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Repressed !!
Calibre's & Chimpo's half stepping 'Start Again' original is now unleashed on Vinyl backed with brand new jungle style VIP remix.
Teaming up with Manchester's Chimpo, the pair have created two sound system killer's. 'This one's not for a fassy-hole,'

Conform Re-Touched Series has delivered other 5 gems to collect with the Vol.IV! The result is brilliant thanks to the contribution of great artists such as Radio Slave, Honey Dijon, Mark Broom, Adriana Lopez and Shlomi Aber.

When it comes to Radio Slave, no one can ever remain indifferent to the quality of Matt Edwards' production. Once again it has hit the mark by re-interpreting "Inside" by Gaetano Parisio in a masterly way. The track is a continuous crescendo but always well anchored to its original groove. The great British producer, Mark Broom, once again leaves no doubt about his ability to create real dace-floor killers. Seems that his edit was created to challenge the sound systems of all clubs around the world. It is the dream of all DJs to play a track of such impact during a party. His version remains faithful to the original but it has that broomish which makes it super catching.

Honey Dijon, an absolute star in the world techno firmament, makes her debut on Conform with her Re Rub interpretation of a classic like Dual Ep by C&G Southsystem, the project created by Gaetano Parisio and Marco Carola. Honey puts all of her Chicago background into this version. By adding vocal she manages perfectly to make two such different schools coexist, the Neapolitan one and the Chicago one. The result is simply sublime.

Likewise, it's a debut on the label also for Adriana Lopez absolutely respected throughout the techno scene for her extreme quality music. Her interpretation leaves no room for doubt that she doesn't like middle ways. Her remix is dark and hypnotic at the same time. Adriana gave her best and the delivery is just outstanding.

The grand finale takes place with the digital bonus track. Ben Sims "Carnival part one" re-edited by Shlomi Aber. This is definitely the icing on the cake! If you are a DJ you'll immediately desire to play this track as soon as possible. His edit it's just perfect leaving intact the original vibe of the English legend's track. Its tribal groove echoes the early 2000s sound. For those who love the genre this is unmissable.

SUMMER OF SEVENTEEN are MONIKA KHOT (NORDRA, ZEN MOTHER), WILLIAM FOWLER COLLINS, DANIEL MENCHE, FAITH COLOCCIA (MAMIFFER), and AARON TURNER. (SUMAC, SPLIT CRANIUM).

Wildfires plagued Washington state during the summer of 2017, their smoke drifting westward toward the Seattle area and toxifying the air. Shortly before that trauma, MONIKA KHOT, WILLIAM FOWLER COLLINS, DANIEL MENCHE, FAITH COLOCCIA, and AARON TURNER had gathered at the latter two musicians' House Of Low Culture studio on idyllic Vashon Island with revered producer RANDALL DUNN. There they cut eight songs that capture the makeshift band's feelings of what COLOCCIA calls "a kind of doomsday lurking in the background." It's as if these highly attuned players had a premonition.

"Summer Of Seventeen" -which was edited and arranged by MONIKA KHOT, who records apocalyptic music solo as NORDRA and plays in the avant-rock band ZEN MOTHER—is a nuanced admixture of these musicians' sounds and a culmination of all of their previous collaborations. COLOCCIA and TURNER have created eldritch folk and chamber rock for over a decade in MAMIFFER while engaging in various solo and group projects that explore their profound spirituality in sound. MENCHE has been a fixture on the abstract composition scene for 31 years and COLLINS is a savvy explorer of drone and ambient forms. Their ephemeral summit meeting has yielded a masterwork for the ages.

A heaven/hell and beauty/beastliness dichotomy pervades the album—as if a titanic struggle was transpiring in that small studio. The fearsome trumpet fanfare that starts "Chorus Of The Innocents" heralds a baleful fate. With a subliminal industrial rhythm bristling beneath the eerie exhalations, the song submerges us in a slow-motion maelstrom, a horror-film facsimile of MILES DAVIS' "Bitches Brew". "Perceived Slight" threads death-metal screams through a stark, suspenseful atmosphere, with austere glints of guitar and beats like fists on a casket lid intensifying the dread.

Angelic chants and celestial drones perfume the air in several of the songs on "Summer Of Seventeen", countered with muted blast beats, serrated hums, jagged glitches, simulacra of grinding gears and lightning. It's as if no good deed goes unpunished. "Spirits Of Redeemer" could be an elegy for the human race while "Cultural Orphan" sounds like a symphony for a malfunctioning factory. The album ends with "Theatre Needs An Audience," a harrowing ballad somewhere between EINSTÜRZENDE NEUBAUTEN and MERZBOW; it's a savage rent in the space-time continuum.

"Thinking about this record now," COLOCCIA recalls, "it seems like we were all sort of anticipating something like this current pandemic happening, although we were thinking about it as fire in the hands of man (literal fire, and also gunfire) that would overturn the normal running of things and reveal the current false beliefs systems holding up most of America."

That grave aura infiltrates "Summer Of Seventeen", However, a hopefulness bubbles beneath the foreboding architecture of sound and noise summoned here. The bunker is the new penthouse.

-Dave Segal, April 2020

This music was composed for SKALAR, an audio-visual kinetic art installation by light artist Christopher Bauder & Kangding Ray SKALAR is a large-scale art installation that explores the complex impact of light and sound on human perception. Created by light artist Christopher Bauder and musician Kangding Ray, this monumental artwork is a reflection on the fundamental nature and essence of human emotions. By combining a vast array of kinetic mirrors and perfectly synchronized moving lights with a sophisticated multi-channel sound system, SKALAR offers an audio-visual narration of radiant light vector drawings and multi-dimensional sound in enormous pitch-dark spaces. SKALAR is an intense journey through the cycle of basic human emotions. Everchanging tonalities trigger the full spectrum of emotional experiences using light, sound, and motion. The feelings of awe, surprise, exhilaration, and anticipation of having one’s senses overwhelmed are created, explored, and repeated in cycles throughout the piece, providing a collective, yet highly individual emotional experience. Light and darkness as endless cycles of day and night define our perception of time and influence our emotions. SKALAR is a central piece within light artist Christopher Bauder’s body of work, reflecting his deep fascination with light. In this gigantic installation, light is treated as a solid material that can be dimensionally sculpted and shaped, evoking abstract emotional associations. Intertwined with the tireless exploration of textures, rhythm, and sound design by musician and composer Kangding Ray, the silence of darkness is filled with iridescent forms of spatial light and sound. The original composition is spatialised in 360° over a 12 channels sound system, this stereo version has been mixed and mastered to convey a similar sense of space.
As of the release of this record, SKALAR has been presented in Berlin (Kraftwerk) in 2018,
in Mexico City (Frontón) in 2019 & in Amsterdam (Gashouder) in 2020. Fore more information about the piece and its concept, please visit skalar.art

2022 Repress

"Cellular Automata" is the new album from Dopplereffekt (Rudolf Klorzeiger and To-Nhan), their first in ten years since 2007's Calabi Yau Space on Rephlex.

Cellular Automata approaches mathematical growth and decay as an iterative process, with each data input considered individually relative to the overall model. The result represents one of the group's boldest creative endeavors, defying expectations while remaining unmistakably Dopplereffekt.

Cellular Automata is the third Dopplereffekt release to come via Berlin's Leisure System label, following 2013's "Tetrahymena" and 2014's "Hypnagogia".

Continuing a run of highly eclectic and quirky but consistently individual releases (most recently GAMING's internationally lauded Scenes From A Deserted City 2x12" LP, out Nov), the Hobbes Music label is very excited to welcome Jacksonville aka Yorkshire-born, Edinburgh-based artist Chris Lyth, to the fold. He has carpet-bombed the last few Hobbes Music events at Edinburgh's Bongo Club with his excellent live sets and the release has been in the pipeline for some time.

The 'FON' EP (caps intentional) combines a love of classic electro and techno with dub reggae, sound system culture, the UK's contemporary bass scene etc. Mastering was done by Optimum in Bristol, who did a really lovely job, with loads of width in the mix.

This release follows Jacksonville's 'Machines Of Loving Grace' EP which dropped in November via Inner Shift. He has a pedigree spanning some 20 years plus via releases for the likes of 2020Vision, Hizou, Doppler, Thug, Plastic City, Leftroom, A.E.R, Shanti and Dan Curtin’s Metamorphic. This record's a bit of a departure for him.

While we're deeply saddened by the knowledge that there's no chance now of us ever hearing Andy Weatherall play it out, we're kinda heartened by the idea that he would have probably dug it.... RIP.

We are proud to welcome Fear-E for his Dark Entries debut ‘Grey Skies In A Dear Green Place’ out February 28th. Fear-E is the moniker of Scott McKay a Glasgow based DJ and producer. Scott has already made a name for himself as one of Glasgow’s most technically-gifted and diverse selectors over the past decade. Then a slew of releases on the home-grown Dixon Avenue Basement Jams and Super Rhythm Trax introduced Fear-E, equally skilled studio operator, to the world.

‘Grey Skies In A Dear Green Place’ contains six club-ready tracks to “smash sound systems and illuminate sweaty warehouses.” The title is a reference to a nickname that Glasgow has, coming from Cumbric, means 'green hollow' or (dear) 'green place'. Layering cut-up vocals with warm thumping beats, Scott creates a stripped-back yet deeply jackin’ vibe. Call these tracks what you will, “acid attacks”, “club destroyers”, “pickle ticklers?!” All songs have been mastered by George Horn at Fantasy Studios. For the cover, Scott commissioned legendary Detroit illustrator Alan Oldham, who’s artwork has graced established an identity for Transmat and DJAX-UP-BEATS, to create a futuristic portrait of Glasgow in black & white and with green kryptonite flourishes by Eloise Leigh.d

Riding high on the success of his recent Soul Flip project, Del Gazeebo busts loose here with a pair of Rootsy, rigorously road-tested, certified party starters on his own brand new Art Surgery imprint.

First for a 2020 freshen-up is Barbara & The Browns' sassy, soulful rendition of the Rhythm & Blues and Reggae classic, "You Don't Love Me" - taking the already energetic 1971 recording, stretching it out, and giving it a little something extra in all the right places. Already touted as "one to watch in 2020" on the BBC's Craig Charles Funk & Soul Show & getting support from The Allergies, Smoove & Jalapeno Sound System.

On the flip, Pluto Shervington's 1976 uplifting Reggae smash "Dat" gets a subtle yet crucial lift to make it even more infectious. This sunny, irresistible ear-worm has long been a staple of Del's DJ sets, yet somehow as yet unreleased. Until now; re-refreshed for 2020.

Utter presents 'The Saturn Star', a score to an imaginary film by music producer and visual artist Jorge Velez.

Inspired by The Third Ear Band, late-period Coil, Carlos Peron's lurid soundtracks and European folk music, Velez's score accompanies the evocative tale of a 16th-century physician-alchemist hunted down by The Inquisition in western Europe.

Much like his acclaimed 'Hassan' soundtrack, Velez purposefully limited the amount of equipment he used to create a cohesive sonic environment, this time restricting himself to a Korg MonoPoly and Prophet 6. The music flowed quickly, with the entire project recorded and mixed within two weeks. The resulting work veers from moments of unsettling intensity to blissful beauty, underpinned by a lingering sense of mystery and paranoia.

Velez is also an avid illustrator and a new 8-page riso-printed booklet titled 'Systema' is included within the LP sleeve. It's intended as a 'guide for self-transformation', with each image to be taken in slowly alongside the music. For Velez, sound and vision are closely intertwined:

"Making music is as visual a process for me as making a drawing. A piece of music that's working is able to take on some fantastic shapes or evoke entire scenes or environments. Creating a story, characters and scenes that vary in intensity make the process of building a score for an imagined film tremendous fun. Listening back to 'The Saturn Star' I can still see those 'film scenes' in my mind..."

For the uninitiated, Velez has been producing music since the mid-90s - his early work was compiled by Rush Hour on its dedicated 'MMT Tape Series' releases - and has been prolific since, with releases under his own name on L.I.E.S, Berceuse Heroique, Skudge and Crème Organization coming in quick succession. He has also produced under a number of aliases such as Professor Genius, Bridge & Tunnel Kids and Duermo for Echovolt, Italians Do It Better and Borneo. His collaborators include Willie Burns, Gilb'r and Acid Arab among others. He currently lives in Amsterdam, Netherlands.

*Limited to 250 copies - includes 'Systema' A5 booklet*

Julien Chaptal is an electronic assembly — part French electronics, part Detroit synth machine, and part Dutch minimal robot (as part of MFD, Le Clic and Amsterdam661). Purpose built with a modular brain, Julien’s performances are switched on, live, utterly groovy, and while pulsating with machine wiring, undeniably human.
Chaptal's newest record, The Way, was conceived after a few too many knobs were turned on his Octatrack, sending Julien tumbling through time and space to capture decades worth of dance floor musical influence before returning home. Recorded live along the journey — on stage, by boat, and in a camper van — The Way’s hypnotic tracks are an intimate look at the intricate circuitry composing the logic behind electronic music, showcasing where it has come, where it is now, and where it will travel to in the future.

Sebastian Heda's new EP is a auditory glimpse into the insides of the haywired central nervous system of a man machine. The opener DISSOLUTION takes no prisoners and sets the direction for this exploration in modular-made attacks from a dystopian future. Followed by no less than two great remixes by ARCHITEKTUR and CAREMAJOR. The next and eponymous track CV GUERILLA is at arms and aims at you with relentless, percussive drum fire and another well executed version by ENDLEC. Finally you get short bursts of radio traffic from a RANDOM SOURCE, leaving nothing but silence and a big grin on your face.

OutOfStock is back in business, and it’s doing fine.

We’ve selected four tracks made by a duo which chose to remain incognito.

It’s suitable for various situations, moments, places. 
It's very helpful for DJs. 
Very pleasant for listeners. 
We recommend using this product on a proper sound system. 

Nothing can stop you now!

Discovered, curated and managed by Exos, Planet X is the latest discovery in our solar system. Little is known about this mystical planet other than that it radiates sound waves on the rougher side of the galactic spectrum. This first release comes from Exos himself where he fuses together old and new material with remixes from his astro pals, Ben Sims and Antigone. The release takes off with an old 90’s Exos track which is then warped and mixed by Ben Sims in his signature hardgroove style. Next in orbit is Bingo, a brand new track for interstellar clubbing that sounds like a country theme where Exos sampled a live guitar from his father’s rock band. The outcome is a dark and raw mixture of a 909 beat with a dark space cowboy riff from the blackest hole of our galaxy. The Antigone remix takes us near the event horizon where there is absolute chaos between dimensions.
The second release from Planet X will launch off next autumn with fellow space cadet Lafontaine on a 4 track storming missile and signs off with a nuclear remix by the one and only Matrixxman.
Start the countdown for our journey to the center of the galactic dancefloor!

No Spiritual Surrender, AKA Spanish techno producers J.C. (Deeply Rooted/Tresor) and Kastil (Esperanza/Wilson Records) return for a four-track EP following their self-titled, debut album late last year.

A1 'Ez Du Axola' portrays rampant synth based percussion, dominating the mix while A2 'The Shakes' is a paranoid, DnB roller for the eyes down crew.

For more pleasant surprises, flip for the B1 'T.Y.S.R.' which is an abstract and disjointed collage of radio samples that massage the ears, before B2 'XXX' closes out with distorted kicks that have enough torque to shatter any system.

Here we go with the twelfth edition of "Parquet Most Wanted", featuring another 4 top-notch productions by SOLEE, SEVERAL DEFINITIONS, ALYNE and THE DUALZ! Already huge DJ support by John Digweed (Bedrock), Victor Ruiz (Suara), Musumeci (Kompakt), Hernan Cattaneo (Sudbeat), DJ Hell (Gigolo), Marcus Worgull (Innervisions), Robert Babicz, Petar Dundov (Systematic), Bebetta (Monaberry), Dirty Doering (Katermukke), Kollektiv Turmstrasse (Diynamic), Mira (Katermukke) and many more. Don´t miss this master class collection of deep melodic House & Techno sound!

Modularz presents emerging artist Patrick Carrera to our family of producers. We are excited to present this next level release focused on pure analog manipulation and sonic hypnosis. The berlin based producer spent a year producing this project for us, its techno in the purest form and taking modern sequencing to a new level. We couldn't be more excited for this body of work to be hammered on the most highly regarded sound systems and venues around the globe. Highly recommended TIP!

repressed !

Ben Rau has had a great start to 2018, successfully launching his new label META , and recently returning from his latest tour of Australia.

It is obvious Ben soaked up the sun drenched culture and musical inspirations down under, as his latest INKAL release "Systéme Solaire" showcases Ben's diversity in the studio, and a more melodic side to Ben's sound that perfectly balances musicality while maintaining underground credibility, amounting to what is arguably Ben's strongest work yet.
With multiple represses on each INKAL release so far, the momentum is building for Ben and INKAL004 will only serve to enhance his ever-burgeoning reputation as a purveyor of dancefloor-ready weapons.

The EP kicks off with the title-track A-side "Systémes Solaire", a track which displays all the trademark influences Ben Rau has become synonymous for , as expert drum programming glitchy percussion and a rolling funk bassline combine to provide the groove.

"Systéme Solaire" has hooky elements in abundance, as a combination of chord work and constantly evolving synths team up to create a memorable, peak-time bomb. The B-side, "Expand", continues in the same vein, as a short, bubbling bass stab drives the track forward and modulates to provide an acid vibe, joined again by luscious piano chords and licks and the Expand' vocal, which switches up from a whispering atmospheric to a heavily effected, pitched tone that keeps interest throughout. All the while accentuated by fractured groovy percussion, piano licks and open hats that shine over the whole track.

With big hitter support on the EP already both INKAL and Ben Rau's career continue to go from strength-to-strength. Grab your copy of 'Systémes Solaire' when it drops

Green Vinyl

On his own Ladies and Gentlemen imprint, Green Supreme is the fourth studio album from house music veteran Phonique: a collection of 11 remarkable songs from one of the scene's most revered producers. To describe Phonique as prolific would be something of an understatement. To date, he has amassed a discography of more than 500 original tracks and remixes - as well as three previous studio albums - for acclaimed labels such as Dessous, Poker Flat, Crosstown Rebels, Systematic, Souvenir and of course his own label Ladies and Gentlemen, a collection which includes some runaway successes. Despite working on Green Supreme, Phonique's fierce production rate has continued unabated in 2016, with highlights including 'T Groove' on Katermukke and his stunning remix of Frank & Friedrich 'Coming Home' which landed on Universal earlier this year.

It is very difficult to present David Duriez without writing an encyclopedic tome as its influence on the House music in France was decisive. Since its inception in 1992, David released over a hundred records under his name, tens under various pseudonyms, mainly on vinyls on the most renowned labels like 2020Vision, Ovum, Systematic, Pokerflat, F Communication, Under the Counter, Stickman, Crosstown Rebels, The End, etc .. (the list is long, see Discogs to be convinced) and as many remixes for some of the greatest artists (think Moby, Dj Sneak, Gemini, DJ Hell, Llorca, Telex, Random Factor, Johnny Fiasco, Paul Johnson, Jori Hulkkonen, Ralph Lawson, Random Factor, Kenny Hawkes or Mr.C).

Founder of the label Brique Rouge and a whole galaxy of other labels, he participated in the creation of internationally recognized labels such as Robsoul with Phil Weeks, Freak n'Chic with Dan Ghenacia (from Apollonia) or Rz Muzik. At a time when David had federated online the cream of the House producers via a forum (far and long before social networks), Ivan Smagghe had nicknamed him "the producer of the producers." , A true House Music activist,

But most of all David Duriez is a devastating dancefloor DJ, He did several tours around the world and played in some of the biggest clubs in the world between 1995 and 2010. Truly one of the most important players in the French electro scene, David is back on tracks after a few years hyatus. But don't call it a comeback because he has never really gone awol, he has been watching the scene and now he's back in the studio. You can expect a (very) long serie of releases for 2016, you have been warned!

Dark Entries and Honey Soundsystem Records have teamed up again to release another volume of gay porn soundtracks by San Francisco-based musician and producer, Patrick Cowley. Perhaps one of the most revolutionary and influential people in the canon of disco music, Cowley created his own brand of Hi-NRG dance music, ''The San Francisco Sound.'' Born in Buffalo, NY on October 19, 1950, Patrick moved to San Francisco at the age of 21. He studied at the City College of San Francisco where he founded the Electronic Music Lab. During this time, Patrick, along with his classmates Maurice Tani and Art Adcock, would create radio jingles and electronic pieces using the school's equipment: first a Putney, then an E-MU System, and finally a Serge synthesizer. He would make experimental soundtracks by blending various types of music and adapting them to the synthesizer.

2024 Repress

Als Compilation-Reihe im Jahre 2001 gegründet um ein paar lose Fäden unserer Stammkünstler zu verknüpfen, hat sich SPEICHER inzwischen zu einem Garanten für fortgeschrittene Tanzklänge aus aller Welt weiterentwickelt der es KOMPAKT erlaubt, Musiker aus allen Bereichen des elektronischen Spektrums einzuladen und zu fördern. Für SPEICHER 85 präsentiert der Amsterdamer Tanzflurbeschwörer und produzierende Drahtzieher PATRICE BÄUMEL zwei hocheffektive Technoschieber die für jeden anspruchsvollen DJ auf der Jagd nach Momentum zur Waffe der Wahl avancieren werden.

In glühendem Rot gehalten, bringt SPEICHER 85 neues Material von keinem geringeren als PATRICE BÄUMEL, einem der meistverehrtesten Resident-DJs und Techno-Innovatoren aus dem legendären, leider inzwischen geschlossenen Amsterdamer Trouw Club. Aktiv seit den Mittneunzigern, verdiente er seine Produktionssporen auf so unterschiedlichen Labels wie Trapez, Get Physical oder Systematic, mit aktuellen Highlights wie dem exzellenten Remix für GusGus' OBNOXIOUSLY SEXUAL (KOMPAKT DIGITAL 044) im letzten Jahr, oder dem Labelsolodebüt auf Kompakt SPEICHER 81 (KOMPAKT EXTRA 81), einem rauen und energetischen Werk das sich als bewusstseinsverändernde Maßnahme allererster Güte entpuppte.

Dark Entries release the debut vinyl EP from Bézier entitled "Ensconced." Bézier is the moniker of all-live-analog electronic wizard Robert Yang from San Francisco. Enchanted by the Cybernetic Broadcasting System (CBS), Robert started DJing as Robot Hustle, joining the Honey Soundsystem collective in 2007

Noir´s follow-up single to 'Around' is a collaboration with Berlin-based
Richard Davis and gets a big rework by Deetron (Music Man, Rejected,
Systematic).

2nd Strike by the Moensters on their own playground. Charming, melodic Originals combined with superb remixes from End of Tape and Daso (Systematic, Stil vor Talent, Connaisseur, My Best Friend).

The sun sat high above the desert outside Joshua Tree on October 17, 2024, baking the rocks and shrubbery outside the Farrington Observatory as a small group of invited guests ventured up a steep path towards the telescope. Kyle Simon, the artist and printmaker who founded the Observatory, was standing outside the print studio sat below the towering cylindrical building, greeting friends alongside his wife Sarah and lifelong friend Brian Weitz, the musician widely known as Geologist of Animal Collective. Simon and Weitz had spent the previous day testing and retesting a system that would transform the light of the oncoming full moon captured by the gigantic telescope into a signal that would modulate the control voltage of Weitz’s modular synthesizer. As the sun dipped below the horizon line, the audience gathered on a small wooden patio surrounded by speakers while Weitz readied himself behind the array of patches and knobs. Simon addressed the group, presenting the history of The Sirens, the sonic exploration of the night sky’s mystical and scientific significance about to unfold.

The music conjured under the Hunter’s Moon that night is now documented on this first official release of The Sirens, which was conceived by Simon and Weitz as a recurring performance piece and sound installation. Over a decade ago, Simon began immersing himself in literature on humanity’s sonic relationship to the celestial realm, including Homer’s Odyssey, Plato’s “Spindle of Necessity, ” Kepler’s Harmonices Mundi, and the field of astroseismology. He fitted homemade telescopes with photodiodes and optical sensors to make the images audible, finding latent patterns in the noisy sonic signals he began receiving from the stars. With Weitz, the process expanded as the signal was routed through an analog amplifier and set to modulate the pitch, filter, and other elements of his synthesizer. Together they developed a system of improvisation, with Simon adjusting the telescope to change the intensity of the light based on its relationship with the moon’s position (imagine a theremin player moving their hands in subtle, meaningful motion), and Weitz responding to that input in real time: bending it, amplifying it, or letting it stand on its own. The duo debuted the piece at the Integretron in Joshua Tree in 2018, providing a crucial proof of concept for the performance at Farrington featured here.

The first thing the listener hears on The Sirens is the opening of Farrington Observatory, the cranking of motor and metal. As the lens of the telescope is exposed to the evening air, a wavering drone emerges from the synthesizer, flickering at the margins, the tuning of the oscillators adjusting to the rapidly cooling desert air. The piece progresses and the drone becomes a luminous, spherical constant, bathing the listener in pure tone as Weitz draws out harmonically ambiguous melodies that spiral upwards. Electronics crackle and convulse, coalescing into dense dissonance before widening out into an open octave. Just as the moon orbits the Earth and the stars shift as the planet rotates, so each sonic element appears in flux, interrelationships slowly forming and falling away. Divided into two parts, The Sirens flows as a continuous conversation between the artists and the starlight completing its thousand-year journey across the galaxy.

The Sirens belongs primarily to a lineage beyond music: of sea captains navigating by looking skyward, of astrophysicists studying the formation of the Milky Way, of the modern myths of werewolves, of the stories embedded in constellations. As Simon writes in the album’s extensive liner notes, “These stories and explorations reveal a collective yearning to become conscious of our connection to the universe, our deep-seated desire to understand how we fit into it all.” This music underscores the history of the night sky as the place where poetry and science find common ground, where exploration hinges on the imagination. Driven by curiosity and ingenuity, Weitz and Simon look up and wonder.

Four dub cuts rooted in bass, space, and smoke. No titles, no names. Pressed for the system.

Modern Hypnosis is proud to introduce Babaka, the new alias of esteemed German producer Jörg Müller.

Reigniting his passion for physical, visceral sound system music, Jörg uses classic analog gear and a few self-built instruments to create a unique, potent dub sound. While reminiscent of Jörg’s earlier ambient and dub techno styles on his 2019 album Drawn From Memory and 2022’s Groundworks LP on The Moth Club, his new direction has evolved those techniques and primed them for sound system use. His debut release as Babaka showcases four masterful tracks that differ widely from one another while remaining within his new realm.

The opening track, "Exterminating Angel," is a pulsating, supernatural dub experiment featuring a deeply infectious bassline, ghostly key stabs, tight percussive delays and an oddly dramatic vocal sample creating a profound sonic climax before tapering off, allowing you to escape its vacuum and recalibrate. The most skank'n track of the EP, "A Bug in the dark" with its murky half-time swagger feel, bouncy hats, dub saturation and mega sub-driven riff has become an all-time favourite at Modern Hypnosis HQ.

Featuring precise production with decorative atmospherics and swung drums, "Woodsman Blues" has an almost Boxcutter feel to its intro before plunging off the deep end, hitting the dub floorboards, and revealing its true self as a reincarnated, stoned dubstep track. Closing out the release is "Hysteria," a perfectly executed, dark, chugging techno steppa that remains a popular track for many early-access DJs and selectors around the globe.

In the words of Jörg Müller himself:

After my first Album "Heavy Heart”, I tried to push my music more into abstract territory, especially sound-wise, ignoring mixing and mastering rules... this culminated in the eerie, roomy, off-atmosphere on "ground works" on The Moth Club.

After that, my focus shifted further towards freeform electro-acoustic ambient music. I built a couple of instruments myself and released two albums on Shimmering Mood as Kaleidophon. This was during the pandemic as nightlife came to a stop.

In 2023 and 2024, I started to go to dances again. I saw The Bug on his Pressure System, Al Wootton at Meaksuma Festival, Channel One and Iration Steppas on Young Veteran Hifi Soundsystem. Especially impressive were Mark Ernestus, Mark Ainley and Aba Shanti on the infamous sound system at Open Ground in Wuppertal.

This reignited my passion for dub/sound system music; I wanted to make tracks with the physical, visceral quality of sound systems.

After a long-awaited break from the format, Smokin’ Sessions returns to vinyl with a very special limited-edition pressing of Rowl’s Signal EP.

Since launching in 2007, Smokin’ Sessions has built a reputation for deep, bass-driven music and a vinyl catalogue that has become an important part of the label’s history. After quite some time away from pressing records, SMOKE046 marks the label’s return to wax — presented on limited-edition transparent blue vinyl.

At the centre of the release is longtime Smokin’ Sessions and Deep Heads artist Rowl, returning with four cuts rooted in the deep 2-step, garage and bass sound that has defined both his own productions and the label over the years.

Opening the record is Versa & Rowl – “If You (Rowl’s Grey Skies Remix)”, a weighty reworking of an unreleased Versa & Rowl dub. Raw, swung drums, deep sub pressure and a distinctly old-school UK garage atmosphere run throughout — a sound described in early feedback as a “future retro garage classic” with that early deep dubstep / 2-step crossover feeling. The remix has also picked up support from Mat The Alien, BunZer0, Deep Tempo and Richard Dorfmeister, amongst others.

“Signal” follows — a heavy, stripped-back 2-step roller built around swinging drums, commanding low-end and Rowl’s unmistakably deep production style. The track represents the classic Smokin’ Sessions sound while pushing it forward with the precision Rowl has developed over more than a decade of production. The track has received strong DJ support, including J:Kenzo, who called it a “Great track”, Synkro, BunZer0, Mat The Alien and others.

On the B-side comes “Sierra” featuring Bristol lyricist and vocalist P.A.B MC. Written and recorded together in Bristol, Sierra takes things into warmer territory: chilled two-step garage rhythms, dubstep-weight low-end and an almost astral atmosphere underpin P.A.B MC’s melodic, conscious vocal delivery. It sits somewhere between soundsystem music and reflective storytelling — equally suited to a late-night system or headphones.

Early response to “Sierra” has already included Synkro, who described the track simply as “Killer”, alongside further underground DJ support.

Exclusive to the vinyl is the instrumental version of “Sierra”, giving the full production room to breathe and making this pressing an essential version of the EP for DJs, collectors and anyone wanting to hear the depth of Rowl’s production without the vocal.

Rowl first appeared on Smokin’ Sessions in 2011 and has remained closely connected to both Smokin’ Sessions and Deep Heads ever since. His catalogue includes collaborations with Versa such as Lunar, Jupiter and Solstice, alongside his 2013 Cosmic Visions EP. His music has previously received support from Don Letts on BBC Radio 6 Music, Tim Parker on NTS, Synkro and J:Kenzo.

For the physical release, no corners have been cut. The record has been vinyl cut and mastered by Beau Thomas at Ten Eight Seven (Ten Eight Seven Mastering) — one of the most respected engineers in UK bass music and someone whose experience with low frequencies and vinyl makes him the perfect choice for a Smokin’ Sessions pressing.

Uluru is back with another tasty 7”.
Making his debut on the label, Uk producer Dj Hiphoppapotamus bring his energy with two cuts from his sensational “Tropical Wiseguy” series, featuring Father Funk on the b side.

Pull up guaranteed!

Pressed on high quality black and green transparent vinyl (48 gr.)
Edition of 250, cut it loud and fat, highly recommended for big sound systems.

The UK Players & Friends Hills and Valleys, Rivers and Streams (A Tribute to Idren Natural) 9 brand new tracks by The UK Players. Voiced by Singers and Poets who knew Idren Natural personally. Recorded and Mixed by Supa Yout’ at Earth Works Studio, Amsterdam. Sleeve artwork and written testimonials from close friends and associates. Idren Natural aka Ras Natural aka InI Oneness, DJ, Singer, Chanter, Musician, was a pivotal player and pillar of UK/European Roots, Reggae, Dub, Sound System Culture. A humble Rastaman who did so much for so many, inasmuch as inspiring, encouraging, and connecting. He selflessly helped those less fortunate than himself. A strong advocate of the culture and philosophy of Rastafari. He was a commanding presence who lit up the stage, giving JAH all the glory. His passing was a great loss to the community. The UK Players Dub Band formed in 1996. They teamed up with Ras Natural/InI Oneness to record their debut 7” single ‘Further’ for Jah Works with Producer Jah Rej. This single gained exposure via Jah Shaka, Abashanti, and King Shiloh Sound Systems, even the famous Radio 1 DJ ‘John Peel’ played it. More recordings with Jah Rej at Seventh Sense Studio led to the debut album ‘Take Heed’. During the halcyon days of InI Oneness & The UK Players (1997-2004) they toured the UK and Europe, clocking up over 250 gigs in that time. Amongst brethren within the Rastafari community, the band became affectionately known as Ras Naturals band. Friends of Natural like Ras Iyah, Tony Roots, Sister Aisha, Wayne McArthur, and Barry Isaacs (among others) performed with them during this time. Members of InI Oneness & The UK Players never split up, throughout the years they branched out into other projects, reconvening for specials and one offs. Following Idren Naturals passing in 2022, the band stepped up to play his memorial show, where the idea formulated of making a tribute album to him. Ben King offered the use of Earth Works studio to help realise the vision. Work began with longtime live sound engineer Supa Yout’ in March 2024. Jah Rej assisted production on a number of these recordings, and sadly passed during the making of it, the last album he worked on. Various vocalists who were close to Natural, submitted vocals across the following year. The album was mixed and dubbed in March ‘25 at Earth Works by Soupa Yout' & Kingsway. Artwork and written memories/testimonials were then assembled. Everyone involved in the creation of this album knew Idren Natural personally. This album shines a spotlight on his spirit. Carrying songs of tribute, and messages for the times. ALPHA DUB: Every time the band played a gig, Natural would insist on starting with a dub. In that tradition, this album is no different. ‘Mandlion’ passing through the studio, headtopped a Melodica cut on it. Dubbed to the max by Supa Yout! NATURAL VIBE: The ‘Forward Fever’ crew from Belgium were one of the first collectives that Natural affiliated with in Europe. Here, Ras Cloud cleverly weaves all of Naturals song titles into the lyrics, creating a song in itself. WORD & FLESH: Fellowdread was born and raised in Kingston, Jamaica. Now living in Bristol, England, residing with Natural in his last days. His Poetry is rich in inflection, knowledge and wisdom, teachings that spark up the divine. ALL ABOUT LOVE: A pause for contemplation, this one stills the listener. Rootsman Rak’s words warn against complacency, and encourages action. A completely (natural) acoustic track featuring the skilled percussionist Jonah Dan. REMEMBER HIM: Inna Dubplate style, Barry Isaacs toasts to Idren in personal remembrance, reminding us all of the man he was. The track also features snippets of a phone call from Naturals oldest friend ‘Fergie Greenspears’ recounting memories. RISE UP RASTA CHILDREN: The legendary Tony Roots, graces the album with his unique delivery. Natural, The Players, and Tony go back a long way. A song of strength to affirm the soul, and rally against Babylon. Livicated to the one (Natural) SONG FOR THE RIVER MAN: During those halcyon days, many stages were shared with Albaroot, whom the band met whilst on tour in Scotland. Clark Innes (lead singer/songwriter) reminisces about the force of nature that was Natural, times shared, and that knowing, to never meet again. ONE STEP AHEAD: An interpretation of the ‘Look Inside’ riddim by Reuben Addis. Built for Sound System, it is the only track on the album that rolls into a dub. Lyrical Benjie literally entered the studio, rode the riddim without hearing it first, cutting his vocal in one take! A message for the times that sends shivers up your spine. THE PRAYER: Iman Onedub AKA Iman Gebre Iyesus, member of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, met Idren Natural at Fairfield House in Bath. Here he seals the album with a recital of the Lord's Prayer in English, with Amharic. His rich textural tones elevated with a one away riddim to carry the listener home.

Almost Starlight is the extraordinary new album by Jem Finer (hurdy-gurdy) and John Matthias (violin). Produced by Jay Auborn and recorded in a Medieval Church, deep in the Devon countryside, in the Summer of 2025, the music is suffused with light, heat and the natural acoustics of the space.

The album defies categorisation; forced to pigeon hole it the nearest approximation would be ‘modern-classical’ but this ignores its myriad influences and explorations which encompass inspiration from Arvo Pärt through Terry Riley to Can via Delius, Alice Coltrane and a subtle reimagining of electronic music played purely with acoustic instruments, bending and shaping their possibilities in surprising and unexpected directions.

Jay Auborn plays cello on a number of the compositions and his production opens up and expands the music through a skilled and imaginative use of space, paying homage to the atmosphere of the church; ‘the sound evolved… chasing the imagined acoustics of that church in my mind; a place for worshipping light with sound.’

Almost Starlight will be released on the 4th September by Touch, available as CD, vinyl, cassette and on streaming platforms.

BIOS OF THE ARTISTS

Jem Finer

Since studying computer science in the 1970s, Jem Finer has worked in various fields, including photography, film, experimental and popular music, sound recording, sculpture and installation.

Much of his work relates to systems, extended processes and extremes of scale and includes Longplayer, a musical composition repeating once every 1000 years, and the Gurdy and Hurdy stones, ancient rocks set upright in fields in East Sussex and Gloucestershire with Jimmy Cauty. Their work together includes a band, The Standing Stones, whose most recent release is Twa Sisters, featuring Iona Zajac and Daragh Lynch.

He was a founder member of The Pogues, with whom he has played, written and recorded since 1981.

Recent music revolves around a fascination with the hurdy-gurdy and includes hrdy-grdy, a cassette released by Benedict Drew’s Thanet Tape Centre. His latest collaboration, with John Matthias, Almost Starlight, will be released by Touch in September 2026.

John Matthias

Since studying Theoretical Physics in the late 1980s and 1990s, John has created music and sound in many forms, including for installation, popular music, music for film, for dance and orchestra.

Much of John’s work plays with the physics of complex systems but he is also greatly influenced by stories and song. John has collaborated with Matthew Herbert, Stanley Donwood, Jay Auborn, Radiohead, Thom Yorke, Nick Ryan and many others to create music with a variety of textures and sonorities. He is particularly interested in simplicity and form and how context informs the way music sounds.

His latest collaboration, with Jem Finer, Almost Starlight, will be released by Touch in September 2026.

EM Records is proud to present the first new album release in 25 years from Australia's Sheriff Lindo, dubmaster of the Southern Hemisphere.
His "Ten Dubs That Shook The World" EM1119CD/LP, released in 1988, has been growing in stature since its release, supported by its re-issue on EM Records, and in the meantime the Sheriff has been working steadily, deep-local style, honing his skills with the Australian sound systems Firehouse Sound and Earthlink Sound. The tracks on "Aftershock Dubs", recorded between 1990 and 2005, while never officially released, have been played as dub plates at sound system parties, proved movers, tested in the heat of action. Recorded at Lindo's 4/5 Studios, these specials were chosen by Japanese sound system savants Takuto Kuratani (Ruv Bytes) and Atsushi Muneshige (Touch the Sky/Corner Stone Music) from a cornucopia of goodness supplied by Sheriff Lindo, mastered by Kuratani for maximum impact. EM Records' first-ever Dancehall release is available on vinyl and CD, with two bonus tracks on the CD. One track features the vocals of Ras Roni; all tracks feature the experience-forged Dub sense of the Sheriff. More than a quarter-century of love, knowledge and soul-science has been distilled here. Don't miss it.

Möge es den Menschen im bekannten Universum gefallen, dass das musikalische Ensemble mit zahlreichen Namen, das rechtlich unter dem Namen ,Kay-Bee Funk Music Group" firmiert, sein - alphabetisch gesehen - erstes Album mit dem Titel ,Access All Areas" veröffentlicht. Diese Aufnahmen, die mit der von Karate Boogaloo patentierten ,Lovely Recording Technique" entstanden sind, machen deutlich, dass jeder ein VIP ist, wenn man KB hört. ,Access" war das einzige Wort, das The Old Kar-Boo's bei diesem Projekt philosophisch leitete. Wurde ein Stück zu verworren, landete es im Papierkorb. Nur diejenigen, die von jedem und allen gesummt werden konnten, blieben erhalten. Dieses Sieb kam während des gesamten Prozesses zum Einsatz; Arrangements und Formen wurden straff gehalten, Schnickschnack auf ein Minimum reduziert. War ,Hold Your Horses" aus dem Jahr 2024 noch ein Epos, so ist ,Access All Areas" ein Haiku. Der bewährte Aufnahmeprozess der Band wurde gewissenhaft eingehalten, abgesehen von einer wunderbaren Ergänzung: den großartigen ,Sound Recordings" unter der Leitung ihres Inhabers und außergewöhnlichen Toningenieurs Alex Bennet. Alex, der den 4-Spur-Ampex 440 bei Bedarf abseits der ausgetretenen Pfade steuerte und stets dafür sorgte, dass die Stimmung stimmte, ist ein waschechter Booger. Auch wenn es sich nur wie ein Augenblick anfühlt, sagt uns die Uhr, dass fast 20 Jahre vergangen sind, seit Kay's Bees zum ersten Mal versuchten, die Songs ihrer musikalischen Helden - The Meters, Booker T & The MG's und The JB's, um nur einige zu nennen - zu spielen. Seitdem haben die Famous Flying Karate Boogaloo Brothers einen Schritt nach dem anderen gemacht und ihren eigenen Sound entwickelt - einen, der die Geschichte der instrumentalen Funk- und Soul-Musik respektvoll würdigt und die Zeit widerspiegelt, die sie damit verbracht haben, ihren unverwechselbaren Sound zu entwickeln. So sehr jedes Mitglied auch für sich allein glänzt, ist es doch ein besonderes Ereignis, wenn alle vier Planeten im Booger-System in einer Linie stehen. ,Access All Areas" ist eine solche Finsternis - ein künstlerischer Ausdruck, an dem jedes Mitglied gleichermaßen beteiligt ist und der einen Schatten wirft, der einzigartig für diesen Anlass ist. Jede Sekunde der Musik wurde unter voller Beteiligung aller Mitglieder komponiert und produziert; das Mixing übernahm Henry Jenkins, das Artwork stammte von Hudson Whitlock und Callum Riley, und Darvid Thor vollbrachte Dinge, die man gesehen haben muss, um sie zu glauben. Musik ist ein Mannschaftssport, und es gibt kein ,Ich" im Funk. Das Album erscheint bei den beiden großartigsten Plattenlabels der Galaxie: ,Colemine Records" aus Loveland, USA, und ,College of Knowledge" aus Coburg, Australien. Hören Sie sich bitte das neue Album ,Access All Areas" von Karate Boogaloo an.

Möge es den Menschen im bekannten Universum gefallen, dass das musikalische Ensemble mit zahlreichen Namen, das rechtlich unter dem Namen ,Kay-Bee Funk Music Group" firmiert, sein - alphabetisch gesehen - erstes Album mit dem Titel ,Access All Areas" veröffentlicht. Diese Aufnahmen, die mit der von Karate Boogaloo patentierten ,Lovely Recording Technique" entstanden sind, machen deutlich, dass jeder ein VIP ist, wenn man KB hört. ,Access" war das einzige Wort, das The Old Kar-Boo's bei diesem Projekt philosophisch leitete. Wurde ein Stück zu verworren, landete es im Papierkorb. Nur diejenigen, die von jedem und allen gesummt werden konnten, blieben erhalten. Dieses Sieb kam während des gesamten Prozesses zum Einsatz; Arrangements und Formen wurden straff gehalten, Schnickschnack auf ein Minimum reduziert. War ,Hold Your Horses" aus dem Jahr 2024 noch ein Epos, so ist ,Access All Areas" ein Haiku. Der bewährte Aufnahmeprozess der Band wurde gewissenhaft eingehalten, abgesehen von einer wunderbaren Ergänzung: den großartigen ,Sound Recordings" unter der Leitung ihres Inhabers und außergewöhnlichen Toningenieurs Alex Bennet. Alex, der den 4-Spur-Ampex 440 bei Bedarf abseits der ausgetretenen Pfade steuerte und stets dafür sorgte, dass die Stimmung stimmte, ist ein waschechter Booger. Auch wenn es sich nur wie ein Augenblick anfühlt, sagt uns die Uhr, dass fast 20 Jahre vergangen sind, seit Kay's Bees zum ersten Mal versuchten, die Songs ihrer musikalischen Helden - The Meters, Booker T & The MG's und The JB's, um nur einige zu nennen - zu spielen. Seitdem haben die Famous Flying Karate Boogaloo Brothers einen Schritt nach dem anderen gemacht und ihren eigenen Sound entwickelt - einen, der die Geschichte der instrumentalen Funk- und Soul-Musik respektvoll würdigt und die Zeit widerspiegelt, die sie damit verbracht haben, ihren unverwechselbaren Sound zu entwickeln. So sehr jedes Mitglied auch für sich allein glänzt, ist es doch ein besonderes Ereignis, wenn alle vier Planeten im Booger-System in einer Linie stehen. ,Access All Areas" ist eine solche Finsternis - ein künstlerischer Ausdruck, an dem jedes Mitglied gleichermaßen beteiligt ist und der einen Schatten wirft, der einzigartig für diesen Anlass ist. Jede Sekunde der Musik wurde unter voller Beteiligung aller Mitglieder komponiert und produziert; das Mixing übernahm Henry Jenkins, das Artwork stammte von Hudson Whitlock und Callum Riley, und Darvid Thor vollbrachte Dinge, die man gesehen haben muss, um sie zu glauben. Musik ist ein Mannschaftssport, und es gibt kein ,Ich" im Funk. Das Album erscheint bei den beiden großartigsten Plattenlabels der Galaxie: ,Colemine Records" aus Loveland, USA, und ,College of Knowledge" aus Coburg, Australien. Hören Sie sich bitte das neue Album ,Access All Areas" von Karate Boogaloo an.

Composer and multi-instrumentalist Koen Holtkamp has spent more than two decades shaping a body of work at the intersection of ambient, experimental, and electroacoustic music. Known for his role in the influential duo Mountains, as well as a solo catalog defined by texture and spatial awareness, Holtkamp has long explored how sound interacts with environment and perception. With Nightlife, he enters a new phase of that inquiry, one shaped as much by physical relocation as artistic evolution.

After leaving Brooklyn for the relatively rural setting of New York’s Hudson Valley, Holtkamp found himself immersed in nature and embracing a slower way of life, a shift that directly informed the album’s creation. Rather than rushing into a new project, he allowed the space itself to guide him, focusing on experimentation and play instead of a fixed outcome. Over time, a new instrument emerged from his modular system, built around physical modeling techniques that emulate plucked string sounds. Drawing on a deep affinity for acoustic traditions, from guitar soli to the kora and other chordophones, he began translating those influences into an electronic language, creating music that feels tangible, effusive, and even intimate, despite its synthetic nature. As the pieces took shape, Holtkamp expanded the project into a kind of imagined ensemble. Composed with specific collaborators in mind, the album features extensive contributions from drummer Greg Fox and saxophonist and flutist Matt Bauder, whose performances subtly reshape the material and draw it toward more fluid, song-like forms, alongside a guest appearance from Ben Vida on synth bass. Yet even as Nightlife occasionally resembles a band in motion, its construction resists traditional cohesion. Acoustic and electronic sources coexist to create a hyper-dimensional sense of space, with each element deliberately placed in its own distinct environment, yielding a complex yet inviting setting that feels both otherworldly and completely natural.

Much of the album was created during late-night sessions, which became a kind of personal ritual and ultimately inspired its title. Nightlife unfolds as a series of finely detailed environments, where stillness, texture, and subtle interplay take precedence over momentum. Each piece invites close listening while remaining open and unforced, reflecting both a change in pace and a deepening of focus. The result extends Holtkamp’s ongoing interest in how sound can shape, and be shaped by, the spaces we inhabit.

South Asian super-producers Lapgan and Baalti – the former a Madlib-disciple spinning hip-hop grooves out of dusty desi samples, the latter duo purveyors of intricately tapestried dance music – holed up in the California desert in early 2024 for a songwriting session to blend their complimentary styles. They ended up with several albums worth of club material built upon decades of Indian music history – floor fillers that move like early Four Tet meets The Avalanches. They’ve been teasing this material around the world during live sets – from Paris Fashion Week to Glastonbury, London Clubs to BK Warehouse parties, sessions at Lot Radio and Karachi Community Radio, and anywhere else they find an aux. The result has been endless ID requests for unreleased gems like “Ipa Ma” and “Lime Tikka”, calls which should finally be answered with the release of Threads.

Lapgan Bio
Chicago-based archivist and producer Lapgan has become renowned for his signature style: unearthing rare and forgotten Indian & Pakistani sounds and recontextualizing them into hip-hop and dance beats that evoke J Dilla and Madlib. He has cultivated a reputation for quietly revolutionary sample-work across his beloved solo projects History and Duniya Kya Hai, as well as LAFANDAR, his critically acclaimed team up with Heems (of Das Racist / Swet Shop Boys). He has worked with a range of artists from both the West (Your Old Droog, Saul Williams, Cool Calm Pete, Kool Keith, Open Mike Eagle, Blue, Quelle Chris) and the East (EXCISE DEPT, Baalti, Sid Sriram, Sid Vashi, Dynoman), and has been featured in global media including Pitchfork, FADER, Stereogum, Passion of the Weiss, Mixmag, Homegrown, and Vinyl Me, Please. Over the past year he has headlined clubs and performed at festivals across the world from Chicago and New York to London and India, and was personally invited to soundtrack back to back Paris Fashion Week shows for the similarly norm-shifting designer Kartik Research. In 2026 he will soundtrack his third Kartik Research runway show, as well as reissue Duniya Kya Hai for its five-year anniversary alongside a companion EP featuring remixes from peers and supporters Arushi Jain, Loris, Mera Bhai, Malkfunktion, and Maral.

Baalti Bio
Baalti makes electronic music built around rhythm, pressure, and collective release – weaving through leftfield bass, dusty hip hop, tripped out dub and raw house all while maintaining a throughline rooted in South Asian culture seen through the lens of a sweaty dancefloor. In the last year they have experienced a whirlwind rise and growing global recognition: from their EP Mela vividly evoking West Bengal’s sound system culture to their Tamil-cinema-infused filter-house project with Anish Kumar Stunt Doubles, in addition to wide-ranging collabs and remixes alongside DJ ADHD, Naya Beat, and A.R. RahmanThey have also built a reputation for their frenetic live show, with appearances at international festivals like Glastonbury and MELT, headlining shows across Australia and Europe and supporting influences turned peers like Four Tet and Disclosure across North America. Their explosive, percussion-heavy sets have been platformed by Rinse FM, NTS, The Lot Radio, Beats In Space, and Refuge Worldwide, and their music has been renowned by publications including Pitchfork, Bandcamp Daily, RA, and MixMag. Their forward momentum continues into 2026 with slated headline tours in India, Australia, and Asia along with appearances at Coachella, Party in the Paddock, Fvded in the Park, and We Out Here festivals.

“When the flesh gets cut off the soul, it’s not the end.”

More than forty years after hardCORPS emerged from a Brixton basement, ‘Metal & Flesh’ returns in a new expanded edition on double vinyl and CD, newly remastered with the full involvement of surviving members Rob Doran and Clive Pierce. Born from the collision of punk, analogue synthesisers, sequencers, disco, reggae and experimental studio techniques, hardCORPS created electronic music that was as physical and emotional as it was mechanical. The arrival of French vocalist Regine Fetet gave the group its defining identity, placing her raw, uncompromising voice against the dense machinery of Hugh Ashton, Clive Pierce and Rob Doran. Working mainly with a Roland System 100, several Roland MC4 sequencers and later an additional MC500 and Atari ST 1040 computers, etc. pp., hardCORPS always transformed limitations, accidents, distortion and human imperfection into part of the music itself. Although rooted in the early 1980s, ‘Metal & Flesh’ refuses easy nostalgia, retaining the tension, space and character that made hardCORPS unlike their contemporaries. Yet, shall we eventually mention Kraftwerk, maybe let’s quote Ian Shirley from Record Collector magazine: „’Je Suis Passée‘ was not only a love letter to Kraftwerk but penned with such verve, passion and precision that Ralf and Florian probably would have accepted a blind date at a Düsseldorf cocktail bar (…).“ And as Martin Rushent famously said in 1990: “Hard Corps were ignored in their time. Perhaps it is the burden of the adventurous and the innovative to be ignored in their time, which is sad. Don’t ignore them now.”

This new edition has been carefully remastered to preserve that character and dynamics rather than simply making the recordings louder or more ‘modern’, while the artwork has likewise been developed to reflect the band’s original identity. Metal & Flesh’ is not merely an artefact of the 1980s, but a rare and fiercely individual document of four people discovering what happens when human instinct and machines collide.

Remastered by Martin Bowes. Graphic design by hard CORPS and Steve Lippert.

Gatefold sleeve gloss lamination, printed inner sleeves with lyrics, two double-sided hand-numbered.

The first Af Ursin album in a decade, this release features extraordinary Belgian vocalist and performer Bénédicte Davin. »Ad Fontes« is a personal response to the fractured reality of our time. Created in the wake of visible social decay, manipulation, and institutional control, the album serves as a sonic mirror to an era defined by corruption and systemic failure. Instead of preaching political manifestos or claiming to have answers, this work is an intimate personal statement – a silent call to embrace spiritual values as the vital, untainted source of human nature.

Much like a teacher, Meryl Streek imparts his knowledge and lived experiences to all who are willing to listen. His third album, ‘Stories They Don’t Teach You At School’, serves as an alternative form of education, delivered through a visceral blend of factual soundbites and raw emotion, loops and samples, guitars and bass. The lyrics resonate with core values of compassion, resilience, and community—themes rarely explored within a classroom setting or seen in today's fragmented society. By prioritising conviction over commercial success, the Dublin artist's outspokenness may invite controversy. Yet beneath the fervor lies a profound desire for positive social change at home in Ireland, and beyond.
Meryl Streek returned to Darkland Studios in Dublin to fine-tune the recordings previously made in a shed at the back of his ma's garden. Here he continued the genre-blurring nature of his earlier work, enticing listeners toward dissonant landscapes and hypnotic rhythms. Gentle piano tones collide with abrasive synths, creating a striking tension between beauty and noise. Streek tempers his rage when appropriate, integrating atmospheric textures and pop sensibilities into his ever-expanding sonic collage.
As is tradition with any Meryl Streek record, ‘Stories They Don’t Teach You At School’ unearths many uncomfortable truths. ‘Rotten Fruit’ examines media manipulation and the numbing proliferation of misinformation, all soundtracked by synth-punk. With gliding keys and a crunchy bassline, ‘Council Estates’ critiques systemic government failures affecting the working class. ‘Kelly’ is a slice of electronica that details an ongoing criminal investigation, currently classified as a “Contested Cause of Death”. The indie pop of 'The Chancer' brings much-needed attention to landlord politicians. As the album progresses, the mission remains absolute: to provide a voice for the voiceless.
To amplify these narratives, Meryl Streek handpicked a diverse group of collaborators for the project. ‘Rotten Fruit’ features Steve Ignorant of anarcho-punk collective CRASS. ‘Depression’ opens with a touching recording of the late Liam Norton, close friend and former touring companion, while Pete Holidai of The Radiators From Space contributes guitars on the song. Comedian Phill Jupitus provides the spoken outro for ‘The Chancer'. ‘Housing For All’ incorporates audio from Derelict Ireland campaigners Frank O’Connor and Jude Sherry. Venn Records owner and Gallows guitarist Laurent ‘Lags’ Barnard joins forces with Adebisi Shank bassist Vinny McCreith on the aggressive ‘Bullet,’ while Sophie Porter of Other Half provides bass guitar for ‘Life is Not a Rehearsal’. The album concludes with a three-minute spoken word piece by Frankie McNamara, the viral creator behind ‘Meditations for the Anxious Mind’.
In her 1990 protest anthem “Black Boys on Mopeds,” the late Sinead O’Connor warned, “To say what you feel is to dig your own grave”. With this release, Meryl Streek firmly holds the shovel.