quête:c king

Reissue for John Joseph’s own all-star group 2017 debut album

At its purest, there is little that can match the visceral thrill and empowering spirit of hardcore. As front-man of New York City hardcore kings Cro-Mags, this is something John Joseph knows very well, and with Up In Arms, he and his Bloodclot compatriots deliver a furious collection that hits hard on every level. "In this band we're doing what each of us have always done: give it our all," he states plainly. "We work hard, and we have a lot to say. Look around the planet - people are fed up with the corrupt ruling class. They destroy the planet and kill millions for profit, and the formula for our response is simple: Anger + applied knowledge = results. Don't just bitch. Change it."

The results reflect the roots and passions of the individual members. Danzig/Murphy's Law guitarist Todd Youth was the first piece of the puzzle. "We've always talked about doing this record together, Todd had songs written and I had notebooks full of lyrics. In late September 2015, I went out to LA to do a triathlon and injured my calf muscle, so I couldn't race, and Todd said he could get some studio time. So, we went in and cut the demo. While there are things we may perceive as a negative in our lives, in fact the universe has a bigger plan, and that experience ultimately resulted in the record." Having been friends with Queens Of The Stone Age and Danzig powerhouse drummer Joey Castillo for three decades, the two musicians had long admired each other's work, and their collaboration has been a long time coming. Following Castillo's suggestion of bringing in Nick Oliveri (Queens Of The Stone Age/The Dwarves) to handle bass duties, the lineup was complete. The songs that comprise Up In Arms manifested after the quartet plugged in and let the music speak for them. "We didn't decide to try to play anything, these are the songs that happened when we started jamming, and I love this band because there are no egos involved. Our goal is to make the best music possible, period. I love it when those guys contribute with melodies, etc., and I've even helped with some of the arrangements. Because we all think alike, our lyrics deal with the issues of the day, and that makes for better songs."

Every track on Up In Arms lives up to the rallying cry of the album's title - the bursts of high energy hardcore act as the perfect accompaniment to Joseph setting his sights on injustice and the seemingly endless flaws of the contemporary world. The breakneck thrashing of "Slow Kill Genocide" is an anthem for everyone sickened by those responsible for "killing the planet and all its inhabitants through industry and war. They're fucking maniacs and must be stopped." The suitably titled "Manic" attacks with bared fangs, Joseph making it clear that you can only push someone so far before they will react with violence - a call to arms for the disenfranchised who want tomorrow's world to be better than today's. Tracked at NRG in Los Angeles, the raw, old-school production that leaps out from the speaker comes courtesy of producer Zeuss (Hatebreed, Revocation), and the record was mixed by Kyle McAulay at NRG. From the moment the opening title track explodes to life, it's clear that everyone involved is having a blast and playing from the heart, and that this is no frills / no bullshit music at its most passionate - every song evoking mental images of utter chaos in a heaving mosh pit.

For anyone approaching the album for the first time, Joseph has only this to say: "Turn the volume way the fuck up!" And with plans to tour everywhere, Bloodclot will be getting in a lot of faces in 2017 and beyond. "We are already writing material and the next album is in the works. But, for now, all we want is to hit the stage to support 'Up in Arms', and every single night leave every ounce of ourselves up there."

For nearly two straight years following the release of their critically acclaimed debut, Chasing Lights, Ida Mae lived on the road, crisscrossing the US from coast to coast as they performed hundreds of dates with everyone from Willie Nelson and Alison Krauss to Marcus King and Greta Van Fleet. And while those shows were certainly formative for the electrifying British duo, it was what happened in between — the countless hours spent driving through small towns and big cities, past sprawling suburbs and forgotten ghost towns, across rolling plains and snow-capped mountains — that truly laid the groundwork for the band’s transportive new album, Click Click Domino. Written primarily in the backseat of a moving car, the record embodies all the momentum and possibility of the great American unknown, offering up a series of cinematic vignettes full of hope and disappointment, promise and regret, connection and loneliness. The songs on Click Click Domino are raw and direct, fueled by an innovative mix of vintage instruments and modern electronics, and the performances are loose and exhilarating to match, drawing on early rock and roll, classic country, British folk, and 50’s soul to forge a sound that’s equal parts Alan Lomax field recording and 21st century garage band. Turpin and Jean produced the album themselves, recording primarily on their own in their adopted hometown of Nashville during the COVID-19 pandemic, and while the collection is certainly bolstered by appearances from high profile guests like Marcus King, Greta Van Fleet’s Jake Kiszka, and Ethan Johns, the heart and soul of the record remains Ida Mae’s intoxicating chemistry, which has never felt more vibrant, ambitious, or self-assured. Now married, Turpin and Jean first met a little over a decade ago while attending university in Bath. The pair bonded immediately over their love for the sounds of bygone eras, and they quickly earned rave reviews everywhere from the BBC to the NME with their raucous first group, Kill It Kid. Starting over fresh as a duo named for Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee’s “Ida Mae,” the first song they ever harmonized on, Turpin and Jean relocated to Nashville in 2019 and released Chasing Lights to similarly widespread critical acclaim. Rolling Stone hailed the album’s “stomping swirl of blues and guitar-heavy Americana,” while The Independent lauded its “retro lustre” and “impressive experimentation,” and NPR’s Heavy Rotation called it “tightly drawn, harmonic and hypnotic.” The music helped the earn the duo a slew of support dates with the likes of Greta Van Fleet, The Marcus King Band, Blackberry Smoke, Josh Ritter, Rodrigo y Gabriela, and The Lone Bellow, as well as performances at Bonnaroo, the Telluride Blues & Brews Festival, the Philadelphia Folk Festival, Germany’s Reeperbahn Festival, and Switzerland’s Zermatt Unplugged.

After long and highly distinguished careers with other collaborators, Richard Rodgers (Composer, 1902-79) and Oscar Hammerstein II (Librettist/Lyricist, 1895-1960) joined forces in 1943 to create the most successful partnership in American Musical Theatre. Prior to joining forces, Rodgers collaborated with lyricist Lorenz Hart on musical comedies that epitomized wit and sophistication (Pal Joey, On Your Toes, Babes in Arms, and more), while Hammerstein brought new life to operetta and created the classic Show Boat with Jerome Kern. Oklahoma!, the first Rodgers & Hammerstein musical, introduced an integrated form that became known as "the musical play." Their shows that followed included Carousel, South Pacific, The King and I, and The Sound of Music. Collectively, the Rodgers & Hammerstein musicals have earned Tony, Oscar, Grammy, Emmy, Pulitzer, and Olivier Awards.

About The Sound of Music

Rodgers & Hammerstein's last musical was a triumph. The Sound of Music opened at Broadway's Lunt-Fontanne Theatre on November 16, 1959. It ran for 1,443 performances and earned five Tony Awards including Best Musical. In addition, the cast album earned a Gold Record and the Grammy Award. Florence Henderson starred in the first national tour, which played for more than two years. Jean Bayless created the role of Maria in the original London production, which ran for more than six years, long holding the record as the longest-running American musical in London.

In 1965 the motion picture version of The Sound of Music was released, and it made Hollywood history. Directed by Robert Wise, with a score revised by Rodgers (Hammerstein had died in 1960, so Rodgers composed both music and lyrics for two songs added to the film: "I Have Confidence" and "Something Good"), and a screenplay by Ernest Lehman, The Sound of Music boasted a dream cast: Julie Andrews as Maria, Christopher Plummer as the Captain, Eleanor Parker as Elsa, Peggy Wood as the Mother Abbess and Charmian Carr as Liesl. Winner of five Academy Awards, including Best Picture, The Sound of Music has become the most popular movie musical ever made.

A little over a year ago, Nathan Williams found himself back in San Diego, writing what would eventually become Hideaway, his seventh album as Wavves, in a little shed behind his parents’ house. It was also the place where he made some of his earliest albums, before he became known for his uncanny ability to write songs that sneered at the world while evoking pathos, sympathy, and a deep understanding of how sometimes we’re our own worst enemies, and that can be okay. Williams’ return to his childhood home was not just a symbolic attempt at jumpstarting creativity. It came as a result of a series of major life changes. A decade ago, Williams released King of the Beach on the maverick indie label Fat Possum. The album was a cocky collection of pop punk gems that catapulted him into the public consciousness, eventually prompting a jump from Fat Possum into the major label system, where he released two albums before becoming disillusioned by the lack of creative agency available to him. In 2017, Williams self-released You’re Welcome on his label, Ghost Ramp. Now, Williams has returned to Fat Possum with a barbed collection of anxious anthems that grapple with the looming sense of doom and despair that comes with getting older in an increasingly chaotic world. “He’ll always skew toward the Bart Simpson character,” says Matthew Johnson, founder of Fat Possum. “But that does not mean that he doesn’t have some commentary, and once in awhile, it’s totally spot on.” Across its brief but impactful nine tracks, Hideaway is about what happens when you get old enough to take stock of the world around you and realize that no one is going to save you but yourself, and even that might be a tall order. The album features Williams’ most universal and urgent songs yet. “Honeycomb” lopes along sunnily, as Williams sings affecting lines like “I feel like I’m dying, it’s cool, it’s great, just pretend I’m okay.” His directness is shocking, and proof that Williams is the kind of songwriter who can capture pain and uncertainty with resonant brutal force. “It’s real peaks and valleys with me,” Williams says. “I can be super optimistic and I can feel really good, and then I can hit a skid and it’s like an earthquake hits my life, and everything just falls apart. Some of it is my own doing, of course.” It’s this self awareness that permeates each of Hideaway’s songs, marking them each as mature reckonings with who he is. After realizing the material he’d been working on in the hideaway was starting to take shape, Williams, along with bandmates Stephen Pope and Alex Gates workshopped the songs in a series of now-abandoned studio sessions, before linking up with musician and producer Dave Sitek of TV on the Radio to help fully realize their new songs.

Album Description BROS VOL 2 takes you on a technicolor journey via your ear drums. The eclectic flavours of VOL1 are taken to new heights. The musical scope is wider, and the worldly sonics more exotic. The power pop refrains sink their hooks deeper, the sly musical jokes sell out harder and the hard charging grooves really pack a wallop. BROS make music that is fun and colourful, the way it's supposed to be. Bio After boldly displaying their full musical range on the 2016 debut album Vol. 1, BROS—aka The Sheepdogs’ Ewan and Shamus Currie—return with Vol. 2, an endlessly surprising new 13-track collection that’s something akin to a party thrown by your friends with the best record collection. Recorded over a two-year span with producer/engineer Thomas D’Arcy in Toronto, BROS sought to expand their scope on Vol. 2 by inviting a host of collaborators, from a horn section and tabla drummer, to Sheepdogs guitarist Jimmy Bowskill (on a range of instruments he doesn’t normally play) and even their father Neil Currie on piano. The results contain something for everyone, from the Tropicalia-inspired “Sunflower” and the smooth jazz of “Clams Casino,” to the lowdown funk of “Never Gonna Stop” and the vintage AM radio homages “Crazy Schemes” and “You Love This Song.” With Vol. 2, the combination of visually evocative instrumentals and finely crafted Pop and Soul nuggets is now undeniably BROS’ trademark sound, one that’s utterly distinct from The Sheepdogs’ arena-ready, guitar-fuelled rock. As a pure studio creation, the album not only displays the Curries’ dynamic creative bond, but also their playful sense of humour and easy-going relationship, something that can’t often be said of fraternal musical partnerships. So as we all wait patiently to return to bars and concert halls, BROS Vol. 2 is here to provide the perfect soundtrack for whatever you happen to get up to within your bubble, just as long as the intention is to have some fun. For Fans of: The Sheepdogs, Dan Auerbach, The Doobie Brothers, The Allman Brothers Band, Eric Clapton, The Band, The Black Crowes

Ronnie Lane & The Band Slim Chance’s klassisches Album ”Anymore For Anymore” aus dem Jahr 1974
wird nun zum ersten Mal seit mehr als 30 Jahren auf Vinyl herausgebracht.
Das Album war Ronnies erstes Soloalbum nach seinem Ausstieg bei den Faces und wurde auf seiner Farm
in Wales aufgenommen, wobei Ronnies Musik einen eher pastoralen Ton annahm und Elemente der Folkund Country-Musik enthielt.
In der Band Slim Chance wirkten das schottische Duo Benny Gallagher und Graham Lyle, Bassist Steve
Bingham (The Foundations, Colin Blunstone) und Schlagzeuger Bruce Rowland (Joe Cocker, Fairport
Convention) mit.
Bewundert und geliebt von Eric Clapton, Steve Winwood, Pete Townsend, Liam und Noel Gallagher, Jimmy
Page, Paul Weller, The Pogues, Ronnie Wood und Charlie Watts, OCS und Rumer, werden Ronnies Songs
bis heute regelmäßig von neuen und etablierten Künstlern gleichermaßen gecovert.
”Anymore For Anymore” wurde in den Abbey Road Studios neu gemastert, auf 180gm Vinyl gepresst
und ist in einer Hülle mit dem unverwechselbaren Original-Artwork untergebracht. Eine neue Innenhülle
enthält seltene Fotos und die Texte von Ronnies Original-Songs, und das Paket enthält eine Reproduktion
des originalen Album-Promo-Posters. Außerdem liegt ein Sound of Vinyl Download-Code bei.
Das Album kommt als 1LP.

Old 97s are an American alternative country rock band from Dallas, TX, fronted by lead vocalist and primary songwriter, Rhett Miller. Formed in 1993, they have since released twelve studio albums, two full EPs, and have one live album. Starting out as a popular bar band before being spotted by Bloodshed Records, they are pioneers of the alt-country movement during the mid-to-late 90s. Their Bloodshot debut LP brought them to the attention of Elektra Records, who hoped that alt-country could be a new post-grunge trend.

In 2005, Blender magazine ranked the band’s then most successful single, 1999’s “Murder (Or a Heart Attack),” as the 176th greatest song “since you were born.” Their music has been featured in a number of film and TV series, including The Break Up, Clay Pigeons, Slither, Ned’s Declassified School Survival Guide, Ed, Scrubs, Veronica Mars and Scorpion. Old 97s recorded three albums for Elektra, before moving on to New West and ATO Records subsequently.

Their fourth studio album, Fight Songs was recorded at Kingsway in New Orleans and released on April 27, 1999. The album is more-slick and pop-oriented than their previous efforts. For the release of this deluxe worldwide debut on vinyl, ROG had six-time Grammy® award-winning producer and engineer, Vance Powell, remix the 12-track album as the band originally intended; stripping off the slick 1990s-style production and sheen that helped the album get on the radio in 1999. With the assistance from the band we are also able to offer previously unreleased 1998 pre-production demos on a 3rd LP that helps to round out the complete story of this classic 1990’s alternative country record.

TROJAN JAMAICA / BMG is proud to announce the release of U-ROY’s final full-length, SOLID GOLD U-ROY. The album was originally set to come out in 2020 with plans for a worldwide tour in support, but unfortunately, the pandemic delayed the release. Now, with the heartbreaking loss of U-ROY on February 17, the album has become a celebration of one of the most profoundly influential reggae stars of his generation. An originator of the chatty rhythmic vocal style known as toasting — a key foundational element in the development of rap in its nascent stages in the 1970s — U-ROY left behind an unmatched legacy which is clearly on display on SOLID GOLD U-ROY, with its guest appearances including ZIGGY MARLEY, SHAGGY, MICK JONES of THE CLASH, SANTIGOLD, SLY & ROBBIE, DAVID HINDS of STEEL PULSE, and more. The album arrives on
July 16, 2021.

SOLID GOLD U-ROY is being heralded today by the release of “MAN NEXT DOOR” (Feat. SANTIGOLD). One of the great reggae songs of all time, the track features an indelible guest appearance by the incomparable Santigold. “Man Next Door” is a beloved reggae standard written by John Holt and released in 1968 by his group The Paragons. U-ROY sampled the song in 1982 for “Peace and Love in the Ghetto” on his Original DJ album. Pre-orders of SOLID GOLD U-ROY will come with an instant grat download of “MAN NEXT DOOR”

Jackie Mittoo is one of Jamaica’s musical giants, a towering figure in the development of reggae whose skills as a keyboardist and musical arranger led to indelible changes in the evolution of Jamaican popular music, helping it to reach international prominence. An exceptionally-expressive player whose mastery of the organ was truly outstanding, Mittoo was also a gifted arranger with an intrinsic feel for what would work best, his key instruction giving shape to ska at Studio One and roots reggae at Channel One and other Kingston studios, as well as lover’s rock at Wackies in New York and with Sugar Minott and UB40 in Britain, Jackie’s own productions later incorporating far-out synthesizer experiments and vocoder techniques. Reggae as we know it would never have existed without Mittoo’s essential input, making him an under-sung icon of Jamaican song. Jackie Mittoo went on to make all kinds of other incredible music in Jamaica, the UK, USA, and Canada before dying of cancer in 1990 at the tragically young age of 42; the dramatic send-off he received at the National Arena in Kingston gives some indication of the stellar status he achieved in his lifetime and the universal respect with which he was regarded. In an exemplary career full of exceptional music, 'Showcase', originally released on Bunny Lee's own imprint Jackpot in 1977, remains one of his greatest, an enthralling collection of stunners that shows why he will always be regarded as Jamaica’s keyboard king.

Demon Records presents Distortion: Live, the fourth and final edition in a series of expansive vinyl box sets chronicling the solo career of legendary American musician Bob Mould.
Bob Mould’s career began in 1979 with the iconic underground punk group Hüsker Dü before forming the beloved alternative rock band Sugar and releasing numerous critically acclaimed solo albums. The final volume in the series features 8LPs of live recordings from across Mould’s solo career.
8 LPs including –
• 4 live albums – Live At The Cabaret Metro, 1989 (first time on vinyl), The Joke Is Always On Us, Sometimes, LiveDog98 (first time on vinyl), and Live At ATP 2008 (first time on vinyl)
• Each album is presented with brand new artwork designed by illustrator Simon Marchner and pressed on 140g clear vinyl
with unique splatter effects
• Bonus LP Distortion Plus: Live which features live rarities including B-sides and stand-out tracks from the Circle Of Friends concert film
• Mastered by Jeff Lipton and Maria Rice at Peerless Mastering in Boston Plus -
• A 28-page companion booklet featuring: a new and exclusive foreword by Bob Mould; an interview conducted by journalist Keith
Cameron; an exclusive testimonial from Bully’s Alicia Bognanno; rare photographs and memorabilia

A GROOVY SELECTION IN THREE ORIGINAL VINYLS TO DISCOVER THE GOLD NUGGETS OF FUNK, SOUL & HIP-HOP ! Selection by the journalist Olivier Cachin and illustrations by the artist LAZOO.

Oliver Wood is a mainstay of modern-day American roots music. The frontman of the Wood Brothers since 2004, he's spent the 21st century blurring the boundaries between folk, gospel, country-soul, and Americana, earning an international audience and a Grammy Award-nomination along the way. Always Smilin', his debut as a solo artist, continues that tradition while also shining new light on Oliver's sharp songwriting, savvy guitar chops, and a voice that evokes the swagger of a Saturday evening picking party one moment and the solemnity of a Sunday morning gospel service the next. Always Smilin' is an album of bridges, mixing a wide range of collaborations with a uniquely personal touch. Guests include bandmates from Oliver's musical past and present, from mentor and co-writer Chris Long (who performed alongside Oliver in King Johnson, the roots-rock band that dominated Atlanta's music scene around the turn of the millennium) to percussionist Jano Rix (Oliver's partner in The Wood Brothers). Blues heroine Susan Tedeschi, Hiss Golden Messenger's Phil Cook, Medeski Martin & Wood's John Medeski, Tedeschi Trucks Band's Tyler Greenwell, Nashville staple Phil Madeira, and singer/songwriter Carsie Blanton also make appearances, with Rebecca Wood — Oliver's wife — handling the album's handmade linocut cover art. For Oliver, the goal was simple: to collaborate freely with a mix of old friends and new partners, embracing a new level of independence.

Soul Jazz Records are releasing this 20th anniversary edition of their classic Studio One Soul on unique Record Store Day EXCLUSIVE coloured vinyl + download code. This new edition is a one-off special pressing exclusively for Record Store Day 2021.

Owned and founded by Clement "Coxsone" Dodd, Studio One's output serves as a comprehensive guide to the history of Reggae music.

Studio One Soul tracks the link between American Funk and Soul and Jamaican Reggae at the legendary Studio One Records.

Curtis Mayfield, Aretha Franklin, Otis Redding, The Temptations, King Floyd, Booker T and The MGs - all these artists had a huge influence on Jamaican artists and this album contains versions of songs by all of them. Featuring classic and rare Reggae Funk and Soul cuts from the Reggae giants alongside rarer cuts, Studio One Soul spans over 20 years of classic Reggae from the Rocksteady Funk through to the deep Roots music.

Greetings to the new generation of ‘Hip-Hop’ and ‘Shake Your Butt’ music. The man behind ‘Timeless Funk’ ain’t exactly no ‘Spring Funky Chicken’, yet he is still the ‘Funkiest Soul’ to rock this here nation.
Rufus Thomas is the Soul King and Grand Daddy of Funk; as his generation knew him then, as we know him today.

In the beginning, the ‘Power of the Most High’ said: ‘Let it be funky’. Then there was Rufus.
Rufus Thomas was born in 1917 in a small town outside of Memphis, Tennessee. At the age of ten he became a tap dancer. In the 1930s, Rufus worked professionally at the infamous Palace Theatre, Memphis, TN, as M.C., performing comedy and dance routines.

During the early 1940s, Rufus began his singing career. He also continued his M.C. acts at various notable nightclubs and theatres, for amateur nights. He was then considered to be a triple threat: dancer, comedian and singer! The notables he crossed hands with in those days were B.B. King, Bobby Bland and Johnny Ace. In the 1950s Rufus became one of the ‘Hip-pest’ DJs in Memphis TN W.I.D.A. radio station and is affiliated with the company to this day. He was quoted as saying ‘I’m young and loose and full of juice’. At those times he recorded ‘Bear-Cat’ for Sun Records, their first R&B hit for the label.
All-right ‘Kiddies,’ now I take you into the light of Rufus in the 1960s. When most of us were on our way to our happy existence, Rufus was already 30 years in the entertainment circuit. He was affiliated with STAX Records. With daughter Carla Thomas, he gave STAX their first hit, the duet, ‘Cause I Love You.’ Rufus’ world famous hits continued under this label, pouring songs out such as ‘Memphis Train,’ ‘Can Your Monkey Do The Dog,’…

The foregoing is merely a scratch on the surface of a remarkable man, who has dedicated most of his life to the entertainment business. It’s kept short and sweet so you know what you are dealing with.
Rufus was quoted as saying, ‘I ain’t a star, I don’t want to be a star. Stars have a habit of falling. I’m like the moon. Clouds may come and cover it occasionally, but it’s always there, and always shining. It’s just sometimes you don’t see it for a while but it’ll be back.’

If it wasn’t for Rufus, Soul Music would be missing one of its loudest sons. If he didn’t exist, somebody

Continued over…

would have to get up and invent him. And Funk? The man practically invented the stuff with James Brown.
Now at the age of 75 ‘The Oldest Teenager Alive’ check him out on this recording of ‘Timeless Funk’. We’ll agree and leave you with this note: Rufus is the ‘Moon’ that brought us what was ‘Funky’ then to what is ‘Funky’ now. So let us get ‘Buck Wild’ on the Funky side of things

Analog Africa Presents Edo Funk Explosion Vol. 1, available on
2xLP/Gatefold LP with 20-page booklet / CD with 36-page booklet. It was
in Benin City, in the heart of Nigeria, that a new hybrid of intoxicating
highlife music known as Edo Funk was born.
It first emerged in the late 1970s when a group of musicians began to experiment with different ways of integrating elements from their native Edo culture
and fusing them with new sound effects coming from West Africa s night-clubs.
Unlike the rather polished 1980 s Nigerian disco productions coming out of the
international metropolis of Lagos Edo Funk was raw and reduced to its bare
minimum.
Someone was needed to channel this energy into a distinctive sound and Sir
Victor Uwaifo appeared like a mad professor with his Joromi studio. Uwaifo
took the skeletal structure of Edo music and relentless began fusing them with
synthesizers, electric guitars and 80 s effect racks which resulted in some of the
most outstanding Edo recordings ever made. An explosive spiced up brew with
an odd psychedelic note known as Edo Funk.
That’s the sound you’ll be discovering in the first volume of the Edo Funk Explosion series which focusses on the genre’s greatest originators; Osayomore
Joseph, Akaba Man, and Sir Victor Uwaifo: Osayomore Joseph was one of the
first musicians to bring the sound of the flute into the horn-dominated world
of highlife, and his skills as a performer made him a fixture on the Lagos scene.
When he returned to settle in Benin City in the mid 1970s - at the invitation of
the royal family - he devoted himself to the modernisation and electrification
of Edo music, using funk and Afro-beat as the building blocks for songs that
weren’t afraid to call out government corruption or confront the dark legacy of
Nigeria’s colonial past.
Akaba Man was the philosopher king of Edo funk. Less overtly political than Osayomore Joseph and less psychedelic than Victor Uwaifo, he found the perfect
medium for his message in the trance-like grooves of Edo funk. With pulsating
rhythms awash in cosmic synth-fields and lyrics that express a deep personal
vision, he found great success at the dawn of the 1980s as one of Benin City’s
most persuasive ambassadors of funky highlife.
Victor Uwaifo was already a star in Nigeria when he built the legendary Joromi
studios in his hometown of Benin City in 1978. Using his unique guitar style as
the mediating force between West-African highlife and the traditional rhythms
and melodies of Edo music, he had scored several hits in the early seventies,
but once he had his own sixteen-track facility he was able to pursue his obsession with the synesthetic possibilities of pure sound, adding squelchy synths,
swirling organs and studio effects to hypnotic basslines and raw grooves. Between his own records and his production for other musicians, he quickly established himself as the godfather of Edo funk.
What unites these diverse musicians is their ability to strip funk down to its
primal essence and use it as the foundation for their own excursions inward to
the heart of Edo culture and outward to the furthest limits of sonic alchemy.
The twelve tracks on Edo Funk Explosion Volume 1 pulse with raw inspiration,
mixing highlife horns, driving rhythms, day-glo keyboards and tripped-out guitars into a funk experience unlike any other.

Following the 70s Peruvian cumbia compilation by Ranil last year, Analog Africa returns to Latin America to highlight the work of one of Perú’s undisputed masters of the electric guitar: Manzanita. This 13th release in the Limited Dance Edition Series includes 14 mostly instrumental compositions of electrifying Peruvian cumbia and guaracha. Manzanita's unique guitar lines rest on confident foundations that shifts gears effortlessly. Limited Edition LP in Gatefold Cover pressed on 180g high quality virgin vinyl

"I was in Lima, hanging out with collector-extraordinaire Victor Zela, who had spent the previous few years pouring his passion for Peruvian Cumbia into the blog „la cumbia de mis viejos“, a trove of incredible music. But after the birth of his first child, his priorities shifted and he decided to part with some of his rarest LPs. I was one of the lucky few given an early chance to examine his treasures, and when I picked up the album Manzaneando com Manzanita, Victor said: “Take it! its one of the best LPs ever recorded in Perú … easily in the top five”. That was all the encouragement I needed … two years later many of the songs from that masterpiece have made it onto Manzanita y su Conjunto, a compilation of electrifying Cumbia sides from Manzanita’s golden era.

Berardo Hernández – better known as Manzanita – first surfaced during the psychedelic Cumbia craze. At the head of the scene were the magnificent Los Destellos, whose leader, Enrique Delgado, was such a six-string wizard that other guitarists found it impossible to escape his shadow. But when Manzanita arrived, his electric criollo style sent shockwaves through Lima’s music scene and posed a serious threat to Delgado’s dominance as king of the Peruvian guitar.

Manzanita had come to Lima from the coastal city of Trujillo, five hundred miles up the coast – a place where Spanish, African and indigenous populations had been living and making music together for centuries – and came of age at a time when the first wave of psychedelic rock from the US and UK was starting to sweep the airwaves. But the sounds of Cream and Hendrix disappeared from the radio just as quickly in 1968 when Juan Velasco seized control of the country in a military coup. The new regime, which favoured local traditions over cultural ‘imports’ from the north, was a blessing in disguise for the Peruvian music scene.

Record labels flourished as new bands, raised on a hybrid diet of electric guitars and Cuban rhythms, rushed in to fill the vacuum created by the lack of imported rock. A new genre, known as Peruvian cumbia, was born and Manzanita quickly became one of its most original voices.

Starting in 1969, Manzanita y su Conjunto released a steady stream of singles that used Cuban guaracha rhythms as the foundation for dazzling electric guitar lines. After countless 45s and several years on the touring circuit, the band signed to Virrey, an important Peruvian label, and recorded two LPs acknowledged as masterpieces among aficionados of tropical music. Most of the songs on Analog Africa’s new compilation Manzanita y su Conjunto are drawn from those legendary sessions of 1973 and 74.

Although he scored a few more hits in the later 70s, his dissatisfaction with the music industry caused him to withdraw from the scene for several years; and when he finally retired for good, the golden age of Peruvian cumbia was a distant memory. But when Manzanita was at the top of his game he had few equals. Victor Zela was right: this is some of the best music ever recorded in Perú."

A GROOVY SELECTION IN THREE ORIGINAL VINYLS TO DISCOVER THE GOLD NUGGETS OF FUNK, SOUL & HIP-HOP ! Selection by the journalist Olivier Cachin and illustrations by the artist LAZOO.

To celebrate 20 years of the record label Jamaican Recordings,Jah Floyd has cut a track telling the story of its beginnings and the people involved. The initial meeting of legendary Reggae producer Bunny `Striker’ Lee in Jamaica and the various artists that became part of the labels catalogue. Such greats as Tapper Zukie, Niney The Obsever, Black Solidarity producer Ossie Thomas. Artists and Producers who music helped define the labels sound. A great collection of releases for all involved alongside its other label Kingston Sounds.

What would have been the labels 20th year and Bunny Lee’s 80th birthday celebrations have sadly been curtailed by the sad passing of Mr Lee in late 2020.

But makes this 500 only 7’’ all the more poignant and comes with a dub version as its B-Side,which for the Reggae label Jamaican Recordings the dub versions was its driving force.
As the track says in its lyrics… `Hope you enjoy the ride respect… Jah Floyd’.

A GROOVY SELECTION IN THREE ORIGINAL VINYLS TO DISCOVER THE GOLD NUGGETS OF FUNK, SOUL & HIP-HOP ! Selection by the journalist Olivier Cachin and illustrations by the artist LAZOO.

Cosmic traveller Herman ‘Sonny’ Blount became Sun Ra after an alien abduction, proclaiming that he came from Saturn and using music to point to human failure on earth, offering space as ethereal alternative. Supersonic Jazz was released in 1957 on Ra’s Saturn label and regularly reissued, even making it onto Impulse in 1974, its blend of bop, avant-garde and galactic well ahead of its time. More melodic and cohesive than many subsequent titles, ‘Advice To Medics’ is a troubling Ra piano diversion, and ‘Super Blonde’ a big-band stomp; ‘Soft Talk,’ by trombonist Julian Priester, is one of the vehicles for John Gilmore’s tenor sax and ‘Kingdom Of Not’ has uncommon swing. A must for all Sun Ra scholars!