This is LWE’s last Download of the Week post until 2011 so we figured it was time to share a bunch of goodies that might otherwise languish on our hard drives. We’ve also rounded up our 10 favorite LWE-hosted downloads from 2010 at the bottom of the post.

Escort, “Cocaine Blues”
This one has been floating around for a while but it’s too good to ignore. Escort have always been among the best of those seeking to emulate and reinterpret classic dance music/funk sounds and “Cocaine Blues” finds them just as good at updating blues classics as well. The band’s first single in three years reminds me of Dr. Buzzard’s Original Savannah Band with its infectious vocals riding on plump disco grooves. We can hardly wait for Escort’s long awaited album to drop after this one.

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Robert Owens, “Heart and Soul”
Chicago’s best known house crooner and belter issued his fourth album, Art, in 2010 on Compost Records, a double LP with production roughly split between old friend Larry Heard and French maestro Atjazz. “Heart And Soul” was producer by the latter and is a bit closer to funky R&B than house, its rubbery bass guitar line wriggling through relaxed rhythms as Owens delivers a spot on vocal performance. A strong follow up to material from his 2008 album.

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Fatback Band, “(Do The) Spanish Hustle” (Danny Krivit Edit)
2010 saw veteran jock Danny Krivit release his second compilation of edits with leading reissuers Strut. Slightly more obscure than the first volume, this one includes Fatback Band’s biggest single, “(Do The) Spanish Hustle,” expertly stretched to nearly nine minutes of Latin-tinged disco. Sounding a bit like Liquid Liquid leading a disco orchestra, it’s one of those edits no disco fan should be without.

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Jatoma, “Little Houseboat” (Kenton Slash Demon Remix)
With only one release in their discography, Jatoma was an unlikely candidate for having their debut album issued on Kompakt. Yet just last month their self-titled LP landed with a Kompakt thump and they’re on to remixes. Kenton Slash Demon were an inspired choice to reinterpret “Little Houseboat,” as they managed to meld chunky, organic-sounding rhythms with dreamy, amorphous synth strains. Besting not only the original but many faddish IDM crossover acts like Gold Panda, this remix suggests we should all keep our ears trained on KSD.

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Silver Columns, “Brow Beaten” (JD Twitch Optimo Remix)
Your guess is as good as ours as to why JD Twitch was recruited to remix Silver Columns’ “Brow Beaten” more than a year after its initial release but we’re glad he was. Far from the near hi-NRG style of the original, Twitch goes for the jugular with a bass-heavy techno assault broken up by syncopated snare hits. Although the raving synths towards the end are eye-brow raisers, this powerful remix keeps our attention much more steadily than the original ever could.

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LWE’s 10 Favorite Downloads of the Week, 2010:
(links, not downloads; in no particular order)

St. Plomb, “Precious Soul” (Ripperton Remix)

The Hundred In the Hands, “Dressed In Dresden” (Kyle MF Hall Remix)