Super selections and wonderful words by our favourite four-to-the-floor expert, The Insider.

BJ SMITH / DON’T BE CRUEL / NUNORTHERN SOUL

B.J. Smith is back and he’s still cooler than a cold one fresh from the fridge. The NuNorthern Soul mainstay has many talents, from the occasional composition for TV, to being a part-time guitar wizard for Crazy P man James Baron’s JIM project, but after five long years away, this EP proves cooking up escapist horizontal sounds is still his forte. This time Smith goes meta with a cover of a cover that finds him reworking Billy Swan’s take on Elvis’ ‘Don’t Be Cruel‘. With Joe Harvey-Whyte’s pedal steel crying sweet tears, Tamar Osborn’s flute floating like incense smoke, and Smith’s own hazy vocals, this Balearic-Americana hybrid feels like Elvis got lost at Café del Mar – and loved it.

JIMENA ANGEL / AGUACERO / PARTYFINE

Winter might be starting to bite – long nights, creeping darkness, shit weather – but you can choose to keep it all at bay with Jimena Angel’s new album, Aguacero. It’s a sun-soaked, globe-trotting love letter that taps into cumbia, Latin electronica, tropical disco and dub, and churns all that up into one irresistible, heart-thumping mix. Bogotá-born, Grammy-nominated and Colombian-rock veteran Angel spins melodies with ease – sometimes playful, sometimes smouldering, always transformative. ‘Telepatía’ kicks off with bubbly highlife horns, ‘Aguacero’ drifts in a lazy reggae haze, while ‘Fuego’ slides into dubby disco bliss. Afro house shimmer meets carnival energy on ‘Selflove’ while ‘Llego La Luz’, and the closing ‘Adios’ ache with soul. The whole record flows freely and leaves your heart warm and your body ready to move. 

CHICAGO BOOGIE VOLUME 4 / STAR CREATURE

Chicago’s Boogie Munster Crew returns with a funk-laden treasure trove unearthed by Star Creature. Four rare Windy City boogie gems, all freshly remastered and DJ-primed to see the light for the first time here. Tiger Jack’s elusive punk-funk bopper ‘Let’s Bounce‘ kicks off the A-side and has been patched together from the record’s long-lost mix, so sounds like a knackered reel-to-reel that keeps shifting almost imperceptibly out of time. Side A also features a buttery smooth soul and boogie blend from Soul Invaders but side B slams with Motherfox’s floor-filling ‘Fallen Into Love‘ and Pyramid Plus’ vocoded, spacey ‘Comin At Ya‘ is a lovestruck classic. Ready those hips, they’re going to be busy once you bang this one on the deck. 

NATE 08 / TWENTY SEVEN / NEEDWANT

Mumbai’s groove wizard NATE08 knows how to serve up a velvet-gloved punch, as evidenced by his sophomore album. Three years after his last, Nathan Thomas cranks R&B, deep house and funk into a hypnotic, sun-soaked cocktail, including some lush collabs with Dishaan, Mallika, Dappest and more. From the dreamy croon of ‘You’re The Reason‘ to the golden-hour shimmer of ‘Call Me Back‘ this cuddly and intimate album rides basslines that melt into your soul while still slapping on the floor. If he hasn’t already, Twenty Seven proves NATE08 is set to fully break out of the Mumbai underground and on to the global stage with heart and style in full supply. 

ECHOES FROM CHERI RECORDS / MILES AWAY

Miles Away Records have got a real hidden gem here that celebrates a tiny New Jersey label that quietly reshaped music history. Founded in 1974 by Boo Frazier, Cheri released only 11 records, but each one packed a punch and influenced legends from MF Doom to Tom Moulton. This compilation is packed with soul and gospel classics from plenty of names we must admit we didn’t know, but now need to know more about. Together they show how a small label left a giant footprint while supplying you with plenty of unknown bangers like Roslyn & Charles‘ flaming soul burner ‘Come Go With Me‘ and their funky, twisted stepper ‘Told To Tell You’.

LAKESHOUSE / OM VERDA MI / PAPER RECORDINGS

Don’t let the artwork here fool you: this is not miserablist music for grayscale autumnal days. It’s bright, uplifting disco-house with rich instrumentation and a vibe that suggests Oslo collective Lakeshouse doesn’t take itself too seriously. Listen close enough to these upbeat delights and you’ll hear everything from Scandi-pop to deep house, Italo to classical in the proper melodies and adventurous rhythms. Next to the live, energetic jams are moments of intimacy and calm that give you a chance to catch your breath and daydream before taking off on choppy drums and pixelated melodies once more. 

BAD COLOURS  / PROMISE / BASTARD JAZZ

Bad Colours’ latest record is like stepping into a club in his native Brooklyn that only exists in your dreams. It’s part sweaty dancefloor, part introspective headphone therapy, fully good. House, UK garage, proto-techno and soul all get smudged together into tracks that groove effortlessly. The title track shimmers with harp and ghostly vocals, ‘We Never Choose’ flips between rap and silky soul and ‘Moment of Silence’ hits like a late-night heart-to-heart. Ninjasonik bring chaotic Brooklyn energy on ‘Freaks’, while closer ‘Home’ wraps it all in piano-led intimacy. Smart and irresistible, Promise is a world you want to belong to. 

FCL / CAN WE TRY REMIXES / FREERANGE RECORDS

Belgium’s finest house duo San Soda & Red D aka FCL make tunes that are smoother than a double espresso and hit with more punch. Their 2014 gem ‘Can We Try‘ is a deep, soul-soaked anthem of love and longing and now it’s got the deluxe remaster treatment. Lady Linn’s vocals still sound like a soft, 3AM heartbreak, and the fresh remixes bring new perspective for 2025: Jimpster delivers jazzed-up deep-house class, Ben Hixon gets gritty with analogue swagger and Deetron detonates a proper peak-time stormer. All brilliantly effective in different ways. 

RADIC THE MYTH / FANTASIA / VIBE ME TO THE MOON

Vibe Me To the Moon is on a real roll right now. The US-based label has carried on a rich, deep house tradition started Stateside with greats like Ron Trent and updated it for now with contemporary artists from all over the globe. Enter South African Radic The Myth with this beautiful brace of Afro-leaning sumptuousness. ‘Fantasia‘ is unhurried and whimsical, which means you’re left to let your mind wander amongst airy melodies and vocal whispers that tickle your inner ear. ‘She Super Glued My Lips‘ sinks even lower with dusty, grainy, dubby drums swaggering gently to and fro beneath diffuse chords. Magic. 

FOUK / GET IT DONE / FREERANGE RECORDINGS

Dutch duo Fouk are a great fit for Freerange given their knack for groove, melody and tasteful but floor-filling magic. The title track here calls on some euphoric piano house goodness and peppers the driving beat until you fully submit. ‘Floating‘ is more rough and raw with its drum funk and dubby low ends, while the club mix of ‘Neon Drift‘ dives into synth-heavy hypnotica without losing that infectious Fouk swing. The ‘First Light Mix’ chills things out with warm pads and hazy percussion that make it perfect for sunrise reflection. This EP is musical, functional and charming all at once – a fine trick to pull off. 

T. MARKAKIS / LITTLE PRINCE / VIBE ME TO THE MOON

Yep, this is a second appearance in this latest round up from Vibe Me To The Moon, but listen to these two gems from Greek mainstay T. Markakis and tell us we’re wrong! He’s a veteran with a deep understanding of the fundamentals and the skill to add to that with his own meaningful melodies. ‘Little Prince‘ is an oasis of calm in an over stimulated world. The smudged chords are painterly in their deployment while occasional vocals add the soulful hook. ‘Starlight‘ could be on Star Creature, such is its authentic jazz-funk loveliness, laid back feel, while its dreamy melodies are designed for late night dreaming. Sublime. 

YUU UDAGAWA / URBAN PHYSICALITY / RAZOR-N-TAPE

Tokyo-based Yuu Udagawa appeared on a Razor-N-Tape compilation last year and made such an impression she is now back with a full solo EP. Her house style is spiritual in the same sort of fashion as Fred P but has more light in the melodies. ‘In Your Eyes‘ is widescreen and sumptuous with jazzy patterns twinkling and percussion tinkling. ‘Recollection‘ rides on humid, soulful drums with a subtle shuffle and ‘Urban Physicality‘ gets more dense and textured with layer upon layer of detuned keys, muffled voices, Rhodes jams and more, all tapping into the classic Body and Soul style. Takuya Matsumoto drops a fine remix to complete this cultured package.