The first of this week's updates is up and online now at Primalrecords.com; this time featuring a load of must-have releases from the likes of Derrick Carter, Swag, Kenny Hawkes, Terry Francis, and DJ Buck. And that's just the start. Here's a quick rundown of this week's top picks:

DJ BUCK "Living Room Chronicles Vol. 3: Forward Movement" Leaf [House, Tribal, Tech-house] LA-via-SF transplant DJ Buck returns with the third in his truly remarkable Living Room Chronicles series. "Forward Movement," by far my favorite of the three, finds itself somewhere in between Buck's vintage funky house aesthetic and X-Press 2's classic corker "Muzik X-Press"--check the incline and feel the climax. House DJs in dire need of audience reaction take note. Two deeper mixes are also included in the package, but my money's on the main mix for maximum response.

www.leafrecordings.com

DERRICK L. CARTER "Squaredancing In A Roundhouse" LP 2x12" Classic [House, Tech-house] After years of threatening its release, Chicago house legend Derrick Carter finally drops his second full-length artist album. Was it worth the wait? Oh, God, yes. There's truly funky deep house ("If I," "Rhythm Machine"), jacky Chicago tech house ("Dreamin'" offers up some help from Cajmere, "A Hope" carries the vibe further), classic Derrick Carter material (the already huge "Where U At?" and the title track), and a helping of some of the other sounds that have always influenced the man (check the deep techno vs. latin-influenced "The Hollow Clash Of Marionettes" and "All Dreams Collide," the album's lush downbeat offering). Further credence, then, that Derrick Carter's name is synonymous with quality.

www.classicmusiccompany.com

KENNY HAWKES feat. MARCEL & KIMRA "Dance For Me" MFF [Tech-house, House] It's like a superhero triumvirate in here! Tech-house impresario and "Play The Game" producer Kenny Hawkes returns with Marcel (of The Path's "Praying" fame) and diva extraordinaire Kimra, who's vocal performance on "Raise The Dead" for Mantis some years back still resonates loudly to this day. "Dance For Me" is a minimal acid track (slightly reminiscent of Mr. Oizo's "Flat Beat"!) that utilizes both vocalists in an effective call-and-response fashion. Still, my pick goes to truly dancefloor-minded dub mix which slightly edges out the original in old school flavor. (Trainspotters will no doubt fall over themselves when they hear the illicit keyboard sample on this one.) Truly amazing stuff.

www.musicforfreaks.com

11th STREET "Plastic Love / Billy Dream" White Label [House, Progressive, Tech-house] Well, we can't say that we have any more copies of the official Bushwacka! mixes of "Billie Jean" available; those are gone forever. But here, on this limited edition white label, some cheeky folks have decided to bring it back and mash it up with Simon's Future Dreams classic "Free At Last." The result is anything but spotty; the club won't know what hit it.

SWAG "Diversions" Pt. 3 (Plastic Head Band & 20/20 Vision Rmxs) Swag [Tech-house, House] It's an exciting week in records for me and the latest from Swag only intensifies matters. Swag's sole original contribution to this EP is "I Need A Freak"--and with a name like that, you can guess which direction these guys are taking it. "Crumpled Cones," from a previous edition of the "Diversions" series, gets made over by Odori's Plastic Head Band, who give it a moody and minimal Detroit-styled rework, and London's 20/20 Vision crew whose funky tech-house rub will surely give fans of David Duriez and Tony Senghore something to write home about.

www.swag-uk.net

EARTH DEULEY pres. KITO KALA "Black House / 2 Hours" Addictive [Tech-house, Progressive] Though he's best known for his blistering tribal house output for London's Low Pressings label, Georgia native Earth Deuley completely flips the script and reinvents himself for a pair of tracks that apparently owe more of a debt to Global Communication than Peace Division. Deep and atmospheric tech-house with a tinge of breaks and a solid dubby vibe is the code of the day for this fantastic record, versatile enough to find favor with house, tech-house, and deeper progressive jocks alike. (New York DJ/production duo Trendroid already licensed a cut for their "Transport" CD from a few months back.) Excellent.

www.addictiverecords.com

Also available now are new remixes and production work from Onionz & Master D (with Blakkat on the remix), Josh Wink, Dino & Terry, Jeff Bennett, Rulers Of The Deep, Sasha Carassi, Nathan Scott & Daniel Poli (excellent UK tech-house on limited white label release), Sir Drew, MRI, Robert Owens, Pliq, and brand new Danny Tenaglia mixes of Billy Nichols' NYC house classic "Give Your Body Up (To The Music)," among much much more.

New label releases from Drop Music (featuring a new Inland Knights collaboration called Four Gone Conclusion), Shaboom, LHB, Ovum, Maya, Chilli Funk, Freakaboom, 83 West, Playhouse, and more is also in tow.

This week's second update is soon to follow, including new releases from Hooj Choons, Bedrock, Low Pressings, and Shinichi, and new house cuts from Blaze, Bebel Gilberto (featuring Derrick Carter and Layo & Bushwacka! on the remix), Rocket (with Jeno and Rob Mello sharing the remix duties), and the long-anticipated full release of DJ Garth & Markie Mark's "Anthem #1."

Watch this space!

(Norman Arenas)