"Die ""big voice"" aus Flint, Michigan, die uns den Smash-Hit „Norma Jean“ bescherte meldet sich kraftvoll mit „It’s so Hard“ zurück. „It’s so Hard“ ist eine tiefgründige, gefühlvolle Beat-Ballade mit einer Botschaft, die eine Geschichte erzählt, die wir leider nur zu gut kennen – die Geschichte zweier vielversprechender junger Menschen, deren Leben ein jähes Ende findet, als sie ungewollt in die Welt der Gaunereien, Drogen und Waffen geraten, die sie umgibt. Gestärkt durch eine unverkennbare Detroit-Härte nimmt dich der Track mit auf eine Reise quer durch das Land und verbindet den coolen East-Coast-Swagger der Isleys aus der T-Neck-Ära mit dem entspannten Groove, den die WC-Lowrider-Soul-Szene so liebt. Ein unverfälschter Ausdruck der Gewalt, die viel zu viele junge Menschen ertragen müssen.
Spinnin' Records, one of the most influential dance music labels, celebrates its 25th anniversary with the Chapter 1 compilation featuring a selection of iconic hits that have shaped the global electronic music scene. Since its founding in 1999, Spinnin' has been a trendsetter in electronic dance music (EDM), nurturing superstar artists and groundbreaking tracks across house, future bass, big room, and deep house genres.
This edition of Spinnin' 25 Years...Chapter 1 double vinyl LP collection includes memorable tracks from legends like Martin Garrix with the chart-topping hit “Animals”, "Stumblin' In" by CYRIL, "Secrets" by Tiësto & KSHMR, "Tsunami" by DVBBS & Borgeous, “Bullit” by Watermat, “Toulouse” by Nicky Romero, "Show Me Love" by Sam Feldt and 23 more tracks showcasing the signature sound and major contributions to the label.
Spinnin' 25 Years...Chapter 1 is available as a limited edition on green vinyl. The iconic Spinnin' logo is printed with an uv spot varnish on the gatefold sleeve.
out of Stock
Last delivered 3 months ago available to reorder, subject to availability
Camera Obscura feiern das 25-jährige Jubiläum ihres Debütalbums ,Biggest Bluest Hi-Fi" mit einer Vinyl-Neuauflage bei Merge Records. Seit der ursprünglichen Veröffentlichung in Großbritannien bei Andmoresound im Jahr 2001 ist das Album in diesem Format vergriffen. Die Jubiläumsausgabe kommt als die definitivste Version von ,Biggest Bluest Hi-Fi", die je auf Vinyl gepresst wurde, und enthält beide B-Seiten der Single ,Eighties Fan" - ,Shine Like a New Pin" und ,Let's Go Bowling" -, die später den erweiterten CD-Neuauflagen des Albums hinzugefügt wurden. ,Biggest Bluest Hi-Fi" wurde nach seinem Erscheinen wiederholt von John Peel in seinen BBC-Radiosendungen gespielt. Das Album ist ein bemerkenswert selbstbewusstes Debüt, ein voll ausgereifter Ausdruck eines Sounds, der die Fans der Band seit ihrem ersten Durchlauf des von Stuart Murdoch (Belle & Sebastian) produzierten ,Eighties Fan" bis zum letzten Hören des 2024 erschienenen Studio-Comebacks von Camera Obscura ,Look to the East, Look to the West" in seinen Bann gezogen hat. Diese Fans haben lautstark gefordert, dass ,Biggest Bluest Hi-Fi" die Vinyl-Neuauflage erhält, die es schon lange verdient hat. Wenn man die Nadel auf Tracks wie ,Swimming Pool", ,Pen and Notebook" und ,Happy New Year" setzt, ist leicht zu hören, warum: Jeder der 12 Songs des Albums ist ein perfekt beobachteter Ausschnitt aus dem Leben, der durch opulent detaillierte Arrangements filmisch inszeniert wird. Es ist zeitlose, grundsolide Popmusik, wie sie nur Camera Obscura machen kann, geeignet für die Hi-Fi-Anlagen von 1966 und 2026 gleichermaßen.
Primordial Mind forms the mysteries and intensity of inner life into eight mandalic instrumentals where Mas Aya and Khôra, artists who share 15 years of music making, orchestrate an inspired, prismatic palette of percussive and melodic sources. Each composition presented stages a vigorous meshwork of colours and textures, contrasting riveting polyrhythms with towering arrangements for flutes, synths, and processed acoustic instruments. Tendencies which the artists trace in their solo practices are amplified, blended, and refracted sublimely in unison, serving as energetic portals to the collective awareness.
Combining trans-ethnic scaling alongside a heady brew of rhythmic influences and advanced electronic processing, the recordings on this album operate with a tactility that vaults between free jazz, dub, raga, ambient, and ritual music. Assimilated powers of primal drum patterning and psychoactive, ceremonial melodies, invoke fourth world adjacencies with the work of Don Cherry, Jon Hassell, Popol Vuh et al. There is an alchemical, Buddhist/Taoist/Hindu inflection that guides the record’s narrative, formed through dialogue between the artists over lifelong shared interest in spiritual modalities generally and the tantric approaches of the global east in particular. The album title is derived from an unexcelled esoteric work known as the Kalachakra (Wheel of Time)Tantra and its associated commentary the Ornament of Stainless Light which detail forms of inner and outer transubstantiation within its complex cosmology and metaphysiology.
Mas Aya is the moniker of Brandon Miguel Valdivia, acclaimed Nicaraguan-Canadian composer, producer, and musician whose electronic and jazz inspired works creatively interlace Colombian, Cuban, and a wide array of traditional music. Khôra is the name of the occult entity that uses multi-instrumentalist, producer, and writer Matthew Ramolo to pronounce itself. Returning to Marionette following 2024's monumental Gestures of Perception, Primordial Mind reinforces the rigorous and magical approach to creation which defines Khôra’s two decades of sonic output. Brandon and Matthew met back in 2011 and the pair toured around eastern Europe with Toronto band Picastro in 2013, also performing as a duo with Brandon contributing drums to Khôra's opening sets. After a short spate composing and playing in the ensemble Bespoken together, they continued to discover shared inspiration in psych/art rock, jazz, experimental and electronic music, providing a fertile soil for friendship and collaboration resulting in their collaged, lo-fi album Tangled Roots in 2017. Mythic and talismanic, the duo's Marionette debut weaves a luminous tapestry of organic pulses, offering itself as a support for resonant meditation and a motor for lucid action and intuition.
Brandon Miguel Valdivia: Percussion, Flutes, Log Drum, Korg Lambda, Angklung, Tambor Alegre, Udu
Matthew Ramolo: Modular Synth, Archival Samples, Angklung, Guitar, Duduk, Bass, Percussion, Arrangements and Mix
Double live album out by one of the most exciting live bands in earth, Mohama Saz! "Ven al fuego" captures their unstoppable stage energy in its purest form. "Ven al fuego" is the perfect compilation and representative of the powerful unstoppable force from the band on stage. Play this album, play it loud and you will be enjoying one of the most memorable live shows that explores musical horizons emancipated from British rock tradition. Mohama Saz from Madrid, Spain are one of the most exciting live bands in the world today, a mind -blowing manifestation of pure psychedelic exotica. Within minutes of taking the stage they have the audience completely under their spell, dancing in wide-eyed bliss to their uniquely intoxicating music. With an electrified Baglama Saz as their lead instrument they fuse elements of Turkish and Armenian folk music, Mediterranean psychedelia and mesmerizing Middle Eastern-flavored ragas with galvanizing go- go discotheque grooves. Mike Stax (Ugly Things Magazine / The Loons) Experiencing Mohama Saz live is a meditative ritual of excitement and pure emotion. One of the best live shows I can think of today, they are truly something special! Jake García (The Black Angels) Album Credits: Recorded live in February 2025 in Madrid (Sala Copérnico, February 22, 2025) and Reus (Lo Submarino, February 15, 2025) by Tommaso Galati. Mixed by Tommaso Galati and Mohama Saz. Mastered by Carlos Díaz. Artwork: Mario Feal
Killer Groove Records proudly presents the self-titled debut album by Italian cinematic funk trio Atabasca. A sonic journey where funk, psychedelia and desert groove merge into a timeless narrative suspended between rhythm and vision.
"Atabasca" marks the debut release from the cinematic funk trio, dropping March 27th on limited edition LP, CD digipack and digital formats, the latter featuring an exclusive bonus track. This is a project built on evocative imagery: each song unfolds as an open scene, an emotional landscape where listeners can step inside and write their own ending.
Lap steel, kalimba, percussion and guitars interweave with bass and drums, striking an original balance between tradition and experimentation that evokes unwritten soundtracks for worlds at once distant and familiar. The record navigates between melancholy and irony, tension and release, with a sharp focus on dynamics and sonic narrative.
Deserts, seas, imaginary villages, getaways, pursuits and collective rituals: "Atabasca" emerges as a collection of musical landscapes that unfolds through vivid, evocative imagery.
Jazz-funk, world music, afrobeat, psychedelia and the Italian Golden Age of movie soundtracks merge into a singular emotional geography: warm, analog and deeply human.
The musical journey opens with "Dune", a melancholic statement that leaves room for imagination, before igniting with "Kundela Mawedi" and its cascading lap steel over haunting vocal chants. "Paco" tips its hat to classic westerns, tracing a bandit's trajectory, while "Cameo" drifts back to childhood through minimal rumba and shimmering kalimba. The cinematic imagery continues in "Cacopoulos", a nod to Spaghetti westerns and Eli Wallach, built on raw drum patterns and distorted guitars. Intensity builds in "Khettara", where afrobeat rhythms and Middle Eastern textures intertwine, before "Hell Dorado" tears off in pursuit of the American dream's funk-fueled mirage. "Papambra" weaves hypnotic polyrhythms between kalimba and lap steel, while "Porpora" delivers a sensual, visceral tango of passion and tension. The digital edition closes with "Reprise", a sequel that stretches the album's central theme into an expansive, meditative interpretation.
The tracks were recorded in single takes, capturing the raw energy and natural atmosphere of the performance. Artistic production was handled by the trio alongside Andrea Fabrizii (digger, musician, producer and catalogue curator for CAM Sugar), while Riccardo Ricci mastered the album at Velvet Room Mastering Studio in Brighton.
Like a desert blooming within the evergreen forests of the planet's far north, a unique, alien, disruptive environment. This is the vision behind Atabasca, the project of Luca Mongia (guitars, lap steel, keyboards, vocals), Paolo Mazziotti (bass, keyboards, vocals) and Valerio Pompei (drums, percussion, vocals).
Individually active for over twenty years on both the national and international scenes, the three Italian musicians came together in 2023 to create a project that merges experience, experimentation and creative freedom. Their music is imaginative and at times dreamlike, blending the classic concept of the instrumental trio with the worlds of film scoring and sound design.
Atabasca's sound moves through jazz-funk, world and cinematic territories, weaving together afrobeat, desert and psychedelic influences into a personal and timeless language. Each piece is a scene; each sound, a fragment of a world, a journey between reality and imagination where groove, texture and organic timbre merge into a singular sonic ecosystem: a perpetually shifting balance that generates new inner landscapes.
For fans of Khruangbin, Surprise Chef and instrumental psych-funk!
out of Stock
Last delivered 5 months ago available to reorder, subject to availability
Budapest-based concept label, Blue Sun is launching their new line of vinyl focused releases, aimed primarily on DJs and collectors: the Blue Series. A counterpart to the Orange Series launched last year that showcases a more upbeat side of the label, the new collection presents a darker, more experimental, and introspective musical vision.
The first release in the Blue Series is a six-track EP by Budapest based multimedia artist, Virág Réti. Choosing her legal name as her artist persona (“Flower of the Meadow" in Hungarian) also with the track titles capturing the folk names of local fauna, Peremidő evokes the artist's innate connection to nature as a place of refuge from the noise of Eastern European urban life.
The EP’s motifs point back to early memories of sitting by a river, simply observing time flowing by. The arc of the songs follow the passage of a day, beginning with the hesitant sounds of early morning, gradually moving on toward more defined, rhythm-driven forms. As the airy textures slowly give way to structure and percussion comes to the forefront, the sense of direction becomes clearer, letting moments of gentle disorder and unexpected sounds to surface.
Virág previously appeared on the label’s Blue Sun VA II compilation with her track Bíbic. Since launching her ambient music project in the fall of 2024, she has become one of the promising newcomers in the Hungarian experimental electronic music scene. Her debut EP, Minden Ami Megmaradt (All That Remains), was released last November as the final offering of temporary nites label (2023–2025). She is also the founder and organizer of the Budapest-based experimental electronic event series Still Places.
Two cross-cultural jazz treasures from the late ‘50s, reissued together for the first time. Lonnie Sattin’s deep, percussive takes on Duke Ellington’s “Caravan” and the Middle Eastern melodies of “Uska Dara” prefigure the global jazz movement by decades. Remastered and pressed on 45rpm vinyl, this PANORAMA release highlights the spirit of exploration and connection that the label is famous for and Record Store Day celebrates — a stunning bridge between swing, world rhythm, and jazz adventure. Remastered and Redesigned labels and sleeve, First time on 45.
out of Stock
Last delivered 5 months ago available to reorder, subject to availability
Coming in extra bloody hot is the 6th release on Disco Combine, harvested from the fields of musical gold by Mr. Dave Lee. First up the epic 'Lovin' You (Was My Mistake)' a throaty Philly-soul favourite , which has been lovingly re-worked into a beefy peak time floor filler. For those who prefer a more dubwise approach, the 'Joanna's Groove' version starts instrumentally with rippling piano, building into a big string finale. On the flip 'How I Love New York' swaggers into your ears with all the class, style & panache you would expect from a jazz-fusion connoisseur living in the big Apple. Don't miss heading to the 'Midtown Dub' if you like things more squelchy and funktified.
out of Stock
Last delivered 19 days ago available to reorder, subject to availability
This isn’t a compilation—it’s a vinyl conversation between cities, generations, and musical bloodlines. This inaugural release embodies the spirit of collaboration, community, and cross-generational artistry that defines each artist’s deep musical legacy.
A statement on wax bringing together Glenn Underground, Coflo, Jon Dixon, Kevin Reynolds and sillygirlcarmen, this four-song project documents the shared language of five Artists through deep house, jazz roots, and forward-looking soul. Though these artists have shared DJ booths and dance floors around the world, this release marks a rare moment where their creative voices intertwine on wax. Each track stands on its own, but together they form a continuum—past, present, and future etched into wax. Pressed with intention and made for real systems, this release exists for the heads, the selectors, and anyone who still believes vinyl is where the story lives. Meant to be played—not archived. The kind of tracks that feel alive in the room and grow every time you hear them.
‘Ease’ EP tracks:
Glenn Underground ‘Dive (Into The Deep)’; the Chicago legend & Strictly Jaz Unit co-founder combines deep house, freeform jazz & soul, here in a jazz-infused, laid-back, hypnotic melange of house beat, synth chord riff, rippling arps, with a whisper of disco in the bassline and 80’s electro in the high, singing strings.
Coflo x sillygirlcarmen ‘Never Forget (That Feelin’)’; East Bay CA-based Coflo combines Hawaiian & Portugese roots with a global reach. A collaborative skipping house beat, pattering percussion & melodic jazz synth piano embrace sillygirlcarmen’s soulful voice and heartfelt lyrics. This collaboration marks a merging of emotional storytelling and percussive sophistication.
Jon Dixon ‘Saturday At Northland’; Detroit’s modern jazz & techno fusionist, rooted in long study and prestigious performance of classical & jazz piano both in orchestral and electronic contexts, employs his keyboard virtuosity in a thrilling wave of melodic piano improvisation & complex lively percussion, combining sheer craft with spiritual heft.
Kevin Reynolds ‘I Got Music’; from an Irish/US Detroit family, producer/live artist Reynolds blends techno, jazz, soul, from influences as diverse as 90s underground techno, Kraftwerk & John Coltrane, and roles/performances in multiple prestigious venues & positions. Here, a stealthy beat & Kraftwerk-evoking robotic electro synth theme are joined by a dual vocal used as a riff, while clusters of piano chords flower into jazz motifs.
out of Stock
Last delivered 67 days ago available to reorder, subject to availability
No-one could have predicted the success of The 88, the first album from Minuit
(minwee), or how warmly it would be received. Equally no-one could have predicted that the band would return to the live arena a decade after their final fling or consider pressing their debut on vinyl for the first time.
Formed in Nelson, NZ in 1997, the trio cut their teeth playing regularly around the South Island’s underground club and festival scene. After a hiatus overseas, they began recording The 88 in 2002 in Ryan’s home studio. The lyrics were influenced by their travels around Europe and Ruth's time working for the UN in Kosovo and East Timor; the beats by The Prodigy, Portishead and the UK’s trip-hop and breakbeat scenes.
Signed to indie label Tardus, their tunes were eagerly picked up by the bNet student radio network, which then ballooned into high rotates on TV station C4, helped along by Alyx Duncan’s stunning video for Except You. A busy summer playing live every weekend for three months and seemingly universal praise from the music press led to them swiftly gaining gold sales.
Now 22 years later, with live shows looming, the trio have decided to revisit their debut, completing two previously unfinished tracks from the period to add a bonus to this inaugural vinyl release.
Are U Mad At Me marks a huge, cowboy boot-wearing step for the Brooklyn-based songwriter. Fields proves that genre is as fluid as sexuality, as the album saunters across country, pop, disco, grunge, and classical with ease. Across 12 tracks, Fields traverses bangers like power pop lead single “Party Girl” and two-stepping second single “Hands Off The Hat” (co-written with Grammy award-winning songwriter Melody Walker) all the way to tragic ballads like “Apalachicola to Tallahassee” (co-written with Karen Pittelman of Karen & The Sorrows) and the closing “Uncle Charlie’s.” He makes light of gender-neutral bathrooms marked with unicorns instead of stick figures in the guitar-driven “Pronoun Meltdown” and calls out a husband cheating on his wife with another man in the tragicomic ballad of “You Should Tell Your Wife.”
Are U Mad At Me arrives at a pivotal time in the roots music scene and the world at large. Fields, who is now rapidly becoming one of New York City’s queer country leaders — through his East Village residency at Lucinda Williams’ new honky tonk and dive bar and through his musical mentorship work through The Recording Academy — has been working tirelessly for this moment for more than a decade. Performing under this moniker since 2013, Fields has released three LPs and two EPs. He’s recorded on queer country pioneers Lavender Country’s 2022 reunion album, Blackberry Rose, and served as the band’s touring pianist. Additionally, his 2023 protest song duet with Mya Byrne, “Burn This Statehouse Down,” made it onto NPR music critic Ann Powers’ list of favorite songs of the year.
Good Kid ist keine typische Rockband; sie sind wahrscheinlich der größte Indie-Act, von dem du noch nie gehört hast. Was als Projekt von fünf kanadischen Informatikstudenten begann, die sich von ihren Aufgaben ablenkten – Nick Frosst (voc), Jon Kereliuk (drums), Michael Kozakov (bass), David Wood (git) und Jacob Tsafatinos (git) –, entwickelte sich rasant zu etwas viel Größerem und einer riesigen globalen Community, die Menschen willkommen heißt, sich so zu zeigen, wie sie sind. Mit vier erfolgreichen EPs im Gepäck liefert Good Kids Debütalbum "Can We Hang Out Sometime?" die energiegeladenen Hooks und innovativen Riffs, die zu ihrem Markenzeichen geworden sind, und wagt sich gleichzeitig mutig in neue Gefilde vor. Langjährige Fans finden hier die typischen Good-Kid-Kracher, die sie lieben, aber auch die Band, die in ihrem bisher rauesten Werk neue Soundfarben, Rhythmen und Wendungen erkundet. Produziert von Grammy-Preisträger John Congleton (St. Vincent, Wallows, Lana Del Rey) in Los Angeles.
Good Kid ist keine typische Rockband; sie sind wahrscheinlich der größte Indie-Act, von dem du noch nie gehört hast. Was als Projekt von fünf kanadischen Informatikstudenten begann, die sich von ihren Aufgaben ablenkten – Nick Frosst (voc), Jon Kereliuk (drums), Michael Kozakov (bass), David Wood (git) und Jacob Tsafatinos (git) –, entwickelte sich rasant zu etwas viel Größerem und einer riesigen globalen Community, die Menschen willkommen heißt, sich so zu zeigen, wie sie sind. Mit vier erfolgreichen EPs im Gepäck liefert Good Kids Debütalbum "Can We Hang Out Sometime?" die energiegeladenen Hooks und innovativen Riffs, die zu ihrem Markenzeichen geworden sind, und wagt sich gleichzeitig mutig in neue Gefilde vor. Langjährige Fans finden hier die typischen Good-Kid-Kracher, die sie lieben, aber auch die Band, die in ihrem bisher rauesten Werk neue Soundfarben, Rhythmen und Wendungen erkundet. Produziert von Grammy-Preisträger John Congleton (St. Vincent, Wallows, Lana Del Rey) in Los Angeles.
"What if, alongside the mainstream history of music, with careers and discographies spanning ten or fifty years from album to album, there was an underground, minority history, that of artists and projects with only one record? A flash, a burst of brilliance, a gem, but no follow-up, no repetitions, no decline.
"This will most likely be the case for this album by Amarante-Cerisier, a duo formed by Mauricio Amarante (RadikalSatan, Équipage, travelling companion of Canan Domurcakli and Austin Townsend) and Marine Debilly Cerisier (dancer, performer, writer, co-founder of alternative cultural venues in Marseille and Brussels), with these eight poetic songs in French having more in common with the visionary essence of certain songs from the early 1970s (Brigitte Fontaine-Areski, for example) than with the post-modernism of the ‘nouvelle chanson française’ of the1990s and 2000s.
"But – and this is undoubtedly no coincidence – this is also the case for two unique albums, which had no immediate follow-ups but which, 50 and 20 years after their release, inspired Mauricio and Marine's album and discreetly found their way into it:
"At the very end of the 1960s, Tchékov Minosa (Marine's grandfather) embarked on a journey to the East with his partner Brigitte de Saint-Preux, during which they were married ten times, in ten different traditions (in Kurdistan, among the Kuchi people of northern Afghanistan, among the Kalash people of north-eastern Pakistan, in Rajasthan,etc.). This three-year journey was documented in numerous articles in the European press, in documentaries, in a book... and on a double LP of traditional music recordings released in 1973 by Le Chant du Monde. And sampled today by Mauricio Amarante at the end of the track ‘Parfois’.
"In the early 2000s, Austin Townsend, a tall, bony figure, washed up on the banks of the Garonne River near Bordeaux, arriving from New Zealand. With a voice that was sometimes very Bob Dylan-esque, at other times buried in the gravelly depths of the low frequencies, he strung together contemporary blues songs on his only album, Introvenus (Potagers natures, 2007), beautifully accompanied in subtle tones on banjo and double bass by Mauricio and Cesar Amarante (alias Radikal Satan). Beyond this unique record, Mauricio played extensively with Austin in concert. And when his friend died in the spring of 2024, he received his guitar, used the instrument for some of the tracks on the upcoming Okraïna record, and decided to dedicate the album to him.
"In our conception of music, fleeting appearances, unexpected reunions, and timeless records outside the dictates of current musical trends thrill us more than overly well-planned career paths."
A personal record for Mike shaped by memory, places, and renewal. Walking the streets of his birthplace, St. Louis, Zito reconnects with the sounds, stories, and hard lessons that forged his signature blend of soul-driven blues and fearless storytelling. Thirteen years after Gone to Texas, this album feels like a defining moment, marking a new chapter for Mike, his family, and a life reclaimed in the city that started it all. The songs paint vivid snapshots of city life and personal reckoning, from late- night regret and self-awareness to raw portraits of neighbourhood survival and street-level truth. Tracks like "Downtown at Midnight" and "Grand Avenue" capture the grit, temptation, and consequences of the past with unflinching honesty, grounding the album in lived experience and emotional weight . Zito's writing is direct and cinematic, pairing tough reflection with compassion and hard-earned wisdom.
At its heart, Outside Or The Eastside is a celebration of second chances, an album dedicated to better days, family, friendship, love, and joy found in everyday moments. Life's unpredictable paths open doors you never expect, and for Mike Zito, this record embraces that truth with warmth, humour, and swagger. It's a record about choosing connection over chaos and moving forward with gratitude, purpose, and the volume turned up
After all of the fun had - and, if we may brag a bit - the acclaim for NWB001, we're back with a follow-up.
So here's NWB002. Our start and end points shift this time (1979–1997 vs 1977-1989) but again the focus is on revolutionary moments in music and subculture.
We've got pieces from The Face, i-D, Time Out, Village Voice, Rolling Stone, Mixmag, The Observer and - a particularly big pleasure - Collusion magazine. We've got brilliant photography, too, documenting seminal afterdark moments. And we've put it all together with much love, craft and attention to detail.
This is material that lets us experience culture in its rawest form. In-the-moment and before endless layers of post-rationalisation have kicked in. Breakthrough events in dance music, hip-hop and pop – and parallel shifts in art, design and fashion. Inspirational, ground-level creativity and enterprise that set the scene(s) for subsequent decades.
We hope you enjoy reading NWB002 as much as we enjoyed bringing it together.
Inside No Way Back 002
Behind The Groove - the epic 1983 feature by Steven Harvey in David Toop's Collusion magazine, charting the NYC disco underground
Photographer Steve Eichner documenting the club kids scene at The Limelight, Palladium, Tunnel and Club USA
Year zero reporting as The Face's Sheryl Garratt visits Chicago in 1986, witnessing the emergent house sound
The Mudd Club - 'disco for punks' as Rolling Stone put it; the Lower East Side party which arguably spawned a thousand indie discos
In the 'socialist city' of Sheffield, meanwhile, Jon Savage heads for a night of sharp clothes and even sharper moves at Jive Turkey
Paul Morley writing in Time Out in 1988 on the tension materialising between glossy style mags and the the monochrome music press
The House That Rap Built - Village Voice celebrates the short but sweet glory years of hip-house
Mixmag in 1992 on the 'return of sex' to clubs like Roxy and the Sound Factory
Images and commentary from Eddie Otchere, rewinding to jungle's halcyon days
Kodwo Eshun reporting on jungle's full-throttle ascent for i-D in 1994
+ Editor’s notes, supporting commentary, playlists, and covers, spreads and imagery from original titles
Dancing Waters is a musical fusion where the Mediterranean soul meets the deep-rooted mysticism of Cental Asia. Inspired by the surprising resonance between the work melodies of Balearic Islands and Pitiüses Islands and the haunting beauty of Persian and Byzantine melodies. QANAT weaves together the rich traditions of the Mediterranean, Mesopotamia, and Persia. The project blends old Balearic work songs with the modal textures of Middle Eastern and Central Asian music -including influences from Iran, Turkey, Tajikistan, and the ancient region of Khorasan. At the heart of the project is the remarkable melodic kinship between Balearic field songs-once sung during rural labor-and the ancient echoes of Byzantine chant. QANAT bridges these traditions, crafting new musical landscapes through original compositions, instrumental dialogues, and vocal ornamentations that celebrate the shared soul of these distant-yet-connected cultures.
To commemorate the 40th Anniversary of the passing of James Darroch, singer/songwriter/guitarist for Sydney's incredible The Eastern Dark, Grown Up Wrong! is thrilled to announce a long-awaited reissue of the band's classic single "Julie Is A Junkie/Johnny and Dee Dee".
Heavily influenced by the Ramones - the band opened their first live show with 'Blitzkrieg Bop' and from then on opened with a new Ramones song every time they played, working through the band's complete catalogue in chronological order - as all manner of hyper-melodic and high energy rock. The Eastern Dark were a classic trio powered by former Celibate Rifles bassplayer James Darroch's blazing guitar and anchored by former Lime Spiders backing vocalist Bill Gibson's hard driving and melodic bass playing (and supreme backing vocals) and Geoff Milne's untouchable beat keeping. They set Sydney's Radio Birdman influenced scene alight in 1984 and quickly built an international following on the back of their classic single. Sadly, just hours after completing what would become their next release - the mini-LP "Long Live the New Flesh" - the band's life, and that of 26-year old James Darroch, was brutally ended in a road accident whilst the band was on its way to Melbourne.
On the back of the tragedy, the band's music lived on and it's global impact was reflected in the influence it bore on numerous bands, from Boston's the Lemoneads to Tokyo's Teengenenete, and obviously a succession of Australian bands from the Hard-Ons through to God and the Meanies and beyond.
After years of searching, surviving members Bill Gibson and Geoff Milne recently found the single's original multi-track tapes, and for the new release, the original recordings have been both remixed and remastered for maximum impact under their supervision.
Welcome to the mind-expanding 1968 jazz recording of Bill Plummer and The Cosmic Brotherhood—where Eastern and psychedelic influences meld together to produce one of the trippiest jazz albums on Impulse Records. This LP is a much-sought-after sonic travelogue, with the pop-psych spoken-word sitar freakout of “Journey To The East” to Bill Plummer’s swinging, rapid fire/cool jazz compositions, to his covers that go straight to the heart of any 60’s genre-crossing jazz fans. Featuring an incredible who's who of the high-caliber talent bubbling over in the Los Angeles music scene at the time: Carol Kaye (legendary bass player of The Wrecking Crew), Maurice Miller (drummer in The Jazz Corps), Dennis Budimir (guitarist with Chico Hamilton Quintet, Ravi Shankar & Frank Zappa), Mike Lang (Piano with Flamin’ Groovies & Hal Blaine), Tom Scott (Saxophone with Gabor Szabo & Thelonious Monk), Ray Neopolitan (Bass for The Doors & Leonard Cohen), Milt Holland (Percussionist with The Wrecking Crew &
Captain Beefheart), Bill Goodwin (Drums for Mose Allison & Tom Waits).
Housed in a beautiful gatefold sleeve with iconic liner notes by Frank Kofsky, who comes out swinging hard in favor of the album, while shaking the dust off any jazz snobs left in the '60s who still were not ready to embrace the future of jazz. Produced by Bob Thiele who produced everyone from John
Coltrane, Art Blakey to Charles Mingus, this sonic rarity is yet another impressive vinyl reissue from the folks at Jackpot Records.
Mit Buddha-Bar XXVIII öffnet sich erneut das Tor zu einer Welt voller Eleganz, Sinnlichkeit und globaler Klangfarben. Die legendäre Compilation-Reihe, die längst zu einem internationalen Lifestyle-Phänomen geworden ist, präsentiert mit diesem Kapitel erneut einen Mix, der die Balance zwischen elektronischer Finesse, weltumspannenden Melodien und tiefen Chill- und House-Vibes meisterhaft hält. DJ Ravin, seit Jahren prägende Sound-Signatur des Buddha-Bar-Universums, führt Hörer:innen mit sicherer Hand durch eine Reise voller Atmosphäre und subtiler Spannung. Jeder Track reiht sich wie ein Mosaikstein in ein großes Ganzes ein - perfekt geeignet für entspannte Abende, stilvolle Lounges oder Momente der Entschleunigung. "Buddha-Bar XXVIII" steht exemplarisch für die besondere Kunst dieser Serie: Musik als Erlebnis, als Raum, als Stimmung. Eine Einladung, abzuschalten, einzutauchen und die Welt für einen Augenblick in warmen Farben zu hören.
Anlässlich des 20-jährigen Jubiläums im Jahr 2025 ist das gleichnamige Debütalbum der besten Band aus Staten Island endlich wieder erhältlich! Mit einem luxuriösen Cover im „old style“ und einer vollständig analogen (AAA) Remastering-Version der Originalbänder – von Ryan Smith (Sterling Sound) – sieht diese legendäre LP besser aus und klingt besser denn je. Mit „Up From the South” und „Ghost Walk” ist dieses Album ein Muss für Fans von Daptone und den Budos!
Anlässlich des 20-jährigen Jubiläums im Jahr 2025 ist das gleichnamige Debütalbum der besten Band aus Staten Island endlich wieder erhältlich! Mit einem luxuriösen Cover im „old style“ und einer vollständig analogen (AAA) Remastering-Version der Originalbänder – von Ryan Smith (Sterling Sound) – sieht diese legendäre LP besser aus und klingt besser denn je. Mit „Up From the South” und „Ghost Walk” ist dieses Album ein Muss für Fans von Daptone und den Budos!
To celebrate the year anniversary of its first release, Erin LeCount launches a limited edition transparent vinyl of her 2025 EP I Am Digital, I Am Divine. The tracklist includes viral hit Silver Spoon which amassed 300K Soundcloud streams before it had even been released, since amassing 21M streams in less than 12 months.
Available for pre-order on the 24th March and set for release on the 17th April 2026.
Erin LeCount is a 23-year-old self-taught artist and producer. A visionary sonic architect and the sole writer and producer of her music, her sound ranges from luscious baroque-pop arrangements to alluring gothic-pop.
At the foreground of her music are diaristic lyrics and captivating synths which offer an enchanting interplay of vulnerability and power. The themes within her music explore everything from identity to relationships and the meaning of life. Erin’s influences include Fiona Apple, Kate Bush, Lorde, Imogen Heap, Charli xcx, and Sampha.
In May 2026, Erin LeCount will embark on her biggest run of shows to date with her new UK tour, entitled the ‘PAREIDOLIA Tour’, which will see her play dates in Manchester, Glasgow, Bristol, and London, the latter of which will take place at the Roundhouse in what is Erin’s largest headline show so far.
This month, Erin was also announced on the line-up for Lorde’s All Points East date on Saturday 22nd August.
Free As You Wanna Be", the first album by drummer Bubbha Thomas and his band The Lightmen, predates the deep-set, maverick jazz issued by the likes of Tribe and Strata East: This album is a harbinger of the collective voice of resistance to the musical and cultural status quo that emerged in the 1970s jazz underground. Drummer, bandleader and activist Bubbha Thomas had toured America with R&B revues, served as a session musician for peacock and back beat records, and played straight ahead jazz with legends before the political and social upheaval of the late 1960s led him to a path first charted by Coltrane. Most of the tracks remain strongly groove-based with a clear sense of cohesion, but a few of the performances push further out than you might expect from later Lightmen releases, revealing the band's deep roots in avant-jazz. This lineup includes a very young Ronnie Laws sounding noticeably removed from the jazz-fusion style he'd adopt in the late '70s. Alongside Thomas on drums, the ensemble is rounded out by Doug Harris on tenor sax, Carl Adams on trumpet, Kenny Abair on guitar, and Joe Singleton on trombone.
My Favorite Things is one of J ohn Coltrane 's all time bestselling LPs. Recorded in 1960 for Atlantic Records during three marathon sessions that also produced enough music for four subsequent albums: Coltrane Plays the Blues , Coltrane's Sound , and Coltrane Legacy. The LP's title tune belongs to the Rodgers & Hammerstein musical The Sound of Music, which at the time, might have seemed an odd choice by critics and fans. However, in Coltrane's hand the tune is spun out with an Eastern sound, a waltz reminiscent of a dervish dance, hypnotic and totally engaging. An edited version of the track was issued as a single and gained popularity across US radio stations, resulting in the LP becoming a major commercial success. My Favorite Things features John Coltrane 's first recorded performance on soprano saxophone - an instrument gifted to him by Miles Davis.
Shrunken Elvis ist ein Trio aus Nashville, bestehend aus Spencer Cullum, Sean Thompson und Rich Ruth - drei erfahrenen Musikern, die ihre Liebe zu genreübergreifender Instrumentalmusik verbindet. Die Gruppe entstand aus langen Autofahrten durch Europa, Winter-Jam-Sessions und dem gemeinsamen Bestreben, Musik eher aus dem Bauch heraus als aus Ambitionen heraus zu machen. Cullum, ein in East London geborener Pedal-Steel-Gitarrist, spielte bereits mit Angel Olsen, Lambchop, Miranda Lambert und Billy Strings gespielt und zwei Solo-Folk-Psych-LPs bei Full Time Hobby veröffentlicht. Thompson kam mit Gnarwhal und Promised Land Sound in der DIY-Szene von Nashville groß heraus und tourte später mit Margo Price und Skyway Man. Ruth schafft unter dem Namen Rich Ruth (Third Man Records) immersive Soloarbeiten, die spirituellen Jazz, Ambient und Post-Rock miteinander verbinden. Ihre Anfänge gehen auf eine Europatournee im Jahr 2022 zurück, die sie im Rahmen von Cullums Soloalbum unternahmen. Mit einem kompakten Setup aus Gitarren, Pedal Steel und Synthesizern in einem VW Passat zusammengepfercht, begannen sie unterwegs zu komponieren - und entwickelten eine gemeinsame musikalische Sprache, die sie in ihre Wintersessions in Nashville mitnahmen. Sie nahmen in einem Studio in einem Schuppen um einen Heizstrahler herum auf und fingen den Geist dieser Reisen mit Spontaneität und Vertrauen ein. Ihr Debütalbum zielt nicht darauf ab, individuelle Fähigkeiten in den Vordergrund zu stellen, sondern die Instrumente zu etwas völlig Neuem verschmelzen zu lassen. Mit der Einstellung ,keine Ziele, nur Ideen" schufen sie Musik, die sich ungezwungen, explorativ und lebendig anfühlt. Verwurzelt in den Traditionen von Kosmischer Musik, Jazz-Fusion, Elektronik und Ambient, lässt sich Shrunken Elvis von Alice Coltrane, Michael Rother, Pat Metheny, Ashra und KLF inspirieren lassen - zusammen mit visuellen Einflüssen wie ECM-Albumcovern und den Filmen von Kurosawa und Bergman. Gemischt von Jake Davis (William Tyler) und mit Artwork von Max Kinghorn-Mills (Hollow Hand) ist ihr Debüt ein leise drängendes, zutiefst kollaboratives Album - Musik, die ohne Erwartungen entstanden ist, aber voller Absicht.
out of Stock
Last delivered 6 months ago available to reorder, subject to availability
AJATE from the East and STEPAK TAKRAW from the West. A historic encounter between Afro-groove bands from East and West!!!
A powerful split album born from the clash of diverse cultures.
The A-side features two tracks by AJATE, a group hugely popular not only domestically but also in Europe and America, who create a unique atmosphere using
Japanese festival music instruments, handmade bamboo guitars, and balafons.
The B-side features two tracks by STEPAK TAKRAW, whose hard-hitting technique rivals authentic Afrobeat bands, breakbeat-inspired approach, and original
sound effects will leave you spellbound.
It seems almost inevitable that at some stage Blue Matter and The Green Ray would be working together, and we’re delighted to say that this is now about to happen. When Blue Matter co-boss, Nick Saloman, was living in Walthamstow, he sat in with The Green Ray many times at the late-lamented Plough Inn on Wood Street (now a mini-supermarket). In more recent times Nick’s band, The Bevis Frond has played live with them on several occasions, and without wishing to disrespect any former members, the current Green Ray line-up sounds as good as they’ve ever sounded, if not, dare we say, even better than before. The Green Ray was originally assembled in the mid-90s by Ken Whaley & Richard Treece, two key members of Walthamstow legends, Help Yourself. During the last 30 years or so, they have released 7 albums and one 12” single.
Sadly, the line-up has changed quite frequently due to the passing of several of their number. Ken & Richard passed away some years ago, and more recently bassist Jeff Gibbs departed this world. However, now under the all-seeing eye of guitarist Simon Whaley, the current line-up is continuing to fly the East London freak flag high. Not long ago Simon asked us if Blue Matter would like to issue their latest offering, and we came back with a resounding “yes please”. ‘Orchard House’ is a superb album, full of great playing and great songs. There are shades of Mighty Baby and Help Yourself (at their trippiest), plus a West Coast atmosphere which put us in mind of Quicksilver and The Grateful Dead. It’s taken some time to happen, but at last Blue Matter & The Green Ray have come together to issue an unmissable album. So don’t miss it.
Xylitol, aka producer and DJ Catherine Backhouse, shifts up the refinement and musical breadth for her second album Blumenfantasie, the follow-up to her Planet Mu debut Anemones.
With Blumenfantasie, Xylitol wanted “to make space and for the music to float and propel at once”, finding routes through the pointillistic figures, cascading synths and the meditative stillness of kosmische musik and bolder breakbeat programming. She reaches this delicate balance through careful subtraction, hoping “to convey a sense of intimacy and sadness but without sentimentality” which she manages with a feel and sound that's raw and intuitive.
Blumenfantasie rolls through detailed jungle workouts that flutter and bleep, through beatless ambience, taking a rare dip below 160 bpm for the elegiac Mirjana, the album’s most explicit nod to Krautrock with a drum break chopped up from Amon Duul II’s anthemic ‘Archangel’s Thunderbird’, through to Halo, a bare bones grime rhythm that calls to mind the missing link between industrial pioneers Nurse With Wound and Wiley's Eskibeat.
Catherine cast her net to draw in experimental audiovisual duo Sculpture and Reading based post-rock band The Leaf Library as collaborators, pulling the former’s whirling eddies of musique concrète into a slice of sublime aquatic jungle, and the latter’s radiophonic folksong into a dark and disorientating breakbeat workout equally indebted to Source Direct as to Broadcast.
Blumenfantasie moves with a confident, self-effacing fluidity which has been informed by DJ Bunnyhausen’s more regular DJ gigs. She speculates ‘if this album feels more cohesive than its predecessor it's likely because I've been DJing a lot more, with Worthing Techno Militia, with central and eastern european electronica collective Slav to the Rhythm, as well as being part of Italo Disco crew Flex. Moving between these zones seemed to open up hidden pathways between the disparate musical trajectories they represent.'
While Anemones contrasted the rough and the delicate, its successor is an album built for the head, hips and heart, with painterly sounds and a sense of intimacy that encourages deep listening while keeping its eyes on the strobelight and its feet on the dancefloor.
out of Stock
Last delivered 4 months ago available to reorder, subject to availability
A GOOD FUN record, the new album from Lipphead – aka the collaborative NYC duo consisting of the producer Tony Simon (Blockhead) and Eliot Lipp – will be the group’s 3rd official full- length, having released the first two records via Detroit’s Young Heavy Soul label.
Lipphead’s music occupies the sweet spot between Blockhead’s groovy, sample-based hip- hop and Eliot Lipp’s upbeat electronic funk. The duo have performed live at select festivals throughout North America and are booked to tour this album, 17 dates in the US starting right after release, April 3rd. European/UK festivals are confirmed in the summer and are waiting to be announced.
The internationally renowned NYC producer Tony Simon—aka Blockhead—has released 15 albums over the past 15 years, including four acclaimed records for Ninja Tune and numerous production jobs including notable works with Aesop Rock. He is regarded as one of the modern masters of instrumental hip-hop and has more recently been releasing music on other platforms like Future Archive Recordings and Backwoodz Studios.
Eliot Lipp is an electronic musician based in Brooklyn, New York. His work was picked up by Scott Herren of Prefuse 73 (Warp Records) after Herren heard him working the club circuit. In 2004, Lipp released his first studio album, S/T, with Eastern Developments Music, a label owned by Warp Records. Lipp has also released music with Pretty Lights Music and his own label Old Tacoma Records.
“Our process for this album was very much "Take this, and add to it" . We both made beats and sent them to the other to add things to. Eliot would generally start the arrangement process and then I'd come in and give my two cents. Gotta say, these Lipphead albums generally come together seamlessly . We definitely have a simple flow and method as to how we create things together, even though the "together" part comes at the end.” - Blockhead
“This is definitely the goofiest record so far. I imagine Lipphead did a little too much doomscrolling between ‘From The Back’ and this one, based on all the meme samples sprinkled throughout.
One difference this time around was that we made way more music than what ended up coming out. It was tough to figure out how to fit it all on one LP, we’ll definitely have some leftovers to drop later on.” - Eliot Lipp
1 Umbrella represents a watershed moment for modern Bay Area hip-hop, effectively serving as the region’s "Avengers" assembly designed to consolidate the Northern California sound. For years, the local scene has been bisected by the distinct "mob music" bounce of Oakland and the melodic, trauma-drenched "pain music" of San Francisco; this collective is the first major commercial force to deliberately fuse these competing energies into a single, dominant infrastructure. The roster is a calculated cross-Bay alliance that balances opposing sonic weights: Lil Bean and Lil Yee anchor the group with the emotive, auto-tune-heavy melodies that define the current SF landscape, while Zaybang cuts through that introspection with his signature high-octane aggression.
Balancing the scales are ALLBLACK and 22nd Jim, who inject the classic East Bay attitude—ALLBLACK delivering the motivational, sports-heavy "player" lineage of the region, contrasted against Jim’s nonchalant, rhythmic flow. Backed by the powerhouse infrastructure of EMPIRE and united under tracks like "Baller Blockin" and the unification anthem "The Blueprint," the group is attempting to solve the fragmentation that has historically plagued the Bay’s independent market. By synchronizing their movement with the arrival of Super Bowl LX, 1 Umbrella is positioning itself not merely as a rap group, but as the official cultural ambassadors for the region, betting that a unified front can finally command the national spotlight that often eludes the West Coast’s independent giants.
A GOOD FUN record, the new album from Lipphead – aka the collaborative NYC duo consisting of the producer Tony Simon (Blockhead) and Eliot Lipp – will be the group’s 3rd official full- length, having released the first two records via Detroit’s Young Heavy Soul label.
Lipphead’s music occupies the sweet spot between Blockhead’s groovy, sample-based hip- hop and Eliot Lipp’s upbeat electronic funk. The duo have performed live at select festivals throughout North America and are booked to tour this album, 17 dates in the US starting right after release, April 3rd. European/UK festivals are confirmed in the summer and are waiting to be announced.
The internationally renowned NYC producer Tony Simon—aka Blockhead—has released 15 albums over the past 15 years, including four acclaimed records for Ninja Tune and numerous production jobs including notable works with Aesop Rock. He is regarded as one of the modern masters of instrumental hip-hop and has more recently been releasing music on other platforms like Future Archive Recordings and Backwoodz Studios.
Eliot Lipp is an electronic musician based in Brooklyn, New York. His work was picked up by Scott Herren of Prefuse 73 (Warp Records) after Herren heard him working the club circuit. In 2004, Lipp released his first studio album, S/T, with Eastern Developments Music, a label owned by Warp Records. Lipp has also released music with Pretty Lights Music and his own label Old Tacoma Records.
“Our process for this album was very much "Take this, and add to it" . We both made beats and sent them to the other to add things to. Eliot would generally start the arrangement process and then I'd come in and give my two cents. Gotta say, these Lipphead albums generally come together seamlessly . We definitely have a simple flow and method as to how we create things together, even though the "together" part comes at the end.” - Blockhead
“This is definitely the goofiest record so far. I imagine Lipphead did a little too much doomscrolling between ‘From The Back’ and this one, based on all the meme samples sprinkled throughout.
One difference this time around was that we made way more music than what ended up coming out. It was tough to figure out how to fit it all on one LP, we’ll definitely have some leftovers to drop later on.” - Eliot Lipp
Yanuka is the solo project of acclaimed keyboardist, composer and producer Tomer Zuk and here he makes his debut on Ma Ze Music with Hashrika and No Tomorrow. Known for his cinematic touch and eclectic style, Zuk blends Middle Eastern motifs, hypnotic grooves, and meditative atmospheres into what feels like a modern-day Morricone from the desert. There are psyched out 60s elements, Library music overtones, funk, soul and jazz instrumentals and great sound designs all bringing these two mysterious and enchanting sounds alive. The first is a late-night wander that echoes Khrangbuin and the second is all wah-wah magic and slick, rolling rhythms.
out of Stock
Last delivered 4 months ago available to reorder, subject to availability
“France absolutely engage the body... but the spectacle is one for your mind, especially as you start to wonder how much of what you’re hearing is really there.” The Quietus
Legendary hurdy-gurdy-powered kraut/psych/folk/drone band France have announced a new album ‘Good Thoughts. Bad Thoughts’ on The state51 Conspiracy label; capturing a wild performance at The state51 Factory in East London - part of their very first tour of England. They played Liverpool Psych Fest as a one off some years back.
Forming 20 years ago as a trio in Valence, France, for this performance, were Jeremie Sauvage on bass, Yann Gourdon on electrified hurdy-gurdy, and Cyril Bondi (of La Tene and Cyril Cyril on drums (stalwart Mathieu Tilly was taking some much needed time off).
This album sees the band plunge into the depths of the human psyche, backed up by Hugo Hyart’s deep, all-over cosmic doodles and an unhidden homage to the Parliafunkadelicment state of mind : Uniting, dancing, staying creative and open minded despite the tribulations of life. Dedicated to the feeling of good (and baby they’re good... at being good).
On the night France were recorded by Hot Chip’s in-house engineer James Crump who subsequently mixed the record at Hot Chip’s studio in East London. The album was mastered by Richy Hughes at Binary Feedback.
You probably have at least one friend who is completely obsessed with Marnie Weber. Her dark, punk-infused humour and fearless embrace of eccentric feminine power archetypes combine with gut-punch viscerality and a strange beauty that is anything but pretty.” Village Voice “This neo-gothic fairytale wavers between happiness and sadness, amusement and tragedy, attraction and repulsion.” The White Review “Weber reaches a new scale for her work…The sentimentality and romance at its root fearlessly sets it apart.” BOMB “Wild multimedia works that often dwell on the ghostly and the monstrous. Think: Fairy tales gone seriously awry.” LA Times Acclaimed LA multidisciplinary artist and musician Marnie Weber collects highlights from a long and storied career on Returning Home: The Music of Marnie Weber, a collection of neo-goth art-pop that steers between kankyō ongaku pop songs, noise-rock, and haunted fairytale darkness. The career of Marnie Weber (b. 1959) began with gigs paid in beer at an LA trucker bar in 1977. Her band, Party Boys, formed when Weber was then 19 and had just left home. By the early 80’s, the band began regularly performing at LA’s fabled Al’s Bar, sharing the stage with generational talents that passed over its beer-drenched floors. L7, Beck, Arto Lindsay, Ry Cooder, The Fall, Fear, Hole, Hüsker Dü, Social Distortion, Nirvana, The Residents, Sonic Youth, Urge Overkill, Jesus Lizard, the Misfits, among plenty more, played to audiences that included Bret Easton Ellis, Steve Buscemi, Tommy Lee, Bill Murray, Al Pacino, Sean Penn, and Chloe Sevigny.
Death Is Not The End present a further volume of Arja Kastinen's eerie amalgamations of 110 year old wax cylinders with her own meticulously transcribed takes, this time focussing in on Armas Otto Väisänen's field recordings of kantele player Iivana Mišukka (b. 1861 d.1919).
"Ivana Mišukka (1861–1919) was one of the Karelian kantele players recorded by the folk music researcher Armas Otto Väisänen on wax cylinders in 1916 and 1917. In the early 20th century, the remote areas of Border Karelia were undergoing the final phase of a transformation in musical culture, with the ancient runo song tradition giving way to newer forms of music. This transition is reflected in Mišukka's repertoire and choice of instrument. The ancient small kantele, hollowed out of a single piece of wood, was already rare at the turn of the century. Mišukka's kantele was a new type of instrument with 26 strings, constructed of several parts, but he played it using the traditional plucking technique. Like other Border Karelian kantele players, his repertoire consisted of music rooted in runosong culture, as well as newer dances and songs from the east and west. Most of the recorded material falls into the latter category.
Ivan Bogdanov Mišukka was born out of wedlock in Suursara village, Suistamo, on 1 May 1861. He began playing the kantele at the age of five or six, quickly mastering the instrument. In adulthood, he was considered one of the area's best master players. Mišukka was landless for most of his life and lived in different parts of the Suistamo parish. His first wife, Tekla Markintytär, died in 1897 at the age of 40, and his second wife, Jevdokia Filipintytär Jeminen, died in 1907 at the age of 50. Seven children were born from the first marriage, two of whom died young. The third wife, Maria Ignatintytär Gurnan (Kuurnanen), was a well-known master of lamentations. Together with Maria, Iivana Mišukka worked as a tenant farmer in the village of Suursara. Mišukka suffered from rheumatism, which prevented him from participating in physical work like Maria. This was apparently partly the reason why Iivana Mišukka went to earn extra money by playing the kantele on gig trips. He often had other traditional artists from Suistamo as his travelling companions, such as the runosingers Konstantin Kuokka and Iivana Onoila. Iivana Mišukka died in Leppäsyrjä village, Suistamo, on 18 May 1919 at the age of 58, and his kantele was donated to Teppana Jänis.
Mišukka only used 14 of the 26 strings on his kantele, playing the same tunes either a fourth higher or lower. He tuned his kantele to the major scale using fifths, except for a low seventh scale degree on the upper strings, but not below the fundamental. Since he did not use the seventh note of the scale on the upper strings at all, he could use the major scale both lower and a fourth higher with this tuning. According to Mišukka, the sound of higher, or 'finer', strings is 'more beautiful', while that of lower ones is 'greater'. Among runosingers, the size of the thirds varied, ranging from major to minor to neutral. A similar phenomenon can be observed in kantele tunings, where the third, sixth and seventh scale degrees vary in a comparable way.
During a meeting, Väisänen suggested that Mišukka play the smaller kantele belonging to Konstantin Kuokka. The idea was to bring it closer to the horn to improve the recording quality. However, the kantele was completely out of tune, and now Mišukka tuned it to the Lydian scale (track 18).
Using the old plucking technique, Mišukka placed his right middle finger on the fundamental tone, his right index finger on the second scale degree, his left middle finger on the third scale degree and his left index finger on the fourth scale degree, and his right thumb on the fifth. The thumb also played the notes above the fifth note of the scale. As Mišukka remarked to Väisänen: 'Peigaloll' tuloo enemb ruadoa' (the thumb has to do more work). However, he did not use the seventh note of the scale on the upper strings at all. Below the fundamental note, he played the seventh and sixth notes of the scale with his right middle finger of and the fifth note of the scale with his right ring finger. This fifth scale degree below the fundamental is almost always used as a drone. Sometimes, when the melody required it, Mišukka, like other players, also varied the fingering. He would also occasionally strike the same string with the side of his fingernail after plucking it.
The wax cylinder recordings of Karelian kantele players are kept in the archives of the Finnish Literature Society in Helsinki, Finland. Copies were made of them onto reel-to-reel tapes in both the 1960s and 1980s. The 1960s copies are mono and the 1980s copies are stereo. However, not all kantele recordings from these decades have survived.
The sound of the kantele is difficult to hear in wax cylinder recordings due to its low volume, and it occasionally becomes completely obscured by noise. During the copying process, the cylinder sometimes rotates unevenly, resulting in breaks or jumps in the music. Additionally, the rotation speed of the cylinder in the copies does not correspond to the performance speed of the original music, which alters the pitch. However, since Väisänen's precise notes are available in the archive, it is possible to deduce the melodies, their speed, and the tuning level of the kantele in the recordings. Of the copies of the original recordings from the 1960s and 1980s, I have selected the one that best met the requirements of this publication and adjusted the speed of the recording to align with Väisänen's notes. To enhance the listening experience, I have replayed the songs, which now partly overlap the old recordings on this release."
