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Sansibar returns to Sin Sistema with a two-track story of a murky and paranoid clandestineoperation, “Babylon Brotherhood”.The A-side, “Babylon Brotherhood (Rated X)”, is a tale of forbidden romance, drawing influencefrom the Westbrook Records classic “Ben Mays – Rated X”, with added vocals from EllenJärnefelt.Whilst the B-side, “Scotch Bonnet”, takes influence from mid-’90s rubbery Chicago jack à laDance Mania and Relief Records

Phillip George Allison was born and raised in Denham Town, West Kingston, the last of six children and the only boy. As a boy he sang hymns at his mother's side. Before long he was singing radio hits at school concerts, where he did Curtis Mayfield, Smokey Robinson and Eddie Kendricks in a falsetto so close to theirs that friends called him "George Smokey."
With Delroy Williams and Shirley Forbes he formed The Mad Lads. Leroy Sibbles auditioned them at Studio One and called Coxsone Dodd over to listen, and they recorded the same day, with Sylvan Morris as engineer and the Sound Dimensions backing them. Ten To One, Losing You and You Never Know were big with the sound systems. George then left music to study electrical engineering at CAST. Years later producer Carl Prince of Gibbous Records asked him to re-record Ten To One, and that brought him back into the studio for the 1984 album So Unusual, where both of these sides first appeared.
Gypsy Woman was one of the first songs he ever sang in class. "Gypsy Woman was originally done by Curtis Mayfield and the Impressions, one of my favourite groups. I chose to do it a little differently, in my falsetto style, like Ten To One that I recorded while singing lead with the Mad Lads."
War Is Ugly "I wrote War Is Ugly during the politically motivated tensions and killings between rival gangs and gunmen all over the island in that period. My message was to the gunmen: turn in their arms and come. War is ugly, love is lovely."

Belfast artist ffolliott draws on family archive and analogue sounds for debut album full of life and texture.

In a world awash with AI slop, here is the antidote. Written and recorded over five years in a Belfast home studio, ffolliott’s debut album Gree leaves the hiss, crackle and instability of life intact - pairing a deeply personal record with decades of artwork and sketches from his late father’s archive.

Released via Kitto Records, Gree is built from vinyl samples, analogue equipment, and intimate guitar with vocals laced with fragments of childhood memory. The album also features unexpected contributions from Grammy Award winning artist Kaidi Tatham. Gree is just the second release from the idiosyncratic artist ffoliott, following IDKWHY, which was released quietly as part of Rhythm Section's Shouts 2021 compilation, and went on to garner millions of streams and support from tastemakers across KCRW, NTS and BBC Radio.


“I generally found that the more I leaned into anything I didn’t like about my music, the more I would end up writing songs that meant a lot to me.” - ffolliott

Back in print on vinyl in Europe, Mia Gargaret is an ambient, (mostly) instrumental album by Chicago, IL singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer Gia Margaret. Not the follow-up she intended to release after the critical success of her debut album but after having to cancel tours because of an illness that left unable to sing for nearly half of the year, she had to rethink her methods. The resulting album is an incredible achievement, finding beauty and possibility in uncertainty while allowing Gia the time to heal. This limited eco-mix pressing was first made available from her merch desk on her recent European tour and is now available from select record stores.

For two decades, The Oscillation has occupied its own space within the psychedelic underground, continually reshaping a sound built as much from texture, repetition and atmosphere as it is from conventional songcraft. On 'Interference', released October 30th 2026 via Fuzz Club, Demian Castellanos pushes that approach further than ever, creating what he describes as "a painting of sound rather than music”. It’s an album where noise and melody constantly collide, dissolve and reform into something strangely beautiful: “I wanted it to be accessible but also quite extreme, a sort of beautiful noise. I did my best to push out the parameters whilst trying not to allow it to disintegrate into something with no meaning or focus.” Chasing an elusive balance between accessibility and abstraction, the result is a record that feels simultaneously immediate and disorientating: dense layers of drones, feedback and motorik rhythms give way to unexpected moments of warmth, colour and even uplifting euphoria. Across its runtime, chaos never overwhelms; instead it becomes another instrument, carefully sculpted into hypnotic, immersive compositions. Much of the album emerged through instinct rather than intention. Fragments originally conceived as intros, outros or abandoned ideas gradually eclipsed the songs they belonged to, with tracks revealing themselves organically through a process Castellanos likens to "playing Chinese whispers with musical instruments." Elsewhere, two long-forgotten compositions – ‘Stasis’ and ‘When You Close Your Eyes’ – finally found their place after lying unfinished for almost twenty years. Recorded and mixed by Castellanos at his home studio in the Czech Republic, ‘Interference’ also benefits from a key collaboration with Lorena Quintanilla of Mexican band Lorelle Meets The Obsolete, who provides a transformative presence. Her haunting vocal on ‘La Alusion’ (which she also wrote the lyrics and melody for) became the breakthrough moment that crystallised the album, turning an instrumental sketch into a dreamlike centrepiece and helping shape the final sequence. She also lends her voice to ‘Isolation Freeway’, adding another layer of mystery to an album that continually blurs the line between structure and dissolution. Perhaps most remarkably, ‘Interference’ was created during a period in which Castellanos had largely stopped listening to music altogether: “My hi-fi broke a couple of years ago so I kind of wanted to see what would happen if I didn’t listen to too much music.” Instead of consciously absorbing outside influences, he trusted instinct, memory and experimentation to guide the process. The result is one of The Oscillation's most adventurous and emotionally resonant records to date: a vivid collision of hypnotic repetition, spectral beauty and controlled sonic disruption that confirms Castellanos remains one of modern psychedelia's most singular voices.

Finnish-American guitarist Raoul Björkenheim and Norwegian drummer Paal Nilssen-Love join forces on their new album PING, released by We Jazz Records on 30th October on LP, CD and digital formats. Recorded in Helsinki, the album finds the seasoned duo firing on all cylinders and delivering a remarkable set of contemporary free music.

PING brings together nine excursions beyond “guitar + drums” and way beyond “free jazz”. That being said, those are still good touching points for the music that is wild, imaginative, raw, yet also at times delicate and introspective. Friends and collaborators for decades in groups such as the lauded Scorch Trio, Raoul and Paal have the history and the trust to create memorable and original improvised music that stuns and moves the curious listener.

Raoul Björkenheim (b. 1956) is a Finnish-American guitarist and composer who has been creating original music for the past four decades living in New York City and Helsinki, where he is presently based. Describing his on-going work as investigative guitarism, he is best known for an expressionistic and lyrical guitar style. Björkenheim’s eclectic discography numbers 50+ albums, ranging from ambient soundscapes to visceral free jazz, from duo to big band. His large-scale works for symphony orchestra have yet to be recorded, and he has also composed scores for over ten films and dance productions. Björkenheim has collaborated musically with Bill Laswell, Toshinori Kondo, William Parker, Mats Gustafsson, Hamid Drake, Ingebrigt Håker Flaten, Gerald Cleaver, Henry Kaiser, Lukas Ligeti, Morgan Ågren, Paul Schütze, Edward Vesala and Juhani Aaltonen, for the labels ECM, Rune Grammofon, Cuneiform, Tum Records and Long Song records. Björkenheim has been awarded various prizes including the Emma prize for best jazz recording of the year, and been nominated three times for the Nordic Music Award.

Paal Nilssen-Love (b. 1974) is a Norwegian drummer, composer, bandleader, and producer known for his central role in Scandinavian free jazz and improvised music. Since the mid- 1990s, he has appeared on more than 280 albums, including 70 released through his label, PNL Records. He has performed with influential groups including Atomic, The Thing, Peter Brötzmann’s Chicago Tentet, Scorch Trio, and Frode Gjerstad Trio, and collaborates regularly with artists such as, Ken Vandermark, Akira Sakata, Otomo Yoshihide, David Murray, Arto Lindsay and more. Paal Nilssen-Love’s fascination with traditional and experimental music has taken him around the world. Since his first visit to Ethiopia in 2009, he has built strong connections with musicians and artists in Addis Ababa, leading to collaborations, performances, teaching, and artist exchanges with Norway. Since his first trip to Brazil in 2013, he has returned regularly, developing collaborations with artists and musicians across the country. His musical explorations have also brought him to Tsugaru and Aomori in northern Japan, where he has developed an interest in the region’s traditional music. Nilssen-Love is also an active organizer and educator. He started both Oslo’s all-Ears festival, the Blow Out festival and FRAM Kunstfest, and has led workshops internationally and in Norway.

BERNARR, the latest album from Grammy Award-winning singer, songwriter, and vocal powerhouse Durand Bernarr, marks the next chapter following his 2026 Grammy Award for Best Progressive R&B Album for BLOOM. Named after his father, legendary sound engineer Bernarr Fields, the album honors legacy while capturing Durand in full command of his voice, his lineage, and his artistic evolution. Originally envisioned as a deluxe edition of BLOOM, the project evolved into a full-length album, blending Bernarr's signature R&B, soul, and gospel roots with vibrant influences from yacht rock, P-Funk, house, and Miami bass. The album features collaborations with Khalid, Big Sean, Sevyn Streeter, VIC MENSA, and James Fauntleroy, alongside production from Raphael Saadiq, Bryan-Michael Cox, and James Fauntleroy

Timeless – yet always fresh: Regardless of the whims of the pop business, Planet Yello has been making its rounds for almost fifty years, repeatedly whisking us away to a world where past and future greet each other and James Bond joins forces with the Man in the Moon, Dionysus and Philip K. Dick.

"To the future, through the past"—with their fifteenth studio album, "Time Lab," Dieter Meier and Boris Blank put this maxim into practice more vividly than ever. Blank meticulously crafts his imaginary soundtracks from fresh samples and found objects from his own archive, which has accumulated a vast collection of sonic fragments, riffs, and motifs over nearly fifty years of creative work. Meier immerses himself in these parallel soundscapes, discovering within them his romantic tales of robbers, mysterious night creatures, and Dadaist wordplay. Essentially, every Yello track is both ancient and brand new at the same time. This principle is perfectly illustrated by the first single, "Around the Sun." It's based on a dormant Meier recording that was cut at the last minute from the selection for "Claro Que Si" (1981). Blank gave Meier's sonorous voice a fresh sonic makeover – the result is an elegant and flexible, thoroughly Yello-esque combination of past and present, romantic wanderlust and driving percussion. "Break Out" also plays with stylistic elements that can be traced back to Yello's earliest days: a dangerously prowling bass riff, fiery percussion, and storyteller Meier in hypnotic top form.

Time begins where it ends, or vice versa. Or, as Boris Blank says: "Yello's music doesn't really know time."

VVAA. SLOW AND STEADY (Downbeat 015)

After a three-year hiatus, Downbeat returns with its 15th release, marking the very first Various Artists compilation in the label's history.

The A-side features the masterminds behind Tetrode, Damon Lamar and Specter, who deliver two tracks showcasing their signature sound. Machine house at a lower BPM, packed with repetitive Akai percussions and synth lines—gentler and warmer on Damon's track, and darker, more unhinged on Specter's side."

The B-side kicks off with label co-founder Jose Rico, who delivers "The Invaders," a track that transports us straight to the roots of the genre. This is textbook Chicago deep house—straightforward and infectious from the very first beat. Closing out the EP, Leonid makes his label debut with an emotional, Detroit-infused deep electronic gem, beautifully crafted with soft percussions, silky synths, and a subtle touch of epic grandeur. Absolutely stunning.

Underpinned by spoken folktales stretching from Indonesia to Poland, a new collaborative EP from Warszawa/Berlin-based Jerzy Mączyński and London-based Flora Yin-Wong arrives via Accidental Meetings. Demons rising from the wind, unknown beings lurking in the forest — the record conjures a landscape built from heady layers of saxophone and the tormented strings of zither, harp and kemence.

Recorded across two intense studio sessions, the EP also features idiosyncratic contributions from London-based guest vocalists and musicians Aga Ujma and Laila Sakini.

Flora Yin-Wong is a London-born experimental sound artist and writer of Chinese and Malaysian heritage, known for weaving field recordings and traditional instruments. Her album Holy Palm (Modern Love) and book Liturgy (PAN) cemented her as a singular voice in experimental music today.

Jerzy Mączyński is a Polish saxophonist, producer and composer whose jazz training feeds into genre-melting work spanning kosmische, prog, industrial techno and minimalism. One of his collaborations being a record of free jazz and rhythmic cubism with Chicago's Hieroglyphic Being.

“Carl layers willowy guitar arpeggios, foggy keyboards, and chimes over Windy’s murmured intonations and rippling basswork. Everything sounds fresh and unaffected in the careful hands of these two gentle souls. Pick it up, lie back, and allow it to lull you into an undisturbed reverie.” Big Takeover

At the time of original release it was written that the album "will transport the listener to other plains of reality.” (Acid Test). Meanwhile, Alternative Press called it “alluring and addictive.” and CMJ called it "expansive, daydream enhancing music.”

The pair have also recently released their collaborative album with Optigan Conservatory, which can be revisited here. A beautiful and hermetic energy larger than the sum of its parts was captured in the collaborative process of making this album. There are echoes of the earliest releases from Windy & Carl as well as refractions of the same opacity that surfaced in the early kranky catalog.

A fine time to be shining a light on these label stalwarts as the dark Autumn evenings roll in

Bruce Ivery returns to Stilove4music, and we couldn't be happier to welcome him back. A true master of his craft, Bruce has delivered some of the label's most celebrated releases, each one leaving a lasting mark on dancefloors around the world.

Born and raised in Chicago and a key member of the legendary Chuck Brothers collective. Bruce's reputation as both a producer and editor speaks for itself. His latest work, a release on Ryan Elliott's Faith Beat, is further proof of his talent. This new drop is no exception—it will have you questioning your own sanity.

It's disco time once again, and it's Bruce Ivery time on Stilove4music. We're beyond excited to share these tracks, designed to create mayhem on discerning dancefloors.

CHIWAX CLASSIC EDITION prouldy presents Boo Williams - Lost Of Time.
This fantastic release from 1995 came originally out on legendary Relief Records.
The 2026 version contains a new mastering.
Don't feed the Discogs Sharks!

New dope release is coming on Macadam Mambo!

We are very glad to present this masterpiece of contemporary leftfield music by Pieter Kock and Nate Davis under their project ‘Sports Café’. If you liked the previous 2xLP of Pieter (The End ll), you will love this new one pairing with Nate. The 2 buddies deliver the perfect soundtrack for lazy afternoons and kinky listening session: put the record on the turntable, play ON, first pop, the feelings is good, you want to chill, you go in the fridge, you open a can of beer, sit on the sofa, start to roll your cigarette, the guitars (Vini Reilly style) are playing, the acid lines show up, nice melodies are coming, nice synths too, little vocals here and there that can remind some sort of PMU’s cafe rooms vibe (it’s from where the name of the project is coming from)… it’s cool, yeah baby, you enjoy, you feel good!!, the more you listen to it the more you love it… A proper shroomy excursion if you are into the trip. Trust us this album is a must have, big TIP ;)

Children of Zeus return with their third studio album ‘As The World Burns…’

Five years on from their highly-acclaimed sophomore album ‘Balance’, Manchester’s kings of hip hop soul, Tyler Daley and Konny Kon, bring us a brand new 16-track opus.

Sonically the duo continue their story where they left off; crafting an amalgamation of street soul, alternative r&b and boom bap hip hop, with a sprinkle of flavours taken from their original multi-genre pirate radio influences, and a dash of forward-thinking new sounds, ensuring all tracks are destined to become future classics.

The features are sparing but powerful, enlisting the talents of revered UK rapper Knucks (‘Before We Drown’), Colorado-native Young Old Soul (‘Dopamine’), MCR family K S R (‘Do You Want To Get High’, & Australian/Mauritian up & comer Anieszka (‘Water & Vibes’).

As with previous projects, this album is largely produced by the duo themselves, though there are guest productions from previous collaborators too, including Grammy Award-winner Beat Butcha, Grammy-nominated Teo, and broken beat pioneer K15, along with an assortment of new players making moves in the underground neo-soul & beats circuit.

Conceptually, this project continues on with the story to date. An eternal search for sunsets and soulfood, as a respite to the anxieties of the modern world; personally, professionally and globally. Assertive swagger is matched with brutal but sincere candidity. As ever, it encapsulates the rough with the smooth, with reflections on where they’ve been, where they’re at and where they’re headed. There’s no preaching to be found here; just an acceptance of things as they are, an embrace of the environment and people they were nurtured by, and a celebration of some of the finer things in life; slow jams, weed & rum, water & vibes. Raps for listeners, blunt heads, fly ladies and prisoners. All packaged together as another perfect sonic love letter to sound system culture. 50 minutes of big people music.

Since the release of their anthemic debut single ‘Still Standing’ a decade ago, to the subsequent EP ‘The Story So Far’, and their critically-lauded debut album ‘Travel Light’, the duo have received numerous accolades, including nominations for AIM Awards & Worldwide Awards both, along with tons of ‘Album of the Year’ nods care of Clash Magazine, Bandcamp, Complex, Wordplay and many more. This along with huge swathes of support from DJs, radio stations, press outlets, tastemakers, luminaries & fellow artists across the globe.

Children of Zeus have performed sessions for COLORS, Soulection (Apple Music), DJ AG, Boiler Room, BBC 6 Music and at the infamous Maida Vale studios for BBC 1Xtra as well as touring across Europe, Australia and South Africa. This is in addition to collaborating & touring with Mercury Award Winner’s Ezra Collective, including a Wembley Arena show. Other collaborations over the years have included Shy FX, Juls, Goldie, Black Milk, Kofi Stone and the late great Lenzman.

From the Broke ’n’ English / Hoodman-era, to the present day, Children of Zeus have been omnipresent in the fabric of British black music. Proud ambassadors of Manchester music, and of UK soul, it really is “Zeus to the world”.

Children of Zeus have been adorned with plenty of flowers over their career. The unbridled quality and poignance of the music and the message on display throughout this project will see the algorithmic needle move some more. It’s undoubtedly set to be a Zeus Summer. As the world burns…

Available on all digital platforms and physical formats, Friday September 4th 2026.







t 07: Do You Want To Get High? (feat. K S R ) - Children of Zeus03:26







t 07: Do You Want To Get High? (feat. [ K S R ]) - Children of Zeus03:26







[t] 07: Do You Want To Get High? (feat. [ K S R ]) - Children of Zeus03:26







[g] B3 | Do You Want To Get High? (feat [ K S R ]) - Children of Zeus03:26

Orlando Voorn returns with a stellar release on CHIWAX!
We are very happy to announce this beauty for the beginning of November.!
Highly recommended!

Repress!

When Network Records originally issued “Innovator” in 1991 we knew that the music contained within was timeless. At that time, of course, we had no grasp of how well Derrick’s epic soundscapes would time travel. We christened the collection - “Soundtrack For The Tenth Planet” - because it seemed like the music (and Derrick) had indeed arrived from another world.

The release has been acclaimed as iconic because Derrick, the madcap and maverick philosopher of Detroit Techno, introduced the concept of dance music with a musical and emotional agenda way beyond anything that had come before. Beats with beauty. Literally the strings of life. Where fellow musical geniuses Chic had previously urged everybody to simply "Dance, Dance, Dance" mood alchemist Mayday merged simple yet cerebral dreamscapes with strange and urgent complex dance rhythms and invited us all to Dance And Dream. And in a strange juxtaposed way helped birth the hedonistic Acid House scene with classics “Nude Photo” and “Strings Of Life”

The energy is frenetic, but merged with a new age ambience. The gems collected on this offering were iconic in 1991, now they cause mass hysteria when Derrick turns his one time musical experiments, created in a tiny room in Detroit, and turns them into epic concerts with orchestras and musicians across the globe. “Hand In Hand” existed in 1991 and we wanted to release it then, but it’s taken until now for the complete 13 minute recording to finally meet the world.
It will be revered, because like all of Derrick May’s music it is life affirming. Emotions Electric indeed.

The original “Innovator” release was housed on one single slab of wax. This time around we have expanded it to two discs to make space for “Hand Over Hand” and also so everything elsewhere - masterpieces remastered - can be presented in a complete and superior fashion. Whatever the tweaks, changes and updates etc all these years on, this music still sounds gloriously alien and groundbreaking. But there’s still no Tenth Planet.

"Innovator" remastered by Curvepusher, London 2019. Re-presented by Network Records in conjunction with Derrick May.

Formed in Montreal, eight-piece funk band Cane and Abel melded Caribbean elements with soul, blues and psych, frontman Frenchie Thompson holding plenty of bite and the full horn section including former Dragonaires trumpeter Norris Ridguard. After early singles on GRT, the group signed to Epic and relocated to the US but made their biggest splash in France, where they cut two LPs in 1972; this self-titled rarity has Thompson’s ‘Girl You Move Me,’ percussionist Blinky Bostic’s ‘Who’s Gonna Take The Weight,’ and likeable takes of Wilson Picket’s ‘Don’t Knock My Love,’ ‘Green Grass’ and ‘Toe Hold.’ A lost funk classic!

HIKARIGASASHIKOMU translates as ‘Light Shines In’, a Japanese phrase conveying a sense of hope in a difficult place. Opening new creative possibilities for Foodman, this astonishing album is an introspective yet hyperactive body of work, representing the clarity and light found after a period of self-exploration. While this is a deeply personal record, it also captures the now-universal sound of a brain stretched between 500 open tabs, multitasking into oblivion in a world in which attention deficit is a global media environment, not merely a privatized psychological malaise. Focusing more on the use of voice, the album incorporates Foodman’s own looped vocals, singing elements of Japanese children’s songs and playground rhymes, and his everyday thoughts. Despite its charm and innocence, this soundworld leaps around manically, fractures and dissolves. Foodman’s voice repeats, disassembles, speeds up and down and is bounced around deliriously, as sound elements call and respond around him. Structurally and vocally, influences are drawn from footwork, ghetto house, and baile funk, all of which are maximally abstracted into bursts of spiralling psychedelic effects.

Music from Tokyo / New York serves as the 2024 sequel to his previous release, Music for Joshua Tree. This conceptual album is divided into Side A (Tokyo) and Side B (New York), utilizing field recordings captured in each location. The ceramic images featured on LP jacket is the work of Namiko Ishikawa (NamipotNYC).

On this record, he incorporates Ambient, Downtempo, Trip-hop, and Dub—bringing to life the specific sounds currently resonating in his mind and his original roots.

Since the pandemic, he has been traveling and capturing "environmental sounds" through field recordings, which served as the primary inspiration for this record. Side A features tracks inspired by the atmosphere of Tokyo, including recordings from streets, parks near his home in Japan. Side B explores New York, incorporating the sounds of Brooklyn and Manhattan, as well as the chirping of insects recorded in the New York mountains.

While the album remains centered on analog synthesizers and vinyl samples, he has introduced analog drum machines and glitch noise to craft the groove. Unlike his previous work, this release brings prominent bass lines and added more Dub elements to the forefront. His primary focus for this project was expressing a sense of "space" and "air" through the meticulous use of reverb and delay.

Throughout the album, he invites the listener to imagine the unique "local atmosphere" he experienced during his travels.

Father Hervé and son Louis return as FRONTMASCHINE with “Rühren”, their most accomplished and refined work to date. United by a shared passion for the rawest and most uncompromising forms of EBM, the duo continues to explore the essence of body music while pushing their sound to a new level of maturity.

On “Rühren”, cold, almost chilling polyphonic synthesizer melodies intertwine with their classic relentless drum programming that sits somewhere between the militant precision of DAF and the mechanical drive of the “Commando days” of Front 242. Every track is built around pure functionality: no unnecessary ornamentation, no concessions—just stripped-down, commanding rhythms designed to move bodies.

This is an exceptionally DJ-friendly record. Each cut is crafted for maximum impact on the dancefloor, making “Rühren” an essential tool and a true secret weapon for any DJ devoted to uncompromising body music. Martial, hypnotic and brutally effective, FRONTMASCHINE once again prove that the most direct approach is often the most powerful.

Xistence Records reaches its eighth release with what may be its most important record so far, bringing together four artists whose music carries the spirit and evolution of Detroit techno. With selections reaching back three decades alongside new material, the EP connects different eras of tracks that exemplify the raw soul, machinery and futuristic thinking at the style's core. Sean Deason opens with 'Time Warp', originally appearing on his Matrix label in 1996 and finally receiving its first vinyl release. Thirty years later, its dramatic entrance and surging rhythm have aged perfectly. Energy is matched by genuine depth and soul, with its futuristic energy at the heart of it all. Label owner Arbilla follows with 'Electric Storm', harnessing the power of a great techno groove creates a blend of infections elements working in harmony. The second side reaches back to 1998 for a previously unreleased DX-9 production. A pounding Chicago warehouse beat meets the mechanical precision of Detroit, while a heavily over-arching acid line fuses the marriage these two deep-rooted cities. Legendary producer, Orlando Voorn closes proceedings under his Basic Bastard alias with 'Alone Together'. Perhaps the sickest groove of the EP. opens up a spacious atmosphere that gives the track an almost celestial quality. Inspired by Detroit techno’s evolution and its key figures, Xistence continues to show why it has become one of the rare trusted homes for proper techno.”

(Tim Humphrey from Electric Cafe)

The Easy Way Out is the first proper release from London's THE EASY EIGHT, sometimes shortened to just EZ8, because why the hell not?
They might be a new band, but feature familiar faces from a some of the best London hardcore punk bands of the last ten years, including THE CHISEL, ARMS RACE, STINGRAY and LAST AFFRONT to name a few. This time around they are going for a more melodic approach. Think of the more melancholic moments of the 80's RAMONES records with a touch of MISFITS and you're on the right track.
This LP compiles the first two recording sessions. Side A features the first session, originally released online last autumn while Side B is rounded out with four brand new songs. It's a great snapshot of the band finding and perfecting their sound during their first year and these songs are guaranteed to be stuck in your head for days.

Energy Exchange Ensemble follow-up on the acclaimed 'Vol.1' continuing the legacy of label-curated studio sessions by in-house production duo, Lewis Moody and Ziggy Zeitgeist.

Offering a unique take on the 'Various Artist' compilation in the sense that the production team have enlisted an A list of players in informal jam sessions, gracefully guiding the sessions into their own unique brand of dancefloor and spiritual jazz.

In the spirit of cultural exchange and spontaneity the sessions are gathered over the course of a few years between Berlin, London and Melbourne. Naturally boasting a long list of collaborators including Erica Tucceri (Deep Matter), King Owusu (Jembaa Groove), Oscar Jerome, Hurcules (Kokoroko), Nathan Haines (ChilliFunk records) to name a few.

This is a unique and creative setting for the duo to explore a more intimate and exploratory approach in the studio further cementing their reputation as a dynamic and innovative team in contemporary jazz crossover.

Michael J. Blood makes his second appearance on a Clone subsidiary! The enigmatic producer, rumored to be from Manchester, UK, draws on the two cities that influenced so many before him: classic Detroit and Chicago vibes and deepness, with a fresh, timeless twist. A perfect fit for our Royal Oak imprint.

Six raw, vocal-led cuts from Italian house veteran Simoncino. Deep Chicago machinery: drum machines pushed into the red, chords hanging in the smoke, voices you never quite catch. Hardware, first takes, mixed hot.

Intervals of waiting, in the in-between mind, strumming a keyboard as if for the first time. From sample to simple, child to child, womblike cocoon when awake, the world crumbling at night. They "dream the dream forward", these lullabies.

Amsterdam's Stefan Vincent makes his Aquaregia debut with Until Meaning Emerges. With a discography spanning techno, acid and IDM, Vincent's versatility is on full display here. The four-track transmission uses the 303 as its central signal, soldering together halftime polyrhythms, breaks and techno. The EP opens with "Soothing the Beast", an alluring polyrhythmic acid stepper with squelching 303 and crisp halftime breaks, where interference resolves into coherence. "Full Scope" then slows the pulse down with a chilled-out, growling acid line that moves with a gravitational weight. On the flipside, "Degauss" reboots the system with a high-octane acid techno tool; a recursive groove spiraling deeper into the network. "Paranoid Origin" closes the release with a euphoric final ascent, layering breaks, melodic arpeggios and shimmering fragments that dissolve into open air.

A DJ, producer and significant figure in contemporary electronic music, Marcel Dettmann steps forward to contribute to Running Back’s ongoing Mastermix series. Whereas previous editions of Mastermix have taken an ear to the sound of lapsed, legendary clubs such as Wild Pitch and Front, Dettmann’s curation deftly captures the man himself in ongoing perpetual motion, raiding the vault for his own precision-tooled edits, long-employed on dancefloors to devastating effect. Alongside a continuous mix, this release arrives as a 3LP gatefold, and as a limited edition cassette.

Closely associated with Berlin’s techno landscape, Dettmann was born and raised in the former GDR, then later immersed in the bleary-eyed counter cultural landscape of post-unification Berlin. Initially oriented by post-punk, industrial and new-wave music, Dettmann has been DJing since 1993, always expanding and perfecting his repertoire. He later began working behind the counter at the city’s tastemaking rave boutique Hard Wax, and a decade after he first dropped a needle, became (and remains) resident at notable local nightspot Berghain/Panorama Bar, where his instincts have helped sculpt the signature sound of both main dancefloors.

Of course, you’re probably not asking, “Who is Marcel Dettmann?” More importantly, you might want to know; just what treats has he gifted us here? The trip begins with a simple pitch-shift skywards, transforming Identified Patient’s creeping ‘The Female Medical College of Pennsylvania’ into a peak-time freakout, before an alternate take on Toctronic’s ‘Bis uns das Licht vertreibt’ emerges from the vaults for the first time. Dating from 1995, and one of Dettmann’s all-time favourites, Cristian Vogel’s ‘Untitled’ clambers back into the box with respectable cuts, while John Bender’s ‘Victims of A Victimless Crime’ kicks off the flip sporting a new arrangement, transporting us back to the foundations of a confident, stripped-back sound.

A few subtle edits to Clark’s perilously funky ‘Dirty Pixie’ takes us to Dettmann’s remix of Junior Boys. Produced in 2010, it transposes the Canadian duo’s sophisticated pop with our curator in his minimal prime, and has since become an irresistible prize for high-minded diggers. The same can be said for Experimental Products’ explosive proto-electro anthem ‘Who Is Kip Jones?’, empowered from pricey Discogs purgatory with just the slightest of tweaks. It’s deservedly sandwiched between the guiding influences of Chicago and Detroit in the form of Mutant Beat Dance’s raw ‘The Human Factor’ and a shimmering new version of previous solo production ‘Water’, featuring close friend and Ostgut Ton ally, Ryan Elliot.

The second half of the Mastermix seamlessly connects the mechanical past and digital present of EBM and industrial in the dance, with Dettmann’s instincts as a guiding hand. Severed Heads’ iconic ‘We Have Come To Bless This House’ emerges with mere nips and tucks, while Nitzer Ebb’s ‘Shame’ is significantly reimagined as a highwire act of rhythm and tension, setting up a sensual second take on a 2017 remix of ‘Limbo’ from Swiss synth heroes, Yello.

Core musical memories are shaken and stirred with a context-shifting take on Frank Duval’s emotional classic ‘Ogon’, while Ian North’s ‘Sex Lust You’ and Ford Proco’s notable Coil collaboration ‘Expansion Naranja’ effectively throb with only minor adjustments, respectfully imagined as “shadow versions”. Meanwhile, a simple breakbeat lifts Albert Kuningas’s ‘Astraalprojektio’ in the direction of wide-eyed dancefloors, while a fresh take on K-Alexi Shelby’s ‘Season of The Real’ inexplicably emerges somehow even funkier than before.

The conclusion of the compilation leads back to Das Tier from the prolific experimentalist Conrad Schnitzler, whose swirling synths and hypnotic vocals are duly tightened by Dettmann, but only as he puts it, “in conversation with the original.” Concluding three discs and thirty years of commitment to the dancefloor, this Mastermix not only offers us the opportunity to eavesdrop on this endless exchange, but to gain some sought-after material for our own record collections.

In August 2022, Australia-based, French born fourth-world music legend Ariel Kalma was invited to participate in BBC Radio 3"s Late Junction series of special collaborations. The program pairs artists that have not previously collaborated to create new music together. Kalma was quick to suggest working together with two musicians whom he has never met - the International Anthem recording artists Jeremiah Chiu & Marta Sofia Honer, whose critically-acclaimed duo debut Recordings from the Âland Islands had been released just a few months earlier. Kalma sent an invitation to Chiu and Honer, which was received with great enthusiasm. Chiu had been a fan of Kalma"s work for a long time, even citing him as a major influence on his approach to electronic music composition. After meeting their goal of 20 minutes worth of music for the program (which was four pieces total), the three musicians were satisfied in what they would present, and sent along their work to the producers of Late Junction; but simultaneously they felt like there was much more to be said, more work to be done. There were several pieces that they had nearly completed that weren"t sent for inclusion in the radio program, and there were many ideas for refining those that had. The three musicians collectively agreed that they would continue work together and try to push the music further. The Closest Thing to Silence is the result of their efforts to take the collaboration further.

“I am not sure which of us it is that's writing this page” - Jorge Luis Borges. There are places where a river runs through the story even when you cannot see it. Austin Cash grew up in the Arkansas Delta, and Nathan Smerage in the Chicago suburbs, their paths crossing years later in Fayetteville, Arkansas, where both became members of the Ozark Free Music Society, a loose congregation of musicians who made free and experimental music in non-traditional venues across the city. ‘River Season’ began as an impulsive text sent to Smerage in the summer of 2024, Cash suggesting they should make an album of guitar duets. Calling his bluff, Smerage returned a folder of recordings within a week. Cash had a handful of pieces of his own, originally written for an unreleased film about an Ozarks ceramicist. The songs began traveling back and forth between them by email, however, after opening for the Magic Tuber String Band and playing the compositions live for the first time together, realised the decision to record them live was the only true option. For four days, in the basement apartment where Cash lived, they recorded River Season live. The result is a meticulously composed collection of steel-string guitar music: part folk record, part road map.

Fahey and Ackerman are somewhere in the distance, alongside Bert Jansch, Nick Drake, Marisa Anderson, Nathan Salsburg, Loren Connors, and others. But River Season belongs to neither Arkansas nor Chicago entirely. Cash grew up in Arkansas before moving to Chicago, whereas Smerage grew up in Illinois before moving to Arkansas. River Season catches the two musicians at an intersection in their paths; it belongs to the stretches of road and rivers between them, real and imagined. "This new collaboration between Austin and Nathan is intimate and tonally diverse. Many of the tracks see Austin playing acoustic and Nathan on electric. The statements are succinct (all but two clock in under four minutes) and idiosyncratic. "Bell Harp" and "Painting Friend" are two stand out examples for me in which the textures of the electric/acoustic pairing play off each other in a way that I can't say I have encountered before." -Evan Morgan (Magic Tuber Stringband)

Scott Fagan’s new album Soon, 55 years in the making, revives songs from his lost 1971 Broadway rock opera.

Alongside songwriting partner Joe Kookoolis, Fagan conceived and wrote the rock opera, an age-old story of an artist forced to make a devil’s bargain between their principles and success, intending it to be the follow-up to his classic 1968 debut, South Atlantic Blues. But fate intervened. The production (which starred Fagan and a young Richard Gere) closed early, the album was shelved, never to be recorded or heard. Until now.

Recorded over seven days in July 2025 at the hallowed Sam Phillips Recording Service in Memphis with a crack rhythm section, the thirteen songs on Soon illustrate Fagan’s extraordinary facility and range as a singer and songwriter of great sensitivity, passion, and humour.

From its rousing gospel opener (“Let The World Begin Again”), through fiery, protest songs (“Faces Names and Places”, “Straight”), and tender-hearted ballads (“Child of Sympathy”, “To Touch the Sky”), the album is by turns, uplifting, mournful, righteous, giddy, soulful (title track, “Soon), and anthemic (closer, “Please Be Well”). This feels like an album of lost classics waiting to be rediscovered.

Scott Fagan has been waiting a long time for the world to hear these songs. The long, long wait is over, Soon.

Armada Music and PDD proudly continue the brand-new A State Of Trance Classic Series, celebrating some of the most legendary and influential records in trance history. Following the success of Volume 1, Volume 2 once again dives into the archives to bring three essential trance classics back to life on fresh vinyl.

Kicking things off on Volume 2 is “Chicane feat. Moya Brennan - Saltwater”, a true trance classic that showcases the sound and energy that helped define the genre during its golden era. Originally released in 1999 on Xtravaganza Recordings, the track quickly became a favourite among DJs and trance fans, and now returns to wax as part of this essential new series.

On the flip is “Veracocha - Carte Blanche (Extended Mix)”, another highly regarded classic from the A State Of Trance catalogue. Originally released in 1999, the track has stood the test of time and remains a firm favourite with trance DJs and collectors, making its return to vinyl a welcome addition to the series.

Last but not least is “Insigma - Open Our Eyes (Original Mix)”, completing another carefully selected trio of timeless trance records. Originally released in 2000 on A Trance Communication Release, this classic perfectly captures the euphoric, driving sound that made the era so influential and continues to resonate with trance fans today.

Volume 2 continues the series in style, bringing together three essential trance classics on one piece of wax and making this a must-have for both long-time A State Of Trance fans and a new generation discovering these timeless anthems.

We don’t know much about Ariane Bonzini. Her age, perhaps. Her first name, certainly – but it’s confusing, as you’d expect. The rest, he keeps to himself, tucked away somewhere between Villeneuve-Saint-Georges and the Landes in the off-season.


What we do know is that at 16 he left everything behind to try his hand at rap. That six years later he left everything behind, again, without really saying why. That he taught himself sound engineering as one might learn a dead language.
And then came Magenta. In 2025, for three months, Bonzini set himself a challenge bordering on the absurd: to produce one track a day, write it, record it, mix it, master it, film himself doing it, and post it on social media. Without planning, without taking a step back, working until 3 am behind the screen. His monthly listeners went from 35 to 100,000.


For ‘Mec Normal’, something changed. Bonzini headed to the Rue Boyer studio – a space steeped in analogue charm, where some of the synths had once belonged to Christophe – and surrounded himself with a team for the first time: Crayon on production, Renaud Letang on mixing.


Chilly Gonzales spotted him, and from their meeting came ‘Gonzini’.


Thirteen tracks suspended between gentle melancholy and a willing detachment. Soaring synths. Recurring, obsessive ‘you’s’. A voice that whispers where others would shout.


Ariane Bonzini is unlike anything we’ve heard before. That is undoubtedly what makes her so unforgettable.

DJ Support: Louie Vega, Terry Hunter, Kenny Dope, Jazzy Jeff, Natasha Diggs, Wayne Williams & More

Broken at the Chosen Few Picnic in Chicago by Terry Hunter, where 40,000 people were singing along to it, after which the label received dozens of requests from a who’s who of DJ’s asking for a copy.

It’s since become one of the biggest tracks around played from Chicago to Ibiza.

Grab your copy now, Limited Pressing act fast!

Eine limitierte 7"-Single von ARMITAGE SHANKS! Die A-Seite stammt von der kommenden LP "Charge Of The Shite Brigade" Die B-Seite gibt's exklusiv auf dieser Veröffentlichung! Limitiert auf nur 300 Exemplare! Die neue Besetzung von Armitage Shanks (zu der jetzt auch Billy Childish und Wolf Howard gehören) veröffentlicht eine brandneue 7"-Single als Vorab-Single zum neuen Studioalbum Charge Of The Shite Brigade. Eine der beliebtesten und dienstältesten Bands von DAMAGED GOODS. Armitage Shanks gibt es schon fast seit den Anfängen des Labels. Wir sind total begeistert, dass sie immer noch dabei sind und brillante Platten machen! Diese hier gehört definitiv zu ihren Besten! ENG A limited 7" from ARMITAGE SHANKS! A-side taken from the forthcoming LP Charge Of The Shite Brigade B-side is exclusive to this release! Limited to 300 copies only! The new line-up of Armitage Shanks (which now includes Billy Childish and Wolf Howard), releases a brand-new 7" ahead of the new studio album Charge Of The Shite Brigade. One of DG's most loved and longest serving bands. Armitage Shanks have been around almost since the start of the label. We're dead chuffed they're still around and making brilliant records! This one is up there with the best of them!

This 1981 album marks the debut of the most revered and iconic figure in Peruvian chicha: Chacalón. His music combines fuzz- and wah-wah-drenched distorted electric guitars with tropical percussion and even elements of huayno. This passion for electric guitars also fueled his admiration for the British band Cream -- and, of course, Eric Clapton -- which ultimately inspired the name of his band: La Nueva Crema.


His songs speak to the working classes who migrated from rural areas to the major cities in search of better employment opportunities and portray the hardships they faced. The lyrics tell stories of heartbreak, drunken nights amid everyday struggles, and marginalization -- common experiences in the poorer communities of Peru. Chacalón became a cult figure among the most disadvantaged sectors of Peruvian society, a devotion that remains strong years after his death. The album is essential listening for anyone interested in psychedelic cumbia and the roots of Peruvian chicha. This reissue preserves the album's original artwork as it appeared on Discos Horóscopo and includes liner notes by genre expert Víctor Zela (La cumbia de mis viejos).

Includes a printed inner sleeve and a double-sided 12"x12" poster.

The upcoming album from Telemakus, featuring an all-star supporting cast of musicians: Flying Lotus, Karriem Riggins, Mndsgn, Liv.e, Sparklmami, Miguel Atwood-Ferguson, Swarvy, Chino Corvalán, Nicole McCabe and more. Pressed via Good Neighbor on a Cosmic Black record made from eco-conscious, 100% recyclable PET plastic.

All songs written, performed, engineered & arranged by Telemakus, except where noted “Five Hands Pt. 1” written and co-produced by Swarvy, “Revival” co-produced by Mndsgn, Karriem Riggins “By Any Feet Necessary” co-produced by Karriem Riggins “2054” co-produced by Karriem Riggins

NOW Music proudly presents the next release in the ‘ERA’ series with NOW That's What I Call An Era - Ballroom Blitz: 1967-1976 celebrating the colourful world of glam rock, pop and unforgettable chart hits that defined the early-to-mid 1970s, with a selection of pop gems from the late 1960s. Pressed across three stunning coloured vinyl LPs – red, white and gold – showcasing the era’s biggest stars, instantly recognisable anthems, novelty favourites and enduring singalongs from one of the most distinctive periods in UK pop history.

Scott Fagan’s new album Soon, 55 years in the making, revives songs from his lost 1971 Broadway rock opera.

Alongside songwriting partner Joe Kookoolis, Fagan conceived and wrote the rock opera, an age-old story of an artist forced to make a devil’s bargain between their principles and success, intending it to be the follow-up to his classic 1968 debut, South Atlantic Blues. But fate intervened. The production (which starred Fagan and a young Richard Gere) closed early, the album was shelved, never to be recorded or heard. Until now.

Recorded over seven days in July 2025 at the hallowed Sam Phillips Recording Service in Memphis with a crack rhythm section, the thirteen songs on Soon illustrate Fagan’s extraordinary facility and range as a singer and songwriter of great sensitivity, passion, and humour.

From its rousing gospel opener (“Let The World Begin Again”), through fiery, protest songs (“Faces Names and Places”, “Straight”), and tender-hearted ballads (“Child of Sympathy”, “To Touch the Sky”), the album is by turns, uplifting, mournful, righteous, giddy, soulful (title track, “Soon), and anthemic (closer, “Please Be Well”). This feels like an album of lost classics waiting to be rediscovered.

Scott Fagan has been waiting a long time for the world to hear these songs. The long, long wait is over, Soon.

Chino, AKA Artur Oles, makes his debut on brokntoys with The Chase, a new EP drawing on new beat, electro and acid influences. Across three tracks, the Polish producer builds a slow, tense atmosphere where nothing is hurried and the pressure only tightens. Closing the record, Not Waving cuts loose with a driving acid trance rework, pure propulsive 90s rave.

Edition of 100 copies including an A4 insert.

*Originally pressed in 2021 - this is a brand new master and cut.**

In partnership with Analogue Foundation, Oshu Records is proud to present the exclusive vinyl repress of "Laroyê" in a thick cardboard tip-on gatefold jacket on 2x 180g vinyl.

Acclaimed Hungarian, Berlin-based producer, composer and pianist Àbáse (AKA Szabolcs Bognár) returns, sharing a special, 5 anniversary remaster of his breakthrough project 'Laroyê'. Releasing on Friday 1 May via Bridge The Gap & Oshu Records, this sensitive exploration of Afro-Brazilian culture originally began as an audio diary, documenting Szabolcs’ travels and collaborations in Brazil through a collection of voice memos, fragmented beats, sketches and field recordings. As his journey progressed, and his collaborations and research deepened, the music project started to take on its own life:

"Laroyê evolved through weeks and months of research and collaborations into the album that it is now. That means that all the sessions were done in different apartments, small studios, often with borrowed equipment, which all adds to the character, but makes the creation of a coherent sound a challenge. Benjamin Tierney, Erik Breuer and Analogue Foundation did an incredible job with the mixes and with this new remaster. I truly believe that we are able to hear the tracks in a new light, with even more depth and clarity."

Coming from the West African Yoruban language, Àbáse stands for "collaboration" – a key element of the music perfectly encapsulated on 'Laroyê'. Recorded in Rio de Janeiro and Salvador, Àbáse spent five months working with diverse artists, from young talents to veterans of the Brazilian scene including Letieres Leite, Luciane Dom, Dofono d'Omolu, Afrojazz and more. The album explores the rich heritage of afro-brasilian culture through samba, MPB and Candomblé, mixing these with broken beat, hip hop and afrobeat, creating a contemporary homage to the classic Brazilian sound. Szabolcs shares:

"Despite already leading and managing musical projects that are close to my hearth, I always felt that one day I would like to start a solo project, where I could take full responsibility for the artistic direction and the music would reflect a truly personal vision. In 2017, I decided to take five months to fulfil a childhood dream and travel to Brazil to expand my creative horizon and expose myself to new influences."

An album standout is the bass-heavy, afro-brazilian ‘Agangatolú, which Àbáse describes as "best exemplifying the story and concept of Laroye as a collaborative effort - a research project exploring the rich heritage of Afro Brazilian culture through my own lens." The track features singers and percussion players Jadson Xabla and Gabriel Santana - two artists based out of one of the oldest terreiros (houses of worship) in Bahia, whilst drummer Jorge Dubman is an integral part of one of the most famous afrobeat bands from Salvador IFA. The contributions of one of Szabolcsoldest collaborators - Hungarian flautist Fanni Zahar - also made the track a full-circle moment.

On a quest for cosmic grooves of unity, Àbáses music pulls from an eclectic blend of global reference points, including modal jazz, Hungarian folk, West African, Brazilian, hiphop and underground electronic music. His work has drawn widespread critical acclaim from the likes of MOJO, Songlines, Soulection and The Guardian, and been supported by key tastemakers including Gilles Peterson, Jamz Supernova and BAMBII. As a keyboard player, Szabolcs has also collaborated with the likes of Wayne Snow, Dele Sosimi, Patti Smith, Emmanuel Wilkins, Gulty Simpson and Zeitgeist Freedom Energy Exchange.

'Laroyê' (2026 Remaster) will release on Friday 1st May via Bridge The Gap & Oshu Records.

Skilled guitar dances over the ultimate groove by Marcus Miller and Omar Hakim.

This important Japanese fusion album was recorded by guitarist Kiyoshi Sugimoto, who was extremely busy at the time as a first-call musician, together with Marcus Miller, Omar Hakim, and Warren Bernhardt, who were in Japan for Kazumi Watanabe’s "TO CHI KA" tour. The lively playing of Marcus Miller, then 21 years old and just before being discovered by Miles Davis, is a must-hear.

Berlin-based producer and live act Volkan Akin lands on Secret Society with a brace of finely tuned minimal house sounds for the small hours. 'Famosus' is stripped back but not lacking in clout: the drums and bass are tightly coiled while the hits pop out of the mix as a soft acid line wiggles endlessly in the middle of the mix. Franco Cinelli remixes with a bolder sense of swing and trippy vocals that are like voices in your head. '2SHY4' is the other original and is dry, dusty tech house with jazzy chords softening the edges and bringing some warmth, then Thomas Melchior remixes with his masterful touch and distils everything into deft, hypnotic grooves.

Ramjac Corporation, aka Paul Chivers, emerged from the UK's late-'80s rave underground, performing live at parties like Sunrise, Energy, Back to the Future, Fun-da-Mental and Synergy. Building tracks with an Atari computer and an E-MU 12-bit sampler, turning severe technical limitations into raw, elastic club music, 88-92: It is What it Was gathers music born in bedrooms then tested in front of crowds at warehouse raves, while the culture was still inventing itself without boundaries, completelyfree.

Ramjac was the original artist on Irdial Discs, following label founder Akin Fernandez's Aqua Regia, and introduced Lee Purkis' In Sync and Neuropolitique to the label, shaping the singular catalogue of that extraordinary imprint alongside Luke Slater's Morganistic, Thee J Johanz and Anthony Manning.


That legacy is now revisited by Musique Pour La Danse, with the release of a limited edition vinyl and digital edition featuring extended liner notes by Nick Halkes of XL Recordings, Positiva and Kicks Like A Mule fame, who witnessed the early Ramjac period first-hand. The release is illustrated by Grant Fulton, who created the visual identity for The Shamen's Synergy events and Orbital albums.

This album presents music written exclusively between 1988-92 and forms the foundation of Ramjac Corporation's ongoing live performances. Restored from the original floppy discs, the recordings preserve the uniquerelationship between early digital technology, sampling culture and live improvisation that defines the Ramjac approach.

Mixed for release for the first time by Trevor Lancaster-Smith, whose 90s engineering work encompassed Leftfield, Faithless and Roni Size, the album brings these compositions into sharp focus while preserving the character of the original instruments and performances. Not just a historical document, 88-92: It is What it Was is a living body of work: music created then, realised now, and continuing to surprise and evolve.

UK enigma Tom Carruthers joins Rotterdam Electronix with a fresh sounding vintage House and Techno release. Detroit to Chicago flavored tracks ready to dance your socks off.

Twenty-five years after its original release, Markus Guentner's debut album In Moll returns in a special anniversary reissue on Black Knoll Editions, reaffirming its place as one of the defining ambient recordings of the early 21st century.

Released in 2001 during the formative years of Kompakt's influential Pop Ambient series, In Moll emerged from a period of rapid transformation in electronic music. New technologies, expanding digital networks, and shifting creative possibilities allowed artists to imagine entirely new sonic worlds. Amid this fertile landscape, Guentner's music stood apart. Combining delicate melodic fragments, slow-moving harmonies, and a remarkable sense of spatial depth, In Moll introduced a distinct artistic voice whose impact can still be felt a quarter-century later.

The album arrived shortly after Guentner's contributions to the inaugural Pop Ambient compilation, including the now-beloved "Regensburg 1," named after his Bavarian hometown. Those early recordings immediately captured the attention of Kompakt founders Michael Mayer and Wolfgang Voigt. Recalling his first encounter with the music, Mayer describes listening to a demo CDR with Voigt while wandering through Cologne late into the night, replaying the tracks for hours. "We knew that we had found something outrageously beautiful and we wanted the whole world to listen."

Across its running time, In Moll unfolds like a series of dreamlike landscapes, inviting the listener into a world that feels both familiar and strangely other. Bells, hisses, distant textures, and slow-moving bass tones drift through vast expanses of atmosphere while luminous synthesizer washes seem to blur the horizon in a fine digital mist. The album's transportive qualities are matched by a remarkable sense of compositional discipline. Every gesture feels deliberate, every texture carefully placed. Balancing warmth and melancholy with restraint, Guentner created a body of work that rewards both close listening and complete surrender.

Reflecting on the album twenty-five years later, Wolfgang Voigt describes Guentner as "one of the first, but also one of the most important ambient artists" associated with Kompakt, calling his music "an integral, timeless part of the long history of pop ambient." Music critic and former Pitchfork Editor-in-Chief Mark Richardson, who reviewed In Moll upon its original release, similarly noted that the album "marked the arrival of an important new voice," and today regards it as "one of the finest ambient releases of the decade."

The album's influence continues to extend far beyond its original audience. For many listeners, In Moll served as an entry point into a new understanding of what ambient music could be. Black Knoll boss Rafael Anton Irisarri first encountered the album shortly after its release in 2001. "It immediately opened a door to a world of music I didn't know existed," he recalls. "At a time when I was still discovering my own creative voice, Markus showed me entirely new possibilities for what electronic music could communicate." Simply put, "The Sight Below would not have existed without In Moll paving the way."

Far from a historical curiosity, In Moll continues to feel strikingly contemporary. What once sounded futuristic now feels timeless, its patient pacing, attention to detail, and sense of wonder remaining entirely intact. The album's enduring power lies not only in its influence, but in the curiosity it continues to inspire, inviting listeners to step inside its world and lose themselves within it.

To mark its twenty-fifth anniversary, Black Knoll Editions presents the most complete edition of In Moll to date. Newly remastered in full analog by Rafael Anton Irisarri, this expanded release pairs the original album with a newly reworked interpretation by Markus Guentner himself, revisiting the material through the lens of twenty-five years of artistic development. The anniversary edition also features a new visual presentation designed by Guentner, offering a visual counterpart to the album's continued evolution. Together, these recordings and visuals celebrate both the enduring legacy of In Moll and its ability to reveal new dimensions twenty-five years later.

This 25th Anniversary Edition on Black Knoll Editions celebrates a recording whose quiet impact has only grown with time, preserving a work that remains as evocative, singular, and essential today as it was in 2001.

Twenty-five years after its original release, Markus Guentner's debut album In Moll returns in a special anniversary reissue on Black Knoll Editions, reaffirming its place as one of the defining ambient recordings of the early 21st century.

Released in 2001 during the formative years of Kompakt's influential Pop Ambient series, In Moll emerged from a period of rapid transformation in electronic music. New technologies, expanding digital networks, and shifting creative possibilities allowed artists to imagine entirely new sonic worlds. Amid this fertile landscape, Guentner's music stood apart. Combining delicate melodic fragments, slow-moving harmonies, and a remarkable sense of spatial depth, In Moll introduced a distinct artistic voice whose impact can still be felt a quarter-century later.

The album arrived shortly after Guentner's contributions to the inaugural Pop Ambient compilation, including the now-beloved "Regensburg 1," named after his Bavarian hometown. Those early recordings immediately captured the attention of Kompakt founders Michael Mayer and Wolfgang Voigt. Recalling his first encounter with the music, Mayer describes listening to a demo CDR with Voigt while wandering through Cologne late into the night, replaying the tracks for hours. "We knew that we had found something outrageously beautiful and we wanted the whole world to listen."

Across its running time, In Moll unfolds like a series of dreamlike landscapes, inviting the listener into a world that feels both familiar and strangely other. Bells, hisses, distant textures, and slow-moving bass tones drift through vast expanses of atmosphere while luminous synthesizer washes seem to blur the horizon in a fine digital mist. The album's transportive qualities are matched by a remarkable sense of compositional discipline. Every gesture feels deliberate, every texture carefully placed. Balancing warmth and melancholy with restraint, Guentner created a body of work that rewards both close listening and complete surrender.

Reflecting on the album twenty-five years later, Wolfgang Voigt describes Guentner as "one of the first, but also one of the most important ambient artists" associated with Kompakt, calling his music "an integral, timeless part of the long history of pop ambient." Music critic and former Pitchfork Editor-in-Chief Mark Richardson, who reviewed In Moll upon its original release, similarly noted that the album "marked the arrival of an important new voice," and today regards it as "one of the finest ambient releases of the decade."

The album's influence continues to extend far beyond its original audience. For many listeners, In Moll served as an entry point into a new understanding of what ambient music could be. Black Knoll boss Rafael Anton Irisarri first encountered the album shortly after its release in 2001. "It immediately opened a door to a world of music I didn't know existed," he recalls. "At a time when I was still discovering my own creative voice, Markus showed me entirely new possibilities for what electronic music could communicate." Simply put, "The Sight Below would not have existed without In Moll paving the way."

Far from a historical curiosity, In Moll continues to feel strikingly contemporary. What once sounded futuristic now feels timeless, its patient pacing, attention to detail, and sense of wonder remaining entirely intact. The album's enduring power lies not only in its influence, but in the curiosity it continues to inspire, inviting listeners to step inside its world and lose themselves within it.

To mark its twenty-fifth anniversary, Black Knoll Editions presents the most complete edition of In Moll to date. Newly remastered in full analog by Rafael Anton Irisarri, this expanded release pairs the original album with a newly reworked interpretation by Markus Guentner himself, revisiting the material through the lens of twenty-five years of artistic development. The anniversary edition also features a new visual presentation designed by Guentner, offering a visual counterpart to the album's continued evolution. Together, these recordings and visuals celebrate both the enduring legacy of In Moll and its ability to reveal new dimensions twenty-five years later.

This 25th Anniversary Edition on Black Knoll Editions celebrates a recording whose quiet impact has only grown with time, preserving a work that remains as evocative, singular, and essential today as it was in 2001.

Faitiche presents the debut solo album by cellist, sound artist, and composer Topu Lyo: “quiet scenes from tokyo” brings together sixteen miniatures for solo cello and tape echo that oscillate between abstracts drones and rhythmic pizzicato sketches – all recorded at Topu’s Tokyo apartment. The constant traffic noise from a nearby highway has become an accompanying soundtrack for his compositions and can be heard on the recordings. Topu’s playing is marked by a distinctive idiom oriented more towards abstract electronic studio effects than classical technique.

The artist spoke to Jan Jelinek about his work:

JJ: A solo cello album may seem like an odd fit for a label that has to date released only music that is electronic in the broadest sense. But I think “quiet scenes from tokyo” complements the Faitiche repertoire exceptionally well. Its sixteen miniatures showcase the cello in all its complexity: the bowed passages sometimes recall a tape feedback drone; the pizzicato playing conjures up the percussion recordings of Moondog; and the abstract textures might be mistaken for the product of a granular sampler rather than rapid finger work on the cello. I’m constantly surprised by just how rich and varied this album is – without ever losing the charm of its sketch-like quality. Could you say a few words about the making of your album – first of all, from a rather technical perspective: what production tools did you use, and why?

TL: My production tools were very sparse. Just a solo cello and my Roland 301 Space Echo, which I only used at the end, running everything through it during mixing, tape only. After years of working with electronics, pedals, and synthesizers, moving to Tokyo pushed me toward minimizing my setup. But my aesthetics shifted too, toward simplicity. I wanted to strip everything back to just the acoustic cello and see how far I could push it — replicating some of my favorite electronic effects through extended technique: slow portamento, LFOs, filters, detune, noise. I’d also been listening to a cassette of ocean sounds for years. When I moved to Tokyo I was horrified to find myself living directly across from a freeway. Eventually the freeway started sounding almost identical to the ocean — and that ended up playing a prominent part in the recording.

JJ: That’s super interesting: mimicking electronic production as a compositional idea for the cello! You say the sound of the freeway is crucial to the album: I, too, tend to interpret steady traffic noise as a positive soundscape – do we hear the freeway on the album? I can also hear other field recordings, for example on “a street car with announcements”. Can you say a bit about how these field recordings influence your playing?

TL: Yes, you can hear the freeway on the album! The freeway is most prominent in “old trees in lonely spring”, “yuyake koyake”, and “the moon” (you can clearly hear individual cars). When I first began recording I had my balcony door shut tightly, but after a while I began leaning into the highway sound and slowly opening the door little by little to control the amount of noise. “streetcar with announcements” was a moment I was recording and a car passed by making announcements in the background. I loved how it sounded! Same thing with “yuyake koyake”, and later I realized that every day at 5pm the same song plays to mark sunset, telling children it’s time to go home. Having this bedrock of sound puts less pressure on me to put music on top or to play more notes.

JJ: It’s astonishing how much this differs from what I’d imagined: I’d been picturing peaceful landscape recordings, but had never thought of a freeway. Which goes to show how open to interpretation traffic noises are. So the room by the freeway had a major influence on the album – how are you going to perform it live?

TL: The contrast between the freeway and the beautiful landscape in my head couldn’t have been starker. I too was imagining a beautiful landscape in which to create the album, but somehow it still worked out. I've been going back and forth a lot on live shows and I think the most honest way is to have it the most stripped down. I was thinking of using traffic samples etc., but I think the duet really comes from the background sounds from every unique venue/environment. So as it stands, I’ll just be doing acoustic solo cello.

Private Mexican lounge that still burns long after the cruise ship disembarks. Armed with a single nylon string guitar , a toy chest of rudimentary percussion, and the emotional microtones of the Spanish tongue, Alejandro Bravo’s lone LP blends bossanova, samba, and the Brill Building into a horny margarita for the tourist class. Recorded at home in Acapulco in 1971, Bravo’s self-released LP slaps and thrills with its taps and trills. Pair with a pregnancy test for best results.

,The Long Ear" ist das Debütalbum von Noh Age _ Charmaine Lee (Parabolmikrofon, Feedback, Gesang), John McCowen (Kontrabassklarinette, Bb- Klarinette, Blockflöte) und Li-Chin Li (Sheng) bei Kou Records - live aufgenommen über drei Tage bei Brooklyn Recording im März 2026 live aufgenommen und von Randall Dunn (Sunn O))), Oneohtrix Point Never) produziert. Das Parabolmikrofon hat seine eigene Geschichte: ein Überwachungsinstrument aus dem Kalten Krieg , das dafür konzipiert war, aus der Ferne zu lauschen, um das zu orten und zu verstärken, was sonst unhörbar bleiben würde. Hier ist es nach innen gerichtet - nicht auf einen Feind, sondern auf den Klang selbst, der durch vier Vintage-Röhrenverstärker geleitet wird. Die Parabolantenne spürt Resonanzen auf, die durch den Raum übertragen werden, und stellt sich auf Frequenzen ein, die von Kontrabassklarinette, Sheng und Gesang erzeugt werden, bis sich eine Rückkopplung entlädt - ein vierter Interpreter mit eigener, unvorhersehbarer Wirkmacht. Das Ergebnis ist spektrale Musik in ihrer viszeralsten Form - verwurzelt in der Tradition von Gérard Grisey, Kaija Saariaho und Iancu Dumitrescu, doch herkommend von der Überwachungsstelle, dem Abhörposten, der Abhörleitung. In sechs Stücken, die auf kompositorischen Rahmenwerken aus zellulären Automaten und grafischen Partituren basieren, bewegt sich das Trio zwischen extremen Registerbereichen - CBC-Grundtöne gegen dichte Sheng-Cluster-Klänge , die kristallklaren Obertöne von Blockflöte und Mini-Sheng - während das Feedback durch all das wandert, sich verdichtet, auslöscht, wiederkehrt. Cover- und Rückseitengestaltung von Shintaro Kago - einem in Tokio ansässigen Manga-Künstler und Pionier der ,Ero-Guro"-Tradition, der international für seine Arbeit an Flying Lotus' ,You're Dead!" (Warp, 2014) bekannt ist. Aufgenommen, gemischt und produziert von Randall Dunn. Zusätzliche Synthesizer und Sounddesign von Randall Dunn. Gemastert von Ben Greenberg. Dolby-Atmos-Mischungen von Ben Greenberg. Schablonenschnitt von Paul Gold bei Salt Mastering.

21 Bum Salute is the fifth album from Sydney experimental psych-noise-pop duo Party Dozen. The work of Kirsty Tickle (saxophone, vocals) and Jonathan Boulet (drums, loops, production), 21 Bum Salute finds the critically-acclaimed, semi-improvised duo feeling liberated - from their peers, their worries, and what the nell they're supposed to sound like now.

Emerging in 2017 from the warehouses of the Sydney experimental noise-rock scene, Party Dozen arrive at the release of their fifth album, 21 Bum Salute, in peak form. Over the course of four, increasingly perverse albums of psych-tinged rock peppered with pop noise and bursts of doom in equal measure, they've transformed from gleeful noise-makers producing DIY albums from a tiny room in Marrickville, NSW, to globe-hopping, critically-adored favourites - producing DIY albums from a tiny room in Marrickville.

As well as tours with Amyl and the Sniffers, King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, Tropical F*ckstorm, Algiers and more, Party Dozen had Nick Cave appear on 2022 single Macca The Mutt', collabed with New York rapper billy woods, performed an incendiary live set on KEXP, signed international deals, firstly with Temporary Residence LTD (Mogwai, Explosions in the Sky,
Along the way Party Dozen self-released their first two albums, The Living Man (2017) and Pray For Party Dozen (2020), struck a chord internationally with album The Real Work (2022), which sent them on tours of Europe, North America, Japan, China and New Zealand, while fourth LP, Crime in Australia (2024), an ode to Aussie noir that leaned beyond rock into moodier moments, repeated it.

Party Dozen recorded, mixed and mastered 21 Bum Salute completely themselves, over a three month span. Inspired by spooky "old recordings" as well as the primal impulses of acts like ESG and Bikini Kill, 21 Bum Salute - named after a peculiar, larrikin ritual in Australia's arid Northern Territory - condenses consecutive years of jam sessions, loops and improvisations into just over half an hour's worth of fizzing, strutting, striking sonics from the fringes.

21 Bum Salute is the fifth album from Sydney experimental psych-noise-pop duo Party Dozen. The work of Kirsty Tickle (saxophone, vocals) and Jonathan Boulet (drums, loops, production), 21 Bum Salute finds the critically-acclaimed, semi-improvised duo feeling liberated - from their peers, their worries, and what the nell they're supposed to sound like now.

Emerging in 2017 from the warehouses of the Sydney experimental noise-rock scene, Party Dozen arrive at the release of their fifth album, 21 Bum Salute, in peak form. Over the course of four, increasingly perverse albums of psych-tinged rock peppered with pop noise and bursts of doom in equal measure, they've transformed from gleeful noise-makers producing DIY albums from a tiny room in Marrickville, NSW, to globe-hopping, critically-adored favourites - producing DIY albums from a tiny room in Marrickville.

As well as tours with Amyl and the Sniffers, King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, Tropical F*ckstorm, Algiers and more, Party Dozen had Nick Cave appear on 2022 single Macca The Mutt', collabed with New York rapper billy woods, performed an incendiary live set on KEXP, signed international deals, firstly with Temporary Residence LTD (Mogwai, Explosions in the Sky,
Along the way Party Dozen self-released their first two albums, The Living Man (2017) and Pray For Party Dozen (2020), struck a chord internationally with album The Real Work (2022), which sent them on tours of Europe, North America, Japan, China and New Zealand, while fourth LP, Crime in Australia (2024), an ode to Aussie noir that leaned beyond rock into moodier moments, repeated it.

Party Dozen recorded, mixed and mastered 21 Bum Salute completely themselves, over a three month span. Inspired by spooky "old recordings" as well as the primal impulses of acts like ESG and Bikini Kill, 21 Bum Salute - named after a peculiar, larrikin ritual in Australia's arid Northern Territory - condenses consecutive years of jam sessions, loops and improvisations into just over half an hour's worth of fizzing, strutting, striking sonics from the fringes.

Nashville’s Jess Kerber focuses on the profound resonances of simple moments, pairing delicate acoustic guitar lines with her rich and captivating tenor. The World Is Dark, but I Want It to Be Funny, her second LP for Felte, is a deeply affecting collection of homespun poetry and natural artistry that finds the artists reflecting on personal history, the emotional intricacies of relationships, and the value of cosmic perspective. She explains,“These songs come from a space of feeling a little left behind, so a lot of the album is about realizing and accepting impermanence, and learning how to be good to yourself and to others.”
Opening with “Familiar Strangers”, Kerber gets to the heart of her greatest talents: fluid fingerpicking, emotive vocal cadences, feather-light touches of piano, and subtle harmonies. “Louisiana Song” positions a lyrical chain of childhood recollections up against the literal rising waters that will one day submerge a cherished place: “I think about being southern / and the sand on the gulf coast / When I think about returning / I am wading in a graveyard”.
Throughout The World Is Dark, Kerber navigates an emotional tightrope, fully aware of the ills of the world while trying to find connections and peaceful corners. Even with all their nuances and challenges, she suggests, our relationships are essential to staying grounded, even when we lose them. “Much of my writing is about facing the struggles head-on, balancing what you need to do to survive while remaining true to yourself,” she says. There are echoes of influences like Joni Mitchell, Gillian Welch, and Lomelda, though Kerber injects her own unique wit, wonder, and humility into every passage, allowing the listener into her head for a spell while quietly taking up residence in theirs.

Over 10 years ago, Leon Michels released his first full length record, Sounding Out The City. It was Michels' first full length record under the moniker El Michels Affair. At the time, the budding retro soul scene consisted of mostly organ quartets a la The Meters and of course, Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings were in the early days of their ascent to world domination. Leon Michels, who was 18 when recording Sounding Out The City began, had just released Thunder Chicken, the first record by his high school band The Mighty Imperials. At the time of SOTC, Michels was just discovering early rocksteady, afrobeat, and 60's garage rock, which inevitably crept its way into the songwriting. He purchased a Tascam 388, an 80's 1/4" reel to reel 8 track intended for home recordings, and began recording music in a 10x10 box with no windows that also doubled as his childhood bedroom. Along with fellow Mighty Imperials Nick Movshon, Homer Steinweiss, and Sean Solomon, and Michael Leonhart, Thomas Brenneck, and some of the musicians from The Dap Kings, Michels recorded the LP over a two year period. Upon it's release, it received some rave reviews and the small deep funk community ate it up, but due to the lack luster promotion and distribution the rest of the world was slow to catch on to the instrumental gems featured on SOTC, which Michels appropriately labelled as "cinematic soul". However, in 2005 it found it's way into the hands of the people who were organizing a series of concerts for Scion that paired bands with MC's. El Michels Affair was contacted about playing one show with Raekwon The Chef of Wu Tang Clan fame. The show was such a success it led to a tour, and then to another set of concerts that featured multiple members of the Wu-Tang Clan. This eventually led to the release of El Michels Affair's second record, "Enter the 37th Chamber" which introduced them to a much larger audience and has been their most successful release to date. Michels has since gone on to produce and co-produce numerous records for powerhouse soul artists like Lee Fields. He shares songwriting credits with Adele, Jay-Z, Ghostface Killah, Aloe Blacc, and has played on records by Ray LaMontagne, Lana Del Rey, The Black Keys and Dr. John.

The wait is over, Return To The 37th Chamber is El Michels Affair's highly anticipated follow up to 2009's underground cult classic Enter the 37th Chamber. Churning out classic records since then for the likes of Lee Fields, The Arcs, The Shacks, and tons more, it is clear that EMA's signature sound is stronger & sharper than ever. This time, in addition to re-interpreting the Wu compositions for a live band, EMA pays homage to the production and sonic fog that makes a RZA beat so recognizable. Producer and bandleader Leon Michels recorded the album completely analog, sometimes hitting 6 generations of tape before it was ready for mixing, giving the Return to The 37th Chamber it's own hazy sound. Adding to the unique fidelity, the record is laced with psychedelic flourishes, John Carpenter' synths, heavy metal guitars, triumpha0nt horns, and traditional Chinese instruments that make up for the lack of the Wu's superlative vocals. From start to finish it's a dark trip that walks the line between RZA's timeless hip-hop aesthetic and the cinematic soul EMA has become known for. El Michels Affair tackles some classics like 4th Chamber and Wu Tang Aint Nuthin to Fuck Wit, as well as some deeper cuts like Ol Dirty Bastard's Snakes, Raekwon's Verbal Intercourse, and Shaolin Brew, Wu-Tang's contribution to the St. Ide's Hip Hop endorsement campaign from 1994. This time El Michels brings some of the Big Crown family along for the ride. Lee Fields handles vocal duties on Snakes and is joined by Shannon Wise of The Shacks for their version of Tearz, which pays as much homage to the Wendy Rene sample as it does to the Wu-Tang Clan. Lady Wray makes an appearance on the cover of Method Man's hit, All I Need, lending her vocal prowess to what gave the Wu one of their biggest hits of all time. Interspersed throughout the record are some original interludes that are like the rug that ties the room together,' giving Return To The 37th Chamber a cinematic narrative that makes it a proper El Michels Affair record and not just a collection of covers. From the music to the presentation, this album is a perfect example of what can only be achieved through diversity. The end result is as much a kaleidoscope of influences and multiculturalism as the city it was recorded in. El Michels Affair is once again, sounding out the city' that raised them, pulling elements of art and culture from across the country and around the globe to create an album truly unique in it's own right.

Following their self-proclaimed LP trilogy (2020-2024), Straw Man Army returns with a new songwriting experiment in the form of True North; a collection of 11 songs written for acoustic instruments over three 72 hour sessions at a cabin, isolated in the woods north of NYC. The result is a concept album in practice as opposed to subject alone. Attuned to both the spiritual and political dimensions of seeking refuge in our times, it asks what exactly we mean by “peace” in this era of increasing violence, incarceration, and skepticism towards a future worth living. Does it feel like relaxation, does it tend towards silence? Is it the cooling of our collective rage? Not here. On True North, peace is a spiritual contradiction; a chimera incorporating our innermost desires and the brutality of the world that surrounds us. The album’s central character is a “sleepwalker” trudging through the waking nightmares that have defined daily life since the release of 2024’s Earthworks. Because True North is music that dreams. Sonically, the band toys with the aesthetics of psychedelia, folk, and kosmiche music for contrast, creating a still pool into which their deepest anxieties ripple and flow and flower into ever darker shapes. And while the musical palette plays on tropes of peace—lush piano instrumentals, fingerpicking guitars, gong, vocal harmony—the subject remains steeped in environmental collapse, death, mental breakdown, and the rejection of our most closely held myths. The clash of these forces is the engine that turns the musical wheel. True North is the sound of music mourning a future that never took place and a bout of anticipatory grief for something that’s only just begun…

Zwei neue Songs von Thee Headcoats in einem passend an die Smiths angelehnten Cover! Die A-Seite ist aus ihrer kommenden LP "Children Of The Sect" und die B-Seite exklusiv auf dieser Veröffentlichung. Wir haben mit Billy Childish über die Single gesprochen_ Frage: "Hat dir irgendetwas an den Smiths gefallen?" Antwort: "Ja. Les Dawsons Version von ,Girlfriend in a Coma" (ich glaube, das ist der richtige Titel). Eigentlich habe ich sie gehasst, aber sie hatten ein paar ganz ordentliche Songtitel. Ihr Gitarrist kam mal auf mich zu und sprach mich an, als wir mit Modest Mouse in der Albert Hall mit unserer 100-Watt-PA spielten - er war sehr nett." Frage: "Auf dem Cover ist ein Bild von Dave Davies zu sehen. Was gefällt dir an den Kinks am besten? Hast du Ray oder Dave jemals getroffen?" Antwort: "Ich bin in den 1960er Jahren mit den Kinks aufgewachsen, zusammen mit den Stones, den Beatles, Bob Dylan und Jimi Hendrix. Als ich 1977 gefragt wurde, ob ich bei den Pop Rivets singen wolle, schlug ich vor, dass wir ,Hippy Hippy Shake", ,Wild Thing" und ,You Really Got Me" spielen sollten - Was mir an den Kinks am besten gefällt? Ich mag die R&B-Kinks? Daves Gitarrenspiel, und wir alle stehen total auf den tollen Schlagzeuger und Bassisten, und natürlich schreibt Ray gute Songs - also: Was gibt's da nicht zu lieben? Abgesehen von einer ganzen Menge. Ich habe noch nie einen echten Kink persönlich getroffen, aber wir kannten ein Mädchen, das sie im Rochester Odeon spielen sah. Sie und ihre Freunde baten Dave um ein Autogramm, und er jagte sie schreiend den Star Hill hinauf, wobei sein kleiner Stolz und seine Freude heraushingen."

Jozef Van Wissem and Jim Jarmusch’s Bocca di Lupo and Mouth of the Wolf were recorded in July 2025 in Bologna, Italy. The recording sessions took place just after several live dates in New York and Chicago, and a week before they began a short European tour which included Paris, London, Ghent, Porto, and a first date in Bologna.

Below are notes from Jozef and Jim directly.
“With thanks to Gian Luca Farinelli and Rosanna Mordini from the extraordinary Cineteca di Bologna, we were able to secure recording days in the very cool Fonoprint Studios — located on Via Bocca di Lupo in Bologna, hence the titles of these two LPs. (“In bocca al lupo” — in the mouth of the wolf — is the Italian idiom for wishing one good luck; equivalent to “break a leg” in English.)

Bocca di Lupo starts with a new version of our own “Only Lovers Left Alive,” and “Apology” is a new version of a pre-existing piece by Jozef. All other tracks are new originals. We were honored to have guest duet vocals from the iconic Courtney Barnett on “Never Like You Said.” The lyrics of the song arrived spontaneously in a single take in the studio. It’s not directed at a specific person, but more an emotional response to several disingenuous, deceitful people — a closing of the door on their toxic behavior. And a casually recorded conversation (concerning the haunted auras of particular pieces of vintage women’s clothing) between Adriana Coppi and Veronica Mayrr (from Deux Femmes) is woven as a background into the track titled “Pour Deux Femmes.” “Black Roses” is an original poem written in Bologna, and recited from within its own musical setting. All other tracks are instrumentals.

Mouth of the Wolf, the second LP, consists of two longer, darkly ecstatic instrumental studio tracks — “In A” and “Massa Damnata.” Both were created with two electric guitars, and derived from our live performances. We consider it to be a musically separate album, and is therefore presented in its own sleeve and with its own artwork.

Our music has many inspirations — everything from our friends in Sunn O))) and Swans to Terry Riley and Morton Feldman; from Hildegard Von Bingen and WIlliam Lawes to Psychic Ills and Spacemen 3; from Les Rallizes Dénudés and NEU! to Nadja and Glenn Branca; from Ian Svenonius and Dead Skeletons to Son House and Gwenifer Raymond…from sunset to sunrise…full moon to new moon…”

a 01. Only Lovers Left Alive 4:36
b 02. Never Like You Said 5:23
[c] 03. Apology [5:11]
[d] 04. Black Roses [2:44]
[e] 05. On Twofold Nature [9:37]
[f] 06. Pour Deux Femmes [8:09]
[g] 07. In Bocca Al Lupo [5:58]
[h] 01. In A [12:56]
[i] 02. Massa Damnata [17:51]

[a] 01. Only Lovers Left Alive [4:36]
[b] 02. Never Like You Said [5:23]
[c] 03. Apology [5:11]
[d] 04. Black Roses [2:44]
[e] 05. On Twofold Nature [9:37]
[f] 06. Pour Deux Femmes [8:09]
[g] 07. In Bocca Al Lupo [5:58]
[h] 01. In A [12:56]
[i] 02. Massa Damnata [17:51]

[a] 01. Only Lovers Left Alive [4:36]
[b] 02. Never Like You Said [5:23]
[c] 03. Apology [5:11]
[d] 04. Black Roses [2:44]
[e] 05. On Twofold Nature [9:37]
[f] 06. Pour Deux Femmes [8:09]
[g] 07. In Bocca Al Lupo [5:58]
[h] 01. In A [12:56]
[i] 02. Massa Damnata [17:51]

[a] 01. Only Lovers Left Alive [4:36]
[b] 02. Never Like You Said [5:23]
[c] 03. Apology [5:11]
[d] 04. Black Roses [2:44]
[e] 05. On Twofold Nature [9:37]
[f] 06. Pour Deux Femmes [8:09]
[g] 07. In Bocca Al Lupo [5:58]
[h] 01. In A [12:56]
[i] 02. Massa Damnata [17:51]

[a] 01. Only Lovers Left Alive [4:36]
[b] 02. Never Like You Said [5:23]
[c] 03. Apology [5:11]
[d] 04. Black Roses [2:44]
[e] 05. On Twofold Nature [9:37]
[f] 06. Pour Deux Femmes [8:09]
[g] 07. In Bocca Al Lupo [5:58]
[h] 01. In A [12:56]
[i] 02. Massa Damnata [17:51]