Stones Throw Records release the latest album from John Carroll Kirby. On Septet, Kirby moves in a different direction to his meditative debut, collaborating with six other LA jazz musicians to celebrate the local thriving experimental LA scene. The record has a real '70s feel within its eclectic blend of jazz, funk and electronic music, which is partly draws on the music coming out of the local scene at the moment but also draws influence from the collaborative nature of the seminal jazz records of that era...

Talk about a blast from the past. Septet is a funky, retro jazz album that takes the feel of '70s experimental jazz and drags it into the 21st Century. The use of old style synths helps to take you back in time, but even the production values have been carefully crafted to make it sound like a long lost treasure.

This is much more than a collection of tracks aping the past. There's a real love and respect for the time period and genre that make for compelling listening.

Obviously, if you're not a fan of '70s jazz, there's very little here for you. But if you are... boy are you in for a treat.

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Nick Smithson