Search:friend of a friend

Originally released on 13th September 1994, Ready To Die is the debut studio album from hip-hop legend, The Notorious B.I.G. Upon release, the album was met with widespread critical acclaim, with Pitchfork giving it a 10/10 rating along with various other critics praising it for its brutally honest depiction of gang violence and conflict as opposed to the often-glorified portrayal in the genre and the wider media. The album has cemented its place in hip-hop history and has since gone on to achieve 6x platinum certification in the US, selling over 3.5 million copies, and has achieved platinum status in the UK as well.

This x2LP re-issue featuring the iconic artwork of an infant bearing a resemblance to the rapper has been out of the marketplace for over a decade and also features all 19 tracks from the Ready to Die Sessions.

The album cover is often cited as one of the greatest of all time, with Billboard magazine placing it no.4 on its list of “The 50 Greatest Album Covers of All Time” stating that juxtaposition of the music with the “innocence of a child” on the cover illustrates how “a cruel world imprints on unmoulded minds”. NME has also placed it no.12 on its list of “Timeless Hip Hop Album Covers” and Complex Magazine have placed it at no.16 on its list of “Greatest Album Covers”.

We are happy to finally share with you the snippets and history behind our first release. Written and produced by Wave Particle Singularity, the author marks with this release another remarkable house music maestro work. He opens the EP with the track Zarbeeya, in which he takes us through a journey of soul saharian chords and chants by his best friend's wife Sabrina, straight from Algeria. The artist follows with the A2, Maghzal, a story for the carpet manufacturing process. On the B side, we are immersed in a more micro-minimalistic groove underlying desertic harmonies with Ghardaia on the B1, and a full-swing dubby groover on the B2 to close the EP and bridge a link from the Algerian Sahara to Berlin.

A gas generator, a hi-fi system, a semi-abandoned house, and 20 hastily printed flyers. That's how, almost without realizing it, Lapsus was born in 2004. Over the course of two decades, we've ridden a rollercoaster of emotions: from soaring epiphanies, convinced that nothing could stop us, to moments of near defeat when we almost threw in the towel. Let's be honestMaking a career out of music is not exactly choosing the easy path. But epic tales aside, today we look back with pride at having created something that, in our humble view, is genuine. To celebrate Lapsus' journey and what lies ahead--and also keeping an eye on what is yet to come--we've gathered some of the artists who have joined us along the way, musicians we consider friends and for whom we have the deepest admiration. In a way, VINT (Catalan for ''twenty'') is like a sonic photo album, a tracklist that tells our story better than we could ourselves, a collection of unreleased music that celebrates the fact that we've made it this far. Leading this outstanding compilation are forward-thinking producers, with contributions from some of the most respected names in cutting-edge electronic music (A-Z): CLARAGUILAR, GAZZI, Kettel, Kode9, Le Motel, Lord Of The Isles, Marina Herlop, naemi, Nueen, Pepe, Plaid, Seph, Simo Cell, Suzanne Ciani, Wordcolour, and u-Ziq. VINT is our way of thanking you for your unwavering support over these 20 years. We hope you enjoy it!

This compilation features tracks released between 1978 and 1988 in Western France.

Through this compilation, we strove to highlight a little-known regional scene, characteristic of the diverse and sometimes opposing music movements of the 80s. Through this musical journey across the Brittany, Normandy, and Pays-de-la-Loire regions, we sought to showcase a resolutely indie aesthetic, sometimes conceived in some of France’s most unusual studios, such as a bunker and a caravan.

We’ve found it difficult to make attribute an established, well-defined genre to some of the tracks featured on this compilation. They draw, each in their own way, from the rock scene that dominated the 80s in France, from countercultures, from American stars who shone on the country’s radio stations and in its record stores, and even from local folk music.

While one could hear an harmony across the tracks featured on Le Grand Ouest, channeling this manifold energy onto a record required extensive research through the Brittany, Normandy, and Pays de la Loire regions’ discographies. Over the three years since the release of Le Grand Sud-Est, we have meticulously researched the references of artists, musicians, studios, labels, and publishers from each region. We sought to trace each artist to identify and listen to all their works from that period, and, when possible, collect unreleased recordings, left as demo cassettes on the artists' dusty shelves.

The synthesis of this research, presented here under the title Le Grand Ouest, hopes to remind us of the timelessness of the indie scene in our country, through the lens of the 80s Western France’s scene. Whereas Le Grand Sud-Est exhibited the funkiest sides of the Provençale and Rhône-Alpes scene, Le Grand Ouest leans towards a more mellow, introverted music, an expression of groups of friends united by the joy of playing together.

The first 500 copies of the record come with an extensive booklet with unpublished photos, press clippings, and texts for each track.

“I've collaborated with Polychrome for quite some time. I performed at their one-year anniversary at Sexyland and, along with Eversines, played at their ADE 2022 party. Additionally, I contributed to their recent "Reflection EP." Throughout this collaboration, we became friends. Hervé, one of the core members of the group, asked me numerous times to create an EP together. It wasn't until his wedding that I finally said yes (how fitting!).

The first track of the EP is "Laak," a tune I created the day after playing at the club in Den Haag. I thoroughly enjoyed DJing at this venue with its impressive sound system. It inspired me to work on the low reese-bass that forms the core foundation of the track. Hervé and I decided to dedicate the entire A-side to this tune, as we had discussed how nice it would be to have a 45-side on this EP.

The second side focuses more on the emotional aspects we appreciate. "Underwater (Dream Mix)" opens this side with an uptempo techno-ish foundation and trancy melodies, fitting the label's aesthetic perfectly. The track's name stems from my unintentional creation of very "underwater" sounding pads during the recording session (note to self: next time double-check if the mix is alright). The EP concludes with "Reassociate," a tune heavily inspired by the early 2000s IDM gems we adore.”

Rein

Its been an incredible journey so far for the Austrian label Fortunea Records. Founded in 2014 by Vienna-based dj and producer Klaus Benedek it was originally launched to release his own productions. But over time many of his friends and colleagues from the scene send him demos. And since then it grow exponential and is now an embodiment of the capitols house and electronic music scene.

Now they are celebrating the labels 10 year anniversary with a 2x12“ vinyl compilation called ‚Down The Danube River‘. This package features 9 tracks by already established figureheads (Peletronic, Dzc., Moff & Tarkin, Jakobin, Nick Hanzo etc.) aswell stunning new productions by new faces (gutinstinct) and projects (SXP). Ranging from bass dub heavy broken beats, deep and funky house tunes to experimental cosmic downtempo trips.

Available soon in a record store near you!

We are excited to announce the release of the Complete James Brown Christmas Collection, a three-LP set featuring music from 1966-1970.

You absolutely don’t need to be a holiday music lover to fall in love with the music spilling out over these James Brown records, as most of the tracks are original compositions that hold their own against many of the grooves that Brown was recording during this high-water mark of his career.

With bonus tracks galore and fantastic liner notes by Alan Leeds (former James Brown publicist and tour manager), and mastered/cut by legendary mastering engineer Kevin Gray, this is a must-have even if you have to give yourself a well-earned, early musical present this year!

Favorite Recordings proudly presents this new 7inch single release, filled with 2 beautiful tracks previously compiled on the famous and now almost sold-out, AOR Global Sounds series.

First comes “What Its Meant to Me” by Jonathon Hansen. Self-produced and self-released in 1978 by Jonathon, this is another perfect recipe of AOR soulful style. Jonathon Hansen told us a bit about its story: “’What Its' Meant To Me’ was a song I wrote about the breakup of a band. As with a lot of my songs, I always write them to be about more than one thing. Primarily relationships. The song was recorded in Costa Mesa, CA at Sunwood Sound Studios. It was recorded with fellow bandmates and other musician friends.”

Another top track from the series comes next, with “It’s Always Something With You” by Jeff Silna. Originally only released on a promotional radio compilation, it was reissued by Favorite Recordings in 2017 on the 3rd edition of the AOR Global Sounds series and is still now in high demand. Here again Jeff Silna reminds: “This track was recorded at TK Studios, credited with the inception of disco music and pumping out what were considered the first Disco hits. TK created what’s known as the Miami sound. I was fortunate to work with some amazing musicians like guitarist Sheldon Stauber and players from the U of M Jazz Band, which was tops in the country at the time. My influences were funk and soul bands like Earth Wind & Fire and Average White Band.”

We are proud to bring you part II of the CEP VA series, featuring six tracks that span a wide range of genres. Each track brings its own signature to this release, making it truly one of a kind.

Beta.V opens the A-side, fusing self-sung vocals with multiple synths that harmonize beautifully together to create a timeless track. This is followed by SWART's 'Eternal Raver', much akin to old-school trance thanks to hypnotic synths and dreamy textures creating a meditative state. A3 introduces ETERA’s 'Classic Shit', a dancefloor weapon with stomping beats and crisp, background drums signaling the signature sound of ETERA himself. On the B-side, SZG stands out with its gated synthline, pounding bass, and catchy vocals from Brazilian MC DDSV adding that unique energetic spin to this release. DJ HENNE’s 'Roboter' on B2 is a hard house slayer featuring a deep mid-track breakdown and self-sung vocals - a DJ HENNE classic. Wrapping up the release, Pōnky combines groovy, funky plucks with a smooth finish, closing the EP out on a playful note.

'Pursuit Of Change' drops via CEP Records on 29th November 2024.

400,000+ creations on TikTok with 1 Billion+ views and 20 Million streams on Spotify. Sunship's remix of Friendly Pressure continues its resurgence. Radio One, Capital, Kiss FM in the UK as well as many top Dance stations around the world have been re supporting the record.

Now a brand new 2024 version is here with added bass and a new arangement that has been filling dance floors all summer.

Proudly presenting, ‘Калі ты запытаеш (If You Ask)’, a brand new, blissed-out pop production with a ‘70s AOR touch, by the ever-on-point SOYUZ (СОЮЗ). Coming at a period between albums, the single features guest appearances from the sensational musicians, Biel Basile (O Terno, Sessa) and Anthony Ferraro (Toro Y Moi, Astronauts, Etc.). Friends of the band, they add their signature touch on the drums and synth respectively. To complete the package, SOYUZ back the title track with a short but sweet, Wurlitzer-laden, MPB-tinged number, ‘Tenório’.

‘Калі ты запытаеш (If You Ask)’ tells the story of lost dreams. A track that can be interpreted either as a bittersweet longing for childhood times, or for a native place you can’t return to. For the writer Alex Chumak he suggests, "In my case, as in the case of many Belarusians, it’s both".

For this song, Alex chose to sing in his native Belarusian tongue. As he explains this language "to me feels underrepresented in pop music, also it’s a beautiful legacy and sonority that I wanted to share with the listeners of our project around the world". One of the key inspirations was a Belarusian band “Песняры” (“Pesniary”), who produced a host of great progressive folk, jazz fusion and AOR, from the ‘70s to the ‘90s, predominantly sung in Belarusian.

Another key influence was the music coming out of the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais in the ‘70s, drawing inspiration from the sentimental and harmonious music of Beto Guedes, Lô Borges, Fernando Oly and Wagner Tiso.

Having parted ways with their drummer Anton, SOYUZ needed to find a new way to produce songs. The answer was to go remotely. Alex contacted the brilliant Biel Basile, who had recorded Sessa's contemporary classic ‘Estrela Acesa’, in which Alex also participated. Utilising Biel and Sessa’s newly built studio in São Paulo, SOYUZ had Biel record the drums directly to tape to get the rich sound they were after. Adding the final magic into the mix, California’s Anthony Ferraro provided a beautiful Solina String Ensemble synth arrangement, with drummer/recording engineer Albert Karch expertly assisting with the production.

To capture the essence of the single visually, Alex and the Brazilian one-man-industry visual artist Gabriel Rolim, spent a blazing sunny May day in Berlin shooting film and stills – one of which became the perfect cover image. We hope you enjoy this little nugget of SOYUZ mastery, a sweet taster to savour while the new album is recorded.

A², the pioneering UK electro, breaks and tech house project of Andy Panayi and Alec Stone release 4 new tracks on R.A.N.D. Muzik Recordings several years after the tragic death of Andy Panayi. This post-humous release is a dedication and farewell from his close friends and family.

2024 Repress

"It was the beginning of 2016, I remember going down the stairs of that foggy Kreuzkolln basement. The floor was packed, the walls were sweaty, the air was so dense that you couldn't use a lighter. The vibe, I guess it can only be described as pure Herrensauna. I looked to the DJ booth and I saw this guy playing with records, in a heavy punk attitude, some 140 bpm (at least) dark tribal techno which I thought I was never gonna listen in a club.

-Who is he- I asked a friend, who was fully trapped in that pounding rhythm - I don't know some guys from Denmark - he replied, showing me with his body language that I should stop talking and enjoy the show. And so I did.

It didn't take me long to find out that this guy at the controls was known as Sugar but his name was Nikolaj. Neither that he was one of the founders of, what was going to be, one of the most influential collectives in the techno scene just a couple of years after that. Nor that these guys do this with the heart and that's why they are authentic.

Proudly presenting Fast Forward.
From Copenhagen, with love."

KAOS is a subdivision from OAKS
Compiled and selected by Hector Oaks.

Ulrich Troyer has been producing music now solidly for over twenty years within a largely genre free framework, but whilst navigating forms such as avant-garde, techno, leftfield, field recording, electronica, glitch and ambient it is the aesthetics of dub that guide his creative direction. Not really recognisable in an orthodox form as remixed versions of roots reggae songs but in the way sonics are manipulated with space, the application and layering of delay, reverb and echo that fixes his output well within the scope of what might be called futurist dub.

The nearest comparisons to his new album TRANSIT TRIBE can only be established by a synthesis of some of the more adventurous explorations in modern music such as African Head Charge, Jon Hassell, Pole (Stefan Betke), Bill Laswell or even Miles Davis; featuring a diverse selection of artists and friends not only from Vienna and environs but also from around the world, sounds are not so much fused but allowed to float along the continuous flowing tide of warm waves of bass.

Rather than to allow the names of Ulrich Troyer's collaborators be merely listed in the album credits, what they bring to this joyful affair needs to be outlined, albeit briefly: Co-producer credits go to Osman Murat Ertel from Istanbul, who employed a variation on the old foolproof Nick Lowe method for checking out the impact quality of his own sound productions by playing tracks through his car sound system speakers!

Murat is a member of the electro-psych-folk group Baba Zula where he plays electric saz, oscillators and theremin and played a key part in the creative development of the album. Mamadou Diabate, the balafon master originally from Burkina Faso and now resident in Vienna, has developed his own unique technique of playing solos that replicate the sound of three instruments playing in unison; however the multi-talented Mamadou is engaged here on singing and playing the talking drum. From South Tyrol Reinhilde Gamper is a member of the experimental trio Greifer who are bringing the sound of the zither into the twenty-first century using new playing techniques and electronic gadgets. Susanna Gartmayer is an Austrian composer and bass clarinetist specialising in improv and multimedia sound research. Diggory Kenrick has been engaged with creating new dub fusions and also re-energising classic rocksteady and roots reggae classics, renowned for his interventions on flute. Didi Kern is an electronic dance musician and drummer from Vienna with a focus on free improvised music. Hamidou Koita, a singer and multi-instrumentalist, is from a traditional Griot family in Burkina Faso but now resident in Vienna and a regular musical partner of Mamadou Diabate playing drums and calabash. Austrian Lukas Lauermann is both a studio and live musician playing cello, also working on electronic sound design and writing string arrangements. He has recorded extensively and appeared on stage with both Mark Lanegan and Hans-Joachim Roedelius. Martin Mallaun is a Tyrol-born specialist in both the development of the zither in modern music and also as a researcher in the effects of climate change on the vegetation of Alpine ecosystems. After studying classical percussion Flip Philipp is now a jazz vibraphone player and member of the Vienna Symphony Orchestra. Wolfgang Pfistermüller is a member of the Vienna Trombone Quartet and the developer of the incredible bass-trombone Aurora with its uniquely warm and resonant sound. Roger Robinson is a renowned British poet, winner of many contemporary poetry prizes and member of the experimental music group King Midas Sound. Kwame Yeboah is a Ghanaian born UK based keyboard wizard who tours regularly with Yusuf / Cat Stevens, Ms. Dynamite and Pat Thomas.

So contained on the album is an astonishing mix of musicians and instruments: sounds of cowbells recorded in the South Tyrolean alps processed by modular synthesizers and heavy analogue bass synths combined with instruments such as zither, bass-zither, electro saz, flute, talking drum, trombone, cello, marimba, djembe, contra-alto clarinet, Farfisa - all bound together by organic live-drums and dub effects.

Limited 2024 Black Vinyl Repress

Osaka based psych-rock three piece Hibushibire return after a long break, with a new line up and a stunning third album. Produced by Acid Mothers Temple/Mainliner guru Makoto Kawabata who also guests on the album.

Following the successes of their debut album 'Freak Out Orgasm!' (2017), the follow up ‘Turn On, Tune In, Freak Out’ (2019) and two very well received UK tours. The band headed home to Osaka, Japan and then, the pandemic hit.

During this downtime, guitarist/vocalist Changchang decided to create a new power trio. Enter Tetsuji Toyoda (Bass/Vocals) & Aoi Hama (Drums/Vocals). The new trio have spent the last three years writing new music, playing live and honing their sound in Japan, and a short well received tour of Taiwan with Riot Season labelmates Dope Purple. And now finally, Hibushibire mark 2 is born properly.

“Hibushibire has returned after a change of members. A psychedelic, progressive work, suitable for a new beginning"

Entering the studio with Acid Mothers Temple/Mainliner guru Makoto Kawabata in the producer chair (and also as a guest musician) once again, the band recorded album number three, 'Magical Metamorphosis Third Eye’. Makoto also adds some of his own trademark guitar howls throughout the album, perfectly complimenting Changchang’s own growing prowess.

Here the band have taken their trademark psych-rock blasts and blended them perfectly with some more trippy, dare I say sweet progressive psychedelic sounds.

“The idea of this album is based on the theme of "occultism and mysticism". But it's not a serious thing, it's about the things we like (UFOs, pyramids, psychic phenomena, shamanism etc) and we all had fun while making it. In terms of what makes it different from the previous Hibushibire albums, it’s where AOI HAMA's vocals are present. I had wanted to use a female vocalist for a long time, so it was a good feeling!”

Like the band's first two albums, 'Magical Metamorphosis Third Eye’ is very much an album of two halves. Side one again is full of killer shorter tracks, while side two is reserved for a blinding majestic 20 minute epic ‘Ayahuasca Witch Abduction’. Perhaps the biggest musical surprise here though is probably track two, the beautifully mellow tripped out ‘We Won't Go Back To The Past’, which sounds like it’s been beamed straight out of the late 60s/early 70s.

The band also tip a nod to the Beatles psychedelic classic ‘Tomorrow Never Ever Knows’, but with their own twist of course.

It’s clear with the line up changes, Changchang has decided to expand the band's musical pathway, and he’s achieved stunning results.

The band plan to return to the UK and Europe in 2024 to see friends old and new.

Following her breakout debut on the label with the mega-hit Heavyweight Sound, which brought a spark of light to lockdown when it dropped, Nina Girassóis now unveils her first album, Superfluido.

Great music isn’t about having the latest gear—it’s about the vision and creativity behind it. Superfluido is the result of over a decade of lo-fi experimentation at São Paulo’s Rocky Studio, where Nina teamed up with producer Paulera. Their journey is infused with mid-2000s underground sound system sessions, carnival rhythms, and the vibrant energy of the city that never sleeps.

The duo’s creative process flows with the spirit of ‘vida boa’—embracing spontaneity and seizing inspiration wherever it strikes: in the supermarket queue, at the bar, or while wandering the streets. This free-flowing approach defines Nina and Paulera’s work, embodying a distinctly Brazilian way of living in the moment, grounded amidst life’s challenges.

With its minimalist soulful sound, Superfluido radiates an effortless, unpolished beauty. It’s a collection of tracks meant to be shared with those closest to you—a soundtrack for life’s special moments.

Sounds of Sirius is back with the release of the "Frequency EP" by Chilean friends Giorgio Robles and Herman Saiz, featuring remixes by Silat Beksi, Ted Amber, and Circkel Square.

Subtle and hypnotic grooving 4 tracker. Longtime friend and partner in crime Markus Suckut is back on Andre Kronerts very own Odd Even. Part 1 of his Museum Series.

After a string of ambient and experimental releases across labels such as Bedroom Suck, Best Effort, Ken Oath and Analogue Attic, Matthew Hayes - veteran bassist of Z*F*E*X, welcomes his latest project Xpress Point, designed to keep your hips moving rather than kicked back on your couch. Born out of jam sessions and collaborations with artists such as Dreamcastmoe, Jitwam, Ziggy Zeitgeist, Finn Rees and Allysha Joy and an obsession with reclaiming the nostalgic sound sounds of the Korg M1 and Yamaha DX7, Xpress Point, which takes Its name from a local surf break off the coast of Phillip Island, draws heavily from the boogie tradition with a nod to vapourware, downtempo, balearic and funk breaks.

Assembled in 2023 across Melbourne/Naarm, London and Berlin, from surf breaks to crusty drum breaks, Xpress Point is a vehicle for Hayes to search for the perfect bass line, explore funk minimalism, continue nurturing longtime musical relationships with close friends and offer his own take on music to make you move.

The eight track journey begins with Timothy Smith of 90s American darkwave band Lestat along with Pat Berdysz and Mekena Berdysz under their View So Cruel guise, “Corpses” is the blackened offering. A blend of styles and voices coalesce in this bright and burnt work. Colombia’s Ravetop follows, rich textured rhythms support scaling synthlines and distant vocals. Acid squawk and looming menace are the ingredients of Ruksby’s romp before Dragée presents an insurmountable wall of string and reverb in “Chapter VI.” The flip brings old friends back into the fold as well as welcoming new names. Canada’s Red Mass conspires with Lieutenant Freebase with unsettling results while Croatia’s Honored Matres returns with the bent and buckled bars and beats of “Sisterhood.” Diana Berti delivers a powerful psychological soundtrack, “Neptune”, before 80s band Simbolo from Brazil closes proceedings with the absorbing analogue abstraction of “For A Better File.” Eight pieces from far and wide, eight tracks that transcend borders and genre tags.

First Word Records is very proud to bring you the 10th anniversary edition of Tall Black Guy's debut LP '8 Miles to Moenart'!

It includes two brand new jazz interpretations ('From Home To Work, And Back' and 'Running The Motor'), recorded with a live band, as well as a new intro cut ('Black Detroit'), and an alternative mix of the single 'Mon Amie De'troit', previously only available on 7" vinyl.

The original vinyl LP release was a one-time limited edition pressing; this being the first time this project has been available on wax since then, and also includes entirely new artwork and photography.

From humble origins in Detroit, raised on a healthy diet of Motown, jazz and hip hop, Terrel Wallace (aka Tall Black Guy) has become a standard bearer for the hip hop beats scene. Through a steady stream of soulful productions filled with incredibly clever sample flips and deft production chops, he has won fans across the world, including Gilles Peterson, Benji B, Don Letts, Lefto, Tom Ravenscroft, Lord Finesse, Huey Morgan, Anthony Valadez and countless others, along with sessions for Boiler Room and more.

'8 Miles To Moenart' literally brought Tall Black Guy full circle, and proceeds to do so once again. Detroit was where he started making music, and it's to his hometown he took inspiration for this debut album. Taking in low-slung hip hop, downtempo house and jazz-tinged street soul, it's a record of rare focus. It encapsulated the musical heritage of Detroit, through the looking glass of Tall Black Guy's own signature sound.

Follow up releases included his sophomore First Word album 'Let's Take A Trip' (which also featured the likes of Masego, Daniel Crawford, Miles Bonny and Moonchild), and records on Ubiquity, Bastard Jazz and Street Corner Music, to name a few, along with a steady slew of limited self-released edits amd productions, most recently with his #7DayVaults series.

He's worked with a number of formidable artists worldwide, including recent extensive work with Zo! (Little Brother), Ozay Moore, Deborah Bond and Dee Jackson (80's Babies), as well as collaborations with 14KT and First Word label-mate Allysha Joy, to name just a few. He is also an integral player for DJ Jazzy Jeff's infamous PLAYlist Retreat sessions, along with more First Word family, Kaidi Tatham and Eric Lau, as well as artists like James Poyser, Ali Shaheed Muhammad and Questlove, and he was a core contributor to First Word's 'Nothing Leaves The House' series, along with Eric, Mr Thing and kidkanevil.

Tall Black Guy has firmly established himself to be one of the most influential producers working today.

Terrel says "I made the bulk of this album back in Detroit around 2012/2013, before I relocated to the UK. I've been back living and working in the States for a while now, and it's great to look back on this project. But while it's nice to reminisce, it's important to look forwards, so I wanted to include something new here to represent my progression as an artist, so there's some new versions included, that I created with the help of some jazz musician friends of mine."

'8 Miles to Moenart' (10th Anniversary Edition) will be released on digital & vinyl on October 18th 2024.



c 03: Funeral Biz / Welcome to Detroit (Interlude) feat. Malice & Mario Sweet

e 05: Mon Amie De`troit (7" Version) feat. Ozay Moore

Despite their early success, The Valentinos’ story was, like many other groups, a ‘what might have been’ story. But there could not have been a more hardworking group. Every night, Friendly Womack Sr. taught his boys all the gospel songs he knew before he kicked them out of the house because they wanted to switch to secular singing.
“Bobby, you’re singing too church!” shouted Sam Cooke across the recording desk at the United Recording Studios in L.A. to Bobby and his brothers…
Still torn here between gospel and secular singing, Friendly “June” Womack told me about both these two lost tracks from the group: “Between you and I, we were looking hard to get another ‘Looking For A Love’. We were desperate for that, as that was such a big seller for us”.
Ultimately these sides failed to be released, yet they were both great tracks. Wouldn’t it be great though if, this time around, Soul4Real Records were able to hang out the ‘sold out’ banner that all the Womack brothers really deserved?

We’re teaming up with ELUCID and Fat Possum for a limited edition of 300 copies of a Rush Hour black ice coloured edition.

E L U C I D, one half of the illustrious duo Armand Hammer, is here with the full-length follow-up to 'I Told Bessie'. Further experiments in the sonic, expanding on the 'live' side of music paired with the embracing of chaos. Something you haven't heard, or not so for a very long time. E L U C I D is here to reveal the bleakness of reality.



---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

''There is never time in the future in which we will work out our salvation. The challenge is in the moment; the time is always now.''
James Baldwin

A raw, crackling urgency runs through rapper-producer ELUCID’s new album REVELATOR like an underground power line. There is no space here for sepia-toned reminiscences or indulgent self-mythologizing. Intellectual rabbit holes have been filled in with concrete and rebar ; there is nowhere to hide and no off ramp from the audio Autobahn that ELUCID has fashioned—a renegade Robert Moses with gold fronts, bulldozing the homes of the powerful and the complicit. REVELATOR brims with the energy of now, with a refusal to look away. Carpe diem in a murder one mask.

Born in Jamaica, Queens, ELUCID has been on the cutting edge of New York’s underground scene since the mid-2000s. From the beginning, he has defied both convention and expectation. He ran with Okayplayer darlings Tanya Morgan, but his own music eschewed their throwback charm for glitchy noise experiments and bass-swamped culture jamming. His 2016 debut studio project Save Yourself (re-released in a deluxe edition last year) announced him in earnest. But in recent years, his Armand Hammer releases with partner-in-crime billy woods have received significant attention and acclaim. Serving as a followup to his last solo album—2022’s comparatively balmy I Told Bessie—ELUCID hoped to “re-distinguish” himself with REVELATOR, setting himself apart amidst the increasing attention around the music he and his friends are making together.

For ELUCID, this meant setting bold new challenges for himself. One of these was diving further into live instrumentation than ever before—”getting my Quincy Jones on,” as he puts it. The testing ground for this approach was Armand Hammer’s most recent project, 2023’s We Buy Diabetic Test Strips’ Möbius strip soundscapes, warmed with instrumental flourishes and skin-shedding beat progressions. With REVELATOR, though, ELUCID strove to create an atmosphere of chaos, embracing experimental electronics and atonal sample bursts. He worked on much of the album with co-producer Jon Nellen, who comes from a background in avant-garde and Indian classical music. “I wanted to get as freaky as I could at this moment. I wanted people to hear things, maybe for the first time, or in a way they haven’t for a long while,” the rapper explains.

ELUCID arrived at the studio with a collection of noise sources: non-referential samples, glitches and noises. Together he, Nellen, and others created forms out of them and, as ELUCID recalls, “just started playing drums with it.” Their fried, distorted sound was directly inspired by Miles Davis at his most uncompromising—specifically, the tone-clustering funk track “Rated X” from his 1974 double LP Get Up With It. At times, the pairing of rap with avant-fusion sounds also brings Emergency! from The Tony Williams Lifetime to mind, perhaps in an alternate timeline where the late drummer was listening to Ice Cube’s AmeriKKKa’s Most Wanted.

“The World is Dog,” REVELATOR’s lead single, functions as the album’s aesthetic thesis statement. Like the Davis track, the textures are punishing, the tonality is in free-fall, and the driving breakbeat of a groove cuts in and out unceremoniously. Avant-jazz bassist Luke Stewart, who appears throughout the record, holds the whole thing together just long enough for ELUCID to tightwalk over the beat. This tension is exactly where REVELATOR sets itself apart; in a time of drumless loops, and safe soul samples, this is a high-wire act with no safety net. Similarly, the song announces the themes of the album within just a few phrases, evoking the way societies accept and adjust to new levels of debasement and brutality while suffocating under the weight of history: “Can’t clock the kill, all a mystery/Forced past will eating everyone eventually/The world is dog.”

Many of the songs on REVELATOR grapple obliquely with dissolution and disenfranchisement in America and across the world—the grim realities of our domestic sociopolitical climate and our involvement in foreign conflicts. “Much of my artistic and political sensibility comes from the Black arts movement here in New York,” ELUCID explains. “Recognizing the interconnected global struggles against oppression, artists and thinkers created works and actions in solidarity with freedom movements in South Africa and Palestine.” ELUCID cites intellectuals like Amiri Baraka, Kwame Nkrumah, Audre Lorde, Sonia Sanchez, and Nikki Giovanni among his heroes. (One track on the album is specifically inspired by Lorde’s work, “SKP,” citing the scholar’s paper “Uses of the Erotic: The Erotic As Power.”) Songs like REVELATOR’s insistent closer “ZIGZAGZIG,” find ELUCID applying up-to-the-minute messaging, making explicit reference to the conflict in Gaza: “Feed a war machine…from river to sea, in lieu of peace.”

Despite ELUCID’s preference for cacophonous system overload here, the rapper also provides moments of respite. Recorded at The Alchemist’s Los Angeles studio, the laid-back, wheezing “INSTANT TRANSFER” is a collaboration with billy woods, which crystallizes their shared sense of creative determination. “With much momentum behind us and even more on the horizon, I knew a purpose, and that every step was ordered to that purpose,” ELUCID said of the experience. Meanwhile, the jittery “HUSHPUPPIES” is a playful anomaly on the track list, providing a snapshot of ELUCID watching his grandparents in the kitchen while preparing for Friday night fish fry dinners.

“Love still rules over on this side,” ELUCID says. ”I’m raising a family. We are making meaning and finding joy in the midst of all the fucked up-ness of everything around us because the alternative is cowardice and slow death. We remain rooted. We celebrate our people and our wins. Struggle is necessary.”

“IKEBANA” is one of ELUCID’s strongest statements of purpose on the record, blending the record’s heaviest themes with its most hopeful sentiments. supported by a shoutalong refrain and an urgent prog-funk groove. Breaking away from images of dissolution and crumbling societal systems that populate REVELATOR, ELUCID notes that the only way to navigate life’s bleakest landscapes is to cling to love and believe in those around you—to look forward toward something better that may or may not be possible. For the rapper, one of the album’s most trenchant lines comes during a centerpiece of a beat drop: “Being alive/I must look up.”

“The lyric ‘being alive I must look up’ is important especially in the context of this album. Much of the album imagery is harsh and reflects the actual doom some of us experience. But still I/we exist,” ELUCID explains.

Every artist is, in one way or another, the product of their time, bound by life’s leaden gravity to operate within the space of that which is already known. But there are some who are able to shake free of these ties, to shape the culture as it unfolds, to make the present their own.
Revelation, as a concept, points to the scales falling from people’s eyes—something that has been hiding in plain sight becoming clear. “The revelator relates to things that have been talked about, things that have been forecasted,” ELUCID adds. “And now they’re really here, and everyone sees it. And there’s no escaping.” REVELATOR plays out with the unmitigated power of those storms, laying waste to any genre conventions in pursuit of a certain physicality. Here, ELUCID develops a wholly distinctive musical language to explore our fractured modernity.

REVELATOR's packaging was designed by longtime Armand Hammer / Backwoodz art director, Alexander Richter.

Inquiri and bvdub's superb new collaboration A Life In Setting Suns on the excellent Past Inside The Present label run by zake reflects a deep-rooted connection to the golden era of electronic music in the 90s. Their project mirrors the layered experiences of rave culture and blends some nostalgia for that with distinct musical identities. Inquiri brings the energy of main rooms where trance-induced emotional highs, while bvdub represents the ambient, early morning deep house scenes. Their friendship and collaboration transcend time and geography and so together they explore the timeless, hypnotic soundscapes that defined the era and in doing so create a harmonious fusion of past influences that resonate deeply.

Michael Mayer albums don’t come round too often, which is one of many reasons why his fourth collection, The Floor Is Lava, is a genuine event. It’s been eight years since his last one, the collaborative & released on !K7; its predecessors, Mantasy (2012) and Touch (2004), took their sweet time, too. It’s no real surprise, given the many hats Mayer wears – globetrotting DJ, revered remixer, inveterate collaborator, and boss of both Kompakt and Imara – that his solo productions are relatively sparing. But this also speaks to their quality: Mayer’s name on a record sleeve is a sign of quality, of music that’s both looking to the future and calling back to the past, that balances the imperatives of the dancefloor and the loungeroom, that’s as exploratory as it is functional.

On The Floor Is Lava, Mayer seems to be taking the temperature of both the music that surrounds him (past and present), and the ides of the industry he works within. There’s that iconic album title, for a start. “The album’s mindset,” he says, reflecting on those four words together. For Mayer, it’s partly a critique of the way the industry boxes in both producer and listener, focuses them on genre, on market, on the next new thing: “Being a free minded spirit that transcends genres has become an uphill battle.” A battle worth fighting, though, and with The Floor Is Lava, the result is an album that’s varied, quixotic, idiosyncratic, charming, and deeply, addictively listenable.

Throughout, Mayer finds thrills in exploration and juxtaposition, allowing unexpected things to blossom and giving them their life, their platform, throwing the listener exciting curveballs: “It’s a DJ album by a DJ that’s easily bored.” Either easily bored, or endlessly curious, The Floor Is Lava is rich with ideas. It opens with “The Problem”, which looks back to look forward, embracing the rickety way early house productions threw samples together with gleeful abandon. Mayer mentions Pal Joey, and the scene around Rockers Hi-Fi and their Different Drummer imprint, as reference points, and you can hear that freewheeling spirit throughout.

It’s followed by “Vagus”, a slinky, sensual minimal house number that Mayer describes as his “musical catnip”. The flow of these two opening cuts defines the dynamic of The Floor Is Lava, defining the dialectical drive at its core: thesis and antithesis leads to synthesis, but with a welcome prickliness that means you’re always excited, always engaged. It’s also productive in the way it derives energy from rubbing genres and sounds against each other, in unexpected ways, for maximum musical frisson. There’s psychedelic techno on “Feuerstuhl”, more minimal techno with “Ardor” (Mayer mentions ‘Immer 1’ era 90s minimal as inspiration), slippery, Shepard-tone breakbeat through “Sycophant”, a lovely, lush vocal turn on the poppy “The Solution”.

The album closes with the melancholy “Süßer Schlaf”, where Mayer sets a poem by Goethe to one of his most haunted, moving pieces of music yet, in abstract tribute to a lost friend. It’s one of the most affecting moments on The Floor Is Lava. There’s also an update on 2020’s wild Brainwave Technology EP, with the surrealist glitter-stomp of “Brainwave 2.0” (check out those handclaps!),where Mayer’s thinking about the socio-political precipice of the now: “I’m reading with great interest about this whole complex of how humanity is about to cross so many lines and the implications that the resulting financial and educational inequality will bring.”

That’s The Floor Is Lava: then and now, brainwaves and nerve structures, problems and solutions, genres on fire; the real, the unreal, and the surreal. An album for the easily bored and the endlessly curious. Mayer has the last word, telling us all you need to know about the album’s spirit: “Burning for the cause, being zealous, being addicted to the heat of the night, the exuberant powers of music.”

Michael Mayer veröffentlicht nicht oft Alben, was einer von vielen Gründen ist, warum ‘The Floor Is Lava’ ein echtes Ereignis ist. Es sind acht Jahre vergangen seit seinem letzten Werk, dem Kollaborationsalbum &, das auf !K7 erschien; seine Vorgänger, Mantasy (2012) und Touch (2004), ließen ebenfalls auf sich warten. Es überrascht nicht wirklich, da Mayer viele Rollen gleichzeitig erfüllt – weltreisender DJ, vielbeschäftigter Remixer, unermüdlicher Kollaborateur und Chef von sowohl Kompakt als auch Imara – weshalb seine Solo-Produktionen eher sparsam ausfallen. Doch das spricht auch für deren Qualität: Ein Album mit Mayers Namen auf dem Cover steht für Qualität, für Musik, die sowohl in die Zukunft blickt als auch auf die Vergangenheit verweist, die das Gleichgewicht zwischen den Anforderungen des Dancefloors und des Wohnzimmers hält, die genauso erforschend wie funktional ist.

Auf The Floor Is Lava scheint Mayer sowohl die Musik um ihn herum (vergangen und gegenwärtig) als auch die Strömungen der Branche, in der er arbeitet, zu reflektieren. Da wäre zunächst der ikonische Albumtitel. „Die Grundhaltung des Albums“, sagt er, drückt sich in diesen vier Worte aus. Für Mayer ist es teilweise eine Kritik daran, wie die Industrie sowohl Produzenten als auch Hörer in Schubladen steckt, sie auf Genres, auf den Markt und auf das nächste große Ding fokussiert: „Ein freier Geist zu sein, der Genres überschreitet, ist zu einem steinigen Weg geworden.“ Ein Kampf, der sich jedoch lohnt, und mit The Floor Is Lava ist das Ergebnis ein Album, das vielfältig, eigenwillig, charmant und tiefsinnig, aber auch süchtig machend ist.

Im gesamten Album findet Mayer Freude an der Erforschung und Gegenüberstellung von Stilen, lässt unerwartete Dinge erblühen und gibt ihnen Raum, überrascht den Hörer mit spannenden Wendungen: „Es ist ein DJ-Album von einem DJ, der sich schnell langweilt.“ Entweder langweilt er sich schnell oder er ist unendlich neugierig – The Floor Is Lava ist reich an Ideen. Es beginnt mit „The Problem“, das in die Vergangenheit blickt, um nach vorne zu schauen, und die wilde Art, wie frühe House-Produktionen Samples mit fröhlicher Unbekümmertheit zusammenwarfen, aufgreift. Mayer nennt Pal Joey und die Szene um Rockers Hi-Fi und ihr Label Different Drummer als Referenzpunkte, und dieser freie Geist zieht sich durch das gesamte Album.

Es folgt „Vagus“, eine sinnliche Minimal-House-Nummer, die Mayer als seine „musikalische Katzenminze“ beschreibt. Der Fluss dieser beiden Eröffnungstracks definiert die Dynamik von The Floor Is Lava und den dialektischen Antrieb im Kern: These und Antithese führen zu einer Synthese, jedoch mit einer willkommenen Schärfe, die dafür sorgt, dass man immer aufgeregt und engagiert bleibt. Zudem gewinnt das Album Energie, indem es Genres und Klänge auf unerwartete Weise aneinanderreibt, um maximalen musikalischen Nervenkitzel zu erzeugen. Es gibt psychedelischen Techno in „Feuerstuhl“, mehr Minimal Techno mit „Ardor“ (Mayer erwähnt ‘Immer’ Ära Minimal als Bezugspunkt), gleitenden Shepard-Ton-Breakbeat in „Sycophant“ und einen lieblichen, üppigen Vocal-Auftritt im poppigen „The Solution“.

Das Album schließt mit dem melancholischen „Süßer Schlaf“, in dem Mayer ein Gedicht von Goethe vertont und eine seiner bisher eindringlichsten und bewegendsten musikalischen Kompositionen schafft, als abstrakten Tribut an eine verschiedene Freundin. Es ist einer der ergreifendsten Momente auf The Floor Is Lava. Ebenfalls gibt es ein Update der wilden Brainwave Technology-EP von 2020, mit dem surrealistischen Glitzer-Stampfer „Brainwave 2.0“ (hör dir diese Handclaps an!), in dem Mayer über den sozio-politischen Abgrund der Gegenwart nachdenkt: „Ich lese mit großem Interesse über diesen ganzen Komplex, wie die Menschheit dabei ist, so viele Grenzen zu überschreiten und welche Auswirkungen die daraus resultierende finanzielle und bildungstechnische Ungleichheit haben wird.“

Das ist The Floor Is Lava: Damals und heute, Gehirnwellen und Nervengeflechte, Probleme und Lösungen, brennende Genres; das Reale, das Unreale und das Surreale. Ein Album für die schnell Gelangweilten und die unendlich Neugierigen. Mayer hat das letzte Wort und sagt uns alles, was wir über den Geist des Albums wissen müssen: „Brennen für die Sache, leidenschaftlich sein, süchtig nach der Hitze der Nacht, den überschwänglichen Kräften der Musik.“

2024 Repress

Wilson Tanner’s 69 returns to Australian soil for a new season. A uniquely provincial take on ambient music, Andrew Wilson (Andras) and John Tanner (Eleventeen Eston) assembled their prized debut over a shared love of seafood, wine and LPG. Recorded in a Perth backyard, these two new friends reached for the tools at hand and made the best of the fine weather. Instrument and implement combine in a languorous bricolage of synthesizer, clarinet and building materials - interrupted only by the occasional flutter of pigeon wings or a call to lunch. Back in print for the first time since 2017, Wilson Tanner hop into Efficient Space’s expanding pot.

Following his debut on Planet E Communications last year to release Art-O-Fact, New Jersey-born and-based house music legend Junior Sanchez now teams up with longtime friend, label boss and techno icon Carl Craig for a brand new Remix EP. “Art-O-Fact (Detroit Remix)” injects the futuristic sound of Carl’s hometown, the EP also includes a ‘Beatless’ mix and a ‘Bass’ mix, which split the new Detroit Mix directly in half, with one focused on melody and the other on rhythm.

Sanchez initially brought “Art-O-Fact” to Planet E with Detroit in mind. “I loved so many records by Carl Craig, Derrick May, Kevin Saunderson, and Juan Atkins,” he says. “I let my inspiration guide me, and I thought about that city—what it meant to me and what techno meant to my heart.” To fully connect the dots, Carl Craig has hopped on the remix, reinforcing the eclectic synth work with a heavy new groove, a gritty bass line, and subtle, shadowy synth melodies. The result is a fortified connection between two scenes and eras that sonically toes the line.

Following appearances on our first three releases and on Chez Damier's latest label 'House Of Chez', El Kazed is back with his first solo EP !

Over the years, El Kazed's sound has become more refined, but you can still recognise his own touch.

On that matter, the A side is a prime example : DeePulse and Yunni perfectly blends that famous FM bass with dreamy pads and a strong 90s Italian house influence.

On the B-side, The Positive stands out with a more club-friendly vibe. Our friend Lea Lisa did her own version of it, driving it even more in that direction.

Paddan's Sigtryggur Baldursson and Birgir Mogensen are lifelong friends from Kópavogur, Iceland, who started as mates on the local football team, then graduated to making music together as teenagers, and even later as young men doing time in the experimental punk collective KUKL, from 1983 - 1986.
KUKL was populated by survivors of the post-punk scene in Iceland in the early 80s, which is well documented in the film Rock in Reykjavik from 1982. The band was released by the Crass collective in London and featured members, apart from Birgir and Sigtryggur, like Guðlaugur Óttarsson, Einar Melax, Björk and Einar Örn, some of whom would become better known later in outfits like the Sugarcubes and their respective solo work and other collaborations.
Sigtryggur has a long career in music, having worked with among others, Emiliana Torrini, Howie B, Les Negresses Vertes, Tomas R. Einarsson, Petur Ben, KK, Kaktus Einarsson, and many many others. He also produces an award-winning documentary music show for RUV called Hljómskálinn.
Birgir Mogensen is a classically trained classical guitarist and bass player who has worked through the years with artists ranging from KUKL to Killing Joke to Spilafifl and Inferno5.
Birgir and Sigtryggur formed Paddan during the 2010s, and are now preparing to release their EP Fluid Time, which has been inspired by their perception of time and space. Birgir Mogensen says, "As a duo, we trusted our musical intuition and were guided by allowing the first idea to remain unchanged during the recording process"Recorded, produced, and arranged by the pair, Sigtryggur and Birgir play basses and drums along with various other instruments.
All recordings are played on live instruments except a modular synth which is programmed in the background of two tracks The duo is joined by the great harmonica and lap steel player Gaukur Davidsson on "Vaguely" and "Bug," and trumpet player Eirikur Orri Ólafsson on "Splash," not to mention the mixing expertise of Vaccines bassist Arni Hjörvar Árnason on "Bug," "Splash," and "Kokka," and sound-mixer Albert Finnbogason on "Vaguely."

Moodena & Charles Levine drop ‘Badman’ on Rekids. Radio Slave and Cratebug remix the track, with the EP landing this October.

‘Badman’ sees Moodena & Charles Levine team up on Rekids this October, including remixes from label founder Radio Slave, and Cratebug. The vocal mix of Moodena & Charles Levine’s ‘Badman’ is up first, a high-energy dance track with classic house strings and an infectious bassline, telephone-like samples dialling the keypad, and a big vocal to top it off. Chicagoan edit royalty Cratebug steps up to remix ‘Badman’ first, turning the track into a hypnotic after-hours cut with plenty of dub echo, the original faintly shining through its rolling elements.

On the B-side, Moodena & Charles Levine’s ‘Badman’ is then remixed by Rekids’ own Radio Slave, who in turn transforms the track with a more low-slung vibe, cruising along with tripped-out sonics and traces of the vocals while bringing the dial-up sounds forward. Closing out the EP, there is also a dub which loses the original ‘Badman’ vocal but maintains the classy house heat.

Moodena has been active in the Disco and Nu-Disco scenes for over thirty years, earning accolades via releases on Midnight Riot, Nervous Records, and his own Tropical Disco Records. Following a twenty-year-long friendship, he collaborates with one-half of Soul Clap, Charles Levine, for the first time for the ‘Badman’ EP on Radio Slave’s Rekids. With Soul Clap, Levine influenced the House and Nu-disco scenes through varied tracks on labels like Defected and Crosstown Rebels while releasing tracks from artists like Jkriv, Josh Wink and DJ Rocca on their eponymous Soul Clap Records label.

DJ Support: David Morales, Louie Vega, Hector Romero, Dave Lee ZR,Tony Humphries, Kevin Yost, Jimpster, Atjazz, Ron Trent, Dj harvey.

Considered the Master of Italo piano house, Don Carlos is up next on friends Micky More & Andy Tee's label Groove Culture Deep with an EP of Finest Classic Piano house.Features the amazing, warmup Classic House of ‘Italian Paradise Piano’ followed by the Deep heater ‘Soul Emotion' and The Garage Late-night ‘Good Emotion’(Vocal Mix) on the A-side. The flip offers ‘Paranoia’(Piano Edit) and ‘Good Emotion’(Paranoia Mix) both tracks perfectly capture the zeitgeist of house music's golden era of late 80’s early 90’s.

The Blessed Madonna began with three magic words, scrawled in shoe polish on a broken - down box and hung on the wall at a small sweaty party: We Still Believe. “I think you have to give up completely to really understand what hope is. It was like 2011? I had spectacularly, monumentally failed. I left the label. I wasn’t DJing. I wasn’t putting out records. I was divorced and living on my Dad’s couch so naturally my friends and I decided to throw an illegal rave. We didn’t have any decorations, so I took a box and wrote, ‘We Still Believe’ on it. I needed to believe that something better was possible and that’s how it all started.” After years of $50 gigs, strung together by gas money and surfed couches, The Blessed Madonna cemented her reputation as a sublime technician behind the decks with a legacy of fluent and dynamic sets, spanning from disco to techno to house and back. One room sweatboxes, circus tents, theatres, massive festival stages and entire city blocks have all served as the canvas for her shows. After a jam packed 2023, from Glastonbury to Sonar to Boiler Room Bali, The Blessed Madonna has been filling the dance floor everywhere she goes and is now releasing her debut album.

The Allergies return to their 100% sample-heavy roots, with a reworked slice of dancefloor friendly Southern soul on 'Knock Me Off My Feet'. Flipping a much sought-after 45 from the late-sixties, they take an already pumping Motown-influenced arrangement and bolt on fat drums, beefy bass, percussion and horns, taking it further than the OG band could ever imagine.

'Let Me Hear You Say' on the b-side takes us way back to New York club scene of the early 80s. Re-working old school MC chants over strutting disco loops, this finger-snapping slice of retro realness is packed with sleek and slinky grooves, and a beat that won't quit.

Movetone Wax proudly presents its third release, MVT003, showcasing the vibrant sounds of Ed Herbst. A longtime friend and collaborator of label owner Maik Yells, Herbst embarks on his first solo venture with Movetone Wax, presenting two compelling house tracks poised to captivate the dance floor. As side A is highlighting Ed‘s love for garage, side B is reflecting his deeper side.

Enhancing the EP’s allure, maestros Terence :Terry: and Niko Maxen contribute their distinctive signatures, expanding the palette and culminating in a diverse and electrifying four-track journey.

Equal Audio is a new vinyl imprint for stripped-back and DJ-friendly house music. No matter of the subgenre, the focus is on consistent energy levels and rather simple arrangements. A minimalist approach for maximum sound quality.

The first release, entitled Giseigo EP, is brought to you by Croatian producer Mariano Mateljan - a true master when it comes to reduced yet powerful tools. With 4 originals he shows that no more than a handful of elements are needed to keep the dance floor moving.