Following up on the first reissue of Nathaniel X Project's seminal E.P. on Music Station, slow to speak's CORE is back with its second from the New Jersey garage/underground label: Cherie Lee's "Love Me Or Leave Me," originally release in 1995. A perfect example of the early to mid 90's jazz-chord driven, bass-heavy and ingenious, sample-rooted funk, "Love Me Or Leave Me" sounds like the lost Mood II Swing D.A.T. that never was, a combination of Smack Productions style North Jersey pride with the added razor's edge of downtown Manhattan's (now extinct) grit and thrill, delivered with the smooth swing of that era's titanium-strong formula. The original full-vocal epitomizes the song-rooted, radio-house aesthetic of the time, but head straight to the "Club Dub" for what's had underground heads and deep house obscurists thirsting for over 15 years. Licensed from Music Station and mastered straight from the original D.A.T.'s, CORE presents the full reissue of this genre-defining moment of the formative years. More

Hailing from an era still ripe with optimism, Nate Tinsley's sole EP on Music Station, under the moniker Nathaniel X Project, is one of the dopest 12"s of the 1990's. Embodying the now fading dreams of a whole generation of club children, the veritable political program was everything deep house strove to be: aspirational, socially-involved, visceral dance music with raw sincerity and unashamed soul. "Gotta Get Over," "Free Yourself" and "Get Up" are special, benchmarks eluding to a temporality and circumstance as much as enviable equipment and technique. Deep organ pads, sagely arrangement and supremely swinging rhythm patterns form the backbone of Tinsley's now legendary explications on the eternal truth of the underground club gospel---these songs work, and continue to resonate with us; behind the cliches lies the shining light of a naked, nearly extinct sincerity. Whole folk cultures have been built on these words. Deep house music was one of them. So much more than the "love and happiness" dribble, Nathaniel X Project's EP sounded and spoke confidently for a whole society getting off outside the stale and jaded mainstream, when "underground" meant something more than another pre-ordained lifestyle choice sanctioned under the ever present gods of exchange. Forever under its sway and adherents since its original release, Slow to Speak have licensed and reissued this masterpiece in its full splendor, a pinnacle of the NY/NJ house sound and beyond. "Oh my people, We've gotta get over, Before we go under." If ever we've needed Mr. Tinsley's words and this music, it is now.
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Reflection shows us that our image of happiness is thoroughly colored by the time to which the course of our own existence has assigned us. The kind of happiness that could arouse envy in us exists only in the air we have breathed, among people we could have talked to, women who could have given themselves to us. In other words, our image of happiness is indissolubly bound up with the image of redemption. The same applies to our view of the past, which is the concern of history. The past carries with it a temporal index by which it is referred to redemption. There is a secret agreement between past generations and the present one. Our coming was expected on earth. Like every generation that preceded us, we have been endowed with a weak Messianic power, a power to which the past has a claim. That claim cannot be settled cheaply."
Walter Benjamin Self-determination, greatness, eternity. Make your reality and it becomes you. Put your heart and soul into what you love and others will recognize your sincerity, seek you out and reward your brilliance: from this comes greatness and glory, infinite and undeniable---a fraternity of the eternal. And yet with each successive epoch, the present greatness of our moment, our time, disintegrates and disperse---becomes the mere stepping stone, the quintessential prerequisite to a future heralded anew as "the great epoch of our time." We fight a impossible war for historical cultural supremacy, and we do so blindly and selfishly, determined to achieve that greatness that we know has not yet settled down with one generation immovable throughout time. Secretly we pity these past fetes of culture, assured that ours is the time, the moment of greatness, importance and ultimate historical worth. So our art morphs from what was once practiced at first as a matter matter of self-fulfillment, personal necessity and fraternal interchange & enjoyment to one of vein self-service & epic self-deceipt. When we continue to ignore the fact that art is no longer a social endeavor---that it no longer participates in and affects the real social changes occurring around us, it's vitality inextricably tied to our historical standing---and allow it to remain autonomous from the very real material conditions that, in no small measure, make up the entirety of our current existence, we willingly clear the path to our own irrelevance, soon to be remembered, at very best, as a shimmering piece of antiquity typical of the old world, one that once held a vital and vivacious beauty in it's moment, but nay, no longer, sentenced to the dungeon of the specialists of the past.
But, it is too late...for WE will soon become THEY... More

One of the most evasive titles of the Prescription/Balance catalog, Chez Damier & Stacey Pullen's "Forever Monna" evinces the futurism of the most forward leaning deep house music, purging itself of any relics of disco sentimentality in the sacred quest of that prophecy of infinite, intangible beauty hidden within the patchwork of electronic production. Originally released in apparently minuscule numbers on Serious Grooves in 1993, this remarkable instrumental track was re-released two years later on Ballance, a fine example of these two Detroit pioneers' tireless effort to claim a piece of that brave new world from the unyielding clutches of Techno. Slinky synth loops. eerie chord frames and a brilliantly simple low-end punctuation coalesce in the uncertain, unidentifiable prospect of soul music stripped of any links to the past or present, an inexplicably funky rendition of a deep house slow mounting contagion, infecting fatally the recollections of Parliament/Funkadelic bass-licks and warm organ progressions with a bleak, somehow comforting landscape of fresh alien-esque soul. Previously unattainable without an eighty-dollar plus price-tag, "Forever Monna" joins the growing army of CORE reissues seeking to popularize an often horded and unattainable circle of essential dance music classics, pieces of stunning vision and incomparable genius that should be accessible to more than just a few pockets capable of shelving out the capital for what is rightfully the universal property of electronic musical sublimity. More

Dream states of lust and lucidity, Slow To Speak's latest reissue of house music's halcyon years comes courtesy of Mood II Swing's visionary Lem Springsteen. Originally released on the Eightball sublabel Empire State Records in 1994, these excursionary landmarks saw Springsteen bid farewell to his usual club-saturated exercises in queeny house euphoria for a hallucinatory breach into a secret realm of desire, where the whispers of a long-forgotten hunger meld with the floating synth-work of a true practitioner of the sacred art of club music. This is the soundtrack to the chill-out room of your unconscious's kaleidoscopic sex dream, the sweet synth lines of Springsteen's ritual music still floating in your mind as you awake, alas, a little too soon. Fear not: this Dyonisian masterpiece is once more available thanks to the good spirits at Dope Jams, who remind you, "Whatever the eye sees and covets, let the hand grasp!" Not without asking (or paying) first, of course. More

Brand new music!!! This latest offering of unreleased gems played at Dope Jams' monthly parties features fresh and all-original tracks from some of NY's finest practitioners of electronic music. "Winter Sampler 2013 #1" opens with the jerky, post-punk nodding funk of "Emperor," from the promising and much hyped Brooklyn outfit Beige, an imminent anthem perched somewhere between house, techno and psychedelic pop---and superseding of all of it with its sheer scope, ambition and originality. Nifty, intuitive synth-work, extremely catchy vocals and a piercing lyrical wit filter through torrents of heavy tape delay and speed-dosed drum machines to form the perfect musical lament of post-modern futility. Next, Francis Englehardt, one half of Slow To Speak/Dope Jams, offers up his latest in a spaciously unfurled series of heady and challenging techno experimentations for the post-appocalyptic generation yet to be. "Leveling" forges a clearly singular and solitary aesthetic out of personal loss, pain and ultimate redemption---truly personal music that tests the limits and transcends the simple utility of mere body music. The sampler is rounded off with the first contribution to vinyl from newcomer Genoa, featuring the aptly titled "New Way," a well-freaked peak-time workout that recalls the energy and vibe of early 1990's vocal-sample laden house without getting bogged down in the stone-forming mediocrity of the lost-and-gone medusa's gaze. All and all, an EP of very much forward-leaning music that swells the ranks of groundbreaking new contributions to the field.
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Ethereal, haunted deep house music from beyond the grave, spirit-channeling from the deepest recesses of electro-spiritual obscurity. The Slow To Speak label presents its latest offering---a residual of the holy-era of the NY underground continuum, conjuring the ritual and pomp of the new electronic goth without abandoning its undeniable roots in the techno/deep house story. Dark-matter melodies interlock in an ever off-centering orbit of sparse percussive return, while the distorted exhortations of some wandering intergalactic phantasm whisper menacingly just beneath the surface. Trance-inducing, strangely unsettling and ultimately transcendent---further evidence that electronic music can transport its listeners into the fertile pastures of the sublime like any other high art. CLEAR VINYL Pressing with Japanese Obi. More

2XLP! A culmination of over 35 years combined experience, Classic House Grooves: Dope Jams utilizes the classic deep house sound of America?s cultural epicenter & infuses it with an uncompromising artistic militancy that screams through the mix?s full-forced party-rocking fervor. Featuring seminal work from Kerri Chandler, Mood II Swing & Chris Brann, as well as highlights from the likes of DJ Pierre, Johnny Dangerous and many more, Dope Jams? ode to King Street sets aside the delicate programming niceties of restraint & conservative listening in favor of all out party warfare, setting the correct context for the label?s brilliant output & using the music to it?s maximum effect. Classic House Grooves: Dope Jams is the definitive collection of King Street Sound?s monumental contributions?a testament to what NYC once was, and what it can be once more. More

Curators and residents 'slow to speak' offer here 3 summer scorchers. Drowned in the prophetic purple sweat exuded from the ever chipping concrete walls at the infamous Dope Jams, "Summer Sampler 2012 #1" picks up where the first two installment left off....in a sex induced haze! Summer Sampler 2012 #1" features the never before released slow to speak re-arrangement of Mark Imperial's acid sleaze classic "She Ain't Nuthin But A Hoe," it's re-written form an ode to the tireless work put in night after night by one of Dope Jams most treasured employees. It is backed with the fever induced hallucinatory beats of Master Ace & Kool Keith for the embarkment of an evening that will surely result in much 'cleanup' cum morning. A small but by no ways comprehensive window into the aural aesthetic of "LIFE," this release is meant to be played and played out, not within the confines of the stringent, stiff predictable banality of peak-time mega-club, but by actual people, at actual parties, a colorful and tangible cry for the still breathing domain of animate life, love and play. More

Originally released in 2011 on 2 different EPs & out of print for a long time, those 3 remixes done by the legend Chez Damier gets a re-issue. A timeless classic. More

French producer and remixer Nicolas Laugier aka The Reflex is a name synonymous with supreme remixes and reimaginings of disco, soul, funk and dance classics. This brand new and essential double-pack sees Laugier take on some of the immense Salsoul catalogue, lovingly reworking classics alongside deep digs from the seminal NYC disco labels vaults. There's something for every dancefloor occasion here with Inner Life, Metropolis, Leroy Burgess and Aurra all getting The Reflex touch. These new versions are more than just re-edits, these are proper remixes utilising master stems, session tapes and the original spirit of these incredible recordings. It's no wonder The Reflex's 'revisions' have found themselves in the hands of tastemakers, DJs and hardcore record fiends alike! You need these.... These brand new mixes have been mastered with love, care and respect for Salsoul / BMG. Artwork and design courtesy of Al Kent / Million Dollar Disco. Worldwide manufacture and distribution courtesy of Above Board distribution, 2021. More

The excellent italian producer DJ Soch aka The italian stallion is back on skylax with the master from detroit keyboardist & lyricist Javonntee. And it's again a future classic; A perfect fusion of the old and new world. God only knows if this way of proceeding is lost today. A « deep » wonder. More

A true rarity from Salsoul's vast archive here, one for the bonafide boogie heads out there. This has gotta be one of the rarest Surface records in existence, 3 cuts of that amazing early 80's funk that only Surface can do! A licensed late 90's pressing of this particular EP became highly sought after and has since been impossible to track down for even the most dedicated diggers. 3 full length jams presented here, including a wondrous mix from the legendary Shep Pettibone of the classic 'Falling In Love', also included are the previously unreleased 'Stop Holding Back' and 'When Your X Wants You Back'. This whole record is pure heat, one for the aficionados. Properly licensed, wonderfully remastered and reissued for the dancefloor! You're not gonna find a more solid, well rounded example of that killer post-disco, electronic funk than this collection of cuts. Essential. Snoozing not advised! More

This is the debut release for Ludovic Llorca aka Art Of Tones on GAMM, and what a release!

Dedicated to the female aspect of disco Ludo has chosen three of his all-time favourite tracks to run through his AOT filter.
Not much more to say than...dance ! More

RAWAX proudly welcomes legendary Fresh & Low to the family!
We are very happy to present you in future most of their amazing
past productions on the new "Treasures" series.
Starting with groundbreaking LITTE "i" EP from 1997! More

The word 'classic' gets thrown around a lot these days, often abused and attached to things that don't deserve the tag.

I think we can all agree that an outfit like Earth, Wind & Fire are truly deserving of such an accolade, since their first tentative steps in the early 1970's as an outfit the Chicago, IL pioneers have made themselves a force to be reckoned with and have sold over 90,000,000 units worldwide! Fusing together Jazz, Funk, Soul, African and Brazilian sounds EWF have been at the top of their game for decades, seeing them inducted into the legendary 'rock n roll hall of fame' at the turn of the millennium. Respect due. On this special, legit 12" reissue we are treated to 2 stellar reworkings by one of Disco and modern dance music's most respected names - Danny Krivit. Danny's tenure in dance music has almost been as long as EWF's themselves so it makes sense that he's on deck to breathe some dancefloor magic into their cult classics 'Brazilian Rhyme' and 'Runnin'. Both tracks are massive club anthems with them being generously sampled over the years and featuring in the playlists of too numerous to mention DJ's and selectors. Both of these amazing edits are extremely sought after and have been legally reissued by Above Board Distribution in conjunction with Danny Krivit and the legal rights holders - Sony Music Entertainment. This high quality repress features original Columbia white label Disco promo artwork and has been remastered from Sony's original sources by Optimum Mastering, Bristol UK. More