Funkier Sounds May 2025

Hello, big up, hope you’re good. It’s been non-stop here at Funkier HQ lately (sadly not all music-related), but I’ve found time to write this little newsletter with some treats for those beautiful ears of yours.

This month:

• You can ring my beh-eh-ell, ring my bell

• A new and lovely Funkier Sessions mix

• What I’ve been listening to (and you should too)

• Gem of the Month

You can ring my beh-eh-ell, ring my bell

Next up in my free edit series is another one I've loved forever and wanted to work my magic on for ages - Ring My Bell by Anita Ward. This tune’s obviously all about the lame little boopy sound, but I love the jangly guitars and backing vocals too. Standard Funkier treatment of beefing matters up somewhat and rearranging things - I’ve given it a long and gradual build up to the vocal, messed around with the stems a bit and added some percussion and snippy hi hats to create a nearly 7 minute monster. I think it’s turned out pretty well, and I’m inviting you to download it and enjoy it. Go on, help yourself!

A new and lovely Funkier Sessions mix

My mix series Funkier Sessions has been continuing, and the latest instalment is a good one - a 96 minute beast of a mix from a UK-based DJ and producer called NTRIK. I loooove this mix - there’s loads going on but it flows really well… starting off on a lovely boogie tip but building to something chunkier with original and remixed disco, some house and varied funky vibes. A few classics and some new discoveries in there too. It’s a really nice one, and you’d do well to give it a listen to see what I mean! As always, I'm looking for more mixes, so give me a shout if you wanna get involved - all welcome!

What I’ve been listening to (and you should too)

I’m always listening to mixes from other DJs for inspiration and new old tunes. Here’s some stuff that I’ve been enjoying recently…

I was at Gala Festival in Peckham last Sunday and the absolute highlight was Hunee and Antal, playing a wonderful selection of obscure old tunes that was pure magic. This mix isn’t that set, there’s not many of theirs out there, but it’s a similar vibe. Just like their set on Sunday, my Shazam was almost melting listening to this!

Another of the best in the game (and someone I met in the crowd at Gala a couple of years back) - Kirollus! This set is a 6 hour + B2B covering lots of bases, but of course I’m here for the mega helping of obscure boogie delights…

Keeping things underground and on an obscure tip, I recently stumbled across this mix from Black Truffle called Gourmet Disco. And you know what, it lives up to it’s name - a sumptuous selection of forgotten disco and jazzy, funky vibes…

Gem of the Month

Ooh, this one! Sky High by Uncle Louise from 1979. This perfect piece of forgotten disco strongly reminds me of the recent Hunee and Antal set that I mentioned above, even though they didn’t actually play it… but it’s exactly the kind of vibe they specialise in - unusual, frantic, dusty disco with crazy bass. This one clocks in at a hefty 10 minutes, flitting again and again between the chorus with its mad horns and the verse giving some light relief. A staple in my sets if I can get the BPM high enough.

Small bit of housekeeping before I go - I might be moving this newsletter to a new provider before the next issue. I’ve outgrown the free plan with this provider, can’t afford their very expensive paid plan and am running out of inactive subscribers to remove to keep my numbers below the threshold. Good problem to have I suppose as it’s good to grow. Just so you know - hope to see you on the other side!

Tom xx