My 6 Gems:
Nathan Stewart
The Candle Family
Love Theme from Two Hearts
This has always felt to me like the logical destination for that low-slung disco sound of the late 2000s. It chugs along at a steady 105 bpm using an impossibly funky bassline as the foundation. Rather than making the mistake of trying to be risqué by adding a porno sample of people having sex on top of a filtered disco beat (that shit is for the birds), it instead leans on a seductive vocal, some well-placed chords, and lush string accents. This tune is pretty spicy. Whenever he says, “So slippery when wet,” I instantly want to do the gesture where I pull on my shirt collar cuz the temperature in the room is really ramping up. This track is nearly nine minutes of unadulterated disco sleaze, and I am here for it.
William Pitt
City Lights (Instrumental)
As a six-year-old living in the United States, I wasn’t listening to much European dance-pop music in 1986, which means I didn’t catch the heat from this barn burner until decades later. There’s something special about the way the guitar floats over the bassline and then just unfolds into the most delicious solo that makes me feel like I should be in a convertible, cruising the streets of an unfamiliar seaside city. I was in the car with my partner a while back, running errands while listening to the Alfredo - The Original Sound of Ibiza mix and when this song came in (it was the vocal version, and Spotify doesn’t have that version so whatever) I started telling her how much I loved it and then described how the song made me feel the first time I heard it. I looked her in the eyes and said, “Imagine what it’s like to hear this song for the first time.” She looked right back at me as I finished talking over the song she had been trying to hear for the first time and said, “Yeah, it must have been really nice to hear it for the first time.
Jakarta
San Je Jak
A while back I was scouring Disco Gs for Yugoslavian funk rock records released in the 80s and came across the Maske Za Dvoje album by Serbian band Jakarta. Tucked away in this solid new wave album is this outstanding mid-tempo song that I have been trotting out whenever possible. Right out of the gate the bassline hooked me with the dual slide move, followed up with the funky walk back; just lovely playing by bassist Rade Bulatović. The chord stabs are like little time machines each time they hit, and there are even horns thrown in for good measure. The breakdown around 2/3rds of the way in is what dreams are made of. My Serbian is pretty rusty (non-existent actually) so I can’t provide much commentary on the lyrical content, but I can say with no reservations that this song is stone-cold killer.
Officer John
Stay (Morgan Buckley Remix)
Sometimes the artwork on a release lets you know that if you don’t check the music out, you will regret it for a long time. The alt-pop/shoegaze LP The Return Of Officer John by Officer John on Dublin label Wah Wah Wino is one of these releases. The final track of the B-side is a Morgan Buckley remix of Stay that is possibly my favorite track of 2026; it is solid gold. I often feel like I don’t know shit about music when trying to describe tracks, so bear with me on this. This channels old-school electronica with a breakbeat and choppy vocal tricks straight out of the 90s, all working their way around a guitar that feels like it is being dunked underwater. This remix is hot as hell. This is a jam for sunrises and sunsets. This is a jam for the poolside while you battle the oppressive heat of the summer. This is a jam for dark, low-ceiling venues with dialed-in sound systems. This is a jam for any place where you can just vibe out and have a good time.
Dynasty
Still In Love
I have been a longtime fan of the legendary Los Angeles disco band Dynasty from the moment I heard their music, so imagine my delight when I learned that local DJ collective Austin Boogie Crew got the band back in the studio to record some new material for their ABC imprint. This song is a solid bop that has not left my bag of 45s since I got my hands on it. The chorus is infectious; the locked-in groove and smoothly funky bassline make this fun as heck to play. It is nearly impossible for me not to be smiling by the time the song comes to a close. This is one of those songs that you can't help singing along to while moving your hips and shaking your nips during a dancefloor workout.
Jimmy Chambers
You Can’t Fight It (Riccio Rerub)
If memory serves, this may be one of my earliest introductions to the work of Italian producer Riccio. There is a lot to love about this track: the source material is from the Italian release of the 1976 film by John Carpenter, Assault on Precinct 13 (great movie, btw) and the lore behind how the rerub came about is pretty charming. The drums have a nice swing to them and completely lock in around the synth bass when it finally comes in. The track just presses on with this determined feel for a few minutes, and when Jimmy Chambers’ vocal drops, it sends the whole thing into the stratosphere; it is unreal. Listening to the chorus in 2026 feels surreal because it definitely feels like in this moment, we can't beat the system, but I'll be damned if that means we shouldn't keep fighting it.
