Downtempo: Romare - Prison Blues

Ninja Tune is promoting "Projections" - a new album out February 9 by downtempo groove artist Romare. Based out of London (many Ninja Tune artists are), Romare squarely has my attention. His tracks are rooted in slick drumming that allows for interesting layering of downtempo grooves and even more funky danceable beats. Check out tracks from the upcoming album "Projections" here - Prison Blues (downtempo), Pusherman (experimental ambient) and Roots (funky house):

Solid Steel Radio Show 8/2/13 ft. DJ Moneyshot (Classic Hip Hop, Breaks, Funk)

Check this awesome new edition of NinjaTune's Solid Steel Radio Show. The Solid Steel guest mixes are always incredible mixes and this is no exception. DJ Moneyshot drops classic breaks and beats for a fantastic weekend flavor. Get your groove on:

Congo Natty - UK All Stars

For Sound Spectrum Saturday, here's a new track from dub and jungle luminaries Congo Natty. This is pure UK sound, if you haven't heard much jungle or D&B, let this be an opener. Congo Natty brings many years of natty dread sound together with UK jungle and dub fusion, plus a crew of their musical friends and family. This is the first "single" off Congo Natty's upcoming album Jungle Revolution, out on Big Dada Records (a sister/sub label of Ninja Tune) on July 1. Check it: 

Ninja Tune Label Showcase - New Tracks & Mixes in 2013

Ninja Tune has been a "go to" label of mine for many years. It was a key inspiration of mine when I first started to discover "downtempo" music and forms of electronic and international fusion. I had heard a Coldcut track (the artist duo who founded Ninja Tune) on BBC's Radio 1 and Blue Room show back in the early 2000's and I followed the trail...it led me to Ninja Tune.

I subscribe to Ninja Tune on Drip.fm - an amazing service that allows users to pay a monthly subscription to a label an in return get ALL of that labels releases in turn as they come out. Ninja Tune releases music from so many amazing artists, including Bonobo, Emika, DJ Food, Kid A, Toddla, Leatherette and more.

Here's a huge set of amazing tunes and mixes that Ninja Tune has released in 2013 from these artists and more. It's 5 hours of amazing music - vibes ranging from downtempo, trip hop, grime, chillout, lounge house and more:

Monday Mix #7: Ninja Tune Solid Steel ft. DJ Kentaro

Ninja Tune's monthly Solid Steel online radio show is always a fantastic mix of eclectic sounds. Coldcut, Ninja Tune's founders, always start the show with an hour long set that ranges from trip hop to funk to ambient, and then they pass it to a guest DJ who performs another hour. This month's guest is DJ Kentaro - a Ninja Tune turntablist (and DMC Turtablism Gold Medalist) who just released a new album "Contrast." Many of his new tracks are featured in his mix, which has a hip hop vibe with downtempo dance and dubstep elements, and a healthy dose of impressive scratching. He also features new music by Slugabed, another Ninja Tune artist. When I heard this mix I instantly went out and bought both new albums by DJ Kentaro and Slugabed - great additions to the downtempo library. You'll like this mix if you like Rusko, Foreign Beggars, downtempo dubstep, turtablism and Ninja Tune in general.

DJ Kentaro - new album "Contrast" (Ninja Tune)

Slugabed - new album "Time Team" (Ninja Tune)

Solid Steel Radio Show 5/25/12 - Funk & Soul Edition, by Coldcut, Dobie & DJ Irk

Every edition of Coldcut/Ninja Tune's Solid Steel Radio Show is a treat. Its not always exclusively downtempo music, but they always feature a different selection of downtempo styles. The last show I really enjoyed (HERE) focused on downtempo trip hop with some glitch, and this show is completely different but equally entertaining - featuring funk and soul, with a bit of Amon Tobin, trip hop and electronic sounds to finish it off. This show features the "godfather" funk fusion Chuck Brown, along with artists he's influenced, including Nas, Chris Turner, the Beatles, and more.