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2026 Repress

Back in 1988, disco rap aficionado and collector Dave Lee put together a compilation titled 'Back To The Old School', showcasing some of the best of the genre, most of which had never been issued before in the UK . Fast forward to 2025 and Dave's label Z Records has managed to procure the rights to a few choice old school cuts for a (sort of) follow up. The difference is this time Mr Lee has remixed and re-worked the songs for today's dancefloors while preserving their original flavour and integrity. In this first part of the series we have TJ Swann's 1981 jam 'Get Fly', re-tracked and taken into lo-slung yacht rock funk territory with a sizzling synth solo for good measure, a perfect compliment to TJ's smooth NYC flow. Terry Lewis & Wild Flower are up next on the A-side, with a boogie rich, mid-tempo stomper with a heavy funk bottom end and a message that still rings true in this day and age. Mike T's 'Do It Anyway You Wanna' finishes things up with a compulsive dose of jazz-tinged disco rap that goes straight for the jugular, super charged slap bass underpinning sharp sax and flute motifs while the rich tones of Mike T slide over the top. Dave Lee yet again providing a masterclass in production.

Following his bold 1983 solo debut 'Walk Into Light', Ian Anderson - the legendary flautist, songwriter & frontman of Jethro Tull - returned in 1995 with 'Divinities: Twelve Dances With God', a richly textured & wholly instrumental work that showcased a different side of his musical imagination. A sweeping, genre- defying suite in twelve parts, 'Divinities' draws deeply on Anderson's lifelong love of classical music, world traditions & pastoral folk. Conceived as a continuous orchestral journey, the album weaves influences from Celtic airs & Middle Eastern motifs to Indian ragas & Baroque counterpoint, all anchored by Anderson's unmistakable flute.

The result is one of his most ambitious & evocative projects - a spiritual, cinematic exploration of faith, nature & the divine. Now 'Divinities: Twelve Dances With God' returns to vinyl in a stunning half- speed remastered edition, expertly mastered by Grammy-winning engineer John Webber at London's AIR Studios using audio sourced from the original tapes. Pressed on black vinyl & housed in a faithful reproduction of the original artwork, this new edition stands as the most detailed & dynamic presentation of the album to date. Originally premiered live in its entirety with orchestral accompaniment before its release, 'Divinities' remains a singular work within Anderson's catalogue - a testament to his restless creativity & compositional range beyond the bounds of progressive rock.

Final LP of a productive year for Feral Child is an absolute cracker. The latest of a long line of superb full lengths from Stephen James Buckley's incendiary Polypores project. This one is arguably his most adventurous outing to date, the undeniably psychedelic “Hungry Vortex”. Four extended pieces exploring polyrhythmic fixations and cosmic jazz-prog freak-outs. Percussion-heavy opener ‘The Body Is The Spaceship’ is a fine example of the sort of seamless organic growth we tend to see in Polypores’ music, with slewed synth blips and rolling polyrhythms gradually twisting into unrecognisable strands of melody and unconventional groove before your very ears.

The prog-heavy ‘Wizards!’ sees Buckley’s trademarked playful use of time-signature changes, providing such a wealth of emotional and stylistic variance and immeasurable enjoyment without changing key once (honestly, who needs keys). It’s brilliantly evocative too and could indeed perfectly soundtrack a mushroom-trip wizard march. As we flip the record over, the flutey flourishes and minimalist clicks of the title track draw the listener into a trancelike state, repeated movements spiralling like myriad creatures crawling over a candy-coloured horizon, echoing forth into an inviting sonic oblivion. It’s ostensibly electronic, yet somehow more natural organism than machine, with little concern for the grid, or indeed, the rules. Finally, we end on something a little more subdued - the reassuring classicism of the beautiful ‘Void High’, with washes of warm noise and wobbly delay lines whirring and twinkling away, closing the record with an experience that is undeniably emotional, spiritual and as always, uniquely Polypores. This is a wonderful record with which to close the year out, it comes in a magnificent, spot varnished Jake Blanchard sleeve. A superb record released as a one time only vinyl pressing.

Ston Elaióna is John Also Bennett’s first album for Shelter Press since his 2019 solo debut Erg Herbe. The American born, Athens, Greece, based flautist, synthesist, and composer weaves a strikingly singular electroacoustic excursion for bass flute and Yamaha DX7ii, largely recorded in the golden haze of the early morning hours - bending time at the otherworldly juncture of consciousness and place. Translating from Greek as “in the olive grove”, Ston Elaióna is permeated with the ambiences of the ancient and present world, guided into form by a playfully rigorous approach to sound.
Initially emerging during the mid 2000s as part of Columbus, Ohio’s noise scene, before relocating to NYC around 2010, Bennett’s diverse activities picked up an increasing sense of pace over the following decade - performing and recording as a solo artist (JAB), with the trio Forma and with CV &JAB, his prolific duo with his partner Christina Vantzou, as well as playing in Jon Gibson’s ensemble among many other multifaceted collaborations. However, since 2020 the flautist and electroacoustic composer has existed in a semi nomadic state: drifting between Brooklyn, Brussels, extensive tours, and Greece, where he finally came to rest in Athens last year.

Drawing upon a carefully honed attentiveness to the environments and experiences of everyday life, Ston Elaióna is a suite of nine pieces (with an additional track exclusive to physical formats), many of them composed and played live as the early morning sun touched the Parthenon, in full view from Bennett’s studio window in Athens. Bennett’s refinement and restraint, honed over his years adrift, led him to adopt a limited palette focused on his primary instrument, the bass flute, and a Yamaha DX7ii synthesizer tuned to just intonation scales. Alongside a handful of other keyboards, digital oscillators triggered by his flute, and occasional field recordings, this simple palette is reflected by the deeply emotive sense of minimalism that permeates the album’s two sides. Following two solo albums defined by outward facing temperaments - 2022’s Out there in the middle of nowhere (Poole Music), which used a lap steel guitar and generative oscillators to evoke the surreal landscapes of the South Dakota badlands, and the largely synthetic atmospheres of the 2024 anthology Music For Save Rooms 1 & 2 (Editions Basilic) - the shift in Bennett’s worldly circumstances offered an intuitive return to the calm, inward states of creative exploration that have historically defined JAB’s sound. In parallel, context provided clear sources of inspiration for many of the album’s themes, as well as sources for some of its sounds. The aura of Greece, from the ancient to the present, from its stones and olive groves to its traffic, figures heavily across Ston Elaióna’s two sides. John Also Bennett’s Ston Elaióna forms an elegantly rigorous world of electroacoustic sonority, bridging the expanse of time with the immediacies of environment and happening in the here and now: a profound sonic mediation on the countless dimensions unlocked by life in Greece.

Blue note / Schema / Far Out recordings artist shares a new compilation of golden age italian library music.

Following his acclaimed five-part Viagem compilation series celebrating Brazil's forgotten bossa nova and samba jazz, Far Out, Blue Note and Schema recording artist and international DJ Nicola Conte turns his curatorial attention homeward with Viaggio, an extraordinary exploration of Italy's library music renaissance 1970-79.

The 12-track compilation spotlights the remarkable creative explosion that occurred during the seventies: when some of the greatest yet most historically overlooked composers, including Amedeo Tommasi, Alessandro Alessandroni and Max Rocci, were composing and recording huge amounts of original music for film and television libraries.

Unlike commercial releases designed for mass consumption, library music was created specifically to accompany images on screen. This meant creative freedom for composers who imagined scenarios, feelings and worlds to soundtrack. Pressed in limited quantities, these recordings were distributed only to internal circles of music supervisors, journalists, and television professionals – making them virtually invisible to the general public for decades.

"This is a journey through a largely forgotten world," explains Conte. "While major jazz recording opportunities were scarce, an incredible network of small labels owned by publishing companies – often created by the composers themselves – began to flourish. This created an open space where musicians could express more experimental and free thinking sounds."

At the heart of Viaggio stands Amedeo Tommasi, the sophisticated jazz pianist who emerged in 1960 backing international stars like Chet Baker, Bobby Jaspar, and Jacques Pelzer. Tommasi was among Italy's earliest artists to introduce Black US modal jazz influences, and when traditional recording opportunities dwindled, he pivoted to soundtrack and library music, helping define a distinctly Italian sound that bridged experimental jazz with the emerging possibilities afforded by developments in synthesizer and recording technologies.

The compilation features rare gems from small label outputs, namely the Cenacolo and Rotary label catalogs. Tommasi's contemporaries include the great Alessandro Alessandroni and his vocalist wife Giulia De Mutiis (Kema), Stefano Torrosi (under the alias Farlocco - meaning fake/phony), and Belgian composer Joël Vandroogenbroeck. The recordings capture the technological evolution of the era as beguiling synthesis often combines with global influences spanning Brazilian rhythms, jazz-funk explorations, and Middle Eastern scales.

"You can hear both the haunting melodies and sun-kissed atmospheres so typical of Italian culture from that era," Conte observes. "Some of these albums could have been proper artist releases, while others were specifically designed for accompanying images on screen, yet all were crafted with exploratory creativity that still resonates powerfully today."

The inimitable Richard Youngs returns to Black Truffle with this third full-length for the label, Hidden. Like CXXI and Modern Sorrow, Hidden unfolds across two side-long pieces at once eminently listenable and possessed of the ‘bloody-minded’ dedication to ‘having an idea and sticking with it’ that Youngs himself has identified as one of the key qualities of his work.

At the core of both pieces are rapid, randomised arpeggios generated with a Moog Grandmother, hypnotic patterns that wouldn’t be out of place on a Berlin School classic. Alongside these arpeggios, across the seventeen minutes of the first side-long piece Youngs builds an airy structure of shakers, synthetic handclaps and a brief, repeated sample, impossible to identify but sounding like a glitched foghorn. Over the top we hear his unmistakable voice, repeating single syllables—Ha, Ho—with a slow delay, something like a lonely one-man-band take on Anthony Moore’s Pieces from the Cloudland Ballroom or a more musical elaboration of the hypnotically overlapping delayed phonemes of Anton Bruhin’s Rotomotor. Like much of Youngs' work, the arrangement of sounds is sparse, each layer punctuated by spaces that allow others to shine through, in a way that seems to have more to do with dub or early hip-hop than high-brow models of musical reductionism.

On the flipside, the arpeggios return, now accompanied by ringing, filtered guitar chords and long flute tones. The use of a similar ground layer across the two pieces with strikingly different overdubs calls up Youngs' first solo record, the classic Advent, reminding us of how consistent ‘theme and variations’ is as an approach in his enormous body of work. Joined by handclaps and a chiming sound, the piece almost feels like it is about to achieve dance-floor lift-off at times, only for the percussion to disappear and leave the listener once again floating among the guitar and flute, now joined by occasional cut-off vocal snippets, like a radio turned quickly on and off. The suspension of these disparate elements over the steady foundation of the Moog arpeggios might remind some listeners of the free-form studio explorations of Moebius & Plank and Holger Czukay or even give a nod to Youngs’ formative encounter with Cabaret Voltaire.

Like some of Youngs’ much-loved work with Simon Wickham-Smith, Hidden approaches relatively familiar sounds and instruments from skewed angles, delighting in loose structures of interaction that border on gleeful incoherence while remaining outwardly beautiful. Coming up to almost four decades of persistent activity, like little else in contemporary music Youngs’ work beams with the simple joys of exploration and experiment.



After Hours is a 1957 album from the Prestige All Stars – led by trumpeter Thad Jones. Also including Frank Wess (flute, tenor sax), Mal Waldron (piano), Kenny Burrell (guitar), Paul Chambers (bass), and Art Taylor (drums), the album features 4 cuts, all composed by Mal Waldron. This new edition of the album is released as part of the Original Jazz Classics Series on 180-gram vinyl pressed at RTI with all-analogue mastering from the original tapes at Cohearent Audio and a Stoughton Tip-On Jacket.

At the beginning of the 1960s, at the Berklee College of Music, Byard Lancaster met some feisty friends: Sonny Sharrock, Dave Burrell and Ted Daniel. It is easy to see why he rapidly became involved in free jazz. Once he was settled in New York, he appeared on Sunny Murray Quintet, recorded under the leadership of the drum crazy colleague of Albert Ayler.



In 1968, the saxophonist and flutist recorded his first album under his own name: It’s Not Up To Us. The following year he came to Paris in the wake of… Sunny Murray. He would come back to France in 1971 (again with Murray) and in 1973 (without Murray for a change). This is when he met Jef Gilson, the pianist and producer who encouraged him to record under his own name again.

On Palm Records (Gilson’s label), he would release four albums: Us, Mother Africa, Exactement and Funny Funky Rib Crib.



A few months after recording “Us”, Lancaster recorded “Mother Africa” along with Clint Jackson III, a trumpeter, partner of Khan Jamal or Noah Howard on other recordings.

On march 8th, 1974, Lancaster and Jackson headed up a group composed of Jean-François Catoire (electric and double bass), Keno Speller (percussion) and Jonathan Dickinson (drums).


Together, they create an immediate impression. From the first seconds of “We The Blessed”, they develop a free jazz which rapidly abandons any virulence under the effect of blues and soul based interventions.

When Gilson’s composition “Mother Africa” begins, listeners are transported into the studio, listening to the musicians setting up: chatting and joking… Then comes the melody: a dozen or so notes of a repeated theme which is accelerated and deformed according to their whims… The jazz played by the association Byard Lancaster / Clint Jackson III is rare: creative AND recreational. “We the blessed”, is apt listening to this again today!

This CD edition contains a bonus track, the magnificent “Love Always” that was originally released on the fourth (and last) volume of the Jef Gilson Anthology series released in 1975.


Recorded on 8th March 1974, it is a beautiful 15-minute-long modal jazz piece. Four notes from the bass (the relentless Jean-François Catoire, who makes up the rhythm section alongside drummer Jonathan Dickinson and percussionist Keno Speller), and the group is up and running!

On piano, Gilson shows the subtle tact of a sideman, leaving the lions’ share of the place to the horns. This allows us to hear the trumpet of Clint Jackson III and the alto (which sometimes sounds almost flute-like) of Byard Lancaster each staking their claim in a long hallucinatory march which moves from moments of direct exaltation to profoundly sensitive collective playing.

Imagine curating a dream lineup of MCs and producers from every corner of the rap world—sounds impossible, right? Not for artist and illustrator Gangster Doodles, who has been bringing this vision to life for the past decade. Now, with “Gangster Music Vol.3”, the trilogy reaches its grand finale, and it’s bigger, bolder, and more unpredictable than ever before. Gangster Doodles himself puts it best: "It’s hard to believe that I’ve been actively working on this Gangster Music series for the past 10 years. The most gangster music trilogy of ALL TIME is almost complete!! And in my humble opinion Vol.3 is the most exciting out of the 3, both from a music standpoint (special shout-out to all my music heroes on Vol.3) and artistically speaking this is the most fun I’ve had in years”

Since launching Volume 1 in 2019 and following up with the second volume in 2022, Gangster Doodles has been shaping the Gangster Music series into a one-of-a-kind sonic universe—an unfiltered mix of underground titans, unsung legends, and rising stars. Volume 3 is the biggest installment yet, boasting a staggering 30 tracks that traverse the entire spectrum of rap and beat culture.

This time around, the lineup is as eclectic as ever. From legendary pioneers like Lee Perry and Tommy Wright III, to veteran producers such as Mr. Scruff and Peanut Butter Wolf, the album pays homage to hip-hop’s roots while pushing forward into fresh territory. The roster also includes established up-and-comers like Devin Morrison, Low Leaf, DJ Harrison, Quelle Chris, Homeboy Sandman, and Suzi Analogue, ensuring a mix of classic flavors and new-school innovation. The bubbling underground is well represented too, with artists like Raz Fresco, Atlanta’s 645AR, and Pro Era’s Chuck Strangers bringing their own distinct heat.

From pioneering SoundCloud rappers like Pouya to genre-bending composer John Carroll Kirby, from Birmingham’s Romderful to Chile’s RVYO, the album encapsulates a truly global soundscape, proving once again that Gangster Doodles’ ear for cutting-edge talent is second to none.

Ralph Rodriguez aka Ralph Session is a Barcelona-based NYC-born house artist who kicks off this lush new Silver Walker 12" with 'Voices Rising', a smooth and song-driven deep house cut with a summery soul and stylish female vocals that hark back to the earliest soulful OGs. DFRA & MissFly combine then for 'Thinking', which is a more percussive and steamy, intense house sound with jazzy chords. Session's 'Love's Dance Floor' (instrumental mix) then taps into smoky late-night soul vibes with meandering leads allowing your mind to get lost in the moment and DFRA's 'Kiss My Soul' closes with a more playful and jazzy sound thanks to the charming flute leads and nimble, dancing keys.

Songs for Nothing was written upon Olan Monk’s return to the west coast of Ireland. The album is imbued with the influence of sean-nós singing, Irish language songs in the “old style” that often proclaim tales of love, loss and landscape; and also heavily indebted to the late Sinéad O’Connor’s confessional songwriting. Reconstructing these influences through their unique perspective has resulted in a fragmentary album veering between collaged pop, machinic rock and slow airs, “dedicated to Conamara and all who have called it home”. The western, Atlantic-facing edge of Ireland has a particular feeling and energy, one that permeates the release: the granite pulsates, the ocean and sky reflect intensities, seaweed rots on shingle shores, plants bloom, ancient trees come up for air from the drowned forest in Galway Bay, the sun splinters through the low clouds.

All songs written and arranged by Olan Monk
Vocals, guitars, piano and tin whistle performed by Olan Monk
Drum programming by Olan Monk featuring recordings of percussion performed by Michael Speers
Vocals on ‘Down 3’ and ‘Fate (Reprise)’ performed by Maria Somerville
Cello on ‘Blank Page’, ‘Oatmilk’, ‘Pomegranate’ and ‘Fate (Reprise)’ performed by Risteárd Ó’hAodha
Violin on ‘Corp’, ‘Down 3’ and ‘Drón Feadóige’ and accordion on ‘Amhrán Mhaínse’ performed by Peadar Tom Mercier
Bodhrán on ‘Corp’ and ‘Drón Feadóige’ performed by Aindriú De Buitléir
Harp on ‘10 Days’ performed by Róisín Berkeley
Flute on ‘10 Days’ performed by Dylan Kerr
Accordion on ‘Blank Page’ performed by Olan Monk

Recorded and mixed by Olan Monk
Additional mixing on ‘Can’t Wait’ by Patrick Burniston
Mastered by Noel Summerville
Photography by Charlie Joe Doherty
Artwork by Nicola Tirabasso
Thanks to Nic Tasker

With love to friends and family for their support in making this record
Dedicated to Conamara and all who have called it home

Sonetos del Amor Oscuro is an ode performed by four enchanted souls who have intertwined their hearts and conjured harmonies and rhythms that wander endlessly among the spellbinding words of a poet from Granada... Federico García Lorca;
He wrung, pushed and vibrated words like tectonic plates, transforming plains into poetic mountain landscapes. He then covered them with a Moorish carpet of snow crystals and had them reflected by the dark locks of hair of a gypsy girl from Albaicín who, with a voice forged in gold and silver, sings her little sister to sleep with a soothing lullaby.

Helena Casella – vocals
Myrddin De Cauter – flamenco guitar
Stijn Kuppens – cello
Stefan Bracaval – flute, bass flute

Helena Casella, the Belgian-Brazilian vocalist with a deep, soft and warm voice, translates her multicultural background and personal thoughts into music in a passionate, soulful and refined way. With her roots in an exceptionally musical family, her music exudes this unique heritage. She effortlessly interweaves genres such as R&B, soul, hip hop and modern jazz, while remaining true to the vibrant sounds of Brazil, an essential part of her roots.
Her debut album was released earlier this year on W.E.R.F. records.

Myrddin De Cauter's music is deeply moving, complex, passionately rhythmic and deeply emotional. He has mastered the compás of flamenco, which gives him the freedom to converse with elements from jazz or classical music. His speed sometimes seems otherworldly, but those who take the time to listen closely to his music will quickly discover an immense world of pure emotion, beauty and tranquillity. After six albums and countless concerts, Myrddin proves that great virtuosos do not necessarily have to come from Spain. At the tender age of eleven, his father taught him to play the clarinet in jazz and gypsy swing style; he became part of the family orchestra and gained his first experiences on stage. A classical melody composed on the guitar prompted him to ask his father to teach him the basics of flamenco guitar. Soon after, Myrddin seemed ready for the real thing and went to Andalusia to learn from Manolo Sanlucar and Gerardo Núñez. This inspired him to compose in his own unique language, deeply rooted in the pure flamenco tradition but enriched by boundless creativity.

Stijn Kuppens is a cellist, composer and producer. In his own genre, which he describes as non-classical cello, he uses the cello in his own unique way. His profound knowledge of the complex history and techniques of the style is clearly audible: Kuppens' mastery of classical music is evident in every note he plays, whether he is performing solo or collaborating with other musicians. His skill as a musician and ambition to explore the boundaries of conventional classical music is evident in his ability to seamlessly blend different genres.

Stefan Bracaval is a classically trained flutist who graduated from the Royal Conservatory of Antwerp. His fascination with the expressive potential of improvisation led him to jazz, where he became a self-taught jazz flutist. Bracaval has collaborated on projects with prominent jazz figures such as Charles Loos, Bert Joris and the Brussels Jazz Orchestra. In addition, he worked as a soloist and arranger with the VRT Radio Choir in 2016. Bracaval leads the Stefan Bracaval QU4RTET, which emphasises the flute as a central jazz instrument and brings new repertoire rooted in jazz traditions.

Live
31/10/2025 – Café Silverio, Gent (BE)
15/01/2026 – Kloosterkapel Diepenbeek (BE)
16/01/2026 – ‘t Ey, Belsele (BE)
17/01/2026 – Sint-Luciakerk (kerkconcerten Merode), Engsbergen (BE)
23/01/2026 – Muziekcentrum Dranouter (BE)

Within the world of theatrical archives, there are the known, the unknown, the forgotten, and the lost. Demetrio Stratos' stage compositions for Teatro dell'Elfo's groundbreaking 1979 production Satyricon - directed by future Oscar winner Gabriele Salvatores - represents one such lost artifact now wondrously returned to life. This radical sonic work, integrating extended vocal techniques, Balinese instruments, and pioneering whale song recordings, stands as the final masterpiece of Italy's most visionary vocal experimenter, lost for over four decades until Die Schachtel's extraordinary recovery. As Stratos himself explained: "The musical operation performed on Satyricon is particular: the composer-musician here does not compose, but borrows ready-made music, vivisects it, melts it, intervenes and recomposes it on magnetic tape. The structure of the signifier, from a morphological point of view, presents itself as a conceptual collage." The music is obtained by utilizing compositions and musical elements from David Behrman, Joan La Barbara, Balinese Ketyak, Turkish Nay flute, Yugoslavian bagpipe, Pan flute, and whale song, with synthesizer interventions by Paolo Tofani. It began as part of something known - a wild, immersive theatrical event that inaugurated Teatro dell'Elfo's historic venue in 1979, was almost entirely forgotten, becoming lost and then unknown. The original production marked a radical departure for the company: no longer popular street theatre, but a dark, immersive, sophisticated spectacle that transformed their space into a rough wooden arena with a sand floor. Demetrio Stratos, working with Paolo Tofani (fellow Area member), created an entire sonic universe that subverted every conventional function of stage music. Their composition wasn't accompaniment, but autonomous sonic dramaturgy that integrated extended vocal techniques, archaic electronic elements, Nay flutes, Balinese instruments, and pioneering whale song recordings. The result was a three-dimensional soundscape that enveloped audiences, creating an otherworldly acoustic dimension. Stratos' score even intervened in the actors' vocal delivery, with the recordings capturing both the performance and his coaching sessions with the cast. The production featured young actors destined for fame - Elio De Capitani, Ferdinando Bruni, Cristina Crippa, Corinna Agustoni, Ida Marinelli - guided by Gabriele Salvatores in this adaptation of Petronius' ancient novel. Shortly after the Satyricon performances, Stratos was hospitalized for the condition that would lead to his death at just 33 years old. This work represents his final composition - a haunting farewell from one of Italy's most innovative sound artists. Die Schachtel presents this recovered work in collaboration with Teatro dell'Elfo, pulled from the original magnetic tape and carefully restored. Satyricon '79 is one of the great artifacts of 1970s Italian avant-garde - a wild, grinding sonic expose which sucks the ear into its depths, made in the spirit of collaboration and creative risk-taking. The edition includes critical apparatus with essays, testimonies from protagonists, and period photographic documentation, documenting an unrepeatable moment where theatre, vocal research and sonic experimentation converged. This release marks a poignant moment in experimental music history - Stratos' final work, now rescued from the archives and restored to its rightful place in the canon of Italian avant-garde masterpieces. A true wonder of towering historical importance. As essential as it gets for any fan of experimental music, or the history of the Italian avant-garde. Fully restored and newly mastered from the original analog tapes. Absolutely essential.

London-based Aketi Ray are all-acoustic dub-jazz dons that blend double bass, drums, upright piano, horns and percussion into original compositions rooted in post-independence Jamaican instrumental traditions. Their sound also weaves in Ethiopian jazz, West African percussion, US jazz influences and UK Steppas vibes. Here they join up with K�ln, Germany duo Hidden Sequence, regulars on the likes of Mosaic and Lempuyang. 'Call On His Name' is flute lead and liquid dub, 'Time Is Now' has a mystic quality and moody sax lead, then 'Sinai' brings slowly unfurling melodies and lovely woodblock hits that echo away to infinity. Alternate versions on the flip make this a timeless excursions into endless dub depths.

"Raise your swords up high: BLOODBOUND march into a powerful future with Field Of Swords, out November 21st via Napalm Records. Twenty years after the release of their debut album, the Swedish warriors stand taller than ever on the front line of epic power metal, delivering their most modern work yet. Most recently drawn to the Viking era, the latest concept album Field Of Swords turns the page to another chapter in history, moving past the year 1066 and into the Middle Ages. As warfare evolves and the significance of forging iron with carbon leads to superior swordsmen, the bloodstained battlefields show new, grim faces, leaving room for more of BLOODBOUND’s vivid storytelling that continues to thrill audiences at countless live shows around the globe. BLOODBOUND’s first release with Napalm Records adds another 11 captivating battle hymns to their repertoire. A diverse record with aggressive songs and epic tracks alike, their eleventh album also contains some of the band’s fastest material ever written. The opening title track, “Field Of Swords”, immediately storms into BLOODBOUND’s signature sound, braiding stories of glory with a sweeping blend of melodic and heavy power metal. The dominant “As Empires Fall” follows the crusaders east and powerfully depicts said glory in epic battle in contrast with sacrifices made on the way. “Defenders Of Jerusalem” cleverly expands on the topic of loss, leaving listeners to wonder which side is holding their heads up high in the face of imminent defeat. Catchy flutes have the heroes take heart in “The Code Of Warriors” to guide them into the “Land Of The Brave” and Field Of Swords to new heights at the same time. “Light In The Sky” further illustrates BLOODBOUND’s battle scars turned electrifying sound, while the mature “Teutonic Knights” opens up the bleak reality of the tragedy that undoubtedly accompanies this battle-torn era of history. Yet, “Forged In Iron”, “Pain and Glory”, and “Born to be King” hold their ground as equally unforgettable tunes, all leading up to the brilliant finale: Brittney Slayes of powerhouse Canadian band UNLEASH THE ARCHERS joins “The Nine Crusades” as another valuable fighter to lead Field Of Swords to greatness. BLOODBOUND’s latest triumphant march impressively illustrates the importance of purpose and perseverance with heroic tales in shining heavy metal armor.

Green Vinyl. Twenty-five years after their first recording, Panzerpappa - perhaps Norway's most cordial avant-prog ensemble - felt the time had finally come to release their first-ever concept album. In 2025 the band will launch Landsbysladder, their eighth studio release. Landsbysladder is Norwegian for "village gossip" and the album comprises seven instrumental pieces centred on the themes of rumours, tales, and gossip in a small village - a musical chronicle of minor and major dramas unfolding in a tight-knit community where everyone knows everyone - or at least thinks they do. Landsbysladder tells a vivid story without uttering a single word. The music shifts between open, melodic passages and sudden bursts of intensity, drive, and complexity. Tempo changes, rhythmic twists, and harmonic detours mirror the unpredictable way gossip can spread, grow, and shift the mood in an instant. The album features several distinguished guest musicians: renowned folk artist Rannveig Djonne on diatonic accordion, seasoned performer Silje Hveem Lofthus on flute, internationally acclaimed soloist and professor Håkon Stene on tuned percussion, Håkon Borve on the rarely heard contra-alto clarinet, and last but not least, jazz luminary Ståle Storlokken - known from Elephant9, Terje Rypdal, Motorpsycho, and Supersilent - on synthesizer.

First Word Records are very proud to bring you 'Ghouls', the 6th studio album from Bastien Keb.

Through the reflective and introspective multi-mood journey of its 19-tracks, this album spans psychedelic-chamber-funk, warped anti-ballads, cinematic instrumentals, Ethio-jazz & ethereal ambience.

Part soundtrack, part beat-tape, part memoir, this is a dreamlike soundscape sewn together from half-forgotten memories & late night breakdowns.

Entirely sample-free, this album is full to the brim with musical experimentation, with Keb's compulsion to make all the individual pieces of music independently; combining strings, harps, saxophones, theremins, clarinets, flutes and trumpets.

He signals to the fuzzy, nostalgic nebulous of mid '90s skate videos, as well as harking back to the scores & moods of movies like The French Connection, Taxi Driver, The Warriors and La Haine. There are whispers of sounds in the air from jazz clubs, street preachers & Turkish restaurants.

Keb describes the sonic experience of this album simply as this… "You're half awake, and half asleep, but you're warm…"

For this 19-track opus, Keb is joined extensively by Malik Ameer Crumpler; a poet, composer, editor and professor based in Paris, who's been involved in numerous albums while writing for various forms of experimental media.

A multi-instrumentalist originally from the Midlands, Bastien Keb (aka Sebastian Jones) previously released his highly-acclaimed album '22.02.85' on First Word back in 2017; this new album being a very welcome return to the Worldwide Award-winning UK independent label.

His music has been widely supported across BBC Radio in the past by DJs including Gilles Peterson, Huey Morgan, Huw Stephens, Jamie Cullum, Lauren Laverne, Mary Anne Hobbs, Nemone and Tom Ravenscroft. This is in addition to glowing press reviews from the likes of Pitchfork, The Guardian and The Line Of Best Fit.

He's built up a steady fanbase through his extensive catalogue over the years, with material for labels like Def Pressé, Gearbox, One-Handed Music and most recently for Shabaka Hutchings' Native Rebel Recordings imprint, on a collaborative project with South London's Confucius MC (Speakers Corner Quartet).

Keb concludes "this record is for anyone feeling lost in a world that seems to have lost itself without knowing it. It's for the people who know that the world is missing the beauty of the lights in the distance, whilst being distracted by new shoes and flashy phones..."

'Ghouls' is due to be released on vinyl & digital worldwide, November 14th 2025.

Things Gotta Change is the fourth release by Austrian soul band SLADEK, following their debut album and
two EPs. With Loveless (2024), the group redefined their sound and secured a unique place in contemporary
soul. This new ten-track album builds on that breakthrough, blending the spirit of Curtis Mayfield, Donny
Hathaway and Marvin Gaye into a style distinctly their own.
At the core of SLADEK are David Sladek (vocals, guitar), Alvis Reid (bass) and Raphael Vorraber (drums),
joined by longtime producer Mathias Garmusch. Passionate about late-’60s soul and analog recording, they
craft a warm, deep sonic palette enriched by Taineh (backing vocals, keys), Yvonne Moriel (flute) and Tobias
Meissl (vibraphone).
The opener “Weight of the World” moves from heaviness to hope over guitar riffs, Mellotron flutes and a
powerful outro. “Stranger”, the first single, turns romantic miscommunication into an uplifting groove. “Wait for
Me” reflects on tough choices before drifting into a meditative guitar and flute mantra. “What a Little Love Can
Do” delivers a calm yet urgent call for compassion. “Here to Stay”, the second single, pairs emotional
uncertainty with steadfast resolve.
Instrumental “Lotus Eater” offers a dreamlike pause, inspired by mythic forgetfulness. The title track “Things
Gotta Change” is a heartfelt plea to break harmful patterns. “Beacon”, the ballad, urges kindness in a cruel
world. “Waking Dream” brings minor-key blues and abstract introspection, while “Bye Bye” closes with highenergy farewells and fresh perspectives.
Things Gotta Change stands as a rich, analog-crafted statement—blending timeless influences, vivid
storytelling, and a deep emotional range into one cohesive, soulful journey.

Born in Buenos Aires in 1934, Hector 'Costita' Bisignani is one of the leading figures in Latin American jazz. Settling in São Paulo in the late 1950s,
he quickly established himself as one of Brazil's most renowned flutists and saxophonists, collaborating with major artists such as Sérgio Mendes, Elis Regina,
Hermeto Pascoal, João Donato, and Gato Barbieri. His career also led him to play alongside Michel Legrand, Lalo Schifrin, Burt Bacharach, and Ray Conniff,

demonstrating his international influence. A founding member of Sérgio Mendes' Sexteto Bossa Rio, he contributed to the rise of Brazilian jazz by incorporating
local rhythms and bold compositions. He is also renowned as a teacher, making him a respected figure for several generations of musicians. With a career
spanning more than 70 years, he remains a pioneering figure in the history of Latin American jazz. 1981, now reissued, perfectly illustrates this creative freedom.

Recorded in the exuberant spirit of the 1970s and 1980s, it blendsbaião, jazz-funk, and Braziliansoul. Ledbyhissaxophone, flute,and clarone,andbackedbyhisGalleryClubband,

thisrarerecordingembodies the vibrant energy of a scene where experimentation and virtuosity went hand in hand.

Léo Dupleix return to Black Truffle with Round Sky, following the enchanting Resonant Trees (BT119). The composer here performs on analogue synthesizer, harpsichord and spinet as one member of Asterales, a group that brings together four important figures in the international community of musicians working with just intonation: Dupleix, Jon Heilbron (double bass), Rebecca Lane (quarter-tone flute) and Frederik Rasten (guitars). The quartet perform three recent pieces by Dupleix, each of which is like a different view on the same landscape of unruffled calm, where the unique harmonic events made possible by just intonation flicker across melodies and harmonies like light on the surface of water.

The first side is dedicated to ‘Poème d’air’, composed while Dupleix was immersed in the music of 14thcentury ars nova composer-poet Guillaume de Machaut. A sustained study of the ‘sonic possibilities of low-pitched sounds in just intonation’, it begins with a long, rumbling pitch from Heilbron’s bass, soon joined by the organ-like tones of the composer on synthesizer. The piece is made up of cycling sequences of chords, each of which is repeated for several minutes before the music either freezes on a single harmony or silently pauses before the next episode begins. These structures are initially dominated by the bass and synthesizer, with Lane’s pure vibrato-less flute tone and Rasten picked harmonics adding flashes of colour. As the piece develops, flute and guitar become more prominent and the bass climbs to higher registers. The development culminates in a stunning episode around fifteen minutes in where the texture thins out, casting a spotlight on a melodic figure exploiting the uncanny sound of Lane’s quarter-tone flute.

On the second side we are treated to two briefer pieces, closer to the sound of Resonant Trees as they return harpsichord and spinet to the foreground. ‘Ghosts’ centres on a harpsichord melody that slowly expands as it repeats, growing from a haunting six-note cell to a flowing succession of notes whose shape become increasingly difficult to perceive. Alongside this melodic development, an increasingly lush accompaniment grows, with long tones from bass, flute, e-bowed guitar and synthesizer holding notes picked out the harpsichord melody in a swaying harmonic cloud. Dupleix notes that the concluding ‘Round Sky’ was written in the countryside in spring, a circumstance that seems far from irrelevant to the impression the piece makes when its euphonous spinet arpeggios emerge from a gentle synthesizer drone like a flower from a bud. Performed as a duo with Rasten, with both instrumentalists also singing, this title piece exemplifies what makes Dupleix’s music so unique: grounded in a rigorous application of just intonation principles yet as open as Harold Budd or Andrew Chalk to an uncomplicated, intuitive experience of beauty.

The perfect accompaniment to that deep fall feeling, Frank Maston's beloved 2025 single finally gets its long overdue vinyl release! As our friends New Commute articulated beautifully, "Foreign Affairs" drifts through London fog and Paris shimmer, its avant-lounge glow wrapping each melody in a wistful ache. On B-side "Liaison," ghostly strings and a solitary piano paint a deserted twilight shoreline, Pacôme Henry's distinct 16mm cinematography hovering nearby." We've pressed just 500 of these gorgeous records so, be quick, Maston always flies.

Originally written for a film Maston was scoring in 2024, he decided to keep it aside for himself. And, well, us all. The song has a vibe Maston has previously flirted with; he wanted to dive in...all the way: "The arrangement is huge, definitely the biggest I've written, and it merited live musicians playing together. Also another experiment, to do it with all live musicians playing my arrangements. I wanted to make something that you'd want to put on when you bring a date back to your place. It's on the edge of sappy but that's sort of the point. I decided to give myself an unlimited budget - just spend whatever was necessary to get the right musicians and record it the best way possible."

It's this dedication to sonic perfection which Maston is rightly lauded for. We couldn't not put this on a cute wee 7" when we heard it.

The A side, "Foreign Affairs", is a brilliant, Bacharach-esque romp with a bit of that unapologetically romantic Morricone angle. Says Frank: "I was trying to synthesize that sort of jazzy/sexy/classy/romantic mature sound, where the edginess is in these surprising chord changes and subtle arrangement cues."

A wonderful complement, the flipside "Liaison", evokes Martin Denny, but Eden's Island was in Frank's head, too. He wanted to take a deep dive into that exotica sound - a genre he'd referenced a bit but never fully committed to - so the piece is lavished with those big sighing strings and a pretty lush arrangement. Happily, it all sounds super rich. Also, "Umiliani is always a reference for this sort of thing (Il Corpo etc.), That almost mechanical arrangement of things moving together and a simple melody over it (something I nicked from Ennio)".

The two songs were recorded in Paris and London in the summer of 2024. Aside from the rhythm section and piano, there's vibraphone, a full string section, trombones and alto and concert flutes. "Liaison" boasts strings, vibraphone, a female choir and tenor sax. Maston played piano and acoustic guitar but that's it (as opposed to playing basically everything on Tulips). His friend Oscar Sholto Robertson played drums and percussion whilst Maston mainstay Elie Ghersinu (formerly of L'Eclair) played bass.

The theme for a lot of Maston's titles is that they have two meanings. So "Foreign Affairs" is both a reference to him living abroad and the idea of constant cultural diplomacy and then there's this sexy/cheeky interpretation of foreign affairs in a literal way - "an affair abroad, ooh la la!". The artwork for this 7" single has Roman campaign flags, referencing the foreign affairs in sort of a sassy way. There's a violence implied. But then if you look from a bit of a distance it looks like a bouquet of flowers. So Frank thought it went with the spirit of the title. Also, he's used a lot of roman motifs now so he kept that theme going, even with the terracotta cover.

This is a vitally important project for our Frank. He explains why, here: "For whatever reason, these songs really resonated with me. I feel like they are either the end of a stylistic era for me or the beginning of a new one. They're sonically the culmination of what I'd been working towards and trying to get better at since I started. If I heard this when I was making Tulips I would have said "YES! *This* is what I want to be doing!". So that's the essence of it. It's a statement and the intended reaction is "This is really good, but why now?". Like the edge to it is the context of someone making this sort of thing in 2025, which I think is a huge strength. The real heads will get it. My music always has like a 2-3 year latency until people really catch onto it, and these ones will have a nice payoff I think."

We couldn't put it better ourselves. So we haven't.

Long-time NuNorthern Soul contributor, B.J. Smith is a man in demand, dividing his time between solo work, playing guitar in Crazy P man James Baron’s popular JIM outfit, collaborating in a variety of well-regarded projects (Smith & Mudd, Bison and White Elephant amongst them) and composing for TV. Due to this impressive list of musical commitments, solo releases have been few and far between of late, with Smith’s most recent NuNorthern Soul release, a stripped back version of his Big Sur single, dropping late 2023.

It's been ever longer since he delivered a volume in his popular and ongoing Dedications To The Greats series, where the singer-songwriter and composer successfully turns his hand to other people’s songs. Since debuting the series on NuNorthern Soul in 2013 via revelatory and inspired covers of tracks by Mos Def and the Pharcyde, Smith has covered cuts by Outkast, Prefab Sprout and Soul II Soul.

On volume four, Smith’s first volume in the series for five years, he delivers a “cover of a cover” – a revolutionary and imaginative interpretation of Billy Swan’s ‘Don’t Be Cruel’, itself a version of a song first made famous by Elvis Presley. It was their mutual love of Swan’s version that brought Smith together with the release’s most prominent guest artist, Joe Harvey-Whyte, whose lilting, bittersweet and deeply emotive pedal steel performances can be heard across the EP.

Smith provides three contrasting takes. The EP is led by the ‘Mother Earth’ version, a slowly unfurling epic in which waves of effects-laden pedal steel and sun-splashed picking acoustic guitars usher in Smith’s eyes-closed vocalisations, settling into a groove reminiscent of his collaborative work with long-time friend and collaborator Paul ‘Mudd’ Murphy that showcases Harvey-Whyte centre stage to joyful effect. As the 14-minute epic progresses, we’re treated to long, languid electric guitar solos, percussion-laden slow-motion builds and hazy, stretched-out organ solos. It’s a breathlessly brilliant concoction that’s a million miles away from either Swan or Presley’s versions.

In contrast, the similarly epic ‘Earth Heart’ version – available in full vocal and instrumental takes – pushes the song front and centre. Following an extended build up, where Tamar Osborn’s gorgeous and fluid flute motifs rub shoulders with languid guitar solos and Harvey-Whyte’s pedal steel, Smith takes to the mic, delivering an emotive performance of the song’s heartfelt lyrics over a hushed, slow-motion groove. The track builds in waves as it progresses, with Smith layering up instrumentation as it rolls towards a fine conclusion.

Completing a superb package is the ‘Root Heart Version’, a Balearic-meets-Americana take built around shuffling drums, toasty bass guitar, extended pedal steel instrumentation, flashes of flute and Smith’s sun-bright acoustic guitar. Loved-up and more than a little saucer-eyed, it’s a bona-fide sunset delight.

"Visual artist, musician and composer Satch Hoyt will release a new 10” vinyl album, Un- Muting, on 3 October 2025 on newly minted record label traza, run by Andrea Zarza Canova and distributed by Honest Jon’s Records. This album is the first to document Hoyt’s ongoing, long-term project of un-muting historical African instruments held in Western museum collections and includes his composition: Un-Muting Beyond Misspelt Borders.
Originally commissioned by Nottingham Contemporary for the exhibition Your Ears Later Will Know to Listen, Hoyt’s composition invites listeners to engage with what he calls ‘sonic restitution’, a performative challenge to the silent confinement of instruments within Western conservation standards and ethnographic museums, awakening and celebrating the hybridity, resilience and creativity of the transnational African diaspora.
The composition began with a recording session in October 2023 at the British Museum in London, where Hoyt was granted access to a selection of African instruments held by the British Museum’s Department of Africa, Oceania and the Americas. In the presence of curators and conservation staff, he played the instruments without written scores, responding instead to their physical and sonic presence.
The recordings were then further developed in Hoyt’s studio, combined with additional performances on both African and Western instruments from his own collection."

For Hoyt, un-muting is both a creative and political act:
"To Un-Mute is to gain access into ethnographic museum collections where I play and simultaneously record the abandoned ancient African musical instruments. These restituted recorded motifs and rhythms accompany my live concerts and recordings. Un-Muting is also concerned with the chapters of patriarchal and racist supremacy which accompany the instruments’ abductions, vehemently opposing the current continuum of this supremacy, its ongoing colonial expansion and continued capital extractivism. It remains focused on the retention of spiritual belief and stalwart visions of liberation leading to eventual global emancipation and self-realisation."
- Satch Hoyt, June 2025

The 10” vinyl record includes a newly commissioned text by critic and scholar Tavia Nyong’o.
The album will be released on vinyl and digital formats on 3 October to coincide with the opening of Satch Hoyt’s solo exhibition Satch Hoyt: Afro-Sonic Mapping Chapter 4 at KARST Plymouth.

Ancient African instruments: Trumpets (Kuba), Sanzas (Chokwe, Lega, Kongo, Yao), Ilimba (Nyamwezi), Whistles (Chokwe, Luba, Pende, Bambara), Talking Drum (Yoruba), Slit Drum (Kuba, Yaka, Tetela, Songye), Bell (Tetela), Rattles (Yoruba, Luba, Bamileke, Pende) and Flutes (Kuba, Kongo, Mossi, Bambara)

Western instruments: Flute, Electric Flute, Roland Handsonic, Synthesizers, Glockenspiel, Wooden Xylophone and assorted hand percussion

Composed, arranged, produced and performed by Satch Hoyt
Engineered and co-produced by Dirk Leyers
Recordings of musical instruments held by the Department of Africa, Oceania and the Americas at the British Museum by Adam Laschinger
Studio recordings of African instruments from Satch Hoyt's collection by Dirk Leyers
Uncredited Female Chant on wax cylinder recording by Karl Edvard Laman (c. 1910), held by the Berlin Phonogramm-Archiv
Additional sound design and production by Call & Response Studios
Mixed by Hendrick Valera (Cali, Colombia)
Mastering and lacquer cut by Kassian Troyer at Dubplates & Mastering
Cover art: Satch Hoyt, Score #1, 2020
Design by Elisabeth Klement
Direction by Andrea Zarza Canova

Ritual Dance - is a sound journey, where futurism and the obsolete merge into a new world. Arash & Quasar (truth and star) - is a duo of electronic producers, friends, DJs, rare record collectors and artists, Pavel Grachev and Vitaly Zhul'kov. Their approach for music making compiles elements of various cultures and eras, resulting in fresh and trippy sonic labyrinths. The title track puts the listener in a state of trance and wild fields, where shaman dance moves take over the existense. Powerful percussion, rich synth textures and traditional instruments are mixed in one. 'Acid Krishna' extends the trip, adding acid basslines and meditative flavour. A true morning anthem of a proper rave trip. 'Lokum' is exploring the deepness of the East through melodies, that sweeten up your adventure away from the daily reality. The flip side starts with 'Opium', where slow beats suck you in the abyss more and more. 'Truth & Star' - is an energy exchange ceremony, where Arash & Quasar become rhythm wizards and dictate how you move and feel, just like snakes dance to the magic flute... The Truth refers to the inner awakening and The Star is the symbol of the external shine. 'Desert' is the final chapter of the trip, evolving into eternity, just like a caravan dissolves in the endless desert, hot air and the blue night... Besides studio work, Arash & Quasar share videos of their own trips and adventures via Youtube-chanel, called DIG LOTO. Together with their best friend, the portative Vestax Handy Trax vinyl player, they search for rare records in remote destinations.

EN/JP liner notes by Doran and a hyper-realistic cover by Japanese visual artist/graphic designer Kai Yoshizawa using 3DCG software.

"8 Automated Works", the first full release by Componium Ensemble, an "indeterminate chamber music" ensemble helmed by Spencer Doran of Visible Cloaks. The project is inspired by the long history of automated musical instruments, beginning with the ancient Greek Archimedes and further developed by the Banū Mūsā brothers in 9th century Baghdad, who "first perfected the concept of a programmable, automated musician: a mechanically controlled flute which used hydraulic water pressure and a system of arrangeable punchcards using a visionary proto-MIDI structure", as Doran explains in the liner notes. This mechanical music-making was extended a millennium later with the use of aleatoric principles by the European Dietrich Nikolaus Winkel, inventor of the self-composing Componium mechanical music system. Doran continues this lineage further, using the possibilities of digital technology and its ability to automate a huge range of virtual instruments and introduce aleatoric elements, moving beyond human impulses and limitations, allowing "new shapes to emerge". Dedicated also to Noah Creshevsky, pioneer of what can be considered cyber-human music, Componium Ensemble features a wide and intriguing range of instruments including prepared piano, bowed harpsichord, celesta, bass clarinet, flute, cello, Balinese tingklik, and more, often in multiple groupings. Despite this variety of instrumentation and the seemingly formidable theoretical underpinnings, the music is very accessible and attractive, spacious and fresh, with a light touch and a sophisticated melodic sense which will appeal to pop fans as well as classical/contemporary music listeners. The album is mixed by longtime collaborator Joe Williams (Motion Graphics, Lifted) and available in 10-inch vinyl, ,

Indian Summer of Love finds The Bongolian immersed in a new set of sounds and influences for a new Belle Epoch. It’s a musical landscape informed by the Sixties psychedelia of India via a Haight Ashbury happening.

It’s a kaleidoscopic vision that takes us from a 20th century Fin de Siècle and lands us in the here and now of the 21st Century. It’s for dancers, for seekers and is all underscored by The Bongolian’s trademark heavy rhythms and breaks. It’s another fine instalment of essential cuts for the dancefloor and for high fidelity listening, quality is guaranteed.

From the East to the West, welcome to the Indian Summer of Love. Nasser Bouzida performs drums, percussion, guitars and keys whilst the album features several new flavours to the Bongolian sound with the prominent instrumentation of sitars and bansuri, along with flute, trumpet, saxophone and trombone performances from several stellular international guest musicians.

For her sophomore outing on Razor-N-Tape, Megatronic drops There’s Truth in Gospel, an extended concept EP built around the idea of a modern-day gospel congregation, reimagined through the lens of soulful, high-energy club sounds. Its six soulful house tracks explore vibrant layers of live instrumentation, from trumpets, flutes, and diverse percussion styles that breathe warmth into the sonic palette of the record. Featuring the voices of Fawziyya Heart, Aku, and Chiqo Casidi, and gorgeous artwork that perfectly captures the rich concept of the music, There’s Truth in Gospel is an ode to unity, joy, and collective celebration.

Returning to Curvature for his eagerly awaited second EP, Senses brings an impressively varied array of atmospheric jungle to the table, drawing from a multitude of influences across the musical spectrum with Convex Reflex.

A1 - Ratio
A break-laden intro lays the groundwork for a considered foray into the old-school - Senses flecking the mix liberally with synths and female vocal hits of yesteryear, before the welcome crunch of thunderous amens takes over. A cascade of rip-roaring edits
floods the track taking you on an epic ride through the ages, breaks chopped with riotous energy confirming this track as a perfect DJ tool for the dancefloor.

A2 - Sun Runner
Beautifully crisp drums open a DJ-friendly intro to Sun Runner, delightfully clear sounding with distinctive cymbals, a thick snare and subtle bongos. An airy soundscape soon washes into the mix with calming synths and flutes, creating a delicately jazzy blend of styles with soothing melodies contrasting perfectly with the breaks. More pronounced synthwork follows to spice things up as the bassline rumbles along below.

B1 - Spirit Vector
Dense atmospherics are the order of the day as Senses deploys Spirit Vector, opening with an array of synths and strings to create an intro reminiscent of Intense's work in the late 90's. Soon we are treated to a paradoxical assortment of heavy amens that work impeccably in the mix - thundering forth with pads soaring high and a heavy sub bass below. Various instrument samples litter the breakdown before a vocal sample declares "Yes". Yes indeed.

B2 - Still
Closing the EP in style, Still opens with sparse breaks, lightly building with extremely subtle apache breaks in the backdrop with sporadic keys and smooth pads. The drop arrives with warm, room-filling basslines and synths to elevate the atmosphere alongside luscious flute samples.Layers are added to the excellent breaks as Senses sprinkles instrument samples, keys and a classic female vocal, completing a joyous composition for Curvature.

Words by Chris Hayes (Spatial / Red Mist)

Burnin Music is proud to present part 2 of label head Pegasvs’ ‘In Search Of’ trilogy of releases, in which the producer continues his exploration of dance floor soundscapes via inventive, incisive and emotive house-laden cuts.

Original soundtrack of the film Little Amélie, an adaptation of Amélie Nothomb’s ninth novel The Character of Rain (Métaphysique des tubes), published in 2000 and a major literary success.



From Tokyo, Mari Fukuhara composed an airy and playful score for the film. She blends impressionistic piano (Ravel is never far), childhood timbres (marimba, traditional Japanese songs), and orchestral textures. The shakuhachi (flute) and the koto bring in a Japanese touch, at times lyrical, at times mischievous. The result is a reading and listening experience that is both deeply personal and universal.



The album unfolds like a musical tale in its own right, evocative yet profoundly intimate.



Released in France in June 2025, the film is now campaigning for the Oscars and will premiere in the U.S. in the fall.

SHADOWY FIGMENTS OF UNRELENTING SONIC SEEKINGS
The magic lantern music of Razen spirals into ever more fanatic territory with the addition of turntablist Guilhem All from Brest. Vietnamese flute, oscillator, chopped-up vinyls and a range of
uncomfortable techniques bring about a series of sandblown, rock-encrusted desert mirages.
MORE INFO SOON
credits
releases October 15, 2025

Recorded by Mathieu Grillo, with assistant engineer Gaia Lufrano
Recorded at Echo Chamber in Volta, Molenbeek on March 4,5 & 6, 2025
Mixed by Mathieu Grillo, with assistant engineer Gaia Lufrano
Mastered by Frédéric Alstadt

Artwork: Aurora/ ChromaGrid drawing by Wilfried Pulinckx

Brecht Ameel: oscillator & harmonium
Kim Delcour: sáo trúc, fijfer, chalumeau, santur
Guilhem All: turntables

Thank you: Arne and Mich at Volta & AB

ALL DAY I DREAM COMMENCES THE NEW YEAR WITH A BANG, RELEASING A WINTER SAMPLER VI COMPILATION
Lee Burridge’s All Day I Dream imprint is thrilled to kick off 2024 with the latest addition to its semi-annual compilation series, A Winter Sampler VI, releasing January 26.

Serving as a testament to the label’s commitment to fostering emerging talent and highlighting the cutting edge of melodic house music, A Winter Sampler VI is a curated selection of tracks that showcase the diverse and vibrant sounds within the All Day I Dream family.

A Winter Sampler VI brings together an impressive consortium of artists from around the globe to put together a 12 track offering. The compilation kicks off with Simon Vuarambon's remix of St Germain’s 2000 hit ‘So Flute’, the euphoric and driving track setting the tone for a journey through the innovative and cutting-edge sounds of the compilation. From Wassu and Bona Fide’s deep yet playful collaborative track ‘Threshold’ to Nathan Katz’s serene and uplifting ‘For You’ to Seth Schwarz and Solidmind’s beautifully spiritual collaboration ‘Create The Universe’, each contribution adds a unique flavor to the sonic tapestry, resulting in a must-listen body of work from beginning to end.

A Winter Sampler VI serves as a testament to All Day I Dream's dedication to providing cutting edge melodic house from select talent across the globe, providing a platform for both emerging and established artists to shine.

All Day I Dream invites music lovers to dive into the next edition of their compilation series with A Winter Sampler VI

pictured cover sealed in shrink wrap (first time ever on Samosa)



Samosa Records comes back with a real summer bang in the form of the ‘Afro-Ritmo EP’ – a four-track journey into afro soaked vibes courtesy of Anura & Sr. Lobezno and featuring label boss De Gama!

First up on side A is the EP’s title track, the mesmerising ‘Afro Ritmo’. Anura & Sr. Lobezno announce their arrival on Samosa Records with this spicy West African rhythm bomb. Kakaki trumpet fanfares meld with intricate synth stabs and ethereal Oja flute, whilst the solid tribal beats and rolling bass dictate the dance moves. And dance you must…

Track 2 is the deliciously glitchy, conga bonanza ‘Sungu Sa’. Make no mistake, ‘Sunga Sa’ is out to get you from the very first beat – tempting you to go behind the curtain as the haunting guitar lures you ever closer to its secret door. Dark, uplifting and ritualistic, the chant of ‘Sunga Sa’ will live in your head rent free well after the sun has gone down. Don’t say you weren’t warned.

Over on Side B De Gama takes the title track ‘Afro-Ritmo’ and applies his unique sonic rubs, balms and enhancers to create a pulsating after hours jam full to the brim with Afrotropic sparkle and magic dust. Like an unstoppable chugging train steaming through a savanna, De Gama is the conductor supreme as the raspy synth, bluesy guitar riff and uplifting brass fanfares entwine around that pounding beat.

Finally, Track 4 gives us the seriously powerful Javier Morrilas remix of ‘Afro-Ritmo’. The original is stripped right down and given the Big Beat treatment for this insanely good take – a peak time switcheroo of a track that keeps you guessing as to where it’s taking you. As the flutey breakdowns and broken beat madness get you, you will fall in love with this one instantly.

The ‘Afro Ritmo’ EP is a powerful, masterful four tracker from Anura & Sr. Lobezno which is well at home in the Samosa Records cooking pot. Spread the word, buy the vinyl. You won’t be disappointed.

• Reviewed with love by The Black Light Disco

Written, Produced, Arranged and Mixed by Anura & Sr. Lobezno.
Keyboards & Percussions: Anura.
Trumpet: Jimmy Garcia
Sax & Flute: Carlos Ligero
Trombone: Prudencio Valdivieso

*Remix and Additional Productions by Stefano Gamma aka De Gama for De Gama Rec - Rome.
Jazz Guitar & Acoustic Bass by Pietro Nicosia.

** Remix and Additional Productions by Javier Morillas.

All tracks mastered by Francesco Pierguidi at L’n’P Studio – Rome.

Artwork and computer graphics by Nerina Fernandez.


SMS038

At daybreak, as sunlight travels through the atmosphere and begins to reach Earth’s surface, daylight gradually emerges. This marks the transition from night to the beginning of a brand-new day. As the temperature rises—especially after clear, calm nights—relative humidity decreases, and mist, formed of tiny suspended droplets, begins to evaporate. Warm air rises and cool air sinks, creating an interplay of temperature, humidity and sunlight that gives way to a soft, diffuse glow. The sea breeze slowly clears the morning mist, setting life in motion once again as the world wakes up.

‘Daybreak’ is Sven Wunder’s fifth full-length album, seamlessly continuing the progression of his musical oeuvre. It takes the listener on a vivid maritime expedition, beginning the moment the first rays of light break the darkness of the night and embarking on a lush journey through the early hours of the day and far beyond, until the light slowly fades and night falls once again. True to Wunder’s now-distinctive artistry, ‘Daybreak’ is marked by elaborately crafted compositions and elegant pop-jazz arrangements for flute, percussion, brass and strings—supported by a decisive rhythm section, all of which add depth and build on his body of work, continuing to unfold his creative path.

Manchester based trio, Sonnenspot have unashamedly taken their favourite records from the Kosmische Musik landscape and fused these to inform their own spontaneous sonic constructions. Motorik drums, pulsating flutes, wah guitar and almost excessive use of space echo make this a dense and dreamy listen, with a hint of the rainy pensiveness of their home town.

Notable inspiration from Neu!, Manuel Gottsching, Sonic Youth and Yo La Tengo is all clearly audible in the various recordings on this album and minimal effort was made to shy away from this. The longest track 'Motorway' is an epic homage to the space rock art form and 'Madrugada' takes both John Martyn's 'Small Hours' and Gottsching's 'Inventions' as a starting point. Others include the tobacco lovers art-rock-ear-worm ('Liquorice Paper'), a dub laden celestial synth jam ('Slow Blinker') and the album opens with the first thing the band ever recorded, as a meaningless improvisation to tune their synths up to ('Figurescene'). Turned out it had a killer bass line and drum part.

Initial sessions were mostly just an excuse for the three long standing friends to get together musically for the first time, and after knowing each other for many full moons, it was long overdue.

They all bring some peripheral musical heritage to the table. Ian Smith was the guitarist in Alfie and the The Beep Seals and played on Badly Drawn Boy's 'The Hour of Bewilderbeast'. Pete Philipson played in Jane Weaver's band for ten years and has made his own ambient guitar albums. Dan Hope plays in the jazz folk band Mother Sky and promotes events around the city under the Rainy Heart banner.
They were joined by another long term musical friend Sam Kynaston who added heavenly flute to much of the album.

Bangs and Talbot get back to business with a stonking new 45 for 2025, their take on the instrumental classic ‘K Jee’.

Originally by US band the Nite Liters (an instrumental precursor to soul act New Birth), this classic track has been a club favourite for decades. It was later covered by MFSB and included in the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack.

Taken from their forthcoming album on Acid Jazz, this latin disco funk flavoured jam is written by Motown hit producer Harvey Fuqua and Charles Hearndon. It features Mick Talbot on Wurlitzer, organ and piano, ably assisted by German funk guitarist Felix Fraenkel, Italy’s Donato Greco on flute, brass from California’s Dan C, and drums, percussion, and bass from original Acid Jazz DJ/producer Chris Bangs.

On the flip is a Mick Talbot-original ‘Re-Micks’ from the ‘Back to Business’ sessions, which gets a heavy-duty live boom bap rework by hip hop pioneer DJ Premier Inn.

Presented on black vinyl in a new colour version of the current Acid Jazz house-bag, with labels reminiscent of the classic RCA design for an authentic ’70s touch…