Funky Friday Round-Up

Another look at what's fresh and hot in the world of NuFunk - this week with an EP from Trotter, a free album from Shy Beatz and a hot slice of sunshine from DJ Peabird.

DJ Peabird - Monsterfunk

'Monsterfunk' from DJ Peabird presents three tracks of raw soulful mid-tempo funk. It's also another hot contender for the 'label art of the year' award.

The first track 'Cool' slinks along with some heavy bass under tasty horns and wicked laid-back vocal snippets.

'Monsterfunk' and 'Oldskool' complete the package, the former reminds me of a 90s hip-hop beat with some fly sample material, but the latter really takes the EP in a new direction, mixing early Chicago house vibes with downtempo beats and a faintly acidic bass.

Three summery, goodvibe tracks, offering something a bit different as we head into outdoor party season.

Go here to buy your copy.

Trotter - Back In Time

 Staying on a sun-drenched tip - 'Back In Time', from Royal Soul head-honcho Trotter, is a four-tracker (including two versions of its title track) which is sure to provide the sound of summer any time you put it on.

Outstanding tune for me is 'Sunshine' which has enough Balieric vibes, latin percussion and chilled disco touches to set any dancefloor swaying. A great beach party set-starter.

'Back In Time' ups the tempo a bit, and toughens the beats, but keeps the relentless disco flourishes. The bass and rhodes are the stars of this track, combining to create a deeply funky groove that never lets up.

Finally, 'Keep On' takes you on a 70s cop-car chase through downtown Sao Paulo as wicked synths sweep across the tight bassline and dusty vocal samples push the vibe along.

A seriously musical, funky EP. Listen to the preview track on the player below and buy it here.

Trotter - Back In Time ( TEASER ) by Trotter

Shy Beatz - Night Window Shoplifting

And finally a wicked free hip-hop joint from Shy Beatz. Mad funky beats and positive, catchy lyrics combine to fabulous effect on this album, which is also refreshingly free from unnecessary gangster posturing.

There's some excellent scratching, deep basses and raw funky production on 'Night Window Shoplifting' - so do yourself a favour, go here to grab it. It's free, gratis, it costs exactly no pence. You'd be mad not to.

Until next time, keep the promos, links and previews of your new releases coming to blog@nufunk.net