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Long Beach legend Scotty Coats links the West Coast eclecticism of Stones Throw to the NYC cool of DFA and Rong to the Balearic gods of DJ Harvey et al. He personally introduced Be With to Ned Doheny 10 years ago and he was immortalised on Smith & Mudd's last LP. And he's the main man behind the mysteriously titled duo Todd Russell & The Dangerous Coats, alongside Erick "Todd" Coomes (Lettuce founder/bassist).

In very real danger of being lost forever, we unearthed two of their private recordings and present them as a double A-Side 12", adorned with S-T-U-N-N-I-N-G artwork, courtesy of Arizona artist Frank Gonzales.

"Playa Larga" is a melodic, mellow masterpiece and is quintessentially Balearic. It's stretched out, low slung, guitar-soaked drum-machine soul music. It's multi-layered and contains multitudes: it builds and builds and builds and mesmerises as it does so. On the flip, "1900 Ocean Avenue" is a super slo-mo, sunbaked drug-chug which is already blowing minds thanks to early leaks of this cosmic, psychedelic detonation.

On first listen back, Erick said to Scotty: “So wait, nothing really happens, I mean nothing bad happens but nothing really happens”. Apparently these tracks were a bit foreign for Erick, musically, because of the lack of structure in the songs.

One morning, years later, Erick called Scotty and excitedly declared: “dude, I get it now!”. He was listening to random music with a lady friend while watching the sunrise in his 1900 Ocean Ave apartment and "Playa Larga" came on randomly. He'd forgotten all about it and said he had to get up and see what song it was because "it was the perfect soundtrack for a psychedelic sunrise over the ocean."

And that's exactly how we came across it, circa 2018, randomly popping up on a playlist while we were busy doing other things. It stopped us in our tracks but, when trying to find any info on iTunes, we were out of luck. It was only years later that we worked out Scotty had sent it to us. Ever since, we've been working on getting this out to you all. It's finally time.

We've only 500 pressed for the world, with many of them spoken for by those lucky enough to be already ITK, so these are gonna fly: be warned!

Scotty is a world class raconteur so we'll hand over to him to explain how these songs came about and why they mean so much to him in the context of his wider raison d'être:

"These were made 13 years ago when I was a new dad and left my job at Ubiquity Records to provide security for my newborn son, Nolan Liam Chai Coats. I became miserable working a job outside of music for the first time in my life and I was laid off 4 months into it. I was left wondering how the fuck am I going to provide for my family?

I lived in Long Beach and Erick lived a few blocks away. I would walk to his house when Jen finally got Nolan to sleep so I could escape my panic, drink some beers (is it beerlearic?) and make some music. He lived overlooking the ocean with the Queen Mary on the horizon, so I guess mellow Long Beach nights unintentionally inspired the music. These songs were the first two songs we ever made and they embody the desperation and hope I really needed at that time. 12 years later, when Rob at Be With expressed an interest in releasing it, we had Erick's brother Tyler Tycoon Coomes play drums on it at Jazzcats Studio in LBC, with Jonny Bell.

Shortly after I was laid off, I discovered The Stepkids. I was blown away by "Shadows On Behalf" and sent it on to Gilles Peterson. He played it on Worldwide the next day. The Stepkids pulled me back into music and made me realize I wasn't prepared to do anything but be involved with music. After I heard their unreleased album, I knew there was something there so I sent it to my good friend Jamie Strong who was at Stones Throw at the time. Jamie passed it along to Peanut Butter Wolf and the band asked me to be their manager. I didn't think I was the right guy for the job but wanted to see them do well so I told them I would help shop their album. Jamie suggested I take his place at Stones Throw, just as he did when he left Ubiquity Records. I always joke that Jamie can call me Scotty Coat Tails because I had been riding his for years.

Wolf told him that "Scotty is a nice guy but has horrible taste in music", which was ironic because he was literally trying to sign the band that I brought him. The Stepkids signed with Stones Throw and found a real manager. 6 or so months later Jamie sent me a note saying "Stones Throw is hiring and you should apply lol". I told him I was going to send my resume and the subject of the email was to read I HAVE GREAT FUCKING TASTE IN MUSIC. I did just that and got a call the next day from their new GM asking me to come in for an interview. When I walked in I was in Wolf's office where I had been 6 months before, signing The Stepkids
deal. Wolf and Jason McGuire were asking me some questions and wanted to introduce me to Jeff Jank. Jank walked in and said "Isn't this the guy that Jamie wanted to bring on 6 months ago?" They confirmed and he threw his hands up and walked out saying "I've seen enough". I got the job. I worked there for 2 or 3 years until I left to join forces with Jamie Strong at his label and stayed there for almost 7 years."

Scotty wanted to use a painting by his good friend, Frank Gonzales, for the front cover image. Frank was incredibly generous in letting us use this one, and Scotty was completely honoured. We think you'll agree, it's pretty striking. Simon Francis carefully mastered the original audio for both tracks and Cicely Balston's precise cut for Alchemy at AIR Studios ensures this double A-side 12" sounds appropriately outstanding. The immaculate Record Industry pressing will ensure these previously unheard, recently discovered recordings finally get a chance to shine.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

re:discovery records is happy and proud to honor a beloved and missed amazing electronic producer Jake Stephenson. Sadly, Jake passed away in 2005 but his music lives on with us forever. A prolific producer with hundreds of credits under many names and many styles. On the record insert inside this EP, his brother Silas and fellow producer and friend Brian Trower share some special stories of Jake as a person and a musician. An eccentric hippie of sorts, music historian and audio savant certainly, Jake was truly a unique, talented and special person. While a 5 track EP hardly scratches the surface, we at re:discovery wanted to honor an artist who impacted the label owner and the history of chill out music more than maybe some know. 50% of the proceeds to go the charity Silas picked to honor his late brother.

re:discovery records is proud to release for the first time, a vinyl edition of 'Two Zeroes' by Grain for it's 25th anniversary.

Grain was a west coast project that emerged out of the psychedelic music and art scenes in Los Angeles in the early 1990s. After a few of their tracks were featured on the key chill out compilations United State of Ambience 1&2 and Excursions in Ambience
and many local live performances, they released two ep's on local labels. Shortly after in 1998, 'Two Zeroes' the full length project appeared. A west coast chill out classic that unfortunately did not get much disribution outside the west coast let alone to the world.

To classify this album is very hard. Think early Jammin Unit with a touch of the Orb and dash of west coast breakbeat and chill out styles and you still can't fully pin it down. A unique album that sonically, was leaps and bounds ahead of most albums in this style thanks to sound designer, audio instalation architect, scientist and artist Jimmy Johnson along with illustrator and fellow sonic artist Peter Ehrlich. Featured on double vinyl with updated artwork by the original designer, Kevin Hanley and presented on beautiful gatefold with a shimmering silver vinyl to match. This could be one of the discoveries of the year for those that have never heard this album. Dare to Dream with us.

Any moment can crash your emotional state of mind. You are looking for help. You can’t find it with-inside of you. A Diamond shines twice a day. The night can be day and vice versa. We love you, no doubt. Our friends love you too. Do you love yourself? A Zebra is not a unicorn but is still unique. Who are you to tell us We can’t do it? EUPHORIC SPIRITS EUPHORIC SPIRITS Women are strong and full of love and positive energy. This life is a gift and you should genuinely use it. Read a book. Internet TV connects your brain to something not valid; remember that. We still love you. You are beautiful. Come with us to hidden spheres and find your inner voice. Shock, Projection, Ideals, Sorrow, Disaster, Fundamental, Weak, Strong, More, Less.

We love you. Follow us to the planet of our inner fears, and we do magic. It will become another planet. Together forever. We love you.

High Focus Records are excited to share a new full length offering from prolific Brighton based producer Mr Slipz, this time with a fresh label signing, Australian rapper Nelson Dialect. A landmark release and signing for High Focus with Nelson being the first international signing on the label. UK listeners might have first heard Nelson collaborating with Verbz & Mr Slipz on the song ‘Hope’ from their acclaimed LP ‘Radio Waves’ released on High Focus in 2020. Nelson has a cult following in his own right in Australia, and previously released music on the legendary U.S label Fat Beats to great acclaim. Now teaming up with one of the most exciting and respected UK producers, Nelson & Mr Slipz deliver ‘Ever Since’. A statement piece by two artists with well over a decade spent on their craft which sounds as urgent and refreshing as if it were their first time releasing music. The album’s title is a reference to the endless quest for a timeless sound, reflecting the creative partnerships which spark from a seemingly forever existing thread of music. The two artists crossed paths whilst Nelson was on tour in Brighton, and a chance introduction to Slipz made this album a reality. As fate would have it, due to a cancellation of plans and changing of schedules during Nelson’s tour, the pair ended up in the studio for 8 days straight together which is when the bulk of the album was created. They each saw this as a cosmic alignment and thus played into the albums astrological artwork themes and overarching concept. Striving to capture the lightning in a bottle moment, what resulted musically on this album was an inspired surge of energy and intense creative output that is felt across the entire LP. Equal parts personal and lyrically dextrous, Nelson explores a multitude of concepts over the hard hitting drums and jazzy samples producer Mr Slipz is renowned for through his previous work with artists including Verbz, Kofi Stone, Vitamin G & Datkid among many more. The album features a slew of impressive guest verses including label mates Vitamin G & Verbz on the emphatic ‘Oxford Scholars’. Two legends Jehst & Confucius MC combine on ‘Smooth Ride’. Bronx pioneer & D.I.T.C legend A.G delivers a show stopping verse on ‘Trembling the Marrow’. There are hypnotic singing performances by Indira May on ‘First Date’ & ‘Open Book’ as well as Hiatus Kaiyote back up vocalist Jace XL on the soul stirring anthem “Figure Out What’s Right”. U.S rappers SickInTheHead & Cazeaux O.S.L.O round out the impressive guest list on the album with their inspired verses. Listeners caught their first glimpse of the duo with their debut single ‘Only Just Begun’. A whirlwind 3 verse tune showcasing the relentless wordplay and imagery Nelson is regarded for over a moody, hard hitting Slipz production. With a buzz already around what Nelson Dialect & Mr Slipz are brewing, the duo have just released their second single ‘Oxford Scholars’ featuring label mates Vitamin G & Verbz

Following their iconic remix of ‘Space Date’ in 2019, the classic collaborative work of Adam Beyer, Layton Giordani and Green Velvet, we are thrilled to have Pleasurekraft back on Drumcode for their debut solo release on the label.

Not keen to colour within the lines, the production duo caught Adam Beyer’s ear as they carved out their self-dubbed ‘cosmic techno’ niche within the techno genre. Conceived as a musical vision that attempts to go beyond mere hands-in-the-air moments, Pleasurekraft incorporate a cinematic soundscape as a canvas for philosophical themes regarding humanity's place within the cosmos. Their 2020 album, ‘Love in the Age of Machines’ explored the myriad and often dystopian relationships we have with the ubiquitous technologies that pervade our every interaction.

The new two-tracker ‘Sex and the Machine’, continues this thematic trajectory in considering the role machines will increasingly play in satisfying the more carnal desires of our species. The title track considers questions such as, will machines of the future have the capacity for thoughts and feelings? Will our answers to such questions be forever tainted by our singular perspective, unable and unwilling to grant future silicon entities such capabilities? The EP’s second track, ‘Body Horror’, with its repeating refrain, “You are changing”, considers the manner in which future technologies will continue to merge with biological entities giving rise to all manner of unimagined consequences. Both tracks showcase the tough, yet still melody-driven cosmic techno sound Pleasurekraft has become synonymous with. However, despite the cerebral content that inspired the music – the form is still pure dance floor muscle.

Endlec starts his label "Renegade Methodz" with one of his most powerful & personal EPs.

"Year Of The Kill" is a product of its time, having been written and produced during one of the most challenging and unique periods of the modern age, between March and April of the "lethal" 2020.
When the world was in a state of full lockdown, a moment in history that we, as a generation, forever will remember.

It's a pessimistic piece of work, that, across it's 3 trax, features, dark & melancholic melodies, sitting on top of heavy beatz, with Endlec's signature, dirty texture, and his unique brutal kinetics raising the energy, forcing you to take notice and dance until u release WHATEVER THE FUCK bothers u!
Scream from anger, scream from joy.
Cry from happiness, cry from sadness.
Raise your hands in the air and just let your self go.
Listen to the music, in whatever corner of the world u are, alone, with friends, with your lover or with whoever TF u care about and just feeeel.
BE IN the moment.
And dance, dance, DANCE U MTF!

So, at the end "Year Of The Kill" is a very personal work of art,
It is what it is, and if u like it that's great, if u don't, then fuck off
and try figure what's wrong with your ears!!

WE are who WE are, WE do whatever the fuck WE want,
WE ARE RENEGADES!
AND THOSE ARE OUR METHODZ.
credits

Totally feels like what might happen if you blended Air and The Cure together.
Goth-pop from California.

Shine Grooves: "This story began in 2008, at that time I dreamed of launching my own music label and was searching for something unique. I was looking for music in different sources and came across the Frunk29's tracks, this is how I met Marat Shainsky, his release was the first on the Biotronic Records (the label I owned in the mid-00s). Later Marat introduced me to his friend - Sergey Lazarev, aka Lazzich and we immediately put together the next release for the label. It was wonderful and hypnotizing music I had never heard before. After some time we prepared the material for the first Biotronic Vinyl, which was authored by Lazzich, but the release did not happen, due to certain circumstances. And now, 15 years later, the idea comes true, we release the Lazzich mini-album on the Hanagasumi 04. Although Sergey is no longer with us, but his music will live forever. Thanks to everyone who took a part in the search for materials, archives, projects, sketches. Special thanks to Shipulina Yana for providing information and cooperation, Marat Shainsky for the advice and tracks searching, Matvey Andreenko for giving me the large media archive of Lazzich's works, Denis Rooter for designing the cover, Semen Pupyshev for mixing the found Sergey's Reason-projects".

2022 Repress
Dear Friends,

25 years of KOMPAKT is no reason to get hysterical. Then again, it's a nice occasion to have a laid back look at the situation in electronic music today. Minimal techno in all it's varieties is now established as the worlds best dance music, as you may know. So far, so good. What's next Nothing. Dance on!

I've gain two essential insights with the passage of time. First off, that music which over the years only knew 'faster, better, stronger' and 'forwards ever - backwards never' can constantly repeat, quote and loop itself without killing itself. A music that suspends the meaning of time and eventually can set a parallel, better universe of fantasy against the twisted grimaces of reality. Again and again.

And secondly, that getting older living in/with this music is a quite relative term to which ideally a serenity of age can ring a bell. This shows that 25 years after 1993 so many protagonists, enthusiasts, DJs, musicians, relentlessly rave fighters - with all personal advancement - are still there and still celebrate, play or produce this/theirs music; and compete themselves and their music just with that.

Two such heroes of the neat and tidy bass drum culture are with no doubt T.RAUMSCHMIERE aka MARCO HAAS and REINHARD VOIGT. From day one, those two figureheads have given live-techno the glam of stage-diving rock 'n' roll, long before vodka and beer prevailed as alternative lube for ecstatic dancefloors.

Even better they both now raise the glass at the longest techno-bar in the world named KOMPAKT EXTRA/SPEICHER. With DREI MILLIONEN KO¨LSCH, Reinhard Voigt continues to establish his savvy 'way into sound', which he's pursued for a few years now on his many releases. He's turning genre cliche´s into a very personal take with his defiant mix of the deepness of a lonesome cowboy and his implicit faith in the dancefloor and gives the music a very personal touch of ennnoblement of the faith in itself. Technos dignity shall be inviolable.

For me, AUGEN ZU by T.RAUMSCHMIERE is one of the most beautiful masterpieces of bass-heavy 'Umta Umta' techno. A few strikingly brilliant vocal lines from the master himself, put through the machines and combined with a relentlessly sequencer that says it all. This cheers my heart and we will always need such tracks to remind us of ourselves. And to forget about ourselves. Smash hits of unreason! Or the prettiest declaration of love to a music which gets its magical moments from what's happening between the bass drum-beats. But only by this when the bassdrum remains linear and will do so forever. Both Marco Haas and Reinhard Voigt know that. Because after techno comes always techno.

Wolfgang Voigt - May, 2018 Wolfgang Voigt - May, 2018

25 Jahre KOMPAKT sind kein Grund sich aufzuregen. Aber dennoch ein schöner Anlass, einen gelassenen Blick auf die Lage der elektronischen Musik zu werfen. Denn der globale Minimal-Techno, in seinen unterschiedlichen Spielarten, hat sich bekanntlich längst als beste Tanzmusik der Welt etabliert. Recht so. Was nun Gar nichts. Weitertanzen.

Zwei essentielle Erkenntnisse haben sich bei mir im Laufe der Zeit durchgesetzt: Erstens - dass eine Musik, die über Jahre nur ein »Höher, Schneller, Weiter« oder ein »Forwards Ever - Backwards Never« kannte, sich ständig wiederholen, selbst zitieren und loopen kann, ohne daran zu ersticken. Die Bedeutung von Zeit und Vergänglichkeit im besten Sinne außer Kraft setzen und der hässlichen Fratze der Realität eine parallele, bessere Welt der Fantasie entgegensetzen kann. Immer wieder.

Und zweitens: dass »Altern in/mit dieser Musik« ein sehr relativer Begriff ist, dem bestenfalls Altersgelassenheit etwas sagt, Alter. Das zeigt sich immer wieder im schönsten Sinne, wenn 25 Jahre nach 1993 so viele Akteure, Enthusiasten, DJs, Musikanten, unkaputtbare Kampfraver, bei aller persönlichen Weiterentwicklung, immer noch da sind und immer noch diese/ihre Musik abfeiern, auflegen oder eben produzieren und sich und ihr Tun auch nur daran messen lassen müssen.

Zwei solche Recken der gepflegten Bassdrumkultur sind zweifelsohne T.RAUMSCHMIERE aka MARCO HAAS und REINHARD VOIGT. Zwei Rampensäue der ersten Stunde, die Live-Techno den Glam des Rock'n'Roll Stagedivings gegeben haben, lange bevor Vodka und Bier sich als alternative Gleitmittel eines ektatischen Dancefloors in der Breite durchgesetzt hatten.

Umso schöner, dass sich eben diese Beiden mal wieder an der längsten Techno-Theke der Welt, genannt KOMPAKT EXTRA/SPEICHER über die beiden Seiten einer Schallplatte hinweg musikalisch zuprosten. Mit dem Track DREI MILLIONEN KÖLSCH setzt REINHARD VOIGT seinen smarten »way into sound« fort, den er schon seit ein paar Jahren auf diversen Veröffentlichungen konsequent verfolgt. Mit einer trotzigen Mischung aus lonesome cowboyhafter Deepness und dem unbedingten Bekenntnis zum Dancefloor schafft er es, den Klischees des Techno eine sehr persönliche Note der Veredelung des Glaubens an sich selbst zu geben. Die Würde des Techno ist unantastbar.

Der Track AUGEN ZU von T.RAUMSCHMIERE ist für mich eines der schönsten Meisterstücke in der Tradition des oktavbassgeschwängerten Umta-Umta Techno. Einige wenige markant brilliante Textzeilen, vom Meister selbst in deutscher Sprache durch die Maschinen geschickt, gepaart mit einem Sequenzer der keine Gefangenen macht, lassen keine Fragen offen. Da geht mir Herz und Rucksack auf. Solche Tracks werden wir immer brauchen, um uns an uns selbst zu erinnern. Um uns immer wieder selbst zu vergessen. Smash-Hits der Unvernunft! Oder die schönste Liebeserklärung an eine Musik, die ihre magischsten Momente immer aus dem gezogen hat, was zwischen den Bassdrumschlägen passiert. Das funktioniert aber nur, wenn die Bassdrum gerade ist und es für immer bleibt. Und Marco Haas und Reinhard Voigt wissen das. Denn nach Techno kommt immer noch Techno.

Wolfgang Voigt, Mai 2018

With the spring awakens: Bionda e Lupo. Hand in hand we walk back to the playful whimsical music land. With bare feet in the grass, around us melodies and bass. Everything shines: colors and lights, sun and faces. A cosmic happiness, from heaven a piece. Here we want to stay with you forever and dance, just dance. With their anthem for the Camp Cosmic festival Bionda e Lupo rolls out a carpet on the dance floor for a new 12″ series on “Eine Welt”.

Label maker Alexander Arpeggio personally feeds the project with his own sounds. Together we float through the sound of the 80s through authentic warm stories.

Pink Vinyl

The year is 1981. The Kiel-based PostPunk / Wave underground outfit NO MORE releases their second ever single „Suicide Commando“ and their world changes forever. Well, not only their world – THE world.
What began as an independently published 7“ single became a cult classic, a genre defining – and defying – song, an all-time dancefloor favorite of many, a timeless signature piece that escaped its original realm of PostPunk x Wave x Indie x Alternative to also become engrainedin the DNA of modern electronic dancefloor culture most prominently in the beloved late 90s permutation presented by DJ Hell which became a classic in its own right. Now the year is 2021. Four decades have passed and NO MORE's „Suicide Commando“ is
back once again - well... the song actually never left! -, this time harking back to the very beginning, the original vibe and the original format.Remastered and re-released with the original tracklisting and paying homage to the original artwork „Suicide Commando“ will be available in 7“ format for the first time since 1981. And staying true to the underground blueprint this 40th anniversary re-release edition once again is put out on the circuit through a small independent label: the Intrauterin Recordings offspring El Caballo Semental which also released NO MORE's „123456789 *baze.djunkiii & Herr Brandt Dream A NuDream Remix“ as a limited to 200 copies one-sided, colored whitelabel 7“ edition in 2019.

FIRST GAJA ALBUM ON VINYL, FIRST GAJA RELEASE ON HIS OWN IMPRINT SINCE 2016. HARDCORE BLACK MAGIC VODOO DOLLS DARKANDHAUNTINGHARDCORETECHNODARKANDHAUNTINGHARDCORETECHNODARKANDHAUNTINGHARDCORETECHNODARKANDH

Written and Produced By Fred Peterkin (Publishing) Lush Culture Recordings / Recorded At New Life Studios Berlin DE

*2021 Repress*

Minami Deutsch 1st self-titled album. Minami Deutsch’s debut album is sated with an absolute love of Krautrock and the driving motorik beat.

=Band Description=
Minami Deutsch was formed by Kyotaro Miula (guitar, vocals, synthesizer) in Tokyo in 2014. Their sound is influenced by both their love for Krautrock legends such as Can and Neu!, and the band members being self-professed "repetition freaks" who heavily listen to minimal techno.
The music proceeds straightforwardly with the Motorik beat (Hammer beat), devised by Klaus Dinger (Kraftwerk, Neu!), as its central axis. Humorous, yet bizarre Japanese lyrics are whispered over a hard, cold beat that is maniacally repeated, creating a pleasant ambience of electronic pulses drifting in space. Sharp guitar tones reminiscent of Michael Karoli (Can) occasionally explode into fuzz distortion, on the verge of collapse.

Kulør is proud to present My Space – Kasper Marott’s 2nd record for the label following 2019’s luscious, longform Forever Mix EP.

The EP represents the latest addition to a diverse but uniquely crafted discography for the Danish producer, DJ and label owner. After scoring something of a mega-hit in 2018 with ‘Keflavik,’ released on Modeselektor’s Seilscheibenpfeiler label and named by Resident Advisor as “one of the biggest club records of the year,” Marott would use that momentum to launch the community-focused label Axces alongside close friend Alfredo92 and release a string of records representing some of Denmark’s finest producers. At the beginning of 2021 Marott released his debut album Full Circle, allowing a more complete picture of his distinctively melodic sound, one described by Pitchfork as “stimulating the imagination as much as the limbs… This is music for dancing but also music for dreaming.”

The four pieces that make up the My Space EP seem to take that last quote as a jumping- off point, oscillating between the beatless serenity of ‘Mosens Tone’, the unashamed force of ‘NV Laser’ and the shades in between on the opening title track and closer ‘Microfest’. Marott’s influences snake over one another, folding crisp percussion underneath his signature glassy textures and intimate field recordings alongside supersaw riffs. This fluid shape-shifting results in an EP that hints at different genres while confining itself to none.

Auch ZYX Italo Disco: Best Of Vol. 2 gibt es wieder als 2LP-Set
in farbigem Vinyl. 16 unvergessene Hits und Raritäten aus den 80er Jahren in bester analoger Soundqualität. Mit dabei sind diesmal: Radiorama, Fake, Den Harrow, Hysterical Fit, Jonathan Gable, Italian Boys, Scotch uvm.

A collaborative meeting between Varg2(TM) and Exploited Body has produced a scalding mess of sweat and suspicion across five headstrong tracks, gesturing towards a new and recombinant vector that's lurking out there during hiatus. Recorded together in Helsinki, 'Etsin Turvaa' yokes the morbid mechanics of Varg2(TM)'s stroboscopic dread to the pyretic catharsis of Exploited Body's ascendant, club-sourced flares. The closing track, 'Haunt Me Like the Snakes That Killed You,' offers the smallest respite following the bedlam of 'Fuck You Forever (Parting is Certain & Loss Will Come Again).' The opening pair, 'Karhu' and 'Etsin Turvaa (I Promise this Will Be the Last Time),' spiral out of control from the elegant core that each track's rougher elements are pinned to.

With Samosa’s disco imprints currently dominating the vinyl charts in all the best record shops across the globe it’s safe to say that their Funk imprint Daje Funk is also making waves that are hard to miss.

Just off the back of a stellar release with Paul Older and Musta Daje Funk Volume 6 see’s label boss De Gama teaming up with G.Markus for yet another top class funk get down.

First up is De Gama’s monster ‘Feel The Groove’. I’m not sure if that’s an order or a request but either way it’s impossible not to do just that. Featuring thumping drums, shoulder shaking guitars, filters in all the right places and a sax solo to die for this is just a sublime track which will cause some serious dancefloor scenes.

On the flip G.Markus, a pseudonym of the super talented Ben Gomori, drops a modern funk extravaganza in ‘Gwarn’. With those eponymous Funk wah guitars, yet more thumping drums, super tight percussion, some fierce keys and a bassline that just shakes this is true dance-floor gold.

Daje Funk’s catalogue is building into one very serious collection of music. Make sure you check out the other releases right now before they are gone forever.

The third reference of Nöle's Label BARRO will be out in February 2020.

This time, with a 6 tracks various artists compilation:

The Horrorist, legend amongst lengends, brings us a hypnotic and trippy story very of his style.

Millimetric, one of the highest French Electro's representatives, delights us with a booming dance floor focused track.

VCO a.k.a Artik, Tresor's resident, debuts in the label with his first production.

Exterminador has recently published an EP in Marcel Dettman's new label (Bad Manners) and he has created another dancefloor designed bomb for our reference.

Orlok 101, a regular in BARRO, joins us once again with a track filled with touches of Electro, EBM and the Sound of Valencia.

Least but not last, Nöle, boss of the label, closes the compilation with a hard and speeding electro-techno-rave track.

The previous references have been supported by artists such as Phase Fatale, The Hacker , Lokier, NX1, Unhuman, Alienata, Reka, Years of Denial and more!

ANNA drops a triple dose of heat to mark her first EP on Drumcode. ANNA first debuted on Drumcode with the irresistable groover ‘Portable Paradise’, which highlighted last year’s A-Sides Vol.7 and set up a busy year playing DC events in 2019.

There was the memorable morning set at Space during WMC, two fiery gigs at Drumcode Festival and typically strong performances at the DC takeover at Resistance in Ibiza and Sonar.

Fresh from her collaboration with Kittin ‘Forever Ravers’, she steps up for a maiden EP on Adam Beyer’s flaghship label. ‘Galactic Highways’ is propelled by an arresting peak-time riff and bombastic drums and was a storming addition to Beyer’s set at Drumcode Halloween recently.

‘Dimensions’ is the powerful brain scrambler, as a blistering wall of acid rubs shoulders with undulating bass notes for an dramatic finish. ‘Phase Two’ is a stirring, pad-laden beauty, driven by lustrous melody lines that cascade over the Brazilian’s punchy percussion.

We bring Patrik Carrera to our team, starting our relationship with this "Inevitable Decay EP". The Australian born, Berlin based producer, offers four slices of modern techno, balancing aggression with hypnosis along four cuts.

"Standing Fog" uses a mega distorted kick and resonant hypnotic bleeps on top, reminding the old X 102 feeling. No remorse in this track, straight to the point madness.

"Altered Form" relies on a complex groove, with asymmetrical components and is heavily texturized, the main synth line goes on forever while different elements go back and forth. The rhythm grows in intensity on the final moments, adding distortion and dirtiness.

"Liquid Toil" goes hyperspace, abstract sinusoidal sequences float over an opaque groove that is soon filled with shuffled 909 hats and sci-fi textures. Jeff Mills will love this one.

"Influx" puts the eye in old Birmingham tools, with a reverberated repetitive sequence over a shuffled beat, things move just a bit, keeping the pace linear and obsessive making a superb mixing tool.

A diverse EP with a personal approach to intelligent dance territories, music that could be from 10 years after today, from the future.

Some time around 20 years ago, the artist known as Dub Surgeon made an absorbing album of beautiful dub infused with ambiance, found sounds and horizontal rhythms. The Lost Future was recorded at the former Amsterdam Film Academy where Dub Surgeon. The recording engineer for the project was Ricardo Villalobos. Dub surgeon and Ricardo Villalobos then mastered it together, putting it through several vintage mixers and recording it to 2 inch tape. Then, tragedy struck: a storm surged and ignited a fire that ravaged the studio. The master copy was thought to have been lost forever. Dub Surgeon stopped making music and disappeared into the shadows after just two EPs on Future Dub in 2002/3. But one day 15 years later, totally out of the blue, he received a demo of The Lost Future. "Pay attention to this," it said. Attached was a demo version of the long lost album and now, finally, it has a perfect and impossibly poetic home on Dubai's Ark to Ashes, which is named in homage to the story of Lee "Scratch" Perry burning down his Black Ark studio to rid it of demons. Sounding as fresh as ever, The Lost Future is an authentic dub experience with a story as special as the music itself

As much as, in modern days, it has become increasingly difficult to pin things down to a specific genre this release brings very defined genres but also a refreshing feature, a constant change of energy in one single track, and most importantly, it all comes with this modern feel to it which indicates it is the new generation rising making justice to what Ultrastretch stands for, surfacing fresh and new talents. Signed by Austrian duo Foehn & Jerome.
The A side is of the EP consists of the genius idea that it is a relatively simple track, however, with the feel that so much is happening, the type when you listen to a loop but one you can listen to forever and not get tired of it, always the best sign. A rolling and constant bassline makes it into a super fat and rounded dancefloor groover, while on top you have these fragments of chopped up vocal samples in and out creating a sense of confusion, a mind drilling element is then complemented by very loose and fine hihats floating around.
On the B side starts with quirky minimal track with a galloping kick throughout, when the open hihats slam in with a vocal it quickly develops into a very happy and playful housy vibe and just when you are riding, the clap slams in now on a tighter hat sequence followed by the break and rebuilding, when it comes back however it adds another element changing the energy yet again, through introducing a synthline. The quirky frog sounding noises throughout certainly makes it a super witty track overall.

A new EP by Extrawelt is always something special, as they continually manage to reinvent themselves while remaining unmistakably true to their sound. The a-side „Moonster“ of their latest record forms a subtle and almost magical bridge to early musical influences such as Immortal Coil, Chris & Cosey, The Cure, and Throbbing Gristle.
In doing so, they reclaim, or rather reintroduce, a powerful, mystical element into their music, one that is integrated so naturally it feels as if it has always been an essential part of Extrawelt’s sonic DNA. Beyond that, the track unfolds through numerous facets, constantly shifting and evolving. Just when you think it is settling into a familiar direction, small variations emerge, keeping the piece remarkably alive and unpredictable.
You can clearly sense how much fun Extrawelt had working on this track. It is bursting with ideas, energy, and vitality, radiating a playful confidence that makes it endlessly engaging.

The b1 track „Bettermaker“ takes a different route, dedicating itself entirely to a single mood. Through subtle pitch bending and a carefully shaped tonal palette, the track unfolds with a slightly eerie, enchanted atmosphere.
From beginning to end, „Bettermaker“ remains focused and unwavering. There are no breaks or dramatic shifts in direction, instead, the piece commits fully to its initial setting. A monolithic, almost mantra like motif forms the core, creating a distinctive ambience, mystical, shadowy and faintly oriental in character.
This atmosphere is carried and reinforced by percussive, ethno inspired drums, which add an organic, ritualistic pulse. The result is a hypnotic soundscape that draws its strength from consistency and depth rather than contrast, inviting the listener into a secluded, otherworldly space.

The final piece of the EP „Popcorn Forever“ reveals another side of Extrawelt’s thinking. The track unfolds like a curious experiment in motion. Instead of building toward a predictable climax, sounds are gradually tossed into an ever running loop fragments, textures and small rhythmic ideas appearing almost casually, as if the piece were assembling itself in real time.
At first the elements seem loosely connected, sometimes abstract, sometimes slightly mischievous in the way they twist and bend. It almost feels like an impossible construction task. But Extrawelt’s experience quietly guides the process. Bit by bit the scattered parts begin to communicate with each other.
Repetition becomes the hidden engine. With every return of the loop new details slip into the structure, and what once appeared random slowly starts forming relationships inside the listener’s mind. The track never forces a clear explanation, yet the brain begins to tie the loose ends together almost automatically.
Popcorn Forever therefore works beautifully as a kind of transit piece within the EP. It moves between ideas, linking moods rather than closing them off. In typical Extrawelt fashion, the result is playful, slightly surreal and full of subtle discoveries that reveal themselves over time.

Blanche Biau, the enigmatic solo project blending 80s wave, post-punk, and shoegaze into a dreamy yet melancholic soundscape, is set to release a remix album of her sophomore record ‘Heartcore’. The new album, titled ‘Heartcore (Remixes)’, will be released via the Zurich based label Subject To Restrictions Discs.

Following the success of ‘Heartcore’, released in July 2025, the remix album brings together a group of artists to reimagine Blanche Biau’s hauntingly beautiful tracks. The remixers include Danzinger99, Donna Haringwey, Lumpex, Lust For Youth, Spear Flower and Milan STHC.

Blanche Biau on the remix album: «Heartcore is deeply personal to me, but I also imagined it as a living, breathing entity that could evolve. Collaborating with these incredible artists has been a dream – they’ve taken my songs to places I never thought possible. This remix album is a celebration of reinterpretation and connection.»

Blanche Biau is a solo project hailing from Zurich, Switzerland. Known for her DIY approach and ability to channel influences from 80s wave, post-punk, and shoegaze into a sound that is both nostalgic and forward-thinking, Blanche Biau has quickly established herself as a rising star in the alternative music scene. Her music combines raw emotion with dreamy atmospheres, resonating deeply with audiences worldwide.

Much like the duo’s music, the story of Rural France is both mundane and magical. Tom Brown (also of transatlantic janglepunks Teenage Tom Petties) and Rob Fawkes moved to London in their mid-twenties. Despite living under the same roof, they never picked up a guitar – except for one drunken, failed attempt at writing a Spoon song (“Big Chops” …don’t ask). It was only after both separately relocating to Wiltshire and starting families that they began assembling songs as a way of meeting up. Tom had amassed a pile of sprightly slacker jams that were calling out for Fawkes’ messily melodic guitar lines. Rural France was born.

After a debut album on their hero, ex-Lemonhead Nic Dalton’s Half-a-Cow Records, they retreated to a garage to record their next two albums: RF (2021) and Exacamondo! (2024), both released on much-respected jangle label Meritorio Records. Despite being lo-fi in the truest GbV sense, both records were warmly received by the DIY indie blogosphere, with their short, scrappy, but supremely melodic songs landing on numerous AOTY lists. RF even won Album of the Year at Janglepop Hub.

Raven Sings The Blues probably summed up the sound best: “With drunken visions of Beach Boys harmonies playing in the back of their heads and hooks that consume Teenage Fanclub cheeriness with the same beautiful brevity that drives Tony Molina, the pair have knocked out eleven rumpled classics.” Album four, SLOTHS, arrives via Meritorio Records and Safe Suburban Home Records on 08/05, and is a slightly different beast. For one, it’s been mixed by a professional – Rob Slater (Westside Cowboy, Yard Act, Thank) – giving the guitars and drums room to breathe. It’s easily their most high-fidelity record to date. It’s also their jangliest, most baroque and thoughtful album yet. But alongside added organ, horns and mellotron – and drums from Tom’s Teenage Tom Petties bandmate Jeff Hamm – it still retains the buzzes, hums and little freak-outs that stick to the duo’s original “Pavement playing Teenage Fanclub” mission statement. “Rob and I both wanted to do something a little slower and a little more melancholy,” says Tom. “We resisted our usual urge to hit the distortion pedal and made something that fitted where we are now and celebrates how we still listen to Meatloaf when we get drunk.”

SLOTHS is also the most thematically consistent Rural France record to date. While it wouldn’t be right to call it grown-up, it definitely has homeowners’ insurance. From the Silver Jews-esque Americana of “Slab” and mid-life rallying cry of “Thirty Seven Forever”, to the horn-embossed loser anthem “Lonely Heart Pyramid Scheme,” the songs celebrate (and rail against) the absurdities of getting older, forming a band in your thirties, and the strange phenomenon of time passing. Because no matter how slow you move, everything else goes fast. SLOTHS.

Step inside the shadow-drenched world of The Curse of Frankenstein with this definitive soundtrack release from Hammer Films, celebrating the film that launched Hammer Horror and changed cinema forever.

In early 1957, composer James Bernard wrote, orchestrated and recorded sixteen powerful cues for The Curse of Frankenstein. Created in a remarkably short production window, Bernard’s score became the sonic blueprint for Hammer’s bold new gothic identity.

Although all sixteen tracks were used in the finished film, the original session recordings are now lost. During Hammer’s painstaking 2025 4K feature restoration, approximately 13 minutes of clean music were newly extracted from the film’s original mixed music-and-effects track — a rare archival recovery that brings Bernard’s work back from the grave.

For the first time anywhere in the world, this historic music is released on vinyl, presented as four atmospheric suites across two 45rpm 7" EPs. Carefully curated to preserve the dramatic flow of the score, this release allows listeners to experience the chilling intensity, gothic menace and emotional weight that defined Hammer’s Frankenstein.

Pressed on green vinyl and produced exclusively as a Limited Collector’s Edition, this set is essential for Hammer fans, classic horror collectors and film-music connoisseurs.

This Limited Collector’s Edition includes:

• Four suites of music from the original The Curse of Frankenstein soundtrack
• Two 45rpm 7" EPs pressed on green vinyl
• Liner notes by David Huckvale, biographer of James Bernard
• Liner notes by Hammer music expert John Mansell

Own a landmark piece of horror film history and experience the sound that resurrected Frankenstein. This exclusive vinyl release is available only from Hammer Films — once it’s gone, it’s gone forever.

Chinese American Bear return in 2026 with their third album, Dim Sum & Then Some, released in May via cult UK label Moshi Moshi.

“Dim Sum & Then Some was started the day after we finished our 2024 album Wah!!!. We were having a lot of fun and inspiration was still high,” the band explain. “The album explores themes around what we love—food, little joys, fun simple nonsense, China, love, anthems, and fairytales. It’s a collage of our life, distilled into positivity and lightheartedness.”

Often described as The Flaming Lips, Dusty Springfield, and The Beach Boys having a baby with a Care Bear, Chinese American Bear’s music is bursting with comedy, groove, quirk, and cuteness. Dim Sum & Then Some is melodically rich and joyfully maximalist, weaving together psychedelia, doses of funk, and lush instrumentation, with plenty of lyrics devoted to the simple pleasure of filling up your belly with good food.

Dreamlike longing, the lament of what may be forever lost, and unrelenting rage define the dark rock band from Stuttgart Vast moments of calm are built only to be torn down unexpectedly, demanding the listener's full emotional commitment. Since their 2019 debut EP Black Awakening, which received strong press coverage and worldwide airplay, ASTRAYA have continued to guide listeners toward new horizons of realization. Their fully handmade wall of sound is crowned by the ethereal vocals of Melina Abele, shining like sun rays through black clouds. In 2024, ASTRAYA joined forces with the Italian label These Hands Melt, under which they are now releasing their highly anticipated second LP "Atropine".

VINDICATE, Black Veil Bride’s seventh album, casts a brilliant symbolic signal across the darkened skies. It’s a living will and testament to the band’s storied past, triumphant present, and unwritten future. VINDICATE harnesses the blend of grandeur and intimacy at the heart of the band’s melodic and metallic sound. Across timeless songs, VINDICATE conjures enduring archetypes, interwoven with themes of revolt and vengeance, and shades of John Milton’s epic 1677 poem Paradise Lost.

Guitarists Jake Pitts and Jinxx, drummer Christian Coma, bassist Lonny Eagleton, and frontman/vocalist Andy Biersack celebrated several milestones in recent years, including massive shows in London and Mexico City. “Bleeders” was a Top 10 hit at Active Rock radio and a several-month-long mainstay on YouTube’s Hard Rock & Metal chart (which tracks both current and catalog music videos) in 2024 and 2025.

VINDICATE is the first new Black Veil Brides full-length produced by Pitts and Biersack, exercising complete creative control while synthesizing the best of what they’ve learned from A-list producers. The album was mixed by Zakk Cervini (Bring Me The Horizon,
Evanescence, Bad Omens).

VINDICATE ushers in Black Veil Brides' most visceral, creative, thrilling, and uncompromising era yet, as the band continues to defy expectations and misconceptions held by casual onlookers. Black Veil Brides forever champions the isolated and the dismissed.
They’re an object of devotion and obsession for those who sing their anthems in unison, a diverse BVB Army that never surrenders.

VINDICATE, Black Veil Bride’s seventh album, casts a brilliant symbolic signal across the darkened skies. It’s a living will and testament to the band’s storied past, triumphant present, and unwritten future. VINDICATE harnesses the blend of grandeur and intimacy at the heart of the band’s melodic and metallic sound.
Across timeless songs, VINDICATE conjures enduring archetypes, interwoven with themes of revolt and vengeance, and shades of John Milton’s epic 1677 poem Paradise Lost.

Guitarists Jake Pitts and Jinxx, drummer Christian Coma, bassist Lonny Eagleton, and frontman/vocalist Andy Biersack celebrated several milestones in recent years, including massive shows in London and Mexico City. “Bleeders” was a Top 10 hit at Active Rock radio and a several-month-long mainstay on YouTube’s Hard Rock & Metal chart (which tracks both current and catalog music videos) in 2024 and 2025.

VINDICATE is the first new Black Veil Brides full-length produced by Pitts and Biersack, exercising complete creative control while synthesizing the best of what they’ve learned from A-list producers. The album was mixed by Zakk Cervini (Bring Me The Horizon, Evanescence, Bad Omens).

VINDICATE ushers in Black Veil Brides' most visceral, creative, thrilling, and uncompromising era yet, as the band continues to defy expectations and misconceptions held by casual onlookers. Black Veil Brides forever champions the isolated and the dismissed.

They’re an object of devotion and obsession for those who sing their anthems in unison, a diverse BVB Army that never surrenders.

The Family Men return with their second full-length effort “Co/de/termination”. Since the release of their debut “No Sound Forever”, they have played countless shows, both in their native Sweden and abroad, garnering a reputation as one of the most intense and uncompromising live bands around. A natural progression of their sound, “Co/de/termination” is a crystallized evolution of The Family Men’s sonic identity, pushing their intensity and precision to new extremes. “Co/de/termination” stands as a concise and deliberate statement, shaped by both urgency and restraint.

Trajectories collide in a wormhole as Tokyo-based Igaxx and Amsterdam-based Gropina converge on a crepuscular four-track 12-inch and digital release for Paesaggi Records. Igaxx drifts through near-beatless, spiralling psychedelia: “The Perception” is a slow-burn ascent, suspended in a state of perpetual anticipation, forever circling a climax that never arrives. “Someday in Time” settles into a steady pulse that glides outward, dissolving into the distance as if lost in quiet contemplation.

On the flip, Gropina reshapes the two pieces through his own sonic lens, like stepping through the looking glass. “The Perception (Version)” brings a supernatural, Kraut-inspired vibe, opening with a deceptive 2:35 intro before unfolding into Mother Sky-esque drums, primitive flutes, and reversed guitars. “Some Day In Time (Version)” is a dubby reinterpretation driven by a ’70s Ace Tone drum machine, a funky bassline, dub-soaked guitars, noir alto saxophone, and subtle details swirling through the mix.

Hip-hop royalty returns—Bun B and Statik Selektah team up once again for the fourth chapter of their blazing collabo-rative saga: TrillStatik 4. Recorded in real-time with that unmistakable underground urgency, this album is a master-class in modern rap chemistry, blending Bun B’s Southern grit with Statik’s boom-bap precision.

The guest lineup is nothing short of legendary. From DJ Premier setting the tone on “Live From Houston,” to Griselda heavyweights Westside Gunn, Conway The Machine, and Boldy James blessing “Trillselda 2,” every track hits with purpose. Regional flair runs deep, too—Paul Wall, Maxo Kream, and Lil’ Keke represent H-Town with pride, while East Coast lyricists like Termanology and Tek bring bar-for-bar fire.

This is more than a record—it’s a cipher of cultures, connecting street narratives, soul-drenched beats, and coast-to-coast talent.

Jede Band, die was drauf hat, hat ein Mitglied, das mal in einem Plattenladen gearbeitet hat. Bei METZ, dem mutigen Noise-Rock-Trio, das zwischen 2012 und 2024 fünf Alben bei Sub Pop rausgebracht hat, war das Sänger und Gitarrist Alex Edkins. Während seines Studiums verkaufte Edkins in seinem Heimatort Indie-Rock- und Hardcore-Platten und wurde zu einem begeisterten Schüler des Rock ,n` Roll, von den psychedelischen 1960er Jahren bis zu den DIY-1990er Jahren und darüber hinaus. Hoopla, das eingängige, melodische zweite Album aus Edkins' Soloprojekt Weird Nightmare, mischt und kombiniert diese Einflüsse auf unterhaltsame und mitreißende Weise und zeigt seine ausgefeilte musikalische Intelligenz. ,Hoopla" sprüht vor Hooks und Ohrwürmern und ist genau die Kassette, die nie aus dem Autoradio genommen wird, sondern immer wieder gespielt wird und den Sommer begleitet. ,Hoopla" ist neu und nostalgisch zugleich und wird deine Ohren erfreuen. Das selbst produzierte und ausgesprochen lo-fi Debütalbum von Weird Nightmare wurde während der Pandemie zu Hause aufgenommen und 2022 von Sub Pop veröffentlicht. Weird Nightmare zeigte Edkins' Indie-Rock-Sensibilität mit einer Vorliebe für unverkennbare Hooks und mitreißende Refrains zum Mitsingen. Auf dem neuen Studioalbum Hoopla, das gemeinsam mit Jim Eno von Spoon produziert und in Seth Manchesters Machines with Magnets aufgenommen wurde, erweitert Edkins die Dimensionen von Weird Nightmare noch weiter. Neue musikalische Texturen wie Klavier, Glocken und Kastagnetten verschmelzen mit Edkins' geradlinigem Songwriting und verleihen diesen Stücken einen glänzenden Schimmer. Es ist, als würde ein beliebter Indie-Regisseur mit seinem ersten Studiofilm einen Schritt nach vorne machen. Wenn das Debütalbum Weird Nightmare ein Underground-Publikumsliebling war, ähnlich wie Richard Linklaters Slacker, dann ist Hoopla Edkins' Dazed and Confused. ,Hoopla" glänzt mit sonnigem Gitarrenpop und wurde mit genau der richtigen Menge an Fuzz und Crunch produziert. Die unmittelbare, schnörkellose Aufnahme versetzt dich direkt ins Studio mit Edkins und seiner Rhythmusgruppe: Loel Campbell am Schlagzeug und Bassist Roddy Kuester. Das ist Power-Pop der Extraklasse; diese scharfen Adrenalinstöße könnten sich nahtlos in einen Radio-Rock-Block zwischen The Replacements und Elvis Costello & the Attractions einfügen. Oder passen genauso gut zu Sharp Pins, Ratboys und Alvvays. Im Kern ist dieses Album ein optimistischer, leuchtender Lichtblick in unserer seltsamen Zeit. Mit Weird Nightmare möchte Edkins euch wissen lassen, dass er die Welt immer noch liebt, und er lädt die Hörer von Hoopla ein, dasselbe zu empfinden. Nutzt diese Chance, um einen Funken der Magie des Pop in unserer verbrauchten alten Welt zu ergreifen. Ihr habt es verdient.

More than half a century into its existence, heavy metal still prowls as a living force in the dark, and Vancouver's SPELL summon that spirit with defiant conviction on their fifth album, 'Wretched Heart'. Rejecting the safety of nostalgia, the band; Cam Mesmer, Al Lester, Gabriel Tenebrae and Jeff Black, step beyond retro homage into shadowy new terrain, where harmony guitars blaze like torches against the night and gothic atmospheres coil around songs pulsing with desperation, longing, and wild exaltation. Forged through the fire of the stage and shaped by trusted collaborators, this is SPELL at their most potent: dramatic, vulnerable, and unafraid of excess. From existential laments to bittersweet anthems that shimmer with both steel and sorrow, 'Wretched Heart' beats with a fiercely human pulse. In SPELL's hands, heavy metal is no museum relic but a darkly romantic covenant-restless, cathartic, and forever reaching beyond the veil.

More than half a century into its existence, heavy metal still prowls as a living force in the dark, and Vancouver's SPELL summon that spirit with defiant conviction on their fifth album, 'Wretched Heart'. Rejecting the safety of nostalgia, the band; Cam Mesmer, Al Lester, Gabriel Tenebrae and Jeff Black, step beyond retro homage into shadowy new terrain, where harmony guitars blaze like torches against the night and gothic atmospheres coil around songs pulsing with desperation, longing, and wild exaltation. Forged through the fire of the stage and shaped by trusted collaborators, this is SPELL at their most potent: dramatic, vulnerable, and unafraid of excess. From existential laments to bittersweet anthems that shimmer with both steel and sorrow, 'Wretched Heart' beats with a fiercely human pulse. In SPELL's hands, heavy metal is no museum relic but a darkly romantic covenant-restless, cathartic, and forever reaching beyond the veil.

More than half a century into its existence, heavy metal still prowls as a living force in the dark, and Vancouver's SPELL summon that spirit with defiant conviction on their fifth album, 'Wretched Heart'. Rejecting the safety of nostalgia, the band; Cam Mesmer, Al Lester, Gabriel Tenebrae and Jeff Black, step beyond retro homage into shadowy new terrain, where harmony guitars blaze like torches against the night and gothic atmospheres coil around songs pulsing with desperation, longing, and wild exaltation. Forged through the fire of the stage and shaped by trusted collaborators, this is SPELL at their most potent: dramatic, vulnerable, and unafraid of excess. From existential laments to bittersweet anthems that shimmer with both steel and sorrow, 'Wretched Heart' beats with a fiercely human pulse. In SPELL's hands, heavy metal is no museum relic but a darkly romantic covenant-restless, cathartic, and forever reaching beyond the veil.

WRWTFWW Records is very excited to announce the first release from its new City Pop Series with Japanese singer, actress, entertainer, scholar and all-around legend Momoko Kikuchi’s sun-drenched classic Ocean Side album, available now as a limited-edition transparent vinyl LP in a heavyweight sleeve with obi.

A cult classic among Japanese music collectors, Ocean Side was originally released in 1984 by mythical label VAP and features lush compositions and arrangements by J-Pop icon Tetsuji Hayashi (Mariya Takeuchi, Miki Matsubara, Omega Tribe, Junichi Inagaki, Urusei Yatsura anime, soundtrack…). Momoko Kikuchi’s city pop gem is a flawless mix of heartwarming beachside funk, breezy grooves, and silky-smooth vocals - the feel-good music we all need in our life right now.

The 9-track summer-is-forever adventure notably includes the ultra-funky megahit “Blind Curve”, the fan-favorite title song, and the insanely romantic ballad “Futari No Night Drive”. A vibrant reflection of summer in 1980s Japan, Ocean Side masterfully balances nostalgia and elegance, and provides part of the origin story for revered modern music genres such as chillwave, and future funk, and vaporwave.

The official reissue licensed from VAP, Inc. is sourced from the original masters with an audiophile-cut by Sidney Meyer at Emil Berliner Studios.

WRWTFWW’s City Pop Series and its Lopetz/Büro Destruct-designed logo also includes jazz-fusion-AOR-mellow-funk treasure Safari (1984), a limited capsule collection of merch, and much more to come in the near future.

The second season of the funny and heartfelt fiction series by Flo Van Deuren and Kato De Boeck takes us along as Bibi and Ama move on to the next chapter of their lives and into their new, unexpected home: an old daycare building. With school no longer providing structure and their wallets running on empty, they dive headfirst into adulthood.

This results in eight new episodes that, like the main characters, have grown up, yet remain just as hilarious and moving as ever.

With the second season of Roomies, the show’s award-winning music makes its return. This time with a powerful soundtrack featuring Eefje de Visser, Ategha (Ahlaam Teghadouini) & Mickael Karkousse (Goose), Maria Iskariot, and Porcelain ID.

“(Tijdbom) Tikkend” is a dark, electronic track that feels like a constant run: sometimes away from the other, sometimes right toward them. It captures the feeling of running out of time, losing each other, and wanting to reconnect. That push-and-pull dynamic felt like a perfect fit for Roomies, where relationships, drama, and fun are always intertwined. - Eefje de Visser

“Whatever Happens” came together in a very organic way, and you can hear that in the track. Raw, genuine, and effortless. What’s unique is that we hadn’t even met until a few days before. Ahlaam walked into the studio and said, “I’ve prepared something.” That opening line alone was fantastic and immediately showed confidence and courage. “Perfect,” I thought. Then we turned the volume up to maximum, and I listened as Ahlaam sang right by my ear. Instant goosebumps! - Mickael Karkousse

Necropalace ist eine düstere, doomlastige Reise ins Schreckliche und Romantische, heraufbeschworen vom sich ständig weiterentwickelnden vampirischen Wesen WORM. WORM schrieb sein erstes Kapitel mit Veröffentlichungen wie "Foreverglade" aus dem Jahr 2021 und dem Split-Album "Starpath" mit Dream Unending aus dem Jahr 2023 (beide erschienen bei 20 Buck Spin). Diese Vision erweckte WORM zusammen mit Hulder, Devil Master, Gatecreeper und Frozen Soul auf der Decibel Tour 2023 auf der Bühne zum Leben. Dabei verkörperte WORM den Sound der Dunkelheit mit einem außergewöhnlichen Sinn für Ambition.
Gemischt von Arthur Rizk (Blood Incantation, Power Trip) und mit dem gefeierten Gitarrenvirtuosen Marty Friedman auf dem letzten Track des Albums "Witchmoon" ist "Necropalace" die bisher reinste Destillation von WORMs selbsternanntem "Nekromantic Black Doom", dargestellt in blutbeflecktem Technicolor. Ein cineastisches, unvergessliches Meisterwerk des modernen Metal.

NOW That’s What I Call 70s Soul brings together 50 era-defining tracks from one of the most powerful decades in soul music, featuring classics from Motown legends, Philly Soul pioneers, smooth balladeers and funk innovators – all pressed across 3LPs on beautiful blue vinyl… Out April 24th!

LP1 opens with one of the decade’s most recognisable love songs: Al Green’s ‘Let’s Stay Together’, a US #1 and UK Top 10 hit that became his signature recording. It’s followed by Marvin Gaye’s ‘What’s Going On’, the socially conscious masterpiece and title track from his landmark 1971 album, and Diana Ross’ Ain’t No Mountain High Enough’, which topped the US chart and became her first solo #1. Stevie Wonder’s ‘Signed, Sealed, Delivered (I’m Yours)’ remains one of Motown’s most joyful recordings and comes before Commodores’ ‘Easy’ introducing Lionel Richie’s smooth ballad vocals. The side also includes Bill Withers’ timeless ‘Ain’t No Sunshine’, a Grammy-winning classic, and The Stylistics’ lush ballad ‘You Make Me Feel Brand New’, a UK Top 3 smash, before closing with Rose Royce’s beautiful ‘Wishing On A Star’, one of the most loved soul ballads of the era.

Flip the LP over and The Jackson 5’s ‘I Want You Back’ – the group’s explosive debut single opens the side. Smokey Robinson & The Miracles’ ‘The Tears Of A Clown’ became a UK #1 and is followed by The Supremes’ Nathan Jones’ showcasing the group’s evolving psychedelic-soul sound. Northern Soul classics from Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons with ‘The Night’, Chairmen Of The Board’s Top 3 smash ‘Give Me Just A Little More Time’ and The Trammps’ ‘Hold Back The Night’. The O’Jays’ joyous ‘Love Train’ leads to The Blackbyrds’ Walking In Rhythm’, before the side closes with the romantic classic ‘Always And Forever’ from Heatwave.

LP2 opens with The Temptations’ epic ‘Papa Was A Rollin’ Stone’, a Grammy-winning US #1 remains one of the most stunning recordings from the Motown catalogue, is followed by Isaac Hayes’ ‘Theme From “Shaft”’, an Academy Award-winner and a US #1 smash. More funk follows from Ike & Tina Turner, James Brown with one of his key tracks ‘Get Up (I Feel Like Being A) Sex Machine’, Edwin Starr’s powerful anti-Vietnam protest song ‘War’, and Sly & The Family Stone’s hugely influential ‘Family Affair’. The Delfonics’ sublime ‘Didn’t I (Blow Your Mind This Time)’ comes ahead of Billy Paul’s timeless ‘Me And Mrs. Jones’ which closes the side…the other side begins with the 1977 #1 from The Floaters with ‘Float On’, before the breathtaking vocals of Minnie Riperton on ‘Lovin’ You’. The Isley Brothers’ Summer Breeze’ and William DeVaughn’s ‘Be Thankful For What You Got’ have become enduring classics and are followed by a run of ‘80s pop-chart crossover hits completing LP2 from Detroit Emeralds, The Moments Raydio and The Tymes’ #1 ‘Ms. Grace’.

LP3 opens with the unmistakable voice of Barry White and his US #1 hit ‘Can’t Get Enough Of Your Love, Babe’, before Aretha Franklin’s ‘Until You Come Back To Me (That’s What I’m Gonna Do)’, delivers one of her smoothest performances. Al Green’s ‘Tired Of Being Alone’ and Gladys Knight & The Pips’ ‘Midnight Train To Georgia’ are followed by minimalist soul classic ‘Why Can’t We Live Together’ from Timmy Thomas, and the side closes with a trio of defining ballads:- George Benson’s ‘The Greatest Love Of All’ Diana Ross’ ‘Theme From Mahogany (Do You Know Where You’re Going To)’ and The Jackson 5’s ‘I’ll Be There’, their biggest hit…while over on the final side…Freda Payne’s #1 ‘Band Of Gold’, opens alongside Ann Peebles’ influential and much covered ‘I Can’t Stand The Rain’.Marvin Gaye’s sensual ‘Let’s Get It On’ became another US #1, while Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes featuring Teddy Pendergrass deliver the contemporary standard ‘If You Don’t Know Me By Now’. Three massive UK #1s are next…The Stylistics with ‘Can’t Give You Anything (But My Love)’, The Three Degrees’ peerless ‘When Will I See You Again’ and Deniece Williams’ ‘Free’. This amazing collection closes with two timeless ballads: Earth, Wind & Fire’s ‘After The Love Has Gone’, a Grammy-winning classic, along with ‘Three Times A Lady’, a huge worldwide #1 for the Commodores.


NOW That’s What I Call 70s Soul, 50 defining tracks from one of music’s greatest decades. Out April 24th.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Lo Recordings is proud to present a brand new compilation by Russian electronic producer/composer OID, spanning 25 years of music that blends in and out of focus, inhabiting styles from dub techno to ambient, vaporwave, space gamelan, electronica and beyond. The album is both a retrospective and a celebration, a journey into a singular world that exists only in OID’s imagination, available digitally and on Ltd cassette from 24th April 2026.

“I first met OID in an illicit ‘Sky High’ bar in Moscow. It was a club for people who liked to jump from high buildings. OID played the piano whilst a tea ceremony took place. It was all like some kind of strange dream. The music he creates sounds like that kind of dream. Some of the tracks are reminiscent of the music released by ALEXANDROID on the ‘False Starts’ album way back in 2003 - a legendary album, in our minds at least. Alex tragically passed away in 2009, leaving only OID.

The music on this album is a testament to the beauty of friendship, the everlasting meaning of music and the light that shines forever.” -
Jon Tye, Lo Recordings

After making their mark as a hugely successful band with a #1-charting album - 2023’s Blackout, From Ashes To New are set to release their highly anticipated follow-up, Reflections. The band returns with their high-energy fusion of rap, nu metal, electronic, and alternative rock. Reflections has 12 tracks and will be available Digital, CD and different colored vinyl variants.

Originally released in 2001, Up The Country is the debut album by The Sixth Great Lake and a quietly revered title within the late-'90s / early-2000s indie scene. Rooted in jangly guitars, melodic songwriting, and a distinctly pastoral sensibility, the album sits at the intersection of indie pop, folk-rock, and classic guitar-driven pop. Although initially released with modest exposure, Up The Country steadily developed a loyal following, earning cult status among fans of understated, melody-focused indie. Its charm lies in its simplicity: clean arrangements, memorable hooks, and an unforced warmth that has allowed the record to age exceptionally well over the past 25 years. This 25th anniversary reissue presents an opportunity to reintroduce an overlooked catalogue gem to today's market, appealing both to original fans and to a new audience drawn to timeless, guitar-led indie records. With renewed interest in archival and heritage releases, Up The Country offers strong long-term catalogue potential beyond initial anniversary demand. A timeless, understated record with strong appeal for fans of melodic, guitar-driven indie.

Let's see now – you just love that hugely fertile foundation period of Jamaican pop music from the birth of ska, through the spectacularly brief two year heyday of rocksteady up to and including the arrival of the first incarnation of reggae a.k.a. early or 'boss' reggae. But you're also aware that the pioneers of these sounds (including The Pioneers!) won't be creating music in these styles or touring forever – so what do you do?

Well, if you're Neil Anderson, owner of Original Gravity Records, the creation bit isn't a problem. You put forth period-authentic style material from a 'roster' of acts – such as Junior Dell & The D-Lites - that in reality consist mostly of yourself (you are a multi-instrumentalist and lyricist after all!) and whichever extra musicians and session singer you rope in for a given track. In the case of Junior Dell & The D-Lites that singer was Adrian Dell – soon to be dubbed (no pun intended) 'Junior' - first appearing on 2021's uptempo ska tribute to Salvadoran retro-dancing internet sensation Aranivah, entitled Miss Aranivah. And you keep putting out stuff so profusely and effectively that there are clamours for you to tour 'the band' which - er - doesn't really exist. What a botheration! Still, maybe your session singer could become – well - a permanent singer? Maybe you can rustle up assorted bredren to become the rest of the band and...you know what? That might just work!

And so, in the blink of an eye, Junior Dell & The D-Lites becomes a bona fide actual live band fronted by a young Jamaican singer playing fresh 60s/70s-style Jamaican music with an energy last seen and heard in, well, the 1960s and 70s. And it tours so effectively that there are clamours for 'the band' – or more accurately, now – the band - to release an album. Wait...what now? And, by the way, you've got a European tour coming up in April wouldn't it be great if the album was ready to tour by then? Pressure drop? Pressure rise more like!

Then again, Junior Dell & The D-Lites have done so many sure-shot singles to date that assembling them along with a new cut, an extended version of one of the singles and re-recordings of two of the label's previous singles that were originally by 'label mates' The Regulators should be a cinch. So expect all the hits: bluebeat banger 20 Flight Ska, the euphoric ska bounce of the aforementioned Miss Aranivah and the title track, a de rigueur smattering of covers (opener Jump Around, midway markers Praise You and Just Can't Get Enough, and one of the re-recordings, closer Don't Look Back In Anger), early reggae groovers Cool Right Down, Last Night Reggay, Can't Stop The Reggae (in a new extended form) and crowd-pleasing new one Mi Try along with the other Junior Dell re-recording - the gorgeous Why Why Why which nods to the period of reggae between the sound of '69 and the arrival of roots.

Don't you brag and don't you boast but that's a Whole Lotta Skankin' going on! Do the ska, do the rocksteady, do the reggay, why– it's another scorcher!

Bristol experimental band SUGAR HORSE are delighted to announce that their third album, Not A Sound In Heaven, will be released on 10th April 2026 via Fat Dracula Records.

To celebrate the news, the band are sharing the bruising lead single ‘Secret Speech’, available to stream on all good digital service providers from 12th February 2026.

Also announced today are a run of April 2026 UK album headline tour dates and an appearance at StrangeForms Festival 2026, with tickets on sale now (see below for full listings).

“We are fortunate enough to live in what is generally known as ‘The West’,” says front man Ash Tubb of the lyrical themes behind the new track. “I say fortunate with gritted teeth, because I know—as I’m sure the reader knows—that living in the West isn’t always rosy. The vast majority of people struggle everyday to feed, clothe and house themselves. Let alone receive adequate healthcare, schooling and workers’ rights.”

“We are, however, where all the world’s wealth is hoarded. We are at the centre of Empire. The people outside of this empire—those of the Global South—have had their resources extracted and their populations exploited by our own governments, with very little given back in return. This won’t go on forever. It will inevitably end, as all great empires do.”

“We in The West have a choice to make in the meantime; either help create a new, fairer world, or let the greed of our ruling classes become the undoing of all of us.”

The first glimpse of new material from the quartet, ‘Secret Speech’ starts as Not A Sound In Heaven means to go on—a politically-charged wrecking ball of a song that smashes its way through the often unbelievable chaos and brutality of the 21st century with vitriolic malice.

How do you capture the machinations of the geo-political industrial war machine—and all the horrors that go with it—in the studio, without seeming trite or crass? That’s the question that Sugar Horse have posed themselves on their forthcoming third album Not A Sound In Heaven, and they must surely be one of the only bands in existence capable of delivering on just that premise with both musical substance and cutting philosophical insight.

“Ever since I was born I can remember visions of war, famine, and death being beamed directly into my living room via the magic of television,” says Tubb of the record. “These visions were accompanied by newsreader narratives designed to either humanise or dehumanise the people involved. We humanise our government’s allies and dehumanise their enemies. This is taken as common sense, or even wisdom to some degree. People watch the news and accept it as fact, simple and true.”

“As a person gets older they move in one of three different directions with this acceptance of reality; They embrace what they’re being told, they fall into a kind of trust free nihilism or they learn that there are deeper narratives at play.”

“Not A Sound In Heaven is an aged acceptance of the latter. An acceptance of sitting at the centre of a global empire of both military and economic dimensions. An acceptance that the stories we’re told as a nation, or what’s generally in the zeitgeist, isn’t necessarily reality itself.”

“How does a person cope with the weight—and, frankly, the guilt—of a society that perpetuates such distinct inequalities? A society that thinks a bit of killing abroad is fine, as long as it improves the lives of people at home. You can see why so many choose to embrace it. Hell, nihilism seems pretty sensible. Once a person decides upon pursuing a degree of truth however, things get a bit depressing. Beyond depressing...maddening.”

“This album explores this kind of breezy, frivolous subject matter in a manner that will no doubt be uplifting to the listener and massively financially rewarding for the artist.”

The new album follows on from their standalone AA single ‘What’s Your ETA? Let’s Have A Tear Up’/‘Would You Like Me To Be The Cat?’ which was released late last year as a surprise double drop.

As Nathan Fake rises from the nocturnal subterranea and rave catharsis of his previous records, on Evaporator, he resurfaces into the domain of daylight, bringing a tangible sense of air rushing against your face, of big skies, and endless landscapes.

The idea of pop accessibility that trickled into 2023’s Crystal Vision is refracted here through the prism of sweeping ambient, deep electronica, and trance uplift. Evaporator is Fake’s idea of “airy daytime music”, with each track a different barometer reading across the album’s varying atmospheres, which range from vibrant sunbursts, bracing rainscapes, and fine mists of clement melodics. “It’s not overtly confrontational electronic club music,” states Fake. “It’s quite pleasant, it’s accessible. As I was progressing through making the tracklist, I called it a daytime album. It doesn’t feel like an afterparty album.” For the past decade Fake has been gingerly introducing collaborations with heroes and friends alike into his lone, idiosyncratic working process.

Border Community alumni Dextro AKA Ewan Mackenzie transmutes his ferocious drumming for Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs into the blurred choral thump of ‘Baltasound’. ‘Orbiting Meadows’, meanwhile, is his second collaboration with Clark, an eerily idyllic duet where microtonal 18EDO piano clangs slowly twirl around wailing pads. Evaporator marks the junction point of old technology and ever fresh creativity for Nathan. The trusty “dinosaur” age software, particularly Cubase VST5, that has powered two decades of music is rarely updated. “I used to sort of feel a bit ashamed of using such old software, and then I kind of had an epiphany – that’s just how I work”, comments Fake. “That’s just how I play. I’m very fond of these old tools, and I get the most joy out of them, but now I’ve incorporated new technology too.” When an artist accumulates so much synergy with their instrument, music making becomes instinctual. By Fake’s account, much of Evaporator just fell into place. The album title arrived randomly in his head (“it felt completely perfect. Airy.”), ideas looped and developed until things locked into place and just felt right. ‘The Ice House’ is a fleeting glimpse of the sonic world he taps into in this creative state, its glassy FM synths built around a counterpoint between rough-hewn crystalline arpeggios and sparse yet gravitas-bearing bass. “That riff I just wrote out on the keyboard, I just played it forever and ever and ever.

The original track ended up being really short. Here you go, and it’s gone!” These unplanned channellings of sound call forth records from Fake’s past while he looks ahead, perhaps getting at the very essence of his musicianship. The opener ‘Aiwa’ (“the breeziest,” he muses) reminds of the introspection that characterised Providence, excited by the fire and grit of Steam Days’ textural experiments, its chunky slams and clatters surging into a flood of harmonic buzzing as they reach out for old wisdom. ‘Hypercube’ stampedes in a similar chronological confluence, infusing an incessant synth line reminiscent of the golden age of rave with the crackling, ecstatic energy of modern festival anthems. Like the vaporisation of liquid to particles, everything that Evaporator presents has a mutant desire to be amorphous. Sounds rarely settle; the irradiated garage beat of ‘Bialystok’ is pitched downwards to driving, rebounding effect, while ‘You’ll Find a Way’ warps static into shivering energy, cinematic synth strings building anticipation into a gradual gush of chords. This translates into a more expansive stereo field than Fake has explored before.


‘Slow Yamaha’ saves the wildest, most kinetic transformations for last with a cornucopia of crispy melodies and fried drums; a sibilance of cymbals on the left, a susurrus of shakers on the right, and kaleidoscopic lasers pulsing and fizzing all around. Evaporation culminating in pure excited atoms.

But, in the summer of 2024, a personal tragedy changed everything. Michael and Lou lost their six-year-old granddaughter, Bebe, in the Southport attacks in July that year, and, as much as they tried to carry on and make a My Darling Clementine album, with the weight of so much sadness and grief bearing down on them, it just didn't feel the right thing to do. The tragic events of summer 2024 not only changed the music they were making and the songs they were writing, it also altered their outlook on life. Recognising that everyone's grief is individual even that of a husband and wife Michael and Lou needed to channel their suffering via their own individual creativity and in their own way, rather than in collaboration, so they worked on two solo albums. Michael's "Nothing Can Hurt Me Anymore" is the first of the two to be released.

An album the defies genre, it is simply his instinctive musical reaction to the events of summer 2024. Michael writes "To be honest, it was impossible to write about anything else. It overwhelmed everything. I hope I am now creatively exhausted on the subject, but I think it will affect my writing forever, just as indeed, the loss of Bebe will". It features eleven brand new MWK songs Partly recorded in rural Wales and partly in not so rural Sheffield, "Nothing Can Hurt Me Anymore"was produced by Michael, along with wunderkind Clovis Phillips, and the brilliant Colin Elliot, who also mixed the album.

Die britische Post-Punk-Band Wild Swans wagte sich in die Nähe von U2 auf ihrem 1988 erschienenen Debütalbum »Bringing Home The Ashes«.

Die eindringliche Stimme von Paul Simpson verleiht jedem Stück ein emotionales Gewicht; ob er nun versucht, Freude oder Trauer zu vermitteln, sein eisiger Bariton lässt einen bis ins Mark erschauern. Das Album handelt vom Erwachsenwerden, das Aufwachsen in einer Zeit des Krieges und die Suche nach Trost von Gott und der Liebe zu finden.

Die Wild Swans wurden nie als christliche Gruppe beworben, aber Simpson nutzt seine Spiritualität, um Hoffnung oder Verzweiflung auszudrücken. Die Wild Swans malen unauslöschliche Bilder: Simpsons funkelnde Stimme und Kellys ätherische Gitarren verleihen dem Album eine unbestreitbar romantisches Gefühl.

»Bringing Home The Ashes« ist in einer limitierten Auflage von 750 einzeln nummerierten Exemplaren auf Crystal Clear Vinyl erhältlich und enthält eine Beilage.

Hey Mercedes, formed from members of Chicago's emo band Braid, included Bob Nanna, Todd Bell, Mark Dawursk, and Damon Atkinson. They debuted with a self-titled EP (Polyvinyl Records) in 2000 and followed up with extensive touring and two full-length albums: Everynight Fire Works (Vagrant Records) in 2001 and Loses Control (Vagrant Records) in 2003 along with two more EP's: The Weekend EP (Vagrant Records) in 2002 and Unorchestrated (Grand Theft Autumn) in 2004. Dawursk left at the end of 2001 and was replaced by Mike Shumaker. After 359 shows and several releases, the band disbanded in April 2005.They played a reunion show in 2007 and celebrated the 15th anniversary of Everynight Fire Works in 2016 with a remastered re-release and select live performances. In 2025, the band made their live comeback at Las Vegas's second annual Best Friends Forever Festival and will continue to play more shows in 2026. In March 2026, Polyvinyl Records will reissue the complete Hey Mercedes catalog. With several EPs and albums currently out of print, this release will provide Hey Mercedes fans with the opportunity to obtain every Hey Mercedes title on vinyl.

Hey Mercedes, formed from members of Chicago's emo band Braid, included Bob Nanna, Todd Bell, Mark Dawursk, and Damon Atkinson. They debuted with a self-titled EP (Polyvinyl Records) in 2000 and followed up with extensive touring and two full-length albums: Everynight Fire Works (Vagrant Records) in 2001 and Loses Control (Vagrant Records) in 2003 along with two more EP's: The Weekend EP (Vagrant Records) in 2002 and Unorchestrated (Grand Theft Autumn) in 2004. Dawursk left at the end of 2001 and was replaced by Mike Shumaker. After 359 shows and several releases, the band disbanded in April 2005.They played a reunion show in 2007 and celebrated the 15th anniversary of Everynight Fire Works in 2016 with a remastered re-release and select live performances. In 2025, the band made their live comeback at Las Vegas's second annual Best Friends Forever Festival and will continue to play more shows in 2026. In March 2026, Polyvinyl Records will reissue the complete Hey Mercedes catalog. With several EPs and albums currently out of print, this release will provide Hey Mercedes fans with the opportunity to obtain every Hey Mercedes title on vinyl. LP FORMAT DETAILS: Clear blue vinyl with download card in a gatefold jacket.

Hey Mercedes, formed from members of Chicago's emo band Braid, included Bob Nanna, Todd Bell, Mark Dawursk, and Damon Atkinson. They debuted with a self-titled EP (Polyvinyl Records) in 2000 and followed up with extensive touring and two full-length albums: Everynight Fire Works (Vagrant Records) in 2001 and Loses Control (Vagrant Records) in 2003 along with two more EP's: The Weekend EP (Vagrant Records) in 2002 and Unorchestrated (Grand Theft Autumn) in 2004. Dawursk left at the end of 2001 and was replaced by Mike Shumaker. After 359 shows and several releases, the band disbanded in April 2005. They played a reunion show in 2007 and celebrated the 15th anniversary of Everynight Fire Works in 2016 with a remastered re-release and select live performances. In 2025, the band made their live comeback at Las Vegas's second annual Best Friends Forever Festival and will continue to play more shows in 2026. In March 2026, Polyvinyl Records will reissue the complete Hey Mercedes catalog. With several EPs and albums currently out of print, this release will provide Hey Mercedes fans with the opportunity to obtain every Hey Mercedes title on vinyl.