Funk & Soul

Dusted || The 10 Best New Cover Songs Of June 2025

By / / Alternative Rock, Blues & Roots, Country & Folk, Funk & Soul, Garage Rock, Indie Pop, Jangle Pop / 1 Comment

Not all new music is really new, as many artists cover songs. Sometimes these are songs by their favorite artists, eg as a tribute to such a musical hero for a special reason, or they simply feel that a song deserves to be dusted and polished to reacquaint fans with great songs from the past. Other times, bands cover songs as a parody. Regardless of intent, some of those cover versions are so good or so much fun, we’d like to put a spotlight on them. Chosen from a wide range, here are – in random order – ten of our favorite covers from last month – links to the pages where you can add them to your wantlist included.

June brought us some worthy cover albums—Rewind by The Feelies, Déjà vu (We Have All Been Here Before) by The Wandering Hearts, and Key Eat Mune – A Tribute To Guided By Voices And Bee Thousand by various artists—but here we highlight the songs that stood out to us the most.

Le Freak || Cover: Neo-Magics || Original: Chic
Neo-Magics’ origins date back some 40 years, but prolific singer-songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Nic Dalton (also from Plunderers, Ratcat, Sneeze, Godstar, The Lemonheads, Love Positions, The Sticker Club, etc.) has breathed new life into Sydney’s rock band. He transforms Chic’s 1978 disco hit Le Freak—written by Bernard Edwards and Nile Rodgers—into an unrecognizable garage rock stomper with irresistible riffs. Completely different, but very catchy, and still danceable. Out digitally via Nic’s Half A Cow Records.

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New album: WITCH || Sogolo

Zamrock’s pulse, still beating and evolving

By / / Funk & Soul, Garage Rock, Psych / Leave a Comment

Zamrock legends WITCH (We Intend To Cause Havoc) aren’t just back—they’re charging forward. Their latest record, Sogolo (translated: Future, or Front), is a cosmic Afro-rock time warp, fusing the Zambian band’s deep 70s roots with a borderless new lineup and futuristic studio touches courtesy of Dutch producer Jacco Gardner. Cut in just ten days mid-tour in Berlin, the twelve new songs glow with the kind of raw, collaborative spark you can’t fake.

It’s amazing how then and now merge, which also applies to urgent storytelling with experimental groove, and analog synth washes with krautrock nods, not to mention the potpourri of voices, styles and influences that pass by here. Among the many standout tracks are Kamusale (a Bemba children’s game song with a garage rock bite), Queenless King (a cautionary tale about choosing love wisely), and Machiriso (Afro-rap warmth straight from a serendipitous lunch break jam), but it’s the all-too-short tribute tune Mbangula Sesa that has me hitting the repeat button the most—shouldn’t that be a summer hit?



Sogolo is out now digitally, on CD and vinyl LP, through Desert Daze Sound / Partisan Records. Featuring Jagari Chandra (lead vocals), Patrick Mwondea (lead synthesizer, organ), Stefan Lilov (guitars, bass synthesizer, piano ), Nicola Mauskovic (drums), Charlie Garmendia (percussion), Theresa Ng’ambi (vocals, backing vocals), Hanna Tembo (vocals, backing vocals), and Jacco Gardner (bass, percussion, synthesizer).

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || Desert Daze || Discogs ||  Partisan

New compilation: 5,4,3,2,1… The Countdown Records Story – 1985-88

The Countdown legacy from Mod and beyond in 13 songs

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“There are plenty of [mod] bands out there with a decent following and no record deals. We can pick up the best of them. What we want is our own label as part of Stiff.” This proposal by Maxine Conroy, Eddie Piller and Terry Rawlings, as described in the must-read memoir Clean Living Under Difficult Circumstances, led to Countdown Records. Highlights of their releases were already collected on CD in 2003, but Acid Jazz now presents a new vinyl compilation marking the 40th anniversary of their group label.

Young and eager acts like Makin’ Time, The Prisoners, The Kick, Long Tall Shorty, The Scene, Fast Eddie, The All-Jacks, The Combine, The Ambassadors, The Kick, and The Daggermen epitomized the flourishing mod revival, an exciting and danceable melting pot of influences from rhythm and blues, new wave, pub rock, power pop, soul, jazz, and ska. It’s hard to sit still and not be cheered by the thirteen tracks on this record.



5,4,3,2,1… The Countdown Records Story – 1985-88 is out now digitally and on vinyl LP through Acid Jazz Records.

Add to wantlist: Acid Jazz || Bandcamp

Gimme 5! Sensational New French Power Pop Outfit Lùlù Share Five Influences For Their Debut LP (out June 6th)

By / / Funk & Soul, Garage Rock, Power Pop, Punk / 1 Comment

With ‘Gimme 5!’ we take a peek into the collections of artists we admire. The premise is simple: artists WE like share five records THEY love. Photo (c): Non deux non 

One week from today, Lùlù will release their debut album via Howlin’ Banana Records (France), Dangerhouse (France), and Taken By Surprise (Germany). It’s one of those records I genuinely can’t wait for you to hear. With members of Irnini Mons, Pogy et les Kéfars, AVIONS and more, Lùlù deliver the kind of upbeat, catchy, and energetic guitar pop (sung in both French and Italian) we absolutely live for at this site. Just listen to the teaser singles—this is the good stuff.

To build the excitement for June 6 just a little more, we asked Lùlù to share some of the records that inspired their sound. The band’s primary songwriter Luc Simone was quick to respond—and no surprise, Lùlù’s taste in music is top shelf and right up our alley. So dive into the musical world of Lùlù, and don’t forget to pre-save and pre-order the debut LP! …

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New album: The Capellas || Untamed

Red hot debut LP with steaming rhythm & blues

By / / Funk & Soul / 1 Comment

As regular visitors to these columns know, The Capellas are a British supergroup featuring Elsa Whittaker (lead vocals), Mike Whittaker (guitar, backing vocals), Matthew “Mole” Lambert (bass, backing vocals) and Yan Quellien (drums). They tick all the boxes of what good rhythm & blues should be, from expressive vocals and charming harmonies to a steady backbeat and strong groove, with emotionally direct lyrics on live and love, captured in a polished sound with raw edges—a touch of garage rock—and an organic feel.

After their Take Your Chance With… EP and Love Prayer 7″, they now put out their first full-length album, which is titled Untamed but actually comes across as quite controlled and well thought out. Of the ten songs, we already heard four on the aforementioned earlier releases, and there is a nice cover of Chris Clark’s Love’s Gone Bad (written by Lamont Dozier, Brian Holland, and Eddie Holland), but each and every one of them is timelessly yearning and dance-floor-ready.



Untamed is out now digitally and on vinyl LP through Soundflat Records.

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || Soundflat

Dusted || The 10 Best New Cover Songs Of April 2025

By / / Alternative Rock, Blues & Roots, Funk & Soul, Garage Rock, Indie Pop, Indie Rock, Power Pop, Psych, Punk / Leave a Comment

Not all new music is really new, as many artists cover songs. Sometimes these are songs by their favorite artists, eg as a tribute to such a musical hero for a special reason, or they simply feel that a song deserves to be dusted and polished to reacquaint fans with great songs from the past. Other times, bands cover songs as a parody. Regardless of intent, some of those cover versions are so good or so much fun, we’d like to put a spotlight on them. Chosen from a wide range, here are – in random order – ten of our favorite covers from last month – links to the pages where you can add them to your wantlist included.

Paisley Park || Cover: Best Bets || Original: Prince & The Revolution
Following the iconic Purple Rain LP, Prince released Around The World In A Day 40 years ago. To celebrate that anniversary, New Zealand power pop quartet Best Bets covers its first single, Paisley Park (“Admission is easy, just say you // Believe and come to this // Place in your heart”), in their own unique style—free to download.

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New single: Kill The Pain with PowerSolo || Le vertige de la fête b/w Miss L’amour

2 + 2 = 5

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Le vertige de la fête and Miss L’amour are two crunchy tunes—the former in French, the latter in English—on one 45, born from an unlikely collaboration.

Kill The Pain is the eclectic post-punk duo of Australian singer/songwriter Phoebe Killdeer (her pop hit Fade Out Lines has more listeners than all the bands we normally write about combined) and French singer Mélanie Pain (of Nouvelle Vague fame). PowerSolo is the long-running Danish cowpunk project of Kim “Kix” Jeppesen (here on guitars and backing vocals) and Bo “The Atomic Child” Jeppesen (drums, bass and backing vocals), aka The Railthin brothers.

This combination of forces and styles—soulful rhythm & blues meets boisterous rockabilly and yé-yé on the A-side, and classy chamber pop on its flip—works out extremely well. This is what good synergy sounds like.

Le vertige de la fête b/w Miss L’amour—written by Phoebe Killdeer & Mélanie Pain, produced by Kim Kix, recorded & mixed by Nikolaj Heyman—is out now digitally and on vinyl 7″ through Crunchy Frog.

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || Crunchy Frog

New album: Le Chiffre Organ-Ization || Illustration

Psychedelic vibes and cinematic sounds from the South of France

By / / Funk & Soul / 1 Comment

Illustration is the sophomore record of Montpellier, France-based Hammond-driven band Le Chiffre Organ-ization, wrapped in a sleeve that is as stylish as their music. Expect a sonic celebration of energetic grooves and danceable nostalgia: this is a tribute to library music, film soundtracks and British mod music from the 60s—a mix of jazz, funk, psych and soul, played with garage rock intensity.

Alain Jullian aka Billy Coog aka Mr. Le Chiffre (organ), Alain Chapot aka Number 9 (bass), Eric Pouchet aka Eric Damod (guitar) and Alexandre Besson (drums) deliver eleven new instrumental tunes, including covers of Be My Lady (Booker T. & The MG’s) and Magic Mirror (Aphrodite’s Child), then they close the album with that one vocal track, Degustation, which is as exciting as it gets.



Illustration is out now digitally and on vinyl LP through Soundflat Records. Cover art by Cyril Cucumber (Woom Studio).

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || Soundflat

New EP: The Kevin Fingier Collective || The Boogaloo EP

Four Latin soul hits on one 7" compilation

By / / Funk & Soul / 1 Comment

We’ve been fans of Argentinean producer/composer/multi-instrumentalist Kevin Fingier‘s work for a while now, writing here and there about some of the incredible R&B hipshakers he recorded with his band. Their music explores all corners of the genre, but on The Boogaloo EP it is all Latin soul that rules. On one 45 in a funky package, four danceable tunes are brought together, songs that we already knew from previous releases, but in this way they come into their own even better. The tracks in question are Latin Dynamite, a cover of Charles Sheffield’s It’s Your Voodoo Working (the only vocal track, featuring Mandioca), El Popcorn, and Cocktail de Medianoche—all hits, a must-have for every party.


The Boogaloo EP is out now digitally and on vinyl 7″ through Acid Jazz subsidiary label Fingier Records.

Add to wantlist: Acid Jazz Store || Bandcamp

New album: Tomar And The FCs || Soul Searching

Reimagining vintage soul for modern times

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Put on your shiniest dancing shoes, because Austin-based rhythm & blues outfit Tomar And The FCs have recently released their third full-length album. It’s called Soul Searching and they make this mission come true, both literally and figuratively. These musicians have mastered the craft of heartfelt soul and showy funk, captured in the sound of the late 60s and early 70s, down to the last detail. Magnificent vocals and an inspired rhythm section, switching between emotional ballads and hip-shaking grooves, touch both the gut and the heart.



Soul Searching, produced by Paul Kresowik and Andy Tenberg, is out now digitally (self-released). Featuring Tomar Williams (lead vocals), Paul Kresowik (drums, vocals), Andy Tenberg (guitar, vocals, tambourine, shaker), Christopher Alexander (bass, vocals), James Rodman (keys, vocals), Jorion Dawson (saxophone, vocals), Andrew Page (trumpet), Angela Miller (vocals), Lauren Cervantes (vocals), Joseph Woullard (baritone saxophone), Matt Danko (percussion), Camille Scheiss (violin), and Diana Burgess (cello).

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

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