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Mammoth Penguins are a 3-piece indie powerhouse, showcasing the songwriting and vocal talents of Emma Kupa (Standard Fare) backed up by the noisiest rhythm section in indie pop. May 2024 sees the release of their fourth album Here on Fika Recordings. After 2019’s big, bold and confident There’s No Fight We Can’t Both Win, and the initial shock of the global pandemic cancelling a trip to SXSW in 2020, the band returned to the studio in the summer of 2021 to start recording. The new record leans into a raw pop-punk power-trio sound more than ever, with a deep growl in layered guitars and bursts of percussion and harmony. The songs and artwork explore themes about finding a place for yourself and familiarity with people and places. Although it turns back towards a classic three-piece sound, the band weren’t restricted by that palette, adding finishing touches of percussion, extra guitars and backing vocals in short bursts in a garden shed, and also bringing in gorgeous strings to sweeten the title track. The sound builds on the band’s first album, Hide and Seek, which was released with the much-loved and sorely missed Fortuna POP! in 2015. The follow-up LP John Doe in 2017 was an ambitious concept album, exploring the feelings of loss and anger at a man who fakes his own death only to return years later, expanding well beyond the 3-piece rock‘n’roll template, with washes of strings, synths and samples. The ‘Penguins have been smashing it at some high-profile support slots in the lead up to this album release, including at Allo Darlin’s joyous reunion at Islington Assembly Hall (Oct 2023) and Muncie Girls last ever London show (Dec 2023). They play the Leicester Indiepop all-dayer and Wales Goes Pop in March, before heading out on tour in support of the new album in May. Those big singalong choruses need your voice shouting back from the crowd with joy and defiance. Mammoth Penguins are Emma Kupa (guitar, vocals), Mark Boxall (bass, vocals) and Tom Barden (drums, vocals). Reminiscent of the pop melodies of The Beths, the indie dissonance of Land of Talk, and the guitar forward slacker rock of Weezer, Mammoth Penguins marry heart-ache indiepop with spiky guitars and Emma’s frank confessional songwriting. “wonderfully awkward indie pop with a literate flair, sounding a lot like a Weezer record or even a more feminine Wedding Present” Clash // “eminently relatable earworms” Brooklyn Vegan // “one of the finest examples of simple and true indie rock around” All Music // “her characterful voice still carrying masses of charm and the messier, grungey approach bringing a strength all of its own, aided by a clutch of cheerful hooks and riffs that contrast nicely with lyrics dealing mostly with heartbreak and misery” Drowned In Sound

Released in 1969, Bull Of The Woods is the 3rd and final studio album from the 13th Floor Elevators. They are the
first band to call their music psychedelic and are known for their innovative use of the electric pitcher. The original
vinyl has long been sold out and unavailable.

Bringing together over 50 of Jamaica's greatest session musicians, whose work spans from the birth of reggae in the late 1960s until today, Roots Architects is the largest gathering of Jamaican musical talent on one all-instrumental album. Never before have so many veterans, who helped create the immortal rhythms that made reggae internationally successful, been assembled to play on new material without vocals. This album aims to celebrate and pay tribute to the unsung heroes of reggae music: the rhythm builders or Roots Architects.

The project is the brainchild of Swiss keyboardist and producer Mathias Liengme. In 2013, he travelled to Kingston, Jamaica, to produce The Inspirators project, an all-star album gathering Leroy ”Horse-mouth” Wallace, Lloyd Parks, Earl ”Chinna” Smith and Sangie Davis, the four of them acting both as musicians and vocalists. This first experience in Kingston studio life paved the way to what would become the Roots Architects project. In February and March 2017 Mathias Liengme travelled for the fifth time to Kingston to record as many of reggae’s greatest living veteran musicians as he could. With the help of a few of these Architects like Robbie Lyn, Fil Callender or Dalton Browne, he managed to gather over 50 session musicians aged 60 to 85 on nine instrumental songs.

Roots Architects are legends back together in Kingston studios doing what they do best: creating in-strumental music all together!

Laufey ist eine in Los Angeles lebende Sängerin, Komponistin, Produzentin und Multiinstrumentalistin, deren Jazzsongs von junger Liebe und Selbstfindung handeln. Aufgewachsen zwischen Reykjavik und Washington, D.C. mit jährlichen Besuchen in Peking, wuchs die isländisch-chinesische Künstlerin mit Cello und Klavier auf und wurde süchtig nach den Jazzstandards von Ella Fitzgerald, nachdem sie die Plattensammlung ihres Vaters durchstöbert hatte. "Typical of Me" ist Laufeys Debüt-EP, die auch ihre Debüt-Single "Street by Street" enthält.

Die Liverpooler YOBS veröffentlichen ihr selbstbetiteltes Debütalbum am 3. Mai 2024 über Fuzz Club und folgen damit ihrer ersten Doppelsingle "Fortune Teller b/w Cemetery Man", mit der die vierköpfige Band die Szene mit einem herrlich schmutzigen und hedonistischen Feuerwerk betrat.

Das Clash Magazine schrieb über YOBS: "Schädelzerschmetternde Riffs und halluzinogene Effekte". YOBS liefern primitive Garage-Punk/Noise-Rock-Salven, die mit erschlagender Intensität vorbeirasen. Auf den zehn Tracks des Albums und der
rasanten 26-minütigen Spielzeit schwelgt die Band in einem rauen, spaßigen Rock'n'Roll, der deine Knochen genauso zum Vibrieren bringt wie deine Lautsprecher. YOBS, die aus den Trümmern der inzwischen aufgelösten Liverpooler Bands Weird Sex und Ohmns entstanden sind, wurden 2022 gegründet und bestehen aus Joey Ackland (Gesang), Alex Smith (Bass/Gesang), Michael Quinlan (Gitarre/Gesang) und George Gebbie (Schlagzeug).

Ihr Debütalbum, das sie in vier Tagen in den Hackney Road Studios mit James Aparicio aufgenommen haben, ist das Ergebnis eines Jahres 2023, in dem sie mit Bands wie A Place To Bury Strangers, Mark Sultan, C.O.F.F.I.N, Alien Nosejob und anderen raue, ohrenbetäubende Shows gespielt haben.

An album of originally unreleased Sun Ra, over 50 years after it was recorded, back in print on lightning yellow vinyl! Sun Ra is still trying to get our attention 50 years after dispatching this transmission. Humanity's path since then makes his message even more urgent today. Years after Herman Poole "LeSony'r Ra" Blount "left the planet" he's still trying to reach us, to wake us up and to change our destiny. Sun Ra and the Arkestra weren't a traditional studio band, and every star in the vast galaxy of their discography reflects this. The origins of these records can be hard to pinpoint at times, but when it comes to Thunder Of The Gods, it's a bit easier. "Calling Planet Earth - We'll Wait For You" was discovered on tapes from Ra's, Universe In Blue, believed to be recorded in '71. The raucous title track and "Moonshots Across the Sky" are unearthed from the '66 Strange Strings sessions. Modern Harmonic has once again paired Ra's sonic art with the visual art of "The Father of Modern Space Art," Chesley Bonestell, whose 1952 work "Formation of the Earth's Continents" spralls across the front and back covers

Die Londoner Band Home Counties veröffentlicht nach ersten EPs ihr Debütalbum 'Exactly As It Seems', produziert von Bandgitarrist Conor Kearney und gemischt von Andy Savors (Black Country New Road, Rina Sawayama, Sorry). Home Counties haben sich als eine der wichtigsten neuen Alternative-Bands Großbritanniens etabliert, die mit Shame, Psychedelic Porn Crumpets, FEET, Courting und bdrmm auftraten und von BBC Radio-DJs sowie Elton John (Apple 1) unterstützt werden. Der Band gelingt es, lyrische Offenheit über die besch******* Details des modernen Lebens und musikalischen Schwung mit Begeisterung in Einklang zu bringen. Nach dem treffenden Motto: 'Mein Leben ist ruiniert, weil ich mir die Miete nicht leisten kann, aber ich werde darüber tanzen.'

New York Blues Hall of Fame inductee Bette Smith returns with her 3rd studio album – ‘Goodthing’ – a triumphant injection of soul music and gospel into rock & roll. Produced by Grammy-winning producer Jimmy Hogarth (Amy Winehouse, James Bay, Paulo Nutini, Sia), the album showcases Bette Smith’s penchant for anthemic, feel-good Soul Rock carried by her signature raspy, soulful vocals inspired by legends Tina Turner, Aretha Franklin and Etta James.

Tracing elements of her sound to her childhood in rough Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, Bette connects the soul music she heard on the corners with the gospel music she heard in church and around the house every weekend - “My mother listened to nothing but gospel,” she recalls, citing Mahalia Jackson and Reverend James Cleveland as other influences.

The album sees her sound scale new heights, and build on the accolades she received on 2017’s debut ‘Jetlagger’ and 2020’s ‘The Good, The Bad, and The Bette’, and her tremendous range and power combined with ‘Goodthing’’s infectious energy, solidify her position as an authentic and dynamic rising soul artist, an iconic force in music.

New York Blues Hall of Fame inductee Bette Smith returns with her 3rd studio album – ‘Goodthing’ – a triumphant injection of soul music and gospel into rock & roll. Produced by Grammy-winning producer Jimmy Hogarth (Amy Winehouse, James Bay, Paulo Nutini, Sia), the album showcases Bette Smith’s penchant for anthemic, feel-good Soul Rock carried by her signature raspy, soulful vocals inspired by legends Tina Turner, Aretha Franklin and Etta James.

Tracing elements of her sound to her childhood in rough Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, Bette connects the soul music she heard on the corners with the gospel music she heard in church and around the house every weekend - “My mother listened to nothing but gospel,” she recalls, citing Mahalia Jackson and Reverend James Cleveland as other influences.

The album sees her sound scale new heights, and build on the accolades she received on 2017’s debut ‘Jetlagger’ and 2020’s ‘The Good, The Bad, and The Bette’, and her tremendous range and power combined with ‘Goodthing’’s infectious energy, solidify her position as an authentic and dynamic rising soul artist, an iconic force in music.

Fünf Jahre nach Jessica Pratt's 2019 erschienenen Durchbruch-Album "Quiet Signs", taucht sie mit neuen Ambitionen und neuen Parametern für ihre Musik wieder auf. Für ihr neues, viertes Album "Here in the Pitch" arbeitete sie erneut in Gary's Electric Studio in Brooklyn und mit ihrem bewährten Team: Multi-Instrumentalist/Engineer Al Carlson und Keyboarder Matt McDermott.

Zusätzlich holte sie sich das Rhythmus-Duo Spencer Zahn und Mauro Refosco (David Byrne, Atoms for Peace) an die Seite, weitere Beiträge auf dem Album kommen von Ryley Walker, Peter Mudge (Mac Miller, Kendrick Lamar) und Alex Goldberg. Die Musik ist intim und emotional, wie es die Fans erwarten und die Texte sind ein impressionistischer Lobgesang auf die Unwägbarkeiten des Ehrgeizes. In den letzten 12 Jahren hat sich die verehrte Künstlerin aus Los Angeles zu einer der einzigartigsten Songwriterinnen ihrer Generation entwickelt. Vor allem durch die mystische, schwer fassbare Mischung aus ihrer zarten Akustikgitarre und ihrem atemberaubenden Gesang. Für "Here in the Pitch" schwebte Jessica Pratt eine größere Bandbreite an Einflüssen vor - große Panoramaklänge, die an den Ozean und Kalifornien denken lassen - und in diesen neun Songs werden Pauken, Glockenspiel, Baritonsaxophon und Flöte mit robusten Gesangsarrangements überlagert, die eine triumphale Stimmung erzeugen, selbst wenn die Texte auf Verwüstung hindeuten. Diese breitere Produktionspalette wird sofort beim eindringlichen Album-Opener und der ersten Single "Life Is" deutlich. Ein Schlagzeugwirbel erinnert an den großen, orchestralen Stil von 60er-Jahre-Pop-Hits wie "The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore" von den Walker Brothers.

This is the most ambitious project of Tim Garland's stellar career, with a celebration of Lighthouse Trio's 20th Anniversary (Gwilym Simcock and Asaf Sirkis), along with a stunning display of Tim's prowess as a composer and arranger with the Britten Sinfonia, featuring violinist Thomas Gould, along with trumpet ace Yazz Ahmed performing as a special guest on one track. Tim describes the project: “That Moment of Departure, from the known, the notated, towards something new is a shout of fearless freedom. The compositions on this album all have crucial and varied relationship*s with improvised music, from string orchestra to intimate trio, and completely free-form music. Classical influences and visual art have informed me, as much as my jazz heart. The series of paintings called ‘Sail To Hope’, by Esra Kizir Gokcen, provide a backbone of inspiration for the first disc’s music. The subject of journeying into the unknown, as well as the influence of Turkish rhythms, create the background atmosphere whilst maintaining the spaciousness and freedom for the jazz soloists.”

Holland, Dozier and Holland are arguably the greatest songwriters ever. More prolific than Lennon and McCartney, they shaped “the Sound of Young America” and propelled the Motown sound in the mid-1960s into a creative stratosphere unmatched by any other independent music label. Their trademark catchy teenage love songs were delivered energetically by previously unknown Detroit groups like The Supremes, the Four Tops, Martha & the Vandellas & Marvin Gaye. Although synonymous with Berry Gordy’s Motown, it was their departure from Motown after a stand-off strike in 1967 and a brutal legal battle that led them to run their own group of labels, Invictus, Hot Wax and Music Merchant. This compilation is a definitive look at this period in history, exploring how H-D-H, under a new guise ‘The Creative Corporation’, drove the next generation of soul music in a myriad of different ways, towards funk, underground disco and jazz. Featuring 55 tracks, this collection documents HDH’s creativity and growth over this seminal 8 year period. During this time the trio developed new artists to rival Motown’s success such as Chairman Of The Board, Freda Payne, Honey Cone, Glass House, Flaming Ember, 8th Day, Laura Lee & Eloise Laws. The collection is complete with a detailed depiction of this period in history by award winning author Stuart Cosgrove who wrote the Soul Trilogy, a series of books on soul music and social change - Detroit 67: the Year That Changed Soul, Memphis 68: The Tragedy of Southern Soul which won the Penderyn Prize, as Music Book of the Year in 2018, and Harlem 69: the Future of Soul. Stuart’s notes detail the relationship with Motown in the final days, the immediate fall out after the trio left Motown and the creation of the new labels Hot Wax, Invictus & Music Merchant

"Spell Blanket – Collected Demos 2006–2009" umfasst Songs und Skizzen aus Trishs umfangreichem Archiv an 4-Spur-Kassetten und MiniDiscs. Die Aufnahmen legen den Grundstein für das, was das fünfte Album von Broadcast hätte werden sollen, und bieten einen Einblick in den kreativen Prozess von Trish und James in der Zeit nach "Tender Buttons" von 2006 bis 2009. Die im Artwork verwendeten Fotos stammen von Trish und James, das Artwork selbst wurde vom langjährigen Broadcast-Mitarbeiter Julian House entworfen. "Spell Blanket – Collected Demos 2006-2009" erscheint als standardmäßige schwarze 2LP und CD bei Warp Records.

In 1984, Jasper Van’t Hof, a prominent European jazz pianist, propelled to fame with the energetic ‘Pili Pili’ a 15-minute trance collaboration with Guinea's Isaac Tagul Group. Inspired by a fiery red pepperoni, the track sold over 100,000 copies, leading the group to adopt the name Pili Pili, becoming a hit in the club and disco scene.

Pili Pili's musical roots trace back to Van’t Hof's 1982-83 tour in Central Africa, where he discovered a love for African music. The band embraced authenticity by collaborating with diverse African musicians from Mali, Congo, Senegal, and Guinea. In 2000, Van’t Hof initiat-ed a project with the young Zulu choir Phikelela Sakhu-la from Durban, South Africa.
Pili Pili's style, described as experimental fusion, blends intricate African rhythms with jazz, fusion, funk, and dance. Van’t Hof emphasized the importance of groove over complex solos, stating that intellectual approaches are lost in their music.

The band's performances, marked by their energetic fusion of jazz and African rhythms, gained acclaim across Europe. Regular tours and festival appearances, such as the Jazz Festival of Montreux, solidified Pili Pili's reputation as an excellent live band. Reviews praised the band's dynamic and explosive music, turn-ing every performance into a rhythmic and fiery expe-rience.

Death Is Not The End präsentiert eine limitierte LP-Pressung ihrer Sammlung unheimlich-brütender Flamenco-Aufnahmen aus den frühen 1900er bis in die späten 1930er Jahre. Diese Überblick konzentriert sich auf den Cante Jondo-Stil ("tiefer Gesang"), der als ursprüngliche Manifestation des Flamenco-Gesangs gilt – aus dem andere Elemente wie Tanzen und Spielen hervorgingen – und erfasst und dokumentiert Titel der frühesten aufgenommenen Stars dieser Form.

Live recording of the final show of SANAM's debut European 2023 tour at London's home for experiemntal music, Cafe Oto.

Beirut's SANAM burst on the scene in 2023 with their debut album Aykathani Malakon, chosen by The Guardian as one of their 5-star albums from 2023: "Aykathani Malakon thoroughly embodies their originating influences, whipping up kosmische, post-punk, psych rock, free jazz and Levantine folklore into an alchemical tour de force delivered with a defiant, DIY disposition".

Under difficult conditions, the band took to the road for a European tour in November 2023 with the final show at Café Oto. From their incendiary European debut earlier that month at LeGuessWho then rapturous, sold out shows in Switzerland, Belgium, Germany and the UK, spirits for the Cafe Oto gig were high and it was destined to be a tour highlight. 'Live at Café Oto' captures the intensity of the shows, a ritual where improvised rock, free jazz and noise underscored an exorcism of traditional Egyptian song and Arabic poetry.

Drummer Pascal Semerdjian adds: "On this tour, I felt the album evolve from being a set of improvised tracks captured spontaneously, into ripe solid songs. Playing these shows back-to-back, our chemistry kept growing, we got closer, and our live sets, at least to me, were an embodiment of this evolution. In a way, this was the real birth of the band"

Vocalist Sandy Chamoun: "We started the tour with a great push at LeGuessWho, and we kept this energy throughout the whole tour. Every gig felt like I was playing the songs for the first time, providing a new and fresh experience for me. We finished the tour with an emotionally intense gig at Cafe Oto, a dream venue. The audience was incredible, as if we had known each other for a long time and the energy was intense and intimate at the same time; it felt like we were in a small circle of fire together, both us and the audience."

"There was definitely magic in the air for our show at cafe oto - an iconic, humble and warm venue and the last show of the tour – it felt like everything was in the right place. It was my favourite show by far, specially that we were also comfortably able to talk about Palestine, the atrocity we have to live with and can't ignore." Pascal Semerdjian

The opening line of Emily Dickinson’s short poem ‘‘Hope’ is the thing with feathers’ inspired the central image of Emily Barker’s new single ‘Feathered Thing’, written while she navigated cumulative grief.

When Barker was first introduced to producer Luke Potashnick (Gabrielle Aplin, Jack Savoretti, Katie Melua) in May 2022, she brought with her a full album’s worth of songs. But after visiting Potashnick’s storied studio, The Wool Hall and hearing his ambitious production ideas, she was inspired to write one more song.

“I also needed to process some heavy news” she comments. Barker and her husband Lukas Drinkwater had been trying to start a family. Following a couple of failed IVF cycles (and other “starts that we’d lost”), they investigated adoption and had decided to relocate to Australia to be closer to Barker’s family.

“It felt like we couldn’t work out what we wanted, but we finally reached a point where we both felt at peace with not having kids,” Barker recalls. “It had been an incredibly intense time, coinciding with a house move and the pandemic.”

And then Barker found she was pregnant. “We’d done all these things to try to make it happen, and then it happened naturally (and against all biological odds). Having previously navigated losses throughout our pregnancy journey, we now had to get our heads around what having this new person in our lives might look like - emotionally and practically.”

Soon after work began on the album, Barker had a miscarriage.

“Songwriting has always been a way of processing throughout my life.” Barker reveals how the new song came quickly as she sat at her piano at home. She shared an early version with Potashnick and remembers him politely asking, “Do you mind telling me what this is about?”

“I think I’d left it too abstract, initially,” she reflects. “It was difficult to open up about the miscarriage, but Luke was very supportive and encouraged me to dig a little deeper without necessarily being specific. I revisited the lyrics, and the result is much stronger.”

“I went to the burnt-out woods/ A tourist with some damaged goods/ Remembered how the trees withstood fires before…”

“The opening line is a metaphor for knowing that I’ll get through this,” Barker clarifies. “It’s about recovery and hope, allowing yourself both the space to grieve and permission to move on”. But Barker’s optimism is never misplaced – she knows the imprint of imagined futures and lost children are carried in hearts and minds forever:

“It’s so hard to let go, wanted to know wanted to know you …”

“I think that it's important to share and normalise these stories, which are all too common, yet not openly spoken about. People hide their pain and don’t want to burden friends and family. I think behind all this anguish, there’s a deep, often untold story.”

Now that Barker is settled back in Western Australia, she’s embracing being an auntie. “I’ve got three younger siblings over here who I’m close to, and they all have kids,” she enthuses. “I look after my brother's kids, aged two and five, one morning a week.”

Recorded - along with the entirety of the new album - at The Wool Hall, ‘Feathered Thing’ begins gently, with oscillating piano and distant drums, until the arrangement gradually transforms into an instrumental dervish of vibrant strings, bass drones and cymbal crashes. Throughout, Barker’s vocals float tantalisingly like a slipstreaming feather.

Watch the video, filmed at The Wool Hall here. The Wool Hall is a studio in Beckington, Somerset, set up by Tears for Fears in the 1980s and used by artists including The Smiths, Pretenders, Joni Mitchell and many more.

Emily Barker is an award-winning singer-songwriter, best known as the writer and performer of the theme to the hugely successful BBC crime drama ‘Wallander’ starring Kenneth Branagh.

Her last album, 2020's ‘A Dark Murmuration of Words’, was produced by Greg Freeman and recorded at StudiOwz, a converted chapel in the Welsh countryside. Lyrically probing, by turns both dark and optimistic, Barker searches for meaning through the deafening clamour of fake news and algorithmically filtered conversation, delivering a timely exploration of the grand themes of our age. It garnered widespread acclaim, with Uncut calling it “…a kind of Australian equivalent of PJ Harvey’s Let England Shake”.

Barker has released music and toured as a solo artist as well as with various bands and collaborations, most notably her long association with Frank Turner, and has written for TV and film, including composing the soundtrack for Jake Gavin’s lauded debut feature ‘Hector’ starring Peter Mullan and Keith Allen.

‘Fragile as Humans’ is scheduled for release on May 3rd 2024 through Everyone Sang/Kartel Music Group. The album will also feature earlier singles: the vast, cinematic ‘Wild to be Sharing This Moment’ and the meditative, crestfallen ‘Loneliness’.

In the dynamic landscape of contemporary jazz, Scottish pianist and composer Fergus McCreadie has carved a remarkable niche. Since 2021, his career has skyrocketed, marked by two acclaimed album releases that propelled him into the limelight – shortlisted for the Mercury Prize and clinching the Scottish Album of the Year (SAY) for "Forest Floor." His debut with Edition Records, "Cairn" (2021), set the stage for a journey deeply rooted in natural themes. McCreadie's latest venture, "Stream," continues this intriguing exploration, this time delving into the essence of water. Accompanied by his long-standing comrades, David Bowden and Stephen Henderson, the album flows with the fluidity of its namesake. It's a musical stream that flows through the rich landscapes of Scottish folklore and the sophisticated avenues of contemporary jazz, blending them seamlessly. The album's narrative is a testament to the trio's evolving musical identity, meticulously crafted to mirror a journey from darkness to light. McCreadie shares, "What I like most about this album is that it evolves from dark to light as the album goes on. It's a sort of cloudy skies to sunnier skies journey, quite different from previous albums where the track sequence was more arbitrary." Their sound, a nuanced tapestry woven with delicate touches and bold strokes, speaks of their confidence and exuberance in forging a distinct path. "Stream" is an exploration of shared passions and expressions, pushing the boundaries of their musical language and vocabulary to new depths. With "Stream," Fergus McCreadie, Bowden, and Henderson offer a refreshing antidote to the predictable. Their music is a celebration of individuality, a journey that resonates with the trio's unique voice. It's an invitation to listeners to immerse themselves in a soundscape that's both familiar in its Scottish roots and revolutionary in its jazz execution – a goal every artist aspires to achieve. "Stream" is a musical narrative that flows like water – sometimes calm, sometimes tempestuous, but always moving forward. For those seeking a fresh, engaging, and authentic musical journey, Fergus McCreadie's "Stream" is a listening adventure not to be missed.

Stream by Fergus Mccreadie, released 3 May 2024, includes the following tracks: "Driftwood", "Sun Pillars", "Stony Gate", "Coastline" and more.

Brazilian singer and composer Arthur Melo turns to the ‘70s & ‘80s, to the musical greats like Caetano Veloso and Milton Nascimento, channelling his love of director Brian de Palma and old detective films, and positioning himself amongst a new generation of contemporary musicians

Arthur Melo, a young Brazilian composer, guitarist and singer returns to releasing music, with his second single after a 3 year break, with a new album Mirantes Emocionais, set for release on British label Wonderfulsound. Backed by his band O Ministério da Consciência it’s a work that pays homage to Arthur’s heroes of Brazilian music from the ‘70s and ‘80s yet goes much beyond throwback. Like his previous post-tropicalia, psychedelic and percussive material, it honours Brazil’s divergent musical history but always looking forward, treading new paths and placing Arthur in a venerable category of explorative, young Brazilian artists alongside the likes of Sessa & Ana Frango Elétrico.

$E VENDE RINCON ist eine Punk'n'Roll-Band aus Rincon, Puerto Rico, der Surfhauptstadt der Karibik, und der Lower East Side von New York City. Ihr Debütalbum "Gracias" ist eine Mischung aus Punkrock der alten Schule (siehe The Ramones, Dead Kennedys, Misfits oder Iggy & The Stooges) und Chicago Blues der 50er und 60er Jahre (man denke an Muddy Waters, Lil Walter, Hound Dog Taylor, Howlin' Wolf). Für $E VENDE RINCON sind Punk und Blues von der Einstellung her dasselbe.

Nach zwei von der Kritik hochgelobten Alben, zahlreichen Mini-LPs, EPs und Singles kehrt das Londoner Trio Girls In Synthesis mit seinem neuen Statement, dem dritten Album "Sublimation", zurück. Wenn du dachtest, du kennst GIS bereits, dann irrst Du Dich diesmal vielleicht.GIS gehen weiter und haben eine düstere und intensive, aber dennoch melodische Sammlung von Tracks erschaffen, ihre Interpretation einer kantigen Pop-Platte. Der Opener 'Lights Out' besteht aus zwei Teilen; der erste ist ein Barrett-eskes Gesangs- und Gitarren-Lamento über Schlafmangel, das über eine von 'Faust Tapes' beeinflusste Freeform-Noise-Sektion in einen stampfenden, hochintensiven Showdown übergeht. In Songs wie "Deceit", "We Are Here" und "Picking Things Out Of The Air" zeigt sich die Gruppe von ihrer melodischsten Seite, indem sie einige der chaotischen Noise-Elemente ihres charakteristischen Sounds auf ein Minimum reduziert und leidenschaftliche, schwebende Vocals und Keyboard-Melodien in den Vordergrund stellt. Ihr Markenzeichen, das treibende Schlagzeug und der Bass, ist besonders bei den Stücken "I Judge Myself" und "Corrupting Memories" zu hören, wird aber durch intensive, vom frühen Gothic beeinflusste Keyboardlinien ergänzt, die Einflüsse aus den späten 1970ern/frühen 1980ern mit der zeitgenössischen GIS-Intensität in Einklang bringen. Die langsam sich steigernden Tracks 'I Was Never There' und 'The Prefix' bauen mit spärlichen Arrangements und kreisenden, spiralförmigen Outros Spannung und Atmosphäre auf, während die Band im abschließenden 'A Damning Lesson' zu ihrer intensiven, knüppelnden Soundwand zurückkehrt, nur um sie in eine verschwommene, hallende Drum-Machine zu schicken, die an die frühen Arbeiten von Cabaret Voltaire erinnert. Nächstes Kapitel, nächstes Level für GIS!

Rising, enigmatic Brighton songwriter Milo Korbenski delivers his debut album proper When You Gonna Tell ‘Em the Truth, Aaron?, a stunning collection of haunted, heavy, unique art-dream-indie-pop earworms.

Milo Korbenski is a shadowy, anonymous Brighton solo musician only publicly seen in a featureless white mask, Stetson and denim jacket. However, his deeply expressive take on lo-fi slacker indie invokes a heartfelt intimacy, singing straight from the soul. This new album - an official debut following a period of self-releasing - displays endless catchy-as-hell hooks, clever lyrical wordplay, and deceptively lean instrumentation that belies its own simplicity.

The music of WYGTETTA? (Milo’s own stylisation) crosses references points as broadly spread as Kurt Vile, Helado Negro, Black Sabbath, The xx, The Cocteau Twins, Siouxsie Sioux, Jagwar Ma and Calvin Johnson while retaining a vitally singular energy. Milo’s underlying unreality is more haunted than the indie-leaning acts mentioned here, and the readymade homespun cassette sonics lend a charm beyond the prettified sheen of his pop influences.

Nach zwei von der Kritik hochgelobten Alben, zahlreichen Mini-LPs, EPs und Singles kehrt das Londoner Trio Girls In Synthesis mit seinem neuen Statement, dem dritten Album "Sublimation", zurück. Wenn du dachtest, du kennst GIS bereits, dann irrst Du Dich diesmal vielleicht.GIS gehen weiter und haben eine düstere und intensive, aber dennoch melodische Sammlung von Tracks erschaffen, ihre Interpretation einer kantigen Pop-Platte. Der Opener 'Lights Out' besteht aus zwei Teilen; der erste ist ein Barrett-eskes Gesangs- und Gitarren-Lamento über Schlafmangel, das über eine von 'Faust Tapes' beeinflusste Freeform-Noise-Sektion in einen stampfenden, hochintensiven Showdown übergeht. In Songs wie "Deceit", "We Are Here" und "Picking Things Out Of The Air" zeigt sich die Gruppe von ihrer melodischsten Seite, indem sie einige der chaotischen Noise-Elemente ihres charakteristischen Sounds auf ein Minimum reduziert und leidenschaftliche, schwebende Vocals und Keyboard-Melodien in den Vordergrund stellt. Ihr Markenzeichen, das treibende Schlagzeug und der Bass, ist besonders bei den Stücken "I Judge Myself" und "Corrupting Memories" zu hören, wird aber durch intensive, vom frühen Gothic beeinflusste Keyboardlinien ergänzt, die Einflüsse aus den späten 1970ern/frühen 1980ern mit der zeitgenössischen GIS-Intensität in Einklang bringen. Die langsam sich steigernden Tracks 'I Was Never There' und 'The Prefix' bauen mit spärlichen Arrangements und kreisenden, spiralförmigen Outros Spannung und Atmosphäre auf, während die Band im abschließenden 'A Damning Lesson' zu ihrer intensiven, knüppelnden Soundwand zurückkehrt, nur um sie in eine verschwommene, hallende Drum-Machine zu schicken, die an die frühen Arbeiten von Cabaret Voltaire erinnert. Nächstes Kapitel, nächstes Level für GIS!

"Rantanplan" sind seit fast 30 Jahren eine feste Institution und das schon lange nicht mehr "nur" innerhalb der Subkulturen, haben mit ihrem letzten Album "AHOI" 2023 nur knapp die Top Ten verfehlt (Platz 11 / 03.03.2023). Mit dem unveröffentlichten und exklusiv auf Vinyl erhältlichen Song "Am Meer" meldet die Band sich auf Sunny Bastards Records zurück. "Am Meer" ist genau der richtige Ohrwurm "um am Strand zwischen 3 Elementen zu liegen" und gut gelaunt den Sommer mit einem kühlen Bier zu genießen! Extrem tanzbarer Ska-Punk und klarer Hit von der Waterkant! Die B-Seite "Sand am Meer" greift nur vordergründig das unbeschwingte Sommergefühl auf, denn Rantanplan waren schon immer mehr als nur eine Spaßkapelle und verpacken ihre gesellschaftspolitischen Botschaften subtil statt plakativ in ihre Musik. "Idioten gibt's wie Sand am Meer"_wer will da schon widersprechen? Bislang nur online aus "Ahoi"-Sessions als Single Digital 2021 veröffentlicht, gibt es den Song jetzt endlich auch erstmals auf Vinyl! Streng limitiert auf insgesamt 500 Exemplare erscheint die 7" im Hardcover in bunter Vielfalt als red'n'white inside out und clear with blue & black splatter vinyl (je 200 copies ww). Für Puristen natürlich auch als black vinyl (100 copies ww) erhältlich.

"Rantanplan" sind seit fast 30 Jahren eine feste Institution und das schon lange nicht mehr "nur" innerhalb der Subkulturen, haben mit ihrem letzten Album "AHOI" 2023 nur knapp die Top Ten verfehlt (Platz 11 / 03.03.2023). Mit dem unveröffentlichten und exklusiv auf Vinyl erhältlichen Song "Am Meer" meldet die Band sich auf Sunny Bastards Records zurück. "Am Meer" ist genau der richtige Ohrwurm "um am Strand zwischen 3 Elementen zu liegen" und gut gelaunt den Sommer mit einem kühlen Bier zu genießen! Extrem tanzbarer Ska-Punk und klarer Hit von der Waterkant! Die B-Seite "Sand am Meer" greift nur vordergründig das unbeschwingte Sommergefühl auf, denn Rantanplan waren schon immer mehr als nur eine Spaßkapelle und verpacken ihre gesellschaftspolitischen Botschaften subtil statt plakativ in ihre Musik. "Idioten gibt's wie Sand am Meer"_wer will da schon widersprechen? Bislang nur online aus "Ahoi"-Sessions als Single Digital 2021 veröffentlicht, gibt es den Song jetzt endlich auch erstmals auf Vinyl! Streng limitiert auf insgesamt 500 Exemplare erscheint die 7" im Hardcover in bunter Vielfalt als red'n'white inside out und clear with blue & black splatter vinyl (je 200 copies ww). Für Puristen natürlich auch als black vinyl (100 copies ww) erhältlich.

"Rantanplan" sind seit fast 30 Jahren eine feste Institution und das schon lange nicht mehr "nur" innerhalb der Subkulturen, haben mit ihrem letzten Album "AHOI" 2023 nur knapp die Top Ten verfehlt (Platz 11 / 03.03.2023). Mit dem unveröffentlichten und exklusiv auf Vinyl erhältlichen Song "Am Meer" meldet die Band sich auf Sunny Bastards Records zurück. "Am Meer" ist genau der richtige Ohrwurm "um am Strand zwischen 3 Elementen zu liegen" und gut gelaunt den Sommer mit einem kühlen Bier zu genießen! Extrem tanzbarer Ska-Punk und klarer Hit von der Waterkant! Die B-Seite "Sand am Meer" greift nur vordergründig das unbeschwingte Sommergefühl auf, denn Rantanplan waren schon immer mehr als nur eine Spaßkapelle und verpacken ihre gesellschaftspolitischen Botschaften subtil statt plakativ in ihre Musik. "Idioten gibt's wie Sand am Meer"_wer will da schon widersprechen? Bislang nur online aus "Ahoi"-Sessions als Single Digital 2021 veröffentlicht, gibt es den Song jetzt endlich auch erstmals auf Vinyl! Streng limitiert auf insgesamt 500 Exemplare erscheint die 7" im Hardcover in bunter Vielfalt als red'n'white inside out und clear with blue & black splatter vinyl (je 200 copies ww). Für Puristen natürlich auch als black vinyl (100 copies ww) erhältlich.

Interesting Decisions is the new album from Into It. Over It., the brainchild of Chicago, IL musician Evan Weiss . Considered to be one of the artists at the forefront of the 2010 emo revival, this is his eagerly awaited fifth studio album, after 2020's Figure. Into It. Over It. is an indie rock powerhouse that has been enchanting audiences since its inception in 2007. The band's emotionally charged lyrics and dynamic sound have garnered critical acclaim and a dedicated global following and their current formation includes Adam Beck on drums, Matthew Frank on bass, and Joe George on guitar.

The Cat's Miaow return to World Of Echo with Skipping Stones: The Cassette Years '92-'93, their second compilation for the imprint, and the fourth in a loosely defined series of reissues associated with the group (also including The Shapiros' Gone By Fall: The Collected Works of The Shapiros and Hydroplane's Selected Songs 1997-2003). It's a smart selection of songs by one of Australia's finest independent pop music groups, whose initial run, across the nineties, was as mysterious as it was bewitching. A generous double album featuring thirty-five songs drawn from The Cat's Miaow's history, Skipping Stones lets listeners in on a bunch more secrets. The four cassettes that Skipping Stones draws from - Little Baby Sour Puss, Pet Sounds (both 1992), From My Window, and How Did Everything Get So Fucked Up (both 1993) - were released or assisted by Toytown, a Melbourne cassette label of rare taste, savvy and intelligence. Diving into that two-year period, Skipping Stones is full of surprises, rich with unexpected and inspired detours, while reminding everyone just how clear and distinct The Cat's Miaow's music was from the very start. Looking in from the outside, they always felt like a group that knew just what they were doing, but intuitive as they are, they weren't forcing anything: these songs always sound exactly what they need to be, rough edges, playful moments and all. The Cat's Miaow may have been bedroom dreamers, but their songs were richly informed, with the sweetest of girl-pop moves sashaying into walls of tremolo-d and distorted guitar, jangling six strings tangling with melodic bass that's pure Peter Hook/Naomi Yang, while the gentle trickle of a drum machine or the earthy twitch of brushes on drum skins provided the spine for Kerrie's and Bart's lovely, unforced singing. This double LP on World Of Echo feels like the very core of the thing - some of the most heartbreakingly beautiful, effortlessly lush and deeply moving pop music you're likely to hear. RIYL: Hydroplane, The Cannanes, Magnetic Fields, Belle and Sebastian, Jesus and Mary Chain

Much-anticipated debut album from Leeds post-punk power-trio and 6Music favourites Objections. Optimistic Sizing is comprised of ten kitchen-sink dramas, ten miniature worlds to lose yourself in. The key topics are covered: performative royal mourning, ill-suited sexual relationships, coastal gentrification, motormouth bigots and - of course - snogging. Objections formed in the post-lockdown period after drummer Neil and guitarist Joe's former band (and cult favourites) Bilge Pump slowed to an amicable halt. They wanted to continue the musical dialogue they had built up over decades and turned to Claire Adams (Nape Neck, Beards) to start something new and Objections was born. The 3 members have also played in/with: Polaris, Yann Tiersen, HiM, Enablers, Felix and Damo Suzuki (among others). Objections released their debut 7" - BSA Day/Better Luck Next Time on Wrong Speed in 2023 and have recorded two Marc Riley / Gideon Coe BBC 6Music sessions. At Wrong Speed we are not fond of genres, we are here to release music we love not tell you how to file it. But Optimistic Sizing is genuinely post-punk in the literal sense of the term. Objections take the freedom and anyone-can-do-it promise of punk and run somewhere new and adventurous with it, creating a vibrant and living musical language with which to communicate their own unique world view. As a result, Optimistic Sizing is not only a classic debut album but a timeless one. "We like to think we know what we're talking about....believe us when we say, Objections are a band to watch" - Louder Than War

Read any article or comment thread about the Seattle noise-rock outfit GREAT FALLS and you're likely to see descriptors like cathartic, heavy, crushing, and unhinged. Maybe even psychotic. And sure, those are all apt: For over a decade, vocalist/guitarist Demian Johnston and bassist Shane Mehling (who also played together in the early-2000s noisecore band PLAYING ENEMY and the experimental duo HEMINGWAY) have honed their sludgy, overwhelmingly intense brand of heaviness, punctuated by delectably discordant riffs, terrifyingly low, thwacking bass lines, and mesmerizingly tight percussion. In the live setting, too, they’re notorious for a stage presence that is so aggressively confrontational and menacing that Mehling once broke his own arm mid-set.

But the most striking aspect of GREAT FALLS, setting them apart from the murky sea of sludge metal and AmRep-inspired noise-rock bands, is their ability to paint a deeply, utterly human story through an all-out assault on the senses: an art the band has perfected on their fourth full-length album OBJECTS WITHOUT PAIN, out September 15 via NEUROT RECORDINGS.

The album is not only their NEUROT debut, but also the first LP featuring drummer Nickolis Parks (GAYTHEIST, BASTARD FEAST), who joined the band prior to the release of their exhilarating, cacophonous 2023 EP,FUNNY WHAT SURVIVES.

OBJECTS WITHOUT PAIN takes us on a bleak, purgative journey through a separation–a snapshot of the turmoil and indecision that occurs after the initial realization of someone's misery, and before the ultimate decision to end a decades-long partnership. From the foreboding intro riffs of “DRAGGED HOME ALIVE” to the end of the 13-minute closer “THROWN AGAINST THE WAVES,” its eight tracks explore the thoughts that come up when a person is staring down the barrel of blowing up their life: How did this happen? Is it too late for a new life? Will the kid be OK? What will make me happier: familiar torment or unknown freedom?

Finally available again – in a special new psychedelic splatter vinyl limited edition of 600 copies! Kvartetten Som Sprängde (The Quartet That Exploded) “Kattvals” (“Cat Waltz”). A reissue of one of the most beautiful and sought after psych rock, progressive pre-jazz rock instrumental albums ever recorded in Sweden. Originally released during the summer of 1973 by the obscure Gump label. Powered by a C-3 organ, Ludwig kit and 50-watt Marshall head with a home-built cabinet, this skilled 3-piece (not a quartet) absolutely soars and blast away heavenly. The delicate use of the studio echo-chamber lends a magical, gossamer reverb to the whole sound. Includes a 4-page insert with rare photos and extensive liner notes by Reine Fiske (Dungen).

Liverpool's YOBS release their self-titled debut album on May 3rd 2024 via Fuzz Club, arriving off the back of their debut double single, 'Fortune Teller b/w Cemetery Man', which saw the four-piece burst on the scene n a gloriously scuzzy and hedonistic blaze. "All skullcrushing riffs and hallucinogenic effects", as Clash Magazine wrote, YOBS deal in primitive garage-punk/noise-rock salvos that race by with a bludgeoning intensity. Across the album's ten tracks and rapid 26-minute running time, the band revel in an abrasive, fun-ashell rock'n'roll that will leave your bones rattling just as much as your
speakers. INDIE ONLY! Splatter LP

Terzo is the third album by Il Sogno Del Marinaio, the avant-rock trio formed by legendary bassist Mike Watt (Minutemen, Firehose, Stooges), cult Italian experimentalist Stefano Pilia (Massimo Volume, In Zaire, Afterhours, Rokia Traore) and drummer Paolo Mongardi (Zeus, Fuzz Orchestra, Fulkanelli). This new batch of recordings is an incredible document of a band that’s creating their own path, ascending to new heights while bending the traditional
rock format.

Recorded at Casa Hanzo in San Pedro (US) and completed at Blindsun in Bologna (IT) the album features collaborations with Ramon Moro on trumpet and Petra Haden on vocals. Mixed beautifully by thighpaulsandra (Coil, UUUU, Spiritualized) and mastered by Giovanni
Versari with artwork by Michelangelo Setola. Terzo is the sound of a band that’s completely confident in their chops, their past suggesting that new possibilities have now been found and that the only territory that needs exploring is free-spirited, magical, restless and uncompromising. “Il Sogno Del Marinaio’s strength is in its effortless balance between Watt’s formidable past and his still potent future.” - Pitchfork.

Great vocals from Capleton and Jr Cat on driving UK steppers riddims. Leeds' finest reggae rhythm constructors are back with an industrial strength combination enlisting two of Jamaica's top lyricists. Following the success of their last 12 inch release, Up Deh with Mark Iration, the duo have laid down two heavy duty slabs of pure sound system mayhem. Mercy features the unmistakable voice and flammable lyrics of ferocious rockstone deejay Capleton. Thunderclap gives a similarly hard stepping backdrop to the younger brother of Supercat, Junior Cat, who carries the hypnotic family style. The Capleton vocal comes with a pair of spiky, heavily filtered dubs, making mass movement a must. This release was originally due to come out in 2020, but got locked down in the lockdown and is now back due to popular demand.

To celebrate Gene Clark"s landmark 1974 record, No Other, turning 50, 4AD are proud to be releasing the album"s session tracks for the first time on vinyl. Mixed from their original multi-track tapes and spread over two discs, these 18 alternative versions taken from No Other"s recording sessions at LA"s infamous Village Recorder studio offer a fascinating insight into the making of this timeless album. Housed in a mirror board, gatefold sleeve and containing photos from the 1974 recording sessions as well as comprehensive song notes, this special edition is being pressed on double black vinyl with the first disc containing the best / most interesting take of each track and the second disc being every first full take.

20204 Reissue

Nach Acid Kings hochgelobtem 2023er Album Beyond Vision, das weltweit große Aufmerksamkeit erregte und sogar in die Billboard Top 100 Albums Charts einstieg, präsentiert Blues Funeral eine brandneue, aktualisierte Ausgabe des 2015er Werks der Band. Middle of Nowhere, Center of Everywhere, das von vielen als Acid Kings bestes Werk angesehen wird, wurde auf seinem ursprünglichen Label nur in begrenzter Auflage veröffentlicht und ist seit geraumer Zeit vergriffen. Zur Feier des 30-jährigen Bestehens einer der kultigsten Bands des Heavy Undergrounds präsentiert diese neue Blues Funeral Edition das bahnbrechende Doppelalbum mit aktualisiertem Artwork und einer exklusiven mehrfarbigen Vinyl-Konfiguration speziell für den Record Store Day. Gatefold 2xLP mit siebbedruckter Seite D. Aktualisiertes Cover-Artwork, Siebdruck auf Seite D und neue exklusive, mehrfarbige Vinyl-Editionen für jedes RSD-Gebiet! Die Vinylfarbe für RSD GER & EU ist Orange mit weißem Galaxy/Mamor-Effekt, limitiert auf 500 Stück.