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Das aufstrebende Pagan-Black-Metal-Projekt UNFELLED erhebt sich aus dem Untergrund und veröffentlicht sein Debüt-Album "Pall of Endless Perdition".
Das Projekt, das vom selben Mastermind wie Woods of Desolation entwickelt wurde, dient als bösartiges und gewalttätiges Gegenstück zu seinem eleganten und melodischen Vorgänger und zeigt die beeindruckende musikalische Dualität von Multi-Instrumentalist D..
Musikalisch verweben sich Wut und Triumph mit Aggression und Melodie, die Texte drehen sich vor allem um Blutvergießen, Krieg und Tod - der dreifache Mantel, unter dem ewige Dunkelheit liegt.

Für Fans von Drudkh, Woods of Desolation, Fuath, Gaerea, Misþyrming.

Das aufstrebende Pagan-Black-Metal-Projekt UNFELLED erhebt sich aus dem Untergrund und veröffentlicht sein Debüt-Album "Pall of Endless Perdition".
Das Projekt, das vom selben Mastermind wie Woods of Desolation entwickelt wurde, dient als bösartiges und gewalttätiges Gegenstück zu seinem eleganten und melodischen Vorgänger und zeigt die beeindruckende musikalische Dualität von Multi-Instrumentalist D..
Musikalisch verweben sich Wut und Triumph mit Aggression und Melodie, die Texte drehen sich vor allem um Blutvergießen, Krieg und Tod - der dreifache Mantel, unter dem ewige Dunkelheit liegt.

Für Fans von Drudkh, Woods of Desolation, Fuath, Gaerea, Misþyrming.

Die Kult-Black-Metal-Band NARGAROTH veröffentlicht jetzt 4 ihrer Full-Length-Alben via Season of Mist auf Vinyl!

FFV: Tsjuder, Gorgoroth, Mayhem, Darkthrone, Marduk

Die Kult-Black-Metal-Band NARGAROTH veröffentlicht jetzt 4 ihrer Full-Length-Alben via Season of Mist auf Vinyl!

FFV: Tsjuder, Gorgoroth, Mayhem, Darkthrone, Marduk

High Roller Records, reissue 2023 with original cover art, black vinyl, ltd 300, lyric sheet, restored original master, mastered for vinyl by Patrick W. Engel at Temple of Disharmony, new cutting by SST

High Roller Records, reissue 2023 with original cover art, black vinyl, ltd 300, lyric sheet, restored original master, mastered for vinyl by Patrick W. Engel at Temple of Disharmony, new cutting by SST

First time ever on vinyl - limited gatefold edition, 180-gram audiophile
pressing. One of the most highly acclaimed trio albums by New York pianist Bill Charlap,
originally released in 1997 on CD by Criss Cross and now reissued for the very first time on vinyl.

Widely known for his work on the Blue Note and Venus labels, his résumé includes performing with many of the leading artists of our time, ranging from Phil Woods, Gerry Mulligan, Wynton Marsalis, Freddy Cole and Houston Person, to singers Tony Bennett and Barbra Streisand. Charlap's album with Tony Bennett,The Silver Lining, The Songs of Jerome Kernwon them both Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album in the 58th Annual Grammy Awards.

Known also for his interpretations of American popular songs, Charlap he has recorded albums featuring the music of Hoagy Carmichael, Leonard Bernstein and George Gershwin.
Jazz critic Scott Yanow gave All Through The Night 4.5 stars on the online jazz platform AllMusic and described it as a superior modern mainstream set.

Bill Charlap: piano
Peter Washington: bass
Kenny Washington: drums

Maxophone, from Milan, formed in 1973 as a six-piece with an unusual
assortment of instruments, all members previously music students
A band of great talent and musicianship, their only LP, released in 1975, came a
little too late to compete with the other important Progrock Italian bands and
went sadly unnoticed.
"Maxophone", was released on the Produttori Associati label (along with Duello
Madre one of the few rock records released by this label) is a marvellous album,
full of dreamy atmospheres and complex horn arrangements, with vocal parts in
a Genesis style and is now considered one of the best Italian prog records of all
times.

Roman artist Heinrich Dressel delivers a sparkling gaze into the future with the glistening ‘Lambda 2077’. Opening with powerful, guttural drones and sweet sweeps from ‘Nebulosa’, the broad sonic scope of this LP is beautifully demonstrated.

Growling arps and magnetic, synthesised moans are throughout this record. Dressel cultivates a cinematic, cerebral experience throughout each track, delicately weaving a visceral soundscape. The rising, slicing tones of the atmospheric ‘CEM 8220’ provide a compelling journey through meandering arps with a defined structure. ‘Arpeggio Jawa’ swims into action with a watery, colourful arpeggio sailing through each intriguing section.

‘Francisco’ opens things up with an electro-tinged, thunderous remix. Building upon the chordal gravitas of the original, the remix provides the release with an acidic percussive journey. The swirling brilliance of the title track ‘Lambda 2077’ presents itself as stunning, emotive work which prepares you for the decade Heinrich Dressel is heading to next. The machine lead release shows Heinrich Dressel as a consistent unstoppable force behind the synthesiser, culminating in an astonishing, sophisticated record.

After his superlative and rather unexpected foray into Afro and Latin fusion with his Sol Set project, John Beltran returns to more familiar territory with a rendition of his classic mid-90s album 'Ten Days of Blue' recorded at this year's Dekmantel in Amsterdam. We get a real feel for the whole gig experience, from the sound of murmured anticipation and intro tape to the resolution at the outro and the main meat of the music itself - lively, optimistic, groovy but understated and chilled at the same time - sits somewhere between his ambient and harder techno work. Among Beltran's very finest output.

Ma Spaventi makes a slick return to Slow Motion Records with the captivating ‘Tornerò’.

Descending arps trickle into ‘Tornerò’ from the get-go. Vocoded vocals flutter through the masterful mix, weaving into inviting synth swells. Defined drums are firmly felt across this record.

‘Non Ce L’Hai Solo Tu’ is a Detroit-infused, fierce floor filler. Layering vocoder motifs with crisp synth stabs make for many a euphoric payoff. The intelligent entwining of electro, early Detroit house and Ma Spaventi’s effortless earworms are plentiful. His gift for haunting, strong melodic intonation is prevalent in ‘Costa Brava.’ A grounded, growling bassline rasps throughout the track, reeling you further and further into this whirlpool of brilliance.

‘Tornerò Reprise’ closes this magnificent EP beautifully. Whispering vocal lines are hauntingly blended with synthesiser noise, keeping in line with the swells across the record and resolving the first edition of ‘Tornerò’ with a more acidic conclusion.

The revered Italian producer, mixing and mastering engineer makes his abundant sonic expertise clear in this enticing LP. Encapsulating his talents, ‘Tornerò’ transports you to Ma Spaventi’s unmatched state of flow.

Emotional Rescue turn their attention to Rare Silk and their sublime cult classic "Storm". It's one of those rare tracks with a wonderful otherworldly quality that manages to be smooth and accessible, and somehow not like anything you've ever heard before. It must be somewhere in the mix, between the dreamy harmonized vocals, lush instrumentation and curious sense of space. The original on the A side is a treat enough, but then throw in a mercurial dubbed out version by Arp on the flip and you've got yourself a 12 inch portal to a most delightful dimension.

Gondwana Records announces 'Goodbyes' the debut album from Estonian pianist and composer, Hanakiv, a deeply beautiful, meditative piano album featuring special guest Alabaster dePlume

"This is an album about healing. It is about saying your goodbyes to everything that doesn't serve you anymore. Each of these songs has a little goodbye in it. So, these are very beautiful and necessary goodbyes".

Hanakiv is a young composer and musician from Estonia (now based in London) who creates meditative piano-based ambient music with elements from classical and electronic music. 'Goodbyes' is her debut recording and draws on influences as diverse as Tim Hecker, Björk "Vespertine", Kara-Lis Coverdale, Arvo Pärt, Erkki-Sven Tüür and Aphex Twin as well as her own cultural heritage. Music has an important part in Estonian culture, especially choir music and its traditions, but Hanakiv also draws on her love of nature – the beautiful Estonian seaside and forests - and on her time in Iceland. However, it was moving to London that gave her the freedom to make her own music: "London gave me the freedom and courage to really be who I am (as a person and musically)" and her heritage and her new home both offer inspiration to Goodbyes, as Hanakiv moves between these two opposite places, a bustling metropolis and a small country full of nature, drawing inspiration from both as she sculpts her own voice.

Hanakiv had an unconventional music education – she started studying music at a school for handbells when she was nine and was part of a handbell ensemble for eight years. Starting on piano at the same time she went on to study composition at high school, and later at the Estonian Academy of Music. Eventually switching to electroacoustic composition, she studied in Reykjavik, and did internships in Malmö, and again Reykjavik before moving to London. She grew up in a musical family and her grandmother was a piano teacher and choir conductor.

"I would always ask her to take me to her choir rehearsals. I remember sitting under the grand piano, listening to the choir and just being mesmerised by the sounds. She also teaches in a local music school in the south of Estonia with about ten pianos, and I'd spend a lot of time there as well. I believe this was the starting point for me to get to where I am now. The last two pieces on the album (Home II and Home I) are composed in this same music school, so it feels like a full circle.

An early influence was Regina Spektor "the first artist who made me really want to play piano" alongside dream pop and Sigur Rós' as well as Estonian contemporary composers such as Erkki-Sven Tüür and Arvo Pärt. Later her studies took her to Reykjavík: "There is this amazing record shop called 12 Tónar in Reykjavik where you can drink espressos and listen to all their vinyls. I spent quite a lot of time there. There is something about Icelandic music that really excited me (the mixture of contemporary electronic sounds with melancholy, emotionality). This is when I started getting more into electronic music, and experimenting outside of classical music". Following a year long break from studying and inspired by making an electroacoustic soundtrack for a friend's abstract video, she was inspired to complete a masters in electroacoustic composition, diving fully into the worlds of sound recording and mixing and focusing on surround sound and how to position and move sounds in space, eventually doing an internship with composer Kent Olofson in Malmö, who works with multi-speaker systems for theatre productions. "I learnt a lot from him and he introduced me to some of my favourite plugins I've used a lot on this album as well."

Hanakiv moved to London just as the pandemic hit and found herself trapped, in a big new city, without any network or family and so just concentrated on making music. "I stayed in my room with my basic equipment - keyboard, Korg minilogue, SM 58 and Rode nt1-a microphones, laptop and speakers. I was reading about mixing, and trying out different things and listening to a lot of music to get the sense of the mixes and production and finishing a commission piece for 5.1 multi speaker system at that time so I set up four speakers for quadrophonic surround sound in my room!". She also found her way back to piano - my instrument – and started practicing again, playing the pieces she used to play, but also just improvising, and this was the beginning of what would become her debut album, 'Goodbyes'.

"I started appreciating everything about music again (even melody!), and everything just came together naturally, and I arrived to a point where I finally found my voice, and I had something that I wanted to say and share. I composed "Meditation I" first and started with "Goodbye", and all the other pieces are derived from that. Without "Meditation I" there wouldn't be this album. If you listen closely, "Meditation I" starts where "Goodbye" ends; "Meditation II" is born from "Meditation I".

But it was meeting Fi Roberts, a sound engineer based at the legendary Strongrom Studios in Shoreditch, London in December 2020 that really brought the album into focus. The pair bonded over an interest in prepared piano and a similar approach to production ideas (a balance of not overdoing it, and letting the songs speak for themselves, but being open to explore) and Fi became a friend but also a confidant and eventually co-producer

"Fi has a big impact on this record but I don't know how to really explain that properly. Of course, this album is sonically stunning thanks to her amazing mixes and recording skills, but she also believed in this music so much and it created something very special - that's difficult to measure with words. She just works with heart, and I really appreciate that"

This then is 'Goodbyes', the first offering from a major new voice, who offers us a meditative work full of space and tranquillity but also life and friendship and meaning. And we are very proud to welcome her to the Gondwana family.

Brazilian psych soul wunderkind, producer and singer Tagua Tagua has joined the Wonderwheel Recordings family with a tender selection of cuts on his second album Tanto.

Recorded in the rural outskirts of Sao Paulo there is a sense of yearning that permeates throughout the set list of ten unapologetic love songs that fly between lush psychedelic pop to warm, beat-laden neo-soul with Brazilian flavor. The album maneuvers subtly between the different dynamics, and purposefully so, as it was 'a vibe' that Tagua Tagua AKA Felipe Puperi wanted to instill from start to finish - channeling soul heroes past and present like Bill Withers, Shuggie Otis & Sault.

The album title and first single Tanto translates to Portuguese as 'so much', and Felipe sees the track and entirety of the album as "a feeling of falling in love for the sake of falling in love". The track is a slice of horizontal soul music and possesses a sweet, almost drug induced fervor, simple on arrangements. Felipe sings in a melismatic tenor, at times tipping into falsetto, with subtle effects enriching his delivery.

Based in the city of São Paulo, Felipe previously fronted the group Wannabe Jalva and has an extensive musical resumé, having played at Lollapalooza Brazil, supported shows for Pearl Jam and Jack White, and created a name for himself as one of the most promising breakout acts in Brazil. Yet there was a break-out moment of self discovery, a re-connection with his language that led to a personal and musical revolution culminating in his debut solo album in 2020, Inteiro Metade.

Whereas his previous longplayer had changing musical personalities from tropical psychedelic to funk and soul, Tanto only flirts outside of the mellow psychedelic soul prism and whilst there are ebbs and flows, it delights in its sparse and sweet minimalism. "Pra Trás" opens proceedings, and aptly, as Tagua Tagua moves from one album to the next, it's about leaving things behind. There are strings and orchestrations, a killer guitar hook and Tagua Tagua's seductive delivery. "Colors" is full throttle future-soul, squelchy synths pulsed by a lazy, yet insistent shuffler of a beat. Further dreamlike timbres are found in "Barcelona", a journey of a song and Brisa, perhaps the body-mover of the collection, with silky synths and a chorus you're sure to repeat.

All songs were written and recorded by Felipe himself, mixed by fellow Wannabe Jalva band member Tiago Abrahão, and mastered by Brian Lucey (The Black Keys, Chet Faker). Recently, Tagua Tagua toured Europe and played several shows at SXSW and along the West coast in the US.

Rua Sound's new sub-label SPHERES is proud to introduce its first release from Rome-based producer Noroi. The Adrastea EP is a richly imaginative work of electronic music, showcasing Noroi's uniquely melancholic and futuristic sound.

Comprised of four tracks, the EP opens with "Stay," a powerful blending of emotive breakbeat and evocative vocals. "Untitled Jungle," a collaboration with VSC, is a genre-defying jungle track that builds to a genre-appropriate fist pumping crescendo. "Chrysalis" is on a more introspective tip, where delicate layers of reverb-drenched instrumentation and the transcendent vocal delivery of Tokyo Witch creates a restorative atmosphere. The EP concludes with "Transoceanic," an energetic piece that blends percussion and atmospherics for a sound that can't be defined.

The Adrastea EP shows off Noroi's flare for innovative sound design, offering a vision of the future of electronic music. Out on March 10th on the Rua Sound Bandcamp and in online and physical stores worldwide, it is a must-listen for fans of the deep, adventurous tracks that work in your headphones as well as on the emotional end of the club sets.

This is the first in a series of releases from the SPHERES label, which named after one of Jupiter's moons. Each one features original artwork by Josje Bijl aka Yorobi, inspired by the sketches of these moons by Galileo in 1610.

All music by Noroi

Dynamite Cuts are proud to add these two wicked bangers to the Dynamite Cuts 45s series. The Legendary ‘Larry Young’s Fuel’, club classic “Turn of the Lights” mega rare 7” version, which was issued back in the 70’s on the dreaded Styrene (which always snapped so easily). Now for the first time on vinyl with its iconic sleeve. Plus, a quirky, funky vocal track “People do be funny” first time on 45. Another must-have 45.

For the second release on Lord Of The Isles’s Dusk Delay imprint we see the Kimochi Sound and Hanagasumi regular, Shine Grooves deliver one of his best organic electronic odysseys to date. Spanning 6 tracks; it masterfully traverses an exciting intergalactic sonic landscape. Aptly titled ‘Pictures Of Mood’, the EP conjures vivid imagery through evocative deep experimental introspection, soul enhancing optimism and eyes-closed dancefloor dreaming.

Limited vinyl run with Riso print.

If you're into the classic sound of the best releases from the seventies and eighties era Jazz-Funk or Fusion with a slightly modern and exciting touch, you don’t want to miss out on Fusion Affair’s first album: Venom! Proudly presented by Parisian label Chuwanaga, Venom is filled with sharp synths, electrifying basslines, serious guitar licks, amazing themes, in-the-pocket drums grooves and true excitement all over the six tracks of the album.

Starting with "Fruits Rouges" which introduces the listener to the beautiful and soulful harmonies spread throughout the album but also an overall overview of how Fusion Affair and Venom brings together strength and delicacy. Then, the impetuous and dangerous ride of "Venom" will leave you either dancing or shocked. A dangerous trip with a perfect climactic ending: watch out for the snakes! The serious but fun-filled groove of "Bounce" will take you back to Herbie Hancock’s seventies, with a jazz-funk style that you cannot resist bouncing your head to! Despite its chordal simplicity, the dreamier yet modern track "Dasha" begins with an unconventional use of berimbau. After several expositions of its beautiful main melody, the track intensifies with a perfectly executed drum and bass interlude. "Missing Cat" returns to a classic Jazz-Funk vibe with late seventies synth brass accentuating its playful theme. This one’s definitely got a vintage vibe! Finally, "Bougie Noire" ends Fusion Affair’s first album with powerful chords and orchestration while keeping it truly mysterious : to be continued...

Fusion Affair brings together the talents of French musicians from Lyon, Paris and Montréal, all gathered by the producer LeMatoux. Following many sessions at the infamous Studio Delta, record label Chuwanaga and the band are ready to spread their infectious groove all over the globe!

Scottish composer and multi-instrumentalist Bill Wells and virtuoso tuba player Danielle Price once more team up for Karaoke Kalk under the name The Sensory Illusions. The two further explore the affinities between their idiosyncratic musical approaches across a variety of styles and genres while also expanding their sound palette. After its predecessor saw Wells working strictly with his electric guitar, on the »Sensory Illusions II« the piano enters the mix on two of the eleven pieces. Much like his brass-heavy collaboration album »Osaka Bridge« with Japanese collective Maher Shalal Hash Baz—made available again on vinyl by the German label Karaoke Kalk in February 2023—this album injects melancholic atmospheres with a sense of playfulness. Picking up on elements from jazz, pop, blues, and classic songwriting while acknowledging their debt to techniques from the worlds of avant-garde and improv music, The Sensory Illusions weave together disparate elements into a colourful, imaginative suite of songs.

Starting with the folky chords of opener »Four Chord Dream,« the track titles spell out Wells’ characteristic use of ideas that literally come to him in his sleep (the project was even named after a record he found while browsing a store in a dream). The National Jazz Trio Of Scotland leader then fleshes them out together with Price, who again serves as a one-woman rhythm section, as she does throughout most of the album. When Wells enters 1960s spy movie territory with a swirling rendition of John Barry’s »Theme from Vendetta« and picks up on those dynamics with a rolling riff in the next song, her versatile playing provides the backdrop for that. Once Wells sits down at the piano for the tender »Flotsam Bodes,« however, their roles are being reversed and Price—a seasoned and multifaceted musician who was one of only six applicants chosen to attend Chilly Gonzales' Gonzervatory in 2019 and who is currently working with acclaimed London-based trumpet player and composer Laura Jurd—takes the lead. »I’m the Urban Spaceman« makes it even more apparent how seamlessly these two experienced players leave each other space to showcase their respective talent and expand on their individual ideas: Marked by Wells’ soloing and exploring different sonic possibilities of the guitar, it also sees Price showcasing her reduced yet agile solos before they both return to the idea at the heart of the song.

It is precisely those ideas that guide the duo’s way through the individual pieces, but their sometimes widely different approaches yield very distinct results. While working with the piano once more on »Mr. Sophie« results in a fuller and more anthemic sound, they opt for a more restrained, melancholic one the album closer »Desk Aunt«. It is precisely these kinds of variations in mood and tone that underscore how these two musicians are perfectly attuned to each other. As the second duo record in their six years of working together, »The Sensory Illusions II« proves once more how much musical ground they are able to cover with their instruments and open minds alone.

”The Songs of Bacharach & Costello” umfasst alle veröffentlichten Songs, die Costello gemeinsam mit Burt Bacharach geschrieben hat, und feiert die drei Jahrzehnte währende Songwriter-Partnerschaft der beiden.

Die von Costello zusammengestellte Super Deluxe Edition enthält das remasterte Album ”Painted From Memory” und eine neue Kollektion ”Taken From Life” mit unveröffentlichten Songs aus dem geplanten
”Painted From Memory”-Soundtrack sowie Live-Auftritten und einem ausführlichen 10.000 Wörter umfassenden Essay von Costello. Das 2LP-Set bietet das neu gemasterte Album ”Painted From Memory” und sechs Songs von ”Taken From Life”, von denen drei neu aufgenommene Kompositionen sind.
Das 2CD-Set bringt auf CD1 das remasterte Painted From Memory-Album, während CD2 das gesamte Taken From LifeAlbum enthält, einschließlich unveröffentlichter Songs des geplanten Painted From Memory-Soundtracks und drei neu aufgenommener Kompositionen.

Das Album ist nun als Super Deluxe 2LP +4CD, als 2LP und 2CD erhältlich

In den letzten Jahren verbreitete sich ein neues Musikgenre vor allem durch Streaming-Playlisten: »Lo-Fi Beats« sind ruhige instrumentale Hip-Hop-Stücke, die dank ihrer verrauschten, leiernden Ästhetik klingen, als kämen sie direkt von einer mehrfach überspielten Kassette.
L.Dre aus Los Angeles ist einer der Meister dieses Stils, doch auf seinem Album LoFi Symphony für Deutsche Grammophon hat er sich einer vollkommen neuen Herausforderung gestellt: Lo-Fi Beats mit hochqualitativen Aufnahmen klassischer Orchestermusiker:innen zu verbinden.

Der Produktionsprozess von LoFi Symphony gestaltete sich deutlich aufwendiger als bei einem üblichen Projekt in diesem Genre. In einem ersten Arbeitsschritt sampelte L.Dre die bekannten Stücke für eine
Rohversion eines Beats, dann wurde die »neue« Komposition transkribiert und einem Orchester aus ausgewählten Musiker:innen zur Neueinspielung vorgelegt.

Gerade die Spannung, die sich aus der Kombination von Lo-Fi-Ästhetik und Hi-Fi-Aufnahmen ergibt, macht LoFi Symphony so lebendig, interessant und innovativ. Streicheraufnahmen treffen auf Vintage-Sounds eines originalen Steinway-Flügels aus den
1920er-Jahren, auf das genretypische Vinylknistern und die charakteristisch gedämpften Drumsounds.

»Dies ist definitiv anders als alles, was ich je zuvor gemacht habe«, bringt er die Besonderheit dieses Albums auf den Punkt. »Ich glaube nicht, dass so etwas überhaupt schon mal gemacht wurde.«

The Stranglers waren in den Siebzigern und Achtzigern
nicht zu stoppen und wurden zu einer der größten
europäischen Bands. Feline erreichte Platz 4 in den
britischen Albumcharts. Die Leadsingle "European
Female" erreichte Platz 9 der Single-Charts und ebnete
den Weg für den Wandel im Sound der Band, die damit
ihren Platz in einer sich ständig verändernden
Klanglandschaft festigte. Anlässlich des 40. Jubiläums von
Feline erscheint das Album als neu als erweiterte
Deluxe-Edition. Diese epische Edition erscheint als CD,
sowie als rote & transparente Marble-Vinyl und wird ein
Sammlerstück für die nächsten Jahre sein

Mixed Colours Vinyl

Nach der 2021 erschienenen Best-Of-Compilation 'This is Telex' erscheint jetzt der komplette Katalog des belgischen Synth-Pop-Trios als aufwändige limitierte 6CD-Box und als limitierte 6LP-Box, inclusive der Alben 'Looking For Saint Tropez', 'Neurovision', 'Sex', 'Wonderful World', 'Looney Tunes' und 'How Do You Dance?'.

Diese Studioalben wurden alle neu gemastert und von den Bandmitgliedern Dan Lacksman und Michel Moers neu abgemischt, wobei der Geist der Originaltitel erhalten blieb und gleichzeitig eine neue Frische hinzugefügt wurde, um eine endgültige Version jedes Albums zu schaffen. Das Boxset ist eine Zeitreise der Karriere des belgischen Synthpop-Trios, von ihrem Debüt 1979 bis zu ihrem letzten Studioalbum How Do You Dance? (2006).

With her hypnotizing voice and vivid lyricism, Jackie Mendoza makes fantastical, intimate electro-pop propelled by ukulele-based dance grooves. Having grown up between her birthplace of Chula Vista, California and Tijuana, Mexico, the 29-year-old singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist bridges these two worlds with dynamic soundscapes that pull from Latin pop, electronic music, and indie pop. She creates a musical universe that exists beyond strict borders of genre and geography, giving her the space to traverse the vast expanse of her interiority. Mendoza first started performing in 2014 as the vocalist for Brooklyn dream pop bands Gingerlys and Lunarette. She then broke out as a solo artist with her 2016 pop hits "Islands" and "La Luz," which showcased her imagery-packed, yet deeply introspective lyrics. On LuvHz, her 2019 adventurous debut EP that was initially inspired by a painful breakup, she turned her personal experiences into songs that observe greater truths about the world around her. As a result, the project became a broader reflection on varying forms of love, in relationships with your partner, your culture, and the natural environment. Mendoza expands this approach on her debut album, Galaxia de Emociones (Galaxy of Emotions), which sees her exploring a great range of feelings, from depression, celebration, outrage, numbness, hopelessness, and thrilling love. She uses each emotion as a portal to convey the intricacies of her experience as a queer, first-generation Mexican American woman, who actively defies and criticizes machismo and the Christian culture she was surrounded by. Brought up in the suburban border town of Chula Vista, she recalls being told by her parents to not mix English with Spanish, but speaking "spanglish" quickly became inevitable. It wasn't until high school, that learning to play ukulele and singing in school musicals allowed her to authentically express herself. "This album is about finding the courage to not only face my emotions, but also sharing them by singing them out loud." Mendoza says. The project was co-written and co-produced by Mendoza and Rusty Santos (Animal Collective, Panda Bear), with a contribution from Grammy winning producer and accordionist Ulises Lozano. As Galaxia de Emociones cruises from shimmering indie pop to accordion-laced electronic norteño, Mendoza proves there is both power and tenderness in embracing the fullness of your being and not doubting your instincts that might have been discouraged by society. She says it all in the opening song, "Natural," which blooms with spacey synths and twinkling ukulele plucks. "There is no use in controlling what comes natural to you," she sings in Spanish in a spellbinding loop. With her new album, she hopes that listeners can connect with her words and look within to explore their own galaxy of emotions.

For over 28 years envy have been crafting soaring compositions with captivating melodies that owe as much to Explosions in the Sky and Mogwai as they do to Bad Brains and Cro-Mags. Their new EP continues to display a masterful control of tension and release in chords and melodies behind the steady spoken-word Japanese of singer Tetsuya. Throughout their storied career, Japanese ENVY have paved the way for iconic bands like Isis, Converge and Deafheaven with their unique sound blending elements of hardcore / punk with reverb-drenched tremolo-picked guitar lines owing to the world of post-rock. Envy sit right in between these 2 worlds, and prove that they are not as disparate as it seems at a first glance. Opening track ,Seimei` marries tear-inducing melodies with gut-wrenching grooves to create a soul journey, while ,Zanshin` (meaning ,uninterrupted heart` in Japanese) dashes forward with an upbeat groove and soaring post rock leads. On ,Tamayura', the energy is dialed back as reverb-drenched tremolo-picked guitar lines wash over you from behind alongside Japanese spoken word-parts and a throbbing heartbeat. This is ENVY at their very best. FFO Mono, Mogwai, Explosions In The Sky, Isis, Swans, Pelican, Caspian, Thursday, From Autumn To Ashes, Thursday, Birds In Row, Deafheaven Limited (400 copies ww) Single Coloured Tamayura (Dark Red Vinyl) Edition!

Wisconsin-based Wavefiler aka Steve Zydek and Vermont-based Go Outside aka Andrew Shaffer have a shared respect for one another's work as well as a personal friendship beyond music and that is what brought them together for this new EP having first met over Instagram. They started by sharing textural washes and snippets of melody with one another and then as the comms progressed they decided to work on a proper album as "audio penpals". Each track was written and finished before the next one was started and was then used as inspiration going forwards. It lends these lush ambient sounds a real sense of narrative.

2023 REpress
A North American road trip of coming of age garage soul mapped by Ivan Liechti, Ghost Riders is Efficient Space’s latest narrative compilation, hovering in a liminal emotional ravine between moonlight melancholy, teenage heartache and unchecked, unrealised ambition. Across seventeen open hearted ballads recorded 1965-1974, the 2LP collects and connects dots between British Invasion fanatics, child prodigies, the loners and the luckless, in a kind of trans-continental survey of those swept up in rock’n’roll mania and buoyed by local newspaper ads promising fame and gold records.

From the tangerine dreams of 8th grade all-girl combo The Mod 4 to the tri-state jukebox aspiring echoes of The Tempters, The Yardley’s poetic Farfisa vamp and lilting folk pop, and The Landlords’ weepy break up b-side blues, these are mostly one shots by dreamers whose experience was brief before being checked back to the reality of suburban normality and realistic career options. Hailing from the regional backwaters of Illnois, Arkansas, Nevada, Massachussets, Ohio, Idaho, Texas and beyond, the licensed artists were scouted by way of local fire departments, spiritualist fellowships and animal welfare centres, often barely a stones throw from where their contributions were originally laid.

A barely teenage Dennis Harte's ‘Summer’s Over’ perhaps best taps the collection’s essence. A gut-wrenching lament of the passing of the season as if it was the last on earth. Flanked by players from The Left Banke, Harte, a now-piano tuner to the stars, is from the minor segment that found longevity in showbiz. Likewise with Michigan icon Lyn Nowicki who cast her ghostly voice over Beatles cover song chameleons The Common People and Jerry McGee, The Ventures member and conduit of Dr. John’s ‘Twilight Zone’.

Ghost Riders simmers with the scent of youthful summers, the pang of schoolyard romance, and the excitement (and disenchantment) of teenage naïveté, delivered via a deceptively simple and frequently wonky garage band set up. The vision of record collector and graphic designer Ivan Liechti, these eternal psych-folk howlers are further crystallised by Colin Young’s fastidious audio restoration, the original artwork of Elise Ganebin-de Bons and an aptly penned forward from Sonic Boom.

If credibility were currency, FAKE NAMES" wealth would be off the charts. Composed of Brian Baker (Minor Threat, Bad Religion, Dag Nasty), Michael Hampton (S.O.A., Embrace), Dennis Lyxzén (Refused, INVSN, The International Noise Conspiracy), Johnny Temple (Girls Against Boys, Soulside) and the newest member Brendan Canty (Fugazi, Rites of Spring), the band is a veritable post-hardcore dream team. However instead of rehashing the past, Expendables is a reinvention that sees the band dialing back the distortion and leaning into the melodies. The result pairs their unparalleled pedigree with a pop sensibility that"s slightly unexpected and wholly satisfying. "For our last record 2019"s FAKE NAMESthe general influences were 70"s U.K. punk and power-pop; but it wound up with a little classic rock vibe as well, like the Vibrators meets Aerosmith. We never saw that coming!" , Baker explains. For Expendables the band enlisted producer Adam "Atom" Greenspan (IDLES, Yeah Yeah Yeahs). Baker explains, "The pop influences are a little more out front on this one and the production really helps it shine. It sounds more direct, more urgent." Expendables is the latest exchange in a musical conversation that spans four decades. Baker aptly refers to the lineup of FAKE NAMES as a "mutual admiration society" and says that once the five members got in the same room together, it felt as if they had already been in the band together for years.

LIMITED BLACK & WHITE COLOURED VINYL EDIT

If credibility were currency, FAKE NAMES" wealth would be off the charts. Composed of Brian Baker (Minor Threat, Bad Religion, Dag Nasty), Michael Hampton (S.O.A., Embrace), Dennis Lyxzén (Refused, INVSN, The International Noise Conspiracy), Johnny Temple (Girls Against Boys, Soulside) and the newest member Brendan Canty (Fugazi, Rites of Spring), the band is a veritable post-hardcore dream team. However instead of rehashing the past, Expendables is a reinvention that sees the band dialing back the distortion and leaning into the melodies. The result pairs their unparalleled pedigree with a pop sensibility that"s slightly unexpected and wholly satisfying. "For our last record 2019"s FAKE NAMESthe general influences were 70"s U.K. punk and power-pop; but it wound up with a little classic rock vibe as well, like the Vibrators meets Aerosmith. We never saw that coming!" , Baker explains. For Expendables the band enlisted producer Adam "Atom" Greenspan (IDLES, Yeah Yeah Yeahs). Baker explains, "The pop influences are a little more out front on this one and the production really helps it shine. It sounds more direct, more urgent." Expendables is the latest exchange in a musical conversation that spans four decades. Baker aptly refers to the lineup of FAKE NAMES as a "mutual admiration society" and says that once the five members got in the same room together, it felt as if they had already been in the band together for years.

When the pandemic hit, Hannah van Loon adopted a dog named Gizmo, who became a much-needed companion while the Bay Area musician wrote her second album as Tanukichan. Aptly Named after her new four-legged friend, GIZMO is an exercise in release, whether from situational hindrances—a forced lockdown, for one—or from self-imposed hedonistic coping mechanisms.“ A theme I always had floating around was escape,” van Loon explains of her follow-up to 2018’s Sundays. “Escaping from myself, my problems, sadness and cycles.”

To channel the more uplifting spirit she wanted for GIZMO, van Loon turned to the radio pop-rock of her childhood: “I was struck by the in-your-face positivity of the lyrics,” she adds,referencing artists like 311, The Cranberries, and Tom Petty. “I wanted to bring that positivity while writing about the sad and helpless emotions I’d been grappling with.” But GIZMO’s lightheartedness doesn’t make it shallow: “I think that I could let it go, as beautiful as snow,” she murmurs on “Don’t Give Up,” a nu metal-meets-Cocteau Twins groove about the sudden awareness that all the relationships you depend on could vanish instantaneously. Van Loon’s main collaborator on GIZMO was Toro y Moi’s Chaz Bear, and the jangly pop earworm “Take Care” showcases the heavily distorted, in-your-face guitar work reminiscent of Bear’s own psych joints What For? And Mahal. On the hypnotic, wall-of-sound-rocker “Thin Air” featuring Enumclaw, van Loon channels the triumphant grit of The Smashing Pumpkins as she ponders the impermanence of even the most impactful relationships: “I’ll always have the memories/Of how you used to make me see/Until they fell in the ocean/They’re not swimming/They’re not floating.”

Existentialism aside, GIZMO also sees van Loon break out of her sonic comfort zone. “One ofthe main changes of how I’m approaching music now is that I want to have more fun in the process,” she says, and she walks the line between melodrama and whimsy gracefully: “I can learn something because I’ve been here before,” she sings on the soaring, bittersweet “Been Here Before.” Deftones-inspired thrash drums and screeching electric guitars are gracefully contrasted with van Loon’s hypnotic, almost deadpan vocal style and a crystal clear acoustic guitar she describes as “cute.” Gizmo the dog suddenly passed away right as van Loon finished the album, but he’s immortalised with his photo on the cover—a fitting emblem of this new era of Tanukichan.

The diminutive Peter Barclay was guy in early '90s Oakland, the eccentric with the most style, the most talent, the local magician. This self-taught musical wizard recorded at home and produced two barely-released albums, 1990's dreamlike Acceptance and 1992's synth pop What Kind Of World, winning over the few who heard them. But fame outside his small circle was not to be, and Barclay was lost in the late-'90s crest of the AIDS epidemic. Rediscovered for a new generation, this is queer music at its finest... Welcome to the world of Peter Barclay.

Tape

Mit seinem packenden Stilmix aus Schlager, Pop und Rock begeistert Wolfgang Petry nun schon seit mehr als viereinhalb Dekaden ganze Generationen von Musikfans. Dabei immer an seiner Seite: Seine Ehefrau Rosie, die mit dem Kultsänger in den letzten Jahrzehnten loyal durch dick und dünn gegangen ist. Zu ihrem gemeinsamen 50. Hochzeitstag am 20.11.2022 macht Wolle seiner Rosie nun eine ganz besondere Liebeserklärung - in Form der brandneuen Single "Du gehörst zu mir und ich gehör zu dir", mit der er gleichzeitig den ersten Vorboten seines kommenden Studioalbums STARK WIE WIR vorlegt!Wolfgang Petry ist ein waschechter Ausnahmemusiker, der nicht nur den deutschen Schlager, sondern die gesamte deutschsprachige Musiklandschaft mit seiner authentischen, geerdeten und unverstellten Art geprägt hat. Knapp zwanzig Millionen verkaufte Einheiten seiner insgesamt 26 Studioalben (davon fünf Top 1-Scheiben und acht Top 5-Entrys in den deutschen Album-Charts) hat Wolle mittlerweile auf der Uhr. Mehrere goldene Schallplatten, eine Multiplatin-Auszeichnung, fünf ECHOS in der Kategorie "Schlager/Volksmusik" sowie insgesamt zehn Goldene Stimmgabeln (inklusive zwei "Platinum Life Award"-Stimmgabeln für sein Lebenswerk) sind die mehr als beeindruckende Bilanz seines bisherigen Wirkens. Doch wie sagt man so schön: Hinter jedem starken Mann steht auch immer eine starke Frau. In Wolfgang Petrys Fall seine Jugendliebe Rosie, die den Sänger und Musiker stets hinter den Kulissen begleitet, ihm in hektischen Phasen den Rücken freigehalten und ihm Trost und Kraft in schwierigen Tagen geschenkt hat. Wolles Fels in der Brandung, auf den sich der 71-Jährige bis heute blind verlassen kann. Nie hat sich Petry davor gescheut, in seinen Songs Fehler und Schwächen einzugestehen, aber andererseits auch danke zu sagen für den Support, den er in guten wie in schlechten Zeiten von seinen Fans erhalten hat. Mit dem ersten Album-Vorboten "Du gehörst zu mir und ich gehör zu dir" möchte sich Wolfgang Petry nun für fünfzig ereignisreiche Ehejahre bei seiner geliebten Frau Rosie bedanken. Als ganz besondere Überraschung ist Gattin Rosie im Clip zu dem Song zu sehen - das allererste Mal, dass die fest aufeinander eingeschworenen Eheleute gemeinsam vor der Videokamera standen! "Ich hab mir den Kopf zermartert, wie ich dieses besondere Gefühl auf den Punkt bringen kann", so Petry über die Entstehungsgeschichte des schwungvollen Ohrwurms. "Zuerst hatte ich eine lyrische Idee, die ich aber schnell wieder verworfen habe. Ich wollte meine Emotionen ganz einfach und simpel ausdrücken; beim Texten entstand dann ganz spontan die Melodie zu `Du gehörst zu mir und ich gehör zu dir`. Der Dreh war komplett anders, aber irgendwie auch vertraut. Schließlich ist sie ja die Frau, mit der ich schon so lange zusammenlebe. Ein berührender Moment in meinem Leben." Und auch für Wolles Rosie waren die gemeinsamen Dreharbeiten ein einmaliges Erlebnis: "Es war eigentlich ganz witzig, aber auch das einzige Mal. Ich fühle mich im Hintergrund wesentlich wohler." Trotzdem fühlt sich Wolfgangs Herzensdame durch diesen ihr gewidmeten Song natürlich sehr geehrt.Auf seinem neuen Album STARK WIE WIR gibt Wolfgang Petry in 12 brandneuen Songs tiefe Einblicke in sein Gefühlsleben. "Die Arbeit an dieser Platte war eine große Reise für mich und hat mir das nochmal eine oder andere vor Augen geführt", resümiert der Sänger. Neben verschiedenen musikalischen Facetten und einer absoluten Ohrwurm-Garantie erwartet den Zuhörer auch der ein oder andere Gänsehaut-Moment.Wolfgang Petrys neue Single "Du gehörst zu mir und ich gehör zu dir" erscheint am 18.11.2022. Das zugehörige Video wird passend zur Goldenen Hochzeit am 20.11.2022 veröffentlicht. Das brandneue Studioalbum STARK WIE WIR folgt am 03.03.2023 als CD, streng limitierte farbige Vinyl, Download sowie auf allen Streaming-Plattformen und ist ab sofort vorbestellbar.

After a devastating opening salvo of 19 modernist rave mutations on a double tape pack for Sneaker Social Club, Minder lands on Hypercolour with another 19 cybernetic fever dreams still reeling from the open season NRG of hardcore.

If you need to understand where Minder wants to take you, strap in for the labyrinth narrative of ‘Knotted’, a smudged, 15-minute breakbeat suite barrelling through lurid dystopian street scenes with only a blown-out bass sprite as a guide. Throughout Sanctuary, bass is the constant when all else is chaos. It comes in thick, warped Reese tones on ‘Simulated Hunt’, gets twisted out through angry filters on ‘Popcorn Lover’, comes on wobbly in true 2-step style underneath grimey garage anti-anthem ‘Ard’.

There’s a lot to take in across the spread of Sanctuary. It’s the sound of every rave genre slowly digested over 30-plus years, until the lactic acid metabolises every snare rush, every searing lead line, every chipmunk vocal lick, and everything gets mashed up and spat back out into a gnarly signal chain at the flash point of inspiration. The time taken is key – this is the sound of a life in front of the speaker stack manifesting in something too wild and weird to be derivative. You’ll hear snatches of familiarity thrown into unfamiliar contexts, but for all the detectable lineage, Minder’s sound is unsettling in its originality.

Dislodged ragga jungle techno, muffled hardcore nightmares, hard n’ haggard acid trance, junked up jump up – you could write an essay on the sounds you can spot and the way they’ve been twisted. Aside from the omnipresent low-end, it’s the unflinching honesty of Korron’s repeat appearances on the mic throughout which bring Minder’s disturbing patchwork into focus. For all the futurism attached to these sounds, it’s also caked in a very human filth which can only come from this earth. The roots run deep, and the fruit is rotten, and isn’t that how it should be?

American singer-songwriter, poet, and photographer Thomas Meluch, known musically as Benoît Pioulard, returns with his most structured and vocal release to date. Titled »Eidetic,« a word denoting the ability to recall mental images with extraordinarily rich precision, the album presents unprecedented clarity and vitality for Benoît Pioulard. To access its thematic ground, Meluch looked inward with an affinity towards the people he loves during a period marked by his move from Seattle to Brooklyn in 2019. The resulting work engages with the universe's unflinching mortality and, as he says, »the ways it has modified and improved my relationships, especially with family.« Embodied by the creek, leaves, and ferns of the cover photography — taken in Michigan’s Burchfield Park, where he and his dad used to hike and »muse on existence« — the music glistens and unfurls with the flow of life he’s come to know. »Eidetic« is the culmination of Meluch's craft both as a producer and writer. An evocative sonic vocabulary meets deft lyrical introspection, articulated with the nuance, vulnerability, and confidence of a longtime artist hitting a stride.

Meluch has continually refined, redefined, and adjusted the focus of his gentle pop project over the last 20 years. Recorded primarily with guitar, tapes, and voice — and spanning labels with albums for Kranky, Morr Music, Beacon Sound, and Past Inside the Present — his catalog flows seamlessly between ambient improvisation and pop composition. Much like the analog photos that often accompany his releases, songs can feel dreamily softened and distant, and others beautifully vivid and detailed. 2021 full-length »Bloodless« found Meluch deep in droning decay, expressive yet wordless. With »Eidetic,« he swings back to sharpened forms. Lush banks of treated guitar and synth brush against hushed percussion; there is mist in the distance, but everything up close is intricately constructed and radiant. Meluch's voice is notably forward in the mix — a warm and calming tenor, a harmonic coo more than a whisper — ever-observant and actively processing.

To record much of the album, Meluch filled a cabin in rural Maine with his usual setup of simple percussion, a couple of Fender electrics, and a parlor guitar made by his friend who does bespoke luthier work. The modest utility is what he knows best, and here he pushes the output to its most pristine potential.

»Eidetic« opens in a swirl of familiar haze; »Margaret Murie« eases listeners in, as lush and verdant as the landscapes conserved by its famed namesake. With the setting established, Meluch, the narrator, enters the foreground with »Crux,« a tender piece written about finding new motivations in a new city. »We covet this rare green hue / Here at the farthest point from home,« he sings above a reassuring pattern of strums and percussion. Meluch's prose shines on the swiftly-moving »Nameless,« inspired by the neurological effects that came with the antiquated practice of manufacturing mercury mirrors; »folks would slowly go insane while looking into their own reflections every day,« he adds. The idea informs a series of surreal abstractions before everything drops out in the final minute, and we are left free-floating in eerie nothingness.

Across the album, labyrinthine lyrical ponderings scatter with dazzling imagery, artfully blurring scenes from world history with Meluch's more personal, present-day. The propulsive and earnest »Thursday Night« catches his mind overly active and too stoned, riffing on black holes and songwriting itself. »Halve« references the splitting of the atom, what he considers »the beginning of man's downfall,« and the unrealized initiative proposed by the US government that would have created 'nuclear refuges' in its national parks. Meluch's loved ones weave throughout; »Tet« holds his father's experience in Vietnam and its lasting effects. »Lillian Isola« touches on his maternal grandmother's spinal curvature, and »Pastel Dust« navigates the wake of his cat, who died on New Year's Eve 2020.

At first blush, Meluch's atmospheric and melodic sensibilities resonate purely in their own right. Upon closer meditation, his ability to render stories — many of which surround human tragedy, misfortune, and understanding — through the prism of his poetry makes »Eidetic« even more rewarding.

Dark Green Vinyl

American singer-songwriter, poet, and photographer Thomas Meluch, known musically as Benoît Pioulard, returns with his most structured and vocal release to date. Titled »Eidetic,« a word denoting the ability to recall mental images with extraordinarily rich precision, the album presents unprecedented clarity and vitality for Benoît Pioulard. To access its thematic ground, Meluch looked inward with an affinity towards the people he loves during a period marked by his move from Seattle to Brooklyn in 2019. The resulting work engages with the universe's unflinching mortality and, as he says, »the ways it has modified and improved my relationships, especially with family.« Embodied by the creek, leaves, and ferns of the cover photography — taken in Michigan’s Burchfield Park, where he and his dad used to hike and »muse on existence« — the music glistens and unfurls with the flow of life he’s come to know. »Eidetic« is the culmination of Meluch's craft both as a producer and writer. An evocative sonic vocabulary meets deft lyrical introspection, articulated with the nuance, vulnerability, and confidence of a longtime artist hitting a stride.

Meluch has continually refined, redefined, and adjusted the focus of his gentle pop project over the last 20 years. Recorded primarily with guitar, tapes, and voice — and spanning labels with albums for Kranky, Morr Music, Beacon Sound, and Past Inside the Present — his catalog flows seamlessly between ambient improvisation and pop composition. Much like the analog photos that often accompany his releases, songs can feel dreamily softened and distant, and others beautifully vivid and detailed. 2021 full-length »Bloodless« found Meluch deep in droning decay, expressive yet wordless. With »Eidetic,« he swings back to sharpened forms. Lush banks of treated guitar and synth brush against hushed percussion; there is mist in the distance, but everything up close is intricately constructed and radiant. Meluch's voice is notably forward in the mix — a warm and calming tenor, a harmonic coo more than a whisper — ever-observant and actively processing.

To record much of the album, Meluch filled a cabin in rural Maine with his usual setup of simple percussion, a couple of Fender electrics, and a parlor guitar made by his friend who does bespoke luthier work. The modest utility is what he knows best, and here he pushes the output to its most pristine potential.

»Eidetic« opens in a swirl of familiar haze; »Margaret Murie« eases listeners in, as lush and verdant as the landscapes conserved by its famed namesake. With the setting established, Meluch, the narrator, enters the foreground with »Crux,« a tender piece written about finding new motivations in a new city. »We covet this rare green hue / Here at the farthest point from home,« he sings above a reassuring pattern of strums and percussion. Meluch's prose shines on the swiftly-moving »Nameless,« inspired by the neurological effects that came with the antiquated practice of manufacturing mercury mirrors; »folks would slowly go insane while looking into their own reflections every day,« he adds. The idea informs a series of surreal abstractions before everything drops out in the final minute, and we are left free-floating in eerie nothingness.

Across the album, labyrinthine lyrical ponderings scatter with dazzling imagery, artfully blurring scenes from world history with Meluch's more personal, present-day. The propulsive and earnest »Thursday Night« catches his mind overly active and too stoned, riffing on black holes and songwriting itself. »Halve« references the splitting of the atom, what he considers »the beginning of man's downfall,« and the unrealized initiative proposed by the US government that would have created 'nuclear refuges' in its national parks. Meluch's loved ones weave throughout; »Tet« holds his father's experience in Vietnam and its lasting effects. »Lillian Isola« touches on his maternal grandmother's spinal curvature, and »Pastel Dust« navigates the wake of his cat, who died on New Year's Eve 2020.

At first blush, Meluch's atmospheric and melodic sensibilities resonate purely in their own right. Upon closer meditation, his ability to render stories — many of which surround human tragedy, misfortune, and understanding — through the prism of his poetry makes »Eidetic« even more rewarding.

Lawrence Hayward knew that he wanted to be a pop star as a teen, and he devised a plan to release ten albums and ten singles over ten years to make that dream come true. A particular and determined individual, he would only be known as Lawrence from that day forward. His hopes for stardom would be pinned on his newly formed band, the succinctly named Felt. Soon signed to Cherry Red Records, Lawrence’s achingly cool vocals and the group’s way with walking melodies were evident on their debut for the label, “Something Sends Me To Sleep.” This compilation collects material from Felt’s Cherry Red period of 1981 to 1985, kicking off with that confident start, assembling numerous high points, and closing with their biggest hit, “Primitive Painters.”

This phase of the band is defined by the songwriting partnership and unique interplay of Lawrence and guitarist Maurice Deebank, with Deebank’s stylish and confident playing the envy of many of their counterparts. He delivers a constant string of shimmering hooks that wrap themselves around and over top of Lawrence’s more traditional beat combo song structures, as if trying to fit four songs worth of ideas into a pre-set radio friendly cutoff time. It works wonderfully as Lawrence always counters with a solid bedrock.

In one of many brushes with the brass ring, in 1984 Felt recorded versions of “Dismantled King Is Off The Throne” and “Sunlight Bathed The Golden Glow,” for the newly formed and Warners-backed label Blanco y Negro, in hopes that the band would follow their A+R man Mike Alway to the executive suite. Despite putting forward two of their finest songs, it was not to be. While major label dreams had to remain on the shelf, fans were delighted to be able to hear these beautifully stripped down and more direct versions when this compilation was released a few years later.

By 1985 the Felt roller coaster was something Maurice Deebank was constantly getting on and off of. As Gary Ainge always kept the beat, and Lawrence never lost focus, they were joined by local teen prodigy Martin Duffy on keyboards, filling out the arrangements, and following Deebank’s racing six-string cascades in “The Day The Rain Came Down” you can even hear a tiny hint of the next phase of the band in Duffy’s organ before Maurice swoops to the finish. The newly expanded Felt would then put everything they had into making one of the defining releases of the 80s: “Primitive Painters.”