Handbook is a producer from York, England, who has been releasing music since the beginning of this decade. The last time we heard from him was just back in June, when he released an EP on Cascade Records called Reminiscence. Now he comes back with an album that was actually made a couple of years ago when Handbook returned from a visit to Australia and was inspired to create. The result is an album appropriately title Oz.

If you’re expecting an “Australian” album, with some sort of obvious wink and a nod to the title or the experience, you’ll be left wanting. If you’re just looking for a solid instrumental album with great soul samples, crisp drum sounds, and a great flow, however, you’ll be more than pleased. It’s not anything incredibly new or different, but it’s also a time-tested formula, and when it’s done well, you don’t really care that much. That’s how I feel listening to Oz. It’s not groundbreaking, but it’s incredibly fun to listen to, and the grooves are just undeniable, soulful, and funky, and that’s all I really need at the end of the day. It’s a warm and inviting album, something you can just put on, nod your head along to it, and just vibe out for a while. Handbook does a great job of creating enough variety between tracks and develops each individual track well enough that nothing ever sounds stale or repetitive. The grooves sound fresh from song to song, and the hooks will stay with you long after the album is over.

Handbook is a talented producer, and he’s given us a lot of different projects over the years. I don’t know what about going to Australia inspired these laid-back grooves, but I’m sure glad they did. Oz is a tasty instrumental album, and it’s impossible to sit still while listening to it.