Temperatures are dropping here in the Bay Area as summer makes it's yearly shift to the other hemisphere, but in response to the oncoming chill, labels and producers the world over are stepping up to the plate in order to dish out some scorching cuts that will make everybody forget that it's going to be damn cold pretty soon. Here's a taste of what's in store...

SAM & GIGI "Come & Dance / Lifestyle Improvement" Siesta Hot on the heels of Hipp-E & Tony's "Freakin Magoo" comes the Finnish production duo of Sam & Gigi. The A-side offering "Come & Dance" will come as a bit of a surprise to long-time Siesta listeners with it's full female vocal that spans the length of the track. Though as different as the cut may be with the vocal and flute stabs throughout, the track will retain fans with it's shuffling, West Coast-flavored beats, rolling b-line and undeniable dancefloor appeal. This is something that could go down equally huge at Body & Soul as it could at Primal's own Get Underground parties. The B-side comes in the form of "Lifestyle Improvement," which echoes the soulful vibe of the flip, though in instrumental form. With it's understated beats, relentlessly funky bass line, and emotive keys that play off each other, this is what the British call Northern Soul. Think Weekender or Miguel Migs in one of his deeper moments and you're coming close. Simply put, this is just good music.

http://www.siestamusic.com

RED BUDDHA "Recovery" (Original & Spincycle Mxs) Dorigen There aren't many labels out now that continue to surprise me with their output, but Dorigen is a definite exception. Newcomer Dan F., appearing under the Red Buddha guise, turns out a beast of a dancefloor cut, and as soon as the beat kicks in on, the sense of urgency is unmistakable. "Recovery" is a prime slice of futuristic progressive house, with it's chugging beats, treated FX loops, a growling reese-ish bass line, and ethereal pads that hover in and out of the mix, this is equal parts Dutch and Detroit. On the flip, Hungry Dave and Shifty under their Spincycle moniker turn out their patented amalgam of dub, prog, and twisted tech-house with the Midnight Growler Remix. Heading straight for the jugular, they slow down the BPM, twist up the atmospherics,
and add some reverberating metallic dub hits to massive success. The punters will be holding up their "Tune!" cards for this one!

JOHN CIAFONE "Thunder / Thinking Of You" Junior Making up half of the legendary Mood II Swing, and the man behind the Chiapet records on Yoshitoshi, John Ciafone samples the flavors of his previous production styles, and once again demonstrates his versatility with a 12" that has already seen heavy rotation from jocks across the board. Dark and dense, the original version of "Thunder" is a no-nonsense club cut of the first degree. With heavy, brooding atmospherics, a tough vibe, and layers of burly
percussion, it is virtually insured that this cut gets a space in the prime-time slot. If the original is a bit too much of a heavyweight for your sound, the dub version of "Thunder" strips everything down to the bare percussion, before working it's way back up to a groove of lethal proportions. Lest I forget, this 12" also has "Thinking Of You", which is
more of a feel-good tune with a classic Mood II Swing vibe. Dope!

SLIDE VS. THE CURE "The Forest" Rife Now before you purist haters start going off about how there can't be a good thing to come out of a progressive remix of a classic Cure track, let me allay your fears by saying that I too was initially skeptical of such a collaboration (being a massive Cure fan myself), but Slide has actually done the mix justice. All elements that would normally be more prominent in the mix are subdued in order to let the samples filter in and out, and Slide has retained the original feel of the
track while adding his signature beat and some rhythmic elements that are interspersed throughout the track. You know it's limited, so don't sleep!

Other hotties this week include the new Miguel Migs on Yoshitoshi, a much-needed restock on the massive Fred Everything remixes of Missy Elliot's "Lick Shots," Chicken Lips remixes of Stylophonic's "Bizarre Mind," another much-needed restock of Tony Thomas's "Psyclick EP" on Jamayka, Ashtrax’s delightfully quirky remixes of Maurice & Noble's "Faith Delivers," Blakdoktor and Del-5 remixes of Solomonic Sound's massive "Children Of Israel" on Shaboom, and promos of the new Kaskade EP on Jamayka. Phew!

Well, with another massive update done, I'm off early to go see Sasha as he touches down here in SF on the Airdrawndagger tour. See you on the dancefloor!

(Justin Corbett)