Cerca:black

It's the 7th release of the 'BLACK AROMA EP Series'.

Huge follow-up single after last years "Glory Story" smasher - funky guitars & chords are screaming for the summer season.

Mangue counts 10' after a various artist record the labelheads are back with a really progressive record this time. Completed with a Marco Fender Remix by Supdub, Nulogic and Lordag.

MUST HAVE !!!
Played & supported by Anderson Noise, Davide Squillace, Franco
Bianco, Patrick Kunkel and many more.

Baile is the third strike from the Mangue Crew. This time supported by Pierre Deutschmann (Low Spirit, Vandit, Platform B, Exx Records) and Click Click (Kassette, Autist, Kaufe Digital). Great tribalistic Four Tracker. Played & supported by The Advent, James Zabiela, Paco Osuna, Gel Abril, Someone Else !!

Zwei wahre cineastische Juwelen auf einer 7"-Single. Eine Auskopplung aus der beliebten Vinyl-Compilation-Reihe "The Tape Masters", die laufend seltene Rare Groove-Schätze und unveröffentlichte Aufnahmen aus den Archiven des Filmkomponisten Peter Thomas zutage fördert. Exklusiv auf dieser Single – und überhaupt zum ersten Mal auf Vinyl erhältlich – ist die rare deutschsprachige Version des Tracks "Black Power", gesungen von einer gewissen Donna Gaines. Später natürlich weltberühmt geworden als Donna Summer, markiert dieser Song ihre allererste Aufnahme als Solokünstlerin im Alter von gerade einmal 20 Jahren. Zugleich war es ihr erster Auftritt vor der Kamera – prominent platziert im ZDF-Krimi-Dreiteiler "11 Uhr 20" (1969). Sowohl der Film als auch bisherige Sampler verwendeten die englischsprachige Version; der Mono-Mix der deutschen Fassung wurde erst vor Kurzem in Peter Thomas’ Bandarchiv wiederentdeckt. Ein weiteres vokales Highlight aus einer deutschen Krimi-Trilogie ist Senta Bergers frech-laszives "Vergiss mich, wenn du kannst" (aus dem ZDF-Krimi-Dreiteiler "Babeck", 1968). Das Lied basiert auf dem Titelthema der Serie und wird von der Sängerin in ihrer Rolle als geheimnisvolle, vamp-artige Barchefin interpretiert. Unter Liebhabern europäischer Filmmusik hat sich der Titel längst zum Kultstück entwickelt und wurde bereits mehrfach gecovert. Das Original feiert nun endlich hier seine Vinyl-Premiere. Achtung: Ein absoluter Doppelseiter!


a a1: Black Power (German version) feat. Donna Summer

a a1: Black Power (German version) feat. Donna Summer

a a1: Black Power (German version) feat. Donna Summer

a a1: Black Power (German version) [feat. Donna Summer]

[a] a1: Black Power (German version) [feat. Donna Summer]

[a] a1: Black Power (German version) [feat. Donna Summer]

[a] a1: Black Power (German version) [feat. Donna Summer]

[a] a1 | Black Power (German version) [feat Donna Summer]

Picture the scene - October 2025, while staying at a friend’s apartment in Chennai, Gavsborg created umpteen ideas and contacted his good friend and bassist from back home, Delroy Pele Fyah Hamilton to collaborate. Hamilton, now based in Singapore performs and records regularly with F.Y .A.H. (successor band from Raging Fyah).

Both Blair and Hamilton share a love for Caribbean music. With this foundation the two set out to create something a bit different that sits between Bouyon, Dancehall & Dennery. The amalgamation resulted in this unique four-track instrumental EP . While the track titles are packed with broader Caribbean references, the project name and title track is an ode to the 90s dancehall pioneers, “Black Roses Crew” , who were based in Arnett Gardens (aka Jungle), Kingston, Jamaica, one of the important homes of 90s dancehall. Roses helped shape dancehall culture through dance, style, crew affiliation, and performance, largely soundtracked by Computer Paul’s Corduroy Riddim with Gerald Levy aka Bogle being the poster human.

Arnett Gardens (Jungle) is one of the key engines that produced the version of dancehall both Gavsborg and Pele draw here from. Think tight, bubbling, bouncing riddims, rolling basslines unlike anything you’ve heard before. Jamaican Dance Music for the movers and shakers

Hailing from Providencia, Colombia (Old Providence Island), Henner, Derrick, Luis, Feliciano and Senen are the Black Diamonds; a band that seamlessly blends the irresistible grooves of reggae with the infectious rhythms of calypso, creating a sound that is both timeless and refreshingly original.

For years, Black Diamonds have been synonymous with the laid-back, soulful reggae sound of Old Providence Island, crafting songs that reflect the Caribbean's easy rhythms and rich cultural heritage. Their debut release, however, takes an unexpected—and thoroughly enjoyable—detour into upbeat calypso, proving that the band is more than capable of stepping outside its comfort zone.

"De Seh Seh" (gossip.. chat and talk to much about the others in Creole) also features a remix by Venezuelan producer and multi-instrumentalist Caribombo, who transforms the song into a dancefloor-ready journey, blending electronic textures with soukous-inspired Afro-house rhythms for a bold, cross-Caribbean reinterpretation.

Reckoning is a dense, carefully nuanced, profoundly complex text, though all nine songs are presented as directly as possible: Mary's voice, her guitar, bits of harmonica. Folk music, of a kind, but not a broadside. Nothing so easy as that. Topical songs with a long view, because she's seen and lived too much of it. Mary's most celebrated songs — “I Drink,” “Mercy Now,” “Drag Queens in Limousines” — are confessional stories, closely observed, clear-eyed and compassionate. She sings with the unmistakable languor of her native Louisiana, writes with the bluntness of Boston, where she was once a successful restauranteur, and rewrites with the fierce precision of Nashville, her home for many years. Her 2018 release, Rifles & Rosary Beads, co-written with wounded Iraq war veterans, received a Grammy nomination for Best Folk Album, and an Americana Music Association nomination for Album of the Year. During Covid she wrote and saw published (by MacMillan) Saved by a Song: The Art and Healing Power of Songwriting, part memoir, part reflection on songwriting, through the lens of her most impactful songs. “A reckoning,” Mary Gauthier writes on the outer sleeve to her newest album, “can be personal, political, or spiritual. These songs inhabit all three realms at once.”

Errands is the first duo recording from Marja Ahti, Swedish-Finnish sound artist and electroacoustic composer, and John McCowen, a native of Southern Illinois, now residing in Iceland, whose work centres on a radical exploration of clarinet multiphonics. Working without the aid of electronics, McCowen has spent years finessing performance techniques that allow him to layer beating patterns and split tones that belie their source in a monophonic instrument. Ahti, in contrast, has built up a stunning body of work in recent years using a classic electroacoustic palette of electronic, field recordings and instrumental sounds. Sharing a bill at the 2024 iteration of Stockholm’s Edition Festival, the pair discovered a sensibility shared across their different sonic means, beginning the collaborative process that would eventually result in the mercurial side-long pieces heard on Errands.

The word ‘errand’ suggests something purposeful but routine, and Ahti’s and McCowen’s work is suffused with the everyday. Meeting with McCowen to record in Iceland, Ahti used the opportunity to gather field recordings, capturing not the natural sublimity often associated with the country—think Chris Watson’s shifting glaciers—but everyday life in Reykjavik. Snatches of bustling streets and what could be humming engines thread between static sinewaves, stretches of clarinet resonances and fleeting textures, the latter often at once visceral and impossible to identify. Errands: we are a long way from the grandiose framing devices favoured by the pioneers of electroacoustic music, yet many of their principles are at work here. The gradual metamorphosis of one sound into another, the carefully achieved ambiguity between the acoustic and electronic, the treatment of the stereo field as a compositional element: all of these link Ahti and McCowen’s music to the electroacoustic tradition, yet their sensibility is radically different. The overall effect is a kind of stillness, but one at peace with continuous change. Like the unwieldy but somehow stylish everyday forms captured in the Hertta Kiiski photographs that adorn the record's sleeve, the music seems to prize a kind of deliberate awkwardness, interrupting static held textures not with an abrupt cut, but with a quick fade, suddenly revealing background as foreground.

Ahti and McCowen’s world is everyday and unornamented, but also shadowed by the numinous. Halfway through 'Chorales', we hear an arrangement for overdubbed recorders of an early motet of Messiaen’s, O sacrum convivium! Played on recorders, the piece shrinks into delicacy and dim memories of childhood music lessons, while at the same time its harmonies retain the grandeur of their liturgical origin. This double quality inflects much of what follows on Errands, including snatches of field-recorded water or air, which seem at once elemental and domestic. Enlivened with countless details that repay repeated relistening, Errands is a record that leaves the listener ready to open their ears anew to their own sound environment.

On this new album, the trio of Sanem Kalfa, George Dumitriu, and Joachim Badenhorst invites you on a poetic and sonic voyage. While their debut Black Sea Songs (2021) drew from traditional folk melodies, this work is a collection of original compositions and one improvisation, inspired by the rich cultures and emotions surrounding the Black Sea.

The music of this trio is elegant yet adventurous, blending jazz, improvisation, world traditions, and contemporary classical influences. Kalfa's distinctive voice and cello, Dumitriu's versatile viola and guitar, and Badenhorst's expressive clarinet and occasional vocals create a unique, dreamlike atmosphere. From the melancholic dance of "Denizi Özleyenler ?çin" (inspired by Orhan Veli Kan?k) to the hypnotic rhythms of "Intermezzo" and the narrative depth of "Fisherman" and "Black", each track breathes the freedom, longing, and interconnectedness that the Black Sea symbolizes.
This album is not just a collection of songs but a living story of travel, encounter, and belonging-whether evoking the ports of Istanbul, the shores of Bulgaria, or the emotional landscapes that connect us all. Black Sea Songs is a celebration of spontaneity, familiarity, and the universal language of music.

On July 20, 1993, Los Angeles hip-hop legends Cypress Hill unleashed their sophomore opus Black Sunday on the unsuspecting masses. The record changed rap music with its dark undercurrent, Latin inflection, no-holds-barred storytelling, and the inimitable interplay between B-Real and Sen Dog cast over psychedelically spun rap soundscapes courtesy of DJ Muggs.

Now to mark the 30th anniversary, two new remixes are available for fans on 12” black vinyl; “Insane in the Brain” from the esteemed DJ/Producer Statik Selektah, and “Hits From The Bong” crafted by the album’s original producer himself, DJ Muggs.

Fidel Kato is a producer based in Rome, Italy. In its sound we hear reminiscences of the boom hip-hop mixed with Latin jazz and today's Lo-Fi trends. In his upcoming full-length “Black Pepper” his productions are enriched by the presence of live instrumentation. Record drops on all digital platforms November 6th and Tuff Kong Records will be releasing it on vinyl November 23rd.

"Originally released in 1979 on Sly & Robbie's Taxi label, this album was Black Uhuru's second LP. Recorded at Channel One it set forth a new sound in recorded music technology. The songs blend into dub versions and the mixing is simply stunning. The track Shine Eye Gal also features guitarist Keith Richards"
(but hey, nobody's perfect).

"Hear the meticulous song writing of Michael Rose, joined by Puma Jones & Duckie Simpson, to complete the vocal line-up.

Sly & Robbie and the Taxi Gang created a sublime sonic masterpiece at Channel One studio in Jamaica. They were at their absolute peak of their powers, before being launched as global superstars with Grace Jones.

Black Uhuru went on to be an extremely popular live outfit, touring endlessly around the world, breaking down barriers and making new inroads to territories previously unknown to Jamaican artists.

This Classic reissue is a must for all reggae collectors."

Der aus Brooklyn, New York, stammende Trompeter Eddie Gale (1941-2020) machte sich Mitte der 1960er
Jahre zunächst durch Aufnahmen mit dem Sun Ra Arkestra, Cecil Taylor und Larry Young einen Namen. Auf seinem beeindruckenden Blue-Note-Debütalbum “Ghetto Music” verband er 1968 seinen eigenen
avantgardistischen Ansatz nahtlos mit Gospel, Soul, Blues und Einflüssen afrikanischer Musik. Diese Linie
verfolgte er ein Jahr später auch auf seinem zweiten Blue-Note-Album “Black Rhythm Happening” weiter,
das er wie den Vorgänger mit seiner neunköpfigen Band und dem achtköpfigen Gesangsensemble The Noble Gale Singers aufnahm. In einer Rezension des Albums schrieb das US-Jazzmagazin DownBeat damals:
“Die Zukunft des Jazz hängt von Musikern wie Gale ab, die das Vokabular des Genres erweitern.”

Clear vinyl. Originally released in 1999, The Sacred Talisman is the highly-acclaimed third studio album from Swedish power metal stalwarts Nocturnal Rites.

Absolutely stunning deep, deep Alton Ellis heavy funk roots tune from 1973. Impossible to find on a 45. Backed by the equally deep and funky Freedom Singers" rare "Black is Black". Two seriously HEAVY and SUPER-RARE cuts from the Studio One stable. Massive 45!

Seit 2019 schrauben FOUR BLACK LUNGS behutsam an ihrem Sound, feilen an Melodien und Songs, die sich sofort vertraut anfühlen, ohne jemals beliebig zu werden. Die vier neuen Stücke klingen wie der erste Kaffee am Morgen: warm, vertraut und voller Energie. Unter der eingängigen Oberfläche stecken jedoch Geschichten, die mit einer ordentlichen Portion Weltschmerz und Hoffnung erzählt werden. Midwestern Pop-Punk trifft auf Heartland Rock und große Melodien.

Fejd entstand 2001 aus einer einzigartigen Fusion des Folk-Duos Rimmerfors und Mitgliedern der Metal-Bands Pathos und Nostradameus. Verwurzelt in mittelalterlich angehauchten Folk-Traditionen, die mit alten akustischen Instrumenten gespielt werden, schloss sich Rimmerfors mit ihren Freunden aus Kindertagen zusammen, um einen Sound zu kreieren, der zwei Welten verbindet – indem er die Kraft des Heavy Metal mit den reichhaltigen Melodien und dem melancholischen Geist der nordischen Volksmusik verschmilzt. Nach Jahren der Vorfreude kehrt Fejd nun mit ihrem fünften Album „Nifelheim“ zurück. Von der ersten Note an werden die Zuhörer in eine Welt alter Legenden entführt, getragen von kraftvollen Arrangements und der bildhaften Sprache nordischer Melancholie. Mit ihrem charakteristischen Einsatz traditioneller Folk-Instrumente bekräftigt Fejd einmal mehr ihren Platz als einer der führenden Namen im Folk Metal.

Fejd entstand 2001 aus einer einzigartigen Fusion des Folk-Duos Rimmerfors und Mitgliedern der Metal-Bands Pathos und Nostradameus. Verwurzelt in mittelalterlich angehauchten Folk-Traditionen, die mit alten akustischen Instrumenten gespielt werden, schloss sich Rimmerfors mit ihren Freunden aus Kindertagen zusammen, um einen Sound zu kreieren, der zwei Welten verbindet – indem er die Kraft des Heavy Metal mit den reichhaltigen Melodien und dem melancholischen Geist der nordischen Volksmusik verschmilzt. Nach Jahren der Vorfreude kehrt Fejd nun mit ihrem fünften Album „Nifelheim“ zurück. Von der ersten Note an werden die Zuhörer in eine Welt alter Legenden entführt, getragen von kraftvollen Arrangements und der bildhaften Sprache nordischer Melancholie. Mit ihrem charakteristischen Einsatz traditioneller Folk-Instrumente bekräftigt Fejd einmal mehr ihren Platz als einer der führenden Namen im Folk Metal.

Héritage Mélodies is the meeting point between saxophonist and composer Jean Vernhères and Black Stamp Music, brought together by a shared passion for the warm colors of music, groove, and the beauty of sound.

Nurtured from an early age by jazz and African-American music—from blues and soul to hip-hop—Jean Vernhères also ventured into Highlife, Afrobeat, and Funk, exploring the fertile “Black Atlantic” that runs throughout his musical journey.

For his first album as a bandleader, he brings together Pierre Bauzerand on Steinway piano, Laurent Vanhée on double bass, Guillermo Roatta on drums, and, as a special guest, Alfio Origlio on Fender Rhodes and piano. Six original compositions where Soul Jazz, Latin Groove, Afro-Caribbean rhythms, spirituality, and intimate melodies come together.

Recorded at Bernard Estardy’s legendary Studio CBE and mastered in Berlin at East Side Mastering, Héritage Mélodies embraces a true audiophile aesthetic: from the breadth and spaciousness of Haumea City, a nod to CTI Records, to the delicacy of Marion.

More than a jazz record, Héritage Mélodies is a story of lineage, travel, and transmission: a personal tribute to all those who have carried forward a musical heritage that transcends time.

Jennifer Herremas Black Bananas melden sich mit "Bad Bunch" zurück - dem ersten Album der Band seit "Electric Brick Wall" aus dem Jahr 2014 und Herremas erster Veröffentlichung seit "White Stuff" von Royal Trux (2019). Das Album erscheint bei Fire Records und markiert die lang erwartete Rückkehr von Herremas ikonischem Gesang an der Seite ihrer langjährigen Mitstreiter Brian McKinley und Kurt Midness. Von Royal Trux über RTX bis hin zu Black Bananas - Jennifer Herremas Schaffen hat sich nie wirklich in separate Phasen unterteilt, sondern sich stets weiterentwickelt. Wie Pitchfork feststellte, sind Black Bananas "RTX aus einem Paralleluniversum", das Einflüsse aus Synth-Pop, Hip-Hop, French-Touch-House und Dancehall in ihren ganz eigenen, einzigartigen Sound einfließen lässt. Ursprünglich vor über 20 Jahren unter dem Namen RTX gegründet, haben sich Herrema, McKinley und Midness zu einem dynamisch verbundenen, schrägen Kollektiv entwickelt. Auf "Bad Bunch" präsentiert das Trio einen spacigen, jazzigen Rock-Groove, geprägt von Improvisation und neuen Aufnahmetechniken, die im Laufe des letzten Jahrzehnts entwickelt wurden. Das Album entstand vor mehr als zehn Jahren und nahm über verschiedene, zeitlich nicht zusammenhängende Phasen hinweg Gestalt an, unterbrochen durch die Royal-Trux-Reunion und die Turbulenzen der Pandemie. Das Ergebnis ist ein Album, das die innovativen Tendenzen von Black Bananas noch weiter vorantreibt und dabei unverkennbar ihr eigener Stil bleibt.

Jennifer Herremas Black Bananas melden sich mit "Bad Bunch" zurück - dem ersten Album der Band seit "Electric Brick Wall" aus dem Jahr 2014 und Herremas erster Veröffentlichung seit "White Stuff" von Royal Trux (2019). Das Album erscheint bei Fire Records und markiert die lang erwartete Rückkehr von Herremas ikonischem Gesang an der Seite ihrer langjährigen Mitstreiter Brian McKinley und Kurt Midness. Von Royal Trux über RTX bis hin zu Black Bananas - Jennifer Herremas Schaffen hat sich nie wirklich in separate Phasen unterteilt, sondern sich stets weiterentwickelt. Wie Pitchfork feststellte, sind Black Bananas "RTX aus einem Paralleluniversum", das Einflüsse aus Synth-Pop, Hip-Hop, French-Touch-House und Dancehall in ihren ganz eigenen, einzigartigen Sound einfließen lässt. Ursprünglich vor über 20 Jahren unter dem Namen RTX gegründet, haben sich Herrema, McKinley und Midness zu einem dynamisch verbundenen, schrägen Kollektiv entwickelt. Auf "Bad Bunch" präsentiert das Trio einen spacigen, jazzigen Rock-Groove, geprägt von Improvisation und neuen Aufnahmetechniken, die im Laufe des letzten Jahrzehnts entwickelt wurden. Das Album entstand vor mehr als zehn Jahren und nahm über verschiedene, zeitlich nicht zusammenhängende Phasen hinweg Gestalt an, unterbrochen durch die Royal-Trux-Reunion und die Turbulenzen der Pandemie. Das Ergebnis ist ein Album, das die innovativen Tendenzen von Black Bananas noch weiter vorantreibt und dabei unverkennbar ihr eigener Stil bleibt.

Casual's latest self-produced release, Black Magic featuring Del The Funky Homosapien, Tajai of Souls of Mischief and Thirstin Howl.

Purple Vinyl, inkl. Poster. The Black Wizards, das in Porto beheimatete Trio bestehend aus Joana Brito (Gitarre/Gesang), José Gomes (Bass/Gesang) und Helena Peixoto (Schlagzeug), kündigt sein neues Album ,Force Majeure & The Acts of God" an, das am 4. September über Hassle Records erscheinen wird. Force Majeure & The Acts of God ist von einem dunklen Humor geprägt. Der Titel bezieht sich auf den juristischen Begriff für unkontrollierbare oder nicht beeinflussbare Umstände und spiegelt damit das Chaos wider, das die Entstehung des Albums begleitet hat. Gleichzeitig deutet er auf den verschmitzten, widerständigen Geist der Band hin.Das Album entstand in einer Zeit, in der politische Landschaften weltweit zunehmend ins Chaos abzugleiten schienen. Es kanalisiert Frustration und Dringlichkeit, ohne dabei in Hoffnungslosigkeit zu verfallen. Für die Texte ließ sich Frontfrau Joana Brito von Büchern über Politik, Geschlechterrollen und toxische Männlichkeit inspirieren. Diese Themen finden sich in Songs wieder, die sich kritisch mit leerer Führung und gesellschaftlicher Spaltung auseinandersetzen. Besonders ,Killing The Buzz" durchschneidet das politische Spektakel mit scharfem Humor und energiegeladenem Punk-Spirit. Musikalisch markiert Force Majeure & The Acts of God einen deutlichen Wendepunkt für die Band. Anstatt den ausufernden Klangnebeln ihres früheren Heavy-Psych-Sounds zu folgen, setzen The Black Wizards nun auf einen kompakteren, raueren und direkteren Ansatz. Das Album vereint die Attitüde des Garage Rock, die nervöse Spannung des Proto-Punk und einen unaufhaltsamen rhythmischen Antrieb. Getragen wird dies von Britos kantigem und durchsetzungsstarkem Gesang, den rauen Gesangsantworten von José Gomes sowie dem kraftvollen Schlagzeugspiel von Helena Peixoto. Aufgenommen wurde das Album während einer intensiven fünftägigen Session mit Cooper Crain in Porto. Das Ergebnis lebt von Dringlichkeit, ungeschliffenen Kanten und einer explosiven Live-Energie.

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.

Erscheint auf schwarzer Vinyl

I, Scvlptor is an exclusive release from Behemoth featuring 8 previously unreleased songs — 7 new studio recordings and one live track. It is an autonomous body of work that bridges the band's foundational past with their present creative _re. The release features brand-new studio material embodying the full force of Behemoth's live energy and intensity. Two tracks — Rise of the Blackstorm of Evil (from The Return of the Northern Moon, 1992) and In Thy Pandemaeternum (from Pandemonic Incantations, 1998) — are newly re-recorded versions of early Behemoth material, reshaped with modern sonics while preserving their original spirit; a tribute to the bands who had a huge in_uence on Behemoth: "In League With Satan” (originally by Venom, feat. Shagrath of Dimmu Borgir) and "The Return of Darkness and Evil” (originally by Bathory, feat. Sakis Tolis of
Rotting Christ). Available on CD, LP, MC and Limited Edition Box Set through Massacre Records worldwide.

Limitierte hellgrüne Vinyl-Version! Death-Metal-Sensation mit dem ehemaligen NIHILIST-/ENTOMBED-Mitglied Nicke Andersson am Schlagzeug und an der Gitarre. Die Mitglieder von Death Breath spielen bzw. spielten in Metal-Bands wie Runemagick, Deathwitch, Nihilist, Entombed, Ruthless Mausoleum und Grinderbitch.

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.

Black Truffle is back with his fourth EP on GAMM!
This time, BT goes all out, exploring everything from spaced-out, European disco to mid-tempo proto-disco and jazz-disco.

Expect disco interpretations flying in every direction on this 12"...exactly what we've come to love from Black Truffle.
All tracks are mastered by Lay-Far on reel-to-reel tape to capture that beautifully organic, warm analog feel.

Two favourites, and two standout tracks. Polygonia's tripper Black Swords on the A-side glides between deep waters and shimmering bubbles at the surface. Fluid yet staccato, and in a league of her own. On the flip, the highly anticipated return of Melatonin Man who delivers a fantastic electro-leaning digger tune; Timeless Time.

The Chicago trio of Black Duck is a natural fit for collaboration with acclaimed Basque musician Elena Setién. Black Duck"s bassist/guitarist Douglas McCombs, guitarist Bill MacKay and drummer Charles Rumback have been lauded for their adaptability as live performers and collaborators for decades, performing in countless ensembles from Tortoise to Brokeback to collaborations with Ryley Walker, Bill Callahan, James Singleton and many more. Setién honed her improvisational skills in duo Little Red Suitcase before going on to collaborate with the likes of Steve Gunn, Mary Lattimore, and Glenn Kotche (Wilco) to name a few. Black Duck and Elena Setién"s combined preternatural ability to converse at the boundaries of improvisation and composition makes for fertile ground in which every subtle gesture carries weight. On their debut, self-titled collaborative release, Black Duck and Elena Setién alchemize the ease of their live chemistry and their wealth of experience into a refined menagerie.

Purple & Translucent Orange Vinyl. Raw Fury and Black Screen Records are outta space to announce Cameron Paxton's game soundtrack masterpiece Dome Keeper on vinyl. The double LP set includes both volumes, "Vol 1: The Engineer" and "Vol 2: The Assessor", in their entirety pressed on beautifully coloured wax and packed in a sleeve that is featuring the iconic artwork of the game. Composed by Cameron Paxton, Dome Keeper features an enchanting original soundtrack that combines a mysterious atmosphere with an adventurous sense of wonder. Paxton got into the project early on and saw the game become reality right from the start: "Dome Keeper began life as a game jam title called Dome Romantik. So originally the scope was much smaller. Because I was there at the beginning of development, I had a long time to spend experimenting and coming up with the vibe before the game ever got picked up."