Tony Lionni is the new signing here at Versatile. Born in Liverpool, his love for the music was passed on to him by his father, a record collector and former DJ, who introduced him to crate-digging at the early age of eight. His roots stem from black music. Hip-hop will become his musical bases before he discovers the acid-house explosion at the mythical Hacienda in Manchester. He naturally starts mixing in the late 80’s/early 90’s, playing a mixture of rare groove, deep-jazz, deep house, etc. He then turns to production and is noticed by Gilb-R’s fine-tuned ears who signs him on the spot. Releases on labels like Wavetec and Mulemusiq are planned further in the year. Listening to Papaia one can’t help to think that 2008 will be the year that progressive house will make its comeback. It has been a long time since we had heard such a simple and effective kick and bass intro. The hi-hat then come in along with a small acid sound. The filter opens before the rhythm accelerates. In the middle of the track, the main melody gets dropped in, arms raise and the listener gets lost in the darkness of the night. On the B side, Shuffle explores the deeper roots of Lionni. The title is surely a reference to the beat, which is predominant in this track. Once again the hi-hats are up infront mixed to percussive sounds, which undulate to the rhythm of the bass, making this track an essential tool, ready-to-use and be mixed into almost anything.