After a contribution to Ethereal Sound and a full-bloom debut EP on Mule Electronic earlier this year, "Running In Circles" takes the next step. Two power cuts that melt, espouse and mutate classicist Chicago school of design elements with the post-industrial take of the Live at Robert Johnson canon On a meta-level they even deal with such heavy stuff as reincarnation and the cycles of life and death. Oh, yes! How does that sound As sweet and threatening as a sugar skull, of course.
Hochwertiges Digi-Pack des Debut-Album !!!
A solitary shed by a lake. Surrounded by woods coated in ice. It's the deepest winter and the Pentatones quartet finds itself in the deserted nature of the Mecklenburg-Vorpommern County. They are searching for sounds pulsating beyond instruments and machines. Inaudible Music this is, made sound by them only. By night the four move over the frosted lake, play the clarinet and put themselves in a chilly trance. Months later they will remember dimly these moments in the woods and cast them atmospherically into their album debut 'The Devil's Hand' with icy romance. Highly attentive to details, they have worked on it for 3 years. Since 2006 the Pentatones tinker with their tessellate electroacoustic sound, in whose center the voice of singer Delhia de France is floating. To friends of club music she might be known from her collabs with techno producers such as Marlow, Douglas Greed or Robag Whrume. With the Pentatones she combines her emotional timbre in various forms with the raw basslines by Hannes Waldschütz and the analog and electronic beats and samples by Julian Hetztel a.k.a. Le Schnigg. Albrecht Ziepert creates melodic moods on the keys, whose appeal one can hardly elude. Their kaleidoscopic arrangements dance between susceptibility and experiment. Enticing pop structures melt with crackling analog electronics - a mixture laid out to make dance at times, at times to chill. The ambiance of her compositions is gloomy, yet light-flooded in a certain way. It is most notably Delhias voice, which outshines everything, never standing still, meandering and spinning, opening up a new emotional space with every breath. The computer with its infinite production possibilities is used in its function as another instrument. Together with the sampler it forms the center of action, processing everything, from voice to keys, which needs an artistic distancing effect. A contrabass is setting the pace at times, then again the brass accelerates the tracks highly emotively. In stylistic regards their compositions are never predictable. A touch of organic jazz here, a subtle hip-hop allusion there, accompanied by a moving club rhythm structure and Delhias captivating voice, which sings, then talks, and whispers in the next moment.
It's not only the infinite world of sound, which inspires them to their adventurously twisted compositions. For all members being equally active in the visual field, art plays an important role in the act of creating and in the overall concept of the Pentatones. This is being reflected in their life shows, acknowledged with much applause on festivals like 'Sonne, Mond und Sterne', the 'Fusion Festival' or 'Ars Electronica'. When they sample themselves during their concerts, modify their sound in real time and vividly interpret their songs, Delhia dances audaciously in extravagant, self-designed costumes in haughty reserve and effuses eccentric pop magic. Sometimes she takes the megaphone and by hereby altering her voice, she infuses her music with another exotic tone. With their self-produced videos the Leipzig residents by choice create an artistic universe, which stages the dramatic lyrics of the lead singer in a sublime way. After all they see themselves as an artificial band, operating beyond the conventional patterns of presentation, bypassing intuitively and creatively common pop stereotypes. Twisted-Pop which gets straight under your skin, without ever grooving streamlined. You can dance to it, lose yourself in it or step into new worlds. There is only one thing difficult to deal with after you enjoyed 'The Devil's Hand' and that's to release yourself from its overwhelming emotional impact.
One can hardly imagine the genre-busting, culture-crossing musical magic of Outkast, Prince, Erykah Badu, Rick James, The Roots, or even the early Red Hot Chili Peppers without the influence of R&B pioneer Betty Davis. Her style of raw and revelatory punk-funk defies any notions that women can’t be visionaries in the worlds of rock and pop. In recent years, rappers from Ice Cube to Talib Kweli to Ludacris have rhymed over her intensely strong but sensual music.
There is one testimonial about Betty Davis that is universal: she was a woman ahead of her time. In our contemporary moment, this may not be as self-evident as it was thirty years ago – we live in an age that’s been profoundly changed by flamboyant flaunting of female sexuality: from Parlet to Madonna, Lil Kim to Kelis. Yet, back in 1973 when Betty Davis first showed up in her silver go-go boots, dazzling smile and towering Afro, who could you possibly have compared her to? Marva Whitney had the voice but not the independence. Labelle wouldn’t get sexy with their “Lady Marmalade” for another year while Millie Jackson wasn’t Feelin’ Bitchy until 1977. Even Tina Turner, the most obvious predecessor to Betty’s fierce style wasn’t completely out of Ike’s shadow until later in the decade.
Ms. Davis’s unique story, still sadly mostly unknown, is unlike any other in popular music. Betty wrote the song “Uptown” for the Chambers Brothers before marrying Miles Davis in the late ’60s, influencing him with psychedelic rock, and introducing him to Jimi Hendrix — personally inspiring the classic album Bitches Brew.
But her songwriting ability was way ahead of its time as well. Betty not only wrote every song she ever recorded and produced every album after her first, but the young woman penned the tunes that got The Commodores signed to Motown. The Detroit label soon came calling, pitching a Motown songwriting deal, which Betty turned down. Motown wanted to own everything. Heading to the UK, Marc Bolan of T. Rex urged the creative dynamo to start writing for herself. A common thread throughout Betty’s career would be her unbending Do-It-Yourself ethic, which made her quickly turn down anyone who didn’t fit with the vision. She would eventually say no to Eric Clapton as her album producer, seeing him as too banal.
Her 1974 sophomore album They Say I’m Different features a worthy-of-framing futuristic cover challenging David Bowie’s science fiction funk with real rocking soul-fire, kicked off with the savagely sexual “Shoo-B-Doop and Cop Him” (later sampled by Ice Cube). Her follow up is full of classic cuts like “Don’t Call Her No Tramp” and the hilarious, hard, deep funk of “He Was A Big Freak.”
Merc Music proudly presents new Artist "Edward", a new light emerging from the Black Country underground.
Having passed Mark E a CD full of left field house music Maxa & Naxa finally make their way onto vinyl with Merc.
Here lies deep distorted driving 4/4 beats and looped disco monotony, following in the vein of previous Merc releases this pushes the sound even further. You don't need us to tell this is the real deal folks - one of the best 12's we've heard all year !As with previous MERC releases - this is limited to initial pressing only - Get with it
Farron Gets Back On Shaw Cuts With His Fourth Record, 'invincible Shaolin' - A Tale Of Double-dealing, Rivalry, Royalty And Bad Blood. Manchu General Pu's Evil Quest To Eradicate The Shaolin Tradition Unfolds, Cunningly Pitting North And South Shaolins Against Each Other. 'spring Break Ya Neck' Opens The Clash With Its Rhythmic Shifts And Whirling Synth Pads. The Northern Masters Prevail.
After Pu's Henchmen Secretly Kill The Southern Shaolin, The General Blames The Masters From The North, Unleashing Chaos. 'cosmicaph' Restores Order, Its Pounding Drums And Floating Melodies Giving New Strength To The Southern Shaolin. Revenge Must Be Taken.
To Prepare For Conquer, The Southern Master Sends Three Of His Disciples To Three Masters To Learn Their Secret Weapons. 'sir Hatch' Sets The Pace With Rolling Punches, Dirty Synths And Sharp Percussion As The Three Disciples Transform Into Lethal Fighting Machines.
Just Before The Final Encounter Between The Shaolin, Leibniz Lands On The Scene With His Fresh Interpretation Of 'spring Break Ya Neck', Revealing To Both Schools That They Have Been Deceived. Joining Forces, North And South Battle The General And His Men, Led By Leibniz's Funky Drum Patterns And Turbulent Synth Action.
And The Shaolin Spirit Lives On...
