Buscar:hi steady

Surface Noise, a brand new LP of well-turned guitar pop, complete with roaring chords and propulsive rhythms behind Dunlap's clever and cultured lyrics. Austin, Texas quartet Gentlemen Rogues celebrate aggressive guitar pop anthems _ bearing the influences of The Replacements, Superdrag, Jawbreaker, and similar visionaries _ and have been gaining momentum and increased attention. Since their debut in 2011, the band _ Danny Dunlap (guitar/vocals), Josh Power (drums), John Christoffel (guitar), and Dave Hawkins (bass, vocals) _ have honed their hooks over numerous singles, EPs, and the 2022 full-length collection, A History of Fatalism. Gentlemen Rogues have supported diverse acts like the Lemonheads, Smoking Popes, the Dandy Warhols, Mrs Magician, and Riverboat Gamblers on stages across the U.S. and the UK. In 2021 Gentlemen Rogues opened for both indie-punk icons Superchunk and Bob Mould, who personally selected the band to provide sole support on the Texas leg of his Distortion and Blue Hearts tour. Little Steve Van Zandt, Springsteen's steady side-kick, has been strong supporter, Pressed on Transparent Electric Blue vinyl! Includes hand-numbered obi-strip and download card.

“Tea House From Emperor Roscoe” by Dice The boss aka Pama Dice was first released as a B side of the early Reggae classic “She Caught The Train” by Ray Martell released in 1970 on the Trojan sublabel Joe (which we will also release separately on the 22nd of March 2024) whilst “Brixton Cat” was released in 1969 on the Duke Label under a Joe logo.
Both titles are skinhead reggae classics that have never been reissued and are very much demand.

About Dice The Boss/ Pama Dice:
Not much is known about Dice The Boss. His real name was Hopeton Reid and he was alternatively known as “Pama Dice”. But we know more about Pama Dice thanks to Gaz Mayall!
"Pama Dice was one of Prince Busters ‘no-shoes’ ‘Sunday school gang in west Kingston Jamaica. According to the Prince there wasn’t a car that Pama couldn’t nick. He used to nick the cars uptown with no shoes on & take them to the ghetto to teach the youth to drive. They were called the Sunday school or no-shoes gang as they were so poor that they only had one pair of shoes each & only wore them to church on Sundays. Pama Dice rose in the ranks to become one of Prince Busters main sound system DJs before emigrating to London in the late sixties where he MC’d for Duke Vin & recorded many great records for the UK/Jamaican booming new Reggae market in its infancy on the shoulders of the Bluebeat & Ska & Rock Steady music scene."

Ruutu Poiss with his second album “II” after his 2021’s debut full length “Palav Aed“, a welcome return to Wake Dream. Recorded in a concentrated period of time during the dark winter days of late 2022 and early 2023, “II” now finds it’s way to the public’s ears in the brighter days of the year.

An album as conceptual as it is emotional, with feelings of transformation and dreaming, hope and arrival, and an aesthetic that is both cinematic and hypnagogic, nostalgic and futuristic, it turns contradictions into harmonies, brings together the dark and the light, spinning and whirling freely around a steady core.

Recorded mainly with one synth and a collection of old drumcomputers, Ruutu Poiss once again shows his futuristic sonic virtuosity within the boundaries of a compact studio setup.

"Memorie d'Inverno" is the first collaboration album from Original Krash (Producer) & Casco aka Helmet (Performer) with the partecipation of various dope mc's and singers also the vynil exclusive include two remixes from leggendary prodcuers Dj Skizo (from Alien Army) and The Next One (from Zulu Nation and Rock Steady Crew).

"Memorie d'Inverno" is a concept album released for Outboard Music in June 22 and the title in italian stands for "Winter Memories".
The LP it's worked and founded on the classic style of Hip Hop where bassline, cuts and drums reign on the productions all made with the MPC5000 sampling original vynils. The songs are concived as a phootage of a memory, so made too survive forever in the ear of the listener. All the tracks has been mixed analogically by Matteo "Nost" Nolli at Nost Studio (excluded the two remixes made directly by the producers) with the supervision of Original Krash and the work on the sound it's an essential part of the LP and melted with the fact that most of the beats are sampled from Jazz and Soul defines the Hip Hop flavour of the album.

Thw philosophy and the work ethic behind "Memorie d'inverno" it could be perfectly resumed in the titles of the intro (True Knowledge Is The Future) and the outro (Today, Not Tomorrow) as a perfect closing circle. The message is don't waste your time around unuseful stuff and keep focused on what you like and really desire to reach, so you better tie the laces to your shoes, bust your back and study to obtain what you deserve beacuse no one is gonna do that for you.
Krash and Helmet thaks everyone who will support our business remebering to the one who hasn't already purchase the order that they really should beacuse... Italians Do It Better .

The Beloved Harmony Jamaican Group The Ethiopians Released Their Debut Album Engine 54 In 1968. Train Imagery Is The Main Focus On The Album, With Excellent Falsettos And Consistent Music From The Prime Of The Rock Steady Period. "train To Skaville" Is The Hit Classic Which Appeared On This Specific Album. It Made An Huge Impact Overseas And It Brought The Group Their First Tour In The Uk.

The Ethiopians Was One Of Jamaica's Most Popular Bands During The Late Ska, Rocksteady And Early Reggae Periods. The Band Was Founded By Leonard Dillon, Stephen Taylor And Aston Morrison.

Neither Timothy J. Fairplay, nor Norwell are strangers to the Dalmata Daniel family: both of them are trustworthy contributors to DD compilation albums of earlier years, plus Norwell has released his 'ODD' EP and 'Joint Spaceflights' EP back in 2017 and 2019 on the label. So this time, it's a return for Norwell, and a debut for Mr. Fairplay: their DDS09 split EP is here to present 4 tracks full of outer space lights, eerie vibes, mesmerizing beats and cosmic energies.

Timothy J. Fairplay's side A starts with the explicit kicks and ominous basslines of 'Caliber 9'. Slowly and steadily, the laser blasts and relentless drums all add up to define a world of space cadets on the run, where any odd-looking figure can turn out to be a malignant, speedy alien. 'TV Tower' takes us to another planet with an even higher rotation velocity. Fast percussion elements and squished lower frequencies take center stage in this intergalactic episode, but the whistle-like melodies and descending, bubbling robot signals make the journey complete.

Flip to side B, and enter the contemplating, otherworldly atmospheres of Norwell. 'Midnight Rituals' gives you the chills with its breath-like swooshes, grievous sirens and deadly asteroid belts. Yet, there is no need to worry: after an intense ride with your spaceship, eventually you end up in the same spot, where you started: in the stable and steady mid-tempo beats of an expertly-programmed drummachine. The orbital mission comes to an end with 'Natives', a dense and heroic hymn with emotive structures and well-crafted harmonics. The track starts with the bittersweet, lamenting synths of a solo voice, pouring their heart out in the spotlight, all alone on the stage. All of a sudden, a hard-hitting, rhythmic groove commences its last rush of dedicated cadences. It is full of breaks, it is full of 303s, completed with airy echoes and dreamy, light gestures. 'Natives' keeps on building its structure with elegant paces, providing a massive, yet delicate experience of Norwell's defined aesthetics. The track lets the last strokes of its gloomy synths roll out, along with the final round of looping drums, thus putting an end to DDS09.

repress !

The birth of rock steady portrayed in a consummate collection from the vaults of Federal Records

Most of them drawn directly from Ken Khouri's master tapes this miscellany of cool rock steady includes marvellous music from the originator of the genre, the one and only Lynn Taitt, alongside an array of Jamaica's greatest singers and vocal harmony group

American rhythm & blues fervour, boosted by a multitude of sound systems playing 78rpm records on increasingly larger sets, gripped Jamaica from the late forties onwards but, towards the end of the decade, the American audience began to move towards a somewhat softer sound. The driving rhythm & blues discs became increasingly hard to find and the more progressive Jamaican sound system operators, realising that they now needed to make their own music, turned to Kingston's jazz and big band musicians to record one off custom cut discs. These were not initially intended for commercial release but designed solely for sound system play on acetate or 'dub plates' as they would later be termed. These 'specials' soon began to eclipse the popularity of American rhythm & blues and the demand for their locally produced music proved so great that the sound system operators began to release their music commercially on vinyl and became record producers. Clement Coxsone' Dodd, Duke Reid 'The Trojan' and Prince Buster, who operated his Voice Of The People Sound System, were among the first to establish themselves in this new role and the nascent Jamaican recording industry now went into overdrive.

In 1954 Ken Khouri had numbered among the first far sighted entrepreneurs to produce mento records with local musicians (mento is Jamaica's original indigenous music) before progressing to opening Jamaica's first record manufacturing plant. Three years later he moved his operation to Foreshore Road (later renamed Marcus Garvey Drive) where, with the assistance of the inestimable Graeme Goodall, he updated and upgraded his recording studio. The importance of this enterprising move was critical to the development of Jamaican music and its influence both profound and far reaching.

"It was Ken Khouri's Federal Recording Studio, the womb that gave birth to the talented writers, artists and musicians that gave Jamaica its musical identity." Prince Buster

Federal Records was not only the place for the sound system men to record their music but it was also where they had their records manufactured and, consequently, the company enjoyed a near total monopoly on recording and record pressing in Kingston. In 1963 Ken Khouri sold his one track board to Clement 'Coxsone' Dodd, who established Studio One, and Ken imported the first stereo equipment to Jamaica and Federal began making stereo records. The following year WIRL (West Indies Records Limited) opened but the competition served to drive the company on to higher heights. Ken Khouri continued to work on his own productions and, in 1966, the seven inch release of Hopeton Lewis' 'Take It Easy', recorded under the guidance of Trinidadian guitarist Lynn Taitt, ushered in the rock steady era.

These two essential albums showcase a stunning selection of well known hits, and not so well known rarities, from the vast Federal catalogue. All tracks have been transferred direct from the master tapes and assembled with the invaluable assistance of Ken Khouri's son, Paul Khouri, who generously gave Dub Store unlimited access to the Federal tape vaults. The extensive liner notes feature extracts from extensive interviews with Paul Khouri whose knowledgeable recollections of working on Marcus Garvey Drive, not only as a producer but as an engineer and musician, are illuminating and educational. Both sets present an insight into the birth and growth of Federal Records and the Jamaican recording industry and are essential to an understanding of the real roots of reggae music.

Blue curacao transparent vinyl repress!

As the title suggests 'On Flute' shows us how diverse Tenderlonious's musicianship is as he embellishes each song with his signature flute sound. 'Ghana' sets the pace of the record with up-tempo afro beats, complimented by keys, strings, a distinctive lead synth and of course a soaring flute solo. 'Autumn Leaves' follows with a more UK broken-beat flavour, revealing a darker sense of atmosphere. Side A closes with 'Oedo Bushi,' a comparatively stripped back tune, a simple conga rhythm with flute and xylophone solos weaving in and out as if in conversation with each other.

Side B starts strong and steady with 'Song For My Father', an upbeat number fusing funk and disco to create the perfect dance floor filler that builds to a climax with one of Tenderlonious's wild flute solos (one of my personal favourites!). 'In A Sentimental Mood' follows and, as the title suggests, shows the listener how this producer came by his name. Tender flute inflections and sensitive lead synths, backed by quiet whispers make this the perfect accompaniment to an intimate candle lit dinner. The EP finishes with 'Dale's Corner,' another broken feel on this one with delayed Rhodes supported by tasteful flute lines throughout - it leaves the listener feeling uplifted and wanting more.

In 1999, Tex Mex rock legend Doug Sahm made the most personal musical statement of his wildly diverse career, this time going back to the country. Here's that album, his final recordings, finally available on glorious vinyl. This is the country record of a hippie refugee, with crying steel guitar and mournful Texas fiddle behind Doug's southern drawl.

Oftentimes in this busy and chaotic world it’s challenging to draw a parallel between two congruent events. In this case however, drawing its inspiration from Detroit’s recent meteoric rise from the ruins of the past, BerettaMusic a label founded in Detroit in 2002 continues to rise through a sea of noise with steady quality releases.

Widely seen as one of the premier house/techno labels from a bustling Detroit music scene, the label is continuing to make waves. This time with the re-launch of their highly respected Beretta Grey sub label. The same label that has launched the careers of artists like Seth Troxler, Ryan Crosson, Luke Hess and many others is back again.

Asher Perkins is no stranger to the dance floor. When Richie Hawtin called him in 2015 and requested his music for Minus, he stepped up and delivered a quality release. Since then he has steadily been honing his craft and cutting his teeth in Detroit with his much sought after, late night, live techno sets.

Asher’s productions can range from deep dark banging techno to heady and psychedelic vibes, both of which he showcases on this release on Beretta Grey. For his faithful fans in Detroit and beyond, they may have caught a glimpse of his new moniker, Acid Perkins, where he takes the crowd on an even deeper dive into the absolute depths of trippy, bumping and bubbling psychedelic soundscapes that will have the listener yearning for more. BerettaMusic is very proud to announce the relaunch of the highly respected Beretta Grey imprint and showcase one of Detroit’s finest in the process, Asher Perkins.

Are you ready? Written and Produced by Asher Perkins Mastered by Brian Kage at the Bear Cave in Detroit, pressed at the world famous Archer Records in Detroit. Label art by Ryan Sadorus.

Portland based act Dancing Plague has been a steady presence in the dark/cold electronic music scene for quite a few years now.

Since 2016 Conor Knowles’ solo project has been putting out one constant flow of independent releases on multiple formats such as vinyl LPs, EPs, tapes and CDs, creating one sonic palette rich with Ebm, goth, industrial and synth influences.

On their 5th studio album, Dancing Plague continues to flesh out and perfect their unique brand of crushing darkwave.

Elogium explores themes of loss, regret, rebirth and growth coupled with throbbing basslines, rave synths, and pounding drums. Knowles balances aggressive waves of electronics with enough pop sensibilities and catchy hooks to be inviting to those new to the genre.

His skills can be clearly appreciated on tracks like the first single Fading Forms which explores the somber feeling of the years passing you by. Knowles’ emotive baritone crooning paints a melancholic picture of the slow fading of time as you feel like you’re fading with it. The words fall like snow onto cold fields of pulsing 80s synths and pounding drum machine rhythms that bring forth nostalgic familiarity but feel fresh at the same time.

Fans of classic icons such as Depeche Mode, Ministry, Nine Inch Nails as well as contemporary torchbearers Cold Cave and Kontravoid do not sleep on this.
Plenty of disturbing beauty to be found in the depths of the underground

Bahamadia’s 1996 debut album Kollage is rightly regarded as one of the greatest rap albums of the 1990s. For the first time ever, Be With present the definitive double LP version of this eternal hip-hop classic, including the legendary "Path To Rhythm" which never appeared on the original LP or on vinyl, anywhere. An indelible VIBE from start-to-finish, Kollage presents Bahamadia's swirling rhymes delivered with an irresistibly butter flow and razor-sharp assuredness over a steady slew of smoothed-out, jazzed-up, blunted beats. Achingly cool and effortlessly funky throughout, it's an absolute must for true 90s hip-hop fanatics.

The entire Kollage project was recorded at D&D Studios and the ties to Gang Starr are keenly felt, with DJ Premier producing five tracks in addition to the killer songs Guru had already produced with her. Working with the cream of the mid-90s East Coast sound, Kollage is, accordingly, a record that demonstrates a varied musical taste with disparate influences, as Bahamadia has previously stated: “The title Kollage was a reflection of my state of mind. I first got interested in music from playing my parents’ and grandparents’ records, as well what I heard on the radio. I wanted Kollage to reflect that diversity both lyrically and sonically."

With intelligent, poetic lyricism and a laconic verbal style bursting with both warm texture and deceptive energy, Bahamadia’s flow was as inspired by Aretha and Nancy Wilson as it was Q-Tip, Schoolly D and Lady B. Swaggering out the gate, "WordPlay" finds Bahamadia confidently showcasing her considerable old-school battle-rhyme skills over a Guru beat that utilises an infectiously bouncy bassline with splashes of sultry jazz horns and a Jeru vocal snatch for the hook. Up next, the quietly shimmering and ruggedly beautiful "Spontaneity" is one of the most alluring on the record, Da Beatminerz crafting a brilliantly soulful and jazzy soundscape for Bahamadia's effortless vocals to float across. It's followed by "Rugged Ruff", where the rapper carefully constructs a swift off-beat flow over Premier's raw jazzy fire.

With smooth spacey synth vibes overseen by former Geto Boys producer N.O. Joe, "I Confess" is, without question, a fly love song and soothing (p)-funk groove. "UKNOWHOWWEDU" is an airy, chilled tribute to her hometown. Produced by Ski Beatz & DJ Redhanded, it rides a gloriously mellow break. It's a true Philly anthem, shouting out a who’s who of the entire city’s scene. Early banger "Total Wreck" follows, presenting a murky Guru instrumental elevated by jazzy horns. Bahamadia invokes the title's suggestion, firing her brilliant bars more aggressively than we’re accustomed to. More Beatminerz-brilliance comes in the way of "Innovation", an opportunity for the MC to invoke Freestyle Fellowship in her forward-thinking and literary verses. "Da Jawn" features hometown buddies The Roots, with Black Thought gliding into a back-and-forth with Bahamadia over ?uestlove’s warm, snapping percussion. With the strut club banger "True Honey Buns (Dat Freak Sh*t)", DJ Premier provides some laidback vibrant boom bap for Bahamadia to share a wild, cautionary tale about a night out with her girl, Kia.

Fan favourite "3 Tha Hard Way" is a hypnotically sinister cut, with Bahamadia, K-Swift and Mecca Star taking star turns to coast over DJ Premier’s raw beat whilst the tender "Biggest Part Of Me" is a heartfelt stunner dedicated to her son. Incredibly, only the European and Japanese CD versions of Kollage was released with the brilliantly breezy “Path To Rhythm”, featuring Ursula Rucker. Whilst ostensibly a "bonus track", it's anything but, to our ears. Very much in sonic conversation with KRS-One's stretched-out sleeper classic "Higher Level", it's absolutely essential so we had to include it, appearing on wax for the first time here, exclusively. Quite a coup.

Somewhat predictably, whilst Kollage was released to significant critical acclaim, it suffered from disappointing sales. In the intervening years - and for far too long - it was a criminally underrated record, an increasingly hidden gem. We hope this double LP reissue - which looks and sounds amazing - will go some way to correct this. This 2024 Be With double LP re-issue has been mastered for vinyl by Simon Francis, cut by Cicely Balston and pressed at Record Industry. It's too bold and beautiful to remain overlooked and underserved.

Audiophile reviews rave about saxophone master John Coltrane's immortal Impulse! records, A Love Supreme (1964) and Ballads (1963). Ballads is an album that will never go out of style and never be unwelcome on any jazz lover's turntable.

You're about to experience Ballads at its peak of vinyl perfection — in UHQR format on Clarity Vinyl, with the added bonus of a double 45 RPM cut by Ryan K. Smith at Sterling Sound. Ryan's cut has his characteristic clarity and transparency all set against Quality Record Pressing's usual noiseless backgrounds on 200-gram flawless records. Each UHQR will be packaged in a deluxe box and will include a booklet detailing the entire process of making a UHQR along with a hand-signed certificate of inspection. This will be a truly deluxe, collectible product.

For this 45 RPM 2LP edition you'll also receive a !2" x 12" 12-page booklet featuring liner notes by Ashley Kahn and recording session images by Jim Marshall.

The intense passionate Coltrane interpretation of standards such as "All Or Nothing At All," "What's New," "It's Easy To Remember" and the Sinatra classic "Nancy (With The Laughing Face)" are the essence of Ballads. When asked why attempt such an undertaking, Coltrane replied "Variety."

While it may have been a short detour by Trane before he exploded off into the nether regions of jazz music a few years later, it is still a fantastic document of one of the premier jazz groups of the 1960s.

Recorded December 21, 1961 and September 18 & November 13, 1962 at Rudy Van Gelder Studios.

"It's impossible to sleepwalk through tracks like "You Don't Know What Love Is" and "I Wish I Knew" and impart them with even a fraction of the emotional heft that the Quartet achieves. This is the type of jazz album in which the music just washes over the listener with it's restrained grace and beauty, and while it may not have the adventurousness that some listeners think Trane should have had each and every time he recorded, I'd say it shows off a side of him that only makes us appreciate his more bold and daring albums even more." — The Jazz Record

ASEC reveals the 'Group Dynamics' record, two hypnotic techno tracks and remixes from Inland and Kaiser.

"'Group Dynamics' is inspired by this kind of captivating energy you feel in a crowd--think sports fans, a packed dance floor, a mass of humans--people aren't themselves in crowds. I was interested in capturing that invisible social group dynamic that makes many people move as one." - ASEC

On the A-side of ASEC's 'Group Dynamics' EP, dropping via his eponymous imprint this February and following up a series of releases supported by the likes of Rodhad and Tommy Four Seven, as well as output on BPitch and MORD. The title track enters the fray with a mystifying energy, percussion clicking and shifting while cavernous synth hits echo across its evolving soundscape. 'Scala Naturae' then continues with rolling drums shot through with bleeps and squelch, the steady beat of weighty kicks footing its looming psychedelic sequences.

Side B invites Counterchange Recordings founder Inland and KSR boss Kaiser to remix the original tracks. First up, Ostgut Ton, Figure, and Nonplus+'s Inland remixes 'Group Dynamics' by adding scratchy textures and the thrum of long-forgotten machines before Kaiser reimagines 'Scala Naturae'. The Key Vinyl and Soma artist turns the track into a prime-time, tripped-out dancefloor cut.

Lastly, Inland provides a dub techno version of his contribution as a digital bonus, with ASEC dropping the excellent 'Enough Is Enough' on online platforms. In this track, typewriter-like hats skitter over imposing drums while warped melodics twist and turn on top, closing out yet another mind-melting techno offering from the Berlin producer.

German melodic extreme metal act FAR BEYOND mark their return with their third studio album, The End of My Road, on February 16 via their new label home Prosthetic Records. FAR BEYONDüs latest full-length is an ambitious and fastidiously curated amalgam of melodeath, symphonic and power metal, covering themes of courage and heart in the face of depression and hardship. Formed in the early 2000s, FAR BEYOND is the solo project of Eugen Dodenhoeft. Based in the Franconian Switzerland region of Germany, FAR BEYONDüs history to this point has been one of slow and steady artistic progression with 2005's An Angel's Requiem and 2016's A Frozen Flame Of Ice albums showcasing Dodenhoeftüs penchant for seamlessly alternating dynamics of gothic and death metal symphonia. Lusciously complex by design, FAR BEYOND's latest album shines in its songwriting structure. Across the eight tracks, Eugen compiled up to 30 layers of vocals, synthesisers and orchestral textures. Whilst a solo endeavour at its core, The End of My Road sees collaborative guitar solos from Nathram's Lukas Grasslin as well as additional synthesiser embellishments from Ari Ahrendt on Tempus Fugit and the title track. The End of My Road was then placed in the hands of Patrick Staudle of Glaswald Studios in The Black Forest, Germany. Furthering their quest to understand the complexities of the unknown and transcend beyond the unknown, The End of My Roadüs contemplative atmospherics and concentrated sonic extremities merge seamlessly with a deft poetic touch. With Eugen adding: üThe End of My Road is my invitation to get lost in the sonic realms of FAR BEYOND and find a moment of peace and inspiration. I look forward to sharing this album with the world and hope that it touches the hearts of listeners, providing them with an unforgettable soundtrack for their own journey.

Desmond Dekker recorded some of his best known songs together with his backing group the Aces. Their single “007 (Shanty Town)” made him Jamaican music’s first outernational superstar, reaching the 14th place in the UK charts. The Leslie Kong produced Double Dekker was first issued in 1973 and consists of the best material Desmond recorded during his early years. In 1969 he scored a number one hit with the legendary song “Israelites”. You’ll hear how the Ska music from the mid-60s developed to the Rocksteady sound. This was “Ska” or “Blue Beat”—(or its new name for the slower tempo “Rock Steady”), and the lyrics come from the Calypso-Mento method of telling about current events in music. He was really at his prime from 1969 to 1971, and recorded classics such as “It Mek” (1969) and “You Can Get It If You Really Want” (1970), which you’ll both find on this record. Even before Bob Marley and Jimmy Cliff Jamaica already had their own international superstar, Desmond Dekker was his name.

Double Dekker is available as a limited edition of 750 individually numbered copies on orange coloured vinyl.

FOLLOWING THEIR RECENT REUNION, THE DELGADOS REISSUE THEIR FOURTH STUDIO ALBUM HATE ON COLOURED VINYL AND CD TO MARK ITS 21st ANNIVERSARY

Ushering in a new era of emotionally vulnerable and cinematic songwriting for celebrated Glasgow group The Delgados, 2002’s Hate is the group’s most ambitious recorded statement to date. Recorded amidst a backdrop of personal change and international crisis, Hate’s internal alchemy transmogrifies darkness into light. It’s an enclosed universe full of tragedy and magic, a swirling galaxy of lush orchestration, misanthropy dealt with kindness and black humour. Above all it showed a band coming to terms with their fragility with a new power and grace.

In Hate, the band’s ambition saw them striving to reflect the breadth of human experience, both the joy and tragedy of living in tumultuous times. Initially commissioned by The Barbican in London to compose music for a film about artist Joe Coleman, the instrumental music that instigated Hate was laden with darkness from the outset. The Delgados’ worldview has always been informed by nuance, an oblique but incisive lyrical perspective but on Hate a new rawness is woven throughout the songs. Coleman’s original subject matter - portraits of troubled historical figures like Ed Gein, Mary Bell and Jayne Mansfield - influenced the tonality of the music but the songs were written against a backdrop of international tumult and personal life changes for the band members. Beginning writing sessions following a family bereavement in drummer Paul Savage’s family, Hate was then recorded while both Alun Woodward and co-singer/guitarist Emma Pollock were expecting new additions to their young families, the latter with drummer Paul Savage. In the background to the recording process were the attacks on the World Trade Center of September 2001 and their aftermath. In this context, it’s remarkable that an album was made at all, let alone one so grand and compassionate. It’s a masterclass in restraint and imagination.

Hate sounds like the world in all its ugly glory. Recorded in Glasgow and New York with Tony Doogan, Dave Fridmann and the band as producers and using over 20 additional musicians, Hate grabs the baton from the group’s breakthrough critical and commercial success The Great Eastern. Bolder, broader and more all-encompassing than anything the band had previously attempted, the album’s palette is furnished by a string section, brass and reed instrumentation, a choir and electronic elements augmenting the core group of Emma Pollock, Alun Woodward, Paul Savage and Stewart Henderson. Far from being over the top, the group’s skill is in attention to detail, in honing and refining each arrangement, allowing each element its space.

It’s a fine balancing act that pays massive dividends. Woodward’s new lyrical vulnerability is spotlighted on tracks like The Drowning Years, which throws elegiac string arrangements against the narrative of characters living in darkness, punctuated by couplets that bring a real-life documentary feel to the narrative. All Rise brings a black comedy to the idea of a confessional before a transcendent, choir-led refrain brings ecstatic resolution to Woodward’s vocal in its highest register. On the single All You Need Is Hate, Woodward’s trick of subverting the Beatles standard showcases the dark humour at the centre of Hate. Here The Delgados’ perversity is in full flow, nurturing a glowing light from darkness, the resolving melody and Fridmann production recalling contemporaries The Flaming Lips (whose Michael Ivins assisted in mixing) or Mercury Rev. The perversity is the surging serotonin induced by the group while singing the lines “Hate is everywhere, inside your mother’s heart and you will find it there. You ask me what you need? Hate is all you need.”

It’s a dark magic that pervades Hate, indeed it’s almost the driving force throughout the album. Flipping minor to major and back again, Favours is fuelled by fear and violence before blasting into the heavens with the gauche line “and you’re feeling fine,” operating in stark contrast to the verses’ tone. Album opener The Light Before We Land finds Emma Pollock in the aftermath of recent family trauma. Her vocal is effortless; a study in steady restraint against the massive, Fridmann-patented drum sound powering Savage’s playing and Henderson’s instantly recognisable melodic basslines. Coming In from the Cold is Pollock in full flight, lifted to the heavens by wide-screen, instrumental texture. Her presence on Hate highlights her knack for lyrical impressionism, the timbre of her voice lending itself to drama while always retaining a mystique. Never Look At The Sun, inspired by the Coleman painting The Big Bang Theory (itself an explosives-themed study), revels in paranoia, her performance ringing out in the eye of the storm conjured by the swirling arrangements. It reaches the peak of a redemptive arc while seemingly parodying the very idea of redemption.

Hate was the sound of The Delgados completely fulfilling their potential, a fully realised vision buoyed by the weight of coming through a darkness into light. For its 21st anniversary, the album is being reissued on the band’s own Chemikal Underground on coloured vinyl and CD. Hate is all you need

Cryovac is a family of artists that work as one machine. Individual style bands together and moves, as cogs, this machine forward. A.Garcia maintains and manages production on every level, even the pressing at the world famous Archer Record Press. Cryovac is a collaboration between artists and craftsmen to make a quality product. Each project Cryovac champions is meant as a gift for the true believer.

Cryovac #28 starts out with Jason Garcia's frantic head banger “Trapped in purgatory”. This classic 4/4 rocker builds intensity by layering screaming tones to crescendo in a steady drive. “Ichabod”, Garcia’s second track on the A side, is a spartan groove with a stoic delivery of minimalism; a stripped down rhythm with a serious attitude.

A.Garcia and M.Kretsch begin the B side with a reggae-punk techno experiment that delivers a rowdy funk.“Rock the dance bah” is Clash inspired minimal with a walking bassline, texas style percussion, and a guitar twack on the up beat. Garcia and Kretsch collab again on the B2 with “Stillgar”; a blend of synths working around each other as one storm guiding a rambunctious beating to a mystic reverie. These tracks illustrate the duo's production method and approach to the techno sound.

Our artwork for this release was provided by Nick Retzlaff. He is an artist and stand-up comic living with autism, and expressing his unique view of the world.

Studio One was founded by Clement "Coxsone" Dodd1 in 1954, and the first recordings were cut in 1963 on Brentford Road in Kingston.1[2] Amongst its earliest records were "Easy Snappin" by Theophilus Beckford, backed by Clue J & His Blues Blasters, and "This Man is Back" by trombonist Don Drummond. Dodd had previously issued music on a series of other labels, including World Disc, and had run Sir Coxsone the Downbeat, one of the largest and most reputable sound systems in the Kingston ghettos.
In the early 1960s, the house band providing backing for the vocalists were the Skatalites[3] (1964–65), whose members (including Roland Alphonso, Don Drummond, Tommy McCook, Jackie Mittoo, Lester Sterling and Lloyd Brevett) were recruited from the Kingston jazz scene by Dodd. The Skatalites split up in 1965 after Drummond was jailed for murder, and Dodd formed new house band the Soul Brothers (1965–66), later named the Soul Vendors (1967) and Sound Dimension (1967-). From 1965 to 1968 they played 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., 5 days a week, 12 rhythms a day (about 60 rhythms a week) with Jackie Mittoo as music director, Brian Atkinson (1965–1968) on bass, Hux Brown on guitar, Harry Haughton (guitar), Joe Isaacs on drums (1966–1968), Denzel Laing on percussion, and on horns (some initially and some throughout): Roland Alphonso, Dennis 'Ska' Campbell, Bobby Ellis, Lester Sterling, among others on horns during the era of Rock Steady. Headley Bennett, Ernest Ranglin, Vin Gordon and Leroy Sibbles were included among a fluid line-up, to record tracks directed by Jackie Mittoo at Studio One from 1966-1968.
During the night hours at Studio One from 1965-1968, singers like Bob Marley, Burning Spear, The Heptones, The Ethiopians, Ken Boothe, Rita Marley, Marcia Griffiths, Judy Mowatt, Alton Ellis, Delroy Wilson, Bunny Wailer[4] and Johnny Nash, among others, would put on headphones to sing lyrics to original tracks recorded by the Soul Brothers earlier each day. These seminal recordings included "Real Rock" (by Sound Dimension), "Heavy Rock", "Jamaica Underground", "Wakie Wakie", "Lemon Tree", "Hot Shot", "I'm Still In Love With You", "Dancing Mood", and "Creation Rebel".
Jackie Mittoo, Joe Isaacs, and Brian Atkinson left Studio One in 1968, recorded drums and bass for Desmond Dekker's and Toots' biggest hits at other Kingston studios, then moved to Canada. Hux Brown stayed in Jamaica to record on the soundtrack The Harder They Come, The Harder They Fall, and toured in Nigeria with Toots and the Maytals and Fela Kuti. The Soul Brothers (a.k.a. Sound Dimension) formed the basis of reggae music in the late 1960s, being versioned and re-versioned time after time over decades by musicians like Shaggy, Sean Paul, Snoop Lion, The Clash, String Cheese Incident, UB40, Sublime, and countless other Billboard originals and remakes trying to emulate their original Rock Steady sound at Coxsone's Studio One.
The label and studio were closed when Dodd relocated to New York City in the 1980s.

Studio One was founded by Clement "Coxsone" Dodd1 in 1954, and the first recordings were cut in 1963 on Brentford Road in Kingston.1[2] Amongst its earliest records were "Easy Snappin" by Theophilus Beckford, backed by Clue J & His Blues Blasters, and "This Man is Back" by trombonist Don Drummond. Dodd had previously issued music on a series of other labels, including World Disc, and had run Sir Coxsone the Downbeat, one of the largest and most reputable sound systems in the Kingston ghettos.
In the early 1960s, the house band providing backing for the vocalists were the Skatalites[3] (1964–65), whose members (including Roland Alphonso, Don Drummond, Tommy McCook, Jackie Mittoo, Lester Sterling and Lloyd Brevett) were recruited from the Kingston jazz scene by Dodd. The Skatalites split up in 1965 after Drummond was jailed for murder, and Dodd formed new house band the Soul Brothers (1965–66), later named the Soul Vendors (1967) and Sound Dimension (1967-). From 1965 to 1968 they played 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., 5 days a week, 12 rhythms a day (about 60 rhythms a week) with Jackie Mittoo as music director, Brian Atkinson (1965–1968) on bass, Hux Brown on guitar, Harry Haughton (guitar), Joe Isaacs on drums (1966–1968), Denzel Laing on percussion, and on horns (some initially and some throughout): Roland Alphonso, Dennis 'Ska' Campbell, Bobby Ellis, Lester Sterling, among others on horns during the era of Rock Steady. Headley Bennett, Ernest Ranglin, Vin Gordon and Leroy Sibbles were included among a fluid line-up, to record tracks directed by Jackie Mittoo at Studio One from 1966-1968.
During the night hours at Studio One from 1965-1968, singers like Bob Marley, Burning Spear, The Heptones, The Ethiopians, Ken Boothe, Rita Marley, Marcia Griffiths, Judy Mowatt, Alton Ellis, Delroy Wilson, Bunny Wailer[4] and Johnny Nash, among others, would put on headphones to sing lyrics to original tracks recorded by the Soul Brothers earlier each day. These seminal recordings included "Real Rock" (by Sound Dimension), "Heavy Rock", "Jamaica Underground", "Wakie Wakie", "Lemon Tree", "Hot Shot", "I'm Still In Love With You", "Dancing Mood", and "Creation Rebel".
Jackie Mittoo, Joe Isaacs, and Brian Atkinson left Studio One in 1968, recorded drums and bass for Desmond Dekker's and Toots' biggest hits at other Kingston studios, then moved to Canada. Hux Brown stayed in Jamaica to record on the soundtrack The Harder They Come, The Harder They Fall, and toured in Nigeria with Toots and the Maytals and Fela Kuti. The Soul Brothers (a.k.a. Sound Dimension) formed the basis of reggae music in the late 1960s, being versioned and re-versioned time after time over decades by musicians like Shaggy, Sean Paul, Snoop Lion, The Clash, String Cheese Incident, UB40, Sublime, and countless other Billboard originals and remakes trying to emulate their original Rock Steady sound at Coxsone's Studio One.
The label and studio were closed when Dodd relocated to New York City in the 1980s.