Don Leisure, best known as 50% of Darkhouse Family, laces us with an all-new 17-track album of beats - Halal Cool J, courtesy of First Word Records. The project dates back from early 2017, appearing originally as An Ottoman Excursion on First Word's sister-label, Excursions - a series of edits born out of a decade-long love of Turkish music & various record-digging expeditions. Following on the single released earlier this year, the full album fuses western sounds with fuzzed-out traditional instruments and themes.

Discovering original pressings of old Turkish music was only possible to multiple trips to Istanbul. The hunt for those dusty records resulted in a further immersion into the country’s musical legacy, reinvented by Leisure’s sensibilities for eastern vibes. Both modern and vintage, Halal Cool J is best heard when played from A to Z, without interruptions. A tasty trip through unknown territories, available on vinyl.