WaxPoetic – Album Release Radar
Wax Poetic · Sebastopol
Release Radar
New music is hard to find, so we’re doing some of the work for you. With so much out there, it’s hard to pair it down — but this is what’s on our radar.
Each month: one featured release and one honorable mention — Jazz, Soul, Funk, and EDM we’re actually listening to.
August 2026
Featured release
Zaccai Curtis — Sonoluminescence Vol. 1
Jazz · Funk · Aug 7, 2026
GRAMMY winner after Cubop Lives! — now leaning into ’70s jazz-funk and soul-jazz. Piano and Rhodes at the same time, Craig Handy on tenor, grooves that reward a full sit-down listen. Built for the drive up and the first spin in the room.
Honorable mention
André Cymone — The Resurrection of Funk
Funk · Aug 14, 2026
Minneapolis sound architect (Prince’s earliest collaborator) plays every instrument on a funk revival that’s protest without bitterness — The Funk Forecaster guides you through 15 tracks of pure groove. Joyful, human, no nostalgia trip.
September 2026
Featured release
Gretchen Parlato — The Wise Ones
Jazz · Sept 11, 2026
Fifteen years after In a Dream, Parlato reunites with Robert Glasper, Gerald Clayton, Mark Guiliana and Alan Hampton — plus Meshell Ndegeocello, Becca Stevens and Amber Navran. Space, groove, and emotional clarity from one of the voices that rewrote modern jazz singing.
Honorable mention
Osamu Fukuzawa & edbl — Before We Spoke
Jazz · Beats · Sept 23, 2026
Tokyo–London collaboration with almost no words exchanged — the music did the talking. Osamu’s piano and edbl’s groove-driven production sit between jazz, neo-soul and R&B. Soft, exciting, and built for late-night listening.
October 2026
Featured release
Jungle — Sunshine
Funk · EDM · Aug 14, 2026 · Arena tour Oct 2026
Post-Volcano and “Back On 74,” the London trio’s fifth album is pure sunshine — disco-funk, soul, and arena-sized hooks. “Carry On” landed as BBC Radio 1’s Hottest Record; October’s the month they take it across Europe. Built for the dancefloor and the living room.
Honorable mention
Flamingo Pier — Woven Together
EDM · Disco · Oct 9, 2026
NZ-born, London-forged — their second album is self-written and self-released. Lead single “Cool Nights” is modern Italo disco: top-down coastal drives and dancefloor heat. A tapestry of collaborators, dancers, and late-night connections.
What are you listening to?
Tell us what’s on your turntable — artist, album, and a link. We may feature it here next month.
November 2026
Featured release
Electric Circus — Rites
Funk · Afrobeat · Nov 27, 2026
Turin’s six-piece follow Canicola with a feverish second album — ’70s funk, afrobeat, psychedelia, and wah-wah guitars on obsessive bass lines. Singles “High Fever” and “Ogres” set the tone: raw, hypnotic, and built for repeated spins.
Honorable mention
Marsh — Aria EP
EDM · Nov 15, 2026
Born as a live audio-visual show (London, Manchester, Red Rocks), the EP caps six months of touring — club cuts “Mercy” and uplifting “Hope” alongside “Rabbit Hole” and the Volen Sentir collab “Ascension.” Melodic deep house at its most cinematic.
December 2026
Featured release
Freshly Squeezed — Into The Reel
Funk · Nov 4, 2026
Southwest UK funk recorded straight to tape over two days at Middle Farm Studios — horns, keys, and live-room energy with zero shortcuts. Old-school beats for your head and your feet. The kind of record that sounds better every time you drop the needle.
Honorable mention
Ayumi Tanaka — Windflower
Jazz · Aug 21, 2026
Pianist Ayumi Tanaka with Thomas Morgan and Thomas Strønen — eight luminous free ballads recorded at La Buissonne for Manfred Eicher. Sparse, subtle, chamber-jazz perfection for winter listening. Intensity through restraint.
Spotify · ECM Records · JAZZIZ
Curated by Wax Poetic. Updated monthly.