Enrico Mantini & friends - Kinda Jazz After All

Conceptually, technically and musically Enrico Mantini’s first downtempo album “Kinda Jazz After All” is a remarkable release. It not only represents the effort of a DJ wanting to combine several styles together, but he ends up doing it through a fascinating exploration of the electronica possibilities.

Coming from the early age of house music and being renowned as one of the deep house pioneers, Enrico has built his fame on his natural propensity to experiment in music.

And this new work is no exception of course.

He is joined by Italian saxophonist Sabatino Matteucci, accordionist Danilo Di Paolonicola and guitarists Cristiano Vetuschi and Domingo Muzietti, on slow tempo beats that often have a strong energy and a funk reminiscence.

Lo-fi grooves made by dirty drum sounds, catchy bass lines and piano riffs are played with mastery by Mantini and trapped into that magic box which is the MPC. An embarrassing minimal approach considering what today’s technologies currently offer.

Without ever denying his origins, Mantini evolves into a new vision of electronic music, never banal or conventional, nor even classifiable as acoustic, moving expertly between stylistic boundaries that make listening to the 14 songs a fluid and never boring experience.

Definitely worth a slot in your discography if you’re into down tempo and jazzy stuff.