No Regular Play

No Regular Play sounds like a jazz club that was abandoned in the 1950s and rediscovered by a deep house producer in modern-day Brooklyn. The music is anchored by Greg Paulus's mournful, expertly played trumpet, which weaves through steady, hypnotic drum machine patterns. There is a palpable sense of space and physical location in their sound, often feeling like it was recorded in a room with high ceilings and wooden floors rather than inside a computer.

What truly distinguishes them is the seamless integration of high-level musicianship with underground dance music. While many 'live' electronic acts feel gimmicky, No Regular Play uses the trumpet as a primary emotional voice, often layering it with breathy, vulnerable vocals that recall the cool jazz era of Chet Baker. The rhythms are informed by a deep study of Afro-Cuban percussion, giving the tracks a subtle, swinging complexity that sets them apart from the rigid grid of standard tech-house.

Start with their debut album, Endangered Species. It perfectly captures their transition from the dancefloor-focused EPs of the Wolf + Lamb era into a more expansive, song-oriented territory. It is the ideal soundtrack for that specific time of night when the party has ended but you are not yet ready for the day to begin.