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The Spanish Queen (of the Piano)

She had small, square hands. She was 1.52 m tall. As a child, she banged her head on the floor to be allowed to play the piano. She was Catalan. She was a pianist—one of the greatest. Her mission? To spread the Spanish repertoire. Her name was Alicia de Larrocha.

When she passed away in 2009 at age 89, Nelson Freire wrote, "I truly loved her; she was a modest woman, and her playing shone like the sun." Acclaimed worldwide, she stood alongside Victoria de Los Angeles as one of Spain’s finest artists.

Larrocha’s journey began at three, seated at a piano. At four, she studied under Frank Marshall, a student of Granados. By six, she was performing publicly; by eleven, she played Mozart’s Coronation Concerto with Madrid’s Symphony Orchestra, astonishing audiences. Despite her small hands, she developed an airy, precise touch, even daring to record Rachmaninov’s Third Concerto. But beyond technical mastery, her playing held a profound sense of life and imagination.

Though trained in Bach, Mozart, and Chopin, Larrocha fought to bring Spanish composers to global audiences. Albéniz and Granados owe much of their fame to her. Her international breakthrough came in the 1950s when an American impresario heard her Spanish recordings and invited her to the U.S., where she triumphed.

Her performances honored Spain’s musical heritage. From Soler’s sonatas to Granados' Goyescas, she infused each note with nuance. She brought Goya’s paintings to life in El Pelele and mastered the dark contrasts of Surinach’s Canción y Danza. Albéniz’s Iberia demanded both power and delicacy—qualities she commanded effortlessly.

Her final tribute was to her friend Francis Poulenc, performing his Toccata—a soaring farewell.

As one admirer put it in 1982, "She walked toward a piano too big for her, sat, placed her hands on the keys… and became the queen."

Alicia De Larrocha, Piano

Nach seinen Megaerfolgen der letzten Jahre mit der erfolgreichsten Radiosingle 2021 „Save Your Tears“ (Platin) und dem erfolgreichsten Song 2020 „Blinding Lights“ (3x Platin) beginnt The Weeknd nun sein
nächstes Kapitel.
Dieses kündigte der Superstar bereits im Herbst 2021 mit “The Dawn Is Coming” auf seinen Social-MediaKanälen an und bestätigte die Gerüchte für ein neues Album dann an Neujahr. Der erste Vorgeschmack auf sein neues Album erfolgte mit der Single „Take My Breath“. Diese stieg direkt in die Top 20 der deutschen Charts ein und erreichte Platz 2 der Airplay Charts.

Sein letztes Studioalbum „After Hours“, welches u.a. die Erfolgshits „Blinding Lights“, „Save Your Tears“ und „After Hours“ enthält belegte Platz 5 der Albumcharts. Seine anderen Alben „Beauty Behind The Madness” (2015) und “Starboy” (2016) sind in Deutschland beide mit Gold ausgezeichnet. Sein neues Album „Dawn FM“ erscheint nun am 07.01.2022 digital und enthält Feature-Artists wie Jim Carrey, Tyler The Creator und Lil Wayne.

Am 28.01.2022 erscheint es auch auf CD und wird ab dem 29.04.2022 auch als Vinyl erhältlich sein.

Shortly after Jay Dee’s younger brother Illa J’s solo debut was issued on Delicious Vinyl, the label and the artist knew the next step in honouring Jay Dee’s legacy was to issue the complete instrumentals from Yancey Boys as a stand-alone release. This mother lode of previously untouched (at the time) beats dates as far back as Jay Dee’s time working on the Pharcyde’s sophomore album, 1995’s Labcabincalifornia. As Delicious Vinyl owner Michael Ross explains, “From ‘95 through ’98 Jay Dee was my go-to guy for hot beats and remixes. He was always making beats, always. So there was a select amount of tracks that he composed for me during that time, tracks as good as anything he’d done, only they never got used.” Once these beats were used for Illa J’s Yancey Boys they were presented to the public on Yancey Boys Instrumentals.

“Recorded at BBC Broadcasting House and partially aired on BBC Radio 3’s Late Junction, the first studio encounter between London-based duo Exotic Sin and Swiss percussionist Julian Sartorius is now published in full on this album from Sagome.

Winding through six distinct and interconnected paths, the trio effortlessly create a shared language in this expansive improvised session.

Listening back two years later — the session was recorded on March 24, 2023 — it’s evident how they build at a relaxed pace, offering space for the listener to enter into their evolving sound. Anchored by piano, delicate wood, metal, and air instruments, a fluid system of interactions develops: repeating, deepening, but not fixating. The direction of travel is not cyclical or linear and the pace insists on forward confidently, avoiding the trap or comfort of recurring motifs.

Percussion is not a timekeeper, but a key element, introducing new textures that even on the final track Path 6, trace out a horizon that feels more like a blurred beginning than a definitive end.

In Session, Exotic Sin moves into a lighter, perhaps more playful language for improvisation than on their debut album Customer’s Copy. This could be influenced by Sartorius’ tactile approach to sonic materials or the more stripped-back nature of the improvised session, with less emphasis on synthesised and electric sounds. While the emotional imprint from their debut album—murkier and insistent—remains, it has been aired out to dry. In Session, their sound-world is broad and moves with levity.”

Andrea Zarza Canova – April 2025


Music by
Kenichi Iwasa (electric and acoustic percussion, trumpet, horns, thumb piano, effects).
Naima Nefertari (piano, Yamaha keyboard, flute, bells, percussion).
Julian Sartorius (drums, percussion).

Recorded and mixed live for Late Junction at BBC Broadcasting House, London, on the 24th of March 2023 by Joe Yon and John Boland.
Mastered by Giuseppe Ielasi.
Produced by Silvia Malnati at Reduced Listening for BBC Radio 3.
Extracts from the session were played on Late Junction on the 14th of April 2023.
Artwork by Josef William Back.
Graphic design by Nicola Tirabasso.

Smut - die Band aus Chicago, bestehend aus Sängerin/Texterin Tay Roebuck, Gitarrist Andie Min, Bassist John Steiner, Gitarrist Sam Ruschman und Schlagzeuger Aidan O'Connor - hat neue Energie getankt und sich auf das grenzenlose Potenzial besonnen, das entsteht, wenn man mit Menschen, die man liebt, Musik macht. In neuer Besetzung - "Tomorrow Comes Crashing" ist das erste Album von Smut mit O'Connor und Steiner - konzentrierten sich Smut darauf, die großen Gefühle einzufangen, die entstehen, wenn man sich zum ersten Mal in Musik verliebt. Das Ergebnis sind zehn intensive und bombastische Songs. Roebuck, Ruschman und Min gründeten die Band ein Jahrzehnt zuvor in Cincinnati, Ohio. Nach Jahren in der DIY-Szene von Cincinnati nahmen sie ihr Debütalbum "How the Light Felt" auf, das eine Offenbarung war. Pitchfork beschrieb es als "eine rigorose, Jahrzehnte umspannende Studie" und eine "gut geölte Drehung des Gitarrenpops der späten 80er". Under the Radar nannte es "Pop-Perfektion", die "subtile Haken mit wehmütigen Texten verbindet". "Tomorrow Comes Crashing" zeigt die Band mit neuem Elan. Der Song "Syd Sweeney", inspiriert von der Schauspielerin, ist das Herzstück der Platte. Es handelt davon, wie seltsam es sein kann, eine Frau zu sein und von Leuten missverstanden zu werden, die einen nicht einmal kennen. Der Song wird von tuckernden Gitarren und großen, rollenden Trommeln angetrieben. Mit anderen Worten: Stadionrock über Wahrnehmung. Paramore trifft "Dookie". "She connects to the youth and the girls in the water/All she amounts to is someone's daughter", singt Roebuck in einem besonders poetischen Moment. Der Song endet in einem Thrash-Metal-inspirierten Breakdown. Es ist ekstatisch. Um die Platte zu machen, nahmen Smut "so live wie möglich" zusammen mit Aron Kobayashi-Ritch (Momma) in einem Studio in Red Hook, Brooklyn, in zehn Tagen auf. Kurz bevor sie nach New York aufbrachen, heirateten Roebuck und Min, wobei der Rest der Band an ihrer Seite war. Die Aufnahmen waren ein wahrer Kraftakt: Sie fuhren mit ihrer gesamten Ausrüstung von Chicago nach Brooklyn, schliefen nach 12-stündigen Studiotagen auf den Sofas und Böden von Freunden, und am Ende war Roebucks Stimme völlig durch. Smut war schon immer ein DIY-Projekt. Weil sie es lieben und genau so tun müssen. "Tomorrow Comes Crashing" ist der Höhepunkt dieses DIY-Gedankens: eine Platte zu machen, die die Intensität, die Launenhaftigkeit und die Emotionen ihrer bisherigen Reise vollständig einfängt.

Smut - die Band aus Chicago, bestehend aus Sängerin/Texterin Tay Roebuck, Gitarrist Andie Min, Bassist John Steiner, Gitarrist Sam Ruschman und Schlagzeuger Aidan O'Connor - hat neue Energie getankt und sich auf das grenzenlose Potenzial besonnen, das entsteht, wenn man mit Menschen, die man liebt, Musik macht. In neuer Besetzung - "Tomorrow Comes Crashing" ist das erste Album von Smut mit O'Connor und Steiner - konzentrierten sich Smut darauf, die großen Gefühle einzufangen, die entstehen, wenn man sich zum ersten Mal in Musik verliebt. Das Ergebnis sind zehn intensive und bombastische Songs. Roebuck, Ruschman und Min gründeten die Band ein Jahrzehnt zuvor in Cincinnati, Ohio. Nach Jahren in der DIY-Szene von Cincinnati nahmen sie ihr Debütalbum "How the Light Felt" auf, das eine Offenbarung war. Pitchfork beschrieb es als "eine rigorose, Jahrzehnte umspannende Studie" und eine "gut geölte Drehung des Gitarrenpops der späten 80er". Under the Radar nannte es "Pop-Perfektion", die "subtile Haken mit wehmütigen Texten verbindet". "Tomorrow Comes Crashing" zeigt die Band mit neuem Elan. Der Song "Syd Sweeney", inspiriert von der Schauspielerin, ist das Herzstück der Platte. Es handelt davon, wie seltsam es sein kann, eine Frau zu sein und von Leuten missverstanden zu werden, die einen nicht einmal kennen. Der Song wird von tuckernden Gitarren und großen, rollenden Trommeln angetrieben. Mit anderen Worten: Stadionrock über Wahrnehmung. Paramore trifft "Dookie". "She connects to the youth and the girls in the water/All she amounts to is someone's daughter", singt Roebuck in einem besonders poetischen Moment. Der Song endet in einem Thrash-Metal-inspirierten Breakdown. Es ist ekstatisch. Um die Platte zu machen, nahmen Smut "so live wie möglich" zusammen mit Aron Kobayashi-Ritch (Momma) in einem Studio in Red Hook, Brooklyn, in zehn Tagen auf. Kurz bevor sie nach New York aufbrachen, heirateten Roebuck und Min, wobei der Rest der Band an ihrer Seite war. Die Aufnahmen waren ein wahrer Kraftakt: Sie fuhren mit ihrer gesamten Ausrüstung von Chicago nach Brooklyn, schliefen nach 12-stündigen Studiotagen auf den Sofas und Böden von Freunden, und am Ende war Roebucks Stimme völlig durch. Smut war schon immer ein DIY-Projekt. Weil sie es lieben und genau so tun müssen. "Tomorrow Comes Crashing" ist der Höhepunkt dieses DIY-Gedankens: eine Platte zu machen, die die Intensität, die Launenhaftigkeit und die Emotionen ihrer bisherigen Reise vollständig einfängt.

Sherlock Hound is the animated series from the masterpiece directed by Hayao Miyazaki and coproduced by TMS Entertainment and RAI, wich was broadcasted for the first time in 1984. The series was a success and remains to this day one a beloved classic in the world of Japanese animation.


To celebrate the recent 40th anniversary of the series, we are pleased to offer this sublime edition with its 2 discs gathering the soundtracks from the TV series and for the initial animated film (The Blue Ruby & Underwater Treasure), completed by a 8-page booklet, illustrated with beautiful artworks.


The soundtrack to the animated series was composed by Kentarô Haneda (well known for his work on the Space Adventure Cobra series) and includes the two signature songs performed by Da Capo. The anime film soundtrack is the work of Kunio Muramatsu, and also includes two songs performed by Haruko Kuwana. Immerse yourself in the fascinating atmosphere of this cult 80s anime!

New Traditions is a collection of pipe music, electronic music, mouth music and folk music from five emerging and prominent Scottish artists.

It started in Sutherland with a recording of The Waters of Kylesku. “Do you learn any Gaelic at the school?” asks Hamish Henderson of Christine Stewart. “No,” she answers. “That’s a shame,” he responds, “Isn’t it?” she says. Then she sings. Her voice is of the peat itself, grown from the earth as the language was. It soars raptor-like above drenched ground and scoured pink rock.

Next, to Nancy Dorian, a linguistic missionary of sorts, who came from America to watch a language die. She charted the decline of Gaelic in a cluster of Sutherland villages from 1963 to 2020 when the terminal native speaker passed. Gaelic has origins in nature, with each letter of the alphabet named after a tree. It seems significant that the land of the north is now all-but devoid of forest.

Enter Alan Lomax, who travelled the world documenting indigenous music. Material from his archives feature on (fucking) Moby’s platinum selling Play. Despite the record’s worldwide commercial success we know very little of the music he essentially exploited.

Then musician Martyn Bennett, who built tracks around Lomax recordings of Scots and Gaelic voices, and did so with love that shared his blood with the cancer that killed him. His records both popularised and preserved obscure indigenous Scottish music.

This collection of tunes has similar intent: to consolidate ephemeral words in physical grooves - real as the rigs that still scar the earth - but also a desire to interpret. These versions have the greatest reverence for the originals at heart, but like the architecture of a great gallery, serve to protect and elevate.

Limited Vinyl Box Set including 6x olive 12” vinyl & download code

Cocoon Recordings presents: Cocoon Compilation V

Back for the summer season, Cocoon Recordings proudly unveils the next chapter in its iconic compilation series. With its 22nd edition, Cocoon Compilation V once again bridges past and future, showcasing the essence of electronic music’s constant evolution. True to the spirit of the label, this handpicked collection delivers a diverse, emotional, and forward-thinking selection that drifts through shimmering currents, pulsating machinery, and moments of pure release.

Delenz & Zeitstill set the tone with “Place To Be”, a smooth and warm opener that invites the listener into a meditative microcosm. What starts as dreamy minimalism steadily unfolds into deep, shimmering depth. A sublime invitation to get lost in sound. Superpitcher takes us further into the mist with “Dream B”, an ethereal and cinematic dreamscape that floats between melancholy and magic. Its stretched textures and hypnotic pacing form a gentle passage into inner space.

The energy intensifies with Patrice Bäumel’s “Nat”, a sophisticated tension-builder with a subtle pulse and haunting atmospheres. Sound waves that breathe, evolve, and subtly command movement. Sawlin switches gears with “Der Jasager”, a deep technoid beast that hits with low-end pressure, modulated percussions, and gritty textures and spooky features. Raw, physical, and unrelenting.

A bright contrast comes from DC Salas and his track “Escapism.” Psychedelic, synth-heavy, and effortlessly groovy, it channels the playful side of electronic storytelling. It channels a trancy 90s flair with its vibrant energy, brilliant use of choir bits, and irresistible vibe that transports you back to a golden era. With Tal Fussman’s “Eyes”, we’re taken into euphoric territory. This stomper is a conversation between piano and strings, rising above crisp grooves, weaving emotion and momentum with finesse.

On the second half of the journey, legendary Ken Ishii teams up with Yuada to deliver “Split Second,” a bold, wild and crazy techno excursion full of mechanical grace and Japanese precision. An ode to organized chaos. Marcel Fengler’s “Aura” follows, powerful and deep, pushing air like an engine through tunnels of tension and light. The blend of rhythm and sentiments is a masterclass in functional elegance and states of mind.

Impérieux brings us “Kala,” a track both twisted and beautiful. Its detuned hypnotic melodies and skewed harmonics are unsettling in the best way while the unconventional rhythms cloak the entire track in a mysterious aura. It creaks and twists toward transcendence, underscored by primordial flute sounds. A fractured lullaby for the club. Joe Metzenmacher injects wildness and attitude into the mix with “Da Freak.” Fuzzy, distorted synths collide with a funky bassline, sharp guitar stabs, and mad bleep effects, bringing the raw groove and dancefloor chaos of a bygone funk era into a futuristic setting.

Joseph Capriati debuts on Cocoon with “Cosmopop” and surprises with an unexpected stylistic shift. Capriati explores a more melodic, emotionally driven sound. Subtle harmonies meet a warm, rolling groove. It’s a bold and personal statement, showing a new side of an artist who continues to evolve beyond expectations. To close, Matthias Schildger offers “Distorter,” a raw and emotional cut that leaves room to breathe while keeping the mind spinning. It begins with beautiful pads, before distorted kicks drop in, yet the track retains a certain tenderness, like the feeling of sitting at a tranquil, untouched nature spot, surrounded by the beauty of the world. A grand finale to a compilation that refuses to settle.

From sunrise moments to peak-time madness, Cocoon Compilation V captures the full spectrum of what dance music can be. Transcendent, visceral and endlessly evolving. This isn’t just a collection of tracks. It’s a curated experience for the body, the mind and the soul.

To celebrate the imprint’s 20th release, it only feels right for label head Pegasvs to be left in control, with ‘Extend and Play’ a wonderful representation of not only Pegasvs’ signature style but the start of a joyous new chapter for the label as it looks forward to another 20 releases.

Well known by now for his simmering and infectious house-laden cuts, ‘Extend and Play’ is yet another wondrous piece of house music that cuts across the genre’s horizon line with aplomb.

The title track unravels with a myriad of Jazz and funk fusion melodies nestled atop a delicate rhythmic section that never ceases to get the room shakin’.

‘Wonky Business’ is a slice of hands-in-the-air dance music that pairs infectious disco guitar riffs with infectious melodies and an irresistible bassline.

‘Hidden Sounds’ sits somewhere in the midrange between the previous two numbers, with driving chords sitting atop a rolling rhythmic bed that simply oozes energy and feet moving.

Finally, ‘Not Far Behind’ slides into view to facilitate a little trip into paradise, as euphoric pads and scintillating acid lines lift the listener to new heights of being.

Early Support from Bill Brewster, Laurent Garnier, Robert Owens, Bradley Zero, Jimpster, Crazy P, Auntie Flo…

Vinyl comes housed in a custom sleeve with artwork by Cerri Studio.

Further explorations into the deep space of the future/past by two master- improvisors who compose their wordless paintings out of thin air. Their collaborative powers are nowhere near their peak and this voyage takes them further into the Uncharted. These pieces unfold as revelatory mind blooms. Creating a canopy of sound forms inside which they speak the rarifi ed language of world creating. This isn’t just music, it’s a journey without maps, Inside.
This new LP takes Nelson & Kramer deep under the earth's seas, pulling the listener down beside them as they explore the uncharted currents that fuel the human imagination, fl uid, always moving, and always changing. It is an excursion into the lowest depths of Ambient Music, and a new beginning from the very place where life itself began. The fl oor of the ocean has a new sound, and it is breathtakingly beautiful.

Named after a (US) West Coast grocery store chain, The Whitefronts started out in 1982 as a quartet of art and theater students attending UCSB. The band quickly mutated into a sextet. In 1984, they moved north to establish themselves as part of the SF DIY culture. Live shows usually consisted of open jams drawing from what the band was obsessing about at the time—free jazz, The Velvet Underground, Caribbean music, improv noise—as well as their own unheralded genres that popped in and out of existence like subatomic particles. Shows with local bands like Slovenly, Camper Van Beethoven, Caroliner Rainbow, Vomit Launch, Barnacle Choir and Barbara Manning provide some context as to their eccentric position within the indie scene of the era.

In 1985, the band released their sole LP, Roast Belief, on their own Bogden label. This was an ambitious attempt to document the various ideas that were happening live. Though practically unknown today, it’s an extraordinary record—a mid-80s classic serving up eclectic derangement on a par with contemporaries like the Butthole Surfers, Meat Puppets, Sun City Girls, Tuxedomoon and Eugene Chadbourne.
The Mamo Waves LP was compiled from recordings made between 1982-1987. As with Roast Belief LP, it’s a mind-melting jumble of the genres explored by Whitefronts throughout their existence. It was originally supposed to be released by Camper Van’s Pitch-A-Tent imprint, as a couple of WF members were touring with CBV in 1987, but the release fell through the cracks when CBV was airlifted to Virgin Records in 1988. Today, it’s clear that Mamo Waves belongs to the same 1980s Californian sub-underground aesthetic that nurtured mythical 80s bands like Departmentstore Santas and Prominent Disturbance. It’s a real WTF m.o. that still sounds like the future.

Unreleased electronic / jazz / madness from two titans of jazz and experimentation: JOHN SURMAN and KARIN KROG.

I could now write a load of blown up puffery about how amazing this is, but everyone does that, and a lot of the time it’s all a load of bollocks. But basically this was sent to me by Karin / John when I asked if they had anything hanging about that had not been released. This came through and blew my tiny mind. Like something from prime Annette Peacock “Pony” period. Here is what John Surman said…

John Surman writes:

Back in 2012/13 there had been some talk about a big futuristic open air urban dance/theatre production for about 80/100 actors/dancers with lasers and all kinds of lighting effects on different stages. I was invited to get involved and, together with Ben and Karin, we eventually decided to get to work on some ideas. I think that the original plan was that in performance there would be a mixture of live music and electronica.

Not altogether surprisingly, bearing in mind the complexity of the project, it never moved forward and developed into anything more than an interesting idea. It was probably over ambitious & I guess the funding never came through.

The only information I that I can find relating to the production refers to two silent movies made in 1927/1928 by the filmmaker Eugene Deslaw, entitled `La Marche Des Machines´ and `Les Nuits Électriques.These were clearly intended to act as inspiration for the project.

After months turned into years it became obvious that the project was going nowhere, and so the recorded music laid around gathering dust until Johnny Trunk asked Karin if she had any interesting music that he might be interested in releasing. One thing led to another and so, finally, Electric Element found a home!

For anyone interested in the equipment used this will have to be an approximation since the memory might be playing tricks. Karin was probably using a Yamaha Rex50 f/x unit, a Roland VT-3 Voice Transformer and an Oberheim Ring Modulator. I was playing Bass Clarinet and Contrabass Clarinet through various f/x units together with a Yamaha WX5 wind synth. All the instruments and voice were also processed through Ben´s equipment. After writing this I asked Ben for his recollections and he came up with the following:

John, Karin and I created this music in 2 or 3 days in the winter of 2013 at their studio in Oslo, Norway. I followed up with another 2 or 3 days of mixing, editing and post-processing . We kept a collaborative, improvisational and free-form approach to the sessions. I grew up immersed in music such as Cloudline Blue, the 1979 duo album of Krog/Surman, and this felt like a similar approach. I have mixed sound for many of their live duo concerts and I would use effects and electronics as an

accompaniment and counterpoint to the performed music. The relation of organic and artificial sound sources in music has always fascinated. In this case, I used some contemporary digital signal processing to introduce my own aesthetic into the conversation, in particular using granular synthesis to recombine small 'clouds' of sound into alternate forms. Some of the software tools I used included Ableton Live, Max/MSP and Reaktor.