Having just inked a new US distribution deal with EMI/Caroline, Tru Thoughts brings you this exclusive sampler. Tru Thoughts is an independent record label based in Brighton, England, started in September 1999 by Robert Luis (A&R) and Paul Jonas (Label Manager), on the back of their highly respected, jam-packed Brighton club nights. Their first album release just so happened to be the seminal Animal Magic by Bonobo, and the label has grown continuously over the last decade, releasing albums from the likes of Quantic, The Quantic Soul Orchestra, Alice Russell, Belleruche, Me&You, Spanky Wilson, TM Juke, Nostalgia 77 (whose incendiary funk cover of “Seven Nation Army” featuring Alice Russell preceded the high-profile high jinks of Mark Ronson by some time), The Bamboos and Hot 8 Brass Band, amongst many others. Support for the label has been impressive, garnering a dedicated and steadily-expanding fanbase, with DJs and tastemakers from a variety of styles hailing Tru Thoughts as one of the most respected leftfield labels around. Fans include Neal Sugarman (Sharon Jones/Daptone), Nickodemus, Garth Trinidad, Mr Scruff, Gilles Peterson, Laurent Garnier, Coldcut, Mark de Clive-Lowe, Jeremy Sole and many more. In 2005, Tru Thoughts won Record Label Of The Year in Gilles Peterson’s Radio 1 Worldwide awards, and music from the label has recently been heard on TV in the likes of Grey’s Anatomy, CSI, Ugly Betty, Shark and a worldwide Apple iPod advert. Now, with albums due from Quantic and his Combo Bárbaro, Stonephace (featuring Portishead’s Adrian Utley on Guitar), Domu, Flevans, Lizzy Parks, Kylie Auldist and Hot 8 Brass Band, Tru Thoughts’ 10th Anniversary year will be another vintage one in the label’s history.

In celebration of the label’s anniversary, Tru Thoughts and Giant Step present to you this exclusive CD-sampler featuring brand new music from the likes of Quantic and his Combo Bárbaro, Nostalgia 77, and Lizzy Parks, along with classic cuts from Alice Russell, Hot 8 Brass Band and Belleruche. “I Just Fell In Love Again” is a track from the new, highly anticipated album by Quantic and his Combo Bárbaro, Tradition in Transition. With vocals from the legendary Panamanian soul singer Kabir, this song gives the impression of a timeless funk classic, but with Quantic’s fresh, of-the-moment and ingenious musical vision stamped all over it. Another track offered on the sampler, “Petrified Dazed” by Kinny featuring TM Juke is an original, colourful and up-to-the-minute brand of modern soul from this exceptionally talented and charismatic vocalist, combined with the playful electronic stylings of TM Juke. The sampler also includes classics like “Northern Girls” from acclaimed self-styled purveyors of ‘turntable soul music’, Belleruche, who just released a new album titled The Express, The multi-instrumentalist Flevans’ track, “More On The Way”, features Shona Foster on vocals and provides a prime example of the idiosyncratic yet instantly satisfying style of Flevans. The song “Rock With The Hot 8” is straight from the second line parades of New Orleans. Hot 8 Brass Band’s unmistakable fusion of modern styles and brass standards transcends genres, bringing an instant ‘cool’ to Brass Band music whilst maintaining it’s credibility as one of New Orleans greatest treasures.

This CD also presents a dazzling selection of sounds from other Tru Thoughts artists including Stonephace, Natural Self, Megan Washington, Hint, Laura Vane, Keith and Julie Tippett, as well as remixes by Solo Moderna, Bonobo, and Eric Lau. Listen and enjoy!