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Rock 'n Roll With The Modern Lovers is the second album released by The Modern Lovers.

The band was formed in 1970 by singer, songwriter, and guitarist Jonathan Richman, with Jerry Harrison (keyboards - later went on to join Talking Heads), Ernie Brooks (bass), and David Robinson (drums). Richman's friend John Felice joined them occasionally. Their sound almost totally focuses on the sound from the Fifties. The lo-fi record breathes folky roots music and rock ‘n roll as it would sound ages ago. The albums features the popular tracks "Ice Cream Man", "Roller Coaster By The Sea", and "Egyptian Reggae". The latter was a cover version of Earl Zero "None Shall Escape The Judgement" and became a UK Top 5 hit.

Rock 'n Roll With The Modern Lovers is available as a limited edition of 750 individually numbered copies on silver vinyl.

I first encountered Pascal Comelade’s music thirty years ago—and nothing has sounded quite the same since. I was immediately captivated: he is an artist like no other, whose sincere and selfless love of music is always evident, especially in his tender reworkings of other people’s songs.

Comelade seems to work like a watchmaker: meticulous, precise, and obsessive—yet always drifting into something dreamlike. His music opens hidden doors, telling strange and beguiling stories filled with obscurity, kindness, and reserved humour.

Back then, my fascination was instinctive. Today, with a few more words at my disposal, I look to this exceptional 70-year-old French musician and feel exactly the same pull.

Métaphysique Du Hit-Parade is the first vinyl compilation devoted to Pascal Comelade’s favourite cover versions. It spans a forty-year career and traces sixty years of rock and roll history along the way. “Sheena Is a Punk Rocker” becomes a soft, soothing lullaby that may well have made the Ramones weep. Then there are his idiosyncratic tributes to Jonathan Richman (“Egyptian Reggae”) and The Kinks (“Sunny Afternoon”), alongside nods to formative heroes such as The Gun Club, Captain Beefheart, and MC5.

Two exclusive recordings stand out particularly: Bob Dylan’s “Girl from the North Country” and Nirvana’s “Come As You Are”—a song that shaped my early youth. Both were recorded especially for this release.

Jan Lankisch, January 2026

Alex Puddu's, second volume of the groundbreaking album of the soundtrack of The Golden Age of Danish Pornography from 2014, finally will be released as a new reissue on the artist's own label Al Dente in his entire original track list and with a brand new cover. The music on this record is inspired by and composed by Alex Puddu for "The Golden Age of Danish Pornography" - a collection of vintage hardcore short films from the early seventies,1971-74 directed by Danish porn pioneer Freddy Weiss - available on DVD from Pink Flamingo Entertainment.

Alex Puddu's groundbreaking album, the soundtrack of The Golden Age of Danish Pornography from 2011, finally will be released as a new reissue on the artist's own label Al Dente in his entire
original track list and with a brand new cover. The music on this record is inspired by and composed by Alex Puddu for "The Golden Age of Danish Pornography" - a collection of vintage hardcore short films from the early seventies,1971-74 directed by Danish porn pioneer Freddy Weiss - available on DVD from Pink Flamingo Entertainment.

Limited run 10” vinyl, arrives in risograph printed cover, with additional insert.

Elijah Minnelli returns to Accidental Meetings, following stand out records for FatCat Records, ZamZam & his own BCC imprint, which have garnered support and AOTY charts from The Guardian, The Quietus and The Wire to mention a few.

Minnelli has a unique dub-wise take, fusing eastern & western folk influences with cumbia and earthy drones, cumulating in his own distinct sonic world and his ever evolving lore. Within Ball & Socket, Minnelli pushes his own vocals to the forefront for the first time, compared to the more accustomed background approach previously. The record also sees a collaboration with Osaka's Kiki Hitomi (Waqwaq Kingdom, ex King Midas Sound) on Unkind, the two intertwining throughout. Fans of the pairing will be happy when it gets a re-up halfway through on the Discomix.

Ball & Socket is a personal record on many a level for Minnelli, and the result ends up as one of his most beautiful body of works yet. It finds it's home on the Bristol imprint Accidental Meetings, four years after his first outing on the label.

Design by Oliver Kay, photography by Aleksandra Sandakow, printed & assembled by The Error Press.

■ Human is a deeply “human” cover album by Gota Nishidera (NONA REEVES), focusing on the world of 80s–90s Japanese kayokyoku and new music.
Following his well received 2023 solo cover album Sunset Rain, this new release features an unprecedentedly wide ranging selection of songs spanning works
by Kyohei Tsutsumi, Reiko Yugawa, and Eiichi Ohtaki, all of whom Nishidera either learned from directly or profoundly respects for their devotion to the study and
practice of pop music.

■ After experiencing major success across Asia including two China tours with NONA REEVES and solo performances in Taiwan Gota Nishidera revisited the essence
of Japanese pop music from a renewed perspective. The result is a meticulously crafted collection of eight ultimate tracks, tightly packed with the charm of Japanese
pop. Born in 1973, Nishidera absorbed the new wave of Japanese music that began in 1980 in real time, and here he updates that experience for the present day.
With arrangements and vocals filled with deep affection for the originals, he offers a modern and fresh reinterpretation of these classics.

■ The album is produced by long time collaborators Yuzuru Tomita, Tomoya Yamagata, and rising talent Yudai Ohi. On the track “Woman (from W’s Tragedy)”,
Nishidera performs a duet with Megumi Mashiro of Hicksville, a vocalist he has worked with for many years on NONA REEVES recordings and live shows.

■ Mastering is handled by ambient/balearic maestro Calm, delivering a stunning final sound.

■ The jacket design is created by Keita Fukumi, producer of the YouTube channel Gota Nishidera Channel NGC. Shot at Nishidera’s local barbershop in Sangenjaya
during his usual haircut, the artwork vividly captures the “human” essence at the heart of this project."

The crown jewel of Finnish Death Metal, reissued in a band-approved new 30th anniversary edition. Features a new vinyl master from the original source by Noise for Fiction, plus a booklet with a lengthy feature by Hippo Taatila and some visual memorabilia. As an added vinyl bonus there's a large poster by the original cover artist Rob Smits creating a new vision of the album cover for the new millennium. Together with bands like Demilich, Abhorrence, Disgrace, Xysma and Sentenced, Demigod from the wastelands of Loimaa, southern Finland, put Finland on the map in the global death metal scene in the late 80's and early 90's. Having risen to underground fame with their demo Unholy Domain, Slumber of Sullen Eyes was a hugely expected debut album. When it was finally released in 1992 after a complicated creation process at Tico-Tico Studios in northern Finland, it was received with open arms and drooling excitement by the then very active underground death metal scene. That scene was, however, short lived,and by 1994 pretty much every band had switched from death metal to something else entirely. What was left after the bands had left the building was a number of classic albums that constitute the legacy of Finnish Death Metal. Among them, Slumber of Sullen Eyes is one of the most original and ferocious. There was nobody like Demigod.

The crown jewel of Finnish Death Metal, reissued in a band-approved new 30th anniversary edition. Features a new vinyl master from the original source by Noise for Fiction, plus a booklet with a lengthy feature by Hippo Taatila and some visual memorabilia. As an added vinyl bonus there's a large poster by the original cover artist Rob Smits creating a new vision of the album cover for the new millennium. Together with bands like Demilich, Abhorrence, Disgrace, Xysma and Sentenced, Demigod from the wastelands of Loimaa, southern Finland, put Finland on the map in the global death metal scene in the late 80's and early 90's. Having risen to underground fame with their demo Unholy Domain, Slumber of Sullen Eyes was a hugely expected debut album. When it was finally released in 1992 after a complicated creation process at Tico-Tico Studios in northern Finland, it was received with open arms and drooling excitement by the then very active underground death metal scene. That scene was, however, short lived,and by 1994 pretty much every band had switched from death metal to something else entirely. What was left after the bands had left the building was a number of classic albums that constitute the legacy of Finnish Death Metal. Among them, Slumber of Sullen Eyes is one of the most original and ferocious. There was nobody like Demigod.

Die hochgeschätzten Euro-Metal-Pioniere Oz wurden ursprünglich 1977 in der kleinen finnischen Stadt Nakilla gegründet. Die Band bestand aus Mark Ruffneck (bürgerlicher Name Pekka Mark) am Schlagzeug, Sänger Ape De Martini (Eero Hämäläinen), Bassist Tauno Vajavaara sowie Kario Elo an der Gitarre.

Fünf Jahre nach ihrer Gründung legten Oz ihr Debütalbum vor. Mit Krachern wie “Saturday Night”, “Capricorn Man” oder dem schlüpfrigen “Second-Hand Lady” avancierten Oz schnell zur HM-Band Nummer eins in Skandinavien.

In der Folge zog man nach Stockholm um, wo 1983 der gefeierte Zweitling »Fire In The Brain« entstand. Die Platte enthielt höchst energetische Heavy-Metal-Hymnen wie “Fortune”, “Megalomaniac” oder “Gambler”. Der kanadische Journalist Martin Popoff verteilte in seinem »Collector’s Guide To Heavy Metal« 9 von 10 Punkten und schrieb: »Fire In The Brain« ist eine düstere, fast depressiv wirkende Platte, die den Hörer wie ein Güterzug trifft. Es ist ein sehr europäisch klingendes Werk – vom apokalyptisch anmutenden ‘Searchlights’ über das zähflüssige ‘Black Candles’ bis hin zum gewaltigen Titelsong werden absolut keine Gefangenen genommen.“

High Roller Records, silver vinyl, ltd 450, 425gsm heavy cardboard cover with 5mm spine, lyric sheet, 12 page booklet, poster

2026 Repress!

Tresor Records is proud to announce forthcoming special editions of its entire catalogue of Drexciya and related projects. 2022 marks the 20th anniversary of the passing of James Stinson and the releases of the Transllusion and Shifted Phases albums. In recognition, the rightsholders, their families, and the label have commissioned Detroit-based contemporary artist Matthew Angelo Harrison to re-conceptualize the covers of Tresor's Drexciya-related catalogue. These editions will be released sequentially, bimonthly, starting early-September 2022.

The series starts with Neptune's Lair, first released in 1999, with the Hydro Doorways single arriving shortly after. In November, Harnessed The Storm and Digital Tsunami are coming. In 2023 comes the release of Transllusion in February. The series is completed by the long-awaited re-release of Shifted Phases - The Cosmic Memoirs Of The Late Great Rupert J. Rosinthrope - at the end of March.

These records, individually and as a catalogue, represent some of the most crucial moments in the Tresor label history, with the sound and mythic world of Drexciya undoubtedly inspiring generations.

Deconstructed techno-dub classical piano, by exploratory composer Richard Pike. A suite of pieces for piano and texture loops, focused on real-time composition & an exploration of cassette sound sources, minimalism, harmony and the ghostly acoustic ephemera that emerges from the loop material. Intimate, granular and dust-covered.

After the passing of the late great Ryuchi Sakamoto during winter in early 2023 Richard Pike gravitated towards the piano as a daily ritual of improvisation, or what he prefers to call ‘real-time composition’.
Pike’s initial approach was an interest in a repeated practice, finding earthly textural tape loops against a daily commune with the piano. Very quickly a suite of pieces formed.

The process of collecting loops and beds in his studio the morning, then moving downstairs to a 1950s Eavestaff Minipiano in the living room, to record melodic and harmonic expressions over the bed of textures, with and against the flow. This process was pure and impulsive, leaving editing and scrutiny until later.

The textures are inspired by the likes of Romeo Poirier, Deepchord, early music concrete and a nostalgia for the ‘clicks and pops’ era that inspired Pike’s early experiments in his Warp Records-affiliated band PVT.

It premiered 25 years ago on the cult Solid Steel show on BBC Radio. It first appeared on a CD-R with a photocopied cover, followed by a cassette release via Blend Records.
Ninja Tune described it as the most important mixtape in the history of Polish electronic music-a release that fused the best of 90s trip-hop with the sounds of the future, carving out a new horizon.
"Virtual Cuts" by the polish duo Skalpel is arriving for the first time ever on vinyl, featuring newly designed artwork by Bartek Szymkiewicz.

For fans of post-punk and new wave, some songs aren’t just classics — they’re emotional landmarks. Joy Division’s “Love Will Tear Us Apart” and The Cure’s “A Forest” (both released in 1980) helped define an era, shaping decades of alternative music with their stark honesty, atmosphere, and unmistakable sound. Revisiting them is no small task.

Reimagining them successfully is even rarer. This special, limited 7” release — pressed to just 300 copies — does exactly that, thanks to legendary Dutch electronic producer Maarten van der Vleuten. A joint effort between Maarten’s own Signum Recordings and American chill-out imprint re:discovery records, he brings these two towering songs into new territory through the hands of an artist who understands both history and transformation. On one side, Maarten delivers a striking cover of “Love Will Tear Us Apart,” taking on Ian Curtis’ immortal lyrics himself. Rather than mimicking the original’s desolation, this version reframes the song into something unexpectedly inspirational and equally moving. It’s respectful, deeply personal, and emotional. Flip the record and “A Forest” is reborn as an ambient-electro journey, marking the vocal debut of Melbourne-based Linda Kastanja.
The result is dynamic and powerful, retaining the song’s eerie tension while expanding its atmosphere into something spacious and cinematic. Honoring their legacy while reshaping their form, it offers longtime fans and new listeners a rare opportunity to hear familiar emotions from a completely new perspective. Todocument this release, a music video has been made for “Love Will Tear Us Apart,” directed by Maarten and edited by Tobias Grönvall, aka Unit 21.

2023 Backstock

New album of one of the biggest Reggae/Dub french soundsystem starring MacGyver, Rooty Step & Pupajim (who worked with Alpha Steppa, Biga Ranx, High Tone, Mungo's Hi-Fi ...).

Since their inception at start of the 2000s, Stand High Patrol have rocked sound systems to their own riddim, assimilating and re-purposing the codes of the genre in their own unique style. From tiny bars in Brittany to huge festival stages, on independent radio or across national airwaves, the crew have quietly trod their own path, never compromising their core value of independence. Connoisseurs have long recognised Stand High’s credentials both as a dub group and a leading sound system, but they stand out from the crowd because of their ability to deliver the unexpected, whether live or on record. Their ability to draw such a diverse audience is testament to this atypical approach to making music.

In 2020, almost 20 years since their humble beginnings, the collective presents their fifth album, “Our Own Way”. As with their first two albums “Midnight Walkers” and “Matter Of Scale”, now considered as classics in their genre, this new opus asserts itself as the latest representation of the crew’s versatile approach to crafting sound. Their music, a blend of its own known as “Dubadub”, has always borrowed influences from multiple sources, and over the course of their career their roots in dub and reggae have intertwined with hip-hop, jazz, new wave, trip-hop and numerous other genres. The ‘Dubadub Musketeers’ have never ceased experimenting, forever seeking to increase the sonic territory they cover, day after day. Both live and recorded, they’ve made it a point of honour to never offer up the same thing twice. Any resemblance that “Our Own Way” might bear to those first two albums is a consequence of this obvious creative continuity, rather than of going “back to basics”.

In contrast to the last two Stand High Patrol records, the hip-hop inspired “The Shift”, or the Bristol indebted “Summer On Mars”, “Our Own Way” doesn’t have a unifying concept or theme. Rather than being limited to a single aesthetic, the LP pays respect to the entire canon of Jamaican music, all unified under Stand High’s inimitable production values. With the wealth of experience gained during the recording of their last two records, the collective decided to aim for a freer project, letting themselves be guided by their own music and their own instincts. The end result is a musical portrait of what Stand High Patrol is in the present moment.

The tracks that make up the new LP burst out of the studio, each born out of unbridled, impulsive creativity. Previously unheard compositions and specially re-tooled dub plates have been assembled into a tracklist that shifts and moves like a classic Dubadub Musketeer live set. Each step of the process has been refined by years of practice : composition, effects, and the final mix. Throughout “On Our Way”, the brutal dub stepper, though still a favourite for sound system sessions, is noticeable by its absence. Instead, it’s the full weight of the crew’s reggae heritage that’s expressed in the mix. It's not just the depth and weight of each tune that strikes the listener, but also the spaces heard between the notes that grab and hold their attention.. The sense of a trip, whether musical, internal or geographic, is omnipresent throughout the LP, linking each track to those before and after. “Our Own Way” finds Stand High Patrol exploring as usual, yet also narrating their journey as they’ve rarely done before.

/// First track, Symmetry, debuted on BBC Radio 6 New Music Fix, 10th February: "A beautiful, beautiful album" /// I got my life back. On 17 February 2025, 1024 rays of ultra sound converged at an operation table in Bern, Switzerland, and disconnected a noisy circuit on my brain. 90% of the manifestation ceased – of a disease that I no longer wish to mention by its name. During the same period, I completed my new album: Self Help Manual. I’ve read more current research about the nameless disease than my neurologist, who despite that I didn’t follow his advice on suitable treatment, called me after the successful operation: a brave, brave man. I have composed the music in the same way as in my previous album – Songs for the Nervous System – through layers upon layers of improvisations in dialogue with my synthesizers, most of which are the same age as me. I made the majority of the songs in my studio in the remains of Old Hagalund in Solna. I edited the recordings in my bed during the waking hours of clarity at night. Some songs – NAC, Ketosis, Overkill – were recorded in the basement of my childhood home in Skutskär, in Norduppland, where I’d returned to be nurtured by my retired parents – who during a night when I couldn’t turn over in bed, or pull the blanket over me – made a list of what would happen to my belongings. To my friends who have stood out with me despite my disease, I want to state: you will not inherit me yet. On the new album, the electric bass takes on a leading role. ESG and Liquid Liquid have been important when I reinvented my baselines, limited and liberated by my poor fine motor skills. Plasma is my homage to Summertime Rolls by Jane’s Addiction, that I listened to frequently in my youth. I guess that no one will hear the resemblance. In several songs, the Fender Rhodes plays an important role, a magical instrument that I bought shortly after my diagnosis over a decade ago, and for a long time didn’t dare to touch out of respect for Herbie Hancock and Fela Kuti. A couple of songs draw inspiration from the Horn of Africa – Inner Nile and Delta. At first, subconsciously in the reverb-drenched Inner Nile, then more consciously in Delta. I’m sorry it doesn’t swing the right way, but it was my attempt to return to the cradle of humanity. Longevity is possibly my favourite. The melody is played by an arpeggiator that I controlled by pressing down different keys in an exhilarating sense of freedom. One song in particular, the second track – One – has caused friends to associate freely: one thought it sounded like Patrick Cowley, another like Sly & Robbie meets Kraftwerk, a third like Air – Moonlight Safari. I made one song just before the surgery: opening track Symmetry. It’s the mightiest and most minimal song. I made one song after the surgery: finishing track Self Help Manual. My previous medication pump is heard through the microphone of my Ovation Magnum. It’s the most hopeful song on the album. I took the cover photos with my Hasselblad during walks in Tokyo suburbs of Ōmori and Kamata more than ten years ago. It was something about the faith of the traffic cones that fascinated me – born in the same streamlined form, they had over the years become increasingly individual and lovable. The mixing was finalized by Christoffer Roth in the newly built Studio Dubious in Nacka. Rashad Becker, who in an interview said that he listens as much with his mouth as with his ears, mastered the album at Clunk in Berlin. Right now it feels like anything is possible. My recovery is perhaps a small step for mankind, but a giant leap for me. I hereby leave the music to you. Joakim Forsgren

A1 GIRL IN A BAND (ORIGINAL BY HALF GIRL)
A2 INCOMPREHENSIBLE WORLD (ORIGINAL BY LAUNDROMAT CHICKS)
A3 NACHT (ORIGINAL BY CULK)
A4 PAST LIFE (ORIGINAL BY EUROTEURO)
A5 INVISIBLE (ORIGINAL BY LUISE POP)
A6 CAN'T YOU SEE (ORIGINAL BY SALAMIRECORDER & THE HI-FI PHONOS)|TOPSY TURVY
B1 THE BULLSHIT (ORIGINAL BY TELEBRAINS)
B2 TOMORROW (ORIGINAL BY DIVES)
B3 SCHÖNE GRÜßE (ORIGINAL BY TCHI)
B4 WHO'S GONNA LOVE ME (ORIGINAL BY BAD WEED)
B5 TROUBLES CAUGHT (ORIGINAL BY MILE ME DEAF)
B6 PLEASE WASTE YOUR TIME (ORIGINAL BY POTATO BEACH)
B7 MARCELINO (ORIGINAL BY TOPSY TURVY)

Das Wiener Label SILUH RECORDS feiert 20-jähriges Jubiläum u.a. mit dieser limitierten wirklichen Vinyl Only-VÖ (no CD, no DL, no Stream)! Das Album kommt mit 13 Songs, aktuelle Label-Artists covern jeweils einen liebgewonnene Song von Labelkolleg*innen. Ein wilder Ritt zwischen den Genres ist vorprogrammiert, was auch den breiten Backkatalog der Wiener Indie-Institution Siluh Records gut widerspiegelt. Das 2005 gegründete Label mit mittlerweile über 100 Releases ist ein wahrliches Szene-Juwel, wo Bands wie DIVES, GARDENS, CULK, MILE ME DEAF, LAUNDROMAT CHICKS, SEX JAMS oder EUROTEURO ihr zuhause haben und zum kleinen Undeground-Hype der Musikstadt Wien maßgeblich beigetragen. Doch im Label-Backkatalog finden sich auch ein paar internationale illustre Gäste. So zum Beispiel gab es Releases mit JAD FAIR von Half Japanese bzw. dem französischen Elektro-Akustiker PHILIP PETIT, den 90er US-Indie-Rockern SWEARING AT MOTORISTS, eine Techno-Remix Platte mit ALEC EMPIRE, ERIC D. CLARKE, JASON FORREST und BERNHARD FLEISCHMANN, ein Single mit CASSIE RAMONE von The Babies, oder Alben vom Chokebore-Frontman TROY VON BALTHAZAR. Für die Jubiläumsplatte wurde jetzt der Auftrag an derzeitige Siluh Acts erteilt, je einen Song aus dem Katalog neu zu interpretieren. ISCHIA zaubern aus einem LAUNDROMAT CHICKS Song eine wahre Dream Pop Hymne mit Shoegaze Finale. LAUNDROMAT CHICKS wiederum basteln aus dem Garagenrock von TELEBRAINS eine Neil Young'esque Version. TELEBRAINS nehmen sich DIVES' "Tomorrow" vor, diese wiederum graben einen alten LUISE POP Song, der nie auf einem Album erschienen ist, aus und erwecken ihn zu neuem Leben. Die Indie-Folk-Gruppe GARDENS bearbeiten eine Dada-Pop-Nummer von EUROTEURO, die wiederum einen TOPSY TURVY Song eingedeutscht haben. Und so geht's munter weiter... Der Titel "POCKET SONGS" bezieht sich auf ein Zitat des befreundeten Betreibers von Bachelor Records, der mal meinte "Pocket Band, eine Band für die Hosentasche. Eine Band, die man liebt und von der man Freunden erzählen möchte, aber nicht zu vielen, denn die Band sollte klein und in der Hosentasche bleiben und nicht in den Playlists von jedem Tom, Dick und Harry vorkommen". Dem Vinylalbum beigelegt ist ein Siluh-Poster, alle Tracks nur auf LP hier exklusiv/original! Herzlichen Glückwunsch!

Dutch composer and pianist Xavier Boot, also known as XA4, joins Philip Glass for the second release on the New York-based record label Orange Mountain Music, owned by Philip Glass.

“Xavier is really a wonderful pianist, and I am thrilled by how he now tackles my compositions, with that elegant electronica touch.” – Philip Glass

The Sea Above features not only Glass compositions but also several original pieces by Xavier: “I recorded this album inspired by all the musical influences I’ve experienced in my life, including classical, electronic (club) music, ambient, minimal, and even Indonesian music. The title track of the album is inspired by Philip Glass’s composition Mad Rush. He told me that he wrote this piece for an event with the Dalai Lama, where it was unclear when the Dalai Lama would arrive. That’s why Mad Rush was composed to last either five minutes or an hour. I tried to convey this idea of timelessness in my music, embodying this endless portal of time and space, which was also scientifically described by Albert Einstein. Another track on the album, Train I, is a reworking from Philip Glass’s opera Einstein on the Beach. You can experience the music on this album as a kind of journey, a trip where you are energetically drawn in at the beginning and later enter more of a fantasy world where dreams and unconscious elements of your mind can emerge.”

Credits:
Tracks 1 & 3 are original compositions by Philip Glass remixed by XA4
Tracks 2 & 9 remixed by XA4 and Jaro.
Tracks 4, 5, 6, 8,10 are original compositions by XA4
Track 7 is composed by XA4 and Tenzin Choegyal.
Vocals track 1: Julia Rosenhart.
Remix, production and playing: XA4.
Piano arrangement track 3: Michael Riesman and XA4.
Remix, production track 2 & 9: XA4 and Jaro.
Production assistance track 3: Jaro.
Mixing: Studio Karakterbak.
Mastering: Laura de Rover.
Cover foto: Angelina Nikolayeva.
Graphic design: Yesser Khalefa

A great name. A great cover. And - of course - outstanding library music.

Soul City Orchestra's Meal Ticket houses titanic funk, mellow groove and symphonic disco-soul.

Released in 1977 on Rouge, a subsidiary of the prestigious and long-established British library label Music De Wolfe, Meal Ticket was crafted by the studio band Soul City Orchestra (a pseudonym for the De Wolfe in-house composers Chris Rae & Franck McDonald).

The driving instrumental funk-rock of the A Side is enhanced with strings and no little drama. However, it's undoubtedly the peerless flipside that makes this record an essential part of any collection.

Head straight to highlight "Chamber Maid"; insistent, conga-driven funky rock with lashings of string-heightened drama. It's sophisticated, classical and deeply classy.

The majestic, powerfully emotive "Sore Head" contains an excellent intro drum break and sultry slo-mo disco breaks throughout. It's low-key stunning. With a few melodic switch-ups, it's symphonic soul heaven and is comfortably the best and most beautifully crucial track on Side A.

The breezy, Philly soul-tinged "Short Change", its intense strings reminiscent of the Salsoul Orchestra and TSOP, presents an easy-glide funk that's just irresistible.

The funky, cool and slick AF "Wheeling And Dealing" is laconic flute and string-propelled sophisticated mid-tempo disco soul. It's worth the price of admission alone.

The breezy, mellowed out disco-funk workout "The Jam" is a deliciously slinky and sophisticated soul strut. Try not swaggering into the club with this in your head next time you venture into the murky world of "the night". Just ace.

The crowning glory is the sweeping, sublime symphonic disco breaks of horn-infused "Soul City Drive", an absolute monster of radiant heavy soul-funk à la Barry White with great string & brass arrangement.

Basically, this is essential for all groove-aficionados.

The audio for Meal Ticket has been meticulously remastered by Be With regular Simon Francis, ensuring this release sounds better than ever. Cicely Balston's expert skills have made sure nothing is lost in the cut whilst the records have been pressed to the highest possible standard at Record Industry in Holland. The original, iconic sleeve has been restored here at Be With HQ as the finishing touch to this long overdue re-issue.

What happens when the mathematical rigor of Johann Sebastian Bach is stripped of its classical facade? With the album SRDNG x LPZG, the duo AMAS, together with double bassist Frithjof-Martin Grabner, delivers a radical answer on May 15th, 2026. The work does not merely translate Bach’s legacy; it consistently reimagines it within the aesthetics of Minimal, Dub-Techno, and Ambient. The creation of this extraordinary abstraction spanned three years and two geographical poles: the raw isolation of Sardinia and the academic precision of Leipzig.

The project found its origin in the seclusion of Pula, at the southernmost tip of Sardinia. There, AMAS extracted and digitally dissected the rhythmic and tonal essence of 14 selected works by Bach. In a temporary local studio, these minimalist sequences fused with field recordings of the surroundings to form a hypnotic framework of electronic structures. Back in Leipzig, this foundation met Frithjof-Martin Grabner. In an intense session held in a hall of the historic HMT Leipzig, spontaneous improvisations emerged that breathe the spirit of Miles Davis’ approach to "Ascenseur pour l’échafaud": free play based on rudimentary sketches, an intuitive reaction to the material—comparable to Davis’ iconic scoring of silent film images. It is a deliberate prioritization of atmosphere over technical perfection. Grabner utilizes the full spectrum of his instrument, creating sounds that, in post-production, often blur the line between analog depth and synthetic texture.

The result is an organic symbiosis: the vastness of Sardinia (SRDNG) meets the intellectual density of Leipzig (LPZG), while the strictness of the Baroque dissolves into the repetitive energy of Minimal Techno. To do justice to this conceptual ambition, the album will be released in an uncompromisingly audiophile edition. Limited to 200 copies worldwide, the double LP is pressed on 180g vinyl and features a front cover with a special 3D effect, continuing the visual tradition of the AMAS series. An album for listeners who understand Bach as a living origin of modern sound art—and for lovers of electronic music seeking a new, organic soul within the repetitive depth of techno.

Krope is a six-part conceptual album by Belarusian sound artist and producer Anton Anishchanka. Rooted in archival folk songs recorded between the 1960s and 2000s, it transforms fragile voices of the past into living, cinematic sound worlds. Created in collaboration with ethnographer Iryna Vasilyeva, the album weaves Belarusian traditional music with field recordings, acoustic instruments, and analog synthesizers — an immersive journey where memory, landscape, and resilience converge.

Flowing as one continuous suite, Krope unfolds like a film: memory re-emerges, fragile yet persistent, shaping an emotional narrative of displacement, loss, endurance, and hope. The archival voices at its core — songs of love, exile, and mourning — resonate across decades, echoing the urgent realities of today. The album flows as a single, immersive sonic odyssey. From the tender rejection in Krope (Dill) to the grief carved in Dubrovuška (Oak Grove), it traces an arc of human experience that is both deeply personal and universally shared. By reimagining traditional music through contemporary sound art, Anishchanka preserves endangered cultural heritage while revealing its timeless relevance.

Credits:
Produced by Anton Anishchanka
Engineering by Tenzor
Mastered by Alex at Quitfish Mastering
Lacquer cut by Tim Xavier at Manmade Mastering
Cover Art by Sasha Zeliankevich
Graphic Design by Ihar Yukhnevich
Creative Direction by Nadzeya Burmistrava

Archival materials courtesy of the Institute of Art History, Ethnography and Folklore named after K. Krapiva, National Academy of Sciences of Belarus.

Special thanks to Iryna Vasilyeva for her assistance with archival selections and ethnographic material.

Shatkavalka 2025