I Know There's Funk In Space – by Stealth Tactic
This is a proper odyssey across the full spectrum of Funk. You can pretty much guarantee that all bases are covered here. We’ve got the classics like James Brown, Marvin Gaye, Al Green, Aretha Franklin, Ike & Tina Turner, Stevie Wonder, Prince, Nina Simone and many more. However, you won’t have heard of most of the artists before unless you enjoy digging in the crates to uncover lost gems. Anyone can bust out an anthem to get the party started but it’s those obscure tracks that often pack a harder punch. Our journey starts off with the more traditional straight-up funk, rare groove and disco, graduating to newer modern cuts, then blasts off into funky house and techno and ends back where we started. It’s almost twelve hours of pulling a serious Funk-face. Nasty!
Monolink’s live sets are well worth checking out. His blend of emotional vocal-driven dance music – combining synths with organic instruments – hits straight to the heart. His first album “Amniotic” is an absolute masterclass of melancholy and melody. The songs take on a new dimension when he hands them off to other producers to remix. Ben Böhmer’s rework of Father Ocean is such a blissful sorrowful tearjerker. It gets me every time. I have to be careful not to listen to it in public. There’s electric joy behind it though, bittersweet beauty. Black Hole is another brilliant collaboration with Ben and that just sucks you right in. It’s a right banger too.
Listen: Sirens (Patrice Bäumel Remix), Under Darkening Skies.
Spanning the genres of jazz, funk, soul, disco, blues, reggae, hip-hop, dance and latin, Quantic delivers a stupendous amount of content to get lost in. With one eye looking forward and the other looking back, his style sounds both futuristic and retro. There are plenty of novel sounds to please the eardrums with a sense of familiarity. The production quality is second to none and his tracks glisten and glimmer with a sprinkling of magic stardust. Whilst he isn’t well known amongst the masses, music aficionados will have come across his path. It’s a thing of beauty to find a true master at work, hidden behind the scenes, creating for the love of it and executing with flair.
Freaky jazz pioneer will get you shouting “Ho!” – in a good way. His luscious vocals go down smooth.
Listen: Them Changes.
Belgian artiste with a flair for the funk. His simple, effective basslines really get the groove going.
Listen: Ostinato Bass.
Blasting off into the stratosphere boldly going where no funk has gone before. Delicious.
Listen: Walk Into Space – Part I & II
Driving latin-fused funk beats that have us dancing across the floor like Speedy Gonzales on meth. Crackin’.
Listen: Work It Out.