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2026 Repress

We feel like Frank & Tony and Smallville have been on the same musical wave-length since forever. Our musical paths have crossed back and forth over the years and we have always shared a lot of the same values- steadily putting out quality music, that stands the test of time - growing consistently - never stop following our very own way - always not-following trends forever..
Frank & Tony is the collaborative guise of Scissor & Thread co-founders Francis Harris and Anthony Collins aka Grant. Both have long been staples of the underground with material under their own names and numerous other guises shaping the musical landscape of House Techno and beyond since the turn of the millennium. Both lived together in New York and as Frank & Tony the pair have delivered multiple albums and many EP’s on their own label, Tokyo’s Mule Musiq and Pacific Rhythm- now they are warmly welcomed onto the Smallville Records roster with their latest collection of works.
‘Ways Of Mine’ leads on the A-Side and showcases the pairs signature deep hypnotic house style via soft billowing pads cascading metallic chimes psychedelic spoken word and dreamy dubbed out keys floating atop a robust bouncy rhythm
section.To open the flip-side title-track ‘After All’ lays down a subtly blooming chord sequence shuffled drums and bumpy bass stabs at its core all subtly nuanced while the latter half introduces more dynamic rhythmic elements and intertwined melodic touches. ‘Dimension’ then concludes the release diving deeper with saturated ethereal pads and bubbling resonant arpeggio lines alongside heavily swung crisp drums jazzy keys and delayed vocal chants.
After All comes with a full cover artwork by Stefan Marx.

All tracks written & produced by Francis Harris & Anthony Collins
Mastering and Vinyl cut by Helmut Erler at Lathesville

Originally released in 2008 on Ezekiel Honig’s own Anticipate Recordings, Surfaces of a Broken Marching Band finds the artist refining a compositional language rooted in the methodologies of musique concrete, ambient, and beat research. Working from a palette of environmental recordings, instrumental fragments, and soft electronic treatments, Honig pushes the source material into an array of sympathetic forms ranging from pillow-soft, lowercase ambient to diffuse downtempo and minimal house. For its reissue on Keplar, the album has been remastered by Kassian Troyer (D&M), bringing a new clarity to its intricate, low-lit architectures.

Throughout the record, serving almost as audiographic guideposts, are faint but insistent gestures toward propulsion, an abiding and recurrent 4/4 pulse that guides the music laterally and instantiates a slow negotiation between its various elements. This music invites close listening precisely by not revealing itself all at once, allowing small collisions of timbre and subtle shifts in emphasis to carry the weight. The traces of lived environments that remain embedded in the mix - distant crowds, sounds of transit, the indistinct acoustics of interiors in flux - expand the frame without breaking its intimacy, creating a potent dislocation between the nearness of the sound and the scale of its sources.

Rather than foregrounding any single voice, this is music that distributes attention equally across its materials, allowing background details to assert their presence as much as melody or rhythm. Honig presents listeners with an astute practice that’s concerned less with building from the ground up than with uncovering what happens when disparate textures and structures are brought into close contact with one another. (Alex Cobb, 2026)

Continuing its faithful documentation of the early years of Monolake, Field Records proudly present the first-ever vinyl pressing of seminal 1999 album Interstate. In a kaleidoscopic lattice of micro-rhythms and exquisitely dynamic textural work, Robert Henke and Gerhard Behles fully collaborated for the final time on this record — and created an electronica landmark in the process.

Monolake's evolution from their earlier dub-techno-tinted works saw their exploration of Max/MSP go further out. The duo yielded greater complexity in the behaviour of their sound palette to achieve an organismic quality that remains an enduring influence on so many strands of experimental electronic music today. Interstate is a vivid record that builds up eight different ecosystems of sound and subtly threads elegant grooves through their root structures.

There's a house-like undulation to the low-end driving 'Tangent-I' and 'Tangent-II', but the infinitesimally detailed layers of sound on top swoon from techno synth shimmers to trickling waters, snaking delay trails and pin prick percussion. You can hear the unmistakable, snappy rhythmic thrust of drum & bass driving 'Ginza', but here it's used as an engine for the crispest array of designer percussion and dub-soaked synth chirrups. Across every track, Henke and Behles demonstrate a potent combination, both groovily instinctive and eternally fascinating to try and pick apart.

After Interstate, Behles departed to focus entirely on the development of Ableton Live and Henke steered Monolake towards a leaner — but no less pioneering — sound. Every Monolake record has its own unique context and sound, and the circumstances of Interstate could never be repeated. Capturing the leaps in progress that were being made in digital music production at the end of the millennium, it's an information-rich document of a moment in time that still sounds wildly futuristic 27 years later.

Third sureshot from Christian Linder as he once again delves back into the vaults and brings to light some of his cherished works. His latest revisit is the Polaris EP, originally released in 2000 on German label Phono Elements. Comprising two fantastic, heady, dubby techno excursions which live long in the memory after the party has finished.

Saxophonist and producer Ben Vince announces the release of his sixth album, Street Druid, the first in almost six years via AD 93.

Street Druid merges acoustic, manipulated and electronic sound and it has saxophone, synth, voice, guitars and drum machine, and features drum kit from Moses Boyd. It features artwork by Byzantia Harlow. It is at once tender, psychedelic and fierce. It is not interested in genre or category. It lasts just under 45 minutes.

A prelude for the future, hands join to cast a peace spell. Consciousness is vast water seeking divine essence and meaning where colours merge and refract. The street druid walks through the night, a benevolence in the darkness, guiding you home. Immersed in noise, life can feel empty, like hollow vessels, a sentient interlude. At times we are found in Gaia’s rhythm, kinetic and rebuilt, transcending through the impact of sound on the body. Every moment is a new change, a new challenge, a new life, we must ride the wave if we are not to be caught adrift or drown. Trying to keep hope intact, we must not retreat into fear, recognise we all live here in Longville and stop the fire before it engulfs us all.

TSTD NEO returns with smooth slow disco remixes for three tracks, originally featured on THE SUNSET MANIFESTO Volume 2:
One of the standout tracks of THE SUNSET MANIFESTO 2, the super smooth Westcoast inspired "Hands of Love" gets an even smoother remix treatment by Liverpools BEN JAMIN, perfectly suited for your next late night bar dj sets.
Stockholm meets Mexico City! TSTD resident producer Monsieur Van Pratt returns from remixing Poolside on The Sunset Manifesto 2, and comes back with a romantic slow disco version of Kimchi's "Do You Ever"
Last but not least UK producer Matt Hughes already did a funky electro disco remix for Goodvibes Sounds' "Stay For One More Night" on The Sunset Manifesto 2. Looks like the original tune didnt leave his head, so he returned to his studio for new remixes. Here you can find the "Echo" version of his new 80s cinema sounding "Late Night Radio Remix", which would sit well in the soundtrack oft he Stranger Things TV series. The long version of this remix will be relased later digtially.

Finally, finally, FINALLY! After many years of fruitless praying, a true collector grail can finally grace every turntable the world over. Bright And Shining is a miraculous leftfield library classic from the genius mind of Barbara Moore. It's Highly Addictive Happiness Music TM and one of the coolest records to come out of anywhere...ever! With originals almost impossible to find - and, when they do, going for over £300 - you already know how crucial this beautiful reissue is.

Recorded in 1981 for Sylvester Music Company, Bright And Shining is breezy, dreamy and funky in a perfectly smooth jazzy-soul-groove fashion, with Moore's patented celestial male-female vocal harmonies this time benefitting from the addition of Fender Rhodes and pumping bass lines.

As one particularly enthusiastic Discogs user put it: "If Eno is responsible for Music for Airports, Moore is responsible for Music for Holidays." Indeed, this is brilliantly unique, "maximum happiness music". If you miss the sun-dappled soft-psych soul of Koushik, the heavenly vocal arrangements of the great Library Music doyenne Barbara Moore - her depth, richness, sophistication and warmth - will see you just right.

The gigantic title track, "Bright And Shining", gallops out the gate, all sophisticated, jazzy leisure-soul with sax and guitars backing Moore's effortless vocal swag in this relaxed, mid-tempo head-nod strut. Worth the price of admission alone. Up next, the sunny, vibey "Fly Me High" features strolling, "unworded" vocals (aside from the refrain of the title) alongside breezy alto sax and electric guitar. Pastoral and perfect. The slow'n'sultry "Affluence" presents a moody elegance, a classical "downlifting" gem. Another crucial highlight is the breezy "Going On Holiday". It's happy. It's sunny. It's lively. It's cool and happy. Did we say happy? A mid-tempo, romantic sax workout, "Alto Sex"presents smooth jazzy funk before the first side closes out with the soaring, jazzy "Stay With Me". Seriously uplifting.

Side B opens with "Feel Fine", an excellent uptempo and bright jazz groove. Up next, "Canon" is wracked with refinement, a peaceful, smooth vocal harmony over repeating bass making for an elegant, late-night classic. It's followed by the laconic "Smooth And Soft", a laidback, casual sophisticated soul and easy-feeling jazz gem. The jazzy "Real Thing" is another exercise in strolling sophistication, complete with wordless vocal harmonies. The fairly self-explanatory "Voice Over Sax" sounds precisely how you would expect; a relaxed sax number with heavenly vocal support! To close, the carefree "Feeling Free" is a pleasant, light and breezy mid-tempo groove.

The audio for Bright And Shining has been meticulously remastered by Be With regular Simon Francis, ensuring this release sounds better than ever. Cicely Balston's expert skills have made sure nothing is lost in the cut whilst the records have been pressed to the highest possible standard at Record Industry in Holland. The original, iconic sleeve has been restored here at Be With HQ as the finishing touch to this long overdue re-issue. We'll grant the final word to MillionDollars. on discogs from about 10 years ago: "If you listen to the record on a sunny day you feel like going out surfing in a white linen suit with a blunt on your lips, catching a cool breeze."

James Curd and Osunlade. After years of playing back to back DJ sets and collaborating in the studio, they decided it was time to create something that could represent both the music they make together and the shows they play. Their sound is a natural meeting point between deep house grooves and soulful roots, reflecting both artists’ histories and shared love fortimeless dance music.

The first single from Nomadic’s is “Better Man”. The track was originally signed to Defected Records,but after creative differences about how the release should be presented, the contract was voided. That decision gave James and Osunlade the chance to put the music out exactly as they envisioned, and the song now finds its proper home on Pronto Records. The package includes the original alongside a set of remixes from some of the most exciting names in underground house.

Dutch producer Frits Wentink delivers a remix in his unmistakable style – raw drum programming, warm analogue textures, and the kind of off kilter groove that has made him one of the most respected names in Europe’s house scene. Mr Ho, co-founder of the cult label Klasse Wrecks, adds his own twist with a version that nods to classic rave and electro energy, while keeping things firmly locked for the dancefloor. Finally, LA based duo Too Easy bring a mysterious touch, layering live instrumentation with electronic drive, showing why they’re quickly becoming ones to watch.

With its story of creative independence, heavyweight remixers, and the credibility of two deeplyrespected artists at the helm, “Better Man” is both a club record and a statement of intent for what Nomadic’s represents.

Vinyl finally here!

The Pieces EP showcases Wraz's versatility across five tracks that blend dubstep with orchestral influences, techno rhythms, and psychedelic sound design.

'Pieces' opens with a cinematic, classical-inspired intro that gradually builds into a dark and evolving bass-heavy journey.

'Tech' follows with a fusion of 4x4 techno and dubstep grooves-minimal yet impactful on a sound system.

'Lurch' brings relentless analog bass pressure and Wraz's signature raw energy, already proven to do serious damage in live sets.

'The Crypt' rounds out the EP with a more introspective feel, featuring shifting synths and hypnotic arpeggios that create a deep, trippy atmosphere.

This release marks a major milestone for the Canadian producer, celebrating his debut on DEEP MEDi.

(Wraz 2025)

First & Last is the debut outing of MC D alongside his partner in rhyme Audio MC. Fresh-faced schoolboy scions of Hijack, The Demon Boyz and Silver Bullet, and peers of the likes of Gunshot, Hardnoise and The Criminal Minds, the pair were taken under the wing of The Powerlords as part of the Powerpack crew (alongside Construction and Trouble), and were given the moniker 2XDEF. Brought to the attention of South London’s fledgling dance label Mendoza Records by producer DJ Fusion, this release would mark the the beginning of a longterm creative partnership between him and MC D, with Mendoza label-mate CSP called in for remix duties. Gritty, explosive and raw, the record stalled at the white label stage with only a handful distributed to radio and club DJs, earning it the status of underground classic. First & Last became exactly that for the short-lived crew.

There is a strong sense of place running through 'North West Tonight', as God Colony aka Crack Copies label heads and Liverpool-raised duo James Rand and Thomas Gorton sketch out a hazy, after-hours portrait of their hometown. Drawing on 80s new wave melodies and rough-edged club rhythms, the EP balances sounds of yore with present-day energy. There is crunchy, disrupted bass on 'The Column', backlit broken beat on 'Middle Eye' and more sun-kissed depths on 'Rhyll Sun Centre'. 'The Paradox' stands out as a darker, more edgy and club-ready sound while the rework by Sasha stretches the track into something built for wide-eyed dancefloors.

Black Moon Mother blends light and heavy soundscapes that pull from elements of Psych-Rock, Pop, Doom Metal and Shoegaze. Formed out of a Nashville music collective in 2017, the band put together a demo EP that became their live set, kickstarting their musical journey. At the beginning of 2018, Black Moon Mother began writing new material and continued the show-a-month ritual, while adding a new song to the live set one by one. January 2020 brought Black Moon Mother to Dark Art Audio in Madison, TN where they worked with engineer and producer Mikey Allred. Their newest album Illusions Under the Sun showcases an expanded musical depth and songwriting maturity, while exploring themes of nature, purpose, and perspective.

Tauceti (Lilou Chelal) is a DJ / producer / composer from Lyon. As a DJ Chelal distills a dark, tropical and sensual techno with percussive and vaporous rhythms in her mix. She stands for a very particular elegance and a certain, clearly audible maturity, which makes her stand out. "Guanyin" is her very first full length - where she transfers the elegance of her sound into a very personal and unique journey.

Tauceti about "Guanyin":

I am pleased to announce the release of my very first ambient album on the Denovali label. This is probably the most personal record I produced so far, because it is in a way a tribute to my Middle Eastern and Asian origins. It is a hybrid and intimate object, at the border between futurism and cultural heritage, with a desire to approach a more contemporary environment at the limit of classical. I used traditional instrument patterns, sounds intimately linked to oriental instruments, all the while using my electronic touch composed of drone/ ambient and sound distortions. This is the result of a year of reflection and increased exploration of new frontiers in the studio, which has gradually evolved into a desire to make an album concrete. Composed of eight tracks, some of you may have heard some of them during my ambient set during the last edition of Nuits Sonores, just before Vail and Rodhad’s magnificent live performance. It’s a kind of homecoming for me, the very first tracks I produced years ago already being part of the ambient register. This is an opportunity for me to reaffirm the multi-faceted aspect of my artistic project, drawing on various aesthetic registers, between ambient and techno. I would like to warmly thank the Denovali label for their trust here, and with whom I will have the chance and the opportunity to maintain a privileged relationship for the next years.

It is time for the guitar riffs and the basslines deeper than the Mariana Trench and therefore who can do it better than the Uruguayan born & raised mastermind that stands behind this next next edition - Matole. Hearing the music from this man leaves a great positive feel wanting to dance, live and love life. By perfecting his sound over the years, as soon as it touches the ear canals you can tell that it’s him and can only be him behind the wheel.

By his young age with utmost will to create, the man is leaving disc artefacts all over the globe working with different labels and promo teams. Now the time has come to synergize with XRD and the feeling is absolutely blissful. As the wise people say the algorithm is not going to fight itself, very important to get into battle stance and show these ones and zeros who is the boss around here.

"Voigt Legacy - Megamix 1" is the promising title of a kind of "Best-Of Bassdrum-Hits" from the far-reaching Voigt universe. It is a compact megamix of seven selected tracks from some very rare live sets which have never been released before or never on vinyl. The mix features all-time classics such as "Fackeln Im Sturm" and "W.I.R.", as well as the long-out-of-print super-smasher "Die Schallplatte" and gems from the Protest, catalogue such as "Du Musst Nichts Sagen" and "Sound & Vision". This multifaceted collection of danceable tracks and looped horses is presented in a deluxe cover with glossy colours.

The art bridge is a natural choice because where there's a loop, there's a way. An abstract loop collage measuring 600 cm x 150 cm was created under the same title, "Voigt Legacy – Megamix 1", corresponding to the music and referencing the graphic symbolism of the titles, logos and cover artwork.

Nervous Gender’s legendary synthpunk LP Music From Hell burbles up from infernal depths to resurface on Dark Entries. Confrontational, unhinged, and unabashedly queer, Music from Hell is an unholy grail for fans of the strangest underbellies of post-punk, minimal synth, and early industrial music, and is presented here newly remastered and on expanded double LP.

Nervous Gender (de)formed in LA in 1978 at the hands of Phranc, Gerardo Velaquez, Edward Stapleton, and Michael Ochoa. Phranc, the androgynous embodiment of the band’s name, left in 1980. Following her departure, a wide cast of LA freaks would find themselves drawn into the band’s orbit, including Alice Bag of the Bags, Paul Roessler of the Screamers, the Germs’ Don Bolles, and an 8-year old drummer named Sven Pfeiffer. In 1980, Nervous Gender appeared on the seminal Live at Target compilation alongside Factrix, uns, and Flipper. With the band’s notoriety cemented, Music from Hell followed in 1981 on Subterranean Records (as no LA label would touch this material).

Side A, dubbed “Martyr Complex”, presents a more punk-forward sound with live drum salvos and slabs of aggressive synth. These twitchy, unsettling shockers ooze with the kind of snotty misanthropy that will endear them to fans of the Screamers or Crass.

Side B, known as “Beelzebub Youth”, is a live performance the band labeled "an electronic bruto-canto dissertation on the banality of spiritual transcendence." Mutant melodies cede way to synthesized clangs, whirs, bleeps, manipulated tapes, and howls of despair.

In addition to all the material from the original LP, we’re treated to a full disc of the band’s demos, the material from the Live at Target compilation, and early live recordings. Included are unrecognizable covers of Carly Simon and Lou Reed, and the Sex Pistols that are so despairingly skewed they fall into the void. This reissue of Music From Hell includes a 36 page lyric booklet, foldout poster, and gatefold sleeve with photos, flyers, and news-clippings designed by Eloise Leigh. Tackling taboo issues like sexual kinks, mental illness, drug use, and childhood molestation, Music From Hell is still surprising – even shocking - over 40 years after the album’s release. Nervous Gender stand as one of the most genuinely anti-establishment outfits in underground music, a colossal fuck you to social norms from religious strictures to gender essentialism.

Bézier ripples their way back to Dark Entries with Decompose, an LP of doomed spa music. Multi-instrumentalist Robert Yang has made numerous appearances on Dark Entries for more than a decade, with releases spanning the stylistic gamut from hi-NRG disco floor-fillers to lush ambient epics. Decompose, Bézier’s second LP, is perhaps his most introspective work yet. It is an album almost ten years in the making, a deep investigation of life, loss, and the struggle of knowing oneself. If one were to pull a tarot deck for this album it would be the Nine of Swords. The album honors the lives of the fallen victims of Pulse Nightclub. It honors lives lost or suffering through the ongoing genocide in Gaza. The title track takes the form of a Buddhist chant, a brooding synth-driven meditation that scales steadily until breaking into John Carpenter-esque arpeggios halfway through. Tracks like “Egg,” “Marionette,” and “A Fading Citadel Atop Black Sand Bluffs” build on this soundworld, one in which intricate melodies and cavernous reverb induce in the listener feelings of both claustrophobia and free-fall. The album’s dancefloor-leaning moments, like “Codebreaking” and “Split a Path Towards the Thicket” are spartan, tunnel-vision techno tracks speeding towards ego-death. Decompose chronicles Yang’s journey to find peace with himself, as a gay Asian American. During this process, they learned to “repot” long-lost parts of their identity so they could grow forth in wholesome fashion. The sleeve for Decompose was designed by Eloise Shir-Juen Leigh, and features a photograph by Frankie Casillo of Robert laying on a bed of rocks in savasana pose, resembling an ascetic, evocative of the monastic vibes of the record.

Disco legend Sylvester comes to Dark Entries with Private Recordings: August 1970, an intimate collection of vintage jazz, blues, and gospel. While Sylvester is best known for his chart-topping collaborations with producer Patrick Cowley, such as “You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real),” this release reveals his passion for the sounds of the 30s and 40s. In 1970 a 22-year-old Sylvester had moved to San Francisco and found himself involved with the Cockettes, the infamous psychedelic performance art troupe. Among this milieu was Peter Mintun, a pianist and record collector living in a commune devoted to retro culture. According to Mintun, “We were like hippies who lived in the twenties. We lived in a house that didn’t have anything modern in it. Nothing in it was made after World War II.” Mintun and Sylvester bonded over their love of Black singers of yore and were allotted a slot during Cockettes performances reviving the music of the Prohibition Era. One afternoon, Sylvester and Mintun recorded a number of their shared favorites using a high-end microphone a friend had acquired. Private Recordings features 9 songs from this session, including standards like “Stormy Weather,” “Happy Days Are Here Again,” and “God Bless the Child.” Sylvester’s unmistakable falsetto brings depth and a dash of camp to these familiar tunes. The recordings are casual and intimate, even capturing banter between Sylvester and Mintun; their brief rendition of “When My Dreamboat Comes Home” has the duo working out a melody in real time. In addition to their sonic explorations of decades past, Sylvester and Mintun also staged photographic shoots in vintage couture. Private Recordings comes with a 16-page booklet on firm cardstock featuring images from these never-before-seen shoots as well as liner notes from Mintun detailing his friendship with Sylvester and their experiences recording. All this is housed in a metallic silver sleeve designed by Eloise Leigh featuring a 1920’s Art Deco aesthetic. The record will be released on September 6th which would have been Sylvester’s 76th birthday, and all proceeds from Private Recordings will go to the two charities that Sylvester left his royalties after his death: Project Open Hand and PRC (formerly AIDS Emergency Fund). This essential release documents the earliest known recordings from one of disco’s greatest talents.

And another new volume of the Meeting Of The Minds series is here, with 4 new collaborations I've done with other producers in the jungle scene!

"Casual Loop" is a collaboration that me & Submerse started working on in 2023 but it was another one of the tracks that I had lost due to my computer being stolen in early 2024, & I hadn't fully backed up everything I had done for a few months, including this track. This meant I had to re-do a lot of the work I had done with what Submerse had started but I was lucky enough to get it near identical to how it was sounding and ready for release. Submerse has been on Future Retro London a few times, with his EP release (FR033) & a track featured on the atmospheric VA EP (FR049) that came out late last year, I'm a huge fan of his musicality & his melodies, which made this track really fun to work on, even with all the obstacles faced!

My first interaction with Quaad goes way back to 2013, when he asked me for a guest mix for a radio show called The After Party that was on C89.5FM in Seattle (which is still up on my SoundCloud for anyone curious) and then before he started his current label (Heavy Sounds), he had started a label with Wetman called Vivid Recordings, which he was sending me the releases on (but I think in standard fashion, I kept forgetting to check them!). But it wasn't until 2022 when me & Dwarde played in Seattle with him and I saw his live Amiga set where he was playing a lot of his own music, & from then on, I was better aware of what he was doing & I got to hang out with him & know him a bit better, which is when I then fully started following what he was doing. Then eventually, we ended up doing a track together (he also uses FL Studio, just like me) and "Judge Dredd" is the end result of that.

Samurai Breaks is also someone that I've known of for a long time but didn't really properly connect with until recent years where I saw what he was doing with his label Super Sonic Booty Bangers, which also does events in Sheffield which I played for in 2024. It was quite an interesting collab because I don't think many people would have necessarily expected our styles to really gel well together but I think we managed to hit a nice midpoint between his craziness & mine haha

Fixate is most likely another person that people would not have anticipated as someone that I would collaborate with, mainly because the style of tune people know him for is more tied with the footwork/halftime sound that became popular in the 2010s, as well as his output as 1/2 of dubstep duo Leftlow, but he has made some jungle in the past & I'm always down for the challenge of stepping outside of my comfort zone to work with people who are not mainly based in the newskool jungle scene but have an appreciation for it. I found out about him through the releases he had on Exit Records from 2015 onwards, plus he was also a part of Richie Brains (the project in 2016 involving many artists forming a loose collective) so I was aware of what he was doing but I properly got to know him from when I went bowling with him, Dwarde & LMajor back in 2022 and then he sent me something to work on early last year (another FL Studio producer btw!), which I took my sweet time in starting it but eventually got done & here we are! And for those wondering, the track title (May Contain Traces) alludes to me & Fixate's shared allergy towards nuts (although his is a lot more severe than mine), which was the only thing I could think of to name the track after when it came down to it!

Spider Taylor crawls over to Dark Entries with Surge Studio Music, an album of archival gay pornographic soundtracks. James Allan Taylor was born into a working-class family in Los Angeles in 1951. Nicknamed “Spider” by his father due to his frantic energy, Taylor was a natural-born guitarist, gifted with perfect pitch and a voracious musical appetite.

Throughout the 70s, he expanded his musical repertoire, playing in bands ranging from country to post-punk, like his outfit Red Wedding, while always looking for new sounds and styles to explore. During this period, Taylor also partnered with his soulmate and musical collaborator, Michael Ely. They were part of a wave of bold, young, gay couples living openly together in the years immediately following the Stonewall Riots. In the early 80s, while working at the West Hollywood gay sex club Basic Plumbing, Taylor met Al Parker, the legendary pornographic actor and director, who recruited Taylor to produce the soundtrack for a film he was working on. Parker’s partnership with Steve Scott running Surge Studios produced some of the most popular all-male films of the era. Spider’s music was a natural fit for Surge, and throughout 1985 and 1986, he composed the soundtracks for five films produced by the iconic studio. Assisted by engineer Steve Conrad and armed with a drum machine and some synths, Spider’s compositions for film veer from the expansive, reverb-drenched “Rainforest” to the Miami Vice-esque chugger “Tech.”

While Spider thought of this work as little more than a gig, tangential to his real craft, enthusiasts of VHS-era nostalgia and vintage erotica will be brought to bliss. Surge Studio Music will be available on both LP and CD, the latter of which includes a 20-minute version of “Strange Places…Strange Things!” as a bonus track. The album’s cover art was designed by Gwenael Rattke, and features stylish images from Surge Studios releases. Also included is an insert featuring liner notes by Will Lewis, a longtime friend of Spider. The music is released from Spider’s estate by Michael Ely, Spider’s partner of 43 years. The shadow of AIDS lingered over Surge; Steve Scott passed from AIDS-related illness in 1987, and Al Parker succumbed in 1992. In 2014, when it became legal for same-sex couples to marry in Arizona, Spider and Michael finally became wedded. Spider would pass away from liver cancer six months later.