Hot on the heels of their ARIA-nominated debut The Stranger in the Mirror, Australia's Jake Mason Trio return with their highly anticipated second album The Modern Ark. Anchored by Jake Mason (Hammond organ), James Sherlock (guitar) and Danny Fischer (drums), the Trio draw from the golden age of organ jazz (Jimmy Smith, McDuff, McGriff) while carving a distinct modern voice. Recorded in Melbourne with vintage gear, the album captures the fire and finesse of a band with over 30 years' shared history. Standout features include Grammy-winning vocalist Kurt Elling on the cinematic title track The Modern Ark and Australian icon Kate Ceberano on the soul-jazz ballad Stop Searching For Love.

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With two deeply cherished compilations already in the bag, Luke Una steps up for the third volume in his É Soul Cultura series on Mr Bongo. A love letter to the dancefloor and its power to unite people from all corners of society amid growing division and extremist politics. Genre-spanning in nature, the 15 tracks travel between cosmic soul, boogie, proto-house, slo-mo technoid grooves, drum machine afro, astral bass-bugging futurism, jazz funk, dance, and disco. Each having the ability to move the body as much as the heart.

From his formative years in Sheffield to co-founding Manchester’s much-fabled Electric Chair with Justin Crawford, through to helming the iconic LGBTQ institutions of Homoelectric / Homobloc, Luke has spent 40 years immersed in dance music. His latest outlet, É Soul Cultura, has grown from a label to a globe-spanning events series with Luke holding residencies and embarking on tours across the world from Japan and Australia to America and Europe.

“For me, the dancefloor was never about a one-dimensional, thudding, 130 BPM beat only. It's a much more dynamic, broader vision than that. I cut my teeth in an era where a 100 BPM record had as much impact, excitement, and energy as a 134 BPM dancefloor jazz funk or techno record”, Luke mentions. É Soul Cultura Volume 3 is the perfect embodiment of that notion: “It’s about four decades in the trenches playing dance music, the late-night afters, the shebeens, the basements, warehouse parties, the eight-hour journeys in East London, through to festival sets at Houghton and We Out Here. It’s music unconstrained by genre or tempo and more about making your body move”.

But this isn’t simply a collection of disparate dance tracks; they carry meaning and soul. “It’s less about escapism, more about reconnection. My experience of post-covid has been the coming together of all the clans in various clubs and gatherings. A reaction to a very toxic world out there, where the aggro rhythms of division have sought to divide us, and people don't meet as often. The coming back together face-to-face in clubs has encouraged a real love in the air, there's a real togetherness and collective spirit”.

Opening up the compilation is a track that channels that very message, the transcendental, soul-rousing Harris & Orr ‘Spread Love’. Joining the dots from there, to the low-slung deep house closer of Fatdog ‘Remember’, you’ll find electronic drum machine Nigerian funk, sitting side by side with dancefloor Cape Verdean brilliance, a post-punk cover of Fela Kuti, rubbing shoulders with cosmic electro, and an Una-championed, 8-minute, kickless DJ Harvey remix. There’s jazz funk in various guises moving from boogie synth to astral travelling, slo-mo acidic raw techno, and a ‘79 soul stepper, alongside swirling percussive Italo disco and tribal-charged house. All infused with an innate ability to bring people together.

As society becomes increasingly fractured, É Soul Cultura Volume 3’s message is more than movement. It’s about dance music’s power to unify people from all walks of life and break down the barriers that divide us.

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limited edition 7" for Valentines day 2026..

Born in the Netherlands and raised in Aruba, Esmeralda was embedded in the Dutch-Caribbean island’s vibrant music scene from an early age, first as a teenage dancer, then as a singer with latin band Los Bravos. She was soon a fixture of the local circuit, singing in hotels, bars, and carnival parades, before setting off on a solo career. Recorded in the late 80s and early 90s with a cadre of friends and collaborators both at home and in New York City, her debut album, All My Love 4 U, pulled together her wide-ranging influences into a sun-soaked, genre-blurring statement.

The album was a success, even landing a couple hits at NYC pop station Z100, but ultimately the momentum was short-lived. After being stiffed by her record label and with a child on the way, Esmeralda retired from music in 1998. Though she reemerged in 2010 with her own radio show on Aruba’s 98.8 Cool FM, and later returned to the stage in 2014, her debut CD faded quietly into obscurity.

Now three decades after its release, listening to “All My Love 4 U” feels like opening a time capsule that perfectly captures the optimistic, globalized essence of the early 90s with impressive versatility. Sultry balearic jams, uptempo dancefloor house, soca, breakbeat-forward new jack, and hip-hop all find a groove here, colliding with a boundlessly joyful and cheeky energy.

This 7” version includes the record’s two hottest hits, plus a digital download for the whole deal. On the A-Side, “Extasy” conjures images of an open air beach club, complete with the setting sun and a cocktail in hand. On the flip, it’s “Friends”, an endlessly re-playable late-night jam up there with the best of them. All My ?? 4 U !

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Tracklisting
A1 Lewis Fautzi - Zona Neutra
A2 Lewis Fautzi - Reflexo Inverso
B1 Lewis Fautzi - Zero Absoluto
B2 Lewis Fautzi - 50.0 Hz

Sales Note
The latest Hayes release introduces Lewis Fautzi to the label with a body of work that aligns naturally with the label's vision. The EP showcases his modern, cerebral take on the genre whilst firmly rooted in contemporary club culture.

Sicherheits- und Herstellerinformationen / safety and manufacturer info (GPSR)
WAS - Word and Sound Medien GmbH
Liebigstrasse 2-20
DE - 22113 Hamburg
Germany
Contact: [email protected]More