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2023 sees the return of multi-talented Norwegian producer Espen Horne to Wah Wah 45s, after a 24 year hiatus. The man behind the label's very first release, the now seminal Magnetica, never lost his connection with the imprint and has remained very much part of the Wah Wah family, making a comeback this year with his first solo material under his own name since that club classic from 1999.

Back in the spring, the first single from the project, the gorgeous soul-jazz beauty Bakeren, featuring the stunning vocals of Resonators' Faye Houston, quickly found a home on Gilles Peterson's internationally renowned BBC Radio 6 show as well as that of Jazz FM legend Robbie Vincent, Bandcamp Weekly and the Fresh Finds Jazz Spotify playlist.

Following that, Bergen Sunrays, became a weekly fixture on the Craig Charles Funk & Soul Show on BBC 6 Music, with the limited 7-inch of both singles selling out within hours of release.

Next up was the wistful Den Franske Gitaren, a lugubrious soul-jazz piece with drum & bass leanings featuring Bergen based MC and vocalist Aich, which found favour with legends Laurent Garnier and Jazzanova as well as hot Japanese production outfit Dazzle Drums.

This was closely followed by the final single to be taken from the album, the stunning and outspoken vocal jazz waltzer Nada Pode Me Calar (which roughly translates to Nothing Can Shut Me Up!) featuring the sublime talent of Olav Wöllo on vocals and Juno - anotherr big one with Gilles Peterson on Worldwide FM and Deb Grant on BBC 6 Music.

And now the full album, entitled The Anatomy Of Serene Eloquence is available for your aural delectation. Recorded largely during lockdown, the LP is a sophisticated and composed piece of work that sees the Norwegian producer make connections with musicians from across Europe, and some closer to home, to collaborate on this sedate and peaceful collection of songs.

The aforementioned Faye Houston also appears on the soulful, dub flavoured Don't Fall Asleep, a piece of music that explores the feeling of being isolated whilst sharing a mutual love and drive to explore new sonic possibilities.

Elsewhere, Olav Wöllo pops up again too, this time on O Mar E A Lua and once again singing in Portuguese to give this track a certain Tropicalia feel, as Espen explains:

"Olav Wöllo is a close friend, an excellent musician and vocalist, and a capoeira professor here in Bergen. He has spent much of his life living in Brazil and speaks Portuguese fluently. He wrote the lyrics for this tune years ago and had just been waiting for the right collaboration to come along.

We went to his lovely studio out on this remote island, made a massive gyoza meal, had some serious good wine and stayed the whole night to record his vocal harmonies and outspoken lyrics."

The single Bergen Sunrays also appears on the album in instrumental form with featured keys courtesy of London based player Rory More - here entitled Rory's Sunrays. His Lowrey organ adds a more melancholic feel to the track, as it does on the stunning Belle Époque, alongside the ivory work of Eirik Blåsternes - an emotional, contemplative and atmospheric track that was tested and shaped in the eclipse of Covid.

As with Belle Époque, La Psychosomnie is a playful yet explorative cut that examines insomnia, paralysis and hypnosis courtesy of some enigmatic French spoken word spinning around a framework of drums, bass and swirling keys.

And finally, the album offers up an alternative version of the single Den Franske Gitaren, this time featuring Martin Halla, a vocalist out of the Bergen Grieg Jazz Academy and winner of the Norwegian version of The Voice back in 2012! The perfect flip to Aich's more mournful interpretation of this bass and drum future classic.

It’s been a few years since Captain Mustache took a ride with Kompakt – 2021, to be exact, when he released the “Everything” single, and subsequently made an appearance on that year’s entry in the Total series. But this visionary French producer has been busy, indeed fiercely productive, ever since, appearing on Helena Hauff’s Return To Disorder and John Digweed’s Bedrock, collaborating with Dave Clarke, Popof, The Advent, Paris The Black Fu, Keith Tucker from AUX88... and two beautifully eloquent albums, Tourbillon Nocturne and Indigo Memories. But with The Super Album, Captain Mustache returns to Kompakt with his most sublime collection yet. On The Super Album, the Captain soundtracks an imagined “whole day for party people.” He welcomes friends old and new on board: opening with the poetic club banger of “About Love”, with guest appearance from Speakwave (aka dynArec), The Super Album shifts gears into the lush, sunny “Shifting Basslines”, where Captain Mustache’s pulsing electro-disco is the perfect fit for a third collaboration with electroclash pioneers Chicks on Speed. After the deep techno pulsations of “Laser Me” and the glitzy pop shine of “Gimme Ya Mustache”, more guests arrive: Arnaud Rebotini of Black Strobe on the slinky “I Love Watching U”, and then a spoken cameo from the truly legendary French disco diva Amanda Lear on “Mustache Of The Universe”, a glitzy glitterball of a song that’s shrouded in ghostly synths. All those tracks appear on the 12” version of The Super Album – download the digital version and you get six more slices of Mustache magic. Here, the narrative turns more insular, more dancefloor focused – the party people have moved through the daytime and they’re in their element, diving deep into the night-time economy. The album spirals, beautifully, into stark electro, driving techno, with great moments of beauty and melancholy – see the pointillist arpeggios of “Everything” (which features Play Paul), the disco stomp of “Acapulco Citron”, and a breath-taking double-bill of stripped back psychedelic electro on “Pulsions Organiques”, and the layered, luscious, swooning “Clair-Obscur”. From there, it’s an astral glide into the Dopplereffekt-ish “Galaxian Symbiosis” before Foremost Poets join Captain Mustache to wave the night goodbye with the brittle, brilliant “Floorwax”. It’s a day in the life, but all in service to the pleasures of nightlife; the dancefloor is The Super Album’s beacon, your body the pliable material moulded into evocative new shapes by this dense, hypnotic, brilliantly pop album.

As it celebrates its 50th anniversary, Bill Withers' Still Bill remains true to its title – and stands as the greatest male-fronted soul album not made by a singer named Marvin, Al, Sam, James, or Ray. Though the saying "keeping it real" did not exist in popular parlance when Withers released his sophomore effort on Sussex Records, no words better capture the music's approach, mindset, and value. Every facet of Still Bill radiates honesty, truth, and emotion.

These characteristics – along with Withers' strong singing, hybrid arrangements, and deceptively simple songwriting – have allowed the album to endure to the point where it sounds as fresh today as in 1972.

After rising into the Top 5 of the Billboard Album charts and attaining gold status within a year of release, Still Bill has long been evaluated not by sales – but according to its merit, spirit, and agelessness. Included by The Guardian on its "1,000 Albums to Hear Before You Die" list (2007) as well as in Tom Moon's 1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die book (2008), its contemporary standing as one of history's most venerated soul efforts eclipses the positive reception it enjoyed in the early ‘70s.

Still Bill walks the same hallowed ground as What's Going On, Call Me, Night Beat, and Genius + Soul = Jazz. Like those landmarks, Still Bill plays with a mix of consistency, effortlessness, and complexity that rewards repeat listening and transcends categorization.

In combining four of the era's predominant styles – Philly soul, sweaty funk, Southern-reared blues, acoustic-based folk – and melding them with standout production borrowed from both minimalist affairs and sophisticated singer-songwriter albums, Still Bill occupies a distinct universe.

Its rhythmic fare is equally laidback and invigorating; relaxing and rollicking; eloquent and muscular; soft and tough. Withers' calm, self-assured voice hovers above it all, doubling as a warm blanket that adds comfort and grace to lyrics steeped in maturity, perspective, and compassion.

Withers' balanced outlook on human desires, needs, and situations stem from his own existence as a former blue-collar employee who believed his time as a musician would soon end. That grounding forever separates Withers from other contemporary soul greats – and stamps Still Bill with a conversational nature and egoless approachability.

"I mean look, I'm really a factory worker," said Withers in 1972. "That's a real job." There's that word again: real. The songs on Still Bill are tethered to modesty and actuality, wedded to a belief in simplicity, and connected to universal truths that link us all – independent of our economic or social standing. No track better exemplifies those principles than "Lean on Me," a feel-good paean to brotherhood and community that hit No. 1 on the pop and R&B charts en route to becoming a mainstream staple.

Withers approaches the plainspoken insight on "Lonely Town, Lonely Street" and heartbreaking vulnerability of "I Don't Want You on My Mind" with similar sincerity and straightforwardness. His proclivity for authenticity extends to the record's other big hit: the sexual, funk-laden "Use Me," which reached No. 2 and reflects the singer's everyman persona. It's an identity couched in keeping it real, the very inclination that ultimately led Withers to retire in the mid-'80s rather than bend to industry pressures or risk credibility.

That commitment to truthfulness and realism helps make Still Bill feel as unaffected as the air we breathe. Looking back on "Lean on Me" years later, Withers said it seemed like "something that was there before I got here" – the kind of song that could be 100 or 10 years old, or one we encounter anew 10 years into the future. The same can be said for every note on Still Bill.

Under the name Matsutake, saxophonist Côme Rothé and producer Jérémy Vieille (2/3 of Zerolex Trio) collaborate with French ethnologists and the Echo System concert hall to create a book-record around the theme "Making materials sing".

The album 1538 dresses this project with an immersive and cinematic jazz, tinged with ambient and experimental music.
The organic and metallic sounds come into harmony with a rare sensitivity to illustrate this study on objects and their history.

Dennis Quin returns to his own self-titled imprint with the ‘Temptation’ EP, comprised of four sturdy original House cuts from the Dutch producer and DJ.

Throughout the past decade, Dutch artist Dennis Quin has amassed widespread support from many leading figures in the underground house scene through material on the likes of PIV, Cecille, Defected, Jerome Sydenham’s Iconic Ibadan and Kaoz Theory, as well as collaborating with the latter label’s founder, Kerri Chandler, and yet another icon of House, Todd Terry amongst others. Here though, Dennis tips the focus towards his own label to deliver more of his raw grooves, crisp beats, and bouncy bass lines.

Title-track ‘Temptation’ leads and lays down a choppy bass line, euphoric piano keys, classic rave stabs and a hooky vocal lick alongside his signature swinging, robust drum style. ‘Ascending’ follows next and sees Quin lean towards a more percussive led feel via heavily shuffled drums, dubbed out vocal chants and twitchy stab sequences.

Opening the flip side of the EP is ‘Odessey’, this time bringing a wavey, elongated bass line into the limelight, subtly nuanced throughout for hypnotic effect while a bouncy drum workout carries the groove throughout. ‘Love Fiyaa’ then rounds out the EP on a raw and reduced tip, fusing ethereal pad swells and murky bass flutters with a stripped-back and sporadic dub vocals.


DJ Support:

Enzo Siragusa
Archie Hamilton
Chrissy
Okain
Freedom
Severino
Jimpster
Mr. V

Igziabeher Yi mas gan (Let Jah be Praised!) - as we follow up with the next release forwarding from Ashanti Selah Music; we are proud to present a fresh combination to the label with Iqulah Rastafari who is a true ambassador and master of his faith as well as being a high-caliber artist in his own right; this release delivers the whole roots and nothing but the roots in its full entirety. Hailing from Jamaica and toured the 4 corners of the world with his band 'Giddeon Family' as well as performing many shows in Africa with the 'Azania Band' - Iqulah always brings the spiritual power and most honourable Rasta energy in connection with the music; making it a such an engaging experience when being among the vibration.

The Maxi-single offers two original vocals and two dub mixes per side with strong lyrics and heavy riddims to accompany!

Lined up next on Cosmocities is a special delivery and direct nod to our formative years’ loves - in this very case, trance music. Fruit of 90s cross-channel outfit Prism, the collaborative endeavour of French producer Pascal Eloy and UK-based Grant Wilkinson, the three-track EP “CMSR006” mixes unreleased music (Refraction), a 1996-issued goodie (Rain) and an exclusive remix from SYO, better known for his ambitiously retro-futuristic output under the S.O.N.S moniker.

Originally released as part of Planet Dog’s 1996 compilation “Feed Your Head”, “Rain” retains all of its original mystique and soulful use of modern production tools - letting a cascading flow of arpeggiated synths, stealth bass onslaughts and 303-borne trippiness pour down as a fully immersive digital shower for the senses.

An unheard gem from the vault, initially written and recorded in 1995, “Refraction” pulls further dynamic traction from a bubbling drum programming and damp, urban jungle-y atmosphere - beaming us straight back in the rave’s most compelling heyday with its feverish maelstrom of fluttering bleeps, spiralling tribal motifs and faux-organic, Neo-Easternmost harmonics.

Adding his ever innovative spin to the table, SYO cuts into the flesh of the original to deliver a further syncopated and spacious version, flush with complex rhythmic sleights of hand and subtle melodic trickery throughout, bound to keep you on the edge with every bar. 25 years on since it was first designed, Prism’s lasting relevancy shines bright on this all-road, bold-to-the-full trance epic that’s lost nothing of its flair.

With „Time Machine EP“ Next Door launches a new motto vinyl record.

Dark, driving, Acid!

On the first track on “Eloi-side” you will find a completely astounded inhabitant of a far future world, who has no answers to the questions of a time-traveler. The second track takes place during a rapid trip - plunging into two worlds.

On the “Morlock-side” machines are working monotonically with the inhabitants in dark caves below the earth’s surface in a far future. Track two is a serious call for a wild dance in a driving ¾ beat.
Have you ever heard anything like it?

The Computer Controlled Minds deliver four remarkable tracks on vinyl. You must experience this!


Mit der Time Machine EP bringt Next Door eine weitere Mottoplatte an den Start.

Dunkel, treibend, Acid !

Auf der Eloi Seite findet Ihr im ersten Track eine völlig verblüffte Bewohnerin einer fernen Zukunft, die auf die Fragen des Zeitreisenden keinerlei Antworten hat. Der zweite Track spielt sich während der rasanten Reise beim Eintauchen zwischen den Welten ab.

Auf der Morlock Seite hingegen arbeiten im ersten Track die Maschinen monoton, in einer fernen Zukunft, unterhalb der Erdoberfläche in dunkeln Höhlen mit ihren Bewohnern. Track zwei dieser Seite ist ein eindringlicher Aufruf zum wilden Tanz im treibenden ¾ Takt!

Habt Ihr so etwas schon mal gehört?

The Computer Controlled Minds bringen hier vier vollkommen krasse Tracks auf Vinyl, das solltet Ihr euch unbedingt geben!

Brooklyn-based queer nightlife luminary Jasmine Infiniti self-released her debut album, BXTCH SLÄP, in March 2020. Dark Entries steps forward to present the album remastered and on double vinyl. Over the thirteen disruptive club cuts of BXTCH SLÄP, Jasmine conjures occult rave incantations with sub-tectonic bass and seductive harmonies. Audaciously championing R&B, vogue, and hip-hop sounds, Jasmine Infiniti’s latest collection of techno-hybrid dance tunes is built for the dancefloors of underground nightlife.
While SiS, her debut EP, was an ode to queer solidarity, community, and sisterhood, BXTCH SLÄP refines the art of personal myth-building. It is an unflinching and uncompromising album, but it also boasts surprising range, moving briskly between ethereal hardcore house (“HOTT”), anxious dark electro (“SPOOKED”), and certifiable techno bangers (“YES, SIR”, “WELLFAIR”). Meanwhile album standout “<3” hovers just above 100 BPM, a defiant statement of euphoric sensuality that’s no less gripping for its dramatic deceleration. Closing number “SHONUFF” clocks in at ten and half minutes, but not a second of this acid-laced adrenaline rush feels wasted. BXTCH SLÄP might be suited for the high-impact dancefloor, but this music takes on a new life in the moments we spend between the parties, alone and full of desire.
BXTCH SLÄP was mastered by George Horn at Fantasy Studios. The sleeve features photography from Guerrilla Davis and hand drawn Infiniti logo designed by Eloise Leigh with a 3-D chrome effect by Sebastian Ortega. Each copy includes a 3-D chrome die-cut sticker. The Queen of Hell is back and her powers are stronger than ever. All hail The Queen!

Group Rhoda, the solo project of Mara Barenbaum, returns to Dark Entries with ‘Passing Shades’. An integral member of the Oakland electronic music scene, Barenbaum has been writing, performing, and plunging into oneiric depths as Group Rhoda since 2009. This is the project’s fourth LP, and the third time Barenbaum has collaborated with Dark Entries; previously on the Max & Mara LP ‘Less Ness’ in 2013 and the Group Rhoda LP ‘Wilderless’ in 2017.
Passing Shades is an investigation of the metaphysics of loss and the transitory nature of the material world. But it is not a grim collection; over 8 songs, Group Rhoda diverges through synthesizer-laden symphonics, four-to-the-floor inflections, and cosmic musings. Barenbaum’s striking voice and singular songcraft guide us through this labyrinth. Arpeggiated waltz “Flow” channels wisdom sought through martial arts; “Earthly Ark” sets a Margaret Atwood poem from the God Gardener’s Hymn Book to somber electronics. The vocoded canticle “Nevermore” is dedicated to the memory of a beloved cat. ‘Passing Shades’ is both mystifying and revelatory. Folk forms are echoed only to detour into the alien. Each song functions as both a fragment of a larger puzzle and a koan unto itself.
‘Passing Shades’ was mastered by George Horn at Fantasy Studios. The sleeve was designed by Eloise Leigh, and features a hazy, clouded sky. The back cover uses a photograph by Harry Crofton. A postcard featuring a poem by Barenbaum is included, as well as a digital download.

Berlin-based, Dutch-born Steffi possesses near-boundless prowess. As a DJ, she’s proved her effortless mastery of disco, house, electro, and techno; as helm of labels Klakson and Dolly, she’s long maintained her status as tastemaker; as a producer, she has graced us with three solo LPs and numerous 12”s. Dark Entries is now honored to unveil the debut of her project Crushed Soul, a moniker she had used only once in 2013 for an Ostgut Ton compilation track. The mutual esteem of Steffi and DE has been previously fruitful, with Steffi providing a remix for Cute Heels’ 2016 EP on DE, but this is their first full-length collaboration.

The Family of Waves EP represents both familiar and novel pastures for Steffi. While her love of electro and classic Detroit techno have been oft-evident, here we witness the darker shades of new wave and industrial creep to the forefront. This turn for the twisted feels not just natural, but predestined, an inevitable succumbing to morbid forces. But Steffi also views Family as “a playful association...a mix of my past and new modern waves". There is a kernel of whimsy, even joy, lurking within the record’s temporal jumblings. The A-side opens with “Gravitational Field”, which juxtaposes its gnarled bassline with unearthly percussives and a recurrent resonant gong. The wild sonic palette speaks Steffi’s singular voice. “Scalar Property” continues the paranoid propulsion with an unhealthy dose of what can only be described as Metroid-funk, its staccato bass jabs interlaced with ghastly vocal pads. The B-side contains a diptych of slower tracks that juggle reference points both retro and futurist. In “Family of Waves”, a churning EBM-esque bassline battles acerbic yelps. On this track, the collision of past and present is most pronounced, as if A Split Second were covering Mike Parker. “Diffusion of Heat” closes the EP with what feels like a perfect synthesis of Steffi’s musical passions: funky, warbling chord stabs; intricate rhythmic diversions; the ecstasy of repetition. Here, disco, new wave, and techno marry harmoniously, if only to inform us of the disharmony of our present.

All songs have been mastered for vinyl by George Horn at Fantasy Studios. The sleeve and accompanying postcard were designed by Eloise Leigh using video art stills by Goldenliustra.

We are proud to release ‘Fortunate Isolation’ the sophomore album from Borusiade. Born and raised in Bucharest, Romania, Borusiade aka Miruna Boruzescu started DJ-ing in 2002 as one of the very few female DJs in the city’s emerging alternative clubbing scene. Influenced by a classical musical education, a bachelor in film direction and fascinated by raw electronic sounds, Borusiade first combined these universes in the construction of her DJ sets and starting 2005 also in her music production. A sound of her own has slowly crystallized, often dark with poignant bass lines, obsessive themes and by all means melodic. She has released EPs on labels like Pinkman, Unterton, Cititrax, Correspondant and Cómeme, who released her debut album ‘A Body’ in 2018.

‘Fortunate Isolation’ is perhaps Borusiade’s most personal release to date. Eight songs that capture a bystander witnessing the world as it undergoes drastic changes. We have disconnected ourselves from ecology, humanity, preservation, care for what surrounds us, for what is still alive. Borusiade adds, “| know that this place, our home has went through so many other extinctions, but | believe things will find their own way on this planet only once we are gone. Entropy creates a time-line but also a transformation - a new beginning.” The album’s sound is gloomy and powerful mixing sonic film sequences, rhythmic excursions and soothing yet obsessive vocals that touch one’s deepest senses. Lyrically the songs tackle themes of forgotten memories, spirituality, mortality, and destruction. All songs have been mastered by George Horn at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley. Each copy is housed in a jacket designed by Eloise Leigh with decaying daguerreotypes against a rust color palette and includes an insert with lyrics.

Celebrating a Decade of Dark Entries with a compilation titled ‘Tens Across The Board’. We revisit our roster and chose 10 songs from 10 bands from 10 different countries spanning the years 1981-1993. The songs flow in chronological order and have never appeared on vinyl, with 7 of the songs previously unreleased.

The compilation begins in 1981 with Parade Ground from Belgium, the duo of brothers Pierre and Jean-Marc Pauly with help from Patrick Codenys and Jean-Luc of Front 242. “The Light’s Gone” was one of their earliest experiments and employs a stark minimalism with modular synthesizers, guitar reverb and tape delay. Next we venture to Granada, Spain in 1982 to meet the trio of Diseño Corbusier. Influenced by Cabaret Voltaire and Dadaism, “La Esperanza está en Antenas” was the band’s take on melancholic pop fueled by a robotic DR-55 bass-line. Sailing the Mediterranean Sea to Athens to meet Greek electronic goddess Lena Platonos who shares a demo from 1983. “Μια Γάτα Σασ Περιμένει Στη Γωνία” translates to “A Cat Is Waiting On The Corner” and is possibly the witchiest sounds we’ve shared yet, ending with a blood curdling scream. Frozen in 1983 we cross Ionian Sea to Messina, Italy and visit Victrola, the duo of Antonino “Eze” Cuscinà and Carlo Smeriglio. They’ve unearthed a melodic instrumental version of “Luca” fueled by a Korg Polysix and TB-303. Traveling across the Adriatic to Slovenia circa 1984, where Borghesia are working on their album ‘Ljubav Je Hladnija Od Smrti’. “Magla” translates to “Fog” fitting for the thick, somber electronics of Aldo Ivancic providing a dense atmosphere for the baritone vocals of Dario Seraval.

On Side B we go down under to Sydney and excavate a hidden Tom Ellard song recorded in 1984 under the alias Lord Metal, an anagram of his name for copyright reasons. “Ga Duum Blitzfonika” is a slow-motion, unadulterated dance groove originally released on the cassette compilation "Independent World”. Skipping ahead to 1986 in Tours, France we salute X-Ray Pop the minimum new wave duo of Didier "Doc" Pilot and Zouka Dzaza. They contribute the hypnotically fragile “Corto Maltese” that originally appeared on the cassette compilation ‘Plop’. Crossing the German boarder we arrive in Dortmund at the apartment of Andreas Sippel of Second Decay who recorded the instrumental demo “Lübeckerstrasse” in 1988 with partner Christian Purwien. Utilizing an TR-808, SH-101 and Arp Odyssey this cold slice of futurism was named after the street Andreas lived on. Traveling westward to England, specifically Basildon, Essex to the teenage bedroom of From Nursery To Misery, the trio of identical twin sister vocalists Gina and Tina Fear and keyboard player Lee Stevens. “Contentment” is an introspective, ethereal pop song with child-like vocals that originally appeared on the Belgian tape compilation ‘Heartbeat Vol.4’ in 1989. Finally, we return home to San Francisco and close out the compilation with Cyrnai the moniker of multi-instrumentalist Carolyn Fok. “Digital Grit Box (Demo)” was an outtake from the ‘Transfiguration’ album sessions recorded in 1993, utilizing dark dance drum beats made with MIDI sequencer programs Studio Vision and Sample Cell.

All songs have been remastered by George Horn at Fantasy Studios. The vinyl is housed in a custom designed jacket by Eloise Leigh featuring our label’s colors black-white-red with connect-the-dots pattern linking the 10 songs via maps/timeline/location, all relating to the reissue process, plus source images from San Francisco, our hometown. For this landmark release we've also printed a 2-sided fold-out wall poster that includes every artist we've released in our first 10 years 2009-2019 in black, red and silver metallic ink, plus an 8x11 insert with lyrics, notes and photos.