Mixerr Album Reviews #2,146

Lil Louis & The World ‎– Journey With The Lonely EP was an EP that was issued on vinyl only in 1991 which wholeheartedly was used to promote his then and upcoming album called Journey With The Lonely which was released on Epic Records in 1992. This Lil Louis EP is a collection of deep house music mixed with electronic sound that was prevalent around Chicago, Illinois throughout the late 80s and early 90s. Although this Lil Louis EP is more electronic and jazz oriented in terms of sound. Its sophisticated production stands the test of time.

These days this Lil Louis EP goes for hefty prices. Sometimes the EP sells for more than $100 dollars on Discogs, GEMM, or eBay. But this EP is worth the purchase for any Lil Louis collectors willing to buy this vinyl EP. Many underground house classics are included on this vinyl such as Dancing In My Sleep, You’re My Reason, Blackout, and Funny How U Luv. Perfect for a picnic, prom, homecoming, or a pool party.



Dancing In My Sleep came from the 1992 album Journey With The Lonely. Joi Cardwell was the lead vocalist who wrote this song. Lil Louis himself did not write this song. Her vocals are sung in perfect harmony. Lil Louis produced the beats himself. Dancing In My Sleep is one of the lesser known songs from Lil Louis.

Dancing In My Sleep is about awakening to a new world with eyes wide in search of something new. Reaching for our dreams. The first verse highlights this at the very beginning. Take a look.:

[Verse 1]
Once upon a time
When things were new
Our eyes wide
We saw the world anew
We sang our songs and we danced along
Reaching for our dreams
Now it’s been so long since our view was clear
And our dance we walk through like sleep

Imagine dancing in your sleep. You toss and turn trying to break the mold. Someone lovingly reaches out to you. Pushing you to grow. Others tell you not to change and to stay the way you are. Now it’s time to ignore them and shake to a different dance or groove. Verse 2 highlights the encouragement of growth. Take a look.:

[Verse 2]
Oh
Fitfully
I toss and turn trying to break the mold
Lovingly you reach out to me
Pushing me to grow
Others tell me not to change
to stay the way I am
But I’m itching to move
Time to groove
Time to shake to a different dance

Now the chorus explains how to shake this mood by watching for something new. Read the chorus to find exact details.:

[Chorus]
I’m dancing in my sleep
Waiting for something new
I’m dancing in my sleep
Waiting for just for you
I’m dancing in my sleep
Waiting for something new
I’m dancing in my sleep
Waiting for just for you
I’m just dancing
Trying to shake this mood


Do U Love Me is the bonus track for this EP that can also be found on the album Journey With The Lonely. Do U Love Me samples Taana Gardner - HeartBeat and Freedom - Get Up And Dance. Joi Caldwell’s vocals were sublime on this song. This song is perfect for a wedding.

This is a wonderful piece of house music which can be considered a classic deep house song with a bass line that will get you every time you listen to this song. The kick drum kicks in after the first verse and the snare drum that kicks in after the second verse. The bass and drums will have you bounce around. It is both hypnotic and melodic. The song is nothing short of emotionally tugging.

The song explores regret in seeking confidence from a friend. Read Verse 2.:

[Verse 2]
In my soul I always knew
That I dared to ask of you
Who’s a friend, I would regret
So I live with my secret
Somewhere singing signs of spring
Whispering a melody
But before I’ll spread my wings
Will you answer candidly

[Chorus]
If you love me
Take me higher and higher (x2)

The fifth verse seeks for truthfulness. Read Verse 5.:

[Verse 5]
Hold me baby
Here’s what I say to you
From my soul (From your soul)
I’m asking you (Just be true)


Blackout came from the 1989 album From The Mind Of Lil Louis. The song Blackout has a deep house sound mixed with electronic music and dance. Back in 1989, the song was played around the world in nearly every club and at every party. Its uplifting vocals are what really energize the song. The song Blackout utilizes a time signature of 4|4.

However Lil Louis gets in touch with his religious side by quoting some scriptures from the Christian Old Testament book. Such as mentioning The Lord is my shepherd from Psalm 23. Psalm 23 is the 23rd psalm of the Book of Psalms.

The first verse quotes the beginning of from the Christian Old Testament and Book of Psalms.

[Verse 1]

The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures
He leaded me beside the still waters
He restoreth my soul
He leaded me in a path of righteousness
For His name's sake
Yeah
Though I walk to the valley of the shadow of death
I will fear no evil, for thou art with me
Thy rod and thy staff comfort me
Thou preparest a table before me, in the presence of my enemies
Thou anointest my head with oil, my cup's runneth over
Surely goodness and loving kindness
Shall follow me all the days of my life
And I will dwell in the House of the Lord
Forever

In the middle of the song is where Genesis 1:1-10 is quoted. Revelation 6:12 is quoted as well. These are the scriptures listed below.

[Genesis 1:1-10]

In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth
And the earth was without form and void
And darkness was above the face of the deep
And the spirits of God moved upon the face of the waters
And God said "let there be light", and there was light

[Revelation 6:12]

And I beheld when he opened the sixth seal
And Lord there was a great earthquake
And the sun became black a sackcloth of hair
And the moon became as blood
And the stars of heaven fell to the earth even as
A fig tree casts her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind
And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together
And every mountain and island were moved out of their place

The message at the end of the song tells us to seek out the truth. The message at the end of the song is “The truth is now, don't wait, too late to wake up” .


You’re My Reason came from the 1992 album Journey With The Lonely. The song is a mellow tune since the pace is very mid tempo. The song is Chicago house music at its finest. You’re My Reason is one of the lesser known songs from Lil Louis. The instrumentation uses a mellow piano, bongos, and a small shaker selection. The bongos are what give the song a soothing mellow vibe along with the piano that is used. This song is perfect for a wedding.

The first part of this song explain how this woman is yearning for a kiss and be closer to her man. She wants him to be by her side so she can desire him more. Read the lyrics below to get a better understanding.

In the morning when I wake hope I’ll overstay from your loving
One kiss is just for crying and my soul is true to fire from your loving
From your loving
you know there'll always be somethings I want to get I want to give
A special a special kind of harmony for your love I want to be
Wanna be close to you baby
Cause you're my reason
Wanna be close to you boy
You're my reason to believe
If I strive to survive but I will to realize
Close to you boy
Cause you're my reason
You're my reason
(delay)


Clap Your Hands (Heads Radio Mix Main R&B Extended) can also be found on this vinyl EP. Clap Your Hands samples Freedom - Get Up And Dance. The song utilizes a time signature of 3|4.

Funny How U Luv came from the 1992 album Journey With The Lonely. Funny How U Luv is one of the lesser known songs from Lil Louis. Not many people know this but Lil Louis is the person who you can hear whistling in the background. The song has that Lakeshore Drive groove. Incidentally the song samples snippets of a Lakeside song.

I rate this EP, Journey With The Lonely EP, 5/5*****!!


Mixerr Album Reviews #2,147

Frederick Jorio Presents Sextravaganza ‎– Tribal Sextrax - A Collection Of Underground Tribal House is one of the best tribal house albums in the history of electronic music. The Tribal Sextrax album is a collection of underground tribal house songs he produced and arranged himself. This album serves as “Best Of” and Greatest Hits” for him in a way. However this album is different because of the number of songs which were used to make Tribal Sextrax a full album. Tribal Sextrax is another beautiful work of tribal house music performed by Frederick Jorio himself.

The sound and style are similar to Sextravaganza ‎– Return Of Sextravaganza. The production on this album is very Afrocentric centered which is why you can hear Afrocentric beats and jungle beats all over the album. There is a lot of tribal madness on this album due to the tribal house sound and jungle house sound. Think tribal jungle. The sounds of dance and electronic meet each other on this album. This album has a melodic dance sound which meets the polished sounds of electronic music. Tribal Sextrax is extremely well produced and polished in an efficient manner. His work is extravagant as always. 90s house music can’t get any better than this. The sounds of 90s electronic music leaves much to be desired for the ears whether good or bad.


(All I Want Is) Sex is a sexy tribal house song perfect for the bedroom, night club, dance, or the dance floor. Orgasmic, sexy, and tribal are three words to describe this song. The song uses both tribal beats and jungle beats.

(I Want To) Take You Home Tonite is a perfect example of tribal house. The song uses congas performed by Ismael Bruno. Congas follow the rhythm of a kick drum next to a set of groovy bass lines. Now this version is not as orgasmic as the Sex Dub or the Danny Tanaglia mix.

Come On Everyone is driven by a repetitive vocal sample, a jazzy saxophone, bass lines, short electric synths, and a kick drum. Come On Everyone is one of his more underrated works of music. The song is perfect for the dance floor. The song follows a melodic rhythm. Now the saxophone gives the song an ambient sound. Ambient house music meets the sounds of dance and electronic on the song Come On Everyone.

The song Montobi's Raindance is filled with tribal madness as it uses lot of tribal house elements. Montobi's Raindance uses an eclectic Afrocentric blend of drums such as congas, bongos, and timbales. The Afrocentric drums blend in perfectly with the tribal house sound on this song as well as this album. Relaxing is one word to describe the mood of this song. Montobi's Raindance follows a tempo of 125 BPM. This is tribal America. The bass blends in perfectly with the Afrocentric blend of drums.

The Orgasm (Never Get Enough) (Sextribe Break) is one of the more orgasmic songs on the album. The Orgasm has a vibe, sound, and style that are similar to (All I Want Is) Sex.

Hey You is one of more well known songs that circulated in the underground scene of New York City. The song even managed enough buzz for the TRIBAL label to issue a single just for this song.

The song Montobi (Sextribe Mix) is filled with tribal madness as it uses lot of tribal house elements. Montobi (Sextribe Mix) uses an eclectic Afrocentric blend of drums such as congas, bongos, and timbales. The Afrocentric drums blend in perfectly with the tribal house sound on this song as well as this album. Relaxing is one word to describe the mood of this song. Montobi (Sextribe Mix) follows a tempo of 122 BPM. This is tribal America. Montobi (Sextribe Mix) is just as orgasmic as (I Want To) Take You Home Tonite.

Electric Jungle is an electronic hodgepodge of synths, notes and beats. This song uses a mixture of Latin jungle beats and Afrocentric tribal beats. Think jungle house for example.

Theme From Sextravaganza uses a funky bassline which is accompanied by synths and dance beats. This song is a mixture of electronic and dance music. The song is basically a tribal house instrumental laced with electronic synths and sounds.

I Won't Waste Your Time (Underground Smoothness) uses the smoothness of R&B and electronic in a tribal song. Joi Cardwell was the lead vocalist on this song. Her vocals are sung in perfect harmony and are sublime as always. You can’t go wrong with Joi Cardwell as the lead vocalist.

Come Drums serves as the closer for this album and uses a barrage of Afrocentric tribal house beats. The beats are not processed and are raw & unfiltered.

I rate this album 5/5*****!!