Cerca:ec band

On December 19, 2025, HAMMER KING will release a very special double edition, closing the circle of their band’s history while opening a new chapter. To mark the 10th anniversary of their debut album “Kingdom Of The Hammer King”, the album returns as a freshly remastered edition. The original artwork has received a modern twist, and thanks to Alexander Ecker’s brilliant remastering, the album now sounds warmer and more present than ever – without losing the charm and magic of the original. But that’s only half of the royal celebrations: with “Hammer King X – Alive In '25”, HAMMER KING release their very first live album! Recorded in the summer of 2025, it captures the raw energy and magic of their acclaimed shows – including performances at Summer Breeze, Bongert Open Air, Formosa Bierfest, and their traditional summer homecoming at the 7er Club Mannheim. Of course, the vinyl edition is also included: the anniversary edition is available as a double album on CD and vinyl, making it the perfect gift for all metalheads.

"Die große Palmöllüge". Alles steht hier im Zeichen der Verschwörungstheorie. Geht Palmöl nun klar oder ist die Abholzung des Regenwaldes am Ende etwa eine Riesensauerei - die Welt teilt sich in zwei Lager. Fridays for Future, regionale Kleinbauern und Orang Utans scheinen sich einig: geht eher nicht so klar. Hier halten wiederum ausgewiesene Klima-Experten dagegen, z.B. Jan Leyk (bekannt aus "Berlin Tag & Nacht"). Der sagt nämlich, dass die "bekackte Tofuwurst dafür sorgt, dass verschissen nochmal die Regenwälder abgeholzt werden". Palmöl, Facepalm - whatever_ Was hat das jetzt alles mit dem neuen Album des linksgrünversifften Punk-Quartetts Akne Kid Joe am Hut? Die sind Team Orang Utan und FFF, soviel erstmal dazu. Aber steht denn wirklich alles im Zeichen der Verschwörungstheorie? Wer aufgrund des Album-Titels nun eine Konzept-LP gegen nutella und co. vermutet, muss leider enttäuscht werden. Wie schon auf Karate Kid Joe wird sich hier auch wild echauffiert, die Palette ist nun aber deutlich breiter. Zentrale Themen sind - klar, Verschwörungstheorie - aber auch linke Klassiker wie Vaterlandsverrat, Saufen und Beamtenbeleidigung. Mitunter wird es auf der neuen Scheibe aber auch richtig deep, z.B. mit einer 1,5 minütigen Nacherzählung eines Beziehungsendes im Italien Urlaub. Oder der Frage was nun besser ist - "Free Hugs" oder "Love Yourself" T-Shirts.

,Kurayami", die neueste Single von Mei Semones, hat ein paar der mathematischsten Riffs und einen der bombastischsten musikalischen Höhepunkte ihrer bisherigen Karriere. Ein aufregender Track, der ein für Mei erfolgreiches Jahr abrundet. Mei über die neuen Songs: ",Kurayami" heißt auf Japanisch ,Dunkelheit" und handelt davon, wie es war, in Michigan aufzuwachsen und mit meinen Freunden abzuhängen. Kind sein war echt cool. Ich hatte echt viel Spaß und war glücklich, aber ich erinnere mich, dass es einen Punkt gab, an dem wir unsere Unschuld verloren haben, und ich denke, in diesem Song geht es um dieses Gefühl. Es ist einer der technisch anspruchsvolleren Songs, die ich geschrieben habe, und ich musste ziemlich viel üben, bis ich ihn singen und gleichzeitig spielen konnte. Es gibt viele coole Tempowechsel, ungerade Taktarten, Arpeggios mit großen Intervallen und schnelle Licks, und ich finde, dass auch das Bandarrangement echt kreativ ist. ,Get used to it" handelt von der Schönheit der Einsamkeit und des Alleinseins, davon, wie man etwas hinter sich lässt, das in deinem Leben wichtig war, aber dennoch Platz dafür lässt, und von meiner Liebe zur Gitarre und zur Musik. Es ist der zweite Song, den ich auf meiner Nylonsaitengitarre geschrieben habe, und die Wechsel und die Melodie sind etwas von Thelonious Monk inspiriert. Die Instrumentierung ist minimalistischer als bei unseren anderen Songs - nur ich (Gitarre & Gesang), Kontrabass und Schlagzeug. Wir wollten einen Live-Jazz-Trio-Sound hinbekommen, also gibt's keine Überlagerungen oder so. Es ist einfach eine direkte Aufnahme von uns dreien, wie wir den Song spielen, und ich finde, das war der beste Weg, um das Gefühl hinter dem Song einzufangen."

In den 90ern hatte Jad Fair fünf Lieblingsbands und Songwriter: Daniel Johnston, The Pastels, Sonic Youth, Teenage Fanclub und Yo La Tengo. Das ist echt eine coole Liste, aber das Besondere daran ist, dass Fair im Laufe von etwa zwölf Jahren mit allen in irgendeiner Form Musik gemacht hat. Jad Fair ist seit einem halben Jahrhundert produktiv, lange bevor das Internet ein simultanes und scheinbar ewiges Archiv von allem schaffen konnte, was jemand mit seinen Vorlieben gemacht hat. Er war an mindestens mehreren hundert Titeln beteiligt, von denen viele bei kleinen Labels erschienen, die es heute nicht mehr gibt, und die vergriffen sind. Tatsächlich ist eine dieser Kollaborationen, die Fair in den 90er Jahren gemacht hat - Strange But True mit Yo La Tengo - schwer zu finden, obwohl sie am 20. Oktober 1998 in den USA bei Matador Records erschienen ist. Jetzt wird das Album zum ersten Mal von Joyful Noise und Bar/None auf Vinyl neu aufgelegt. Als Fair Mitte der 90er Jahre mit Yo La Tengo auf einer Party spielte, waren sie alle Freunde, Fans und Kollaborateure, die gemeinsam an Platten gearbeitet oder diese veröffentlicht hatten. Als Fair vorschlug, gemeinsam ins Studio zu gehen, war das Trio sofort dabei. Das Ergebnis, ,Strange But True", ist so wunderbar, abwechslungsreich und wild wie eine riesige Wiese mit einheimischen Gräsern. Dieses Kollaborationsalbum zeigt die unglaubliche Bandbreite der Künstler und versetzt uns zurück in eine Zeit, in der Indie-Rock noch so seltsam und widerspenstig sein durfte, wie seine Schöpfer es wollten.

French artist based in Brussels, Che Vuoi presents her first album Cinecittàx, a nod to the great Italian studio, and a tribute to false dreams.

A theatre at the back of a run-down piano bar, where surreal and intimate scenes unfold; words and stories drawn from disparate sources: Fellini, G. Réal, Diderot... or written by herself, spoken, shouted or barely whispered by an altered voice.


Noises, samples, a drum machine, a brush on a snare drum, a piano spinning round and round until it reaches delirium and its own abolition, leaving us suspended in a constant in-between or a time that never truly existed.



« This voice, gentle, mad, with lightning verve, tells between the lines and the echoes the presence of threatening shadows and ghosts. And it is Che Vuoi, her character, her world of images, that haunts us. It is a strange bewitchment that carries us beyond the words she has freed from "the stationery I stole from Bellavista the other night" ("le papier à lettre que j’ai chipé au Bellavista l’autre soir") into the lair of her universe, as whimsical as it is silky in which we let ourselves slip, as one would slip over the rock of an esoteric river, in the heart of a forest that makes music and has delirious things to tell us. »

Punkrock, Fußball und Eishockey_Fan-Leidenschaft mit Höhen und Tiefen in mitreißende Hymnen verpackt mit Ohrwurmgarantie: Die Düsseldorfer Band "Dead Dates" haben sich nicht nur dem Punkrock verschrieben, sondern sind seit Jahrzehnten auch sportbegeisterte Fans und eng verbunden mit zwei Traditionsvereinen aus ihrer Landeshauptstadt! Jetzt erscheinen 2 neue Songs (nicht nur) für alle Fortuna95 Düsseldorf & DEG-Fans auf limitiertem 7inch Vinyl! Sänger "Opa" Marcus Haefs war jahrzehntelang Stadion-DJ der Fortuna Düsseldorf, pilgerte nebenbei auch noch zu fast jedem Heimspiel des Eishockeyvereins und hat nicht nur deshalb ein sicheres Gespür für Klänge, die bei Supportern & Ultras ankommen: "Wir wollten mit diesen Songs keine neuen Stadionhymnen oder Aufstiegslieder schreiben oder neue Fans erreichen. Wir fanden einfach die Idee gut eine Single mit zwei A-Seiten für die wichtigsten Vereine unserer Stadt aufzunehmen mit jeder Menge Spaß und Bier dabei" (Dead Dates) Vom Aufstieg zu reden wäre zumindest bei den Kickern derzeit auch etwas bescheuert so mitten im Abstiegskampf und deshalb heißt der Fortuna95-Song auch mit trotzigem Humor gespickt "Nie mehr Nebenplatz 11". Auch die DEG versucht ihre Erstklassigkeit wieder zu erlangen, also "Heja DEG"_die Playoffs sind nicht mehr weit! Punk hat sich schon immer mehr an den Underdogs orientiert und echte Fans halten ihrem Verein in jeder Situation die Treue!

Punkrock, Fußball und Eishockey_Fan-Leidenschaft mit Höhen und Tiefen in mitreißende Hymnen verpackt mit Ohrwurmgarantie: Die Düsseldorfer Band "Dead Dates" haben sich nicht nur dem Punkrock verschrieben, sondern sind seit Jahrzehnten auch sportbegeisterte Fans und eng verbunden mit zwei Traditionsvereinen aus ihrer Landeshauptstadt! Jetzt erscheinen 2 neue Songs (nicht nur) für alle Fortuna95 Düsseldorf & DEG-Fans auf limitiertem 7inch Vinyl! Sänger "Opa" Marcus Haefs war jahrzehntelang Stadion-DJ der Fortuna Düsseldorf, pilgerte nebenbei auch noch zu fast jedem Heimspiel des Eishockeyvereins und hat nicht nur deshalb ein sicheres Gespür für Klänge, die bei Supportern & Ultras ankommen: "Wir wollten mit diesen Songs keine neuen Stadionhymnen oder Aufstiegslieder schreiben oder neue Fans erreichen. Wir fanden einfach die Idee gut eine Single mit zwei A-Seiten für die wichtigsten Vereine unserer Stadt aufzunehmen mit jeder Menge Spaß und Bier dabei" (Dead Dates) Vom Aufstieg zu reden wäre zumindest bei den Kickern derzeit auch etwas bescheuert so mitten im Abstiegskampf und deshalb heißt der Fortuna95-Song auch mit trotzigem Humor gespickt "Nie mehr Nebenplatz 11". Auch die DEG versucht ihre Erstklassigkeit wieder zu erlangen, also "Heja DEG"_die Playoffs sind nicht mehr weit! Punk hat sich schon immer mehr an den Underdogs orientiert und echte Fans halten ihrem Verein in jeder Situation die Treue!

“Stornoway’s best work yet: big music, which deserves the largest stage.”★★★★★ – The Guardian


Lauded on release as Stornoway’s most expansive and confident work, Bonxie remains a hymn to connection, ecology, and the beauty of life. This expanded edition includes previously unreleased B-side tracks from the original recording sessions, new liner notes from each member of the band, and some of their well-known unplucked versions of tracks on the album.


Bonxie is Stornoway’s boldest and most outward-looking record, an album infused with a sense of wonder for the natural world and humanity’s place within it. Produced by Gil Norton (Pixies, Foo Fighters, Twin Atlantic), and a contribution from Craig Potter (Elbow), the songs carry field recordings of birds (20 species appear across the album), weaving them into melodies that soar like the great skua (or “bonxie”) that gives the record its name.


Stornoway will be playing a very special show at the Royal Albert Hall on 30th March 2026.

The FOX GOD has decreed a new prophecy: for the very first time in BABYMETAL history, the band’s four iconic albums—BABYMETAL, METAL RESISTANCE, METAL GALAXY, and THE OTHER ONE—will be unleashed as limited edition splatter vinyl.

From the explosive birth of kawaii metal to the cosmic journey across galaxies and the restoration of THE OTHER ONE, these four albums have carved the path of the Metalverse. Each one is a chapter in BABYMETAL’s legend—now reborn in a form unlike anything ever released before.

Splatter vinyl is new territory for BABYMETAL. Each pressing radiates with bursts of chaotic color, echoing the energy and intensity of the music itself. They are not just vinyl records, but sacred artifacts—collector’s editions destined for the chosen disciples of the FOX GOD. Once these limited runs vanish, their true form will never return.

This is more than a release; it is a celebration of the entire BABYMETAL saga. From the self-titled album that started the global revolution, to the second chapter declaring our Resistance, to the interdimensional odyssey of METAL GALAXY, and the rebirth told through THE OTHER ONE—every disc is infused with Kitsune Power.
The FOX GOD commands: seize this moment, honor the prophecy, and claim your relic before it disappears into legend.

Prepare your turntables. Summon your spirit. The Splatter Vinyl Apocalypse has begun.

'The creation of the band African Fiesta, founded in 1963 by three well-known musicians, Nicolas Kasanda, Tabu Ley Rochereau and Roger Izeidi, and the contributions of the VITA label, established by Roger Izeidi, occupy an exciting chapter in the history of Congolese popular music. During the mid-1960s, African Fiesta consistently reached the top of the hit parade. The band, which back in the day positioned itself as a competitor to a current called ‘Fiesta Cubana’, breathed new life into Congolese Rumba, continuing the tradition of the African Jazz school started by Joseph Kabasele.
'The VITA label, with African Fiesta as their sole provider, besides four songs of Eduardo De Veracruz Vinagre et Son Orchestre, ran between May 1963 and early 1966. It created a spectacular legacy and back catalog full of tasteful sentiments and sensual melodies, deeply rooted in the Afro-Latin sound.
'This new compilation offers a few of the classic African Fiesta songs and complements them with an eclectic and original selection, divided into four thematic sides: Showcase, Rumba Lingala, Cha Cha Cha & Bolero. This double LP album comes with a 16-page booklet featuring the history of VITA and African Fiesta, song commentary by Congolese journalist Herman Bangi Bayo, and a written catalog of the VITA label. The heirs of Roger Izeidi kindly gave permission in Kinshasa to release this album of African Fiesta on Planet Ilunga.'

Dharmacide is a Spanish band known for their eclectic fusion of genres, blending elements of shoegaze and dreampop music. Their sound is marked by intricate guitar riffs, powerful drumming, and deep, emotive vocals that create a unique atmosphere. The band, with members of Alcalá Norte and Depresión Sonora, has made a huge impact on various stages, performing at renowned venues and festivals, including iconic spots in their home country as well as internationally, earning praise for their high-energy performances and thoughtful compositions. Their latest singles have been produced, mixed and mastered by Mark Gardener from Ride. "Tougher Than the Rest" is their awaited second album. They take a step forward with a darker sound with gloomy riffs and ethereal voices in which they describe perfectly how the sound of a night full of random events -that surely, we all have experienced- would be like. Their sound is influenced by today's bands like Diiv, Warpaint or Beach House but also by classic artists like Cocteau Twins, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds or Tom Waits. 'The Cigs, The Light, The Coffee and Crying' is the first single in which we find a powerful reverb-laden riff with a solo vocal melody in the middle of the chaos until breaking into a powerful chorus. Their debut LP "Cult Band Member" (2021) is sold out and the growing interest in the band anticipates that copies of this new album will not last long.

Comprising of sisters Eva and Grace Tedeschi, The Cords are the brightest new indiepop band from Scotland and this is theri debut. They started playing drums when they were little kids and later found that they liked 80s and 90s indie music more than their peers did, and so formed a band, just the two of them, with Grace on drums and Eva on guitar - and the songs started to flow. With only a cassette and a flexi single released so far (both of which sold out in a matter of hours), Eva and Grace honed their skills by playing a whole series of gigs with some of the biggest names in Scottish pop. Their first show was with The Vaselines, and since then they have played with Camera Obscura, Belle and Sebastian, BMX Bandits and others, while also sharing stages with the new generation of indiepop stars: the Umbrellas, Chime School, Lightheaded. Like all great pop bands, The Cords have taken familiar ingredients and created something utterly fresh. Older indie fans will hear echoes of The Shop Assistants, The Primitives, Tiger Trap and Talulah Gosh, but they will hear something else too: a yearning, dreamy melodic power that takes the songs into darker, stranger places. Younger pop fans won't care about these old reference points: what they will hear is the sound of two young women doing something utterly exciting: playing loud guitar and loud drums, taking analogue instruments and hitting them hard in the service of immediate and infectious pop tunes, and not giving a second thought about the digital world that wants to own everything we do. The Cords sound free: they remind us that pop music, played right, is expressive, liberating, joyful and deeply personal. First single `Fabulist' is a sweet and catchy pop song that races along, so headlong and hooky that, on first listen, you could miss the fact that it's a wholehearted take-down of people who lie for a living. And the album is a fun rollercoaster ride from that point onwards, with the real stars of this record being Eva's sinuous guitar and silky vocals, and Grace's clattering, expressive sing-song drums. It's the sound of two sisters having an intense musical conversation with each other, pushing each other on to greater heights, exhilarated by the set of perfect pop songs they have magicked up. DIGIPAK CD, LP on BABY BLUE VINYL.

Imagine curating a dream lineup of MCs and producers from every corner of the rap world—sounds impossible, right? Not for artist and illustrator Gangster Doodles, who has been bringing this vision to life for the past decade. Now, with “Gangster Music Vol.3”, the trilogy reaches its grand finale, and it’s bigger, bolder, and more unpredictable than ever before. Gangster Doodles himself puts it best: "It’s hard to believe that I’ve been actively working on this Gangster Music series for the past 10 years. The most gangster music trilogy of ALL TIME is almost complete!! And in my humble opinion Vol.3 is the most exciting out of the 3, both from a music standpoint (special shout-out to all my music heroes on Vol.3) and artistically speaking this is the most fun I’ve had in years”

Since launching Volume 1 in 2019 and following up with the second volume in 2022, Gangster Doodles has been shaping the Gangster Music series into a one-of-a-kind sonic universe—an unfiltered mix of underground titans, unsung legends, and rising stars. Volume 3 is the biggest installment yet, boasting a staggering 30 tracks that traverse the entire spectrum of rap and beat culture.

This time around, the lineup is as eclectic as ever. From legendary pioneers like Lee Perry and Tommy Wright III, to veteran producers such as Mr. Scruff and Peanut Butter Wolf, the album pays homage to hip-hop’s roots while pushing forward into fresh territory. The roster also includes established up-and-comers like Devin Morrison, Low Leaf, DJ Harrison, Quelle Chris, Homeboy Sandman, and Suzi Analogue, ensuring a mix of classic flavors and new-school innovation. The bubbling underground is well represented too, with artists like Raz Fresco, Atlanta’s 645AR, and Pro Era’s Chuck Strangers bringing their own distinct heat.

From pioneering SoundCloud rappers like Pouya to genre-bending composer John Carroll Kirby, from Birmingham’s Romderful to Chile’s RVYO, the album encapsulates a truly global soundscape, proving once again that Gangster Doodles’ ear for cutting-edge talent is second to none.

‘Workaround’ is the lucidly playful and ambitious solo debut album by rhythm-obsessive musician and DJ, Beatrice Dillon for PAN. It combines her love of UK club music’s syncopated suss and Afro-Caribbean influences with a gamely experimental approach to modern composition and stylistic fusion, using inventive sampling and luminous mixing techniques adapted from modern pop to express fresh ideas about groove-driven music and perpetuate its form with timeless, future-proofed clarity. Recorded over 2017-19 between studios in London, Berlin and New York, ‘Workaround’ renders a hypnotic series of polymetric permutations at a fixed 150bpm tempo.

Mixing meticulous FM synthesis and harmonics with crisply edited acoustic samples from a wide range of guests including UK Bhangra pioneer Kuljit Bhamra (tabla); Pharoah Sanders Band’s Jonny Lam (pedal steel guitar); techno innovators Laurel Halo (synth/vocal) and Batu (samples); Senegalese Griot Kadialy Kouyaté (Kora), Hemlock’s Untold and new music specialist Lucy Railton (cello); amongst others, Dillon deftly absorbs their distinct instrumental colours and melody into 14 bright and spacious computerised frameworks that suggest immersive, nuanced options for dancers, DJs and domestic play. ‘Workaround’ evolves Dillon’s notions in a coolly unfolding manner that speaks directly to the album’s literary and visual inspirations, ranging from James P. Carse’s book ‘Finite And Infinite Games’ to the abstract drawings of Tomma Abts or Jorinde Voigt as well as painter Bridget Riley’s essays on grids and colour. Operating inside this rooted but mutable theoretical wireframe, Dillon’s ideas come to life as interrelated, efficient patterns in a self-sufficient system.

With a naturally fractal-not-fractional logic, Dillon’s rhythms unfold between unresolved 5/4 tresillo patterns, complex tabla strokes and spark-jumping tics in a fluid, tactile dance of dynamic contrasts between strong/light, sudden/restrained, and bound/free made in reference to the notational instructions of choreographer Rudolf Laban. Working in and around the beat and philosophy, the album’s freehand physics contract and expand between the lissom rolls of Bhamra’s tabla in the first, to a harmonious balance of hard drum angles and swooping FM synth cadence featuring additional synth and vocal from Laurel Halo in ‘Workaround Two’, while the extruded strings of Lucy Railton create a sublime tension at the album’s palatecleansing denouement, triggering a scintillating run of technoid pieces that riff on the kind of swung physics found in Artwork’s seminal ‘Basic G’, or Rian Treanor’s disruptive flux with a singularly tight yet loose motion and infectious joy. Crucially, the album sees Dillon focus on dub music’s pliable emptiness, rather than the moody dematerialisation of reverb and echo. The substance of her music is rematerialised in supple, concise emotional curves
and soberly freed to enact its ideas in balletic plies, rugged parries and sweeping, capoeira-like floor action. Applying deeply canny insight drawn from her years of practice as sound designer, musician and hugely knowledgable/intuitive DJ, ‘Workaround’ can be heard as Dillon’s ingenious solution or key to unlocking to perceptions of stiffness, darkness or grid-locked rigidity in electronic music. And as such it speaks to an ideal of rhythm-based and experimental music ranging from the hypnotic senegalese mbalax of Mark Ernestus’ Ndagga Rhythm Force, through SND and, more currently, the hard drum torque of DJ Plead; to adroitly exert the sensation of weightlessness and freedom in the dance and personal headspace.

**Includes double sided insert with liner notes and photos*

Al Mati was the pseudonym of eccentric Portuguese-born, Dutch-based artist Alberto Mesquita. The name translates to ‘Alberto Friend’, with ‘Al’ short for Alberto and ‘Mati’ meaning ‘friend’ in Surinamese.
Alberto’s story comes across like a mythical character from a European Kerouac novel, but instead of writing it down, he poured those adventures and characters into his record. The music and the comic-style artwork, drawn by his friend Bruno Scoriels, work as one, with Alberto himself becoming both the story and the character within it.

Raised under Salazar’s regime in Lisbon, where all men were conscripted to Africa, he refused, a pacifist. This put him at odds with his father, born in Angola and a prominent lawyer tied to the dictatorship. Unable to accept his son’s stance, the rift forced Alberto to flee Portugal as a deserter, leaving everything behind.

He sought a new life in Paris, where he met Bruno Scoriels. The pair busked to get by, and young and broke, set off on adventures across Europe. On one trip to Barcelona, they crossed the Pyrenees on foot through a five-kilometre train tunnel, not knowing if they would make it out alive. The train later featured on the cover of Some Shit, a nod to that hazardous journey and the strange turns of his life.

From there he moved to Belgium, where he met Jolanda, his future wife who also features on the album. They lived in The Netherlands, then back in Belgium where they married, before returning to Portugal under false pretences. The regime promised deserters immunity, but it proved untrue, and Alberto was forced to flee again — this time with a young family, using Bruno’s passport to escape to The Netherlands.

They settled in the Gliphoeve flats in Amsterdam’s Bijlmermeer, a vibrant immigrant community. This melting pot of cultures inspired Alberto musically. He started a studio in their flat where musicians from Suriname, Angola, the Antilles, Brazil, Mozambique and Portugal came and went, jamming, rehearsing, recording and forming bands including Albatros, Comoção and Mati Africa, performing internationally and at iconic Amsterdam venues like De Melkweg and Paradiso.

Being an immigrant was tough. Alberto was stateless for years, drifting across countries. Some songs voiced his frustration with the Portuguese regime, others were playful or simply love notes to his wife and kids. He passed away in the Netherlands in 2021, leaving Some Shit open to interpretation. But when you picture Europe in the 1970s — the politics, the upheaval, and his need to connect people across cultures — you can hear an artist shaped by contrast, who poured his experiences, feelings and love into music.

Nach zwölf Jahren Funkstille kehren die brasilianischen Thrash-Legenden Violator mit „Unholy Retribution“ zurück – acht erbarmungslos extreme Tracks, die die vorübergehende Auszeit mehr als wettmachen. Dieses dritte Studioalbum kanalisiert Jahre der Frustration in vernichtende Riffs und gallige Songtexte ohne Kompromisse. Die wiedererstarkt aus dem Underground von Brasília zurückgekehrte Band begeht nicht bloß ein Comeback, sondern macht eine musikalische Abrechnung, die rohe Wut in eine verheerende Klangkulisse verwandelt. High Roller veröffentlichen die Vinyl-Version in Zusammenarbeit mit Kill Again Records.
Die Band holte speziell für dieses Projekt den belgischen Produzenten Yarne Heylen ins Boot. Kill-Again-Inhaber Antonio Rolldão erklärt: „Er hat das Wesen der Band eingefangen, und das Endergebnis klingt mordsmäßig.“ Die Produktion stellt ein perfektes Gleichgewicht zwischen organischer Brutalität und chirurgischer Präzision her, während der renommierte Künstler Andrei Bouzikov erneut ein Artwork entworfen hat, das die erbitterte Message des Albums einfängt.
Herausragende Tracks wie das vernichtende ‚Chapel of the Sick‘ und der kaltblütige Opener ‚Hang the Merchants of IllusionÄ zeigen eine Band auf dem Höhepunkt ihres Schaffens bei einem erbarmungslosen Thrash-Angriff, nach dem sich Fans des klassischen Underground-Metal gesehnt haben. Das ist Old-School-Metal in seiner wesentlichsten und gefährlichsten Form – von politischen Umwälzungen und persönlichen Kämpfen geprägte Musik, dargeboten mit jener Überzeugung, die echten Metal von bloßer Unterhaltung unterscheidet.

“Twenty-five years into their existence, The Album Leaf are an old comfy sweater. It might not be the most fashionable thing in your collection but it always feels good when you put it on. Jimmy LaValle’s synth textures are warm, nostalgic and steeped in Boards of Canada / Ulrich Schnauss-style soundscapes that are relaxing, otherworldly and melodic” – Brooklyn Vegan

The Album Leaf shares his new ambient LP, Rotations. The record is a mediative experiment into atmospheric sound. Creator Jimmy LaValle explains, “This collection of music is a true reflection of my creative process—rooted in sound exploration, experimentation, and spontaneous response. Each track captures a moment of creative discovery, free from the pressure of achieving a polished result. Throughout my career, I’ve often placed significant weight on what an album should be. With this release, I’ve let go of those expectations to share a body of work that feels genuine and authentic.

The Album Leaf began as the solo project of Jimmy LaValle, who came up in the San Diego music scene playing in hardcore bands and the instrumental rock band Tristeza. He had inked a deal to release his next solo album through the indie label Tigerstyle Records, so he put the modest advance towards a self-recording starter setup, building out the sound with occasional studio access. The music that emerged — vivid, rhythmic, soaring instrumentals guided by lines of Guitar and Rhodes — not only set the path for The Album Leaf over the next two decades of acclaimed releases (for Sub Pop, City Slang, and others), it became a touchstone for the next generation's wave of melodic and meditative electro-organic music.

Frontman Chris Reifert was already a well-known force on the underground through his time as drummer with Florida's highly respected death metal combo Death. After playing drums on the band's debut album, the much acclaimed 'Scream Bloody Gore', Chris moved back west to the more open climate of San Francisco & formed Autopsy. The band released the demo 'Critical Madness' in 1988 & it wasn't long before Peaceville Records snapped them up in a deal initially spanning 4 albums.

The partnership kicked off in April 1989 with their debut album 'Severed Survival'; a brutal explosion of heavy riffs, tight drumming & a screaming vocal, rounded off with concepts of death, disease & diabolica. This was swiftly followed up with the equally genre-defining 'Mental Funeral' opus in 1991. Released in the autumn of 1995, Autopsy's then fourth & final album before splitting, 'Shitfun', was a glorious scatological gross out & exercise in the limits of extremity & a fitting end to one of the finest bands of a Doomed generation before their return from the grave in 2009 which has continued to go from strength to strength to the current day. This thirtieth anniversary vinyl pressing of 'Shitfun' is presented on bowel- busting limited brown marble- effect vinyl, including the original cover art & printed inner sleeve.

The story of Suffering began in the UK's West Midlands in 2012 and since those nascent days they have released a nefarious collection of occult black metal offerings, beginning with their debut album, 11, in 2018 and most recently the Symphonies: Diabolis EP in 2024. They have also built a reputation for intense, diabolical live performances, appearing alongside the likes of Esoteric, Ghost Bath, and Mol. The band recently signed with infamous label, Apocalyptic Witchcraft, with label founder Conor Droney describing Suffering's music as "dark, unflinching, and deeply atmospheric, exactly what we stand for." And now the first fruits of that new alliance are about to be unveiled, in the shadowed form of Things Seen But Always Hidden. Things Seen But Always Hidden is an enveloping nightmarish journey through temptation and spiritual destruction, an immersion in contrasting states of terror and ecstasy - it bewilders, consumes and possesses the power to change and scar. Each song seeps into the next, binding them into a grimoire of dehumanising ritual, yet they exist as powerful individual entities. There is 'Enthralled', constructed from classic black metal riffs and raw vocal exhortations_and something more, something imperceptible but profoundly affecting; 'What Once Was Shall Be Again And What Is Shall Be No More', a glimpse beyond the veil, a fall down the endless paths of inherited memory that binds you to this album, this place constructed from arcane sound; the fear filled and imperious 'Hell On Earth New Eden', driven by a ravenous, unholy hunger_each chapter in this tome of unmaking and desecration will burn itself into your mind. A fusion of blackest metal, ritualistic doom and unsettling, distressing atmosphere Things Seen But Always Hidden will never leave you, no matter where you run. The way to Things Seen But Always Hidden will be revealed by Apocalyptic Witchcraft on November 28th. But remember, once you have set foot on this path there is no way back_

Das ursprünglich im Juni 1985 veröffentlichte dritte Studioalbum „Theatre of Pain“ von Mötley Crüe
läutete einen kühnen neuen Sound und Look ein, behielt aber gleichzeitig die für die Band charakteristische
Hardrock-Intensität bei. Dieses trendsetzende Album prägte den Stil und die Musik vieler nachfolgender
Bands, während die Crüe selbst ihren Look und Sound mit jedem Album weiterentwickelten.
Theatre Of Pain war das erste Album der Crüe, das es in die US-Top-10 schaffte und auf Platz 6 landete.
Es war auch ein echter weltweiter Hit und erreichte Platz 7 in Australien, Platz 7 in Schweden, Platz 5 in
Finnland, Platz 11 in Kanada und war ihr erstes Album in den britischen Top 40 (Platz 36). Das Album
ist derzeit in den USA mit 4-fach Platin und in Kanada mit 3-fach Platin von der RIAA zertifiziert.
Die Tour führte sie um die ganze Welt: Japan, USA, Kanada, Deutschland, Frankreich, Schweden, Finnland,
Norwegen und Dänemark. Das bahnbrechende Video zu ihrem Kult-Track „Home Sweet Home“ war über
90 Tage lang die meistgewünschte Nummer 1 und veranlasste MTV dazu, die „Crüe Rule“ einzuführen,
wonach ein Video nur 30 Tage lang für die Wunschliste zugelassen war!