The Owl

Review: More good value goodness from the Editorial label, one of the few re-edit focused outfits that manage to retain a high level of consistency. The Funk District kicks things off with a fine re-arrangement of an organ and electric piano-focused chunk of sweaty dancefloor soul ("An Evening With El Diablo"), before Matt Hughes gets busy with some elastic slap bass on flash-fried disco-funk revision "Get Down". Elsewhere, Label regulars Ed Wizard & Disco Double Dee dip the tempo on the slow and seductive "Slippin", the Owl stomps his way through the P-funk style heaviness of "Funky Feelin" and Cody Currie offers up a hazy sample-house cut rich in jazzy flourishes and warm electric piano chords.

Review: Given that John Devecchis AKA The Owl decided to call his long-promised debut album Concrete Funk, you'd probably expect something heavy, grey and angular. Yet the music contained within - a mixture of loopy, gently beefed-up revisions and straight re-edits of killer funk, soul, disco and boogie jams - is anything but grey and dull. It's every bit as colourful as his previous EPs, with the many highlights including the bumpin' 'Solar Funk', the squelchy brilliance of Steve Monite re-rub 'Only You Baby', the synth-heavy, Italo-style throb-job 'The Truth', and the soaring, string-drenched disco release of 'Knuckles'. With 12 killer cuts strewn across two slabs of wax, it's a value-for-money collection that contains more high-grade edits than you can shake a proverbial stick at.

Review: A new Cardiology must mean more surefire disco, boogie and funk heat given an artful nudge, nip n' tuck. These four pearlers will be thoroughly useful tools in your utility belt, leading in with the singalong hook of "Only You Baby" which sports a healthy dose of boogie synth work. "You" by way of contrast is a strictly organic funker looped up to perfection. "Got To Dance" takes the tempo down but piles on the groove for this heavy dose of soul, and then "Fever" takes things out on a rolling trip of percussion and classic licks that'll have you sweating in no time at all.

Review: The sweet and funky side of the Constant Sound empire is back for a third bout. Cardiology deals in the finest disco edits and deep house delights for soul-centric groovers, and so it continues with this sure-footed 12" from The Owl. "Soul on Fire" is an appropriate title for the lead track, which keeps the vibe sizzling throughout with a strictly managed dose of Philly disco magic. "Universal Funk" takes things more upfront, but still those drops hold just enough back to keep the track utterly cool. "Funk Town" gets wild on the filter with the core sample hook before dropping some sassy bass and bongo heat at the track's apex. "Concrete Soul" completes the picture with a wistful choice in samples and the nastiest b-line on the whole record.