It's been nearly a year since I shared a few words in the form of a blog. The intervening months have seen the economic downturn take hold costing many people their jobs, including myself. It was an eventuality for which I was financially prepared, but I had grossly underestimated the difficulty in finding new employment.

As someone who has always enjoyed music, and having built a solid reputation over seven years through this website, the solution was under my nose all along. No more hedging my bets looking for jobs while half heartedly networking to find writing projects; the time has come to commit fully to one course of action. As of now I will devote myself full time to writing, specialising in the music industry. Anyone who needs help with any aspect of their written communication should feel free to get in touch. I have been working in the background to build a client base and now have three labels on board. Over the coming months I will be looking to significantly increase that number so don't be surprised to see regular posts on forums and social networking sites as I strive to establish my business.

So what does this mean for the JJazproJect website? In truth, not that much, although reviews and articles for the website will need to play second fiddle to paid projects. I will strive to inject some new content into the site, the current Reelgroove competition being a prime example. Look out for another competition at the start of September involving one of the scene's iconic labels. Until next time...

Well Autumn is almost upon us and the nights are about to get longer and colder. The Ryder Cup is back in the USA and Andy Murray has shown the world what an exceptional tennis player he is. Season 2 of "Dexter" is proving just as enjoyable as season 1 and it's been far too long since I took the time to string a few words together. Personally and professionally it's been a hectic year; as far as the music goes, things seem to be snowballing right now and the volume of material coming in for review is greater than ever. On that front, I could really do with some guest reviewers so feel free to get in touch if you're up for it.

Talking of reviews, I'm in the process of re-designing the reviews page. The plan is to have individual pages for each month going forward with an archive page featuring all the reviews from previous months and years.

There have been numerous tracks that have caught my attention lately with Backroom Sounds - "Darkside" complete with new mixes still high up in my personal chart.  A few new labels are also well worth looking out for; Sweetleaf Recordings, Nu Deep, Sobra & Wild Trackin' will all be available through Traxsource. 

There are numerous tracks that I never got a chance to review once I'd cleared the pile of promos from the table. "I Waited For You" by Stone Island ft Carla Prather, "Love Is The Answer" by Studio Apartment ft Joi Cardwell and Home & Garden's "In and Out" with Chez Danier are all rather tasty.

Finally, you'll notice some other changes to the site in the coming weeks. I plan to drop the charts page and update the music page for the first time in a while. Feel free to let me know if you have any suggestions or want to get involved.

This week started on a very sad note following the announcement that KT Brooks had died last weekend. Taken from us far too young; he was a wonderful vocalist with a powerful voice and the ability to inject emotion and passion into his work. I would like to express my condolences to all his family, friends and colleagues.

Recent buys have included a few gems that unfortunately I haven’t had time to review but to name a few, I’ve been impressed by Vega ft Johnny Dangerous - “New York City“, Justin Michael’s “Music High” on Code Red and Richard Earnshaw’s Blueroom Dub of Souldyamic ft Nicole Tyler - “Gonna Fly”. Of the numerous tracks I’ve been fortunate enough to preview lately, “Take Me Down” by Fabio Tosti & Logical Groove has probably been my favourite. The vocals come from Savio Vurchio and do not disappoint. It’s also well worth checking out DJ Aakmael’s “Deepermonents EP” on Cyberjamz and Beppe Gioia’s “Ivory” on Sofitone which showcase the subtler side of house.

Finally, and on a more serious note, a controversy seems to be blowing up around a Barcelona based DJ and his use of numerous unreleased tracks. I first spotted it on the Deep House Page forum, and the story has also been picked up by Spirit of House . At this stage it’s degenerated into a lot of name calling but if the labels and producers are correct in their assertions, and there seems every reason to believe they are, it can only end in tears for the man from Barcelona. Click here to read more at www.spiritofhouse.com

The first three months of the year have almost come and gone, the clocks go forward tonight and summertime is nearly upon us, in theory at any rate. Yet again the WMC has passed without my attendance even though I keep vowing to make it. The people who’ve been send back mixed reports on their experiences including more tales of woe concerning door policies. That aside, though, I think I’d rather be enjoying the heat of Miami in March than the wind and rain here in Scotland. Not to worry, only eight weeks until the annual trip to Portugal which always brings warm weather, great food and some most enjoyable wine...

Since I last put together a few words, many promos have come my way and much music has been bought from a variety of sources. There’s also plenty of tunes on my shopping list; far too many to go into right now. Personal picks lately have to include Ralf GUM & Diamondancer’s awesome “All This Love For You” on Gogo Music and “Reach Up” by West District Allstars ft Natasha Watts. These two stand out amongst many excellent tunes I’ve been privileged to preview lately. Tracks that I never got round to reviewing but are well worth laying your hands on include Lisa Shaw’s “All Night High” on Salted and “Higher” by Elisabeth Troy” on Soul Purpose”. for anyone who doesn’t already own most of the tracks included I would also recommend picking up Defected Records’ compilation of Miami Classics - there’s some absolute belters on there.

The website reached six years old last week and, to be honest, I nearly forgot about it myself. Anyone ho has ever maintained their own website will understand the efforts involved. The digital age has changed much over the six year’s I’ve been doing this. I think it’s harder to put timely reviews out there now than in years gone by. Six years ago the MP3 had not fully taken off and vinyl promos still dominated. Now, the intangible digital files can be downloaded at a premium by just about anyone before the general release of most tunes. As a result now, by the time a track is available at normal price on general release, the ideal window has passed for reviewing it. I don’t know how everyone else feels but I grudge paying extra for something I can’t touch just to have it a month earlier - I feel differently about vinyl even if I don‘t buy much of it these days.

More soon….

It’s been four weeks since I last jotted down a few thoughts and with the festivities over for another year, it’s back to work on all fronts now. If you’re reading this, I hope you too enjoyed a well deserved break from the daily routine and managed to get some quality time with friends and family.

Moving On then, there's been a few reviews added over the Christmas holidays and the New Year is underway in fine style courtesy of some great new music from Ralf GUm ft Monique Bingham, Andy Holder and Dom Navarra, and that's just for starters

Due to the volume of promos I receive, I rarely get round to reviewing my own purchases these days and there are several that are worthy of mention. The following are enjoying heavy rotation right now: “Work It Out” by Michael Procter & Colonel Abrams, “Not To Mention” by Alix Alvarez & Nate James, “Mesmerise” by Danism ft Haze, “Sunday Morning” by Todd Terry, “Back When” by Sir Piers ft Robert Owens, & Lady Luck from Radhika. I’m sure there are more I’ve forgotten about but I’ll come back to them next time.

Hopefully you will have noticed some subtle changes to the site, I’ve added new sub pages within the “Music” page. The new pages have embedded audio and feature a “Track Of The Week” and a classic selection from “The Vault”. There will be some new feature articles later this month but I’ve got a few other tasks in the pipeline which need to be attended to first.

Until next time then...

This is the first weekly blog ever posted on the site nearly six years since launch. I don't plan to do them all myself, and over the course I hope that several guests will bring you  glimpse into their own week, musical or otherwise.

So where do I begin? The week kicked off with a few new promos arriving, including a couple from the prolific Gotta Keep Faith who never stop surprising me: look out for the reviews next week. As far as new reviews go, I've only had time to add three: those being from Ultra Nate, Christian Hornbostel & Matthias Heilbronn

Tuesday came around along with the invitation to redraft the biography of a very high profile DJ. Whilst it's not something I agree to do too often these days, due largely to time constraints, it's always an enjoyable challenge to present someone else as they would want the rest of us to see them.

Wednesday and Thursday delivered some quality mix sessions from Richard Earnshaw & Mr V, thanks to both for the quality sounds. Checking out Traxsource I was inspired by new material from Sir Piers, Roland Clark, Ethan White & Lisa Shaw and Alix Alvarez to name just a few. Hopefully I'll find a timely moment to review them, if not, the tracks are smokin': hunt them down.

So as the weekend comes around and I'm polishing off a rather pleasant bottle of Rioja after another hectic afternoon with my two year old son, it's Evan & Parrish from Groove Junkies who are providing the inspiration, courtesy of a rare Classics Mix session. For the weekend I can envisage listening to new tracks from Monkey Brothers, Luis Radio, DJ D, Scott Wozniak, The Jinks, Groovalicious, Nightrhymes, Soularis & Sequential Soul. I also recommend checking out Cynthia Layne's terrific long player "Beautiful Soul", particularly if you're into something a little more laid back.