Vito Lalinga (Vi Mode Inc. Project) - Black Spirit Planet (2018)

This year Vito Lalinga has been somewhat prolific, releasing a string of solid EPs on Timewarp and Sound Exhibitions. This time round, he pops up on Greece's Kraak label for the very first time. Highlights are plentiful throughout, from the slap bass propelled nu-funk-meets-jazz-funk sunshine of "I'll Be Good To You Baby" and solo-laden Bob James tribute "Bitter Taste", to the rich, mid-tempo nu-disco bounce of "Chill Speech" and constantly rising Afro-disco/nu-funk fusion of heavy-hitting workout "Afroinvasion". Elsewhere, "Ghetto Space" is a deliciously positive, piano-sporting disco-funk roller underpinned by rolling house drums, and "I Got To" is a Clavinet-sporting peak-time workout rich in lapsed hip-hop vocals and jammed-out solos.