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Andrew Scott, aka NY*AK, Scott has remained a consistent representative of the music scene and we're delighted to have him on board for the first release of 2018 on Local Talk, Bound EP.

We're treated to four tracks, the opening track 'Bound' is a cut up, soulful disco house slammer.
Next up we got Dancing, a perfect example of Andrew's skill when it coms to slowing down the tempo but still letting the track have enough character to keep you...'dancing'.

On the flip we got 'See More' which takes you straight to a dark and gritty club with it's stuttering chords, tight drums and pulsing bass.
Last but not least we got 'Sandwiches' which features long time collaborator Ian Blevins.
A stunning low deep groove for any Theo Parrish or Marcellus Pittman fans out there.

James Ramey, better known by his self-depreciating stage name Baby Huey, was a potently flamboyant presence in Chicago's soul scene during the 1960s. Though he suffered weight problems throughout his life due to a glandular disorder, he was easily recognizable for his appearance, which featured an enormous afro, and long, flowing African robes. He and his band The Babysitters were a wildly popular and successful local act across Illinois, cutting numerous 45 singles, without releasing a single full-length album. A chance audition with Donny Hathaway and Curtis Mayfield of Curtom Records would change everything for the band. Though the two of them were pleased with the group, they opted only to sign Baby Huey without the Babysitters. Huey would go on to spend much of

1970 recording a studio debut of psychedelic soul and funk music, comprised largely of covers of tracks by Mayfield, Sam Cooke, and others, plus two original compositions. During this time the now 400-pound singer struggled with addiction to alcohol and heroin. Huey would not see the release of his debut album, dying at the age of 26 from a drug-related heart attack. So many years after its 1971 release, Baby Huey's studio album Baby Huey: The Living Legend went on to become a cult phenomenon, a massive influence to hip-hop artists and fans, and is now considered a classic of its era. Tracks from the album have been a treasure trove of sample material for artists like A Tribe Called Quest, Wu-Tang Clan, DJ Shadow, and The Chemical Brothers to name just a few. Additionally Huey's own vocal style, which dabbled in sing-song melodies and self-referential rhyming, has been said to have influenced the development of rapping itself.

LP Maxime Daoud, a much sought after musician accompanying Forever Pavot and his brother Adrien Soleiman, has released under the alias Ojard a first album of soft and delicate instrumental vignettes. If '' Euphonie '' calls for cinematographic comparisons (Vladimir Cosma, Basil Kirchin), the minimalism of the arrangements, the simplicity of the melodies conjure up to Erik Satie's '' furniture music '' and Brian Eno's 'thinking music.

Two unreleased recordings dug up by the team at Numero Group for their Purple Snow comp (GET IT), these were begging to be put on 45. Recorded at Audiotek Studios Inc in 1975. David Z, who engineered Lipps Inc's "Funkytown" and several Prince productions, piloted both these recordings. 'Get It On' is the perfect end up night stone groove track, i can't recommend this record enough, buy it. Another completely selfish venture, i just wanted this on 45.

We know you've been waiting for this one since last summer! Caspa's debut on Youngsta's ridiculously on-point Sentry has been one of the most requested releases in a very long time. Hot on the heels of releases by dBridge, Nomine and Akcept, the Sub Soldier comes in hard with two absolute burn-ups...

'Gutter Riddim' is a stately spacious construction where every weighty element is carefully considered and plays a key role in the momentum. Tightly sprung tension buzzes through it with high voltage as Caspa lays down some of his darkest designs to date. 'Hot Head' hurls us even deeper into the shadows. A true teaser piece, the first bass line is a staccato stab that gives you just enough time to settle into the groove before the real big-balls bass line comes hurtling out of nowhere.

Rewind every single time, this has been causing uncut mayhem for the few DJs lucky to have it early enough. Timelessly gully and a perfect way to kick the doors of 2018 in. As those who were at Sentry's first anniversary at Fire earlier this month will corroborate: London's heart rate is pounding away at 140 again, some of the most crucial bass music is coming out of the city and Sentry, Youngsta and Caspa are slap bang in the heart of it. The wait is over... Enjoy.

Tardis Records are delighted to welcome UK tech-house hero Flow to the Tardis Records stable for their eighth release. The three tracks making up the Trine EP were recorded together with Simon Moorecroft (a.k.a. Simon Vinyl Junkie) around the time of his first vinyl releases back in 1996-1997. All three tracks sound completely contemporary whilst having more than enough old school flavour to give flashbacks to any 90's ravers. Lead track 'Boy Girl Action' has skipping, garage-influenced beats with rolling bass and swirling atmospherics, whilst a breakbeat, vocals and a stabby intro give 'Trine' on the flip a more ravey feel. Closing out the EP, 'I See You' is the dubbiest cut here, with another heavy bassline, cut-up vocals,and subtly swung percussion. Eli and Oscar have loved testing these tracks out on the road and can vouch for their impact on a peak-time dancefloor!

raw, soulful and agitating: glenn astro, the humble house sorcerer from berlin, produced four tunes and a sweet interlude for mule musiq that point out: house music is still heading for the future.
with countless eps, album's and collaborations for labels like ninja tune, tartlet or his own co-owned imprint money $ex records, the dj and producer already emphasized that he thinks house counter to the trend.
his new ep shows this anew with unpolished, speedy, even techno-like rhythms and deep gentle melodies. dance music for jagged movers that have enough of high gloss sounds.
if house music is a spiritual, a body, a soul thing, then glenn astro delivers some real fresh groov-ing prayers.

B. Fleischmann, the longest-tenured solo artist on Morr Music, returns with indie-spirited, electronica-enhanced moments of bliss on his new album Stop Making Fans': Recorded with a little help from friends including vocalist Gloria Amesbauer, Markus Schneider (guitars), and Valentin Duit (drums), it's a two-part reflection on artistic self-reliance vs. fame-seeking conformism, another deeply personal, utterly idiosyncratic album by the Indietronic trailblazer.Stop it and just DO,' Sol LeWitt once wrote to sculptor Eva Hesse - and listening to B. Fleischmann's new album, he indeed does both: He slams on the brakes and stops looking at what anyone else is doing, stops pleasing, stops being restrained, and at the same time he floors the accelerator and delivers the kind of high-paced work that bursts at the seams with polyphonic energy and an urgency unique to his music.Arriving with interlocked bleeps, the hustle and bustle of an invisible grand station's atrium ( Here Comes The A Train'), Fleischmann's trademark vocals serve as a gentle reminder to resist the siren calls, to not trust the latest hype. Energy levels remain high throughout the first part of the LP - whether it's the mumbling, personal stocktaking of what feels like an underwater hymn ( There Is A Head'), the robotic, immodest pop tune It's Not Enough' (feat. Gloria Amesbauer) or the return to light-speed mode on Wakey Wakey' - the first half of this album is indeed all about letting off some steam.After the collected canter of 7-minute instrumental Hand In,' the multi-instrumentalist & his studio mates kick off the slower-paced part II with the title song: a note to self, a reminder to never buckle or water down an original vision... and indeed, it's a sonic tapestry that's impossible to compare or pigeonhole when he changes the rhythm in mid-track and turns yet another corner when you thought you had discovered a fixed pattern. That said, B. Fleischmann certainly knows how to orchestrate an entire funfair full of sonic attractions. Guest singer Gloria Amesbauer returns for soothing tunes The Pros of Your Children and "Hello Hello . B. Fleischmann guides us to his almost jazz-tinged Little Toy , and leaves behind an Endless Stunner — another typically dense and shape-shifting stream of harmonies that keeps winding its way until the very end of this album It's rare that an album is great because it does not live up to its title - but here's one. Stop Making Fans,' his first full-length release in five years, is another totally unique, and thus potentially fan-base enhancing release. But then again, it's always been like that: We're usually at our best when we care the least - look at the delightful ways of toddlers or really old people. That natural ease, those invisible shrugs of shoulders: it's what does the trick. And you can hear a lot of that on Stop Making Fans'.

Boris Bunnik is no stranger in the worl d of electronic music. He released several albums and ep's under a variety of monikers since 2007 on labels like Delsin, Shipwrec, Frustrated Funk and his own Transcendent imprint. Fauxpas Musik welcomes him for a new project called Severnaya. Originally hailing from the Island of Terschelling, the most Northern and remote part of the Netherlands he now made a piece of music dedicated to this special place. Severnaya means north in Russian and refers to the bright frozen landscapes of the northern archipels. Boris often plays with the influences and elements of ambient in his music. If we have to believe the man himself, Polar Skies is his most personal sound trajectory to come from his mind. Drum programming is scarce and what remains is a lush and profound listening experience floating on scapes and melodies. We clearly hear his roots and intentions represented in the airy, tranquil sound design of this new album project. Things sound spacious, and life is at ease in these melancholic compositions. Crispy crackling percussions and icey pads place you in the midst of a resonant arctic landscape. You can hear influences drawn from producers like Biosphere, Pub, Brian Eno but we also hear more contemporary influences from modern day film composition but most of all we here Boris his own signature. The tracks were composed over a couple of years (2015-2017) in a more contemplative mindset. At some point this selection formed a consistent piece of music and as a result you hear his most personal and fragile works to date. Fauxpas Musik is proud to release this new project in 2018. written and produced by Boris Bunnik aka Conforce at the PasadenaOceanlab Studios Special thanks to family, friends and Fauxpas

Under the alias of Zanov we find the works of French electronic pioneer Pierre Salkazanov, who had started playing guitar in the 1960s in a Shadows styled band, Les Ambassadors. Instrumental rock was not enough for Salkazanov, he was always looking for evolution, so when a meeting with French synth player Serge Ramses (of "Secret" fame) got him into the world of synthesizers he just dived deep into the bourgeoning world of electronic music. He got himself his first syths and started producing works into a 4-track Teac tape machine. French music was at its best, it was the time of Jean Michel Jarre, Didier Bocquet, Richard Pinhas and Heldon, Alain Meunier... Even Gong's Tim Blake was living in France at that time. And so Zanov soon caught the attention of Polydor, who released Green Ray in 1976. It is a work made with minimal equipment if compared to other French sythetists, not to mention their German peers, he worked on the EMS VCS3 synth and used a 4-track Teac and a Revox A77 Mk IV reel to reel tape recorders obtaining huge sound results. You can appreciate an influence from the Berlin school, Green Ray walks the same path of what artists like Tangerine Dream and the likes were producing at the time, Zanov had felt under the spell of Ricochet, but his head was boiling with ideas which gave the recordings a very personal, unique touch.

Zanov's three albums met with unanimous critical acclaim for the sound quality as well as for the originality of this very personal universe.

Under the alias of Zanov we find the works of French electronic pioneer Pierre Salkazanov, who had started playing guitar in the 1960s in a Shadows styled band, Les Ambassadors. Instrumental rock was not enough for Salkazanov, he was always looking for evolution, so when a meeting with French synth player Serge Ramses (of "Secret" fame) got him into the world of synthesizers he just dived deep into the bourgeoning world of electronic music. He got himself an EMS VCS3 and started producing works into a 4-track Teac tape machine. French music was at its best, it was the time of Jean Michel Jarre, Didier Bocquet, Richard Pinhas and Heldon, Alain Meunier... Even Gong's Tim Blake was living in France at that time. By the time of his second LP, Moebius 256 301, issued also on Polydor in 1977, Zanov had already gathered a small collection of gear, including an ARP 2600 and an ARP sequencer, his old VCS3, an RMI Harmonic and a PS 3300. Again under the influence of both first and second generation of Berlin school musicians the LP will appeal to fans of Klaus Schulze or Tangerine Dream, but they will also find a big deal of Zanov's own personal sound on it, since as the musician himself reckons he had little contact with other peers of his generation, so besides a general love for the electronic gear used and the sounds you could make out of them the creative ideas behind his works were all his own. On his second album a richer sound is found, not only due to the use of the new gear, since some of its tracks where recorded using only his old EMS, but also due to his won experience after having taken his works to the life stages in the Golf Drouot boite, the Lase Olympia venue (on the basement of the famous Olympia), the Paris Planetarium or those for planned one month tour (of which in the end only four dates were accomplished).

Zanov's three albums met with unanimous critical acclaim for the sound quality as well as for the originality of this very personal universe.

(Disclaimer: release notes refer to the combined CD double-album release "Hot Flash: Best of The Voltags" on which all tracks appear together. "Electric Nightmare" and "Danger High Voltag" are released separately on vinyl format)

It does not happen that often any more that unreleased music from 40 years ago surfaces. Even more unlikely it is that the songs put on tape are such treasures. The Voltags were right at the forefront of the local Washington DC New Wave/Punk scene of the late 1970s. Influenced by Kraftwerk, Gary Numan, The Clash, and The B-52's, they have released only one 45rpm single during their existence. But during the time span of not even 18 months, they had recorded enough material for an entire album - but the songs remained in the can.

This is the story of The Voltags, a short-lived band which could have become famous and mentioned in the same breath as the aforementioned music legends of that era - if their songs had been released back in the day. Dive in and enjoy the sound of The Voltags, it is truly special. We here at Perfect Toy are thrilled to be label to finally release their work and we sincerely hope that they are finally getting the appreciation they so richly deserve.

Detailed information:
Dave Bennett and Hangnail Phillips grew up in Brookside Park, Newark, Delaware, USA, a small suburban college town nestled midway between Philadelphia and Baltimore. Their first band project evolved into Pump Productions (Pump) under which they released their only 45rpm single in 1970 (one of the two songs, "Pappy's Rug", can be heard on "Down & Wired 3", Perfect Toy Rec.). Soon after the recording of the single the two graduated from High School and disbanded Pump. Both moved on to form two new Newark bands. Dave was a founding member of "Snake Grinder & The Shredded Fieldmice" and Hangnail co-founded "Rudy Baker & The Vegetables".

In early 1979, two friends of Dave's, Nick Norris and Mike Fisher, became partners in a music production company, White Clay Productions. One of White Clay's first artists was Dave Bennett who had just written two excellent songs: "Electric Jungle" and "Son Of Sam". White Clay set up a recording session and Dave assembled a group of friends to record the songs. Before the recordings were even mixed, Dave asked Hangnail if he would join in a band to support the single and other songs he had written. When James Keesey (drums) and Rick Reid (bass) were added the line-up was complete. For a while they didn't have a name and then one day Nick Norris was looking at a photo of Dave standing next to a "Danger High Voltage" sign. Dave's head was in front of the E in Voltage and Nick laughed "Danger High Voltag" and so it was soon suggested that the band should be called "The Voltags" (pronounced Vol'-togs). After months of preparing a repertoire they were ready to play out. Their first gig was (October 20, 1979) at a gay disco in nearby Wilmington called The Backstage. On December 30, 1979, White Clay decided to put on a big show at the State Theater to celebrate the end of the Seventies ("The End Of The Decade Bash").

For the next year, with the help of White Clay, they recorded 19 songs, both studio and live recordings with White Clay's mobile unit. If not for these "off the board" recordings, many of their songs would have never been recorded. There was always talk of a second Voltags single but the strains of working so closely together were taking their toll on them and Dave decided to leave the group in December of 1980. The Voltags couldn't be The Voltags without Dave, and by the end of 1981, Hangnail, James and Rick, too, were ready to disband.


- all songs previously unreleased
- mastered from the original reel-to-reel tapes
- limited vinyl release

Releasing an album into the world is a special moment for any artist but when you're an artist who grew up in remote northern Ghana with no schooling, spending a life herding cows and goats, building your own instruments and teaching yourself to sing, then there's a particular sense of occasion and celebration in finding recognition and an audience for that music.

This is the case for Guy One, an utterly unique artist who is writing and performing Frafra music, a style that originates from a small area in the north of Ghana. Whilst Guy One is already loved and adored locally by now - building up a fervent following in local villages in which no funeral or wedding would take place without his soaring voice and deeply rhythmic playing, before then transforming into an award-winning, TV appearing artist in Ghana - his music is now to find a much wider audience through Max Weissenfeldt's Philophon label (Jimi Tenor, Hailu Mergia, Alemayehu Eshete) on this Berlin meets Bolgatanga release.

Guy One's international debut #1 is an album rooted in tradition as much as it is the contemporary ("Frafra music Made in Germany" says drummer producer Max Weissenfeldt if he's forced to put a label on it) but given the fact that the traditionalism of Frafra music itself is a largely unknown force, the results are more even more potent and stirring in their creations. Choirs, trumpet, organ, bass, drums, synthesiser, vibraphone, saxophone and piano, the album is as bursting with instrumentation as it is ideas and innovation.

The album's perfect positioning between the old and the new and in taking that middle ground and launching it into completely new territory is enough to completely unglue the definitions of what music can be.

Clocking in at 11 minutes, this is a radical deconstruction of the track 'Bint El Khandaq' that appears on the Mashrou' Leila album 'Ibn El Leil'. Lost Souls Of Saturn tease out the underlying emotion and yearning present in the original and take the listener on a beguiling, symphonic ambient journey that calls to mind Wolfgang Voigt's much loved Gas project, or the shimmering imaginary landscapes of Brian Eno. Renowned for their rousing, sensual electro-pop Mashrou' Leila's songs touch on political freedom, LGBT rights, race, religion and modern Arabic identity.
Lost Souls Of Saturn were approached by the band to reinterpret the original track and the stunning results fit perfectly as their debut release on R&S. This is the next step in the evolution of Seth Troxler and Phil Moffa's Lost Souls Of Saturn project. Look out for an album on R&S in 2018.

In 1980 Ilitch mastermind Thierry Müller released his second LP, 10 Suicides, on the French imprint S.C.O.P.A. Unlike his debut Periodikmindtrouble (also available from Superior Viaduct), which featured intricately layered instrumentals, 10 Suicides explores a more art-damaged pop sensibility. While distorted guitars and atmospheric synth workouts remain a part of Müller's signature sound, several songs credit the mysterious Ruth Ellyeri, who was not an actual person, but rather Müller's female alter-ego. Opening track "Elle Voulait Que Je Sois Drôle" shows Ilitch's new direction with overloaded vocoders, driving Moog basslines and soft, Eno-like melodic flourishes. The androgynous vocals on "Waiting For Mabelle (Je Ne Viendrais Pas)" resemble an upbeat Gregorian chant bent through a 20th century lens. 10 Suicides is a staggeringly personal album that still sounds years ahead of its time.This first-time vinyl reissue comes with 16-page booklet and is recommended for fans of Ghédalia Tazartès, Chris & Cosey and Monoton.

Visible Cloaks' Lex proposes a utopian dream language and its accompanying sound, a limitless, delicate space developed by fluid musical techniques and subconscious voices. The six pieces comprising Lex simulate a more peaceful future, their mysteries telling a new tale in an unknown but imaginable melodic language. Visible Cloaks are the Portland-based musicians Spencer Doran and Ryan Carlile. Utilizing software-based composition rooted in randomization, MIDI-translation and chance operations, the duo has established an improbable humanist mode of music from esoteric processes. Following their self-titled debut album, Visible Cloaks offered Reassemblage, an album simultaneously honoring the post-Yellow Magic Orchestra school of avant musical adventure and diverging from it. Veering from the paths cleared by Japanese and Italian electronic pop and ambient artists of the mid-80s / early-90s, Reassemblage established Visible Cloaks' own camp in a forest of deep sound canopied by trees grown from synthetic seeds.The sound represented on Lex is webbed with sculptural arrangements and interpolated by the sounds of alien speech. These strange and serene utterances were created by Doran feeding a chain of multiple dialects and accents through a language translation software to create an auditory poetry of an evolved place and time.

Lex features both the final version of this process and earlier, simplified experiments with it ( Keys'). The idea - building on 'fourth world' or 'global village' type concepts - was to create a projected language that was a fusion of many,' Doran explains. The result was a very disorienting form of non-language that amplifies the lapses in meaning that occur with the inaccuracy of auto-translation software.'

Permutate Lex, a companion short film to Lex made by Visible Cloaks in collaboration with artist Brenna Murphy (who also created the artwork for Reassemblage and several virtualist videos for the album), is an integral counterpart, both visualizing an aesthetic alive with human form and guiding the sonic experience of the first five pieces: Wheel,' Frame,' Transient,' Keys,' and title track Lex.' World,' the longest piece presented on Lex, is redrawn from a generative composition originally produced for an installation Doran made with Murphy.

The original work incorporates LFOs and randomized MIDI-information, and was intended to variate indefinitely. In this 'fixed' version, World' provides a more conclusive view into the impossible musical environments Visible Cloaks make real. Longer than any track on
Reassemblage, World' expresses the deepening, patient intimations suggested by Lex.

Doran says the Lex attempts to communicate the essence of a world distant enough that it can't be captured or comprehended from the present, appearing only surreal and inscrutable.' The statement reveals a broader musical philosophy fueling this new moment, an awakened voice woven through complex melodic shapes and phrases establishes communication between listeners and the unknown, here presented by Visible Cloaks as sounds coloring the very edge of the envisionable.

'What was old is new again'... The old adage is so tired that nobody takes its proper measure: all people hear is the word 'old', when the important one is 'new'. Making new things out of old things is an act of alchemy. The proof is in this fifth album - no rest for the wicked of Perpignan - which is blown right open here and there by a few very contemporary guests. After the opener, 'Ouverture', with its almost surf-like guitars, comes 'Le Premier Jour', where Lionel Limiñana talks about his rock baptism with the punks, the mods, the skinheads and the Lambrettas of his youth in the South of France. What comes just after is the seismic shock of 'Istanbul is Sleepy': the Imprimatur of Anton Newcombe of The Brian Jonestown Massacre is simply enormous. Then comes Emmanuelles Seigner's super sexy tornado on the title track; and 'Dimanche' follows, with Bertrand Belin. Lionel sees him as a 'French Nick Cave who writes songs that resemble films.'. 'The Gift' features Peter Hook who scrapes his bass guitar again here; obviously a song reminiscent of an early period New Order. Finally, the Limiñanas on their own send out an instrumental cavalcade with a furious beat, like a Kraut Morricone, 'Motorizzati Marie' followed by 'Pink Flamingos', introduced with psych rock pads played backwards forming a vaporous song bathed in acoustic arpeggios. A respite in the album... before the fuzz and the abyssal bass of 'Trois Bancs' violently shakes the ghost of Gainsbou

Around the time of this recording, Stanley Cowell had achieved a degree of prominence as the pianist for the advanced bop quartet Music Inc., which he co-led with trumpeter Charles Tolliver, as well as for unusual projects like his Piano Choir. With Regeneration he chose another path, essentially trying to produce a jazz-infused pop album with strong African roots, perhaps owing a little bit to Stevie Wonder. He assembled an extremely strong cast of musicians for the venture, including Marion Brown, Billy Higgins, and Ed Blackwell, as well as several African string and percussion masters and, by and large, succeeded conceptually if not commercially. A few songs use vocals in a fairly standard pop framework, and, while they are performed capably enough, the lyrical content leaves something to be desired in typical mid-'70s fashion. But much of the rest of the music makes up for this with, among other things, a delightful fife and drum piece by Brown and strong bass work by Bill Lee (Spike's dad). Regeneration is an interesting, often enjoyable album which, aside from its own small pleasures, provides a snapshot of some of the cross-fertilization in genres occurring at the time.

Solar Phenomena welcomes singular rhythm master STL for a new EP that offers four fantastic tracks of dubby house. It is the label's fourth release and finds the Something label boss in a typically inventive mood.

First track 'Spy vs Spy' opens things with shuffling drum loops and eerie synth details that hypnotises over seven minutes. 'Atomsmasha' has wooden hits and rough shakers peppering a soft, imperfect groove as awkward chords bring an unhinged edge to the mix. On the flip, 'Summer Breeze & Brotherhood' has loose keys doing an off kilter dance over STL's trademark low-key drums where 'Freebird' zones you out with long held chords and detuned keys as cloudy, dusty kicks bring a barely-there groove deep down low. You know what to get from STL by now, but at the same time you can never get enough.

The long established and critically acclaimed DJ-Kicks series kicks off 2017 with suitably accomplished DJ, producer, vocalist and instrumentalist Matthew Dear at the helm.A man of many musical hats, Texas born, Detroit raised Dear has a wide reaching discography that takes in face melting techno as Jabberjaw, dark avant-pop under his own name and intricate minimal as Audion.Often with a gothic slant and full of curiousness, his pensive but playful music is an intoxicating distillation of many different influences, often withhis own stylised vocals at the centre.

For more than 30 years music has been the most important thing in my life - this is a clear and true to the heart statement by Soulsurfer, DJ and drummer for the Hanover-based outfit named SUPERSOUL. And yes, SUPERSOUL are a real band. A band in love with analogue instruments and mastering their craft. A rat pack of five groove fanatics accumulating enough years, wisdom and experience to tell truly authentic stories within their songs - songs which are taking the bands audience on a journey into the 60s and 70s sound of Black America. SUPERSOUL are playing Funk 'n' Soul on a hot, steamy, energetic and passionate tip, performing self-written songs with stories told in the bands mothertongue - German ! With Arne Busch as vocalist and band leader SUPERSOUL is built around a true force. His vision and expression of Soul is phrased like the emphasis of a preacherman's gospel whilst fat and funky grooves are masterly crafted and carefully layered by Margot Gontarski and drummer Lars Heindorf a.k.a. Soulsurfer, glazed with wah-wah-heavy licks played by guitar wizard Toni. Their experienced interplay on the latest SUPERSOUL album is polished with loads of analogue engineering magic at Studio Nord Bremen and perfectly complemented by solos and arrangements of Lutz 'Hammond' Krajenski and seven other guest musicians making and appearance on this longplay piece.
It's not big of a surprise that these musicians, all of them rich in experience due to their contributions to other bands and projects, met in Hanover, Germany's secret capital of Funk. But it is quite a surprise that it took that long for an album to appear on the record store circuit that amalgamates German lyrics and urban Funk in a previously unheard manner like SUPERSOUL does.
And for those who come across this longplay piece whilst being on their next dig we go along the lines of the words by the famous man Miles Davis as - We suggest to you to play this record at the highest possible volume in order to appreciate the sound of SUPERSOUL .

2024 Repress

Das 1973 von Neu!- und Cluster-Mitgliedern gegründete Trio markierte eine Wende im Krautrock: Weg von der Fusionitis, weg vom überambitionierten Gegniedel, weg von der Ironie, die allzu oft nur lausige Fähigkeiten kaschierte. Harmonia spielte seine impressionistischen Skizzen mit minimalistischem Gestus. Kein Text trübte den Sound, alles war repetitiv, friedlich atmosphärisch und irgendwie LoFi. Brian Eno hörte sich so tief rein in diese kitschlosen Versponnenheiten, dass er den Ambient erfinden konnte. Heute, nach 31 Jahren, klingt das etwas unfertig, vor allem die Ein- und Ausstiege, doch der naive Charme der Musik blieb erhalten. Das Album bildet den Auftakt einer Reihe von remasterten Neuauflagen legendärer Brain-Platten. Darunter auch "II" von Cluster. Hat Eno natürlich auch intensiv gehört.

Bugsy hails from Milan where he is resident and co-host of the brilliant Take It Easy club night which brings many of the finest house DJ's to the city and remains packed week in and week out. With his featured producers Astroloop at his side Bugsy has come up with a quality debut loaded with fat, low-slung deep beats and Detroit-inspired grooves for Freerange entitled the Svegsy EP. The lead track sets the mood with mid-tempo loping beats that have 'Freerange' written all over them. We can't get enough of the simple yet satisfying warm-up vibe which oozes from this track. Understated, warm and relaxed yet with a bump and grunt which calls you to the dancefloor.
A2 is a track entitled New Vision where we find a straighter groove underpinned by a restless, pulsing, analogue bass and shifting block chords. With it's heads down attitude and simple, rolling arrangement this is Jimpster's personal favourite for banging on a big system. Flip over for the aptly titled Ghost Song. Here we get off-kilter vocals and fleeting glimpses of a melody which then disappear into the ether. All in all a slightly surreal yet groove-heavy track which has a charm of it's own.
Rounding off the EP we have Chicago house legend Boo Williams on the remix of Ghost Song, where he takes a minimal approach with a hint of acid but keeping his soulful touch. Enjoy!

150 white copies!! What's the best thing we can do What our heart tells us, so finally we do it. Enough! Music starts a vinyl only limited series with collected fine musicians. The first outstanding release is by label owner himself Danilo Schneider, he presents his EP Take A Breath. The deep passion and focus on excellent productions is the result on this first release here.'Solidly' and 'Sunday' are two tracks full of rhythmic elements, percussions and a groovy dub drive. This harmony between a straight kick and a deep bassline along side the melodic attitudes are balm for your soul. Stay tuned and follow us on a journey full of exciting releases.

It´s quite some years after Starburst , the first record on Internasjonal the japanese duo Traks Boys, consisting of Kawasaki based producers and Djs Crystal and K404 did for us. But a short 7 Years down the road the magic is still there. "Be With you" and "Weekend Lights" are mesmerizing, sparkling with creativity and beauty. "Be With you" is modern disco cut up of the finest while Weekend Lights is a hypnotic stringinfected warm groover that we can´t get enough of. Finally Weekend (Light) Lover and Friend of the House Axel Boman takes it all home in the biggest of ways.
Reduced with care and then build up again to one the neatest breaks that we heard this year.

Experimental Dancefloor music, unformated and still ... exploring sweet and sour... First tune, called Oppression is a Revered techno kick Doom tune. Secodn track is a sweet shy volumed kick at 220 BPM still...And third A side track, Lobotomie Croissante is an obsessional Industrial broke npsychedelic track, a bit in the Olschool little 7'' witch i cant remember the name of^^ B side opens on Mutation, a 170 BPM speed techno/trie dark tune very new wavy ambiance... Special and precise ! Then comes an ambient dark indus tune called Ondes Robotiques. Terminal is a break electronica hard tune, in a AFX Ant-zenized style. Terminal is the name... good anme to close this EP. A record in a rare style nawadays , offering a real variety of unformated sounds, not so hard but still hard enough to be dancefloor ! MASTERPIECE !!

Written, performed and produced by Thomas Moen Hermansen @M57 Studios Asker Jan-Sept 2016

Published by Smalltown Supermusic/Sony ATV Scandinavia

Mastered by Schnittstelle , Photos by Ragnhild Fors, Design by Metric Design

After the slightly more conceptual "Principe del Norte"album, "5" takes two steps forward and one step back
collecting a batch of tracks that was recorded right after it's preceder and in tandem with the recent "Square One"album with Bjørn Torske.
A "freedom"album of sorts, beyond the slightly misleading album opener "Here comes the band" there's a variety in these tracks tracing inspiration from 35 years (unhealthy)obsession with all things "good music" played enthusiastically.
"5" also marks the launch of my new label "Prins Thomas Musikk".

A run through the tracks with a couple of hints to titles and inspiration:

"Here comes the band"
A planned album of a fake band consisiting of me only was ditched. This is their only entry...
Very loosely inspired by "Bandwagonesque"era Teenage Fanclub

"Villajoyosa"
Melodic ideas hummed into a handheld recorded and specific notes about instrumentation scribbled down while on holiday in Villajoyosa in Spain turned into this little ditty when back in slightly colder Norway.

"Bronchi Beat"
Made in bed during a rough patch of bronchitis. Heavily influenced by prescription cough medicine.
Orbe from Madrid made a dizzy techno version which comes out soon enough...

""
I find great inspiration in working on new ideas while travelling the skies. Partly inspired by a detour into the soundtrack of my early teens (Paul Hardcastle, Warp 9, Maze, Mtume...)this particular one was started on a bumpy flight home from Athens and later finished in my tiny M57 Studio(R.I.P.)

"Æ"
Another bronchitis-ridden idea. Slow and low is the tempo. Beat originally inspired by Brian Briggs "AEO", melodies beamed in from Wally Badarou.
"Æ"is the norwegian pronounciation of the A in Acid refering to the 303 screeches going through the "song"

"Ø"
By the title you might think I'm running out of ideas. Not sure what happened here and why...

"Lunga Strada"
The track that took me the longest to complete hence the "long road".
Personal favourites The Pilotwings from Lyon sent over 2 ridiculously good and fun remixes which will
be released on a separate 10"

"London til Lisboa"
Another idea made on a plane when I should have tried to catch some sleep.
Direction steered by Plaid and Pat Metheny. Thank you for the inspiration

"Å"
Initially the final track AND then: scrapped idea for the alphabet soup of "Principe del Norte".
Later evolved into what we have here. Comes with a really nice remix by Pional on a separate 12"

"Venter på Torske"
The final recorded addition to the album. Made while waiting for Bjørn Torske to reply on a text message...

"Aske Hermansen"
In all seriousness, this is probably as soppy as it gets with me.
Tears into my computer keyboard, made on the road missing my wife and kids.

Steppas Records presents 'Osaka Steppas' Vol. 2, the second in a series of releases showcasing the Japanese underground dub movement. This edition features Osaka producers Dub Kazman and Roots Masashi. The Osaka Steppas' raw and unrelenting sound developed in the subterranean clubs of Osaka, a port city famous for its counterculture night life. Inspired not only by the sounds of Jamaica, but also drawing inspiration from UK and European soundsystem culture with enough bassweight to test even the toughest of soundsystems. Presented in a beautifully designed full colour sleeve inspired by the works of the legendary ukiyo-e woodblock artist, Hokusai. This release is not to be missed.

Since making their debut on the imprint in 2013 with 'Blue Aconite', the Italian duo Hiver has since released two more EPs on Curle; 'Same Mistake Twice' in 2015 and 'Soundescence' last year. Since the release of the latter mentioned EP, Hiver have been busy behind the booth, performing in the UK, China, Germany, Holland and, of course, in Italy, where they still hold a residency at DUDE Club. Kicking off the EP is 'Elipse', a stunning four-minute track that nods to avant-garde artists such as Wolfgang Voigt's GAS alias or Brian Eno, as the pair gradually weaves several layers of shining, atmospheric tones before slowly fading into the background. Title-named track 'Air Castles' follows, with the tight selection of drums combined with the ebb and flow of soaring synths creating a melodic style of techno that has become synonymous with their name. Next is 'Aleutine', a song that similarly blends Hiver's characteristically ethereal, hazy synths alongside more vibrant analogue bleeps to great effect. These delicate synths are later given the chance to gleam as the track comes to a close.Closing this excellent four-track EP is deep-groover 'Leisure', seeing Hiver up the tempo through their clever use of percussive elements, sharp synths and headstrong drums.

Ike Yard recombine their music looking across decades of post punk, electronic, soundtracks and come out with some of their best yet and enough to last the next 20-30 years (in Ike Yard´s very own words). Originally founded in 1979 New York City, members Michael Diekmann (keyboard, guitar, vocals), Kenneth Compton (programming drums, synths arrangements, bass, guitar, vocals) and Stuart Argabright (programming drums, synths arrangements, distortion bass, keyboards, metal perc) reformed the band once in 2007 and again in 2010. Each time different and with new ambitions. This time 'Sacred Machine' EP is defined by detailed drum layers supported by multiple basses and keyboards, some off-timing beat patterns that turn in a second of synchrony into a straight four on the floor kick and first time vocal collaborations.

Composition wise 'Sacred Machine' EP is recorded as a 'rehearsal'. As for Ike Yard songs would not be done so very many times in their existence, all threw in on each piece as they came into being. It sounds like a group that could have been doing records in Anthony Burgess and Stanley Kubrick´s 'A Clockwork Orange'. 'Night Klub' revisits Ike Yard´s original 'Night After Night' from 1981 EP. 'Sacred Machine' might be familiar to those who caught Ike Yard dates in Europe between 2007-2014 as one of the extended jams prepared for the dark ambient shows. 'Tear Drop' night airport music with sweet vocals by Camella Lobo of Tropic Of Cancer is followed by 'Spit' that explores Ike Yard NCR style with jittery beats, clomping, stomping cross cut beats. 'Slaves Of Janet' featuring Erica Belle brings to mind scenes in an S&M parlour with unused lyrics from the Factory America LP recordings.

In 2017, the musical term electronic' is nearly obsolete given the ubiquity of computerized processes in producing music. Even so, the prevailing assumption is that musicians working under this broad umbrella must be inspired by concepts equally as electrified as their equipment. Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith has demonstrated in her still-blooming discography that this notion couldn't be further from the truth, and that more often than not, rich worlds of synthesized
sound are born from deep reverence of the natural world. Smith (who by no coincidence, cites naturalist David Attenborough as a contemporary muse) has embodied such an appreciation on
The Kid in as direct and sincere a way as possible by sonically charting the phases of life itself.
The album, which punctually follows up her 2016 breakthrough EARS, chronicles four defining cognitive and emotional stages of the human lifespan across four sides of a double LP.
The first side takes us through the confused astonishment of a newborn, unaware of itself, existing in an unwitting nirvana. Smith's music has always woven a youthful thread befitting of the
aforementioned subject. Here she articulates it in signature fashion on the track An Intention,' which serves not only as a soaring spire on The Kid, but on her entire output. There is playfulness here, but it's elevated by an undertone of gravity into something compelling and majestic that is fast becoming Smith's watermark. The emotional focus of side two is the vital but underreported moment in early youth when we cross the threshold into self awareness. The subject is profound enough to fill an entire album, but rarely makes its way into a single track, indicating Smith's ambition to broach subtler and deeper subjects than the average composer. This side offers up another highlight in the form of In The World But Not Of The World' which serves its subject well with epiphanic, climbing strings and decidedly noisy textures over a near-Bollywood low end pulse.

Side three emphasizes a feeling of being confirmed enough in one's own identity to begin giving back to the formative forces of one's upbringing, which is arguably the duty that all great artists
aim to fulfill. This side ends with the exploratory album cut Who I Am & Why I Am Where I Am' recorded in a single take without overdubs on the rare EMS Synthi 100 synthesizer. This humble
piece of sound design serves as a contrast to side four's verdant orchestral moments, all written and arranged for the EU-based Stargaze quartet by Smith herself. This final side represents a
return to pure being, the kind of wisdom and peace that eludes most of us until the autumn of life. On To Feel Your Best' this concept is voiced in the bittersweet refrain one day I'll wake up
and you won't be there' which Smith intended to be a grateful acknowledgement of life rather than a melancholy resentment of loss. The song has both effects depending on the mood of the
listener, and both interpretations are equally moving.
Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith belongs to an ilk of modern musicians who are defined by their commitment to creating experiential albums despite the singles-oriented habits of modern listeners,
and here she represents her kind proudly. The subjects on The Kid are not simple to convey, and yet through both emotional tone and lyrical content, Smith does just that. There is a similar
gravity to both birth and death, and rarely is that correlation as accurately and enthusiastically mapped as it is here.

Alan Watts, another logical inspiration of Smith's, once expounded that people record themselves to confirm their own existence, and as such, echoes and resonance are reminders that we are alive. You're not there unless you're recorded,' Watts muses, if you shout, and it doesn't come back and echo, it didn't happen.' The Kid speaks to this idea directly. As Kaitlyn Aurelia
Smith explores her existence through music, she guides us in gleefully contemplating our own.

Optimo Trax presents a 4-track EP from Germany's Mathias Schober, head honcho of Berlin's Lossless label. As always we prefer to let our artists do the talking. Here's what Mathias has to say about this release -
The idea behind all tracks on the EP was a simple setup of drums and one synth that would do a main sequence/sound, yet there's a lot of detail in all of them. 'In A Certain Way' features a 808ish beat with a main sequence coming from a tiny monophon synth called Atmegatron - 8Bit love, it turned out being much more music than I thought it would be when I set everything up.
'But What Rules Are Made For' is the same setup but the sequence is a 101 and so are all the washed out fx synths. On 'Is To Break Them' I went a different route, I had the dub, delayed stabs synth first as I was messin' with my Moog and a Space Echo - which btw is used on every single track I release, if you haven't noticed yet.
So I was trying to build something around those stabs in order to fit the track to the others and so I ended up with another sequence coming from my Moog. As there was still space on the record, I decided to add an ambient version of 'Is To Break Them', I love the ambience on this track. I hope that my love for dub sounds is obvious enough on these tracks. Happy I found such an excellent home for the EP!

Heavyweight (180gr.) gatefold LP, including a download code.
The first-ever reissue of Jon Hassell's "Fourth World" masterpiece originally released in 1981.

Collaborators include Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois (U2, Peter Gabriel) and Michael Brook (Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan).

Beautifully re-mastered, with a bonus track ("Ordinary Mind") and liner notes written by Hassell himself.

VERY strong track listing with some of the biggest Motown hits ever - should do very nicely going into Christmas gifting area and beyond as a strong catalogue seller.


[B] A2 | Dancing In The Street - Martha Reeves & The Vandellas

Following on from our previous Gladys Knights & The Pips 12" ('Love Is Always On My Mind'/'Bourgie Bourgie' Cat No: DISCO115) it gives us great pleasure to re-issue her most expensive and in-demand 12" - the Canadian only Walter Gibbons remix of "It's A Better Than Good Time" backed with the full version of "Saved By The Grace Of Your Love".

This is a legendary and super-rare 12" which was only ever issued in Canada and has become something of a holy grail for serious dance music collectors over the years.

A decent condition copy will currently set you back £300+ and that's only if you're lucky enough to find one! it's a Gibbons master-class like you know he can.

Fully remastered on limited edition 180 gram heavyweight vinyl.

Franco Battiato is often heralded as Italy's answer to Brian Eno. A quizzical composer/lyricist, Battiato turned pop music upside down in the early '70s with three classic LPs - Fetus, Pollution and Sulle Corde Di Aries - that formed a confluence of avant-folk sensibilities and analog electronics.

Pollution from 1972 is the captivating follow-up to Fetus. Like its predecessor, the album features Baroque textures, motorik rhythms, weird tape effects and Battiato's perfectly oblique vocals. Upon hearing Pollution, Frank Zappa joyfully proclaimed it "genius."

While Battiato's core group of collaborators remains largely the same as on his debut, this phenomenal band (joined by an eighteen-year-old Roberto Cacciapaglia on keys) appears even more in the foreground on Pollution. Out of the Ash Ra Tempel-like riffs and urgent guitar strumming emerge hypnotic grooves and cinematic flourishes, suggesting a futuristic meeting point between Stereolab and Ennio Morricone.

Dedicated to the Centro Internazionale Studi Magnetici, Pollution touches on themes of environmental catastrophe. Futurist allusions seep in through eccentric lyrics (at times sung backwards) about hydraulics, magnetic fields, etc., yet listeners don't need to speak the artist's language to grasp his melancholy vision. With Pollution, Battiato solidifies not only his cult figure status, but also many of his forward-thinking ideas on rock 'n' roll.

Superior Viaduct is honored to present the first-time domestic release of Pollution on vinyl. Reproducing the original gatefold jacket, this reissue is part of an archival series that chronicles Franco Battiato's masterful body of work from 1971 to 1978.

2022 Repress

HQ Gatefold, 3x12 140g Vinyl, black innersleeve, download code
EXTRAWELT are back! Although in fairness, they were never gone. On the contrary, since their first release on James Holden's Border Community Label dropped in 2005, Arne Schaffhausen and Wayan Raabe have been responsible for a plethora of classics including "Schöne Neue Extrawelt" and "In Aufruhr", their two seminal albums on Cocoon Recordings. The duo are one of the most booked live acts worldwide, commanding a huge fan base. Their performances are the stuff of legend, making them the absolute highlight at every club and festival they play. So it's with great pride and respect, that we can announce the release of Extrawelt's third album for Cocoon Recordings. "Fear Of An Extra Planet" completes the Cocoon trilogy and the excitement growing among their fans represents a new high in the history of EXTRAWELT!
Musically, of course, there's enormous pressure on EXTRAWELT to deliver, but this is dismissed with a playful disregard and they are clearly focused on the job in hand. The album title "Fear Of An Extra Planet" sounds cinematic, like some art-house science fiction film, without giving too much away.
However, from the first seconds of the opening track "Superposition", the album title makes 100% sense and sets the scene for the rest of the trip. We are immersed in wide open spaces and invited to explore dark and dusky worlds that transport us back to their Border Community years. Timeless and elegant, "Superposition" perfectly captures the epic, dream like quality that made James Holden's label so influential.
New Release Information Second up, "Gott ist Schrott" takes a much more minimalist approach with its retro 80s drum programming, monster bass lurking in the breaks and playful Rhodes/synth riffs that span the divide between early German techno and deep Detroit electro with a distinctive film soundtrack aesthetic. "Oddification" continues this theme, adding extra spice reminiscent of the techno-synth vibe of Detroit with a punchy, almost Prodigy-style breakbeat complete with shredded vocal samples that gives us a taste of what's in store. "Gentle Venom" then takes the breakbeat motif to the next stage. The main focus here is the classy sprinter of a bassline, peppered with a flurry of intricate and subtle effects and modulations, that immediately trigger an intense, movie-like 'in pursuit' feeling.
With - Das Grosse Flimmern" we cautiously approach the album's high point. It's still in keeping with the soundtrack aesthetics, but faster and with more urgency. Almost hypnotically, Extrawelt invade us with an energy and impetus that always radiates from their music. Next in line is "Silly Idol" and here Arne Schaffhausen and Wayan Raabe opt again for a more minimal tack, focusing even more intensely on the dance floor to reveal a pulsing, twisted heart to the album.
"Punch The Dragon" is the hidden gem of the collection, utilising and melting together the most bombastic and playful elements. This one is totally off the hook, a sensory overload in an acoustic widescreen format! Then we have the title track "Fear Of An Extra Planet" which perfectly sums up the album concept. It opens up like a film score, with minimal passages following dark sequences that morph into dreamy melodies, all grounded by cool, constantly alternating analogue drum patterns. If you're not listening closely, you might get the impression that three or four different titles are mixed together; such is the effortless flow of the album.
As we near our destination, "The Friendly Coroner" really does honour its name. The morbid charm of the title is captured by a fluid bassline and melodic arrangements that border on the absurd, until the funky drum beat finally drops. In our mind's eye we see a cheerful medical doctor removing his bloody gloves, hanging his smock in the closet and vibing out in his neon drenched workspace. And there we sit, glued to our cinema seat, submerged in the different textures EXTRAWELT have conjured up on "Fear Of An Extra Planet". Over the course of the last title, the strings usher in the final acknowledgments as the credits roll. The dramatic end of "2084" leaves us transfixed in front of a black screen in a large, dark room safe in the knowledge that we've just witnessed a science fiction epic.

A new reference of the prestigious Spanish Techno label Injected Poison Records. After a year since from her last release on vinyl, during this time, we have been able to see some of her releases in digital format, but, It's vinyl time , we have generated enough waiting and now we can enjoy a powerful vinyl, with a magnificent work of art and design for collectors and four powerful tracks with 3 of the best producers of the Techno scene. We are proud to welcome our well-known label partner Christian W nsch and a new member of the Pole Group; P.E.A.R.L. At the vinyl we can listen two original tracks from the owner of the label, Jose Pouj, with two remixes of Christian W nsch and P.E.A.R.L. The release date will be available in September. Enjoy.