quête:ax
Manchester’s sferic label return with a debut from ungoogleable Greco-Canadian anomaly Anastasia Patellis, aka Any, featuring additional instrumentation and co-production from Klein/Lolina cohort LA Timpa. It's a set of "squat pop" experiments that thread nocturnal soundscaping and pop hooks through hallucinated outlines written on harp and broken synth.
Greco-Canadian artist Any was bedding down in a Cretan squat when the album's title, μέγα ελεός in Greek, boomed from loudspeakers next to a bonfire, courtesy of a midnight Orthodox church sermon. Moving to the sunny, ancient island had provided her with an escape from big city burnout, but she ended staying far longer than expected - years rather than months. It’s this prolonged sense of suspension that provides the album with its wandering spirit, using harp as an emotional core.
Listening to Breton music made on the Celtic harp from artists like Kristen Noguès and Alan Stivell, Any sketched out song outlines that were then tweaked by Lagos-born, Toronto-raised journeyman LA Timpa, who flew out to Crete last summer to put his idiosyncratic stamp on the record. Like the dusty songs on Astrid Sonne's 'Great Doubt, ‘MEGA MERCY' sounds as if its drum line was duped on dictaphone from an old beat tape, then spliced with field recordings and vocals.
Half sung, half spoken, she murmurs around the beat, not exactly over it, adding circuitous, boss-tuned harp twangs when necessary. It's music that's spartan rather than lo-fi; a sort of bare-bones reaction to electroacoustic experimentation and outsider folk. It makes perfect sense that an artist as thematically on-point as LA Timpa is involved - Any's instrumental vamps are roughly pasted around pinprick boom-bap snaps and crunchy foley denouements, eventually cooled into contemplative Nala Sinephro-esque meditations.
Sections bring to mind Tirzah's most psychedelic early excursions, with dry asides set against a slurping, off-axis beatbox loop and distant, barely-audible synths. The record is tied up on 'WEATHER LIKE TIDE', an instrumental callback to the opener, book-ending the album with a melancholy, humid kinda ambient folk, purposefully melting the timeline.
- A1: Proud Sorrow
- A2: A Hope
- A3: The Death Of Juan Diaz
- A4: The Truth
- B1: In The Wilderness
- B2: Worthless Pleasures
- B3: Returning Home
- B4: Song Of The Pirate
Dig deep in to the released output of famed producer David Axelrod and you’ll discover this gem, Pride. The single self-titled release is the pairing of Axelrod with his son Michael. The father-son duo deliver psychedelic pop with what many may call a Baroque folk-rock twist. Issued in 1970, the project is somewhat in the realm of the output from groups such as Love or The Byrds – but indelibly David Axelrod through and through.
- Diabolical Influence
- Death Lurks At Every Turn
- The Witchfinder Comes
- Be My Witch
- Annihilation
- Theme From Cyclops
- Lord Of The Flies
- Aradia
- Sacrifice
Purple vinyl, limited to 150 copies. Born from the murky industrial depths of Birmingham, UK, Margarita Witch Cult's self-titled debut studio album is a tour-de-force in classic metal, hard rock, doom, and mind-melting psych. A thunderous drum fill propels you into opener 'Diabolical Influence'- a lurching behemoth of a tune that makes easy bedfellows of crushing stoner riffs, Latin incantations, and a simply humongous chorus. The pace quickens with the frantic 'Death Lurks at Every Turn'- a hair-raising thrasher of breakneck snare rolls and unruly guitar solos. 'The Witchfinder Comes' only furthers the sense of foreboding, as tales of torture and pleas for exile fall on the ever-deafening ears of the listener. 'Be My Witch' comes in hot and heavy as a grungy ode to the forbidden, and the blistering 'Annihilation' concludes side A with speed-freak ferocity. The more adventurous and immersive side B is kick-started with 'Theme From Cyclops' - the deft chops of all 3 members being undeniable as we gallop into the ambitious, face-melting journey that is 'Lord Of The Flies'-a belting doom groover that culminates in a classic guitar & bass dual to rival even the most virtuosic of axe-wielders. As we near the end of our perilous sonic expedition, 'Aradia' serves up an instrumental serving of pure downtuned filth, with sleazy swagger and tasteful shredding that give extra provenance to its author's deep bag of tricks. The killer blow comes in the shape of the simply savage 'Sacrifice'- an unholy exhibition of undeniable force. The duality of the track makes for an experience that leaves our sweet listener reeling- the bludgeoning weight of its monstrous main-riff giving way to razor-sharp verses and a tripped-out, mind-bending psych jam- only to come crashing back to crushing reality as the final, fatal notes ring out. With their debut LP, Margarita Witch Cult have crafted a timeless, merciless beast- one that will chew you up and spit you out, yet somehow keep you crawling back for more.
Primera referencia en formato 2 x 12" del sello Español X Erie.
Con artistas referentes del techno internacional como Steve Redhead, Eric Sneo, Axel Karakasis, Gary Beck, Filterheadz, Oscar Escapa y el comandante del sello
Horacio Cruz.
Una edición muy cuidada, con portada especial, llena de sonidos enérgicos que nos transportan a la época dorada del techno más pistero.
Incluye una remezcla del track "Despiertos" a cargo de Gary Beck y cerrando en la D1, una pista con ritmos rotos y melodías profundas a cargo de Horacio Cruz.
Un doble vinilo imprescindible para djs y coleccionistas del género.
How would you like to hear it? This project is the brainchild of Andy Baxter, a multi-talented musician and multi-instrumentalist from London. His recording career began in 2018 when he released his first album, Green, on Village Live.
Buoyed by this initial recognition by his peers, he quickly released a second self-produced opus the following year, entitled Dusk. But it was his third LP, Shapes, released by KingUnderground, that took him to the next level.
Conceived during the first period of confinement, Andy played almost every instrument on the album (a few musicians joined in here and there): drums first and foremost, his instrument of choice, but also bass, guitar, keyboards and even the flute, which he had just learnt at the time of the album's creation. Largely inspired by the library music of the 70s, including some of his mentors such as Piero Umilani, David Axelrod and Brian Bennett, the album is nonetheless resolutely modern. But there's no denying the cinematic atmosphere that emanates from his compositions.
From the opening track "We're From Nowhere", with its heavy, funky bass, you get the impression of being plunged into the Harlem blaxploitation of the heyday, and you can't help but see a musical nod to Roy Ayers' "We live in Brooklyn, baby". But you soon realise that far from being a nostalgic musician, Baxter also listens to his contemporaries like Khruangbin and BadBadNotGood, as can be heard on tracks like 'Leaves', 'Odysea' and 'Ikigai', with their atmospheric guitars and Fransesca Uberti's haunting backing vocals, which instantly invite you to travel and escape! But there are times when the mood gets a little tense, like on the more angst-ridden 'Villains', with its almost free jazz flights of fancy. Finally, his drumming also comes to the fore on the last track, 'Stay Free', with its Afrobeat rhythm reminiscent of a certain Tony Allen and evoking creative freedom as a common thread running through his values.
In nine tracks, Shapes takes us on a neo jazz journey that once again demonstrates the vitality of the English scene in this field for several years now! At the start of 2022, Robohands released their latest album, Violet, on the same label, confirming all the good things we thought about them! By allowing a number of musicians to join him on this new opus, Andy Baxter has shown a willingness to work with more accomplished collaborators.
Since first forming in 2016, London's High Vis have steadily polished their palette of progressive hardcore with shades of post-punk, Brit pop, neo-psychedelia, and even Madchester groove, mapping a middle ground between hooks and fury, melodies and mosh pits. Singer Graham Sayle describes their third album 'Guided Tour' as an axis of competing forces: "It's trying to be a hopeful record, while also being incensed." Rounded out by drummer Edward 'Ski' Harper, guitarists Martin MacNamara and Rob Hammaren, and bassist Jack Muncaster, the band's deep roots in the UK and Irish DIY hardcore scenes have kept them grounded but growing, inspired equally by restlessness and righteous anger. As Sayle puts it, "Everyone's scratching, everyone's working all the time, and their idea of relaxing is just getting fucked and avoiding reality. This album is an escape from that."From its opening seconds of a cab door slamming, a car revving away, and a baggy rhythm swinging to life, 'Guided Tour' sounds like a band reaching for new heights, bristling with energy. Recorded across a few weeks at Holy Mountain Studios in London with producer Jonah Falco and engineer Stanley Gravett, the results feel dynamic and dialed-in, like anthems burned into sense memory through sweat and repetition. Harper cuts to the chase: "We had a clear idea going in, every moment got used. Maybe when we're 60 we can sit around and get a drum sound right, but for now it's about getting things done."The album's 11 songs span the spectrum of contemporary guitar music, sharpened by experience, camaraderie, and societal frustrations. From swaggering street punk ("Drop Me Out," "Mob DLA") to jangling indie sneer ("Worth The Wait," "Deserve It") to heavy alt ("Feeling Bless," "Fill The Gap") to shoegazey spoken word ("Untethered"), the group's chemistry transmutes any style to their unique intensity. Sayle champions this evolving fusion: "For years coming from hardcore, we had pretty clear boundaries - other scenes were separate worlds. Now things are getting more blended, drawing from different places."Nowhere is this sentiment flexed more boldly than on "Mind's A Lie," a dance- punk anthem inspired by Harper's love of house, garage, and pirate radio. Stabs of sampled female vocals (by celebrated South London singer and DJ Ell Murphy) build into a razor wire rhythm of low-slung bass, tense drums, and sparkling guitar before Sayle's staunch voice starts barking harsh truths ("Face to face with all I've known / I can't call these thoughts my own"). After a sudden breakdown, the track regroups and takes off, cruising into the horizon in a haze of chiming guitars and Murphy's ascendant voice, from the streets to somewhere beyond.
Civilistjävel! x Mayssa Jallad’s ‘Marjaa: The Battle of the Hotels (Versions)’ is a radical response to Mayssa Jallad’s 2023 original LP, a lyrical account of epochal events in Beirut at the dawn of Lebanon's civil war. ‘…(Versions)’ sees Civilistjävel! (aka Swedish producer Tomas Bodén) apply a stripped, dub methodology to Mayssa's rich stems, refracting the Arabic source through the hazy prism of Northern European electronica. Retaining ‘Marjaa…’s deep spatial framing and vaporous, shifting nature, traces are lifted and set down in a new landscape: a ghost of a ghost. Informed by Tomas' singular strand of ambient, minimalist, dub techno, ‘… (Versions)’ recalls the reductive, shimmering pulse of pioneering Berlin-based practitioners Basic Channel/Chain Reaction, but with the parameters stretched into the ether. Where versions typically focus on a rhythm, here the anchor is the tone and texture of Mayssa’s voice, around which a new world has been constructed. Disembodied and liminal, it conjures an eerie panorama that feels like a postscript to the original, further emphasizing the geopolitical events that have had such devastating effect in Mayssa’s homeland of Lebanon since that record’s release. ‘Marjaa…’ (tr. ‘reference’) combined Mayssa Jallad’s two main vocations: music and urban research/architectural history. The album was co-written with Fadi Tabbal and based on Mayssa's Historic Preservation master's thesis (‘Beirut’s Civil War Hotel District: Preserving the World’s First High-Rise Urban Battlefield’). The thesis examined a 5-month conflict that took place within Beirut's skyscraper-laden luxury hotel district of Minet El Husn near the start of the Lebanese Civil War. Addressing a post-war generation who have never been taught this difficult history, ‘Marjaa…’ was an attempt to process trauma, and “a call to protest for the renewal, rather than the recycling of the political class that once destroyed the country and holds us, to this day, hostage of its violence.” Often perceived as a mysterious, shadowy presence, Civilistjävel! has come increasingly to the fore in recent years through a consistently dazzling stream of records, released both anonymously and via Fergus Jones’ FELT imprint, often appearing with scant information and tracks for the most part untitled. Having featured tracks from ‘Marjaa…’ on mixes, and included the album in his picks of 2023, in early 2024 Tomas asked Mayssa to provide vocals for a track on his album ‘Brödföda’. Mayssa remembers, “Tomas asked me to choose one of the tracks he was working on. I was in Boston at the time, so I took a walk and chose a track. I wrote the lyrics at the public park, wondering if I was the only one around that was losing sleep over the genocide in Palestine and the war in South Lebanon. I went back to the apartment and recorded the vocals on my phone, while listening to the track on headphones. Tomas reworked it with the voice and sent it back. I liked it immediately.” Despite the geographical distance from Beirut to Uppsala, Sweden, where Tomas resides, Mayssa’s contribution sounds very much at home in Civilistjävel!’s atmospheric, contemplative sound-world. Tomas’ request was reciprocated by Mayssa soon after, resulting in the spectral, glassy ambience of ‘Etel, Kharita (Version)’. This was followed by an invitation to work on more tracks, which Tomas immediately embraced, intensively jamming out versions live to two-track tape in downtime between travelling. If not entirely dissimilar to his regular working practice, the immediacy of it was unusual. Much was improvised live with just a keyboard (not tethered to a grid), and a restricted set-up that largely forbade later edits - only the rhythm tracks are programmed. A sharp conceptual thinker and composer, Tomas takes creative liberties with Mayssa’s songs in a way that is deeply felt and sympathetically aligned, whilst unashamedly outside of the original context of the record. The voice is leaned into as an instrument, without the clear, specific details of language, and this axis provides an uncertain, amorphous footing - structure is often suggested or hinted at, before disappearing or collapsing into fog, and folding back into the message within the song. A somewhat unprecedented source for an album of versions, even those familiar with ‘Marjaa: The Battle of the Hotels’ may at points struggle to hear the songs these versions are rebuilt from, despite the vocal narratives remaining virtually intact. The light has shifted; eroded buildings are foregrounded; fragments of memories appear in chiaroscuro. Signs and signifiers have been replaced. Shorn of the original's warm guitar, ‘Baynana (Version)’ feels like an ominous visitation, the sun no longer visible. ‘Holiday Inn (March 21 to 29) (Version)’ is a molten, clattering invocation. The beat-less tracks nod towards the cold, otherworldly sound-scaping of late '90s isolationism. More propulsive and embodied, ‘Holiday Inn (January to March) (Version)’ and ‘Kharita (Dub)’ are strobing, iridescent techno - lithe, shifting and mutating with almost implausible finesse. A stunning addition to Civilistjävel!’s growing catalogue, ‘…(Versions)’ is a luminous counterpoint to ‘Marjaa…’, and a welcome reminder of how incredible that record remains.
-Combo Chimbita formed in 2016 as a loose combination of friends and bandmates, many of whom had played together in other groups, all of whom were products of the Colombian diaspora who ended up as first generation New Yorkers making their way in the city's fertile music scene
-Dímelo marks the group's first release on Wonderwheel Recordings and in many ways marks a return to the band's roots, as well as a hint of what's to come
-The track was recorded in late 2023 alongside their last single "Margarita" with Victor Axelrod aka Ticklah (Antibalas, Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings)
-Busy Twist is one of the leading artists of the new global dance underground with his sophisticated fusion of Afro, Latin and UK bass
-Busy Twist has worked with artists like Bomba Estereo, Alewya, Kevin Flores to name a few, and released music on labels like Soundway, Sony Colombia, Because London, and Jamz Supernova's Future Bounce
-They have released music on iconic and cult-favorite labels such as Anti- Records, Names You Can Trust and Figure & Ground
- A1: Ready To Rock; Written-By – Barden*, Schenker*
- A2: Attack Of The Mad Axeman; Written-By – Barden*, Schenker*
- A3: On And On; Written-By – Barden*, Schenker*
- A4: Let Sleeping Dogs Lie; Written-By – Glen*, Powell*, Barden*, Schenker*, Raymond*
- B1: But I Want More; Written-By – Barden*, Schenker*
- B2: Never Trust A Stranger; Written-By – Raymond*
- B3: Looking For Love; Written-By – Barden*, Schenker*
- B4: Secondary Motion; Written-By – Barden*, Schenker*
- C1: Never Trust A Stranger (Monitor Mix)
- C2: Let Sleeping Dogs Lie (Rough Monitor Mix)
- C3: Attack Of The Mad Axeman (Alt. Version-Monitor Mix)
- C4: On And On (Rough Monitor Mix)
- D1: Looking For Love (Monitor Mix)
- D2: But I Want More (Rough Monitor Mix)
- D3: Never Say Die (Live Rehearsal Take)
- D4: Never Trust A Stranger (Piano Demo)
- A1: Return The Curse
- A2: Saviour Destroyer
- A3: Worm Vision
- B1: They Have Bodies
- B2: On A Hill
- B3: Inside The Horror Mask
With this, their fourth album Black Helium find themselves widening the parameters of their take on heavy psychedelic rock, with probably their most baked and hook-laden material to date.
From the no-safety-net freak out of ‘Return the Curse’, to the sawtooth groove of ‘Up on a Hill’, ‘The Animals Are Coming’ LP is Black Helium at their most exploratory and focused.
Recorded one sun-drenched week in late June 2024, this time at Axe and Trap Studios with Ben Turner (Hey Colossus, Part Chimp). ‘The Animals Are Coming’ is the band sweating it out in a room, fueled by “party foods “and vintage amps. Digging deeper towards the source, no matter how transcendent, no matter how dark.
Black Helium are a psychedelic power trio, based in London. Never afraid to stray from the beaten path, they traverse aural hallucinatory soundscapes; from detuned Neanderthal rock to deep oceans of introspective blissed out psychedelia.
The band consistently gig across the UK (including a two week tour with Japanese label mates Hibushibire late 2024), and have recently started ventures into mainland Europe. And plan to continue throughout 2025.
- 1: Confronting Silence
- 2: The Axiom Of Equality
- 3: Weaving Loom
- 4: Koyasan
- 5: Beginners Guide To Simplicity
- 6: Nemesis
- 7: Nonduality
- 8: Ephemeral
- 9: Pentagonal Garden
- 10: Arc For Drums
- 11: Ishi
- 12: Kmj
Jetzt auch auf Vinyl: Musikalische Mitteilungen aus Oslo, New York, Basel und Lugano – aufgenommen zwischen 2018 und 2022 – werden auf dieser fesselnden Aufnahme, auf der der norwegische Schlagzeuger Thomas Strønen solo und in einer Reihe von Duetten zu hören ist, einander gegenübergestellt und neu kombiniert. Mit unterschiedlichsten Partnern wie Craig Taborn, Chris Potter, Sinikka Langeland und Jorge Rossy ist der musikalische Bezugsrahmen breit gefächert. Elemente von Langelands archaisch anmutendem Folk bis hin zu Potters Post-Coltrane-Saxophon und Taborns wirbelndem modernistischem Klavier finden alle ihren Platz in einem Projekt, das neue Verbindungen und kreative Beziehungen impliziert. Das Album wurde im Februar 2023 von Strønen und dem Produzenten Manfred Eicher in den Bavaria Musikstudios in München fertiggestellt und gemischt.
Swollen Members rose in the underground Hip Hop scene with a series of classic albums that made them one of the genre's brightest stars. Founded by Madchild, Prevail, and DJ Rob the Viking, Swollen Members have stayed independent under their own label Battle Axe Records. The have returned in 2009 stronger than ever with Armed to the Teeth, which features appearances from Talib Kweli and Tech N9NE.
- A3: お花畑にて = In The Flower Garden; Written-By
- A5: 対クッパ戦 = Battling Bowser; Written-By
- A7: Super Pipe House = Super Mario House; Written-By
- B7: ごきげんスター = Irrepressible Star; Written-By
- C5: ねぇねぇジーノごっこしようよ = Play "Save The World" With Me!; Written-By
- D1: 土管からコンニチハ = Greetings From The Pipes; Written-By
- E1: Long Long Ago… = Long, Long Ago...; Written-By
- E2: ちょっとドキドキ = A Little Anxious; Written-By
- F2: 対 クリスタラー戦 = Battling Culex; Written-By
- F3: クリスタラー戦での勝利 = Victory Over Culex; Written-By
- F4: クリスタラーの会話 = Conversation With Culex; Written-By
- G5: オノレンジャー参上 = The Axem Rangers Bust In; Written-By
- G6: クッパ城(其ノ弐) = Bowser's Keep (Second Visit); Written-By
- H5: お・し・ま・い・! = The End!; Written-By
- A1: 楽しい冒険 愉快な冒険 = Fun Adventure, Cheerful Adventure
- A2: Let's Try = Let's Try!; Written-By
- A4: クッパ城(其ノ壱) = Bowser's Keep (First Visit)
- A6: 剣は降り星は散る = The Sword That Scattered The Stars
- A8: どこに行きますか? = Where To?
- A9: 道中は危険がいっぱい = Danger Abounds On The Journey; Kinopio Side
- B1: 対モンスター戦 = Battling Monsters
- B2: 勝利!! = Victory!
- B3: Hello, Happy Kingdom
- B4: 説明しますっ! = Let Me Explain!
- B5: 新しい仲間 = A New Friend
- B6: まだまだ道中は危険がいっぱい = Danger Aplenty On The Journey
- B8: 対 ちょっぴり強いモンスター戦 = Battling Strongish Monsters
- B9: 武器たちがやってきた! = The Weapons Show Up
- B10: 対 武器ボス戦 = Battling A Weapon Boss
- B11: スターピース入手 = Got A Star Piece!
- B12: ダンジョンはモンスターがいっぱい = Monsters Abound In The Dungeon; Mallow Side
- C1: ワイン川を行こう = Let's Take The Midas River
- C2: おじいちゃんと愉快なオタマ達 = Grandpa And The Upbeat Tadpoles
- C3: ショック! = Shock!
- C4: かなしいうた = Elegy
- C6: ジーノの目覚め = Geno's Awakening
- C7: 森のキノコにご用心 = Beware Of The Forest Mushrooms
- C8: Rose Town; Kaeru Sennin Side
- D2: Welcome! Yo'ster Island!! = Welcome To Yo'ster Isle!
- D3: かけっこしようよ = Let's Race
- D4: 働きモグラは良いモグラ = A Working Mole Is A Happy Mole
- D5: Docaty Mountain Railroad = Moleville Mountain Rail
- D6: ここはブッキータワーでございます = This Is Booster Tower
- D7: そしてわたしの名はブッキー = And That Makes Me Booster!; Geno Side
- E3: 坂道 = The Hill
- E4: メリー・マリーの鐘が鳴る = The Bell Rings Out At Marrymore
- E5: 祝いのメロディ = Melody Of Celebration
- E6: 星の光の花咲く丘で = Where Flowers Bloom Under Starlight
- E7: 沈没船 = The Sunken Ship
- E8: お買い物ならリップルタウンへどうぞ = Shopping At Seaside Town; Peach Side
- F1: 僕らの楽園~モンスタウン~ = Monstro Town, Our Paradise
- F5: 貴方と作るキノコフスキー名曲の時間 = A Masterpiece Composed With Toadofsky; Koopa Side
- G1: フカフカしましょ! = Let's Get Fluffy!
- G2: マルガリ・マルガリータ = Valen-Valentina
- G3: ドドが来たっ!! = Dodo Has Arrived!
- G4: バーレル火山 = Barrel Volcano
- G7: 武器工場 = The Factory; Yoshi Side
- H1: 対 カジオー戦 = Battling Smithy
- H2: 対 変身好きのカジオー戦 = Battling Smithy's Many Forms
- H3: さよならジーノ…~星の窓から見る夢は = Farewell, Geno... / The Wishes From The Stars
- H4: 楽しいパレード 愉快なパレード~そしてパレードは行ってしまった… = Fun Parade, Cheerful Parade / There Goes The Parade
b A2 Let's Try = Let's Try!; Written-By [Original Score Written By] – Koji Kondo
[c] A3 お花畑にて = In The Flower Garden; Written-By [Original Score Written By] – Koji Kondo
[e] A5 対クッパ戦 = Battling Bowser; Written-By [Original Score Written By] – Koji Kondo
[g] A7 Super Pipe House = Super Mario House; Written-By [Original Score Written By] – Koji Kondo
[p] B7 ごきげんスター = Irrepressible Star; Written-By [Original Score Written By] – Koji Kondo
[z] C5 ねぇねぇジーノごっこしようよ = Play "Save The World" With Me!; Written-By [Original Score Written By] – Koji Kondo
[xd] D1 土管からコンニチハ = Greetings From The Pipes; Written-By [Original Score Written By] – Koji Kondo
[xk] E1 Long Long Ago… = Long, Long Ago...; Written-By [Original Score Written By] – Koji Kondo
[xl] E2 ちょっとドキドキ = A Little Anxious; Written-By [Original Score Written By] – Koji Kondo
[xt] F2 対 クリスタラー戦 = Battling Culex; Written-By [Original Score Written By] – Nobuo Uematsu
[xu] F3 クリスタラー戦での勝利 = Victory Over Culex; Written-By [Original Score Written By] – Nobuo Uematsu
[xv] F4 クリスタラーの会話 = Conversation With Culex; Written-By [Original Score Written By] – Nobuo Uematsu
[yb] G5 オノレンジャー参上 = The Axem Rangers Bust In; Written-By [Original Score Written By] – Koji Kondo
[yc] G6 クッパ城(其ノ弐) = Bowser's Keep (Second Visit); Written-By [Original Score Written By] – Koji Kondo
[yi] H5 お・し・ま・い・! = The End!; Written-By [Original Score Written By] – Koji Kondo
[b] A2 Let's Try = Let's Try!; Written-By [Original Score Written By] – Koji Kondo
[c] A3 お花畑にて = In The Flower Garden; Written-By [Original Score Written By] – Koji Kondo
[e] A5 対クッパ戦 = Battling Bowser; Written-By [Original Score Written By] – Koji Kondo
[g] A7 Super Pipe House = Super Mario House; Written-By [Original Score Written By] – Koji Kondo
[p] B7 ごきげんスター = Irrepressible Star; Written-By [Original Score Written By] – Koji Kondo
[z] C5 ねぇねぇジーノごっこしようよ = Play "Save The World" With Me!; Written-By [Original Score Written By] – Koji Kondo
[xd] D1 土管からコンニチハ = Greetings From The Pipes; Written-By [Original Score Written By] – Koji Kondo
[xk] E1 Long Long Ago… = Long, Long Ago...; Written-By [Original Score Written By] – Koji Kondo
[xl] E2 ちょっとドキドキ = A Little Anxious; Written-By [Original Score Written By] – Koji Kondo
[xt] F2 対 クリスタラー戦 = Battling Culex; Written-By [Original Score Written By] – Nobuo Uematsu
[xu] F3 クリスタラー戦での勝利 = Victory Over Culex; Written-By [Original Score Written By] – Nobuo Uematsu
[xv] F4 クリスタラーの会話 = Conversation With Culex; Written-By [Original Score Written By] – Nobuo Uematsu
[yb] G5 オノレンジャー参上 = The Axem Rangers Bust In; Written-By [Original Score Written By] – Koji Kondo
[yc] G6 クッパ城(其ノ弐) = Bowser's Keep (Second Visit); Written-By [Original Score Written By] – Koji Kondo
[yi] H5 お・し・ま・い・! = The End!; Written-By [Original Score Written By] – Koji Kondo
- A1: The Sundering
- A2: The Frost-Giant's Daughter
- A3: How Heavy This Axe
- A4: Lords
- A5: Fire Lances Of The Ancient Hyperzephyrians
- A6: To Take The Black
- B1: Maiden, Mother & Crone
- B2: Under The Boughs
- B3: The Black River
- B4: The White Sea
- B5: Untitled
- A1: Di-Da (Sahib Shihab) 5’10
- A2: Dance Of The Fakowees (Sahib Shihab) 4’14
- A3: Not Yet (Sahib Shihab) 3’25
- A4: Tenth Lament (Sahib Shihab) 6’20
- B1: Mai Ding (Sahib Shihab) 4’50
- B2: Harvey’s Tune (Sahib Shihab) 3’07
- B3: No Time For Cries (Sahib Shihab) 3’52
- B4: The Crosseyed Cat (Sahib Shihab) 3’34
- B5: Little French Girl (Sahib Shihab) 2’35”
Recorded August, 1965, Copenhagen, Denmark.
Original LP issue: OKTAV – OKLP 111
Sahib Shihab (Edmund Gregory) played with many of jazz’s finest musicians. Shortly after he became one of the first jazz players to change their names due to an Islamic conversion, he joined Thelonious Monk for his Blue Note sessions. He also played with Art Blakey, Dizzy Gillespie, Oscar Pettiforn and Quincy Jones. A unique musician, he was at home in every musical style, from the experimentalism of Thelonious Monk to the more direct hard bop of Art Blakey. Sahib Shihab’s distinctive sound was rooted in his modernist compositions and arrangements, complemented by an intense, soulful playing style.
In 1959 he toured Europe with Quincy Jones after getting fed up with racial politics in USA and ultimately settled in Scandinavia. He worked for Copenhagen Polytechnic and wrote scores for television, cinema and theatre. He remained there until 1973. During this period, he recorded several albums as leader for European labels such as Vogue, Storyville and Futura.
In 1961 he joined The Kenny Clarke-Francy Boland Big Band and remained a key figure in the band for the 12 years it ran. He married a Danish lady and raised a family in Europe, although he remained a conscious African-American still sensitive to racial issues.
This record, on the Danish Oktav label, his second as a leader and also his rarest is a true masterpiece !!!
Personnel :
Sahib Shihab (Baritone saxophone, Flute, Cowbell)
Poul Hindberg (Alto saxophone, Clarinet)
Ib Renard (Baritone saxophone)
Bent Nielsen (Baritone saxophone, Flute, Clarinet)
Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen (NHOP) (Bass)
Alex Riel (Drums)
Allan Botschinsky (Trumpet)
Fritz von Bülow (Guitar)
Bent Axen (Piano)
Bent Jædig (Tenor saxophone, Flute)
Niels Husum (Tenor saxophone)
Svend Åge Nielsen (Trombone, Bass trombone)
Torolf Mølgaard (Trombone, Euphonium)
Palle Bolvig (Trumpet)
Palle Mikkelborg (Trumpet)
Poul Kjældgård (Tuba)
Louis Hjulmand (Vibraphone)
- 1: Ten Degrees Of Strange
- 2: Nether
- 3: The World To Come
- 4: Flood In The Desert
- 5: Tree Rings
- 6: Gods And Monsters
- 7: Enkidu Walked
- 8: Bonedigger
- 9: I Can’t Swim There
- 10: Home And Dry
- 11: Ferryman
Johnny and Robert began work on the album in the first weeks of the pandemic, wanting to make music that sang of those dangerous, disorienting spring days; when birdsong was brighter –– and the sense of bewilderment more powerful –– than any of us had known before. They drew inspiration in part from The Epic of Gilgamesh, the oldest surviving work of world literature; an epic poem from Ancient Mesopotamia that contains the earliest version of the Flood Myth. To Johnny and Robert, Gilgamesh resonated eerily with the present moment –– and it catalysed their song-writing. For Gilgamesh is a story of friendship, love, loss, grief, bad governance and good dreaming; of natural disaster and environmental crisis. It also contains the first recorded act of human destruction of the natural world: when Gilgamesh and Enkidu travel to the Sacred Cedar Wood, slay the guardian spirit of the forest, and cut down the trees with their axes, thereby bringing catastrophe upon themselves. Johnny and Robert wrote the album between March 2020 and February 2021, during a year in which we all wandered unsure of our path, lost in the cedar wood. The songs were composed in large part as a correspondence, through a back-and-forth of notebook pages, voice-recordings and WhatsApp-messages, at a time when lockdowns made meeting in person impossible. The first eight songs were recorded in an off-grid cottage deep in a Hampshire forest, with the sounds of chainsaws felling trees drifting in through the windows along with the birdsong. The result is an album at once urgent and ancient, which fuses poetry, landscape, myth and music into something unique. These are songs that ring with hope, love and sadness –– and one need not know anything about The Epic of Gilgamesh to be touched by them.




















