Cerca:hit house

• The tracks from the group’s two 1984 EPs together on a swanky 10-inch vinyl LP. Inner bag features liner notes by Kris Needs incorporating new interviews with all three Delmonas and a series of great photos by Eugene Doyen.

• Sarah Crouch, Hilary Wilkins and Louise Baker started singing together as a unique spark of spontaneous magic inextricably linked to their boyfriends in the Milkshakes, then rocking a garage-punk antidote to shiny synth-pop and brash chart stars with a direct lifeline back to rock’n’roll’s original simplicity and wildness. After Billy Childish and Bruce Brand formed the Pop Rivets in 1978, the guys hooked up with Micky Hampshire and Russell Wilkins to found the Milkshakes. Sarah shared a student house with boyfriend Micky plus Billy. After she and Hilary, then dating Russell, sang backing vocals on the Milkshakes’ rollicking Beatles-translated take on the Shirelles’ ‘Boys’, Louise’s arrival turned them into a girl group pretty much by accident.

• “I loved the music the Milkshakes were playing,” Louise recalls. “Loved the small, intimate venues and most of the bands that played with them, especially the Prisoners. I’d gone with the Milkshakes to Belgium and was somehow persuaded to get up on stage and sing something. Next thing I knew, there was some kind of plan to get the three of us in the studio.” At first the three girls were called the Milk-boilers, renaming themselves the Delmonas by the time Ace Records’ Roger Armstrong and Ted Carroll suggested recording the EPs that furnish this collection. “I think we were asked to each think of three songs and turn up,” says Louise. “I mostly listened to music from the 60s: lots of girl groups, Irma Thomas, Dusty Springfield, Bo Diddley, Velvet Underground, Kinks. Bruce had the best record collection; Mel Tormé was in there somewhere and one of my faves. Sarah came up with doing the Doors cover.”

• ‘Comin’ Home Baby’ was written as an instrumental before Bob Dorough added lyrics and Mel Tormé recorded it in 1962. The Delmonas’ finger-clicking, noir-dynamic version kicked off their first EP with authentic-sounding 60s production resonance, iced with mysterioso organ. The Cookies scored a hit with Goffin & King’s ‘Chains’ in 1962, the Beatles’ version providing the Hamburg Star-Club template for the Delmonas’ energised rendition. The first EP, “The Delmonas Volume 1”, rounded off with two songs from the Childish-Hampshire songwriting partnership: ‘Woa’ Now’ and ‘He Tells Me He Loves Me’, the latter recalling the New York Dolls covering the Shangri-Las’ ‘Give Him A Great Big Kiss’, mainly because it has similar chords.

• “The Delmonas Volume 2” opened with Sarah’s idea of covering the Doors’ hit. “We thought, ‘How would the Kinks have played it?’” she affirms. ‘Hello, I Love You’ had got the Doors into hot water with the Kinks’ publishers for its resemblance to ‘All Day And All Of The Night’. The Delmonas home in and highlight that similarity, adding bonkers psychedelic drop and evocative new coda. Their surf-tinged version of the Milkshakes’ ‘I’m The One For You’ is followed by the swampy screaming of ‘Peter Gunn Locomotion’, a cover of a 1963 single by Freddie Starr in his pre-stand-up comedian days as singer with the Midnighters. The set closed with the sultry organ-led vamp of the Milkshakes’ ‘I Want You’, the nearest the Delmonas get to the slowies Sarah helpfully points out they referred to as “shag songs”.

• All these tracks would re-appear on their “Dangerous Charms” album, along with out-takes and recordings from a BBC session, before the original trio splintered, leaving Sarah and Hilary to return for further adventures as Ludella Black and Ida Red. The eight tracks here capture a moment when three fun-loving friends got to live out some musical fantasies and had a blast doing it. 37 years later, it sounds just as contagious.

Madness’ fourth studio record “The Rise & Fall” has often been cited as the band’s best record and is home to one of their biggest tracks in “Our House” UK #5. Originally released in 1982 and reaching #10 in the UK album charts, it is now subject to a brand new re-release on 180g black vinyl in a gatefold sleeve as part of an ongoing reissue campaign.

Featuring exclusive liner notes by journalist Stevie Chick (MOJO, The Guardian & NME) and interviews with band members Lee ‘Kix’ Thompson, Mike Barson, Suggs McPherson, Woody Woodgate and Chrissyboy Foreman. Also featuring the hit single “Tomorrow’s (Just Another Day)” [UK #8].

"Empire was originally released on 20th August 1990, and is the band’s most commercially successful album to date, reaching triple platinum status.
It featured the top 10 hit, “Silent Lucidity”, which was nominated for 2 Grammys, and “Jet City Woman”. The follow up to the groundbreaking Operation: Mindcrime, the album was produced by Peter Collins, and recorded in Washington and Vancouver in the spring of 1990. Empire features brilliant and intelligent lyrics and songwriting complimented by incredible musicianship, with the songs ranging from beautiful ballads, strong melodic rockers, and classic heavy fist pumpers. This version, newly remastered at Abbey Road Studios, brings together all the available recordings to narrate the story of this remarkable album. It also contains a DVD which features the accompanying promotional videos and a live performance of the album. The deluxe version features new sleeve notes by noted journalist Alex Milas who spoke with Geoff Tate at length, discussing the making of the album and the concept behind it, and is housed in a 10″ x 10″ box, providing the definitive package."

Factory Benelux presents an expanded double vinyl edition of Sex and Death, the 11th studio album by lauded Factory Records ensemble The Durutti Column.

Originally released in 1994 on CD only, the album has now been re-mastered with 5 bonus tracks and appears on vinyl for the VERY FIRST TIME in a coloured vinyl edition limited to 1500 copies.

The vinyl edition is housed in a gatefold sleeve . Disc 1 is pressed in blue vinyl, and disc 2 in silver. A 2xCD edition is also available (FBN 201 CD).

The writing and recording of Sex and Death closed an uncertain period for Vini Reilly and the group following the collapse of Factory Records in 1992. Factory founder Tony Wilson remained in post as manager of the band, but Sex and Death would be their last album with producer Stephen Street, famed for his work with Morrissey, The Smiths and Blur.

Writer and master guitarist Vini Reilly remained philosophical. “People say the Durutti Column is this or that. I don’t care, so long as we make good music. There’s screaming feedback on some tracks, heavy metal guitar, Spanish picking. It’s not just this ethereal trip. Don’t listen to the form, never listen to the form. Listen to the content.”

Stand-out tracks include Anthony (dedicated to Wilson), The Rest of My Life, and Believe In Me. Guest musicians include viola player John Metcalfe, vocalist Ruth-Ann Boyle (later to form hitmakers Olive with Tim Kellett), programmer Martin Jackson (Magazine, Swing Out Sister) and bassist Peter Hook, then on furlough from New Order post-Republic.

All 5 bonus tracks are previously unreleased, having been retrieved from a long-lost DAT tape located in Tony Wilson’s personal archive. All tracks on the album have been newly re-mastered in 2020 by Peter Beckmann and Technology Works.

Brooklyn-based duo Julian Duron and Michael Sherburn are Earth Boys, connoisseurs of heady house music that warms you with soft summer heat. Returning to Shall Not Fade after the success of their sellout LP Earth Tones last year, Automatic EP continues the Bristol label's new Classic Cuts series. It beautifully blends jazz instrumentation with deep house energy, creating sophisticated and unique dance music.

The title track is absolutely not to be missed - it's something a little different from the duo, centralising completely infectious vocals that are guaranteed to circulate your head for hours, a clean cut hit. Jazz sax meanders over the laidback house beat and into the next track "Okokok," which nods to Middle Eastern disco, this time the sax solos pair with a throbbing acid bassline. This acidic edge is brought to the forefront in the hard hitting business of "Revolution 420", a rave ready number infused with laser cut synths and dreamy pads.

Floating flute samples bring in the B side, the hazey natural breaks but disco influenced bassline making "Hush" both muted and danceable. Earth Boys bring master house producer JT Donaldson on board for the closing track, a sound soaked with funk n soul influence in its chunky slap bass and crooning female vocals. "Love Got You" winds the EP to a close with style - both cool and romantic, understated and glittering with character.
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Everything has its right moment in space and time. And Rhode & Brown’s debut album “Everything in Motion” is no exception to this rule.

But first things first:
Hailing from Munich, Germany, Friedrich Trede and Stephan Braun are the DJ and producer duo Rhode & Brown. Growing up in two neighbouring villages near Munich both of them had been music enthusiasts since their early childhood. Friedrich played drums in punk bands at school and recorded rap songs in his bedroom, while Stephan, as childhood friend of Harold Faltermeyer's son, had the chance to experiment in the impressive studio of the legendary Donna Summer producer in his early teens.

By the late 2000s older friends started supplying them with DJ mixtapes and helped them sneak into clubs they weren’t allowed to visit, yet – cultivating their love for electronic music and club culture. And, of course, the Internet was their go-to source for finding the latest blog house tunes back then, too.

It wasn’t until October 2009 that their paths would cross for the very first (but almost last) time when introduced by a mutual friend: Back then Stephan was selling his old CDJ-player and Friedrich, who wanted to hone his DJ skills, ended up buying it: „When I got home and unpacked the player I realized that it was the wrong model. I thought Stephan was trying to rip me off - so I called him in a rage and demanded my money back.“ Friedrich laughs. To cut a long story short, the two met again the same evening, money and CD-players were exchanged, but luckily so was their passion for house and disco music. It was at that very moment that Rhode & Brown was born.

A lot has happened since the two played their first gigs together and made baby steps in music production. In the past 10 years they established themselves as one of the most reliable house producers around with rock solid releases on Toy Tonics, Shall Not Fade, Public Possession or their own Slam City Jams imprint. As well as becoming a household name in the DJ world, sharing the booth with the likes of Palms Trax, Dam Swindle, Jamie Tiller or Octo Octa - spreading their infectious "Dancing Deejays" vibes around the globe.

Following the great reception of last years „Aku Aku“ EP, June 2021 will see the release of Rhode & Brown’s debut album on Permanent Vacation. A record that showcases their open minded approach to making music and a passion for the nuances between genres - „We found inspiration for this album in all corners of our record collection. That means we are as much influenced by disco or 80s synth-pop as by house and techno of the last decades or the latest viral trap hit on Spotify“, the guys say.

On "Everything In Motion" you'll hear piano house / Italo disco hybrids alongside dreamy Balearic soundscapes and '90s-infused acid breakbeats flawlessly accompanying '80s synth pop anthems. Always infused with that signature Rhode & Brown magic. The album also finds them collaborating with some of the finest vocalists of the moment: Peaking Lights' own Indra Dunis is lending her voice to the title track for this special laid back California vibe, while Berlin's hottest export DJ City evokes a neon light romance affair on "Memory Palace", with a longing poem that makes you wander the rainy streets at night with your walkman on.

At a time when suddenly everything seems to be standing still, Rhode & Brown undeterred moving forward... true to their LP’s title.

Bounding on from the Door to the Cosmos, the label'sexpansive triple vinyl compilation, OnTheCorner has paired up new artists in this series of cosmically twinned EPs. Twinning EPs on a single piece of wax reduces the impact on the environment and wallet friendly. Each brace of cosmically twinned OnTheCorner artists interstellar balearic for the deepspace bound. Each 12" will be split taking over a whole side of black wax. Party wax loaded with Stardust. Get your fix of tomorrow's sound, tonight! Side A is UFFE's 'Not All the Stars EP' - an underground emissary channeling dark bass weight through a prism of jazz-house - dub-tech hitters. A singular talent leading the charge into new frontiers with OnTheCorner. Not All The Stars EP is aprelude to his first LP on the label and follows on from City's Dead and that featured on Door to the Cosmos in 2020. Petwo Evans' 'Bootstrap EP' on the flip side is made of soundsystem-primed, innovative club tracks. Welsh Futurism, celestial electrics and objects of space-junk percussion. CERN loops, cyber kinetic grooves, machine pulses and chugging house kicks converse in the orbit of 'Gyroscope'. Petwo Evansfeeds the tracks compulsion with heady layers awash with dreamy vocal stabs, synths and hazy harmonics.

NYC legend Pal Joey is back, offering up new versions of some classic tracks alongside fresh material on his revered Loop D’Loop label.

Seven deep house grooves that capture the essence of the NYC scene blending jazz pianos, hypnotic trumpet riffs and lush strings over the top of driving basslines, crunchy drum machine hits and soulful vocals written by Joseph Longo himself.

The creative minds behind Handy, merch dons, illustrative geniuses, radio hosts and all-round good guys are now trying their palms at the world of the record label.

No strangers to danger, they hit the ground running with a five-track rodeo from Handy resident Maroki, complete with remixes from two standout talents of their respective scenes, 1800-Girls and Jensen Intercepter.

Kicking things off ‘Taff Trails’ a crunchy, Detroit influenced, synth laden house gem with a dose of dreamy pianos nestled in for good measure. 1800-Girls puts a breakbeat spin on the original with his emotive take. Blissful, climbing synths all tied together with a solid break. Rounding of the A side, ‘Special’ hypnotsises with reverberating vocals, lo-fi organs and acidic arps.

Flip it over to find ‘Hatchi’ a straight up electro mind melter, driving basslines, crazy reeses & infectious rhythms, before Jensen Interceptor offers his signature sound on a plate to close out proceedings. Warp-speed tempo, rapid fire synth lines and crazy percussion result in a guaranteed dancefloor destroyer.

Toronto-based punk rockers Billy Talent released their fifth studio album Afraid of Heights in 2016. Preceded by the strong singles “Afraid of Heights”, “Louder than the DJ” and “Ghost Ship of Cannibal Rats”, the album became both a critical and a commercial success. It hit number 1 on the album charts in several countries including their native Canada. It is the first album with drummer Jordan Hastings (of Alexisonfire fame), after drummer Aaron Solowoniuk announced he would not be able to play drums for the foreseeable future due to a multiple sclerosis relapse. However, Solowoniuk very much remained part of the band and was involved in the recording of the album. It was a new chapter for Billy Talent, but the trusted high-energy punk rock that they are known for remains more than solid. Just listen to the thumping “The Crutch” or the introspective epic “Rabbit Down The Hole”.

The album is released as a limited edition of 3000 individually numbered copies on bloody mary (transparent red & solid white & black mixed) coloured vinyl. It is housed in a UV matte finished gatefold sleeve, which also contains a 4-page booklet and an exclusive art print by Igor Hofbauer.

"Vermintide 2 is a critically lauded first-person co-op action game that sees players smash, bash, and slice their way through the Chaos army and Skaven rat-men. Jesper Kyd (Assassin’s Creed, Borderlands, Hitman) amassed a broad palette of violent percussive sounds in creating his propulsive score. The music leans more towards this hypnotic array of scrapes, cracks, and thumps than it does the orchestral elements traditionally associated with dark fantasy — and is all the more distinct a score for it.

38 tracks (including seven bonus tracks not found on the digital release) have been specially mastered for vinyl, and will be pressed to audiophile-quality, heavyweight 180g discs in ‘Chaos Red’ and ‘Skaven Green’. These will be housed in a deluxe gatefold sleeve, with artwork designed by Fatshark Games, including ‘The Ubersreik Five’ front cover. "

10Questions is a record label by Dam Swindle's Lars Dales and graphic designer Bas Koopmans. After an amazing first release, 10Questions ventures deeper into Italo territory with signing one of the scene's longest running duo's: 'PBR Streetgang'. PBR has been known for big dancefloor tracks, whether it's house or disco, they always deliver. This EP will surely add to this legacy.

The title track 'Dayskipper' sets the mood with it's 707 drum programming and rolling Italo bassline. The track slowly progresses to show it's dancefloor pedigree. A catchy synth hook combined with synth choir stabs drives the theme home. What makes this a standout track is that the hook is not an obvious one. The ominous chords are very well crafted and will cut through you like a knife through butter.

'Dayskipper' shares the A side with 'Knockout'; a track that is both a tribute to the early history of house and a contemporary piece of music in one. The 'Moog' style bassline sets the mood for a playful approach but it's the addition of the vocal hits and the piano hook that drives that theme home. Add a pinch of hip-house and you have the recipe for a good time.

On the third track (and a full side on the record) 'Chi-Lite' you can hear that PBR still knows how to get the most out of a house beat. The theme however is more a dreamy proto house track than anything else. The syncopated synth stabs set the perfect mood for the DX7 style bells that are played on top. PBR masterfully shift from floating moments to dancefloor energy within a matter of minutes.


10Questions is a label build on the concept that the record and record sleeve are an integral part of the full experience of an EP. The artist is given a questionnaire and depending on his/her answers the artwork is made. This way the music and art co-exist in the same creative universe, that of the artist and the label alike.

Straight Outta Caledonia is the first commercially available “Greatest Hits” of the outsider songwriter Jackie Leven, an artist
who has largely remained in obscurity in his native Scotland despite being one of the greatest wordsmiths – and singers – it ever
produced. A well-travelled musician who began making psychedelic, progressive music in the late 60s before emerging as an
epic storyteller full of pathos, humour and humanity in the 90s, Leven lived and wrote like many of the fragile, gregarious
characters of his songs; large, full of life and empathy. Leven passed away in 2011 after recording 30+ albums under different
guises or with his briefly successful New Wave band Doll by Doll. Straight Outta Caledonia is a compilation collated by Night
School Records on its Archival label School Daze that seeks to introduce Leven’s music to new generations.
In an age of isolation, alienation and loss of visceral experience, Jackie Leven’s music can be massive and welcoming. It feels
connected to some universal humanity and vibrates with vitality. His songs are often full of tragedy and comedy simultaneously,
cutting straight to the heart, often plugging directly into the nervous system of the listener. His lyrics are rich, dense with imagery
that can veer from apocalyptic to the comically banal in a sentence, with a songwriting panache that can be heavy handed to
almost bursting point before skewering the song with a clownish, warm punchline. His productions ranged from Bob Dylan’s
Rolling Thunder Revue style rock band orchestrations with strings and organ as on the epic Ancient Misty Morning or they could
be pared down to the purest form of folk song as on Poortoun: Leven on stage alone with an acoustic guitar, albeit played with a
mastery of the instrument that he often only hinted at. Musically his sound can bend traditional structures or stay completely
confined within them yet still forever push towards an ecstatic release, as on the cinematic Snow In Central Park.
The most exciting, jaw-droppingly effective tool at Leven’s disposal was his voice. A multi-octave instrument that, though
damaged during a savage assault in Fife, he used with flair; he had both a brazen disregard for the rules and a deep humility, all
of which is evidenced with every phrasing. A baritone that could flit up through the register – always touched by his gentle
Kirkcaldy accent – it’s the prime delivery method for his songs. Leven’s voice enabled him to inhabit the characters in his songs to
an uncanny degree, a skill that in turn enables the listener to empathise with them and, subsequently, the singer. It’s most evident
in stand out song The Sexual Loneliness Of Jesus Christ, a breathtaking re-telling of the life of its protagonist, not as a pure,
sinless messiah but as a sexually frustrated, solitary man condemned to an existential loneliness no one else will ever feel. In
many ways the track is the archetypal Jackie Leven song. Produced by Pere Ubu’s David Thomas, what strikes the ear first –
after the samples of unemployed workers in Glasgow following the closing of the Clyde shipyards – is the audacious, rhythmic
tremolo effect Leven employs through the verses before the production opens up to allow Leven’s vocal to lift into a soar, a
freeing glide powered both by the force of the singer’s chutzpah and the inherent, doomed destiny of the protagonist. With any
other singer such subject matter could come across as gauche or worse, pretentiously sonorous, but Jackie Leven’s genius was
such that he could be this cinematic and brazen while touching something elemental and true in the beholder. It’s a skill evident in
every song on Straight Outta Caledonia, the trademark of a songwriter who revelled and excelled in intensity with a lightness of
touch.
In his lifetime, Jackie Leven toured, wrote and recorded at a ferocious rate. He recorded under aliases to avoid record contract
restrictions, played house shows in Europe after or instead of official concerts, events which were often spoken word story telling
masterclasses as well as performances of his often bewilderingly dense songbook. His music has traditionally been catalogued
as “folk” music and has been largely banished to a small, dedicated group of international fans and apostles both private and well
known, like author Ian Rankin or Glenn Matlock. Since his passing in 2011 however, there has been a growing recognition
amongst a newer generation, with artists like James Yorkston or Molly Nilsson publicly stating the influence of the unsung
troubadour on their own craft. Jackie Leven’s fairytales for hard men are often forensic deconstructions of masculinity, sad and
ecstatic, light and shadow, always endlessly rich, a resource as bountiful as Leven himself’s human spirit undoubtedly was.

‘This Is Telex’ is a brand-new compilation collecting 14
tracks from the innovative Belgium trio, covering their
career from formation in 1978 up to the final album in
2006.

This compilation includes the hit single ‘Moskow
Diskow’ as well as their Eurovision Song Contest
entry, aptly called ‘Euro-vision’.
There are also two wonderful and previously
unreleased tracks unearthed from the Telex archive, a
cover of The Beatles’ ‘Dear Prudence’ and a
reinterpretation of a Sonny & Cher track called ‘The
Beat Goes On/Off’.

All the tracks were newly mixed and remastered from
the original tapes by band members Dan Lacksman
and Michel Moers, keeping all the tracks in the spirit of
the originals but adding a freshness to them.
This compilation sets the way for a comprehensive
reissue campaign of the entire Telex catalogue.
CD in card pack with 12-page booklet.

Coloured vinyl 2LP (side A/B is shrimp pink vinyl, side
C/D fern green vinyl) housed in a gatefold cover with
printed inner sleeves with notes by David Stubbs, plus
digital download code.

Tape packaged in pink case with a green shell, plus
digital download code.

Gordon Koang, South Sudan’s enigmatic superstar and ceaseless fountain of infectious, upbeat pop music, kick starts 2021 by revealing a series of remixes from his recent Unity album, this time partnering with two of the undisputed leaders of electronic music in his adopted home city of Melbourne, Australia - Sleep D and Andras.

Stranded overseas after civil war tore apart their country over six years ago, Gordon and his cousin Paul Biel Kueth, who were on tour performing to expatriate communities in Australia, were forced to apply for humanitarian protection and made the heartbreaking decision to leave their families stranded at home, on the chance that citizenship would be granted and reunification made possible.

After languishing on the outskirts of Melbourne’s suburbs for many years, Gordon met the Music in Exile label, a not-for-profit run by members of Melbourne’s flourishing music scene in order to create more opportunity for the city's numerous refugee and migrant musicians. He immediately assembled a band and tracked his eleventh full-length album, Unity (his first recorded album featuring performances in English and made widely available).

In the midst of a successful run of singles and festival performances around Australia, the Covid-19 pandemic hit, derailing Gordon’s newfound success and growing status as the darling of Melbourne’s vibrant music scene. Forced to find alternatives, Gordon reached out to some of his newfound friends in that city’s community. The result - this set of startling remixes by some of the finest voices in electronic music today.

Gordon, who was born blind in a small village in South Sudan’s Upper Nile Valley, began composing on the thom, a five-stringed instrument sometimes referred to as a Sudanese banjo, He started busking on the streets of Juba, accompanied by his cousin Paul Biel, who would sell homemade cassettes and CD’s. His anthems of peace, love and unity struck a chord, and before long Gordon found himself as something of a folk hero and a voice for peace in a country torn by ongoing conflict.

Now resettled in Australia, Gordon records and releases music in order to support his family back home in East Africa. He still awaits Australian citizenship, and forges on in the hope that this may one day be granted, allowing him to reunite with his wife and family in his newfound home.

Unity is Gordon’s eleventh full-length album and first to be recorded in Australia. It was produced by Stefan Blair and Liam Parsons of Melbourne lo-fi legends Good Morning, and features an ensemble cast of Australian performers. South Sudan and Y Dah are taken from the album, reimagined here by Andras and Sleep D. The remixes were a gift to Gordon and his family, with no fees paid or royalties due - all proceeds go directly to Gordon to help him reunite with his family.

In many ways, DJ Black Low's debut album, Uwami, shows the signs of an artist's first offering in any musical genre. Showcasing fluency in a broad range of styles and stuffing a number of ideas to the record's brim is the 20 year-old producer's attempt to both introduce himself to a wide listenership and stamp a recognizable sound in their minds. In other ways, somewhat out of the young South African producer's control, Uwami goes against the grain. The album comes at a time when South African electronic music is being fundamentally disrupted. Amapiano, the electronic music movement which first gained popularity with a small, core group of followers, now dominates the mainstream. Well-known and pervasive, amapiano borrows from a diverse palette of musical styles which are popular in South Africa's largely Black townshipsjazz, kwaito, dibacardi, deep and afro house among them. Instead of pandering to the seemingly insatiable local appetite and growing global penchant for amapiano though, on Uwami DJ Black Low seeks out the limits of the sound du jour and tries to stretch them. On his solo productions, he uses the samples and compositional norms that make amapiano hits the bedrock on which to experiment and improvise. With collaborators, DJ Black Low improvises within the boundaries of listener-friendly grooves. The sound he creates has foundations of what could easily have progressed into captivating amapiano songs on their own. But he uses improvised but structured electronic percussion and distortion sounds to drive the tracks in a particular direction. What remains is something like a deconstructed amapiano. For a young producer living in the townships of the greater Pitori area of South Africa's Gauteng province, there were few avenues available for Radebe to pursue a career in music. His trajectory shows the vulnerability of this pursuit. "I had started producing in 2013 and it so happened that I lost my equipment in 2014. I couldn't afford to buy equipment. In 2017, a friend of mine who had been making music found a job and decided to quit music. He gave me his equipment and I was able to start producing again. That's when I started getting back to it. I tried to pick up where I had left off, with hip hop and commercial house but I found that amapiano was the popular music. I liked it, so I started producing it."

PM Warson grew up in an English town, in a post 9/11 world, drifting into financial crisis, against the staple suburban musical landscape of heavy rock, the ghost of the New Wave, and the fading star of the Indie Boom of the Noughties. He found his own fit in the form of Rhythm & Blues from half-a-century before, drawn in by records in the family collection, engaging at a visceral level, abstract from any subcultural connotations. While an outlier stylistically, he found camaraderie and direction among musically inclined peers, saving up two summers straight for a Rickenbacker guitar, getting the taste for playing live with an archetypal teenage power trio. After a move to London to study, he was without a band for a while. The Rickenbacker was sold for an archtop, and he delved deeper into his musical vocabulary - delta blues, Americana, early jazz and Rock'n'Roll. Meanwhile, via the capital's blues clubs and soul nights, he discovered a new setting for the music that had enticed him the first place, existing, not in a vacuum, but alive and in the moment.

A chance audition thrust him into full-time work as a touring musician. He found himself, blissfully under-qualified, serving an apprenticeship alongside conservatoire-trained jazz musicians and session pros. Meanwhile, the inevitable downtime in new cities on the road allowed for significant crate-digging between coffee spots and sound checks, while feeding off the knowledge of the players around him. Becoming more and more interested in production, ever-drawn to the Golden Era of record-making, he befriended the proprietors of Soup Studio, then an all-analogue facility based on Cable Street. He started moonlighting on production projects and learning the inner workings of a studio environment. A network was building, and when it was time to break out on his own, everything was in place.

Shedding the construct of a 'band' or a 'singer-songwriter', and perhaps the monoculture of contemporary music-making, he started cutting sides with a band of friends and acquaintances found along the way. Without any wider ambition, it was as much about the process as the outcome, evoking the R'n'B records of the '50s and '60s in practice rather than emulation. His first effort, the ramshackle "You Gotta Tell Me" became a de facto single, and after being urged to press a few copies to vinyl by a friend, it began to cause a few ripples on the local DJ scene. Meanwhile, a wild, off-the-cuff cover of 'Hit The Road Jack' caught the attention of a London music agency, giving his lineup an outlet for playing out. This included house-band sets at London establishments such as the Blues Kitchen, Old Street Records and notably at the opening of the Mary Quant Fashion Exhibition at the V&A Museum.

Exclusively on vinyl - 14 defining tracks from the most glamorous indie rock & roll legends.

Kicking off with The Killers ‘Mr Brightside’ and Franz Ferdinand’s ’Take Me Out’ - both huge anthems from the post-punk revival of the early 2000’s - a genre that took inspiration from the distorted rock scene of the late ’60s alongside the guitar & synth driven new wave of the early ’80s and produced some of the most creative and bruised tracks of the past twenty years. Some acts found mainstream appeal and delivered huge radio and chart friendly pop - The Bravery, Razorlight and Kasabian (represented here with ‘Club Foot’ which sounds as fresh today as it did when it was released).



The scene gave rise to bands whose growing fanbases could easily identify with them, not only for the music, but also the look and attitude. From New York, Yeah Yeah Yeahs and The Rapture are included here and from the West Coast, Dandy Warhols hit big with ‘Bohemian Like You’ and Black Rebel Motorcycle Club who scored a Top 5 album with their debut release. With particular emphasis on captivating live shows and an alignment to grittier rock aesthetics, The Vines, The Hives, The Libertines and The Fratellis all represented different elements of Indie Glam, while MGMT delivered one of the greatest debut albums of the period by melding Indie Pop with synth-driven psychedelia which included the incredible cut ‘Kids’, also featured here.



14 Essential Tracks on one vinyl album - ‘Glamorous Indie Rock And Roll’

Live At Robert Johnson welcomes Amsterdam-based DJ and Producer Alain van der Born aka Perdu to the Club, who already made his marks with Releases on DGTL Records, Heist, and Let’s Play House amongst others. His contribution is a Four Track EP called Soaring Flights, including a Digital only Bonus Track. On this EP, Perdu champions a full-on 1980s sound, which hits more than one Chord in Live At Robert Johnson’s very own set of Styles.

Dystopia (co-produced by Tjade) is a High Energy Track, in which a raw and stoic Bass Riff slowly working its way into a Break. It’s the first Break in which the Atmosphere heats up significantly and subsequently sustains for the remainder of this quite enjoyable, and not quite dystopian rush on the Dance Floor. Retrograde immediately kicks off with a South American infused Rhythm Loop, joined by a deep and analogue Bass Serpentine, with bubbly Acid sprinkled along the way. Rise Of F5 brings back those 1980s signature pumping Kick and gated reverb Snare Drums, employing melodic and slightly haunting elements, which eventually dissolve in Euphoria and a Melody to hum along with (or shout, if you prefer). Somehow It’s Different Now concludes in a slightly different and quite mellow vein, that lets you leave this EP on the easy side. Available Digital Only is the Bells Mix Version of Perdu and Tjade’s Dystopia, for those inclined to a more melodramatic Dystopia with added playfulness thanks to—you guessed it—Bells (no whistles, we promise) …