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Caiphus Semenya, AKA Mr Letta Mbulu, is a South African legend and Streams Today… Rivers Tomorrow, his second solo LP, is perfect. A ten out-of ten album if ever we heard one. It’s also incredibly rare, especially in good condition, so Be With is delighted to present this reissue.

Now a revered composer, musician, and arranger, Caiphus left apartheid South Africa in the 60s for self-imposed exile in Southern California together with his wife, Letta Mbulu. Settling in Los Angeles he started working with the likes of Hugh Masekela and Miriam Makeba and other exiled and semi-exiled South african artists, as well as, of course, his wife Letta.

Caiphus also found himself working with and composing for a broad range of jazz and pop artists, including Lou Rawls, Nina Simone and Cannonball Adderley. His facility with both jazz and African forms served him well. His LA stay also the beginning of an ongoing collaboration with Quincy Jones, the fruits of which can be tasted in Caiphus’s African compositions for the scores to Roots and Spielberg’s adaptation of The Color Purple.

Originally released in 1984, Streams Today… Rivers Tomorrow is not just a musical masterpiece, it is also the soundtrack to the life of many South Africans - both then and now. Fusing the US-heavy sounds of boogie, disco and funk with Afrobeat and traditional African elements, it’s truly a spectacular listen. Jabu Nkosi handles keyboards on the album, with synths by Caiphus and Craig Harris. Sipho Gumede is on bass and Condry Ziqubu is on guitars.

The Afro-Cuban grooves of “Mamase” open the record. Continuing where Listen To The Wind left off, this is another horn-heavy call-and-response ode to a positive life. Life as an invitation to party, to take part, to “get involved”. But only if you’re willing to let in the transcendent power of music. “There’s gonna be a Mardi Gras, there’s gonna be a carnival; there’s gonna be a jamboree, there’s gonna be a bacchanal”. Who can resist that? Vibrations everywhere.

It’s followed by the joy of “Aida”. Gleeful, dayglow keys and synths *just* on the right side of mid-80s sleaze are accompanied by a killer bassline, slick, skipping drums and proud horns. Infectious funk.

The tempo is taken down a few notches for the powerful “Nomalanga” and the lamentations of a heartbroken man who must leave his wife Nomalanga and their children to join the fight against apartheid. It’s an emotional song, no question, but it doesn’t bring you down. The uplifting music and optimistic vocal delivery from Caiphus and his backing singers in the second half offer hope.

Breezy drums and contemplative keys act as a backdrop for the stunning backing vocal harmonies in the intro of “Moshanyana”. This gives way to stuttering beats, a bassline to die for and Caiphus giving it his all, over guitars, marimba and synth strings. Another slo-mo winner.

Side two opens with “Dial Your Number”, an uptempo English-language boogie-funk workout, complete with mid-song cutaway to a random telephone call. Whether or not this propels the song into “key track” status, we’ll let you decide.

What’s not up for debate is the brilliance of “Matswale”. This was a hit in South Africa in the mid-80s and you can still hear why. It might just be our favourite Caiphus hit. Wow. This is some damn fine breezy, beautiful, emotional pop. The restrained playing, the guitar licks and the gentle keys are out of this world. The beats? Thundering, direct and slick. The singing? It’ll give you goosebumps. As for the sentiment? This is Caiphus singing to his in-laws about their daughter’s adultery, begging them to intervene and help him save his marriage. Not your typical pop single story-telling!

The ferocious “Ndi-Kulindile” closes the set with a nod to the coming sound of the States. The hard-edged, electro-influenced drum patterns and bouncing, elastic bassline are something of a departure from the album’s predominant sound, yet one wonderful constant, Caiphus’s exceptional delivery and his sparring with his backing vocalists, is satisfyingly present and warmly deployed.

With Simon Francis handling the mastering of this Be With edition, you know it sounds as fantastic as ever. The stunning sleeve has been restored, with its painting of a dream-like cosmic vista, as a lone figure takes in a scene that’s part distant planet, part urban sprawl. One listen and you’ll be transported.


Caiphus Semenya, AKA Mr Letta Mbulu, is a South African legend and Streams Today… Rivers Tomorrow, his second solo LP, is perfect. A ten out-of ten album if ever we heard one. It’s also incredibly rare, especially in good condition, so Be With is delighted to present this reissue.

Originally released in 1984, Streams Today… Rivers Tomorrow is not just a musical masterpiece, it is also the soundtrack to the life of many South Africans - both then and now. Fusing the US-heavy sounds of boogie, disco and funk with Afrobeat and traditional African elements, it’s truly a spectacular listen. Jabu Nkosi handles keyboards on the album, with synths by Caiphus and Craig Harris. Sipho Gumede is on bass and Condry Ziqubu is on guitars.

One listen and you’ll be transported.

A 38 minutes exorcism, dionysac sexyness fueled with romanticism, made of mechanical incantations mixed with spectral vocals of forgotten imaginary tribes, words from a physicist (Incomprehensible Image), and mystical breathings… To remind you that music is demanding your soul and body, fully.

A master irritator, disclosing this talent all the way, down to every chosen title, for the album itself and all of its components (would you put Milk in Water ?). As repetitive or minimalist music may already make some of you feel nervous, it seems more accurate to talk here about primitive music – notwithstanding a non violent anarchism. But those are only words and vain attempts to attach TLT to a region or a family. Neither the burden of classical European music legacy, which eventually lead to pop music, seemed to interfere with his wild mind, and if it is no surprising to hear Bach in German electronic music, there is here a clear statement that you are out of this sirupy prison…

For D.W. is a sorcerer. He’s been empirically learning the speaking of trance with years of touring and experimenting with all kinds of audience and venues, from clubs to museums, from Mongolia to Brazil, from his performances with his bands Kreidler or Toresch to solo ones, sustained by a steady limited set up, as the one used when he’s recording : one MPC, rudimentary synths, few effects and a mixer. No sound engineer on stage as only he knows his secret language… Raw dubmaking, leaning towards hip hop, indubitably underlining here a significant distanciation from his previous industrial inspirations. The bewitchment of this record is operating with no warning from the very first seconds until the last epiphany of Sales Pitch.

He is using his knowledge of techno, psychedelism (Inverted Sea), UK bass (Jumping Dead Leafs), only to bring you out of it. We all tend to be slaves, without even being conscious about it, and a balance must be existing between being a slave and showing off. Mr. Weinrich’s answer is unsettling because it is an utter call to this balance, in our world of black and white and political correctness. There is no morality in music… Don’t expect anything else than an unaccountable liberating immediate experience. Don’t expect any kind of music because you are already in the past or the future… From his recording technique mainly relying on one takes, his adoration of mistakes and jeopardy, to the core essence of repetitive music, it is all here about being in the present. No ears no glasses.

Washington collective, The 3 Pieces, privately-pressed Iwishcan William on their own DL Records in 1982. The 12 has Discogs, for one, confused. Is it soul, rap, jazz, go-go, funk, electro, or educational? By nature of its birthplace and date of birth, it`s all of those.

Synths shimmer in harp-like glissando. The bass grumbles, rumbles, machine-made. The beat pops and locks. The whole thing grooving and exuding positivity. One part the cosmic funk of say Cloud One`s Patty Duke. Another, the balearic chug of Will Powers` Adventures In Success. Like Brother D it looks to “agitate, educate, and organize”, and stirs in the sentiments of Razzy`s I Hate Hate. Imagine if the Last Poets jammed with sister Sarah Webster Fabio. Keys parp like car horns, a real trumpet blows a Don Cherry solo, but the track really revolves around its sweet Sesame Street call-and-response chorus:

“I wish love. I can love. I will love. I am love.”

Swiss gentleman DJ and Phantom Island resident, Lexx, produces a killer remix - smoothing out the OG`s jerky edges, upping its sophistication. Making clear the contributions of Lexx` new bubbling electronics. rescuing a clipped guitar, previously lost deep in the mix, and moving the children’s voices to the fore. Ensuring you’ll remember that

““I am” is the glory of a wish come true.”

Idjut Boy Dan Tyler then ties up the package, well he actually kinda sends it out into space - expanding everything in echo. NYC Peech Boys-esque delay. The result is a mind-blowing, psychedelic, almost ambient, Larry Levan-like, Paradise Garage dub. Where fragments of song fly at you from four corners. Trippily pan from left to right. The horn blasts now paying tribute to King Tubby`s Hi-Fi. François Kevorkian going bang!

All carefully mastered with love from the original master tapes by Sam Berdah at The Wall studios.

Two things become immediately clear when you hear “Body Electric”, the third original album by White Haus, João Vieira (X-Wife / Dj Kitten)’s solo project. The first is that we’re faced with an insatiable music lover, with an exemplary historical awareness. The second is that is music, although it channels all that passion, does it in such a way that is increasingly all his own. The thing is, that if on one hand, in these twelve new tracks, we’re assailed by the presence of the tutelary Talking Heads and their satellite projects, by Vivien Goldman, Sexual Harrassement or Konk’s New York No Wave, by the electronic pop of Soft Cell or New Order, by the hybrid funk of Prince and his Minneapolis accollites, by the Italo-Disco inspired by Giorgio Moroder or Patrick Cowley or the Acid House of Adonis or Maurice.

Along with its sister imprint Fluid Electronics - dedicated to all things more muscularly 4x4 oriented, from house to techno via ambient, Fluid Funk will offer a platform of choice for creators and lovers of soulful house, hip-hop, jazz, funk, disco et al. The goal of the label is to bring a community of like-minded people together, cleared from the complexities that sometimes hamper the good course of the label-artist relationship.

First to grace Fluid Funk's dance floor-ready grooves is Rotterdam-based emerging talent Beau Zwart. Fresh off a choice inaugural sortie on INI Movements that hit the streets a few weeks ago, Beau steps in with his debut 12", "Beyond Two Souls" - an infectiously smooth and solarpowered six-track platter featuring Dutch duo Fouk on remix duty.

Expect lavishly orchestrated cascades of ankle-twisting breaks, prismatic synthwork and summer-flavoured melodies to wrap your ears around as your feet and body give in to the power of that funky bass. Brewing elements of fuzzy pop, pixelated soul and tropicalised rhythms, Beau Zwarts sound takes us on a wildly enjoyable ride across luxuriantly flowered scapes and fluttering cosmic house horizons. Interlaced with sugary Rhodes stabs and 8-bit harmonics a la "Floating Points", Sykes' warm vox intonations shows us the way into a pulsating heart of wonky, bop-infused boogie.

Expanding to further out-there, club-optimised bravura, Fouk's take on the title-track is the kind of track that'll make an impact in the sweatbox as well as in a more cabaret-like setting. Pulling out the weirdo harmonics and left-of-centre jazz aerobatics, "Ixodus" lets its free spirited sense of playfulness take over completely. Flip sides and here's "Marble Book" unbolts the spacious pads and whirling alien riffs as a sturdy sub-bass and gut-churning kicks beat time onto further estranged
dimensions.

A slightly more muscular but thoroughly sensuous workout, "Bustin Out" fuses classical two-step-indebted breaks with lascivious "P-Funk" tropes into one compelling club heater, before the EP's sluggish closer "Illustrate My Way" sends us into orbit for good with its slowed down romanticism and otherworldly piano fantasy.

Lamunai Records presents Curiouser and Curiouser, a treasure trove of millennial music era from a duo pop group called Santamonica from Jakarta, Indonesia.

The concept of this album is making music from a trip to the adventures of Alice In Wonderland, an eclectic mix of pop, bossanova, electronics, waltz and shoegaze. From Astrud Gilberto and Antonio Jobim, Pizzicato Five meets My Bloody Valentine or Stereolab's 60s sensitivity to Broadcast. A collection of multi-layered analog audio sets, the noise of Joseph Iyup's noisy guitar combined with Anindita's fairy voice melodious lines of strange lyrics wrapped in curling beats, very dynamic, very rich. Listening to the album, on several tracks, we can hear French Pop's acrobatic 5/4 beats until the roar of the wall of
sound becomes a combination that is difficult to imagine at the time and is still very relevant to listen to now.

Now, for the first time ever, one of the phenomenal albums of the 2000's Indonesia wave is now available in a limited format in 2xLP-Gatefold-Marble colors vinyl with an additional 1 song that has never been released before.

For Farsight, California’s bucolic San Geronimo Valley was the space that allowed for the creation of this handpicked selection of artistic output. Following a period of deep interest in abstract painting and its relationship to music, the artist found this lush and sparsely populated region to be an ideal location for contemplation and composition.

Although the majority of the work was executed in the first two months of 2020 in this forested setting, some of the pieces were based upon drafts created as early as Summer 2017. United in their eclecticism, the six cuts that comprise “Not Here, But Somewhere'' reveal a broad spectrum of musical influences. They are statements in an age in which influence is omni-directional, and in which the pace of artistic invention outstrips the ability of observers to identify and reify sub-genres. Although each track presents a unique approach, “Cadena,” “Sans Titre,” and “Door to the River'' reflect the continuing global suffusion of Latin American and Carribean styles such as reggaeton and dancehall. Simultaneously, the duo of “While” and “Hot Half” suggest the ongoing dialogue of techno, electro, and industrial music and the interstices between them. “Mid-Winter Burning Sun”
invokes the intensity of American trap music with its booming bass while touching equally upon the feel of early dubstep.

Ultimately, the idea that there is a “space for each artist” can be taken both in a literal sense— One’s physical environment— And also in the figurative sense that there is room enough for the ideas of all artists, who are kindred spirits in the endeavor of radical self-expression. In this way, “Not Here, But Somewhere” exists as an acknowledgement and gesture of goodwill towards every artist daring enough to explore the unknown.

If you are passionate about local music scenes as much as we are you might already know about the current brood of great bands going on in Cardiff, Wales.
Chain Of Flowers were the first to hail from the Welsh capital, followed by related side projects such as Night Thoughts, more recently came Private World of which the two boys we’re about to introduce are also live members of.
A new wave/synth act from the same city called Plastic Estate is emerging this year.

The duo composed by Nicholas James and Stanley Fouracres have released a few digital singles in 2019 as they’ve opened for The Murder Capital at Sŵn Festival and played alongside the likes of M!R!M, Josiah Konder and The Love Coffin. This Place is their first physical release and it’s due on 7-inch vinyl and digital on June 19.

On the two songs that compose the single, Plastic Estate clearly draw influence from the best UK new wave and pop artists such as Dave Gahan, Paddy McAloon, Roddy Frame and yet there is a sophisticated casualness and an innate freshness in their songwriting that makes them not sounding dated at all.
Amazing composition skills for such a young band and a perfect balance between electronic dance elements and acoustic instruments allow them to pay homage to the above-mentioned masters and to be a perfectly contemporary group at once.

Although it’s possible to pick out some darker lyrics, the overall feel is up-beat and breezy. It’s a contrast that runs through a lot of their music – like a dichotomy between dark, melancholia and happier, brighter feelings.
Whether it’s a happy pop synth riff mixed with sombre lyrics or vice versa, the young Welsh duo is delivering the best 80’s-inspired modern pop craft.
RIYL: Echo & The Bunnymen, Prefab Sprout, Depeche Mode, Orange Juice, Wild Nothing.

Here is the highly anticipated sixth volume of the well received electronic compilation series from the relaunched 1980's color tapes label. As with the other volumes you can find great examples of cold wave, minimal wave and synth electronics and pro to EDM made by obscure British bands in the 1980's such as: Berserk In A Hayfield, Lives of Angels, Silicon Valley, Modern Art, Disintegrators, Echophase, The Lord and Mystery Plane

"Up there with V-O-D selections, the Color Tapes series so far has provided invaluable insight to hidden or much lesser-known currents of the ‘80s cassette subculture which gave birth to myriad artists, styles and industry conventions whose influence can still be felt over 30 years later. " - Boomkat

“Electronic work that’s way different from mainstream pop of the period - often forgedout of the same instrumentation as the hits - but in a stripped down way - with lots of dark and moody corners!” Dusty Groove

“Evil Synths and evil beats” - Norman Records

“Gary Ramon’s re-born Color Tapes imprint is every bit as essential as it’s Minimal Wave and electro-focused predecessors” - Juno

Limited edition of 500 copies comes with poster insert

Principal is the new solo project by producer and musician Rasmus Allin, who’s first album Treacherous Dub will be released on the Copenhagen-based label StereoRoyal in July 2020.

Best described as an homage to old-school Jamaican dub, Principal’s music features live recorded drums and other instruments. Fused with electronic elements, it celebrates the sound of the original dub pioneers.

Born in 1970, Rasmus Allin has been working as a producer, musician, and songwriter since the mid-nineties, primarily within the realm of electronic music. Inspired by the British trip hop and drum ‘n’ bass scene, he soon gravitated towards Jamaican dub, rocksteady, and reggae. "I found my inspiration in the old Jamaican dub masters like Lee Scratch Perry, King Tubby, Augustus Pablo, and Scientist. I’ve spent endless hours in the studio trying to replicate their sound, using old tape delays, filter boxes, and modulation effects,” he says.

In 2002, Allin formed the band Junkyard Productions, playing major venues and festivals like Elysee Montmartre, Le Triptyque, Télérama Dub Festival, and Roskilde Festival while touring through Denmark, Germany, Switzerland, and France. Alongside this, he continued to hone his skills in producing, co-writing, and remixing music, working with top Danish pop and reggae acts the likes of Natasja, Pharfar, Wafande, Shaka Loveless, and the British girl band All Saints.

Treacherous Dub will be released on vinyl and all major streaming platforms, and will be Allin’s first album of pure instrumental dub tracks —an ambition he’s been wanting to fulfil for years. Marking his debut as a solo artist, the album also marks his premiere as a visual artist, with the album cover lithograph made by Allin himself. For Rasmus Allin, the collaboration with StereoRoyal offered “the perfect opportunity to give the tracks the finishing touches.”

StereoRoyal is a Danish library music label founded in 2010 by and specializes in off-kilter music for film and TV. Originally, the label focused on electronic genres, but over the years has grown to include a broader variety of music produced by some of the most talented composers in Scandinavia.

Jori Hulkkonen was born and raised in a small town named Kemi with a population of 20,000, in the north of Finland. Since the early 80s, his musical influences have been on the side of electronic music, quite eclectic style for a 10-year-old boy who grew up in this period still marked by the seal of the Cold War. At the end of the 1980s, Jori's passion for electronic music was reinforced when he discovered its most abstract and minimal part: techno from Detroit and House Music from Chicago. Excellent DJ, he played in the best clubs and festivals in Europe. Jori Hulkkonen is an artist well known and extremely respected in the Nordic countries for his pioneering status, with his love of music and his involvement in making it known.

Silver Vinyl repress

The debut of Hamburg-based Quadratschulz on Clone Dub Recordings. A mini album with tracks ranging from a poppy version of Rephlex style braindance to melodies reminisching a modern day John Carpenter soundtrack to almost old Viewlexx style electro. A versatile album where Quadratschulz showcases his broad range of influences all very firmly rooted in the 90's rave.

Suction Records welcomes Roger Semsroth back to the label - having previously released 2 full-length albums with us under his retired electro-pop alias, Skanfrom. “Grøndal” (suction051) is the debut vinyl release under a new alias, Nordvest.

These days, Semsroth is best-known for his stark and minimalist techno project, Sleeparchive. The material on Grøndal - icy, melodic, and mostly beatless - is comprised of tracks that were originally released digitally as Sleeparchive, via Bandcamp. The releases were met with general disinterest from Sleeparchive fans, prompting Semsroth to re-brand them as Nordvest, before removing them from Bandcamp altogether.

We’ve chosen 11 highlights from 3 of those digital albums, “Rooftops & Chaotic Streets”, “Scribbles”, and “Sleepless”, for a cohesive 11-track LP of austere, synthetic ambience. Think Tangerine Dream as reinterpreted by Incunabula-era Autechre, and you might be getting somewhere close. While “Rooftops & Chaotic Streets Seven” recalls Sleeparchive, and “Sleepless Six” could very well be a lost Skanfrom track, the rest of the LP clearly warrants a new alias - Nordvest is a new side of Semsroth that we haven’t heard before.

Mono Han are brothers Alessandro and Davide, who collectively have a deep and long understanding of electronic music. Davide is a co-founder of N.O.I.A, one of Italy’s first electronic live acts to perform and record with drum machines and synths as early as 1978. He was also behind seminal Italo outfit Klein + M.B.O and proto-house hit “Dirty Talk”. Alessandro, following in his brother’s footsteps was inevitable and he too became hooked on the incredible new sound palette emanating from the early electronic machines.

Since then they have released under an array of aliases, have clocked up numerous club hits and this project brings them back to their 80’s roots.

On Sunset features ten classic yet modern Paul Weller songs. On Sunset is a soul album. At the same time it’s also an electronic album, an orchestral album, an album packed with masterly pop songs and heart-tugging ballads, and an album filled with touches of experimentalism. It’s also an album that sees Weller taking a rare glance into the rear-view mirror as he speeds into the 2020s. Most of the album sees Weller multi-tasking on various instruments with accompaniment from his regular band - Ben Gordelier appears on all tracks and Andy Crofts on most whilst Steve Cradock pops up with his guitar on 4 songs. An eclectic and sometimes surprising gathering of guests appear on On Sunset including Slade’s Jim Lea contributing violin to the Bonzos-esque “Equanimity”, and Paul’s old Style Council chum Mick Talbot adds his signature Hammond Organ sound to 3 tracks. The beautifully lush “More” features a verse sung by French singer Julie Gros, from the band Le Superhomard (whose album Meadow Lane Park was one of Weller’s favourites of 2019) as well as the return of The Strype’s guitarist Josh McClorey. English folk trio The Staves contribute backing vocals for 3 tracks. Once again Hannah Peel sprinkles her magic over the album with string arrangements and The Paraorchestra were invited to add their expertise to 4 tracks. Formats include Black double Gatefold Heavyweight LP, a CD Mintpack and a Deluxe Hardback CD version with additional tracks.

Ghent's Steiger are a piano trio, but not in the classical sense. With their versatile style, influenced by different musical genres such as jazz, rock, pop, classical and electronic music, they try to find a balance between composition and improvisation through the use of experimentation and electronics.

Considered pioneers of the Belgian jazz crossover scene, Steiger have been active for 6 years and have recently found themselves performing at major jazz venues in Flanders, picking up numerous accolades along the way.

The trio's highly anticipated sophomore album 'Give Space', released 14th September on Sdban Ultra, was recorded at 7 different locations, with the music composed to fit and fight these locations within a dialogue of acoustics, atmospheres and appetition. Field recordings, reverbs, ambient sounds, all collected within the search for the unpredictable, were given space within this dialogue as the essential part of the encounter. As a result, the locations emerge somewhat as a fourth member of the trio. The music - sometimes fixed, sometimes completely free - takes on an ever-changing journey into their multi-faceted world.

Siegmar Fricke has made a name for himself in the tape culture since 1981 - with a mixture of Musique-Concrète and Post-Industrial. As a former label owner of "Bestattungsinstitut" he released numerous works that went beyond EBM, Electro, Techno and Ambient. In the heyday of the netlabels he focused mainly on his own productions, which he then made available as free downloads. Since 2002 Siegmar has been active with clinical sound experiments under the pseudonym "Pharmakustik". In 2005 he started his collaboration with Maurizio Bianchi from Milan, who has dedicated himself to "industrial decomposition" since 1979. For his Time Compression EP on Infoline, Siegmar Fricke has unearthed compositions from the period 1992-1994 and curated them anew. A phase in which he listened to the radio day and night and connected his sampler to the stereo to record material around the clock. He listened to many radio shows from England or Holland, which often broadcasted techno, trance and acid. At that time those sounds were new territory for him. He recorded inspiring sequences at first go, edited them and then let them flow into his own productions. The result was "future-pop collages mixed with sequencer-controlled trance and sampled voices", to put it in the words of Siegmar Fricke.

Theresa Stroetges has and always will be a traveler. Under the name Golden Diskó Ship or as a member of bands like Soft Grid or the improv collective Epiphany Now!, the Berlin-based multi-instrumentalist has continuously been moving through the fringes of experimental music, but also extensively explored the possibilities of tried and tested formulas - whether folk, rock, techno or pop. With her fourth solo album, her first for the Karaoke Kalk label, the Golden Diskó Ship is yet again venturing into unknown territory. »Araceae« is inspired by environmental changes and the eerie feelings that arise when faced with natural beauty - when everything seems perfect on the surface but something feels off underneath it all. As a whole, it is notably more focused on electronic grooves that provide the foundation for Stroetges’s poetic long-form storytelling.

Partially conceived during a residency in India, »Araceae« is the first Golden Diskó Ship record to feature two guest musicians. For »Wildly Floral, Slightly Damp,« Stroetges collaborated with percussionist Dripta Samajder who with his Sri Khol contributes complex rhythms to a driving beat that wouldn’t be out of place in the record bags of daring DJs. Sophia Trollmann takes over saxophone duties for »Ortolan,« a riveting coming-together of intricate, IDM-flavoured techno and jazz-inspired improvisation. Both are integral standout tracks on an album that clearly follows a holistic plan. Already the opener »Clouds of Neon Limelight« dips into anthemic synth pop territory, but unfolds into a great saga full of ominous undertones and Stroetges’s trademark: layered vocals that at once evoke feelings of uncanniness and intimacy.

It’s a juxtaposition that runs throughout »Araceae,« thus enforcing the album’s overall themes of sensual experience and alienation. »Game of Biryani« for example lends some of its musical structures from pop music, calling into question traditional songwriting conventions which here reappear as irritating echo effects rather than recycled old tropes. With the lush »Limping over the Prairies« and the adventurous »Glow-in-the-Dark Gloves,« Stroetges further challenges her audience by applying noise and a heavy dose of autotune respectively to disorientating effect.

The couple makes for an impressive finale of an album that scrutinises our ideas of what is natural - whether in music or the world around us. »Araceae« was inspired by the travels of its creator, but also sets out to ascertain what lies beyond everything that eyes or ears can perceive.

The premise for Quindi Records is simple – to represent music with a universality at its core.
Without adhering to specific genre tropes, the releases are intended to have a meaning and purpose in all kinds of situations – a social soundtrack as much as a stimulating experience,
feeding emotions and the psyche with a sentimental palette of sounds. Lovers’ music, loners’ music, music for friends and family alike.
Woo makes for a perfect choice to meet this loose concept head-on – the music of Clive and Mark Ives straddles disparate worlds and finds its own peculiar balance. On one hand it’s delicate synthesizer music with a minimalist bent, while on the other their joyous, twinkling harmonies have an immediacy that speaks to the soul. You can detect privacy in their craft – the brothers originally recorded their music in relative isolation in London in the 70s, 80s and early 90s. It’s only in recent years their sublime work has enjoyed a wider audience through an extensive run of reissues.
Arcturian Corridor ? presents a rare, previously unreleased piece of music from Woo – the expansive suite of the title track that unfurls across five parts. It’s an enchanting listen that shows a new breadth and depth to the duo – detailed drum programming and a broader palette of synth tones cascading in elegant unison. The name refers to Arcturus, the fourth brighteststar in the night sky. As Woo themselves explain, “The Arcturian Corridor is said to be a channel of light that brings unconditional love and wisdom from Arcturus to Earth.”
In addition to the 20-minute A-side piece, Woo also presents a new version of “Love On Other Planets”, a standout piece from their 1990 album ?Into The Heart of Love? . The fragile subtlety of the original has been embellished here with rich new passages that turn it into a kind of electronica epic, although still marked out with the sensitivity one expects from a Woo record.
Two remixes complete the set, both furthering Quindi’s modus operandi as a genre-agnostic force for cosmically charged music. Dublin’s Wah Wah Wino collective present their Wino Wagon manifestation for a tastefully strange house version of the fifth part of “Arcturian Corridor” that channels the freakiness of Pepe Bradock, the robo-funk of Metro Area and a soupcon of pop nous. British duo Ultramarine maintain the stylistic ambiguity as they channel decades of expressive experimentation between live band dynamics and machine soul on their version of the title track’s second chapter.

A new sub-label of the longstanding Canadian electro imprint Suction Records, Ice Machine — focusing on old-school wave/post-punk sounds — is thrilled to present a new, deluxe reissue of “Pow Wow”, the debut 1982 solo LP from Cabaret Voltaire’s Stephen Mallinder. Now expanded to a double-LP, and also released on CD/digital, it’s a definitive reissue which now includes Mallinder’s early solo discography in its entirety. This collection of mutant dub/funk/postpunk sounds just as fresh and contemporary in 2020 as it did in 1982 (note Autechre’s inclusion of standout cut “Del Sol” in a mix earlier this year), and highlights Mallinder’s crucial contributions to Cabaret Voltaire.

Some words from Mr.Mallinder on the scene and era from which “Pow Wow” was born: “It was an interesting, and inspiring, time. The primal caterwaul of punk was dying and lots of really significant things were emerging from the fires. Much looser vibes were in the air and there was a much more exploratory feel. Punk had championed a visceral, anti-intellectual approach but in truth the real characters brought so much more to the table, and what began to happen - from people like The Pop Group to Throbbing Gristle, and emerging scenes from No New York to Factory Records - is we began to embrace the art of it all. There was acknowledgement of the importance of books, films, graphic art, and experimentation with all those mediums. We were just as interested in turning over rocks to see what lay beneath, as throwing them. There was a sense of new magik emerging.”

“Pow Wow” was commissioned by the Fetish Records label, and recorded at the Cabs’ Western Works studio, where Mallinder would spend his days recording with Cabaret Voltaire, and continue on alone into night recording his debut solo material. “I slept very little in those days,” he adds, continuing: “It was done on 8 track and very multi-tracked, so lots of recording, then bouncing, and overdubbing, to get the integrated feel of the tracks. I became very adept at pressing record then jumping onto equipment to play it - it was actually a very 'live' record in that sense. I've always seen rhythm at the core of what I do so I loved the layering of counter rhythms. The sequence/arpeggiator parts were all drum machine triggers that were played live. It was about creating a distinct groove so arrangements came from weaving in and out of those linear grooves. It was fun to play everything from drums, guitars, keys, trumpet, percussion, tapes… and record and produce it all. Prince got it from me!”

Surprisingly, Mallinder’s first solo LP would also prove to be his last - that is, until last year’s critically-acclaimed solo return “Um Dada”, on Dais.

This new edition of “Pow Wow” contains 14 songs, and is housed in a recreation of the original, iconic Neville Brody jacket, painstakingly recreated using scans of Brody’s original artwork elements. The 2LP vinyl edition is in a reverse board, thick-spine jacket, and adds a 12”x24” folded poster/insert, featuring unused elements from Brody’s original designs, sketches, and instructions for the LP. The CD edition comes in a reverse board, 6-panel digipack.


2-11 from the Pow-Wow LP on Fetish Records, 1982.

13-14 from the Temperature Drop / Cool Down 12” on Fetish Records, 1981.

12 from the Fetish Records compilation The Last Testament, 1983.

1 edit from the Pow-Wow Plus LP on Fetish Records (Japanese pressing), 1984.

Long-time collaborators, longer-time best friends, lifelong analog appreciators; the German duo Iron Curtis & Johannes Albert join cosmic forces once again for another LP mission 'Moon II', a heartfelt voyage through the sounds, movements, styles and machines that created this music in the first place.
Think late 80s New York, early 90s Sheffield and the perennial sounds of Italo and Detroit, 'Moon II' is a lunar safari that celebrates the deepest foundations of house, techno and electronic soul while resolutely refusing to get nostalgic. Written and recorded during an intense two-and-a-half month session in Berlin last autumn, there's a consistency and tangible narrative running throughout as the pair play inspiration ping-pong over the course of 10 tracks.
A little Drexcyian glacial nod here, a hazy Boards Of Canada wink there. The Other People Place, Kerrier District, Environ Records, the Hacienda, Sub Club, Heaven 17, classic electro… All these ingredients are constantly bubbling in the mix for both Curtis and Albert (as individuals and even more so as a duo) and the end result is an album that works as a proper album should. Peaks, troughs, dreamy departures and all beautiful things in between.
Taking off where their debut collaborative album 'Industrie & Zärtlichkeit' (soon to be retitled 'Moon I') left us three years ago, the opening modem sounds on the intro track 'Canggu Laundry Club' dial us into a special sense of time and space.
It's a space where anything feels possible; Visual-inspired acid lines on 'Tiger Trek', lino-spinning body pops and windmills to the street sounds electro style of 'The Ultimate Seduction', the club-focused, Traxx-style Cutie Schamuthie collaboration 'Hurting', the melancholy plucks and struts of 'Feingold', the provocative, slinky, smoky finale piece 'Nektar'… The list of intergenerational and cross-genre landmarks on this adventurous body of work go and on, each track complementing the last as they fuse to create a bigger collective picture. A picture that's charmed together through the consistent use of key classic studio machines.
They call it Introverted Electronic Body Music, we call it warm, free-spirited and ultimately timeless. Perfect for your sets, your afterhours or your headphones alike; it's time to let Iron Curtis and Johannes Albert take you to the Moon and back… Once again.

After he hit their sweet spot with a little 3/4 psychedelia on the ‘Kraut Jazz Futurism’ compilation, new Berlin based imprint Kryptox founded by the Gomma & Toy Tonics crew (yes, that new label dedicated to new jazz electronica phenomenas from the uprising German scene) do the sensible thing and tie down nomadic percussionist Niklas Wandt for his first ever solo EP. Anyone with a dancing shoe dipped in the underground will recognize the dungareed Berliner from collaborative outings with Bufi-body popper Wolf Muller, synth shaman Sascha Funke or his NDW dream team Neuzeitliche Bodenbeläge (whose funky bassman Timo Hein helps out here), and now he’s rolling (mostly) solo with four tracks of far out head music. Largely built around improvised drum jams recorded in Wandt’s rehearsal space in Berlin, the sounds on the EP mutated and matured before assuming their final form under the mix

2x12"

since long, chilean/swiss producer and dj luciano is a prominent figure in the global electron-ic club music circle. already from a young age on he was exposed to music profoundly, as his father worked as a jukebox repairman and possessed a large record collection.

when he was twelve, his mother gifted him a guitar, that turned luciano shortly into a mem-ber of a school punk rock band. soon after, his passion for electronic music rose. infected by detroit techno and engaged by close friends like producer dandy jack, he started to play rec-ords in local santiago de chile dance clubs and became involved in the minimal techno scene around friends like ricardo villalobos.

when luciano moved back from chile to switzerland in 2000, he established a residency at weetamix club in geneva, started releasing his own productions on labels like mental groove and joining the cocoon team in ibiza to play at the famous monday night at club amnesia.

since then he is a regular on the balearic island, holding residencies at clubs like dc10 or, with his “vagabundos” serial, at ushuaïa. besides playing around the globe with the likes of carl craig, richie hawtin or loco dice, he is releasing groundbreaking minimal techno and house on his label cadenza since 2003, featuring music by artists like nsi, ricardo villalobos, pikaya, reboot, maayan nidam and himself.

his very own music, so far issued on three albums and countless eps, was always ambiguous. there is his club leaning creativity that can dance slightly into pop spheres while never for-getting the power of precise sliced rhythms and subtle bass sensations.

and then there is a calmer luciano, that displays his love for “music to listen at home, done for a spiritual travel, an inner universe and a moment paralyzed in ether”, as he describes it.

on his first ever mule musiq album release “luci neu house”, luciano now delivers meditative journey music full of repetitive patterns that slowly playing tricks on the listeners subcon-sciousness. “i love music that has a dimension more than music designed for the radio or tv format. mu-sic, that is designed to bring you a higher level of energy and creativity.

so, there is no pretentious things in it ... more just sounds and dimension that will lead your head into the fall of jupiter” he reveals about the one-hour long composition “luci neu house”, whose esoteric deepness reminds on the intensely meditative class of his older pro-ductions like “behind my soul” from 2010.

an epic tune cut on vinyl into four 15-minute long pieces, who shift slowly, almost unper-ceived, whilst absorbing the mind of close observers into a micro-sliced world of moving gen-tleness.

maelstrom magnetism against the gravity of time, that also can be found on the additional mule musiq 257 12inch, which functions as a soothing footnote to luciano’s album.

the almost 13 minutes long trip “flags of himalaya” opens with restful percussions that unhur-riedly start to dance with soft string, piano and horn melodies. on the opposite, the nine-minute long “the evasion of the spiritual soldier” grooves laidback with jazzy rhythms and italo leaning melodies.

a perfect tune for slow dance sensations and endless sunset seaside drives. at a total length of almost 90 minutes, all new mule musiq music composed by luciano distributes a mesmer-izing healing spirit, that grounds organically, even if it is totally rooted in the digital, soft-ware driven world of composing music. “check your buddha” tunes, that somehow sound novel during each new listening circle.

This Spring, Life And Death hits a half century of releases with a suitably standout album from leftfield innovator Autarkic. Terms and Conditions is a 10 track window into the Tel Aviv artist's rich, wildly-infused electronica.

Critical acclaim has followed Nadav Spiegel's every move since he debuted in 2015. He is impossibly hard to pin down, and brings real songwriting ability to club tracks that colour far outside the usual lines. Weird dub, psychedelic rock, all forms of wave, sideways pop, swampy techno, Middle Eastern subtleties and plenty experimental in-between sounds all inform his work. It defies convention in ways many cannot, and has come on labels like Disco Halal and Turbo, as well as Life And Death with the Heavy Dreamer EP in 2018.

2016 and 2017 brought his first two albums, Can You Pass The Knife? and I Love You, So Go Away, both on Disco Halal. Both were full of intensely emotional wave, synth and lo-fi sounds that fizzed with innovation. Says the artist of its follow up, "Terms and Conditions was created to celebrate the moment in time that is now. The moment we became peasants in a new digital-feudal world, happily giving away our privacy for the privilege of owning a smart phone."

Terms and Conditions is a unique melting pot, a reimagining of familiar sounds in unfamiliar ways, and is another standalone record from Autarkic.

Repress!

Just when you think that the well of obscure music from around the world has run dry, Analog Africa returns to put the record straight. Pop-Makossa shines a light on a glorious but largely overlooked period in the story of Cameroonian makossa, when local musicians began to replace funk and highlife influences with the rubbery bass of classic disco and the sparkling synth flourishes and drum machines of electrofunk. The resultant compilation, which apparently took eight years to produce, is packed full of brilliant cuts, from the heavily-electronic jauntiness of Pasteur Lappe's "Sanaga Calypso" and horn-totin' Highlife-disco of Emmaniel Kahe and Jeanette Kemogne's "Ye Medjuie", to the dense, organ-laden wig out that is Clement Djimogne's "Africa".

GLOK is the electronic solo project from Andy Bell of shoegaze legends RIDE (formerly of Oasis/Beady Eye/Hurricane #1). His debut album under the moniker, Dissident, was originally released last year on a limited edition cassette by Bytes, an offshoot of Ransom Note Records. That sold out in 24 hours, and was followed by a vinyl pressing of 500 copies, on transparent green vinyl, sold via Bandcamp and two online shops. However, with that edition now sold out pretty much on word of mouth, due to popular demand, Dissident is being repressed and is this time being made available to a wider audience via a partnership between Bytes and Republic of Music/K7. The name GLOK is a misspelling of the German word for Bell. The German connection fits well as there is a strong Krautrock influence in the music, especially on the title track, 'Dissident', an epic clocking in just shy of the 20-minute mark, which blends synthwave, minimalism, trance, Detroit techno and John Carpenter soundtracks, with Andy even dropping in some killer John Squire-esque guitar licks.

Exciting new producer Yves Tomas releases on Rekids with ‘Pilot EP’ this May - a bold and versatile debut release exhibiting the artist’s broad range of influences.

Hailing from London but with roots in Bristol, Yves Tomas is a producer, vocalist and DJ brought up in the centre of UK club music. Since experimenting with music through his childhood and early teens he’s gone on to become an engineer, working in studios alongside some of the biggest names in grime and pop music. This has led to him developing his own unique style of electronic music as a reactionary expression to working in the meat grinder culture of mainstream music. He now joins Radio Slave
Rekids - a label known and respected for discovering many luminary figures in electronic music.

With its otherworldly melody and echoing effects, ‘Braindead’ is a downtempo track that remains beatless until the halfway mark, moving onto the beautifully arranged ‘MA1’ with its reverb-drenched breaks, quivering synths, and ever-evolving chopped and looped vocals. ‘River’ then incorporates elements of grime and jungle courtesy of its lively stabs, soulful chords and compelling rhythm built on punchy percussion. Taking things into a spiritual direction, Elephant & Snake’ meanders forward using
syncopated drums, washy chants and elevating organ keys before ‘Callout FM’ follows with its rattling snares, twisted arpeggios, and crystalline pads.

Nearing the end, ‘Pilot’ is a stripped-back affair with sporadic kicks, a fuzzy bassline, and vocoder vocals until digital bonus track ‘Birds Of The Barbican’ ties everything together by generating an uplifting atmosphere destined to elevate revellers for many years to come.

New SheweyTrax 12"!! Introducing SoCal artist withNme. A-side features three lyric jams full of lush indie-pop, catchy vocals, and electronix. Opener "Early Girl", a young women's struggle to make it and doing what she needs to do for a better future. Feature track "Window Sill" is your favorite cat chasin' birds without a care or just letting the wind in the sail take you away. "Skywalker" closes out sideA as a sneak peak track from the forthcoming withNme album. "Window Sill" is additionally featured on Side B, with club vibes by developing producer Delicate Instruments. Two solid deep house selections: "DELINSTR Chasin' Remix" and bonus instr mix. Vibe record leading into summer 2020!

Iconic cultural engineer and prolific music pioneer Daniel Miller, aka The Normal responsible for the timeless post-punk / wave classic “Warm Leatherette” and founder of Mute Records, collaborates with avant-techno artist Nicolas Bougaïeff to instigate another revolution with the inaugural release as Populist on Avi Caspi’s newly founded imprint The Temple and The Low Dive. Miller and Bougaïeff provide four purist modular techno explorations that are prepared to carry the listener into stellar dimensions. Introductory A1 track “Center” is a sophisticated, minimalist, stripped down piece with dynamic elements and a cinematic aesthetic that introduces the mood of the entire EP, defined by spectral micro movements and a touch of liquid textures.

Further navigation through the EP reveals more of the aesthetic intent while, at the same time, retaining a specific uniqueness found in each track. There is a definitive interstellar cosmic feeling throughout that brings the future back to the present and with B2 track “Temple” we discover that Miller and Bougaïeff are no strangers to a provocative and discerning dancefloor. “Temple” guarantees ecstatic dance floor moments that define experience. The digital bonus track “Dogma” continues to keep up the pace and here is what will be imminently essential for any serious purveyor of explorative techno to include in their repertoire.

This first installment on The Temple And The Low Dive gives us something that is as special as it is unique, paying homage to one of electronic music culture’s most admired artists and icons, and introducing the world to new artists and proponents of the global electronic scene, Caspi and Bougaïeff. TIP!

Les Cooles De Ville is an Amsterdam based alternative Hip-Hop group creating soulful music using elements of Jazz, Bossa Nova and Pop. Recording and performing with live instrumentation and a mixture of samples and electronics they bring a unique, international vibe to the musical landscape quirky colourful, laidback and romantic they deliver a sound reminiscent of contemporaries like The Internet and Tom Misch.

Sometimes referred to as the Dutch equivalent of the Native Tongues the group's sound is inspired by acts like Digable Planets, De La Soul, A Tribe Called Quest, Lucy Pearl and Slum Village.

L.C.V.D.'s new self-titled album is available via digital platforms and vinyl via Season Five Records / Below System Records. The album includes guest appearances by Benny Sings, Roos Jonker, Randell Heye, Delaney Nelom, Benjamin Herman and MARNIX.

“When I was asked to put my hands on the original tracks of Blancmange I was instantly excited. They were one of my favourite Bands when I grew up as a teenager in the 80’s. Listening to their music walking around with my Walkman back then was adventurous. Mainly because I was already in love with the aesthetics of synthesisers and drum machines. But also because it was unusual pop music with an extraordinary energy that made it in the charts. Remixing a favorite Band is challenging but I’ve tried to keep the free spirits and playfulness in my mix that makes Blancmange still so special after all these years” – Roman Flügel

Roman Flügel remixes the cult 1980s classic that is ‘Living On The Ceiling’, and the result is a killer, off-kilter slice of club-focussed machine funk that contains the same wonderfully bizarre cocktail of traits, that Blancmange always boasted in spades. Eerie and schizophrenic but also both bright and triumphant. Also features the original and sought after extended mix.

The first in a new series of ‘London Records Remixed’ releases on 12” and digital. Now at its new home as part of the Because Music Group the London Records catalogue is being revisited by pioneering, contemporary electronic producers.

Pacific Shore makes modern melancholy hip-hop-soul-jazz with love. The duo’s "road music” evokes a dreamlike and cinematic musical journey. In the studio and on stage, the duo shows that machines, live instruments, and vocals can make electronic music organic, warm, and alive.


Immersed in the studio for a while, the duo are back with the album "Two Kingdoms", their biggest project so far. Without complex, these 17 tracks transport us between vaporous pop/funk groove and hybrid experimentations. A lively, moving and poetic work in search of a certain sense of life on Earth.


As Ying and Yang the album is a combination of two interdependent chapters, we find the voice of their faithful friend and collaborator Sarah Linhares on the tracks Overboard, Knees Wet, Borders among others. As well as the very intriguing Majin Blobfish on Light & Shade and the appearance of a new voice from Pacific Shore on several titles: Two Kingdoms, Home, A Part of Me...

The Advent (Cisco Ferreira) delivers his first full-length Electro album in 17 years. Released this May on Sync 24's burgeoning Cultivated Electronics label, 'Life Cycles' finds the past meeting the future. Because, to get a truer feel for this new long-player, we should head back even further to a 1995 classic - The Advent's debut album, 'Elements Of Life'. In fact, fans will recognise a nod to the original artwork of that seminal release, as 'Life Cycles' takes us full circle, containing unreleased Electro gems from the '90s, available for the first time.

"I have been making electro music for nearly 3 decades now and excited to see that it is in demand with this new wave of talented producers out there. 'Life Cycles' is an album where I explore my older past and connect with the future, 2020 and this new electro generation," says Cisco. Ever since Cisco Ferreira discovered Acid House in the London clubs he frequented, his journey has been about making his mark on the electronic music scene.

Fresh from college he landed a job as assistant sound-engineer in several recording studios where he learned the art of translating feelings to frequencies, recording high profile artists from the world of Rock, Pop, Dance and Reggae. When acid label, Jack Trax moved in next-door, Cisco started recording for the likes of Adonis, Fingers Inc, Marshall Jefferson and Derrick May.

These rendezvous sparked the inspiration for his first EPs on R&S and Fragile. By 1994 Ferreira had signed a record deal for 12 EPs and 3 albums together with Colin McBean. This was the beginning of an era during which the duo set a worldwide standard for high quality underground Electro and Techno.

They hit the world with a refreshing sound, both as The Advent, and G Flame (Cisco) and Mr G (the alias Colin still uses today). Nowadays The Advent is a solo project for Cisco as he bombards crowds around the world with his trademark raw, energetic sound.

As much as The Advent is known for uncompromising Techno, so his Electro has been a huge influence for a lot of young Electro artists today (including his own son and sometime Electro collaborator, Zein) and when you listen to 'Life Cycles' you'll understand why. From the moment the beats kick in on track 1, 'Music Is Life' we're met with full on Advent power. The album explores classic old-school Electro vibes from the tough machine funk of tracks like 'This Is Not' and 'Vast' to the acid excursions on 'Panda', via some the ghetto boogie of 'L.U.' or 'Stasis V2'. And lest we forget what an amazing live performer The Advent is, there's even the deeply hypnotic 'Live@Motor 1998'.

**LP FORMAT IS VERY LIMITED - PLEASE BE AWARE THAT UNFORTUNATELY THERE MAY BE CUTS TO ORDERS**

For Los Angeles' The Black Queen, the depths of isolation and loss have always functioned as a gateway to being born anew. Much has transpired since the band released their cold, cutting debut album Fever Daydream (a record that Revolver described as 'a haunting exploration of the darker side of pop music'). But throughout it all, the trio of Greg Puciato (former frontman of the now-defunct The Dillinger Escape Plan), Joshua Eustis (of Telefon Tel Aviv, Puscifer, and Nine Inch Nails), and Steven Alexander (a tech member for Nine Inch Nails, Ke$ha, and A Perfect Circle) have emerged as triumphant and intense as ever, documenting their journey via the synth-streaked industrial anthems of their sophomore release, Infinite Games.Formed in 2011 after a chance meeting between Puciato and Eustis backstage at a Dillinger show in which they both realized they were huge fansof each other's work, The Black Queen became a labor of love for its members to explore sounds and emotions that they couldn't quite fit into their full-time projects. Injecting a pained, twilit edge into slick new-wave tracks as fit for the dance floor as they are for some imagined dystopian skyline, the trio have managed to channel their scattered, eclectic influences into a surprisingly cohesive vision. 'We've got a pretty weird cross section,' Puciato says of the band's musical chemistry. 'We can go out for food and listen to Power Trip on the way there, then Baltimore club music on the way back, and then talk about how killer Maxwell's Embrya album was, and then get sidetracked and talk about the Celeste video game soundtrack, then all have to be quiet so that we can grab a voice recording of some weird sounding radio interference. It's all over the place and unusually far reaching,and there's a lot of passion for discovery.'After releasing their 2016 debut album Fever Daydream to critical acclaim however, the trio underwent several major upheavals that cast the project in a completely new light. Puciato's main project The Dillinger Escape Plan disbanded. Chris Cornell of Soundgarden killed himself while Puciato was on tour with him. Eustis put out music under his beloved Telefon Tel Aviv monikerfor the first time since his former bandmate Charles Cooper died in 2009. Thetrio's storage space was robbed. Puciato suffered a relapse into crippling anxiety and paranoia. Once again, in the face of tragedy, The Black Queen had to rebuild everything from the ground up.The first step was acquiring a new studio space, which immensely helped the band get back into the rhythm of freely collaborating with one another, and experimenting with sounds for as long (and as loud) as they wanted. The resulting album, Infinite Games, marks a massive leap forward for The Black Queen. Not only are the band's icy R&B instincts more sharply pronounced; they've also rendered their morbid electronics in more lush detail than ever before, filling out the corners of their songs with chilling ambient passages
that create a wide-screen backdrop for Puciato's eerie, tortured vocals. 'I think this album is actually hookier, but more insidious in that it reveals itself over time,' Puciato says about Infinite Games. His choice of words says something about the album's creeping, pitch-black approach to pop music.With this release, the group have also announced a new undertaking in the form of their new label, Federal Prisoner. Resisting the more marketing-centricapproach that feels standard at this point for the record label game, the goal of Federal Prisoner is to provide an outlet for projects that emerge naturally from The Black Queen's own creative endeavors and collaborations with otherartists. In a way, Federal Prisoner solidifies TBQ's commitment to creating music on their own terms, following the same organic sense of inspiration that led them to forming in the first place. As Puciato puts it, 'It's just an expression of passion and individualism in a way that opens more doors for us to create and to own what we create with minimal compromise. It's as much an act of refusal as it is a statement of intent.'Infinite Games, the second album from experimental Los Angeles synth-pop trio The Black Queen, comes out on September 28th

The collaboration between Gino Pavan and Guido Frezzato began in 1995, with the creation of the soundtrack of Giancarlo Marinelli's movie "Scano Boa - Dannazione".

Gino Pavan recorded and produced, in his own "Noi Studio", the music of Frezzato, then given to an ensemble of 15 musicians, among them a strings quintet, and the folk ensemble Marmaja, along with the ethnic suggestions of the percussions by African Brothers. In the following two years, their collaboration would lead to the production of two albums for African Brothers: "N'der Tangana" and "Voodoo".

Followed by the soundtrack of "Alla ricerca dell’uno” (Searching for the One) with the musicians of the Compagnia dei Popoli, and the music for the dance-theatre performance of Belgian dancer Thierry Parmentier. Also worth mentioning, the album by Luca Xodo & Frezzato "Didjeridu", later to be used as a soundtrack for the movie "Case" (Homes) by Rodolfo Bisatti (Ipotesi Cinema). After twenty years spent piling up autonomous musical experiences, Pavan offered Frezzato to try their hands at a musical project that sees them, for the first time, composing music together.

The result is the "NOT LINEAR" project, a musical dialogue between electronics (Pavan) and acoustic instruments (Frezzato), using an "online" form of composition.

Recorded in separate locations, between December 2017 and February 2018 and subsequently mixed at "New Frontiers” studio by Ugo Bolzoni, "NOT LINEAR" collects, within these first 6 tracks, the fruit of this artistic collaboration.

"NOT LINEAR" is enriched by the collaboration of Pavan and Frezzato with two internationally-acknowledged, exceptional artists such as Giulio Aldinucci and Eraldo Bernocchi, each one interpreting a track of their choice out of all those initially selected out of the studio sessions, in a furrow of continuity of the "non-linear" concept that inspires this work. NOT LINEAR design has been curated by renowned visual artist Petulia Mattioli.

Zweites Album von Andreas Kleerup, einem der besten Produzenten Schwedens, der mit Roxette und Cardigans arbeitete und zusammen mit Robyn eine UK #1 landen konnte ("With Every Heartbeat"). Während Lykke Li und Neneh Cherry zu den Gästen seines selbstbetitelten Debütalbums (2009) zählten, sind es auf "2" UK-Electro-Pop-Stars AlunaGeorge, das schwedische Powerhouse Rebecca & Fiona sowie Neuseelands Indie-Helden Yumi Zouma. Entstanden ist ein ausgezeichnetes Electro-Pop-Meisterwerk mit skandinavischem Ohrwurm-Potential.

New York City's Macula Dog is a duo known for their singular style of clattering electronic synth music that takes influences like Devo and The Residents to their (un)natural conclusion. Macula Dog return with the Breezy EP containing four new cuts to tease the rhythmically inclined. Breezy is Macula Dog's second release on Wharf Cat Records, following 2016's Why Do You Look Like Your Dog? LP. Breezy was tracked completely live with the help of analog wizard, Paul D Millar (Ariel Pink's Band) at his Bug Sound East studio, and marks the first Macula Dog release recorded with an outside engineer. With Millar they achieve new levels of fidelity including a slapping low-end, perfectly suited to the 12" 45PRPM format and sure to knock over fans who have been waiting for these new songs, a few of which that have entered their recent live sets. Breezy tunes for Breezy times. With tales of industry, aging, apocalypse and insanity, we see the band's first attempts at pop songs and "conventional" song structures only hinted at on past gemstones like "Lawnmower" and "Purchase Power Station." Just when the racketing barrage of echoes cannonading from across the canyon's walls have begun to die down, we hear the sound of an engine reving.

Pitto is not one to flood the scene with new music considering he’s only released two ep’s in the last three years. He takes the time to let ideas evolve and it’s clearly noticeable on last year’s EP on ‘Something Happening Somewhere’ sublabel ‘Ooshaa’, where his feel for an almost poppy hook is perfectly combined with his love for darker electronics. On the ‘Baila baila EP’ –his return to Heist after his last ep in 2018- he explores this path further. The EP is filled with live percussion, a dark and rolling acid line, chopped beats and catchy piano riffs. The three originals are accompanied by a remix courtesy of Pete Herbert that has ‘summer’ written all over it.

Opening track ‘Sammie’ has a beautiful sense of melancholy to it, where an emotional piano riff is combined with some 80’s tinged vocals and loads of live percussive elements for a smile inducing experience.

‘Discko’ takes a darker approach with a deep and ‘dubby’ low end and a guitar riff that wouldn’t be out of place on a Caribou track. The horn section and synth lead give it a real crossover appeal and it’s the kind of track you imagine working just as well on a summer festival as in a dark basement.

On the flip, there’s the title track ‘Baila’, a proto inspired acid stomper with a nice wink to early 90’s dance music vocals. An acid line gives the track its backbone, but it’s the combination of Pitto’s chords and instrumentation that give this track it’s unique edge.

The EP finishes off with Pete Herbert’s remix of ‘Sammie’. Pete’s version has that full-on summer appeal with his recognizable style of modern day island disco. He adds a bit of drama to the track with some big breakdowns, changeovers in the piano riff and turns the Balearic vibe up a notch with an added dreamy solo.

We’re happy to have Pitto back on Heist and this unique and diverse EP is one we hope will create a lot of smiles on the dance floor in the coming months.

Yours Sincerely,
Lars & Maarten

During a karaoke-fuelled haze in the seedy parts of Oslo, Legs 11 was formed based on a shared love of synth pop, post-punk, new wave and house music. Drawing on these influences, the band has created a diverse musical universe, ranging from dark repetitive guitar driven tracks, via infectious pop gems, to deep yet melodic dancefloor-orientated grooves. After exploring the indie-dance themes on their debut album "Another Wave" (2017), it's now time to dive into the world of (electro) pop!

Legs 11 have drawn on many different influences throughout their 15 year history. Still, at the heart of the band's musical universe, there has always been a deep love for pop-music! On their new ten-track album "The Colour Of My Heart", Legs 11 show us ten shades of their brightly pop-coloured heart.

Something is stirring in downtown Tucson. That's no great surprise perhaps: Calexico have been sending out missives from the desert for 20 years now, Giant Sand for even longer than that, and the Green on Red revival is surely overdue. Let us remind ourselves that this isn't a big city in the American sense, but that its hinterland is indeed as big as it gets. For an hour south, Mexico starts. And this is where things get interesting.

Born in Nogales, Arizona, raised in Nogales, Sonora, multi-instrumentalist and band-leader Sergio Mendoza grew up listening to the Mexican regional styles jostling for headspace in a young, music-mad mind - cumbia mainly, but mambo, rancheras and mariachi too. The border is always a fierce arena of exchange, both commercial and cultural, and so there was American music too. At one point 'rock and roll, the classics', as Mendoza himself deadpans, seemed to win out and he stopped playing those 'Latin styles' for a good decade and a half.

The return to those sounds was a strong one in 2012's Mambo Mexicano, co-produced by Mendoza and Joey Burns of Calexico - a band for which Mendoza has become an increasingly integral touring and recording member. While that record had a studied air, tentative in parts (as befits the renewal of an old love affair), ¡Vamos A Guarachar! is another beast entirely: by turns raucous ('Cumbia Volcadora', featuring Mexican electronic pioneer Camilo Lara), tender ('Misterio', surely Salvador Duran's finest moment with the band so far) and plain serious fun, as in 'Contra La Marea' and 'Mapache', it also bears a robust electronic edge, a keen pop sensibility and all the hallmarks of Mendoza's love of 60s rock, with the closing track, 'Shadows of the Mind', sure to be included if anyone decides to update the Nuggets collection for the 21st century. This is roundabout way of saying that it appears to have everything, but never too much of anything. Focused, fierce and beautifully executed by a superbly drilled set of musicians, it is a record that fully matches the band's explosive live performances.

You could, of course, take the trip to Tucson yourself, to the home of this essential set of field recordings. The scene hangs out together, so ... if the stars align and their frantic tour schedules permit, you might see any number of folks from Calexico, Giant Sand or up-and-coming cumbia rockers Xixa deep in conversation somewhere in town with a quiet young man in black. That's Sergio. Right now, in this endless game of Tucson tag, Orkesta Mendoza are IT.