From Rivera's Groove Box #424: Niles Cooper - Oldtown Dub

Nothing makes my heart beat faster than a good ol' 90s house style groove. What is it about old school house music so insatiable and desirable, that when you hear those tight beats and chords patterns, it just feels so right? Maybe it's the right balance between all the sounds in the mix, where things just feel more sparse, not cluttered and too nervous. Of course, not all old school inspired dance music is executed in a new and exciting way. Truth to be told, it's getting harder to sort out the real gems from unsatisfactory duds. But Niles Cooper has gotten it right with this track, which itself is a dubbed and tricked out version of one of his previous tunes "Downtown Copenhagen". It's in Cinthies (Berlin's 803 the Meme Queen, Elevate record store) record bag also!

From Rivera's Groove Box #423: Willie Burns - She Left In Spring

Autumn is here, but I wish it was spring. Willie Burns composes his tracks often in a minimalistic way, in here you can just hear a steady kickdrum and a chord melody pattern which slowly grows with intensity throughout the length of the track. All processed through the E-mu SP-1200 sampler, which gives it a warm and magic digital distortion sound.

From Rivera's Groove Box #422: Zack Toms - Bring Me Down (Vocal Mix)

Big big UK 4x4 garage tune, which was introduced to me by Brawther. Zack Toms is mostly known for his funky disco sampling house tracks which were released on American dance labels like Nervous, Deep Cuts and 83 West Records. I don't know exactly how the Stanton Warriors got involved into remixing one of his productions, but this collaboration has become his best known work and thanks to channels like GarageVybez98 it's a sought after classic now.

From Rivera's Groove Box #421: Colonel Abrams - Trapped '94 (Smack Club Dub)

Nice and tight jersey house remix from Mentalinstrum (Eddie Perez) for the early proto-house song from New York. This remix was very influential for the developement of the UK garage house sccene, with key players dropping this track in their mixes. Colonel Abrams is widely credited as one of those artists who brought house music to the mainstream in the mid-80s.

From Rivera's Groove Box #420: DJ Topcat - I Need Weed In My Life

Another Dance Mania classic, this one has a catchy and easy to remember monologue, albeit a bit dark and sinister. A cautionary tale about the dangers of drug addiction. Toppled with a distinct raw production, tough ghetto house beats and tweaked synths, it is easy to recognise why this track is being hailed as a favorite by many. DJ Topcat is a Chicago DJ and producer - he released a handful of tracks on various artists compilations and a solo record on Dance Mania in 1997.

From Rivera's Groove Box #419: Maurice Joshua Feat. Chantay Savage – I Gotta Hold On U

That lady can sing! Steve Silk Hurley Silky Scat Dub is where it's at. Early 90s house at its finest. Some of the vocals and track elements were reused in Hardrive's 'Maurice's Vibe' which itself is an unreleased Masters At Work remix draft from this song. Also recommended to check out is Bernard Badie's 'Stressed Out' which uses some vocals from Chantay as samples.

From Rivera's Groove Box #418: Houz' Neegroz - All Night Long

One of Nu Grooves Rheji Burrell's aliases. Proper tough old school house with gritty swinging beats, the right sounds and samples directly where you feel them the most, all recorded on a dusty DAT tape giving it a lo-fi quality. But it works and has such a unique footprint.

From Rivera's Groove Box #417: Brawther - Endless (Underground Mix)

Incredibly deep and classy track from the Frenchman Brawther. Brawther told in his Discord forum, that he sent a 192kbps mp3 version of this track to Chez Damier for preview, but when he was ready to send the final mixed version, Chez had already sent the track to the vinyl plant for getting pressed. He got it mastered professionally though! But the track does sound kinda muddy and lo-fi, giving it a real underground vibe.

From Rivera's Groove Box #416: Angela Werner - Won't You Be My Lover

Crazy danceable new wave vibes with super bloody marvellous vocal from Angela Werner, whom some dubbed as the german Kate Bush when she was active in the early 80s. Clunky but groovy synth's all over the show with a fine and easy to sing along chorus.

From Rivera's Groove Box #415: Ron Allen - Whispers

Beautiful and lush deep house vibes from Ron Allen, who has almost the same producer chops as Larry Heard. This one gets into your head real easy.