The seventh instalment of the Allo Love series is not only the first to come from outside of the UK, but also the first to be put together by selectors who are not recording artists or DJs from the immediate Wah Wah 45s family. Polish DJs and producers Animisiewasz and Sid Pong are very much part of the label clan though, as the former is the imprint’s in-house designer, responsible for pretty much all of the label’s visual identity from as far back as the Colman Brothers’ eponymous LP. The latter is his DJ partner and master of the re-edit, and the together they wryly call themselves ‘Piękni Chłopcy’, which roughly translates to ‘Beautiful Boys’.

Their musical partnership was born back in 2003 in their hometown of Cracow, Poland, with a common vision to push jazz, funk and land leftfield orientated sounds that were not being represented on the city’s clubbing map. The coming together of Animisiewasz and Sid Pong resulted in long lasting friendship and many inspirational exchanges, not only between the two of them, but also with the crowd who were attending their parties. Thanks to the tireless duo, this little corner of Europe has been exposed to many different genres and musical styles from the last half a century whilst maintaining a solid dance floor for a decade and a half now.

The pair’s musical knowledge and taste is quite exquisite, making Animisiewasz’s role in Wah Wah 45s all the more enjoyable as he understands exactly where the label’s music is coming from – but let’s let the guys have a word or two about this hugely anticipated compilation themselves:

“This album reflects our broad taste in music from different backgrounds – both geographically and in terms of genre. The idea was to present a selection of our favourite Polish bands and producers coupled with some of our best loved selections from the Wah Wah 45s label. What we have chosen is a very good representation of our DJ sets when we play together. Highlights from our home country include the great Polish ten-piece band P.Unity kick things off in style; the much loved Wojtek Mazolewski Quintet delivering an outstanding take of a Max Romeo classic – where in the studio chatter, one can hear the voice of the late Maceo Wyro of Polish production outfit, Innocent Sorcerers; we have a previously unreleased instrumental edit from the hugely popular Rasmentalism; the smooth, crooning sounds of Julian Uhu; the Onra sounding Night Marks trio track; and an insight into a sugar fuelled child’s mind represented by the other Innocent Sorcerer, Envee, with another previously unreleased track. Some of the Wah Wah 45s selections have very personal connections to us, like the Maze Hill song, which helped us get through a particularly rough time, or the Envee Remix of Honeyfeet which was made especially with this compilation in mind. And then there are a couple of selections from two of our other favourite UK labels, Far Out Recordings and Mr Bongo.”

All in all, a unique and intriguing Allo Love selection from our friends in Cracow – na zdrowie!