The Sofrito collective, led by DJ Hugo Mendez and producer Frankie Francis, are an ambitious lot. Not only has the gospel of their Tropical Warehouse parties spread from East London to Bogota and beyond, their record label's "Sofrito Super Singles" series has become an underground sensation. They issue raw dancefloor takes of everything from Nigerian acid boogie to raw Gwo Ka rhythms; from Latin grooves on the Pacific coast of Colombia to futuristic sounds from 2000s European producers. Sofrito: International Soundclash is their second compilation for Strut, following the critically lauded
Tropical Discotheque. These 14 tracks are geographically and chronologically diverse yet have one thing in common whether they are from the '70s or the 21st century: they're raw and their grooves are infectious. Of the new cuts, the highlights are an unreleased, alternate version of "Nabed Nade ei Piny Ka" from the
Owiny Sigoma Band (the original version appeared on their self-titled Brownswood album in 2011) and Grupo Canalon's "La Zorra y Perol" fronted by Nidia Congora -- who is also vocalist with
Quantic y Su Combo Barbaro. The vintage jams come from Trinidad, Colombia, Dominica, Congo, Cameroon, and elsewhere. Here, standouts include Les Defficiles de Petion-Ville's "F'em Confiance," a Dominican mini-jazz with colliding, guitar-driven rhythms countered by hand percussion and a squiggly synth sound so current it's hard to believe it was recorded in 1976. Another burner is the opening soca instructional cut "Vibrations Groove," by Trinidad's Lord Shorty & Vibrations International from 1977. The Afro-Dominican scorcher "Agarrlo Que Eso Es Tuyo," by the legendary merenguera
Luis Kalaff, is a must hear. 1980's Sartana et Son Groupe Mistral's "Information par Le Mistral" is a bubbling, unrelenting zouk driven only with a boss bassline, roiling hand drums, and killer chanted vocals between frontman Sartana Sinitambi and the band. Contrast this with the full-blooded Afro-disco of Cameroon's "Ebolo" by Bella N'Joh, followed by the Sofrito edit of Concept Neuf's cover of Ralph McDonald's "The Path," and you have a compilation ambitious enough to satisfy any crate digger's expectations as well as those of any dance party on the planet. Simply put, Sofrito: International Soundclash continues the collective's rep for all-killer, no-filler releases. ~ Thom Jurek