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Suddenly it is more than one week into August and one realizes that summer is way too short. The evenings are once again chilly and it is necessary to bring a sweater or a jacket into the night. When I type this I can hear the rain on my roof top. From the open window the smells of the rain soaked city drifts into the room. Thick fragrances from a nearby kitchen mixes with damp concrete and asphalt.

I have been working the major part of the summer months and spent most the nights listening to music and these are the records that has been on my decks the past six weeks.

I will start with the most recent purchase, the stunning new 12" from Antonio.

ANTONIO
Azande "Africa Nueva"/Kieleeks Groove/Rhumba en Paradiso
(Tribal Winds 1999)
A new 12" from Antonio Ocasio! I recently found his last release off his own label Tribal Winds, the awesome Happy, Joyous and Free and I though it might be a long while before we would hear anything more from this talented Puerto Rican from South Bronx, New York. Last Saturday when I spent most of the afternoon in record shops I was pleasantly surprised to find Antonios new 12" in the racks.

Azande opens with a wall of percussions, bongos, Haitian drums, congas, timbales, a Peruvian flute sample and storming synth chords. The song builds on congas and a deep b-line. The long track is progressing with breaks of steel drums, guitars and the ever present percussion patterns. Azande is very cinematic, like the music by Ennio Morricone. Another name that comes to mind is of course Curtis Mayfield who also explored the possibilities of rhythms and spirituality in his music. Check for instance Mayfieldīs classic concert recording Curtis/Live in New York 1971 with a small band.

In a letter Antonio explains that his biggest influence has been David Mancuso and The Loft back in the mid-seventies. Mancusoīs way of playing music that other people were not playing have inspired Antonio to develop a strong belief to create and play the "flip side" of his musical vision. The taste for the different version of a song is also apparent in Antonioīs own music. It is easy to find numerous of influences in Antonioīs music, but there is also a distinct different flavor in it, which makes his music so rewarding and inspiring. It is a rare quality among musicians to be able to merge all influences and inspirations into something new, rather than just make a copy of music from the past and Antonio is one of the truly gifted in dance music. Antonioīs music is much more than thunderous dance music pleasing a Saturday night crowd, his music is also intricate enough for close listening in the Walkman.

Antonio is making spiritually based music with an ambition to evoke the music lover and dancer to feel and think instead of simply jumping - to create a spirit in which the people on the dance floor closes their eyes and allows themselves to dance and move in which ever way the music makes them react.

At first hearing the mid tempo of Azande makes it an excellent track for the bar or the chill out room. But when I saw how excellent it worked at sunset yesterday, when the crowd was slow dancing with their eyes closed, I realized that Antonio is very near perfection of his musical vision. Azande is a phenomenal track and a strong contender for this yearīs single of the year!

The second song Kieleeks Groove is uptempo with fast beats aiming directly at the dance floor. The title is funny; Kieeleks Groove sounds like Swedish, and it would mean something like "Lovesī Groove" in translation. Definitely a must buy!

CYMANDE
The Message/Brothers On The Slide/Dove/Bra
(Sequel)
Four funk classics from Cymande. Spectacular deep funk from 1972. For the heads who loved Masters At Workīs tribute to Fela Kuti on Expensive.

COMMON NATURE
Canīt You See The Sunshine Through The Rain?
(Guidance Records)
Common Nature is giving us the bass treatment. Huge bass lines and good vocals on this gem from Guidance records. Quality house music. Original Mix is the best and Deeper Dub Mix is the bass. Outstanding music.

ZIMPALA
Grand Habakuk
(Fantomas Records)
Cinematic house music from France. With a just a touch of easy listening music this one comes out like the sound track to one of those movies from the mid sixties when the hero is driving a fast car on a meandering road in southern France or Monaco. Nice music for a day on the beach.

ALL GOOD FUNK ALLIANCE
Sol En La Noche/Last Jam at 1450/A Song Called Hey/Disco Hash
(Maxi Records)
This is a strange record. Funky, funky and funky like nothing I ever heard before. The label says it all: 4-cut ep of Latin house disco tracks & lounge grooves. All tracks are good. I think the All Good Funk Alliance Crew is from France. The only thing I know for certain about this record is that it is funky. A very good record!

PAUL HUNTER
Red Hook Project
(Guidance Records)
Paul Hunter of Deep Sensation fame, (donīt miss Somehow, Somewhere (There is a soul heaven)), has launched a jazz fusion project.

Soothing. Jazzy house for the small hours, but it is more like jazz than house, and still it is 4/4 music so it can not be jazz. It is house music that sounds like jazz, but so what? Donīt sleep on this one.