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Julia Cumming’s solo debut Julia opens with an unadorned declaration of independence: her voice and a piano uniting for a liberating proclamation of self that rejects doubt, misogyny, and the notion of being “too much.” Julia unlocks a creative door years in the making for the New York–born multi-instrumentalist and Sunflower Bean bassist, culminating after nearly two decades of bands, releases, labels, and relentless touring. As Sunflower Bean’s Headful of Sugar era ended in 2023, Cumming decamped to Los Angeles, where a two-year, deeply healing collaboration with producer Brian Robert Jones — her “second artistic puberty” — took shape. Drawing freely from formative influences: Burt Bacharach, Carole King, Joni Mitchell, Carly Simon, and Brian Wilson. Julia emerges as a joyful, anti-cool coming-out: a celebration of the dorks, the misfits, and the enduring truth of being enough.

Julia Cumming’s solo debut Julia opens with an unadorned declaration of independence: her voice and a piano uniting for a liberating proclamation of self that rejects doubt, misogyny, and the notion of being “too much.” Julia unlocks a creative door years in the making for the New York–born multi-instrumentalist and Sunflower Bean bassist, culminating after nearly two decades of bands, releases, labels, and relentless touring. As Sunflower Bean’s Headful of Sugar era ended in 2023, Cumming decamped to Los Angeles, where a two-year, deeply healing collaboration with producer Brian Robert Jones — her “second artistic puberty” — took shape. Drawing freely from formative influences: Burt Bacharach, Carole King, Joni Mitchell, Carly Simon, and Brian Wilson. Julia emerges as a joyful, anti-cool coming-out: a celebration of the dorks, the misfits, and the enduring truth of being enough.

Niemand hätte jemals die Entwicklung voraussehen können, die Hardcore nehmen würde, als diese Bewegung entstand. Und Anfang der 2000er Jahre hätte niemand vermutet, dass eine Band wie TERROR auch 24 Jahre nach ihrer Gründung noch immer eine der einflussreichsten Bands des Subgenres sein würde. Ihre Aggressivität, gepaart mit ihrer Liebe und Wertschätzung für die Szene, die so viele gekommen und gegangen sind oder sogar ganz vergessen haben, hat ihnen Erfolg beschert - nun veröffentlichen sie ihr zehntes Album, STILL SUFFER, das am 24. April bei Flatspot Records erscheint. TERROR stammt aus Los Angeles, Kalifornien, aus einer Zeit, als Hardcore eine Band brauchte, um wieder auf Kurs zu kommen, da das Genre aus der Bahn geraten war. TERROR stürmte herein, machte sich sofort einen Namen und ließ nicht mehr locker. Die Band hat ihren Ursprung in der kalifornischen Hardcore-Szene, die sich in den späten 1980er und frühen 1990er Jahren von der Punk-Szene abspaltete. TERROR stammt aus Los Angeles, Kalifornien, und entstand zu einer Zeit, als Hardcore eine Band brauchte, um die Dinge wieder ins Lot zu bringen, da das Genre aus der Bahn geraten war. TERROR stürzte sich in die Szene, hinterließ sofort seine Spuren und gab sie nie wieder auf. In Zusammenarbeit mit dem Produzenten (und ehemaligen Gitarristen) Todd Jones schuf die Band zehn schnelle, aggressive, provokative Tracks, die die Themen aufgreifen, die TERROR überhaupt erst so einflussreich gemacht haben. Songs über Selbstermächtigung, Überleben und den unerbittlichen Willen, sich Herausforderungen mit den Werten und der Unterstützung zu stellen, die innerhalb dieser Mauern zu finden sind. STILL SUFFER wurde durch die Technik und zusätzliche Produktion von Taylor Young im The Pit Recording Studio, das Mixing von Jon Markson und das Mastering von Brad Boatright bei Audiosiege vervollständigt, mit zusätzlicher Vocal-Technik von Jay Zubricky bei GCR Audio und Drum-Technik im Studio 606 von Taylor Young und Oliver Roman. Die Gastvocals auf dem Album stammen von Jay Peta von Mindforce bei ,Beauty in the Losses", Brody King von God's Hate und Dan Seely von King Nine bei ,Deconstruct It", zusammen mit Hot Water Music's und Drum-Technik im Studio 606 von Taylor Young und Oliver Roman. Die Gastvocals auf dem Album stammen von Jay Peta von Mindforce bei ,Beauty in the Losses", Brody King von God's Hate und Dan Seely von King Nine bei ,Deconstruct It", zusammen mit Hot Water Music's Als Gastsänger auf dem Album sind Jay Peta von Mindforce in ,Beauty in the Losses", Brody King von God's Hate und Dan Seely von King Nine in ,Deconstruct It" sowie Chuck Ragan von Hot Water Music zu hören, der in ,Fear The Panic" eine selbstbewusste Performance liefert. Dieser Song wurde auch von Chad Gilbert von New Found Glory co-produziert. Von Anfang an hat TERROR nie den Dingen den Rücken gekehrt, die diese Band seit ihrer Gründung so wichtig gemacht haben. Mit der Veröffentlichung von STILL SUFFER wird deutlich, dass die Band keine Anzeichen einer Schwäche zeigt und weiterhin mit den Werten und der Unterstützung, die sie innerhalb dieser Mauern findet, Herausforderungen direkt angeht. Die Songs handeln von Selbstermächtigung, Überleben und dem unerbittlichen Willen, sich Herausforderungen mit den Werten und der Unterstützung, die innerhalb dieser Mauern zu finden sind, direkt zu stellen. Von Anfang an hat TERROR nie den Dingen den Rücken gekehrt, die diese Band seit ihrer Gründung so lebendig gemacht haben. Mit der Veröffentlichung von STILL SUFFER wird deutlich, dass die Band keine Anzeichen einer Schwäche zeigt und weiterhin erfolgreich ihre Mission verfolgt, authentischen Hardcore zu liefern und der Welt zu zeigen, dass dies viel mehr als nur Musik ist. Diese Gemeinschaft und Bewegung, die niemand wirklich in Worte fassen kann, ist genau der Ort, aus dem die Energie stammt, die TERROR antreibt, mit STILL SUFFER weiter zu wachsen und sich weiterzuentwickeln. ,Die Ewigkeit ändert sich nicht, du bist genauso beschädigt wie ich."

Niemand hätte jemals die Entwicklung voraussehen können, die Hardcore nehmen würde, als diese Bewegung entstand. Und Anfang der 2000er Jahre hätte niemand vermutet, dass eine Band wie TERROR auch 24 Jahre nach ihrer Gründung noch immer eine der einflussreichsten Bands des Subgenres sein würde. Ihre Aggressivität, gepaart mit ihrer Liebe und Wertschätzung für die Szene, die so viele gekommen und gegangen sind oder sogar ganz vergessen haben, hat ihnen Erfolg beschert - nun veröffentlichen sie ihr zehntes Album, STILL SUFFER, das am 24. April bei Flatspot Records erscheint. TERROR stammt aus Los Angeles, Kalifornien, aus einer Zeit, als Hardcore eine Band brauchte, um wieder auf Kurs zu kommen, da das Genre aus der Bahn geraten war. TERROR stürmte herein, machte sich sofort einen Namen und ließ nicht mehr locker. Die Band hat ihren Ursprung in der kalifornischen Hardcore-Szene, die sich in den späten 1980er und frühen 1990er Jahren von der Punk-Szene abspaltete. TERROR stammt aus Los Angeles, Kalifornien, und entstand zu einer Zeit, als Hardcore eine Band brauchte, um die Dinge wieder ins Lot zu bringen, da das Genre aus der Bahn geraten war. TERROR stürzte sich in die Szene, hinterließ sofort seine Spuren und gab sie nie wieder auf. In Zusammenarbeit mit dem Produzenten (und ehemaligen Gitarristen) Todd Jones schuf die Band zehn schnelle, aggressive, provokative Tracks, die die Themen aufgreifen, die TERROR überhaupt erst so einflussreich gemacht haben. Songs über Selbstermächtigung, Überleben und den unerbittlichen Willen, sich Herausforderungen mit den Werten und der Unterstützung zu stellen, die innerhalb dieser Mauern zu finden sind. STILL SUFFER wurde durch die Technik und zusätzliche Produktion von Taylor Young im The Pit Recording Studio, das Mixing von Jon Markson und das Mastering von Brad Boatright bei Audiosiege vervollständigt, mit zusätzlicher Vocal-Technik von Jay Zubricky bei GCR Audio und Drum-Technik im Studio 606 von Taylor Young und Oliver Roman. Die Gastvocals auf dem Album stammen von Jay Peta von Mindforce bei ,Beauty in the Losses", Brody King von God's Hate und Dan Seely von King Nine bei ,Deconstruct It", zusammen mit Hot Water Music's und Drum-Technik im Studio 606 von Taylor Young und Oliver Roman. Die Gastvocals auf dem Album stammen von Jay Peta von Mindforce bei ,Beauty in the Losses", Brody King von God's Hate und Dan Seely von King Nine bei ,Deconstruct It", zusammen mit Hot Water Music's Als Gastsänger auf dem Album sind Jay Peta von Mindforce in ,Beauty in the Losses", Brody King von God's Hate und Dan Seely von King Nine in ,Deconstruct It" sowie Chuck Ragan von Hot Water Music zu hören, der in ,Fear The Panic" eine selbstbewusste Performance liefert. Dieser Song wurde auch von Chad Gilbert von New Found Glory co-produziert. Von Anfang an hat TERROR nie den Dingen den Rücken gekehrt, die diese Band seit ihrer Gründung so wichtig gemacht haben. Mit der Veröffentlichung von STILL SUFFER wird deutlich, dass die Band keine Anzeichen einer Schwäche zeigt und weiterhin mit den Werten und der Unterstützung, die sie innerhalb dieser Mauern findet, Herausforderungen direkt angeht. Die Songs handeln von Selbstermächtigung, Überleben und dem unerbittlichen Willen, sich Herausforderungen mit den Werten und der Unterstützung, die innerhalb dieser Mauern zu finden sind, direkt zu stellen. Von Anfang an hat TERROR nie den Dingen den Rücken gekehrt, die diese Band seit ihrer Gründung so lebendig gemacht haben. Mit der Veröffentlichung von STILL SUFFER wird deutlich, dass die Band keine Anzeichen einer Schwäche zeigt und weiterhin erfolgreich ihre Mission verfolgt, authentischen Hardcore zu liefern und der Welt zu zeigen, dass dies viel mehr als nur Musik ist. Diese Gemeinschaft und Bewegung, die niemand wirklich in Worte fassen kann, ist genau der Ort, aus dem die Energie stammt, die TERROR antreibt, mit STILL SUFFER weiter zu wachsen und sich weiterzuentwickeln. ,Die Ewigkeit ändert sich nicht, du bist genauso beschädigt wie ich."

Saxophonist, producer and composer Brian Allen Simon explores darker hues, transposing waking and altered states under his studio veil Anenon. On the deeply evocative new album 'Dream Temperature', he shifts electronic processing to the foreground, introducing digitized wind instruments and unworldly atmospherics, not heard since his innovating mid-late 2010s output.

A longtime Los Angeles resident, born and raised, Brian Allen Simon has expressively operated under the moniker Anenon, releasing the highly revered 'Petrol' (2016), 'Tongue' (2018) and the viscerally beautiful 'Moons Melt Milk Light' (2023), in a line of unwavering musical dialogues. While the penultimate album was a deliberate, reductive, entirely acoustic detour that was born out of a want to unplug, 'Dream Temperature' sees Brian primed with a newly discovered wind synthesizer as his central compositional tool, alongside acoustic piano and tenor saxophone. The entirety of the album's electronics are triggered by Brian's lungs, generating otherworldly synths modulated by expressive breath control, channelled through the laptop as the core processing chamber for added textural components and field recordings.

A free floating and heavy emotional resonance marks 'Dream Temperature' from beginning to end, invoking the feeling of waking up, still heavy from a night of half-remembered dreams, and continuing one's day in this state. Simon maps out the album's spatial voice early on the statement title track, a deep, yet compact cut, generated from digital saxophone rasps that whistle by in close proximity, along with haze filled textures and sub bass. There is a sonic oscillation of urban grit and pastoral drift throughout as tracks pass by like introspective thoughts, fueling both a tense and ethereal quality that underpins the album. Interluding solo and part-solo piano improvisations 'Last Sun 1' and '2' are positioned adjacent to the buffering digital soundscapes. Their softer, still processed timbres pierce the melancholic exterior, offering a contrasting tenderness that could echo the grace of Ry?ichi Sakamoto, the spiritualist rigor of ECM's Keith Jarrett and a touch akin to Aphex Twin's piano miniatures. 'Nulle Part 1+2' signals the first appearance of an acoustic wind instrument, as tenor saxophone flourishes are juxtaposed against noisy drones, all shouting at the void, with notes resurfacing like lost digital data.

The album was recorded at home during either sunset or nocturnal hours between September of 2024 and October of 2025, a period in which Brian found himself craving more lengthy and intimate studio time as he searched for more pronounced textural qualities amidst his new sonic ambitions. 'When The Light Appears, Boy' shows further evidence of this deeper universe, revealing a grittier edge as the album's essential blueprint is sonically inked. A sprawling expanse of wind synths rhythmically encircle the listener before a dreamy, ghostly ambience blankets 'Toyama'. The sound is evocative of the productions of post dubstep era luminaries such as Burial or the productions of HTRK's Nigel Yang. More isolating and enveloping than the previous all acoustic record, this is music both disorienting and yet warmly inviting all at once. A sonic diarist at heart, personal field recordings were also taken from Sardinia, Japan, Big Sur and LA which intersect at unexpected moments throughout the album's 31-minute play time.

'Dream Temperature' is a vital coalescence of both Simon's electronic and acoustic practices with repositioned electronics akin to earlier works, both haunting and elegant, yet still profoundly personal. Simon continuously resonates as an experimental outlier treading an enthralling, non-linear musical path. This music resolutely glows with an unknowing aura, like an untapped energy source waiting to be discharged.

Swedish producer Robert Leiner’s landmark 1994 album ‘Visions Of The Past’ finally gets a vinyl LP reissue on Apollo, the ‘ambient division’ of R&S Records. Long regarded as one of the pivotal ambient/electronic long players, the album has stood the test of time and serves as a reminder on how potent the early ambient techno releases were.

Leiner was a central figure in the early European techno and ambient landscape, carving out a distinctive sound that bridged atmospheric depth and rhythmic intensity. Known for his releases as The Source Experience and contributions to the R&S/Apollo catalogue, as a producer and engineer, Leiner’s work resonated across the underground, earning him a reputation for visionary, emotionally charged productions that stood apart from his contemporaries.

'Visions Of The Past’ captures this duality perfectly with expansive ambient passages that drift into hypnotic techno, while layers of intricate sound design and pulsating low end create a timeless and immersive listening experience. Tracks unfold with patience and precision, like the 12-minute-long marine epic ‘Aqua Viva’, balancing introspection with kinetic dance energy, and the new age ambience of ‘Dream Or Reality’ and ‘Northern Dark’ embodying the forward-thinking ethos that defined Apollo’s golden era.

Three decades on, this long out of print album finally returns on vinyl format, freshly remastered and restored, reaffirming its status as an essential document of electronic music’s evolution and Robert Leiner’s enduring influence.

‘Visions Of The Past’ by Robert Leiner is available on Apollo Records from 7th November 2025.

Artist and multi-instrumentalist Flaer looks to the landscape to explore pastoral melancholy on debut release, Preludes. It is released in a second edition black vinyl, with an alternate cover artwork.

Ensconced in his family home in rural Leicestershire in the early months of 2020, painter and musician Realf Heygate (b. 1994) picked up his childhood cello for the first time in several years and began to play. Setting himself parameters to only record onto 4-track tape with acoustic instruments – cello, piano and acoustic guitar – he assembled a suite of instrumental compositions that form the basis of Preludes, his debut album as Flaer and the inaugural release on Odda Recordings.

Channelling the tension and unease between the pastoral idyll of the English countryside and the darkness which lurks beneath the surface, the mini-album draws inspiration from the analogue aesthetic of 1970s folk horror films, weaving field recordings of birdsong, church bells and the natural environment into chimerical melodies that reflect on Heygate’s childhood experiences of rural England.

“It was really important not to isolate the sound from its environment,” he explains, describing the compositional and recording process as “site-specific”. Developed over a series of intuitive musical enquiries, the mini-album’s uncanny quality emerges from combining raw demo takes with overdubs of almost orchestral grandeur.

Heygate points to the final track as indicative of the work as a whole: “‘Follow’ really is the mantra for the release and embodies the practical approach I was taking to music making: not to force the music but see where it takes you.”

As a painter, Heygate’s practice takes artefacts through sequences of reproduction that embrace the fluctuating materiality of the copy. Since obtaining a degree in Fine Art from Central Saint Martins in 2017, he has exhibited solo at Peter von Kant and Springseason galleries in London, and has participated in group shows at Saatchi Gallery, Cob Gallery and Senesi Contemporanea.

Describing his artistic practice as one of self-erasure, music instead provides Heygate with a more personal and autobiographical outlet. Where the two worlds combine is on Preludes’ striking artwork, which features paintings of 13th century stone carvings from the font of the church in the town where he grew up.

Speaking to a time where people were connected to the land in a more profound way, each symbol is assigned to a track on the album, which Heygate likens to giving them a title.

“To add that one juxtaposition might open a whole new interpretation or language that might be hard to find otherwise,” he explains.“Over time it might reveal itself to you, which is why I'm excited about it being released. To throw them out there and see what comes of it.”

Fresh from releasing projects on Method 808 and Future Classic, landing a huge collaboration with Chloé Caillet, and delivering an official remix for Fatboy Slim, PPJ are entering a new chapter in full force. Their expansive take on global street sounds, ranging from neoperreo to Miami bass, gets a cool re-coating.

Led by the magnetic vocalist Páula, with production from Povoa (individually supported by Four Tet, Ben UFO, and Barry Can't Swim, with recent releases on Live From Earth), the duo operates in maximalist mode: playful, sensual, and slightly unhinged.PPJ’s new era, JOKER, embraces a figure that appears everywhere from card decks to carnival culture as a symbol that mirrors their own DNA: funny, eerie, seductive, unpredictable. The EP leans further into club territory, but rather than polishing their edges, PPJ amplify them.

At the emotional core of the record sits “Coeur,” co-produced with Chloé Caillet. It begins with an MPB-tinged foundation flirting with bossa nova. It’s unmistakably Brazilian, bathed in sunset hues before being sped up and twisted into a dance-floor-ready electronic form. The groove shimmers with tension: warm percussion, elastic basslines, and Páula’s voice hovering between intimacy and tease. It feels like a remix of itself, romantic, but slightly untrustworthy.

If “Coeur” glows, “To Nem Ai” is a slow burner. A very deep and downtempo house cut, it unfolds slowly, almost luxuriously, guided by sensual vocals that feel whispered directly into the ear of the listener. A hypnotizing piano sample that feels like a late-night confession. It’s the kind of record that transforms a dancefloor into something tactile.

Elsewhere, “Me Pega” is a high-energy reinterpretation of the tech-house sounds from Santa Catarina, one of southern Brazil’s most feverish party states, twisted and accelerated for ferocious impact. Drawing direct inspiration from Sarro, a raw and vibrant Brazilian street dance, the track captures physical intensity in its purest form: sweat, bass pressure, collective release.

Its counterpart, “Tem Carnaval” channels Páula’s vivid storytelling into a thunderous ode to Rio’s carnival spirit, euphoric, chaotic, cinematic landed just in time for this year’s celebrations.

On “Sexy Doce,” rugged electroclash melodies collide with unexpected references. “It was inspired by Budots, which is dance music from the streets in the Philippines,” Povoa explains. “Then we mixed it with Páula’s Brazilian vocals. Baile funk is similarly from the streets, so there is a connection.” The result is raw yet futuristic, a cross-continental flirtation that feels both underground and explosive.

With this new EP, PPJ make music like they’re tuning into a dozen pirate frequencies at once. Pirate radio from Rio to Berlin to Manila intercepting fragments of street culture, sensuality, and chaos, and stitching them into something deliriously cohesive.
JOKER doesn’t just nod to club culture. It challenges it, twists expectation and leaves a lasting impression.

Yearly compilation series RADAR KEROXEN return with its sixth volume of theme-driven releases, continuing to chart the fractured sonic terrain of the Canary Islands’ undergrowth.

After digging through indie, psychedelia, shoegaze, and site-specific drone, Vol. 6 dives headfirst into the after-hours circuitry of the islas afortunadas, assembling a hand-picked selection of underground club mutations from five long-standing operators within the local electronic ecosystem.

If Vol. 5 was shaped by the cavernous resonance of Santa Cruz’s obsolete gasoline tank, Vol. 6 is fuelled by late-night club aesthetics and mid-90s hardware obsession. Opening the record, Dancelwerk — one of the archipelago’s early modular practitioners — delivers tightly wound structures nodding to Warp-era golden agefuturism and southern Tenerife’s rave boom. Cmos34 follow with their first-ever published material, injecting instability into the system through improvised techno rituals built on friction and feedback.

Jorganes drags the narrative deeper into hypnotic territory, stripping club music down to its skeletal pulse and channeling disciplined repetition and late-90s minimalism into austere, trance-inducing momentum. From Gran Canaria, Sunday German Flowers bends the mood toward cinematic dub: heavy low-end pressure, spoken word, and nocturnal atmospheres stitched into slow-burning club noir.

Closing the circle, Nico Hernández pulls the compilation back to volcanic ground with ambient compositions shaped by Lanzarote’s raw geological landscape — basalt echoes, tectonic silence, and island isolation rendered in sound.

As always, the release is housed in a post-tropical collage artwork by Pura Márquez.

Master by Daniel García
Artwork by Pura Marquéz

Metric’s relentless pursuit of timeless songwriting and fiercely independent ethos have cemented their place as one of the most essential and ahead-of-the-curve bands of the last two decades. The trailblazing Toronto outfit was founded by songwriting and production partners Emily Haines and Jimmy Shaw, along with bandmates Joshua Winstead and Joules Scott Key. Though both were also founding members of the influential and sprawling Canadian indie rock outfit Broken Social Scene, Metric was always the top priority, and shortly after they met and cemented their mission, they left Toronto for New York in search of like-minded artists. There, they found themselves at the center of the city’s burgeoning indie sleaze scene alongside bands like LCD Soundsystem, The Strokes, TV On the Radio, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Interpol.

Their 10th studio album Romanticize The Dive harkens back to the free spirit of that era, kicking off with Haines nostalgically imploring the listener to “let me take you back, it was the start of something...” before pulling back the curtain on a band that has consistently stayed true to each other and their ethics for decades. In a tribute to lifelong friendship, the album also reunites the dream team behind their 2009 breakout album Fantasies at Electric Lady Studios in New York. All at once a heartfelt reflection on their history, a celebratory gift to those who have been along for the ride, and an outstretched hand to new fans, Romanticize The Dive is another testament to the band’s unwavering love for each other and their insatiable desire to push themselves as artists.

While both draw their influences from jazz, contemporary classical music, and extended improvisations, they use preparations and extended techniques to bring a sonic vocabulary to their respective instruments that sounds otherworldly. As vocalists, they blend these elements with singer- songwriter and pop influences to create long, flowing sonic arcs encompassing abstract soundscapes, simple songs, angular rhythmic bursts, and more. The result is touching, captivating, and never predictable for the listener. Voices and sounds merge into a unique musical world that is greater than the sum of its parts

Formed by vocalist and guitarist Andy Yorke, bassist Jason Moulster and drummer Nigel Powell, the band crafted an album that stood apart from the late-Britpop rush with a sound that was intimate, melodic and emotionally direct.Songs such as "Solved," "Higher Than Reason" and "Angel" showcase Yorke's plaintive vocal delivery and the band's gift for dynamic build-ups, moving from hushed reflection to soaring climaxes without losing their understated core. Critically noted for its cohesion and lyrical sincerity, Almost Here established Unbelievable Truth as a thoughtful counterpoint to the era's louder guitar bands. It remains a focused, atmospheric debut that rewards close listening and highlights a band confident in mood, melody and craft

The Swallows were one of Singapore’s standout bands of the 1960s, rising from the explosive Pop Yeh-Yeh movement, the regional response to the global beat-band wave, with strong garage-rock roots. Fusing surf rock, early Beatles-inspired pop, and gritty, fuzz-laden guitars with a distinctly local sensibility, they became youth icons of the era. Defined by sharp suits, infectious melodies, and a rebellious spark, The Swallows captured the restless energy of post-independence Singapore, securing their place in the island’s golden age of bands and in the wider story of Southeast Asian rock.

Dry Socket is a politically charged hardcore band from Portland, Oregon, known for blistering performances and emotionally uncompromising songwriting. Rooted in the raw aggression of classic hardcore, their sound channels the urgency of early Ceremony, G.L.O.S.S., and Negative Approach while carving out a distinctly modern, inclusive space within the genre, one where anger, grief, and survival are not just themes, but lived realities.

Their music confronts systems of violence, coercion, and control with unflinching honesty, creating room to be unapologetically furious, vulnerable, and alive at the same time. Every riff lands like a strike; every lyric feels torn from experience rather than abstraction.

Since forming, Dry Socket has toured extensively across the U.S., Europe, and Mexico, sharing stages with Gorilla Biscuits, The Hope Conspiracy, Torso, and more.

Their latest record, Self Defense Techniques, centers on survival under constant pressure. Inspired by the practice of dehorning rhinos to protect them from poachers, removing a vital part of the animal in order to keep it alive, the album examines the compromises people are forced to make to endure a hostile world. Horns are tools for protection, communication, care, and identity. To survive, so many of us are taught to remove our own.

Across the record, Dry Socket interrogates life inside systems that demand silence, obedience, and self-erasure. Songs wrestle with exhaustion, spiritual betrayal, and economic violence, oscillating between fury and grief. Self Defense Techniques isn’t about triumph, it’s about endurance, documenting the cost of staying alive while refusing the lie that softness is weakness or that silence is peace

KITCHEN. LABEL is proud to present AGATE, the latest album by Japanese artist MEITEI, marking a deepening of the world he first shaped through his Kofū trilogy released between 2020 - 2023.

Named after the mineral agate, a stone formed through slow accumulation, pressure, and time, the album reflects MEITEI’s patient approach to sound. AGATE brings together extended and newly rearranged works from across the Kofū cycle alongside new compositions and passages, refining material developed through years of performance and sustained practice.

The album presents seven tracks:

HAŌ (Previously unreleased track)
SHIN-OIRAN (Remodeled from Oiran I, Kofū 2020)
SHIN-SADAYAKKO (Remodeled from Sadayakko, Kofū 2020)
SHIN-WAROSOKU (Remodeled from Wa-rōsoku, Kofū III 2023)
KYŪGEKI (Remodeled from Shinobi and Akira Kurosawa, Kofū II 2021)
SHIN-OIRAN II (Remodeled from Oiran II, Kofū 2020)
SHIN-EDOGAWARANPO (Remodeled from Edogawa Ranpo, Kofū III 2023)
Across these works, MEITEI expands the musical vocabulary first introduced in Kofū, a sound he once described as “lost Japanese mood.” While Kofū drew from fragments of folklore, theatre, ghost stories, and forgotten urban memory, it was never an act of historical reconstruction. Rather, it reflected a sensibility of the past observed from the present. With AGATE, this worldview is clarified as Shinpu, a process of discovery in which historical awareness becomes a foundation for contemporary creation rather than a constraint.

During five years of Kofū tours across Japan, Europe, and Asia, MEITEI performed this material in a wide range of spaces, from underground live houses and listening rooms to culturally significant sites. These environments influenced pacing, dynamics, and structure, shaping how the material evolved over time. AGATE is therefore not only a studio album, but the result of material refined through repeated performance.

If the Kofū albums were windows into forgotten eras, AGATE explores what lies beneath, sediment and strata formed through time and pressure. MEITEI’s approach to sound mirrors the nature of agate itself. Grains become texture. Texture becomes narrative. Voices drift through decaying layers of sound, while ancient instruments are used in non-traditional ways, forming distinctive percussive rhythms and melodies that appear and vanish without fixed resolution.

The album’s visual materials were developed under MEITEI’s direction through physical art-making processes. The cover artwork originates from a letterpress print created by Kamisoe, a Karakami atelier in Nishijin, Kyoto, using Kyo-karakami paper. The original artwork, produced through traditional woodblock techniques on handmade washi, was subsequently reproduced on print for the album edition. Kamisoe continues to reinterpret this historical Kyoto craft with a contemporary sensibility.

The title calligraphy was created by Bio Xie, whom MEITEI personally invited to participate in the project. During his performances abroad, MEITEI encountered in Taiwan a lingering atmosphere reminiscent of “Shitsunihon” — a sense of old Japanese memory that quietly endures beyond time. He was deeply drawn to Bio Xie’s distinctive use of Chinese characters, which resonated with this experience, and asked him to contribute to the visual expression of AGATE.

In parallel, MEITEI continues to reinterpret Japanese sensibility through his concept of “Shitsunihon,” presenting it as a contemporary musical language. The refined Kyoto motifs envisioned by Kamisoe and the distinctive calligraphic expression by Bio Xie intersect with MEITEI’s singular artistic direction, weaving together a newly articulated worldview.

The accompanying visual imagery, including the liner photographs, was created by photographer Hiroshi Okamoto, who was also responsible for the visual direction of MEITEI’s previous work, “Sen'nyū.” It draws from MEITEI’s lived experiences of winter seas, solitary cliffs, and breaking waves. These scenes symbolize the inner conflicts of the ten years he spent living in Hiroshima, and his confrontation with solitude and the sounds he creates.

AGATE will be released on 17 April 2025 via KITCHEN. LABEL on 180g vinyl, CD, and digital formats. The album is mastered by Kelly Hibbert, known for his work with Flying Lotus, Madlib, and J Dilla.

With AGATE, MEITEI returns to the material of Kofū with greater focus and discipline, continuing an ongoing process of working forward with inherited material.

Gal Costa’s 1969 self-titled album stands as one of the
boldest statements of the Tropicália movement. Blending
psychedelic rock, experimental arrangements, and Brazilian
popular music with fearless originality, the album showcases
Costa’s powerful, expressive voice at its most adventurous.
Featuring contributions from major Tropicália figures such as
Caetano Veloso and Gilberto Gil, its mix of sweetness and
sonic daring helped redefine contemporary Brazilian music,
cementing Gal Costa as a groundbreaking and influential artist.

Released in 2002, Games and Hell marked an early chapter in Toxic Twin’s output, capturing the raw, hardware-driven sound of Berlin’s early 2000s electronic underground.

Minimal, direct, and rooted in a time when the scene was still forming.

Nearly 25 years later, Games is reissued and expanded to six tracks, including previously unreleased material from the same era, via Relic.

FOLLOWING THE SUCCESS OF “THE OTHER HELL”, GOBLIN ARE BACK FOR RECORD STORE DAY 2026 WITH AN EXCLUSIVE COMPILATION OF SINGLES RELEASED BETWEEN 1975 AND 1979!

For the very first time on vinyl, this compilation gathers together all the singles released by Goblin during their golden era between 1975 and 1979, a journey that begins with the explosive, legendary debut Profondo Rosso, a true chart phenomenon of its time, and reaches the rare Amo Non Amo, passing through unforgettable milestones of Italian film music and progressive rock.

The collection opens with Profondo Rosso and Death Dies, taken from the soundtrack of Dario Argento’s masterpiece that catapulted Goblin to fame, blending dark atmospheres, virtuosity, and a unique sense of cinematic tension. It continues with Roller and Snip Snap, drawn from the instrumental album Roller (1976), a record not tied to any film, yet considered a cult cornerstone of Italian progressive music for its intricate structures and expressive power.

Chi? and Chi? - Parte Seconda follow; two tracks originally composed as the theme for a 1976 RAI television show, which saw Goblin bring their unmistakable sound to a different medium, experimenting within a shorter, punchier format.

Next comes Suspiria with its haunting counterpart Blind Concert, from the soundtrack of Argento’s 1977 horror classic. This remains one of Goblin’s most iconic and unsettling works, where music becomes an active narrative force: hypnotic, percussive, and filled with eerie vocal layers that made it a cornerstone of horror soundtracks worldwide.

From Il Fantastico Viaggio del Bagarozzo Mark (1978) come Un Ragazzo d’Argento and Opera Magnifica, two tracks that highlight the band’s more conceptual and visionary side, a move away from cinema toward a self-contained narrative and progressive experimentation.

The single Yell stands as another late-decade gem. Originally composed as the opening theme for the RAI television series “Sette storie per non dormire” (1978), it captures Goblin’s ability to merge rock energy with electronic pulse, proving their versatility far beyond the horror realm.

The compilation closes with Amo Non Amo and Funky Top, taken from the soundtrack of the 1979 film Amo Non Amo, one of the group’s lesser-known but fascinating cinematic works.

Far more than a simple anthology, The Singles Collection 1975–1979 maps the evolution of Goblin’s sound, from the worldwide success of Profondo Rosso to their most mature and experimental phase. It finally restores to vinyl a body of work that had long been scattered across rare 45 rpm releases, offering fans and collectors a complete, vivid portrait of one of Italy’s most inventive and influential musical ensembles.

Amore Libero – Free Love marks the first film score composed by Fabio Frizzi, written in 1974 for the movie of the same name directed by Pier Ludovico Pavoni. Set against the exotic backdrop of the Seychelles, the film tells the story of Simo, a free-spirited young woman played by Laura Gemser in her cinematic debut, blending sensuality and the spirit of liberation so typical of the 1970s.

Frizzi’s score perfectly captures the film’s atmosphere, weaving together evocative melodies, funky grooves, and progressive textures — an elegant, psychedelic soundscape that reflects both the tropical setting and the film’s themes of freedom and desire. The recording features the Goblin in their classic line-up: Fabio Pignatelli (bass), Massimo Morante (guitar), Walter Martino (drums), and Claudio Simonetti (keyboards), with Vince Tempera handling arrangements and orchestral direction.

Long regarded as a true holy grail for collectors, now, for the first time ever, it is officially reissued on vinyl, bringing back to light a fundamental chapter in Italian film music and progressive sound. An essential record that merges Frizzi’s melodic genius with the visionary energy of the Goblin, Amore Libero – Free Love stands as a timeless document of an extraordinary era in Italian cinema and its music.

A Record Store Day 2026 exclusive / Pearly light blue vinyl edition / 30x30cm insert with extensive liner notes