The sounds of Cubop from Ubiquity Vik remembers encountering the Ubiquity label back in the early days of acid jazz. That kind of acid-Euro-hipster jazz sound a la Brand New Heavies, Mother Earth, Vibraphonic and the like. A pleasant label with pleasant releases always worth picking up. Then, they seemed to disappear. Or at least Vik hadn't encountered any of their releases. Then, while catching up on some new releases a few weeks ago, Vik stumbled on these to releases from the Cubop label. Lo and behold, Cubop is a division of Ubiquity. Figuring he had never been burned by the label in the past, Vik took the chance. It was about an 80 percent success. The first album is Pucho and His Latin Soul Brothers "Paina" (Cubop/Ubiquity 7). This falls firmly into that Afro-Cuban blaxploitation style popular in the late '60s. It has a a certain level of hipness and contains one of the smoothest (and previously unreleased) covers of "You Can't Always Get Want You Want," but in the end only about a third of this release really works. The second third is passable funk soul with the final third bordering on cheesy adult contemporary jazz. Still, if you've got some spare cash and you're up to date on the latest releases, this is worth taking a chance. You Can't Always Get What You Want - Cease The Bombing - Chitterlings Con Carne - Homeland - Yaina - Inside The Corn - Naima - San Juan 2000 - Hard Hats Highly recommended is the second find of the day, Soul Bossa Trio (Cubop/Ubiquity 3). Vik believes the Pucho to be a re-issue, but the Soul Bossa Trio are a new group of hipster in the acid bossa dance school. Now Vik rarely finds fault with a bossa nova, and the combination of American soul with this sultry South American sound has always fascinated Vik. What is truly surprising here is the trio hails from Japan. This revival has produced some truly fascinating music from Japan and the Soul Bossa Trio are one of the finest examples. An absolutely amazing cover of "Aint' No Sunshine" is the highlight in an almost flawless release. Not only recommended, but one of Vik's required albums for the new bossa fan. Sally - Mambo Paristenne - Bayu Bayu - A Bit Tricky - Cha Chita - Ain't No Sunshine - Poochie - Tin Tin Deo - Call Me, Mr. Vibes - A Holiday In South Zone (Saudade Do Rio)