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In its review of pianist Shai Maestro’s ECM leader debut ‘The Dream Thief’, All
About Jazz spoke of “a searching lyrical atmosphere, emotional
eloquence and communal virtuosity that serves the music.”
All of which also applies to ‘Human’, where Maestro’s outgoing, highly-communicative
band with fellow Israeli Ofri Nemya on drums and Peruvian bassist Jorge Roeder becomes a quartet with the inspired addition of US trumpeter Philip Dizack.
Shai’s expansive pianism is well-matched by Dizack’s alert, quick-thinking approach to
improvising. And, as ever, Maestro is taking the music forward while also respecting its
sense of tradition. Near the end of a programme comprised almost entirely of Maestro
originals, exploring a range of temperaments, the quartet offers its own take on Duke
Ellington’s “In A Sentimental Mood”, while Shai’s tune “Hank and Charlie” pays tribute to
the musical empathy shared by the late Hank Jones and Charlie Haden.
‘Human’ was recorded at Studios la Buissonne in the South of France in February 2020,
and produced by Manfred Eicher.
Shai Maestro: piano,
Philip Dizack: trumpet,
Jorge Roeder: double bass,
Ofri Nehemya: drums

This critically acclaimed duo made their debut in 2018 with the album ‘Last things’
on Oslo Session Recordings (OSR003 & OSR003LP), which received international
praise.
For the duo’s ‘Chasing Sunset’ album, singer Siril Malmedal Hauge has this time around
contributed as a lyricist and composer on three tracks, including the title song; ‘Chasing Sunsets, ‘Time, and the jazzy ballad ‘Wake Up’, that also features tenor-sax-great
Knut Riisn s as special guest. Jazz guitarist Jacob Young is known for his three albums
as a leader on ECM (‘Evening Falls, ‘Sideways’ and ‘Forever Young’), as a sideman with
Manu Katche, Karin Krog, Sidiki Camara and as the driving force behind the label Oslo
Session Recordings.
On ‘Chasing Sunsets’ he has written three new songs, which feature him as both guitarist and singer.
The album consists of three vocal duets where Siril’s vocals blends with Jacobs voice;
check out the sonic adventurous feel on tracks; ‘How Can I Advise You’, ‘The Ceiling’ and
‘High Alert. The remaining songs are gems from the popular music canon, with surprises
like the cover of the famed Norwegian Pop Anthem of the north, ‘The Lovesong’ (Kj
rlighetsvisa), written by Halvdan Sivertsen and sung in English for the first time.
Other gems include the Burt Bacharach/Hal David classic ‘I Say A Little Prayer’, and other
well-known masterpieces such as ‘You are So Beautiful’ and ‘My Ideal’.

Altar De Fey originated in San Francisco in the early 1980’s as part of the emerging musical form that would come to be
known as Deathrock. Out of the Zeitgeist flash of 70’s Punk Rock the new sound took the darkest elements of the counter
culture into ever deeper, gloomier and more mature territory.
Performing at legendary San Francisco venues Mabuhay Gardens, Graffiti, The Nightbreak and the rest billed with
Christian Death, 45 Grave, and all the fellow architects of West Coast Post Punk.
The original incarnation passed through a rotating cast of characters centered strongly by the vision and experimental
guitar of founding member Kent Cates. Eschewing the conventional chord progression/solo form entirely Cates’s guitar spins
strands of melody and rhythm, tone and texture in a style that to this day is all his own. The mood was perfected with the
innovative tribal drumming of Aleph Kali and Butch Mason’s haunted confrontational vocals.
Though the band had a strong base of support, no original recordings were ever released and the young members
carried on into new musical endeavors. By 1988 ADF disbanded.
Years upon years passed yet the name was never completely forgotten. As Goth Punk culture persisted, grew and
developed over time the band began to take on a kind of legendary hue among fans in the know; The lost mysterious
phenomenon of Altar De Fey. -There was a kind of poetry to it. Finally in 2011, when asked if they would play a reunion for a
festival in San Francisco Kent and Aleph surprised everyone by answering yes.
Reforming originally as a 2 piece with a drum machine Kent on guitar and Aleph on vocals to an enthusiastic reception,
the duo enjoyed it so much they decided to continue the momentum and quickly added Skot Brown on bass, Aleph switched
over to live drums, and Jake Hout was added on vocals. The new line up debuted in April of 2012 and has continued
regularly performing songs from the original 80’s catalogue and steadily adding new material ever since.
A new generation of underground Deathrock music is growing across the world, in closer, more direct communication
than ever before, and interest in the band has quickly escalated.
This unique compilation brings you 11 original ADF songs recorded between 1984-1986 (demos, rehearsal records, live
records). If you are into classic Christian Death, 45 Grave, Kommunity FK, Burning Image etc. grab this gem now before it’s
too late!

14 of the top salsa hits by Edddie Palmieri,Ray Baretto, Celia Cruz...

The Rongetz Foundation is back with a new album named Velvet Bullet. The forceful music of the adapting sextet is generating a wide range of sensations. From the punchy « Sun Strike » to the hypnotizing « Optophobia », auditors will be able to bounce and dance to « Velvet bullet », « Whirling Dervish » and « Baroque Buffoon ».

Rongetz acts as caster in chief and brings in some of the most promising talents of the New York jazz scene. Simon Moullier on Vibes is already recognized by Herbie Hancock and Quincy jones as one of the best musician of his generation, same goes for Jonathan Barber (Drums) Tivon Pennicott (Tenor Sax) and Alexander Claffy on Acoustic Bass. Also featuring on the album is a Nuyorican gem that Rongetz discovered in Manhattan few years ago, Carlos Jimenez (Flute). Keita Oggawa (Percussion) from Snarky Puppy has also joined the team on two tracks.

Elegant and powerful, as demonstrated by the breath taking opening piece « Sun Strike », the Velvet Bullet will be out February 19th 2021 and is surely not to be dodged.

Lunar Tredd – Fimber Bravo’s first album on Moshi Moshi since the much acclaimed Con-Fusion – tells the tale. The highlife fusion of You Can’t Control Me resonates in the wake of the global Black Lives Matters protests. There is fire in these impactful clarion calls to resist oppression, recognise strength in resilience and fight against the corruption of power.

Bravo’s been a constant collaborative force - as his time as leader of 20th Century Steel Band, as musical director of Steel ‘n’ Skin, and appearances with everyone from Sun Ra Arkestra to Hot Chip, shows. Lunar Tredd reflects the influence of the music handed down to him by “ancestors” . Helped by an enviable cast of friends and collaborators, Fimber has shifted those touchstones to create something that sounds resolutely like the here and now.

Those friends that appear on Lunar Tredd, include Alexis Taylor of Hot Chip and The Horrors’ Tom Furse; The Invisible drummer Leo Taylor and Senegalese percussionist, Mamadou Sarr dropping in on rhythm duties, while there are also appearances from Susumu Mukai aka Zongamin, the brilliant Kora player Kadialy Kouyate, vocalist Cottie Williams, Vanishing Twin’s Catherine Lucas, and production from Lapo Frost and Ghostpoet producer Shuta Shinoda. Some, like Zongamin and Williams go way back with Fimber, other connections are newer, but all have quickly become part of the London-based musician’s musical family.

Indeed, Fimber never loses sight of where he’s come from on LUNAR TREDD - even as he looks to where he might go next. As a musician, he’s still finding new creative peaks nearly 50 years after he began.

"Lesbo" is a 1969 erotic film directed by Edoardo Mulargia, his only experiment in this genre within a filmography mostly focused on Western films and sentimental/romantic comedies. Calling "Lesbo" an underground film is practically an understatement, as no official home video releases of this movie seem to exist; its soundtrack instead has luckily survived to the present day and, given the caliber of its two composers, it could only be a terrific work.

The friendship between Francesco De Masi and Alessandro Alessandroni is even more dated than the artistic partnership that was later born between the most famous spaghetti western whistle and Morricone, and "Lesbo" is 'only' one of the various collaborations between these two composers.

Introduced as usual by a sensual theme sung by a seducing female voice, this warm and Mediterranean-flavoured soundtrack has numerous variations with a romantic/symphonic, lounge, even jazz taste, with some typically 'Morriconian' moments of tension too.

An extremely varied work, therefore, of which in 1969 - the year the film was released in theaters - only eight tracks were published on the single side of an LP containing, in addition to the soundtrack of "Lesbo", also that of "L'amore questo sconosciuto" on side B. Recently reissued with the addition

of numerous bonus tracks, it is here in its full version - 24 tracks! - on vinyl for the first time ever.

"Modern Uganda" is a unique project-it's the exquisite debut album of a band, which no longer exists!

delay_okwas a band from Gdańsk, Poland, which was formed in 2017 and played together till 2020 in the belief that making music must be fun. It was a trio consisting ofPiotr Chęcki(tenor and baritone saxophone, flute, casio),Szymon Burnos(synthesizers, moog, guitar, vocals)andJacek Prościński(drums, spdsx, percussion). On this, their debut album you can also hear the peculiar sounds of the Sopot's MDK Orchestra, the guitar ofMichałZ ienkowskiand a Tanzanian rap byAlex(Alex Mussa), met in Zanzibar.

"W e create impulsively, not ignoring our first - sometimes trivial - ideas,because it is in them that we find the joy that accompanied us at the very beginning of our musical paths. W e do it so that we can sit together in front of the speakers and have fun listening to our own songs again. "Modern Uganda" is a small collection of our interests, so we kind of do it out of the selfish need of doing something for
ourselves"

The band oscillates around the sound of IDM, lo-fi, and other sub-genres of modern electronics, with an element of jazz improvisation. The album was DIY recorded and is a tribute to the most famous African ski jumper from Uganda-Dunstan Odeke.

"Modern Uganda" vinyl record comes in two colors(flamingo pink and classic black). Mix and mastering were done byMaciej Milewski, the cover photo with shoebill was taken bynao-cha, a Japanese artist from Tokyo.

At the end of the '60s in Italy - but also abroad, especially in France and England - a very particular trend began to spread, that one known as 'Library music' or 'sonorization': as suggested by its name, those were real music libraries intended for the accompaniment of audiovisual productions such as

television programs, advertisements, documentaries and films. Since they were created in total artistic freedom condition, they are often difficult if not impossible to catalog, as they're not anchored to a specific musical genre; this freedom also allowed the authors to compose, sometimes in the most complete anonymity, experimental and avant-garde music, capable of anticipating the sounds that only many years later would have been widespread on a larger scale.

Egisto Macchi (1928-1992) was one of the most active composers of the sonorization and soundtrack genres together with artists such as Piero Umiliani, Alessandro Alessandroni and Ennio Morricone; he also collaborated with the latter in the experimental music project Gruppo di Improvvisazione Nuova Consonanza. "Fauna Marina" is among his most popular and sought-after by collectors titles: a set of eleven compositions intended to accompany the images of a hypothetical fish fauna documentary, an abstract hybrid of classical, contemporary and jazz music that is still fresh and surprising today.

"Fauna Marina" is part of a reissues series, made in collaboration with Edizioni Leonardi (Milan, Italy), of extremely rare library music LP's published between late '60s and early '70s, most of which have never been released again until today, and that are finally made available again for

collectors and sonorization music lovers.

Papa Roach are set to release their second greatest hits album, which covers the second decade of their career. On top of numerous fan favourites, the album includes exclusive remixes, previously unreleased acoustic versions and a new version of 'Broken As Me' feat. Danny Worsnop (Asking Alexandria). Papa Roach vocalist Jacoby Shaddix will also appear in the upcoming horror thriller 'The Retaliators'.

Record Kicks presents "The Black Stone Affair" the lost Italian Cinematic Masterpiece by Whatitdo Archive Group on limited edition 45.

For the first time ever, Record Kicks is pleased to announce the release of the long lost soundtrack by Whatitdo Archive Group to the Italian Cinematic Masterpiece "The Black Stone Affair''. The Soundtrack will be released on April 09 on Gatefold LP, CD and Digital Download. The first extract from the movie soundtrack is a limited edition 45 vinyl featuring "The Return of Beaumont Jenkins" on side A and the non-album bonus track "La Pietra" on side B. The 45 will be released in limited edition to 500 copies worldwide next March 05.

Long thought to be lost alongside the movie itself by the production studio, the soundtrack's master reels were recently recovered and its audio meticulously restored and remastered by J.J. Golden in Ventura, CA. The movie itself was understood to be unusual for its time: a globetrotting adventure/western-noir written and directed by aspiring visionary, Stefano Paradisi. Unfortunately for Paradisi, the tragic loss of his masterpiece also meant the end of his short lived career in movies. People who worked on the film have been cited as saying this film was going to be a turning point in Italian cinema and henceforth put Paradisi on the map alongside the likes of Fellini and Antonioni.

While the movie never saw the light of day, the soundtrack by obscure band Whatitdo Archive Group has thankfully been recovered. The music itself is staggering to hear and this limited edition ultra groovy 45 is just a little appetizer of what you'll be hearing on the LP. Rare groove and soundtrack fans don't sleep on it.

Repress

Berlin-via-Warsaw high roller of the new generation of techno VTSS aka Martyna Maja returns with a mesmerising 6-track EP titled ‘Borderline Tenderness’, this time from Berlin-Milan label VEYL run by Alex Knoblauch & Maenad Veyl.
Following a tremendously acclaimed collection of releases showcasing her fresh take on dance floor belters through Intrepid Skin, REPITCH, HAVEN and also featuring on KAOS, Monnom Black and Hellcat; this new record expands her horizons to different sides of her odd electronics as in ‘Woah’, while also giving a proper dose of her well-known craft to incorporate hardcore, EBM and acid influences on cheeky techno grooves.
Collaboration with friends and colleagues is key for VTSS in order to evolve. Consequently the EP includes a handful of features from the likes of LSDXOXO, contributing vocals on ‘Goin Nuts’, which is also available as a bonus instrumental version. As well, MOTZ boss Jasmine Azarian appears with spoken word on ‘To Whom All Lovers’ and the blazing ‘MDM508’ with Sonic Groove affiliate Crystal Geometry crown the record of a well-deserved head-bitch in charge.
Cover image taken out of the distinctive world of Tomaso Lisca.

Cool Ghouls - a band fledged in San Francisco on house shows, minimum wage jobs, BBQ's in Golden Gate Park and the romance of a city’s psychedelic history turns 10 this year. What better a decennial celebration than the release of their fourth album, At George's Zoo!

How did San Francisco's fab four arrive at George's Zoo? The teenage friendship of complimentary spirits Pat McDonald (Guitar/Vox) and Pat Thomas (Bass/Vox) serves as square one. The Patricks were munching on Eggo-waffle-sandwiches and downing warm vokda in suburban Benicia (San Francisco bay) years before McDonald would hear George Clinton address his fans as "Cool Ghouls". The boys played their debut gig as Cool Ghouls at San Francisco's legendary The Stud in 2011, but there's no doubt the musical moment cementing the band's trajectory was much earlier at the 18th birthday party for boy-wonder Ryan Wong (Guitar/Vox) - at the Wong household.

You might remember the Ghouls' earliest days... McDonald’s hair hung luxuriously past his waist, Thomas dreamt of no longer having to crash on friends' couches to call SF home and Wong looked forward to turning 21. Cool Ghouls' Pete Best, Cody Voorhees, thrashed wildly – but briefly - on the drums and Alex Fleshman (Drums), who still claims he's not really "a drummer", turned out to be a really good drummer. Thomas would sleep pee on tour. Those were golden days!

Flash forward to today and everything is up in flames. No shows, parties or bars. Cool people are streaming out of SF. It's been 2 years since the last time Cool Ghouls have even played. The STUD is gone, The Eagle Tavern is for sale and The Hemlock has been demolished for condos. Your boss is an app. Fascism is no-knocking down the door. There's a pandemic.

Fortunately for us, the Ghouls got an album in before it all went to shit, and they made it count. At George's Zoo includes 15 of the 27 tunes they managed to eke out while simultaneously working through major life moves. It was a 5-month, all out, final sprint down the homestretch (to Ryan's moving day) with affable engineer Robby Joseph, at his makeshift garage studio in the Outer Sunset (pictured on the cover). Instead of recording the entire album over a few consecutive days - like they'd done with Tim Cohen, Sonny Smith and Kelley Stoltz for the first three LPs - the band took it slow by working through a few songs each weekend after rehearsing them the week before. Robby would cue up the tape, McDonald would throw some steaks on the grill and they'd get to work - much to the neighbor, George's, chagrin.

These guys have a real commitment to elevating as songwriters, musicians and ensemble players. It's always been for the music with Cool Ghouls and this long-awaited self-produced outing is a track by track display of the ground they've covered and heights they can achieve. Their vocals and trademark harmonies are front and center and out-of-control-good. Ryan's guitar solos are incredible. The horns by Danny Brown (sax) and Andrew Stephens (trumpet) hit in all the right places. Maestro, Henry Baker (Pat Thomas Band / Tino Drima), plays keys throughout. There's even a mesmerizing string section ("Land Song") by sonic polyglot, Dylan Edrich.

None of this growth is to the detriment of the fun, natural, feeling that fans have come to expect from the band. This is a fully realized Cool Ghouls album. It paints a remarkable portrait of SF's homegrown heroes and the many corners they've explored over the last decade. The songwriting, harmony and playing are nothing if not solid. The lyrics are keen. Robby's recording and mixing sound great start to finish and even better after mastering by Mikey Young. It's a triumphant addition to their catalogue. Recommended for Stooges and Beach Boys fans alike. Listen and see!

Yes, many things have changed since 2011. Who knows what the 20's will have in store for life on Earth, let alone the Cool Ghouls? We at least know that 2021 has At George's Zoo for us, a beautiful keepsake from the Before Times when we used to stand in living rooms together while bands played.

Melbourne’s Cool Sounds return with their fourth full-length album Bystander, out February 12. Warm and deftly balanced, Bystander moves through indie rock and alt-country with an alert effortlessness.

Cool Sounds’ signature lead guitar lines are in dialogue with lead singer and songwriter Dainis Lacey’s lyrics, which are at turns introspective, self-aware, irreverent and unflinchingly observant. Bystander was written during a European summer and recorded in three weeks over the following Australian one, produced by Lacey alongside Dylan Young (Way Dynamic). While it can sound serene, Bystander isn’t always as laid back as the warm weather might suggest: this album sees Cool Sounds more attuned to their surroundings than ever. While Lacey has always been interested in storytelling, these songs bring lyrics into sharp focus – for the first time the words were all written before the music, and he took notes in the band’s cramped tour van on the autobahn and while wandering through small towns in France and Italy, reflecting on his home while away from it.

Bystander sees Cool Sounds explore the contemporary moment and the everyday with nuance and dexterity, never losing sight of the intimacy and charm that characterises their work. An exercise in observation and reflection, Bystander takes snapshots and zooms in, underlines phrases, and asks its listener to continue paying close attention.

Cool Sounds are Dainis Lacey, Nick Kearton, Ambrin Hasnain, Steve Foulkes, Jack Nichols, Pierce Morton

Produced by Dainis Lacey and Dylan Young

Engineered by Dylan Young

Repress

Alexander Robotnick (aka Maurizio Dami) is an Italian electronic musician. He made his debut on the Italian music scene as the founding member of Avida, a dance-cabaret band featuring Daniele Trambusti and Stefano Fuochi.In 1983 he attained international popularity with his track Problemes d'amour, published first by the Italian label Materiali Sonori and then by Sire-Wea. Problemes d'amour went on to become a cult track of the disco scene. It became quite an import hit in America's underground club scene, and sparked the mini-LP Ce N'est Qu'un Debut that same year (originally released on Materiali Sonori in 1984 (Italy). It consists of 6 captivating tracks including the hit Problemes d'amour as well as the track Dance boy dance which has appeared on other cult disco compilations.

Los ingenieros oníricos se sirven de los artefactos para poder manipular su conciencia y diseñar mundos oníricos por los que viajar. De origen incierto, los artefactos se encuentran dispersos entre planos y han intentado ser rediseñados en nuestro mundo mediante el uso de frecuencias, convirtiéndose en elementos de estudio plenamente funcionales para el ingeniero onírico del plano físico. La correcta correlación de uso entre artefactos permite al onironauta saltar entre los diferentes estados de la experiencia para la formación de universos.

El artefacto ​Onirógeno ​es capaz de inducir al sueño. Sirve de puerta de enlace al mundo onírico y está presente en un estado de semi-consciencia. Dicho artefacto esférico, de naturaleza cromada, reproduce de manera cíclica el proceso de encendido de la máquina de sueños por un operador en un espacio ilusorio. El ingeniero sucumbe a un estado aletargado que permite el vínculo con otros artefactos al ser testigo de una de estas reproducciones.

El artefacto ​Hipnagogia ​es capaz de provocar alucinaciones visuales de intensidad creciente. Permite formar protomundos inconexos. Es un artefacto propio del plano semi-consciente. Debido a lo efímero de los protomundos formados, el ingeniero es incapaz de controlarlos y dotarlos de sentido.

El artefacto ​Efialtes ​es uno de los más inestables y volátiles. Este ente del plano semiconsciente provoca la incapacidad transitoria para realizar movimientos voluntarios durante la transición entre el sueño y la vigilia. Permite al ingeniero crear un canal al plano transitorio. Su presencia o interacción puede darse en los primeros o últimos estadíos. Está muy presente en el mundo semi-consciente y puede ser atraído por el uso de otros artefactos. Emite un zumbido muy característico cuando interacciona.

El artefacto ​Proyector,​ ​toroide derivado de Efialtes, solo presente en el plano transitorio. Crea un canal y permite al ingeniero ingresar, precediendo a la separación física, y materializar la consciencia en el nuevo plano.

Extracorpóreo ​es un derivado del artefacto Proyector, presente en el plano transitorio y con influencia en el plano físico. Permite a la conciencia materializada del ingeniero comunicarse con los impulsos básicos motrices y órdenes cerebrales del plano físico, traduciendo los diferentes protocolos implicados.

El artefacto ​Vacío ​es un espacio unidimensional que interconecta el plano transitorio con el plano onírico.

El artefacto ​Arquitecto,​ presente en el plano onírico, forma y diseña espacios acorde con las órdenes del ingeniero onírico en el caso de que el canal de comunicación sea lo suficientemente consciente. Es una pequeña recreación esférica del universo elevado a infinito en forma de fractal.

El artefacto ​Escultor,​ de hormigón y presente en el plano onírico, crea las diferentes imágenes e inteligencias que habitan el mundo onírico en construcción. Aunque puede ser controlado, a menudo actúa con un mayor libre albedrío, creando imágenes recurrentes.

El artefacto ​Programador,​ de código en cascada y presente en el plano onírico, es la inteligencia encargada de dotar a los mundos oníricos de acontecimientos.

El artefacto ​Devoramundos ​es el artefacto más inestable conocido y con mayor rango de influencia entre planos. Destruye el mundo creado como un agujero negro engulle todo a su paso.

El artefacto ​Cordón​, de plata y presente en todos los planos, sirve como nexo entre el cuerpo físico y la consciencia materializada. A menudo, debido al influjo de otro artefacto, o a la inestabilidad en el canal creado por correlación, es capaz de obligar a la regresión, clausurando el canal de comunicación. Existe un artefacto Cordón que une cada una de las conciencias proyectadas con sus correspondientes cuerpos así como del cuerpo físico. Se desconoce que ocurre en caso de fisión.

El artefacto ​Regreso,​ presente en el plano transitorio-semiconsciente permite al ingeniero recuperar la consciencia y restablecer sus signos vitales.

Originally founded in Spain and now based out of Berlin, Golden Soul Records, the brainchild of James Rod, Aleito and Azaria has been releasing synth-heavy, mind melters and brain busters that traverse the galaxies of Italo, nu disco, synth pop and new beat since 2015. The best remixes from the label have now been perfectly packaged onto this new 2021 EP.

Kicking things off, a slice of futuristic machine funk from James Rod who puts a cosmic twist on Javier Busto - Robot in Mars, before Aleito works up a arpeggiated whirlwind with From Beyond - Body Resonance.

On the B side Azaria lets loose a new beat monster remix of Tiempo de Maldad - Disco Gold with Jarle B providing an Italo stomper of a rework for Aleito’s - Always Here to close out proceedings.

I’ve known Alex Bleeker my entire life. Well, okay, maybe not since I was born, but there’s no doubt that I’ve shared a fair bit of memories with him over the years. We’ve acted in high school productions of Shakespeare together, gone on late-night diner runs, argued about which Weezer album is the band’s best, and swapped mutual appreciation for the music of Yo La Tengo on car rides careening around the snaky suburbia of our hometown. Just like his Real Estate bandmates Martin Courtney and Julian Lynch, we attended high school in the New Jersey enclave of Ridgewood, a place where sticky summer days yielded cool nights with a glow so nocturnal that you can practically hear the fireflies buzzing off of this sentence alone.

Indie rock—a type of music that can easily be made or listened to in someone’s garage—often dominates teenage suburban preoccupations, and both Alex and I were no exception. You can hear this legacy of listening on his new album Heaven on the Faultline, which departs from his last full-band outing as Alex Bleeker and the Freaks, 2015’s Country Agenda. Whereas that album had a more full-bodied explicitly folk-y feel, Heaven on the Faultline finds Bleeker getting back to his homespun roots over the course of its 13 songs, from the jangly guitar pop of New Jersey heroes the Feelies and YLT’s hushed, acoustic reveries to the open-hearted folk rock that marks so much of the Grateful Dead’s early catalog.

Written and recorded over the last several years, Heaven on the Faultline’s songs were initially recorded straight to GarageBand in Bleeker’s bedroom before receiving further studio refinement in co-producer Phil Hartunian’s Tropico Beauty space in Los Angeles. With contributions from Confusing Mix of Nations’ Josh Da Costa, Cameron Stallones of Sun Araw, singer-songwriter Kacey Johansing, and Parting Lines’ Tim Ramsey, Heaven on the Faultline achieves a warm and intimate feel that defines Bleeker’s mission for the album: “I wanted to capture the moment in which I fell in love with making music to begin with. This is music for myself—me getting back to music for music’s sake.”

The unsteady times we live in certainly creep into view on Heaven on the Faultline. The deceptively easygoing “D Plus” was written on the day of President Donald Trump’s inauguration with the cursed event in mind, while the anxiety of climate change hovers just above the lovely guitar loops of “Felty Feel.” “The album is very much about dealing with the anxiety of a sense of impending doom,” Bleeker states while discussing the album’s portentous vibes. “When is the hammer going to fall? How do we go forward in the face of such anxiety and experience the complexity of life?”

Tough questions with few answers, but try not to stress too much. It’s possible to experience such existential doubt while also enjoying the simple pleasures that life has to offer, and that ethos is square at the heart of Heaven on the Faultline. It defines who Alex Bleeker is, too, and is one of many reasons why I’m proud to have known this special person and artist for so long.

Larry Fitzmaurice

First released by Cazzo Film in 2001, ebo hill’s Bonking Berlin Bastards has long achieved the status of an underground punk porn classic. Like the Cazzo productions of director Bruce LaBruce, hill’s vision was both ahead of its time and a playful distillation of 90s and early-2000s Berlin Zeitgeist: queer, industrial, hypersexual, exhibitionist and fueled by electronic music. The story is told in large part by the soundtrack, to be released for the first time on Ostgut Ton sublabel A-TON. The music follows a group of squatters, punks and drag queens as they fuck, party and stumble their way through an empty city at the turn of the millennium. Approaching these themes more through location than plot, the film’s narrative freedom is also a narrative of freedom; between chance encounters and sex in public, atop the maze of roofs in the city’s former East, bent over bridges and moaning in ecstasy at oncoming traffic, pants down in telephone booths, packed into sex clubs, in the shadows of abandoned factories and techno clubs lost in time. Composed by improvisational techno trio AeoX and noise / industrial producer Rouage aka CNM (respectively), the music spans a broad range of appropriately pounding industrial, weird techno, noise, ultra-stoned ambient, improvised dub and electro. It’s a sonic spectrum that connects Berlin’s queer hardcore techno and squatter party scenes from which AeoX and Rouage emerged, drawing a direct line between the likes of Berghain-forerunner OstGut (a primary meeting point for the film’s cast & crew) to the more industrial, breakcore and noise- oriented independent party collectives and locations who provided multiple settings for the film, including Grüne Hölle and Stellwerk.

*Artists:* CNM / Rouage (Kathinka): Born in 1975 and raised in East Berlin. Co-organization of subcultural events since 1998 in Berlin, Potsdam, Leipzig and Barcelona. Experimental music, collaborations, exhibitions and audiovisual shows since 2000.

AeoX: Active between 2001 and 2007. Originally a quartet, then a trio, the group eventually shrank to two permanent members: Alex.E and Hanno Hinkelbein. The latter founded Null Records, where AeoX released two album and numerous EPs. They also released on Mental.Ind.Records founded by former OstGut resident Cora S. Musically, the group experimented with combining improvisational hardware techno, breaks, traditional instruments (guitar, clarinet, piano) industrial and metal.

Ursprünglich 2001 von Cazzo Film veröffentlicht, hat Bonking Berlin Bastards von ebo hill längst den Status eines Underground-Punk-Pornoklassikers erreicht. Wie die Cazzo- Produktionen von Regisseur Bruce LaBruce, war auch hills Vision seiner Zeit voraus und ein spielerisches Destillat des 90er- und Anfang-2000er Berlin-Zeitgeists: queer, industriell, hypersexuell, exhibitionistisch, angetrieben von elektronischer Musik. Die Geschichte wird größtenteils über den Soundtrack erzählt, der auf Ostgut Tons Sublabel A-TON zum ersten Mal veröffentlicht wird. Die Musik folgt einer Gruppe von Hausbesetzern, Punks und Drags, die ficken, feiern und durch die leere Stadt um die Jahrtausendwende streifen. Bonking Berlin Bastards erzählt diese Themen mehr über die Drehorte als über die Handlung. Die erzählerische Freiheit des filmischen Narrativs ist gleichzeitig eine Erzählung von Freiheit: Von zufälligen Begegnungen bis hin zu Sex in der Öffentlichkeit, auf Dächern im früheren Osten Berlins, sich über die Brüstungen von Straßenbrücken beugen, trotz und wegen des Verkehrs stöhnen, mit heruntergelassenen Hosen in Telefonzellen, in überfüllten Sexclubs, im Schatten aufgegebener Fabriken, zeitverloren in Technoclubs. Der Soundtrack wurde sowohl vom Improvisationstechnotrio AeoX als auch von Noise-/Industrial-Producer Rouage aka CNM komponiert und spannt einen weiten Bogen von explizit pumpendem Industrial, schräg klingendem Techno, Noise, ultra-stoned Ambient, improvisiertem Dub und Electro. Das musikalische Spektrum verbindet Berlins queere Hardcore-, Techno- und Hausbesetzer-Party-Szenen, aus denen AeoX und Rouage selbst hervorgingen und zieht dabei eine direkte Linie zwischen dem Berghain- Vorgängerclub OstGut (ein wichtiger Treffpunkt für die Darsteller und Crew des Films) und den eher Industrial-, Breakcore- und Noise-orientierten Independent-Partykollektiven und -Locations wie Grüne Hölle und Stellwerk, welche mehrfach als Drehort und Kulisse des Films auftauchen.

CNM / Rouage (Kathinka): 1975 geboren nd aufgewachsen in Ost- Berlin. Co-Organisation subkultureller Events seit 1998 in Berlin, Potsdam, Leipzig und Barcelona. Experimentelle Musik, Kollaborationen, Ausstellungen und audiovisuelle Shows seit 2000.

AeoX: Aktiv zwischen 2001 und 2007. Ursprünglich ein Quartett, dann ein Trio, dann verkleinerte sich die Gruppe auf zwei permanente Mitglieder: Alex.E und Hanno Hinkelbein. Letzterer gründete Null Records, auf dem AeoX zwei Alben und zahlreiche EPs veröffentlichte. Ebenfalls Veröffentlichungen auf Mental.Ind.Records, welches von der ehemaligen OstGut resident Cora S. gegründet wurde. Musikalisch kombiniert die Gruppe improvisierten Hardware- Techno mit Breaks, traditionellen Instrumenten (Gitarre, Klarinette, Klavier), Industrial und Metal.