawn chorus of bass and strings.

Review: Complementing the fresh single 'Shine', released at the very same time, 'Tokyo Crossover Night 2023' is a compilation album by various artists selected by Shuya Okino, esteemed Japanese disco and broken beat DJ/producer. Kyoto Jazz Sextet, DJ Kawasaki, J.A.M and Shuya Okino himself all crop up on this veritable razzmatazzer, amounting to yet another worthy contribution to the label Village Again Japan, and the Tokyo crossover scene they occupy at large.

Review: To mark his Shibuya club space, The Room, turning 30, Kyoto Jazz Massive man Shuya Okino has put together this celebratory compilation. In keeping with his love of jazz-dance, soul and Latin flavours, what's on offer is vibrant, percussive and life-affirming in the extreme, with standouts including the brilliant Batacuda madness of 'Ortega' by Yosuke Tominaga, the Clavinet-heavy disco-funk shuffle of Miomatic's 'Power of Light', the spiritually enriching (and sonically soaring) nu-jazz brilliance of Masa Collective's Valerie Etienne and Rob Gallagher hook-up 'Love Is Everywhere' (as remixed by Quasimode and then re-edited by DJ Kawasaki), and the Latin soul-jazz of Mano Arriba. Throw in a couple of quality Kyoto Jazz Massive cuts (including their superb cover of Pharoah Sanders' 'You Gotta Have Freedom') and you have a seriously good compilation.