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2026 Repress

The late sixties and early seventies spectacle of Jamaican Deejays taking their live performances out of the dance halls and translating them into hit records, not only marked the beginning of forty years of dance hall driven music on the island but also provided the original inspiration and template for the global dominance of rap and hip hop.
The art of deejay was now rightly recognised and the toasters or talk over artists advanced from introductions and interjections to stringing complete sets of lyrics together and riding the rhythm for the entire length of the song.
Deejays including U Roy, I Roy, Dennis Alcapone, Big Joe ,Little Joe and Prince Jazzbo who built their reputations working live on sound systems,now went one step beyond and moved on to become recording deejays with entire catalogues of hit singles and albums to their credit.
Throughout the seventies a whole host of mic men followed in their wake including Dillinger,Dr.Alimando,Clint Eastwood and Jah Stitch.
Talking records were not new, but 'talk over' records were...the repercussions of this uniquely Jamaican phenomenon would go on to reverberate worldwide...

For the second release on Diskclaimer* Records, we are committed to serve as a channel where driven and devoted artists such as Reformed Society can share their craft with complete honesty and freedom. Pluck & Growl EP is the result of an extensive selective process through the vast library of unreleased material from such a prolific artist, produced both in London and Barcelona between 2021 and 2025.

The final selection comes together as a well-rounded EP, flowing through different shades of house, from big room prog and tech house-leaning cuts to more laid-back, dreamy grooves. Guided by a deep intention throughout the four tracks that unfolds as a cohesive journey across both sides.
Limited to 300 copies.

Some recordings herald the future in ways that are impossible to see in real time. Teodros Makonnen With His Organ (ቴዎድሮስ መኮንን ከኦርጋኑ ጋር), by the artist Teodros Makonnen, also known as Teddy Mak, is one of those. Today, electronic sounds, synthesizers, and digital production are taken for granted in Ethiopian music, but in the early 1980s, they were novelties that polarized opinion. Even to this day, the story of Teodros Makonnen’s legacy has never been properly told. He played a decisive role in defining the sound of the digital era of Ethiopian music that emerged in the 1980s and beyond, both as a keyboard player and as a producer, songwriter, performer, and sound designer.

Ethiopian music was at a crossroads in the early 1980s. Much like music in the rest of the world, technology and automation heralded either a quantum leap in musical development or the annihilation of musicianship, depending on who you’d ask. The changes were incremental nonetheless, but with the benefit of hindsight one can clearly see that the changes meant different things in different contexts. Drum machines and electric organs came to replace many hotel bands because, all of a sudden, one musician could control drums, melody, and accompaniment. Teodros was one of the first musicians in Ethiopia to explore the possibilities this opened up.

Teodros’ father, Captain Makonnen Beri, was a chief pilot at Ethiopian Airlines and a music enthusiast at that. This would prove important to his development, as Makonnen brought back a piano from Germany, which would lead to the first steps in Teodros’ long musical career. Captain Makonnen’s work as Head of Flight Operations and as a pilot exposed him to the wider world that was far from commonplace for most Ethiopians. In a house where music captivated the whole family, the piano gave Teodros’ talent an outlet. Not only was a piano at home rare in Ethiopian households, his father also brought an Indian teacher to their home to teach Teodros and his brother, Captain Samuel Makonnen, music theory (solfeggio or ear training) and piano. Teodros and his youngest brother, the late great Dereje, a member of both the legendary Ibex Band and the Ethiopian reggae group Dallol, took up music from that point onward, with Teodros beginning to develop his proficiency at the age of eight. His father encouraged him to practice tirelessly at home, and Teodros later received musical schooling at the German School in Addis Ababa.

His obvious talent led to studies and formal education at the Yared School of Music, followed by continued studies in American jazz at Northern Virginia Community College in Virginia. Teodros cut his teeth professionally in his mid-teens, not only as a keyboardist, but also as an arranger for the Wabi Shebelle and Dahlak bands in the 1970s. He mastered electronic sequencing early, rising to prominence through the midnight recording sessions held during the military curfew. The pressures imposed by the curfew required precise and disciplined recordings, and Teodros delivered just that. This, in turn, led to collaborations with iconic artists such as Mulatu Astatke, Aster Aweke, Menelik Wossenachew, Tilahun Gessesse, Mahmoud Ahmed, and Alemayehu Eshete.

In those days, he sat in as a keyboardist with the Dahlak Band when Dawit Yifru took a hiatus to study in Russia, and also with the Ethiostar Band. He secured a residency at the Wabi Shebelle Hotel with the Shebele Band, together with Zelalem Tadese (drums), later succeeded by Elias Bekele, Mulugeta Hailu (bass), Teferi ‘Bibisha’ Mengesha (guitar), Kumelachew G/Selassie (trumpet), and Teshome Deneke (saxophone). A friendly competition developed between the bands associated with the Ras Hotel (the Ibex Band), Ghion Hotel (the Dahlak Band), and Wabi Shebelle Hotel (the Shebele Band). The music scene at Wabi Shebelle saw teenagers commanding the spotlight in an industry otherwise dominated by musicians of an older generation.

At the Wabi Shebelle Hotel, Teodros met a diplomat from Saudi Arabia and later visited him at his home in Addis Ababa, a meeting that had unexpected musical consequences. The man owned a Yamaha double-deck keyboard. That evening, they recorded Teodros Makonnen With His Organ (ቴዎድሮስ መኮንን ከኦርጋኑ ጋር) in one take. This recording, a cornerstone in the early digital sound of Ethiopian music, came about almost by chance, simply because Teodros got the opportunity. Traditional Ethiopian songs were cast in a wholly electronic style.

Once freed from backing duties, Teodros’ keyboards could explore dreamlike soundscapes that took Ethiopian music in new directions. Even though the cassette contained well-known Ethiopian songs, they were given highly original arrangements, performed on an electric organ with drum machine backing and rhythm patterns that left the listener with suggestive, lingering sounds. “Libesh Kabashen” (also known as “Anchi Bale Game”) and “Odu Gol Golesa” wrap you in the very stuff that dreams are made of.

Originally released on cassette only, this recording exudes a mystique that surpasses even some of the most obscure Ethiopian recordings of the day. It remained more or less unknown outside of Ethiopia until now. Some of the tracks, like “Addis Fikir,” are permeated with an almost naive buoyancy, free-floating sounds that lost contact with the ground the moment they were conceived. Others, like “Meche New Hageren Yemayew” and “Lelitu Alnega Alegn,” carry a moodier, quirkier timbre, with pulsating rhythms in the background. Yet even the darker pieces contain an unmistakable wave, something essentially Ethiopian. If most recordings of Teodros’s contemporaries at the time were teeming with atmosphere, his songs seem instead at home in the stratosphere, almost ethereal. Some of the music here could be filed under “lullabies,” were it not for the recurring, almost brooding feeling that engulfs the listener on the aforementioned tracks. You could easily be forgiven for drifting into a blissful haze as the music washes over you.

Up to the advent of electronic music production, Ethiopia was totally dominated by big bands on the one hand, and small groups on the other. The former were tied to large institutions such as the military, the latter emerged from the entertainment industry, in hotel bars and nightclubs. These groups were commercially driven, and bands ultimately had to foster a mercenary approach to employment, albeit not to the passion for music. In the light of this, Teodros’ musical legacy can be seen in two ways. On the one hand, he is a key player in Ethiopian music from the 1970s onwards, leaving an indelible mark through hundreds of compositions and arrangements, including soundtracks for numerous documentary films and advertisements for different companies. On the other hand, the way he and others employed electronics brought Ethiopian music onto a fork in the road.

The replacement of traditional instruments with electronic equipment was seen as impending doom by some. Others, like Teodros, saw new avenues for performance, production, and creativity. Just as later producers like Abegasu Shiota of Admas, Teodros was a trailblazer who opened paths that it took Ethiopian music as a whole more than a decade to rush into. The hotel scene had already been pushed toward electronic music by financial necessity and cost-cutting. Today’s revived global interest in Ethiopian music from the seventies and eighties, alongside a broader resurgence, has changed the reasons for using digital means of music production. They have become tools for musical dreaming. This is where the dreaming began.

For over 11 years, Nowadays Records has been shaping the French electronic music scene with boundless energy and total artistic freedom. Much more than a label, Nowadays is a big musical family where every release, meeting and event becomes a real celebration. With over a hundred albums and nearly a thousand titles to its credit, Nowadays Records embodies musical diversity across a variety of genres: abstract hip-hop, house, electronica and alternative pop.



It's in this festive spirit that the Club Nowadays project is born, a true embodiment of the collective's vision. Through its club compilations and evenings featuring label artists and outside guests.



Today, the label continues to chart its course with the release of Club Nowadays Vol. 6, a new opus in its series of compilations, which fully embodies its vision of club music. This sixth volume brings together emblematic figures of the label and emerging artists around the following dance tracks.



Don't Lie, the first single from the compilation, is a heartfelt track born of a broken heart, but turned towards the light. Mira Ló composed this track as an act of resilience, following a break-up in love. She transforms her pain into positive energy, hoping that everyone can recognize themselves in it and find a little sweetness to soothe their own grief.



R1D1 brings together his groovy house and garage influences to create the track Marsupilami around a hand-crafted synth, sharp drums and deep bass. Influenced by hip-hop beatmaking, he incorporates vocals from radio and interviews, transformed into rhythmic elements. The name, a nod to the famous character, comes naturally through the sampled “houba houba”. Between offbeat textures and assertive groove, the track embodies R1D1's singular, hybrid universe.



OOGO & Blanka, two pioneers of the label, offer us Phô Real, a hybrid track between soulful deep house and hip-hop groove, mixing organic and digital textures. A track to get the dancefloor moving, with a delicious nod to La Fine Équipe's culinary universe.



With Tracksuit & Loafers, Yambow creates a bridge between groovy French Touch elegance and the effervescent energy of UK house, in the tradition of producers like Salute and Oppidan. The track is conceived like an acid cocktail: funky, euphoric and dancefloor-friendly. The title is a nod to cultural contrasts - between English tracksuits and French loafers - which translate into a musical interplay between sophistication and fervor.



Finally, Laaanky, the Parisian producer, breaks codes and gives free rein to his passion for raw sound, efficiency and groove on the track Bloom. Between textured house, dub echoes and Afro-tinged post-dubstep rhythms, he explores a danceable, minimalist and percussive electronica. Less is more.

A long-lost Japanese acid folk gem, Niningashi’s 1974 private press debut Heavy Way shimmers with originality, deft song writing and a dream-like groove.

Although he was training as a pharmacist, Kazuhisa Okubo was much more interested in prescribing musical medicine.
A coming-of-age album, Heavy Way captured a turning point in Okubo’s life, and Japanese society more widely as a nostalgia for the pastoral calm of the traditional life, met the cosmopolitan thrill of coffee, sex and cigarettes in the big city.
Intoxicated by Tokyo, driven by a passion for music and surrounded by a thriving acid folk scene, the young student filtered his experiences through a psychedelic cocktail of soulful influences from the US and Japan.
Niningashi was his first band, and Heavy Way was their only album. It was honest and raw, deep and strangely funky, in an off-beat kind of way. Across nine tracks, Okubo and the 6-piece band put their own spin on the new folk sound of Japan, combining witty lyrics with electric guitar-driven solos and crisp, understated grooves.

Melancholy and profound, opening track ‘Ameagari’ feels like a synthesis of Harvest-era Neil Young and Haruomi Hosono’s Happy End. Then there’s the whimsical washboard country sound of ‘Semai Boku No Heyade’; the moody, low-lit charm of ‘Restaurant’; and ‘Hitoribotchi’, a sensitive portrayal of childhood, steeped in memories of rainfall that will resonate with fans of Woo and Mac Demarco.
While Okubo would go on to taste success with psychedelic folk bands Neko and Kaze, the latter of which scored three #1 albums, little is known about his mysterious debut with Niningashi.
Self-released by Okubo in 1974, and featuring album artwork by his brother, it has slowly generated a cult following online, intrigued by its soft and enchanting sound. So few records were ultimately pressed that those remaining have fetched up to £1,500 online.

Featured on Time Capsule’s era-spanning collection Nippon Acid Folk, Niningashi’s Heavy Way is a deep-cut grail of a vibrant time in Japan’s musical history, where even the pharmacists were making jams.

Two of the most prolific remixers in the world of Disco,Dave 'Love' Lee and John Moraleshave teamed up for one of their biggest projects to date - 'Mixed To The Maxxx'. After gaining access from the legendary original artists, the pair take the multi-track tapes of many classic Disco, Funk & Soul tracks and re-work them...to the Maxxx!

Where Remixed With Love stands as Dave Lee's own gold-standard body of work, Mixed To The Maxxx sets that legacy alongside Morales' own decades-deep M+M body of work: Lee brings his musically dense, groove-first touch to the likes of Harold Melvin, Syreeta, Lenny Williams and The Brand New Heavies, while Morales applies his extended, dancefloor-built M+M treatment and crushes the likes of Barry White, The Temptations and Loleatta Holloway, plus Dennis Coffey's breakbeat classic "Scorpio" for the DJs and collectors alike. Both work from original tapes, surfacing parts barely audible or entirely unheard in the source mixes, and both know when to let a classic breathe rather than bury it under modern production. It's a pairing a long time in the making. Lee and Morales first talked about working together around a decade ago, and getting Mixed To The Maxxx off the ground took five years of patient work: tracking down usable stems, securing approvals, and navigating a licensing landscape where much of the best material is now tied up with major labels increasingly cautious about clearing remixes. What's landed here is the product of that graft as much as the pair's shared ear for a great record, the sound of two people who know exactly what they're looking for and are willing to put in the time to find it.

A double 12" sampler in summer 2025 previewed the record's range. A bass-driven overhaul ofThe Brothers Johnson's "The Real Thing" and an extended mix of Philly legends Bell & James' "Livin' It Up (Friday Night)" showcased Lee's side, while an anthemic take on Inner Life's "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" and a tempo-lifted Light Of The World"London Town" flew the flag for Morales. Both drew strong early support ahead of the full LP.

Two of the most prolific remixers in the world of Disco,Dave 'Love' Lee and John Moraleshave teamed up for one of their biggest projects to date - 'Mixed To The Maxxx'. After gaining access from the legendary original artists, the pair take the multi-track tapes of many classic Disco, Funk & Soul tracks and re-work them...to the Maxxx!

Where Remixed With Love stands as Dave Lee's own gold-standard body of work, Mixed To The Maxxx sets that legacy alongside Morales' own decades-deep M+M body of work: Lee brings his musically dense, groove-first touch to the likes of Harold Melvin, Syreeta, Lenny Williams and The Brand New Heavies, while Morales applies his extended, dancefloor-built M+M treatment and crushes the likes of Barry White, The Temptations and Loleatta Holloway, plus Dennis Coffey's breakbeat classic "Scorpio" for the DJs and collectors alike. Both work from original tapes, surfacing parts barely audible or entirely unheard in the source mixes, and both know when to let a classic breathe rather than bury it under modern production. It's a pairing a long time in the making. Lee and Morales first talked about working together around a decade ago, and getting Mixed To The Maxxx off the ground took five years of patient work: tracking down usable stems, securing approvals, and navigating a licensing landscape where much of the best material is now tied up with major labels increasingly cautious about clearing remixes. What's landed here is the product of that graft as much as the pair's shared ear for a great record, the sound of two people who know exactly what they're looking for and are willing to put in the time to find it.

A double 12" sampler in summer 2025 previewed the record's range. A bass-driven overhaul ofThe Brothers Johnson's "The Real Thing" and an extended mix of Philly legends Bell & James' "Livin' It Up (Friday Night)" showcased Lee's side, while an anthemic take on Inner Life's "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" and a tempo-lifted Light Of The World"London Town" flew the flag for Morales. Both drew strong early support ahead of the full LP.

Love Big Dummy emerged as the stray creation of Jonathan Stodle (Spite Fug, HEVN III) and Kjetil Skaro (Crispy Carrot). Converging with rhythm section Halvor Dokke and Tore Paulsen, the freewheeling venture soon ripened into its own tantalizing entity. Informed by shoegaze, folk, psychedelic rock and alumni indie, their palette reaches deep into decades past while carrying a riveting sense of urgency and presence. Their melodic craftsmanship and innate ingenuity evoke the sound of life-affirming melancholy. Their self-titled debut was recorded in the cold, dim bunkers of Boksen in Oslo, with noise-whiz Morten Minothi Kristiansen (Kennel/Monomort) piloting the gearship. It"s a San Francisco breeze across the slushed northern pavements.

PICNIC AT THE CEMETERY is Bella Poarch’s debut album and most personal work to date; a cinematic coming-of-age album about reclaiming memory, rewriting pain, and finding solace in yourself after trauma. Told through surreal fairytale symbolism and Bella's hand-drawn characters ("The Bigheads"), the album transforms her difficult childhood into a vivid inner landscape — where the Bigheads guide her through heartbreak, girlhood, and self-repair. More than a collection of songs, Bella has crafted a dream world that sustained her through her difficult past and turned it into music that helps others heal.

"Business Spice" the debut LP by Big Benny Bailey isn't your grandpa's bluegrass album. It's unapologetically playful, and grunge- and pop-tinged, unafraid to break tradition and reimagine what a modern take on the genre can look like, complete with Charli XCX references and anxiety attacks during Uber rides.

The third release on Uprising pairs a sax-driven rockabilly thumper with one of the coolest dance craze records of the mid-60s. ‘Red Hot Car’ was Bobby Verne’s only recording and came out on the tiny Californian Doc Holiday label in 1962. Judging by the current price and collector demand for an original copy only a small quantity were pressed. This is a powerhouse of a tune that has been filling dancefloors across the globe for some time now.
As for the flip, in 1965, Buddy Wayne added self-penned lyrics to Gary Paxton’s rendition of the James Bond theme. Released on the Big Ben label – that only put out four records − it sat unwanted for decades. Then the rockabilly scene picked up on it in a big way when they discovered that it was the perfect stroller. This was closely followed by the northern soul and mod scenes. Today, it is at last crossing over to a more mainstream audience.

For South Central’s premier singer, songwriter, and producer, success was never an overnight accident; it was a blueprint executed with meticulous precision. With his highly anticipated project, Labor of Love, Blxst delivers a masterclass in modern West Coast R&B and Hip-Hop, proving that true artistry requires both sweat and soul. The album serves as a sonic manifesto on the price of ambition, the weight of loyalty, and the delicate balance of maintaining romance while building an empire. It stands as a definitive evolution of the distinct sound Blxst pioneered, blending crisp, trunk-thumping 808s with soulful, nostalgic chords and his signature, effortlessly smooth vocal runs.

Entirely self-produced and co-written, Labor of Love bridges the gap between the sun-drenched grit of Los Angeles street culture and the vulnerability of late-night bedroom playlists. From the bounce of celebratory anthems to introspective, late-night drive confessionals, Blxst curates a tracklist that feels both deeply personal and universally resonant. It explores the sacrifices made in the pursuit of greatness, paying homage to the sonic pioneers of LA while firmly cementing his own place as the vanguard of the city's modern sound. It is a celebration of independence and the self-made mentality, reminding listeners that he remains the chief architect of his own destiny.

Ultimately, Labor of Love is a testament to the grind, capturing the sleepless nights and tested relationships that pave the road to success. Blxst puts his heart on the line to show that the work itself is where the true passion lives, creating an album for the city, for his family, and for everyone who stays dedicated to their craft. More than just a collection of radio-ready hits, this project is a cohesive, cinematic experience from one of music's most reliable hitmakers. It is a definitive reminder that Blxst isn't just riding the wave—he is directing the current.

A major independent figure on the global electronic music scene, Petit Biscuit returns with Movement, a new album featuring a striking rework of “Everything In Its Right Place,” the acclaimed track “Let You Know” with Sonia Ammar, and the new single “Midnight Sky Pt II,” a tribute to his fans that reconnects with Petit Biscuit’s signature sound, both powerful and emotional.


The album will be showcased on the biggest stages of French festivals this summer.

Following the “immaculate and eternal soul” (The Guardian) of The Indications’ 2019 album, American Love Call, Private Space unlocks the door to a wider range of sounds, boldly launching the band into a world of synthy modern soul and disco beats dotted with strings. Anchored by the high-low harmonies of Aaron Frazer (drums/vocals) and Durand Jones (vocals), and rounded out by Blake Rhein (guitar), Steve Okonski (keys), and Mike Montgomery (bass), The Indications are true masters at melding revival sounds with a modern attitude. The ten tracks across Private Space provide for both an escapist fantasy and a much-needed recentering after a tumultuous 2020.In conjunction with today’s announcement, they share Private Space’s lead single/video “Witchoo.” Reflective of the track’s vibrant, playful energy, the Weird Life-directed video features the five band members and close friends, transitioning from a live performance 
to an electric backstage soirée.“At the end of the day, I just want people to close their eyes and forget where they are. Just the way a Stevie Wonder album does for me,” says Jones. Developed after being apart for much of the year, Private Space is creatively explosive and delights in upending expectations. Throughout, The Indications highlight a collective resiliency – as well as the power of a good song to be a light in the darkness. From an Indiana basement (where the band recorded their 2016 self-titled debut LP as college students), The Indications have catapulted into the soul limelight and an international stage. Following their sophomore album American Love Call
 — a dreamy but pensive record of big string arrangements and sweet soul stylings — The Indications became revered by vintage music fans, the lowrider community and late-night television.

The record is largely sung in Scots language, one of Scotland’s three official languages along with Gaelic and English. “Scots gives me a way of expressing myself which is connected directly with the landscapes I love. It brings the songs alive and it is a fascinating language. The name of the record is in Scots - Forefowk means the people who came before, or ancestors. When we say ‘mind me,’ we can mean a few things- remind, remember, watch over or care for me. The record explores how tradition needs to be constantly reconnected with, built upon, looked after, and shared.”
Quinie sings with a style inspired by Scottish Traveller singers. “I began singing unaccompanied Scots Song in 2015 after hearing Scots Traveller singer Sheila Stewart on the radio. Initially I felt like I shouldn't sing these songs because I'm not a Traveller, and I saw people around me doing that in a way that made me uncomfortable. But on the other hand this music made sense to me and I felt driven to learn. Over the years I have met Traveller friends who taught me that settled people sharing these songs could contribute to raising awareness. Scottish Travellers are marginalised and discriminated against in modern Scotland, despite being custodians of so many of our important traditions. So I started to perform them and tell this story. From there I built on my repertoire and started writing my own songs”.
To develop this record, Quinie travelled across Argyll with her horse. They went on a pilgrimage of sorts through the ancient landscapes of the West of Scotland to explore the interconnected relationships between people, ancestors, animals, and place. The album’s vinyl release is accompanied by a book and film, documenting this unusual research process.
Forefowk, Mind Me was recorded in August 2024 at The Big Shed in Highland Perthshire with support from Creative Scotland. Quinie is accompanied by an ensemble of musicians: Ailbhe Nic Oireachtaigh (viola), Oliver Pitt (duduk, bouzouki, percussion), Harry Górski-Brown (small pipes, violin), and Stevie Jones (double bass, recording, and mixing). Each of these artists brings their own distinctive voice, bridging contemporary experimental practice with worlds of traditional and early music.

Houston’s premier street griot is stepping into his most profound chapter yet with his highly anticipated upcoming album, O.Y.N. Throughout a decorated career that spans over 1.2 billion global streams and a fiercely loyal fanbase, Maxo Kream—born Emekwane Ogugua Biosah, Jr.—has established himself as one of rap’s most authentic, uncompromising storytellers. From the raw trenches of Alief to the critically acclaimed triumphs of Punken, Brandon Banks, Weight of the World, and his triumphant 2024 independent pivot Personification, Maxo has long been celebrated by Pitchfork, NPR, and Complex for his cinematic, hyper-detailed world-building. Now, O.Y.N. finds the Houston icon turning his gaze inward, pairing his signature Texas grit with an expansive, global perspective that redefines his artistic boundaries.

If his previous work was about Maxo taking full creative control as an independent force, O.Y.N. is about him uncovering who he is at his core. Following the passing of his father, Maxo found himself searching deeper for his family origins, leading to a pivotal moment of artistic and personal rebirth. For the first time in his life, Maxo traveled to Lagos, Nigeria, anchoring his new music in a profound celebration of his Nigerian heritage. The emotional centerpiece of this journey is the JPEGMAFIA-produced single “Time Out,” an introspective track that moves away from the frantic energy of his past releases to offer a stripped-back look at love, loss, and legacy. Featuring a heavy, resonant drum presence on the outro, the song’s accompanying music video was filmed on location in Lagos, capturing Maxo navigating his ancestral roots in real-time.

While O.Y.N. reaches new emotional depths, it doesn't sacrifice the hard-hitting, volatile street persona that made Maxo a star. The album expertly balances soul-baring vulnerability with cutting-edge hip-hop experimentation, showcasing elite chemistry with some of the genre's most forward-thinking visionaries. Look no further than “Fake Jeezy,” a collaborative explosion featuring Denzel Curry and masterminded by JPEGMAFIA. The track is a masterclass in industrial chaos, combining sharp lyricism and early-2000s trap imagery with cold, surreal visual aesthetics. This duality highlights Maxo's unique positioning in the culture as a trusted street general who can effortlessly trade bars with rap's avant-garde elite.

From his early days flipping Kendrick Lamar's “Rigamortis” to sharing marquee tracks with the likes of A$AP Rocky, Travis Scott, and Tyler, The Creator on hits like “Big Persona,” “Cracc Era,” and “Cracc At 15,” Maxo Kream has always been a rapper's rapper. O.Y.N. represents the ultimate synthesis of this incredible journey. It is an album born from the soil of Alief but elevated by the spirit of Lagos—a raw, beautiful, and heavy-hitting testament to an artist who has survived his past, honored his losses, and fully embraced his destiny.

Brazilian artist Rubel isn’t one to be pigeonholed and typecast into staying in one sound. Casas, the follow-up to his debut album Pearl from 2015, brought a bigger, more epic, and richer production quality to the table. Fusing the worlds of MPB and hip hop, Rubel’s sophomore LP built on the momentum of its predecessor, gaining a Latin-Grammy nomination along the way. Mr Bongo is proud to be giving Casas its first worldwide release on vinyl and CD outside of Brazil and Japan.

The cliché they say is that the second album is always the trickiest; however, Rubel doesn’t seem to have had any problems on Casas. It’s a fountain of creativity and originality, marking an artist in full flow.

Conceived after Rubel spent six months living in Los Angeles, Casas is MPB-leaning at its core but is also driven by a hip hop inspired pulse. There is a clear influence from hip hop’s aesthetic across the 2010s woven subtly but fundamentally throughout. Nods to Frank Ocean, Kendrick Lamar and Tyler, The Creator can be heard across an album full of playful edge and personality. Luscious string-led arrangements and tracks that explore the rich folkloric rhythms of Brazil, sit next to songs with low-fi drum machines and features from acclaimed Brazilian rappers.

One of the highlights of the album, ‘Mantra’, starts with a traditional Brazilian rhythm that morphs into a hazy hip hop beat. A sublime song with a hooky call and response chorus, it features a guest appearance and verse by the Brazilian MC Emicida. Another highlight is the epic ‘Colégio’ (College) which further showcases the melding of stripped back drum machine beats with cinematic, sweeping arrangements. Elsewhere, ‘Partilhar’ is a swaying, heartwarming hug. A tale of longing and love that has become a singalong fan favourite at Rubel’s concerts.

Casas also shines a light on a string of key players in Brazil’s new vanguard, such as Pedro Fonte, Gus Levy, and Brazilian rapper / poet Rincon Sapiência to name a handful. The record has pop sensibilities yet also feels underground. It beats with the heart of a singer-songwriter, a feeling that was felt so strongly on Pearl, yet this time is bolstered by a level of arrangement and richness of sound that take it to another dimension - soaring horn and string sections elevating the songs from home recording to stadium-ready anthems. Keeping that intrinsic beauty and simplicity of a well-constructed song yet reframing it within a pop context is the true gift of this album.

Casas cemented Rubel’s status as one of Brazil’s leading contemporary talents and a key figure enriching the country’s already effervescent scene.

There was an immediate buzz surrounding This Is What I Know About Being Gigantic, the 2001 debut EP by Seattle indie phenomenon Minus the Bear. It wasn’t the kind of viral interest that translated into a string of sold-out tour dates, but it meant that the tuned-in crowd eagerly anticipated their next move. To help stir up the excitement for their first proper full-length, the band followed up Gigantic with a promo CD featuring two tracks from their upcoming album, a short instrumental interlude, an exclusive new song, and a demo version of another album track. Packaged in a cardboard slipcase, it was the kind of cheaply manufactured promotional item that could be handed out for free at shows or thrown in as a bonus in online orders—a relic of the final years of the CD age before the advent of the iPod and mp3. The sampler CD was christened Bands Like It When You Yell “YAR!” At Them in a nod to the upcoming album Highly Refined Pirates.

While these kinds of promotional items typically had an ephemeral existence, filed away in some neglected binder of CDs or tossed out during one of the many apartment-to-apartment moves of the band’s principal demographic of urban twentysomethings, Bands Like It When You Yell “YAR!” At Them had a curiously persistent presence. Perhaps it was because it was packaged more like a proper EP than a sampler. It certainly helped that it was a free release, meaning anyone who came to a show likely walked away from the evening with the cardboard slipcase tucked in their jacket pocket. It’s also noteworthy that the EP showcased three songs from the back half of Highly Refined Pirates rather than the album’s live staples and fan favorites from side A. Whatever the combination of factors at play, “YAR!” took on a life of its own and was ultimately re-packaged in a jewel case and sold as a proper EP in 2004 in the wake of Highly Refined Pirates’ success. And now in 2026, it’s getting its first proper release on vinyl.

Opening with the driving beat, chirping guitars, and funky low-end of “Spritz!!! Spritz!!!,” Bands Like It When You Yell “YAR!” At Them quickly cements Minus the Bear’s foundation of sophisticated revelry, a spirit further emphasized in the Highly Refined Pirates title choice. Part of the Bear’s lore involves them playing their first show three days after 9/11, and just as New York City’s indie rock scene took a sharp turn towards nightclub debauchery and a rejection of ‘90s rock’s dour fatalism in the wake of the World Trade Center tragedy, so did the Bear turn away from the Seattle’s scene’s penchant for gloom and angst towards a cerebral after-hours pop sound. The inclusion of “Women We Haven’t Met Yet” helped elevate what could have otherwise been seen as an album deep cut into a lead track. The fact that these first two songs essentially served as preview singles over future Pirates hits like “Monkey!!!Knife!!!Fight!!!” and “Absinthe Party At The Fly Honey Warehouse” speaks to the high quality of every song the band cranked out in their early years. The EP’s exclusive track “Drop It Like It’s Hot” presaged Snoop Dogg’s mega-hit single of the same name by two years, but whereas Snoop leaned into restrained minimalism, the Bear unleashes some of their fiercest work here, building off of interwoven riffs and electronic layers to a climax of stabbing guitars and hollered vocals. Much like Nirvana’s Hormoaning EP, Minus the Bear’s Bands Like It When You Yell “YAR!” At Them was initially more of a marketing gimmick than a proper release, but given the popularity of the pivotal studio albums that stemmed from the same recording sessions, these extended plays serve as compelling companion pieces that have earned a special spot in their respective fanbases’ hearts. Suicide Squeeze is proud to offer Bands Like It When You Yell “YAR!” At Them on vinyl on September 18, 2026, nearly 25 years after the band’s first show.

Remastered for vinyl by Bernie Grundman with lacquers cut at 45rpm, this limited edition pressing of 1000 copies on Puget Sound-colored vinyl helps document and preserve the exciting early years of one of American indie rock’s most beloved acts.

Coloured Vinyl. Harsh Reality - the fourth studio album by Seattle's The Drowns - is an unapologetically political punk record, coming this September from Pirates Press Records. Recorded at The Blasting Room in Fort Collins, CO by punk rock legend Bill Stevenson (Descendents, Black Flag) and mixed by Jason Livermore (Teenage Bottlerocket), this collection of 13 new songs fuses everything fans have loved about the band's previous sonic experimentation and focuses it into laser-tight melodic songwriting firmly rooted in punk rock, but with the potential to reach listeners from all walks of life. Singer-guitarist Rev Peters, singer-bassist Andy Wylie, and drummer Jake Margolis largely bashed out the tracks themselves, with the exception of additional guitar work on "Vengeance" by Zach Blair (Rise Against, Only Crime, GWAR), and a touch of accordion on "3rd & Pike" courtesy of Matt Hensley (A-100s, Flogging Molly). While the title of lead single "Relentless" could easily refer to The Drowns' infamously non-stop touring regimen, it refers instead to something far more humanitarian: the crushing weight of capitalism on the working poor. The song acknowledges the toll it takes on one's mental health, struggling day in & day out with no breaks only to be left farther & farther behind. "I wish life would just give it a rest", laments Rev. The album contains its fair share of venom, however, like all great political punk in the tradition of The Clash or Stiff Little Fingers, the lyrics prioritize people over polemic, reaching out with compassion in an age where it is in distressingly short supply. "I'm sure that we could change it all if we only had a heart", implores Andy on "Have a Heart". This is life-affirming music for hard times, made for everyone that could sorely use it right now, and a record poised to give the band's hard-earned position as a fan-favorite in the global punk scene an even greater trajectory. For a band that has won over fans around the globe, record by record and show by show, it is a big statement, but simply put: Harsh Reality is The Drowns at the top of their game.

Die Zwanziger - ein Alter voller Möglichkeiten, aber vor allem: verdammt seltsam. LEILAs Debütalbum "20 SOMETHING IS A F*KING STRANGE PLACE" fängt genau dieses Gefühl ein: zwischen Erwachsenwerden, Unsicherheit und dem Drang, sich ständig neu zu erfinden. Mit dabei: die Taube - in jeder Stadt, auf Dächern, im Sound, auf dem Cover. Ein Vogel, der niemandem gehört, aber überall ist. Genau wie LEILA selbst, die zwischen New York, Sarajevo und Bern lebt und dort drei Versionen von sich entdeckt. Die Musik? Ehrlicher Pop, durchzogen von Punk-Energie, UK-Underground und Experimentierfreude. Kein Album, das Antworten gibt, sondern eines, welches die Unordnung der Zwanziger festhält - roh, ehrlich, unaufhaltsam.

Back in November 2015, after years of collaborations with such as Ghostface Killah, Raekwon, Obie Trice, Sean Price, Kool G Rap, Eternia and countless others, Toronto-based producer MoSS released his debut producer album entitled "Marching To The Sound Of My Own Drum". Since the beginning of his career, the Canadian beatsmith, record digger and music connoisseur has been making a name for himself with his signature sound and on this record he gives an amazing display of what he's capable of doing being backed up by an all stars team that features AZ, Havoc, Slum Village, Onyx, Inspectah Deck, Ill Bill, Skyzoo, Guilty Simpson and 20+ other legendary MC's. A few years after its original release, we've decided to team up with MoSS to bring you this masterpiece on wax and, for the occasion, he's also added an unreleased bonus track called "We Here" that features Smif-N-Wessun that, together with "Emotional Redux", we've put on a 7" together with its instrumental. Limited edition of 500 hand-numbered copies, with the first 200 pressed on orange/black A-side B-side vinyl, and 300 on black vinyl.

BONUS 7”

A1. Emotional Redux (feat. Big Gov, Guilty Simpson, Jon Connor, Vstylez, Willie The Kid)
B1. We Here (feat. Smif-N-Wessun) UNRELEASED
B2. We Here (Instrumental)

Geoff Kirkwood (Man Power)

I’dgained some notoriety as a music producer and DJ but I hit a horrible case of writers block around 2018.

The problem I was finding was that I was trying to shoe horn every smart arsed clever dick musical reference I had into the music I was making, but the function of dance music is to make people dance, not to show people who broad your musical references are, so I was making pretty shitty music that landed in the middle and didn’t achieve either aim.

To tackle this I ended up committing to just trying to make the most expressive and wanky experimental stuff I could. I was immersed in club culture at the time so the whole enterprise started as a joke, hence the name “Bed Wetter”. However when I fully submitted to just naked exploration the really unexpected thing that happened was that I found myself unavoidably having to deal with a lot of my own bullshit. That bullshit turned into the “Billy Mill is Dead” album, which was essentially the sound of me excavating my own life and looking at how I felt about where I was from, where I was headed, my family, my history, my region and all of the things i have conflicting feelings about.

It was partially catharsis and also a bit of deprogramming around being able to call myself an artist after being raised to believe that wasn’t an option for me.

I self released Billy Mill is Dead in the months before the pandemic and it found it’s fair share of love in the places I hoped would connect with it, and just the right amount of being ignored by people who I’m pleased didn’t feel it. This all lead to me being emboldened enough to apply for an artist in residence position at a big regional opera house months later in the middle of lockdown.

My feeling was that if my DJ career was potentially over for the remainder of my lifetime then there was no harm in exploring this alternative method of expression to see where it could take me.

I submitted a ridiculously ambitious plan for what I would like to do as a project, and to my absolute shock I was selected for the position.

I was 40 years old and from a scarcity background so I had a potentially unique response to that kind of validation for the first time and what followed next was a process of me just coming back with bigger and more ridiculous ideas just to find out at whatstage they’d tell me to stop.

The thing is, nobody did. I got as far as suggesting writing a full symphony to be performed by an orchestra before my own nerve gave out and I decided that was probably as far as I should push things.

The problem with people giving you permission to do things is that you then need to go out and figure out how to do those things.

The biggest issue for me, beyond raising the money to pay for everything, was how does a person actually write a symphony?

I was introduced to Fiona Brice, a multi instrumentalist and orchestral arranger. She’s also a recording artist who releases on Bella Union. On top of that she’s a violinist who used to be part of the band Placebo and who used to appear regularly playing for other bands on things like Top of the Pops.

Not only was Fiona uniquely placed to not look down on the strange provenance of someone from an Acid House background wanting to write a symphony, but more to the point we really hit it off from day one.

Fiona coached me in the essentials of writing for an Orchestra, and then I went off and wrote the 8 movements.

I’d love to say I laboured for years over this bit, but it took about 2 weeks in total. I’d also love to say what I wrote was a complete symphony, but the version of this which is solely me feels like looking at something without your glasses on. The shape,feel and borders were all there, but the definition was absent. Fiona taught me the broad language of a symphony, but without her it would have lacked all intonation, nuance and detail. Where I had shaped ideas with a hammer, she brought out my meaning with precision using a scalpel.

I think the prodigiously quick turnaround for the music is as much proof of how conceptually and musically aligned Fiona and I are. I know we’re both incredibly proud of what we’ve created.

It took nearly 2 more years to stage the debut performance in what was potentially the most traumatic period of my life which saw me embroiled in an international crisis with my own family and the death of my father, all with the backdrop of COVID.

The work itself is inspired by the working class experience, but it’s also a comment on how we get to decide what we are and how we’re defined, and we get to choose what we do to prove these things.

The original recording was contractually impossible to ever share again, so we re-recorded it in a working men’s club with jobbing (albeit world class) players. In many ways it’s a record that feels like it shouldn’t exist, which is why we’re all so happy that it does.

Orchestra Mambo International ist ein britisches Orchester für Mambo, Salsa und Afro-Cuban Jazz, 2022 von DJ Lubi und Jonny Enright (Grupo X) gegründet. Inspiriert von Größen wie Tito Puente, Eddie Palmieri und den Fania All-Stars, verbindet es klassische Traditionen aus New York und Kuba mit frischer Energie aus dem UK. Die generationsübergreifende, internationale Besetzung vereint Musiker aus Venezuela, Kolumbien, Kuba, Brasilien, Spanien und Großbritannien sowie Altersgruppen von Zwanzigern bis Siebzigern. Das Debütalbum "¡Apúntalo!" enthält Kompositionen von Jonny Enright sowie Beiträge von Carlos 'Pachanga' Peña und Timbales-Spieler Jimmy Le Messurier. Ein besonderes Highlight ist der Gastauftritt des renommierten Musikers Chip Wickham (Gondwana Records). Musikalisch bewegt sich "¡Apúntalo!" zwischen Mambo, Salsa Dura, Pachanga, kubanischem Son Montuno, puerto-ricanischer Bomba und Latin Jazz und verbindet den klassischen afro-karibischen Dancefloor-Spirit mit originellem Songwriting, facettenreichen Arrangements und der Energie einer Big Band.

The follow up to her UK number 1 album This Is How Tomorrow Moves, the stark and striking fourth album by beabadoobee is named for the electricity towers that dot every major artery in the world—the strong, spindly structures that reminded Beatrice Laus of her connection to friends and family at home while she was staring down extreme disconnection and isolation on tour over the past few years.

The title can also be read as an allusion to Laus’ spiky, forceful new sound—the waves of distortion that crash and shatter across this record’s 14 songs mirroring the intense crackle you hear when walking under power lines. The pylon is also a fitting symbol for an album that reckons with the repetitive anxieties of your mid-twenties: What if I’m always going to be this way? What if life is just pylon after pylon on the road?

The album’s first single is available to stream and buy from today: “Sun Has Set” introduces Pylon as, in essence, a set of songs that began as diary entries, words that Laus thought she’d never be able to say out loud. “A lot of the songs on this record are things I wish I could have said to someone,” she says. “This song has this petty tunnel vision—it’s like, I hate you. You’re gonna stay here and listen to how much I hate you. Because I never got to say that.” The single comes accompanied by a striking first person video directed by Bea’s partner and longtime visual collaborator Jake Erland.


Ever a devotee of pure rock music—both as something to be cherished and something to be played with—Laus casts these feelings in songs that touch on classic grunge, midwest emo and ‘90s radio rock, zeroing in on a sound that is both harsher and more direct than any of her previous records. She says the music she’s loved has “always been an influence” on her music, and so for B4 she went straight to the source. A fair few of Beabadoobee’s composite influences contributed to Pylon, a fact that speaks to the goodwill and respect Laus has amassed over the course of her relatively brief career.

Hayley Williams sings on “Nothing to Prove,” a deeply anthemic indie-rock song about getting your power back from fairweather friends who just want a bit of your success. The moody “Powerlines” features a verse from Turnstile singer Brendan Yates, a master of matching vocal force with emotional nuance. Elsewhere, you’ll find contributions from Pinegrove’s Evan Stephens Hall, Deftones’ Chino Moreno, and Title Fight’s Shane Moran, as well as, on “Write Me A Letter”, production work from Laus’ longtime friends and collaborators Matty Healy and George Daniel of The 1975.

Beabadoobee will debut songs from the record on the Powerlines Tour, her first ever arena shows and biggest tour to date, taking in shows across North America, the UK and Europe this autumn-winter. The Powerlines Tour kicks off 1 October and includes stops at Madison Square Garden, The Kia Forum, The O2 and more (full routing below). Support comes from Wisp in the US, Canada and UK and Violet Grohl in France, The Netherlands, Belgium and Germany.





Born in the Philippines and raised in London, Beatrice Laus emerged as a British alternative music icon across three acclaimed albums and five EPs. She has garnered multiple BRIT Award and BBC Sound Of nominations, and won NME’s Radar award, whilst amassing over 10 billion streams worldwide and more than 12 million followers across her social channels.

This Is How Tomorrow Moves became her first record to reach number 1 on the UK Official Album Chart in 2024, following her Top 10 albums Fake It Flowers (which reached number 8) in 2020 and 2022’s Beatopia (#4). Earlier this year, beabadoobee released the one-off single ‘‘All I Did Was Dream Of You,” teaming up with Grammy-nominated best New Artist The Marías, the result of a longtime mutual creative admiration between María Zardoya and Bea.

Archimboldos have clawed their way out of the starcaves of their primordial past and into the tranquil light of a coral garden on their third full length album, Crusta Arcana, a gumbo stewpot of transcendent electronica suffused with tribal rhythms and liquid ambience. Across a stereo field smeared with tolling bells, post-industrial folk percussion, and tinkling keys, Archimboldos soundtrack a science fictional journey, not into the depths of space, but deep beneath the waves.

In the past the Chilean duo of Nicolás Carcavilla and Felipe Crocco have described their music as “liminal shrimp folk.” Here they continue this strange exploration when they visit the court of the prawns, producing stately electronic chamber orchestrations. Perhaps these are the frequencies used for ritual dream initiation into the mystery schools of drowned Atlantis. Weaving an ancient sacred science, Archimboldos take listeners on a mystic vovage into their singular crustacean mythology, the crusta of their hidden arcana.

Archimbolodos are masters of conjoining cyclonic and centrifugal lines of electricity into spellbinding incantations. These deep-sea transmissions envelope the listener into aquamarine forcefields that are as hallucinatory as they are hypnotic. Navigating these strange fantasias could lead one to getting lost at sea, but the work is buoyed by the somnolent melodies of lonely harpsichords and swelling synth pads whose sustained tones reach towards distant shores. Sailing across a vast expanse of oceanic harmonies and percolating percussion, these pieces are as precise as the hand of a sailor on the rudder, moving with the tide.

Casting their net wide across eight pieces, Archimboldos have made a big catch. From the emotive electronic counterpoint found on “Bursting Armor” to the blocks of seaweed tangled sonic sculpture trawled up from the ocean floor on “Aphelion IX.” Other songs are like samples of biological ambience collected from luminous tide pools: resplendent tones placed into a Petri dish of sound, swirled, cultured and fermented until it undulates with the rhythmic movement of microscopic lifeforms. Alternating between rippling minimalist sonority and pounding, progressive, synth-heavy entrancement, Crusta Arcana charts its own idiosyncratic itinerary of instrumental invention.

All the while light is down streaming from the heavens to pierce the waters, here calm, there choppy. The intrepid musical captains commanding Archimboldos have laid a course for new archipelagos of the imagination, guided by heavenly constellations.

-Justin Patrick Moore, author of The Radio Phonics Laboratory, Telecommunications, Speech Synthesis and the Birth of Electronic Music

Still hot on the heels of compiling the first volume of the Italian Dancefloor Outsiders, and moved by the urge to explore new musical landscapes and discover sounds produced in subsequent years, we decided to continue our quest of tracking an alternative map of what was happen- ing in the Italian electronic music scene. This second volume takes inspiration from the concept of “Mezzanotte Mezzogiorno” (literally “from Midnight to Midday”), a term first used for a now legendary party held in 1992 at Club Imperi- ale in Tirrenia, Tuscany. The owner of the club, Roberto Pannocchia, was eager to attract a different kind of audience to his venue and so decided to extend the closing time until midday, well beyond the Italian law limits. But as Imperiale was a members club, he was allowed to do it, and he already knew that this act would forever shape the Italian club scene. "Mezzanotte Mezzogiorno" was then used to describe long dancing marathons that lasted for the whole weekend, spread across clubs, after-parties and more off-the-grid open air venues but, most of all, became the symbol of an era. The music ranged from slow, pitched-down landscapes to epic techno progressions, filling both feverishly packed big rooms and colourful chillout zones. A parabola of musical move- ments related to specific genres was born, reaching its peak and then fading towards the end of the millenium.

Unless you’ve been living under a rock you will have bound to have heard Prospa and Cloonee’s 2026 Summer anthem Free Your Mind which reimagines the iconic vocal from this legendary Fibre Foundation track. Featuring Sybil’s vocals originally heard on Oh, How I Love You, produced by Victor Simonelli, Prospa & Cloonee’s track introduces the beloved hook to a new generation of House music fans.

Now for the first time since it’s initial release in 1995 Free Your Mind by Fibre Foundation, one of the many aliases of New York house mainstay Victor Simonelli, is available again on the original label, Victor’s own Big Big Trax.

Driven by uplifting piano riffs, soulful vocal touches and groove-led rhythms, the track captures the essence of classic US garage house, delivering a feel-good energy that continues to resonate on modern dancefloors.

Featuring a selection of mixes including UK Mix, NJ Mix, Instrumental and Bonus Dub, the release offers strong versatility for DJs across house and garage sets, from peak-time moments to deeper transitions.

Rooted in the New York house tradition, Simonelli’s productions sit comfortably alongside artists such as Masters At Work, Todd Terry and Kenny Dope, making this a natural fit for stores supporting classic US house and garage.

Back on fresh 12" vinyl, this iconic release maintains strong appeal for both collectors and DJs looking for reliable, time-tested dancefloor material.

One year earlier, 50 years ago this December, THE HEARTBREAKERS arrived in London to join the Sex Pistols on the "Anarchy" tour. They spent most of 1977 there, recording "L.A.M.F." and cementing their status as elder statesmen of the punk movement. This last date of their 1977 European tour was to be their very last as a band - until the reunions. Drummer Jerry Nolan had already jumped ship; his substitute is The Clash"s Terry Chimes. The gig was filmed for a movie that was never to be - this is the soundtrack recording.

MEMPHIS, TN — Fat Possum Records and Hi Records are proud to announce the first vinyl pressing in half a century of Ann Peebles' 1975 album Tellin' It, fully remastered and recovered from the Hi Records vault, where it had sat untouched for decades. Available on vinyl in stores September 11, 2026 and can be pre-ordered now and also available streaming everywhere now. 
Peebles was at the height of her career when she recorded Tellin' It — coming off her biggest hit, "I Can't Stand the Rain," the year before. Produced by Willie Mitchell at Royal Studios in Memphis, with the grooves that defined the label's sound, backed by Howard Grimes' drumming and the Memphis Horns. 

"Peebles and Mitchell don't just recast "Rain" 10 different times—instead, they lean into the supple support laid down by the Hi Rhythm Section, who have plenty more uptempo grooves to offer." Andy Beta, Bandcamp
The original master tapes were sent to John Nicholson at Nashville Tape Transfer for their first listen in fifty years. From there, the project stayed close to home: remastered by Clay Jones in Taylor, MS, then back to Memphis for lacquers cuts by Jeff Powell (Take Out Vinyl), and was pressed & plated at Memphis Record Pressing.

Friends of Jesse Malin: I Would Do It For You – Vol. 1 brings together musicians from the worlds of rock, punk, Americana, and the underground to celebrate one of modern rock's most respected songwriters. "I've been a fan of Jesse Malin for decades now so I was thrilled when Valley Lodge was asked to be a part of the tribute album,”says Dave Hill. The song originally appeared on D Generation’s 1996 album, No Lunch. "'Too Loose' has always been one of my favorites—a great and timeless rock song that we had a blast re-interpreting." Produced by Lyle Hysen, Friends of Jesse Malin: I Would Do It For You Vol 1. is the first in a two-volume series of nearly 80 songs (!) recorded by Jesse’s friends and community. Proceeds from the album will benefit Malin’s healthcare as he recovers from a paralyzing spinal stroke. Vol. 2 will feature Thurston Moore, Willie Nile, and many more. "Friends, collaborators, and artists from every corner of Jesse's world wanted to be involved," says Hysen. "The songs just kept coming. What started as a single collection quickly grew into something much bigger, encompassing almost the entire Malinverse. We're excited that this is only the first chapter." The compilation features contributions from Amanda Cross, Bebe Buell, Trapper Schoepp, Valley Lodge, Danny Sage, James Maddock, Gogol Bordello, Ursa Minor, Sami Yaffa, Prima Donna, Das Damen, Rene & Grace Mata, Dead Milkmen, Cat Popper & Sasha Dobson, Robinlee Garber, The Seashore Sharks featuring Jesse and Alexei Sanoff, Derek Cruz, Jill Fiore, Matt Madly & Co., Davey La, American Dream, Joe McGinty, Randy Schrager, Stephen Chopek, Ben Foley, and Kelley Swindall. Friends of Jesse Malin: I Would Do It For You – Vol. 1 will be available digitally, on vinyl, and as a deluxe double-CD edition. The vinyl release features twelve tracks across two sides and includes a download code for the complete digital collection, while the CD edition presents all 26 songs across two discs.

Brighton’s Moon Attendant team up with Go! Team's leader and drummer Ian Parton for new LP ‘Dum Evol’. Following their debut ‘One Last Summer’ with this incendiary, heart-pounding, drum-led masterwork full of untutored surf-guitar, Scarlet Rivera style fiddle, psychedelic orchestration and sharp-playful lyrics, all within just over 30 thrilling minutes.Since their debut, Paul Blewett and Nick Holton had been knee-deep in experimental music and needed something or someone to smash the shit out of the new songs. Instead of making heavier music, the result left lofty but wobbly structures teetering on fractured Giacometti-like frames, exposed, more arresting. Paring back the Musical palette from previous wash of synths and reverb to surf guitars, Moog, and violin, leaving Blewett's vocal (often compared to Colin Bunstone) leaning into an unvarnished, direct sound like Jimmy Campbell. Thematically, Dum Evol turns inward. Where their debut asked questions, this record sits with the answers, exploring love, conflict, and growth as experiences that must be lived first hand - “It’s such dumb evolution, you still have to learn the hard way”. Their lyrics get under the skin and under The Establishment in a wistful worm like way. Nudging at the truths. Smiling but always ready to bare some fangs.The fantastic instinctive violinist, Roger Proctor, joined as fourth member, bringing raw fragile beauty to ‘Look The Other Way’ & ‘Difficult Ifficult’, blending swooping string lines with the monster-surfing-Sonic Youth racket elsewhere. They explain - “We kept to a first take policy generally as it keeps everything just fresh and daisy like.” Dum Evol’s restraint allows the band’s more experimental instincts to land with greater weight. Musically, the record occupies a space somewhere between the slacker-rock nonchalance of Pavement and the gypsy swagger of Dylan - 'Desire' through a lens that is consciously, almost defiantly, English. It’s a sound that channels the 60's pastoral folk tradition alongside the sharp-edge of The Auteurs, an honest version of England, one to be proud of, existing in stark contrast to the hollow jingoistic nationalism of flag-shaggers climbing lamp posts. Jagged, lived-in, and entirely vital, Dum Evol is a record that feels fully realised, yet remains dangerously built to unravel in a hair's breadth.“Psychelelic grungy synth-pop - Moon Attendant marry analogue electronics to a lovely burbling pop sound, like Felt exploring the recesses of krautrock. Trippy, ramshackle and a cult in waiting.” Shindig!

Brighton’s Moon Attendant team up with Go! Team's leader and drummer Ian Parton for new LP ‘Dum Evol’. Following their debut ‘One Last Summer’ with this incendiary, heart-pounding, drum-led masterwork full of untutored surf-guitar, Scarlet Rivera style fiddle, psychedelic orchestration and sharp-playful lyrics, all within just over 30 thrilling minutes.Since their debut, Paul Blewett and Nick Holton had been knee-deep in experimental music and needed something or someone to smash the shit out of the new songs. Instead of making heavier music, the result left lofty but wobbly structures teetering on fractured Giacometti-like frames, exposed, more arresting. Paring back the Musical palette from previous wash of synths and reverb to surf guitars, Moog, and violin, leaving Blewett's vocal (often compared to Colin Bunstone) leaning into an unvarnished, direct sound like Jimmy Campbell. Thematically, Dum Evol turns inward. Where their debut asked questions, this record sits with the answers, exploring love, conflict, and growth as experiences that must be lived first hand - “It’s such dumb evolution, you still have to learn the hard way”. Their lyrics get under the skin and under The Establishment in a wistful worm like way. Nudging at the truths. Smiling but always ready to bare some fangs.The fantastic instinctive violinist, Roger Proctor, joined as fourth member, bringing raw fragile beauty to ‘Look The Other Way’ & ‘Difficult Ifficult’, blending swooping string lines with the monster-surfing-Sonic Youth racket elsewhere. They explain - “We kept to a first take policy generally as it keeps everything just fresh and daisy like.” Dum Evol’s restraint allows the band’s more experimental instincts to land with greater weight. Musically, the record occupies a space somewhere between the slacker-rock nonchalance of Pavement and the gypsy swagger of Dylan - 'Desire' through a lens that is consciously, almost defiantly, English. It’s a sound that channels the 60's pastoral folk tradition alongside the sharp-edge of The Auteurs, an honest version of England, one to be proud of, existing in stark contrast to the hollow jingoistic nationalism of flag-shaggers climbing lamp posts. Jagged, lived-in, and entirely vital, Dum Evol is a record that feels fully realised, yet remains dangerously built to unravel in a hair's breadth.“Psychelelic grungy synth-pop - Moon Attendant marry analogue electronics to a lovely burbling pop sound, like Felt exploring the recesses of krautrock. Trippy, ramshackle and a cult in waiting.” Shindig!

One of the biggest electronic tracks of 2001, "Diabla" was championed by some of the world's most influential DJs, including Pete Tong, Dave Clarke, Sven Väth, and many more. Widely regarded as a true classic and a genre-defining record, Diabla successfully bridged the gap between house and techno, earning its place as a timeless dancefloor anthem.

This fully licensed reissue arrives courtesy of Armada and the original label, Soma Quality Recordings. The package features a brand-new interpretation from Joris Voorn alongside the much-loved Heavenly Mix and Revisited versions, rounded off with the legendary remix from Kevin Saunderson.

Lars Sandberg, better known as Funk D'Void, has been at the forefront of the global electronic music scene since the mid-1990s. Beginning his DJ career at just 15 years old, Lars discovered his passion for music early in life. Raised by his mother, a professional concert pianist, he always knew music would define his future. Over the decades, Funk D'Void has built a reputation as one of electronic music's most respected DJs and producers, consistently delivering innovative productions and unforgettable sets around the world.

Two tracks extending towards the 10 minute marker, very much in the unique style of Robert Mononom which was already being refined throughout his previous 3 EPs, now culminating in 2 excursions throughout deep hypnotic/psychedelic machine made sounds. A side is built on an aggressive triple and double beat kick drum with a very dubby "big room" presence upon which waves of other nuances in noise get overlayed slowly transforming the 165+ BPM experience throughout what sounds like an extended live mix. B side goes in more spacial/atmospheric direction where hi hats take control over the kick, capturing the witness in a whirlwind of dubbed out overlaying rhythmic patterns. A sound so raw and pure in its introspection, clearly showing Robert's capacity of developing an aesthetic of his own.

Dj Ultramars hasn't released many tracks altogether, and since 2024 he is again too busy to release everybody else's music on his label to find the time to compose more music, but many of his previous tracks are still relevant today, still pleasing party audiences in as much as when first released, and it's been too many years that those tunes have been proposed new on vinyl, so time for a recut & repress.
Here we have:

A1: Cab Carlco, the biggest hit of Dj Utramars, originally released on Mars Picture 1 (1999) as well as Toolbox Killerz 25 (2015), so 11 years since its last (limited) release !
Very uplifiting / very "in your face" kind of track, always & eversince so efficient on the dancefloor.
A2: Ennui (voicemix), originally released on Mars Picture 2 (2003), 23 years ago! (what a round number...). A track that will hypnotize you with its female vocals playing with the echo, yet runnin steady on a heavy deep bass & enough arrangements to not get bored of it: every Mars Assault is designed as a record to DJ as much as a record to listen to.
This track is cut in 45rpm to keep optimal quality until the end of the side.

We had to put some of the best two tracks of Dj Ultramars on the music side since the flip side is a laser etched side ! After we had released the two first picture discs, our current pressing partner was giving the possibility for a laser etched record, so here is the Mars Picture 3 ! See the picture of B-side above.


200 copies limited in this laser etched pressing.
Cut with Hervé @ dK mastering

Following last year's world tour, Sparks were invited to perform a one-off show on the Moon - the first band in history to do so! Includes an introduction and outro from Cate Blanchett, who accompanied the band on their lunar trip.

Sparks Live On The Moon comprises a full live set of twenty songs spanning the band's 54 year career, including 'This Town Ain't Big Enough For Both Of Us', 'The Number One Song In Heaven', 'When Do I Get To Sing "My Way"', 'The Girl Is Crying In Her Latte' and songs from their most recent album MAD!

Sister Hazel is the American alternative rock band from Gainesville, Florida, onsisting of band members Ken Block, lead vocals/guitar, Andrew Copeland, guitar/vocals, Ryan Newell, lead guitar, Jett Beres, bass, and Mark Trojanowski on drums.

The band’s name pays tribute to Sister Hazel Williams, a beloved local missionary known for her unwavering compassion and community work....Somewhere More Familiar is the second studio album by Sister Hazel, the title of the album comes from a lyric in the song “We’ll Find It”, and was released in 1997.

Anchoring the album is the band’s song “All for You (which is Sister Hazel's biggest hit to date, hitting #11 on the Billboard Hot 100. Meanwhile “We'll Find It” found a second life on the soundtrack of the 2001 film The Wedding Planner, starring Jennifer Lopez and Matthew McConaughey.

…Somewhere More Familiar finally arrives in its debut vinyl pressing and includes an insert with lyrics.

Scotland's incomparable and influential Arab Strap are back with their ninth studio album Half-Told Tales, due for release via Rock Action Records on 4th September 2026: almost exactly 30 years since the beloved duo’s first ever single, The First Big Weekend, was released. The follow-up to 2024's acclaimed I'm totally fine with it (y) don't give a fuck anymore (y) , Half-Told Tales is rich with Aidan Moffat and Malcolm Middleton’s trademark wit and dark humour, whilst creating moments from quiet brooding to a self-described “disco-metal incantation that might make you dance” . Including the single You You You, the album was recorded with long-time collaborator Paul Savage (Mogwai, Belle and Sebastian, Franz Ferdinand) . Vinyl is released as a double LP in a gatefold sleeve.

Scotland's incomparable and influential Arab Strap are back with their ninth studio album Half-Told Tales, due for release via Rock Action Records on 4th September 2026: almost exactly 30 years since the beloved duo’s first ever single, The First Big Weekend, was released. The follow-up to 2024's acclaimed I'm totally fine with it (y) don't give a fuck anymore (y) , Half-Told Tales is rich with Aidan Moffat and Malcolm Middleton’s trademark wit and dark humour, whilst creating moments from quiet brooding to a self-described “disco-metal incantation that might make you dance” . Including the single You You You, the album was recorded with long-time collaborator Paul Savage (Mogwai, Belle and Sebastian, Franz Ferdinand) . Vinyl is released as a double LP in a gatefold sleeve.

Originally unleashed in October 2004, Ape to Angel took the momentum of Pitch Black’s preceding albums to new levels, with the sound becoming fuller and the bass more driving. The duo tweaked the sounds of club culture around the dub heart of the album, blending sinuous bass lines, simmering rhythms and echoing acidic synths to electrifying effect. They also wrote their first fully vocal song, Elements Turn, with singer Sandy Mill, and sampled Estonian satellite transmissions for Lost in Translation.

Critically acclaimed, with DJ Mag awarding it five stars, the release of Ape to Angel led to a 42 date tour round the world which included their North American debut. Tracks from the album were also picked up for use in CSI: Miami and HBO¹s True Blood, the latter featuring Freefall in a vampire orgy scene - perfect.

ELEPHANT is an album that doesn’t ask for space, it takes it.
Built on weight, grit, and undeniable presence, ELEPHANT moves like its namesake: loud, heavy, and impossible to ignore. There’s a swagger to it, a confidence that leans into chaos, desire, and the pull of living all the way, even when it leaves a mark.
But like an elephant, it’s not all brute force. Beneath the heavy stomp is something more human. There are moments of vulnerability, cracks where emotion slips through, where longing, doubt, and reflection take over. The album balances power with sensitivity, and strength with softness. A notion that even the biggest presence can feel deeply.

Like the massive creature pushing through brush and unbroken paths, ELEPHANT is about confronting what’s right in front of you; the noise, the weight, the truth, and choosing to move through it anyway.

Super limited (1000 Global) Silver Die-Cut vinyl first pressing, shrinkwrapped with hand stamped 'cafe' napkin obscuring the cover. Please preorder asap.

On Cafe Paradiso, Mykki Blanco is completely reborn, trading the persona - driven theatrics of his previous releases for something more interior and exacting. The record draws from the diverse, banal and yet idiosyncratic contexts of the artist's life in transit.

"Chameleonic" is one way to describe the artist known as Mykki Blanco, who has played many roles through his storied career: a rapper, a poet, a magazine editor, an advocate. Perhaps "fearless" better describes him; with high profile collaborations from the likes of Charli XCX, Teyana Taylor, Basement Jaxx, Blood Orange, Big Freedia, Kelsey Lu, Michael Stipe, Arca and Anhoni, Mykki has been recognised as a pioneer of queer-centric hip-hop who resonates across musicians of many genres and generations.

This album is Mykki at their most direct - a coherent statement with collaborator FaltyDL and a massively listenable album for fans of LCD Soundsystem and New York Punk, packaged in striking 'Napkin covered' deluxe vinyl for a super-exclusive first run

2026 Repress

Kerri Chandler begins a brand-new chapter with the launch of his self-titled label, Kerri Chandler, and its debut release; the Downtown EP Pt. 1.

The release includes four tracks reconnecting with the spirit of Kerri’s iconic Downtown Records era while offering something fresh for the next generation of listeners. 3 of the tracks come straight from that timeless catalogue and firm favourites among Kerri’s community, now beautifully presented on vinyl once again.

Part 1 also features one brand-new, exclusive track, giving fans something truly special: a glimpse of Kerri’s sound, and an invitation to join him on a journey through his remarkable catalogue. This release marks the start of an ongoing celebration of Kerri’s music, his evolution, and the sound that continues to inspire house music lovers around the world. Every detail, from the sleek new sleeve design to the thoughtful presentation, reflects Kerri’s care and respect for his music and the people who’ve supported it. It marks the beginning of something bigger; it’s a series of reworks, reissues, and rediscoveries that will guide listeners through the depth of Kerri’s catalogue and his lifelong love for house music. For long-time followers and new listeners alike, Downtown EP Pt. 1 captures everything Kerri Chandler represents, soulful, honest, and made with nothing but heart.

"Northern Electronics presents ’The Vanity Project’, the new LP by Vanity Productions.
Like a fractured reflection, images appear distorted and incomplete. A series of fragments revealing influences, methods, and decisions where life and work remain inseparable. Moving through the residual noise of contemporary media space, Christian Stadsgaard draws from social media remnants, dark web transmissions, and untreated human sound.
These elements are processed through noise electronics and tape manipulation, collapsing source and signal. ’The Vanity Project’ is constructed as a dense, uneven surface. A collage of found sound, environmental interference, and emotional residue. The result carries Vanity Productions’ characteristic melancholy, Nordic restraint, and accumulated debt, forming a quiet but insistent tale of romance and reflection from the source.”
Album credits:
All music recorded by Christian Stadsgaard in Copenhagen, Denmark 2025
Mixed by Christian Stadsgaard and Malthe Fischer
Mastered by Giuseppe Tillieci at EnissLab, Rome
Photos by Christian Stadsgaard
Collage by Anthony Linell
Sound contributions by Shredded Nerve, Jackson-Pratt, Ashley C, Hannes Norrvide, Malthe Fischer, Daniel Svanberg Bøtcher, Vagn Olsson, Yuri Umemoto, Lise Westzynthius, Qiuyao Ning, Peter Peter, Government Alpha and Merzbow – A big thank you to everyone involved.
“The Vanity Project” was kindly supported by KODA kultur, Copenhagen.

Fresh off of their 2020 offering Adult Themes, El Michels Affair is back with a new full-length release. Titled Yeti Season, this newest album has everything we've come to expect from EMA's patented cinematic style of instrumental soul music. Where Adult Themes inspired a soundtrack to an imaginary film, Yeti Season brings us to a different place in time_with new inspirations. Taken with Turkish-styled funk and an almost Mumbai-esque take on soul, El Michels Affair offers us a different kind of drama and imagination with Yeti Season. If you've been following along, this shouldn't be viewed as too far a departure for El Michels Affair. The first single off of Yeti Season showed their hand back in 2018. A double-sided banger, that release brought the musical textures to the fore that dominate this record. The first song, titled "Unathi," is fully realized with the beautifully haunting-yet-hopeful vocals of Piya Malik, formally of 79.5_another Big Crown artist. Singing in Hindi, Piya's ethereal voice is telling us to work and strive together toward progress. Even if you don't understand her language, you can still hear the urgency of purpose, creating a lasting vibe that sits on top of it all. Leon Michels explains that Piya had a vital influence on this record: "When Piya started singing in Hindi, she had a different voice, a different tone. I knew we had to do something together." And so Piya appears on three other songs on Yeti Season: "Zaharila," "Murkit Gem," and "Dhuaan." Each providing particular signatures to the album. "Zaharila" is a building and changing love song punctuated by blaring trumpets, driving drums, and Piya's pleading lyrics. While the more upbeat "Murkit Gem" opens with a fuzzed out, Wu-Tang-esque baseline that buoys Piya's stylings. The psychedelic guitar and Piya's changing tones and textures singing about an all-consuming love are what pushed "Dhuaan" on to the second single from Yeti Season. There is also a vocal appearance from Shannon Wise of The Shacks, yet another Big Crown artist. Her song called "Sha Na Na," lies more in the familiar EMA vein: melodic, hypnotic, soulfully visual. But between Shannon's airy singing, the jumpy baseline, moody vibes, the active drum lines, it sounds like a pensive walk home after a strangely dramatic night. So what is Yeti Season? It could be more of a feeling than an actual place or time of year. It's a heavy album_as evidenced by the signature musicianship and dramatic vocal expressions. But it's also a hopeful record, with phrasings, textures, and chord changes that hint at something better_or fuller_coming our way. You hear it in songs like "Ala Vida," with its stabby, pulsing chords laying a bedrock for EMA's bright, atmospheric horn lines. Or even in "Fazed Out," which leaves you with a feeling of determination, a striving for resolution even though the driving, march-like song structure should accompany some conquering army. This persistence has to come from the fact that Leon Michels and company finished this record during the lockdown. It was a tough and troublesome time. But look at what has come of it: Yeti Season_a record of high and heavy drama, but also one of hope and promise. It may take a year like 2020 behind us to find hope in a winter big footed creature like a Yeti, but that's where we are.

Tape

When Leon Michels and El Michels Affair released their rst record, Sounding Out The City, in 2005, it was hard to guess what was next for Michels and his then-introduced, now-patented "cinematic soul" sound. Now, four EMA studio albums and scores of tribute and remix projects later - all while producing for some of the biggest names in the industry - Michels has trademarked his sound, with each project taking audiences somewhere new and pushing the boundaries of what he is known for. The man is a river, not a lake and this time he takes his golden touch into the realm of hip-hop laying down a musical bed for one of the greatest to ever rhyme into a microphone: Black Thought of The Roots crew. Releasing on Big Crown Records, the LP is called Glorious Game and it is a remarkable debut partnership in more ways than one. Michels provides his bottom-heavy, soul-tinged production for Black Thought who gives us some of the more personal and transparent verses we've ever heard from him. Michels and Black Thought have been in each other's orbit for a while now. The two first met in the 2000s when Thought was first getting familiar with the contemporary soul scene. "Out of that whole world, Menahan Street Band was probably my favorite," recalling the funk and soul group Michels was a founding member of back in 2007. Fast forward a few years and musicians from that collective - Dave Guy on trumpet and Ian Hendrickson-Smith on sax - are now full time players with The Roots. This connection eventually led Leon and Thought to doing a few fundraising events around NYC and Philly together. "Before long, Black Thought was coming around the studio and would jam with us from time to time," Michels explains. "Then, fast forward to 2020 and COVID lockdowns, he just hit me up out of the blue, wanting me to send him stuff to write to. We both were looking to stay busy" Being that Black Thought is the co-founder and emcee for, hands down, the best live-band group in hip-hop. Michels took a decidedly different approach to this project and instead of sending recorded tracks of live compositions, he pulled out the sampler and sampled himself and some records from his collection. "I'm a big fan of soul music," as if Michels has to remind us. "And part of hip-hop's appeal to me has always been the sample-based production" For Glorious Game, Michels would make wholly composed and recorded soul songs in his studio, sample himself, then chop and/or loop up his sounds and create instrumentals for Black Thought. On some tracks he took a more traditional hip-hop approach, starting from samples of other people's music but then adding live instrumentation on top. But for the most part, it's him reinterpreting his own compositions into something new. The result is an organic feel of loop-based tracks that breathe and uctuate enough for Black Thought to ex on. "What I write about is determined by the equation of the producer's energy and my energy," Black Thought says. "It's about where we meet." So armed with Michels sampled and re-sampled soul cinematics, Black Thought rhymes through personal memories.

Amelie Lens' debut album 'AURA' is the first full-length studio album to come from the Belgian artist despite being one of the most respected and sought-after acts in electronic music today.

Of the album, Amelie says:

"'AURA' is my story. Aura is about the connection between the crowd and me. Music has always been my escape, my way of turning my emotions and energy into something new. When I was younger, I would disappear into nightclubs and create myown world in my head. Being in the nightclubs gave me this feeling of belonging somewhere, I felt connection and freedom I had never experienced before. That feeling changed my life completely. So this album really reflects that whole journey. From playing tiny local clubs and driving myself through the night for gigs, to standing on huge festival stages, becoming a mother, building EXHALE and learning how to balance it all in life.

I wanted 'AURA' to feel emotional but still powerful, uplifting but raw. From big festival tracks to the trippy tracks I'd play at 4am at RSO. Although making this album is one of the biggest things I have ever done in my life, I wanted to keep it light and somehow playful. Because that is also how I am as a person. This is the most honest version of myself I've ever shared. I hope it brings some light, happiness and connection to others as it does to me. Because Aura is and always will be about my connection to you."

The album will consist of 11 brand new tracks, all produced by Lens - with one stellar collab, who will be announced in due course.

Dawuna’s latest mixtape is a muted hypnagogic R&B tour de force, pieced together while recovering from a traumatic head injury.

For »African Family Laptop Musick«, I was healing from a traumatic head injury that gave me a later amnesia diagnosis, so I don’t remember more than a couple small flashes of memory from the recording/construction of this project. I know I wanted to make a low-fidelity concept piece about my family life at the time, compositionally simple, but necessarily abstracted. This is the last lil offering from a very personal side of myself before I give y’all something big. Enjoy. – Dawuna

Manonmars’ 3rd album sees him at his most amorphous and psychedelic, at points sharper and laser focused, and at others more blurred and impressionistic than his previous records. Many of the core players remain the same, all of the production is once again handled by O$VMV$M (the duo of Neek and Amos Childs of Jabu) while Paulina Korobkiewicz (also of Young Echo) makes a return handling both the album’s cover artwork and contributing a series of diaristic field recordings and voice notes.

‘The project references movies, cartoons, fictional characters and video games, among other things. The album title is open to interpretation but all of these elements are forms of visual entertainment which have their own unique ability to transcend things like language barriers and cultural divides. The visual element is key because those details bridge the gap on a communicative level.’ - Manonmars

The album blends abstract, blurred braggadocio with more immediate personal details such as on ‘Volcanic Shield’ a posse cut of sorts featuring Bristol improv luminary Dali de Saint Paul and Franco Franco (½ of cyborg rap duo Kinlaw & Franco Franco) - where Mars recalls;

‘Memories of brighter days, happy meal hit the spot
Mum was spinning vinyl playing Super Ape or Pressure Drop
I would spend the weekend with the Turkish mandem on the block
single parent household, mum was studying or on the job
money came and went always was an on and off
made it back from school time to see what’s on the box’


The beat fades away to leave one of Korobkiewicz’s recordings of Mars’ mum talking about her life in London in the 80s, spending her money on reggae records as an ambient chord fades in like an echo of a jungle intro – stretching out as a link between generations of UK music.

The production by and large is brighter and more kinetic than earlier Manonmars records – with O$VMV$M drawing on everything from modern underground rap and drill through to jazz and acid ambient passages.

London is also a central character here, bustling and constantly shifting, either when bleeding in through field recordings, or as an ever-present backdrop in the lyrics;

‘I’m a fusion of Tippa Irie and Topper Harley
Hit the target like the black Atari
I dropped a tab now shit’s A Scanner Darkly
Got the munchies, Imma yam a sarnie
Pour the Wray and Ting like man at Carni
Exit Peckham Rye and turn left, walk past Hannah Barry
Get your (w)raps up like its January’

‘I've always considered London my home, despite spending some time in the South West of England too. My mum had been living in London for 25 years (...) That was a pretty big deal in some ways because it removed us from multicultural society during the period which overlapped with my teenage years. (...) I never got used to how quiet it was in the countryside (...) Bristol was the closest city to where we lived and it was through travelling there and making connections that I became involved in making music and playing gigs.’ - Manonmars

Mars’ practice as a painter (under his given name Jack Martyn Richardson) and photographer also loom heavy over the album, he cites Paul Verhoeven, Abdul Mati Klariwein and H.R Giger as influences – as well as Miles Davis, Drakeo the Ruler and DJ Rashad.

As with much of Richardson’s work the raps at times feel blurred to a point of almost inscrutability, creating a distance between the audience and himself. A process that ties into his visual work and the way he experiences the world as mainly abstract colour without his glasses. He explores this further in an ongoing visual collaboration with Korobkiewicz, ‘Fun and Games’ which serves as a visual archive of one of London's largest and oldest travelling fairgrounds.

‘I was diagnosed with very severe short-sightedness at the age of seven. I remember my early formative years as visually blurred. Some of my photography reflects this experience of partial vision and uncertainty, referencing memory and perception rather than fixed representation.’

Manonmars’ first public outing as a rapper was at a Young Echo radio event, broadcast shambolically from a practice room just off Jamaica street, Bristol in 2011, as much as things have moved on both stylistically and in terms of focus - strong links back to the city remain a key foundation throughout the collaborations and guest appearances.

‘I have no problem with being an outsider looking in. One of the things I enjoy about London is the anonymity (...) it's easy to be a stranger here when so much is happening. I feel like thats more valuable than people may realise.’

Comes with liner notes and interview on the back of the sleeve.

Dennis & Christy Soares are a husband-and-wife duo whose prolific output - over 100 albums and nearly 2,000 songs recorded across CD, cassette, vinyl, and streaming - stands as one of the most quietly remarkable self-made catalogs in contemporary music. Based for two decades on the Big Island of Hawai'i before recently relocating to Centralia, Washington, the pair have been making music together since meeting at San Joaquin Delta College in 1986, channeling a DIY spirit rooted in sincerity, spirituality, and an unshakeable belief in the power of a song. Their work spans platforms most listeners have never heard of, distributed through sheer determination and an infectious enthusiasm for reaching new ears.

Free At Last is an 11-track anthology compiled by AGS founder Roger Bong, representing less than 1% of Dennis & Christy's total recorded output. Drawing from more than 600 songs considered over the course of 12 years, the collection makes no claim to being definitive - instead, it offers what Bong calls "simply an invitation": a way in for new listeners, and a distillation of the warmth and pure intention that runs through everything this duo creates. From their earliest recordings to the present day, Dennis & Christy have never stopped making music on their own terms. Free At Last is an introduction long in the making, and very much overdue.

What is Buck? Buck is a state of mind, a way of life, a demeanor that gets you through the good times and the bad. If you ask Brainstory, It is also the energy that permeates their debut album. Kevin, Tony, and Eric are a trio of brothers bounded by blood, fate, and a small town with nothing to do. Their story begins in the long lost lands of the San Bernardino Valley, in the twilight zone known as Rialto, California: An arid wasteland of boredom and empty lots. Through punk rock and skateboarding they found temporary liberation from the local monotony. However, it wouldn't be long before a hunger for more led them to explore musical realms beyond that of the hardcore punk they admired. After stints at music school and steady disappointment trying to navigate their local jazz scene they moved to Los Angeles and Brainstory was born. Through a introduction from Chicano Batman's bassist, Brainstory caught the ears of Big Crown head honchos Danny Akalepse and Leon Michels. Shortly thereafter they were on their way to Queens, to record at The Legendary Diamond Mine with Michels at the helm. An instant chemistry yielded 10 songs in 10 days and now Brainstory has gifted the world with one hell of an introduction to all things Buck. Highlights include the sublime slow burner, "Dead End" which was the A-side to their first 45 on Big Crown that sold out in a matter of days. With Kevin's sublime falsetto floating atop Tony and Eric's unflappable and unmistakable backbeat, this tune has become a favorite with the ballad heads, the low-riders, and the slowie collectors. "Breathe" showcases another side of their sound taking a page out of the Shuggie Otis playbook and flipping the script with some stoned out west coast swag. Kev and Tony's father, Big Tone, an accomplished performer himself, steps in on "Peter Pan" to sing lead vocals over a chorus of friends and family. Bassist extraordinaire, Tony, takes over lead vocal duties on "Sorry", a smoked out, G Funk groove that is just waiting to be sampled. These guys have come a long way from their self released EPs and opening tours with Chicano Batman. Their musical growth is undeniable, and taking their California sunshine vibes and mixing them with Michels' NYC aesthetic has proven to be an amazing combination. It's a debut record that pulls influences from so many genres seamlessly it's hard to nail down. Call it Funk, call it Rock, call it Soul, but over here at Big Crown HQ, we've decided to call it BUCK.

Big Crown Records is proud to present the debut full length offering from Les Imprimés, Rêverie. The stirring and ethereal sounds of Les Imprimés have been making fans of anyone who hears them since their first 7" single hit the speakers. Morten Martens is the man behind the band. Born, raised, and working in Kristiansand, Norway, he keeps a low prole while making his heart felt, highly infectious, and unique music. This album is a long time coming for Martens and it is sure to make him a name to be reckoned with. The first thing you notice listening to Les Imprimés is the high level of musician-ship. Martens plays nearly every instrument on the recordings and handles the production and arranging. He has been making records for decades, winning a Spellemann Award (aka, the Norwegian Grammy) in 2006 for producing a HipHop album as well as getting nominations across three other genres. While awards and accolades speak to the level of his talent, this new album really shows who he is an artist on his own terms. Moving away from being a hired gun on the touring scene naturally led him to start doing more studio work. Slowly collecting gear and getting more experi-ence behind the boards he built his own studio on the island of Odderoya and was making a living playing with and recording other people's music. As the story goes, after those sessions would end he would work on his own project into the wee hours of the night. From these late night sessions, Les Imprimés was born and Rêverie began to take shape. However, "it wasn't until COVID, when things locked down, that I was really able to nd the time to focus on Les Imprimés" Morten says about creating and leading his own solo project. "It was a scary time. But I knew I had to do something with it." He took the sum of his inuences, combined them with his own vibe and got busy writing the music, playing the instruments, and singing the songs. "It's soul music, but I don't exactly have the soul voice," Morten explains humbly. "But I do it my own way, in a way that's mine. "It is his sound, his fingerprint, his sensibility, that makes his music hard to put in a box. The album showcases both Martens' range and his ability to make a cohesive album. The lead single "Falling Away" starts with a raw drum break and turns into a lushly arranged tune that paints the picture of love when it slips away. On "Still Here" he professes his resilience through life's twists and turns over a thundering track that puts a new spin on the B side ballad genre. Songs like "You" and "Our Love" mix tones from 60s and 70s Soul with arrangement nods to Doo Wop records while Martens' lyrics and delivery leave you singing the melodies long after they finish. "Love & Flowers" finds Martens in a moment of clarity with a song that ts the niche sub genre of happy break up tunes, the four on the floor track will move the dancefloor or while the message will resonate with anyone who put too much effort into the wrong situation in their lives. However, it is songs like "Muse" and "Chess" that really encapsulate the uniqueness of Les Imprimés as they push the boundaries of genre, one a profession of love for music and the other a cover of an electronic record respectively. Martens' lyrics, emotion, and delivery truly make the whole thing come together and stand out from any of his peers. There's an infectiousness and a pop sensibility in the writing that is done with the utmost class and taste giving Les Imprimés the rare quality of immediate attraction that only deepens the more you listen.

Der finnische Sänger Bobby Oroza veröffentlicht sein Debütalbum This Love bei Big Crown Records. Das Label aus New York City ist bereits Heimat von Bands wie Lee Fields & The Expressions, The Shacks und El Michels Affair. Bobby ist in Helsinki geboren und in einer Musiker- und Künstlerfamilie aufgewachsen. Zu Bobbys Glück hatten seine Eltern eine große Plattensammlung mit frühem Jazz, Blues, Motown-Hits, Gospelchören und Doo-Wop-Gruppen wie The Drifters und The Clovers, aber auch Alben aus Brasilien und Afrika, Folksongs aus Nord- und Südamerika von Bobbys Mutter und Salsa-Musik aus New York. All diese Einflüsse sind heute in Bobbys Musik hör- und spürbar. Auf Kuba studierte er monatelang intensiv Schlagzeug und Gesang. Mit Cold Diamond & Mink, der Hausband von Timmion Records, bestehend aus Bandleader Jukka Sarapää, Sami Kantelinen und Gitarrist/Komponist Seppo Salmi, bildet er ein brillantes Quartett, mit dem er seine Vision in Musik umsetzt. CD&M liefern mit ihren LoFi-Instrumentals die perfekte Untermalung für Bobbys verrauchte Tenorstimme, die Herzen brechen und schmelzen lässt. Der bereits 2016 als 7" Single veröffentlichte Titelsong "This Love" ist längst zum Hit in Lowrider-Kreisen geworden und wurde auf "Hat Trick" von Odd Future Rapper Earl Sweatshirt gesamplet. Der Song ist mit seinen harten Drums, den wilden Riffs, dem vergrabenen Bass und Bobbys verhaltenem, aber intensivem Gesang ein Muss für Soul-Sammler und hat sich als 7? mehr als 3.000 Mal verkauft. Der Song "Your Love Is Too Cold" ist ein Stomper, der Soul-Grooves früher Motown-Stücke mit Gitarrenriffs aus einem Funk-Soundtrack von James Brown mischt und schon jetzt weltweit auf allen Soul-Partys schwer angesagt ist. Bobby hat einiges für die Tänzer im Publikum in petto: Stücke wie "Lonely Girl" und "Falling in Love" sind Verneigungen vor dem Northern Soul, "Keep On Believing" liefert Jazz-Funk wie aus den Siebzigern. Aber "This Love" wendet sich vor allem an die Balladenliebhaber, die voller Sehnsucht in die Nacht schauen. Mit Songs wie "Alone Again", "Down On My Knees" und "Deja Vu" beschwört er eine intensive, leicht abgründige Sinnlichkeit. Eine einzigartige Spielart von Soul, made in Finland.

Morgan Noise erschaffen mit ihrer Musik eigene Welten, in denen sie Jazz-Sensibilität und alternative Experimentierfreude mit Singer-Songwriter-Flair verbinden. Alle vier Mitglieder, darunter Musikerinnen der Bands Fat Dog und Flur, verfügen über einen Jazz-Hintergrund. Ihre Improvisationskunst ist entscheidend für die Entfaltung und Weiterentwicklung der Songs. Inspiriert von den Klanglandschaften von Saya Gray, Nilüfer Yanya und Astrid Sonne, schlagen Morgan Noise eine kunstvolle Brücke zwischen komplexen Emotionen und klanglicher Präzision, lyrischer Nuancierung sowie künstlerischer Klarheit. Zu ihren bisherigen Erfolgen zählen Auftritte beim Green Man Festival sowie eine Live-Session für Riley & Coe. Nach der UK Support-Tour für Porridge Radio steht nun die Veröffentlichung ihres Debütalbums an – ein Werk, das vom Lebensgefühl der frühen 2020er-Jahre und den Erfahrungen während der Tourneen in dieser Zeit inspiriert ist.

Released in 1991, the Cramps’ “Look Mom No Head!” is a stone-cold classic.
As well as black vinyl, it was also released on red and Ace are delighted to give fans old and new the opportunity to restock their vinyl blood bank with that delicious colour.

Alex Warren returns with his highly anticipated sophomore album, WILDCHILD, following the success of his critically acclaimed debut You’ll Be Alright, Kid, which featured the chart-topping, record-breaking hit “Ordinary” and established Warren as one of music’s biggest global breakout stars. Inspired by the nickname his late father gave him growing up, WILDCHILD is Warren’s most vulnerable but also most joyous work to date — a raw, cinematic collection exploring grief, growth, love, and self-discovery. Blending heart-stopping ballads with infectious pop anthems, the album captures Warren at his most honest yet, pairing deeply personal storytelling with soaring vocals and expansive production. Featuring recordings of his father’s voice woven throughout the project, WILDCHILD offers an intimate portrait of an artist moving from heartbreak toward healing.

Alex Warren returns with his highly anticipated sophomore album, WILDCHILD, following the success of his critically acclaimed debut You’ll Be Alright, Kid, which featured the chart-topping, record-breaking hit “Ordinary” and established Warren as one of music’s biggest global breakout stars. Inspired by the nickname his late father gave him growing up, WILDCHILD is Warren’s most vulnerable but also most joyous work to date — a raw, cinematic collection exploring grief, growth, love, and self-discovery. Blending heart-stopping ballads with infectious pop anthems, the album captures Warren at his most honest yet, pairing deeply personal storytelling with soaring vocals and expansive production. Featuring recordings of his father’s voice woven throughout the project, WILDCHILD offers an intimate portrait of an artist moving from heartbreak toward healing.

Leap Life is Saul Williams’ first solo album in over 10 years and marks a major return for one of the most influential voices in spoken word and experimental music. Named after Saul’s leap year birthday, the project has been carefully sequenced by composer and producer Carlos Niño as a fully immersive, front-to-back listening experience.

The album expands Saul’s sound into electronic and ambient territories while remaining rooted in spoken word, with rich sound design built from nature recordings, environmental textures, and expansive instrumentation. It also sees Saul step further into the role of producer, drawing influence from Fela Kuti, Black church traditions, and South African electronic music. The record features a standout cast of collaborators including Kamasi Washington, Georgia Anne Muldrow, Moor Mother, Gonjasufi, and Surya Botofasina, alongside material developed with Robert Del Naja (Massive Attack). Released via Big Dada, the album marks a full-circle moment with the label where Saul originally launched his solo career.