The week's first update is online now at Primalrecords.com, and don't forget that you've got until Thursday to enter our OM Records Mushroom Jazz contest! All successfully processed orders over $50 (excluding shipping) will be entered into a pretty big fishbowl and one winner will be chosen, at random, to receive a copy of Mark Farina's latest Mushroom Jazz 4 compilation on unmixed vinyl--as well as a pretty cool record shopping bag from Technics. If you've been having trouble making that $50 order, however, this week should help. Here's a small taste of what we've got for you:

DJ GARTH & ETI "20 Minutes Of Disco Glory" Pt. 2 (Original Dub, Mirror Boys, and Simon Mxs) Grayhound (Promo) [House, Tech-house] Now that the DJ Harvey mixes of this acid house classic have been fully released (we've got those, too!), Primal Records customers can stay one step ahead with pre-release white label copies of this second disc in the package. Alongside the dub mix from the original 1996 Wicked Records pressing, this record's got 2 new remixes to choose from, and I'm hard-pressed to decide. Thomas brings in his Mirror Boys alias for a fun and organic take on the original that carries the SF acid house banner into the millenium; it's dubbed out, it's trippy, it's got a slight SF breakbeat vibe, and its bassline will be enough to wake up any sleepy dancefloor. Fantastic! Simon (of Come-Unity fame) offers up another rare remix on the flip and he doesn't disappoint. If you liked his "Disco Recovery" remix for Primal or lived for the ominous atmospheric effects from his remix of Tijuana's "Groove Is In The Air," then open your crate, my friends. This one's coming in.

www.grayhound.net

DJ BUCK "Highlights / 405" F4 Music [House, Tech-house] The folks at F4 Music hope to see their label become a home for producers who want to experiment with the formula, and if the latest EP from DJ Buck is a sign, this label could prove itself to become a much-needed breath of fresh air. While "Highlights"--a funky tech-house rub that certainly holds itself against any of Buck's catalog--is certainly a highlight, DJs across the globe have been excited about this record's eccentric flip. "405" marks uncharted territory for Buck, using lush synth melodies, an electro-retro downbeat, and an almost prog-tinged climax that brought the house down when Buck premiered it at a Get Underground! party earlier this year. (Similar effect went down for Jay Tripwire when he rocked it a few months later at Sno-Drift.) Whatever it is, it's hot, and it's different, and thank God for producers who care enough to push boundaries.

www.f4music.com

DJ ALI "Capture Your Mind / In The Day" Leaf [House] / DJ ALI feat. TIM FULLER "You Don't Know" Village [House] With much support from the Vancouver house elite (Luke McKeehan, Tripwire, Tyler Stadius, and others) and a massive response to his remixes of Chez Damier's "Ghetto Gospel Man," DJ Ali is poised for dancefloor recognition with not just one, but two new releases this week. "Capture Your Mind" is a deep and funky house track with a dub streak and subtle tribal elements, while "In The Day" is a Chicago-flavored tech-house groover that would have fit in perfectly with
the Panhandle set. Meanwhile, Ali's latest for Village features a very Prince-like vocal from Tim Fuller and an irrepressible deep house flavor that soothes while it jacks, making Ali--no doubt--one to watch in 2003.

www.leafrecordings.com
www.thatvillagesound.com

UNKNOWN (THE HIVES) "Hate To Say I Told You So" (Slide vs. The Hives Rmx) White Label [Progressive, House] Somewhere a cross between The Cure's "Let's Go To Bed" and a sulkier New Order, Slide (of Cass & Slide fame) hands in a truly versatile remix of the Hives' ubiquitous garage rock anthem "Hate To Say I Told You So." It kind of reminds me of this New Wave radio station I used to listen to in New York in the mid-'80s; the kind of track you'd hear on their Friday night "Party Out Of Bounds" show sandwiched between Depeche Mode and Ministry. In other words, if your party needs a quasi-nostalgic and genuine feel-good moment, this is it.

JDS "The Drummer" (Original & Leon Roberts Mxs) Rhythm Syndicate [Progressive, Tech-house] Though there's been speak of Rhythm Syndicate closing its label doors, you'd never know it with its prolific output as of late. Here, JDS offers "The Drummer," a refreshing prog cut with funk, feel, and pure peak-time playability. Our man Leon Roberts (of Shaboom and Ubu fame), meanwhile, gets old school on the remix, keeping the beefy prog-tinged kicks of the original, but layering a massive dab of acid funk on top that makes this track probably more Derrick than Diggers. DJs of all persuasions will want to hear this.

Also new this week is remix and production work from Metro Area (with DFA on the remix), Julius Papp, Loudeast (with G-Pal mixes), Natural Rhythm, Oliver Lieb (remixed by Saeed & Palash and SF fave Behrouz), Tiefschwarz (featuring the essential Freaks mix of "Acid Soul"!), Gabriel & Dresden, Filterheadz, Fluke, Menace, Smithmonger, DJ Nukem, Kidstuff, and Playgroup--remixed by Todd Terry and Par-T-One--among others.

New label output from Drenched, Whoop!, Yoshitoshi, Vista, SOG, Marine Parade, Classic, Steve Lawler's Harlem label, Shinichi, and Large is also in.

And don't forget about full-release copies of the latest from PC Synergy for Robsoul (with Llorca and East Coast Boogiemen on the remix) and Garth & ETI's "20 Minutes Of Disco Glory" Pt. 1 with DJ Harvey on the mix. If you missed these on white label, you'll need them now.

When we come back with new records later in the week, we'll also have a contest winner at hand and news of some Holiday specials around here. Until then, be good!

(Norman Arenas)