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Boheme is the second studio album of the French duo Deep Forest. The album combines samples of Eastern European gypsy songs with electronic music. It became the duo's most successful album, selling over 4 million copies, achieving Platinum, Gold, and Silver certifications in multiple countries and winning the Grammy Award for Best World Music Album in 1996.

The new single on Bob Stanley's Measured Mile label is a terrific double-header from Connie Stevens – ‘Tick Tock’ b/w ‘Keep Growing Strong’. A northern soul monster, arranged by the late Philly soul legend Thom Bell, original copies of Tick Tock regularly fetch £250 or more.
It was originally the flip side, as Connie Stevens was handed the very first opportunity to record Thom Bell and Linda Creed's evergreen ‘Betcha By Golly Wow’, later a hit for both the Stylistics and Prince. The record label decided to retitle it ‘Keep Growing Strong’, for unknown reasons - Measured Mile have rescued it from obscurity and made it affordable once again.
A classy orchestrated floor-filler and a timeless Philly ballad. You can't go wrong.

A kaleidoscope of harmony vocals - as Crosby, Stills and Nash might have sounded with a funky back beat. Delicate acoustic fingerpicking, warmed by a swell of brass before a drama of electric unfolds. Guitar band music, delivered with the sensibilities of someone who knows how to make you dance. Sun-kissed blue-eyed soul, reminiscent of Ned Doheny, but emanating from a beach far from California.

These are the sounds of Jim, as heard on debut album 'Love Makes Magic'.

Debuting in 2021 on the folk-informed 'Falling That You Know' EP, Jim is the latest alias of songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and renowned DJ Jim Baron. Famed as co-founder and musical director of festival-stunning favourites Crazy P, his latest Jim project is a musical journey unlike anything he has done before.

"The Gold Experience" ist das erste vollständige Album, das Prince unter seinem unaussprechbaren Symbol als Pseudonym veröffentlichte. Mit dem Wort "SLAVE" auf einer Wange geschrieben, glänzte Prince mit den opulenten Balladen "The Most Beautiful Girl in the World" und "Gold" sowie der provokativen Single "Eye Hate U".

«The Truth» gilt weithin als einer der am meisten unterschätzten verborgenen Juwelen von Prince. Das Album wurde ursprünglich als Begleitung zum Triple-Album «Crystal Ball» aus dem Jahr 1998 veröffentlicht, mit dem Prince zum ersten Mal ein Album völlig unabhängig herausbrachte. «The Truth» war auch das erste Prince-Album, das als "akustisch" bezeichnet wurde, obwohl es elektronische Instrumente und Elemente enthält, und es gab den Hörern eine noch nie dagewesene Möglichkeit, sein Songwriting und seine Stimme in einer reduzierten Form zu hören. Erhältlich auf schwarzem Vinyl als Einzel-LP

In 2003, Belgian composer, percussionist and multi-instrumentalist Chris Joris released his Magnus Opus "Out of the Night" on the Belgian jazz label W.E.R.F. records. The album - an emotionally infused tribute to his late wife - became a commercial success and received several reprints over the years. Meanwhile, the release has been out of print for some time. On the occasion of the 20th anniversary of one of Belgium's most important jazz records of the past three decades and on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of W.E.R.F. records, this gem is being reissued, for the first time ever on vinyl.
Especially for this reissue, the album has been enriched with some never before released tracks and alternative takes from the original recording sessions.

Super limited edition. 2LP comes with an alternative artwork and three bonus tracks! Gatefold, neon pink / black / blue striped vinyl. Limited to 250 copies.

Alright! 2023, Black Rainbows are back with 12 fresh, brand new tunes! The new album sounds huge, with of a great deal of attention paid to the guitars in the recording, and it seems that the band has finally found the perfect balance and tone for their heavy super stoner sound!

This album gives you not only incredible heavy rock-stoner gems, but also: one space acoustic song, one super psychedelic suite and one melodic trippy ballad that adds a perfect mixture of what is sure to be the best album released by the band so far! "Superskull" has been recorded by Fabio Sforza (the same producer of the last two recordings), in May 2022, and after much work and effort by the band in mixing and mastering, the album will see the light of day one year later. The incredible artwork has been delivered by the brazilian artist Pedro Correa.

Super limited edition. 2LP comes with an alternative artwork and three bonus tracks! Gatefold, neon pink / black / blue striped vinyl. Limited to 250 copies.

Alright! 2023, Black Rainbows are back with 12 fresh, brand new tunes! The new album sounds huge, with of a great deal of attention paid to the guitars in the recording, and it seems that the band has finally found the perfect balance and tone for their heavy super stoner sound!

This album gives you not only incredible heavy rock-stoner gems, but also: one space acoustic song, one super psychedelic suite and one melodic trippy ballad that adds a perfect mixture of what is sure to be the best album released by the band so far! "Superskull" has been recorded by Fabio Sforza (the same producer of the last two recordings), in May 2022, and after much work and effort by the band in mixing and mastering, the album will see the light of day one year later. The incredible artwork has been delivered by the brazilian artist Pedro Correa.

Super limited edition. 2LP comes with an alternative artwork and three bonus tracks! Gatefold, neon pink / black / blue striped vinyl. Limited to 250 copies.

Alright! 2023, Black Rainbows are back with 12 fresh, brand new tunes! The new album sounds huge, with of a great deal of attention paid to the guitars in the recording, and it seems that the band has finally found the perfect balance and tone for their heavy super stoner sound!

This album gives you not only incredible heavy rock-stoner gems, but also: one space acoustic song, one super psychedelic suite and one melodic trippy ballad that adds a perfect mixture of what is sure to be the best album released by the band so far! "Superskull" has been recorded by Fabio Sforza (the same producer of the last two recordings), in May 2022, and after much work and effort by the band in mixing and mastering, the album will see the light of day one year later. The incredible artwork has been delivered by the brazilian artist Pedro Correa.

EXTREME return in 2023 with their brand new studio album “SIX”. The multi-million selling hard rockers present 12 tracks ranging from funk-tinged bangers to soaring ballads as only EXTREME can deliver. Spearheaded by the songwriting team of vocalist Gary Cherone and guitarist Nuno Bettencourt (who blessed the world with chart toppers like “More Than Words” and “Hole Hearted”), “SIX“ is an essential addition to EXTREME’s discography. The album opener and first single “RISE” will immediately fire up legions of anxious fans with its signature riff. Elsewhere, “OTHER SIDE OF THE RAINBOW” showcases EXTREME’s gift for passionate acoustic magic. EXTREME are back with “SIX“ – everything the fans have been waiting for. Formats; CD, 2LP Black, 2LP Ltd Transparent, 2LP Ltd Red & Black Marble.

EXTREME return in 2023 with their brand new studio album “SIX”. The multi-million selling hard rockers present 12 tracks ranging from funk-tinged bangers to soaring ballads as only EXTREME can deliver. Spearheaded by the songwriting team of vocalist Gary Cherone and guitarist Nuno Bettencourt (who blessed the world with chart toppers like “More Than Words” and “Hole Hearted”), “SIX“ is an essential addition to EXTREME’s discography. The album opener and first single “RISE” will immediately fire up legions of anxious fans with its signature riff. Elsewhere, “OTHER SIDE OF THE RAINBOW” showcases EXTREME’s gift for passionate acoustic magic. EXTREME are back with “SIX“ – everything the fans have been waiting for. Formats; CD, 2LP Black, 2LP Ltd Transparent, 2LP Ltd Red & Black Marble.

Limited Edition 500 LPs for RSD2023 – 250 ‘Sugar Mountain’ Gold LPs! / 250 ‘Restless Rollin’ Black LPs! (randomly inserted) . From the makers of 'Hillbillies In Hell'...

Full Throated, Big Chested Country, Hollyweird Pop and Velveteen Popcorn for the working stiffs.
Deluxe Gatefold LP with exclusive scholarly liner notes by Alvin Lucia! Non-Returnable.
Full dynamic range 2023 remasters direct from the first generation analogue master tapes!
Best known as one of the original Godfathers of '50s Rockabilly, Dorsey Burnette had a fascinating 1960s solo pivot to epic, widescreen vistas of Existential Incarcerations, Serpentine Temptations, Cold War Escapees, Luciferian Combats, Eco-Armageddons and Creationist Heavens.
Blessed with a bold set of tonsils and a song-writing genius, Burnette is largely forgotten today but his hits (and misses) offer a brash landscape of Spiritual-Crooner Belters and Hillbilly Backwoods Swelters.

Lusty, loud and proud, this set examines unheard and underrated sides cut for various mid-'60s labels as Burnette sought a home for his unique Hillbilly Popcorn Pop.
Antediluvian Survivalism and Biblical Environmentalism, Ancient Traditionalism and Passionate Hedonism.
The best of Dorsey Burnette's 1960s sides stand alone as Wry Depression-Era Fables, Swinging Tower of Babel Ballads, Devilish Tribulations and Forceful Masculine Declarations.

Eons in the making – ‘Hard Working Man' captures and chronicles the stellar output of a prodigious wordsmith and eccentric, arcane thinker. Fundamental Questions and Timeless Revelations, Dorsey
Burnette channelled Eternal Wisdom through Blood, Sweat and Big Beat Ballads.
Many of these sides are impossibly rare and are reissued here for the very first time. All for your primal listening pleasure

Kelsea’s fourth album, SUBJECT TO CHANGE, arrived on September 23, 2022. The first single, “HEARTFIRST,” quickly took over airwaves, and was the “most added song at country radio” the week of its release. Most recently, Kelsea earned a GRAMMY® nomination for “Best Country Solo Performance” for “HEARTFIRST.” Kelsea Ballerini is ready to continue making history in 2023 and beyond. The two-time Grammy nominee previously teased Subject To Change in April, and said that the '90s-tinged "Heartfirst" set the tone for what's to come. "There is a lot of nostalgia to this record," she said. "It does sound really '90s-inspired, '90s country and '90s pop... I really just wanted to start this next chapter with something that feels good. It's breezy, it's happy, and I hope people hear that."

World premiere recording of Richter’s electrifying ballet music EXILES. Originally commissioned for Singulière Odyssée (2016) by Sol León and Paul Lightfoot, premiered by Nederlands Dans Theater (NDT). First release of previously unreleased opening piece from Woolf Works – Flowers of Herself. Alongside its premier recordings the album also offers great opportunity for catalogue re-marketing . Featuring new orchestral-versions of best performing iconic Richter catalogue tracks.

The name NxxxxxS (pronounced "N-Five X-S”) sounds like it could be an equation, or a mystery. But to begin to unravel the identity of the French producer who just signed to Because Music and Mad Decent (the label founded by Diplo), you first have to look for clues on YouTube and Soundcloud, where so many underground artists have found a place to hone their craft. In the ten years preceding the release of his second album Short Term Agreement in 2023, NxxxxxS built up a solid reputation for himself in the international vaporwave, vaportrap & phonk scenes. This is no small feat considering he didn’t have any real knowledge of production or composition before deciding to take on these classic genres of “Internet music”.
The Paris native first gained exposure when he started making beats on YouTube, taking his inspiration from American rappers of the blog era - when artists, especially in hip hop, used digital technology to break away from traditional distribution models - like Mac Miller or Odd Future. Building on this initial success, NxxxxxS turned to Soundcloud, an essential platform for music enthusiasts, tastemakers or anyone on the lookout for the sounds of tomorrow.
Following in the footsteps of The Alchemist and other producers of the same ilk, NxxxxxS soon became one of the pioneers of vaporwave and vaportrap music. Featured prominently in modern productions, these styles originated on social media platforms such as Reddit or Tumbler in the 2010’s and are recognisable by their frequent use of commercial samples ranging from the 70’s to the 2000’s (taken from jingles, lounge, jazz or elevator music). Altered, chopped up and slowed down to around 60 to 70 BPM to match hip-hop standards, the music offered a critique or satire of capitalism, consumer society and any culture that grew out of it, most notably yuppies from the 80’s.
NxxxxxS put his own spin on the recipe by creating a new world filled with soaring melodies and countless references to movies and horror scenes, and eventually released his debut album Fujita Scale (a scale used to measure the damage inflicted by tornadoes) in 2014. The album reached a worldwide audience because of its composer’s story and of the secrecy around his French nationality, and even won over unexpected fanbases such as the highly closed off Chinese market. Fujita Scale landed on one of China's streaming platforms, making NxxxxxS an identifiable artist in Asia who went on to tour his album three times across the continent.

NxxxxxS kept the ball rolling, collaborating on a new series of more accessible projects, which aimed to be less niche in terms of the references or sub-genres they tapped into, so he could find a new audience. This led to his first hits, “Synthetic Corporation” - which would also become the name of his label - “Remember Last Summer” and “Formatted Excess”, as well as his most popular track to date, “Playa Shit”, with over 11M streams on Spotify. The upcoming album’s title, Short Term Agreement, is a playful reference to his unyielding desire for independence and productivity, and his eagerness to preserve the personal freedom he turned into strength.
Yet NxxxxxS is never one to refuse support, and he has now joined forces with Because Music & Mad Decent to further establish himself as a producer at the international level - alongside Diplo especially, who is a case in point - so that this understated and ever prolific artist can meet his ambitions of widening his audience and have his name known by all.
And so the tracks on Short Term Agreement serve as the foundation for NxxxxxS' new identity, featuring a rich and diverse array of sounds thanks to the numerous guests involved: London rapper Jeshi - a new British rap phenomenon also freshly signed to Because Music, French rappers 8ruki & Bitsu, Canadian Freddie Dredd and American underground talents Pollari . Avoiding the pitfalls of a compilation-like producer album, NxxxxxS has once again carved out his own style from the modern hip hop rule book.

In other words, NxxxxxS’ constant evolution has brought us this much closer to solving the mystery that is his name.

Colin McCann didn't pick up a guitar for nearly ten years. The Northern-California-based songwriter, previously performing under Long Dog Bird, had been creating music with longtime friend and collaborator Brian Gossman for much of their adult lives with early-00s Baltimore-based band Wilderness. So what would cause such a stagnant period? And how could McCann find his way back to the joy that music had once so easily conjured? The answer was to go back to the very beginning, where the kinetic forces that urged McCann to make music in the first place could emerge once again. But first, he had to make space in his internal world; a kind of silence where he could hear the exhale of his past, and the blossoming of a new song. That blossoming would soon become the first songs for McCann's latest project Vulture Feather. The band's debut album Liminal Fields exists on an intangible plane: a crack in the concrete, a gauze between worlds. For as long as McCann can recall, he's been using music as a vehicle to try and connect with an underlying, indescribable nature that only the sonic world seems to be able to reach. "There's a feeling of ecstasy that comes when one merges with music," he says. "It's what calls us all back again and again to listen, to sing, and to play." McCann had been striving to reach this outlying environment throughout his career, often stretching in ways that eventually came to negatively impact his life, and his health. The wake up call came when McCann suffered a near-death experience, eerily predicted by a friend through a dream she had had almost a year earlier. Newly awoken to the beauty of being alive, McCann strove to slow down, to listen to the inherent nature in all living things, and to rediscover our mutual connectivity. He stopped playing and listening to music, and instead soaked himself in the cacophony of silence. Then without any epiphany or grand catalyst, something urged McCann to pick up a guitar again. Ideas flowed more naturally than ever, and he soon realized that the liminal space he had been searching for was there all along--he only had to listen. McCann tentatively reached out to Gossman to collaborate and the friends found themselves once again jamming together, in an off-grid quonset hut where they now practice. "It was like no time had passed," McCann says. "That feeling of ecstatic joy, of forgetting your own name, came flooding back." They were soon joined by another old friend, Eric Fiscus, who completed Vulture Feather on drums.

Guitar Noir" ist das 1993er Studioalbum des legendären Gitarristen Steve Hackett. Dieses Album wurde noch nie auf Vinyl veröffentlicht und ist das erste in einer Reihe von Veröffentlichungen aus seinem Backkatalog, die zum ersten Mal in diesem Format erhältlich sein werden. Auf diesem Album, das einen dunkleren Ansatz für seinen Gitarrensound verfolgt, wurde Steve von Julian Colbeck (Keys), Dave Ball (Bass), Hugo Degenhardt (Schlagzeug), Aron Friedman (Keys), Nick Magnus (Keys) und anderen unterstützt. Erhältlich als Gatefold 180g 2LP mit geätzter Gravur auf Seite D.

This release will come in 10 alternative sleeves limited to 100 copies of each so the bedroom design of the front cover has been painstakingly adapted for devotee’s of; 1. Sex Pistols 2. The Clash 3. The Jam 4. Buzzcocks 5. The Damned 6. The Stranglers 7. Siouxsie & the Banshees 8. Generation X 9. Ramones and 10. Blondie… and that design comes with a signed and stamped print of that design inside…
Mal-One’s new five track 12’’ offering has broached the tender subject of the bedroom wall and what as a teenager we would cover it with, as we revelled in our teenage glory. During what we now fondly remember as the Punk Rock period, this would have been the promo posters, gig tickets, flyers, badges, t- shirts anything we could find to extend our allegiance to the Punk Rock cause. Track one of this extended play covers this dilemma in fine style:

Side One
1. Punk Rock Pictures on my Wall …from floor to ceiling and ten feet tall !!!
2. JJ’s Alright relates a true story of Mal-One’s run in with the Euroman Cometh himself and finding out first hand that
even if his band The Stranglers were to become Punk’s social outcasts that in fact JJ was Alright and so in fact was
Hugh….
Side Two
1. The Buzz-Cocks Are Coming tells the Buzzcocks connection to this movement and their entry point into the affray.
2. Damned Disciple tells what is required to become a Damned devotee. Which includes amongst other requirements
and as stated on one of their early badges ‘skipping off school to see them play’
3. The Satellite Kid tells the engaging story of Mr Paul Weller coming to London seeing the Sex Pistols for the first time
at the Lyceum Ballroom on The Strand. In doing so he found some likeminded souls and more importantly people the
same age that he could relate to and forge an identity with.
Hopefully to hang on your bedroom wall… it’s never too late Punk….

While the hook line for this new local trio would have to be that bassist/leader Brenda Sauter used to be a member of the later-'80s incarnation of the famous Feelies (and it's notable offshoot, The Trypes), even if you didn't worship at the altar of that group (and especially if you did!), Wild Carnation is a revelation. While
the persistent, pumping beat and hard-played jangle guitars of most of the tracks here emanate from her previous band and from their forerunners, the Velvets (especially), Television,and the Byrds - Sauter's beguiling voice is perfect for the ultra-appealing pop hooks the group writes as well as the thoughtful lyrics she composes.

Way back in the 1990s, a young Delmore stumbled into now defunct NYC nightclub Wetlands (during the sadly also now defunct, NYU Independent Music Festival), just as WILD CARNATION were about to begin their set.

Having lived in NYC / Brooklyn / Hoboken the previous decade, where countless mesmerizing gigs by THE FEELIES, YUNG WU, TRYPES, and SPEED THE PLOUGH had been experienced, it was the chance to see Brenda Sauter fronting her new group that drew Delmore in. A few songs into their set, it was apparent, however, that this trio was more than a Feelies offshoot project, despite melodic similarities, and Brenda's cool vocals / presence.

WILD CARNATION played raw, loud and fast (and occasionally out of control), with Richard Barnes distorted, jangly guitar lines perfectly colliding with Brenda's propelling bass notes, while Chris O'Donovan
kept it together, while pounding the living hell out of his drums. It was a garagey, indie rock mess, more reminiscent of Hib-Tone / Chronic Town era REM, and emergent New Zealand bands like The Bats and The Clean, than The Feelies.

Delmore was smitten, and determined to sign them, despite the fact that the Delmore label did not yet exist.
In 1993, Wild Carnation's debut 7", "Dodger Blue" b/w "The Lights Are On (But No One's Home)", taken from raw home demos recorded the previous year, became the second Delmore release. A full length album was then commissioned, and an evolving Wild Carnation holed up at Mix-O-Lydian recording studios with engineer Don Sternecker (The Feelies, Speed The Plough, Wake Ooloo) to record their debut full length, Tricycle, released in 1994.

On Tricycle, the pastoral quality of their most beautiful ballads was captured perfectly, while retaining enough of the rawness of the live experience. Waves of critical acclaim followed, from now defunct publications (CMJ Jackpot! Raygun, Trouser Press) followed, including this one by Jack Rabid of The Big Takeover, written for All Music Guide:
"While the hook line for this new local trio would have to be that bassist/leader Brenda Sauter used to be a member of the later-'80s incarnation of the famous Feelies (and it's notable offshoot, The Trypes), even if you didn't worship at the altar of that group (and especially if you did!), Wild Carnation is a revelation. While the persistent, pumping beat and hard-played jangle guitars of most of the tracks here emanate from her previous band and from their forerunners, the Velvets (especially), Television,and the Byrds - Sauter's beguiling voice is perfect for the ultra-appealing pop hooks the group writes as well as the thoughtful lyrics she composes.

Trading the occasional Feelies drone for sugar-sweet melodies (yes!) and utilizing the pretty ring of the guitars to maximum effect, songs such as Wings are the perfect pop confectionery, too honeyed and
delightful to miss capturing your bending heart and too consistently insistent and edgy to be wimpy, kind of like Reckoning-era R.E.M. It's all so well captured with pristine production, with balls to match the heart, too!

And though the 12 tracks are largely cut from a similar mode, all seem special just the same on their own.
A truly shining, first-rate effort, along with Lotion's and Nyack's early EPs and the last Flower LP, the best release to come out of a New York group this decade, and exceptionally crafted at that! Do not miss."

'Malombo music is an indigenous kind of music. If you listen to it, you can feel that it can heal you, if you’ve got something wrong. It’s healing music.'
Lucky Ranku

"Lucas ‘Lucky’ Madumetja Ranku (1941-2016) was one of the greatest African guitarists of his generation. He first made his name with the Malombo Jazz Makers – the successor group to the legendary Malombo Jazzmen, formed in Mamelodi township by guitarist Philip Tabane, drummer Julian Bahula and flautist Abbey Cindi. When Tabane left the Jazzmen in 1965, Bahula and Cindi called on Lucky to replace him, and the Malombo Jazz Makers were born. Building on the popularity and success of the original Malombo Jazzmen, the Malombo Jazz Makers become immensely popular, touring widely, winning numerous jazz competitions, and recording two successful albums for the Gallo label.

The deep and hypnotic Down Lucky’s Way was their third album. Recorded in 1969, it was the first Malombo Jazz Makers album to feature additional instruments, and the first to feature Abbey Cindi on soprano saxophone as well as flute. But more than anything else, Down Lucky’s Way is a transfixing showcase for Lucky Ranku’s sui generis guitar virtuosity. Quite different from their previous recordings, the album shifted the Jazz Makers’ sound toward hypnotic, extended compositions, layered by organ bass and guitar overdubs. Of all the Malombo Jazz Makers recordings, Down Lucky’s Way is the deepest of mood, and the richest of vision.

However, through one of the erasures that are ubiquitous in South African musical history under apartheid, it seems that the record may not ever have been properly issued. Original copies are outrageously rare – only a few are known among collectors. When we asked Lucky about the album, he was unaware it had ever been released, and had never seen a copy. Perhaps it was pulled; perhaps it was pulped; perhaps Gallo simply took their eye off the ball. Nobody knows, but it is not impossible that the apartheid authorities were involved, for by 1969, the Malombo Jazz Makers were well known to them.

Julian Bahula’s introduction of malopo drums to the music of the original Malombo Jazzmen was a moment of crucial political and cultural radicalism for South African jazz. Traditionally used by BaPedi people for healing, the malopo drums of Malombo music re-centered jazz
around indigenous sounds and culture, and over the next decade, the Malombo Jazz Makers became deeply involved in political opposition to apartheid. Their recovery of indigenous sounds made them the musical standard bearer for the Black Consciousness movement, and they toured South Africa clandestinely with the writer and anti-apartheid activist Steve Biko. They also broke apartheid laws by playing with the white rock group Freedom’s Children, sometimes appearing on stage in masks or made up with UV paint to avoid detection by the authorities; they appeared regularly at the rule-bending Free People’s Concerts organized by David Marks, where Marks’ clever exploitation of a loophole – mixed audiences were prohibited from attending ticketed concerts where anyone was being paid, but the law said nothing about private functions played by artists for free – meant people could come together in defiance of apartheid laws. The notorious Special Branch would raid their concerts; Lucky remembered police storming an auditorium, throwing smoke bombs.

Eventually the political situation became too dangerous, and the band were being actively sought by the police. Though Abbey Cindi remained in South Africa, both Julian Bahula and Lucky Ranku went into political exile in the UK, where Bahula founded the group Jabula with Lucky and former members of Cymande, Steve Scipio and Michael ‘Bami’ Rose. With Jabula, Julian and Lucky worked tirelessly for the anti-apartheid movement, raising funds and awareness all over Europe and in the US. They played with Dudu Pukwana’s Spear in the joint formation Jabula-Spear, and worked together in Bahula’s Jazz Afrika formation, and Bahula organized the first Concert for Mandela in 1984 (it was Jabula that supplied the chorus for The Special A.K.A.’s hit single ‘Nelson Mandela’). Lucky also played and recorded with Chris McGregor’s South African Exiles Thunderbolt group. After the fall of apartheid, they both remained living and working in the UK. In 2012 the South African government awarded Julian Bahula the Gold Order of Ikhamanga for his cultural work during the struggle against apartheid.

Until his death in 2016, Lucky continued to play with countless groups and musicians. putting together the band Township Express with Pinise Saul, and leading his own African Jazz Allstars. The influence of his playing on the international perception of South African township music was immense, and he was held in the highest regard by his peers – ‘Lucky was a guitarist who could bring any house down’, said Michael ‘Bami’ Rose.

But despite his continuous presence on the UK live circuit over four decades, Lucky Ranku never recorded an album as leader. And so as well as restoring an important lost piece of South African musical heritage, Down Lucky’s Way is a precious opportunity to hear one of Africa’s foremost guitarists stretching out, in focus and in his element."

First issue since 1969 of the Malombo Jazz Maker’s unknown third album.
Liner notes featuring interviews with Julian Bahula and Lucky Ranku.
Fully licensed from Julian Bahula.

“Crystal Motion” were a vocal quartet of Cape Verdean descendancy from New Bedford Massachusetts. The group’s original members being lead vocalist “Kevin Gomes”, Kevin’ s cousin, Rodney “Skeeta” Santos, Daniel “Buddy” Monterio and John Paris, the man responsible for coining the group’s eventual performing name “Crystal Motion”.

Entering a local now defunct recording studio “Metcalf’s” the grouped recorded the Kevin Gomes penned demonstration song, the sweet soul ballad “There’ll Be Another”.

A copy of this song was eventually submitted to the recently formed Independent Recording Studio, “Omega Sound Productions” in Philadelphia, PA. The label was owned by Frank Fioravanti who having just hit paydirt with William DeVaughn’s smash hit “Be Thankful For What You Got” continued with his policy of supporting up and coming talent and upon hearing Crystal Motion’s demo decided to offer them a recording contract. Although deciding against using their submitted demonstration song (which was to remain unissued) Fioravanti chose to record the group on a song he had co-written with another Philly writer and recording artist Pal Rakes, the title of the song was “You’re My Main Squeeze (Part 1 & 2)” an exciting disco dance orientated song that Frank released on them in 1975 on his Sound Gems label imprint. The song became a minor hit in Boston MA, Providence RI and Philadelphia areas also receiving extensive airplay in Atlanta GA and Houston TX. John Paris was to leave the group being replaced by a longtime friend of the other group members Douglas “Dougie” Mendes. With attention coming from the producers of “American Band Stand” and “Soul Train” the group toured the East coast circuit throughout 1975 and 1976 in preparation for an upcoming album project which was never finished before lead singer Kevin Gomes left for unforeseen personal reasons and ultimately the group broke up. Little did “Crystal Motion” know at the time but their solitary 45 release was finding a new audience across the pond in the UK with “You’re My Main Squeeze” being championed by inspirational DJ Colin Curtis in the hallowed halls of Blackpool Mecca, a timeless classic that never fails to bring a smile to the listening audiences faces even to this day.

Returning to the groups unfinished Sounds Gems album project only one track was ever completed, the Fioravanti/Rakes composition “Million Dollar Baby” which along with “There’ll Be Another” has been licensed from their respective owners and paired together for a long overdue 45 release for your delectation. With ‘Crystal Motion’s’ “You’re My Main Squeeze” cult and anthemic status being forever assured with Northern/Modern Soul devotees we’d like to think the discovery and release of these two slightly differing Sweet Soul offerings will garner and enhance the group’s wider appeal with the growing aficionados of the Chicano, Group Harmony and Lowrider genres, Enjoy.

Various Artists - A Giant Has Nowhere To Go: Tongue Master Records Presents Selections From Comes With A Smile (2000-2006) LP + 7' + 4 page booklet insert describing the legacy of the magazine, 500 only pressed. A vinyl only release. "A Giant Has Nowhere To Go: Tongue Master Records Presents Selections From Comes With A Smile (2000-2006)" is a celebratory vinyl-only release drawn from the magazine's sixteen cover-mounted compilation CDs. Across some 300 tracks, the magazine presented previously unheard tracks from its eclectic array of interviewees drawn from the worlds of the Singer Songwriter, Americana, Post-Rock, Electronica, and all things Indie. Comes With A Smile's designer/editor Matt Dornan's association with Tongue Master Records began with the first TM 7" and has continued to the present day. In some ways the association has come full circle with this curated release. The selections on this album represent the place where the worlds of Tongue Master and CWAS converge. Most remain exclusive to the magazine, and all appear on vinyl for the first time. Side one features artists who appear in the Tongue Master discography - from established masters Mark Eitzel, Mark Mulcahy and Howe Gelb to the equally idiosyncratic stylings of New York's The Scene Is Now, Athens' Sigmatropic (featuring Edith Frost) and London's cinematic The Real Tuesday Weld. The latter revisits a CWAS favourite, featuring a newly recorded vocal by Sephine Llo, exclusive to this release. Other contributions include intimate demos from Eitzel and Gelb (better known in embellished form by American Music Club and Giant Sand respectively), to standalone gems like Mulcahy's "Elephantine" (which gives this collection its title) and the bruised avant-garde blues of The Scene Is Now's "The Word". The tracks on side two and the accompanying 7" are a diverse selection drawn from the 16 CDs CWAS issued between 2000 and 2006 that reflect and complement the oeuvre of Tongue Master Records. Here you will find the dense literature-infused art-folk of Lullaby For The Working Class, the sparse acoustic balladry of Nina Nastasia and the curious Matmos-enhanced stylings of veteran polymath and fellow New Yorker David Grubbs. In their wake comes an epic jazz-tinged duel between Douglas McCombs's Brokeback and sometime labelmates Chicago Underground Duo, and the raw gothic Americana of Blanche. The LP concludes with a haunting lo-fi lament by the sorely missed Jason Molina in his Songs: Ohia guise. The 7" presents two further gems: a concise edit of the lengthy title track from a 2005 12" tour EP from CWAS regulars The American Analog Set, and an acoustic rendition of a track from the album 'The Great Destroyer' by shapeshifting veterans Low from the same year. Together the 14 tracks hint at the breadth of the CWAS archive, a treasure trove from a not-too-distant musical past. With full lyrics, a special four page insert tracing the history of the magazine, and an Alex Wharton Abbey Road cut, this quality release is a testament to the legacy of CWAS. 'Probably the best independent music magazine in the world '- ESQUIRE // Tracks: SIDE ONE: 1 The Scene Is Now - 'Words' (3:10) 2 Howe Gelb - 'Wolf Pup' (4:42) 3 Mark Mulcahy - 'Elephantine' (4:12) 4 Sigmatropic featuring Edith Frost - 'Haiku 4 (Alt)' (2:31) 5 Mark Eitzel - 'Bought A Book' (3:36) 6 The Real Tuesday Weld featuring Sephine Lo - 'Dreaming of You' (3:47). SIDE TWO: 7 Lullaby For The Working Class - 'In Defense Of Abstractions' (3:18) 8 Nina Nastasia - 'I Will Never Marry' (3:29) 9 David Grubbs- 'Aging Young Lovers' (2:53) 10 Brokeback With Chicago Underground Duo- 'Chomsk, Live!' (7:08) 11 Blanche -'Never Again (Demo)' (3:26) 12 Songs: Ohia - 'Untitled' (3:01). 7" SIDE 3: The American Analog Set - 'Everything Ends In Spring (Edit)' (4:41). SIDE 4: Low - 'Walk Into The Sea (acoustic version)' (3:07) For indie stores only!

***BACK IN PRINT ON RED VINYL!!! Lice-All, from 1992, previously known as self-titled, and also previously known as something else we’re all not gonna talk about, thank you very much. This was the Melvins last release before signing their Atlantic deal, and features the introduction of new bass player Joe Preston (previously of Earth, currently of Thrones). It’s one long, slow, loud blob of drones, moans and fuzztones. The opening endless power chord shimmer influenced Sleep, Sunn O))), and countless other sludge metal drone freaks for years to come.

First time reissue of mega rare 1972 psych-folk album from Venezuela.
180g LP.
One of the most obscure records ever released in Venezuela that was originally distributed in tiny quantities as a promo-only album.

A magic blend of protest songwriting, with a strong environmentalist statement, and folky pop with psych ingredients —such as the use of sitar sounds— recorded by the collective of artists “Una Luz”, and “El Zigui” who was once described as the local Bob Dylan.

The late ‘60s was a short period of time, long enough to turn the world upside down.

Music, paying attention to the ancient Greeks who said that changes in society are also reflected in it, also undergoes violent transformations in its structure. The turbulent joy of rock and roll and twist gives way to the meditative sounds of the waves of the sea contained in surf to finally welcome music of soft and delicate harmonies with songs full of references in their lyrics to the state of society and their relationships with the environment.

On the other hand, in Venezuela, although the expansive wave of May 68 had not reached it, a certain degree of dissatisfaction began to be perceived, especially through the music of a singer-songwriter from the countryside of Venezuela known as Ali Primera, El Cantor del Pueblo. Thanks to a scholarship from the German government, he studied for a few years in that country, and it was there that he recorded his first album, with songs whose lyrics reflect the essence of authors such as Bob Dylan and Atahualpa Yupanqui. And Ali Primera becomes one of the greatest influences of our artist: El Zigui.

Guillermo Sánchez Corao —known as El Zigui for some strange reason— was born in the Venezuelan city of Maracay, capital of the State of Aragua, on January 13, 1948. From a very young age he began to study guitar playing and, already in his teens, we can find him as part of the duo El Zigui & Franklin together with Franklin Laudelino Mejías, another young man with a great musical pedigree.

It is during his bohemian phase as a troubadour, in the surroundings of the Ateneo de Caracas, when his music caught the attention of producer Mario Tepedino, the most important youth music producer at the time. Mario takes him to his TV show “2001 Juvenil”. With the incorporation of other musicians such as Rubén "Micho" Correa —who would later become a great arranger and record producer— he created the group El Zigui y Una Luz, which would later be joined by musicians such as Carlos "Nene" Quintero and Alfredo Padilla, members of the amazing Grupo Pan. Later on, another outstanding singer would also join Una Luz: Guillermo Carrasco.

With this formation they made it into a recording studio in 1972 where they managed to record, in just 30 hours, a long-playing album of which only 60 copies were pressed and has therefore gained cult status among collectors. As expected, the strong content of the lyrics was not supported by the media, making the promotion of the album impossible to accomplish. However, it was with the help of Mario Tepedino that they made it to television, with appearances on “2001 Juvenil” and “Antesala Lunar”, a show that was especially produced for the broadcast of the arrival of man on the Moon.

That was probably one of the main reasons for El Zigui to move to Canada and then France until 1978 when he returns to Venezuela. He would then join bands like Xabañón, Fogón and De Vuelta al Futuro, a 12-member super group. The former members of Una Luz had become well known musicians in the country, especially Guillermo Carrasco who was one of the greatest ballad artists in the ‘80s and targeted by the biggest record companies at the time. El Zigui died in a traffic accident on June 22, 1999. If he had lived through these crazy times... where would he have gone?

Carole King’s The Legendary Demos will be released April 24th, 2012 via Hear Music / Concord Music Group. A previously unreleased collection of 13 history-making Carole King recordings of some of her most celebrated songs, The Legendary Demos traces King's journey from her days as an Aldon staff writer in the 1960's, where she crafted hit after hit for other artists, to the dawn of her own triumphant solo career in the 1970's, and contains her original recordings of future standards like "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman," "It's Too Late," and "You've Got A Friend." Featuring liner notes by acclaimed author and Rolling Stone contributing editor David Browne, the collection brings to light a heretofore missing link in the chain of King's career. Fittingly, The Legendary Demos serves as a companion to King’s long-awaited memoir, A Natural Woman, which is being released April 10th, 2012 via Grand Central Publishing.

Aldon Music used these demos—short for “demonstration records”—to pitch King's material to other artists, from Gene Pitney and Bobby Vee to Aretha Franklin and the Monkees. While the recordings have long been coveted and collected within the industry, they have never before been released to the public.

Whether it was a potential single for the Monkees or a solo performer like Pitney, King’s demos were remarkable in their completeness. “When she sat down to the piano and played a demo of one of her songs, the whole arrangement appeared right in front of your eyes magically,” recalls Brooks Arthur, who engineered a number of these efficient sessions for King at one of several midtown Manhattan studios. “A lot of the smarter producers would adhere to Carole’s demos. If you stuck to that, you’d come home a winner.”

King and then-husband / songwriting partner Gerry Goffin signed with Aldon Music in 1959, and anyone who listened to the radio during the first half of the ‘60s will recognize the songs of teen passion and devastating heartbreak heard in King’s original recordings. “Take Good Care of My Baby” was a No. 1 hit for Bobby Vee in 1961. Goffin’s gift for tapping into teen anguish—in this case, hiding behind a stoic public face—was never conveyed better than in “Crying in the Rain,” which the Everly Brothers took into the top 10 in early 1962. “Just Once in My Life” was the Righteous Brothers’ follow-up to their still-spine-tingling “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’,” and King’s demo reveals how she and Goffin were instantly able to tap into the duo’s (and producer Phil Spector’s) dramatic, impassioned sound.

Like many of their fellow songwriters at the time, King and Goffin wrote songs for Don Kirshner’s TV show about a fictional, Beatles-derived pop band that debuted in September 1966. The Monkees turned out to be more credible singers (and musicians) than anyone initially expected, as their high-charting 1967 version of King and Goffin's “Pleasant Valley Sunday” revealed. The Monkees also cut “So Goes Love,” a dreamier ballad heard here, but the track didn’t make their first album and wasn’t released until long after they’d disbanded.

The Legendary Demos includes early takes of six tracks that formed the basis for King’s world-wide solo breakthrough Tapestry. King and lyricist Toni Stern’s ever-poignant “It’s Too Late” is here, along with King’s own “Way Over Yonder,” “Beautiful” and “Tapestry,” all three bursting with the artistic and spiritual renewal infusing King’s life during this period.

Among the collection’s numerous gems is the original 1967 demo for Goffin, King, and producer Jerry Wexler’s “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman,” a song that would later appear on Tapestry and of course be famously cut by Aretha Franklin later that same year. King’s version offers several different takes from the Franklin and Tapestry versions. Her delivery in the opening lines is looser (check out the way she stretches out “Lord” in “Lord, it made me feel so tired”), and the bridge is even more imbued with palpable romantic and sexual heat.

And finally, there’s King’s initial take on “You’ve Got a Friend,” a classic entry in the Great American Rock Songbook. Milling around in the Troubadour balcony during soundcheck, her friend James Taylor heard King perform the song on a bare stage and was immediately taken with it; his own version, a massive hit, would arrive the following year.

Taj Mahal can rightfully be called a living legend for his contributions to
popular music
With a voice as instantly recognisable as Louis Armstrong, Ray Charles, or Dr.
John, Taj Mahal has throughout his career pushed the envelope of American
music forward by incorporating sounds from the Caribbean, Africa, traditional
blues and jazz. He has won 3 Grammys from 15 nominations, was inducted into
the Blues Foundation Hall of Fame, and presented with a Lifetime Achievement
Award from the Americana Music Association.
With 'Savoy', Taj takes a new direction in his musical journey, exploring classics
from the American songbook with his good friend and acclaimed record producer
John Simon, whose resume includes producing classic albums by The Band,
Leonard Cohen, Gordon Lightfoot and Blood Sweat & Tears. 'Savoy' is the
realisation of a musical collaboration they had been planning for decades, finally
locking in the studio time to make it happen in August 2022.
Recorded with the hottest musicians in San Francisco, 'Savoy' is a loving
throwback to the sounds of the swing jazz big band era, titled as a tribute to
Harlem's Savoy Ballroom where the music composed by the likes of Duke
Ellington, Louis Jordan, George Gershwin and Louis Armstrong was performed by
a who's who of iconic artists, and now brought back to life by the one and only Taj
Mahal.

Combining soft sunshine-pop harmonies with complex, acid-tinged
arrangements, this '69 concept album features the work of ex-Gestures
member Dale Menten! The-album-turned-rock-opera became a huge hit,
full of ethereal ballads, mind-bending solos and enough hammond organ
that'll leave your head spinning

Unlike the majority of previous Davis albums, E.S.P. consisted entirely of new compositions written by members of the group. Despite the profusion of new material, only one tune ("Agitation") is known to have appeared in the group's live performances. "Little One" might be best known for being revisited on Hancock's landmark album, Maiden Voyage, recorded a few weeks later. This version is somewhat more embryonic; Carter's bass is halting, and Davis and Shorter state the theme with winding, interlocking contrapuntal lines that evoke Davis and Coltrane's version of "Round Midnight". Hancock's solo on Carter's composition, "Eighty-One", also presages his work on that LP - particularly its title track.

The title track is reminiscent of Jackie McLean's "Little Melonae", which Davis had recorded with John Coltrane in 1956. "Iris", by contrast, is another Coltrane-like ballad, not too dissimilar to "Infant Eyes" on Shorter's Speak No Evil album. Shortly thereafter, Shorter's compositions would begin to dominate the Quintet's recordings, though here he contributes only two of the seven songs.

This was the first time Wayne Shorter recorded with Miles, and the band - in this configuration - had been together for less than a year. As you will hear, the connection between the musicians is uncanny, as if they had been playing together for decades. Especially notice Wayne Shorter's brilliant interplay with Miles on the closing track "Mood," the haunting ballad written by bassist Ron Carter. At over forty-eight minutes, E.S.P. is one of the longest jazz albums of its period.

The 1975 album "That's The Way Of the World" was also the soundtrack for a 1975 motion picture of the same name which featured some of the band members of Earth, Wind, & Fire in cameo roles. The album includes the ballad "Reasons" alongside the #1 US pop and R&B hit single "Shining Star" as well as the title track which reached #12 on the pop chart.

"Earth, Wind & Fire has delivered more than its share of excellent albums, but if a person could own only one EWF release, the logical choice would be That's the Way of the World, which was the band's best album as well as its best-selling. Open Our Eyes had been a major hit and sold over half a million units, but it was World that established EWF as major-league, multi-platinum superstars. Fueled by gems ranging from the sweaty funk of "Shining Star" and "Yearnin' Learnin'" to the gorgeous ballad "Reasons" and the unforgettable title song, EWF's sixth album sold at least five million units. And some of the tracks that weren't major hits, such as the exuberant "Happy Feelin'" and the gospel-influenced "See the Light," are equally powerful. There are no dull moments on World, one of the strongest albums of the 1970s and EWF's crowning achievement."

Dire Straits' arresting self-titled debut arrived in the midst of punk's reign but couldn't have been further removed from the era's slash-and-burn style. Recorded in West London in February 1978, the band's tasteful, jazz-inflected set embraces folk, blues, and pub rock while also tracing a direct line back to the beat-oriented sound of early rock n' roll. Country and roots accents further distinguish the British quartet's stripped-down music from any 1970s peers, as does the transparent production, which has remained revered among audiophiles the world over – and which has never been better than on this meticulous pressing.

Mastered from the original master tapes and pressed at RTI, Mobile Fidelity's 180g 45RPM 2LP version of Dire Straits features natural tonalities, superb balances, you-are-there imaging, deep-black backgrounds, and pristine clarity. Even if you've heard this album hundreds of times before, you've never experienced it with such lifelike sonics and premium richness. This numbered-edition collector's set immerses you within the smoky, laidback atmospherics of every song. This is how all vinyl should sound.

Crucial to every arrangement, Mark Knopfler's winding guitar lines emerge with supreme transparency and multi-hued textural detail. His intricate playing comes across as if it's being transmitted via his 60s-era Fender Vibrolux amplifier placed right before you. The cleanliness, dimensions, and live feel are that good. His bandmates, too, benefit from the extra groove space afforded by this 45RPM edition. Rhythms skate and swirl; percussive effects resonate with crispness and attack; the leading edges of notes naturally decay.

Dire Straits' strong, well-edited batch of original material further enhances the overall enjoyment and makes the record one whose pleasures go far beyond the organic sonics. Just as Knopfler's narratives pour forth with poetic and surrealist texts, the musical settings – an intoxicating combination of easygoing shuffles, back-hall boogies, and pop-honed ballads – mirror the old-fashioned soulfulness inherent in the classic recordings of the late 50s and early 60s. The lyrics are equally captivating.

Drawing from his time as a youth in Newcastle, Leeds, and London, Knopfler invests tunes with an autobiographical slant and emotional connectivity that become obvious the moment he opens his mouth to sing. "Down to the Waterline," "Wild West End," and "Lions" all feature colloquial touches that add to their reach. By extension, "In the Gallery" functions as a tribute to Leeds sculptor Harry Phillips (father of future Knoplfer collaborator, Steve Phillips) while the record's breakout smash, "Sultans of Swing," pays homage to struggling bar bands.


Through it all, Dire Straits performs with a subtle cool and clever poise that no band ever matched. Just how good is the chemistry? Bob Dylan heard the quartet and invited Knopfler and drummer Pick Withers to play on Slow Train Coming. But even Dylan himself didn't hear Dire Straits sound this magnetic back in its original heyday. Now, everyone can.

Miles in the Sky reflects the intriguing curiosities and rainbow possibilities suggested by the album cover. Miles Davis' fifth and final album with his classic second quintet is kaleidoscopic in sound, forward-looking in structure, and contextually grounded in approach. As the legendary leader's first venture into what would become fusion, it's historical for containing the premier appearances of electric piano, bass, and guitar on a Davis effort.

The album's wide-open soundscapes soar. As do the fluid contributions of Davis' mates. Tony Williams' percussion, central to every composition here, transpires before your eyes. Herbie Hancock's piano hovers and fades with sublime purity. And George Benson, who sits on "Paraphernalia," blows the equivalent of smoke rings with his bluesy guitar, which here takes on brilliant tonality and definition. The acoustic material that occupies the second half of the record is equally transparent and full-bodied.

Granted enhanced production and a greater field of audible information, Miles in the Sky can finally be perceived as belonging to the same upper echelon as Davis' ubiquitously acclaimed Nefertiti and Filles de Kilimanjaro – the albums that precede and follow, respectively, this watershed title. Commonly branded a "transitional" work, Miles in the Sky showcases Davis already at ease with electric instruments and eager to venture into uncharted territories. Doubling as organized jams and bridges between jazz and rock, both the rhythmically challenging "Stuff" and frisky "Paraphernalia" glancing toward the future while keeping solid footing in the past.

Similarly, so do "Country Son" and "Black Comedy." In his original review for jazz authority Down-Beat, Larry Kart observes: "Davis takes material from his earlier days and darkens its emotional tone. His opening phrase on 'Country Son' recalls a fragment from his 'Summertime' solo on the Porgy and Bess album, but here it is delivered with a vehemence that rejects the poignancy of the earlier performance. Even on 'Black Comedy,' his most straight-ahead solo here, the orderly pattern of the past is displaced and fragmented."


Flavoured with humuor, bossa nova, country, and even ballroom phrases, the compositions on Miles in the Sky explode with creativity, purpose, and color.

Their masterpiece? With breaks for dayyyyyys and an almost ambient, heavy jazz atmosphere throughout, *this* is the apex of British jazz-rock fusion. We'll Talk About It Later was first released on Vertigo in 1971 and original copies are now very tricky to score. Like all the Nucleus records, it’s aged ridiculously well and this Be With re-issue, re-mastered from the original analogue tapes, shows off just why this deserves to be back in press.

Genius trumpeter and visionary composer Ian Carr was one of the most respected British musicians of his era. He was a true pioneer and saw the potential in fusing the worlds of jazz with rock, just as Miles Davis and The Tony Williams Lifetime did in the US. In late 1969, following the demise of the Rendell-Carr quintet, and tiring of British jazz, Carr assembled the legendary Nucleus. Regarding music as a continuous process, Nucleus refused to “recognise rigid boundaries” and worked on delivering what they saw as a “total musical experience”. We can get behind that.

Under bandleader Carr, Nucleus existed as a fluid line-up of inventive, skilled musicians. This constant evolution and revolution was all part of the continuous musical exploration and discovery that took jazz to new levels. And the music has kept relevant. To steal a line from a review of our re-issue of Roots, when it comes to anything Nucleus “it’s basically already hip-hop”.

We'll Talk About It Later is arguably Nucleus's best album. Not only that, it's in the top 5 of all fusion albums. By the time Nucleus entered Trident Studios in September 1970 to record Elastic Rock's successor, they had already won a best group award at the Montreux Jazz Festival. Once again presented in a Roger Dean designed die-cut gatefold sleeve it continued to demonstrate the chemistry and interplay that worked so brilliantly on Elastic Rock; Carr's sumptuous trumpet and flügelhorn lines, Karl Jenkins's funk-filled electric keyboards, Chris Spedding's wah-wah guitar, Brian Smith's sax and the rhythmic foundation of drummer John Marshall and bassist Jeff Clyne.

The group work and insane musicianship Nucleus were famed for is in evidence from the off. The intensely funky "Song for the Bearded Lady" is absolute FIRE, blasting out the speakers to leave listeners floored. Counterpoint riffing segues into a spacious groove and a Carr trumpet solo demonstrating the influence of electric Miles from the period. The stop-start funk of "Sun Child" would appeal to Soft Machine devotees whilst the genuinely touching "Lullaby for a Lonely Child" is a lovely downtempo ballad. Featuring an understated, reflective horn line from Carr and Smith and atmospheric, shimmering bouzouki from Spedding, there's an exotic flavour which contributes to the bliss. The ominous, sleazy title track retains a swaggering menace and is not the only track to lend a sort of heavy stoner rock atmosphere. The guitars and bass are deep and low throughout, conjuring heavy psych moments to go with the actual jazz and even funk. To say this album was in conversation with Bitches Brew would not be overstating the sheer brain-frying brilliance.

The Weather Report-adjacent "Oasis" opens Side B, a colossal track featuring nearly 10 minutes of steadily building melodic horns, keys and choppy guitar riffs. So ace, it could easily go on for another 10. Mesmeric. Spedding adds unique vocals to the undeniable groove of "Ballad of Joe Pimp" whilst saxophonist Smith's duet with drummer Marshall at the conclusion of "Easter 1916" - inspired by the Yeats poem about the Irish nationalist uprising in Dublin - adopts the wildness of the most incendiary free jazz.

This Be With edition of We'll Talk About It Later has been re-mastered from the original Vertigo master tapes, Simon Francis’ mastering working together with Cicely Balston's cut at AIR Studios to weave their usual magic with these wonderful recordings. The stunning die-cut sleeve has been restored with the original gatefold window pane depicting the Irish uprising in 1916. Incredible, timeless, guaranteed spine-chills.

No Pads, No Helmets...Just Balls ist das erste Studioalbum der kanadischen Rockband Simple Plan.

Gegründet von Mitgliedern der Band Reset, verbrachten Simple Plan über ein Jahr damit, ihr erstes Album mit dem Produzenten Arnold Lanni aufzunehmen. Es ist ein Pop-Punk-Album, das sich um das Ausgestoßensein dreht und Vergleiche mit Blink-182, Good Charlotte und New Found Glory aufkommen ließ. Nachdem sie bei dem Major-Label Atlantic Records unterschrieben hatten, wurde "I'm Just a Kid" im Februar 2002 als Single veröffentlicht, und am 19. März folgte "No Pads, No Helmets...Just Balls".

You never have to guess what Tink’s thinking. The Chicago-born songstress and rapper says it all in her music. She spits, speaks, and sings straight from the heart without filter or apology. At the same time, she breaks boundaries, dropping off bars with uncontainable charisma and belting out hooks with show-stopping range. She can be romantic in one crescendo before getting raw in a bout of wild wordplay. This versatility consistently affirms her as a force in her own lane. Following her 2011 debut mixtape Winter’s Diary, she dropped projects at a prolific pace, including Alter Ego, Blunts & Ballads, and Boss Up. 2014 saw Winter’s Diary 2: Forever Yours arrive to widespread critical acclaim, landing on year-end R&B album lists from Billboard and Rolling Stone. It also yielded “Treat Me Like Somebody,” which gathered 64 million Spotify streams and counting. A year later, XXL touted her among its coveted “Freshman Class.” Following a stint in the major label system, she embraced independence again with Winter’s Diary 4 2016, Voicemails [2019], Hopeless Romantic [2020], and A Gift And A Curse [2020]. She collaborated with everyone from Sleigh Bells and Pentatonix to Future, G Herbo, 6lack, and K Camp. During 2021, she served up Heat of the Moment powered by “Rebel” [feat. Jeremih] and “Might Let You” [feat. Davido]. After raking in streams in the hundreds of millions and earning acclaim from Pitchfork, The FADER, HYPEBEAST, and more, she opens up like never before on her 2022 album, Pillow Talk.

Baby Rose makes healing music for the aimless and heartbroken. The Grammy-nominated singer/songwriter and producer's uniquely rich voice naturally lends itself to her powerful, smoke-filled ballads lamenting lost loves and broken futures. "I make music to help myself get through things," she says. The piercing honesty and vulnerability she brings to her lyrics in turn helps others process their feelings and find a place of healing. For Rose, it's a journey that's still ongoing. "If I'm going to leave anything behind, it's going to be getting people back to themselves," she says. "As I get back to myself, it's a constant reset: Remember who you are, remember who you want to be." You can hear the impact of this approach in Baby Rose's upcoming second album, Through and Through. Take the hypnotic "Fight Club." Over the track's simmering baseline and crashing cymbals, she declares, "I don't need no one else to show me the way." She describes the song as a "breaking of the shell. It encourages me to just go for it and not care about what anyone else thinks." Therein lies Baby Rose's strength: a determination to live, love, and create on her own terms. "I'm not just a singer with a unique voice," she says. "I'm somebody that has something to say." In the years since releasing her last album, To Myself, Rose has been painstakingly piecing together its sequel. Started almost immediately after its release, her new body of work finds her in a state of musical and personal transition. It's a subtle merging of new sounds_stirring rock, upbeat r&b, psychedelic funk, pop, and soulful ballads_, all mastered through analog tape to make the music feel warmer and all-encompassing. It's also a journey inward as she battles past fear and self-doubt to finally discover_and love_who she is, where she is. Finishing an album with such peace and firm resolution is a first for Rose, but she makes it clear: She's nowhere near done writing her story. "I think as long as I'm being raw and trying to push past my comfort zone, it will feel rewarding," she says. "I don't want to be the type that doesn't take risks because I'm afraid. I have to trust that as long as the music is honest and innovative, it'll be timeless."

Southside sweethearts, the Dreamliners, first came into the scene as the Royaltones in 1961 when they were students at South San High School in San Antonio, TX. In 1963, label head Abie Epstein signed them to his Cobra & Jox labels producing 4 singles. On the way to a studio session, Ana (Ana) Wilburn coined "The Best Things in Life" on the dashboard of her car. Out popped a playful Farfisa and harmony-driven tune reminiscent of the Crystals or Ronettes. Ana also wrote and sang lead on the haunting ballad "Just Me & You." A song about longing and adolescent heartache that's perfect for any post-breakup kleenex session.

Southside sweethearts, the Dreamliners, first came into the scene as the Royaltones in 1961 when they were students at South San High School in San Antonio, TX. In 1963, label head Abie Epstein signed them to his Cobra & Jox labels producing 4 singles. On the way to a studio session, Ana (Ana) Wilburn coined "The Best Things in Life" on the dashboard of her car. Out popped a playful Farfisa and harmony-driven tune reminiscent of the Crystals or Ronettes. Ana also wrote and sang lead on the haunting ballad "Just Me & You." A song about longing and adolescent heartache that's perfect for any post-breakup kleenex session.

High Roller Records, picture vinyl, ltd 500, lyric sheet, poster, numbered

FÜR FANS VON: HEAT, Eclipse, Nestor, Hardline, Brother Firetribe
Mit ihrem neuen Album „Code Red“ schlägt die deutsche Hard Rock Band DEVICIOUS aus Karlsruhe ein neues Kapitel auf. 2017 gegründet, veröffentlichen sie nun ihr 5. Album in fünf Jahren. Nach einigen Klangexperimenten auf dem Vorgängeralbum „Black Heart“ kehren sie nun zurück zu ihren Wurzeln, zu dem, was sie am besten können. Große Arena-Melodien kombiniert mit bombastischen Chorarrangements und einer großen Produktion.
Das Album wurde von Bandleader und Songwriter Alex Frey selbst produziert und in den Mastersound Entertainment Studios in
Steinheim, Deutschland von Alexander Krull gemischt und gemastert. Er ist der Hauptakteur hinter den Bands ATROCITY und LEAVE’S EYES sondern steht auch auf der Producer- und Mastering-Liste von Bands wie ATROCITY, LEAVE’S EYES, DORO, CREMATORY, VELVET VIPER oder ZAR. Das neue Kapitel von DEVICIOUS beinhaltet auch einen neuen Sänger. Antonio Calanna verließ die Band nach dem letzten Album auf freundschaftlicher Basis, um sich auf andere Projekte zu konzentrieren. Sein Nachfolger ist niemand geringerer als der ehemalige TNT-Sänger Baol Bardot Bulsara, der bereits
auf dem „Black Heart“-Album einige Backing-Vocals gesungen hat und bei einigen Black Heart-Headliner-Shows an Bord war. Mit Baol ist die Band flexibler, da er eine breitere Bandbreite hat und alles von melodischen Balladen bis hin zu Power Metal-Melodien singen kann.

Mit „Code Red“ liefern DEVICIOUS ihr bisher kraftvollstes und ausgereiftestes Werk ab. Ein melodisches Meisterwerk mit allen DEVICIOUS-Markenzeichen.

In the days before “landfill” indie, and in rebellion against a developing Britpop orthodoxy, there were some weird but melodic bands coming of age outside London that drew inspiration from the US underground and the sparkly retro-futurism of Japan. Primitive guitar noise with art rock leanings, post punk DIY and fanzine culture. The best known of these bands was maybe Urusei Yatsura; “noisy stars”, named in honour of Rumiko Takahashi, legendary manga creator.

Back in 1996, after several increasingly well-received 7’s, the band travelled to Leamington Spa to record their debut album with John Rivers, producer of Swell Maps and Glasgow scene godparents, The Pastels. The resulting album won the group legions of new fans and gained them their first Independent #1 chart placing, alongside peers Ash and Super Furry Animals.

“These were fertile years in Glasgow, a scene with no name, no single sound, where the magic thread tying everyone together was words and works so personal, they couldn’t be mistaken for anyone else’s. ‘We Are Urusei Yatsura’ is a cascade of ‘why not?’ thinking. The way ‘Phasers on Stun’ spirals into ‘Sola Kola’; the sunburned 23-second improv at the end of ‘Pachinko’; the slack-echoing strings of the outro to ‘Road Song’ sprayed with the shrapnel of toy electronics. Pure pop magic, Ren & Stimpy on upstairs, ray-guns, Ian’s homemade walkie-talkie speaker, a beatbox, all sealed with a “Talking Tina” doll’s emphatic endorsement: “I love it”” – Nick Soulsby

It features compositions by the great Stan Tracey - The Godfather of British Jazz - inspired by Dylan Thomas' drama 'Under Milk Wood', including the timeless "Starless and Bible Black" with its acclaimed solo by tenor saxophonist Bobby Wellins.

Like Thomas's characters, the themes vary greatly in tempo, in mood, in dramatic depth. The title song is a triumph, not only because it stands by itself as a beautifully conceived jazz ballad, but because it sets the scene for the rest of the writing and playing. Some of the other themes are impressionistic and highly subjective sketches of Thomas seen through the prism of jazz.

It was awarded 69th place in Jazzwise magazine's The 100 Jazz Albums That Shook the World: "Tracey is indispensable, a one-man mission statement. Here he showed how much could be achieved within the basic jazz quartet format.

Reaction at the time seems to have been along the lines of where on earth did this come from? Coherent, vital and mind-stretching."
"The haunting Starless and Bible Black remains probably the finest single recorded performance by a British jazz group." - The Observer

Drop a needle on Psyché's debut album and you'll see visions, or rather Mediterranean visions, be they of waves of heat shimmering above dunes of sand, or of women dancing around a bonfire on a rocky plain, or of bushy cliffs overlooking emerald-green and turquoise sea. The name Psyché is of course ancient Greek for 'soul' or 'mind', signifying the band's love of psychedelic funk, but also the wide range of Mediterranean influences – from Southern Europe to the Balkan Peninsula, and from Anatolia to the Maghreb – that provide an endless source of inspiration for their hypnotic sound and minimalist style.

Psyché members Marcello Giannini (Guru, Nu Genea, Slivovitz), Andrea De Fazio (Parbleu, Nu Genea, Funkin Machine) and Paolo Petrella (Nu Genea) have been active in the Naples music scene for almost two decades, most notably during the first wave of the new Neapolitan Power movement (Slivovitz, Revenaz Quartet). Over the years they have often crossed paths and collaborated on side projects in various genres (math-rock duo Arduo and, more recently, synth-pop duo Fratelli Malibu), before working together as the rhythm section of Nu Genea's live band. Following their first tour with Nu Genea in 2018, they started Psyché with the intent of exploring more minimalist styles and making music with just a few elements.

A unique combination of psychedelia, groove and improvisation, the music of Psyché goes back to the roots of our future; it evokes visions of a mythical past, blending centuries-old music traditions and mixing them with modern genres. Like a warm Mediterranean breeze, it travels across lands, seas and eras, distilling essential rhythms and cosmic pulsations.

The album's opener "Kuma" (titled after the first ancient Greek colony on the Italian mainland, now an archeological site near Naples) is like a vibrant, magical wave. With its deliberately simple harmony and sharp guitar riffs, it travels across the Mediterranean from Italy to North Africa, first lapping gently on Greek and Turkish shores – with some compositional elements reminiscent of Italian pop legend Lucio Battisti – and then speeding up and landing on the driving, syncopated rhythms of afrobeat. While listening to it your eyes fill with images of small white houses shining in the sun, of fig trees heavy with fruit, of spice bazaars and colourful medinas, and you can almost feel the desert wind blowing in your hair.

The journey continues with two examples of Psyché's bold and elegant approach to contemporary afrobeat and cumbia fusion: "Cumbia Mahàre" and "Amma". The former combines minimal synths and exhilarating rhythmic patterns of drums, percussion, guitar and bass, drawing us into the movements of an imaginary ritual dance (the term mahàre was used in Southern Italian dialects to indicate witches). Next is the cinematic and mysterious ambiance of "Angizia" (a snake goddess worshipped by the Marsi in ancient Italy), another fascinating mixture of different sonic traditions and cultures where hip-hop/funk drums are blended with Maghreb influences, Balkan echoes, and hypnotic, Theremin-like synths that have sort of a sci-fi movie quality to them.

The title track "Psyché", with its uptempo afro-rhythms, ethereal vocalizations and refined percussion, is almost a manifesto of the band's style and confirms the freshness of their minimalism, which is not afraid of taking in the sun of lands confined between the sea and the desert. The following "Manea" (named after the Roman-Etruscan goddess of the dead) is an afro-funk number with smooth and introspective dreamy jazz touches, and with an arrangement dominated by a guitar that, dripping notes like drops of water, creates a delicate, cinematic sound. Next, we come to "Hekate" (the Greek goddess of magic, witchcraft and crossroads), a track that fuses psychedelia, spacious Latin guitars and a fast, tight groove. The album comes to a close with the exquisite melodic ballad "Kelebek", which seamlessly combines hip-hop drums and dreamy guitars, and whose warm, flowing sonorities and evocative atmospheres conjure the image of a butterfly (which is what kelebek means, in Turkish) floating over the Mediterranean and, from there, the world.

• A globe spanning (France, Italy, Germany, USA, Belarus, Sweden, Russia, Australia, Canada) covers album of the late great Marc Bolan songs starting with the earliest cover in 1965 • Covering a huge range of genres and styles • A response to the U.S Hit album Angel Headed Hipster which opened up the songs of Bolan to a new American audience by using big names and TV advertising…this concentrates on quality recordings by lesser known artists • Presented in deluxe gatefold sleeve. • Reviews in Record Collector, Vive le rock R2, Shindig, Classic Rock.

Reflections is a recording of Sufjan Stevens' sixth collaboration with acclaimed ballet and dance choreographer Justin Peck. Originally composed for World Premiere and performances (May 17-26, 2019) by Houston Ballet, the piano duet was recorded at Oktaven Studios by Ryan Streber and performed by pianists Timo Andres and Conor Hanick. Reflections is imbued with Stevens' memorable and emotionally resonant melodies and arrangements and continues to establish Stevens as a contemporary composer.

Christopher Schwarzwalder strikes again for Denature Records, this time with a 5 tracks EP: 'Leaves'. The tracks 'Catjammer' and 'Slow Down' were produced with Feathered Sun lead singer Jo.Ke and have a wonderfully uniquely slow and melancholic groove. On the other side 'Setup' and 'The List' will take you more darker and hypnotic places. The EP ends with 'Leaves' which sounds like an invitation to an endless ballad into the sunset.

Der britische Pop-Noir-Künstler und Schauspieler (Exit, Wisting), Luke Elliot, glänzt auf seinem dritten Studioalbum mit einer eklektischen Mischung von Einflüssen, die von Jazzikonen (John Coltrane, Duke Ellington) über Outsiderlegenden (The Cramps, Gun Club, Mink DeVille) bis zu ebensolchen Kultfilmen (Badlands, Pulp Fiction, Natural Born Killers) reichen. Sein dunkler Crooning-Stil aus Tradition, Melancholie und Melodie lässt Vergleiche mit den größten Singer/Songwritern unserer Zeit zu, und das Mojo-Magazin nennt ihr 'einen Meister des zugänglichen, verdrehten Gothic Americana'. Ein Highlight auf 'Let 'Em All Talk' ist sicherlich sein Cover der zeitlosen Ballade 'I (Who have Nothing)'.

Der britische Pop-Noir-Künstler und Schauspieler (Exit, Wisting), Luke Elliot, glänzt auf seinem dritten Studioalbum mit einer eklektischen Mischung von Einflüssen, die von Jazzikonen (John Coltrane, Duke Ellington) über Outsiderlegenden (The Cramps, Gun Club, Mink DeVille) bis zu ebensolchen Kultfilmen (Badlands, Pulp Fiction, Natural Born Killers) reichen. Sein dunkler Crooning-Stil aus Tradition, Melancholie und Melodie lässt Vergleiche mit den größten Singer/Songwritern unserer Zeit zu, und das Mojo-Magazin nennt ihr 'einen Meister des zugänglichen, verdrehten Gothic Americana'. Ein Highlight auf 'Let 'Em All Talk' ist sicherlich sein Cover der zeitlosen Ballade 'I (Who have Nothing)'.

A nomad in France and elsewhere, a dandy of the highways and byways, Antonin carries his poetically gaunt figure along the beaches of Cap-Ferret, where he is originally from, his long Cossack hair and his profile of a night owl with a sharp sweetness. Born "sea-drunk", he grew up in a wooden hut on the sand in the middle of the pines, and his only masters are time, the ocean and the six strings of his acoustic guitar. His music is like him: sun-drenched, free as air, necessary as water. Heady pop ritornellos, ballads to sing in chorus and dance barefoot, island saudades. Somewhere between Nino Ferrer and Nino Rota, Air and Moustaki, with Antonin's casual and chameleon-like ability to pass himself off as an Italian or an Israeli when the wine or the atmosphere encourages him to do so.

New signing to Xtra Mile Recordings - Hannah Rose Platt releases her new album 'Deathbed Confessions' on 19th May 2023. 'Deathbed Confessions' is a concept album inspired by classic horror, Rod Serling’s ‘The Twilight Zone’, BBC’s ‘Inside No 9’ and Samuel Pepys’s ‘Balladeer’ and is produced by Ed Harcourt. Available digitally, CD and beautiful gold vinyl, gatefold sleeve with special A3 Print of cover art. 'Deathbed Confessions' is an eclectic collection - sure to intrigue, disturb, and pull on the heartstrings of any listener. A collection of haunting vignettes linked through polarised themes of death, love, the afterlife, murder, regret, the uncanny, and bizarre… “Deathbed Confessions” boasts a wide dynamic curve, featuring the luscious swells of the Budapest Film Orchestra on ‘Inventing the Stars’, Harcourt’s signature piano playing and vocals (featured on the sea-shanty duet ‘The Mermaid and The Sailor’) and classical Ondes-Martenist Charlie Draper on ‘Home for Wayward Dolls’. Hannah Rose Platt is an acclaimed singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and storyteller, who merges the sinister authorial prowess of Nick Cave and Tom Waits, with the gilded Americana of Bobbie Gentry. Track 1 - 'Dead Man On The G Train' - released 24th February 2023 - Single ‘Dead Man on the G Train’ was the first song I wrote for the record and the opening title. I wanted to write little four-minute ‘pulp noir’ mystery thriller, which sets the tone for the rest of the record. Ed and I had such fun recording this track, expect to hear bombastic drums and beastly guitar train sounds. We hope to transport you to 1930s New York, someone’s boarding the G train to Brooklyn and they won’t be getting off… (listen out for the twist!)’ Track 2 - 'Feeding Time For Monsters' - released 29th March 2023 - Single “If a house represents the psyche – what would haunt the rooms of our very own haunted houses? I explore a mix of my own ptsd experiences and personal ghosts in this song. Ed and I wanted to create a sense of chaos and dissociation with woozy vocals and thrashing guitars (and the video animation by William Davies is just astonishing! Check it out!

After an explosive performance at Wacken Festival, the mighty heavy metal newcomers ROADWOLF are back with pure power to unleash their highly anticipated sophomore record! The first single, “On The Run”, starts off the record with a bang, featuring electrifying guitar riffs, a pulsating bassline, and driving drums that set the tone for the entire album. The band wears their influences proudly on their sleeves as you can hear their inspiration from legends like Judas Priest, Saxon, and Dio. Single Blurb: Single 2 ROADWOLF is tearing up the heavy metal scene with their latest epic release! As one of the leading acts in the new wave of traditional heavy metal, they've shared the stage with some of the genre's most iconic names like Enforcer, Skull Fist, and Bullet. With "Supernatural," the band showcases their versatility, delivering a touching ballad-like verse before unleashing a full-blown metal extravaganza during the chorus. Get ready to rock out with ROADWOLF, the masters of heavy metal power! Single Blurb: Single 3 With the success of “On The Run”, ROADWOLF launch through your speakers once again with the release of their next single “Midnight Lightning”! The title track brings out ROADWOLF’s heavy metal prowess with soaring vocals and scorching guitar solos, reminiscent of Judas Priest. Join the band on this electrifying ride, bolting along lightning crashes as the clock strikes midnight. ROADWOLF is guaranteed to get the crowd head banging and moshing in frenzy with this new powerful single! Album Blurb: Brace yourself for an ear-shattering, face-melting experience as Austrian heavy metal sensations ROADWOLF unleash their highly-anticipated sophomore album, Midnight Lightning, out on May 5, 2023 via Napalm Records! With their debut album, Unchain the Wolf (2020), the band firmly established themselves as purveyors of classic heavy metal, drawing inspiration from legendary acts such as Judas Priest, Saxon, UFO, Dio and Ozzy Osbourne. Since its release, the band has turned heads on stage, performing at renowned metal festivals such as Wacken and sharing the stage with notable acts such as Enforcer, Skull Fist, Bullet, Lizzy Borden, Vicious Rumors, and Night Demon. Now, they bring the madness directly to you with their all killers no fillers album Midnight Lightning!

Schottlands hottest Superstar Lewis Capaldi meldet sich mit seinem langersehnten 2. Album zurück - nachdem er mit seinem Überhit ”Someone You Loved” 2019 alle UK Rekorde knackte und sein Debüt ”Divinely Uninspired To A Hellish Extent” weltweit wie heißeste Semmeln über die Ladentheken ging (7fach Platin in UK, Gold in DE und aktuell wieder #4 in den UK Albumcharts).

”Broken By Desire To Be Heavenly Sent” enthält neben der Uptempo Single ”Forget Me” auch die aktuelle Ballade ”Wish You The Best”, die Lewis zum mittlerweile das fünfte Mal auf den UK Singlechart Thron
katapultierte.

Nahezu täglich nimmt er seine über 6,5 Millionen Instagram Follower auf unterhaltsamste Art und Weise mit auf seine Reise und beherrschte zuletzt sogar wochenlang die #1 der UK Netflix Charts mit seiner sehr berührenden mental health Doku ”How I’m Feeling Now”.
Niemand vereint herzzerreißende Songs, eine einzigartige Stimme, Humor und die Zerbrechlichkeit aufgrund andauernder mental health und Tourette Erkrankungen wie der 26-Jährige. Trotz aller Widrigkeiten spielt er weltweit in den größten Hallen und mit befreundeten Kollegen wie Niall Horan, Sam Smith, Jonas Brothers und zählt u.a. Elton John und Harry Styles zu seinen Fans.

"MELODY NELSON STORY 50th anniversary Melody Nelson's story holds a very special place in Serge Gainsbourg's discography. In the aftermath of the global success of Je t'aime moi non plus Serge Gainsbourg, inspired by his new partner, Jane Birkin, decided ""to get down to business."" With the collaboration of a very young musician, Jean-Claude Vannier, he signs an album hailed as one of the most remarkable successes of orchestral pop around the world. Now released as 1LP set.Reviews in R2, London Macadam
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For twenty years, Dynarec has been pushing the boundaries of electro on some of the best known labels. Little will his listeners know, there is another side to this prolific French producer’s machines. Speakwave is a lesser known, and heard, moniker of this analogue artist and the debut vinyl release of this nom de plume is set for release on Bordello A Parigi.

Fans of the Dynarec sound are treated to the same wonderous compositions and melodic structures with something else added.

“Cartographic Venture” is a ten minute introduction to this new style. Crisp drum patterns support cold flourishes and stabbing synthlines before distant vocals arrive. The track balances the frostier edges of electronics and wave to create a lonesome and longing synth pop ballad. “Coming On Monday” has a different energy. The pop element of the predecessor remains, lyrics are vocoder dipped while confident key shifts are countered by strong rhythm patterns. The closer, like the 12”, defies definition. Burbling notes and sharp snares give an edge to

“Exposition to Revolution”, but there is also a more inviting nurturing side coming through in the spiralling skyward melody. A release that shows another fascinating side of this multifaceted musician.

Initially releasing on Oscilla Sound, then following up with records on Intramuros and FTD, E-Unity gained wider recognition when Resident Advisor described "post-Livity techno with a dreamy twist, from this promising young Frenchman". His next release – on TEMƎT – saw him inaugurate the imprint with the ‘Duo Road’ EP – four tracks of electronic futurism, jerky rhythms and dubbed-out frequencies.

‘BBB<3’ is an LP of club ballads that echo his influences, ranging from hyper-pop, Latin music, the hardcore continuum and post-dubstep stylings, featuring heavy bass mutations, spacey synths and hybrid rhythmic compositions.

In an uncertain world, E-Unity takes the opposite approach to a lot of contemporary electronic music which is always faster, harder and somehow dystopian. Instead he offers a record filled with sensibility, love and positivity, fighting the evil forces with heart emojis and sub-reinforced sonic weapons.

E-Unity shows extraordinary musicality and eclecticism throughout his productions and DJ mixes. His b2b set with Simo Cell at Positive Education Festival and former monthly residency on Rinse France solidified his notoriety as an adventurous yet thoughtful selector.

TEMƎT was launched by Simo Cell with a mission to release cross-genre electronic music, placing focus on the French music scene, whilst developing collaboration across different artistic disciplines. Previous artists to release on the label are Lolito, Less-O, Second., elise, E-Unity and Simo Cell, plus additional contributions from Low Jack, Peverelist and Skee Mask for their mix cassette series.

Super bitter-sweet ballad. Like 70% cacao chocolate. Tomasz Guiddo teams up with legendary Vienna crooner Louie Austen (remember all his hits on Cheap, KittyYo, Tirk, G-Stone, Klein Records, Etage Noir). On the flip side of this 7" the Columbian superdons Meridian Brothers turn this into real mambo madness, which gives the ballad a joyful twist.

First-ever reissue of the 1988 album. Gatefold LP includes new and restored artwork and a chapbook, featuring forty-eight pages of lyrics, essays, photographs, and Gordon's extraordinary drawings for each song. The Choctaw, Assiniboine, and Texan poet, journalist, visual artist, American Indian Movement activist, and musician Roxy Gordon (First Coyote Boy) (1945-2000) was above all a storyteller, known primarily as a writer of inimitable style and unvarnished candor, whose wide-ranging work encompassed poetry, short fiction, essays, memoirs, journalism, and criticism. Over the course of his career he recorded six albums, wrote six books, and published hundreds of shorter texts in outlets ranging from Rolling Stone and The Village Voice to the Coleman Chronicle and Democrat-Voice, in addition to founding and operating, with his wife Judy Gordon, Wowapi Press and the underground country music journal Picking Up the Tempo. Along the way he cultivated close friendships with fellow Texan songwriters such as Lubbockites Terry Allen, Butch Hancock, and Tommy X. Hancock, as well as Ray Wylie Hubbard, Billy Joe Shaver, and, most famously, Townes Van Zandt, whom he called his brother. Although his work covered a vast array of topics exploring strata personal, local, global, and cosmic alike, Gordon's primary subject as a writer, musician, and visual artist was always American Indian culture, specifically the ways it collided and coexisted with European American culture in the South and West-and within the context of his own life and braided identity. The ten songs on Crazy Horse Never Died, his first officially released and distributed album, were recorded in Dallas in 1988. "Songs" is perhaps an imprecise taxonomy for what Roxy captured on this and his other albums, all of which remain out of print or were released in instantly obscure limited editions of homebrew cassettes and CD-R's. (Paradise of Bachelors plans to reissue remastered, expanded editions of his catalog; Crazy Horse is the first.) He only occasionally attempted to sing, and his musical recordings are primarily corollaries of, and vehicles for, his poems. His sharp West Texan drawl, tinged by formative years of reservation living in Montana and unmistakable once you hear it-high, lonesome, flat, and cold-blooded as a bare rusty blade-instead patiently unfurls in skewed sheets of anecdotal verse and discursive narrative rants. Although Gordon's music at times incorporated powwow style drumming, fiddling, or unaccompanied ballad singing, the majority of it hews to an idiosyncratic spoken word style, accompanied by atmospheric, sometimes synth-damaged country-rock that skirts ambient textures and postpunk deconstructions. His songs are essentially recitations over backing tracks of finger picked guitars, rubbery washtub bass, and buzzing, oscillating keyboards. On the stark yellow and red jacket of Crazy Horse, which he designed himself, Gordon describes these recordings as innately ambivalent in terms of form, content, and identity: These are poems and/or songs about the American West, white and Indian. My life has been Indian and/or white. Maybe there's not a lot of difference-maybe. I guess that's mostly according to which white person or which Indian you're talking about. That's probably what this album's about. Crazy Horse Never Died comprises songs that span the personal and political arcs of his writing practice and the poles of his native and white ancestries.

Jean-Luc Mocard met Jean Ronde in September of 2009, while working at the CASIO Palaiseau factory, near Paris. Before, they were both active musicians with a particular taste for synthesized music, touring extensively through European and Asian underground venues and clubs. Eventually, their furious passion for collecting 80’s keyboards brought them together to become the fabulous duo Vive Les Cônes.

Presently based in Porto, Portugal, by a matter of pure chance, Vive Les Cônes is a CASIO explosion, the fuel of a dancing machine that never stops and cherry picks moments from dance and pop music culture along the way. Their live concerts are non-stop hit parades featuring their very own local cult classics, such as “Bonaparty” or “Brocoli-Rave”, and medleys of pop-culture classics ranging from video-game soundtracks, to dance hits, to classical music.

“De France”, their debut album, is the product of years of playing live, training and mastering the perfect CASIO technique. Every track in this album is played live using only pure unmodded Casio PT-380 and Yamaha PSR-37 keyboards, thrift store fx pedals, bringing to the recorded form the meticulously crafted tracks that set dancefloors on fire all throughout the world.

The album is an eclectic journey through electronic and dance music on cheap keyboards, from traces of House Music in “Maillon” and the instant hit “Je Ne Sais Pas”, fumes of vaporwave in “Machine à Vapeur”, and, of course, baguettes of French electro in “Brocoli-Rave”, the track that usually andeuphorically ends Vive Les Cônes’ set.

The Quietus has referred to the duo as a “weird John Shuttleworth take on house music”, but them being French, a better comparison would be something like “Daft Punk lost all their gear on tour and had to play a gig using some old keyboards”. But could they even do it? Maybe a “Pascal Comelade on molly live set for Boiler Room” could make thembetter Justice. We’re not really sure what to compare them to though, and probably there’s no need to compare them to anything, as the best thing you can do is to give them a go and check them out for yourself.

Jean-Luc Mocard met Jean Ronde in September of 2009, while working at the CASIO Palaiseau factory, near Paris. Before, they were both active musicians with a particular taste for synthesized music, touring extensively through European and Asian underground venues and clubs. Eventually, their furious passion for collecting 80’s keyboards brought them together to become the fabulous duo Vive Les Cônes.

Presently based in Porto, Portugal, by a matter of pure chance, Vive Les Cônes is a CASIO explosion, the fuel of a dancing machine that never stops and cherry picks moments from dance and pop music culture along the way. Their live concerts are non-stop hit parades featuring their very own local cult classics, such as “Bonaparty” or “Brocoli-Rave”, and medleys of pop-culture classics ranging from video-game soundtracks, to dance hits, to classical music.

“De France”, their debut album, is the product of years of playing live, training and mastering the perfect CASIO technique. Every track in this album is played live using only pure unmodded Casio PT-380 and Yamaha PSR-37 keyboards, thrift store fx pedals, bringing to the recorded form the meticulously crafted tracks that set dancefloors on fire all throughout the world.

The album is an eclectic journey through electronic and dance music on cheap keyboards, from traces of House Music in “Maillon” and the instant hit “Je Ne Sais Pas”, fumes of vaporwave in “Machine à Vapeur”, and, of course, baguettes of French electro in “Brocoli-Rave”, the track that usually andeuphorically ends Vive Les Cônes’ set.

The Quietus has referred to the duo as a “weird John Shuttleworth take on house music”, but them being French, a better comparison would be something like “Daft Punk lost all their gear on tour and had to play a gig using some old keyboards”. But could they even do it? Maybe a “Pascal Comelade on molly live set for Boiler Room” could make thembetter Justice. We’re not really sure what to compare them to though, and probably there’s no need to compare them to anything, as the best thing you can do is to give them a go and check them out for yourself.

Since the release of the Sentimental Fool, Lee Fields has been touring relentlessly, playing to capacity crowds all across the US & EY with the drive and determination of an artist a fraction of his age. The fruits of which have culmi-nated in his song "Forever" being featured in 2023's top rated Super Bowl commercial, further solidifying Lee as the king of soul. In keeping with the momentum it is our pleasure to announce the release of his brand new single "Waiting on the Sidelines". Written by Thomas 'TNT' Brenneck (MSB, Charles Bradley, Diamond West Records) this beat-ballad grooves low and slow, giving Lee ample room to unleash a heart-breakingly soulful display of vocal acrobatics - an absolute must-have for fans of the Penrose sound. On the flip you'll find "You Can Count On Me", an in demand, upbeat moover previously only available on a limited edition 12" EP. Now bow to the king!

MD Pallavi & Andi Otto first crossed paths on a theatre stage in India ten years ago. They started collaborating instantly and in 2016 MD Pallavi's mesmerizing vocals for the downtempo raga Bangalore Whispers warmed hearts and ears. Their musical relationship flourished with artistic residencies in Bangalore and Hamburg, their respective hometowns, and a concert tour in Japan. The collaborative track Six made ears turn again on Andi’s album Bow Wave (Multi Culti 2019). And now, years later, the fruits of this artistic endeavour are fully formed here on Songs for Broken Ships - the debut album of the duo.

The album presents an interwoven pop-aesthetic vision of the two artists with their contrasting musical backgrounds. It ranges from organically woven folktronica to cut-up disco tracks and acoustic ballads. Reminiscent of, but not akin to Nicola Cruz, Beach House or Four Tet’s early productions the music is experimental but focused on the listener and their experience.

MD Pallavi is a singer, actress, filmmaker and performer from Bangalore, South-India, where she trained in Hindustani music and poetry since childhood. On Songs for Broken Ships, poems in her native tongue Kannada*, one of India's many languages, are performed over Andi’s alluring production, translating the stories into musical narratives. The poems address topics that are as timeless as the music itself. Social equality is touched upon in Bayalu (written by Bontadevi in the 12th century). Artistic struggles - communicated on An Unwritten Word (Gangadhar Chittala, 1865) - are almost prophetic and the surreal, dreamlike scenario of Clockshop (KS Narasimhaswamy,1958) brings you further inside the sonic journey.

Andi Otto is a composer, cellist and DJ based in Hamburg, Germany, He is known for his idiosyncratic and unconventional dance music productions on labels such as Multi Culti, Shika Shika and Pingipung (which he co-runs and curates). For this collaborative experience his dubbed out basslines gently interlock with the 7/4 and 5/4 beats to create a backbone for the instrumentation and expressive vocal timbres of MD Pallavi. His sound design combines graceful acoustic recordings, juxtaposed against modern drum machines, computer generated noise and vintage synthesizers.

*The LP comes with a text sheet containing all Kannada lyrics - which have their own vocabulary and script - together with the phonetic transcription and English translation.

The Supremes A’ Go-Go marked the
group’s first number one pop album. It is
presented here in its rarely heard Mono
mix, which according to many reviews has
more punch and immediacy than the Stereo
version. Various compilations had skimmed
the most familiar songs off of other Supremes’
albums, but the concept behind Supremes A’
Go-Go was to get the group to cover some of
the top hits of other (mostly Motown) acts. As
a result, every song on the album was familiar
in name, and only “You Can’t Hurry Love” was
culled for any hits packages. A number one
album on the pop and R&B charts, Supremes
A’ Go-Go also benefited from the fact that the
album didn’t include any pop standards or
slow ballads, just solid R&B dance numbers. It
was the first LP by an all-female group to reach
number-one on the Billboard 200 album charts
in the United States. The LP contains two of the
Supremes’ top ten Billboard Hot 100 singles:
the #9 hit “Love Is Like an Itching in My Heart”
and the #1 hit “You Can’t Hurry Love”. 180-
gram VIRGIN VINYL LIMITED EDITION.

Zwei klassische Balladen-Coverversionen aus den 80ern auf 7". Levin Goes Lightly aus Stuttgart covern das Iggy/Bowie-Juwel mit Chuzpe und Empfindsamkeit. Und die britische Punkrockband The Members (aktiv zwischen 1976 und 1983 und 2007 wiedervereint) ist am besten bekannt für ihren Song "The Sound Of The Suburbs" mit ihrer großartigen Reggae-gefärbten Ehrerbietung an Kraftwerk.

"Recorded at Ardent Studios and released in 1972, the album has gone on to become one of the most influential and iconic debut albums of all time. This 50th-anniversary indie exclusive edition is pressed on 180-gram metallic gold with purple smoke vinyl and features all-analogue mastering by Jeff Powell at Take Out Vinyl. The album has been included in Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Albums of All Time, with the song “Thirteen” featured in its 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. Realeased on 180g Tip-on Jacket , Gold/Purple vinyl "

Sustained exercises in tension. Personal healing. Dischord Records. The Unit Ama make music that explodes outward: dense but soothing metronomic pulses morph into a wild fracturing of the traditional rock trio. The Unit Ama take their time. They act on their own terms. This applies to their music and their work-rate. Two albums and a handful of singles in twenty years. Sporadic gigs. No endless Bandcamp messages or weekly mailing list updates. Rare missions outside their native north-east. And then… Toward is their second studio album and their second Gringo release. It’s not their ‘pandemic’ album but does see the band considering the important things: post-traumatic growth, insight through experience. Utilising the past to navigate towards a meaningful future. Toward was self-produced and will probably get tagged as post-hardcore which is fair enough. But it’s also informed by post-punk, jazz and folk, and by working closely together for two decades. The Unit Ama play in other incarnations that inform their music and the way they dismantle expectations of the rock trio. There’s as much Richard Thompson as Minutemen. Toward takes the exploratory, explosive sound of their debut and adds twenty years of living and listening. Toward is eight tracks that are thoughtful and intricate without losing any impact. This is gut music as much as it is head music. The Unit Ama never let their abilities get in the way of their instincts and Toward is full of surging urgency and roaring anxiety. But there are moments of brooding calm too, and a song – Mary – that could be stripped down and sold as a folk ballad. The trio also play variously as The Long Lonesome Go, Archipelago, The Horse Loom and more. They have supported everyone from Fugazi to Lungfish, Lightning Bolt to Sunburned Hand of the Man

An unmissable pairing of Texan-born soul queens! Ruby Wilson was Memphis based for most of her life whilst Emily spent her formative years in Houston before relocating to Stockton, CA, to raise her family. Both were signed to Malaco Records in Jackson, MS, where these two timeless example of Southern Soul were recorded nearly 30 years apart and now appear on 7” vinyl for the first time.
Ruby Wilson first came to our attention in the mid-70s with two singles on T.K. subsidiary Glades, with Number One In Your Heart and the funkier Sky High both still sounding good today. She signed to Malaco during their most fruitful period, and her self-titled album in 1981, from which this classy below-midpaced selection comes, despite being a typically polished affair never reached the highs with the label that Jewel Bass, Fern Kinney, and of course Dorothy Moore had set over the previous few years. It remained her only outing with them, but she went on to make a further three albums in the late 80s with the Hot Cotton Jazz Band, one with the Climax Jazz Band, and finally back on her own A Song For You (2000 Cadre Ent.) and Show You A Good Time (2005 Unkut Music). She became an accomplished actress and was also known as the Queen Of Beale Street for her many club performances in Memphis. Sadly, Ruby died in 2016, but hopefully this release on Jai Alai will help us remember what a talent she really was.
Not only is Emily David an extraordinary talent, she is a remarkable woman too. Her only album Queen Emily was a direct result of her finishing as a semi-finalist of America’s Got Talent in 2008 at the tender age of 40. She was no stranger to talent shows having won a Sammy Davis Jr award in 1999, but back then, as a single-mother decided to put her singing career on hold to bring up her two daughters. One day her troubled sister arrived to stay but left without taking her two boys with her, so Emily felt she had to bring up her nephews as well. Her dreams of a musical career had evaporated but years later her daughters encouraged her to try once again.
It was almost a year after America’s Got Talent that Malaco boss Tommy Couch Jr. called out of the blue and offered her a contract without meeting her. As Queen Emily, a digital 4-track EP was released in the US, but her eponymous CD album, bizarrely released by Malaco in the UK before the US, is one of the best examples of 21st century Southern Soul, steeped with the label’s trademark live instrumentation by the Muscle Shoals Horns Rhythm Section and contains a number of polished standards such as Use Me, Angel In Your Arms, I Betcha Didn’t Know That and Going Crazy. However, it is the George Jackson-penned ballad Throw Away Me that really stands out and deservedly received critical acclaim in the UK at the time. It now gets a very welcome vinyl debut on Jai Alai and makes for a fabulous pairing.

Special double A sided 12" single to mark 50th anniversary of Block Buster! AND The Ballroom Blitz + original B sides

Following in the footsteps of 'L'Espròva', a record released in 2018 by and 'Mantras', a body of long instrumental pieces, Ernest Bergez joins Jacques Puech, Elisa Trebouville and Loup Uberto to explore the possibilities of a collective energy. L'Herbe De Détourne achieved to catch the vivid energy of the band playing live and combined it with all the sonic explorations the musicians had in mind for a long time, in a completly free state of mind. Themes and songs are wound up in complex rhythmic gears and follow one another in a continuous momentum. Freely digested, the traditional repertoire from the Massif Central mutates and hybridises with invented forms, inspired by traditional Greek, Persian and North African music... The result is music that is as much for the ears, the feet, as for the guts and perhaps the heart.
It can be a ball, a concert, or a spontaneous ceremony. The Occitan language takes a central place, both as musical material and as a poetic and emotional springboard. Inspired by traditional canvases, a poetic form emerges and makes its way through the old words, passed from mouth to mouth.

waveform* - The Connecticut duo of Jarett Dinner and Daniel Poppa - have been carefully crafting artful, introverted songs since coming together in high school. The two, with a shared affinity for bands both active & long-forgotten to most listeners, feel like students of the indie rock canon. Their grasp of how to craft the perfect song has never been better than on their latest LP Antarctica.

Great retrospective on this Brazilian artists work!

A fifteen track survey of Maia's 1970s recordings, completely remastered, commemorating what would have been the Brazilian musical legend's 70th birthday on September 28. The release is the fourth in the label's World Psychedelic Classics series, known for unearthing long neglected masterworks by Os Mutantes, Shuggie Otis, and one of the first compilations of African psychedelia and funk

Correcciones Calypso returns from a generous hiatus with the fourth edition of its acclaimed edit series, replete with four re-edits that veer from the subtle to the downright brazen. Thomass Jackson and INigo Vontier invite the French duo Youkounkoun to open proceedings with an insane early 80s edit full of big drums and exotic touches that's been blowing dancefloors all around the world for the past years - and definitely resides in the brazen category, despite a lot of work having gone into it. Olta Karawame make their debut on the series with a powerful, compact edit full of ballsy keyboard riffing and a military-sized kick drum that is guaranteed to have heads banging . To complete the release label bosses Thomass and INigo deliver edits of their own with their characteristic sound, giving this EP maximum a value for money factor and entertainment from start to finish.

Veyl welcomes Blind Delon to the label for their third album, La Métamorphose. Founded in 2016 by Mathis Kolkoz, the project released several EPs leading up to their first full length, Discipline (Khemia / Unknown Pleasure Records, 2019) and their subsequent follow up, Chimères (Manic Depression, 2020). Originally a three
piece before the departure of guitarist Theo Fantuz after their second album, the project then focused on refining their sound and energy through alternative projects and more EPs before adding a new member ahead of their latest opus. The band currently consists of Mathis Kolkoz (Vocals, Guitars), Coco Thiburs (Bass) and Thom Mayor
(Synths, Guitars).

Fueled by cold bass lines and synthesizers of yesteryear, French post-punk and black romanticism, Blind Delon shatters genres and styles to create an evolved strain of synthpunk that wears its influences proudly while mutating into something totally new. La Métamorphose represents a fresh direction - a heavy, post-metal sound that’s full of emotion and raw intensity. 'Le Crépuscule' opens the album with a hard hitting piece that commences the experience perfectly. Next up, the group kicks things into high gear with the speedy, heavy-synth play of 'La Violence' featuring vocals by Fivequestionmarks, followed by 'La Mort', a blackened post-punk cut
featuring the one and only Curses. Label head Maenad Veyl makes a guest appearance on the fourth track, 'L’Homme', which drifts into deep experimental melancholy with a cinematic feel.

Keeping with this mood is the powerful 'L’Affront' featuring The KVB, which descends further into darkness before resurrecting with the immense feelings of 'Le Sarcasme'. Track seven, 'La Noyade', drills into the skull with growling vocals and menacing synths which bleed nicely into 'La Foule', slowing things back down with a subtle yet lingering sense of dread. French project Poison Point arrive on 'L’Envie' which moves guitars back to the forefront for a raucous ballad that sets up the final piece and title track, 'La Métamorphose', the glorious grand finale of an album teeming with emotion and begging to be played again
and again.

A precedent of sorts to, erm, Armand van Helden vs Fatboy Slim’s 1999 bout, ‘The Heavyweight Sound Fight’ takes pride of place among iDEAL’s hall of oddities with one of the zaniest recordings by three international leaders of the avant-garde. Double LP with an LP-sized 12-page booklet designed by Sean McCann of Recital.

Adapting all the pomp and ceremony of a boxing match to ludicrous ends - including a flier depicting each artist with their dukes up - they produced what sounds like a great night out for NYC’s experimental cognoscenti with Charlie Morrow (USA) vs Carles santos (Spain) each backed by a band - Soho Baroque Opera Company with the assistance of the New Wilderness Foundation - while Sweden’s Sten Hanson acts as referee, and Armand Schwerner takes the role of announcer in thick, nasal New York brogue. It’s brilliantly daft and subversive but accomplished in a witty way that maybe escapes too many solemnly po-faced avant-garde conceptualists nowadays, and remains a strange outlier in the history of NYC avant garde and beyond.

“Operating as an aural window into an happening that occurred more than 40 years ago, “The Heavyweight Sound Fight” unveils a different context of experimental music than is not often encountered today. Running across the album’s four sides, within all the seriousness of art and technique, is the unmistakable presence of humor, play, and the absurd. The audience can’t help but laugh and cheer as the announcer - effecting a deep New York accent and nodding toward notable attendees like Allison Knowles, Dick Higgins, and Jackson Mac Low - takes an active role in the fight, each artist delivering an array of vocalizations - from extended technique utterances to rants - against the next, with the bands weighing in and engaging in their own battles, ranging from big band dirges and marches, to outright experimental electronic madness. It’s a trully raucous affair that brings that radicalism carried by its sounds into entirely new zones.

According to Marrow, he was deemed “winner” in an “off-script” move by the judges, and Santos never spoke to him again, continuing the wild and wonderful mystery and humor of the performance into the present day. Who knows what Santos, who sadly passed away in 2017, would say.”

Limited Edition Clear 12” Vinyl Single (1 x 12” clear vinyl in sleeve). Soft Cell’s 2022 return with ‘*Happiness Not Included’, featuring hit single ‘Purple Zone’ with Pet Shop Boys, has proven to be well worth the 20 year wait, with the album receiving a deluge of critical acclaim as it raced into the UK Top 10 - making it their highest charting studio set in almost 30 years. ‘Light Sleepers’ was a ‘*Happiness Not Included’ highlight and band favourite, accompanied by a video directed by Charlie Ann Max and starred esteemed performer and winner of season 7 of the American RuPaul's Drag Race, Violet Chachki, as a young Marc Almond. Available on limited edition 12” clear vinyl, this release features new mixes of the track by The Grid. The 12” also features brand new re-recorded brass mixes of ‘Last Chance’, a track from previous album ‘Cruelty Without Beauty’. A huge fan favourite, the track was according to Marc Almond, “the natural successor to Say Hello, Wave Goodbye and one of my preferred Soft Cell songs period, why was this never a single?’. The re-reworked versions by Dave Ball and album producer Philip Larsen are now adorned with a full live brass section.

Tom Zé and Faust collide in Domenico Lancellotti's "machine samba"

Domenico Lancellotti's SRAMBA reaches back to the roots of samba whilst completely revamping its blueprint, indoctrinating guitar and percussion-led rhythms with analogue synthesisers, courtesy of album producer Ricardo Dias Gomes.

The majority of SRAMBA was recorded over two months in The Cave - Domenico's home studio in Lisbon, the city both Brazilian ex-pats reside in, where the arrival of a couple of Russian-designed synths purchased by Ricardo influenced the direction of their initial experimentation: "Ricardo had these instruments, modular machines" remembers Domenico, "and I had my guitar, some percussion instruments. On the first day we started making sounds and recording them, and songs started to appear, sambas started to appear."

The son of a renowned samba songwriter, at home Domenico would watch his father play and compose. At parties, the adults would hand his father a tamborim (a small tambourine) and ask him to play along. "I grew up inside samba, it's my roots", he says. "For me, everything is samba, I bring it into whatever style of music I am making".

Domenico and Ricardo instantly saw how the synthesisers were not at odds with the sambas they were playing, instead they had a similar sound to its typical percussion instruments (ganza, repinique, surdo, tarol). What's more, they saw a connection with roots samba, the samba that existed before bossa nova and samba jazz came along. This was rhythmic samba, with grooves that could go on ad infinitum. "It's samba de clave, geometrically structured" says Domenico. "It's ostinato samba", adds Ricardo.

"Diga" is a great example of what their proposal is capable of, as what begins as a glitchy machine whirring into action soon turns into a glorious samba in which the gurgles and scratchy beats coming from the analogue equipment only add to the arrangement. Likewise, on "Tá Brabo" it's an aching melody from one of the synths that gives the guitar rhythm its needed counterpoint, and shows how the duo's greatest accomplishment is not in invention alone, but in creating a great samba album. It's an album that can go from the opening track "Ere" with its reverberant bass thud, mantra-like vocals and staccato rhythms to the string-accompanied "Nada Sera de Outra Maneira", a swooning samba that pays tribute to the Brazilian ensemble Tamba Trio, who along with Tom Zé's Estudando O Samba, Domenico names as the biggest influence on their treatment of samba.

Other important reference points are made clear on "Um Abraço No Faust". One of three instrumentals on the album its title riffs off a JoãoGilberto song, "Um Abraço no Bonfá", but whereas JoãoGilberto was giving a hug (um abraço) to bossa nova guitarist Luiz Bonfá, Domenico and Ricardo are giving theirs to the German avant-gardists Faust. "Quem Samba", with its horn section and dramatic melody give a whiff of Domenico's Italian ancestry, while "Descomunal" is devoid of rhythm whatsoever, guest vocalist Tori singing over a bed of electronic drums, cello and swirling synths, that highlights the duo's unwillingness to stick to a particular formula.

Both Domenico Lancellotti and Ricardo Dias Gomes are revered names within Brazilian music over the past 20 years. As a member of the +2's, with Moreno Veloso and Kassin, Domenico released a trio of albums on Luaka Bop in the early 00s that pioneered a new Rio samba sound with elements of funk and psychedelia. With Veloso and Kassin he would later form Orquestra Imperial, a big band intent on reviving ballroom (gafieira) samba, and that has worked with guest vocalists such as Seu Jorge, Elza Soares and Ed Motta. SRAMBA is his fourth solo album. Multi-instrumentalist Ricardo Dias Gomes first came to notice as a member of Caetano Veloso's band Cê which helped reinvigorate Caetano's career with a sound influenced by British new wave. As well as collaborations with Lucas Santtana, Negro Leo and Thiago Nassif, and work with his own group Do Amor, he has released a series of acclaimed solo albums that reveal a restless music-maker.

SRAMBA is a glorious showcase of the duo's style, uniting Domenico's playful lyrics and rhythmic, samba-rooted songs with with Ricardo's assured accompaniment of unorthodox textures and instrumentations. It may be a new language for samba, machine samba (samba de máquina), but as Domenico says, "samba da máquina is samba".

Multi Culti co-founder Dreems joins forces with Jacoby for kaleidoscopic sonic wizardry that flows seamlessly from symphonic dream pop to ambient esoterica.

If this album had been produced by ai the prompt would have been: create the perfect mix of daft punk - homework crossed with Brian Wilson - pet sounds containing shades of Moby - play but with the complexity and scope of the avalanches - since i left you, containing a few saucy licks of Nile rogers funk, dainty fragments of French psychedelic library-kitsch, mind-expanding flourishes from the BBC radiophonic workshop, all culminating with a bell-filled percussive piano ballad outro masterpiece produced by Brian Eno and four Tet on 180 mics of LSD after watching sesame street with lee perry.

It’s a record of fantastic imagination, full of surprises. Crack open your head, dive in and enjoy the trip!

Limited edition 7” containing ‘all your time’ and ‘in your mind’.