Поиск:dj bee

Perila (Aleksandra Zakharenko) left her native Russia six years ago, landing in Berlin. Finding her place almost immediately - first at Berlin Community Radio and through that amongst a group of like-minded creative individuals (including her current flatmates Special Guest DJ and exael) - she started a regular practice of working on an expressionistic "sonic diary" of field recordings and electronic sound research for her own pleasure. When the opportunity arose to create her own podcast series, WET (or Weird Erotic Tension) was born. Upon hearing her evocative and atmospheric music layered with friends Nat Marcus and Inger Wold Lund's erotic spoken word poetry, Sferic Records asked to release it, and Perila - a project name originally used for her BCR show - truly came to be. Aleksandra, who was raised in St. Petersburg, has been involved in music since childhood thanks to her melomaniac father. She's been both drummer and singer in local bands in Russia, and is also the co-founder of radio.syg.ma - one of the first online stations in Russian focusing on experimental sounds - but Perila is something else entirely. You could loosely describe it as ambient, but her soundworld is so specific and transportative, filled with detail and movement, it's more akin to hauntological musique concrète, touched by song. Her fascination with voice and language - she studied English literature at university - is still evident, although that's now her voice, her texts, her crooning you can hear on the Everything Is Already There cassette (Boomkat Editions, 2020), her processed breaths on the Meta Door L cassette (Paralaxe Editions, 2020). The Wire Magazine got it right when they said about Irer Dent that, "Sensuality is presented as a secret pass to a higher consciousness." For her debut album, How Much Time it is Between You and Me?, released via Smalltown Supersound on June 11th, Aleksandra takes inspiration from the concept of time, which she felt keenly during the pandemic. Recorded primarily in September 2020 in a rural village in France - her only travel during the first year of the pandemic period - surrounded by mountains but otherwise alone with no internet, her perception of time there differed immensely. She describes the trip as, "an immersive experience into self," viewed through a "silence prism" where everyday sounds usually ignored felt amplified. While her work has always dealt in intimacy - be it the private thrills of WET or the audible closeness of our surroundings - the organic response and consistent feedback she gets for Perila made Aleksandra recognize a longing, a need for it in today's world. Intent on creating work based in honesty and tenderness, Perila's practice also explores how we feel music and emotion throughout the body and how sound can help to release it. How does the sound enter a body and travel through it? Where does movement start? How do you reach and unblock emotional clusters with the help of sound and deep listening of the body responses? Aleksandra likes to describe her music and performances as trips - thick narratives drifting along sound to get closer to self. Let Perila guide you through this journey.

Indie Retail Exclusive Water Spirits color vinyl LP More Energy Fields, Current is a definitive new peak in the recorded continuum of prolific producer/percussionist Carlos Niño. Featuring contributions from more than a dozen exciting voices in the creative music constellation of Los Angeles (of which Niño's has been a central force for over 2 decades), including Sam Gendel, Nate Mercereau, Jamael Dean, and Jamire Williams, the album collects 10 pristine gems of collaborative communication helmed by the Southern Californian sage, elegantly presented in his unique "Spiritual, Improvisational, Space Collage" style. The album is ripe with "ambient" passages that function like open portals between moments of consonance and clarity, and epic post-hip hop opuses like the heavy/heady "Thanking the Earth." But even in the occasional absence of drums, there is a powerful pulse implicit in the program's frequency of consciousness. It's a testament to Niño's foundations as a DJ. His distinct ability to craft a kinetic, cinematic sonic experience from dozens of independent, often rhythmically-ambiguous improvisational memories is more fluently displayed on More Energy Fields, Current than anything we've heard from him to date. It resonates, lucidly, with the way Niño's mentor Iasos - who is known to the world as an original founder of New Age music - has described his work: "Real Time Interactive Imagination, Flow Texturization." On More Energy Fields, Current, Niño immerses us in the watery depths of his world, spiriting us like a submarine through exotic nether-leagues of untouched sound. And when we arrive at the final, bookending piece "Please, Wake Up." (an extended version of the opening theme, featuring saxophonist Shabaka Hutchings), it's like a return, safely to shore.

"Guts finest selection from his DJ sets. Some dancefloor classics and some discoveries"

Any DJ set tells you, unconsciously or not, about its author.

Through the record choices and the way they are organized, one can feel the DJ’s state of mind and find out a bit more about the musical deposit discovered that is being shared and dug through by him or her at the moment.
The appetite for diggin’, the quest for a novelty or a forgotten rarity is what makes a DJ set a true organic living matter constantly fueled although not always, unfortunately, respected.
Time stretching. Too many DJ’s made a pact with this diabolical creature. A true digital steamroller that runs over the rhythm to fix the tempo while leaving behind an agonizing drummer whose sole crime was to have been carried away by his energy and having moved forward the BPM. At the end, everything that gave charm and life to the track, its imperfections and the peculiar fact that it makes you dance faster towards its end… all these along with all the lively movements contained within the track are reduced to nothing.

My conception of music and DJ sets is the exact opposite. Since the first volume of Straight From The Decks, my DJ sets have been redesigned, refreshed and improved. However, there was no preexisting plan, they evolved naturally following my new desires.

The famous core of my indispensable musical choices started to morph little by little into something different without losing sight of its center of gravity which remains undoubtedly afro-tropical.
No matter which track, its style and its origin, the quality of the music that is brought to my ears is always my sole and primary concern.
In this selection, you’ll find 7” vinyl records available to everyone sitting proudly next to some rarities found online and acquired through nerve-raking auctions battles. There are indeed exclusive remixes along with titles that until now were only available in their digital formats. Now for the first time they are available here in vinyl format. Obviously, if you have chosen the CD format, that precision doesn’t really matter…
Sixteen titles which have become the heart of my sets throughout this past year.
A heart which in a year will beat to a certainly different drum…
Pura Vida
Gutsto attend the next one..."

Those who pay close attention to DJ Harvey’s sets should already be familiar with NuNorthern Soul’s next single, a fully licensed reissue of a sought-after 1980 promotional seven-inch from legendary Spanish Flamenco singer Manuel Mancheño Peña, better known as El Turronero (‘The Nougat’).

Both ‘Las Penas’ and ‘Si Yo Volviera A Nacer’ have long been secret weapons in the sets of dusty-fingered Balearic DJs, with Harvey regularly dropping the tracks during his sessions at Pikes Hotel on the White Isle.

Both tracks first appeared on Pena’s 1980 album New Hondo, a set that updated the then veteran Flamenco artist’s sound for the disco era. Whereas most of his previous albums were more traditional Flamenco affairs, New Hondo combined his throaty, effervescent Flamenco singing style with the driving grooves, swooping orchestration and spacey synthesizer sounds of European disco.

To promote the album, Spanish label DB Belter pressed up a promotional “45” featuring two of the most club-friendly cuts on the album. It’s this release that is being reissued for the very first time by NuNorthern Soul.

A-side ‘Las Penas’ is undoubtedly an off-kilter, late-night disco classic. Built around a flanged, action-packed disco-funk bassline, metronomic beats. soaring and layered female backing vocals, intergalactic synth sounds and stirring strings, the track steps up a level when ‘El Turronero’ takes to the microphone to belt out an infectious, energetic vocal in his trademark Flamenco style. It’s the kind of cut that’s as haunting and intoxicating as it is funky and floor friendly.

Flipside ‘Si You Volviera A Nacer’, another of New Hendo’s most sought-after tracks, is another unique and righteous concoction. Looser, groovier and warmer in tone, it sees another sublime, Flamenco style lead vocal from Pena accompanied by even funkier bass, spiralling ’70s synthesizer sounds, sweaty drums and some seriously exotic instrumental flourishes (think sitar and kalimba). It’s every bit as alluring as the more driving A-side, and equally as playable.

Both tracks may be unusual in comparison to the artist’s other releases, but they expertly capture a moment in time, when disco dominated dancefloors all over the world and inspired even the most traditional and historic of European musical styles. Quite a number of flamenco-disco records were made in Spain during the late ’70s and early ’80s, but very few are quite as magical as these.

In the past years, the multi-instrumentalist, composer, producer and music enthusiast Jeff Özdemir had been focusing on organising the Live-Mixtape series in Berlin, inviting numerous artists to join him on stage for every single event. However, the year 2020 put an end to this for all the painfully obvious and obviously painful reasons. Undeterred, he instead put together the third instalment of the »Jeff Özdemir & Friends« series, working with singers, musicians and groups such as Knarf Rellöm & DJ Patex, F.S. Blumm, Joanna Gemma Auguri, Elke Brauweiler and Elmer Kussiac for an 18-track … Now, is this a compilation or an artist album? Well, why just either this or that when it can just be both at once? This is »Jeff Özdemir & Friends Vol. 3« after all, emphasis on »&«.

Released on Karaoke Kalk like its two predecessors from the years 2015 and 2017, respectively, »Jeff Özdemir & Friends Vol. 3« sees the man behind Kreuzberg’s 33rpm record store and the 33rpm Records label showcase his qualities as a people remixer, songwriter and versatile musician. He put together a collection of groovy tunes picking up on funk and afrobeat rhythms, introspective ballads, a musically channeled punk attitude, shoegaze sentiments, spoken word passages, drones, glockenspiel sounds, seriously fun experimentation and much more. Just like on the cover artwork - courtesy of Marion Eichmann, Özdemir’s favourite visual artist - everything here seems to discreetly exist for itself while being tightly connected to everything else at same time.

While artists like Ertan Doğancı, Désolé Léo, eng°n, F.S. Blumm and Zap have been long-term collaborators of Özdemir and were featured on previous instalments of the »Jeff Özdemir & Friends« series, new faces and forces also enter the mix. The melancholic »Love Letters« for example marks the first (though hopefully not last) collaboration with singer Joanna Gemm Auguri, while Knarf Rellöm & DJ Patex’s appearance has been dreamt of collectively but hasn’t been fully realised until now.

Whether it’s Désolé Léo’s French crooner soul, the lo-fi synth pop song »Bored« featuring former Commercial Breakup singer Elke Brauweiler or the many different sounds and styles presented under the name Jeff Özdemir: no decision is ever made between either that or this musical direction, but all are being joyfully enjoyed together. Thus, throughout its 70 minutes, the stylistic diversity of »Jeff Özdemir & Friends Vol. 3« does not once border on randomness. Instead, these sometimes very different songs are marked by a shared atmosphere - a direct result of these very different musicians approaching their studio time together less as a chance to make music but more of a chance to carefully listen to and interact with each other.

Just like you’d expect it from someone deeply connected with the local music community who also happens to run a record store, Özdemir is also the kind of person who’ll hand you the worn copy of a record he has just fished out from the bargain bin because he knows about its potential to change your life. The contributions by Vackrow (»Kleistpark«), Gebrüder Teichmann’s old band BeigeGT (»Disco«), and Otto von Bismarck (»Zu viele Erinnerungen«, produced by The Whitest Boy Alive’s Daniel Nentwig) do not even feature Özdemir, but are simply musical pearls that were (almost) lost in the shuffle of music history and unearthed for this very special occasion. That’s just what friends do, don’t they?

London-based musician Harriet Zoe Pittard aka Zoee has been described as an artist who writes 'personal pop for people who don't fit in' (Huck Magazine). Previously, Zoee has released singles through Ryan Hemworth's 'Secret Songs' imprint and Vegyn's label Plz Make It Ruins, as well as guesting as a vocalist on tracks with Hot Chip's Joe Goddard and with hyper-pop collective PC Music.Over the past two years Zoee has taken some time to nurture her voice and her sound. Her debut album 'Flaw Flower' is due on June 25th. 'Flaw Flower' is an honest and vulnerable glimpse into Zoee's interior world, a world she creates through marrying her real-life phone notes with imagery taken from modern works of literature such as "The Flowering Corpse" by Djuna Barnes, Sylvia Plath's "A Winter Ship" and Maggie Nelson's "Bluets". Through these 11 new songs, Zoee delves deep into her own emotional life, combining aspects of the everyday with the surreal in order to uncover the beauty found in being flawed. The record nods to the avant pop of the 80s, an era that Zoee has always been drawn to thanks to the expressive and trailblazing music of women including Anne Clark, Joan Armatrading, Cyndi Lauper, Rose McDowall and Anna Domino. The album is characterised by a mix of hi-fi and lo-fi instrumentation. 'The Loft' features a free jazz solo from acclaimed experimental saxophonist Ben Vince alongside stock GarageBand synths. 'Host' combines home demo backing vocals with an elaborate baby grand piano solo. Zoee sources foley sounds from YouTube and pulls from her own domestic field recordings, such as a microwave buzzing in 'Microwave' and a shower running in 'Evening Primrose', often using these sounds as the starting point for the songs. Maintaining intimate bedroom elements whilst developing a more expansive band sound, felt integral to the project, since that's where Zoee's writing process often starts, sat on her bed with her laptop and midi keyboard. Writing for the album began in October 2018 when Zoee started working closely again with friend and long-term musical collaborator Rowan Martin. As the material for the record began to take shape the writing and recording process also evolved with the addition of bassist Kyrone Oak and keys player Laura Norman, as well as contributions from Ben Vince and London pop artist Saint Torrente. "I feel like the songs on this album took me deeper into myself, the sad song that I thought was about a boy is still about that but it's also about loss, about self-determination, about not losing hope, about memory, about domesticity, about detachment, about my dad, about my mum, about change, about feeling incredibly alone, about growing up."

Germany’s Tilman inaugurates his new imprint Pleasant
Systems this June with the ‘Adventures’ EP, featuring
collaborations with Will Buck and Rhode & Brown. Mainz,
Germany based producer and DJ Tilman has been dropping
his twist on contemporary house over the past decade on
labels such as Shall Not Fade, Life Is For Living and Quality
Vibes as well as his own Fine imprint, run in collaboration
with Johannes Albert. Here though, Tilman marks a new
beginning with the launch of Pleasant Systems, a new
imprint designed to shine a light on vintage inspired house
sounds from both himself and friends. Up ¦rst is ‘What’s
Mine Is Mine’, a collaboration with Brooklyn’s Will Buck which
lays down an amalgamation of airy synth pads, choppy bass
stabs, bright piano lines and enchanting §ute like melodies
atop a swinging drum groove. ‘Strawberry Fields’ follows,
stripping things back to shu©ed percussion, billowing
ethereal textures and wandering sub bass tones while
§uttering brass tones and resonant leads ebb and §ow
within. ‘Velvet Park’ opens the §ip side, this time joining
forces with Rhode & Brown, embracing a classic sound with
raw crunchy drums, delayed piano chords, bumpy bass
stabs, cinematic strings and brass hooks throughout. ‘Lovin'’
then rounds out the release, dropping the tempo, featuring
the voice of Tilman himself and laying focus on off-kilter
organic percussion, twinkling resonant tones, eighties tinged

Another all-time classic from the extensive back catalog of the legendary Miami songstress Gwen McCrae.

"90% Of Me Is You" is instantly recognizable, it's been sampled countless of times by some of the most seminal Hip Hop artists ever (Large Professor, Jaylib, Mobb Deep & more) & is a bonafide "Rare Groove" sure-shot that never loses it's appeal & is always in demand with DJ's & producers. Perhaps it's the pairing of the languid guitar & strings, or Gwen's sultry vocals & that steady breakbeat that keeps people hooked some 40 years after it's original release Whatever it is, it's classic material from start to finish!

Backed here with it's original b-side slow jam "It's Worth The Hurt" this super-rare 45 has been re-mastered, re-pressed & brought back for 2015's dance-floors in conjunction & with the permission of T.K. Disco / Henry Stone Music, Miami USA.

To reveal to the world all the musical riches of Mali, and more particularly the music of the Mandé region, cradle of the great griot families, is the highly laudable purpose of this LP The Lost Maestros Collection. To perpetuate and transmit this ancestral musical history, The Lost Maestros Collection brings together 8 wonders of Mali who have each in their own way managed to develop this tradition towards more modern and electrified countries and associates pioneers of Mandingo music and actors of the young post generation.

The Lost Maestros Collection is the result of the collaboration between Deviation Records, newly created by Phil Margueron and the independent Malian label Mieruba, which has been working since 2010 to ensure that this golden age of Mande music does not fall into oblivion. Aware that these nuggets are not eternal, Mieruba, based in Ségou on the banks of the Niger river and capital of the former Bambara kingdom, undertook for eight years the preservation of this musical heritage by putting these 16 pieces on tapes at the Kôré studio de Ségou as well as at the famous Bogolan studio in Bamako.

Premieres from Data Transmission and Bolting Bits. Early support from Hospital, Huey Morgan, Rupture, Fanu, Rob Luis, Anthony Kasper (Fokuz), Red Rack'em, Bandcamp Weekly, etc.

150 copies pressed on 180 gram vinyl. Picture shows the HF021VFELT edition which comes with 'Nuthin' But a Jungle Thang' die-cut felt sleeve insert (in assorted colours), with Heard and Felt embroidered fabric tag. HF021V edition is the same 180g vinyl without the felt sleeve insert.

With music from Jonny Faith's recent Night Lights EP appearing in Grand Theft Auto and best of 2020 lists including Gilles Peterson's, you might think Jonny would continue to mine his take on hip hop and broken beat. Well, all in good time. He's been ready to enter the jungle for 20 years, and he's not waiting any longer.

Now based in Melbourne, Jonny first got involved in music in Edinburgh as a DJ and turntablist in the 90s, getting hooked on jungle, drum & bass, hip hop and the hybrids of these championed by the Mo'Wax label. Formative experiences included hearing DJ Hype spinning in Newcastle, seeing the Roni Size/Reprazent live show with two drummers and hanging out at cult Edinburgh club night Manga, where residents G-Mac and DJ Kid hosted the likes of Marky, Grooverider and J Majik.

Jonny was keen to start making his own sounds, signing up for an electronic music production course. But it wasn't quite what he was after.

'The course turned out to be more house-oriented,' Jonny recalls. 'Sampling wasn't on the curriculum, and the students weren't allowed to touch the Akai S900, the sampler used in lots of the early jungle classics.'

When Jonny did start releasing his own productions a few years later, he was starting to explore the experimental beat scene around the time Flying Lotus and Hudson Mohawke (another Scottish turntablist) were starting to make their mark.

Jonny continued to widen his sonic palette, adding elements of dub, jazz, funk, electronica and broken beat, and picking up fans like Radio Nova Paris, KCRW, Vice and Clash Magazine along the way. But he's never been more than one degree of separation from his jungle/D&B roots. He continued to buy and play the music, did the odd D&B remix and snuck sonic elements and techniques into his tracks at various tempos. Over the years his releases have shared labels with the likes of Peshay, Om Unit, Drumagick, Reso, Kid Drama and Danny Scrilla.

Now, more than 20 years after those early experiences in Edinburgh, Jonny unveils his first jungle/D&B EP, On Lock. And it sounds like he's been making this music the whole time. In a way, he has.

The single 'Open My Eyes' bursts out the gate, chopping not only the breaks and the soul for a tune that sounds like Amerie's '1 Thing', or some Just Blaze chipmunk soul, reimagined for the 174 BPM crew. Jonny started this one as a hip hop beat for a live routine on his MPC, but it only really came together when he reframed the groove around a D&B rhythm. Next up, Jonny tries a similar trick on his own boom bap tune 'Stay in Your Lane' from the 'Night Lights' EP. His new Step Off Mix totally recontextualises US MC Lady K's slinky soulful rap and hooks with a tough and funky junglist groove. One for fans of the old Roni Size/Bahamadia collab. 'Create' then spaces things out just a touch, with atmospheric but propulsive drumfunk. Vinyl bonus track 'Nuthin' But a Jungle Thang' layers cascading amen breaks, timestretched vocals and a massive double bass-line over the wah guitars and synth whistling of a G-funk era classic.

With early support for Jonny Faith's take on jungle/D&B coming from Hospital Records, Rupture (Rinse FM) and Fanu (Metalheadz), Jonny is ready to be welcomed (back) into the scene.


b A2: Stay in Your Lane (Jonny Faith Step Off Mix) feat. Lady K

Everything has its right moment in space and time. And Rhode & Brown’s debut album “Everything in Motion” is no exception to this rule.

But first things first:
Hailing from Munich, Germany, Friedrich Trede and Stephan Braun are the DJ and producer duo Rhode & Brown. Growing up in two neighbouring villages near Munich both of them had been music enthusiasts since their early childhood. Friedrich played drums in punk bands at school and recorded rap songs in his bedroom, while Stephan, as childhood friend of Harold Faltermeyer's son, had the chance to experiment in the impressive studio of the legendary Donna Summer producer in his early teens.

By the late 2000s older friends started supplying them with DJ mixtapes and helped them sneak into clubs they weren’t allowed to visit, yet – cultivating their love for electronic music and club culture. And, of course, the Internet was their go-to source for finding the latest blog house tunes back then, too.

It wasn’t until October 2009 that their paths would cross for the very first (but almost last) time when introduced by a mutual friend: Back then Stephan was selling his old CDJ-player and Friedrich, who wanted to hone his DJ skills, ended up buying it: „When I got home and unpacked the player I realized that it was the wrong model. I thought Stephan was trying to rip me off - so I called him in a rage and demanded my money back.“ Friedrich laughs. To cut a long story short, the two met again the same evening, money and CD-players were exchanged, but luckily so was their passion for house and disco music. It was at that very moment that Rhode & Brown was born.

A lot has happened since the two played their first gigs together and made baby steps in music production. In the past 10 years they established themselves as one of the most reliable house producers around with rock solid releases on Toy Tonics, Shall Not Fade, Public Possession or their own Slam City Jams imprint. As well as becoming a household name in the DJ world, sharing the booth with the likes of Palms Trax, Dam Swindle, Jamie Tiller or Octo Octa - spreading their infectious "Dancing Deejays" vibes around the globe.

Following the great reception of last years „Aku Aku“ EP, June 2021 will see the release of Rhode & Brown’s debut album on Permanent Vacation. A record that showcases their open minded approach to making music and a passion for the nuances between genres - „We found inspiration for this album in all corners of our record collection. That means we are as much influenced by disco or 80s synth-pop as by house and techno of the last decades or the latest viral trap hit on Spotify“, the guys say.

On "Everything In Motion" you'll hear piano house / Italo disco hybrids alongside dreamy Balearic soundscapes and '90s-infused acid breakbeats flawlessly accompanying '80s synth pop anthems. Always infused with that signature Rhode & Brown magic. The album also finds them collaborating with some of the finest vocalists of the moment: Peaking Lights' own Indra Dunis is lending her voice to the title track for this special laid back California vibe, while Berlin's hottest export DJ City evokes a neon light romance affair on "Memory Palace", with a longing poem that makes you wander the rainy streets at night with your walkman on.

At a time when suddenly everything seems to be standing still, Rhode & Brown undeterred moving forward... true to their LP’s title.

Athlete Whippet join the Toy Tonics family! The London/Berlin-based duo make a sound that is based on futuristic breakbeats combined with deep, jazz chord progressions and a kind of funk that sounds more like it was made in 2100 then in a year behind us. Definitely not a retro record the Vesta EP is further proof that the connection between London and Berlin that has been build by several Toy Tonics artists (Cody Currie the latest in the gang) is becoming a strong one. The combination of the Berlin dancefloor sound and the UK jazz fusion soul is changing the scene and creating new moods. Neo soul and house, broken beats and disco.. there are lot of things happening in that new world and Athlete Whippet could be a strong player in that new sound.

The 2 guys already achieved great support by UK radio DJs such as Annie Mac and Jamz Supernova for their their first collaborative EP Touch (with Metronomy’s Olugbenga), followed by their 2020 solo EP 'Your Love Is Lifting Me', an ode to compassion and solidarity, and remixes for labels including Rhythm Section.

‘Vesta’ is not just the title track of the EP but also the name of the South London Road where they shared an apartment, built a studio in their living room, and put together the first ideas for this EP.

Both Robin and Avi come from a live performance background, played in bands since their early teenage years before they met studying music at Goldsmiths in London. You can hear a playful live quality throughout the EP. It’s not your average house productions with the usual formalistic patterns, but a very original, very fresh style - hard to copy (but easy to dance to).

Now based between Berlin and London, they collaborate with their friend, Athens-born, Berlin-based artist Aphty Khéa on Yesterday and Can’t Make My Mind Up.

Avi and Robin their label squareglass and a London-residency inviting guests such as Seb Wildblood, Will Saul, Asquith, Anu and also have a monthly show on Rinse FM.

What began as a challenge to fight creative stagnation, soon grew into a fully-fledged audio-visual project for Belgian DJ, producer and live artist, Biesmans. Setting himself the goal of making three tracks per week for a month, he re-scored ‘80s pop culture moments – including films, TV shows and games, resulting in a brilliant 12-track work encompassing new wave, indie, dark wave, electro and
disco.
Moving his modular-heavy studio to Berlin in 2014, the ensuring years saw Joris Biesmans drop heat on Correspondent, Disco Halal, AEON, 17 Steps and Future Disco. He’s been a core member of Watergate
family since his arrival in the capital, working as the club’s sound technician. He made his debut on Watergate Records in 2020 with the well-received ‘Electric Love’ EP.
The ‘Planes, Trains & Automobiles’ album took shape in April last year as the lockdown was starting to take grip and Biesmans needed a positive distraction. Ensconced in the music of his childhood and ‘80s
pop cultural fodder, he locked himself in his studio and set about creating, later digging through archival footage to match the music. Biesmans, who previously undertook work scoring films, was so absorbed by the process, he’d sometimes do it in reverse; allowing the vintage media be the guide. Throughout the period, the clips were shared each Monday, Wednesday and Friday on his Instagram, building up a firm following from fans, friends and colleagues. And thus, the project found its wings, developing into an album.
Throughout the dozen tracks, highlights are plentiful; from the neon ambience of the Kraftwerk-inspired ‘ ‘Cosmic Cruise’, which later accompanied a smoky scene between Tom Cruise and Rebecca de Mornay in ‘Risky Business’; the sun-soaked, retro-pop title track, which became the album’s first single, and was paired with a jubilant dance scene from the Breakfast Club; ‘Cold Void’, the album’s second single, which saw Biesmans link up with fellow Belgians Boi Wonder and Tom the Bomb for a dark wave creation built around a heavy guitar solo and set against a backdrop of Blade Runner clips; and the silky electro funk of ‘Another World’ that soundtracks scenes from Miami Vice.
Biesmans explains about ‘Planes, Trains and Automobiles’: “I started this as a lockdown challenge, in which I would make three tracks per week for a month, alongside providing videos where I re-scored
footage of 80s pop culture moments. Inspired by the movie of the same name, I picked the title because it ties to the theme of ‘mobility’. Our society is based upon being mobile and when Corona hit us, we
could taste a bit of being immobile. As an artist that meant, I could focus on making music 100%. No distractions, no weekend gigs, no parties just making music. This new lifestyle resulted in my first album.
A journey into the past but looking forward to the future, experimenting with other genres and techniques to make a real album that goes beyond club music.”

Is Joe's 2nd album on Sable Noir recordings. It's a recollection of tunes put on a side throughout the years in the idea to make an album, and englobing all the different aspects possible of some of the music the producer has been up to.

Flow LP takes its influences from triphop to dub techno, ambient music to jungle, soulful drum and bass of course, but also cinematic ambient scores to darkest and percussive 170 joints.

The point here was to be able to tell a story bringing all those different styles all together, and also to deliver an album. Not only for dj's, but also for a full listening purpose. That's why we also released this album, in vinyl, digital, but also in a good old fashioned CD version too.

We hope this cosmic journey through all those styles makes you feel something special. Wherever you listen to it.

Sable noir recordings, but also everything behind this LP is a friend and family co working team, and it is a real pleasure to finally be able to bring this to you now!

Moonlit Train’ is the debut album from up-and-coming singer-songwriter/ MC Tiawa(pronounced tea-ah-wa) aka Brightonian Tia-Awa Blackhorse.
Meandering between neo-soul, hip-hop and jazz ‘Moonlit Train’ is a conceptual record that journeys through relationships, heartache, and healing. Produced by collaborator and multi-instrumentalist Jack-Chi aka Jack Kingslake -a Bristolveteran who cut his teeth as a producer in the city - the album sets the stage for a new chapter in Tiawa’s career on hometown label Tru Thoughts.
Fusing soulful vocals with the jagged edge of a rap-styled flow, Tiawa lays the foundation for her timeless yet graceful sound and lyrical maturity that confutes her youth. Themes of healing are at the core of Tiawa’s creative output, while simultaneously exploring her Portuguese heritage.
In the artists’ words: “Each song on the album is an emotion. I hope it helps to heal people in serious situations and make them feel better when they listen.
“Saudade” is the introduction to ‘Moonlit Train’ and opens with a Portuguese poem that translates to ‘don’t be sad now, I’m going to play a song for you.”
Described by the artsdesk as “pure trip-hop”, Tiawa has been championed by the likes of legendary DJ David Rodigan (BBC Radio 1Xtra), broadcaster royalty Cerys Matthews (BBC 6Music), and underground purveyors Off Licence Magazine.’ - Previous support Youth (Killing Joke), David Rodigan (BBC 1Xtra), Cerys Matthews (BBC 6Music), Off License Magazine. - Featured on WheelUP’s single “Take Me Higher” and the album “Good Love”.

Tibor Szemző is not only a skillful and experienced Hungarian musician but also a media artist with a vast imagination. His last LP, ARBO X – Csoma Grooves, refers to his full-length film A Guest of Life released in 2006, for which he not only directed but also composed all the music. The film is inspired by the life of Alexander Csoma de Körös, a remarkable polyglot from the 19th century who set out from his native Transylvania to central Asia on foot to look for the roots of the Hungarian language. He reached Tibet, dedicated the rest of his life to study of Tibetan manuscripts and finally became the founder of tibetology. After 14 years Tibor Szemző decided to explore the theme further and composed the cinematic performance, Silverbird and the Cyclist, where he as narrator presented the story of Csoma from a different perspective.

ARBO X is the music from this performance and it is based on the soundtrack of the original movie but the material has been restructured and enhanced by new layers. There are fourteen relatively short tracks on the album and each of them has a very specific character, sometimes mysterious as the titles of the tracks themselves. Their arrangement is ingeniously composed. Szemző’s typical bass flute and voice with percussion accompaniment on the first track Axis is a very impressive introduction to the whole album. The following tracks build up a series of colorful sound parables, which are in no way descriptive. Every element, whether it’s a double bass, viola, soprano voice, vocal trio or electronics, fits perfectly within the overall sound fabric with effective timing. Listening to ARBO X one unwittingly concentrates on interweaving details without loosing the sense of the whole. It’s certainly a great benefit, as in previous recordings, that most of the musicians participating in the recording of ARBO X are very familiar with Szemző’s music and his collaboration with some of them goes back to Group 180, a new music ensemble he founded in 1978 and soon earned international acclaim. This most recent album belongs among a long line of recordings that Tibor Szemző has released during his musical career and displays great compositional complexity and a keen sense of a perfectly balanced sound spectrum.

Alexandr Krestovský

HIGHLIGHTS An emblematic figure of the Brazilian avant-garde and a key part of the cultural climate that made the rise of tropicália possible, Walter Smetak was a Swiss musician and inventor of instruments who developed his career in Brazil. "Smetak" (1974), his debut album, was produced by Caetano Veloso and Roberto Santana, and had the support of Gilberto Gil. It sums up a personal universe that combines Afro-Brazilian ritual traditions, theosophy, microtonal studies, collective improvisation and the use of unconventional musical instruments. Liner notes by Caetano Veloso. DESCRIPTION Walter Smetak was a Swiss cellist, composer, inventor of musical instruments, sculptor and writer who developed his career in Salvador, Brazil, and became an emblematic figure of the Bahian avant-garde and a key part of the cultural climate that made the rise of tropicália possible. Since 1969, he has carried out various workshops of experimental music at University of Bahia. His music was materialized in two albums: "Smetak" (1974) and "Interregno" (1980). "Smetak" was produced by Caetano Veloso and Roberto Santana, with the support of Gilberto Gil. There he unfolded a radical sound universe, based on the investigation of Afro-Brazilian ritualistic traditions, microtonality studies and collective improvisational open processes, always under the influence of theosophy, which he discovered in Brazil, and which allowed him to generate a symbolism represented in the construction of his own unconventional instruments, many of them of a sculptural nature, made with unusual materials such as PVC pipes, pumpkins and polystyrene foam, which he called plásticas sonoras. Around 150 instruments were created by Smetak, many of them in a surrealist style. They have been exhibited on various occasions in museums and galleries. His music was often based on graphic scores, many of them of great beauty. In addition to Smetak, Caetano Veloso and Roberto Santana, musicians such as Gereba, Tuzé Abreu, Djalma Correa, Capenga, among others, participated in the recording of this album. The author of one of the most important studies on Smetak, Marco Scarassatti, has written on the work of the Swiss-Brazilian artist: "His original and metaphysical work goes beyond any mysticism created around his figure. He investigated the relationship between sound and light, space and form, microtonality, collective improvisation, as a sound alchemist, a multimedia and unplugged prophet-visionary. While transforming matter, Smetak transformed himself and many of those around him." This reissue reproduces the much sought after original 1974 edition, published by Phillips. It includes the catalog of instruments used, adds a brochure with new photos and presents the remastered audio. The liner notes were written by Caetano Veloso. This project is part of Incidencias Sonoras: COINCIDENCIA experimental music & sound art platform, by the Swiss Arts Council Pro Helvetia.

For Jayda G, joy is a state of mind. Whether she transmits it through her upbeat productions or magnetic energy at the decks, the Canadian-born DJ and producer, real name Jayda Guy, is a beacon of empathy on the dancefloor. It's no surprise, then, that Jayda G's DJ-Kicks mix captures the buoyant spirit of the music that has influenced her most. "DJ-Kicks has been a personal goal of mine for a really long time. I've been a fan for decades now. I remember there was one mix by Chromeo and it had some French disco on it that always stood out in my mind," she remembers. Clocking in at just over an hour, Guy's mixtakes you on a journey that moves through loved classics and new bubblers. The mix contains Jayda's Brand new single "All I Need", the follow up to Grammy Nominated breakthrough single "Both Of Us", a slinky house tune co-produced with James Ford that fizzes with shimmering energy. A rallying cry for kinship and understanding, Guy's insouciant vocals insist "all I need is you to hear me", gliding across the perfectly swung house beat. "Because the mix was made during the pandemic, I thought, 'What music makes me happy?' I want people to feel like they know me. I wanted it to be approachable, still honouring the disco and soul music that I love. I hope that translates in some shape or form."

TRANSPARENT ORANGE VINYL

For Jayda G, joy is a state of mind. Whether she transmits it through her upbeat productions or magnetic energy at the decks, the Canadian-born DJ and producer, real name Jayda Guy, is a beacon of empathy on the dancefloor. It's no surprise, then, that Jayda G's DJ-Kicks mix captures the buoyant spirit of the music that has influenced her most. "DJ-Kicks has been a personal goal of mine for a really long time. I've been a fan for decades now. I remember there was one mix by Chromeo and it had some French disco on it that always stood out in my mind," she remembers. Clocking in at just over an hour, Guy's mixtakes you on a journey that moves through loved classics and new bubblers. The mix contains Jayda's Brand new single "All I Need", the follow up to Grammy Nominated breakthrough single "Both Of Us", a slinky house tune co-produced with James Ford that fizzes with shimmering energy. A rallying cry for kinship and understanding, Guy's insouciant vocals insist "all I need is you to hear me", gliding across the perfectly swung house beat. "Because the mix was made during the pandemic, I thought, 'What music makes me happy?' I want people to feel like they know me. I wanted it to be approachable, still honouring the disco and soul music that I love. I hope that translates in some shape or form."

If you collect vintage 70's soul-jazz vinyl, there is a good chance that you already own a record that features the amazing vocal talents of Dee Dee Bridgewater. Whether it be Roy Ayers, Norman Connors, Billy Parker or Carlos Garnett - Dee Dee is the glue that fuses these artists together. Although best known for her jazz work, Dee Dee has had a wonderfully rich and varied career encompassing soul, musicals, gospel, and underground disco from the 70's to the present day. She is still active as a vocalist, composer, and producer and remains one of our favourite vocalists at Mr Bongo HQ. We take things back to the early years of Dee Dee's career with her debut album 'Afro Blue'. Recorded in Tokyo in 1974, the album was released exclusively in Japan via two different Japanese labels (Trio Records in 1974 and All Art in 1985 respectively). Each release had unique cover art and we have opted to present the album in its original 1974 form.

'Afro Blue' features an exquisite collaboration of American and Japanese musicians, such as Cecil & Ron Bridgewater, Motohiko Hino and producer Takao Ishizuka. The result is a sublime deep soul-jazz masterpiece with timeless versions of 'People Make The World Go Round', 'Love From The Sun', and 'Afro Blue'. It is arguably one of the finest albums in its genre. This record has long been a sought-after item for DJs and collectors alike, so we are delighted to finally make this wonderful music from an understated great available to all.

Bosq & Pat Kalla have been traveling parallel paths from across the Atlantic ocean without ever intersecting for too long. They have both been deeply involved in the modern / retro Afro Disco scenes in their respective countries but it wasn’t until the legendary French producer & label head GUTS asked Bosq to remix Pat Kalla & Le Super Mojo “Canette” that they met musically. That remix was received so well by the public as well as the artists themselves that they decided to work on an original track together.

“Mouna Power”, sung in a mix of French, English & the Cameroonian dialect of Pat’s heritage places Pat’s smooth vocals over Bosq’s raw & heavily layered, percussion & horn driven Disco Funk. The Dance Dub strips back some of the vocals, pushes the percussion even further up in the mix, and stretches out the grooves, focusing more on the infectious B-section than the original. This makes for a perfect body moving excursion that will let the dancers delve deeper into the groove while being carried along by the horn blasts and Pat’s chanted vocals.

The record features the renowned horn section of the Bogota Orquesta Afrobeat, and djembe work from “Beto” Salas, a world class percussionist from Turbo on Colombias Caribbean coast. Bosq as usual handles all the rest of the percussion, instrumentation & production.

Guy Gerber’s Rumors recruits Öona Dahl and Amber Cox aka Slumber for a dose of psychedelic house on the ‘Twin Moon EP’ this May.

Slumber’s previous outings for the likes of Nervous, Viva Recordings and Desert Hearts have seen them push an otherworldly, dreamlike sound and this debut for Gerber’s imprint sees the pair turn in the most accomplished expression of their heady aesthetic to date.

Across the release, the duo displays their talent for crafting hypnotic and engaging tracks. From the wistful, muted vocals on ‘Envoke’ through to twinkling closer ‘Twin Moon’, understated atmospherics, soft tones and well-considered production take the forefront, leading the listener through their delicate sound.

Öona Dahl’s solo work has seen her grace the likes of Watergate, All Day I Dream and DJ Three’s Hallucienda and San Francisco-based Amber Cox’s has appeared on Motek Music and Occultists. Since 2009, the pair have been involved with Slumber, a project initially started in Florida from a shared passion for vivid electronic music.

Repress

After breaking into techno's big league in 2017, Belgium's Amelie Lens' career has been maintaining the same impelling tempo as her music releases - this time with the launch of her own label: LENSKE. Catapulting from her intimate vinyl only studio sets onto the world stage, Lens has maintained an unwavering commitment to techno's dark acidic grooves. After proving her skills in her Belgian back yard, Amelie Lens' name became one to watch out for on worldwide festival stages. Anyone who's caught one of her Exhale take over nights at Labyrinth knows the caliber of her curation, with past guests like Marcel Dettmann, Ellen Alien, Rødhad and Kobosil, a skill she's solidified in her production and DJing. Never one to miss a beat, Amelie Lens is coming off a big year with big plans for LENSKE. The idea for Lenske was born naturally out of Lens sitting down to produce a track with collaborator Sam Farrago. When Kobosil offered to do a remix, the idea of a fresh platform to release her own and friends' music started to make sense. Aimed at the deeper underground of Amelie's techno spectrum, Lenske is also built to expose younger emerging artists. With the second release by Milo Spykers already in the pipes, Lens sees her imprint beginning as a carefully selected vinyl only platform, which will expand into digital releases to ensure affordability for the scene she wants to inspire and support. Lenske is also intended to continue the strains addictively dark stabs and hooks that Lens established with her releases on Lyase Recordings, ARTS and Second State.LENSKE's first release by Farrago, "Risin", comes packing high velocity punches, including a collaboration with Amelie Lens and a remix from Kobosil. The EP's A side is packed near 12 minutes of crisp machine driven techno with Farrago's rattling peak-time "The Riddler" being the first to puncture. The title track, "Risin", will only be released as the Kobosil remix, a titanium tour of auditory horrors, which also borrows from the EP's other tracks. Lens' signature sultry vocal samples on the B side's "Jealousy" draw the contours of a jaw grinding banger, while "Hidden Power" rounds out the release with a blaring dance floor siren encased in exquisitely unpredictable arrangement.

Bristol hip hop duo release their debut 12” ahead of an album in July featuring a thumping electro remix by SURGEON (Dynamic Tension/ Tresor Records) and an extended remix by Ree-Vo themselves.

The lp ‘All Welcome on Planet Ree-Vo’ due for release in July could only really have been made in one city steeped as it is in Bristol’s decades of less conventional hip hop and bass music. Tweaked and fine tuned during the summer of 2020 the record punches with a mix of red eyed paranoia to a playful future funk.
T. Relly is pure Bristol hip hop royalty – known in the community variously for his links to all of the city’s major club nights, his passion and support for the most disadvantaged (through his work with the youth and prison leavers), through to compering stages at St Paul’s Carnival and his seminal 2018 lp with DJ Rogue ‘Let Them Know’

Andy Spaceland (AKA Andy Jenks) got involved in Bristol bass music as soon as he moved to the city with Static Sound System and a collaborative 12” with Rudy Tambala (AR Kane ) as Sugarboat Vs Sufi, before his band Alpha were signed to Massive Attack ’s label Melankolic, whilst he also became one of their tour DJ’s. His CV of collaborations range from Smith and Mighty to Madonna, and he is currently releasing music with US producer Butch Vig in the band 5 Billion in Diamonds , and working on new tracks with Mark Stewart (The Pop Group). His signature can be heard on this remix for Elizabeth Fraser

Ziad Rahbani’s cult album, “Bennesbeh Labokra...Chou?” originally
released in Lebanon only and mixing arabic music with Jazz, Bossa Nova and other western influences, is hailed as an absolute classic.
The album is the soundtrack to his eponymous play and has been highly soughtafter by DJs and collectors around the world. Curated by Lebanese-born music
expert Mario Choueiry from Institut du Monde Arabe in Paris, the album is
reissued on vinyl for the first time since 1978, featuring original gatefold sleeve,
remastered audio and a 2 page insert with a new introduction by Choueiry.
“Bennesbeh Labokra... Chou?” is a skilful blend of Arabic music and Bossa-nova
- “First Introduction” - the recurring theme of the album, groove - the funky
beat of “Second Introduction” and the jazz vibe of “Variation’s 3 and 4.” It’s also
interesting to hear an early version of “Al Bosta” which would grace Fairuz’s
1979 album “Wahdon” in a faster, funkier version.
With a knack for cinematic orchestrations reminiscent of Lalo Schifrin, Ziad
Rahbani also brings more complex arrangements to the album on such tracks
as “Variation 5” making the album such a rich listening. Undoubtedly one of
the most important albums recorded in the Middle East

In many ways, DJ Black Low's debut album, Uwami, shows the signs of an artist's first offering in any musical genre. Showcasing fluency in a broad range of styles and stuffing a number of ideas to the record's brim is the 20 year-old producer's attempt to both introduce himself to a wide listenership and stamp a recognizable sound in their minds. In other ways, somewhat out of the young South African producer's control, Uwami goes against the grain. The album comes at a time when South African electronic music is being fundamentally disrupted. Amapiano, the electronic music movement which first gained popularity with a small, core group of followers, now dominates the mainstream. Well-known and pervasive, amapiano borrows from a diverse palette of musical styles which are popular in South Africa's largely Black townshipsjazz, kwaito, dibacardi, deep and afro house among them. Instead of pandering to the seemingly insatiable local appetite and growing global penchant for amapiano though, on Uwami DJ Black Low seeks out the limits of the sound du jour and tries to stretch them. On his solo productions, he uses the samples and compositional norms that make amapiano hits the bedrock on which to experiment and improvise. With collaborators, DJ Black Low improvises within the boundaries of listener-friendly grooves. The sound he creates has foundations of what could easily have progressed into captivating amapiano songs on their own. But he uses improvised but structured electronic percussion and distortion sounds to drive the tracks in a particular direction. What remains is something like a deconstructed amapiano. For a young producer living in the townships of the greater Pitori area of South Africa's Gauteng province, there were few avenues available for Radebe to pursue a career in music. His trajectory shows the vulnerability of this pursuit. "I had started producing in 2013 and it so happened that I lost my equipment in 2014. I couldn't afford to buy equipment. In 2017, a friend of mine who had been making music found a job and decided to quit music. He gave me his equipment and I was able to start producing again. That's when I started getting back to it. I tried to pick up where I had left off, with hip hop and commercial house but I found that amapiano was the popular music. I liked it, so I started producing it."

KNTXT kicks off 2021 by welcoming exciting new talent ONYVAA to its ranks. The much vaunted DJ and producer debuts with her Lost Angeles EP, a superbly powerful four tracker that is perfectly at home on this agenda setting label.

ONYVAA is an LA based artist who has been on a swift rise up through the global techno ranks in the last couple of years. She brings classy Detroit, melodic and dub influences to her music, and her raw analog aesthetic always helps ensure her stylish tracks bring plenty of atmosphere to go alongside her strong modular live-sets. Now, she steps up with a much anticipated debut on Charlotte de Witte's KNTXT label having struck up a personal friendship with the influential artist.

Says ONYVAA, "Lost Angeles was inspired by my time back home in LA and things feeling a bit foreign to my everyday life pre-covid. I’m super grateful for all of Charlotte’s support and really proud to be a part of the KNTXT family. Hoping to play these tracks out on the dance floor soon!"

Opener 'The Way It Is' wastes no time in laying down a heavyweight techno groove that is run through with edgy, laser-like synth riffs. It's an all consuming wall rattler that will blow clubs away. 'Lucid' is a darkened techno roller again lit up with expertly designed synths that are bright yet menacing as distant vocal sounds add another layer of tension. It's an all out acid attack on 'LXD' which places you at the heart of a rave, strobe lights flashing, smoke in the air, darkness enveloping you. The title track closes out at hyper speed, with turbocharged drum programming, interwoven bass and clanking industrial motifs all getting you thoroughly in the zone.

Says Charlotte, "I met Shelby for the first time after a show in Athens. We visited the city the day after and instantly became friends. Whenever the opportunity would arise, we’d spend time together. I love being around the ball of energy that is Shelby and I’m beyond excited to have her and her music on my label. Expecting big things from her!”

This is a fantastic new signing for KNTXT and surely the start of even bigger things for ONYVAA.

I.JORDAN ist zurück und feiert mit ihrer neuen EP, „Watch Out!“, die erste Veröffentlichung für Ninja Tune.

Nach der sehr erfolgreichen und persönlichen EP, „For You“, die im letzten Jahr mit großem Erfolg veröffentlicht wurde (der Titeltrack der EP wurde von Resident Advisor auf Platz 1 der besten Tracks des Jahres 2020, vom Crack Magazine auf Platz 2 und von Pitchfork auf Platz 21 gewählt), ist „Watch Out!“ ein Feuerwerk an einzigartig gestalteter, energiegeladener Tanzmusik, die Indias euphorischen, bejahenden Sound in seiner stärksten Form zeigt. „Watch Out!“ ist stark von Bewegung inspiriert, sowohl in ihrer wörtlichen als auch in ihrer abstrakten Form, und India reflektiert darüber, wie diese Bewegung ihre Leben über die Jahre beeinflusst hat. Fast schon einem Klischee entsprechend sind die meisten Tracks von langen Reisen inspiriert. India beschreibt die Platte als „eine Hommage an sowohl physische als auch konzeptionelle Bewegung“, und ein Ergebnis ihrer eigenen Bewegungsmuster, das letztes Jahr durch einen Lockdown zwingend verändert wurde. Obwohl die meisten ihrer Shows im Jahr 2020 abgesagt wurden, hatten die in Doncaster geborenen und in London lebenden Künstler*innen, die als eine der aufregendsten Dance-Music-Produzierenden des Augenblicks gehandelt werden, ein ziemlich erfolgreiches Jahr und zeigt keine Anzeichen für eine Verlangsamung. „For You“ wurde im Mai 2020 auf Local Action veröffentlicht und erhielt sofort beeindruckende Kritiken von Medien wie hierzulande Groove und international Pitchfork (8.0), NME (5/5), Clash (8/10), Resident Advisor, Mixmag, The Guardian, Bandcamp, Dazed und mehr. India gewann außerdem den Preis „Best Breakthrough Producer“ bei den jährlichen DJ Mag Best of British Awards und wurde von Pete Tong zu seinem „Breakout Star of the Year“ in seiner Show bei BBC Radio 1 ernannt.

GEORGIA's new kaleidoscopic hyper-music-entity "State Effect (Accel)" expands the NYC's duo project in a high-dimensional phase space—and does so within their all-kind-of-music frame.

State Effect (Accel) is happening this very moment, it is a positive cry for change—a brilliant plan.

This record is "viscous" — whatever I do, wherever I am, it sort of "sticks" to me.

It is "nonlocal" — its 'accelerated' effects are globally distributed through a huge tract of time. It forces me to experience time in an unusual way.

It is "phased" — I only experience pieces of it at any one time.

It is "inter-objective" — it consists of all kinds of other/multiple entities but it is not reducible to the sum of its parts.

This music reveals the present and its psychic dimension, no titles could have been more relevant.

Justin Tripp and Brian Close's new kaleidoscopic hyper-music-entity expands their GEORGIA project in a high-dimensional phase space. A great work of cognitive music mapping that plots all the states of a system — Lovely bubbly HTML.

The eight tracker long playing make extensive use of the vocal participation of Paris/Berlin-based artist/DJ MARYLOU aka OISEAU DANSEUR and Gabi Asfour of visionary NY fashion collective threeASFOUR.

Legendary NYC house label Strictly Rhythm is celebrating a mammoth 3 decades of cutting edge, roof-raising house music. Truly a benchmark.

Originally founded in 1989 by the dynamic pairing of music industry man Mark Finkelstein and A&R expert Gladys Pizarro, Strictly tapped directly into the fertile New York underground and after hours club scene, helping to launch and bolster the recording careers of dance music luminaries like Armand Van Helden, Roger Sanchez, Ultra Nate, Todd Terry, Wamdue Project, DJ Sneak, Louie Vega and many more. Strictly Rhythm is easily one of the most recognisable and respected dance music powerhouses of all time.

Across 3 limited double vinyl offerings, the Strictly catalogue has been expertly picked over to present you with a snapshot of some of the most earth shattering house music to emanate from the streets of New York City. A who's who of producers and artists, all killer and no filler. End to end classics that help to tell the story of one of dance music's most well loved labels. Classic cuts and essentials from DJ Sneak, Wamdue Project, Louie Vega (Sole Fusion), Essence and more all feature on part 2 in their unedited, 12" mix glory.

Fully legit, remastered and selected with love courtesy of Strictly Rhythm and Above Board distribution for 2020. Happy birthday Strictly Rhythm!

Clear Vinyl

Rumors is the hotly anticipated new label from Guy Gerber. This first release is from Guy in collaboration with the legendary Dixon. The fantastic new single comes with a magic remix from Lake People.

Guy Geber has never been busier than in the last year or so, shaping up Pacha in Ibiza with his Wisdom of the Glove night. As well as that, he continues to DJ around the world and steer his Supplemental Facts label through the freshest house and techno sounds around. Dixon, meanwhile, is famed for his deep and classy house sound as a DJ and as part of the influential Innervisions crew. His productions are met with a great response, as was evidenced by his recent remix of Mathew Jonson’s ‘Level 7’ on Crosstown Rebels.

‘No Distance’ is a deep and moody bit of house that builds slowly and surely in expertly crafted layers. With harmonic bell-like melodies, jangling, loose percussion and a killer bass guitar line, it’s perfectly poised for the labewls’ debut release and sure to make a big impact. Bearing the hallmarks of both producers, this is a serene and seductively musical track that will be the perfect pinnacle of any DJ set.

Lake People have remixed the likes of Chymera and Kollektiv Turmstrasse and have released on labels like Permanent Vacation and Connaisseur before now. Their remix reworks the track into something a little darker and more direct. A muddle of rubbery beats underpins trippy melodies and forlorn pads as gorgeous synth lines bring plenty of late night emotion to the track.

This is a stunning first release on Rumors that is sure to spread like wild fire.

eon Vynehall veröffentlicht den Nachfolger seines von der Kritik gefeierten Debütalbums auf Ninja Tune!

Auf „Rare, Forever“ erforscht Vynehall zum ersten Mal, wer er als Mensch und Künstler im einzelnen, jeweiligen Moment ist, anstatt in die Vergangenheit zu schauen, um herauszufinden, was und wer ihn geprägt hat. Das Ergebnis enthält dann zwar mehrere Seiten von ihm, aber Abwechslung ist etwas, an das Vynehall in seiner Kunst gewöhnt ist, so beschrieb er in seinem Resident Advisor Podcast 2018, dass er den Dancefloor „links und rechts, oben und unten“ mitnimmt. Auf „Rare, Forever“ begibt er sich auf eine Sieger-Runde. Das Album ist eine wunderbare Mischung aus allem, was er bisher gemacht hat, und bleibt dabei wirklich progressiv; das Endergebnis klingt wie „Nothing Is Still“, nur, dass die Erzählung abgeschwächt und der Dancefloor aufgedreht wurde. „Rare, Forever“ wird sich für Fans von Vynehalls DJ-Kicks-Mix oder seinen eklektischen Ausflügen beim weltbekannten Community-Radio NTS vertraut anfühlen, während es gleichzeitig anders klingt als alles, was er bisher gemacht hat. Auch wenn es viele Dancefloor-Erinnerungen und -Momente gibt, ist es keineswegs eine reine Dance-Platte - stattdessen ist „Rare, Forever“ die klarste Repräsentation des breiten Spektrums an Musik, die er bisher gemacht hat. Zuletzt hat Vynehall mit dem „Studio Ooze“ einen neuen Aufnahmeraum eingerichtet, um seine Kollaborationen zu erweitern und hat für Leute wie Kam-Bu, Wesley Joseph, Kenzie TTH und Jeshi geschrieben und produziert, die in naher Zukunft ihre jeweiligen Tracks veröffentlichen werden.

The MUSHROOM HOUSE compilation is a collection of balearic, afro and cosmic disco tracks that have been released on several Toy Tonics EPs over the last 5 years. Toy Tonics now releases some of these EPs on a double vinyl together. This is the second part. Featuring eleven tracks. (Vol 1 was released in 2020.)

Original tracks and remixes by friends of the label: Kiwi, Red Axes, Karl Hector, Hugo Capablanca, Harry Wolfman. Very special contributions by New York's legendary Joe Claussell and fashion designer Marcelo Burlon, who contributed the vocals to a song by Milan’s Barking Dogs. Art Alfie from Studio Barnhus is featured also with an exclusive track and legendary DJ Sprinkles with a magic rework of a Hard Ton song.

A few of the tracks had been already released on Gomma records. The now sleeping indie-electronica label that was the „mother“ of Toy Tonics records. Some were made exclusively for Toy Tonics.

17 Track compilation of all of their studio recordings, remastered and pressed on Electric Blue Vinyl. Presented in gatefold sleeve with never seen before photographs ,a printed lyric inner sleeve and poster.
The VIP’s were formed in 1978 while at Warwick University. Within weeks they were gigging at clubs in the Midlands, often on the same bill as THE SPECIALS in Coventry. Soon they found a manager, Clive Solomon, who with Timmy Mallet (now a TV and Radio presenter) and both students at the university, financed the group’s first single the EP ‘Music For Funsters. In the summer of 1978 they built up a loyal following in London. The single was picked up by John Peel, who played it constantly on his BBC radio show through the year. The 3 track EP, featuring ‘I’m Perfect’, ‘I Believe’ and ‘Boys of the City’ was released on Clive Solomon’s own ‘Bust’ label.
In 1979 the VIP’s could be found playing all over the country, frequently on the same bill as Squire, stablemates on Clive Solomon’s label.
In early 1980 they went into Olympic Studios in Chiswick to record some tracks with ex-THE ANIMALS bass player and SLADE/Jimi Hendrix manager Chas Chandler. The track ‘I Thought You Were My Friend’ was recorded at these sessions A few weeks later a major record deal was agreed with Gem Records/RCA and ‘Causing Complications’ came out in March. To coincide with the release the VIP’s went on tour supporting SECRET AFFAIR.
After the tour the single ‘The Quarter Moon’ was released, another track produced by Mike Leander. It received extensive airplay around the UK and beyond, and was also picked as BBC Radio 1’s Record of The Week by DJ Mike Reid on his Morning Show, as well as being Radio Luxembourg’s ‘Power Play’ for two weeks. The constant touring, recording and radio play had earned them a spot on Top of The Pops but they were suddenly told -on the afternoon that they were due to appear - that an industrial dispute at the BBC had resulted in the show being cancelled. Disappointed, they continued to record and tour, this time with MADNESS, THE BEAT and DEXYS MIDNIGHT RUNNERS amongst others. This time Bob Seargent (of The BEAT and HAIRCUT 100 fame) was recruited to give ‘Need Somebody To Love’ that sparkle and edge to capture The VIP’s live sound on vinyl. Although perhaps the most representative of the band’s sound, Top of The Pops again eluded them.
By the end of 1980 the VIP’s were selling in Spain, Germany, Italy and France through the RCA label but they seemed to be losing heart with the business. Illness -Jed had been touring with a collapsed lung - and tensions saw the band play their last concert at Leicester University. A fourth and final GEM single, ‘Things Aren’t What They Used To Be’ (a song taken from their earlier Mike Leander recording sessions) proved to be their last. With several songs still to be recorded, it was a frustrating time for all.
Paul Shurey and Guy Morley has already made alternative plans for THE NEW VIP’s and recruited Simon Smith from THE MERTON PARKAS to play drums while Paul returned to his native keyboards. With Tony Conway on guitar and Andy Godfrey on bass they became MOOD SIX.
Paul Shurey played a central part in the birth and proliferation of the Rave movement in the 80’s, 90’s and 2,000’s, initiating a great a great many DANCE RAVES all around the world. Very sadly he died in 2017. He was also a gifted artist/cartoonist, and it’s his picture which graces the album’s sleeve. He is a brother very greatly missed.
Guy Morley works in film editing and Andrew Price is involved in developing community projects in and around his native Bristol.
“We became lifelong friends and shared a great and very exciting rock and roll dream.”

When Nkrumah Jah Thomas hit Number 1 on the
Jamaican Charts in 1976 with his debut single
‘Midnight Rock’ on Alvin Ranglin’s GG label it gave the
new DJ a theme song and an entry into the world of
music. Within three years he had launched his
Midnight Rock label and, alongside more music under
his own name, he produced a series of classics by the
likes of Tristan Palmer, Anthony Johnson, Early B and
many more.
In 1997 he signed a deal with Acid Jazz’s Roots label
and since then his career as a producer has been
developed and anthologised; the release of a series of
archive King Tubby and Scientist mixes, the use of his
masters to be sampled by Nas (on ‘The Don’), Protoje
and others, plus reissues of his classic albums.
To celebrate 40 years of Midnight Rock, Thomas went
back into his tape archive to unearth another 10
tracks, either with original vocals or guest names
brought in.
Behind original rhythms recorded at Channel 1, Tuff
Gong and others, featuring the Roots Radics and The
Midnight Rock Band and mixed in places like King
Jammy’s and Tubby’s we are presented with a line-up
of stellar talent - Linval Thompson with the plaintive ‘I
Can Be Your Man’, the forthright Super Cat on ‘Me
Glad She Gone’ and Luciano on the rare ‘Good Thing
Goin’ On’. They are joined by Courtney Melody,
Pinchers and Joesy Wales, Daville and more. Keeping
the circle complete, Thomas appears on two tracks,
including the future classic ‘Sounds A Go Dead
Tonight’ with Junior Vibes.

Selectors Choice is a collection of Reggae tunes from some of the best producers and artists cut to limited edition vinyl.

The 12"s concentrate on compiling tracks of the same riddim that have never been released together that include unreleased versions and brand new releases. They are specifically catered for any Reggae collector, selector and DJ

The first Azu Tiwaline's album, after been acclaimed by DJs like Lena Willikens, upsammy, Shanti Celeste and a bunch of electronic medias (Bandcamp, RA, Crack), is now remixed by a Lyon-Bristol-Berlin trifecta of similarly minded rhythmic innovators - twisting and warping her work into new shapes, featuring Don't DJ, Laksa & Flore reinterpretations.

Nothing happens overnight. Behind every emergence, there’s years of work, thought and preparation - both intentional and unconscious - that’s gone unseen.

So the past year might have been a ‘breakout’ year for Azu Tiwaline, but it was really built over two decades of experimentation, soul-searching - both creative and personal - and exploration. “A new name for a new spirit” as she likes to say, but with an unmistakable identity rooted in her history and ancestry.

On her debut album as Azu Tiwaline, Draw Me A Silence, a record released in two parts with her family at I.O.T. , she fused together two halves of her own heritage, inspired by a new home in the desert. Personal history collided with family heritage: half step rhythms from a career in bass music met the warm winds and wide open silence of El Djerid in Tunisia.

When music is sincere and honest, it tends to reverberate more widely, and deeply. The tracks written for the Magnetic Service EP were sent to one label and one label only, Livity Sound, who picked it up instantly. Something about the spacious, yet dense sonics - crafted with the help of percussionist Cinna Peyghamy - resonated with listeners starved of both the community of the dancefloor and the space of the outside world. The EP became one of the Bristol label’s most heralded releases of 2020, featuring in end of year coverage from Bandcamp to Resident Advisor.

Beneath the calm of her productions, a restless spirit inhabits Azu, born out of months and years spent on the road. In 2020, it was her music that took her places. She put together a series of podcast mixes that echoed the percussive, rhythmic curves of her own productions, for Boiler Room, Dekmantel and Crack Mag. She distilled Fazer Drums’ percussive experiments into dubby downtempo with a remix, and contributed her most rooted track yet - Violet Curves with Cinna Peyghamy - to On the Corner’s Door to The Cosmos compilation.

This will be followed by the Extended version of the album with a gorgeous ambient bonus track “Eyes of the Wind”, accompanied by a video clip directed by Azu Tiwaline, shot in her desert lands. This track will be appearing in a digital reupload reunifying Draw Me A Silence Part.I and II. As a sort of final chapter of this debut album.

As for the rest? We’ll see what 2021 has to offer for both the world and Azu Tiwaline. In the meantime, take inspiration from her music: keep the tempo steady, let some light in, and listen for the silence.

"...a swirl of the bedrock elements that make up modern music, his LP lifts from Soul, Funk and Hip-Hop to create this ode to Detroit House."
A NATION OF MILLIONS

EARLY SUPPORT FROM ALEXANDER NUT ("Tight beats from Snips as always. Dexters Pain is my fave here. Big ups"), KARIZMA ("Proud to hear a friend grow musically, great work on the album my friend...Full Support. K'), RED RACK'EM, SK VIBEMAKER

SNIPS delivers the first vinyl release on Houseology. The Barbershop LP is a tongue in cheek play on the production techniques Todd Worsnip aka Snips normally uses when making his Hip-Hop work. This 8 track LP is meeting of the two worlds of House and Hip-Hop tapping into Snips' raw ability to find the best cuts and chops needed for any genre.

DJ Snips began his career at legendary London record store Deal Real', where he ran the open mic night alongside British host and comedian Doc Brown, Snips' years at Deal Real saw him DJ'ing alongside performances from several US heavy hitters including Kanye West, Mos Def and the Black Eyed Peas.

Snips' knack for manoeuvring through a wide range of Hip Hop oeuvres has seen him play around the world, Specifically in NYC where he has been a guest at legendary parties including Everyday People, Bible Study, Mobile Mondays and Ginny's Supper Club. As well as being a regular in NY, Snips has also headlined events in The Philippines, Australia, Germany, Hong Kong, The Netherlands, Qatar, France, Norway and Spain. When Snips isn't touring or on the Club circuit, he's known for churning out beats for some of the most talented MCs on both sides of the Atlantic. His production work includes tracks for several major US recording artists including M1 (Dead Prez), Capadonna (Wu Tang), Sean Price.

Work on the Houseology record label allows Snips the opportunity to articulate himself even more so within his skilled production, by drawing a definitive line between the House/Hip-Hop relationship which has existed for years.

Recline Music founder Nicco (N.D) returns on the label this April, delivering his grooving single 'Lost Universe', accompanied by a remix from Javonntte. Florence native Nicco (N.D) is a long-standing player within the house music scene. Producing since the late 90s, he has previously performed as a singer and guitarist before joining forces alongside Ivano Coppola to launch their Recline Music imprint. He has worked with DJ T., Oxia, Clarian and many others, whilst releasing over one-hundred tracks and gaining support from Marco Carola, Joris Voorn and Steve Bug.

The remixer of this package is Detroit-based Javonntte. Since the early nineties, he has been producing music and has collaborated with legendary producers including Blake Baxter, Amp Fiddler and Andres in his formative years, whilst his solo releases have landed on Quintessentials, Traxx Underground and Kai Alce's NDATL.

'Lost Universe' is a glistening deep house track that effortlessly combines luscious chords with rising pads and blissful keys to transport listeners on a hypnotic journey. Javonntte's interpretation reveals a feel-good affair, as fathomless bassline sequences fuse with kinetic drum programming and dubby chords - wrapping up this enchanting offering in style.

BEN SIMS: Sweet remix from Javonntte!

DJ BONE: Funky! I love it

STACEY PULLEN: Solid Tracks

SHUR-I-KAN: Javonntte remix is nice and summery!

FRED P: Nice one..

KAI ALCE: Javonntte remix hard, deep & HOT!

PHIL DAIRMOUNT: Javontte remix for me

SPATIAL AWARENESS: Love the OG

TELFORT: Real nice ! :)

BILL BREWSTER: Original's nice.

CRAIG SMITH: Real nice Javonette remix

DIZ: Really Nice!!

FRED EVERYTHING: Very nice Javonntte Remix!

Deepology presents the final EP of the ‘Four Seasons’ series. Four releases, vinyl only, each corresponding to a specific season of the year. Quality deep and underground house gems from past and present.

Mr. Fedor Velyaminov aka Cossway, a Russian producer currently based in Paris kicks things off. ‘Raw Feelings’ is an ethereal journey exploring the depths of deep and tech house whilst firmly placing its sights on the dancefloor appropriate.

Next up Andrey Djackonda & Minube, our friends from Moldova. These guys have got groove and style in abundance. ‘Softly’ is a modern minimal interpretation of deep house, ranging from more traditional house vibes to somewhat abstract deep and dreamy moods.

On the flip side, Erefaan Pearce, a legend of Cape Town house music in collaboration with Perspektif let loose ‘H O U S E’. The track originally appeared digitally back in 2010, but this is the first time it has been pressed to vinyl. True classic deeeeep-house gem.

Finally, a lovely tune by Dance Chance Romance, a contemporary dance music project by Kyoto DJ and producer Yusuke Yamamoto. Having released more than 20 vinyl albums on various labels around the world his work is not influenced by trends and is highly valued for its unique sound.

Limited Edition of 300 copies. Pressed on black vinyl with white disco bag.

Lothian Buses’ is an EP of genre collisions with Proc Fiskal amalgamating his twinkling, caffeinated grime sound with the rhythms and sounds of other genres, without ever overthinking it. To kick off, ‘Thurs Jung Yout’ is a kind of shoegaze drill with strings and gentle tones swelling and dissipating against busy drill beats. ‘Baguettes’ is a more classic Proc sound, a galloping rhythm against a sparse melody that was a quick fix up for a show that turned out well. ‘Choco Frito (Calamari)’ was influenced by the good life, DJing in Portugal in the sunshine and hearing Kuduro played out. The latticing drum patterns nod to the style, dropping into a sunny accordion chorus with a plucked guitar line. ‘Scarab Aloph’ is Proc's style compressed, full of micro-glitches, tight drum fills and incidental drop-outs across a pretty melody, while ‘HopeTak2’ is his percussive, breezy take on funky house with smiley melodic stabs. Finally, ‘Mullit Madollock’ takes the sonics of airy Bukem-style atmospheric jungle, an instantly recognisable inspiration that's not been as foregrounded in Proc’s work before, refitted and updated with grime-inspired melodic bass kicks.

This album is a celebration of benga and rumba music recorded in Nairobi, Kenya in the early 1980s. The five Kenyan groups chosen all feature "Boys" in their band names in one form or another; a common theme in Kenyan music at that time.

The tracks selected were all released as 7" vinyl singles on the Boxer, Lulus and Hit Parade labels, which were all part of Babu Shah's Audio Productions stable. This is the first time they have been released outside of Kenya.

No Wahala Sounds are proud to bring you these lost musical gems and would like to thank Doug Paterson for digital clean up from the original vinyl.

Due for release on 09 April 2021. Interest for airplay from Tom Ravenscroft and Gideon Coe from BBC 6 Music, DJ Ritu from Resonance FM/SOAS Radio, Roger Hill from BBC Merseyside, Steve Barker from BBC Lancashire, and DJ Debbie Golt from Resonance FM.

KingUnderground releases Other Mirror’s debut record. The album is mixed by legendary engineer ‘No Sleep’ Nigel, who has worked with a plethora of the UK Hip-Hop scene since the late ‘80s.
Other Mirror are James Tilley, Amelie Chevalier and Jonny Cuba. The 3 formed the band in 2018. They had talked for many years about starting a project together and after several years of pursuing their own creative endeavors, the school friends found themselves reunited and finally creating music with one another. Although the Self Titled LP is Other Mirror’s band debut, they’re far from newcomers. Jonny Cuba has been an active musician since the late 90s, with other collaborative highlights including The Herbaliser, Mike James Kirkland, and production for legendary British Library labels KPM, Bruton, and Cavendish. Tilley has had multiple releases with his first band, Fabric, from the early, to late 90s, and has collaborations with DJ Food, and recording sessions with John Peel. Chevalier is an accomplished vocal coach, dancer, and choreographer with various session work, including live shows at Glastonbury Festival, and Bestival. Rounding out the trio with her mystical vocal delivery and groovy bass lines.

The results of the band’s initial collaborations feel reminiscent of a Quintin Taratino movie, cinematic and groovy in nature. Other Mirror are particularly drawn to the power of music within film and TV. It’s ability to support and affect the narrative is similar to how the band taps into direct emotions.

“The music can be partially improvised with unexpected sections. Like films are made in the edit, we follow a similar approach when we are composing.” - Amelie Chevalier

The Other Mirror debut reflects the bands long standing rapport together. It often feels like there is a conversation happening within the music between the old friends. Their unconventional approach to composing adds a familiar flavor in each track on their self-titled LP.

Planetself return with ‘The Chosen’, an exciting new collaboration with LA-based producer extraordinaire Daniel Crawford (known for his creative mixtapes and live work with artists such as Raphael Saadiq and Mary J Blige). The track also features the vocal talents of legendary US underground wordsmith Blurum13.

Planetself producer Inkswel became aware of Daniel Crawford’s work through his latest album ‘Revolution’ on Wicked Wax and his well-renowned ‘Flip Wilson’ mixtape series. He then asked Crawford to remix a track from the Planetself back catalogue, but this turned into a complete flip and rework manifested as a new song we are now proud to unleash on the world.

‘The Chosen’ is all about the newest generation of kids coming up who have been chosen by the universe to be a part of this crazy time on our planet. Our people’s evolution to bring about change and revolution in a time that we need it like we’ve never needed it before! They hold within them the love and light and strength needed to turn this world around. It’s up to all of us. If you are here now this includes you. We are all The Chosen.”

Sit back and absorb the soul-drenched, feel good vibes of ‘The Chosen’. Let the sound move you to make a positive change in the world today.

EDSEVEN
Sydney DJ/Producer Edseven has built a rock solid reputation over the last 15 years, sharing the stage DJing with the likes of Gilles Peterson, Peanut Butter Wolf, Norman Jay, IG Culture and many more across Australia, Berlin, Detroit and Amsterdam.

Always eclectic, his selections joining the dots between styles and eras with skill and respect – never losing focus on the dancers.

His latest release ‘Freaky (Meet me halfway)’ is no different. A djembe led future soul burner blessed by the legendary London vocalist Colonel Red’s scorching voice with Canadian duo Potatohead People flipping it into a dripping 80’s Boogie track.

Following 2012's acclaimed Red Nail album, machine manipulator, DJ, collector and music auteur, Cherrystones has been consistently working - composing, producing, editing, educating, programming, soundtracking and performing.

Biding time, considering and now ready to present the latest instalment of his journey. After completing the Critical Mass compilation - with part 2 due late 2020 - he left London for Scotland for two years to isolate. An experiment to truly find himself, with no social circle or need to engage, the objective to alchemise and create.

Building an intensive, all analogue studio running to 1/4 & 2 tape, the majority of these recordings are the emotions and moods drawn from this detoxification. The widescream Rave Digger, horror-haus Lavid Grinch show a more expansive Cherrystones. The occult beats of Uhuru Glue lead to the anthem Amaziac, with it's organic AFX rising, before again down to future beats of Silver Soarde and closer, Sethodone Recess Plant.

A musical blacksmith, a magician, conjurer a part of me i knew existed but have never fully spoken to or back to, i saw the sun rise and the clouds swarm, i saw dark settle and as the process speaks for itself they were aged in Bronze, dawn of man-man of dawn.

There’s something new under the sun. If you look at it closely,
something new is only (and always) created at crossroads –
when different and signi¦cant traditions are connected and
combined. On their own, these traditions have often existed
for a while. However, in this new form they have never
appeared together. The latest manifestation of something
new can now be found on the album “No Future Dubs”, the
interpretations of “No Future Days” – the most recent album
by German band Messer – by Finnish producer and old
friend of the group Kimmo Saastamoinen aka Toto Belmont.
The intentional traditions that merge on this grand and
digni¦ed album are post-punk, dub and techno. A new
chapter in the culturally constant narrative of dub is written
here. Through their past and parallel activities in hardcore
and post-punk bands, Messer drummer Philipp Wulf met and
befriended Kimmo, originally a drummer too. In their
continuous dialogue discussing their musical journey, Philipp
and Kimmo over the years more and more immersed
themselves in the aesthetic possibilities of dub and reggae.
Indeed, lots of musicians do not listen to the type of music at
home that they write and play in their respective projects
(Take me as an example: House is the music that I produce
and put on as a DJ. On my own, I listen to various stuff,
music by Monk and Messer for example). The same applies
to the protagonists involved here. By discussing dub und
through Toto Belmont’s steadily increasing producingexpertise, the idea of creating dub versions of selected
Messer tracks was born. The Messer album “No Future
Days”, released in 2020, proved to contain the perfect raw
material as the songs on this album are already produced in
a much more transparent way than on previous LPs – and
are hence more suitable for dub. Still, it’s a giant leap from
the originals to the dubs. These add a third dimension to the
described character of the post-punk/dub amalgam: techno.
The result is a sound that hasn’t existed before, especially
not with German lyrics (which scarcely, however, carry
meaning or messages here. Hendrik Otremba’s voice is used
more like an instrument, as if he was the ghostly ¦gure which
he often sings about and which now §oats and screams
through the sound space). The history of mutual contact and
in§uence of (post-)punk and dub (reggae), which Messer
have kept on writing, is glorious and reaches back far in
musical history. Still, it has always been a rather marginal
chapter not only in punk but also in dub history. But already
in the beginnings of punk (the British version, less the
American one), the presence and in§uence of reggae was
obvious in many places as both are united in their resolute
attitude as rebel music. This is how the two genres
recognized each other – especially the punks regarded
reggae as rebellious. As is known, already Johnny Rotten
mainly listened to dub in private. By using the name John
Lydon, he then – together with bass player Jah Wobble –
established the group PiL as one of the most exemplary
bands at the crossroads of dub and punk. The Slits, Pop
Group, Killing Joke, The Ruts and last but not least The Clash
along with the Mick Jones offshoot Big Audio Dynamite –
the thriving British music scene in the early 80s was full of
dub-in§uenced acts. The echoes meandered everywhere. In
the USA, it took longer until the in§uence of dub became
noticeable and it has never been as distinctive as in the UK.
The history of US hardcore, however, cannot be told without
bands like Bad Brains from Washington D.C. who on their
albums occasionally inserted conscious reggae and dub
tracks between breakneck hardcore tracks. Another
important group is Blind Idiot God who similarly included
dub tracks on their LPs – the contrast between densely
droning rock tunes and widely breathing dub versions can be
experienced very vividly here. In the 90s, dub’s in§uence on
post-punk decreased while turning up even more distinctively
somewhere else: Techno was in many respects susceptible
to dub, to say nothing of the music from the so-called British
hardcore continuum (jungle, drum & bass etc.), which directlydeveloped from dub and reggae. But also “pure” techno –
meaning techno without breakbeats – discovered its a¨nity
for the possibilities of dub at an early stage, in England for
instance in projects like Left¦eld or The Orb. In addition, the
project Rhythm & Sound was established in Berlin with close
ties to the Hardwax record store. With regard to this project,
you can’t really say where dub ends and where techno begins
(or vice versa) because of the interconnection of the two
genres here – everything is based on the steppers pulse
which links the two styles like a common DNA. With dub
techno a new genre was created. Until the present day, there
are producers who don’t produce anything else and DJs who
don’t put on any other music. The Messer dubs are
characterized by a grand majestic manner and force that
presumably someone like Mad Professor is able to produce
and that is also inherent in many Scandinavian productions
of the last 15 years; a crystal-clear aesthetic which locates
itself far away from Kingston or Brixton, but features a pulse
referring clearly to Berlin and Helsinki. The songs appear in a
completely new and deconstructed form, the instruments are
exclusively used as particles and raw material, not as riffs;
merely glaring guitar textures ¦ll the wide dub space. There
are many new elements that were added by Toto Belmont,
especially synthesizer sounds and drums. The ¦nal result
creates an enormous aesthetic power and dignity, and an
atmosphere you don’t want to leave anymore. “No Future” is
a well-chosen title as a reference to the protagonists’ punk
association; as a main thrust of the album, however, a
comma between these two words is imaginable as well.

SWINGROWERS are an Italian quartet from Sicily. They have been at the forefront of the electro swing scene for many years but have evolved beyond it more recently. Their constant touring and festival appearances from Boomtown to Glastonbury's Avalon stage, from Tokyo's Blue Note club to tours in India and more have secured them a large international following while their YouTube videos regularly reach multi-million views. Starting as a DJ/Vocal duo with the debut album in 2012, via the 5 piece band on Remote (2014) to the current line-up on Outsidein (2018) they are now poised to release their best album yet and take things up another level.

HYBRID is a lyrically ambitious project held together by ecological themes but what really sets this apart is the brilliant melodic work of a tightly-knit group working perfectly together, plus exemplary musicianship in the gypsy guitar work and alto sax department, coupled with a gorgeous voice and brilliant, original production work. This album is their masterpiece. Usual support expected from previous supporters like Craig Charles and BBC 6 Music, but this album is also likely to reach out to a much wider audience than before. SWINGROWERS have also been lucky to have many significant syncs and this album is expected to generate many more. In particular future single and video WANNABE has the standout qualities of an anthem, concerning itself with female empowerment and individuality that will have wide appeal.

Seminal UK-Rave act Altern 8 drop first single in 27 years.

Entitled ‘Hard Crew’, the release has been a fixture of Altern 8’s live sets for the past five years and is the first release since 1993’s ‘Everybody’ on the legendary Network Records imprint.

Accompanied by remixes from Denham Audio, Samurai Breaks feat DJM and Mechanizm & Kin, the unabashed UK hardcore track is being released to help fund the WeAreViable campaign which seeks to pressure the UK Government into supporting the arts and events industry during the Coronavirus pandemic.

Altern 8’s impact on electronic music cannot be overstated with Mark Archer and former member Chris Peat first pairing up as Nexus 21 before donning their trademark dust masks and shaping the nascent UK rave sound while simultaneously achieving international commercial and critical success.

Altern 8’s ‘Hardcrew’ is released on Stafford North with a percentage of profits going to the WeAreViable campaign.

Zona Utopica Garantita is a electronic punk project born from the join of Frasco (Bloodygrave & Die Lust), Jules (Cronaca e Preghiera) and Danilo Fatur (CCCP Fedeli alla Linea) . Machine-gunned electropunk + teutonic body music+poetry is their formula. ZUG!, ZUG!, ZUG! Ltd. Edition EP comes presented in a ONE-OFF truly limited edition of 200 copies lacquered pressed on 180 gr. high quality SOLID BLACKvinyl. All tracks have been specially remastered for LONG CUT vinyl by Daniel Hallhuber at Young and Cold Studios.

Bad Colours is the moniker of London-born, Maryland-raised, Brooklyn-based DJ and producer Ibe Soliman. With influences of garage from both sides of the Atlantic as well as funk, post-disco, proto-house and rap samples; his debut album 'PINK' is set for release by Bastard Jazz on 26th February 2021.

The drive to record an album came about while isolating at home in Flatbush during the COVID-19 pandemic. Inspired by some rough ideas and samples that friends sent him, Ibe focussed his attention on making music. From time well spent soaking up and storing sounds from clubs around the world, Ibe found, now with the time to dedicate towards it, the tracks flooding out. Taking cues from early Trax records and Larry Heard, the UKG musicality of MJ Cole, Todd Edwards' vocal sampling techniques, the brashness of Bmore, and an encyclopedia of disco, funk and soul knowledge; Ibe got to work and quickly compiled more than enough tracks for a full-length release.

Flowing from the album intro 'PINK!', first single 'Cookin' vibes over a Chris Faust sample and saxophone from south California virtuoso Carras Paton. 'Feelin' Like' was originally built around a short vocal sample by Jarv Dee, but grew to include additional lyrics on black power from the Seattle rapper after he heard it: "Dancey stuff with a message" says Ibe.

Slow jam 'Heyyy', with its preemptive lyrical synths, bridges to the album's next single 'Get You Off'. Ibe had been listening to a lot of Marvin Gaye - particularly 'I Want You' - during lockdown, getting into the production and vocals. After writing the "I just wanna get you off" hooks, he handed the track over to talented singer, actor and playwright Marcus Harmon who wrote the verses and provided the stunning vocal performance.

Keeping the sensual vibe, 'Skin To Skin' samples vocals from 'Private Play' by Wash 'N' Set, also produced by Ibe, with the Chris Isaak-esque guitar lines by Lex from Foreign Tapes. Made late at night, CMYK reminded Ibe of driving at night in the rain in NYC, where the colors bleed together on the wet road while 'Boss', the first track made for the album, is based around a Sunny Jones sample. The closing track 'Feel' was made at the peak of Black Lives Matter protests. "I just wanted something hard sounding," says Ibe.

Known for his residencies at some of New York's top venues, Ibe has been rocking crowds as a DJ for over a decade, and has shared the decks with the likes of James Murphy, Mark Ronson, and Q-Tip. He's performed alongside Wiz Khalifa, Snoop Dogg, Pusha T, and Young Thug, to name a few. In high demand as a private party curator, he's helped set the tone for Jeff Koons, FKA Twigs, Justin Timberlake, Travis Scott, and Usher. When Ibe's not behind the decks, he's in the lab, where he's produced for Kendrick Lamar, Faith Evans, Keyshia Cole, and Rick Ross, among others.

2023 Repress


it’s happening again: dj, producer and dial records co-owner lawrence produced his fourth album for mule musiq. and once more, another very special one. the berlin-based artist wrote nine new arrangements specifically for “studio mule”, the new audiophile listening bar that mule musiq's head-honcho toshiya kawasaki recently opened in shibuya, tokyo. it features an exquisite vintage hi-fi sound system, a small record shop, craft liquor and beer as well as an extensive natural wine collection. “toshiya's wine and listening bar was the inspiration for the project. i followed the idea of listening to music in this (for me imaginary) place on a magic vintage sound system, slightly drunk with an always special drink in my hand! the music is therefore also very eccentric and “tipsy”, improvised on acoustic instruments, synthesizers and computer, combined with recordings i did in berlin's central tiergarten park.” lawrence acknowledges the imaginative superstructure above his new album and his mode of operating during the recordings. the records is called “birds on the playground” and features deep pulsating music, that unfolds its true absorbing character when the auditor listens care-fully to the detailed storytelling of lawrence. like always his tunes got a special, radiant pulse, that somehow is a signature sign of most of his productions. playful cosmic grooves, light-hearted, crafted with love and yet freshly unset-tling in some moments. his arpeggiated melodies remind partly on the music of hans-joachim roedelius. in other sec-onds they display a jazzy spiritual character and drift into meditative areas, that sound to a degree like long forgotten japanese folk music spheres. as “birds on the playground” isn’t aimed straight for the dancefloor, the overall coating of the music is a relaxed, cautious one, that goes beyond the average definition of ambient music. each track builds up gracefully, in order to present a mesmerizing musical architecture, that offers new sound dimensions with any fresh listening turn. as the record is made for mule musiq`s latest public space enterprise, everyone who is close-ly connected to the label was involved.

mule musiq’s core artist kuniyuki was in charge for the mastering. and the labels visual draw-er stefan marx painted the cover artwork. “when i saw the record cover for the first time, i had to think a bit of an extremely funny new year's eve party from over 10 years ago, when stefan and i founded the imaginary band “the dead sea”. this record would have been a wonderful soundtrack to the bustle during that night.” lawrence reveals.

it must have been a party beyond hysteric spheres, where all guests dance and talk dearly at the bar, while the music slows down their body functions enough to hear a sound that takes everybody away to a place, that must have been home in that very moment.

Vertaal first mixtape, Paradigm Shifting had a soft digital released on the 23rd April 2020, on Vertaal’s Empty Quarter Tribe imprint.

Self-produced, recorded and mixed in their own studio, the EP was nominated by Jazz Revelations for EP of 2020 and produced

four singles, ‘Polar’, ‘Duels, ‘Drop Off’ and ‘Dilla5’.


2020’s lock down led to a completely remixed and partial re-recording of the mixtape into a full, seamlessly mixed double LP with 6 additional

tracks and a further 6 musical ‘skits’ recorded separately by all the contributor musicians on the album during lock-down.
The limited edition numbered coloured vinyl 2LP will be released on March 26th 2021 supported by a fifth single, Alcazar b/w Husky on April 2nd

with promo video directed by Ben Sommers (Smoke No Pony Productions) whose previous credits include Mary Epworth, Archive, Young Knives and many others.



Vertaal have been an increasingly notable presence in the nu-jazz scene over the past 3 years.
Tipped as “ones to watch for 2019” by Jazz Re:freshed, Vertaal played an exclusive pick of sold out shows at prestigious venues such as Ronnie Scott’s, Pizza Express Soho and the Jazz Café.

They have also supported the likes of Mark Guiliana (David Bowie), & Pete Ray Biggin (Level 42) and finished off 2019 guesting for Richard Spaven at The Cambridge Jazz Festival.



Of the six tracks on the current mixtape, first single ‘Polar’ was played on the uber-cool Deeper Cuts show by DJ Karl Bos who described the track as an “incredibly produced record.”

Tony Minvielle (Jazz FM) urged his listeners to “…hunt this down. They’re making incredible music!” after playing two tracks from Paradigm Shifting on his show,

and the mixtape has garnered similar excited responses from many DJs and reviewers (press list below).



Paradigm Shifting will be released on March 26th. The shrink-wrap will be stickered with full information and press quotes.

Re-issue of a soul masterpiece from 1974, 'I Love You More and More' by Tom Brock was Tom's only solo album release, but what a beautiful classic it is. For some, it is up there in the pantheon alongside their all-time treasured soul favourites such as Marvin Gaye's 'What's Going On'.

Produced by the legend Barry White and released on 20th Century Records in 1974, it features the lush hallmark orchestration, heartfelt songs, and funky yet slick playing you’d expect from a White production. Like a dusting of sugar onto the top of the cake, the record also features the stunning arrangements of the great pianist, arranger, composer, and producer Gene Page, whose musical career left an impressive and prolific legacy.

'I Love You More and More' received another lease of life when it was resurrected for a new audience after having been sampled by Jay-Z, Mos Def, C.L. Smooth, and others. The record is solid throughout, but the song 'There's Nothing in This World That Can Stop Me From Loving You’ proved to be an extra-bright star in the sky and it formed the base to Jay-Z's 2001 hit 'Girls, Girls, Girls'. The sampling of Tom’s work triggered the collectors, diggers and DJs to explore his record and to transfer their passion for it onto their followers too.

Tom Brock passed away in 2002, but left behind his sensational soulful voice on a handful of amazing dusty 7" singles, several assorted productions recorded by other artists, and this absolute winner of an album, which will be cherished for years to come.

• Half-speed vinyl cut at Abbey Road Studios

• Sampled by Jay-Z, Mos Def, C.L. Smooth…

• Produced by Barry White, arranged by Gene Page.

One of the most highly regarded modern Brazilian jazz trios, Caixa Cubo announce ‘Angela’, their latest album and first to be licensed for European release by Heavenly Recordings.

 ‘Angela’, their Seventh since forming in 2007, was named as one of 6 Music’s Recommends Albums Of 2020 (Presenter Picks), chosen by DJ Huey Morgan. The single ‘Palavras’ is currently on the 6 Music playlist. Heavenly Recordings picked up on the record when DJ Giles Peterson played ‘Palavras’ on his show.

 Recorded in December 2018, the album features the singer Zé Leônidas on ‘Palavras’ and includes arrangements of songs like ‘Baião Malandro’ by Egberto Gismonti and ‘Dark Prince’ by Geri Allen, in addition to the group’s original compositions.

 Made up of Henrique Gomide (keys), João Fideles (drums) and Noa Stroeter (bass), the trio have split their time between Brazil and Europe in recent years, having been awarded scholarships to study at the Royal Conservatory of The Hague, Netherlands.

 They have performed at many respected European venues and festivals including Jazz à Vienne Festival (France), Anton Philip Hall (The Hague), A-Trane (Berlin), Riverboat Festival (Denmark) and others in Paris, Brussels, London, Birmingham, Lisbon and Rotterdam. They also performed in Maputo, Mozambique, as well as renowned venues in Brazil, mainly in Sao Paulo (Auditório Ibirapuera and SESC Consolação, Museu da Casa Brasileira).

The latest from Mr. K and Most Excellent Unlimited pairs lowdown and stomping disco from an unlikely source with a funked-out floorfiller from some very familiar voices.

Minnie Riperton’s 1977 single “Stick Together” was an outlier in her catalog of smooth modern soul, an intentional nod in the direction of the prevailing disco sound. Co-written with Stevie Wonder, “Stick Together” in its original single release was divided into two parts, the first a fairly conventional uptempo cut with all the catchy qualities you’d expect from Stevie and the husband and wife team of Richard Rudolph and Minnie. It was the second half of the song that caught the ears of DJs who played for funkier dancefloors, however. Freddie Perren, a former member of Motown’s legendary Corporation collective of songwriters and producers, and a man then red-hot off his success with Tavares’ “Heaven Must Be Missing An Angel” and the Sylvers’ “Boogie Fever,” was on production duties, and the song clearly benefits from his disco-friendly touch. In Mr. K’s epic edit we are treated to a lengthy exploration of the second part of “Stick Together,” featuring keyboardist Sonny Burke (veteran of Marvin Gaye’s band and fresh from playing on Candi Staton’s disco smash “Young Hearts Run Free”) working out an irresistible Jingo-esque piano part, Riperton’s sensual ad-libs, and, as if that wasn’t enough, a cameo appearance by Pam Grier on finger snaps! Krivit’s 8-minute-plus edit passes way too quickly to get enough of the hypnotic groove — rewinds are called for!

Our flip side, “Body Language,” originated as an album cut on the Jackson Five’s last album of original material for Motown, Moving Violation, recorded before Jermaine left to go solo and the remaining brothers joined Epic Records in a new incarnation as the Jacksons. For such an obvious heater it’s puzzling why the label never released it as a single; but regardless of that apparent misstep, “Body Language” has long been a sure shot in many DJs’ bags. With his new edit, Mr. K presents the track in its ultimate form, loud, remastered, stretched out and rippling with energy over a full six minutes. With an iconic bass line that just doesn’t quit, and Michael and the boys in fine form, it’s impossible to imagine a situation where this wouldn’t set the room on fire.

For Chris Tooker, the first decade of his artistic journey was immersed in bands while the second was engaged in wandering the realms of electronica in the form of creator, composer and engineer for DJ duo KMLN. Today, after many incarnations, Tooker returns to the source of himself while carrying both the treasures of his past and a vision for the future. Tooker has long been called to pursuing obsessive trails through the greater cosmos. On these journeys, he seeks particles with a hypnotic essence. Once found, he interprets this magic in his own special way, through the most universal language - music. His music tells stories of fascinating adventures through the dust, the palms, and the gritty streets of yonder. It is colorful, deep, and disco laced. It flaunts rare collected percussion (delivered live in his sets), various instruments and sometimes whispers a touch of voice. Now his solo-debut EP Nang’o drops on Acid Pauli and Nico Stojan’s label Ouie. For the lead track Nang’o, Tooker recruits the phenomenal talents of Kenya’s multi-instrumentalist Labdi. Labdi’s oruto (a western Kenyan fiddle instrument) and bewitching vocals provide the hooks for this subtle, shuffling track, presented here as both a full version and as an instrumental. Baladi features Shawna Hofmann both on co-production and vocal duties - this time a more driving, rolling groove develops with Shawna adding sultry, evocative vocals to the mix. Undone rounds off the physical release - another signature exercise in subtlety and restraint, as an infectious groove folds in bubbling synths, crisp percussion and dubby effects.

Mouse on Mars, the Berlin-based duo of Jan St. Werner and Andi Toma, approach electronic music with an inexhaustible curiosity and unparalleled ingenuity. ‘AAI’ (Anarchic Artificial Intelligence) takes their fascination with technology and undogmatic exploration a quantum leap further.
Emerging from a primordial ooze of rolling bass and skittering electronics, hypnotic polyrhythms and pulsing synthesizers propel the listener across the
record’s expanse. Hidden in the duo’s hyper-detailed productions is a kind of meta-narrative.
Working with AI tech collective Birds on Mars and former Soundcloud
programmers Ranny Keddo and Derrek Kindle, the duo collaborated on the creation of bespoke software capable of modelling speech; text and voice from writer and scholar of African Studies Louis Chude-Sokei and DJ/producer Yağmur Uçkunkaya were fed into the software as a model, allowing Toma and Werner to control parameters like speed or mood, thereby creating a kind of speech
instrument they could control and play as they would a synthesizer.
The album’s narrative is quite literally mirrored in the music - the sound of an artificial intelligence growing, learning and speaking. This exploration of artificial intelligence as both a narrative framework and compositional tool, allowing the duo to summon their most explicitly science-fiction work to date. Original artwork by Casey Reas, inventor of the computer graphics language Processing.
Recently, Mouse on Mars received the 2020 Holger Czukay Prize for Pop Music.
Mouse on Mars have been regularly streaming performances throughout 2020, partnering with organizations like Goethe-Institut, Haus der Kulturen der Welt, Conditions of a Necessity and others and will continue these in 2021.
‘AAI’ is available on grey or black double LP packaged in a single sleeve with full colour insert / lyrics. CD comes with 8-panel poster booklet.
“Andi Toma and Jan St. Werner continue to create soundscapes that blur the line between programming and live musicianship, and sometimes between Earth and outer space.” - AV Club
“Enthralling and impossible to categorize.” - Pitchfork
“Sustained and ephemeral electronic sounds conjure unearthly open spaces… It’s not a song; it’s sound as a temporal phenomenon, a few minutes of sculpted attention.” - The New York Times

Following highly praised releases by Hermeto Pascoal & Grupo, Leonardo Marques, Xenia Franca and Moons, 180g and the legendary Disk Union continue to explore the best of today's Brazilian music scene with this wonderful psychedelic and funky pop album by Rio de Janeiro's Gus Levy: Magia Magia.


The mystical universe of Magia Magia reflects influences from the samba rock of Jorge Ben, the romantic grooves of Djavan and the psychedelic pop of Connan Mockasin and Negro Léo. The lyrics and sensations suggest a new way of seeing the reality of the world and relationships: union, spirituality, magic, complicity, happiness, courage, love, fraternity, dilemmas and contradictions lead the poetical subject of Magia Magia. Inspired by a conception of the universe ruled by feminine entities, Gus Levy brings with Magia Magia a masterpiece of modern Brazilian psychedelic and funky pop, with exquisite artwork by Fernanda Varella.

A composer and multi-instrumentalist from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Gus Levy has been gaining more and more attention on the Brazilian music scene during the last few years. He is also a producer at Rio de Janeiro's Estúdio Carolina studios, a member of the band "Os Dentes" for more than 10 years, and the guitarist of choice for artists like Antonio Neves, Filipe Marones and João Werneck.

Special Request continues his impeccable run of form with a typically fervent entry into the DJ-Kicks mix series. His adventurous 25 track mix takes in personal favourites, new school classics and of course a selection of his own brand new and exclusive edits, dubs and reworks next to some overlooked gems. Leeds based Paul Woolford dares to go where few others do. He can do face-melting underground bangers, peak time piano anthems, ambient cinematics or chart climbing crossover hits. What unites his work as Special Request across labels like Houndstooth and R&S, though, is precision engineering, but never at the expense of real, raw emotion and visceral impact. He is an artist who very much pours his heart into everything he does, and has been on such a prolific run in recent years that it has been impossible to keep abreast of all his many projects. Even in this mix, he hints at yet more new sides and sounds. As always with Special Request, this is an emotional, full spirited ride through the musical mind of one of the most accomplished artists of the day.

They Say: “Exploring the wide range of moods and sounds produced by percussion”.

We say: MPCs at the ready because this does exactly what it says on the tin, to devastating effect. Oh, and the sleeve is stunning.

Originally released in 1979, Percussion Spectrum was produced by the legendary percussionists Barry Morgan and Ray Cooper. With dope beats taking in diverse styles, from funk and soul and jazz through to Latin, Brazilian, samba and Afro-Cuban, this is an amazing sample source filled with killer drum-breaks and percussion flares. Unsurprisingly it’s one of the most sought-after records from the Themes catalogue.

This library LP is a library in itself, with its mix of short themes of single beats, short breaks and some longer, more fully-formed DJ-friendly tracks. Trust us when we say that this is a box full of percussion firework ready to be thrown onto the dancefloor at the just right moment. We don’t have anywhere near enough space to describe all 34 tracks (there isn’t even enough room on the labels to list them all!) so we’ll pick out some favourites.

Favourites like opener “Impulsion”, a percussive masterclass with drum upon drum upon drum making it feel like a neat prototype to the percussive underscores of Peter Lüdemann and Pit Troja’s eternal The Now Generation LP. And the dramatic “Fast Action” is exactly that, racing along on a rapid roll of congas, cymbal crashes and throbbing kicks. “The Chaser” is classic library cop-funk with dilapidated drum figures, and the outrageously funky “Heat On” is the perfect accompaniment to your wild action sequences.

A real highlight is “Runaway”, and not just because it sounds like nothing else on the record. Here are drums and percussion in that tight funk style that just cries out to be sampled. “Percussion Power” is an extended, near-three minute suite of funky drum solo after funky drum solo that just aches to be looped: open drums to die for people! “Shivers” is a tense, apprehensive underscore with shock stabs that builds to a climax whilst “Drums On Parade” is a showcase of head-nod drums and cymbals in march time. Did someone say “funky”?

Side B starts with a stroll down “Samba Street”. With the noise of the crowd in the background, this is riotous, authentically drawn samba that sounds like it’s been beamed straight in from Rio in full flow. Drop this at midnight and watch the cobwebs fly off any dancefloor. Prefer it without the fake crowd? “Samba Street (b)” has you covered.

The simple, innocent “Child’s Themes” (all five of them) provide a nice, sweet respite from all the funk. Nursery sounds tinged with only a touch of melancholy. The gentle marimba solo of “Tropical Peace” only adds to the sense of serenity we get from the relatively calm second side. The album closes out with a veritable toolkit of tom toms, snare drum rolls, timpani, vibraphones and chiming bells.

Percussion Spectrum is a joyous collection of sounds, as bright, beaming and downright funky as the vibrant cover. The Themes series is known for each record having its own particularly striking sleeve, which was unusual for library records at the time, and Percussion Spectrums’s multi-coloured drumsticks make for one of the most eye-catching.

As with all of our other Themes re-issues, the audio for Percussion Spectrum comes from the original analogue tapes and has been remastered for vinyl by Be With regular Simon Francis. As usual Richard Robinson has taken the same care with restoring the original sleeve from archive scans. This is another one ticked off the list of library records that should be out there for anyone who wants a copy.

They Say: “Contemporary scores for visual effect”.

We say: Synth-heavy, low-slung space-funk masterpiece.

The creator of the romping tunes that became the iconic themes to the BBC’s Grandstand programme and their televised Wimbledon Tennis Championship coverage, Keith Mansfield was perhaps KPM’s most prolific artist from the mid 1960s right the way through the 1980s. As well as the sort of pop orchestral sound that is all over these classic library records, he could also turn his hand to raw, edgy rock and funk. Quentin Tarantino is a big fan, going as far as including some of Keith’s work on the soundtracks to Kill Bill and Grindhouse.

This is it. This is THE ONE for us: Keith “The Man” Mansfield’s Vivid Underscores from 1977. A sample freak’s wet dream and one of Be With Rob’s favourite ever KPM records. A must for fans of Brian Bennett’s Voyage (yes, THAT good). And no, we’ve no idea either why it took us this long to get round to tackling this monster of a record. But then again some things are worth waiting for.

Attention! Calling all crate diggers, DJs, beat heads, Hip Hop junkies, MF DOOM fans! Behold! Vivid Underscores makes sampling easy. Prepare to be up all night, every night, chopping, looping and splicing these endless grooves and spacey synths. The highlights are too many and too mind-blowing so we’ll pull out a few particular highlights. Trust us, this library LP is just jaw-dropping.

“High Velocity” sets the tone with its aggressive horns, wah-wah guitars, funky baseline and wobbly synth refrain. So good and so hypnotic that Memphis Bleek just had to swipe the ominous, frazzled intro for “What You Think of That” featuring Jay-Z. Also, for real drama, the 1985 Lakers retrospective “Return to Glory” used it to soundtrack the footage from the legendary game five of the NBA finals at the Forum. Heady days. “Crash Course” - Stetsasonic horn refrain? Beautiful - jazzy chase-funk, amazing warm keys, percussion and funky horns - all action.

The more restrained “Matter Of Urgency” is an utterly amazing, brass-heavy underscore. The grandiose, uplifting “Dawn Of Aquarius” still sounds like the future with its tense, thundering drums, killer bassline and swirling synths. Version II loses the drums and percussion but is no less startling. “Staying Power” closes the first side with a relentless, pounding groove which *will* snap your neck. Be warned.

“Trucking Company” is a pacey, synth-and-string masterpiece and its accompanying parts (a–c) mess with the formula to great effect. Part (a) adds echo delay to really dazzle and part (c) plays the breezy, beautiful middle section without the tension. “Hot Cargo” and “Espionage” are both tense spy-funk themes par excellence. “Interplay” is a quiet killer, with flutes over a glistening piano refrain just waiting to be looped. The intro to the menacing “Omen” might’ve been sampled by 7L & Esoteric for their classic “So Glorious” but the entire 5 minute track is a mini-drama masterpiece, one only Mansfield could create.

Even though its a mix of short themes in-and-amongst longer, full-length tracks, Vivid Underscores is still thoroughly listenable from start to finish. That’s not something that can be said of all library records and it still manages to serve as rich resource to keep even the keenest samplers busy for a while.

As with all of our KPM re-issues, the audio for Vivid Underscores comes from the original analogue tapes and has been remastered for vinyl by Be With regular Simon Francis. And as usual, the sleeve reproduction duties were handed over to Richard Robinson, the current custodian of KPM’s brand ident

Legendary Chicagoan General Juke aka Gant-Man returns with Distorted Sensory, his brand new acid house adventure. A longtime veteran who's been behind the decks since before he was even a teen, he's been an essential part of Chicago dance music history since the Dance Mania days in the mid 90s, and a major pioneer in jumpstarting the juke movement that followed. This new single, and his debut solo releaseon the Teklife imprint explores the time honored tradition of jacking, channeling the very essence of house music though a modern lens. Employing an enigmatic 303 bassline that mutates and breathes as if it were alive, Gant plays malicious melodies that run up and down octaves in a freaky, hallucinatory manner. Squelchy synth movements are met by eerie FM tones, reminiscent of Cajmere's classic Chicago staple the Percolator. A rugged 909 drum kit bangs the track along in true jacking fashion, making it the perfect tool for shaking the floors of dark, sweaty warehouses. In addition to the original, two of the UK's finest contribute remixes as well. Hyperdub boss Kode9 puts things into overdrive with his 160 BPM warped vision of Gant's acid, sliced up to appeal more to the footworkers and fans of psycho tempos. Dubstep pioneer Loefah strips back the original percussion and lets the 303s float over a cloud of deep sub bass, adorned with lovely splashes of rolling snares and micro percussion. With an array of stone cold classics under his belt, from ghetto house anthem Juke Dat Girl to his brilliant collabs with the late DJ Rashad Heaven Sent and Juke Dat Juke Dat, Gant-Man is a true renaissance man. For over 20 years, he's consistently shown the world the complexity that makes up his city's dance culture, never sticking to one area or tempo. Distorted Sensory is a beautiful celebration of Chicago house music, a return to its true raw design, and a reminder of just how timeless an art form it really is.

Heady power pop trio Portable Radio announce the release of their debut eponymous LP on March 12th 2021 on Crimson Crow Records. Lead track and first single Hot Toddy, out in February, introduces the album with its ethereal brooding pop arrangement.
Some years ago, the world started to go weird – and that’s when the then duo, Portable Radio, decided it was as good a time as any, to start making first steps.
Phil … and Mof … shared some messages and a love of melodies, and as a gift to friends and those feeling the weight of everything, recorded a version of Brian Wilson’s gorgeous opus, ‘Love & Mercy’. The result was enough for them to start writing songs, and the blueprint for Portable Radio was born – hope, empathy, fun, love, and mercy.
Phil had cut his teeth in the Beep Seals and Mof was a DJ and student of pop, and in each other they both wanted to make music that was a tonic for the times; what transpired was a clutch of songs that were filled with uplifting, rich harmonies – stirring power pop inspired by Todd Rundgren, Wings, Carole King, Electric Light Orchestra, NRBQ, Emitt Rhodes, ‘70s West Coast AOR, The Zombies, and of course, The Beach Boys.
The duo released their Baroque Pop debut single with You Are The Cosmos recordings – the double A-Side of ‘Seven Hills’ and ‘Parades’. A cult following started and some shows and radio sessions ensued, joined by extended family – tap room-Mozart Jim Noir, shed-pop wizard Aidan Smith, and Phil’s previous bandmate, the supremely talented Ian Smith (Beep Seals/Alfie).
Soon, Robyn Gibson (The Junipers/Bob Of The Pops) joined the ranks for their star turn and appearance on the ‘12 String High’ compilation. The two becoming a trio, the output cranked up, seeing the release of the debut Portable Radio EP (produced by Jim Noir) and the Christmas Selection Box, all loaded with killer hooks, washes of dreamy harmonies, and just a sprinkling of cynicism because no-one is impervious to the all-encompassing weirdness of the last couple of years.
All of these things were the groundwork for the imminent full-length, self-titled debut, out in March 2021. The LP (vinyl/download/streaming) is full to bursting with big choruses, reflective popsike, FM ready pop, melancholic ballads, with each song is treated like it’s going to be a single.

One of the most highly regarded modern Brazilian jazz trios, Caixa Cubo announce ‘Angela’, their latest album and first to be licensed for European release by Heavenly Recordings.

 ‘Angela’, their Seventh since forming in 2007, was named as one of 6 Music’s Recommends Albums Of 2020 (Presenter Picks), chosen by DJ Huey Morgan. The single ‘Palavras’ is currently on the 6 Music playlist. Heavenly Recordings picked up on the record when DJ Giles Peterson played ‘Palavras’ on his show.

 Recorded in December 2018, the album features the singer Zé Leônidas on ‘Palavras’ and includes arrangements of songs like ‘Baião Malandro’ by Egberto Gismonti and ‘Dark Prince’ by Geri Allen, in addition to the group’s original compositions.

 Made up of Henrique Gomide (keys), João Fideles (drums) and Noa Stroeter (bass), the trio have split their time between Brazil and Europe in recent years, having been awarded scholarships to study at the Royal Conservatory of The Hague, Netherlands.

 They have performed at many respected European venues and festivals including Jazz à Vienne Festival (France), Anton Philip Hall (The Hague), A-Trane (Berlin), Riverboat Festival (Denmark) and others in Paris, Brussels, London, Birmingham, Lisbon and Rotterdam. They also performed in Maputo, Mozambique, as well as renowned venues in Brazil, mainly in Sao Paulo (Auditório Ibirapuera and SESC Consolação, Museu da Casa Brasileira).

For the next release in the Dispatch Blueprints series, we present another two tracks of retrofuturism from the producer of the first two Blueprints instalments, Kid Drama.


Featuring the Commix remix of 'Impulse 1' taken from the very release, and the rolling, funk-led 'Black Widow', this two-track release perfectly captures the essence of the Blueprints series - celebrating the classic sound of drum and bass, enhanced with modern production techniques.

These two tracks have both been receiving heavy DJ support, a testament to this talented producers skills.

Dies Occidendum is a mythical voyage across fog-laden, scorched earth terrain from the original friar of dark hip hop, Dj Muggs the Black Goat. Known and revered as the sonic mastermind behind both Cypress Hill and his own Soul Assassins imprint, here Muggs sheds the MCs and presents his latest dark-soaked productions as an illuminated manuscript of sorts; a fully immersive, instrumental soundtrack to the mysterious Dies Occidendum. No one wields the Excalibur of sonic darkness quite like Muggs. Combining ingredients of psych rock, gypsy folk with modern elements of trap, forged together under layers of his signature sonic grime, Muggs has created yet another blueprint for the utmost sonic menace and macabre. The Renaissance is upon us. Long live King Muggs. ABOUT DJ MUGGS: One of the original architects of dark hip hop in the early '90s, DJ Muggs helped craft a singular sound that blended darker sensibilities of psychedelic rock and hip hop in a unique way that influenced many in its wake. As the primary producer of legendary rap group Cypress Hill, Muggs' productions and sonic sensibilities are unmistakable and deeply revered by the truest of hejkvgads. Muggs' own MC round-robin imprint, Soul Assassins has been home to countless productions, laying sonic drop cloths for everyone from Dr. Dre, Ice Cube, Chuck D, GZA, Mobb Deep to MF Doom, Freddie Gibbs, Roc Marciano and Mach-Hommy.

LTD. RED VINYL

Dies Occidendum is a mythical voyage across fog-laden, scorched earth terrain from the original friar of dark hip hop, Dj Muggs the Black Goat. Known and revered as the sonic mastermind behind both Cypress Hill and his own Soul Assassins imprint, here Muggs sheds the MCs and presents his latest dark-soaked productions as an illuminated manuscript of sorts; a fully immersive, instrumental soundtrack to the mysterious Dies Occidendum. No one wields the Excalibur of sonic darkness quite like Muggs. Combining ingredients of psych rock, gypsy folk with modern elements of trap, forged together under layers of his signature sonic grime, Muggs has created yet another blueprint for the utmost sonic menace and macabre. The Renaissance is upon us. Long live King Muggs. ABOUT DJ MUGGS: One of the original architects of dark hip hop in the early '90s, DJ Muggs helped craft a singular sound that blended darker sensibilities of psychedelic rock and hip hop in a unique way that influenced many in its wake. As the primary producer of legendary rap group Cypress Hill, Muggs' productions and sonic sensibilities are unmistakable and deeply revered by the truest of hejkvgads. Muggs' own MC round-robin imprint, Soul Assassins has been home to countless productions, laying sonic drop cloths for everyone from Dr. Dre, Ice Cube, Chuck D, GZA, Mobb Deep to MF Doom, Freddie Gibbs, Roc Marciano and Mach-Hommy.

Back in 2018, Four Flies Records unearthed the previously unheard 'Africa Oscura', considered by many as the "dark side" of 'Zoo Folle' – Giuliano Sorgini's masterpiece (reissued by Four Flies Records in 2016) – and partly recorded during the same session in 1974.
The original work portrays a fictional and mysterious continent, providing a soundtrack tinged with dark
moods and cosmic shades. 'Africa Oscura' was entirely recorded by the composer, who played all instruments in his studio in Rome. This resulted in a formal spareness, a minimalism that gives it a
modern quality, something which makes it stand the test of time, or at least resonate with contemporary taste.
Since its release, 'Africa Oscura' has become a classic – a pivotal release not only within Sorgini's discography, but also one that made his name more known and accessible to a new generation of music professionals, DJs and fans of electronic music.
Four Flies have thus decided to celebrate its modernity with a double 12" featuring 7 reworks by six of Italy's most visionary DJs/producers: Jolly Mare, L.U.C.A. (aka Francisco), pAd, Painé, and Quiroga & Dario Bass.
The original tracks have been reworked with different approaches, sometimes into full reinterpretations, and with demanding dance floors in mind. The result is a stunning collection of electronic, cosmic, downtempo and Balearic reworks that preserve the spirit of the original versions while projecting them into the future.

Next up on MOM is another exploration of the link between art and music. This time it is dance performance. The musical artist is Okkre (Uge Pañeda) producer of the Spanish duo LCC, who have released two albums on the celebrated Austrian imprint, Editions Mego. Okkre is a composer of soundtracks, DJ and she is currently immersed in researching her "landscapes series" project, connecting countries and cultures that are seemingly unconnected to each other through field recordings... MOM 012 is the soundtrack to a very special performance named ÉPICA. Directed by Barcelona based choreographer Aimar Pérez Galí, it was premiered at Sonar 2017. EPICA brings clubbing culture inside the theatre, to deliver a highly energetic performance, joining bodies, sound and voices of historic and political dissidence. It is about communication between bodies (without language) and the liberty of being on the dancefloor. Freedom of movement, expression and happiness through music! Okkre has provided a startling soundtrack. This soundtrack complements the performance of the dancers beautifully but also deserves to be listened on its own. It is both powerful and dramatic, fitting the title. The music of the soundtrack has been adapted for its imminent release on vinyl. The piece begins with the rhythmic movement of beats, which provides a structured backdrop. They are complemented by a swirling bassline. Overlayed percussion of differing styles comes in and out. Harsh almost metallic synths enter after a few minutes, which also have the sensation of breathing. Later on, powerful synths battle sturdy cymbal assisted percussion. In the latter stages, everything gets even more intense techno feel and the A Side ends with dense dark synths. The music is alive! While the other side gently mixes a melodic bassline that moves like the wind with intertwined chorus and voices, which appeal to the spirit of the artistic work, evoking space for feeling and touching. At the same time, insistent beats offer a club feeling. Scary yet empowering strings create a hypnotic atmosphere alongside falling keys and vocal impressions. The final few minutes provides a strong climax to the record. This features hammering beats, a circling bass and powerful keys. A mighty performance! ÉPICA is indeed epic.

Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry & The Upsetters’ classic Return of Django. Lee Perry had already been making name in the Jamaican music scene for about a decade before Return of Django hit the UK charts in 1969. Soon after, Trojan released a hugely popular collection of Perry’s biggest instrumentals. This album is a must for everyone that enjoys that good old vintage reggae sounds.

Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry was a pioneer of dub music and worked together with artists such as Bob Marley and the Wailers, The Clash and The Beastie Boys. This legend turned 84! this year and he’s still performing and recording music.

* repress on sandstone colour vinyl

For 'Music For Dreams’ collector’s series, we aim to bring you something a little different, something a little out there. After eclectic contributions from Jan Schulte, Moonboots and most recently Basso, we’ve lent the slot to Belgian sonic globetrotter DJ soFa. As always, he’s been granted supreme curatorial sovereignty, and trust us, he held us to our word on that one. For elsewhere Jr I, soFa takes us on a trip to the alluring and magical reality of childhood - and a trip, it is.

This double LP features both new and old compositions from a wide range of countries, all centered around the youngest citizens of planet earth. The compilation has been 2.5 years in the making, with soFa collecting obscure pieces from all over the world and inspiring young collaborators to produce new tracks mostly by means of analogue synthesizers and vintage drum machines. The result is a thematically and sonically homogenous collage of cosmic children’s music.

'soFa' starts us off with Milo Kolarov’s exercise in sonic imagery ‘Analogue Beam’, a story about animal characters, presented to us as distinct motifs of bleeps and blitzes. Next up is the surreal jigsaw puzzle dub ‘Totti und Pippo’ by Jah Limonardi and 'Die Kleine Gräfin Dubski'.

Here, we come bouncing on giant, iridescent mushrooms, lulled deeper and deeper down the rabbit hole by incantations of a child’s voice. Throughout, the record is full of these synaesthetic properties, immersing the listener in creative ways, nudging you down hidden experiential pathways.
All of the tracks, more precisely ... they were pleasantly engaging, often blooming with charming grooves and provided with a whimsical melody.

The first Prestige release for 2021 is delivered by London-based, Italian bred HLZ! Emilio has been on the map for a min, and we are more than thrilled to finally lock in a project in the form of a versatile 3-track EP offering. As his talents have been revered with all the top labels and DJs across circuit, Prestige is chuffed to deliver this unquestionable slapper of a 12".

As the Lead track, 'IN BETWEEN' takes listeners on a journey thru a deeper palette, HLZ is able to turn out with casual grace. Liquid gold best describes such a superb composition. Rolled out drums + classic bassline hook = sure fire integrity.

Riiing the alarm! 'DUB SUNRISE' hits different and not what you'd typically expect from mans. Only meant to be heard on a proper rig, HLZ channels the natty spirit and nails this iteration of the dub wise vibrations.

Third tune might as well be a title cut, 'NEON UNDERWATER' is simply pure rudeness. The track perfectly fits its title, as you instantly catch that murky, immersed feeling upon first listen. Another sound you may not be accustomed to hearing from HLZ off rip, from a label that frequents the roads less traveled.

PMG017 will be a vinyl feature with full color sleeve on March 5th, digital to follow suit 1 week after release. The heaviest of players showing full support; likes of Doc Scott, Craze, Flight, Ulterior Motive, and more. We're very excited to finally share with you all, such an astounding drop from the renowned Prestige Music Group.

‘No Limits’ is a record that has been causing waves since 2019 when it was originally released on Gladys Pizarro’s Launch Entertainment imprint.

Born out of an inspired studio session in 2018 between Danism, Train and DJ Rae, the song immediately felt special, evoking memories of the heyday of the soulful NYC sound. The production and, in particular, the sublime vocal delivery from DJ Rae made it stand out and the NYC-based Launch Entertainment seemed the perfect home for it. The record was a hit on the soulful house scene with heavy support from Louie Vega, Todd Terry, Francois K, Terry Hunter, CJ Mackintosh, Mr V, Sandy Rivera, DJ Spen, Brutha Basil, Sy Sez, Richard Earnshaw and loads more.

Fast forward to 2021 – and in partnership with SoSure Music - ‘No Limits’ is set for release on vinyl with the unquestionable expertise of Danny Krivit laying down a signature re-edit of this soulful house gem. Looping up DJ Rae’s vocals to expert effect at the beginning of his edit, Krivit amps up the anticipation for that sensuous, soulful house drop as twinkling keys reverberate from ear to ear. This is emotive house at it’s very best. The full length and original Vocal Mix graces the B-side.

With this release Danism, Train and DJ Rae also launch their DTR project alias. With the continued success of ‘No Limits’ plus brand new material set to follow throughout the year on Launch Entertainment it makes sense to cement their initial collaboration into something more solid. Danism, Train, DJ Rae combine as the DTR Project with Danny Krivit on remixes duties. A delightful combination to kickstart 2021.

Justin Thurgur has been at the heart of the UK's World Music scene for over twenty years, primarily through his collaborations with the Afrobeat maestro Dele Sosimi (former keyboardist for both Fela and Femi Kuti) and with the pianist Kishon Khan. Most recently in Khan's projects Lokkhi Terra and the Afrobeat/Cuban crossover, Cubafrobeat.

Thurgur has worked with Cuban giants Giraldo Piloto, Changuito and Julito Padron, with the Nigerian drum legend Tony Allen and with Damon Albarn's Africa Express project; which included Cheick Tidiane-Seck and Fatoumata Diawara. He's also worked with the likes of Bukky Leo, Francis Fuster, Pandit Dinesh, Baby Akhtar, Inemo, Tony Kofi, Kodjovi Kush, The Soothsayers, The Levellers and The Selecter.

He is perhaps most known as the trombonist from the multi-award winning 'folk' group Bellowhead. Their split in 2016 led to him forming his own band and releasing his debut album as a bandleader, 'No Confusion'.

The album features original compositions written by Thurgur in collaboration with double bassist Max De Wardener, piano/rhodes/Hammond organ player Kishon Khan and guitarist Phil Dawson, with band members including the likes of Graeme Flowers on trumpet, James Allsopp on bass clarinet and Oreste Noda on congas.

Thurgur promoted 'No Confusion' throughout 2016 and 2017, culminating in an enthusiastically received performance at Love Supreme Jazz Festival in 2017. Jazz FM, in particular Chris Philips, gave extensive airplay to the album as well as streaming a live performance from the Jazz FM studios and doing an interview. They subsequently playlisted two of Thurgur's single releases. Lopa Kothari played a track on BBC Radio 3's show 'The World On 3'. The band did a live interview and performance on DJ Ritu's 'A World In London' show on Resonance FM. Beyond this Thurgur has been developing relationships with various other digital radio stations, including Gordon Wedderburn, John Waugh and a number of Global music stations based in Europe.

Following the reissue of Marta Ren "Stop Look Listen" album, Record Kicks is proud to present the reissue of another mega rare and super in-demand vinyl from its vaults: Sydney soul/funk outfit DOJO CUTS' second legendary album "Take From Me". The second studio album from the Aussie band will be finally back available on vinyl on a classy limited edition clear LP on March 12th.

"Take From Me" was originally released in 2012 and once again features the sizzling, smoky vocals of Miss Roxie Ray. This much anticipated follow-up to their 2009 debut on Record Kicks, has rapidly became a "classic" in the deep funk and soul scene with millions of streamings on the digital platforms. The originally LP has never been repressed and the few available copies change hands for crazy money on Discogs.


This is the album where all of Dojo Cuts' experience and hard work reaches its deeply soulful zenith, with tracks such as in "Easy to come home", "Sometimes it hurts" and title track "Take From Me". With the liner notes written by dj and collector Russ Dewbury (Jazz Rooms) and the support of the entire Daptone Records family aka Gabriel Roth, Neal Sugarman and Homer Steinwess, this is a must have for all the funk & soul lovers. Watch out the repress is limited to 500 copies worldwide.

DRP (Dom & Roland Productions) was started in 2006 for Dom to collaborate with like-minded artists. Now 15 years in with an enviable roster from “Noisia” to “Amon Tobin” it is now the main home of Dom’s work.

Mando is one of Doms closest friends. He has been writing music for over 25 years. A gardener by day, he shuns the limelight and has always maintained writing music is his secret hobby! He had a studio in the room next to No-U-Turn in the 90s which was eventually taken over by Optical and Edrush.
Until fairly recently he never released anything! He has an amazing ability to create sick grooves, his style is raw and refreshing and not over produced like a lot of modern music. If i had to pigeonhole his style I would say 90s neurofunk.

Both these tracks play to his strengths. This is his first release on vinyl, so will become collectable!

DJ PLAY: What? In their bedrooms? These people regularly play DRP tracks… Rene Lavice, Laurent Garnier, Giles Peterson, Jerome Hill, Digital, DJ Bailey, DJ Lee, Bryan G, Fabio, Grooverider, Loxi, Andy C, Break, Kasra, Doc Scott, Dbridge, Goldie, Ant TC1, Gridlok, Ulterior Motive, Noisia + More.

The “nighters” at Wigan Casino initially ran from 2am-8am every Saturday night/Sunday morning. From midnight onwards, crowds would gather outside and spill over onto the road blocking the local traffic. As attendances grew the crowds became a problem, particularly to the local constabulary, and on the eve of the Casino’s 1st Anniversary – with a genuine threat of closure looming – a momentous decision was made. Gerry Marshall, the Casino’s owner, somewhat reluctantly decided to open the club’s adjoining cabaret lounge, known as “Mr M’s” (named after the man himself).

That night Northern Soul history was made. It was the start of an era, the birth of the “club within a club” and, as it proved to be, a temple to fans of Northern Soul “oldies”. Eventually at 3am the black double doors – which separated Mr M’s from the upstairs balcony of the main ballroom – burst open, and a sea of soulies hit the dancefloor for the very first time to the banging sound of “Hey Sah-Lo-Ney” by Mickey Lee Lane, spun by DJ Alan Cain and featured here in all of its remastered glory (side 1, trk 1).

Such was the incredible response to that first night in Mr M’s in 1974 that a petition did the rounds gaining over a thousand signatures demanding that it should continue every week! What had intended to be an emergency one-off event had unintentionally ended up being the longest, most popular “temporary” oldies venue EVER!

M’s, as it was more affectionately known, soon became the No.1 oldies venue in the 70s. It was unashamedly “100%” oldies and “100mph” dance tunes!!! It was like an engine room churning out vinyl memories week in, week out and the atmosphere and sounds are captured here!

These two tracks have been around since their first releases on Kent LPs in the late 80s. Taken from the Scepter/Wand tapes, the artists had one release each on those labels. Maurice Williams’ ‘Look My Way’ was recorded at the same session as the two songs issued on his Zodiacs-billed Scepter 45, although it outperforms them both.

It was assumed that ‘Not Now But Later’ by Walter Johnson was also an unreleased number, but a few years later, a Wand DJ copy was discovered in the home of the producer Billy Jackson, when the singer’s true identity was found to be Walter Wilson. However, Billy stated that it was an alias for Tommy Keith, who wrote and recorded some excellent soul music. It is a beautiful self-penned ballad in the Ashford/Simpson mould.