quête:beat

Second release from Olga Limited, Vinyl Only Series, introduces Stekke’s single Shifter.

Atmospheric, Spatial, Hypnotic track, composed with elements from House and Techno merged into an unique and singular vibes.
Legendary Roman Fluegel, one of the pioneers from the German Electronic music scene, signs a timeless remix, late night underground dance floor special tool.

Closing the EP, Renato Ratier, exponent and veteran, who is responsible for decades of club culture in Brazil, brings more funky groove, in a powerful 4/4 beats construction.

Suns of Arqa is a sonic mission created by luminary Michael Wadada, who began in 1979 after receiving higher guidance in Jamaica while working with roots reggae chanter Prince Far-I. It is a prolific traveling music collective that has seen over 200 collaborators, meant to connect people from all cultures and walks of life through a “deeply spiritual vibration that merges cultures, faiths and musical genres”. Wadada combines ancient Hindustani raga systems with Piobaireachd and Nyabinghi roots drumming, creating ritualistic world music infused with dub and reggae.

The lyrics combine both mystical and sensory elements, often including prayer and referencing a higher power but finding root in experiences common to all people- memory, sight, and physical sensation.

Their first album, Revenge of the Mozabites, was a collaboration between Wadada and On-U Sound creator Adrian Sherwood. Following its 1980 release,Peter Gabriel invited them to perform at the first WOMAD festival. Today, the record is regarded by some as a cult classic. Over the years they have played at many major music festivals including Glastonbury, Big Chill, Telerama Dub Festival, and Transmusicales, and released over 40 albums on Virgin, EMI, Interchill Records, Antler Subway, Red Rhino, and their own label, Arka Sound.

Suns of Arqa has had a seminal influence on the World Beat sound, and continued to make appearances at seasonal festivals and sacred ritual spaces all over the world until 2021. Michael Wadada passed away in the midst of planning their U.S. tour for this release. The record is a compilation of some of Wadada’s and Sleepers Record’s favorite old Sun of Arqa tracks, mixed by Youth and Adrian Sherwood, and mastered by Eroc (drummer of Grobshnitt).

Notable collaborating artists include: Guy Called Gerald, UK producers Youth and John Leckie, Greg Hunter, 808 State's Graham Massey, Finley Quaye, Sounds From the Ground, Bryn Jones aka MuslimGauze, Adrian Sherwood, John Cooper-Clarke, The late great Professor Stanley Unwin, Eric Random, New age guru Tim Wheater, Astralasia, Prince Far-I, The Orb's Alex Patterson, Zion Train, and Gaudi.

"And although the Great Spiritual being Michael Wadada has returned to source and his body to earth at our time, his music is alive and will continue to be a great force for higher spiritual realms and raising vibration through occult frequencies...Suns of Arqa will continue to raise the vibration of the hearts and minds of humanity" – Angela aka Angel-Eye (Wadada's wife and bandmate)

Vinyl Only

Bigg Testosterone Johnson is the name that keep them streetz in fear for decadez.

Humble beginnings as a bank robber to his first MPC traded in prison for a few bricks of soap and pack of cigarettes led him to keep streetz in fear once again... This time around with his bulletproof beatz. Word 2 yo momz.

Two all-time undisputed anthems from Robin S, much sampled, oft covered but nothing beats the originals. Champion now reissue both Stonebridge Club Mixes of ‘Show Me Love’ and ‘Luv 4 Luv’ loud and proud on either side of a limited 12 inch housed in a Champion picture sleeve. Impossible not to have a whole crowd belting out the words or smiles straight on their faces from the get go, these are two tracks that every collection needs – regardless of taste. It’s all love baby!

On the A side with ‘Joy’, Bruise head in a jubilant direction. Chanting vocal chops ride along deep cut kick grooves and vivid piano riffs; modernising the classic house sound and forming a track that would as likely go off in a club in the UK as it would on the sun-soaked beaches of Ibiza.

In ‘The Theme’, Bruise switches things up and offers up a weighty, bass-driven progressive techno heater; bolstered with rattling break chops and polyrhythmic analogue synth arpeggios. As the track progresses, rip-roaring, squelching acid-lines are introduced at the crescendo; creating a versatile club record; primed and ready for the clubs reopening.

On this single ‘When Pianos Attack’, the vibe is instantly recognisable. Piano chords lead the charge of yet another dancefloor destroyer, with that signature sound of swinging beats, layered pianos, lashings of strings, and hosts of heavenly soulful choirs. Just close your eyes, look up, feel the rush, and dance.

+ Includes the unreleased vinyl exclusive ‘Akiba Choirs’. A new school dance anthem!



Huge support from: Annie Mac, Pete Tong, Laurent Garnier, Severino / Horse Meat Disco, Sasha, A Trak, Andhim, Spiller, Graeme Park, DJ EZ, John Digweed, Fatboy Slim, Sam Devine, Laurence Guy, Gilles Peterson, Fred Everything, Soul Clap, James Lavel, Basement Jaxx, Francois K, Luke Solomun.

'Joy'
- Pete Tong’s Essential New Tune + Tong asked Bruise to record a Joy themed Essential Mix for BBC Radio 1.
- Premiered by leading dance authority Mixmag.
- Featured in Defected / Faith’s behind the counter.

‘When Pianos Attack’
- Played by Blessed Madonna as an artist to watch 2022!
- Played at Warehouse Project by Graeme Park, and then again by Terry Farley.
- Magnetic Magazines Best of Month

Bruise appeared in Faith Magazines taking a full page for interview with a heavy focus on When Pianos Attack.

Retromigration returns to WOLF Music for his 2nd solo outing on the label with a trademark, warm, jazz-flecked house journey.

Hot property by anyone’s standards, the Amsterdam-based producer stretches his legs across six MPC chopped and screwed heaters, from the punchy, deep deliciousness of ‘Hafenluft’ and sun-soaked vibrations of ‘Mad Fox’, to the bouncing bubbler ‘Tinger’ that features Nephews.

On the flip, the Dam-Funk channeling, keytar cruise ‘Be Alright’ sits side by side with ‘Disk Yard’ and ‘Nur Wir’, two twilight cuts that showcase Retromigration's love of the beats and hip hop scenes whilst putting his own unique spin on them. Another sure-fire example of why you’re seeing Retromigration’s name popping up all over the place right now – pure class from start to finish.

White Vinyl

Greyscale's most personal release and perhaps the most important for label owner grad_u aka Aleksandr Martinkevič. Earlier this year, Alex was diagnosed with cancer. Certainly a horrible thing to hear and there has definitely been some low moments in certain stages of the journey. At just 36 years old, many of us are shocked that such a young person can develop cancer. After some research he found out that younger and younger people are randomly getting cancer studies show. An alarming trend to learn about. However, there has also been a lot of other learning and different new levels of appreciation for the simple things in life as a new higher level of inspiration in making music has manifested. And this new release encapsulates that. Alex has also felt a duty to make things better for others. Focusing on what can be improved as he wants to highlight research, treatment and the overall communication of this disease to more people in the electronic music scene. Part of the proceeds from this new album will be donated to the National Cancer Institute in his homeland of Lithuania.
Alex wants everyone to know that catching these signs early and getting regular checkups are your best chance at beating cancer. Thankfully Alex did this also and his treatments have gone well. Alex plans still stay steadfast with his label and his life. Simplifying things with the love from his family and friends, focusing on his hobbies
along with making sure he makes his health his #1 personal priority.
The name for this full length release is titled 'T2NO'. grad_u's most introspective work yet features 8 emotional tracks overall. The honesty expressed in this album is blunt and to the point. These tracks take you on an audio journey thru grad_u as he expresses his feelings thru the entire process in each stage.
Beginning with two wonderful ambient tracks named 'Genetic Mutation' & 'Carcinogen'. In the opener, Chords rain over you as a beautiful ambient melody peeks out underneath it followed by a more stark and hazy field of interference. From the gentle opener to the more tension filled follower, the personal journey of grad_u is
developing before your ears. The b-side of 'Neoplasm' is a bit more somber but also has a ray of light in it.
Introspective as it can get, this is a true journey through an uncertain future. 'MRI scan' needs no explanation....
The second half of the album begins the understanding of what grad_u was going thru. 'Malignant Transformation' gives off that feeling of the human body working thru the science. Fight or flight becomes the theme for this track. 'Adenocarcinoma' almost gives off the sound of cells rebuilding themselves. Sci-fi meets real life in this epic battle. 'Resection' continues this scientific sounding reflection on the body healing with sounds of movement and time. As if the body is working itself out. Lastly and triumphantly comes the closing
track 'Waking up to a New Life'....
The emotional journey of this album isn't for the faint of heart. It leaves nothing to the imagination. It works thru all the emotions that can come with such and life changing event like having cancer. We want to thank grad_u for sharing his story with us. This story can happen to anyone...
"I would like to take this opportunity to express my great gratitude to doctors A. Dulskas, G. Jurevičienė, V. Sidorov and all staff in Abdominal Surgery and Oncology Department at NCI. Thank you for your expert care and for saving my life.
Also, big big thank you my family and closest friends for all their love and support during this difficult period of time and always being there for me."
Special thanks to Lithuanian Council for Culture, associations AGATA and LATGA for support of this special project.
Part of proceeds from the album will be donated to National Cancer Institute, Lithuania

"First released way back in 1992, Stefano Curti ,Mauro Tamino and Stefano De Carlo's first 12" as Minimal Vision (they'd previously released numerous as The True Underground Sound of Rome) remains one of the classiest and most ear-pleasing Italian deep house records of all time. For proof, check 'Magic Staircase', where picturesque synthesizer melodies rise and fall atop skittish beats, 'Pacific' style chords and a chunky Korg M1 bassline, and the bleep-sporting Chicago deep house tribute 'Prelude'. Those searching for something a little more energetic should take a listen to the warm and beautiful 'Milky Way' and 'Night of Love', whose programmed percussion, fizzing synth solos and jaunty bassline doff a cap to Detroit tech-jazz."

Thanks

FIRST GAJA ALBUM ON VINYL, FIRST GAJA RELEASE ON HIS OWN IMPRINT SINCE 2016. HARDCORE BLACK MAGIC VODOO DOLLS DARKANDHAUNTINGHARDCORETECHNODARKANDHAUNTINGHARDCORETECHNODARKANDHAUNTINGHARDCORETECHNODARKANDH

Back once again with the MYEDITS master. An audacious single sided weapon from the Moxy Edits crew, blending whomping speed garage basslines, a classic vocal of supreme stature and a slick, skipping beat to produce another slice of dancefloor destroying gold.

The track first appeared when Darius Syrossian dropped it at the Brooklyn Timewarp after party b2b with Seth Troxler, and lead to people scrambling for a track I.D when videos emerged. The week after it was one of the standout tunes at the WeAreFstvl Mexico festival.

Mother Tongue keeping the pressure high and unleashing straight away the follow up to the deadly YJ Vol.1.
This second Yellow Jackets double A sider feautures Chicago’s royalty Ron Trent and the extra talented multi instrumentalist Other Lands.

Again one track per side and full powerful cutting to maximize the sound impact in pure YJ philosophy. Ron Trent ‘The Medi’ was actully constructed while riding trains and in hotel rooms through Italy, used as a secret weapon in special occasions…and we can hear why: a mind expanding suite that keeps evolving and going in places and spaces while constantly beating you hard! On the Flipside Other Lands brings things down to more abstract realms with the floating almost Kraut inspired jam ‘Matter’.

A very special release and a hint of what Yellow Jackets has in store for us in the near future…

black.round.twelve presents the second release on its imprint, signed by the Romanian talent Pîrvu.

Dance Refuge EP’ is a 4-track EP spanning from minimal house to broken beat, showcasing a collection of music drenched in vibrant and sincerely playful energy – a sonic naivety of sorts, very akin to Pîrvu’s own personality.

Both ‘Twelve’ and the title track ‘Dance Refuge’ fill the A-side of this record with a positively warm tone where the groove is king. Razor-sharp drum programming shines through compositions with hints of acid, profoundly accurate sub-basses, and just the right amount of atmosphere, creating a musical spectrum very prone to those floating, early-morning dancefloors. The flipside’s ‘Space’ follows the same groove-led narrative introduced previously and infuses it with an extra dose of playfulness and feel-good sound design before toning it down to the introspective ‘Lver,’ finishing this EP with just the right amount of breaks and warmth.

As usual, the cover of the EP was (undoubtedly) drawn and painted by the talented Berlin-based Juli Jah, beautifully portraying Pîrvu.

'Cryptic Speech' opens this release with the thump of UMEK’s trademark kick drum and a pulsating synth line. Dramatic stabs lead to the haunting breakdown which provides an epic hands-in-the-air moment before the percussions slams back in.

'Bounce That Ass' has a jacking sound that takes influence from Chicago's ghetto and booty styles. Chunky percussion and UMEK’s own personal twist add a modern take on the tried and tested style loved by dance floors all over the world. The growling bass stabs, muffles vocals and snare rolls combine to create the fist pumping groove.

'Killer' tips its hat to the old school rave scene by utilising retro style synth stabs and a broken beat percussion loop in its timeless breakdown.

'Navigating' sees a welcome return to the UMEK's classic hoover synth arpeggios that gave his early tracks such a stand out sound, and the raw energy is nothing less than superb!

Few groups arrive as fully formed as EPMD did. This dropped as the third single from the album of the same name, and further cemented their distinctive aesthetic: Slow rhyming, trading lines rather than the rappers being confined to their own verses, and backings that were ruthlessly funky and simple at the same time.

They’d go on to be labelmates with Public Enemy when Def Jam picked up their contract in 1990, and to compare and contrast the two is illuminating. While PE at that time were making waves with the Bomb Squad’s breathless, kitchen sink approach to production, EPMD were equally adored for taking the opposite approach.

Here, there’s a sprinkle of drums from Kool & The Gang’s oft-sampled ‘Jungle Boogie’, paired with a very recognisable portion of Eric Clapton’s ‘I Shot the Sheriff’. And that’s pretty much it – the two samples are linked, looped and left to their own devices. Such was Erick and Parrish’s confidence in their own rhyming ability and strong voices, no further embellishment was needed.

That confidence extends to the subject matter. While their debut album and later projects were heavy with concepts – the ‘Jane’ series – and notable guest verses, this was the third straight single of pure brag rap. Two MC’s, one beat, a whole heap of lyrics about how good they were. It’s something you can’t do unless you truly are special, and this duo most certainly were.

Paired with the classic instrumental version, which didn’t make it to the US 7” releases – it’s only on a hard-to-track-down French 7” pressing from 1989 – this this is a timely reminder of how breathtakingly perfect hip-hop can be.

The Tel-Aviv centered Yotam Avni officially joined forces with Stroboscopic Artefacts last year, turning in a sensual an invigorating entry for the Monad series. Thanks to his personalized fusion of esoteric and worldly sound elements, Avni immediately made a case to deliver more work to the label, and now he has done so with 'Perlude to Dybbuk,' the second in a new series of S.A. releases to feature the Oblique Artefacts visual team's distinct, elegant portrayals of scanned foliage. As with Avni's previous Monad contribution, the new Perlude to Dybbuk makes references - both in title and in sonic content - to the ancient Hebrew folklore of his homeland (a 'dybbuk' being a kind of limbonic spirit attaching itself to the body of a living human until it has successfully reached its final destination). However, the atmospheric, rather than overt, use of these references gives this record a level of dignity and quality as well as a premonitory feeling that hovers over the proceedings.The opening 'Avka (New Life)' opens with the twin stimuli of chthonic, rolling percussion and ambience that has become a modern Stroboscopic tradition, but ever so gradually deviates from the realm of the easily anticipated. Some of the surprises to be found here are sharp, organic drum fills and sighing strings that have an uncanny vocal quality to them. By the time a surgically clipped acid synth sample comes into the mix, the track has reached a simmering level of excitement and the listener's imagination will have license to reside in a virtual world seamlessly combining elements both ancient and futuristic.Dybbuk' temporarily situates listeners back in brutal modernity, with the first sounds heard being something like insistently slicing helicopter blades. Avni merely uses this as the foundation, though, for a genuinely unique construction whose shamanic beats, throttled horn and undertow of frenzied electronics combine to give the feeling of being menaced and eventually overtaken by a spirit entity. This piece shows just what Avni is capable when operating in a more aggressive, 'post-industrial' mode, and the result stands up with some of the best exponents of that genre.The finale 'Modern Matters' is the most readily club-friendly selection from the disc. This potent, floor-shaking and perspiration-inducing number superimposes resonant vocals from traditional Middle Eastern folk song onto this alchemical mixture of machine oil and sweat, and provides a romantic flair without resorting to naïve, touristic 'ethno-techno.' Avni's skillful dedication to counterpoint, and determination to make a finished form is more than the sum of its parts, shines through here and throughout the duration of this record.

Beatbude presents: Employee’s Hold Music Volume 2. More music on hold, tried and approved! Ten decent songs written, programmed and produced by Max Graef.

Clear Green Vinyl

Prolific Colombian producer Felipe Gordon returns to RNT to deliver his first offering in a two-EP and album project series.

The records kicks off with the swingy Strings of the Afterlife, evoking classic Chez-N-Trent vibes and moves to the sultry emotive tones of The Fall of A Withered Empire. On the flip, Felipe takes us into high gear with the hypnotic looped synth groove and relentless beats of Clásico, and lets us down easy with the jazzy lilt of Julia y Luis. A truly standout EP, even for Felipe who delivers quality time and time again.

In the early 21st century, a shadowy figure rose from the dust that settled atop forgotten record collections throughout Africa, leaving behind
a trail of clues in what seemed like a wild good chase, but in October 2013, Luaka Bop will unmask a phantom: the great William Onyeabor.

'...anyone out there making music at the moment will be quite excited by this...' Damon Albarn
'...a synth-slathered prog-funk killer...' - Pitchfork
"talk to @LuakaBop about details of the William Onyeabor comp they are working on today... gonna blow minds!!!!!!!!!' - Four Tet

Promotional Assets
Covers & Remixes by Devendra Banhart, Man Tear (DFA) & Hess Is More, Caribou, Dam-Funk, Justin Strauss, Scientist, Optimo, Prince Language, Illum Sphere, James Holden, Peaking Lights, etc.

Art collaborations with John Akomfrah, Njideka Akunyili, Harrison Haynes, Dave Muller, Odili Donald Odita, Xavier Simmons and music videos by Brian Baderman, Mike Sumner & Kindess. Partnership with Moog, Boiler Room, DubLab, Beats in Space & East Village Radio. Events at Moog Fest, Pop Montreal, Le Comptoir General