This record has really moved me on a lot of levels. When the first tune “Holding On” dropped in 2020, it was so infectious that I had it on repeat forever (and I still do, this time for more personal reasons). I mean, I loved it, and told Tom Noble that probably every time we saw each other. When he eventually played Monk-One and my Shake! party in Brooklyn a while ago, I honestly had no idea he’d got back on the horse to finish this project. So imagine my surprise when this full-length got released at the end of last year. I fell in love with the single again and head over heels for the Lp, which to me, has an immediate timeless sound and feel as classic records should.

Bicoastal disco aficionado, Superior Elevation label/shop owner, and all-around legend of the scene, Tom Noble brings forth a sprawling project 15 years in the making with his House of Spirits full length LP on Razor-N-Tape.

There’s a long history of the making of this record that was summed up perfectly on the Razor-N-Tape site, but here’s the short version: Tom connected with West Coast funk band Orgone through local collector/DJ Dewey Chan after hearing their cover of “It’s Serious” by Cameo. In 2007, they recorded six demos together at Killion Studios in North Hollywood. Tom then enlisted a gospel choir from Tulsa, Oklahoma, to provide vocals, which were recorded in a church home studio by music director Darwin Jones. Many of the songs, including “Holding On,” were written on the spot during the recording process. After relocating to NYC in 2013, Tom returned to LA and Oklahoma to complete the material, enlisting additional vocals from dreamcastmoe in DC. Despite years of delay, Tom finally finished the LP in 2024, 17 years after the original recordings, with Razor-N-Tape stepping in to release it.

The opener “Love Trip”, an uptempo stomper, immediately gets you out of your seat (those background vocals of “love trip!” and bass line are just a few of the many reasons you can’t stop moving). Noble glides through various moods, be it smooth, downtempo R & B in the dreamcastmoe vocals on “Diamond Eyes” or the mid-tempo grooves of “I Get Lifted”. The two singles from the record “Times Are Changing” and “Please Take Me There” plus their remixes by Harvey Sutherland, Makéz and Sizmo have raised eyebrows and moved asses. The smoothness of “Moving Away” is a late-night party that goes deep into the night. Of course, the fave, “Holding On” is there, and gets a new mix. “Time Is Running Out” can not be looked over either, tossing in a little Brit-funk spice into the mix to round out this banger of a full-length.

Call this double pack of dynamite anything you want, but to me, this future classic is my Record Of The Year and, mark my words, its timeless sound will be rocking dancefloors and making people feel good for many years to come, shining for the world (and generations) to see.

Get the record here!

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