Studio Barnhus

2011

Swedish duo Shakarchi & Stranéus hand their track to fellow Gothenburg head Axel Boman, who turns it into a hypnotic dub house odyssey. A slow burner with a loooooong build up that’s totally worth the wait. Big up to my man Stewart Upchurch (A1, Vinylmania) who put me onto this and about 1000 other records over the last 35 years.

King Street Sounds

2019

Two UK deep house vets linking up for a bouncy track that keeps thing swinging and picks up the mood while drifting into broken beat syncopation here and there. Bristol’s own Sean McCabe has an insane output of attacks that rarely miss.

Rise Music

2019

South African producer Floyd Lavine links up with vocalist AWEN, a former lawyer of Senegalese descent by way of France and Hong Kong. “Kusimama” means “to rise/stand” in Swahili — and the track does exactly that. Awen’s understated tone cuts through just right. 

Local Talk

2021

Spiritchaser is the UK-based dynamic duo composed of Mark Bamford and Richard Earnshaw, who’ve been kicking up dust since that late 90s. Emily Cook’s dubby vocal floats like vapor here. Solid after-hours material. Came out on the excellent Stockholm label Local Talk, which is always worth checking for.

Freerange Records

2020

This Dominican cat Oveus from Washington Heights is the total package. Poet. Rapper. DJ. Actor. And no lie kinda pretty too LOL. My mans also won Def Jam’s poetry slam and Showtime at The Apollo more than once. He gets props over here. As of late, UK vet Jimpster aka Jamie Odell has gotten back to the type of tracks that made me sweat him for so many years. 

Self-released

2025

NY OG Merlin Bobb teams up with Osaka legend Masaki Morii to flip my favorite Frank Ocean song. It works because they keep Frank’s intimacy intact, just laying it gently on a club-ready groove. Not mad.

Strictly Rhythm

2017

A 1973 sample from Black playwright Charlie Russell anchors a Soulful, Jazzy groove that trades bombast for warmth. Tim Deluxe may be known for more big room sounds, but he can go deep when the mood arises. Charlie Russell is best known for his 1970 hit play “Five On the Black Hand Side”, which was later made into a movie to serve as an antidote to the Blaxploitation pics of the era. From the trailer: "You've been coffy-tized, blacula-rized and super-flied – but now you're gonna be glorified, unified and filled-with-pride... when you see Five on the Black Hand Side." Right on.

Central Park Recordings

2001

Myself and every other NY DJ played this song to death in 2001. I left it alone for many years, but I can’t front: it still sounds great. With Osunlade stripping it to its core and rebuilding it with congas, bass, and spiritual uplift, this became a foundational building block to the afro house rhythms you hear absolutely everywhere on planet earth now.

Good Vibrations Music

 2023

One of my all time producer heroes, Glenn Underground on the controls. He puts his foot into every track, and once you feel it, you never let go. Harold Matthews Jr. was a Chicago poet, songwriter, and vocalist known for his work as a Black Beat Nik and contributing to house anthems from Ron Trent, Terry Hunter, and Ron Carroll (RIP), to name a few.

Moon Harbour

20125

Keeping with this Black poet theme, Italian house duo Deepshakerz team with Zimbabwean poet/lyricist Xander Pratt for a cut that balances message with dancefloor weight. Afro-house meets modern tech-tinged deepness.

Lab Results

2001

A break from the straight house into a little broken beat. Gotta keep these dancers guessing. Vienna’s downtempo pioneers dZihan & Kamien reimagine Atjazz’s cut as something cosmic and clubby. Came out in 2001, but brand new to me. Maybe you too?

Forget The Clock

2022

Stripped-down, moody loops that would have been right at home on a Nu Groove 12” in 1993. Minimal but effective, it leans into its title: airy pads, weeded out words, and a beat that keeps things pushing forward. This track first appeared as a hidden bonus track on the vinyl release of his Good Hado EP. 

Blackk Records

2022

Damn this shit gets my face all screwed up like WHAT? Love it. Has a Naked Music vibe of the early 2000s, but without the cocktail bar corny. A stripped back drum beat that kinda borrows from Quentin Harris’s India Arie remixes of that same era. I’m here for it. 

Reel People Music Limited

2024

It’s AtJazz so you know I’m repping. Buy this man’s music. Every day all day.

Yoruba Records

2024

From the label founder himself, “Luv” is Osunalde in his preferred lane. Hypnotic. Percussive. Soulful. Turn on tune in zone out get down. I got play with Osunlade a couple times at Burning Man and he really knows how to move that crowd.

Atlantic

1992

Man, listen. One of the best deep house records like…. Ever? Came out in 1992 and you still can’t fuck with it. If you don’t dig this I don’t dig you. Original engineer Jerome Sydenham remastered this, so you know he came correct.

Delicieuse Records

2024

Norwegian producer Dublon delivers a deep track with a rolling bassline, lovely piano groove, and up close and personal vocals that kinda makes you want to meet this girl Deza. Perfect transitional tune to shift the energy without breaking the flow. From then Delicieuse Records label out of Bordeaux.

Dolfin Records

2024

Dallas house vet JT Donaldson brings his trademark warm chords and steady groove, pairing with Rami for a smooth, walking-tempo deep house cut. This dude gets it.

MAW Records

1996

A NYC underground anthem for the ages. Has it really been 30 years? Louie Vega and Mood II Swing with Donell Rush (RIP) tearing it up  on vocals, just vamping and letting the spirit flow through him. Play this after 3am and watch the true heads look for a place to put their drinks down.

Nervous Records

2025

Two giants collide: Louie Vega and Moodymann. You know they’re gonna get into some sonic alchemy. The LP version was dope and maybe even better but this, but Dennis Quin remix beefs up the drums just right. You and me. Me and you. We had it all.

Defected

2009

Mike Dunn has been preaching the good word of House since the late 80s, and this track is a continuation of that mission. Raw, jacking, and bumpin’, with his unmistakable swagger. He’s a hype man in the storied tradition of DJ Hollywood and all those pioneers that know how to move a crowd.

Chicago Connection Records

1987

This is one of the first House records I ever fell in love with back in 1987. It remains an incredibly potent dance floor killer damn near 40 years later. Like, what even IS that synth sound? It’s like you’re inside a hornet’s nest. Not everyone understands…

Nu Groove

1990

My man Bobby Konders dropped this in 1990 and it was an instant NY anthem. A mission statement for the children. Keep this in your crates.

DMR Records

1988

More Mike Dunn. More raw. More magic. “My name is Michael, and I am here for one cause. To make you jack yo body real hard”. Mission accomplished.

Vega Records

2010

Duce Martinez and Lou Gorbea took the 1975 disco classic and turned it into a dubby DJ tool. I added the afro drums on top to set up the next track. Reciting the lyrics to Free Man should grant you free admission to any real house party IMO.

Cha Cha Groove Records

2025

There was a time in the mid 200s where these kinds of riot-inducing Brazilian tracks were everywhere. Or maybe it was just my circuit. They amp up a party without fail.

Poji Records

2021

This sound places you firmly in Newark and/or Baltimore, where these type of lovely vocal tracks dominate. Wonderful, soulful sounds in the Zanzibar lineage we all owe a tremendous debt to.

Trusted Rhythm Records

2024

Japanese producer Yuu Udawaga gets a remix from Chicago’s Abacus, who turns it into an absolutely incredible dreamy journey. When this plays in the car I get so lost in the groove I miss my exit, every time.

Wave Music

1998

Remember earlier when I was kinda dissing Naked Music? All of that still stands, but this track was always one of the exceptions to me. Smooth, sensual and deep with auto-tuned vocals that captured the moment we were all in. It was inescapable in its era, and I played it at Bang The Party in Brooklyn more times than I can count. Respect.