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LTD. CLEAR PINK VINYL

Barely disco and hardly jazz, Rupa Biswas’ music the halfway point between Bollywood and Balearic. Tracked in 1982 at Calgary’s Living Room Studios with a crack team of Indian and Canadian studio rats alike, both “Moja Bhari Moja” and “East West Shuffle” are the perfect fusion sarod and synthesizer. Remastered from original analogue source material and with permission and blessing of the producers and performers.

CoOp Presents is incredibly proud to present an all-new compilation album put together by Allysha Joy. This 14-track LP gives us a solid glimpse into the current wave of Antipodean bruk / broken beat artists.

Allysha explains "the connection began with a guest mix for CoOp Presents Worldwide FM radio show. I was asked to guest on the show, so pulled together some heavy unreleased and unmastered "Australian" broken sounds. I immediately called Horatio, Close Counters and Setwun, some of my nearest and dearest inspirations and collaborators to get them in the mix! Within 24 hours I had a brand new beat from Setwun called 'H.B.Y', I ran up some vocals on a Close Counters track and landed a wild jazz-bruk collaboration called 'Fly' from Horatio Luna and Nikodimos! We all felt really blessed to be linking in with some of the innovators of the sound we love!

Also in the mix, I played a track by Lanu a.k.a Lance Ferguson, one of "Australia's" funkiest songwriters and producers. Mike Gurrieri and Chris Gill over at Northside Records had already been scheming to set Lance and I up on a music date for weeks, which turned into writing 'Rewind' . Lanu, along with Ennio Styles, have been integral in the broken beat sound down here from the early 2000s and they connected Jonny Faith in to bring 'Southern Stepper'.

After linking in over the music and working on some collaborations, Alex Phountzi and IG Culture asked me to put together this compilation. The first person that came to mind was Sampology. A wild ride of shifting harmony and incredible vocals, Sam delivered 'Sunny', featuring Maia. Also of Middle Name Dance Band acclaim and a beaming light of creative energy, Kuzko created 'Immunity' for the comp — their debut solo release!

Also up in Meanjin, Special Feelings and Squidgenini were making their own style of jazzy house music and we absolutely knew that they would kill it on the broken beat tip. They sent through 'On Heat' and 'Prophecy' respectively, and inspired me to write and produce 'Listen'. A track about the struggle to be heard as female and non-binary artists. A hard-hitter mixed by co-collaborator Yelderbert of our new duo project, Totek.

As my brother and the one that first introduced me to Agent K, I knew we had to get Ziggy Zeitgeist up in the mix! He immediately sent over a bunch of tunes, and from alongside all of the 30/70 Collective demo drum loops and fresh Z.F.E.X sounds, we selected 'Bruk Samba' featuring Cody Curry, the CC Dance Orchestra.

I had managed to pull together a bunch of tunes for the compilation and after a studio session one afternoon I was walking down Sydney Road and bumped into Silent Jay, Alien and A.KID a.k.a. ACID SLOP at their new spot, the Mandarin Dreams HQ. We were just chatting and above Jay's head I spotted the New Sector Movements record, 'Download This'! To see that they'd just been spinning this record felt so serendipitous, so I had to ask them to be on it! Acid Slop sent me through a tune literally the next day, called 'Everything Falls Apart' and within the week we got 'Walk Away', from Lori and Silent Jay. It felt complete.

The way that this music just effortlessly and lyrically fell together, is a testament to the broken beat undercurrent that runs within the jazz and dance music scene down-under. 'They're Energised' connects a scene of deeply talented and inspired musicians, collectively shaping the new wave of uniquely "Australian" bruk and broken beat music!"

'They're Energised' is released mid-November 2022 on double vinyl and digital worldwide via CoOp Presents.

Semi Delicious is wrapping up the 2022 with a set of collaborative remixes of bossman Demi Riquísimo’s personal SD stash.

Following on from 2019’s ‘Reconfigured’, 'Reconfigured 2’ see’s Manami, Gallegos, Gina Breeze & Asa Tate put their own imitable stamps on the back catalog of label head’s own Semi Delicious back catalog.

First up with have Japan born, Peckham based Manami’s interpretation of ‘Mirage Over’. Originally released on SEMID008, Manami’s fingerprints are all over this revised iteration. High energy, twisted prog with balearic touches make for a considered & unique reimagining. Fresh from tearing apart Panorama Bar, Gallegos puts his spin on disco tinged roller ‘Point One’. Vintage percussion characterise a remix that wouldn’t sound of out of place in the bag of Larry Levan or Ron Hardy. The b-side kicks off with HomoBloc & Warehouse Project resident Gina Breeze beefing up the low end and levels of psychedelia on ’Sanitise’ making for some serious peak time gear. To wrap up the package we have Asa Tate’s revision of ‘Anxious Elephants’. Breezy piano and panpipes contrast the records chugging low end and acid inflections creating a truly versatile track suitable for shifting the mood up or down in a given context.

Jackson Ryland comes in focused and ecstatic with his first vinyl release under his technoid alias JR2K. Jackson is based in Washington DC as one-half of both Superabundance and Rush Plus. He’s recently released on Peach Discs and Pleasant Life, showcasing his knack for presenting energy as a delicacy. JR2K “Walking Backward” is another illustrious highlight in the savvy DC producer’s already-accomplished underground career. Played on Hör Radio by Kush Jones and supported by Peach, Ciel, Clarisa Kimskii, Ryan Elliott, CMD, Davis Galvin, livwutang, Furtive, Golden Medusa, Lychee, Miley Serious, and Jialing!

The A side opens up whooshy and hard with “ExoGeni Approach”. This illustrates perfectly what I love about Jackson’s style(s)...it sounds like the sickest mid-90s techno track, full of energy and movement while taking in the atmosphere with repose. After the rollercoaster intro, the acidic up-ticks, lush synth layering, and perfectly crunchy closed-hats sink your ass straight through the dance-floor to tumbling free-for-all in the green-screen collage of your daydreams. Wake up…A2 “Call Back” splashes you with a glass of refreshing water…you still got hours at the party, and you’re coming up on some healthE shit…time to get back to that business of dancing your soles and soul away to this driving monorail of euphoric acidic techno. Choo choo choose your own dance destiny, baby!

VINYL COLOUR IS GREY. BORSTAL, the UK-Hardcore band featuring Nick Barker (Brujeria, ex-Dimmu Borgir, Cradle Of Filth) & Pierre Mendivil (Knuckledust) release details of brand new 2 track 7". Produced by Russ Russell (Napalm Death/The Exploited/At The Gates). The 2 songs are a follow up BORSTAL's debut EP "At Her Majesty's Pleasure". The 7" record is a collaboration between Rucktion Records & 4 Family Records. Both labels are offering different variants and bundles of the 7" in extremely limited quantities. Pressed on heavyweight Vinyl and including a free download code! Front man 'Pierre' comments on the new video 'No Surrender'; "This song is inspired by confronting the defeatist mentality that society seems to want to push on us, on so many levels! And even in ourselves as we battle everyday to try better and strengthen our mental attitude just to deal with life these days." BORSTAL Guitarist 'Lee' continues "It's nice to finally get some fresh music out there. We recorded these 2 songs in 2021 with our brother Russ Russell. But due to delays with pressing plants and so on, we got held up! I feel like our sound is really coming together now, and these new tunes are just a teaser for what's to come. We've nearly finished writing our full length too, so they'll be news to follow that soon". The cover artwork for the 7" is by Australian artist Mick Lambrou. Mick has recently designed t-shirts, flyers and artwork for the likes of hardcore legends Agnostic Front, Madball & Slapshot.

Repress!

European version of the long overdue LOS CRUDOS Discography collection. LOS CRUDOS, formed in Chicago's Pilsen neighbourhood in the early 90's, are a Latino punk band with a strong socio-political message and an extremely militant DIY attitude. During their first incarnation, spanning the years 1991 to 1998 the band self-released their own records, printed their own merch, booked their own shows and toured relentlessly around the world. From South America to Japan including a 3 month European tour in the winter of 1996. They spoke to the freaks the outsiders and the minorities and were not afraid of confronting the white middle class punk who reigned supreme during the terrible 90's. A time which will not be remembered for their hardcore output except for a few exceptions, in which CRUDOS are surely included. Their sound, far from being a copycat of whatever flavour of the month was reigning at the time was heavy rooted in the golden years of European and Latino American ferocious hardcore punk. With bands as IMPACT, WRETCHED, OLHO SECO, TERVEET KADET or MASACRE 68 as obvious influences in a time when the simple mention of any of those bands (or any non English speaking bands really) was usually met with a laugh or a joke. They sang in Spanish, with aggression and conviction and that made their message spread out widely, reaching thousands of Spanish speaking punks both in Latino America and Spain as well as inside USA where third generation Latino kids surely were missing a voice within the punk scene. The band split up in 1998 after a really intense year of touring and reformed in 2008. The band will be undertaking their first ever Scandinavian tour in July/ Agust 2016. This collection, originally released as a benefit for MRR magazine last year, includes all the LOS CRUDOS output plus compilation tracks as well as a couple demo tracks and an unreleased song. The European version comes in a gatefold sleeve and brings a 40 page booklet with flyers and the lyrics of all songs.

Track list: 1. Tiempos De La Miseria 2. Me Robaron 3. Crudo Soy 4. La Madres Lloran 5. Eliminación 6. Desde Afuera 7. Asesinos 8. Se Ve En Tu Cara 9. Cipayos, Traidores y Vendidos 10. Sin Caras 11. No Estoy Convencido 12. Curiosidad 13. ¿Por Qué? 14. Tú Lo Enseñaste 15. Lucha Para Que Te Escuchen 16. Corrido Jodido 17. Escaleras 18. Llegan Empujando 19. Nada Cambia 20. Achicados 21. En Mi Opinión 22. No Te Debo Nada 23. Levántate 24. La Caída De Latinoamérica 25. Nos Quieren Como Siempre 26. No Me Vengan A Salvar 27. Déjanos En Paz 28. Tierra De Libertad 29. Victorias y Ganancias 30. Unidad Prohibida 31. That's Right We're That Spic Band 32. Poco a Poco 33. Suéltalo 34. Migra Violencia 35. Viejos Patéticos 36. Del Pasado Al Presente 37. Esto No Trae Precio 38. A Los Inseguros 39. Tomando Los Golpes 40. No Existen Palomas Blancas En Mi Barrio 41. No Va A Haber Revolución 42. ¿Quién Es El Pendejo Más Grande? 43. ¿Qué Pasó Con La Paz? 44. Metiendo Sal En La Llaga 45. ¿Vas A Regresar? 46. Hardcoregoismo 47. Naciste Con Voz 48. Ilegal, ¿Y Qué? 50. Identidad Perdida 51. Vendedores De Dolor 52. 500 Anos 53. ¿Ahora Quién Se Queja? 54. Lengua Armada 55. ¿Qué Paso Con La Paz? (Alt. Version) 56. Peleamos 57. Escupiendo En Tu Propia Cara 58. Que Te Conviene 59. Me Lo Paso Por El Culo 60. Cobardes 61. Desde El Barrio 62. Sin Título 63. Somos Peligrosos 64. No Se Acabó 65. Lo Que Queremos 66. ¿Qué Me Importa? 67. Mediocre

2022 Repress

Calibre has gone through his hard drives, DAT tapes and even mini discs to find more gems for 'Shelflife 3'. Thirteen of his most
requested unreleased productions from 1997 to 2013 are now released on Vinyl, CD and Digital formats. Please note the vinyl format is pressed on 3X12' vinyl with the 13 track CD shrink wrapped. Mistajam 'Brilliant, brilliant, brilliant!' Doc Scott '10/10 Doesn't get better than this' TC '10/10 Need a moment to take this in! So Good!'Noisia 'Smooth as ever. Love it!'
Recent Calibre live mix for Mixmag:

Back in stock !

First Word Records is very proud to present a brand new full-length album from Kaidi Tatham. 'It's A World Before You'.

Following on from two EPs released on First Word last year ('Changing Times' and 'Hard Times'), Kaidi has delivered us thirteen tracks that deftly illustrate his various talents as a multi-instrumentalist.

Kaidi is probably best known for his work with Bugz In The Attic, though his musical contributions over the years have also included Amy Winehouse, Slum Village, Mulatu Astatke, Soul II Soul, Moonchild, Leroy Burgess, Amp Fiddler, Chris Dave, Macy Gray, King Britt, DJ Spinna, Mr Scruff and IG Culture to name but a few! In recent times, he's worked with DJ Jazzy Jeff on a variety of projects, including his most recent album 'M3', touring Europe for Jeff and Will Smith's reunion shows, and on the PLAYlist album 'Chasing Goosebumps', with Glenn Lewis, Stro Elliot (The Roots), Masego, Maimouna Youssef, Rich Medina, Daniel Crawford and more.

All this in addition to heating up dances around Europe with his inimitable DJ sets, and working heavily with First Word label-mate, Eric Lau (who also mixed this album) on a variety of projects, and adding releases to his already impressive catalogue on 2000 Black, Eglo and Theo Parrish's Sound Signature, with regular compadre, Dego (who features on the album's title track).

This album personifies Kaidi's diverse palette of sounds - bar Eric & Dego's features, every piece of music is played by himself. Largely flowing on a broken beat rhythm section, Kaidi effortlessly incorporates washes of afro, latin and funk throughout. From the harmonics of 'Your Dream Don't Mean A Thing', to the breakneck funk of 'Outta Audah', each and every riddim exudes energy. But this isn't simply a bruk record. The album is laced together with downtempo beats and future jazz interludes throughout, and some sweet synth boogie is never very far away, especially on the weighty vibes of 'It's About Who You Know'. To top it all off, there's two delightful nuggets of hip hop soul - Mancunian label-mates, Children of Zeus, feature on the neo-soul vibes of 'Out Here On My Own', and there's a feature from Amir Townes, better known as Uhmeer - an upcoming MC from Philadelphia, and son of one Jazzy Jeff Townes - who rides a sub-heavy, piano-led slice of boom bap, voicing an assortment of characters to tell the tale of 'Cupid'.

'It's A World Before You' is set to cause serious damage to sound-systems over the Summer, and show and prove once again the skills of one of the UK's best unsung musical talents, Kaidi Tatham.

Released on Greensleeves in 1990 to glowing reviews ‘Blowing With The Wind’ went on to be Pablo’s most successful album since the seventies. The mix of nyahbinghi drumming and hardcore steppers was embraced big time by the new age sound-system culture bringing Pablo’s far east sound to a whole new audience. A successful tour of Japan followed where Pablo showcased Blowing With The Wind with a selection of his original rockers. Recorded at Tuff Gong & Dynamic and mixed at Tuff Gong & Music Works, engineered by Soldgie, Chunny, Sylvan Morris & Tony Kelly.

Silver Vinyl

O'Flynn und Frazer Ray - zwei gefeierte britische Produzenten und DJs - kündigen ihr gemeinsames Album,„Shimmer“ auf Technicolour an. Das Album ist das Ergebnis der Liebe von O'Flynn und Frazer Ray (fka Soundbwoy Killah) für die britische Dance-Music-Szene, von Speed Garage bis hin zu Breaks und Hardcore, und ihr umfassendes Wissen und ihr Respekt für Underground-Kulturen und -Genres scheinen als direkter Einfluss durch. Insgesamt ist diese Herzensangelegenheit eine nostalgische Hommage an ikonische britische Nachtclubs und den Eskapismus, den sie bieten, selbst bei ihrer Abwesenheit während der Pandemie - „Musik für diese Räume zu machen während sie geschlossen sind, war eine Form des Eskapismus für uns - ähnlich wie ein Videospiel zu spielen oder ein Buch zu lesen, wir wollten einfach an einen anderen Ort transportiert werden.“.

O'Flynn hat sich in den letzten Jahren einen Namen in der britischen Electronic-Dance-Szene gemacht und bekam Support von Künstler*innen wie u.a. Four Tet, James Blake, Ben UFO, Gilles Peterson, die ihn in ihren jeweiligen Radioshows spielten, sowie von Bonobo, mit dem er auf dem Track „Otomo“ (aus Bonobos aktuellem Top 3-Album „Fragments“) zusammenarbeitete. Bereits 2017 veröffentlichte er bei Ninja Tune seine 12“ „Pluto’s Beating Heart“/ „Eleven“, bevor er 2019 sein von der Kritik gefeiertes Debütalbum „Aletheia“veröffentlichte, für das er eine 18-tägige UK-Tour absolvierte und vom Guardian als „One to watch“ bezeichnet wurde. Frazer Ray veröffentlichte ebenfalls 2019 sein Debütalbum, „Halcyon Daze“ (als Soundbwoy Killah), das auf Vinyl schnell ausverkauft war.

Red Vinyl

Introducing Time Is Now's newest recruit, a link up that felt inevitable. A Bristol native, Borai has had a firm foot in the city's bass scene since its inception, his steadfast dedication to rave culture helping to shape what it is today. When he's not curating his own Higher Level label, helping steer the Club Glow collective, or cutting dubplates for Dubstudio, he's exercising his passion for hardware, crafting vital DJ tools which span an impressive crosssection of the hardcore continuum. Naturally EP is a culmination of these endeavours, as well as his far-spanning influences.

We're transported out of Bristol and into late 80's Chicago - the golden era of garage house - via soulful vocals, nebulous melodies and saxophone whispers. It wouldn't be a Borai release, though, without some UK flavours. Rich atmospheric jungle track 'Phosphenes' brings things to a euphoric close, and reminds us of the producer's ambidexterity.

"I was 27 when this album came out, LA was a whole different animal. I was going back and forth from NY to LA, touring a lot and trying to make progress for me and my close friends and family.

Oct 1 2002 seems like it was yesterday... The day we released the album, I got a call from Nas, completely caught me off guard. He complemented me on the writing of “Release Date” the first track on the album. Those are some of the moments I think of when I reminisce about dropping this project. It was such a turning point in my life, I was coming off of a huge push with “Restless” and the follow up had to be a smash, at the same time I was still finding my standing as a man, a young father, and an artist. It was always my dream to work with the people I’ve now been able to work with and I can listen to this album and remember exactly where I was and who I was with, it’s like time travel.

Fast forward 20 years later and I am thrilled to be able to share this body of work with you and more generations to come.

Thank you for rockin' with me for all this time.
Enjoy the 20th Anniversary Edition of MAN VS MACHINE,

From its dramatic intro, "Release Date," to the thundering West Coast march "Enemies," Xzibit's fourth and mythical album, Man vs. Machine produced by no less than Dr Dre, spent a total of 19 weeks on the "Billboard" 200 chart and was certified gold only a month after its release with over 500,000 copies sold.

The legendary album that features a heavyweight cast of featurings with the likes of Snoop Dogg, Eminem, M.O.P, Nate Dogg, DJ Premier and Dr Dre himself is now available for the first time since its original release, to celebrate its 20th anniversary!

















[q] D3. My Life, My World [Bonus Track]
[r] D4. What a Mess [Bonus Track]
[s] D5. (Hit U) Where It Hurts [Bonus Track]

Vector Lovers has remained a firm favourite of the underground electronic music scene cognoscenti and holds a coveted place among the most hallowed of record shelves, and with good reason. Since the early 2000s Martin Wheeler has explored a sparse audio wasteland in order to develop a new sonic palette that looks outward to electro, IDM and ambient.

After self-releasing a handful of his own productions on the Iwari label, Wheeler’s career defining album was signed by British label Soma in 2005, leading to the first great revival of 90s IDM. Capsule for One' was an unrivalled masterpiece that perfectly synthesised the heritage of the Hardcore Continuum with renewed airs and degree of clarity that ushered in a new millennia and sound. It arrived as a worthy successor to the venerated Warp artists of the time, while embracing new panoramas and technologies.

Capsule for One' is a melancholic album, with an almost cosmic spirituality that provokes daydreaming. From its opening track 'City Lights From a Train' it welcomes the listener onto an infinite journey at the speed of light, connecting the past, present and future, folding time and space and painting neon cities populated by cyborgs. The album reaches its zenith with 'Melodies and Memory', featuring Wheeler’s very own voice, which has arguably become one of this century’s greatest electronic ballads to date. In fact, the impact of 'Capsule for One' was such that Tracey Thorn commissioned him to produce her song 'Easy', from the album 'Out of the Woods' Virgin, 2007.

For its forthcoming release on Lapsus Records, Martin Wheeler has remixed each and every song on 'Capsule for One', as well as adding two previously unreleased tracks 'A Simulation' and 'Perfect Score', both produced around the same epoch. This extra special release, with artwork redesigned by Josep Basora, features a double marbled vinyl and a limited edition insert print.

For his debut album Dip Shim digs deep into his past for his most personal release yet, drawing on his childhood in Spain for a genre-bending album of electronics, combining influences from house, techno, electro, downtempo, and ambient to create one of the year’s most essential releases.

Dip Shim, who also runs the Bolero record store in Malmo, Sweden, pushes and tweaks those silver boxes to create music with one foot in the past but looking to the future, from the fluid acid house of Dalaplan Jam and Bubble Gate, uptempo electro jams like BDP Fast Life and Tusso Arcade Force, to meditative joints such as One For Regen and Impossible Connection.

But although the album is eclectic, these 12 tracks are underpinned by Dip Shim’s unique hardware-led sound, proving he’s an artist with depth and longevity.

Classic Nas instrumentals combined on a 2LP, including tracks from his very first LP "Illmatic" as well as bunch of classic cuts like "Affirmative Action", "Hate Me Now" or "Nas Is Like".

LP including booklet with extended liner notes. Channeling wild seventies Impulse vibes, even resonating the guts of early Art Ensemble of Chicago and the tempering spirit of Max Roach's 'We Insist' era: BRAHJA is soul searching their spirit on 'Watermelancholia'.

Devin Brahja Waldman is a New York saxophonist, drummer, synthesizer player and composer who leads the group BRAHJA. Waldman has accompanied his aunt, poet Anne Waldman, since the age of ten. Waldman is a co-founding member of Radical Reversal, Diva of Deva Loka, and Notable Deaths. He has performed with Patti Smith, William Parker, Nadah El Shazly, Malcolm Mooney, Thurston Moore, Godspeed! You Black Emperor, Charles Hayward, Luke Stewart and Yoshiko Chuma. Waldman is also a member of NYC's Heroes Are Gang Leaders (led by poet Thomas Sayers Ellis and saxophonist James Brandon Lewis), of Sam Shalabi's Land of Kush, and of the Norwegian hardcore group MoE.

As a youngster, Waldman was taken under the wing of avant-garde giant Paul Bley. Along with Anne Waldman and cousin Ambrose Bye, Waldman is a co-producer for Fast Speaking Music -a NYC poetry and music label which has released recordings with Amiri Baraka, Meredith Monk, William Parker, Laurie Anderson, Eileen Myles, CAConrad, Fred Moten, Daniel Carter, Clark Coolidge, Thurston Moore, Joanne Kyger and many others.

Ancient to the future 2.0

Watermelancholia is about the law of Karma:
a law so obvious that it often goes unspecified and ignored.
Neglecting this law invites a world of chaos.
It's been articulated in endless ways.
Some have called it Cosmic Law or Natural Law.
Others translate it as Do No Harm.

(liner notes excerpt)

The moment the first bass note of Luke Stewart kicks in on 'Watermelancholia', followed by the swelling drum roll of Malick Koly and the lush leading voice of Janice Lowe you feel Devin Brahja will take you on a deep mind-blowing spiritual journey.


Channeling wild seventies Impulse vibes on 'O.P.K' or, could we say, even resonating the guts of early Art Ensemble of Chicago and the tempering spirit of Max Roach's 'We Insist' era: BRAHJA is soul searching their spirit on 'Watermelancholia'.


A poetic stream of consciousness, backboned by top-notch musicians, transcending the cosmic universe, trying to find answers and musically connecting.


Watermelancholia is a meditation on healing the inner schism between the sense of self - the ego - and the inner being. It is about bringing the ego to justice; putting it on trial, as it were.

Dopeness Galore / Records We Release
"A newfound father's attempt to pass wisdom on to his children."

- Spring 2019 -

"As my girlfriend’s pregnancy was steadily treading along, I settled into my home studio in the attic of our new house. In our previous apartment I had a tiny room which could hardly fit my recording gear, let alone my drums which were still sitting at my parents’ house eating dust. Now that we’d moved into a bigger place, I had confiscated a part of the top floor to build my studio. This time I had just enough space to fit my drum set together with other percussion instruments, Fender Rhodes and synths. This sparked a whole new world of creative opportunities.

At the same time I also started to think about what kind of wisdom I would want to pass on to my children. I started writing down my thoughts. Little anecdotes, ponderings and things to think about as a human being.

These two events took place in parallel and once I actually started jotting down my first compositional ideas I saw the concept right there in front of me bright as day.

This LP has been written and recorded as inspiration to think about things and to keep re-thinking again and again to strengthen the knowledge of self.

Fruit Distro Collective is heavily inspired by Jazz composition, Hiphop drum sounds and the percussive elements of Afrobeat and Afro latin styles. "

Sonido Verde De Moyobamba feature on the second volume of Analog Africa's Sonic Expedition into the Peruvian Amazon, as well as being behind this brilliant new collection which drops on the same day from the same label. It is a coming together of eight super-rare cuts of guitar and organ inventiveness taken from the five albums the band recorded between 1981 and 1987 for Discos Universal. You would beard pushed to find any Cumbia from the Peruvian jungle that hits as hard as this with its incessant rhythms, mad acoustic guitars and bustling percussion.

AN EXCLUSIVE NEW LABEL DEDICATED TO JAZZ, HARD BOP, R&B AND SOUL MASTERPIECE IN STRICTLY LIMITED CLEAR VINYL EDITION.

Limited Clear Vinyl edition, 500 copies! “Bossa Nova Soul Samba” came as Ike Quebec’s best contribution to the fruitful marriage between Jazz and Brazilian music. Recorded in 1962 and released on Blue Note in the same year. this was Quebec’s final recording before his death in January 1963. A beautiful studio session dominated by Quebec’s tenor sax warm tone and the light and gentle groove provided by Kenny Burrell - guitar, Wendell Marshall - bass, Willie Bobo - drums and Garvin Masseaux - chekere.

AN EXCLUSIVE NEW LABEL DEDICATED TO JAZZ, HARD BOP, R&B AND SOUL MASTERPIECE IN STRICTLY LIMITED CLEAR VINYL EDITION.

Limited Clear Vinyl edition, 500 copies! “Bossa Nova Soul Samba” came as Ike Quebec’s best contribution to the fruitful marriage between Jazz and Brazilian music. Recorded in 1962 and released on Blue Note in the same year. this was Quebec’s final recording before his death in January 1963. A beautiful studio session dominated by Quebec’s tenor sax warm tone and the light and gentle groove provided by Kenny Burrell - guitar, Wendell Marshall - bass, Willie Bobo - drums and Garvin Masseaux - chekere.

AN EXCLUSIVE NEW LABEL DEDICATED TO JAZZ, HARD BOP, R&B AND SOUL MASTERPIECE IN STRICTLY LIMITED CLEAR VINYL EDITION.

Limited Clear Vinyl edition, 500 copies! “Bossa Nova Soul Samba” came as Ike Quebec’s best contribution to the fruitful marriage between Jazz and Brazilian music. Recorded in 1962 and released on Blue Note in the same year. this was Quebec’s final recording before his death in January 1963. A beautiful studio session dominated by Quebec’s tenor sax warm tone and the light and gentle groove provided by Kenny Burrell - guitar, Wendell Marshall - bass, Willie Bobo - drums and Garvin Masseaux - chekere.

Mit ihrem zweiten Album beweist die norwegische Band erneut ihr Geschick für Verschmelzung: eine wilde Mischung als Punk, Hardcore, Noise-Gitarren und Indie Rock. In limitierter Auflage erscheint das Album als Clear Vinyl.

Sydney Sprague makes music for the end of the world. With everything seemingly imploding in on itself, there’s one thing we can all try to be authentic and it’s the one word that best describes Sydney’s songwriting. Sydney carries the same fire, creativity, and wit of her 90’s pop idols, combined with her familiar-yet-surprising hooks and hard hitting, topical lyrics.

On December 2th Svart Records will release the slowly gestated second album by the mystical Finnish progressive rock group Getsemane, who describe themselves as performing music "molded from the jawbones of a pike", in reference to the Kalevala where Väinämöinen built his first kantele The group first got together in 2009 in the Tampere area to perform live music for a fire theatre. After the shows they decided to continue as a band finding ever more polyrythmic and progressive ideas still drawing from the Kalevala mythos and eccentric psychedelic visions. Getsemane self-released their eponymous debut album in 2015, and the follow-up Viimaa is due for release this December. Best known for their dynamic live shows, the group's new album is full of unusual time signatures, meandering melodic lines and ethereal landscapes, not forgetting hard rocking in the best 70s style. Those that are into classic prog rock in the lines of Haikara, Tabula Rasa or King Crimson will feel immediately at home. The first single off the album, Varma kuolema ("Certain death") is a good representative of the entire album. According to the band, the song gives "A gruesomely honest but a cradling, positive vibe of the meaninglessness of life."

RUN-D.M.C.'S PATH-BREAKING SELF-TITLED DEBUT BENEFITS FROM DEFINITIVE RESTORATIVE TREATMENT
Mastering Source to Be Determined Closer to Production Date


The impact, influence, and importance of Run-D.M.C.'s self-titled debut – the album that invented hardcore hip-hop and bridged rap, rock, and funk in then-unparalleled ways – cannot be measured. The first full-length record released by Profile Records, the 1984 set permanently changed the sound of music, broadcast streetwise wisdom to every corner of the country, and made the notion of a one-man band a distinct reality. Produced by Russell Simmons and Larry Smith – and bolstered by an incendiary blend of staccato deliveries, stark beats, aggressive exchanges, evocative hooks, and socially conscious messages – Run-D.M.C. still hits listeners in the jaw with the same intensity it did nearly 40 years ago when it could be heard booming from ghetto blasters carried around city blocks nationwide.

Sourced from the original master tapes and pressed on MoFi SuperVinyl, Mobile Fidelity's numbered-edition 180g SuperVinyl 33RPM LP is the definitive-sounding version of this groundbreaking work.

Clear Vnyl

Recorded in the San Fernando Valley just a stones throw away from the infamous Van Nuys Blvd. cruising scene, it's no wonder from the debut long player from The Rugged Nuggets hits hard and demands to be turned up loud with the windows rolled down. Delivering west-coast cool at it's finest. With swooning strings, breezy guitars and tough as nails drums, Odds & Ends epitomizes a mellow vibe, but is undeniably cool.

Hailing from Queens, NY, the original members of Onyx were discovered by the legendary Jam Master Jay of Run-D.M.C Onyx released their ninth studio album, Onyx Versus Everybody. Almost 30 years since their debut, Onyx still have raw energy, undeniable boldness and their pulse on the culture. The 10-track LP is a cohesive body of work that is full of street tales featuring appearances by Big Twin, Ricky Bats, Harrd Luck and Termanology. If you're a diehard fan of Onyx, this is one of the group's best projects in their legendary career. According to Sticky Fingaz, the album was completed in just two weeks thanks, in part, to the group's new songwriting process. "We didn't really write anything," he recalls. "We wrote a little bit but you know, we got a new technique where we just vibe and get on it. We recorded everything in the Batcave. That's Fredro's studio." Fredro says their classic "Last Dayz" from their sophomore album, was the inspiration behind the production on their new album. "'Last Dayz' is a Hip Hop classic beat you know? It was in 8 Mile and that made it even more legendary so I wanted to get the vibe on the album," he says. "I know what I know when it comes to making beats and my style never changed. That's why it sounds like 1996 because I didn't change the way I make my beats. When it comes to producing, Fredro claims to have the hardest tracks in the game and he brought that same energy to the new album. "I don't get nothing from a beat machine," he added. "I don't even use a hi-hat. I got my own drums. I play my own drums. My shit is dirty. I need it to be dirty. My shit is filthy. I got the nastiest, grimest, beats in Hip Hop." With their signature hardcore lyricism and gritty production, Onyx Vs Everybody makes a strong case for being named among the best albums of 2022 so far, but that isn't the recognition they seek. "Onyx Vs Everybody is the hottest, grimmest, dirtiest album of the year," Sticky Fingaz boasts. "I don't want the best album of the year. They can have that. This is the grimmest album of the year." Coming off a Versuz beating Cypress Hill at the forum in LA and now on a international tour, for fans of Cypress Hill, Public Enemy, Run DMC

Jon K and Elle Andrews’ MAL imprint returns with a new LP from one of the London experimental underground's best kept secrets, Rory Salter aka Malvern Brume. His music is rare, eccentric and mysterious - somewhere between Coil's bleak ritual magick and the BBC Radiophonic Workshop's most experimental, minimal fringes. 

Malvern Brume operates just beneath the radar, occasionally turning up at Café OTO lineups and on a smattering of releases for Low Company, Alter, Infant Tree and Kasual Plastik - but he’s never one to shout too loudly about his work. ‘Body Traffic’ is his most interesting set to date, laying bare a process melting found sounds, field recordings and spoken word into throbbing, pulsing rhythms. It’s an evocation of a fraught mindset during the early weeks of lockdown in 2020; sequestered in his flat next to a trainline, the infrasonic - and more audible - rumbles of rolling stock and a nagging sense of dread infecting his ambiguously discomfiting recordings.

Operating in a headspace that values world-building and vivid, visual emotionality, Salter’s careful melodies are familiar - the distant, weeping melancholia of 1970s British TV hangs off the recordings like net curtains, and his atmosphere loops into experiments that weave through bare traces of industrial music, blank-faced electro pop, and hedonistic Brummie techno, all reduced to a cinder. 

The mood is set on the bellyaching resonance and crawling walls of the title tune, while 'Through Beaked Fog Horns' is drowned beneath morning mists: lopsided synth drones choke and drift, percussion mutates into inebriated bubbles, and tape-f*cked environmental whirrs create an atmosphere that’s hard to decipher in one take. 

‘Moss Spines Clenched’ follows cryptic stains on peeling flocking, and the icy creep of ‘Tense Branches Waver’ quivers beyond a cracked windowpane. The artist’s voice appears from beneath a cardboard box fort in the imaginary world of ‘Cornered Into Sleat’ as a distant drum beats out a marching thud and traffic squeals are sculpted into chirpy whistles, before ‘Bri Dun’ resolves the eerie tension in an OOBE-like ascent above the dado-rail and across the tracks, watching himself fade into a dissociative bliss.

"All chatter falls quiet…” Salter murmurs thru saturation and white noise. It’s a sound that’s gonna stick with us for a while.

Reissued double vinyl album of first part of THIS IMMORTAL COIL's Coil homage in gatefold sleeve with new artwork! "Brilliantly versatile tribute album to British-based avant garde and experimental group, Coil." More than a tribute to cult dark ambient band COIL, This Immortal Coil is a project of re-interpretations by Ici d'Ailleurs' artists and more: Yael Naim, Bonnie Prince Billy, Matt Elliott, Yann Tiersen, DAUU, Christine Ott, Chapelier Fou, Sylvain Chauveau, Deadverse. Mixed by OKTOPUS of DÄLEK. Peter Christopherson himself immediately put it up for sale on the Coil website at the time, cherrishing the work as "The Most extra-ordinary, beautiful and moving re-interpretations of Coil I have ever heard." "On November 13th 2004, John Balance passed away, He was, along with Peter Christopherson, the founding member of the group Coil. His brutal death marked the end of over twenty years of activism and musical genius. I have then decided to work on a project that would pay tribute to them. I didn't want another compilation that would pile up pieces, without any link. My wish was to transpose this unique musical mood to another one, more classical and more accessible to everyone. The whole idea was to pay tribute to the music for what was beyond it, just the way COIL underlined it: « Coil is more than music »I got my inspiration from the project This Mortal Coil, started in the eighties by the English label 4AD. Its label manager had then grouped some of its own artists together in order to play some standards of rock and pop music. Most of those who participated in this work hardly knew COIL. My purpose wasn't to go towards those artists who had a conscious connection with the music of the group, let alone musicians who claimed to be the heirs to this seminal work.

Full classic artists from the scene united on this new release from Tikal Sound !

AKO Arcade welcomes The King of the Jungle aka Dextrous with an unreleased track from 1995. This has been on DUB for nearly 27 years and we’re glad we can give it an official release. This is classic Dextrous production.
On the flip, we have a remix by Stretch & Enjoy keeping all original elements and taking it to a new level which hits a lot harder.
We hope you enjoy this release and thank you for your support.

For the second chapter in Vala series two Swedish natives have been invited to give their brumal take on the label’s output. On the A-side Härdstedt leaves no much to question with a subtly psychedelic roller “Esrange” whereas Arkajo provides a groovy remix of that particular track with a spice of familiar drum programming trickery. Both staying legitimately true to their own recognizable sound. On the B-side Kaspiann continues from where Vala 1 was left to and provides two wintry sea inspired tracks to leave room for the next chapter in series of unfolding surprises.

This is Freebreak : an alliance between tribe datas and the break free spirit... Heard that long time ago on the Strange breaks from the Spiral tribe, anbd after ward with Kamehouse (Capsule) and after again with Cycloscotsch (Hokus pokus), or Rislo (Triphase)... This long tradition of beautiful « hard to sell records » leaded to some really nice mixes... and a sweet dance in parties.. Hopefully this record reaches his public because it's quiet courageous and deserve a true audience. Big up to all Freebreas makerz !

Repress.

There is an endless abundance of variations that the clarinet can use in changing the colour of a single note. Ben creates a web of sounds that are hard to pin down but easy to absorb as a whole. A sense and perception of continued growth too illuminated and overwhelming to resist.

Solid Pure hardtek Tribe. Renewing the old school out of the Happytek/core, hardfloor etc... A real old school LBEmeeting DSP sounds-like... Enjoy !

Dark & classious. As all Scuderia records...

Songs inna hardcore bloody mood...

The official retrospective on one of Somalia's most famous and beloved private bands, Iftin, and a companion compilation to our Grammy-nominated "Sweet As Broken Dates". Digitized from cassettes recorded between 1982 and 1987 at the legendary Al-Uruba hotel's secret studio and the jams for the masses performed in the basement of Somalia's national theater. Banaadiri rhythms from Somalia's south, Mogadishu's finest vocalists, Dhaanto reggae-like guitar licks, and smoldering brass blend seamlessly with the sounds of Asia, the Middle East, and Africa to form one of rawest, most cosmopolitan eras of music anywhere. Iftin's Mogadishu is where the world's sounds begin and end.

Double LP gatefold with a 12" x 12" poster. Hardcover bookcase CD with 12 page booklet.

Barely disco and hardly jazz, Rupa Biswas’ music the halfway point between Bollywood and Balearic. Tracked in 1982 at Calgary’s Living Room Studios with a crack team of Indian and Canadian studio rats alike, both “Moja Bhari Moja” and “East West Shuffle” are the perfect fusion sarod and synthesizer. Remastered from original analogue source material and with permission and blessing of the producers and performers.

Orange one sided EP, Printed sleeve and coming with an comics Inserts !

psychedelic gabber, old school... with a Dj Ruffneck reworks... DRUM & BASS hardcore oldschool killer !!

a A1 The Final Riot Incursion - DJR VIP 01
[b] A2 The Final Riot [Recursion - DJR VIP 02]
[Conclusion - DJR VIP 03]

You Always Will Be is the new album by artist Dylan Henner.

The follow up to 2020's well received 'The Invention of the Human', the new record touches on themes of nostalgia & longing for times passed; innocence yielding hardships and vice versa; ageing; the soul; life changes; parents and children; loss; love.

Dylan says:

"The piece tells the story of a single life, from birth to death. I've been thinking about the passage of life a lot recently as I lost all four of my grandparents but celebrated the birth of my daughter all within a short period of time. The brevity and preciousness of being really hit me."

The vinyl release consists of a ~ 40 min piece split across two sides, while the digital release features extended versions of the music in that piece, making up 10 individual tracks.

Phase Group continue their exploration of the fringes of contemporary electronic music with a release that brings together two separate projects born from analogue hardware improvisations.

‘A Given Moment’ presents the dub-laden, mind-bending and noise-driven music of Brussels-based artist and Vastechoses label head Lostsoundbytes, and the lo-fi, early morning lysergic experiments of Lowspace, an unearthed, forgotten collaborative project by French DJ and musician Low Bat and Dresden-based producer Heninspace.

This is music that takes you deeper into the vortex, made for dark and smoke-enveloped clubs and cosmic day-break afterparty moments. On the A-side, Lostsoundbytes continues his prolific output of masterfully crafted bass-heavy and dub-wise analogue machine jams, while the B-side presents two lost psychotropic experimental recordings by Lowspace made in 2016 upon a visit by Low Bat to Heninspace’s Dresden studio.

'A Given Moment' will be out on Phase Group in December 2022

Artwork by Andrija Čugurović
Mastered in Glasgow by Murray Collier.
Professionally dubbed to cassette in Prague by Headless Duplicated Tapes.

London based label Natural Selection present their 3rd release in the form of a 4-track physical and digital EP courtesy of Kamikaze Space Programme (aka Christopher Jarman), entitled "Ashes To Ashes, Dust To Dust EP". The release also features a remix from Slave To Society (ex AnD). Cut by Simon at The Exchange Vinyl and mastered by Dadub Studios, Berlin.

Jarman is widely considered as one of the most forward thinking and innovative sound designers around. With roots indebted to the music he released as Raiden in the early 00's, his abstract, field recorded, industrial and broken admission into the annals of Techno via his prevailing alias; Kamikaze Space Programme, has seen his music backed, supported and released by the heaviest of renowned labels such as MORD, Mote-Evolver, Osiris, TRUST & more.

As an avid field recording artist, Jarman's release by and large is made up of foley sound design and sonic experimentation using bespoke apparatus and homemade microphones. Capturing internal resonances and electromagnetic radiation of objects, re-amplified or organic, classic hardware dub mixing completes his instantly recognisable Kamikaze Space Programme aesthetic, and successfully traverses the divide between Techno, Drum and Bass, Electro and Breakbeat.

Natural Selection are well known for bridging the heavier spectrum of Techno, Electro, Acid, etc. with new, experimental style and form. One can always expect cutting-edge, hard-hitting, underground electronics from Natural Selection, with extreme diversity in sound.

(GF Col. LP + DL
Formed in 1980 by guitar prodigy Leonardo Vela Rodriguez, Sonido Verde de Moyobamba created some of the hardest, craziest Cumbia to emerge from the Peruvian jungle. With distorted, surf-addled guitar facing off against lysergic organ and hyperactive tropical rhythms, Sonido Verde conjured the organic sound of the dense forests surrounding their hometown while riding their dance-party grooves to dizzying psychedelic peaks.

Compiled by Analog Africa, Sonido Verde de Moyobamba presents eight ultra-rare tracks of guitar and organ madness drawn from the band’s five albums recorded for Discos Universal between 1981 and 1987. Pressed on Sun Yellow colored vinyl, housed in a screen-printed jacket and strictly limited to 2000 copies, Sonido Verde is a definitive trip into the heart of the jungle.

Limited Edition 180g LP - Comes with a Silk-Screen printed cover and a Sun Yellow colored vinyl
Download for LP from Bandcamp also includes unlimited streaming of *Sonido Verde de Moyobamba* via the free Bandcamp app along with high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more Analog

Tired of the crazy pandemic lockdown time, we've got another Bourassa release.

Smolny, who recently debuted with the song 'Secret' on the PLUR vol.4 compilation for Lobster Theremin, returns to his label this time with the 'Magic Series' of 4 beautiful rave tracks from the 90s.

The A side offers two wonderful classic old school jungle sounds, which recall the crazy times of that golden era. Cheerful pianos and twisted well-known vocals take us into a magical world.

On the other side, 'Fantasy' and 'Euphoria' at a slightly faster pace of 140 bpm, brings us killin' happy hardcore vibes. Who doesn't remember the epic sample 'Can't beat the system'? Used again in the 'Fantasy' with the new arrangement will definitely destroy the dancefloor on more than one occasion.

Repress !

It was in Paris that John Lewis co-led this 1956 date with Sacha Distel, a French guitarist who never became well known in the U.S. but commanded a lot of respect in French jazz circles. The same can be said about the other French players employed on "Afternoon In Paris" -- neither tenor saxophonist Barney Wilen nor bassist Pierre Michelot were huge names in the U.S., although both were well known in European jazz circles. With Lewis on piano, Distel on guitar, Wilen on tenor, Michelot or Percy Heath on bass, and Kenny Clarke or Connie Kay on drums, the part-American, part-French group of improvisers provides an above-average bop album that ranges from "Willow Weep For Me", "All The Things You Are", and "I Cover The Waterfront" to Milt Jackson's "Bags' Groove" and Lewis' title song. The big-toned Wilen was only 19 when "Afternoon In Paris" was recorded, but as his lyrical yet hard-swinging solos demonstrate, he matured quickly as a sax man. A mythic LP and one of the best recorded in France!!!

Light Blue Vinyl 2022 Repress

Schwefelgelb is a Techno duo from Berlin, known for their raw but precise and cutting productions. Their reputation for a strikingly energetic live show brought them into clubs and festivals around the globe.

It seems almost ironic that in the midst of a pandemic their new 4 track EP "Der Rest Der Nacht" ("The Rest Of The Night") appears to be their clubbiest release ever. Massive kick drums, rave-like leads and hard-hitting impacts encapsulated in a detailed production - a sound that makes you long for dark concrete industrial clubs.

NPLX002 comes on 140 g colored vinyl and a download code and will be released 28th of May. The digital version contains a bonus remix by Randomer. (Presale starts 7th of May.) Previous releases on aufnahme+wiedergabe, Fleisch Records and Minimal Wave Records' imprint Cititrax have been frequently played by acclaimed DJs (Phase Fatale, Randomer, VTSS, Amelie Lens, Regis, Helena Hauff, Veronica Vasicka, Silent Servant to name a few).

Limited edition reissue of this legendary, rare and dreamy electronic ambient new age album.

Originally created and released in a small edition in Japan back in 1987 by the mysterious musician/ magician Shiho. The album features floating shimmering synthesizer textures. It's unique and extra ordinarily serene with shifting tone colors and spatial textures bringing the listener to a special magic place. It's as beautiful as it captivating. There's also a haunting edge to parts of the album sounding like what could originally have influenced David Lynch and Angelo Badalamenti when they composed the soundtrack to the original Twin Peaks series. Shiho who loves to make improvisational music began studying classic piano at the age of five. She says she gets inspiration from the celestial realms but she never considers melody. She draws a musical picture. Creativity is the unfolding of the unknown realms within the self. Through our chosen ways of expression, each of us is daily creating a unique universe, a unique environment.

The universe created by each and every being in endless repetition are messages of the universe. The breath of this music, expressed from my present environment, flowing through a myriad of places as environmental music is my expression of The Body Is A Message Of The Universe. Part of the album also saw a limited US CD release in the late 1980s which is hard to come by today.

Although Shiho Yabuki continued her career in Japan, both as a musician and magician and became a pioneer of healing music in Asia, for most western listeners it was like Shiho was one of those mysterious artists who puts out an album and then is never heard from again.



Tracks: Tomoshibi / Samadhi / Winterland / Tenshingoso (Earth, Wind, Fire, Water and Spirit) / Forestland / Tawamure/Cosmic Dance / Energy Flow/Ki No Nagare (The Way Of The Energy Flow)

red marbled vinyl

An outstanding 2LP compiling the best instrumentals of the greatest white rap group ever: the Beastie Boys. New Yorkers Ad-Rock, MCA and Mike D crossed over into the mainstream in the mid 80s with their full-length Licensed to Ill and exploded any notions of one-dimensionality with its ambitious followups such as Paul's Boutique, On Check Your Head and Ill Communication. Taking influences from hardcore and hip hop, these innovators performed most of the music while integrating an array of rock samples, 808 beats and witty wordplay into an ever-intriguing sonic smorgasbord.

The story of Gold Panda's journey from an acclaimed debut record to now, as he releases his third full length album, is an entirely circular one. Hailing from Chelmsford Essex in the UK, in the six years since the release of his genre-defining debut album 'Lucky Shiner', the electronic artist most comfortable with the moniker Derwin Panda spent the subsequent years splitting the majority of his time between London, Berlin and countless excursions to Japan. As he created his third album ''Good Luck And Do Your Best' he ultimately found himself back where he began, in the East of England. Whereas his second album 'Half Of Where You Live' was occasionally taut, perhaps harder and more piecing, the 11 songs that comprise 'Good Luck And Do Your Best' have a distinctly warmer palate, one that echoes 'Lucky Shiner' a little more, albeit with a clearer range of sounds, and also, to Derwin's mind, one where 'the tracks aren't popping out against each other. It's a complete record.'

For Fans Of... Michael Kiwanuka, The Black Keys, Curtis Harding, Black Pumas. Latest 7” from Philly band named Artist to Watch by NPR station WXPN. Features signature Synth & Soul production from Eraserhood Sound. Follows the 2022 7” Money In Your Mouth / Miss Me. Philadelphia band Stereo League has always been about discovering new genres and working with collaborators who can bring unique sensibilities to their music. On their latest 7” Operator, Please / Seasons of Trouble, the band, comprised of childhood friends Alex Savoth and Dan King, continued their fruitful partnership with the synth & soul record label and production crew Eraserhood Sound. Following the success of the group’s 2021 EP Endless Mirage, the band, again under the guidance of EHS, have created two more timeless, soulful songs, each with their own unique personality. The A side “Operator, Please” is a swampy, seductive throwback to 70s soul and funk, evoking the indelible Southern sound from classic labels like Hi and Cat. The flip side “Seasons of Trouble” puts a bowtie on the funk, taking its cues from the classic Philly soul of The Delfonics, The O’Jays, and more. Stereo League, who have been named Artist to Watch by NPR station WXPN, believe this release to be the clearest and best representation of their vision to date, delivering the classic, yet thrilling sound they have been searching for. Tracks: 1. Operator, Please 2. Seasons of Trouble (Explicit)

Punk pioneers Crass continue their vinyl reissue series, re-pressing their limited releases by adjacent artists through Crass Records, in association with One Little Independent. The series, including over twenty bands and solo artists recorded at the legendary Southern Studios and produced by Penny Rimbaud, continues with two more historic pieces from the Crass Records catalogue; The "Grey" EP by North London post-punks Lack of Knowledge, and "Beware" by US anarchists Sleeping Dogs. Sleeping Dogs were one of only two American bands to release on Crass Records and in 1982 their sardonic and sludgy, but politically sharp, hardcore made up the "Beware" EP. They were first formed under the moniker Arsenal by the late artist, and designer of the iconic Crass logo, David King. "Beware" showed the originality and potential of Sleeping Dogs, even as Rimbaud and Crass guitarist Phil Free augmented the band"s sound for the studio session. The front cover of the single featured its own striking image, courtesy of King. Sleeping Dogs disbanded shortly after, re-emerging briefly under the new guise of Brain Rust a few years later. Distorted, biting, and beat-driven, the collection is a well-researched and poignant expose of Western imperialism. First released on 7" vinyl, limiting the sound, the new series has been remastered for 12" by Alex Gordon at Abbey Road Studios, allowing them to be heard as never before. This, plus enlarged replicas of the original covers, brings new gusto to their already radical sound. Penny Rimbaud notes that "Our (Crass") interest was never in personalities, profits or power, and neither did we have time for reformist liberals. Our position was solidly revolutionary; we took no prisoners. Talking the talk was never enough for us, no, we demanded that we also walk the walk. Ours wasn"t a show, it was a battle, not a living, but a lifestyle, a lifestyle with a difference - rather than looking only to ourselves, we sought to share our gains. I feel that this willingness added great strength to the form of anarchism that we practiced both on stage and out on the street."

In July 1973, Blue Note Records headed to Montreux, Switzerland to showcase several of the label’s stars at the Montreux Jazz Festival. Live albums all titled Live: Cookin’ with Blue Note at Montreux followed from Bobby Hutcherson, Ronnie Foster, Bobbi Humphrey, and Marlena Shaw, but one of the performances by Donald Byrd remained unreleased in the Blue Note vaults. Now, nearly 50 years later, that recording of the great trumpeter’s dynamic set will be officially released for the first time ever on what would have been Byrd’s 90th birthday: December 9, 2022.

That summer, Byrd was fresh off the release of his hit crossover fusion album Black Byrd, the first of his innovative and incredibly successful studio collaborations with producer Larry Mizell. But in a live setting the band had a rawer, harder edge, as this searing set attests. Byrd led a 10-piece band that included Larry Mizell on synthesizers, Fonce Mizell on trumpet and vocals, Allan Barnes on tenor saxophone and flute, Nathan Davis on soprano and tenor saxophone, Kevin Toney on electric piano, Barney Perry on electric guitar, Henry Franklin on electric bass, Keith Killgo on drums, and Ray Armando on congas and percussion. The set list includes Larry Mizell’s tune “Black Byrd” along with otherwise unrecorded Byrd originals like “The East,” “Kwame,” and “Poco-Mania,” as well as an excellent cover of Stevie Wonder’s “You’ve Got It Bad Girl.”

Volker Bertelmann and Hildur Guðnadóttir hardly need an introduction - their distinct styles have graced the speakers of pretty much anyone enamored with experimental music in the last decade, and between them the two have chalked up an enviable canon of successes. Bertelmann, under the Hauschka moniker has explored the extremities of prepared piano improvisation, and Guðnadóttir has taken cinematic, explorative cello music into a new era of depth and passion, so to hear them both together is a rare and unexpected treat. Rare is putting it lightly even - „Pan Tone“ is a recording of a single concert which the duo performed on the 26th of February 2010 as part of Arctic Circle - Bubbly Blue and Green festival at Kings Place in London, and documents an event that would truly never be repeated. Sure, they could attempt to re-create the event, but the spontaneity and glorious serendipity in this particular recording is a pleasure to behold.

Bertelmann and Guðnadóttir decided to create a set of compositions which based on the idea of the ocean, and took a book of Pantones to extract exact references to the specific colors of the sea. These watery tones form the backbone of the performance and inform the direction of the collaboration, guiding us through rich blues, glassy greens and frothy whites. In listening to the music it seems incredibly appropriate that the artists should choose blue as the middle ground in their work; the ineffable lightness that Bertelmann brings to the table is a stark contrast to Guðnadóttir's sinking darkness, and as the two styles collide we witness a plethora of tones, shades and hues. It sounds as if the two artists have been playing together for decades, and their sound is so perfectly matched you might wonder why it's taken them this long to collaborate. All that's left for us to do is to soak in the tidal beauty of this very exclusive body of music, to listen to it sing, bubble and crash through its duration before settling in total silence. When the record reaches its conclusion there is an unsettling calm, a sense that you have witnessed something very special indeed, and that is a feeling to prize amongst all else.

The wait is over! Delgado, the ten-track collaboration album by Flee Lord & Roc Marciano is now available on vinyl with bonus tracks from the delxue digital version! Originally released in August of 2021, Delgado was produced entirely by Roc Marciano, with the veteran artist / producer providing a blend of versatile beats for the Lord Mobb General to spit his patented street raps over. With features from long time collaborators such as Conway the Machine, Ransom, Stove God Cooks and DJ Boogieman, Delgado received both commercial and critical acclaim and now this fan favorite is available on wax! HotNewHipHop had this to say about the album: “On this one, Flee is in absolute beast mode, bodying each instrumental that Marci serves up with fire and fury. At this point, it’s going to be hard to deny Flee a spot at the best current lyricist table, especially after he delivers inspired performances on ‘This What Ya Want?’ and the minimalist ‘First Kill’.”

British producer Jonathan Hipgrave aka Jonny3snareS hits the right snare - as the Dutch say - with his brand new Parasol EP on Utrecht's 030303 Records. With plenty of off-tone melodies from another galaxy and hard hitting and impatient snare drum compositions, this is braindance at its very best. Upon reading track names like Custard Rollneck, Milk on Sofa and Pond Life, you expect to hear acid heavy, euphoric and sometimes slightly uneasy dancefloor nostalgia in the best Rephlex tradition and that is exactly what you get. Big tip for fans of Cornish acid!

Boggiedown Base has been a producer and remixer since debuting as part of Die Reimbanditen in 1993. His CV includes productions for Die Coolen Säue/DCS, Albino, Chaoze One, and Die Deutsche Reimachse. In 2005 he met the Backspin-Magazine-DJ DJ 12 Finger Dan and the two formed a production duo. As Soulbrotha, the two produced mainly for and with American artists such as Sadat X from Brand Nubian, DJ Premier from Gangstarr, Large Professor, Big Shug, Blaq Poet, Masta Ace, Beneficience, Cella Dwellas, El Da Sensei, Kev Brown, Edo G and much more. The two came into contact with the producer Roccwell from Munich by chance. Through the common love for soul samples, hard drums, the clanking of the E-MU SP-1200, dope raps and spectacular cuts, the idea of a collabo-album came up.

"In Good Company" is a celebration of the classic boom bap sound and comes up with top-class feature guests. Among others, the New York cult rapper J-Live was won for the song "Real Reconize Real". Q Ball & Curt Cazal aka QnC from the legendary D&D Studios in New York show on "Classic Position" why they are still relevant after more than 20 years in the game and the Boston MC M-Dot proves on "Toil" why there is a hype around his person. But there are also other top artists on the guest list, such as DJ Eclipse, DJ Riz or KORE. "In Good Company" is to be understood as a homage to the many rap classics of the last three decades and sees itself in their tradition, but always remains modern thanks to the contributions of many young and talented artists such as Wildelux, Duo Pesci, Resolute or Empulse.

“A rather gorgeous and engrossing collection, that borrows stealthily from a rich history of sound effect and soundtrack to build a tender poem to the night time.” - CLASH
“The plan was to make twenty 90-second tracks designed as TV themes,” says Arab Strap’s Aidan Moffat, of the initial thought behind his new instrumental album as Nyx Nótt “But it wasn't a satisfying listen, it was too gimmicky and silly.”
So instead, Moffat decided to stretch the idea out, plunge deeper, and expand the music into full tracks, “making some of them quite long and dramatic, with the odd swift turn here and there.” In fleshing these tracks out into more fully realised songs he began sourcing samples from professional TV and film music libraries. “The focus then turned to making a proper album out of these modern library sounds,” he says. “I decided to stick with the Themes From title and named the tracks after the sorts of shows they made me think of when I listened back.”
The result is a record that explores genre themes such as: ‘Thriller, ‘Porno’, ‘Caper’ and Swashbuckler’, and acts as an audio equivalent of channel hopping through a unique TV station programmed by Moffat. “I still wasn't sure about all this until I did the album cover, which brought it all together,” he says, of the artwork that places an old smashed TV unit front and centre with a woman perched on top. “It has echoes of old TV compilations but is pretty cheeky and slightly sexy in that old 70s compilation style. I wanted this one to look a bit more fun than the last one, as well as hopefully sound a bit more fun too.”
Aside from being a fun experience, it is also a stirring and immersive listen, one that allows the listener to imagine their own accompanying visual scenarios to each musical theme. The opening ‘Docudrama’ marries a gently creeping beat with strings that glide from tense to sweeping, while ‘Porno’ is all seedy smoky jazz that feels plucked right out of Travis Bickle’s late night trips to porn cinemas in Taxi Driver.
Touches of jazz pop up in other places too, on ‘Hardboiled’ this merges with subtle pulses and gargles of electronics that build to a rousing crescendo of horns and bleeps, and on ‘Caper’ there’s a vivacious full jazz band skip to the lively swinging rhythms. “There's a few more jazzy elements here,” Moffat says. “Although I'm not quite sure where that came from. Although, like everyone else, I've had plenty of time to be introspective recently, so I decided the next Nyx Nótt album should be more upbeat and encourage some occasional foot-tapping.”
However, what becomes apparent, the longer you spend in the world of Themes From, is how singular and unique the tone of each composition is. “Each track has its own individual feel,” says Moffat. “The idea was to sound like a different composer and band throughout.” It’s a stylistic leap that continues Nyx Nótt’s trajectory as one that shares no direct link to Moffat’s other projects. “I approach them in completely different ways and with a different purpose in mind,” says Moffat. “I don't think Nyx has ever heard of Arab Strap, and certainly doesn't own any of their albums.” It’s also a notable shift from the debut album under this moniker, and suitably given the theme, Moffat has created a visual comparison between these two sonic worlds. “If the first Nyx Nótt album was like looking out on dark prairies before dawn, this is more like a walk through a neon Soho after a few cocktails.”

Comprehensive box of 6 LPs / EPs and the band's first rare 7inch.

Aroma Di Amore is/was Belgian’s premier cult band. Since the early eighties ADA innovatively combined electronics with rock. With a mix of razor-sharp Flemish lyrics and unconventional song structures the group earned a cult status in Belgium and abroad. 40 years later they conclude their career with a few last concerts and a vinyl box set spanning the years 1983-1987.

At the notorious Rock Rally of 1982 Aroma Di Amore stands out with their wonderful handling of the Flemish language, a deep bass, typical cold new wave drums, biting guitar riffs with the occasional flavor of absolute madness. Frontman Jos Verlooy adopts the stage name Elvis Peeters. The explanation for this remarkable pseudonym choice: in 1977 – the period of the singer's musical awakening – one of the two famous rocking Elvises (not Costello, but Presley) succumbs to his pill addiction. So, dixit Verlooy, there is an Elvis vacant. A banal surname belongs next to that exotic first name. A combination that breathes rock 'n' roll, according to the singer.

His companion Gerry Vergult – who very much determines the sound with his metallic riffs, somewhat indebted to Jean-Marie Aerts – adopts the stage name Fred Angst. Completely in line with the depressing zeitgeist of the 1980s. Gerry eats and breathes music. Besides composing most of ADA’s songs, he records & self-produces a few fantastic dark en loner solo minimal wave tracks as Fred Angst. He is still musically active, more towards the electronic leftfield nowadays under the moniker Zool.

It is clear from an early age that companion Elvis Peeters possesses the gift of the word. As an adolescent he published the punkzine “Dus”. The punk spirit stimulates Peeters. He begins to transform the poetry that he has been entrusting to paper for some time into song lyrics. It is on a whim and without any stage experience that punk friends Peeters and Angst register for the Rock Rally as Aroma di Amore. On a bed of post-punk and cold wave (Joy Division, Wire and Sisters of Mercy are the main influences), they initially let out playful, minimalist and nonsensical slogans such as "Doe De Mafia" (1982) and "Gorilla Dans De Samba" (1983). Later on, the tone becomes more serious, although Peeters' choice of words continues to show a penchant for absurdism and sarcasm. No one in Dutch songwriting imitates this verbal elasticity, certainly at that time.

The numerous songs about war are downright horrifying. In the 1980s, an arms race is underway. When the Belgian government decides to install nuclear missiles in 1981, Aroma di Amore asks for one minute of silence in the hall during performances. In "Lauwe Oorlog" (1983), Peeters exposes the core of his unrest: “paraat voor de parade / de vrede wordt begraven / met militaire eer”. To this day, the frontman of AdA still proudly wears his at least 30 year old 'atomic energy, no thanks!' button.

In 1984 Aroma releases Koude Oorlog on the new and independent Brussels label Play It Again Sam. The traditional press and radio ignore the record, but in the alternative circuits the mini-album does not go unnoticed, and the group starts to build a solid fan base, resulting in more and more offers for gigs. There's also interest in the Netherlands, and due to the international contacts of PIAS, the record also ends up in France, Switzerland, Spain and Canada.

Encouraged by this modest success, the group returns to the studio for a 12" single. With new group member Frits De Cauter on sax, they record "Voor De Dood". To this day, Voor De Dood remains the most popular AdA song, as evidenced by the countless compilations on which the song has appeared.

AdA goes to the Netherlands to record their next album “De Sfeer Van Grote Dagen”. The people from Nasmak have built a new studio in Eindhoven and one of the members, Theo Van Eenbergen (later Henry Rollins), will be the producer. “De Sfeer Van Grote Dagen” is the group's most adventurous album, and the reviews are again unanimously favorable. However, sales are disappointing and PIAS proposes to recruit Chris Reed of Red Lorry Yellow Lorry and record a new single with him. "Zonder Omzien" is recorded at the prestigious Pyramid Studio. However, PIAS is waiting to release the album and in the meantime AdA is recording a number of extra tracks with producer Ludo Camberlin, including "Koekoek In De Stad". Towards the end of the year, Lo and Elvis travel to Africa for a few months and as a result the group comes to a standstill. In this period, Zonder Omzien is released.

At the beginning of 1986, Peeters and Meulen return, and Andrea Smits leaves the group. Luc Pillards is hired as a replacement, and when Ludo Camberlin presents himself as a new label boss and producer (Anything But Records), they start recording their first full album for the label. “Harde Feiten" kicks in immediately, and the group is back up to cruising speed. In the first week of release, the record even appears in the bestseller list of the record stores.

At the beginning of 1987 the recordings for the second album start, this time in a production by Peeters and Angst themselves. Shortly after the shooting, AdA goes to Switzerland for a short but successful tour, with Men 2nd and Cas & Organized Crime as support act. "Koudvuur" is published in the autumn and considered to be their strongest record so far by the group, the reactions are rather low. Both the reviews in the press and the sales are disappointing and put a damper on the joy. Nevertheless, the group is invited to perform in Valencia, Spain, where they have an unexpected success.

MUTANT SOUNDS BLOG

Aroma Di Amore have always been outsiders, even within the confinement of the alternative rock circuit. Their peculiar blend of raw guitars, electronics, Dutch lyrics and unconventional song structures was too hybrid for many. Those howewer who, without prejudice, would lend an ear to the band's music, discovered an energetic, authentic and uncompromising collective that stood above all trends. While so many Belgian "connaisseurs" had their doubts about the possibilities of international recognition for a band singing in Dutch, Aroma Di Amore toured France, Switzerland and Spain; their records figured in alternative charts from Poland to Canada.

From beginning to end the nucleus of Aroma Di Amore consisted of Elvis PEETERS, who in a inimitable, possessed way delivered his highly original lyrics, and Fred ANGST, guitarist mastering the heaviest riffs as well as refined tapestries of sound. Furthermore, the line-up varied throughout the band's carreer with:- H.K. (Guitarist from 1982 until 1983)- Andrea SMITS (Organ from 1982 until 1985)- Luc PILLARDS (Synthsizer in 1986)- Jan WANDELAAR (Guitar and synthesizer in 1986)- Pulcherie (Saxophone in 1983)- Wout DOCKX (Bass from 1987 until 1988)and especially- Lo MEULEN (Bass from 1983 until 1987)and the late Frits DE CAUTER (Saxophone from 1984 until 1986) contributing to the music.

Box Set includes: Gorilla Dans De Samba 7" (1983), Voor De Dood 12" (1984), Koude Oorlog LP (1984), De Sfeer Van Grote Dagen 12" (1985), Zonder Omzien 12" (1986), Harde Feiten LP (1986), Koudvuur LP (1987)

First-time reissue of Aroma Di Amore's 2nd album, originally released in 1986.

Aroma Di Amore is/was Belgian’s premier cult band. Since the early eighties ADA innovatively combined electronics with rock. With a mix of razor-sharp Flemish lyrics and unconventional song structures the group earned a cult status in Belgium and abroad. 40 years later they conclude their career with a few last concerts and a vinyl box set spanning the years 1983-1987.

At the notorious Rock Rally of 1982 Aroma Di Amore stands out with their wonderful handling of the Flemish language, a deep bass, typical cold new wave drums, biting guitar riffs with the occasional flavor of absolute madness. Frontman Jos Verlooy adopts the stage name Elvis Peeters. The explanation for this remarkable pseudonym choice: in 1977 – the period of the singer's musical awakening – one of the two famous rocking Elvises (not Costello, but Presley) succumbs to his pill addiction. So, dixit Verlooy, there is an Elvis vacant. A banal surname belongs next to that exotic first name. A combination that breathes rock 'n' roll, according to the singer.

His companion Gerry Vergult – who very much determines the sound with his metallic riffs, somewhat indebted to Jean-Marie Aerts – adopts the stage name Fred Angst. Completely in line with the depressing zeitgeist of the 1980s. Gerry eats and breathes music. Besides composing most of ADA’s songs, he records & self-produces a few fantastic dark en loner solo minimal wave tracks as Fred Angst. He is still musically active, more towards the electronic leftfield nowadays under the moniker Zool.

It is clear from an early age that companion Elvis Peeters possesses the gift of the word. As an adolescent he published the punkzine “Dus”. The punk spirit stimulates Peeters. He begins to transform the poetry that he has been entrusting to paper for some time into song lyrics. It is on a whim and without any stage experience that punk friends Peeters and Angst register for the Rock Rally as Aroma di Amore. On a bed of post-punk and cold wave (Joy Division, Wire and Sisters of Mercy are the main influences), they initially let out playful, minimalist and nonsensical slogans such as "Doe De Mafia" (1982) and "Gorilla Dans De Samba" (1983). Later on, the tone becomes more serious, although Peeters' choice of words continues to show a penchant for absurdism and sarcasm. No one in Dutch songwriting imitates this verbal elasticity, certainly at that time.

The numerous songs about war are downright horrifying. In the 1980s, an arms race is underway. When the Belgian government decides to install nuclear missiles in 1981, Aroma di Amore asks for one minute of silence in the hall during performances. In "Lauwe Oorlog" (1983), Peeters exposes the core of his unrest: “paraat voor de parade / de vrede wordt begraven / met militaire eer”. To this day, the frontman of AdA still proudly wears his at least 30 year old 'atomic energy, no thanks!' button.

In 1984 Aroma releases Koude Oorlog on the new and independent Brussels label Play It Again Sam. The traditional press and radio ignore the record, but in the alternative circuits the mini-album does not go unnoticed, and the group starts to build a solid fan base, resulting in more and more offers for gigs. There's also interest in the Netherlands, and due to the international contacts of PIAS, the record also ends up in France, Switzerland, Spain and Canada.

Encouraged by this modest success, the group returns to the studio for a 12" single. With new group member Frits De Cauter on sax, they record "Voor De Dood". To this day, Voor De Dood remains the most popular AdA song, as evidenced by the countless compilations on which the song has appeared.

AdA goes to the Netherlands to record their next album “De Sfeer Van Grote Dagen”. The people from Nasmak have built a new studio in Eindhoven and one of the members, Theo Van Eenbergen (later Henry Rollins), will be the producer. “De Sfeer Van Grote Dagen” is the group's most adventurous album, and the reviews are again unanimously favorable. However, sales are disappointing and PIAS proposes to recruit Chris Reed of Red Lorry Yellow Lorry and record a new single with him. "Zonder Omzien" is recorded at the prestigious Pyramid Studio. However, PIAS is waiting to release the album and in the meantime AdA is recording a number of extra tracks with producer Ludo Camberlin, including "Koekoek In De Stad". Towards the end of the year, Lo and Elvis travel to Africa for a few months and as a result the group comes to a standstill. In this period, Zonder Omzien is released.

At the beginning of 1986, Peeters and Meulen return, and Andrea Smits leaves the group. Luc Pillards is hired as a replacement, and when Ludo Camberlin presents himself as a new label boss and producer (Anything But Records), they start recording their first full album for the label. “Harde Feiten" kicks in immediately, and the group is back up to cruising speed. In the first week of release, the record even appears in the bestseller list of the record stores.

At the beginning of 1987 the recordings for the second album start, this time in a production by Peeters and Angst themselves. Shortly after the shooting, AdA goes to Switzerland for a short but successful tour, with Men 2nd and Cas & Organized Crime as support act. "Koudvuur" is published in the autumn and considered to be their strongest record so far by the group, the reactions are rather low. Both the reviews in the press and the sales are disappointing and put a damper on the joy. Nevertheless, the group is invited to perform in Valencia, Spain, where they have an unexpected success.

MUTANT SOUNDS BLOG

Aroma Di Amore have always been outsiders, even within the confinement of the alternative rock circuit. Their peculiar blend of raw guitars, electronics, Dutch lyrics and unconventional song structures was too hybrid for many. Those howewer who, without prejudice, would lend an ear to the band's music, discovered an energetic, authentic and uncompromising collective that stood above all trends. While so many Belgian "connaisseurs" had their doubts about the possibilities of international recognition for a band singing in Dutch, Aroma Di Amore toured France, Switzerland and Spain; their records figured in alternative charts from Poland to Canada.

From beginning to end the nucleus of Aroma Di Amore consisted of Elvis PEETERS, who in a inimitable, possessed way delivered his highly original lyrics, and Fred ANGST, guitarist mastering the heaviest riffs as well as refined tapestries of sound. Furthermore, the line-up varied throughout the band's carreer with:- H.K. (Guitarist from 1982 until 1983)- Andrea SMITS (Organ from 1982 until 1985)- Luc PILLARDS (Synthsizer in 1986)- Jan WANDELAAR (Guitar and synthesizer in 1986)- Pulcherie (Saxophone in 1983)- Wout DOCKX (Bass from 1987 until 1988)and especially- Lo MEULEN (Bass from 1983 until 1987)and the late Frits DE CAUTER (Saxophone from 1984 until 1986)contributing to the music.

Da Buze Bruvaz and Lord Beatjitzu come together for a truly hard hitting, no holds barred, HipHop grudge match with the tough as nails BoLO Yeung Barbarian Bicepz EP. The long-time collaborators, known for dropping at a prolific pace individually, found time to combine and give their prospective audiences a true gift. Expect nothing but explosive neck-snapping beats and hard-body drunken rhyming. This is truly a companion piece for the Lord Beatjitzu produced Bruce Li in Japan LP. Here we find Da Buze Bruvaz Him LO and Clever One, deconstructing a few of those tracks while also bringing heat to some exclusive gems from the vaults of the reclusive production wizard. You may want to take a few steps back before entering drunken dragon styles presented on this one. Bruce Li meets Da Buze Bruvaz and every track contained within qualifies as a lethal weapon! Protect your Necks, Arms, Heads and Chests! PLAY on 45 rpm!

Das neue Album "nichts" der Aachener Post-Hardcore Band FJORT ist ein 50-minütiges Erlebnis. "nichts" gewinnt dem dichten Sound der Band, der fließend zwischen allen Spielarten von Hardcore und Postrock wandelt, zahlreiche neue Facetten ab. Die Täler sind tiefer denn je, in den Höhen ist kaum Luft zu atmen. Die Atmosphäre fühlt sich nahezu greifbar an. Lyrisch gaben sich FJORT seit jeher kryptisch und bleiben dieser Linie treu werden auf "nichts" jedoch auch konkret wie selten zuvor. Vielleicht, weil Zeiten wie diese mehr denn je nach Schonungslosigkeit lechtzen. Vielleicht auch, weil eine Art Galgenhumor seinen Weg auf das Album gefunden hat, der mit dem absoluten Ernst gekonnt bricht. Abwechslungsreicher und schlichtweg größer klang diese Band noch nie.

2022 Repress

Mancunian maestro Setaoc Mass returns for his second outing on Soma with the Fortnight EP. Drenched in his typical hard hitting, meticulously produced style, Sam's latest Soma 12" has him at the top of his game with 4 top quality tracks + a special bonus track for the digital EP.

"Time" opens the EP with a particularly hypnotic sound and a definite driving pace as swelling and pulsing background atmospheres give this a quite aggressive backbone. "Bluebells" is yet another dance floor rocking track that hits the ground running right from the start. Razor sharp poly-rhythmic structures keep the track interesting while intense percussive workouts provide the power. Title track "Fortnight" delves deeper whilst still remaining true to Sam's direct and tough sound; don't let this deeper side fool you, all the hallmarks of a proper banger remain intact! "Chaos" closes out things with a more groove laden and emotive tone as shuffling percussive elements funk things up before subtle synths work their way in giving the track a more melodic feel than the previous. Digital Bonus, "Necessary Evil", is a straight up, no nonsense dance floor workout.

yellow vinyl / incl. dl codes

Modern techno is fast-paced and borrows elements from mid 90s trance records. This record is not that.

An Appointment with Mr Yeats sees the words of W B Yeats, one of Ireland's greatest literary sons, merged with the music of The Waterboys, one of Britain and Ireland's greatest rock bands, in a truly unique and ambitious musical undertaking. The album was originally released in 2011, and has been fully remastered for re-issue, and now contains 6 previously unreleased bonus tracks. The Waterboys vocalist Mike Scott, first delivered a new dimension to Yeats' poetry in 1988, when he wrote a musical accompaniment for the classic poem The Stolen Child, during the making of the Waterboys seminal album 'Fisherman's Blues'. Five years later he set another Yeats poem to music, Love and Death, which appeared on their 'Dream Harder' album. Over the years, Scott had been quietly crafting a wealth of material similarly based on the writings of Yeats. A number of these were performed by him at the Abbey Theatre during the Yeats International Festival in 1991, but most had remained in Scott's private songbook awaiting the right vehicle. An Appointment with Mr. Yeats was that long-awaited context. Scott's love of literature is firmly embedded throughout the work of The Waterboys. He has also put the writings of Robert Burns, James Stephens, Kenneth Grahame and George MacDonald to song. Speaking on his literary influences and loves, Scott explained: "I grew up in a house full of books so literature - and language - have always been important to me. Working with other peoples' words is something that comes as natural to me as working with my own. In a way it's even more immediate; I've always found writing music an easier process than the writing of lyrics, and setting words of the quality of Yeats' to music is an enormous privilege and treat." An Appointment with Mr. Yeats is a unique and memorable opportunity for lovers of great music and great literature to celebrate the union of song and word in one spectacular record.

Timothy J. Fairplay is a producer based in the UK with a back catalogue of releases under different aliases and as a member of various groups – most notably, The Asphodells with Andrew Weatherall. His EP Chariots In The Sky was made with cult hardware synthesizers (Roland TR-808, SH-5, SH-09 and many more) and is the debut vinyl release on Archaic Future Sounds. Influenced by the Dark Wave side of Italo-Disco, John Carpenter’s soundtracks and electronic Krautrock, it features 4 Science Fiction themed tracks perfect for all sophisticated dancers, DJs and connoisseurs of pure analog sonic bliss!

"Les Heures Felines is the first EP from U25 on their own label Unative Records.

This work interprets the perpetual movements of human moods. We are witnessing the progression of a thought, a feeling which is constantly changing. Emotions take precedence over reason, they are supple and fluid and leave us with memories as disintegrated as we are. The beauty of man lies in his twitches. We are just blurred and faded sketches of what we would have liked to be. The result of all of these thoughts is told in those hard kicks, tortured pads, melodies, voices and breakbeat.

White Vinyl

Wiederveröffentlichung des im Jahr 2014 erschienenen siebten Albums der schwedischen Hardrock Legende. Die limitierte Neuauflage erscheint auf weissem Vinyl inkl. Bonus Track sowie neuen Liner Notes von Astral Doors Sänger Nils Patrik Johansson.

"Notes From The Shadows" (das siebte Album der Band) führt uns zu der dunkleren Seite der Band mit einem näheren Blick in die schwarze Bibel. Ein rein böses Heavy Metal-Album, das die okkulten Texte zum klassischen Heavy Metal zurückbringt.

Elf außergewöhnliche Tracks, gemischt und gemastert im Black Lounge Studio in Grangärde von Jonas Kjellgren (Raubtier).

"Notes From The Shadows" hat sich als ein großer Schritt in der Karriere der Band erwiesen und wird nun als Ltd. Edition White Vinyl wiederveröffentlicht.

The elusive SW. returns to Avenue 66 with okALGORYTHM. His third LP for the label is a semi-opaque wandering through the shadowy byways of memory, driven by tough-yet-supple production and his unmistakable, unerringly original voice. Inspired by all night electronic radio shows of the '90s, okALGORYTHM pulses with rich imagination and a sense of purposeful meandering. Speaking in cryptic fragments, the artist hints at elusive reminiscences "back then on the autobahn, to Berlin, with friends" while also noting that some recollections are "of things that didn't happen that way."

To this end, the album drifts from the knotty synth spirals of opener "WHAtADAY" through the tense, technoid tropics of "stepCLASSixMOtor," the brightly melancholic Larry Heard-isms of "TROPyCALLhytsrIA" to the stately skronk of closer "What endingENDs." The rhythmic undergirding never lets up, suggesting a limitless night drive tinted in deep greens and refracted reds. Each of the album's ten tracks comes alive with warm, analog finesse and a palpable atmosphere, though they play out by turns urgent or unhurried, coaxing or inscrutable. Yet throughout, there's a consistently hypnotic quality which draws the listener deeper into the album's unique balancing act.

If listeners are trained to expect throwback anthems every time the '90s are referenced, here they might find a more apt touchstone in the wilder, left-of-center corners of Chicago's foundational epoch. Throughout the album, the spirit of jacking house is absorbed, metabolized and transmuted. Drawing on lineages of taut, nervy synth-and-drum machine workouts, SW. manipulates his hardware with the delicate, considered touch of a painter. Perhaps the memory that lingers longest from that bygone era is the sense of profound possibility that dawns before forms become rigidly calificed and commodified. Either way, adventurous listeners will find that okALGORYTHM blooms with a uniquely affecting grace and SW.'s inimitably obscure loveliness, infused with a somber glow and marked by shimmering, untraceable contours.

Matte, textured lift-off lid box containing a remastered reissue of the Harvest album, a 7" single with outtakes, a 1971 unreleased BBC concert on LP & DVD, a DVD of the film Harvest Time, a 48-page hardbound book, a fold-out band poster, and a numbered lithograph. Harvest is housed in a Stoughton tip-on jacket which has a matte texture on the outside and a high-gloss finish on the inside. The left side pocket includes a replica of the original fold-out lyric sheet. BBC In Concert is housed in a matte Stoughton tip-on jacket. Harvest Outtakes is a small hole 7" issued in a shrink wrapped matte picture sleeve with top opening. Harvest Time DVD is housed in a printed card sleeve and comes with a two-sided insert. BBC In Concert DVD is housed in a printed card sleeve. 50th anniversary deluxe edition Original album (remastered) Three Harvest outtakes on 7" single (two unreleased versions) 1971 unreleased BBC concert on LP & DVD Harvest Time: 2-hour unreleased film from 1971 on DVD 48-page harbound book Numbered lithograph Poster

Draped in a flag of patriotic shame, the Hated stormed onto the scene just as D.C.’s Revolution Summer was swerving out of control. Channeling Bad Brains’ Black thrash and Hüsker Dü’s zen approach to hardcore, Dan Littleton, Erik Fisher, Colin Meeder, and Mike Bonner synthesized their own version of what became emo in 1985. Remastered from the original analog tapes, Best Piece Of Shit Vol. 4 compiles their D.I.Y. debut cassette, the No More We Cry EP, and 14 period bonus tracks from the Hated vault, spread across two LPs and annotated by fellow Annapolis hooligan Andrew Gebhardt. Decorated with extensive photo documentation and cut’n’paste ephemera, this Hated-approved set captures a band, a scene, and a country on the verge of either exploding or imploding. Never said it’d be like this, right?

Draped in a flag of patriotic shame, the Hated stormed onto the scene just as D.C.’s Revolution Summer was swerving out of control. Channeling Bad Brains’ Black thrash and Hüsker Dü’s zen approach to hardcore, Dan Littleton, Erik Fisher, Colin Meeder, and Mike Bonner synthesized their own version of what became emo in 1985. Remastered from the original analog tapes, Best Piece Of Shit Vol. 4 compiles their D.I.Y. debut cassette, the No More We Cry EP, and 14 period bonus tracks from the Hated vault, spread across two LPs and annotated by fellow Annapolis hooligan Andrew Gebhardt. Decorated with extensive photo documentation and cut’n’paste ephemera, this Hated-approved set captures a band, a scene, and a country on the verge of either exploding or imploding. Never said it’d be like this, right?

Robbie Williams remains one of the most successful British pop stars of his generation many years after he put out his most notable albums. Life Thru a Lens was one of them and it now turns a frankly hard to believe 25 years old. This special anniversary edition comes on limited clear vinyl and takes you right back to the end of the last millennium. The songs are big singalongs with plenty of Williams's swaggering confidence shining through each one as he muses on growing old, love and of course loss with his biggest single of all, 'Angels.'

Bloodline was an American blues-rock band from New York City, New York. Formed in 1991, the group originally featured vocalist Aaron Hagar, lead guitarist “Smokin’ Joe” Bonamassa, rhythm guitarist Waylon Krieger, bassist Berry Oakley Jr., drummer Erin Davis and keyboardist Lou Segreti. After Hagar was fired due to creative differences, Oakley took over as lead vocalist and the group began recording demos for a planned studio album with producer Phil Ramone. Bloodline released their self-titled debut album in 1994, which was produced by Joe Hardy and features the singles “Stone Cold Hearted”, “Dixie Peach” and “Calling Me Back”. The band broke up shortly after the album’s touring cycle.

Bloodline is available on vinyl for the very first time and
includes an insert with lyrics.

During the worldwide pandemic, when many bands were setting up livestreams, the symphonic metal pioneers decided to go even further and presented the virtual reality show The Aftermath. This spectacular immersive, tech-driven event allowed them to perform in four different futuristic virtual worlds that interact with both the band and the music. The set included both old and new material, as they presented the single “Shed My Skin” for the first time during the live set and played a brand new version of “Forsaken”

The Aftermath EP features four live tracks from the virtual reality show, including the single “Forsaken (The Aftermath)” and “Shed My Skin” featuring Rudi Schwarzer and Christoph Wieczorek, both from the German post-hardcore band Annisokay.

The Aftermath EP is available as a limited edition of 3000 individually numbered copies on crystal clear coloured vinyl. Side B of this 12 inch contains a exclusive full colour print based on the show’s artwork.

Head Cleaner brings a brilliant Hardtek oldschool sound... Souvenirs from another dimension ! BIG UP !

First-time reissue of Aroma Di Amore's debut album, originally released in 1984.

Aroma Di Amore is/was Belgian’s premier cult band. Since the early eighties ADA innovatively combined electronics with rock. With a mix of razor-sharp Flemish lyrics and unconventional song structures the group earned a cult status in Belgium and abroad. 40 years later they conclude their career with a few last concerts and a vinyl box set spanning the years 1983-1987.

At the notorious Rock Rally of 1982 Aroma Di Amore stands out with their wonderful handling of the Flemish language, a deep bass, typical cold new wave drums, biting guitar riffs with the occasional flavor of absolute madness. Frontman Jos Verlooy adopts the stage name Elvis Peeters. The explanation for this remarkable pseudonym choice: in 1977 – the period of the singer's musical awakening – one of the two famous rocking Elvises (not Costello, but Presley) succumbs to his pill addiction. So, dixit Verlooy, there is an Elvis vacant. A banal surname belongs next to that exotic first name. A combination that breathes rock 'n' roll, according to the singer.

His companion Gerry Vergult – who very much determines the sound with his metallic riffs, somewhat indebted to Jean-Marie Aerts – adopts the stage name Fred Angst. Completely in line with the depressing zeitgeist of the 1980s. Gerry eats and breathes music. Besides composing most of ADA’s songs, he records & self-produces a few fantastic dark en loner solo minimal wave tracks as Fred Angst. He is still musically active, more towards the electronic leftfield nowadays under the moniker Zool.

It is clear from an early age that companion Elvis Peeters possesses the gift of the word. As an adolescent he published the punkzine “Dus”. The punk spirit stimulates Peeters. He begins to transform the poetry that he has been entrusting to paper for some time into song lyrics. It is on a whim and without any stage experience that punk friends Peeters and Angst register for the Rock Rally as Aroma di Amore. On a bed of post-punk and cold wave (Joy Division, Wire and Sisters of Mercy are the main influences), they initially let out playful, minimalist and nonsensical slogans such as "Doe De Mafia" (1982) and "Gorilla Dans De Samba" (1983). Later on, the tone becomes more serious, although Peeters' choice of words continues to show a penchant for absurdism and sarcasm. No one in Dutch songwriting imitates this verbal elasticity, certainly at that time.

The numerous songs about war are downright horrifying. In the 1980s, an arms race is underway. When the Belgian government decides to install nuclear missiles in 1981, Aroma di Amore asks for one minute of silence in the hall during performances. In "Lauwe Oorlog" (1983), Peeters exposes the core of his unrest: “paraat voor de parade / de vrede wordt begraven / met militaire eer”. To this day, the frontman of AdA still proudly wears his at least 30 year old 'atomic energy, no thanks!' button.

In 1984 Aroma releases Koude Oorlog on the new and independent Brussels label Play It Again Sam. The traditional press and radio ignore the record, but in the alternative circuits the mini-album does not go unnoticed, and the group starts to build a solid fan base, resulting in more and more offers for gigs. There's also interest in the Netherlands, and due to the international contacts of PIAS, the record also ends up in France, Switzerland, Spain and Canada.

Encouraged by this modest success, the group returns to the studio for a 12" single. With new group member Frits De Cauter on sax, they record "Voor De Dood". To this day, Voor De Dood remains the most popular AdA song, as evidenced by the countless compilations on which the song has appeared.

AdA goes to the Netherlands to record their next album “De Sfeer Van Grote Dagen”. The people from Nasmak have built a new studio in Eindhoven and one of the members, Theo Van Eenbergen (later Henry Rollins), will be the producer. “De Sfeer Van Grote Dagen” is the group's most adventurous album, and the reviews are again unanimously favorable. However, sales are disappointing and PIAS proposes to recruit Chris Reed of Red Lorry Yellow Lorry and record a new single with him. "Zonder Omzien" is recorded at the prestigious Pyramid Studio. However, PIAS is waiting to release the album and in the meantime AdA is recording a number of extra tracks with producer Ludo Camberlin, including "Koekoek In De Stad". Towards the end of the year, Lo and Elvis travel to Africa for a few months and as a result the group comes to a standstill. In this period, Zonder Omzien is released.

At the beginning of 1986, Peeters and Meulen return, and Andrea Smits leaves the group. Luc Pillards is hired as a replacement, and when Ludo Camberlin presents himself as a new label boss and producer (Anything But Records), they start recording their first full album for the label. “Harde Feiten" kicks in immediately, and the group is back up to cruising speed. In the first week of release, the record even appears in the bestseller list of the record stores.

At the beginning of 1987 the recordings for the second album start, this time in a production by Peeters and Angst themselves. Shortly after the shooting, AdA goes to Switzerland for a short but successful tour, with Men 2nd and Cas & Organized Crime as support act. "Koudvuur" is published in the autumn and considered to be their strongest record so far by the group, the reactions are rather low. Both the reviews in the press and the sales are disappointing and put a damper on the joy. Nevertheless, the group is invited to perform in Valencia, Spain, where they have an unexpected success.

MUTANT SOUNDS BLOG

Aroma Di Amore have always been outsiders, even within the confinement of the alternative rock circuit. Their peculiar blend of raw guitars, electronics, Dutch lyrics and unconventional song structures was too hybrid for many. Those howewer who, without prejudice, would lend an ear to the band's music, discovered an energetic, authentic and uncompromising collective that stood above all trends. While so many Belgian "connaisseurs" had their doubts about the possibilities of international recognition for a band singing in Dutch, Aroma Di Amore toured France, Switzerland and Spain; their records figured in alternative charts from Poland to Canada.

From beginning to end the nucleus of Aroma Di Amore consisted of Elvis PEETERS, who in a inimitable, possessed way delivered his highly original lyrics, and Fred ANGST, guitarist mastering the heaviest riffs as well as refined tapestries of sound. Furthermore, the line-up varied throughout the band's carreer with:- H.K. (Guitarist from 1982 until 1983)- Andrea SMITS (Organ from 1982 until 1985)- Luc PILLARDS (Synthsizer in 1986)- Jan WANDELAAR (Guitar and synthesizer in 1986)- Pulcherie (Saxophone in 1983)- Wout DOCKX (Bass from 1987 until 1988)and especially- Lo MEULEN (Bass from 1983 until 1987)and the late Frits DE CAUTER (Saxophone from 1984 until 1986)contributing to the music.

First-time reissue of Aroma Di Amore's 3rd album, originally released in 1987.

Aroma Di Amore is/was Belgian’s premier cult band. Since the early eighties ADA innovatively combined electronics with rock. With a mix of razor-sharp Flemish lyrics and unconventional song structures the group earned a cult status in Belgium and abroad. 40 years later they conclude their career with a few last concerts and a vinyl box set spanning the years 1983-1987.

At the notorious Rock Rally of 1982 Aroma Di Amore stands out with their wonderful handling of the Flemish language, a deep bass, typical cold new wave drums, biting guitar riffs with the occasional flavor of absolute madness. Frontman Jos Verlooy adopts the stage name Elvis Peeters. The explanation for this remarkable pseudonym choice: in 1977 – the period of the singer's musical awakening – one of the two famous rocking Elvises (not Costello, but Presley) succumbs to his pill addiction. So, dixit Verlooy, there is an Elvis vacant. A banal surname belongs next to that exotic first name. A combination that breathes rock 'n' roll, according to the singer.

His companion Gerry Vergult – who very much determines the sound with his metallic riffs, somewhat indebted to Jean-Marie Aerts – adopts the stage name Fred Angst. Completely in line with the depressing zeitgeist of the 1980s. Gerry eats and breathes music. Besides composing most of ADA’s songs, he records & self-produces a few fantastic dark en loner solo minimal wave tracks as Fred Angst. He is still musically active, more towards the electronic leftfield nowadays under the moniker Zool.

It is clear from an early age that companion Elvis Peeters possesses the gift of the word. As an adolescent he published the punkzine “Dus”. The punk spirit stimulates Peeters. He begins to transform the poetry that he has been entrusting to paper for some time into song lyrics. It is on a whim and without any stage experience that punk friends Peeters and Angst register for the Rock Rally as Aroma di Amore. On a bed of post-punk and cold wave (Joy Division, Wire and Sisters of Mercy are the main influences), they initially let out playful, minimalist and nonsensical slogans such as "Doe De Mafia" (1982) and "Gorilla Dans De Samba" (1983). Later on, the tone becomes more serious, although Peeters' choice of words continues to show a penchant for absurdism and sarcasm. No one in Dutch songwriting imitates this verbal elasticity, certainly at that time.

The numerous songs about war are downright horrifying. In the 1980s, an arms race is underway. When the Belgian government decides to install nuclear missiles in 1981, Aroma di Amore asks for one minute of silence in the hall during performances. In "Lauwe Oorlog" (1983), Peeters exposes the core of his unrest: “paraat voor de parade / de vrede wordt begraven / met militaire eer”. To this day, the frontman of AdA still proudly wears his at least 30 year old 'atomic energy, no thanks!' button.

In 1984 Aroma releases Koude Oorlog on the new and independent Brussels label Play It Again Sam. The traditional press and radio ignore the record, but in the alternative circuits the mini-album does not go unnoticed, and the group starts to build a solid fan base, resulting in more and more offers for gigs. There's also interest in the Netherlands, and due to the international contacts of PIAS, the record also ends up in France, Switzerland, Spain and Canada.

Encouraged by this modest success, the group returns to the studio for a 12" single. With new group member Frits De Cauter on sax, they record "Voor De Dood". To this day, Voor De Dood remains the most popular AdA song, as evidenced by the countless compilations on which the song has appeared.

AdA goes to the Netherlands to record their next album “De Sfeer Van Grote Dagen”. The people from Nasmak have built a new studio in Eindhoven and one of the members, Theo Van Eenbergen (later Henry Rollins), will be the producer. “De Sfeer Van Grote Dagen” is the group's most adventurous album, and the reviews are again unanimously favorable. However, sales are disappointing and PIAS proposes to recruit Chris Reed of Red Lorry Yellow Lorry and record a new single with him. "Zonder Omzien" is recorded at the prestigious Pyramid Studio. However, PIAS is waiting to release the album and in the meantime AdA is recording a number of extra tracks with producer Ludo Camberlin, including "Koekoek In De Stad". Towards the end of the year, Lo and Elvis travel to Africa for a few months and as a result the group comes to a standstill. In this period, Zonder Omzien is released.

At the beginning of 1986, Peeters and Meulen return, and Andrea Smits leaves the group. Luc Pillards is hired as a replacement, and when Ludo Camberlin presents himself as a new label boss and producer (Anything But Records), they start recording their first full album for the label. “Harde Feiten" kicks in immediately, and the group is back up to cruising speed. In the first week of release, the record even appears in the bestseller list of the record stores.

At the beginning of 1987 the recordings for the second album start, this time in a production by Peeters and Angst themselves. Shortly after the shooting, AdA goes to Switzerland for a short but successful tour, with Men 2nd and Cas & Organized Crime as support act. "Koudvuur" is published in the autumn and considered to be their strongest record so far by the group, the reactions are rather low. Both the reviews in the press and the sales are disappointing and put a damper on the joy. Nevertheless, the group is invited to perform in Valencia, Spain, where they have an unexpected success.

MUTANT SOUNDS BLOG

Aroma Di Amore have always been outsiders, even within the confinement of the alternative rock circuit. Their peculiar blend of raw guitars, electronics, Dutch lyrics and unconventional song structures was too hybrid for many. Those howewer who, without prejudice, would lend an ear to the band's music, discovered an energetic, authentic and uncompromising collective that stood above all trends. While so many Belgian "connaisseurs" had their doubts about the possibilities of international recognition for a band singing in Dutch, Aroma Di Amore toured France, Switzerland and Spain; their records figured in alternative charts from Poland to Canada.

From beginning to end the nucleus of Aroma Di Amore consisted of Elvis PEETERS, who in a inimitable, possessed way delivered his highly original lyrics, and Fred ANGST, guitarist mastering the heaviest riffs as well as refined tapestries of sound. Furthermore, the line-up varied throughout the band's carreer with:- H.K. (Guitarist from 1982 until 1983)- Andrea SMITS (Organ from 1982 until 1985)- Luc PILLARDS (Synthsizer in 1986)- Jan WANDELAAR (Guitar and synthesizer in 1986)- Pulcherie (Saxophone in 1983)- Wout DOCKX (Bass from 1987 until 1988)and especially- Lo MEULEN (Bass from 1983 until 1987)and the late Frits DE CAUTER (Saxophone from 1984 until 1986)contributing to the music.

First-time reissue of Aroma Di Amore's 3rd EP, originally released in 1985.

Aroma Di Amore is/was Belgian’s premier cult band. Since the early eighties ADA innovatively combined electronics with rock. With a mix of razor-sharp Flemish lyrics and unconventional song structures the group earned a cult status in Belgium and abroad. 40 years later they conclude their career with a few last concerts and a vinyl box set spanning the years 1983-1987.

At the notorious Rock Rally of 1982 Aroma Di Amore stands out with their wonderful handling of the Flemish language, a deep bass, typical cold new wave drums, biting guitar riffs with the occasional flavor of absolute madness. Frontman Jos Verlooy adopts the stage name Elvis Peeters. The explanation for this remarkable pseudonym choice: in 1977 – the period of the singer's musical awakening – one of the two famous rocking Elvises (not Costello, but Presley) succumbs to his pill addiction. So, dixit Verlooy, there is an Elvis vacant. A banal surname belongs next to that exotic first name. A combination that breathes rock 'n' roll, according to the singer.

His companion Gerry Vergult – who very much determines the sound with his metallic riffs, somewhat indebted to Jean-Marie Aerts – adopts the stage name Fred Angst. Completely in line with the depressing zeitgeist of the 1980s. Gerry eats and breathes music. Besides composing most of ADA’s songs, he records & self-produces a few fantastic dark en loner solo minimal wave tracks as Fred Angst. He is still musically active, more towards the electronic leftfield nowadays under the moniker Zool.

It is clear from an early age that companion Elvis Peeters possesses the gift of the word. As an adolescent he published the punkzine “Dus”. The punk spirit stimulates Peeters. He begins to transform the poetry that he has been entrusting to paper for some time into song lyrics. It is on a whim and without any stage experience that punk friends Peeters and Angst register for the Rock Rally as Aroma di Amore. On a bed of post-punk and cold wave (Joy Division, Wire and Sisters of Mercy are the main influences), they initially let out playful, minimalist and nonsensical slogans such as "Doe De Mafia" (1982) and "Gorilla Dans De Samba" (1983). Later on, the tone becomes more serious, although Peeters' choice of words continues to show a penchant for absurdism and sarcasm. No one in Dutch songwriting imitates this verbal elasticity, certainly at that time.

The numerous songs about war are downright horrifying. In the 1980s, an arms race is underway. When the Belgian government decides to install nuclear missiles in 1981, Aroma di Amore asks for one minute of silence in the hall during performances. In "Lauwe Oorlog" (1983), Peeters exposes the core of his unrest: “paraat voor de parade / de vrede wordt begraven / met militaire eer”. To this day, the frontman of AdA still proudly wears his at least 30 year old 'atomic energy, no thanks!' button.

In 1984 Aroma releases Koude Oorlog on the new and independent Brussels label Play It Again Sam. The traditional press and radio ignore the record, but in the alternative circuits the mini-album does not go unnoticed, and the group starts to build a solid fan base, resulting in more and more offers for gigs. There's also interest in the Netherlands, and due to the international contacts of PIAS, the record also ends up in France, Switzerland, Spain and Canada.

Encouraged by this modest success, the group returns to the studio for a 12" single. With new group member Frits De Cauter on sax, they record "Voor De Dood". To this day, Voor De Dood remains the most popular AdA song, as evidenced by the countless compilations on which the song has appeared.

AdA goes to the Netherlands to record their next album “De Sfeer Van Grote Dagen”. The people from Nasmak have built a new studio in Eindhoven and one of the members, Theo Van Eenbergen (later Henry Rollins), will be the producer. “De Sfeer Van Grote Dagen” is the group's most adventurous album, and the reviews are again unanimously favorable. However, sales are disappointing and PIAS proposes to recruit Chris Reed of Red Lorry Yellow Lorry and record a new single with him. "Zonder Omzien" is recorded at the prestigious Pyramid Studio. However, PIAS is waiting to release the album and in the meantime AdA is recording a number of extra tracks with producer Ludo Camberlin, including "Koekoek In De Stad". Towards the end of the year, Lo and Elvis travel to Africa for a few months and as a result the group comes to a standstill. In this period, Zonder Omzien is released.

At the beginning of 1986, Peeters and Meulen return, and Andrea Smits leaves the group. Luc Pillards is hired as a replacement, and when Ludo Camberlin presents himself as a new label boss and producer (Anything But Records), they start recording their first full album for the label. “Harde Feiten" kicks in immediately, and the group is back up to cruising speed. In the first week of release, the record even appears in the bestseller list of the record stores.

At the beginning of 1987 the recordings for the second album start, this time in a production by Peeters and Angst themselves. Shortly after the shooting, AdA goes to Switzerland for a short but successful tour, with Men 2nd and Cas & Organized Crime as support act. "Koudvuur" is published in the autumn and considered to be their strongest record so far by the group, the reactions are rather low. Both the reviews in the press and the sales are disappointing and put a damper on the joy. Nevertheless, the group is invited to perform in Valencia, Spain, where they have an unexpected success.

MUTANT SOUNDS BLOG

Aroma Di Amore have always been outsiders, even within the confinement of the alternative rock circuit. Their peculiar blend of raw guitars, electronics, Dutch lyrics and unconventional song structures was too hybrid for many. Those howewer who, without prejudice, would lend an ear to the band's music, discovered an energetic, authentic and uncompromising collective that stood above all trends. While so many Belgian "connaisseurs" had their doubts about the possibilities of international recognition for a band singing in Dutch, Aroma Di Amore toured France, Switzerland and Spain; their records figured in alternative charts from Poland to Canada.

From beginning to end the nucleus of Aroma Di Amore consisted of Elvis PEETERS, who in a inimitable, possessed way delivered his highly original lyrics, and Fred ANGST, guitarist mastering the heaviest riffs as well as refined tapestries of sound. Furthermore, the line-up varied throughout the band's carreer with:- H.K. (Guitarist from 1982 until 1983)- Andrea SMITS (Organ from 1982 until 1985)- Luc PILLARDS (Synthsizer in 1986)- Jan WANDELAAR (Guitar and synthesizer in 1986)- Pulcherie (Saxophone in 1983)- Wout DOCKX (Bass from 1987 until 1988)and especially- Lo MEULEN (Bass from 1983 until 1987)and the late Frits DE CAUTER (Saxophone from 1984 until 1986)contributing to the music

First-time reissue of Aroma Di Amore's 4th EP, originally released in 1986.

Aroma Di Amore is/was Belgian’s premier cult band. Since the early eighties ADA innovatively combined electronics with rock. With a mix of razor-sharp Flemish lyrics and unconventional song structures the group earned a cult status in Belgium and abroad. 40 years later they conclude their career with a few last concerts and a vinyl box set spanning the years 1983-1987.

At the notorious Rock Rally of 1982 Aroma Di Amore stands out with their wonderful handling of the Flemish language, a deep bass, typical cold new wave drums, biting guitar riffs with the occasional flavor of absolute madness. Frontman Jos Verlooy adopts the stage name Elvis Peeters. The explanation for this remarkable pseudonym choice: in 1977 – the period of the singer's musical awakening – one of the two famous rocking Elvises (not Costello, but Presley) succumbs to his pill addiction. So, dixit Verlooy, there is an Elvis vacant. A banal surname belongs next to that exotic first name. A combination that breathes rock 'n' roll, according to the singer.

His companion Gerry Vergult – who very much determines the sound with his metallic riffs, somewhat indebted to Jean-Marie Aerts – adopts the stage name Fred Angst. Completely in line with the depressing zeitgeist of the 1980s. Gerry eats and breathes music. Besides composing most of ADA’s songs, he records & self-produces a few fantastic dark en loner solo minimal wave tracks as Fred Angst. He is still musically active, more towards the electronic leftfield nowadays under the moniker Zool.

It is clear from an early age that companion Elvis Peeters possesses the gift of the word. As an adolescent he published the punkzine “Dus”. The punk spirit stimulates Peeters. He begins to transform the poetry that he has been entrusting to paper for some time into song lyrics. It is on a whim and without any stage experience that punk friends Peeters and Angst register for the Rock Rally as Aroma di Amore. On a bed of post-punk and cold wave (Joy Division, Wire and Sisters of Mercy are the main influences), they initially let out playful, minimalist and nonsensical slogans such as "Doe De Mafia" (1982) and "Gorilla Dans De Samba" (1983). Later on, the tone becomes more serious, although Peeters' choice of words continues to show a penchant for absurdism and sarcasm. No one in Dutch songwriting imitates this verbal elasticity, certainly at that time.

The numerous songs about war are downright horrifying. In the 1980s, an arms race is underway. When the Belgian government decides to install nuclear missiles in 1981, Aroma di Amore asks for one minute of silence in the hall during performances. In "Lauwe Oorlog" (1983), Peeters exposes the core of his unrest: “paraat voor de parade / de vrede wordt begraven / met militaire eer”. To this day, the frontman of AdA still proudly wears his at least 30 year old 'atomic energy, no thanks!' button.

In 1984 Aroma releases Koude Oorlog on the new and independent Brussels label Play It Again Sam. The traditional press and radio ignore the record, but in the alternative circuits the mini-album does not go unnoticed, and the group starts to build a solid fan base, resulting in more and more offers for gigs. There's also interest in the Netherlands, and due to the international contacts of PIAS, the record also ends up in France, Switzerland, Spain and Canada.

Encouraged by this modest success, the group returns to the studio for a 12" single. With new group member Frits De Cauter on sax, they record "Voor De Dood". To this day, Voor De Dood remains the most popular AdA song, as evidenced by the countless compilations on which the song has appeared.

AdA goes to the Netherlands to record their next album “De Sfeer Van Grote Dagen”. The people from Nasmak have built a new studio in Eindhoven and one of the members, Theo Van Eenbergen (later Henry Rollins), will be the producer. “De Sfeer Van Grote Dagen” is the group's most adventurous album, and the reviews are again unanimously favorable. However, sales are disappointing and PIAS proposes to recruit Chris Reed of Red Lorry Yellow Lorry and record a new single with him. "Zonder Omzien" is recorded at the prestigious Pyramid Studio. However, PIAS is waiting to release the album and in the meantime AdA is recording a number of extra tracks with producer Ludo Camberlin, including "Koekoek In De Stad". Towards the end of the year, Lo and Elvis travel to Africa for a few months and as a result the group comes to a standstill. In this period, Zonder Omzien is released.

At the beginning of 1986, Peeters and Meulen return, and Andrea Smits leaves the group. Luc Pillards is hired as a replacement, and when Ludo Camberlin presents himself as a new label boss and producer (Anything But Records), they start recording their first full album for the label. “Harde Feiten" kicks in immediately, and the group is back up to cruising speed. In the first week of release, the record even appears in the bestseller list of the record stores.

At the beginning of 1987 the recordings for the second album start, this time in a production by Peeters and Angst themselves. Shortly after the shooting, AdA goes to Switzerland for a short but successful tour, with Men 2nd and Cas & Organized Crime as support act. "Koudvuur" is published in the autumn and considered to be their strongest record so far by the group, the reactions are rather low. Both the reviews in the press and the sales are disappointing and put a damper on the joy. Nevertheless, the group is invited to perform in Valencia, Spain, where they have an unexpected success.

MUTANT SOUNDS BLOG

Aroma Di Amore have always been outsiders, even within the confinement of the alternative rock circuit. Their peculiar blend of raw guitars, electronics, Dutch lyrics and unconventional song structures was too hybrid for many. Those howewer who, without prejudice, would lend an ear to the band's music, discovered an energetic, authentic and uncompromising collective that stood above all trends. While so many Belgian "connaisseurs" had their doubts about the possibilities of international recognition for a band singing in Dutch, Aroma Di Amore toured France, Switzerland and Spain; their records figured in alternative charts from Poland to Canada.

From beginning to end the nucleus of Aroma Di Amore consisted of Elvis PEETERS, who in a inimitable, possessed way delivered his highly original lyrics, and Fred ANGST, guitarist mastering the heaviest riffs as well as refined tapestries of sound. Furthermore, the line-up varied throughout the band's carreer with:- H.K. (Guitarist from 1982 until 1983)- Andrea SMITS (Organ from 1982 until 1985)- Luc PILLARDS (Synthsizer in 1986)- Jan WANDELAAR (Guitar and synthesizer in 1986)- Pulcherie (Saxophone in 1983)- Wout DOCKX (Bass from 1987 until 1988)and especially- Lo MEULEN (Bass from 1983 until 1987)and the late Frits DE CAUTER (Saxophone from 1984 until 1986)contributing to the music.