Following on from two various artist 12”s that featured the likes of Rüf Dug and Adam Strömstedt, the latest release on Banoffee Pies Records welcomes unsung 90s house champion Mark Nicholas to the fold, presenting material unearthed from his archive of unreleased gems. We had originally intended to ask Nicholas for one track to appear on our various artist series of 12”s, and instead wound up with an album’s worth of material. Nicholas’ own Ringrose label first rose to the surface back in 1998, and the highly sought-after Low End Theory Pt. 1 12” amassed something of a cult following amongst eager heads over the years. Intrigued by the refined analog grooves he had left behind, we dug through his back catalogue and found him perfect for the off-kilter, soul-enriched and sample heavy sound our label and parties are all about. After requesting tracks from Mark we ended up with a wide selection to sift through and quickly reached the conclusion that the music would be best represented as a complete body of work. While it took time to craft the perfect selection, we feel this LP best represents the diversity and skill Nicholas has at his fingertips. The fact he refrains from tethering himself to one sound accentuates the colour and personality that identifies his music. The live, jammed out feel is equally matched by his experimental ideas, perhaps best manifested on uptempo swinger “This Jazz”, but still his direct understanding of groove drives the LP forwards at all times. The energy levels ramp up to the techno pulse of “Ginger Giraf” at times, while elsewhere a sweet and serene mood calms the pace down on “Old Sole”, but the finish on the music is consistently organic and hand-played, holding everything together naturally whatever the tempo. The energy and sheer musicality that spills out of the ten tracks selected for this album is hard to resist, shedding a much-deserved light on jazzed-out house music that came dangerously close to never seeing the light of day.