Sunshine Jones – We Are What We Are/Come To Me

A new EP from Dubtribe Soundsystem man Sunshine Jones here – and one that might surprise you.

Because on We Are What We Are it's OUT! with the winsome, soulful loveliness and IN! with a big chunky b-line, tuff beats and a spoken male, poetry-style vocal. Come To Me, presented here in two mixes from Nicko Vee and Jones himself, similarly sees him looking to contemporary European sounds for inspiration.

Both tracks are taken from Jones' recent Belle Ame Electronique album, which came out in November and which I must admit got overlooked when it landed – I was busy and, y'know, I'd had enough of all that winsome soulful loveliness, truth be told. On the evidence of this EP, I'm gonna need to go back and check that album again…

Out: This week

About: This comes on King Street Sounds, who live here and here (web, Soundcloud)

OR'L – Confusion EP

A five-tracker here from France's OR'L on F*** House Music that, as is often the label's wont, fuses (deep) house and (nu) disco vibes.

Confusion itself leads the charge, a low-slung, pulsing, sleazy nu-disco groover with a wibbly, trippy synth topline reminiscent of N-Joi's Anthem. Bougie Solitaire is house with disco edges and reminds me a bit of Direckt's 2 Fat Guitars in a weird kinda way, while Tools 890 is a more straight-up deep/tech house jam with some jazzy, lounge-y flourishes.

Finally, you get two mixes of Disco Sluts: the original's long on space disco synths and wukka-wukking geetars underpinned by a solid, if understated walking b-line, while Will Berridge flips the script and turns it into a dubby, afterhours excursion that for me is actually the pick of a very fine EP.

Time to get your shimmy on, peeps!

Out: This week

About: You can find F*** House Music (sister label to Sleazy Deep, dontchaknow?) on Facebook and Soundcloud, or at their own website.

KANT – Burn, Hurt, Touch EP

An EP of typically cerebral/leftfield house grooves here from Denmark's Gartenhaus.

Just to make life a bit easier, the three words in the EP title are actually the names of the three tracks involved. Burn is a dubby, chuggy deep/tech affair, but definitely one more aimed at discerning grown-ups rather than dancefloor drug monkeys; Touch is an ever-so-slightly more upbeat number with subtle disco stabs and a nice big throbbing b-line.

But the standout, as with yesterday's Switchbox single (below), is a cut that draws heavily on a classic from days gone by. In this instance, it's the slow-pulsing, Balearically-tinged Hurt, which lifts a hefty chunk of vocal from Carly Simon's Why. To great effect, it must be said!

Out: This week

About: You can find Gartenhaus on Soundcloud, on Facebook or at their own website.

Paolo Marturano – I'll Be Waiting For You

Seems like a while since we heard from Chester-based Muchiq Records, but here they come again now with a surefire floorburner courtesy of Italy's Paulo Marturano.

There are three mixes to choose from. The Original is a deep, techy house throbber with one SERIOUSLY chunky b-line, a neat wibbly synth topline and a male voice intoning "I'll be waiting for you, there's nothing else I can do." One to drop in those heads-down, locked-on moments in the wee small hours. The Forshure Remix ups both the BPM and the tech factor a notch or two, while Dansco's rub adds busier percussion to give the track a driving, proggy, almost tribal feel; both retain that same mantra-like vocal.

It's the original that stands out for me, but with the other two mixes in tow you've got the ammunition to slay a range of floors. Go get 'em.

Out: This week

About: You can find Muchiq on Soundcloud, on Facebook or at their own website.

Sound Gypsy – Way I Feel EP

Having warmed up with all that deep stuff, time to move towards the floor now with this latest from Sound Gypsy, aka Dobara Music boss Harsh Puri.

There are three tracks in a total of six mixes, so you can't fault this one in the VFM stakes! Way I Feel itself is in its original form a chunky deep/tech houser, done in that very 'now' stylee but tempered with soulful vocal samples and killer space disco stabs. SION's remix then dubs things right out in quite a satisfying fashion.

The original version of Just Like That has more of those ace stabs over a more upbeat backing, with some rave-y keyboard stabs thrown in for good measure, while the Rafael Cerato remix heads off again into dubbier but this time also into slightly proggier territories. Havens & Hart perform a similar dubby trick with Everybody Keep On Movin' but here it's the original that stands out for me – a wicked little slice of soulful, disco-fied deep house done properly, with boogie-era male vox and lashings of fat bass.

So that's: Just Like That for the youngsters, the original of Everybody Keep On Movin' for the older heads and SION's rub of Way I Feel for the sofa surfers. Everybody's happy!

Out: This week

About: This comes on Sleazy Deep, who can be found on Facebook and Soundcloud or at their own website.

Geometriae – Subtransformer EP

We stay in Denmark, and stay on a very deep tip, with this three-track EP from Danish producer Geometriae.

"Dub-based techno and deep ambient soundscapes," is how the hype sheet describes Geometriae's style, and they're not wrong. Dubbermann is a bassy, spacey dub techno excursion, Strings Of Space is a sparser, more cinematic/atmospheric ride, while Subtransformer itself is slightly more 'dancefloor', but no less deep n' dubby for it.

Lights out, lay back and enjoy. Nuff said.

Out: This week

About: This comes on a label I don't think have featured on here before, CPH Undersound. Find 'em on Facebook and Soundcloud.

Distortion Inc – Echo Of Tape

We stay in pastures uber-deep now with this newie from Denmark's ever on-point DeepWit Uncovered.

In fact, Echo Of Tape marks one of the label's deepest excursions yet, and that's saying something! Across the EP's three tracks, then, expect warm pads, muted percussion, disembodied vocal snips, tinkling minor-key jazz piano licks – you know the story – all at a tempo that means this EP is best filed somewhere between slo-mo and ambient. And that makes it perfect for those moments when you just want to lean back, shut your eyes and drift off into inner space.

Out: This week

About: You can find the DeepWit crew on Soundcloud, on Facebook or at their own website.

Fraser Owen & Thom Norton – Dominos

Well, that turned out to be a slightly longer Xmas break, blog-wise, than I intended… sorry bout dat. But here we are again now, with this latest from Savoir Faire Musique.

It's a three-track affair, with Owen and Norton supplying a track apiece and collaborating on a third. The joint effort is the title track Dominos itself, a bassy deep chugger with disembodied, echoing vocal samples and luxurious muted kicks. Owen's solo offering is Polaris, a slightly more jaunty number with garage-y organ stabs and an unhurried feel, while Norton gives us Just Beyond The Trees, a deeper-than-deep ride with a male, spoken vocal that's reminiscent of the mighty Gil Scott-Heron.

If you like it a little bit tech-y and very deep, this EP is seriously worthy of your attention. Just Beyond The Trees, in particular, is a killer.

Out: This week

About: You can find Savoir Faire Musique on Facebook and Soundcloud.

Evan Iff – Sweet Babe

Finally for today, we move back into deep house territory with the latest from Jesus Pablo & Di Riviera's Something Different.

In its Original form, Sweet Babe is an interesting mix of influences: the soulful vocal's classic west coast, while the synths and percussion come from a more contemporary deep/tech school of thought. Mix-wise there's a self-explanatory Dub and a typically fine rub from Matches, who puts the vocal through the FX mangle and sparses things right up while adding lots of shuffly top-end. But taking top honours for me is Malin Genie, who gives (give?) us a deeper, sultrier rub.

You won't go wrong with any of 'em, to be fair. But Malin Genie is the one for me here.

Out: This week

About: You can find Something Different on Facebook and Soundcloud.

Jonny Love House – Alfresco Disco

Staying firmly in dancefloor territory, here we have the latest from rising UK producer Jonny Loves House.

It's a four-track affair. Bounce is big, squelchy and lightly disco-fied, and wouldn't have sounded out of place on Credence back in the day. Matter is pacier and techier, Loose pairs a strident, techy riddim with slightly housier leads, while finally Even If – the pick of the crop for me – is all about the big fat bassline, which is augmented by (quite poppy) female vocal snatches and wonky, off-kilter keys.

Should you be of a mind to jack your body this festive season, these four tracks will serve as musical accompaniment admirably.

Out: This week

About: This comes on Jonny's own self-titled label… they live here and here (website, Soundcloud). And also in Brighton, if you must always live so relentlessly in the real world.

Dave Martins – Natural

The latest here from Switzerland's Southpark Records, who've definitely been on something of a roll this past few months.

Label co-founder Dave Martins is the man at the controls, with remixes taken care of by Kenny Ground and Hector Couto. Martins' original of Natural is an atmospheric tech-houser with a touch of deep prog around the edges, Kenny Ground's remix rides much more strident percussion while Hector Couto's rub, the standout for me, filters the drums and takes us into deeper territory.

Another solid dancefloor bet.

Out: This week

About: You can find Southpark Records on Facebook, on Soundcloud or at their own website.

Helder Teixera – Non

Having discovered Portuguese producer Teixeira, the Endemic camp seem determined to release a record by him at least every 45 minutes… here's just the latest. S'good, though. 

There's just the two mixes to choose from. The original is a midtempo, rolling tech-house groove, with snatches of spoken French vocal but the emphasis primarily on the drums. It's the 4am Mix from Teixeira himself that I'm feeling much more, though – a far smoother, afterhours house joint with organs to kill for.

Nuff said, really… otherwise I'll be forced to do some sort of 'big, throbbing organ' joke. But yeah, this is very cool indeed.

Out: This week

About: Here's a link you may have seen before, and here's Helder's own Soundcloud page which you may not.

Anton Lanski – Kill Me

Liverpool's masters of all things deeper than deep serve up a fine remix package here.

Anton Lanski's original version of Kill Me operates in downtempo/chill-out territory, but the rest of the EP is made of more floor-oriented remixes, which are the winners of a remix competition run by the label earlier in the year. Forteba gives us lo-slung, sleazy nu-disco/slo-mo, Insect O takes us into dub techno territory, Jedd's mix comes on like the very sparsest and most minimal of two-step, while What About U's rub is the closest to the sumpuous original, just with slightly beefier kicks.

The Forteba and Insect-O mixes stand out for me but it's an impressive EP all round – given that the remixers involved are competition winners and hence presumably relative newcomers, doubly so.

Out: This week

About: You can find Etoka Records at their website or on Soundcloud.

Dudley Strangeways & Michael McLardy – Timed Out EP

More classic-style deep house vibes to kick us off today, as two familiar names team up for a three-track EP on Deep Edition.

Timed Out itself is in its Original form sees all manner of liquid-y, bubbling synth sounds and atmospheric samples layered over fairly uptempo beats and topped with snatches of people talking about Detroit, while the Sossa Remix tones down the multiple layers and has a slightly more cinematic feel. But the absolute killer here for me is bonus cut Can't Sleep, as sumptuous a late-night groove with garage-y overtones as you're likely to hear all week.

Top-drawer bizniss, as is Martijn's label's wont.

Out: This week on Beatport, everywhere else from 31 December.

About: You can find Deep Edition on Facebook and Soundcloud, or at their own website.

Lee Walker – The Deep Stuff

Another TIWWD fave label here, as Savoir Faire Musique bring us this solo outing from RiffRaff's Lee Walker.

In its Original form, The Deep Stuff is typically sumptuous SFM deep house tackle, chugging along nicely at 120bpm and sporting a pleasingly understated, though insistent organ line (and at one point, what sounds like a dog barking but might not be). Deep Edition label boss Martijn gives us a remix that's similar but slightly rawer-sounding, Groove Syndicate beef up the kicks and push the tempo a notch, while Miami Ice take us even deeper with a mix that rides groovier percussion and adds lounge-y sounds on top.

All that said, the four mixes aren't hugely varied, to be honest. Good job the Original is as strong as it is, then… cos that also means you won't go far wrong with any of 'em.

Classy stuff as ever from SFM.

Out: This week

About: You can find Savoir Faire Musique on Facebook and Soundcloud.

James Dexter – System Check EP

Been busy working on the TIWWD redesign today, and in fact got 90 per cent of it done… only trouble is it's the last 10 percent that takes 90 per cent of the time! So it'll be a little while yet before it all goes live.

In the meantime, there's just time ce soir to tell you about a couple of deep house gems that are landing from a couple of TIWWD's favourite labels. First up is this EP from James Dexter, a 25-year-old producer from London who's had stuff out on some pretty heavy-hitting labels already: Om, Salted and Nervous to name but three. Here, though, he serves up his debut for the mighty Lost My Dog.

It's a four-track affair, and the title track is actually my least favourite, I'm sorry to say! You've gotta love those raw, jacking beats overlaid with piercing synths and female vocal wails, so it's not rubbish by any means… I could just do without the bloke shouting "It's a soundsystem banger" over and over again. Not to worry though, cos there's plenty more to enjoy here, from the soulful One Day, to the small-hours dancefloor vibes of Do That Thing and In & Out.

Quality deep house music, but then what else would you expect?

Out: This week

About: Find Lost My Dog on Facebook, on Soundcloud or at their own website.

Giom – Play On

From a fledgling label based in NYC, to a brand spanking new label straight outta Cyprus, going by the name of Fly In A Jam Records… and from an artist I can't tell you anything about, to one I shouldn't really need to, cos he's doing all right for himself these days is our Giom. You've probably noticed.

Here, the French deep house dude serves up a simple, unhurried midtempo groover that's probably best suited to warm-up play or very late sessions rather than peaktime mayhem, but that's very fine all the same, and that has an understated spangly disco breakdown in the middle.

Just the one mix, so I needn't detain you any longer. But yeah, typically high-quality fare from Giom… and a great way to kick off a new label!

Out: This week

About: You can find Fly In A Jam on Soundcloud or Facebook, or Giom at his own website. You can find a fine range of novelty tea cosies here, in case you're stuck for a Xmas present for Auntie Margaret. And that's about as seasonal as the Scrooge-like TIWWD ever gets, so make the most of it.

Alwin Parenze – MT Royal EP

A very checkable deep house EP here from New York's Dance Through Life Records. I can't tell you a lot about it, mind… I don't know who Alwin Parenze is or what his back story is. I don't know where Mt Royal is (there's lots of them). I don't know why record labels don't tell me these things.

But I can tell you that Mt Royal itself and Bongo Boom are the most upbeat/floor-friendly trax, Late Night is the one for those in search of some classic-sounding deep house vibes while my personal faves are the deeper cuts Making You Dance and (especially) 7th June.

And I can tell you that it all adds up to, as I said, a very checkable EP.

Out: This week

About: You can find Dance Through Life on Facebook and Soundcloud.

Copyright feat Andre Espeut – Lifted

Don't overlook this killer from Defected. Not so much for the A-side Lifted itself, though. That's a big room, driving houser with soulfully-inclined male vocal exhortations to lift your hands up… it's okay, but nothing that special.

Which is why I say don't overlook this, because if you'll do you'll miss out on both Sometimes, a deeper house cut with tuff, rolling drums, samples from the same vocal Moby used on Honey and parping sax, and most importantly the Pablo Fierro Remix of Lifted, which drops deeper and adds a stonking great fuck-off Robin S-style organ line. And makes itself an unmissable purchase while it's doing it.

Defected might not be the hippest label to be biggin' up but I don't care – made by a pair of true UK house and garage legends and given a polish by one of the best of Europe's new wave, this is a genuine bomb.

Out: This week

About: You can find Defected here, here and here (web, Facebook, Soundcloud).

Various – Finest NY House 2012

Not one but two sampler EPs here from King Street, following the label's usual, somewhat confusing strategy of putting out completely different yet identically titled EPs for Beatport and Traxsource.

In the red corner then we have the Beatport Edition. This is a seven-track affair, with contributions from Fisher & Fiebak, Satoshi Fumi, T Ruggieri, Iban Reus & Oliver Schmitz, M2, vexuS T and Mass Digital. Here, the emphasis is mostly on drummy, tracky shit: Ruggieri's Love Shines Through, Fumi's Shiny and Mass Digital's deeper Those Moments stand out.

In the blue corner, meanwhile, the Traxsource edition features a further seven cuts, this time on a more melodic/musical/funkier tip. Marco Bruzzano's Rebirth is one highlight, Quentin Kane's euphoric, Rod Stewart-sampling M.U.S.I.C another, with further contributions coming from Washerman, Alex Font, Phazed Groove, Urban Soul and Hamza.

As you might expect from a collection focusing mostly on up-and-coming names, there are a couple of tracks that fail to hit the spot but overall, both EPs do their job of showcasing the current house sound of NYC admirably.

Out: This week for the Traxsource edition; you'll have to wait till December 24 for the Beatport one.

About: As well as their own website you can now find King Street/Nite Grooves/Street King on Facebook and Soundcloud.