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This long-awaited inaugural release from DJ Fred Spider's Voom Voom Records visits an iteration of the legendary South African jazz funk ensemble of the 20th century. Spirits Rejoice recorded two incredible jazz fusion albums in the late 70’s with amble lashings of funk and soul. As the currents of popular music shifted in the 1980s, the group got behind a modern dance side project led by guitarist Paul Petersen and produced by the genius Patric Van Blerk.
The result was Doctor Rhythm and an album entitled I Feel It Rising from 1981. Based out of Cape Town's premier vintage vinyl emporium, Voom Voom presents the album's sultry slow-burner "I'm So Strong Now" (paired with a modern remix) and well as two versions of the disco-boogie swinger "Hook It Up" written by the pianist Mervyn Africa (the original track alongside a Fred Spider & Simbad edit and a crisp rework by DJ Turmix from NY to boot). The result is an essential dancefloor release documenting what is surely South Africa's best take on band-driven New York boogie from the disco years. Calum MacNaughton (Sharp-Flat Records/As-Shams-The Sun)

Luke Slater and Ashley Burchett return as Roog Unit for new EP on Mote-Evolver.

Following a string of collaborative EPs throughout the years, Mote-Evolver boss Luke Slater and Ashley Burchett (Ø Phase) return under Roog Unit to Slater's imprint, delivering another set of mind-bending, boundary-pushing techno tracks tried and tested in their back to back sets under the alias.

Leading the release, 'Bash Box' brings a high-energy stomper peppered with menacing kicks and siren-esque leads, coming in at a blistering 156bpm. 'Don't Let Go' follows with tripped-out vocals and tweaked basslines making for a heads-down cut. On the flip, 'Koox' sees the duo reach for wonky, twinkling synths atop a fierce sizzling drum hook. 'Sanity Regard' takes the B2 spot, rounding out another stellar EP from two of techno's most revered talents.

The releases arrives as part of Mote-Evolver's new series of in-person artist collaborations, with each EP capturing the creative moment as it happens, with results aimed squarely at the dance floor. Each release has artwork combining one item from each artist, which means something to them, into one new image.

Orange Vinyl
Kero & Steph’s landmark collaboration Syndrome now sees a sumptuous release on vinyl and evocative music video, spinning data into densely layered visual treats.

Steph’s coolly ethereal voice and poignant writing drift in harmonies atop the sliced-up, glitched, hard-hitting precision of Kero’s productions. The unforgettable directness of her compositional sense is here, as her long resume of scores and placements would suggest. It finds an urban-technological counterpart in Kero’s frenetic sounds. The DU label boss is in full force straight from the chilling post-pop of the opening titular cut. “Walk in the park” is a production masterwork, punchy organic percussion against grinding bass. “Who am I to complain” is at once arresting and vulnerable with vocals, but still packs an emotional gut-punch in the accompanying instrumental. “Count down from 7” is more stripped down and urgent, melodic hooks propelled by lo-fi rhythmic mechanism’s menace.

For the remixes, Oberman Knocks unleashes utter digital destruction - computer memory banks dropped through a wormhole. That thoroughly deconstructs Mtch into composite textures -- and opens “Walk in the Park” to near-unrecognizable, yet somehow danceable mayhem.

The new physical and motion elements find a visual language for these sonic strata of imagination and digital construction. From designer Christoph Grünberger, known for his tome The Age of Data: Embracing Algorithms in Art & Design, we get the packed outer sleeve and 2D design. These enshroud a calm-looking Steph in a Shibuya Crossing-style trip inside Defasten’s geometries, opposite a catalog of branching visualizations and glyphs.

Defasten, known for his live AV work fusing virtual reality and performance, here explodes faceted 3D cubes, in the cover and further in the music video. These pulsing crystalline hyper-geometries delve into data as expressive medium, shifting and vibrating with the glowing tones and crisp percussive hits of Kero and Steph’s composition. It’s a rare music video that matches the music in intricacy and form - a world that can only exist in virtual space, but that feels as immersively dreamy as the sound score.

“Sugar coated fabric … in braided covers” and “silver linings” were never so tempting.

Orange Vinyl

The garage -psychedelic French duo The Liminanas straddles since 2009 the boundary between psychedelic ,shoegaze,garage & French yé-yé up to cool vocals . Quintessentially French but first known at the start in the US before hitting homeland France. 7 studio albums so far, 2 rare tracks compilations, many Eps,some OST, collabs such as L’Epée with Anton Newcombe & Emmanuelle Seigner : time for a first time Best of, and actually more than a Best of : Double Cd , Ltd Triple Vinyl& Digital editions offer 12 exclusive bonus tracks -new songs + rare songs when they called themselves les Bellas, before The Liminanas-.
“Electrified” also includes 23 classics songs , with featurings such as Peter Hook, Anton Newcombe and French pionners Laurent Garnier, Etienne Daho & Pascal Comelade.
Features liner notes written by Iggy Pop, Peter Hook & Keith Streng (Fleshtones) : because it’s only rock’n’roll.

Als Secret Discovery 2006 in die Zeitmaschine stiegen, ahnten sie noch nicht, dass sie 17 Jahre später, im Jahr 2023, mit einem neuen Album aussteigen würden. Dabei herausgekommen sind 9 brandneue Songs – über Liebe, Hass und menschliche Abgründe sowie über soziale und gesellschaftliche Missstände.

Von atmosphärisch, melodiös und indielastig bis hin zu brachial, metallisch und hart präsentieren sich die Songs in alter Secret-Discovery Manier mit einem guten Schuss musikalischer Reife. Eingängige Hooks, hypnotische Melodien zwischen Nostalgie und Aggressivität, eingebettet in runde Arrangements und expressive
Harmonien - auf den Punkt gebracht durch Kai Hoffmanns charismatische Stimme.
Charakteristisch ist die für die Secrets typische perfekte Symbiose aus Rock und Elektronik.

Auch als Special Edition im Digipack erhältlich! Aufgepeppt mit 3 nagelneuen Bonustracks als Ergänzung zum Standard Album sowie 2 Remixen und eine bearbeitete Version des Songs „In My Life“ der Band „Alice2“. ’In my Life’ ist eine extended Version mit einem Gitarrensolo von keinem geringeren als Gitarrenlegende Axel Rudi Pell!
Die 2 Remixe von ’Dein Reich’ könnten unterschiedlicher nicht sein: Eine Electronic Dark-Dance Version sowie eine Extended-Guitar Version von Dirk Riegner , der unter Anderem bei Peter Heppner für die Keyboards verantwortlich ist.

“This is me at my most imaginative, freakiest, and yet still most grounded and introspective,” says Japanese American rapper/actor Lyrics Born not only about his new album Vision Board, but also his “self” and his existence. “I feel like a new man! I’m healthier physically, spiritually, mentally, and emotionally.” The lead single and video “Diamond Door” is a pop/rap banger that lands you with an infectious barb and keeps you hooked for days, and is a thinly-veiled tribute to a particular style of female appreciation, but it can also be taken as a welcome mat to the new era of Lyrics Born. The accompanying video which shows Lyrics Born in his current physical form - svelte, stylish and with a confident swagger - reinforces this next chapter in his life. 60 pounds lighter, he lost the weight during the pandemic when he knew he needed to make a change. “Touring was becoming harder, and I was having all these weird health problems, but nothing that anybody could put their finger on,” he explains “My anxiety was high. I was not sleeping well. I was on the verge of really bad health.” And this improvement brought more confidence which shows in his new album. Vision Board is a focused affair that found him stretching his creativity farther and challenging himself to write in a way he’s never written before. Recorded primarily in New Orleans and produced by Rob Mercurio of Galactic (who also produced 2015’s Real People and 2018’s Quite a Life), it posited him in a new environment that helped his creative juices flow even more fluidly. “There’s nothing like recording in the Crescent City. It just gets in your blood, and the results are always funky and wild.” “This is about as psychedelic as I’ve ever been,” LB says. “I’m so proud of this album. I’m in a different space. The world is in a different space, and I wanted to celebrate that, loosen up and really create some imagery and share some emotion that I never have. I was listening to a lot of Shuggie Otis; a lot of obscure psychedelic soul and later Temptations,” he explained. “This is like if Alice in Wonderland was Japanese.” Vision Board was also inspired by another Bay Area rap luminary, although one who’s no longer with us - Gift of Gab. The dexterous Blackalicious MC and fellow Quannum Projects alum had a profound effect on Lyrics Born’s life, both creatively and philosophically. “I asked myself on some of these songs: ‘How would Gab approach them?’” he said. “I’d play with certain cadences, certain styles; I tried to stretch stylistically, lyrically and vocally on every single song. None of the patterns are the same.” Lyrics Born’s vulnerability shines through on the nine-track effort, something he’s not ashamed to admit (nor should he be). At one point during the pandemic, he was losing one friend, peer or family member every other week - from Zumbi of Zion I to Gift of Gab to Digital Underground’s Shock G. While many of the songs are deeply introspective, he had to “write some fun shit,” too. Celebratory horns, uptempo rhythms and fiery bars pepper the project from start to finish, and truly encapsulate Lyrics Born’s evolution of not just a groundbreaking Asian-American MC but also a human being. As the only Asian-American MC to release 10 studio albums, the first Asian-American to play major music festivals like Coachella and Lollapalooza and the first Asian-American to release a greatest hits compilation, Lyrics Born has been breaking barriers his entire life - and he’s not going to stop anytime soon. From the bombastic and tribal “I’m the Best Rapper in the World” with its self-winking boastfulness to the playful scat of “Bang Bang Bang” that slinks like an outtake from West Side Story, to the smooth and seductive “Who's The Best? (Dear Young LB)," to the psychedelic and swoony ”Alligator Boots” with it dreamy “Walk on the Wildside”-esque reverby sway, Vision Board sees Lyrics Born tackling different tones, textures and genres without fear and making them completely his own. It's an eclectic body of work that boasts more synths, more psychedelia and is generally more abstract.

Electronic duo Pale Blue return to Crosstown Rebels with ‘No Words’, the second single from their forthcoming album ‘Maria’, with remixes from DJ Tennis and Perel.

Italians Do It Better founder Mike Simonetti and Silver Hands’ Elizabeth Wight’s rich and storied careers within the electronic realm and beyond only elevated further with the launch of their Pale Blue project in 2015, unveiling a series of critically acclaimed releases via Simonetti’s 2MR imprint with plaudits including Pitchfork, FACT and Resident Advisor, to name just a few. Having provided the first look into their forthcoming album on Crosstown Rebels entitled ‘Maria’, scheduled for release on the label later this year, the pair return to open March with the second single from the project, ‘No Words’ - accompanied by remixes from DJ Tennis and Perel.

Detailing the backstory to the record, Simonetti notes both upcoming single ‘No Words’ and the majority of the tracks on the duo’s forthcoming album project were made on the exact synths used to create Jaydee’s iconic 1993 hit, ‘Plastic Dreams’.

Guided by a captivating bassline accented by Wight’s charming vocals, which flutter amongst the mix, ‘No Words’ is a hooky and compelling production that ebbs and flows across its near five-minute duration with effortless ease, capturing the playful nature alluded to by Simonetti. Life and Death head honcho DJ Tennis’ remix arrives next, veering down a hazy yet absorbing path as crisp organic drums and engrossing melodies form around the vocals and journey through light and dark textures.

The B-side of the record belongs to DJ/producer, vocalist and DFA Records favourite Perel, offering a cosmic dive through spacey synths, skittering bleeps and pops, and tough kicks across her take on the production - before distorting and warping the vocals and shifting the emphasis on the ever-evolving electronics across her ‘Dub Version’.

Daje Funk Records is back with Vol. 4 of the legendary ‘Slam Dunk’ series of EPs, this time featuring Souldynamic - Musta - Les Inferno - Groovemasta !!!

On the A-side, the supremely talented Souldynamic kicks things off with ‘Tales From Q.J.’ - a delicious chunk of late summer grooves bathing in sun-drenched keys and strings. The rolling bassline acts as the hook, and what follows is a gloriously constructed melodic masterpiece sprinkled with heavenly vocals. Fall in love with this, you will.

A2 sees Italian maestro Musta crack open the deep reggae vibes with ’Soup’. You’ll find it hard to resist this bubbling broth of twisted, rhythmic precision bass, ‘one drop’ beats and tight, short skanking guitar riffs. With ‘Soup’, Musta demonstrates his complete understanding of this genre. Darkened room or bar sun terrace - you decide.

On the B-side, label co-owner Les Inferno spices things up several notches with the aptly titled ‘Hot Burn’. And boy, does this track sizzle. A hustling rhythm that takes over your dance nodes from the get go, Les Inferno lovingly sprinkles Latino and Afro vibes all over this searingly hot dish. It’s furious, intense and relentless - and the brass breakdown acts as the tabasco sauce. Drink water. Plenty of water.

Closing Vol. 4 out on B2 is Groovemasta with ‘That Funk’. A track that treats its funky beats and chunky bass like royalty, this 118bpm monster wastes no time in demanding ‘Gimme that funk’. And you’re gonna hand it over. The swirling, gyrating sexiness of ‘That Funk’ can’t be understated - impossible not to lose yourself in this guaranteed dance floor time bomb.

Slam Dunk Vol. 4 seriously raises the bar for this already excellent series, and has to be in any self-respecting vinyl junky’s record box. Grab it while you can!

»Love As Projection« is the new album by Frankie Rose, her fifth studio LP and second for Night School following the reissue of her interpretation of The Cure’s »Seventeen Seconds«. Frankie Rose has forged an enviable musical legacy, from playing with bands like Crystal Stilts and The Vivian Girls but on »Love As Projection« she takes a bold step into electronic pop production. A sumptuous recorded statement, it dances in ecstasy and broods on the tumult of the western world’s decay in equal proportion. At the heart of the album is glowing, confident songwriting, resplendent in hooks and choruses but still touched with an optimism undimmed.

After spending nearly two decades establishing herself across New York and Los Angeles independent music circles, Rose re-emerges after six years with a fresh form, aesthetic, and ethos. Celebrated over the years for her expansive approach to songwriting, lush atmospherics, and transcendent vocal melodies and harmonies, »Love As Projection« is a reintroduction of her established style through the lens of contemporary electronic pop. Recorded with producer Brandt Gassman and mixed with long-term collaborator Jorge Elbrecht this is the album Frankie Rose has been building up to her entire career.

More than a rebirth, a refinement, a resurgence, »Love As Projection« boasts a widescreen scope: a long- form project heavily considered for half of a decade, culminating in the most personal and accessible collection of art-pop that Frankie has ever written. When Rose aims for the pop jugular as in first lead track »Anything«, the result is unstoppable. A majestic pop song built for radio, it erupts into an irresistible chorus that marries classic epic 80s American pop with the cult effervescence of Strawberry Switchblade »It’s like a prom scene in a John Hughes movie. It’s a hopeful song about abandoning fear even if the world is quite literally on fire.. In the end, at least we have each other,« says Rose. »Sixteen Ways« further boasts a propulsive, massive chorus, though tempered by a cynicism built in global post-truth, global malaise. »It’s about getting your hopes up, but simultaneously making lists in your head about how it will never work out in your favour.«

The big anthems don’t let up there. On »DOA« some massive, rolling drums lathered in big mid-80s gated reverb dovetail with a syncopated baseline for the ages as Rose’s vocal sails effortlessly above. The effect isn’t unlike ethereal vocalists Clannad circa Howard’s Way or Enya jamming with Simple Minds in their stadium-conquering heyday. Rose tempers the adrenalin with heart-tugging bittersweet tones and there are plenty of them. »Sleeping Night And Day« takes its time with an off-the-cuff chorus, swirling around in harmony and chorus-bass. »Saltwater Girl« picks up the balladeering baton with another nod to album track-mode Switchblade, deep space opening up in the mid-tempo drum track and soupy, digital atmospherics. Album closer »Song For A Horse«, reimagines modern Pop production a-la-PC Music but shorn of the meta-atmosphere. Pianos, swelling synths, minor keys cut through with major. These moments, also seen in Feel Light offer ballast to the soaring pop choruses. Moments like these are big oceans of emotion to fall into before being led out by Rose into a bright new day.

»Love As Projection« is released in the USA by Slumberland.

First time reissue of a legendary and undeservedly obscure salsa collector’s album from 1969. Led by rebel accordionist Alfredo Gutiérrez and featuring singer Lucho Pérez of Sonora Dinamita fame, “Así es… Con salsa!” is just that: raw, heavy duty NYC salsa performed through a Colombian “Costeño” tropical filter, with trombone, accordion and deep bass. Contains three hot bonus tracks in the same style and insert with liner notes. “¡Así es… Con salsa!”, by Colombia’s Alfredo Gutiérrez y Los Caporales del Magdalena, is a legendary collector’s album, yet still undeservedly obscure (and perhaps sonically surprising) for the uninitiated. It’s an experimental mash-up of seemingly disparate genres from different origins that on paper would seem to be at cross purposes. Yet at the same time the release is a masterpiece of raw pan-Latin fusion from the dawn of Colombian salsa that holds its own as a bonafide heavy duty pioneering record of the genre, despite its outsider status. Probably the most shocking musical element is Alfredo Gutiérrez’s fiery accordion, an unexpected instrument in the idiom of salsa, as it’s usually associated with the tropical music of Gutiérrez’s Caribbean home region of Sucre. Gutiérrez has always been a provocateur, never shying away from the controversial or outlandish, which has earned him the richly deserved sobriquet, “El Rebelde Del Acordeón” (The Rebel of The Accordion). Gutiérrez started Los Caporales in 1968 as a rival to Discos Fuentes supergroup Los Corraleros de Majagual, and the band had made three popular albums prior to “¡Así es… Con salsa!”, yet most of the repertoire on those records consisted of typical Colombian tropical and coastal rhythms and genres, none were purposely devoted to the newly minted genre of salsa. From the start, Gutiérrez lays down a salsa manifesto when the album kicks off with ‘Guadelupe no va’, a four-minute workout with pile-driving force that demonstrates the uncompromising power of this 14 piece orchestra. The listener is instantly hooked by the rawness of the sound, the bouncy energy, heavy brass and piano arrangements and the looseness of the improvisational sections. Gutiérrez was given the green light by Codiscos A&R head Humberto Moreno to dedicate an album to New York style salsa, giving more prominence to the voice and compositions of Lucho Pérez, an already proven expert in Cuban genres who previously had been only one among many vocalists in the band. Several tunes on the record are remakes of older compositions by Lucho Pérez from his early tenure with Discos Fuentes group La Sonora Dinamita, the new versions are much more raw and menacing, as if put through a Bronx filter. The band was made up of Codiscos’ regular stable of ace studio musicians from Medellín for the recording date. The album was both a success and also not abnormal in its mixing of salsa and costeño Colombian sounds, as there were several other similar hybrid records by other artists at the time. Both the desperation of the lyrics (about not being able to afford anything) and Lucho Pérez’ forceful delivery leave an indelible impression of street wise authenticity, which is backed up by the fact that both band members grew up poor

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.

Next up on Toolroom’s 4-track vinyl sampler series is a tasty collab from label founder, Mark Knight and dance music royalty, Armand van Helden, a fresh new edit of a revered club weapon from Julio Navas, Gustavo Bravetti and David Amo, Kiss FM regular, majestic and Sydney-native Alex Preston.

Up first label boss, Mark Knight enlists Grammy nominated Armand van Helden for their debut collaboration, 'The Music Began To Play'. Kicking off with a hard-hitting house groove and electrified bassline that drives the record, before dropping into the track's golden moment and sampling the 1979 classic disco cut 'I Don't Need No Music' by T.J.M; a gem of a record that encapsulates both Mark and Armand’s love for classic cuts.

Next up, a record that became a cult hit of the underground and one that defines the true sound of Toolroom's heritage, Julio Navas, Gustavo Bravetti and David Amo’s 'Raw'. Refreshed for 2022, we see one of France's hottest exports, Tony Romera, deliver a high energy, club focused remix of 'Raw', bringing the classic club record back to dancefloors and sound systems across the globe!

Up next is another heater from Majestic, who debuts on Toolroom with ‘Annie’. Recapping one of the hottest summers on record, Majestic embodies the Balearic, Ibizan heat, sampling Kid Creole & the Coconuts 1982 hit, 'Annie I’m Not Your Daddy', turning a slice of calypso / disco, into a club ready record for the dancefloor. From the brass melody to the hooky guitar riff, majestic lays down his signature style with a Groove Armada-esque vibe throughout.

Rounding things off is label favourite, Alex Preston with his unique blend of 4 to the floor dance music and live funk guitar riffs that have swept through clubs, moving feet, and bringing those feel-good vibes. Ticking all the right boxes on this one, 'Hunching' kicks off with its infectious groove and bassline, throwing in some lush strings, guitar flits and an 80's inspired saxophone break that adds some serious flavour to the record.

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.”

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.”

The Young Senators are an exemplary progenitor of DC's hyper-local, hyper-celebrated Go-Go scene. Peers of Chuck Brown's Black Heat and Soul Searchers, the septet was led by energetic singer and conga player Jimi Dougans, and featured saxophonist Leroy Flemming, guitarist Calvin Charisty, keyboardist Frank Hooker, drummer James Johnson, bassist Wornell Jones, and trumpeter Phillip Guilbeau. The band issued two singles on the the tiny Innovation label, before joining up with Motown's Eddie Kendricks in 1972 for his sophomore effort People... Hold On. The Young Senators' fuzzed-out brand of psychedelic soul is often bootlegged, but finds it first legitimate release in 45 years via these remastered sides.

After an interminable wait due to the vinyl manufacture crisis, Mercury 200 is back stronger than ever, supplying some homegrown material that is conceivably as potent as GOTG001. This time they teamed up with 2 legendary OG's, Apoc Krysis & MCR-T, to spice up your musical experience and bring you the best of the two worlds. Dealing at the intersection of breakbeat, Ghetto tech and trance, this record will definitely catch your attention. Parental Advisory Explicit Content. Legally available only on prescription.

For the first track of the vinyl, they teamed up with the Atlanta based rapper Apoc Krysis to blend two opposite genres in a Memphis rap infused techno banger. This unique collaboration put on the table whats the both side has the best to offer: powerful and lethal flow. This track is here to pick you up and put you back on your feet after a breakup. When nobody's there for you, this track is.

Full of fast and filthy grooves "Caramelo" is the track that will make you sweat. A heavy stomping beat with devilish vocals ready to make your ghetto inner self dance. Heavy grooves and a powerful bassline this track will slap you into consciousness. 100% Floor impact guaranteed.

On the flip side we start with an outstanding collaboration with Berlin most notorious player in the ghetto house-techno scene: MCR-T. An uplifting, instant serotonin booster.

Building up the tension at the start with a breakbeat and OG (original gangsta) lyrics, the tracks eventually turns into four to the floor house infused groove. Party killer guaranteed!

Last track but not the least consists in a classic mercury 200 signature breakbeat track. A fine blend of trancy and infectious melodies with a short rap hook and chest punching drums.

Belgium's Ahl Iver has become synonymous with the Lenske name since founder Amelie Lens singled out one of his demo submissions back in 2018. Since then, the young DJ/producer has dropped two EPs on Lenske whilst holding down a busy international touring schedule including regular appearances at Amelie's revered Exhale party series. 'Paradox' contains four dance-floor orientated cuts with the typical Ahl Iver sound that's steadily become a Lenske staple.

Opening the record is 'Reverse Psychology', featuring a thunderous kick drum, whirring sonics and industrial slams. Ahl includes a stripped back rave synth and siren combo with sharp stabbing sequences. Next up is 'Paradox', kicking off with a distant alarm, wicked keys and another blistering kick drum. The elements build together to form the foundation for the jacking vocal sample that dominates and drives the track onward, always with a singular acid line buzzing menacingly in the background.

On the flip is 'Rumble In The Jungle', kicking off with twisted and devilish effects that snicker and shoot across the hurried pace of the roaring kick. The track develops into a battlefield, with the initial mischievous sounds mimicking a frenetic laser fight, before stripping back the focus onto the main kick drum and singular percussive slap. Rounding off the record is 'No Salvation'. The track builds on the initial kick drum combo as well as an ever-present melody that gradually rises to the forefront of the track in a powerful takeover. There's a cinematic feeling to the cut created by airy elongated pads as the hook of the track, gliding and ascending under the harsher elements.

First Word Records is extremely proud to welcome the legendary New Sector Movements to the label, and the first new release from this moniker in 15 years! A 5-track EP for 'These Times', comprised of street soul, hip hop, jazz and bruk-tinged vibes.

Founded, headed and produced by DJ & musician IG Culture (CoOp Presents / LCSM), this all-new quasi-group project also features the vocal talents of Allysha Joy, Mike City and Natalie May with additional accompaniment from Wonky Logic, Wayne Francis, Alex Phountzi and the NSM Fusion Starship!

New Sector Movements (aka NSM) were the first out the gate at the dawn of the original broken beat movement, releasing their first single 'Groove Now / New Goya' on the People label in 1997, then releasing several singles and EPs through to the late noughties, and dropping a classic album on Virgin entitled 'Download This'. The previous incarnation featured several other artists from the bruk foundation era, including Kaidi Tatham, Izzy Dunn, Julie Dexter and Eska Mtungwazi amongst others.

Awarded a 'Lifetime Achievement Award' at the 2019 Worldwide Awards, NSM's IG Culture is a hugely pioneering prolific artist in the UK music scene. His catalogue of releases over the years has seen numerous aliases, collaborations, remixes and productions. Appearing on the scene in 1990 as part of Dodge City Productions, to producing several solo albums throughout the noughties, to recent years with his hugely-acclaimed cosmic jazz outfit LCSM (Likwid Continual Space Motion), additionally to co-running the CoOp Presents label, continuing the legacy of the award-winning club night whilst showcasing new artists, IG Culture has been omnipresent at every corner of British black music for three decades deep, influencing many a sound.

This is all additionally to projects like NameBrandSound, Likwid Biskit, Da One Away and Son of Scientist to name just a few. His work has appeared on releases by Roots Manuva, Young Disciples, Les Nubians and Monday Michiru, while remix work over the years has included Gang Starr, Femi Kuti, José James, Miraa May, Slum Village, Digital Underground, Luniz, Naughty By Nature, Airto Moreira & Flora Purim.

As a DJ, he's shut down dances all over the world, recently at places like Fabric, We Out Here festival and Summer Dance Forever in Amsterdam, as well as regularly rocking the airwaves on Worldwide FM and combining the two at BBC 6 Music's All Points East stage in the Summer. IG Culture also founded Selectors Assemble; a collective of forward thinking DJs and producers.

So, as we head towards Winter 2022, New Sector Movements has returned (but don't call it a comeback!). After a turbulent few years in the world, it seemed a poignant moment to reinvigorate the soul, and reflect upon 'These Times'. Here we have five brand new tracks, each illustrating a pertinent mood and attitude representing the current climate. Allysha Joy leads the vocal on EP opener 'These Times', a sumptuous slice of street soul with a deeply infectious horn hook. 'Stand' is next - uptempo boom bap for the dancers, this one featuring the soulful pipes of Mike City. 'Hope' is a midtempo jazz-funk dub again feature vocal licks from Allysha, and introducing the mysterious NSM Fusion Starship into the fold. 'H.E.A.T.' picks up the pace with some infectious jazz-bruk business, this one lead by Natalie May on the vocals, who explains "heat = movement, motion". And finally 'Bless' with closes the set on a four-four riddim with bruk sensibilites, inviting Mike City back with an uplifting vocal requesting we "bless the people just trying to make it".

An essential EP of cross-genre vibes to resonate cross-generations, New Sector Movements do not ramp. IG Culture and crew proceed to give you what you need for 'These Times'.

'These Times' is released on vinyl and digital worldwide via First Word Records late February 2023.

One amp. One mic. One person. Countless hooks. That’s the Dazy formula. Since first releasing the single Bright Lights b/w Accelerate in August 2020, Dazy mastermind James Goodson has been writing, recording, and releasing new music like a man on the hunt to find the best pop hook, and he won’t stop until he’s put all of them into his songs. Show- casing a unique set of influences, Dazy’s sound marries thumping drum machine beats, blasts of feeding back guitar, and sugar-sweet hooks into something that sounds like God- flesh covering Oasis—or maybe the other way around. With lean songwriting that recalls Teenage Fanclub but a home-re- corded production style better suited for Big Black, Goodson builds a constant churn of abrasive, consuming noise and then makes it catchier than anyone else would ever dare to.

PINK VINYL

Austin-based, shoegazers Blushing will see the release of their debut EP Tether for the first time on vinyl on February 10, 2023 through Kanine Records. The limited (700 copies) pink colored vinyl is packaged as a double EP. Paired with sophomore EP Weak on the b side, the vinyl features new double-sided cover artwork, where fans can choose which side's cover art to display and includes an mp3 download code. Blushing's first step out into the musical world showcases shimmering guitars chords and infectious choruses, which sent shivers through the deam-pop community upon its original release After receiving such a positive response from Tether, Blushing quickly got to work writing and recording a follow up EP. Weak, a bit of a misnomer, solidified the group's reputation for writing catchy hooks over dreamy, soaring and at times extremely heavy instrumentation, which resulted in the band finding their signature sound. This release follows up Blushing's 2022 full album release, Possessions, an album with charismatic vocals, dreamy guitar hooks, swirling bass lines, filled with dream pop intensity and produced by Elliott Frazier (Ringo Deathstarr). Lead single "Blame" featured Miki Berenyi (Lush) and Mark Gardener (Ride) lent a hand on mixing and mastering. Blushing features two husband and wife duos consisting of Michelle Soto (guitar, vocals), Jacob Soto (drums), Christina Carmona (vocals, bass), and Noe Carmona (guitar). Jacob and Noe have been lifelong friends that played in bands growing up in El Paso, TX. Blushing is a part of the modern dream pop and shoegaze community that has helped Blushing create an album that all indie music lovers need to hear. Fans of LUSH, Cocteau Twins, My Bloody Valentine, RIDE, Slowdive won't be able to resist.