One of the best things that Fat Beats has done is recent years is the launch of their Baker’s Dozen series of releases. The idea behind the series is to get some of the finest instrumental producers across the globe to submit to a pretty simple format – twelve instrumental tracks, with one bonus track to be pressed in limited numbers as a flexi disc, to make it a baker’s dozen. Over the last couple of years, we’ve gotten contributions from artists such as Exile, Elaquent, Budamunk, and Marco Polo, just to name a few. Now the series heads to Germany, where Suff Daddy takes over.

Suff Daddy is a producer from Berlin who is probably best known for his 2016 album, Birdsongs, which came out on Jakarta Records. For his Baker’s Dozen album, he takes us out to the West Coast, where he delivers a lot of fat, laidback beats. The beats are built around these big drum hits, and then filled out with a lot of synthesizers and electric pianos. He’s drawing heavily on electro-boogie, R&B, and just a little G-Funk to make these beats that sound really big and full and funky. The hooks are simple, yet catchy and fun, and they’ll stick with you after the album is over. Most importantly, though, this album is just really funky. It might be December, but this album might make you want to brave the elements, roll down your car window, crank up the volume, and go cruising. It’s just got these great, warm, laid back grooves that make you want to hang out with your friends, dance, and have a good time. Look, Baker’s Dozen doesn’t always need to be a cerebral thing. Sometimes you just want to have a funky good time, and that’s what Suff Daddy is giving you.

Baker’s Dozen is a very malleable series, one that can go any number of directions based on the producer whose been handed the reins. Suff Daddy decided that for his entry, we all needed to get down and boogie, and I can’t argue with the funk he’s given us. This is just a really fun entry to listen to.