Brazil Various Artists

Some crate-digging compilations are often the result of someone hand-picking their choice favourites from another country’s musical history, perhaps unaware or uninvolved with its cultural lineage in the process. On Soundway’s latest release - a treasure trove of synth jams, pop, samba boogie, balearic and electro from 1980 & ‘90s Brazil - the tracks are picked by Millos Kaiser, one half of the Brazilian duo Selvagem, who are at the helm of throwing some of the country's best dance parties. It’s a rare compilation that offers Brazilian music actually picked by a Brazilian.

Some crate-digging compilations are often the result of someone hand-picking their choice favourites from another country’s musical history, perhaps unaware or uninvolved with its cultural lineage in the process. On Soundway’s latest release - a treasure trove of synth jams, pop, samba boogie, balearic and electro from 1980 & ‘90s Brazil - the tracks are picked by Millos Kaiser, one half of the Brazilian duo Selvagem, who are at the helm of throwing some of the country's best dance parties. It’s a rare compilation that offers Brazilian music actually picked by a Brazilian.

Three CD collection. Sir Elton John, born Reginald Kenneth Dwight, has been for a great part of the past five decades, one of the dominant forces in rock and pop music, especially during the 1970s, when he produced hits like "Your Song," "Rocket Man", "Bennie and the Jets," and "Crocodile Rock." He has sold more than 250 million albums and over 100 million singles, making him one of the most successful artists of all time. He has also won five Grammy awards and one Academy Award. In 2004, Rolling Stone ranked him number 49 on their list of the 100 greatest artists of all time. John has been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994. In The Many Faces of Elton John we will embark on a journey that will give us a profound insight into the career of one the pop music's most legendary superstars. We will enjoy some of his collaborations, his early -and rarely heard- early works and his work as producer for other artists. On top of this, we will revisit his incredible catalog and we will enjoy many of his well-known hits performed by the legendary Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. With stellar artwork and remastered sound, The Many Faces of Elton is a brand-new addition to our Many Faces collection and for sure will be an essential part of your music library.

If the aim of Flamencopolis is to alter any misguided impressions that flamenco is a staid music and dance style whose components are set in stone with little room for innovation, it succeeds wildly. In recent years, artists such as Ojos de Brujo, Ketama and the rocking Raimundo Amador (the latter two are included here, the former, unfortunately, are not) have taken the basic elements of traditional flamenco and created from them something appropriately called nuevo flamenco. Placed side by side with the more traditional form, which often occurs on this project, the two branches of the music sometimes sound so dissimilar that one could make a case that they are not even related. But as if to prove the point that they are indeed, and that the possibilities go even further, Flamencopolis not only converges the new and old flamenco styles, but invites artists from outside of the genre to collaborate with some of flamenco's greats, thus making even more clear that flamenco is capable of seamless integration.

For Remixes JID020, the label has tapped a few of their favorite contemporary artists and producers to offer their own take on the music of Series 2. The album features a variety of dynamic personalities with remixes from London based artists Shabaka Hutchins and Theon Cross, New York tastemaker Melanie Charles, LA based producer Bei Ru, Brazil’s Dj Nyack, Detroit based producer Tall Black Guy, Bay Area producer Mophono and the LA based house duo LO & Diisko.

Containing 10 previously issued cuts from the back catalog of Blue Note, this mix of new and old artists takes a stab at the songbook of one of Brazil's most important artists. While some artists here may not be the best representatives for re-interpretation of Jobim, they all easily imprint their own unique styles and improvisations around his famous melodies. For the most part, these are straightforward interpretations of the originals, and while they offer nothing insightful, they do not do them a disservice, either…