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Can you believe it? Devendra Banhart's Cripple Crow - originally released by XL in 2005 - is turning 20 years old. This was the 5th album from the Venezuelan American artist who is considered the pioneer of the "Freak Folk" and "New Weird America" movements. To celebrate - Devendra has compiled a reissue of the out of print release that features a 3rd Bonus LP (on Clear Green Smoke Vinyl) featuring 9 bonus tracks, including 1 B-Side, 5 previously unreleased demos, 2 previously unreleased live tracks, and 1 unearthed smash hit from the recording sessions. This release is the first on his newly created Heavy Flowers label. The album received a "Best New Music" 8.4 review from Pitchfork upon its release. The release date will fall 1 day prior to the actual 20th Anniversary, which will be the first time Devendra is early for anything. Now THAT is something to celebrate! Limited to 2000 units on 3xLP with Bonus LP on Clear Green Smoke Vinyl. 36 tracks of music and 1 track of .... well... you decide! "Cripple Crow is undoubtedly impressive, vastly singular but entirely accessible, and an inspired listening experience where Banhart again proves himself as one of the more talented and charismatic forces in modern music." - Pitchfork

The year is 1989 and it's the peak of the Belgium New Beat craze. Not limited to records and clubs, the New Beat lifestyle was marketed to death with all sorts of fashion items, a plethora of accessories, and at least one erotic movie.

Fast forward a few decades. In the middle of nowhere, Switzerland, tucked inside a long-forgotten video store that closed its doors in 1999 and sat untouched for 20 years, we stumbled upon a strange treasure amongst tons of VHS hidden in the adult section. A mysterious VHS labeled "Erotiques New Beat."

What we found was pure 1989 Belgian erotica-low budget, fog-drenched, and neon-soaked. Minimalist sets. Girls in PVC. Flashing lights. Mirrors. Fog machines. Loud colors. It was erotic, sure-but also oddly sweet, almost innocent in its surreal, lo-fi dreaminess.

And then came the soundtrack.

That's what really floored us. A collection of New Beat gems, raw, simple, irresistible. Somehow, it captured the full spectrum of the genre: 100-110 bpm grooves with shades of EBM, sleazy coldwave rhythms, sensual synths, proto-Goa pulses, monk choirs, oriental melodies, and a healthy dose of movie samples. It felt alive. Timeless. Utterly perfect.

We had to know more. We dug, tracked down the source, and in 2020, reissued the soundtrack on vinyl. It sold out fast. Now, five years later, we thought about pressing one final batch. A special edition on picture disc, featuring the original smileys from the VHS.

Habibi Funk is more than happy to announce our 31st release which happens to be our 3rd various artists compilation. The album is dedicated to the cassette tape scene in Libya from the late 80s to early 2000s, from disco to reggae to pop. All songs previously unreleased outside of Libya and not available on any DSP platforms.

This compilation isn’t a sweeping history of Libyan music — it’s a personal journey into the sounds we fell in love with while digging through tapes, conversations, and stories across Libya and beyond. Rather than spotlighting the country’s most famous musical exports, the compilation brings forward a mix of overlooked gems and local classics of the cassette era: artists whose work thrived despite political limitations, and scarce international exposure. The music featured here blends reggae rhythms, synthy disco grooves, gritty pop, house, and funk, a vibrant collision of genres that reflects Libya’s unique sonic landscape from the 1980s to the early 2000s. Many of these recordings were recovered from the TK7 cassette factory in Sousse, Tunisia, a now-demolished site that once played a quiet but vital role in distributing and manufacturing Libyan music. Other tracks were digitised in a Cairo hotel room in 2021, where we transferred nearly 100 tapes over the course of three days, on-site using a high-grade cassette deck brought into Egypt with us. From that trove emerged artists like Ahmed Ben Ali, Cheb Bakr, and Najib Alhoush & The Free Music, who have already featured on our earlier releases. Their sounds sit alongside contributions from this release from the likes of Khaled Al Melody, Fathi Aldiyqz & Sons of Africa Band, City Lights Band, Libya Music Band, and Group Hewaya. During this era, Independent artists relied on makeshift home studios or travelled abroad to record in Tunisia and Egypt, gradually building their own infrastructures for creativity. By the 90s and early 2000s, as access to digital equipment increased, a few of the artists began setting up their own studios — a shift that gave rise to a more self-sufficient recording culture across the country. The resulting sounds are anything but homogeneous. They reflect Libya’s geographic and cultural crossroads: North African rhythms meet Arab melodies and deep African roots. Reggae, in particular, took on a local Libyan flavour — not just musically, through the slowed-down cadence of traditional shaabi beats, but socially, as a vehicle for expressing identity and pride. What ties all the artists on this comp together is a boundary- pushing approach to genre and style: recorded in small studios, exchanged by hand, and shaped by a cross-pollination of influences, from Benghazi to Tripoli and beyond. All tracks are licensed from their creators and in the case of the artists being deceased from their estates. All profits are being split 50:50 between us in the licensors and ownership remains with the creators, we only licensed the music.

Itchy-O is an experiential performance ensemble that has mesmerized audiences across the U.S. and beyond since 2009. The beating heart of this fifty-plus-strong performance troupe is a batterie of percussionists accompanied by an orchestral arsenal of avant-instrumentation. Weaving a synergistic spell, the ensemble dismantles assumptions of traditional performance models to break down the barriers between audience and performer, administering a bombast of ceremonial chaos; baptizing the audience—body, mind, and collective spirit—in an elaborate, pan-sensorial ocean of music, mystery, and transcendental spectacle.
Itchy-O has shared the stage with legends such as David Byrne & St. Vincent, while luminaries like JG Thirwell and Dan Deacon have opened for the humbled brigade. Over the years, they have energized crowds as the opening act for a slew of iconic artists including DEVO, Beats Antique, and Wooden Wisdom (Elijah Wood). Their unforgettable private engagements include a legendary performance at Maynard Keenan’s Merkin Vineyards while delighting festival audiences at Riot Fest, Biennial of the Americas, the Underground Music Showcase, and Tasmania’s world-renowned Dark MOFO with enveloping processionals, pop-up performances, and staged spectacles.
In 2024, itchy-O debuted Söm Sâptâlahn, a sold-out collaboration with the Fiske Planetarium. Named for an epic set of custom-crafted gongs cast from six hundred pounds of reclaimed brass at the School of Mines and tuned to a bespoke seven-tone scale, this project birthed this latest double album. Accessible, mysterious, and meditative, it is a bold addition to the itchy-O catalogue, sure to appeal to connoisseurs of the experimental, the contemplative, and the avant-garde.

Emerging from their subterranean recording studio The House of Vibes, The Grip Weeds have delivered a tour-de-force with Soul Bender, their ninth full-length studio album and their first newly-recorded original tracks since 2019's Trip Around The Sun. This astonishing record finds the band pushing their recording, arranging and songwriting skills into new and evocative territory. On Soul Bender, The Grip Weeds continue to expand: Musical and sonic experimentation abounds, resulting in a record that is bigger and more dramatic than ever; melodically inventive, yet accessible with lyrical imagery and hooks firing at you from all directions. Most impressive of all is that The Grip Weeds are entirely self-contained: From production, engineering, mixing and artwork, Soul Bender represents a complete and total vision of intent. If you like the fearless bold intensity of rock from the classic era yet reimagined for the 21st Century, Soul Bender is for you. Heard on Sirius XM's The Underground Garage, The Beatles Channel and indie/commercial radio worldwide.

Following Stab Breaks and Crystal Blue Cuts, a chilling new theme emerges this time inspired by the legendary horror icon Chucky, the killer doll with razor-sharp punchlines. This record is a full on tribute to the story and voices of the film’s unforgettable characters. Side A delivers a loaded sound bank packed with eerie samples, while Side B features six skip-proof scratch tracks designed for seamless performance. Also included is a download card giving you digital access to the full record, plus four exclusive bonus beats available for free download.

Übercode Ouvre is the eagerly awaited album from Panzerballett, a unique jazz-metal quintet that fuses intricate metal riffs with jazz improvisation, humor, and high-level musicianship. The album pushes genre boundaries, featuring contributions from legendary drummers Virgil Donati, Marco Minnemann, Anika Nilles, Morgan Ågren, and others. It offers a thrilling listening experience for jazz fusion and progressive metal enthusiasts alike. Included are covers like "Bleed" from Meshuggah, "Alien Hip Hop" from Virgil Donati; re-imaginations of classical pieces like Beethoven's "Ode to Joy" and Vivaldi's "Summer"; as well as originals like "Seven Steps To Hell". They all showcase the band's blend of complex rhythms, virtuosic drumming, and unconventional arrangements. The album's diversity makes it stand out in the progressive metal and jazz scenes. Panzerballett, led by guitarist Jan Zehrfeld, has earned a cult following for their "Headbanging with Brain" approach to music, delivering not only technically advanced compositions but also humorous, organic reconstructions of well-known pieces. Their live performances are legendary for their energy and complexity, and Übercode Ouvre is poised to continue that legacy with tracks that balance intense technicality with an accessible groove. Übercode Ouvre is a musical journey and a perfect workout for developing brain-muscle connections with its meticulously constructed beats. If you want to experience one of the most innovative bands in progressive jazz and metal, having this album is a chance to own a piece of modern music history that challenges the boundaries of what metal can be and how jazz can speak to the heavy music world. Übercode Ouvre is the highly anticipated jazz-metal album by Panzerballett. A world-class line-up pushes genre boundaries more than ever. FFO The Aristocrats, Virgil Donati, Marco Minnemann, progressive metal etc, features legendary drummers Virgil Donati & Marco Minnemann

Mediocampo (1984), Jaime Roos's fifth album concludes an unintentional trilogy that began with Aquello (1981) and continued with Siempre son las cuatro (1982). It is the bright side of the series, a groundbreaking album that has become a classic, perhaps the most prestigious and well-known work of his discography. The album's sound, aligned with international trends of the 1980s, made Mediocampo the gateway to Jaime Roos's universe for a younger audience approaching music through rock. Its proposal was unique and deeply Uruguayan, yet it incorporated elements that resonated with a public accustomed to Anglo-Saxon pop. The albums Aquello and Siempre son las cuatro, despite being very different works, share a focus on the Beatles-inspired pop song structure, stylistic diversity, and a search for popular roots. Mediocampo, the conclusion of this song-driven trilogy, is as daring and experimental as its predecessors but with much more direct and accessible communication, achieving an almost perfect distillation of his artistic vision. Today, many of its songs are an essential part of Montevideo's cultural soundtrack.

The Ibex Band, with Giovanni Rico and Selam Woldemariam at the creative helm, provided the musical backbone for legends like Aster Aweke, Girma Beyene, Tilahun Gessesse, Mulatu Astatke, and Mahmoud Ahmed, including the iconic album Ere Mela Mela, shaping modern Ethiopian music as we know it today. This 1976 album (Ge’ez Year 1968) played a pivotal role in that legacy and has now resurfaced to set the record straight.

There’s a tendency to talk about the seventies as a golden age of Ethiopian music. There are good reasons for that, and just as good reasons against it. However, the notion of a golden past privileges the role of Western explorers and suggests that the pinnacle of Ethiopia’s musical culture is something only a foreigner can appreciate and unearth. It downplays the complexities of Ethiopia’s culture and history, creating an artificial divide between then and now. And it underestimates the constantly evolving sound that has followed.

The legendary musical outfit The Ibex Band, later metamorphosed into The Roha Band, has played a central role in defining the sound of many of the greatest stars on the music scene of Ethiopia from the mid-seventies onwards–but their golden output has never really waned. The story of the origins of the band that provided the musical backbone for greats such as Aster Aweke, Girma Beyene, Tilahun Gessesse, backing the solo career of group member Mahmoud Ahmed as well as backing Mulatu Astatke and many others has yet to be properly told.

Two misconceptions plague the image of Ethiopian music, one is that the music is pure because it is, by some notion, unexploited, the other is that it is all traditional. To begin with, a combination of political changes between the late sixties and the mid-nineties created an environment where only the most dedicated and skilled musicians struggled on and pursued a musical career against fierce odds. The whole Ibex Band, with Giovanni Rico and Selam “Selamino” Seyoum Woldermarian at the creative helm, are arguably the origo of the vibrant scene in the mid-seventies, and the said pair are foremost responsible for not only navigating the band through troubled times, but also modernizing the 6/8 chickchicka rhythm to a contemporary form. Giovanni laid the rhythmic foundation with heavy looped basslines that reinvented traditional melodies as dance music, and with Selamino’s innovative guitar work they influenced scores of musicians from Abegaz Kibrework Shiota to Henock Temesgen. Even Giovanni’s Fender bass and Selamino’s Gibson guitar inspired younger musicians in their choice of instruments. Not only in choice of instruments but also in sound–even as the digital revolution hit Ethiopian music, a lot of popular music still took its cue from the masters from Ibex and Roha.

Ibex emerged out of the ashes of the sixties group the Soul Echos band, adding Giovanni and Selamino to their ranks and taking their cues from a slew of influences, such as Motown and The Beatles, fused with traditional music. A tighter-knit unit than most bands at the time – Ibex has remained six to seven members throughout their whole career, compared to many bands that were as large as fifteen or sixteen men strong when Ibex set out. Their playing has been viciously focused, economical yet heavy. Just a year before the recording sessions of the album in your hands, Giovanni and Selamino made a contribution to the popular musical lexicon of Ethiopia that was simply defining the popular sound: their arrangement and recording of bandmate Mahmoud Ahmed’s solo effort and real commercial breakthrough tune and eponymous album, Ere Mela Mela, from 1975.

Selamino has never limited himself to being an adroit lead guitarist, but has always been a scholar of history, and as such he has probably contributed as much to modern Ethiopian music with his guitar playing and compositions as with a deepened understanding of modern or contemporary – Zemenawi – Ethiopian music. Selamino’s contributions serve as a metaphor for those of the whole band, at one and the same time creating and defining a new, danceable and updated sound anchored in Giovanni’s bass, whilst also elevating the broader scene through their support for others on the scene and on top of that, increasing the understanding of the music.

There is an understandable desire to romanticize the musical heyday Ibex and Roha were at the forefront of, because so much of the output is sorrowfully hard to come by. Ibex creativity was nothing short of ridiculously fierce compared to many of their Western contemporaries. Based on their sheer recorded output alone they could have usurped the title “hardest working in show business” from James Brown, recording more than 250 albums or 2500 songs in the seventies and eighties. Some only surface as cassettes today, others were never given full LP release, and some are simply impossible to find today. In the light of that, it’s nothing short of a miracle that the recording Stereo Instrumental Music from 1976 (Ge’ez Year 1968) has resurfaced. Unearthed in perfect condition on a chrome cassette, this is musical history comes alive–to set the future straight. Stereo Instrumental Music was recorded in collaboration with Karl-Gustav Lundgren, a Swedish national working for the Radio Voice of the Gospel. It took two sessions at the Ras Hotel ballroom in Addis Ababa. The Ibex Band was the first band in Ethiopia to employ a four-track recorder for their recording (the first available in the country, lent by Karl-Gustav). Later the same week, Giovanni and Selamino realized that, lengthwise, the recorded material fell short of what they wished for, so they recorded four more tracks in one more session on a single-track recorder. The Ras Hotel and Ghion Hotel, where the Ibex Band held musical residencies were to Ethiopia in general and Addis Ababa in particular what Motown was to the USA and Detroit a few years earlier – a hotbed of musical creativity and showmanship.

The most astonishing thing about Ethiopian music of the last half century is how tradition and modernity are intertwined. Because of this feature, it’s kind of hard to tell when there ever was or when we are in a “golden age”. So much of music from the past has been criminally neglected, but because of the hardships in the past, it would be an oversimplification to say that said past was a golden age. Probably, the golden age is what we are approaching, because for the first time both the past and future are accessible, and the monumental contributions from before can lay a firm foundation for a thriving music scene today. The Ibex Band stands firmly in the past, present and the future. That, if anything, is golden.

The detailed history of Stereo Instrumental Music is in many ways unique. To begin with, it couldn’t have been recorded earlier (there were no four-track recorders available) and it really couldn’t have been recorded afterwards either, at least not in the years directly following, because of the toll the musical scene took from the unfavorable political climate that followed when the nascent Derg regime and rival groups tried to assert themselves, the musical equipment lent from The Voice of Gospel Radio simply disappeared from Ethiopia when the radio station folded in 1977. Karl-Gustav Lundgren,
the Swedish foreign national who assisted during the recording, worked with the Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus at the time, recalls how they only had about fifteen minutes to get the microphones in place for the recording as to not alert neither the management at Ras Hotel nor the authorities and most importantly, to complete the recording before the curfew came into effect at midnight. In leaping to the opportunity to use previously unavailable equipment to push their sound forward and improvising to meet the logistical challenges, the Ibex Band displayed the very avant-gardism and adaptability that explains their longevity as a band through the years. The recording of Stereo Instrumental Music is from a given time in history, but it sounds as beyond time.
Much of the energy that burst out of the scene that Stereo Instrumental Music came out of dissipated or got sidetracked during the societal changes Ethiopia went through in the 1970s and 80s. Whilst leaders might have professed to be revolutionary, the work ethic of the Ibex Band can truly be described as that. They never called it quits, but adapted, toured extensively abroad in Africa, Europe, and the Middle East, and found ways to work even in the face of the curfew that curtailed a lot of musical life. They even played major arenas in the nineteen eighties, despite said curfew and restrictions. The whole extent of their legacy has never been told, but their music speaks louder than words, so therefore… tune in to the Ibex Band’s Stereo Instrumental Music.

A Mountain of One return with their second single from eagerly awaited forthcoming album "Stars Planets Dust Me".

"Dealer" sees them push further into the Cosmos with a modern take on the electronic disco pulses of Kraftwerk and Giorgio Moroder mixed with organic sensibilities, Electric sitar and reverse guitar akin to the heady moments of The Beatles track "Tomorrow never knows". Criss crossing Balearic, psychedelia, disco and electronica.



”Dealer” shows the band, made up of musical soulmates Mo Morris and Zeben Jameson, have lost nothing in the past decade. Recorded over Skype during the coronavirus pandemic, with Mo now in Bali and Zeben in west London, a shimmering, modern classic, experimental but accessible, melodic and adventurous. As ever, it is utterly unique, made in a musical universe all of their own.

When A Mountain Of One first started performing, they quickly became one of the most- acclaimed bands out there, with the likes of i-D, Sunday Times Culture, Pitchfork, NME and more raving about them and their inspired and original approach.

Sold-out shows and awesome reviews followed with “Collected Works” and “Institute of Joy”, two phenomenal globally acclaimed albums that have stood the test of time,
This heady odyssey is mastered again by Global Electronic music icon "Ricardo Villalobos", and soon to also be remixed by Ricardo on a full album of his interpretations of the forthcoming album.
Their first single "Custards last stand" from the forthcoming album had radio support from NTS radio, Worldwide FM / BBC 6.



The forthcoming album “Stars Planets Dust Me” will be released March of 2022.

Ben Kaczor and Niculin Barandun reveal their debut album on Dial Records, dedicated to the healing properties of sound. »Pointed Frequencies« contains six mesmerizing compositions. The collaboration between Niculin Barandun and Ben Kaczor started in 2022 with a carte blanche for an audiovisual show at Digital Art Festival Zurich. While working on the performance, a common understanding of sound aesthetics emerged and the foundation for the duo’s project was laid. At that time Ben Kaczor studied sound therapy. Niculin Barandun was intrigued by the concept, and it became subject of the album's creation.

The intention behind »Pointed Frequencies« is to explore the therapeutic potential of binaural beats and solfeggio frequencies, providing listeners with a healing experience. These elements are subtly integrated into the recordings, becoming a freeform blend of experimental and ambient music. A contemporary approach suspends the esoteric background common in this field. Instead, the focus is on crafting a unique sound that is appealing to those seeking a more accessible form of musical recreation. With the dynamics of free improvisation, Ben Kaczor and Niculin Barandun create virtuosly interwoven sound structures. Ambient timbres evoke the presence of the room and create an experience of wordless thinking. An immersive journey invites the listener to sense of intimacy and movement. Calmness and contemplation, beauty and melancholy meet unconventional and stochastic scenes of dramatic character.

Joni Mitchell Gets Jazzy, Counterbalances Love and Trust with Freedom and Confusion on Court and Spark


Mobile Fidelity's UltraDisc One-Step 180g 45RPM 2LP
Plays with Definitive Detail and Clarity: Pressed on MoFi SuperVinyl Strictly Limited to 5,000 Numbered Copies
Box Set Features New Liner Notes
1/4" / 15 IPS / Dolby A analogue master to DSD 256 to analogue console to lathe


Court and Spark, the most commercially successful album of Joni Mitchell's trailblazing career, arrived after a year in which she took some time to breathe and kept a low profile. The pause led to more breakthroughs for the singer-songwriter. Marking Mitchell's increasing drift toward jazz (and affinity for Miles Davis and John Coltrane), Court and Spark garnered four Grammy nominations, earned the Best Album of the Year vote in the prestigious Pazz & Jop poll, and ranks #110 on Rolling Stone’s list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

Sourced from the original analog master tapes, pressed at Fidelity Record Pressing on MoFi SuperVinyl, strictly limited to 5,000 numbered copies, and featuring new liner notes, Mobile Fidelity's UltraDisc One-Step 180g 45RPM 2LP box set presents the 1974 classic with definitive detail, tonality, and directness. Marking the first time the revered LP has received audiophile-quality treatment, it's one of six iconic 1970s Mitchell records Mobile Fidelity is reissuing on vinyl and SACD sets.

Benefitting from a virtually nonexistent noise floor, dead-quiet surfaces, and superior groove definition, this collectible edition reproduces without compromise the textures, details, and breathtaking craftsmanship that help make Court and Spark into what many fans believe is the Canadian native’s finest hour. Notes bloom and decay as they do amid an acoustic live environment. Soundstages extend far and deep, with black backgrounds and balanced tones adding to the uncanny realism.

The reference-grade presence and openness put in transparent view Mitchell’s incisive words and unique phrasing, as well as the contributions of her prized support musicians — including Tom Scott and the L.A. Express as well as guest turns by the likes of David Crosby, Graham Nash, Jose Feliciano, and Robbie Robertson. Mitchell, experimenting with the melodic parameters of guitar and piano, is rightly found at the center of it all. The jazz-rock rhythms of drummer John Guerin, slippery guitar lines of Larry Carlton, vibrant horns and reeds laid down by Scott — crucial to the songs’ shape-shifting arrangements — can now also be heard with fresh ears.

Visually and physically, the packaging of the Court and Spark UD1S set complements its distinguished status. Housed in a deluxe slipcase, both LPs come in foil-stamped jackets with faithful graphics that illuminate the splendor of the recording. This reissue is for listeners who desire to engage themselves in everything involved with the album, including Mitchell’s “The Mountain Loves the Sea” painting — a picture of waves embracing and receding away from a mountain, a metaphor for the record’s lyrical themes — on the cover art.

Pitching deceptively light compositions against underlying tensions, Court and Spark witnesses the singer-songwriter finding her footing with a group of top-shelf musicians who seemingly understand her visions as well as expanding her lyrical palette and venturing further into territory no artist had dared explore. Mitchell’s accessibly complex structures, beat-propelled rhythms, and spirited interplay with Scott & Co. both give the music a different identity than her prior efforts and point in the directions she soon headed.

Lyrically, Court and Spark matches the wit, integrity, originality, and intellect of anything in Mitchell’s oeuvre — no small feat. Offsetting positives with negatives, and considering circumstances from multiple angles, Mitchell explores issues connected to love and freedom, certainty and confusion, and trust and fear with unfettered boldness and introspective empathy. She teeters between surrender and retreat, and spends a majority of the record sussing out the complications and sacrifices involved with such actions.

Mitchell addresses the transactional nature of desire (the intimate title track, the upbeat “Raised on Robbery,” complete with rock ‘n’ roll pep from Robertson and zesty sax from Scott); anticipation and disappointment of romance (“Car on a Hill,” “”Down to You); fame and celebrity (“A Free Man in Paris,” “People’s Parties”); and sanity (the dark and stormy “Trouble Child,” a satirical cover of Annie Ross’ “Twisted”). Throughout, she sings with an emotionally penetrating beauty and devastating honesty that teaches about ourselves.

Or, as Mitchell relays on “People’s Parties”: “Laughing and crying/You know it’s the same release.”

A hard rock mash up - Bandleader Paul Ngozi's split album with his drummer and co-vocalist Chrissy Zebby Tembo. The set includes an oversized 8 page booklet detailing Ngozi’s arc, rare photographs, discography and annotations.

"Zambia’s Zamrock movement that exploded in the 1970s...provided young musicians access to European and American music, and created a unique sound. At its root, Zamrock melded fuzz-toned psychedelia, chugging garage rock and roiling funk with a broad mix of African cadences and beats...enlivening a scene that included bands like Musi-O-Tunya, Amanaz and the Ngozi Family” - New York Times

Zamrock was a bona-fide rock scene: on the African continent, only Nigeria can claim one so comprehensive, and Nigeria’s was largely catalyzed and funded by subsidiaries of the European major labels. Zamrock was as independent as the newly-named country, formerly known as Northern Rhodesia. Zamrock is starting in its completeness, especially for a scene that emerged, unfurled and disappeared so quickly. From Musi-O-Tunyaís fusion of Fela’s Afro-beat, Hendrix’s rock, South African jazz and traditional Zambian melodies and rhythms to Salty Dog’s acid folk/rock, Zambia’s rock scene contained all of rock’s subgenres. Zamrock was much more than an imitation of American and European rock music: it quickly became a uniquely Zambian movement, befitting of its name. WITCH, Paul Ngozi and Amanaz sound nothing like other rock music from the African continent - or elsewhere. Zamrock came from a nation's youth carrying forth the momentum of a political and social revolution with a musical revolution that maintained the fiery power of early rock - in the mid-to late-70s. From that era, Zamrockís energy is matched only by the punk and hip hop scenes of England and America.

2024 repress

Rush Hour’s RSS series excels in unearthing buried treasure, offering a second chance for artists and releases that have long been overlooked. That’s certainly the case with ‘Witches’, the superb sole single by British 1980s wave trio Zenana.

Originally released on seven-inch by the tiny PRM label in 1986, ‘Witches’ was the product of a sister-brother songwriting team whose music was mostly recorded in the front room of a terraced house in Nanpean, a small industrial village in Cornwall, England’s most south-westerly county. While the single was infectious, impeccably produced and dancefloor-ready, it sold in limited quantities at the time.

Zenana’s story can be traced back to the early 1980s, when singer-songwriter Anita Tedder founded the all-female trio as a vehicle for her musical ambitions. To bring her songs to life, she joined voices with her brother Mike, an early adopter of electronic music who had built a studio – nicknamed MFR, short for ‘Mike’s Front Room’ – in his Cornish home.

Countless Zenana tracks were recorded at ‘MFR’ between 1984 and ’86, with the resultant demo cassette securing the band a management contract, a slew of live bookings, a video shoot and even a television appearance. Buoyed by this underground success, they headed to the remote Sawmills Studio in Cornwall – famously only accessible by boat – to re-record ‘Witches’, a song inspired by local folk tales of witches gathering near Mike’s home.

While this version of ‘Witches’ failed to make an impact at the time, it has become something of a cult classic following its’ rediscovery by crate digger Kiernan Abbott – and subsequent championing by other dusty-fingered DJs including Antal, Skyrager, Trevor Jackson and Luke Una – in early 2023. The buzz inspired Zenana to perform live again for the first time in decades, with the story of their surprise comeback being covered by British media outlets including the BBC and (more surprisingly) the Daily Mail.

Now presented in re-mastered form, ‘Witches’ is a genuinely slept-on gem. Propelled forwards by punchy drum machine beats, a killer synth bassline and fizzing keyboard sounds, the song benefits greatly from strong vocals and an extra-percussive middle eight layered with vocalisations, cosmic spoken word sections and swirling noises.

It comes backed by a brand-new extended ‘spell of love’ courtesy of Bristol duo Bedmo Disco, AKA music journalist Matt Anniss (author of Join The Future: Bleep Techno and the Birth of British Bass Music) and DJ/production partner Gareth Morgan. Anniss is a long-time friend of Mike and Anita Tedder who has fond memories of visiting Mike’s home studio with his family around the time that ‘Witches’ was recorded.

Working from Zenana’s original MFR eight-track recording (tapes of the single version were lost years ago), Anniss and Morgan have turned in the extended ‘dance mix’ the track never had first time around. More atmospheric, clandestine and dancefloor-focused, it offers authentic nods to New York proto-house, mid-80s Shep Pettibone dubs, and the pioneering synth-pop productions and dub mixes of Factory Records regular Martin Rushent.

"One of the best bands to come out of NYC since who gives a shit." -CVLT Nation. When you enter White Hills' lair in Brooklyn, the duo's insatiable desire for music and art is immediately palpable. Crates of vinyl from floor to ceiling line the long hallway. Guitars appear at every angle, one lying across a sofa in obvious mid-play with others in cases tucked beside amplifiers into every conceivable corner. Synthesizers and cables cover the purple satin bed while gouache paintings in various stages of progress strewn the floor. Album covers, movie posters, books, paintings, prints and souvenirs of subversive culture occupy the remaining wall space. A sanctuary of adoration, creation and imagination, it's also the nerve center of their record label Heads on Fire Industries and the site where the final mixes of their latest album Beyond This Fiction took shape. For nearly two decades, White Hills have been blowing minds with their sonic alchemy: a unique mix of neo-psychedelia, art rock, and post-punk- at once original and recognizable. Their cult reputation emblazoned in celluloid following their performance in Jim Jarmusch's sultry vampire romance Only Lovers Left Alive, the duo has toured vigorously since their inception. With a vast catalogue that astounds and a relentless punk ethos, time seems to energize the duo, making them increasingly daring and prolific. "Music creates a bliss beyond sex and drugs," professes one-woman rhythm section Ego Sensation. "We'll never stop making music. It's the highest high to be had in life." Founding member Dave W, whose signature other-worldly guitar sorcery defines the White Hills sound, grabs his Les Paul to record a melody lingering in his head from last night's dream before it escapes. Outside, the sound of passing sirens, honking horns and bits of conversation remind you that you're in the middle of New York, a city so flush with rock legacy and artistic innovation it would take lifetimes to drink it all in. A voice from outside shouts, "This shit is going for 3! These people got to be out of their fucking minds!" Dave shakes his head and laughs, "There's no place I'd rather be." Committed to a vocation marked by extremes, doubt, struggle and moments of ecstasy, Dave and Ego continue this torrid affair with music bearing their latest fruit Beyond This Fiction. Inspired by the ideas of Joseph Campbell, the writer/philosopher known for the book The Power of Myth, the album explores the idea of "riding between opposites"- forging one's own path unrestrained by the dualistic constraints of society. It's a cry to all the seers among us- call us outsiders or rebels- who feel smothered by convention and see nonconformity as the gateway into divine mystery. Recorded with Martin Bisi, known for his iconic NYC sound developed through his work with no-wave titans Sonic Youth, Swans and Lydia Lunch, Beyond This Fiction sees Dave W (guitar/vocals/synths) and Ego Sensation (drums/bass/vocals) orchestrating their distinct guitar heavy meditations into songs with a stronger focus on vocals than previous albums. Opener "Throw It Up In The Air" and closer "Beyond This Fiction" both have a lush quality that flirts with shoegaze. "Killing Crimson", a song that takes inspiration from Killing Joke and King Crimson, has a driving beat and a catchy hook that begs for a sing-a-long. "The Awakening" plunges into the meditative ambient abyss the band is well known for, featuring the unique voice of frequent collaborator poet Dan McGuire to deliver the meaning behind Beyond This Fiction. The album harnesses the seductive accessibility of 2015's Walks For Motorists while evoking the tempestuous soul of the band's seminal 2011 H-p1. Notorious shapeshifters, White Hills make Beyond This Fiction a familiar surprise. Back in the lair, Dave draws eyes on his hands in preparation for the day's video shoot. Ego reaches in the closet pulling out the red velvet jacket she wears on the cover of Beyond This Fiction where she stands in a NYC alley holding a glowing orb. "That's the portal- the gateway into the mystery. The music will take you there.".

Having established himself as one of the most energetic and exciting Jazz musicians within the already thriving worldwide scene, New Zealand born, London based Drummer & Producer Myele Manzanza has made a major impact upon the global music landscape.

 A founding member of Electric Wire Hustle, Myele has released five solo albums, and racked up tours and collaborations with Jordan Rakei, Theo Parrish, Miguel Atwood-Ferguson, Recloose and Amp Fiddler amongst others . Myele has developed a strong live presence in his new London base; his quartet has shared stages with the likes of Hiatus Kaiyote, The Bad Plus, Alfa Mist, and drawing packed houses to top venues such as The Jazz Café and Ronnie Scott’s. Last year, the first two instalments of his 'Crisis & Opportunity’ record series saw him garner praise from Mary Anne Hobbs, Cerys Matthews, Jamie Cullum, Huey Morgan, The Guardian, Complex, Jazz FM, Lefto, Worldwide FM, Jazzwise and more.

Following the release of his last offering, a chance conversation between Myele and a young Barista at a local coffee shop occurred - their topic (centred around the trials and tribulations of following your musical passions) sent Myele down a spiralling path of internal reflection, spawning a new lease of creative energy and examination of new ways to approach his craft. The third addition to the heralded series, ‘Crisis & Opportunity Vol.3 - Unfold’ sees Myele change his approach from drummer / improviser, altering his sonic output to a more electronic dance music output, opting for a more producer / beatmaker focussed role. Sharing production duties with Lewis Moody (Zeitgeist Freedom Energy Exchange) and taking a more producer / beatmaker focussed role. His initial instinct was to create music that could be played in a club, but also incorporate elements music of the Jazz and technical musicianship he’s renown for.

Articulating his thoughts on the record’s genesis, Myele explains: ‘‘As the process developed, I was also drawing a lot of inspiration from vocal driven soul, RnB and songwriter-driven music to a point where I had lit a new creative fire. Reconsidering the direction of the album, I was left with the creative question “What broader ranges of emotion might my music be able to access, and what kinds of art could be made possible if I were to open up my music to hold space for singers and for stories?”

First single ‘Silencing The Sun’ features the vocal talents of fast-rising fellow Kiwi artist Wallace, whose spectral tones glide gracefully over the pulsating rhythm section and twinkling keys. On second single ’Therapy’ UK Soul royalty Omar weaves his trademark magic over a solid 4/4 beat, soulful key stabs and lush synths, bottling lightning into dancefloor alchemy. Final single ‘Unfold’ sees Rachel Fraser deliver a delicate and introspective vocal performance over stripped back instrumentation as cold, angular electronics juxtapose the warmth of piano keys and sweeping strings. With a wealth of additional incredible talent (such as China Moses and Rosie Frater Taylor) enlisted to further compliment the record’s grainy synth textures, emotive chord changes, driving low end sonics and expressive percussion, the scene is set for a beautiful, shifting and engaging listening experience.

"One of the best bands to come out of NYC since who gives a shit." -CVLT Nation. When you enter White Hills' lair in Brooklyn, the duo's insatiable desire for music and art is immediately palpable. Crates of vinyl from floor to ceiling line the long hallway. Guitars appear at every angle, one lying across a sofa in obvious mid-play with others in cases tucked beside amplifiers into every conceivable corner. Synthesizers and cables cover the purple satin bed while gouache paintings in various stages of progress strewn the floor. Album covers, movie posters, books, paintings, prints and souvenirs of subversive culture occupy the remaining wall space. A sanctuary of adoration, creation and imagination, it's also the nerve center of their record label Heads on Fire Industries and the site where the final mixes of their latest album Beyond This Fiction took shape. For nearly two decades, White Hills have been blowing minds with their sonic alchemy: a unique mix of neo-psychedelia, art rock, and post-punk- at once original and recognizable. Their cult reputation emblazoned in celluloid following their performance in Jim Jarmusch's sultry vampire romance Only Lovers Left Alive, the duo has toured vigorously since their inception. With a vast catalogue that astounds and a relentless punk ethos, time seems to energize the duo, making them increasingly daring and prolific. "Music creates a bliss beyond sex and drugs," professes one-woman rhythm section Ego Sensation. "We'll never stop making music. It's the highest high to be had in life." Founding member Dave W, whose signature other-worldly guitar sorcery defines the White Hills sound, grabs his Les Paul to record a melody lingering in his head from last night's dream before it escapes. Outside, the sound of passing sirens, honking horns and bits of conversation remind you that you're in the middle of New York, a city so flush with rock legacy and artistic innovation it would take lifetimes to drink it all in. A voice from outside shouts, "This shit is going for 3! These people got to be out of their fucking minds!" Dave shakes his head and laughs, "There's no place I'd rather be." Committed to a vocation marked by extremes, doubt, struggle and moments of ecstasy, Dave and Ego continue this torrid affair with music bearing their latest fruit Beyond This Fiction. Inspired by the ideas of Joseph Campbell, the writer/philosopher known for the book The Power of Myth, the album explores the idea of "riding between opposites"- forging one's own path unrestrained by the dualistic constraints of society. It's a cry to all the seers among us- call us outsiders or rebels- who feel smothered by convention and see nonconformity as the gateway into divine mystery. Recorded with Martin Bisi, known for his iconic NYC sound developed through his work with no-wave titans Sonic Youth, Swans and Lydia Lunch, Beyond This Fiction sees Dave W (guitar/vocals/synths) and Ego Sensation (drums/bass/vocals) orchestrating their distinct guitar heavy meditations into songs with a stronger focus on vocals than previous albums. Opener "Throw It Up In The Air" and closer "Beyond This Fiction" both have a lush quality that flirts with shoegaze. "Killing Crimson", a song that takes inspiration from Killing Joke and King Crimson, has a driving beat and a catchy hook that begs for a sing-a-long. "The Awakening" plunges into the meditative ambient abyss the band is well known for, featuring the unique voice of frequent collaborator poet Dan McGuire to deliver the meaning behind Beyond This Fiction. The album harnesses the seductive accessibility of 2015's Walks For Motorists while evoking the tempestuous soul of the band's seminal 2011 H-p1. Notorious shapeshifters, White Hills make Beyond This Fiction a familiar surprise. Back in the lair, Dave draws eyes on his hands in preparation for the day's video shoot. Ego reaches in the closet pulling out the red velvet jacket she wears on the cover of Beyond This Fiction where she stands in a NYC alley holding a glowing orb. "That's the portal- the gateway into the mystery. The music will take you there.".

A late period hard-rock, proto-punk entry in Zambian guitarist and bandleader Paul Ngozi’s extensive catalog. Featuring drummer Chrissy Zebby Tembo. LP includes oversized 8 page booklet detailing Ngozi’s arc, rare photographs, discography and annotations. Released under license from the Estate of Paul Nyirongo. “Zambia's Zamrock movement that exploded in the 1970s ... provided young musicians access to European and American music, and created a unique sound. At its root, Zamrock melded fuzz-toned psychedelia, chugging garage rock and roiling funk with a broad mix of African cadences and beats.... enlivening a scene that included bands like Musi O Tunya, Amanaz and the Ngozi Family.” - The New York Times Zamrock was a bona-fide rock scene, with albums released through independent labels based in Zambia. This music scene was complete, encompassing the genres of rock, acid folk, fusion, Afro-beat, South African jazz and traditional Zambian melodies. It quickly became a uniquely Zambian movement, befitting of its name. WITCH, Paul Ngozi and Amanaz sound nothing like other rock music from the African continent or elsewhere.

Celebrated Zambian guitarist and bandleader Paul Ngozi’s concept album about the stuggles of those living in Africa’s 1970s townships Includes Oversized 8 Page Booklet That Details Paul Ngozi and The Ngozi Family’s Arc, Including Rare Photographs, Discography And Annotation. The third entry in an era-defining reissue series on Now-Again centered around this Zamrock legend and his band - previous entries include Day Of Judgement and 45,000 Volts

"Zambia’s Zamrock movement that exploded in the 1970s...provided young musicians access to European and American music, and created a unique sound. At its root, Zamrock melded fuzz-toned psychedelia, chugging garage rock and roiling funk with a broad mix of African cadences and beats...enlivening a scene that included bands like Musi-O-Tunya, Amanaz and the Ngozi Family” (New York Times)

Zamrock was a bona-fide rock scene: on the African continent, only Nigeria can claim one so comprehensive, and Nigeria’s was largely catalyzed and funded by subsidiaries of the European major labels. Zamrock was as independent as the newly-named country, formerly known as Northern Rhodesia. Zamrock is starting in its completeness, especially for a scene that emerged, unfurled and disappeared so quickly. From Musi-O-Tunyaís fusion of Fela’s Afro-beat, Hendrix’s rock, South African jazz and traditional Zambian melodies and rhythms to Salty Dog’s acid folk/rock, Zambia’s rock scene contained all of rock’s subgenres. Zamrock was much more than an imitation of American and European rock music: it quickly became a uniquely Zambian movement, befitting of its name. WITCH, Paul Ngozi and Amanaz sound nothing like other rock music from the African continent - or elsewhere.

For the fourth time now Jaqee introduces herself to the World with her impressive voice and her unique attitude. Born in Kampala, the Capital of Uganda, she began her vagabond like life the moment she was born. During her childhood, she travelled the rural areas of her home country with her parents. This is where she collected her first impressions of the life as a nomad. From birth on, wandering the earth became a part of her destiny. In the early nineties she undertook a huge step and immigrated to Sweden. The City of Gothenburg would become her adopted home from where she was able to access all the different destinies and directions, which were on offer to her. Through all the borders Jaqee crossed, music has always been her steady companion whereas it never was a stereotype thing that let her get down with any special genre, than more like a special feeling. “To do what I want in a particular moment is my motivation. I like to express myself in all kind of sounds.” So above all, she became a true nomad in the world of music. After several successful co-operations with numerous artists, in 2005 Jaqee made an impact with her debut album “Blaqalixious”, which was mainly a Soul and R&B album. “That was my direct contact to the music that a rural community in the Diaspora plays” she explains. But it did not end up there because a nomad like Jaqee does not settle anywhere. After further creative and fruitful collaborations, Jaqee released her second long player “Nouvelle d´ amour” in 2007. This time, the sound was more of a rocking, bluesy vibe. It seemed to be the total opposite to her debut album but for Jaqee it was only the next step on her path in the circle of life. “Everything is possible as long as it is real. I never wonder about things like genre as long as the vibe fits.” One step further on, she encountered the songs of Billie Holiday, which lead to the album “A letter to Billie” recorded together with Bohuslänbigband, a lovely homage to the great American Jazz Singer. Both of her first two albums each received a Swedish Grammy nomination and several appearances in the Swedish national television increased her standing as a passionate and soulful Singer. So Teka, producer and creator of many successful riddims for his co-found German label, Rootdown Records considered her to be part of his new project “Koala Desperados“, which link Caribbean vibes like Cumbia to Reggae, and while working on it a totally new idea was born. Jaqee and Teka decided to combine both their talents into one album. The results of which you can now hear on “Kokoo Girl” a refreshing mix of Old School Reggae sounds from the seventies combined with up-to-date Beats, electronic twists and turns and of course the amazing voice of Jaqee. For her, this means that she has achieved some of her ambitions. “I grew up with African Gospel, in sad and turbulent environment, so for me, this means I grasp and totally understand the reggae and its non ending struggle for the common man.” No sooner said than done and “Kokoo Girl” will become Jaqee’s fourth and newest release. All the paths she followed, countries she crossed and influences she absorbed are a part of this album. She sings with the freedom of spirit of the travelling people. The word “Kokoo” is the only memory that remains everlasting. It is just a word but its impact is so huge that Jaqee does not really like to explain it. “It implies irony and seriousness as well as sarcasm and fun.” It is more than a gimmick. “Kokoo” is a very special feeling and a clear view of the world from an artist who has seen more of it than all the people that have settled down.

A Gilles Peterson-approved deep jazz-rap classic.

2024 first time vinyl release, 140g double vinyl, remastered audio with restored artwork.

Limited and Non-Returnable.

Holy grail hip-hop alert! Superstar Quamallah's Invisible Man was never released on wax so, to celebrate the 15th anniversary of this astounding record, we present the first ever vinyl edition. A stunning record which gained accolades upon its initial release, such as a prominent feature on Gilles Peterson's renowned Best Of 2009 show, it's one of the most essential jazz rap albums of all time.

Deep jazz rap on that mellow-melodic tip, Invisible Man is an unforgettable album with nothing but dope beats and dope bars. There's a strong chance this album has passed you by but we truly believe it to be a lost hip-hop masterpiece. It supremely captures the essence of a golden age classic without being slavish to the past. No, this ain't some facile throwback rap. It's a fresh and deeply soulful, original album shot through straight from the heart. Perfect to chill to, Invisible Man is profoundly jazz-oriented and captures with simplicity and sincerity the essence of hip-hop circa 1983-1994. It sounds like vibing with your nearest, dearest and oldest friends on a long hot summer night as the tantalising thought that anything is possible fills the air. You know what, we can just call this "magic hour rap" and we think you'll know what we mean. It's just beautiful. Just Listen.

Brooklyn-born, California-based emcee, DJ, and producer Superstar Quamallah was active in the West Coast underground scene throughout the 90s and recorded extensively with such revered names as Defari and Tajai. His parents were some serious artistic heavyweights, too; his father was soul organist Big John Patton, a giant in the jazz world known for his releases on Blue Note whilst his mother was an active designer. However, he remains relatively unknown. Invisible Man, named ostensibly after the classic Ralph Ellison novel, could also refer to how he is viewed by the public at large. With close affiliations to the Hieroglyphics, Dilated Peoples and Likwit crew, his debut EP "Don't Call Me John" arrived in 1999 on ABB Records, after which he took a sabbatical from recording which included graduate school, travelling, teaching at Inglewood High and eventually a professorship of African Studies at Berkeley.

With a laidback flow and deep, relaxing presence on the mic, Superstar Quamallah is equal parts Big Daddy Kane, Rakim and Guru. Invisible Man is refined, soulful, feel-good hip-hop of the old school. Its wise, spiritual and literate sound, combined with the summertime vibes projected by the smooth beats and the nostalgia-inducing samples and vocal scratches, created jazzy boom-bap rap reminiscent of prime De La Soul, A Tribe Called Quest and Gang Starr.

Irresistibly bouncing opener "You Need Knowledge" loops sparkling pianos, horns and a nagging whistle refrain with scratched vocal refrains from Slick Rick, Mobb Deep and Guru. The super-smooth head-nod classic "88 Soul" also utilises a beautifully swelling piano line and dusty breaks whilst Quamé reminisces about his childhood in NYC. Deeply moving, the silky, sultry "Black Shakespeare" is built around an elegant piano loop and goes hard on the superman lover tip whilst "For My People...It's Spiritual" is transcendental rap in conversation with Rakim and older gods. The "Moment Of Truth"-sampling "Lonely At The Top" is striking for its undiluted boom-bap stylings and the staccato flute-hop of "Just Listen" is riddled with soulful refinement. The deeply-affecting, wistful-yet-triumphant bells and horn-drenched single "California Dreamin'" is top-tier rap of unimpeachable quality. What a flow!

Another highlight is the rich melodic piano-rap of "Purity", a beautiful ode to the foundations of rap and those keeping the culture authentically alive. Beautifully played instruments and spiritual jazz samples elevate the deep thinking present on "Kunta Kente" whilst the darker jazz-tinged battle-rap of "93 Shit" goes super hard both in a lyrical sense and with its no-holds drum punches. The breezy Rhodes and string loops that serve as the sonic backdrop to the slinky jazz rap of "We Got Plots" are just gorgeous as our hero evokes Common's "I Used To Love H.E.R." with a head-spinning tale of crime, deception and double crossing. And some twist! "Do Win-Dis" has a tense crime-funk backing and rolling beats which complement Quamé's flow perfectly before the record is rounded out by the tough yet jazzy brilliance of rap confessional "Hope She Remembers Me". Just sensational.

Upon its original release, Quamallah himself declared: "My favorite time period for Hip Hop music was definitely between 1983 and 1994 with 1988 and 1993 being two years that standout as extremely impressive years musically and culturally. The fashion, slang, movies, TV shows and vibe during those years was incredible. While totally submerged in the feelings and music of that entire time period, I went to work on Invisible Man and I am excited for people to hear the result! It is an album that I would want to hear from some of my favorite artists of the past and present today. This is not a RETRO trip for me; this is me at my best lyrically and spiritually using the accessories of the 80s and 90s to fuel me. I am a 88 soul as the song states!"

This album goes deep. It goes all in. When Invisible Man first came out it had a real hold on us here at Be With HQ. We couldn't stop listening to it. We'd venture to say it's one of the top 25 rap records of the 2000s. In the years since its release, it has remained a criminally underrated record, an increasingly hidden gem. We sincerely hope this first time double LP release will go some way to correct this.

It's been mastered for vinyl by Simon Francis, cut by Cicely Balston and pressed at Record Industry. Finally available on the format it should always have been on, it must never be rendered invisible again.

Eccentric soundscapes, cryptic atmospheres, unexpected rhythms – with the second episode of the Intelliance series, the concept label Augmented Research once again holds up a mirror to the progressive present and provides various perspectives on the innovative electronic club sound of a new generation.

A1
Raär's music manages to draw the masses beneath the surface of common perception. The blend of deep, organic atmospheres, liquid sound design and supersonic drums awakens a deeply rooted but rarely accessible state of mind. "Riparian Zone" is a tool for transcendental experiences.
A2
There are only a handful of artists like Nebuchadnezzar who have made a name for themselves and demonstrate that rules in electronic music are meant to be broken. "Fidget" is a good example of the obsolescence of obsessive genre categorization. Unpredictable rhythms and glitchy, whipping drums feel like a race against time (extended to almost nine minutes).
B1
With "Sea And Bunkers", Sukkube proves her virtuoso and versatile handling of modular sound synthesis. The rapid, loopy beat, accompanied by a serious and simultaneously playful melody and hissing atmospheres, generates a mysterious, fresh mood. Influences from different eras form an interesting symbiosis of futuristic, uplifting techno and nuances of classic styles.
B2
If an artist were given the task of dealing with vintage drums in the most innovative way possible, while at the same time retaining a sense of nostalgia, "Pragma" would be the clear result. Edict has broken the rules of classic techno styles, pushing polyrhythm and distortion to their limits.

As mood changers go, this track is up there with the best. Last year whilst DJing with miche at Shapes festival in the snow-capped mountains of Switzerland, a breathtaking yet ominous Alpine sky suddenly became a picture postcard moment. The clouds parted and a double rainbow formed, as miche dropped Studio Rio's bossa nova remake of Bill Withers’ all-time classic 'Lovely Day'. From there, the dancefloor shifted gears and morphed into full-swing feel-good vibes, in a beautiful, spontaneous moment nobody could have planned for.

Mr Bongo now proudly presents a reissue of this brilliant, bossa-channelling Bill Withers reinterpretation from Studio Rio’s 2014 release ‘The Brazil Connection’. Masterminded by the German Grammy award-winning Berman Brothers, the project was born out of their deep love of Brazilian music. “Our goal was to bring the Brazilian joie de vivre to iconic performances by well-known artists. What would these classic songs sound like had they been recorded in the studios of Rio de Janeiro in the first place, with the best Brazilian musicians and arrangers?” the brothers reflect.

Capturing the life force of Brazil, the beating heart that is its music, they set out to find the musicians who would fit best with their concept. Landing in Rio in 2013 a series of coincidences led to them being introduced to their idols Marcos Valle and Roberto Menescal, who both agreed to come on board. The Berman Brothers also wanted to find some of the musicians who recorded with one of Brazil’s most influential composers Tom Jobim. “Fifty years after Jobim made the music that really defines bossa nova, we found that many of his sidemen were still active, including Paulo Braga of Jobim’s famed rhythm section. It was magic; everything just fell into place.”

There's no question that the original of ‘Lovely Day’ is up there as one of the most feel-good, spirit-lifting anthems of all time. Here the brothers, with the help of a whole host of Brazil’s finest musicians, rework Bill’s soul-fuelled groove into a bossa nova slice of sunshine. With the blessing of Bill and Sony, they were given access to the original multitracks so they could incorporate Bill’s vocals perfectly into the new arrangement.

Joy-injected horns and bouncing double bass blend with the smile-inducing samba flavour of Pretinho da Serrinha’s cavaquinho playing. Tying it all together Torcuato Marinao who worked with the likes of Gal Costa, Gilberto Gil and Caetano Veloso, completes the line-up as arranger of the songs.

The perfect end-of-the-night track, mood lifter or soul warmer, remakes don’t get much better than this.

Big Crown Records is proud to present Brainstory’s sophomore full-length album Sounds Good.

Based in L.A. but hailing from the Inland Empire's own Rialto, California, two-thirds of Brainstory, Kevin and Tony Martin are brothers by blood, while Eric Hagstrom is a brother through their music and long term friendship. Since they started the band they have constantly faced situations that forced them to rise to the occasion. They got signed to Big Crown Records, they stepped up their game. COVID happened, they learned to record themselves. They started touring a ton sharing the stage with the likes of Lady Wray and they got their live show super tight. All of this time spent grinding and growing has certainly paid off. The path to take their art to the next level is clearer than ever, and once again, they are here for it. If there is one thing that is abundantly clear on Sounds Good, it’s that Brainstory has leveled up.

Part of this evolution is undoubtedly attributed to having access to and working constantly in their own studio in Long Beach. Another major factor is that their brotherhood has expanded. "I've been playing music with my brother all my life and now with Eric for a long time," Tony tells us. "Leon, though, is like another brother I've just met."

Leon Michels, Big Crown's co-owner, produced this record and applied his unmistakable golden touch in crucial ways. The other member of the extended Brainstory brotherhood whose contributions were essential to the album, is studio engineer legend Jens Jungkurth who controls the tones and textures of the music. "That's what you're hearing, our connection, the fun moments, the little details," Kevin describes. "This record isn't half what it is without them—and it made us want to match that effort," and match that effort they did. Album opener "Nobody But You" is an uplifting, dance ­oor burner, that shows off a new side of Brainstory's range. Drummer Eric Hagstrom’s crushing back beat lays the foundation for an inspirational feel good banger that manages to take the uncomfortable truth that “nobody will save you but you” and turn it into pure blissful motivation. "Peach Optimo" is a laid back half time tune that blends the bounce of Down South Hip-Hop with California G funk and Jazz. They once again show off their B said ballad talents with "Gift Of Life" but this time taking the genre to a new place with lyrics about existentialism and a track that is drop dead gorgeous, haunting, and profound all at once. "NyNy" is an homage to Kev and Tony's recently deceased grandfather while "Too Yung" is a show stopping, deeply personal, stripped down number about being introduced to

alcohol at a young age. They put another hit on the boards with "Hanging On," a Latin / Psychedelic Soul inspired banger featuring Claire Cottrill on background vocals while "XFaded” addresses the all too common vicious cycle of smoking and drinking too much over a trippy shuf­e.

"It's been four years since our last full length record, and with everything that's happened since, it's like we've been catching up to ourselves." That's one way to describe change: catching up to oneself. Each member of Brainstory has gone through shifts, both personally and musically, and all of that threads through Sounds Good. It's easy to say that the music industry can be short on lasting, genuine relationships. However, for Brainstory, from day one it's been about standing by each other, for each other. Their friendship started the group. Track listing:

Hello and welcome to Cult Value, the new album from Manchester-based band Oort Clod, released by Safe Suburban Home in the UK and Repeating Cloud in the US this April. We are very excited to introduce this mercurial and unique collection of songs. The album includes garage stompers such as “#7”, off-kilter indie whining like the title track “Cult Value”, perfect indie pop songs like ‘Car Talk’ and much more. Featuring members of Unpaid Intern, the Hipshakes, Jeuce and the Early Mornings, Oort Clod was originally conceived by songwriter Patrick Glen as a fluid project with shifting members. Over the course of pandemic-era practices above the empty Peer Hat pub (the epicentre of DIY music making in Manchester) the current line-up solidified. In 2021 Oort Clod released a split E.P. with fellow Manchester band Priceless Bodies, pursuing a darker and more experimental sound. The EP received international airplay including BBC6 Music and KSFX. After playing gigs with bands like Porridge Radio, Jeffrey Lewis, and Garden Centre and even more practices above the Peer Hat, Oort Clod have mounted up once more to make Cult Value. The album’s sound is hard to pin down but it is Oort Clod’s most accessible and complete work so far. The band finds common ground in the alternative rock bands of the 1980s and 1990s, the post-punk and indie bands on Flying Nun Records and trashy compilations of post-British Invasion 60s garage gems like Nuggets. All of which come through, warped by Oort Clod’s particular sensibility, on this record made at Delicious Clam studios in Sheffield under the watchful eye of Ed Crisp. You’ll even get their cover of ? &the Mysterians “96 Tears”—rated the best ever cover of the song by the Blanketing Covers podcast, beating Jonathan Richman, Aretha Franklin, the Stranglers and Suicide (this actually exists, honestly). So there you have it the short and sweet lowdown on the new album Cult Value by Oort Clod. We hope you enjoy listening to it as much as they did making it and spread the good word as you see fit. Good luck in your endeavours and take care.

Out of print as a stand-alone release for decades since its original 1974 issue. Produced by George Harrison, Shankar Family & Friends is an almost-forgotten masterwork – an emotional and sonic pact between two like-minded souls to both advance their spiritually minded bond and unite musical styles, cultures, and sounds in wondrous fashion Contributions from Ringo Starr, David Bromberg, Billy Preston, Nicky Hopkins, Jim Keltner, Klaus Voorman, and a host of virtuosic Indian musicians add to a diverse album that melds Eastern and Western traditions; encompasses jazz, funk, bhajan, Indian, and pop; and represents the spirit and breadth of Harrison's Dark Horse Records imprint.

Memorable contributions from an A-list of American and English musicians — Ringo Starr (drums), David Bromberg (electric guitar), Billy Preston (organ), Nicky Hopkins (piano), Jim Keltner (drums), Klaus Voorman (bass), Robert Margouleff (Moog), Malcolm Cecil (Moog), Tom Scott (saxophone) included — add to the richness of a set that melds Eastern and Western traditions. These “names” mesh with a host of Indian virtuosos — Alla Rakha, Ashish Khan, Kamala Chakravarty, Hariprasad Chaurasia included — who turn Shankar Family & Friends into a journey laced with percussive, string, and vocal components that aren’t soon forgotten.

Throughout, Shankar Family & Friends remains true to its title — a mesmerizing record named to reflect the group participation approach of its creators. The idea started when Shankar told Harrison about a ballet he wrote. The Beatle, who first met Shankar in June 1966 — roughly a year after Harrison became interested in Indian music after overhearing it in a restaurant while filming Help! — immediately was convinced they needed to record it. Harrison’s staunch admiration of Shankar and serious approach to Eastern styles are reflected throughout the album.

Indeed, for Harrison, Shankar Family & Friends marks the culmination of a years-long effort to master the sitar, study Hinduism, and incorporate elements such as drones, unusual chords, and expressive picking into his own songs. The seeds of this unique collaboration can be heard in Beatles works such as “Norwegian Wood,” “Love to You,” and “Within You Without You.” Both musicians were also fresh from performing at the 1971 Concert for Bangladesh shows. Yet Shankar Family & Friends remains entirely unique in each visionary artist’s history — and ultimately, led to a collaborative tour Harrison and Shankar staged across North America.

Encompassing jazz, funk, bhajan, Indian, and pop, Shankar Family & Friends is thematically split into halves. Side One reveals Shankar’s uncanny ear for melody — even when applied to Western forms. The lead-off “I Am Missing You,” the first single ever released by Dark Horse Records and reportedly the first pop composition Shankar completed, underscores his skills as a composer and global ambassador. Beautifully sung across three octaves by his sister-in-law, Lakshmi Shankar, the devotional song features multiple drummers and production that mirrors Phil Spector’s Wall of Sound approach. Harrison plays autoharp and guitar; Starr sits in on drums; Scott handles flute and soprano saxophone. It’s the inviting start of a musical adventure teeming with color, majesty, and mysticism.

A second version of the track — designated with a “(Reprise)” tag — appears minutes later. Unfolding in different ways, it follows a folk ballad structure stitched together with Indian instrumentation. Here, according to Shankar, the musicians “attempted to convey the sounds and atmosphere of Vrindavan, the ancient holy place where Krishna grew up.” Both renditions speak to the cross-continental fusion that came so naturally to Harrison and Shankar, whose oversight on the side’s other vocal tracks ensures listeners familiar with Western methods gain easy access to the hypnotic allure of his native country’s music.

Nowhere is this more evident than on Dream, Nightmare & Dawn (Music for a Ballet), the side-long piece that served as the genesis for Shankar Family & Friends. Launched with an airy overture and unfolding across three movements, the mostly wordless suite features everything from call-and-response interplay and classical lyricism to uptempo dance figures, stacked rhythms, and intoxicating grooves. Blurring the lines between contemporary and traditional, and Western and Eastern, the inspirational work is the exclamation point on a record that defined “world music” well before the term became co-opted as a catch-all genre.

One of the most successful and enjoyable debuts in history, The Cars' self-titled album doubles as a greatest-hits collection. That's because not one song here is unrecognized or unknown. A huge reason why the Boston quintet became America's most popular new-wave band, The Cars launched eight tracks still regularly heard on radio stations everywhere. Consider the hit list: "You're All I've Got Tonight." "Good Times Roll." "Just What I Needed." "Moving in Stereo." "My Best Friend's Girl." "Don't Cha Stop." If you're a fan of pop music, this album is mandatory. Just call it the best new-wave rock album ever made.

And now, The Cars sounds better than it has in any previous incarnation. Mastered from the original analogue tapes, Mobile Fidelity's numbered-edition LP allows the music's oscillating rhythms, futuristic keyboard passages, panned stereo images, and rippling textures to be experienced like never before. The songs take on a surreal quality, the Cars manipulating the vibrant music at will to mesmerize the listeners' senses and hold them at bay. Mobile Fidelity's pressing epitomizes the sensation of "moving in stereo."

Led by Ric Ocasek and Benjamin Orr, the Cars managed to unite then-disparate styles: bubblegum pop melodies, angular art rock, progressive arrangements, and terse minimalism. Orr's low, understated singing and Ocasek's cool, detached vocals lend shades of doubt and double meaning to the lyrics, which are further counterbalanced by orchestral keyboard flourishes and electronic beats. The brilliant arrangements also benefit from a laidback cool and understated irony that remain uncommon in the over-the-top world of mainstream music. Obsessed with incorporating the latest technologies and sounds into its palette, the band spiced its tunes with delightfully quirky accents — country-tinged guitar fills, echoing Syndrums, reggae splashes, hard-rock tones, robotic pulses.

The results are the sounds of a creative landmark. At once accessible and eccentric, edgy and catchy, The Cars explodes with emotion, energy, and hooks. It's impossible not to get caught up humming and singing along to every song, an appeal that comes courtesy of Roy Thomas Baker's stellar production. The legendary producer, best known for his work with Queen, ensured that the record seamlessly packed a smooth midrange, spacious imaging, and call-and-answer choruses in one tight package. Baker's trademark touches with harmony vocals abound.

"The MoFi disc is much better than the original in every way. It's more dynamic, much more natural on top, and all three dimensions have a lot bigger space. This disc is great from start to finish, but "Moving in Stereo" will blow you away on a great system in a big room."
—Jeff Dorgay, TONEAudio

Sourced from the analog master tapes for the first time, Sharp-Flat presents the WITCH disco albums as you've never heard them before in sleeves that replicate the original album artwork.

Over the course of the 1970s, WITCH delivered an impressive run of garage, rock and prog releases. By 1980, the band was ready for a new chapter. Shuffling their lineup and relocating to Zimbabwe, they undertook their mythical transformation into an African R&B, soul and funk powerhouse. With access to a state of the art recording studio in Harare, WITCH produced two exquisite albums from 1980 to 1984.

With crisp beats, funky bass, swirling synths and tight horns, 1980's Movin' On was a sharp departure from the group's Zamrock roots and made no bones about the fact that the WITCH was ready to embrace the sound and spirit of a new decade. Trading lead vocals with founding member Chris Mbewe are newcomers Christine Jackson and Stanford Tembo, making for a well rounded set that combines dance floor burners with mid-tempo boogie grooves. A carefully crafted, great sounding album from a seasoned ensemble, Movin' On is an African pop classic.

Chicago hip-hop outfit Angry Blackmen made up of Quentin Branch & Brian Warren (ABM) have been stretching their arms and tapping into different sounds since they smashed onto the scene with their debut single “OK!” in 2017. A prime introduction starring two emcees showing they deserve to wield the microphone and do so with good cause. Then barely a month later ABM released sophomore single ‘Riot!’ a complete shift in sound that still housed the foundation set in ‘OK!’ A few years later the duo would drop their debut project ‘Talkshit!’ which saw them amass the following they have today.
‘The Legend of ABM’ immediately smacks the listener in the eardrum leaving no second wasted and jumping straight to the point. The 11-track adventure truly presents an expression of hip-hop that we haven’t seen before, infusing multiple sounds with the 50-year old genre. To go even deeper, Quentin Branch & Brian Warren are teaching a masterclass in top-notch poetic lyricism, creating both accessible and mind-bending music. “Stanley Kubrick” has both heroes shattering the beat with their braggadocio for what is just the appetizer to prepare the listener for what’s to come in the next ten tracks. ‘Sabotage’ tells the story of two Black men hustling through the trenches of capitalism and the effect that this journey has on them. While the album exudes catchy wordplay and spine-splitting production, if you lift up the hood, ABM is spinning a tale of depression, existentialism and self-reflection that isn’t always pretty. “Dead Men Tell No Lies” is another mutation in sound for the duo, where the industrial sounds clash, violently yet perfectly together with a blistering hook harkening to the end of time. Warren & Branch’s raw poetry educates the listener of the pre-apocalyptic world we’re already living in throughout this project. ‘The Legend of ABM’ is not an excursion for the weak, the production is meant to snap your spine in half, the lyrics from Quentin & Brian are pathos-infused and relatable to anyone simply trying to survive.

From out of nowhere - if nowhere is the febrile, warped and twilit imagination of Julia McFarlane - comes Whoopee, the second album by J.McFarlane’s Reality Guest. Whoopee is an esoteric, kaleidoscopic movie in music form directed by Julia McFarlane and co-conspirator Thomas Kernot. Full of life, breakbeats and smokey vignettes on the fragile nature of interpersonal relationships, Whoopee is a stylistic evolution from everything McFarlane has done before. Surreal, beautiful in parts and replete with the aching wisdom McFarlane’s songwriting has always promised, this Reality Guest pulls back the curtain on a whole scene of naked truth. Recorded in Melbourne in bursts since the release of 2019’s Ta Da, Whoopee features a new sound palette and band member in Kernot. The duo dive deep into electronic pop tropes, mining digital synths, samples, breakbeats and deep bass grooves, largely dispensing with live instrumentation. If Ta Da took twists and turns with your expectations, offering a Dada-ist, monochromatic take on pop music, Whoopee is McFarlane’s subterranean love-sick pinks, reds, greens, purples and blues. Becoming something of a tradition, the album starts with an instrumental intro pilfered from a 90s’ spy film or cinema intro music, puffing up the listener for the heart-squeezing bathos of Full Stops. Over a bleary backdrop of walking bass lines, jazz- inflected keys and smoked-out atmosphere, McFarlane’s poetry narrates the fragile state of a relationship: “You put a full stop where I thought there’d be a comma, I want the story to continue even with all the drama.” Over a palpable pain, the narrator is revelling in the drama of a relationship, addicted to tumult and heightened emotion. On Sensory, a space age bachelor lounge pad ballad, the converse state of the previous song is explored, here the narrator is battling the numbness of being out of the drama, stuck in a sensory-deprivation tank, anaesthesized and battling to emerge from the fog. Wrong Planet explores an otherworldly pop music, hewing a bright hook out of a sense of confusion. A bona-fide, sing-along chorus bursts out of the narrator musing on the absurdity of existing in this reality. It speaks of one of Julia McFarlane’s main talents, her knack of inspecting human relationships and states with a clear perspective, like an alien visiting Earth and realising everything we are is really, really strange. Whoopee is both more accessible than previous Reality Guest work and somehow more obfuscated. Where the production on Ta Da was dry, sharp and strange, this Reality Guest is blurred, almost smeared with the effluvium of 90s+00s culture and existence. Through it all, it’s hard to deny the undeniable pull of the songs. Precious Boy carries on the lounge theme with a whole sampler of cut up sounds fading in and out of the haze as McFarlane’s voice is right up to the speaker cooing and free- associating, maybe in love or maybe in confusion... maybe they’re the same thing? Sometimes the listener is invited to just bathe in the tone of the vocal, as on Apocalypse, where the texture and timbre of the vocal is luxurious, bathing in piano tinkles and double bass throb. On lead single Slinky, a cut up beat reminiscent of Washingtonian Go-Go drum patterns leads, the song slipping through your fingers, elusive and presenting sound as pure pleasure. Closer Caviar jumps back into the broken breakbeats of a surreal funk, fuelled by the sensory pleasure of the music, a hedonistic whirl in rapture, the narrator now living life to the fullest in all its giddy heights and deep troughs. This is the album’s main character fully-actualised and in the terrible, beautiful moment.

Gaucho — Steely Dan's Grammy-winning seventh studio album now on UHQR!
Definitive reissue Ultra High Quality Record, the pinnacle of high-quality vinyl!
45 RPM LP release limited to 20,000 numbered copies
Mastered by Bernie Grundman from a 1980 analogue tape copy originally EQ'd by Bob Ludwig
Pressed at Quality Record Pressings using 200-gram Clarity Vinyl®
Purest possible pressing and most visually stunning presentation and packaging!
Tip-on old style gatefold double pocket jackets with film lamination by Stoughton Printing


Gaucho — the iconic seventh studio album by Steely Dan, released in November 1980 — and Grammy-winner for Best Engineered Non-Classical Recording, was also Grammy-nominated for Album of the Year and Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals. The album represents the band's musical evolution towards a more polished and sleek sound, featuring a collection of meticulously crafted songs that blend jazz, rock, and pop music, while exploring themes of decadence, longing, and disillusionment.

Gaucho opens with the title track, a jazzy instrumental piece that sets the tone for the rest of the album. The standout tracks on the album include "Hey Nineteen," a catchy and upbeat tune that features a memorable saxophone riff and lyrics about an older man's attraction to a young woman, and "Babylon Sisters," a funky and groovy track that showcases the band's impeccable sense of rhythm and melody.

The sessions for Gaucho represented the band's typical penchant for studio perfectionism and obsessive recording technique. To record the album, the band used at least 42 different musicians, spent more than a year in the studio, and far exceeded the original monetary advance given by the record label. Still, the album features multiple layers of instrumentation, carefully crafted arrangements, and the use of top-notch session musicians to create a lush and sophisticated sound that is uniquely Steely Dan.

Despite its critical and commercial success, Gaucho was a challenging album to make. During the two-year span in which the album was recorded, the band was plagued by a number of creative, personal and professional problems. MCA, Warner Bros. and Steely Dan had a three-way legal battle over the rights to release the album. After it was released, jazz musician Keith Jarrett was given a co-writing credit on the title track after threatening legal action over plagiarism of Jarrett's song "'Long As You Know You're Living Yours."

Gaucho marked a significant stylistic change for the band, introducing a more minimal, groove- and atmosphere-based format. The harmonically complex chord changes that were a distinctive mark of earlier Steely Dan songs are less prominent on Gaucho, with the record's songs tending to revolve around a single rhythm or mood, although complex chord progressions were still present particularly in "Babylon Sisters" and "Glamour Profession." Gaucho proved to be Steely Dan's final studio album that Donald Fagen and Walter Becker would make together until the year 2000.

Gaucho reached No. 9 on the U.S. album chart and was certified platinum-selling. "Hey Nineteen" reached No. 10 on the U.S. Singles Chart and went to No. 1 in Canada. Pitchfork, in its review, describes the almost "pathologically overdetermined production" as elegant, arid and a little forbidding. "Every last tinkling chime sounds like it took 12 days to mix, because chances are, it did." The New York Times deemed Gaucho the best album of 1980, beating out Talking Heads' Remain in Light and Joy Division's Closer.

Founded by core members Walter Becker (bass) and Donald Fagen (vocals, keyboards), Steely Dan's popularity rose throughout the late 1970s on, and their seven albums throughout that period of time blended elements of jazz, rock, funk, R&B, and pop. Steely Dan created a sophisticated, distinctive sound with accessible melodic hooks, complex harmonies and time signatures, and a devotion to the recording studio. Becker and Fagen, with producer Gary Katz, gradually changed Steely Dan from a performing band to a studio project, hiring session musicians to record their compositions. The duo didn't perform live between 1974 and 1993. But their popularity nevertheless grew throughout the '70s as their albums became critical favorites and their singles became staples of Adult Oriented Radio and pop radio stations.

After a brief battle with esophageal cancer, Walter Becker died on September 3, 2017 at the age of 67. Steely Dan has sold more than 40 million albums worldwide and were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in March 2001. VH1 ranked Steely Dan at No. 82 on their list of the 100 Greatest Musical Artists of All Time. Rolling Stone ranked them No. 15 on its list of the 20 Greatest Duos of All Time.

This stereo UHQR reissue will be limited to 20,000 copies, with gold foil individually numbered jackets, housed in a premium slipcase with a wooden dowel spine.

Gaucho remains a testament to Steely Dan's enduring musical legacy and their ability to create timeless music that transcends genre and style.

This is a presentation of Xexa's different sensibilities as a composer, musician and sound designer, mapping what are in effect her initial explorations with voice, rhythms, synths, ambience, ever searching for an organic final result. As a student at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama (London) between 2019 and a still fresh 2023, she presented in her third year a portfolio that included what we can now listen as "Clarinet Mood", the final track on "Vibrações De Prata". Her intention was to «study the feeling of listening to music as an environment one inhabits and not as a sound that follows you throughout the day. Walk into, instead of listening to, an ambience». With no previous clarinet training, Xexa explores its palpable sound as a physical doorway to this realm.

Four other tracks ("Assim", "Nha Dêdê", "Fragmented Breath" and "Prendes Nh'Alma") formed part of what she named the 2021 Sound Calendar. Out of a (natural) total of 12 compositions, these four connect with other intimate moments to tell a broader story, one of fragility, «like a flower about to bloom, we can detect first glimpses of colour and form but can't yet divine its final form».

This sort of imaginative sonic micro-management can also be found on "Libelula", where the synth attempts to recreate the beating of a dragonfly's wings. Minute details are a major feature in jewelry, an art Xexa studied in her native Lisbon's António Arroio school. Free spirited as she is, Lisbon is merely a geographical location where she was born, no particular feeling of being Portuguese attached to her position in the world. So far, Xexa's origins in São Tomé and Príncipe and a prolonged stint in London (it feels prolonged, at such a young age) are the two other major environments that form her experience as a human being but also as an artist. We are extremely proud to have been able to access truly special creative, intimate moments and help bring out into the world this physical manifestation of beautiful contemporary music.

Kalipo prepares to launch his new album Happy Little Accidents, which counts with twelve electro-focused tracks as well as the participation of feature artists Rampue, Ira Atari, Oberst & Buchner and subkutan. Iconic 80s painter and TV host, Bob Ross is celebrated for his thirty-minute landscapes, recognizably soothing voice as well as the 'happy little quotes' he imprinted on pop culture. One of Ross' most memorable turns of phrase, "We don't make mistakes; we just have happy accidents," went on to encourage thousands worldwide. And not just painters. "For me, this album was about letting the songs develop very quickly and not evaluating them too much, or trying to avoid mistakes," says German electronic music producer, Kalipo (Jakob Häglsperger) who named his latest release Happy Little Accidents after Ross' signature phrase. "Bob Ross really impressed me as a child, he was always so accessible to everyone and demonstrated how easy it was for anyone to work creatively," says Kalipo, who translated Ross' fast and instinctive wet-on-wet painting technique to music-making on Happy Little Accidents. The 12 tracks that make up PART I and PART II of the album are a celebration of the method - sometimes it's a floaty journey with tinkering sounds, at other times dark fast beats create the core of the music, but there's always a sense of intuition and heart driving Kalipo's productions.

Toy Tonics going New Wave Disco with Baby’s Berserk’s self-titled debut album (to be released on 29 September).

There are many shades of funk in dance music. Berlin’s Toy Tonics label brings up artists that reflect many of these different aspects in dance music. Now the label comes up with a band! A band that is inspired by 1980ies New Wave as well as the Y2K Indie dance scene. Two guys and 2 girls from Amsterdam and Montreal called Baby’s Berserk.

Baby’s Berserk is about taking the freedom to be who you want to be, about being comfortable. Having played in all-girl punk bands since the age of 14, the bands singer Lieselot is an expert on female empowerment. “Dress like a girl and act like a boy,” is a catchphrase she lives up to every day and it clearly is a message that resonates with the band’s wild fans.

In the great tradition of Roxy Music, Throbbing Gristle and Malcolm McLaren, Baby’s Berserk is not just about the edgy music, but also about a very strong own visual style. They readily blend their sounds with underground fashion. What you see is what you get and seeing Baby’s Berserk is feeling right at home. Lieselot is a visionary when it comes to stage presence. Have you always wanted to see an electronic band with a punk attitude perform wearing a mix of haute couture and Flintstone-style rags? Look no further, it’s Baby’s Berserk.

Following on the critically acclaimed singles ‘What I Mean’ (2020) and ‘Toxic Kisses’ (2022), Baby Berserk’s highly anticipated self-titled full-length is now finally about to see the light on Berlin’s Toy Tonics records. Sonically designed for gritty rock venues as well as up-to-date edgy dance clubs, Mano’s lush compositions smoothly intertwine with the highly associative lyrics written by Puggy and Lieselot. Poets and literary addicts may think they’ve just discovered the rock & roll equivalents of Sylvia Plath, Kurt Vonnegut and Allen Ginsberg. To tell you the truth: their wild guess is pretty accurate as the works by these greats lie scattered around the Baby’s Berserk studio for inspiration.
The band was born in a laboratory back in 2019. Tired of being in bands with unruly and unpredictable humans, Mano Hollestelle set out to create a group of high precision robots to create the post-punk sound he had in mind. His outdated technology of floppy disks and cassette tapes worked well to program the androids, until one day a 90s rave mixtape was mistakenly entered into his computer. House music is a feeling and the punk bots instantly got hooked on it upon hearing it for the first time. They could never be reset to factory settings again. Mano worked tirelessly with his androids, currently known by their humanoid names of Lieselot Elzinga, Puggy Beales and Eva Wijnbergen, to fulfil his evil plan to make the rockers dance and the dancers rock. Baby’s Berserk is the fiendish extension of this plot. Beware, the band’s bass driven grooves and computerized beats have been known to cast a spell upon all within earshot.

So what do the songs on ‘Baby’s Berserk’ tell you? That it’s totally fine to have lots of fun in life! To have a boyfriend as an accessory (‘Accessories’), to get inspired by Sponge Bob (‘Dancing with the Fish’) and to blend your spirits with mixers whenever the hell you feel like it (‘Rum ‘n’ Kola’).

Baby’s Berserk member Puggy Beales on ‘Limousine’: “Decant the wine from my tip jar to yours. Soon we'll be on easy street, chauffeured home from the rat race each evening. Is it everything you'd hoped it would be?”

Check not only the debut album but also the forthcoming Remix EP with remixes by Each Other, Niklas Wandt, Sam Ruffillo, Kris Baha and Nicolini.

Ariel Posen's music occupies the space between genres. It's a rootsy sound that nods to his influences — heartland rock & roll, electrified Americana, blue-eyed soul, R&B, Beatles-inspired pop — while still moving forward, pushing Posen into territory that's uniquely his own. Posen seeks answers with new album, Reasons Why. The internationally known Canadian rocker wrote this new reflective album coming out of half a year of lockdown and was extremely inspired creatively, 30 songs turned into a batch of 10 tracks for the new album and were recorded in Winnipeg, Manitoba and Montreal, Quebec. Reasons Why shows once again that "best" is a high standard for Posen. The new songs represent another step forward in every aspect – lyricism, musicality, playing, sonics. The songs are nuanced but impactful, deeply resonant but universally accessible. Posen blends craftsman's care with the daring do of a seasoned live player, resulting in an immersive adventure that reveals fresh merits on every listen. On Reasons Why Posen determinedly defies any easy genre identification and refuses to be sealed in any sonic cubbyhole.

Experimental hip-hop/jazz quartet Bokoya team up with Colognebased producer / guitarist Gianni Brezzo (Jakarta Records) for collabo album on Melting Pot Music. Bokoya describe themselves as a four-headed human drum machine that play improvised beat music.

You can call it jazz if you like (all four members are graduated jazz musicians btw) but be ready to stumble over some Dilla, kraut rock, ambient or dub in the mix. We recommed their their doublealbum “Hausensession” (MPM, 2022) as a reference point.

Gianni Brezzo's music is a bit easier to access but not less leftfield. Jazz is a major influence too but it goes way further. On his album “Tutto Grosso” (Jakarta, 2022) Brezzo rides a sonic wave similar to Matthew Halsall, Surprise Chef, El Michels Affair and BadBadNotGood.
The recording sessions for “Minari” took place at the Gottesweg Studios in Cologne where Bokoya and Gianni Brezzo jammed for three days and nights based on some basic sketches and beats. The sessions were edited and arranged after by Bokoya and Brezzo but no overdubs added.

Improvised & produced by Bokoya & Gianni Brezzo.
Mixed & mastered by Roe Beardie.
Artwork by Jens Roth & Jeremias Diekmann.
Leon Raum - Drums
Darius Heid - Fender Rhodes, Synth
Lukas Wilmsmeyer - Guitars, Bass
Ferdinand Schwarz - Trumpet, Synth
Gianni Brezzo - Guitars, Sampler, Effects

Dark, evocative beats engulfed by bold raw vocals: this is
TOTEK, the genre-defying electronic project of Allysha Joy and
Max Dowling.
In their own right, Allysha and Max both lay claim to an
extensive musical prowess: the former as a member of the
internationally-acclaimed nu-soul outfit 30/70 and her equally
revered solo project, the latter as a prolific producer, performer
and collaborator (Client Liaison, NO ZU, Parvyn and countless
others).
Born out of burn out and edging frustration for the pace and
complication of life at times, this collaboration came together
almost immediately. TOTEK found itself in the dark edges,
wanting to punch a little harder and move through it all quickly,
boldly, unafraid in relief. The chemistry held between Max and
Allysha found songs written in mere moments that expressed
something new that neither artist had been able to access
alone.
On face value, the six tracks on ttk.1 could feel musically
divergent: representing different idioms, different tempos and
different themes. Yet they are unified on a more holistic level
through their energy, ethos and character. TOTEK prefers to
view music in this way: what is the overall experience of a
record? Pushing boundaries and eschewing conventions has
been organically at the heart of TOTEK from the beginning. The
process of crafting a record was no different: The artists
intended to create a work that is characterful and unpredictable
yet unified by a throughline of potency and intensity.
TOTEK represents a masterful coming-together of influences: a
blend of multiple electronic idioms with a unique soul sensibility;
channelled through two creatively potent individuals. While their
music conjures shades of Dorian Concept, Jana Rush and
Flying Lotus, ultimately their sound is eclectic, elusive and
unique.

The collaborative bi-coastal project between Andi (NYC) and Machino (LA) is dark, spiraling music that conflates the tension of running EBM basslines with the monstrosity of electro-saturated, industrialized beats. In 2021, Andi and Machino began sending music back and forth to each other virtually—thousands of miles apart—as they built upon their passion for creating off-the-cuff, dangerously degenerate dance tracks.

Parafernales, their first release out this summer on Mannequin, is a conceptual EP that deals with power struggles: love and lust, strength and destruction, dominating and domination. Andi's vocals are spoken, whispered, and yelled simultaneously, as if to mirror the mania of having control and losing it at the same time. The EP title, Parafernales, is a nod to Machino's first language of Spanish and stems from the idea of miscellany: it is parafernalia for drugs, or, simply, accessories for unsavory activities. With inspirations from turn-of-the-90s erotic thrillers to the Chilean post-punk band, Los Prisoneros, the duo collide in a manner that is unadulterated and, at times, completely unhinged.

Machino is an electronic performer and music producer from Mexico based in Los Angeles who started out making moody ambient, techno and has now pivoted towards industrial music. He has released several EPs on different labels such as Tresor and X-IMG. Andi is a DJ, producer and music journalist based in NYC. She runs the nine year strong label/party SYNTHICIDE in NYC.