Comprising 15 tracks from Traxman’s stacked vault of unreleased material made across the last 20 years, with Sinjin Hawke assisting on the A&R work, ‘Da Mind Of Traxman Vol. 3’ is a monumental document of a true great of multiple waves of Chicago dance music. From the irresistible vocal chant, heavy bass notes and skittering percussion of opener and to ‘Kill Da DJ’ to the gargantuan ‘I’ll Write The Hook’ and anxious rhythms of ‘Tha Wolf’, it folds a myriad of influences from soul and jazz to rock and rap into its urgent juke, footwork and ghetto house constructions. Fellow Chicago pioneer DJ Funk dying days after its release was both brutally sad and a reminder of the need to cherish and appreciate these legends who laid the groundwork while we have them.

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Not a collab we saw coming but one that makes so much sense. Two transatlantic producers who push dancefloor functionality into their hybrid club tracks, Pangaea and Leonce, join forces. The result is a thrilling mesh of UK and US influences: ‘Dusted’ has wobbly synths, strident drumwork and sugary UKG vocals, while ‘Stuck’ is more of a viscous heater.

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Marie Davidson’s tracks are always textural trips that carry a strong sense of personality through them. Throwing back to the sounds of early Detroit techno on her new album ‘City Of Clowns’ makes perfect sense in that respect, with that period of music brimming so strongly with experimentation, optimism and the distinct artistic marks of its originators. There’s also new wave influence weaved in, across the 10 tracks that serve up sci-fi synths, playful vocals and juddering basslines in abundance.

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Announced by Hessle Audio co-founder Ben UFO as “probably the closest we've come to releasing a UKG single” since the label’s first-ever release, the anticipation was high for this two-tracker from Bristol’s Josi Devil. The opening cut ‘Make It Better’ is big on atmospherics with reverb dousing its rumbling basslines and vocal chops, while the flip ‘Restless Sleep’ leans into dark and shuffling territory.

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The multi-talented French artist Oklou dropped her debut album ‘choke enough’ this month. Previously known for working with the likes of COUCOU CHLOE and Shygirl, this first LP has solidified her name in the alt-pop scene. Weaving together an abstract ambient with her whispering vocals, the 13-track release saw her work with A. G. Cook and Danny L Harle on productions as well as feature Drain Gang’s Bladee on hyperpop track ‘take me by the hand’.

East London vocalist and producer John Glacier has finally dropped her album ‘Like A Ribbon’. Leading up to the release with a bunch of singles and EPs throughout 2024, we now have the final piece of the jigsaw. Glacier shares in her Mixmag cover interview, “I wanted to create an album that changed with the seasons. It’s weird; I don’t know why I just felt that ‘SHILOH’ wasn’t an album, it was a project, but ‘Like a Ribbon’ is an intentional album – I knew it would take three parts and be made across this long period of time. The running thread throughout is just life throughout the year.”

As a whole, John brings us into her world of raw sounds with executive producer Kwes Darko, including gritty guitars, heavy drums and echoing lyrics on everyday living. Joining her on the album are two very different artists, Eartheater and Sampha, who both sit back and allow themselves to gently add something to their tracks yet not overpower Glacier’s work. This is one of those albums that you’ll have on repeat.

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Mixmag’s Valentine’s AKA the cluband cupids, AKA DJ HEARTSTRING have blessed us with their first EP since 2022. As a vibrant pair of producers and DJs, there was no doubt we’d hear some dancefloor-ready scourchers. Drawing in a bunch of soft trancey synths with some catchy, choppy vocals, they continue to pull on our heartstrings.

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Japanese-Canadian musical polymath Saya Gray spins an intricate web of heartfelt lyricism and obscure arrangements on her debut album, ‘SAYA’, through an inner monologue of heartbreak and remaining stoic in its wake. Across 10 tracks, Saya finds moments of sorrow in downtempo, instrumental folk and shoegaze, moving through hugely cinematic avant-pop and occasional electronic fragments, layering sickly sweet vocals over huge, soaring modular synths and brittle basslines. The resulting debut is nothing short of a masterpiece, a 10-part oeuvre boasting the very best of Saya Gray so far.

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Much like his early contributions to the South London jazz-R&B scene, Kiran Kai’s debut album ‘Ariel Blue’ is a familiar affair – an effortless concoction of shoegaze, R&B, and lo-fi grime instrumentals soaked in reverb and crackly, pitched-up vocals. There’s a particular early standout in ‘What Holds The Ground Up?’ featuring the low murmuring vocals of North London rapper Lex Amor, launching the record into a run of gorgeous downtempo cuts.

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Tokyo-hailing Prettybwoy pulls inspiration from his family history on his recent EP on SVBKVLT, ‘Tokyo Ice Age’, a reflection on the constantly shifting cycles of life. “An ice age is a cycle of roughly 100,000 years that Earth has been undergoing for at least the past million years,” he explains. “I’ve been reflecting on these cycles and the way life resets or disappears over time”. Across seven mutated club cuts, including additional remixes from aya and Proc Fiskal, ‘Tokyo Ice Age’ is an industrial workout slipping through jungle, breaks, and leftfield club.

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Having already introduced us to ‘Club Shy’ last year, now Shygirl is taking us for a foray into “Room 2” — and if this six-tracker is anything to go by, it’s even naughtier and even sweatier than the main room. With an eye-watering line-up of dance/pop’s biggest divas - including BAMBII, Jorja Smith, PinkPantheress, Saweetie and more - ‘Club Shy Room 2’ builds upon the club origins of its predecessor, but in the place of references to ‘90s/‘00s clubland are modern nods to Jersey club, new-wave UK garage, Latin club styles and more. Fear not, there is still some of that Shygirl spunk in there, with the addictively catchy ‘F*Me’ featuring Yseult and the rowdy ‘Je M’apelle’. In ‘Club Shy’, Room 2 is where the girls get down.

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Pedal to the metal, NAINA’s debut four-tracker is speed-lover’s dream; with raucous nods to footwork, electro, rave and jungle, ‘Survival’ rarely strays from its breakneck tempo - though despite this, there are still moments of softness littered throughout. It’s found in the warm synth stabs and sugary vocals on ‘Valentine’ and the smooth, fluctuating breaks on ‘I’d Rather Be Here (Than Anywhere)’. While the record retains its emotional centre, by the first few seconds of last track ‘Core Memories’ it’s clear NAINA is making a clear declaration of where she stands as a producer — ploughing through gun-finger-slinging electro melody and fiery bass. Let’s have it!

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San Francisco-based duo Baalti are experts at up-tempo, bubbling club music that playfully incorporates sounds from the South Asian diaspora - but new four-tracker ‘Mela’ undeniably takes things a step further. Take the use of Banghara percussion to create searing breakbeat on ‘Raja’, or the chopped up vocal sample that dithers through hi-hat slaps on the dub-inspired ‘Loose Leaf’ — ‘Mela’ sees Baalti demonstrate a more refined, subtle approach to melding together their plethora of inspirations to create four tracks that feel completely new yet simultaneously familiar.

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