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The Future of Latin / The Gun is a seminal EP from Nino was originally a slow burn upon its release on Production House back in the early 90's, but over the years it has become a much sought after classic.

This repress is lovingly remastered from DAT and available again for the first time since the original run

Two undisputed early jungle classics feature on this vinyl, plus the very sought after VIP mix...

The Dark Crystl was a music defining track when it was released in the early 90's. It single handedly changed the game, bringing to the fore what would soon become the very essence of jungle music - heavy amens with clever edits, huge bass lines, gorgeous pads and deep atmospherics. It started a run of anthems from the legendary Dj Crystl, that continued through to Inn Year 3000 and beyond. This is an unmissable repress of a timeless classic.

I have a thing for distant galaxies or places in the universe where there are very few stars or star clusters. In meditations, I imagine myself in an empty space in the universe where it is pitch-black. My way of dissociating.

I played shows in Tbilisi and (1.) Yerevan. Afterwards, I was taken to the airport. We were in the car, the weather was good. There is a big mountain near Yerevan, which was (2.) the view. And Alice Coltrane’s World Galaxy was playing on the radio. I resonate with this song.

A few weeks later, my wife’s mother arrived (3.) from Canada. We had dinner together that day in (4.) Antwerp. As we drove out of the underground parking, I wanted to play that Alice Coltrane song again. But the internet reception wasn’t great, so the song cut out. We then wanted to switch to the local pirate station Radio Centraal. It was playing the exact same Alice Coltrane song, from exactly the same moment. We didn’t realize it at first. A very strange continuum.

Now I’m thinking whether my thing with the universe is because of this track and this situation. The track is about (6.) Olodumare, who is the African God of everything. That is very close to the voids in the universe. The place where I like to be.

S-Tone Inc., one of the most acclaimed artists on Schema Records, with +300.000 monthly listeners and millions of plays on Spotify, is back with a full rework of his previous full-length "Body & Soul", a homage to the late '70s / early '80s disco music that the artist used to immerse in during those adventurous years. Early '90s British acid jazz, '70s soul, Brazilian and jazz music are here reworked in a nu-disco key, with the exception of the downbeat tracks "Flying Away" and "Midnight Sun" and the 'spacey' "Odoya", rearranged by The Invisible Session without mining the overall mood of this release.

This one is highly recommended for fans of Khruangbin, Lord Echo, Leon Bridges or Fat Freddy's Drop.

Open is the sixth studio album from acclaimed composer, producer, filmmaker and multi-instrumentalist, Kutiman. It is an addictive & irresistible twelve-track trip taking in elements of classic soul, Middle Eastern psychedelia, Afrobeat, Thai funk, jazz fusion, cosmic library soundscapes and more.

The uptempo “Vanishing Point” opens proceedings, recalling both Abstract Orchestra’s 2017 Dilla tribute and the lounge OST/library music flips of Tosca and DJ Vadim fame.

My Everything introduces prominent guest & frequent Kutiman collaborator, Dekel, whose soul-pop vocals coupled with jangly acoustic guitar riffs tip to contemporary indie artists such as Michael Kiwanuka and SAULT. “A Day Off passes through” Anatolian psych and Khruangbin-esque Thai funk whilst the afrobeat/jazz fusion “Confetti” pays tribute to Kutiman’s other namesake, Fela Kuti.

Dekel rejoins for the beatdown, lilting dub-soul “Believe In You” with hints of Lord Echo and the sun-inflected New Zealand dub-soul sound. The Tuareg-leaning guitar lines on “Canoe” travel across the Saharan desert easterly towards Sudan and Ethiopia by the end, whilst meditative and Coltrane-adjacent album closer “Ripples” provides a final moment of reflection from a truly global excursion of soundscapes.

Pat Kelly possesses one of the great soul voices to come out of Jamaica. Influenced by the fantastic American singer Sam Cook, Pat Kelly could ride over any tune that came his way and with his outstanding falsetto voice always added a little magic to each recording.

Pat Kelly (born 1949,Kingston, Jamaica) began his singing career in 1967 when he replaced Slim Smith as lead singer of the Techniques, his voice working so well with the impeccable harmonies of Winston Riley and Bruce Ruffin. Their first hit for the mighty Duke Reid stable was a version of Curtis Mayfield's tune 'You'll Want Me Back' retitled 'You Don't Care' which held the Number 1 position in Jamaica for six weeks. Their next hit was another Curtis Mayfield cover of the Impressions 'Minstrel and Queen' again retitled for the Jamaican market as 'Queen Minstrel'. Further hits followed with such cuts as 'My Girl' and 'Love is Not a Gamble' before in 1968 Kelly decided to become a solo artist and hooked up with producer Bunny Lee. Bunny decided not to break the tried and tested formula and put Kelly on another Curtis Mayfield track 'Little Boy Blue' a style that
suited his voice so well. This paid dividends and was followed with 'How Long' (will I love you)' which gave them the biggest selling Jamaican hit of 1969. A track which broke the mould in that often used tradition where Jamaican tracks are sweetened
for the foreign markets by adding string arrangements. This was reversed on this occasion as the tune had already been released in the UK and dubbed over with strings so came back to the Jamaican shores and released there.
Another string to Pat Kelly's bow was his engineering skills. Having already spent a year in America studying electronics he put this to good use and became little known to many
one of the chief engineers at Channel 1 studios in the late 1970's and early 1980's.

For this release we have focused on the fabulous singing skills of Mr Kelly and have compiled some of his finest recording moments for your listening pleasure. The aforementioned timeless cuts to 'How Long ( Will I Love You )', 'Little Boy Blue'
alongside some other killer lost classics, as our set opener 'It's a Good Day', 'Somebodys Baby', 'Give Love a Try' and 'I'm In the Mood for Love'. His version of 'Twelfth Of Never' in a Rocksteady Style sounds as good now as it did then. We have
also included his interpretation of the James Carr soul hit 'Dark End of the Street' which has Pat Kelly working over the same rhythm as 'How Long' but giving it a different slant
with these fresh lyrics. A fine set from one of the Islands finest, Jamaican Soul indeed... hope you enjoy the set.

2024 Repress


Johnny Clarke stands tall as one of the great vocalists that ruled the Jamaican reggae scene from the mid 1970's to the early 1980's Dancehall period. This re-issue of his 'Don't Stay Out Late' set shows his versatility to sing any song that was put in front of him and make it his own. Under producer Bunny 'Striker' Lee's guidance, Mr Clarke produced a run of singles and albums few could match.

Johnny Clarke (b 1955, Jamaica, West Indies) cut his first record 'God Made the See and Sun', after winning a local singing contest in the Bull Bay area of Jamaica. Although the single was not a hit, it led to two follow up tracks for producer Rupie Edwards, '
Everyday Wandering' and 'Julie' that fared much better, both on the island and overseas in England and Canada. These tracks also brought the singer to the attention of producer Bunny Lee and a working relationship that would go on to produce a prolific catalogue of music.
Johnny Clarke's Dread Conscious/ Love Song style were to grace many hits around this time in 1974. Such tunes as 'None Shall Escape The Judgement' , 'Move Out Of Babylon' , 'Rock With Me Baby' , 'Enter The Gates With Praise' to name but a few. All new songs added to a host of cover tunes, recommended by Bunny Lee, many taken from singer John Holt's catalogue, that suited Clarke's vocal style.
The rhythms were cut at various studios around the Island. Randy's Studio 17, Channel I, Treasure Isle, Dynamic Sounds and Harry J's by a group of musicians loosely called The Aggravators and voiced King Tubby's studio.

All great tracks backed by great rhythms, cut by Mr Johnny Clarke with a voice that few could equal.

Four Flies keeps digging into the secret archives of Alessandro Alessandroni to bring hidden treasures back to light. After two successful releases - the EP Afro Discoteca and the compilation album Lost & Found -, it is now the turn of a new 7'' single featuring two tracks with a strong soul-funk influence, sung by the Maestro's beloved Cantori Moderni in a typically Italian harmonizing style, poised somewhere in between gospel and disco music. Both tracks are previously unreleased and were recorded in the same 1976 sessions that birthed Sangue di sbirro (Knell / Bloody Avenger), his most blaxploitation-inspired soundtrack.

Shine On, on Side A, is a disco-funk anthem driven by a killer rhythm section, with heavy drum breaks and bass lines enhanced by a powerful brass section, string interludes and Fender Rhodes phrasings with a distinctly jazz-funk flavour. In the same vein, Prohibition on Side B is a mid-tempo funk floor-filler built on a super groovy bass line on top of which are layered prominent brass and Wurlitzer passages.

This is another great find that expands the known horizons of Alessandroni's discography. And it won't be the last one…

Lex first grabbed our attention following his brilliant release on B2 Recordings which became a staple vibe setter in Jimpster’s DJ sets and Sofa Sessions streams in 2021. Gaining his deep musical knowledge through his own revered record store Radical Soundz, the Greek DJ and producer has been immersed in dance music for over 20 years and considered one of the key figures in the Athens underground house scene. With releases and remixes on labels such as Leng, Samosa, King Street and Black Riot, Lex is making waves internationally with a unique sound that fuses live elements and expansive arrangements taking influence from masters such as Ron Trent but adding a warm, cosmic glow. Fellow Greek artist Locke joins pro- ceedings for this EP bringing his own psychedelic sound garnered from his years playing crazy events taking in South American jungle parties, burning hot African desert raves, the underground clubs of Berlin to the sparkling coastal shores of Baja California. Locke is more than just a DJ. He is a connector, educator and traveler whose soulful music has the crowds chasing the sun as he brings love and celebra- tion to the events he plays.

On title track 7 Day Path we’re treated to a beautiful spacious jam which unfolds across 7 minutes, driving, live percussion keeping the energy high whilst Herbie- esque synth leads help to create a beautifully paced and dynamic arrangement.

Next up we have Italian legend DJ Rocca onboard for a remix of 7 Day Path. The prolific producer and DJ has been a tour de force since the late 90’s collaborating with the likes of Howie B, Dimitri From Paris, Chris Coco, Daniele Baldelli and Jazzanova producing singles, remixes and albums for labels such as Sonar Kollekt- iv, Compost, Classic, Rekids, Futureboogie, !K7, Tirk, International Feel, Defected, Rotters Golf Club and Faze Action Recordings. Here he adds his trademark dubby disco wiggle pushing the original in a jazzy direction with live flute. Definitely one to be heard under the stars on a Croatian beach for maximum Adriatica effect!

Flipping over, things head deeper and darker with See No Ball featuring Locomot- ives, a more straight-up heads-down stripped back club jam with a repeated vocal, funky guitar chops and a smattering of improvised synth and Hammond B3 keeping things jazzy and musical.

Closing out this brilliant EP we have Catch Up With The Sun which drops the BPM’s for a low-slung cosmic jam loaded with good vibes.

The last couple of years have seen a renaissance for West Coast singer-songwriters. LA-based youngsters such as Drugdealer and Sylvie have attracted considerable attention releasing warm and mellow records tonally reminiscent of the early 70s. Most fans of this new/old sound are unaware of Bart Davenport's early explorations in the same sonic territory. His now 20-year-old "Game Preserve"album should gain an appreciative new audience with its first ever vinyl release.

In the year 2000, Bay Area troubadour Bart Davenport and several other musicians were recruited by a major tech corporation in Seattle to work on an algorithm-based music matching/search engine. It was what looked like the beginning of a promising career. After a year, however, the project was shelved. Bart and his colleagues were laid off with a healthy severance package... on the 12th of September, 2001. Not only had the musician's life changed, so had the world. Rather than blow the money on a holiday or new car, Bart knew he had to make a record. A proper album that meant something.

Back in Oakland, he entered Wally Sound Studios with former Kinetics bandmate Jon Erickson at the controls, and a swathe of talented local musicians. "With Game Preserve," Bart explains, "Jon and I really wanted to knock it out of the park. I wanted to utilize people from my old bands like Loved Ones drummer John Kent. I also invited my newer indie-pop friends from Call & Response, and a young Nedelle Torrisi. Harmony singing by The Moore Brothers was an essential ingredient on Game Preserve as well."

Both Erickson and Davenport fondly recall growing up in households where the music of The Carpenters, Joni Mitchell and The Eagles soundtracked their young lives. By the early 00s they were ready to reconnect with what is often referred to as the "Laurel Canyon" sound. "I'd buy used tapes at garage sales and play them in the car. "Ladies Of The Canyon" by Joni and Jackson Browne's first album were both in heavy rotation. Jon Erickson was getting deeper into the Steely-Mac-Doobie yacht-rock sound in earnest. A certain amount of childhood nostalgia led a lot of us back to that part of the 70s. I'd flirted with classic soft-rock on my first album, but that record was pretty scattered esthetically. I wanted my next one to be more focused. Jon and I made some ground rules: no electric guitars (except on 'Bar-Code Trees'). No synths. Most importantly, all the songs have an air-tight, super dead, close mic'd drum sound. Putting these sorts of limitations on the sessions will give your record a specific quality. In the case of "Game Preserve"it's mostly about tight drums, acoustic instruments and analog production. We used a 24-track, two-inch tape machine for tracking, then ran the mixes through an analog board straight to a 1/4 inch master tape."

While the album's sonic palette may be firmly planted in 1970, Davenport's songwriting covers a sizable landscape of moods and reflections. From the quasi-flamenco intro of 'Sweetest Game' to the somber Wurlitzer of 'Nowhere Left To Go', to the 12-string shimmer of 'Intertwine', "Game Preserve" tells a story of young love, lost innocence and redemption, crossing borders and oceans along the way.

Released in 2003 on family-run Oakland label Antenna Farm, the ultra-analog sounding "Game Preserve" was only made available on digital formats, including CD. Copies were later pressed by labels in Germany and Spain; the latter being one country the album actually did well in, establishing Bart Davenport with a small but loyal fanbase he still enjoys today. Two European tours as support for Kings of Convenience also helped gain a foothold on the continent. Back in the US, however, Davenport and his sophomore album remained quite obscure.

Limited promotion meant it did little, but for the music lovers that heard it, the album undoubtedly remains a classic of the era, deserving far more. Twenty years on, it now finally receives its vinyl debut. "I personally think it holds up well," says Bart of the album two decades later. "The idea was to make something that could be an homage to late 60s/early 70s West Coast pop but hopefully timeless as well. Years on, I hear it as just that. It was a colorful and brief period of my life that felt at times like it could last forever. I discovered the joy of working in a proper studio with a perfect cast of characters. I'm still very close with all these people and still play music with many of them."

The first in a four-volume retrospective of Kuduro and tarraxinha pioneer DJ ZNOBIA. Incoming unto the world for a very long time from the musseke of Rangel, home of Casa da Mé&e Ju, in the Angolan capital o Ldanda, one if not the pivotal visionary of his country’s music electronic and digital modernism DJ Znobia, o/fum/an inventor. Usually considered the first purveyor of the fluency regarding tarraxinha (drinking in its foundational slow shuffle from the city of Benguela), as well as a main player in free thinking, spontaneous, funny, depressive, silly, melancholic, hilarious all encompassing beats within kuduro, batida, techno and beyond, his influence as a producer, DJ, MC and public fiuce has had a great imprint in Angolan culture for the better part of the last three ecades. This venture went through over 700 tracks of his archive (more than double are lost in the meantime between his and the NNT library) in order to collaboratively select a fiercely representative albeit balanced affair from his production, between instrumentals for sung kuduro, instrumental kuduro/batida, sung and instrumental tarraxinha, and other creative styling from the late 90’s to the mid 2000’s. Forms now heard around the world which started here, with Znobia a decisively influential contributor, along with several of his peers and collaborators, which will be also in evidence in this four volume retrospective. His story is way too far flung for this endeavor to try and make a simple narrative out of it. You have to be him, you have to be within this territory, and we ask of the people who will approach to ask him what has happened with the history of this music and what is the current reality at ground zero Luanda, as he is a mirror and visionary of its streets, in a country with such complicated dynamics and brutal treatment of its citizens. To try to put in a clean slate for this conversation, let’s talk to a genius of street music. Your question. First, here's the opening collection of what we have to share with you.

For the first time in their diverse second act, they allow themselves to be a rock band, freed of adornment and embellishment. As much as Carlson’s guitar has always been the focal point of EARTH’s music, it’s been surrounded by consistently diverse instrumentation. Here the dialog between Carlson and Davies drumming remains pivotal, underpinned by the sympathetic bass of Bill Herzog (Sunn O))), Joel RL Phelps, Jesse Sykes and the Sweet Hereafter) and thickened by additional layers of guitar from Brett Netson (Built To Spill, Caustic Resin) and Jodie Cox (Narrows). Perhaps the largest left turn on Primitive And Deadly, though, is the prominence of guest vocalists Mark Lanegan and Rabia Shaheen Qazi (Rose Windows) who transform the traditionally free ranging meditations of EARTH into something approaching traditional pop structures.
On “Rooks Across the Gates,” a song stylistically the closest to the folk inspired modality of Angels Of Darkness, Carlson stretches out into some of his most lyrical playing to date, creating an almost symbiotic relationship between his performance and the vocals of old friend Mark Lanegan. “From the Zodiacal Light,” meanwhile, takes the late 60s San Franciscan/freaked-out jazz-rock transcendence of The Bees Made Honey In The Lion’s Skull and quickly re-appropriates that sound into a musky torch song for the witching hour.
This contradictive tension between a band pushing itself ever-forward whilst surveying their history is reflected in the albums twin recording locales. The foundation of the record was laid in the mystic desert highlands of Joshua Tree, California where EARTH recorded hour after hour of meditations on each track's central theme at Rancho de la Luna. Upon returning to Seattle these were edited, arranged and expanded upon at Avast with the help of long-term collaborator Randall Dunn (who was previously at the helm for the Hex, The Bees Made Honey In The Lion's Skull and Hibernaculum sessions).

After dominating 2023 with two joint albums from two of hip-hop’s biggest producers in The Alchemist (The Great Escape) & Cardo (The Night Shift), Larry June is back with his first full length offering of 2024, Doing It For Me. Going back to his roots of what made him the type of man he is today and the formula that initially brought him success, the album contains no features and focuses on Larry doing things his way, for himself. From enlightening listeners on how to move like a boss and live a healthy lifestyle, to flashing what his hard work has brought, fans are sure to be able to soak up some game on how to improve their own situations. The 15-track album features production from Jake One, DJ Khalil, Harry Fraud, Cardo, Cookin’ Soul, Teeko & more. Singles include "Imported Couches," "Meet Me In Napa," "Dreams," & "Like A Mack." If there’s one thing we know about Uncle Larry thus far, it’s consistency. Listen to Doing It For Me and prepare to watch your habits improve. Picture Disc vinyl, housed in a gatefold jacket, and includes a 12x12 Insert and obi strip.

Continuing our quest to get all of the classic early AMT albums released on vinyl, we turn to 2006’s ‘Starless And Bible Black Sabbath’, and with the help of Makoto Kawabata’s studio wizardry, we’ve made it possible.

This latest instalment in the ‘Acid Mothers Temple Vinyl Archives - First Time On Vinyl’ series (as with the three previous SOLD OUT releases in the series) have all been meticulously put together with the help of Makoto Kawabata with the original CD artwork recreated for these vinyl editions from archive photos stored in the vaults at the Acid Mothers Temple in Osaka, Japan and the original audio remastered by James Plotkin.

Here’s what "Brainwashed" had to say upon it’s original CD only release back in 2006 …

“The title track is the meat of the beast, beginning with a minute of booms and gongs reminiscent of a thunderstorm before launching into some slow, heavy Sabbath-esque riffs. Squealing guitar and synth effects accompany the vocals of bassist Tabata Mitsuru, whose voice captures some of the sound and feeling of Ozzy's more than it does the melody. The pace is slower than most AMT fare, but things speed up considerably around the eight and a half minute mark. The group convincingly imitates the Sabbath guitar sound here and the rhythm section is particularly tight, giving listeners something on which to hang their ears or even providing them with a chance to gasp for air during Makoto's guitar explorations. Around the sixteen minute mark, everything comes to a wailing halt before the band returns to the dirge-like tempo that started the song. This pattern continues for the duration of the piece, until a couple of minutes before the ending, when the group makes a smooth transition to acoustic guitar and processed vocals to cool down.

Clocking in at nearly thirty-five minutes, the length alone may tax some listeners. However, the second track, "Woman From A Hell, "provides relief, which with a running time of six minutes is uncommon in the Acid Mothers canon for its brevity. This one condenses many of the ideas of the title track, and accomplishes much of the same evocation of Sabbath, but with the vocals in a more prominent role. The disc comes full circle, ending with thunderstorm sounds much like theones which started the album. Though the title track could have been shortened and perhaps an additional track included, this album remain some of the group's more accessible releases in some time and should please fans old and new alike.

According to the group's website, Makoto is reviving the Melting Paraiso U.F.O. line-up after a year of recording and touring with the Cosmic Inferno. This is a shame of sorts, since the Cosmic Inferno infused a much-needed vitality to the group that it had lacked since the departure of vocalist Cotton Casino. Yet the reformed Melting Paraiso U.F.O. has the potential to be even better since, if anything, Makoto seems to be the Mother of Reinvention.”

Acid Mothers Temple & The Cosmic Inferno are: Tabata Mitsuru - Bass, Vocal, Maratab - Hiroshi Higashi - Synthesizer, Dancin' King - Shimura Koji - Drums, Latino Cool - Okano Futoshi - Drums, God Speed - Makoto Kawabata - Guitars, Speed Guru

An extremely prolific artist, whose work encompasses composition, opera, theatre, radio plays, film or performance, Ergo Phizmiz returns in due time to the Discrepant fold long after his 'Two Quartets' and 'Disco Carousel' - under his given DW Robertson name - albums. A purveyor of the Creative Commons rights, Phizmiz has been deploying much of his work on the ever expanding Free Music Archive directed by WFMU since the early 2000's, creating a sprawling and defiant body of work that defies given and stale notions of sound hierarchies, history and copyright through a process that comprises collage, sampling, reappropriation, songwriting, covers and pretty much any available media with a playful and thoughtful approach.
For this new Discrepant entry, Phizmiz goes back in time to push into the future a number of pieces recorded more than two decades ago creating this perpetual motion outside a linear chronologic progression. Anticipating by almost 20 years the memefication of ASMR videos, 'Selected Ambient & ASMR Works 2001-2003' - itself a pun on the AFX classics - embraces the ambient tag not at its functional face value, but instead as a means to the "evocation of imaginary spaces, and correspondingly the invention of their sonic environments". Collecting recordings from a myriad of instruments - violin, xylophone, banjo, kora, found percussion and so on...-, shortwave radio and field recordings to create loops with different lengths that play with and/or against themselves continuously in a process "(dis)conjunction" not far removed from Feldman's 'Why Patterns?' or hip-hop's sampledelia. A free-floating temporal space that collapses the flashing images of Angelfire pages unto Web 2.0 sense of displacement.

Frenchie King is a veteran artist and producer from the world of Reggae music. He was born in Jamaica and moved to the UK at the age of 12, where he began singing in a church choir. In the late 1960s he formed a church band with two friends called "The Ressurectors". Their music caught the attention of Reggae star Alton Ellis. After meeting Alton a new band formed called "Black Stallion" and their first song on Venture Records was released entitled - "Love Power". Alton was mentor and guiding light for Frenchie and crew; enabling them to jam with a host of Studio One artists.

Frenchie went on to work with noteworthy Reggae arists like: Alton Ellis, Dennis Brown, Dennis Alcapone, Ken Parker, Tito Simon, Dave Barker, Bobby Davis (The Sensations), Ruff Cutt, Owen Gray and Akabu.We didn't tour with Dennis or John Holt but Alton would always call them to the stage to jam, but we did a few shows with Alton sister Hortense Ellis and few other too much to mention...

Moving into the 1980s, Frenchie started a solo career and switched to the label "M1" where he released projects like "Your Entitled" and "Poor Me Natty Dread". During this time he also worked with renowned producer Sid Buckner (Studio One), before taking a brief hiatus; returning to help produce artist Owen Gray. He also wrote the song "Blackbird" for the band Akabu which was released in 1995 on U-Sound. M1 recording produce yours truly under name countryman linkup with the man Ezekiel in Luton hence M1

Moving forward into the 2000s, along with other musical adventures the iconic album "People Had Enough" was released in 2017, along with singles, "Let Us Do Something" and "Dance Cork". On let us do something and dance (kark) is produce by Michael McNeil aka the original jah son , a good musical sou-jah.

Which brings us up to date. In 2023 Frenchie hooked up with The Blackstones. Through this came the opportunity to work with Iron Sound Records and producer Alien Dread. This is the first single on ISR, with a solid Roots vocal track backed by studio band: Alvin Davis, Asha B and Steven Wright. More to follow!

You could call Wishy's story a lucky one. After prior monikers and iterations, Wishy was born as a kaleidoscope of alternative music's semi-recent history, with traces of shoegaze, grunge and power-pop swirling together. On Triple Seven, Indiana songwriters Kevin Krauter and Nina Pitchkites' musical synergy proves itself to be a rare one-the kind that sounds like someone striking gold. Part sly wink and part warm gratitude, it's only fitting their much anticipated full length debut is titled Triple Seven, where Wishy's penchant for indelible hooks is couched equally in pillowy atmospherics and scathing distortion. By day Krauter works as a music teacher, giving drum and guitar lessons to students, while Pitchkites is a seamstress by trade and often makes embroidered merch for the band. Coming up in a scene defined by hardcore and emo, Krauter and Pitchkites instead found themselves writing melodies in their heads while driving to work, pulling music from the air and arriving at a blearier, more ethereal interpretation of Midwest expanse. Initially, their music oscillated between hazy dream-pop and heavier alt-rock. The subject of their songs create a loose web of vignettes and snapshots, capturing Krauter and Pitchkites in a whirlwind couple of years _ exiting the pandemic, embarking on an embryonic project, making sense of their musical pasts while forging a musical future alongside one another, each of them on a journey of self-acceptance and self-understanding. Sometimes gorgeous, sometimes festering, and always cathartic, Triple Seven is a vibrant and exhilarating document of self-discovery with the scope and heft of the bygone big-budget rock albums that inspired it.

2024 Repress

Micron Audio embodies a hub for a modern and futuristic electro sound, led by its master DJ Stingray 313. The imprint beckons intense electronic sounds, roughened textures and geometries that speak to a guiding principle of making technological advancement accessible to the people. These technoid adventures of sci-fi sound design and arrays of unabating rhythm, draw its listeners through warped microworlds and wicked contortions. Behind the sounds, it exists as a display of artistic responsibility, making statements and providing solutions from socio-political commentaries.? The first Micron Audio physical release emerged in 2011, with DJ Stingray 313's Electronic Countermeasures EP, following a digital-only compilation that is no longer available. Tracks from the Micron Audio hemisphere have featured in several compilation records released by the likes of Rush Hour and Creme Organization, including Stringray's Urban Tribe project. It represents a crisply defiant and firmly electronic approach, drawing in the infective indicators of video games. Relaunching afresh in 2021, Micron Audio is working with new artists and is stepping not only further into the future but into the foreground, where its clear scientific intention and political attitude is entrenched through top-shelf sound design and pumping rhythms.

Coming off a successful transatlantic exchange, Brian Kage and his Michigander label keep the momentum, and the collaborative spirit, moving with an EP that hits closer to home. For any Detroit artist, working with Delano Smith would be on the bucket list, as one of the city's original, more influential DJs — before the D developed any of its "waves" — who would come into his own as a producer later to, once again, help mold the Techno City's sound. Make no mistakes about it, this tastemaker had a ripple effect back before techno even had a name, when it was just "progressive" music and mixing. The thing is, the feeling of admiration and respect here is mutual, from the moment Smith first stumbled across one of Kage's records and had to know who was making these sounds. This meeting of the minds happened organically and timely, with Keep 'em Movin’ as the result.

Opening the release is the title track, a driving number with pulsating synth tones and deep, call and response piano stabs. The ever so slightly pitched down vocals are modern and effortlessly cool, a style that resonates with today's dancefloors, but done tastefully, and with lyrical content that sets the record straight about what it really means to represent Detroit.

"D Spirit" takes an ancestral turn. This is spaced-out Detroit techno meets afro deep at its finest. Forward moving keys are bathed in deep, celestial pads as shuffling hats accented by light hand percussion beckon the body to move. Lively marimbas cut through the hypnotic undertones and awaken the senses with soulful appeal. A fluid bassline rumbles beneath while baroque pianos add tension and heighten the atmosphere.

The final track rounds the release out with an exclamation mark. For lovers of Delano Smith's infamous remix of "A