Midnight Soul
Count onMidnight Soulbecoming the set that nudges the experimental Kinkysweet label into the spotlight, because records this artfully compiled and sequenced sizzle through the underground circuit swiftly. West Coast DJ Tom Thump gets the mood exactly right: On each of two discs, he hauls out the big guns first (jazz legendRoy Ayerswith Erykah Badu for the trance-inducing "Everybody Loves the Sunshine" and Peter Malick with Norah Jones for the moody "New York City") then, using lesser-known artists, smoothes out an aural curtain that insists on being kept closed. Tight. This is music to rub elbows by at the chicest house party in town, or to sip martinis to with somebody you shouldn't at the titular hour—the vibe is urban hush-hush, and everybody, former club kids who have hung up their dancing shoes for apartment life especially, ought to be in on the secret.--Tammy La Gorce