quête:in da place

James Place returns with his new LP "Still Waves To A Whisper" (the fourth release on Umor Rex). Flitting between the dreamworld of hauntological synth music and hypnotic techno functionality, Still Waves To Whisper showcases James Place's continuing development of dramatic (and varied) sound worlds.

Musically, Still Waves To A Whisper contains both some of the most immediately danceable and straight up beautiful tracks of James Place's career. Utilising voice samples from the same source as his last album, Voices Bloom, opener 'Known Cry' is a heavenly coda of sunlight bursting through clouds, warm synths drifting across restrained pulses. 'Timing and Lighting' went through countless live iterations before the current version was tracked for this album, a tunneling exploration of rhythm with a dose of sardonic humor. 'Move In Blue (Homeward Mix)' is James Places' rework of a track from 2017's Voices Bloom, obsessively remixed and revisited, here littered with additional melodies and populated by newly sampled voices. Closing track 'Names' is perhaps the most outright beautiful James Place recording to date. A stripped back rework of a live version of Living On Superstition's 'Another Mourning In America', the tune is based on a melodic line written after the studio recorded version. Interwoven with a sampled vocal, and rinsed of all of the original song, 'Names' is left behind a stark and compelling descendant. The digital release includes a remix of 'Move In Blue' by Persuasion aka Devon Hansen.

The title, Still Waves To A Whisper, stems from a conversation between Place and another artist on methods to ease anxieties and the benefits of a focused practice. The hope's for this music to continue that conversation on a larger scale.

All songs written, produced and recorded by Phil Tortoroli between 2015 — 2018 in Brooklyn, NY. Vocals by Sam Sally and an unknown guest.

Mastered by Rafael Anton Irisarri at Black Knoll Studio, NY. Photos & Design by Daniel Castrejón.

The OUER guys just live down the road from us in Berlin and we have been crossing paths many times these past years so it is with great joy we can finally present a full EP with their unique approach to electronic music on Dirt Crew Recordings. Since their debut on 'HEIST' in 2016 Xaver and Oliver have consistently pushed their sound and production, on their own OUER imprint they released four EP's up till now and the latest called 'E' is just a few weeks old as we speak. The A side opens with the title track 'Stingray Nebula', a bliss composition of layered arpeggios underlined by a deep sub bass, building steadily towards etheric strings setting in and descending again with a break beat ending that builds perfect grounds for the following dance floor stomper 'Undine'. That second A side track is a great mix of Deep House and Electronica and is what makes OUER's music so special, almost entering trance territories here but keeping those Chicago and Detroit references alive. When we head over to the B side we encounter some new tracks that really made us want to release this EP in the first place. The beautiful 'Thales' contains live bass and percussive instrumentation and is a crossover indie-tronica gem. Following that is the deep 'Inside' where an 'emo' piano themed House jam meets clever vocal sampling and filtered synth stabs to produce a great going groove. Closing out we have some real ambience electronica for you in 'Train Ride to Bratsk', again played mostly live and using acoustic instruments recorded in their Berlin studio the OUER guys are crossing borders again and turned out this piece of goodness. Enter the world of OUER, we hope you like it as much as we do!

Rich NxT's 'The Brigade' EP was a 2018 cross over highlight. Thematically linked to its predecessor, 'Hard To Be' stands as the unofficial follow up.

Rich's last outing for the influential imprint was large by any standards, spreading far beyond the FUSE dancefloors finding support from many places. Led by EP track 'Serious', which was heralded as one of the tunes of 2018 by Mixmag in their mid-year review, it got love from Seth Troxler and the Martinez Brothers at Circoloco, alongside heavy rinsing of 'Brigade' and 'Eight' by all the FUSE residents.

The 'Hard To Be' EP comes as another on-point three-track work from Rich that channels the same versatile spirit. 'Wah' is an uplifting slice of original house, mirroring the accessibility and fun of 'Serious' with a catchy riff that runs throughout. The track created an enormous buzz on the IOM group with hundreds of comments and I.D requests pouring in throughout the year, and soundtracked parties everywhere from Fuse's raves at Studio 338 terrace in London, Sonus festival and The Martinez Brother's Cuttin' Headz at ADE. 'Interrobang' is head-nodding brilliance as twisted bass and sampled attitude characterise the seven-minute peak time banger. 'On The Rocks' rounds out the EP as punchy kicks and buttery smooth bass mark this work of grooving minimalism, echoing the spirit of Fuse029's 'Eight'.

And so closes this chapter of Rich's impressive body of work. In the process it's proved what we already knew all along; his knack for providing fail-safe dancefloor ammunition for the Fuse faithful and beyond, remains as strong as ever.

It took a while before it was this. It was a place to find clothes made by people lost in a minefield of ideas who liked to party. It was a place for temporary visions that turned out to happen and were then forgotten. It was always a place to find a new circle of friends. A place for expression where the throttle had been loosened and we all careered into the next day and the day after that. We all need to meet in the flesh away from the pixels and connect our first thoughts. Somewhere to ruffle our own feathers and take off on a phantom flight. It has been all this and it still is. Only now there is a record label to try and actually document a little of all of that. Welcome to Sameheads.

This record is a morsel from the community. Novo Line, Twoonky, Kruton, Kris Baha and Antoni Maovvi and Balance Crew aka Dane Close & L. Zylberberg. Six acts whose sweat is in the carpet and who all owe more than seven euros to the place for one reason or another. Six songs that electrify a new way to no wave. Don't forget, this a mince based dish. Enjoy.

J R Seaton aka Call Super

After over 100 million album sales the Backstreet Boys return newly signed to RCA Records. Formats are double LP (1st Feb) and CD (25th Jan). Includes the singles "Don't Go Breaking My Heart", "No Place" and the Ryan Tedder/Shawn Mendes penned song "Chances". Radio support across R2, ILR network, plus ad campaign. Video plays at Vevo and MTV. Ads, features, interviews and reviews across all press. Online/social media activity. Recent TV performances have included Strictly Come Dancing, Loose Women, This Morning, Lorraine, ITN News, 'Stand Up To Cancer'. Sold out June UK arena dates. Poster campaign and database mailout.

In the cracks that sprawl between electronic and analog music, visual art, and craft creation, Yamila dances on the edge of sound and conceptual heights. The Spanish composer, cellist, singer and producer is based between Belgium, Holland and Spain. In recent years Yamila has created music for contemporary dance productions in places such as The Gothenburg Opera, Netherlands Dans Theater, and Dance Forum Taipei, among others. Her projects have been presented at festivals such as Sonic Acts Festival (Amsterdam), Arts Electronica (Linz), Seoul International Computer Music Festival, STRP Festival (Eindhoven), and Today's Art festival (The Hague) to name a few.

With 'Iras Fajro' (Forbidden Colours), her debut album, Yamila, summons in 11 songs with the strength of electronic sounds in front of a fragile voice that at times unfolds in small coral clusters. The brilliant electronic arpeggios and rhythms dissolve in the velvety voices of the cello, which are sometimes intertwined with the creations of two collaborators, the British producer and composer Clark (Warp) and the multifaceted ex- flamenco Nin~o de Elche (Sony).

My love wears forbidden colours My life believes My love wears forbidden colours My life believes in you once again

Black Rain returns with Computer Soul: the final part of a sequence of Blackest Ever Black releases that began with 2011's Now I'm Just A Number: Soundtracks 1994-95, and a first glimpse of the project's richly imagined future. For this outing Stuart Argabright (Ike Yard, Dominatrix, Death Comet Crew) is joined by BR founder member Shinichi Shimokawa as well as more recent recruit Soren Roi and Zanias (vocalist on 2015's Dark Pool) - making for the most most group-oriented iteration of Black Rain since its earliest days. Sonically too, there is a sense of evolution but also of coming full circle: the cyberpunk techno of Argabright's celebrated William Gibson soundtracks (compiled on Now I'm Just A Number) and extrapolations of Dark Pool's neuromantic yearning cut with glimpses of the thrash and industrial rock energies that animated Black Rain's incendiary live shows - and sought-after tapes for Kombinat and TPOS - in the early 90s. More than ever, Black Rain is propelled by a powerful science fiction impulse, whether responding to the themes and characters of Gibson's Sprawl or the Blade Runner universe (particularly K.W. Jeter's spin-off/continuation novels which extended its mythology, and timeline, further). It's not news that many of these works' most powerful predictions and prophesies have come to pass - the replicants are already living among us - so Computer Soul projects further into several possible unforeseen futures, its events 'set' in the second half of the current century, fifty or so years after those of Dark Pool. The hyperpopulated metropolises of Dark Pool are no more; the apartments are empty, haunted by ghosts of AC current, devices and machines running lonely without their owners...a melancholy internet of things. Where has everyone got to Gone but perhaps not gone. Oblivion beckons - always does - but on the other side of that, something else... another time, another place, a river....and a new way of living.

The story of Seattle's rise to global rock supremacy in the late 80s and early 90s begins with Green River. Made up of Jeff Ament (bass), Mark Arm (guitar/vocals), Bruce Fairweather (guitar), Stone Gossard (guitar) and Alex Shumway (drums), the
quintet put out three 12's and a 7' single during its brief existence.
Green River's influence on Seattle's music scene spread far and wide thanks to the members' dispersion into bands including Pearl Jam, Mudhoney and Love Battery, as well as the punk glam sludge rock songs they left behind. 'By '83, '84, there was
definitely a movement that was happening within hardcore, like Black Flag slowing down for My War,' says Arm. 'The Replacements and Butthole Surfers were rearing
their heads, and they're very different bands, but they're not hardcore - the Replacements are pretty much straight-up rock, and Butthole Surfers were God knows what. Sonic Youth's Bad Moon Rising was around, and a lot of really
interesting post-hardcore things were happening.'
Green River, formed in 1984, were part of that evolution, with a sound that straddled a lot of different genres - blues, punk, bloozy straight-ahead rock. The mini-LP 'Dry As A Bone' - which came out in 1987 - and the band's lone full-length
'Rehab Doll' - which came out in 1988 - were released as a single CD with a few bonus cuts, including their sneering cover of David Bowie's 'Queen Bitch' and their marauding version of Dead Boys' 'Ain't Nothin' to Do', in 1990 - but they've been
unavailable on vinyl for years.
Now, these slices of Seattle music history are not only back in print, they're accompanied by items from the vaults that had been forgotten about for decades.
'Dry As A Bone' was recorded at Jack Endino's Reciprocal Recording in 1986 and it shows the band in furious form, with Arm's yowl battling Fairweather and Gossard's
ferocious guitar playing on 'This Town' and 'Unwind' opening as a slow bluesy grind then jump-starting itself into a hyperactive chase. The deluxe edition includes Green
River's cuts from the crucial Seattle-scene compilation 'Deep Six', as well as long-lost songs that were recorded to the now-archaic format Betamax.
'Rehab Doll', recorded largely at Seattle's Steve Lawson Studios., bridges the gap between the taut, punky energy of 'Dry As A Bone' and the bigger drums and thicker
riffs that were coming to dominate rock in the late 80s. This new edition of 'Rehab Doll' includes a version of 'Swallow My Pride' recorded to 8-track at Endino's Reciprocal Recording, which features a more accurate depiction of how the band
sounded when they played live. 'When I listen to these mixes, I think, 'This is how we actually sounded - this is the kind of energy we had,'' says Shumway.
Green River's place in American music history is without question but these recordings paint a more complete picture of the band - and of rock in the mid to late 80s, when punk's faster-and-louder ideals had begun shape-shifting into other ideas.
CDs in digipack with 12-page booklet. 2LP formats in gatefold jacket with custom dust sleeve and digital download code.

Funnuvojere is the new imprint founded by Massimiliano Pagliara. Now marking his third album release, after countless remixes and EPs, the Panorama Bar resident widens the horizon of his musical contributions by launching a label "deep as the ocean" as the name suggests, and open to different musical genres. The first instalment comes from James Booth. Known also as The Gardener and North Vest, the Manchester born producer has been known for his distinctive deep sound very dear to Los Angeles based imprint 100% Silk and Hamburg's Growing Bin Records that released his latest LP in 2017. "Bath Time" is a thrillingly deep-cosmic cut rich in melodies and emotions. The EP starts off with a spaced-out, italo classic cut where form assumes a different dimension as the music layers intertwine in an everlasting flow. If the title track seems ironically like a perfect place to start a party night, "Roller Chrome" is an emotional ballad for hopeful dance floors; while "Such Is Life" is a nostalgic piece of balearic tradition.

THROUGH GODS OWN EYES
MusicForSunrises&SunsetsDarkCornersOfTheDanceFloorDarkCornersOfTheMind.
FastDeepSlowRaveInspiringInspirtational&CosmicUpliftingWildPitchedHeartMelting&HeartPoundingSexMusic

Conceived in Bali as a club event to allow Phil Cooper and Indonesian DJ, Dea Barandana a chance to flex their rave potential and dig out those obscure, heavy dance floor cuts it has been hosting sporadic parties for the last 3 years, with no specific musical boundaries, it is about the late night, early morning dance floor experiences, heads down and lost in music!

A label was also planned, but when that would happen was always unclear, however a chance meeting in Croatia at Love International Festival 2018 between Phil and Carlo Bragagnini AKA La Mano has led to the inaugural release, TGOE001 La Mano 'Tana del Lupo' EP

Side A - Sirena, inspired by the classic Italo stable, a deep and driving intro that builds with a rolling, solid bass line, shimmering effects, gun fire handclaps and siren sounds before the piano line eases in to take it to a euphoric crescendo of soaring synths for maximum hands in the air vibes...

To add weight to the release, remixer options were discussed and both agreed on Man Power, and his rework has taken it to a much different place, adding a solid breakbeat to it, dirtying up the piano and extending the mix to 9+ minutes, this is HEAVY for the floor...

Side B - La Mano, the ying to the yang of Sirena, this is a much more progressive track, subtle in the arpeggio build up and layered to create a big sound culminating in a swirling series of dreamy chords and synth lines.
The Ambiente mix takes away the kick and percussion to allow the full dream like state to take effect, one for sunrises and sunsets across the globe...

A doctor by day and a musician by night, Leon x Leon has been producing songs in his
Parisian home studio since 2013, where house, italo-disco and boogie are mixing. When he
was younger, he was immersed in music by taking jazz drum lessons at the conservatory,
and especially by seeing his father, a sound engineer, who had been building his own
synthesizers since the 1970s. As a tribute, he used one of these unique synthesizers on a
title of the disc.
After a remarkable remix of Cerrone's "Funk Makossa" and several tracks on various from
'Red Laser Disco', he released his project My Solar Brass on the same English label in
2017. Organizer of many Parisian parties, he also participated in the founding of the
publishing label 'Good Plus". With the release of Rokanbo on Cracki Records, Leon x
Leon signs a mature EP with the influence of different styles.
The first eponymous title is a manifesto mixing Acid, House and Zouk. As soon as we
launch the track, the pop & acid 80's sounds takes us to another world... A UFO from the
Islands! The other parts of the EP don't leave us in the lurch! 'Formant Sweep' delivers a
soft and groovy bass that responds to an endless, spatial synthetic takeoff. On 'Red
Footpath', the harder kick cleverly blends with an atmospheric blanket and a bright, lively
flute solo straight from an abandoned piece of bamboo on a deserted beach. After that,
'Jungle Juice' lets a crazy keyboard solo resonate in the middle of tropical fauna and flora,
and finally on 'Horizon', the EP ends in beauty with an airy atmosphere. This last piece
sounds like a beautiful sunset at the end of a long summer day.
Through all these tracks, Rokanbo EP offers us a clever contrast between synthetic notes
and the warmth of tropical groove, and places our gaze towards the horizon, seeking the
groove to disturb its line on the infinite sea.

Part II The title of the project is: "An Intermediary Plane of Existence", an in-between world, a shadow zone, two universes, the place between the entrance and exit of a portal. Most electronic music producers probably know the feeling where they, after producing and recording a track they are extremely content with, are suddenly overcome with a slight fear: "what if my computer crashes, what if the file of the recording gets lost somehow and the music gets lost, it's gone forever...". That feeling and the fact that all music, ever written and even the music that has yet to be written, is "somewhere" when it's not
being played or made. It's either written down in notes, stored in
someone's mind, cut into a piece of vinyl, recorded on tape, converted into 0's and 1's hiding somewhere on a hard drive, a cloud, a CD or a USB stick. It's been taken form the place it was before it was made and stored in another place, in an intermediary plane of existence, waiting to be played, to come back to life and listened to again. We wanted to do this various artists album not with just any talented artist, but with people we've met the past years who became our friends and people we admire for their music and personalities. Friendship is also something that most of the time resides in an intermediary plane of existence. When a friend is not in the same room, city or even country it doesn't mean the friendship is not still there. If you've never even met
someone in person, it doesn't mean you can't be friends. Even if you haven't spoken to your friend for a long period of time, it doesn't mean the friendship doesn't exist anymore. The same goes for love I believe.
Some people you will never stop loving, alive, or dead. Both owners of P-RT-L lost their fathers within a week from each other last year, but I also know people who haven't seen or spoken to their dads or moms in over a year, yet somehow it feels completely different not seeing someone for a long time if you know a person is still alive, even though it's not sure you will ever see him or her again. Their dads went back to the place they were before they were born and they will never come back the way they knew them. Just like all music that went lost before we as humans had the ability to write it down, store it on a medium or pass it on otherwise. That exact music, just like their dads, is lost forever. I know this will probably sound a bit too philosophical for some of you readers, but it's something that keeps me awake at night, sometimes. This albums is a way for us to celebrate the fact that the music on it, will never be lost because we as humans have found a way to store and contain it in a place where we can easily reach it, for ever. We hope you will enjoy the music! P-RT-L Featuring artists: Alex Bau ,AnD,Anouk De Vos, D-Leria, Daniel Kane, Dasha Rush, Frame Six Micol Danieli

RIYL HIDDEN CAMERAS/ARTHUR RUSSELL

Since his recording debut as Choir Boy in 2016, Adam Klopp mined a sound swirls 1980s synth noir with captivating, cinematic songs sweeping with pensive sorrow and glowing hope. As a former member of the Mormon faith, Klopp spent his youth both in the pews of his place of worship, but also churning through DIY punk venues, before leaving the sect in the thick of a mission in Tahiti.

The duality of faith and fiction are central to the lush explorations on his debut album Passive With Desire. Recorded at Studio Studio Dada, the album's tracks permuted as bedroom sketches, awash with camp, the sting of loss, and allusions to halcyon days of nocturnal, electronic driven pop. Retaining elements of Klopp's original demos, Passive With Desire was recorded with a full band and polished with trumpet, strings, as well as archival samples calling back to Klopp's hazy youth.

Engineered by Klopp, Bret Meisenbach, and Stephen Cope, Passive With Desire is the entry point to Choir Boy's world of emotive wit, novella kissed lyricism, and bouncy, synth-forward takes on traditional song writing bound by the universal themes of loss, desire, evolution, and exploration.

Now available for the first time in wide release, Passive With Desire is a proper introduction to Klopp's unique storytelling, orated by his full, rangeful vocals. The expanded CD version comes with a 12-page lyric booklet, and combines the album with seven bonus tracks, including the Sunday Light EP and tracks from the limited Part Time Punks cassette. The repackaged LP edition comes in a sturdy matte jacket with matte Eurosleeve insert with lyrics. The first pressing comes in limited editions of 100 on Clear/Black/Red Splatter, 400 on Metallic Red, and standard black vinyl.

Key Selling Points:
- Expanded CD version comes with a 12-page lyric booklet, and combines the album with seven bonus tracks, including the Sunday Light EP and tracks from the limited Part Time Punks cassette.- LP edition comes in a sturdy matte jacket with matte Eurosleeve insert with lyrics. - LP comes with download- Reissue of debut album

Turbo Kid Is A Contemporary Classic From The Depths Of Cult Cinema With Quebec-duo Le Matos' Score To This Acclaimed Science Fiction Picture.

Turbo Kid. A Stirring Tale Of A Boy, A Girl, And A Bmw Amidst A Post-apocalyptic Landscape, The Film Is A Delightful Throwback To The Teen Wish-fulfilment Fantasy Films

Of The 1980's Through The Prism Of Modern Splatter, Complete With A Deliciously Villainous Performance By Legendary Genre Character Actor Michael Ironside (scanners, Total Recall).

Propelling This Insanity Is An Incredible Score That Cherry Picks Its Influences From The Best Of Electronic Film Music From The Past Thirty Five Years,

Running The Gamut From The Inevitable John Carpenter Bleed Through - With Some Beautifully Malevolent Atmospheric Pieces -

To Riffing Off Of The Classics Of Van Halen All The Way Through To Modern French Electronic Music From The Like Of Daft Punk & Ed Banger Records.

Turbo Kid Is Diverse But Not Disparate; It Plays Fast And Loose But Not At The Expense Of Cohesion, So There Are Moments Where You Can Just Lie Back And Relax

To The Mesmerizing Ambience And Dream Of Authentic Alien Landscapes, Or Freak Out To The Best Of The 80's Hedonistic Synth-pop,

Or Let Yourself Be Inhabited By An Eerie Chill From The Evocative Electro-goth Vocals.

Turbo Kid - A Place Beyond Your Dreams, A Record Beyond Your Imagination.

Invoking imagery of condensed, interstellar warfare - Dayzero takes command of the controls for Sentry Records' eighth release. Based in Japan, the acclaimed producer follows up on his substantial outings for Wheel & Deal and Hatched Music among others - having continuously refined his highly effective compound of Dubstep with vocal support from the scene's vital tastemakers. Now joining the Sentry roster with two monumental armaments, the newest signee shows us how it's done. Enrichening the sound system music scene with a no-nonsense production style as well as his innovative, experimental approach - all killer, no filler.

Taking off to another dimension in 'Sunday on Spaceship', listeners are met with feigned lo-fi soundscapes, carved out of analogue noise and detuned echoes. A state of overt tension dissolves into Dayzero firing up the heavy weaponry with stripped down sub bass tremors and meticulously crafted off-kilter groove. Amongst granular, apocalyptic percussion reverberating voices of days past flicker. Diverse drum instrumentation and supple distortion keep it lively, a no-questions-asked onslaught and guaranteed way to light up any dance.

Flipping over to the B-Side, we're placed on the receiving end of another ton of musical napalm. Finding ourselves being churned through bare concrete, laced with psychedelics. 'Down By Law' oozes of sonic variance, as industrial plucks shine through the cracks - furthering the aberration alongside narcotic staccato arpeggios. Subtle use of eerie harmonies and surging feedback wails is firmly kept in check by brute-force kicks and snares - ceremonious pressure underneath. Venting high-pressure 808's amidst supremely crafted breaks, leaving us yearning for more. A pair of mean-spirited sound-bwoy murder tracks on a twelve-inch platter - enough said!

This raw, intimate recording, which took place at the start of Prince's career right before he achieved international stardom, is similar in format to the Piano & A Microphone Tour that he ended his career with in 2016. The nine track, 35-minute album features a previously unreleased home studio cassette recording of Prince at his piano captured in 1983.

The private rehearsal provides a rare, intimate glimpse into Prince's creative process as he worked through songs which include "17 Days" and "Purple Rain" (neither of which would be released until 1984), a cover of Joni Mitchell's "A Case Of You", "Strange Relationship" (not released until 1987 on his critically acclaimed Sign O' The Times album), and "International Lover".

The album also includes a rare recording of the 19th Century spiritual "Mary Don't You Weep" which will be featured during the end credits of Spike Lee's BlacKkKlansman in theatres August 2018.

For fans of Prince's spontaneous live medleys, tracks 1-7 of the album are presented in that same format as they were originally recorded.

'BAPTISMA is 55 years old, lives in Nagoya and runs an art space and concert venue called Spacio Rita. He has never before released any music.

In the hot and humid Japanese summer of 2016 YPY and I played a show at Sapcio Rita, Shintaro was DJing and BAPTISMA played a short show, too. It was impulsive and driving while somewhat earthy and dark, buzzing with dense energy like a jungle yet spacious like the hall of the mountain king.

BAPTISMA's powerful sound creates strange places - as inviting as shady.
I was captivated. BAPTISMA liked the idea of a release and we embarked on that long journey that finally led to DISK16. Along the trip we proudly welcomed HODGE from Bristol as a stowaway. His unexpected remix well rounding this square project. Finally MARIA MENDES from Lisboa served as our beacon, providing a simple and beautiful jacket for this neat release!'

Standard black double vinyl format of the album. Marketing activity to Xmas.

THIS IS NOT A REISSUE. THIS IS THE FIRST TIME THIS AMAZING MINIMAL SCORE HAS BEEN ISSUED ON VINYL

This is the first time the complete score to The Conversation has been released on vinyl. The film itself was originally released in 1974 and a 7' demo of the theme was sent out as promotional material by Paramount (PAA-0305), but a USA stock edition was never issued. In Japan the same music was also issued on a 7' at about the same time (JET-2273), with a picture sleeve, but until now nothing else has ever been pressed on vinyl.

Jonny Trunk's little obsession with this music began after I'd caught the film, late night, sometime in the mid 1990s. Musically it's an exceptional example of the 'new minimalism' in film music of the period, marking a departure (for some) from big scores to smaller, more economic ensemble sounds.

The film was written, produced and directed by Francis Ford Coppola and is still a thrilling journey into sound, mind and murder. Heavily influenced by Antonioni's Blow-Up (and not, as some thought, by Watergate), Coppola wanted to fuse the concept of Blow-Up with 'the world of audio surveillance'. The story centres around Harry Caul (Gene Hackman), a mac-wearing professional wire-tapper and clandestine bugger who gets unusually consumed by a conversation he's been paid to record. Caul is a loner, an obsessive-compulsive character with numerous neuroses that play out brilliantly throughout the film. And as he slowly pieces together the conversation fragments and forms his own story around it, his world falls apart.

Sonically this movie - all about sound - is groundbreaking in many ways, with actual 'sound Design' Provided By The Legendary Walter Murch - The Man Who Actually Invented The Term In The First Place.

For The Music, Coppola Wisely Chose A Young David Shire, His Brother In Law. Shire's Deceptively Simple Piano Theme (composed Because Of No Budget For Big Orchestra) Is One Of Tragic Beauty, Brilliantly Capturing Caul's Loneliness, His Slightly Disturbed Nature And This Trip Into Darkness. The Melody Has Both Sweet And Sour Tones, Feeling A Little Like A Slow Ragtime, Which Both Develops And Retreats Throughout The Film; There Are Even Trips Into Avant-garde Territory With Electro-acoustic Flourishes And Concrète. The Solo, Agitated Figure Of Caul, Wearing His Distinctive Transparent Mac, Is Made All The More Raw And Poignant By The Score - The Sparse And Curiously Emotional Compositions Are Unlike Any Others I Can Think Of From The Period.

The Soundtrack For The Conversation Proved To Be A Major Break For Shire, His Career Really Taking Off From This Musical Point. His Next Score Was To Be The Underground Classic Taking Of Pelham 123, Followed Up Later Ironically By All The Presidents Men - A Thriller About The Watergate Scandal.

The Conversation Went On To Win Several Awards And Nominations, And Has Become A Classic Of The 'new Hollywood' Movement. Hopefully Now This Music May Become Part Of The Renewed Interest In Old Film Soundtracks.

Anders Trentemøller's career is a travel-heavy one, with his touring schedule taking him pretty much all over the world. But it's his home port that's inspired his latest project, the sprawling, stunning compilation mix 'Harbour Boat Trips Vol. 02: Copenhagen'. Clocking in at just over an hour long, the compilation sees Trentemøller curate and craft sixteen songs into a heavy, hazy mix that ranges from shoegaze to electronica, featuring both familiar and celebrated artists like A Place to Bury Strangers (with a new Trentemøller remix) and Slowdive to more obscure finds, as well as Trentemøller's own tracks and remixes, most notably a brand new Trentemøller cover of Neil Young's classic 'Transformer Man'. The mix sees him pick up a thread he left off earlier in his career. In 2009 he put together 'Harbour Boat Trips - 01: Copenhagen', a compilation mix comprised of his favourite music, both Danish and international, from across four decades, loosely inspired by the motion and movement of Copenhagen's busy harbour. Closing in on a decade later, we're getting the second edition, with 'Harbour Boat Trips - 02' arriving this November.

Our final physical release of 2018 at First Word comes courtesy of Souleance, aka the DJ producer duo consisting of Soulist and Fulgeance, with a double A sided single, and a glimpse into one of our forthcoming 2019 releases, 'French Cassette' which follows on from Souleance's acclaimed 'La Beat Tape' release from 2013, and again delves into crates of samples with a distinct French flavour.

'François' is a track dedicated to the one and only François de Roubaix, legendary film score composer, jazz aficionado and one of the duo's biggest French influences. A delectable slice of 100 bpm instrumental boom bap, built around a seriously infectious jazz-funk groove, and chopped-up vocals.

'Sète' heads to the south of France, to the beautiful Mediterranean city where Gilles Peterson's Worldwide Festival takes place. A region that the duo have had love and appreciation of, for many years. This one touches up the tempo a little, with some sun-glazed boogie riding beneath ethereal vocals, samples and sizzling synths.


With a decades worth of collaboration between them, and persistent party rocking across Europe, Souleance continue to create tried & tested nuggets of magic for the dancefloor. This double-sided 7" is no exception, and should give you an idea of what to expect from the full beat tape next year. Meanwhile, here's another essential one for the record bags.

On her deeply moving debut album At Weddings, Sarah Beth Tomberlin writes with the clarity and wisdom of an artist well beyond her years. Immeasurable space circulates within the album's ten songs, which set Tomberlin's searching voice against lush backdrops of piano and guitar. Like Julien Baker and Sufjan Stevens, she has a knack for transforming the personal into parable. Like Grouper, she has a feel for the transcendent within the ordinary.

Born in Jacksonville, Florida, and now based in Louisville, Kentucky, Tomberlin wrote most of At Weddings while living with her family in southern Illinois during her late teens and early twenties. At 16, she finished her homeschooling curriculum and went to college at a private Christian school she describes, only half-jokingly, as a "cult." By 17, she had dropped out of school, returned home, and begun to face a period of difficult transition in her life. The daughter of a Baptist pastor, Tomberlin found herself questioning not only her faith, but her identity, her purpose, and her place in the world.

"I was working, going to school, and experiencing heavy isolation," Tomberlin says of the time when she first began writing the songs on At Weddings. "It felt monotonous, like endless nothingness. It was a means to get through to the next step of life." In songwriting, Tomberlin found relief and lucidity she had trouble articulating otherwise. When she was 19, she wrote "Tornado" on her parents' piano, and began to develop confidence in her music. A year later, she had written enough songs to fill an album.

Throughout At Weddings, Tomberlin's lyrics yearn for stability and belonging, a near-universal desire among young people learning to define themselves on their own terms for the first time. "I am a tornado with big green eyes and a heartbeat," she sings on "Tornado," her voice stretching to the top of her range. Rich, idiosyncratic imagery — a fly killed with a self-help book, brown paper bags slashed violently open, clouds that weep over a lost love — sidle up to profound realizations about learning to be alive in this world. "To be a woman is to be in pain," Tomberlin notes on "I'm Not Scared." On "A Video Game," she muses, "I wish I was a hero with something beautiful to say."

Tomberlin cites the hymns she grew up singing in church as her greatest musical influence, and while At Weddings in many ways documents the unlearning of her childhood faith, it's easy to hear the reverential quality of sacred music in her songs. "A lot of hymns talk about really crazy stuff — being saved from the depths and the mire, judgment. When you actually realize what you're singing, it becomes really overwhelming," Tomberlin says. "I grew up singing in church. I was still helping to lead worship when I started coming to terms with the realization that I didn't know if I believed. I felt nauseous and shaky reading these words I was singing and feeling their intensity. If I did believe this, how could I sing these words without being scared out of my mind That's what's influenced how I write."

At Weddings is laden with reverence for music itself, for the power it has to heal others and help people navigate their lives. It is a record about learning to love oneself and others without reservation, from a place of deep sincerity — a lifelong challenge whose tribulations Tomberlin articulates beautifully. "My number one goal with my music is for honesty and transparency that helps other people find ways to exist," she says. With At Weddings, this remarkable young songwriter offers up comfort and wonder in equal measure.

a1 | Any Other Way
a2 | Untitled 1
a3 | Tornado
a4 | You Are Here
a5 | A Video Game
b1 | I'm Not Scared
b2 | Seventeen
b3 | Self Help
b4 | Untitled 2
b5 | February

One thing The Vryll Society aren't short of is admirers, Lauded at just about every turn by press and public alike, the release of their debut LP for Deltasonic Records is hotly anticipated thanks to the promise this band have shown through their live sets and recent single releases.

Discovered and nurtured by the late and much missed Deltasonic founder Alan Wills, they fitted the type for him perfectly. He instantly saw in them similar attributes he'd previously found in the early days of The Coral and The Zutons. The confident swagger, the solid union formed by their band-of-brothers gang mentality, their willingness to stand outside the conventional and often stifling jangly Liverpool scene, and the work ethic. Always the work ethic.

Wills instilled in The Vryll Society something which has become over the ensuing years a key element of what they are, what they've become, and of the music they produce. He gave them belief. A belief that hard work and determination will bring them to the place they wanted to reach.

'Alan taught us that all you need to conquer the world is a rehearsal room, your instruments, a good work ethic and a positive attitude and you'll get there. He kind of taught us the rules and the attributes that you need to have to be successful so we've just continued on that path' says frontman Mike Ellis.

Ellis has stated that it was that attitude and that work ethic which got them through the subsequent tragic loss of their friend and manager in 2014, driving them forward through those times, propelling them to harder work, and bonding them even closer together as a unit.

That unit have spent the intervening time creating and honing their own brand new-psych sound, and building up a fanbase with their superlative live shows. Drawing from an eclectic palette of influence from deep funk to Krautrock, electronica and prog, they've created a heady, intoxicating, pin sharp, and tightly wound mellifluous groove, washed over with cyclical motifs, acres of effects laden guitar hooks, and shimmering, textural technicolour soundscapes. It is at once blissful, dizzying and madly infectious. It's that eclecticism, that kaleidoscopic swirl of influences which brings together hip hop flavours, with the prog stylings of names such as Aphrodite's Child and The Verve - pre Urban Hymns - when the drugs were still working. The dynamic leaps and folds through all these influences is where you find The Vryll Society's own brand perfect pop. Its all there in the loops, in the hooks, the drive and the vibe of this unique band. But this isn't frippery, these aren't throwaway cheap thrills for our disposable times. No, this is heavier. This is music too feed your head.

Live too, The Vryll Society are a formidable force. That gang mentality binds them together over the ideas formed by spending long hours together in the rehearsal every day. Hotwiring these ideas into the heads of the crowd through extended psych jams and deep solid grooves gives a different show every time, and with each and every set, the offer gets better. Recent travels have seen them take SXSW 2017 by storm as guests of BBC Introducing as well as major festivals such as Glastonbury and Leeds/Reading.

The songs that fill the delicious grooves of Course Of The Satellite weren't so much written as devised or developed, brought together organically over months in the band's underground lair, or over weeks in Liverpool's Parr Street Studios. Working closely with producers, Wills' right hand man and Deltasonic brother-in-arms Joe Fearon and Tom Longworth, the album took shape organically, biding its time and finding its way. The result is a work of impressive confidence and stature. It's a record that believes in itself, and for all the right reasons. This is an effortlessly cool album, the sort of record that makes friends easily. The world is ready, willing and more than able to take The Vryll Society even deeper to their heart. The path Alan Wills showed them awaits. It's a path that leads to greatness.

a1 | Course Of The Satellite
a2 | A Perfect Rhythm
a3 | Andrei Rublev
a4 | Glows And Spheres
a5 | Tears We Cry
a6 | When The Air Is Hot
b1 | The Light At The Edge Of The World
b2 | Shadow Of A Wave
b3 | Soft Glue
b4 | Inner Life
b5 | Give In To Me

The demons of night are out again: Seoul's one-stop shop creative collective Byul.org returns this fall with its third international album, entitled Nobody's Gold, out via Alien Transistor (worldwide) and the group's own Club Bidanbaem imprint (South Korea). Comprising 14 new songs, it's a dizzying, haunting affair that channels the group's manifold influences and references points (from post-punk to Stockhausen and back via club culture) and yet sounds intriguingly coherent.

Moving in and out of the shadows, Nobody's Gold breaks forth as pure sonic landscape - a universe of its own, folding and unfolding into both more experimental patterns, yet also with occasional hooks and dark catchy structures, gracious build-ups flickering among the hazy roar and thunder. After the screak and squeal of 'Lamb with a Wolf Mask,' the foreboding sounds of 'The Museum of The Two of Us' segue into a synthesized party tune about a missing friend being chased by police ('Nari Yuko Yin'), one of several vocal tracks with a sinister edge. Taking things up another notch, 'Friendly Enemies' is probably the closest this group will ever get to creating a stadium-ready anthem. On the other end of the spectrum, 'The Place Where Designers Go To Die' is a magnificent void with an immense and irresistible undertow...

Never too jolly (not even while 'Day Drinking at a Seaside Town' or during takeoff via epic pop tune 'Bats We Are'), Nobody's Gold compiles soundscapes with a very tangible, corporeal presence - iridescent sonic sculptures placed in unlikely settings (e.g. outer space, see: 'Dirty Dirtiness'), born at the fringes where night blends into day and vice versa.

Inspired by everyday life, half-remembered drug/club experiences, Pascal Quignard's disturbing La haine de la musique, Stockhausen and Bill Evans, the new LP sees the collective remain true to its DIY foundations while repeatedly questioning our listening habits and 'the exaggerated love for the concept of love,' as they put it.

Founded around the dawn of the millennium as a group of poetry-loving friends who'd occasionally meet for drinks, Byul.org has long become an extremely prolific and versatile collective within Seoul's scene: Main song-writer TaeSang Cho and his mates Yu Hur, Jowall, YunYi Yi, SuhnJoo YI, HyunJung Suh, and SoYoon Hwang went from publishing to recording, from releasing tunes to design, art direction and more. Although their list of clients includes Atelier Herme`s and the Venice Biennale (they did the Korean Pavilion twice), the group still remains a drinking circle of close friends at its core: Pals who simply like to create and carouse and dream and live and perform and play tunes together.

The body never lies. Every dance is a graph of the heart. Nothing is more revealing than movement.

These are the words of Martha Graham, one of the greatest American dancers and choreographers of the 20th century. Massimiliano Pagliara might as well have them tattooed on his chest, close to his heart, being an accomplished dancer, too. He has studied contemporary dance in Milan and Berlin, and went on to dedicate his life to transforming experience into movement, be it musical, physical, or spiritual. Massimilano's message is clear: Don't stand still. Don't keep looking back. Know where you are coming from, but don't remain petrified by the past. Take a chance at Endless Change, instead. Move on! Just like Massimilano did.

Stemming from Lecce province, an area at the south-eastern-most tip of Italy, Massimilano has been based in Berlin for several years where he's been one of the main forces behind recombining the city's hardboiled techno scene with an often overlooked sensibility for the soft and the tender. Call it underground disco passion. Massimilano's last and sophomore album, With One Another, released in 2014, was about celebrating the joy of human encounters and in parts seemed like a big get-together with like-minded artists and friends (among them nd_baumecker, Lee Douglas, and Credit 00). The record quickly hit the number one spot in Groove magazine's album chart - and its creator hit the road.

Besides his busy DJ schedule and far from the usual club circuit routines, Massimilano dedicated himself to intense travelling and exploring the world anew. 'I felt like I have lived more than ever,' he states. 'Getting to discover all these beautiful places around the world and meeting so many lovely interesting people, has inspired me in many different ways. I feel enriched.'

The result of these experiences is Feel Live, Massimiliano's third full-length endeavour. It was recorded in several intimate, sometimes improvised studio settings between Los Angeles, Portland, and Massimiliano's homebase in Berlin as well as at airports and on intercontinental flights high up in the sky. Featuring vocals by Private Agenda, Peaking Lights, Kim Anh and instrumental contributions by Fort Romeau, Tim K, and Jules Etienne, Feel Live is Massimilano's most playful and imaginative work to date. It's as emotional as sensual, as vibrant as the first ray of light after a thunderstorm has cleared the air.

Is it awkward or odd to call this record jazzy Presumptuous to pinpoint its spacial, almost orchestral qualities Unfair on the ruling Cosmic powers to highlight its aspirations of founding a new land of Balearic Harmonia and getting down at a huge fertility rite with electro enthusiasts and house lovers Not one bit. Feel Live is pure grandeur and elegance. It feels like an eternal movement.

Martha Graham has dedicated her whole life to dancing. 'It's permitting life to use you in a very intense way,' she said. 'Sometimes it is not pleasant. Sometimes it is fearful. But nevertheless it is inevitable.' Massimilano couldn't agree more. His advice when facing the inevitable: 'Live what you are feeling, feel what you are experiencing, good or bad, it is an experience.'

Boum Boum Boum! 25 years of KOMPAKT. When a record label still thrives after a quarter of a century thanks to a focus of what was expected to be a short lived music phenomenon called TECHNO, then it stands to prove two things; that it techno has taken its place amongst serious, multilayered musical genres like rock'n'roll, pop and folk music. And that KOMPAKT has never been only for techno, but KOMPAKT stands as a broad-minded, genre-defying entity that has set out to cross-pollinate all kinds of musical inventions within the realm of electronic music. Through its course, KOMPAKT has sent 'Around The World', all kinds of sub-genres, concept series and crossover adventures based on the non- negotiable 4/4 beat. And back again.

Without a doubt, the 100% kickdrum-free POP AMBIENT series is the most endearing and enduring concept that I have had the pleasure to curate. From the start, I felt there was a strong need to add a certain pop- elegance - ensouled by discourse as much as hedonism - to a sound that was recognized as 'Chill Out' music that could be heard in seedy techno club back rooms and forgotten festival areas. Over the years, I like to imagine that POP AMBIENT has crystallized into a highly recognizable trademark sound and a multi-facetted musical universe of its own.

So once again, I had the pleasure to put together this year's edition by plowing through an ocean of sonic jewelry that had been submitted from all over the world by new and old friends. The task was clear: for this special edition, I must create a homogenous listening experience that would both appeal to our trusting followers, to continue our tradition while integrating new micro facets , variations and influences from neighboring musical universes as possible. Obligatory while being innovative. Conspirative while being cosmopolitan. Albeit the headline 'Ambient' might sound a little too humble for a compilation that encompasses aspects of neo classic, atonal music and the most beautiful aural kitsch imaginable, it still helps as a necessary means of orientation in the best possible sense. Same goes for another dear tradition: Veronika Unland's abstract-floral cover design that keeps on pleasing our sore eyes year after year.

Although each and every POP AMBIENT edition doesn't shy away from diving into the relevant question of 'What is contemporary discourse music' - in the end it all boils down to that elevated moment where all theory dissolves into ambient air, into a higher state of cosmic bliss. POP AMBIENT is sacral music for non-believers.

Wolfgang Voigt Cologne, October 2018

Bum Bum Bum. 25 Jahre KOMPAKT. Wenn ein Musiklabel, das seine inhaltliche Ausrichtung im Wesentlichen auf den anfangs als schnelllebig und vor allem kurzlebig apostrophierten - hype' Techno setzt, nach 25 Jahren in jeder Beziehung immer noch voll im Saft steht, dann zeigt das zwei Dinge: Das erstens mittlerweile jeder bemerkt haben du¨rfte, dass Techno eben kein kurzftristiger hype ist, sondern vielmehr ein vielschichtiges, ernstzunehmendes Genre, das sich ebenso wie Rock'n'Roll oder Schlager fest in der Musikgeschichte etabliert hat.

Und zweitens, dass KOMPAKT nie nur ein reines Technolabel war und ist, sondern ein nach vielen Seiten aufgeschlossenes Experimentierfeld, das sich von Anfang an der Grenzu¨berschreitung und dem musikalischen Erfindungsreichtum verschrieben hat. U¨ber die Jahre wurden unter dem KOMPAKT-Signet etliche Subgenres, Konzeptreihen und Crossoverwagnisse auf Basis der unverhandelbaren geraden Bassdrum - around the world' und wieder zuru¨ck geschickt.

Eine der wohl scho¨nsten und nachhaltigsten Konzeptreihen du¨rfte wohl die bassdrumfreie POP AMBIENT-Serie sein, die ich als KOMPAKT-- Altvorderer' nach wie vor die ja¨hrliche Freude habe, zu kompilieren. Dabei hat sich u¨ber die Jahre aus dem anfa¨nglichen Bedu¨rfnis der seit den fru¨hen 90er Jahren in den sogenannten - Chilloutrooms ' grossra¨umiger Technoclubs, - Lounges' und - Muzakkneipen' entstandenen - Entspannungsmusik' etwas entgegenzusetzen, eine eher von Pop-Eleganz, Diskurs und Hedonismus beseelte, eigene Spielart ambienter Musik, eine vielschichtige programmatische Musik mit hohem Widererkennungswert entwickelt.

So hatte ich auch im Jubila¨umsjahr einmal mehr die Qual der Wahl, aus den aus aller Welt kommenden, grossartigen Klangpreziosen guter alter sowie neuer Freunde die subjektiv besten zu einem homogenen Ho¨rerlebnis zusammenzufu¨hren. Dabei ist mir immer sehr wichtig, einerseits den Erwartungen der treuen Ho¨rerschaft im Bezug auf Traditionsverpflichtung gerecht zu werden und andererseits auch immer mo¨glichst viele Mikrofacetten, Varianten und Einflu¨sse angrenzender Stile und Universen aufzugreifen. Innovativ und verbindlich. Konspirativ und weltoffen. Auch wenn der U¨berbegriff Ambient, fu¨r eine Kompilation die sowohl Aspekte von Neuer Klassik, Atonalita¨t und Kunstmusik mit den allerscho¨nsten Seelenkitschklangwelten zu vereinen sucht, zu eng gefasst ist, so hilft er doch bei der notwendigen Orientierung im besten Sinne. Ebenso wie die Tradition gewordenen, wunderscho¨n abstrakt-floralen Kunstblumenwelten der von Veronika Unland gestalteten Cover, die ein ums andere Jahr auch die Augen in Verzu¨ckung versetzten.

Auch wenn jede Kompilation sich aufs Neue an den relevanten Fragen zeitgema¨sser Diskursmusik abarbeitet, so ist der erhabene Moment am Ende doch der, in dem sich alles zu Gunsten eines - ho¨heren, kosmischen' Ho¨rerlebnisses, im wahrsten Sinne des Wortes in ambiente Luft auflo¨st.

POP AMBIENT ist die sakrale Musik der Ungla¨ubigen.

Wolfgang Voigt / September 2018

"In 2016, 21 years after Acid Mothers Temple & The Melting Paraiso U.F.O. were founded in Osaka, Japan, there was a major shift in the line-up and "Next Generation" was added to the bands name. We now view the first 20 years of the bands career as chapter one in our story, and we are now turning the page to start chapter two. In 2018, it's time to re-record our classics with this new line-up, we just opened the door to the next stage!' (Kawabata Makoto 2018)
 
Twenty four years into their existence, Acid Mothers Temple & The Melting Paraiso U.F.O. have circled the globe at least a few dozen times, released over 100 albums in their various guises and played thousands of shows.
 
In recent years, they've experienced seismic line up changes which has given them yet another new lease of life ... or a rebirth if you will. Original members Kawabata Makoto (guitar, speed guru) and Higashi Hiroshi (synthesizer, noodle god) are now joined by Jyonson Tsu (vocal, midnight whistler), Satoshima Nani (drums, another dimension) and Wolf (bass, space & time) and as anyone that has seen the new line up live will testify, things have gone even more cosmic ...
 
'Reverse Of Rebirth In Universe' sees the band return to their old label Riot Season for the first time since 2012's 'IAO Chant From The Melting Paraiso Underground Freak Out' (CD still available). Both label and band have gone on some wonderful journeys during that time apart but both felt the stars were finally correctly realigned to renew their partnership in all things weird.
 
Long time AMT fans will immediately recognise some of the song titles listed on the album sleeve here. But the songs themselves have been reworked and transformed far away from their original versions. New boy Jyonson Tsu's quiet, almost whispered vocals bring a whole new aura to proceedings, despite the familiar riffs hidden in the depths below them. It's so laid back in places it's practically horizontal, with only occasional trademark piercing guitar squeals threatening to destroy the peace and calm. The whole of side two is taken up with the twenty minute epic 'Black Summer Song' .. and if this is an indicator to where the AMT mothership is heading going forwards we're all in for another fucked up and magical ride.
 
If you stepped off the AMT ride over the years, possibly overwhelmed by the amount of releases they were once firing out ... it could be time to step back on it and check out where they're currently at. In a world that's more messed up than ever, we could all use a little break away from the norm, and nobody takes you as far away from the norm as possible as Acid Mothers Temple & The Melting Paraiso U.F.O.
 

Russian born and very gifted musician Aleceo is a new addition to the ongoing rooster of Copenhagen's prolific Music For Dreams label - Aleceo came to attention of label boss Kenneth Bager with the brilliant first Ep 'Clouds' - (all tracks included here.).
Aleceo has his own musical voice, he produces and composes music that is rich in harmonies and melodies - he sits somewhere between Balearic and Deep House - combining the past and moving forward and this double vinyl 'Teletrip' is an excellent taster of his many talents and a real body of work.

'Liebe Tanzen' is a sunny mood full of vintage Roland vocoders, imagine yourself in a Zeppelin watching the earth from the skies and hearing handclaps, acidic noodling and beautiful rhodes combined with a high-pitched soulful voice repeating 'Take My Love' and you have the mood of a modern soul track supported by the balearic brigade. 'Dipping Into You' is a deep house mood featuring the beautiful voice of Jelila- sounding like a late 80 ties Boy's Own track played in a barn just when the Sunrise appears.
One of the outstanding killer tunes and a real grower on the debut album by Aleceo is the single 'Whisper To the Wind' a track recorded with Canadian singer Wulf SoulFire - ten minutes of powerful Roland 909 drums, talking verses and a sublime chorus.
'Nevesomost' - a cinematic, melancholic acidic journey that was inspired by the old USSR Sci Fi movie 'Moscow - Cassiopeya' where a group of children was sent to Mars. 'Monotone' recorded in Bali and sung by guest singer Masha Verymaryland - a french song about a girl who loves to dance and sing with arpeggios, Xylophones that sets the mood for a dreamy French Riviera. 'Clouds' is first class ambience feat the Siberian multi-instrumentalist Sergi

Kampanella playing the Mandolla. The title track 'Teletrip' is tv samples mixed with 80 ties new wave drum machines. 'Priceless' is a downtempo documentary live recording Aleceo did with his American native friend Kita. 'Dome' full of accordions, balalaika, handclaps and melancholic keys tells the story of Dome of God - the place of peace and happiness and makes you wanna sit by the seaside.

'Know Him' is inspired by gospel from the Mississippi church. 'Mzi' wouldn't sound out of place in a Leo Mas warm up tape from Amnesia in Ibiza - middle 80ties with its obscure breakdown full of 30/40ties voices.

Bonus is the inclusion of Kenneth Bager's reprise of 'Dome'.

The album 'Teletrip' by Aleceo feels like a forgotten balearic album with a modern twist suddenly washed upon the shores on the White Isle.

The Latest Release By Musique Pour La Danse Is A Reissue Of A Rare And Cult Record, Super Novas Planetary Invazion Ep. It Is Part Of A 4 Ep Reissue Series Of Nate Krafft's Music Under Several Aliases (super Nova, Naquil). Originally Released By Infra In 1996, This Is An Off-kilter Ep That Should Be Filed Under Techno / Electro / Detroit But That Also Goes Beyond These Categories.

Behind Super Nova Is Nate Krafft, A Producer From The Mid West With Only A Handful Of Releases Under Different Aliases. The Planetary Invazion Ep Sees The Artist Explore Uncharted Territories, Disregarding Common Dancefloor Tropes To Instead Take The Listener To New And Wonderful Places. If There Ever Was A Record Way Too Far Ahead Of Its Time When It Initially Got Released But That Deserves A Second Chance Because Its Aesthetic Is Remarkably Relevant These Days, This Is It.

For the third chapter of Refined Productions Aleksandra Grünholz aka We Will Fail delivers her third full length album entitled Dancing on her recently launched label with Jakub Mikolajczyk, head of MonotypeRec label and MonotypePressings. Here she tells the story:

'Taking a break from rationality, my first thoughts about the theme of this album were about the night, when our sight is limited and thoughts are corrupted by fatigue. I don't dance anymore, I don't party, I don't let myself go. Some time ago that part of life slipped away from me. This album is like silently entering into a place you shouldn't be in. A lot of rave inspired sounds were used on the album, dreamy pads, arpeggios, simple melodic structures; but this album is not easy and simple.

As head of a graphic design studio in Warsaw, last year was very hard for me, the amount of work started to overwhelm me; I started to feel stupid and possessed by the work, this is how the tracks 'Very Urgent' and 'Economic Maladies' were born. While the track 'Reason' is about losing rationality and how easy it is to do.

'Put Your Hands Up in the Air' encompasses the rave. It's also a kind of question, can music itself tell a story Very often in EDM or trance music there is a story and I like to call it catharsis. A moment, when the beat slows down and melody/pads become solo. I tried to extract this moment, without adding drops and aggressive rhythms.

'So Who's the Man' is about regaining the power, slowly but consequently. This album is a about feeling bold, monstrous and strong. Like looking insolently into someones eyes. You have to be patient with this one, because it builds up slowly. If you listen only for a fragment you miss the whole idea.

'Beasts from the East' was inspired by the thought of being a small peace loving person in a chaotic world that is dominated by stupidity.

The track '2018' epitomises the rave, but more complicated. Each of the layers are a but simplistic and could construct a dance track, but as there are so many sounds simultaneously, it can become disturbing in the perfect way.

'Diving in Plastic' was fit for the last track, I didn't want the album to have a perfect conclusion, I wanted to leave the listener hanging and ready for more.'

Composer, Synthesist And Producer Matt Robertson Is Set To Release His New Album 'entology' Via Tape Club Records On 16th November 2018. It Follows His Warmly Received 2016 Album 'in Echelon', Described By Mojo As "nils Frahm's Modern Classical Meets Jon Hopkins' Grainy Techno", "an Album Of Symphonic Electronica And Leftfield Techno Thats Cinematic In Scale" In Mixmag And "magnificent Wild Sound" By The Line Of Best Fit.

As Musical Director For Björk, Cinematic Orchestra And Anohni As Well As Working With Lamb, Emiliana Torrini And Bat For Lashes, Matt Has A Wealth Of Experience Collaborating With Some Of The Most Exciting Artists In The World. Working With A Collection Of Vintage, Modern And Diy Synths, And Combining Electronic Music Production With Classical Composition And Cinematic Soundscapes - Artists, Producers And Film Composers Alike Seek His Enveloping And Distinct Sound.

"i Love The Idea That Not So Very Long Ago, The Idea That A Species Could Become Extinct At All Was Laughed At. In The 17th Century, Fossils Were Believed To Be From Mythical Creatures Like Dragons. In 1796, George Cuvier Presented The Idea That A Species Could Have Existed And Now No Longer Existed, And He Was Laughed At By Scientists. Darwin Then Suggested That Evolution Did Not Need Catastrophic Events To Explain Extinction - More That It Was Due To Perpetual Competition In An Overcrowded World.

I'm Adopting The Word "entology" To Be An Awareness Of Our Current Period Of Geological Time Being An Extinction Period, Where An Extinction Period Is Defined As A Time When A Significant Proportion Of Species Die In A Geologically Insignificant Amount Of Time. I Was Trying To Imagine The Obvious Desolate Spaces Of A Post Apocalyptic World, But Also The Slightly More Opaque Vision Of The Fact That So Many Things Are Becoming Extinct Around Us Without Us Noticing, Or Even Being Aware Of Their Existence In The First Place.

The Idea Is Of Desolation But, Because Of The Awareness, Also Of Hope."

- Matt Robertson

Skin Town's unexpected return with their new album 'Country' finds the duo upping the already high bar set on their striking dark pop gem debut 'The Room' with a dauntless artistic statement that trades clever posturing for vulnerability. Yielding their prowess with more restraint, Skin Town's 'Country' hits harder and cuts deeper - doubling down on their narcotic cocktail of strong R&B hooks, spacious bewitching productions, and marked sense of melody that puts vocalist Grace Hall and multi-instrumentalist Nick Turco in a class of their own.

Many saw that potential on their debut with support from Dazed, Interview, The FADER, KCRW, as well as artists like Tinashe shouting out Skin Town. Lamenting on the duo's unmistakable chemistry, Pitchfork says, "Turco's synthscapes are huge and scene-stealing, while Hall's husky voice strikes a glorious medium between Abel Tesfaye and Sade." Their latest is even more potent, a particular strain of sad dance music that feels timeless and raw.

'Country' refines Skin Town's minimal framework of tethering hip-hop/R&B rhythms to Hall's smoky, precise phrasing exploring richer atmospheres and darker concerns. Written and recorded over 3 years, the album touches upon depression, loss, hedonism, poverty, rebellion, sex work, empowerment, and love's contradictions. The album's completion was sidetracked many times with Hall suffering a string of life-threatening mysterious immune system ailments, as a result there is a lot of pain and joy in this record, made with literal blood and tears.

The opener "Bad" signals at this departure from their upbeat predecessor stripping away the beats, relying on the interplay between Turco's ringing chords, the enveloping synthwork and Hall's melancholic, rhythmic intonations. "Mute" brings back the drums, couched in a slinking hip-hop beat and a creeping synth lead. Throughout the record, Turco's productions glean from an eclectic, disparate mix: melodic Amiga tracker music, Metro Boomin', New Age, The-Dream while Hall seems ever more comfortable exploring syncopation and half-rap/half-sung excursions. This is inventive, uncanny pop music where Enya, Offset, Zola Jesus, and Future inhabit the same space.

Skin Town's unerwartete Rückkehr mit ihrem neuen Album "Country' hebt die sowieso schon recht hohe Messlatte ihres markanten Dark-Pop-Juwelen-Debüts "The Room' noch ein wenig höher. Skin Town's - Country" schlägt härter zu und schneidet tiefer - und verdoppelt ihren narkotischen Cocktail aus starken R&B-Hooks, einer großzügigen, betörenden Produktion und einem ausgeprägten Sinn für Melodie. Das ist erfinderische, unheimliche Popmusik, bei der Enya, Offset, Zola Jesus und Future im selben Raum leben.

Viele sahen dieses Potenzial bei ihrem Debüt und so gab es reichlich support von Dazed, Interview, The FADER, KCRW sowie Künstlern wie Tinashe. Pitchfork hob die unverwechselbare Chemie des Duos vor und sagte: "Turcos Synth-Landschaften sind riesig und szenenraubend, während Halls heisere Stimme eine Klasse für sich ist, angesiedelt zwischen Abel Tesfaye und Sade.'

Country' verfeinert den minimalen Rahmen von Skin Town, Hip-Hop/R&B-Rhythmen mit Hall's rauchigen, präzisen Vocals, die weitere Atmosphären und dunklere Anliegen erforschen. Das Album behandelt verschiedenste Felder von Depressionen, Verlust, Hedonismus, Armut, Rebellion, Sexarbeit, Empowerment bis zu den Widersprüchen der Liebe. Die Fertigstellung des Albums wurde mehrmals aufgeschoben, wobei Hall eine Reihe von lebensbedrohlichen, mysteriösen Immunsystem-Krankheiten erlitt, was dazu führte, dass viel Schmerz und Freude auf dieser Platte zu finden sind, die sprichwörtlich mit Blut und Tränen gemacht wurde.

Following a first vinyl appearance on You And Your Hippie Friends' 'A Very Nice Combinado Volume Dos' (YAYHF 03) earlier this year, Mexican producer PAULOR aka Paulo Rodriguez gets ready for his first solo outing with Hippie Dance's sister label.

Curated by Rebolledo, the imprint has established an impressive talent pool within only three releases, including both veteran and upcoming talent such as Sebastien Bouchet, El Güero, Zombies In Miami, Beyou, Roman Flügel and more. It's a testament to the label's chiselled vision that an idiosyncratic and diverse group such as this is able to sustain individual approaches to electronic music while weaving a coherent sonic tapestry from all its ingredients, the whole quite organically being more than the sum of its parts.

Now, it's up to PAULOR to flesh out his own sound cosmos on You And Your Hippie Dance's latest 12' drop, presenting a concoction of salt-caked beats, riffing guitars and flexing bass that evokes a sense for space and untouched, psychedelic landscapes not unlike Rebolledo's very own desert funk vignettes. After 'La Race' (his contribution to 'A Very Nice Combinado Volume Dos') and the 'Discótico Desértico' remix for Rebolledo's 'Mondo Re-Alterado' (HIPPIE DANCE 10 LP) started making the rounds in tastemaker DJ sets, PAULOR caught a major moment of inspiration while performing at Monterrey's TOPAZDeluxe - which lead to the husky, hypnotic cut PAULOR'S BLUES, pièce de résistance and headstone in one, as it set the scene and also birthed enough follow-up tracks to naturally grow into a cohesive, full-blown EP.

From echo-drenched, beatless opener NEBLINA to the percussion-infused intrigue of DELIRIO EN CARRETERA, the athletic pop minimalism of AMIGOS or the slow burn of brooding mystery shuffle LUCES CALLING, PAULOR creates a unique, atmospheric sound panorama that excites minds and bodies alike. Adorned with a starry night sky, the record's cover artwork couldn't be more fitting - it's a dominant musical vista in PAULOR's work, whose vantage point is not necessarily a specific place (although all tracks were recorded in Xalapa), but a feeling of exquisite duality: the feeling of being lost between the stars, lonely and connected at the same time, a speck of dust and the center of the universe.

No one had been through those doors in years. Unchanged, seemingly untouched, just a Guard watching over it, one wondered whether the place would ever see the light of day again. Built in the 70s by Scotch, there were only twenty such places in the entire world. Twenty studios, all identical. Most had undergone a digital makeover in the 80s, but not this one; situated in Lomé, this studio had stayed true to its original form. Silent and uninhabited but waiting for one thing, and one thing only: for the sacred fire to be lit once again. That of the Togolese Recording Office, is studio OTODI for those in the know. Through thick layers of dust, the console was vibrating still, impatient to be turned on and spurt out the sound so unique to analog. That sound is what Peter Solo and his band Vaudou Game came to seek out.

The original vibrations of Lomé's sound, resonating within the studio space, an undercurrent pulsing within the walls, the floor, and the entire atmosphere. A presence at once electrical and mystical sourced through the amps that had never really gone cold, despite the deep sleep that they had been forced into. In taking over the studio's 3000 square feet, enough to house a full orchestra, Vaudou Game had the space necessary to conjure the spirits of voodoo, those very spirits who watch over men and nature, and with whom Peter converses every day.

For the most authentic of frequencies to fully imbibe this third album, Peter Solo entrusted the rhythmic section to a Togolese bass and drum duo, putting the groove in the expert hands of those versed in feeling and a type of musicianship that you can't learn in any school. This was also a way to put OTODI on the path of a more heavily hued funk sound, the backbone of which maintains flexibility and agility when moving over to highlife, straightens out when enhanced with frequent guest Roger Damawuzan's James Brown type screams, and softens when making the way for strings. Snaking and undulating when a chorus of Togolese women takes over, guiding it towards a slow, hypnotic trance. Up until now, Vaudou Game had maintained their connection to Togo from their base in France. This time, recording the entire album in Lomé at OTODI with local musicians, Peter Solo drew the voodoo fluid directly from the source, once again using only Togolese scales to make his guitar sing, his strings acting as channels between listeners and deities...

DELUXE VINYL EDITION!!!
This release does exactly what it says on the tin! "Twenty two tunes live from Tokyo" was recorded by punk legends TOY DOLLS at Club Quattro in Tokyo on the 27th of December 1989.

Django Reinhardt devised an astonishing new technique of playing guitar built around the two fingers on his left hand that were left with full mobility after a devastating fire and, together with Stéphane Grapelli, he was responsible for defining the gypsy jazz genre. A nomadic spirit whose life became a never-ending quest to journey to wherever his precious talent would take him, Django Reinhardt will forever be revered as one of the most unique, gifted and influential musicians of the 20th century.

Double LP on heavyweight 180 gram audiophile black vinyl in a wide spined sleeve with new artwork layout. Re-mastered by John Rivers at Woodbine Studios especially for vinyl release. Includes a bonus track not on the CD version and new artwork design. Never has a record been so aptly titled, or so perfectly descriptive of a band's particular vision of the universe. For all that, the original appearance of Taking Drugs was in fact a bootleg on the semi-legendary/semi-notorious Father Yod imprint in 1990, later supplemented with contemporary outtakes and cuts for the Bomp reissue in 1994 and one further song for the Space Age version in 2000. The original seven tracks, dated January 1986 and the first recordings to feature Pete Bain on bass, are collectively known as the Northampton Demos, understandably named for the recording location in a studio outside said English city. Both Sonic and Pierce have been on record as long preferring these takes to the eventual versions that surfaced for the most part on Sound of Confusion. Certainly it's a fine set of performances, showing a definite step toward the more familiar sound of the group and away from the rougher takes on For All the Fucked Up Children of the World. "The Sound of Confusion," aka "Walkin' With Jesus," rips along with fierce energy, Pierce's singing and the rampaging, primitive wail and rumble of the band just wonderful. "Losing Touch With My Mind" takes things to an even higher level, a huge wallop of feedback and beat (Natty Brooker's drumming in particular delivers just what the doctor ordered), Pierce delivering the lines with a flat, cutting drawl. On the slightly lighter tip, "Come Down Easy" is more or less fully in place (aside from singing about it being 1986!), possessing a more upfront but less vocally distinct feel than the Perfect Prescription take. The tracks that surfaced on the later reissues come from a variety of different sessions, including the original take on "Feel So Good" and a good live version of "Things'll Never Be the Same," one of several cuts featuring Brooker's drumming replacement Rosco.

In the sweltering North-Eastern Brazilian state of Pernambuco lies the coastal city of Recife, where Amaro Freitas is pioneering the new sound of Brazilian jazz. For the prodigious young pianist, the spirit of his hometown runs deep. From the Afro-Brazilian maracatu born on the sugar plantations of slavery, to the high intensity carnival rhythms of frevo and baião, Amaro's heavily percussive approach to jazz is as indebted to these Pernambuco traditions as it is to Coltrane, Parker and Monk.

As with many of the greats before him, Amaro began playing piano in church aged 12, under the instruction of his father, leader of the church band. As his natural talents became obvious, the young prodigy quickly outgrew his father's instruction. He won a place at the prestigious Conservatório Pernambucano de Música but had to drop out as his family could not spare the money for the bus fare. Undeterred, Amaro gigged in bands at weddings and worked in a call centre to fund his tuition. The transformative moment came at age 15 when Amaro stumbled across a DVD of Chick Corea concert, 'he completely blew my mind, I'd never seen anything like it but I knew that's what I wanted to do with a piano'.

Despite not actually owning a piano, Amaro devoted himself to studying day and night - he would practice on imaginary keys in his bedroom, until eventually striking a deal with a local restaurant to practice before opening hours. By the age of 22 Amaro was one of the most sought-after musicians in Recife and resident pianist at the legendary jazz bar Mingus. It was during this time he met and begun collaborating with bassist Jean Elton and the pair went in search of a drummer. 'We kept hearing about this crazy kid who was playing in 7/8 or 6/4, we knew we had to meet him'. Hugo Medeiros joined, and the Amaro Freitas Trio was born.

'I want to show the simplicity of music, to break the stigma that the piano is for a particular social class. Yes, it's a difficult instrument, which many people do not have access to, but with it you can express everything.'

Following his critically acclaimed debut album Sangue Negro (black blood), the title of his sophomore release Rasif is a colloquial spelling of Amaro's home town. A love letter to his native northeast, Amaro explores its traditional rhythms through the jazz idiom, employing complex mathematical patterns reminiscent of some of the most challenging works by fellow Brazilian masters Hermeto Pascoal, Egberto Gismonti and Moacir Santos.

Preferring to see the piano as a though it were a drum with 88 unique tones, Amaro's intelligence and emotion intertwine on every track, from album opener 'Dona Eni': a scorching reconstruction of the baião rhythmic structure, played in seven measures instead of two, to the serene homage to the coastal reef and its ecosystems on the title track 'Rasif'. 'Aurora' is a suite of three parts, representing the sun's journey from the light and soft of the rise, to the aggressive dissonance at its midday zenith and descending chromatic cadences as the sun sets.

Due for an Autumn release on Far Out Recordings, Rasif sees Amaro Freitas take a deserved step onto the world stage. Having already made a name for himself in Brazil, Amaro and his phenomenal band will embark on their first European tour later this year.

Amaro Freitas - Piano

Hugo Medeiros - Drums & Percussion

Jean Elton - Double Bass

Henrique Albino - Baritone Sax, Flutes & Clarinet

All compositions by Amaro Freitas

Produced by Amaro Freitas

Recorded by Bruno Giorgi @ Carranca Studio, Recife, Brazil

Mixed and mastered by Bruno Giorgi @ Quarto Studio, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Executive producer and management: Laercio Costa

Danach haben sich die Fans gesehnt: Nach langer Abstinenz kehren Muff Potter 2019 für eine Deutschland-Tour auf die Konzertbühnen zurück. Im Zuge dessen legt das Label Grand Hotel van Cleef vier Alben der Jahre 2000 bis 2007 auf Vinyl noch einmal auf. "Heute wird gewonnen, bitte" kam 2003 auf den Markt und katapultierte die Band mit raffinierten lyrischen Geschichten, Melodien zum Verlieben und einem kraftvollen, elaborierten und durchdachten Punkrocksound in die erste deutsche Indie-Liga. Während der Albumaufnahmen und der anschließenden Tour wurde Muff Potter von Jule März als Backgroundsängerin unterstützt. Sie verlieh den Songs, in die auch mal ein Glockenspiel oder Mellotron eingebunden wurde, eine völlig neue Note. Anders ausgedrückt: Die Tage der rotzigen jugendlichen Punkkapelle waren eindeutig gezählt. Passend dazu veröffentlichten die Münsteraner mit "Placebo Domingo" ihre allererste CD-Single. Gleichzeitig gab es mit dem ersten Videoclip eine weitere Premiere für die Gruppe zu feiern.

New collaborative album from two of the world's most revered sound artists. 'At its best, William Basinski's music inspires the sort of rapturous testimony usually reserved for peak experiences, cult leaders and the dead.' Pitchfork // 'Awe-inspiring: strange, elemental, and profound.' AllMusic // For over half a decade, William Basinski and Lawrence English have been in regular contact with one another. During that time their paths have crossed repeatedly in various cities; Zagreb, Los Angeles, Hobart and more, in a variety situations. It was from these chance encounters - and the strange familiar of lives lived in transit - that their first collaboration, Selva Oscura, was seeded. The phrase Selva Oscura draws its root from Dante's Inferno. Literally translated as 'twilight forest,' it metaphorically speaks to both those who find themselves on the unfamiliar path and more explicitly the nature of losing one's way in place and time. Each of the extended pieces on this record maps an acoustic topography that draws on the concept of drifting into the strange familiar. The works each dwell in an ever shifting, yet fundamentally constant state of unfolding. As one sound fades away, another is revealed in its place, creating a sense of an eternal reveal. Selva Oscura was recorded in Brisbane and Los Angeles simultaneously. The compositions were each created through a process of iteration and rearrangement that inverted the micro and macro characteristics of the raw sonic materials. Dynamics and density were chiselled with restraint and at other times intensely reductionist approaches to create a limitlessly deep, but open sound field - as rich as the suggested place from which its title is drawn.