Stones Throw presents Move

Boogie—the slowed-down, postdisco, live-band funk of the early ’80s, is back in a big way—well, a big way in our little corner of the nightlife world. But like any rediscovered genre, you don’t want any old Jack or Jill making your playlist; you want the expert opinion. Los Angeles–based vinyl champion Dam-Funk has been on to the boogie thing for years now—long before his crate-digging, hip-hop-leaning pals got wind of it. As his podcast and a modern-funk 12-inch “Burgundy City” indicate, he knows that when it comes to summer, the stickier, the better.

Through the magic of the Stones Throw residency in Chicago, we finally get a taste of what Dam-Funk has been dishing at his Monday night Funkosphere parties in Culver City, California: funk, modern soul, boogie and more from the likes of Circle City Band, U.K. Players, Rah Band and Silver, Platinum and Gold. Never heard of ’em? Think early Prince or midperiod Rick James: slap bass, synth runs and midtempo drums. He’s not stuck in the past by any means—his own CDRs such as “Zone” and recent stuff by Baron Zen round things out. But mainly, as he insists on original wax, this is a lecture at vintage boogie school.

Also on the bill, DJ James Pants is known to boogie with the best of them. But his is a much more eclectic vision with psych and ’80s obscurities sneaking in the back door.

So while Mr. Peabody Records in Chicago has been sourcing boogie vinyl for folks like Dam-Funk, the city doesn’t yet have a boogie monthly, never mind a good weekly, where one can sink into some lush, soulful ’80s funk. Perhaps this sentinel from L.A.’s underground can kick-start something.