Jiscomusic

Posted on 12. Oct, 2009 by silvestre in Labels We Love

There has been one record label over almost the last five years now, that has been building a bridge between the sophistication of re-editing old disco, soul and funk tunes and the hedonism of the dancefloor in perfect fashion. Not only it is a record label that release after release has been surprising audiences, it is also a label that together with Instruments of Rapture has set the standards for yet another house sub-genre.

Slow-mo, mid-tempo, chuggy, hypnotic and warm kind of 4/4 that makes you beg for the break to come. Normally such break will be that of short loop of female soul/disco singer that will sweep the dancefloor with a welcome wave of fresh air. The bassline on Jiscomusic slabs of black wax is also another feature that makes you buy their vinyls without giving them any pre-listening. You are given a grinding, heavyweight, glossy kind of groove that will keep you going on and on and that will never let down neither the DJ or the punters.

Mark E is captaining the ship with three vinyls on the catalog. His first release back in 2005 is my personal favorite. Two beatdown re-edits of One Way ‘I Am Under Your Spell’ (Soulful as it can be) and Womack & Womack ‘Baby I’m Scared of You’ are gems that made Mark E a name to watch closely. A year later he came back with another two underground anthemic monsters; an edit of Gabor Szabo’s ‘Keep Smilin’, again highly filtered, ‘housy’, slow and sensual with one of the most beautiful piano loops thrown in the break, able enough of making some tears of joy drop on the dancefloor. Pay close attention to the exemplary use of reverb and echo techniques at play on this one. On the B side, he offered us Tata Vega’s ‘Get It Up For Love’. This one a bit faster and with a filtered ‘a la french’ bassline, and a highly desired break. Simple yet effective.

Arguably, it has been The Revenge and 6th Borough Project who has made Jiscomusic a well-known label synonym of guaranteed dancefloor success that does not bore. Selling hundreds of copies worldwide, Juno were re-stocking and listing ‘Cadillacs’ during serveral months in the bestseller section. Repress after repress of last year underground disco-house re-edit of classic Hot Chocolate’s ‘Cadillac’ propelled Jiscomusic to the stratosphere of grandiose UK re-edit labels. Although the edit did not differ greatly from the original, it added more thump to the bassline, and the drum section turning it onto an infectious groove with a number of epic breaks along its eight minutes of glory. On the B Side, yet another superior example of modern music-making. The Revenge took us on a 11 minute tour-de-force around the soul-jazz-funk-disco realm that assembled an absolute monster. Although not as successful on the dancefloor, still a classic.

The Revenge, as it names implies, came back for more at the end of the year, with an equivalent in dancefloor destruction capabilities equal or greater than ‘Cadillacs’. This time Stevie Wonder’s ‘Love Light In Flight’ got the re-edit treatment although on a smoother, classy vein. A track that builds up and builds up endlessly, with a rock solid bassline and percussion until the warmth of Stevie’s vocals rocks you off the boat. Entrancing and soulful.

On and on, Jiscomusic has been gracing us with releases that you can bag without questioning. Above, you got a sense of what’s on offer. Casinoboy and Eddie C were the last two references on Jisco. Both, again, of the highest caliber. We cannot wait for more to come. Jisco, Under the Shade (Jisco sub-label), Instruments of Rapture, L.E.S.S. Productions, or Delusions of Grandeur, have refreshed the ever broadening – and sometimes tiring- spectrum of dance music production.