Suche:it goes on

5 years after his last studio album, Wax Tailor is back with "The Shadow Of Their Suns" a darkly elegant "sound feature" accompanied by a new and prestigious cast.

Behind this allegorical title hides a long period of brainstorm. The luxury of time in a world where everything goes fast. Time to observe the light from the shadow, the "whirlwind of life", its excesses, its drifts and its symbolic violence. Time to think and translate into music as a privileged witness of our society.

Among the guests of this new album, the rock legend Mark Lanegan & his unique voice, Del the Funky Homosapien (Gorillaz, Hieroglyphics), D Smoke (Winner Netflix Rythm + Flow, the new west coast scene sensation), the late Gil Scott Heron, Rosemary Standley (Moriarty), Mr LIF (Thievery Corporation, Def Jux), Yugen Blakrok (noticed alongside Kendrick Lamar & Vince Staples on the Black Panther album), Adeline (Brooklyn’s Best Kept secret soul singer), Boog Brown (Detroit femcee).

“I made this record for young women to feel invincible.” - Izzy B. Phillips, Black Honey Having last week been pre-empted by the landing of their colossal new single ‘Run For Cover’, today Black Honey have announced their brand-new album – ‘Written & Directed’. ‘Written & Directed’ will be released on the 29 th of January 2021 on Foxfive Records. ‘Written & Directed’ is Black Honey’s second album. It follows their outstanding self-titled debut released back in 2018 when the world that surrounded the Brighton four piece looked and felt like a very different place. Black Honey however are still the bad-ass, truly original band they have always been, they’ve just graduated from the intriguingly anomalous newcomers to becoming one of UK indie’s most singular outfits. They've travelled the world and released a Top 40 album; graced the cover of the NME and become the faces and soundtrack of Roberto Cavalli's Milan Fashion Week show; smashed Glastonbury and supported Queens of the Stone Age, all without compromising a shred of the wild, wicked vision they first set out with. It's now time for the next instalment of their story – ‘Written & Directed” – which see’s Black Honey deliver one, very singular, message – a 10 track mission statement that aims to unashamedly plant a flag in the ground for strong, world-conquering women. For fierce frontwoman and album protagonist Izzy B. Phillips – it’s the most important message she could send to inspire her cult-like fanbase and fill the female-shaped gap that she felt so acutely when she was growing up and discovering rock music for the first time. Written throughout 2019 and recorded in fits and spurts between touring, ‘Written & Directed’ is drenched with a hedonistic, anything-goes attitude. It’s also the most full-throttle collection of music that Black Honey have ever-written – egged-on by their run of shows supporting long-term friends and collaborators Royal Blood. Exploring everything from womanhood, to identity and power, it’s an album that revels in the rich history of pop culture, throws a wink to its rock- and-roll heroes, but ultimately (and in true Black Honey fashion) it stands on its own two feet. With a typically hyper-visual world referencing grindhouse cinema, kitschy pulp films and a flip-reverse of female cinematic representation all primed to unfurl and explode around them, 'Written & Directed' is the sound of Black Honey strapping in and saddling up, of harnessing their quirks, and, as the Phillips has always hoped, riding them joyously into the sunset.

A quick, spontané voyage to the French Riviera ca. 1968, good times long before things went south, Organi’s “Parlez-vous Français?” is a woozy, tripping, soothing sojourn: DIY dream pop, hazy psychedelia, blurred-but-steady beats dripping down the golden boulevard, complete with mystical chants, a dash of half-remembered Franglais that goes down like some vintage eau-de-vie. There’s a fine massage waiting behind those venetian blinds. Pay half an hour, you’ll be relaxed and revived after 22 minutes. Très irrésistible when streamed, Organi’s haunting, hard-boiled French lesson is even better with that classique vinyl crackle in the mix.

Following the cinematic title skit with its bass loop appendix, Oakland-based producer and multi-instrumentalist Mike Walti (and his songwriting partner Maryam) aka Organi invites singer Jessica Bailiff along for the majestic entrée, an interpretation of Philamore Lincoln’s 1970 tune “The North Wind Blew South” (doesn’t it always?), adding anticon. heavyweights Jel and Odd Nosdam on synths and bass for à la mode enhancements and additional bric-à- brac.

Whereas the theme tune “Organi” comes with big drums, big organ, seductive overtones, pure hypnosis, “Whispers” is the soundtrack to some kind of psychedelic campfire tableau vivant: all brumeux, hazy, with spare guitar, Gauloises or Gitanes dangling, a glass of Bordeaux waiting on the dusty old amp, and featuring guest vocalists Yea-Ming Chen & Susy Borhan. It gets even more Parisienne after that: a French woman just knows how to look classic, even when all she’s got is some attitude, a ramshackle tambourine, a craving for old Sukia weirdness and those budget-couture “4 Dolla Jeans”...

Clearly in love with analog equipment, Organi turn The Vaselines’ “Slushy” into a slow- moving, bottomless lullaby – “... you'll never miss what you never had” –, and the femme fatale minimalism of “Stay The Night” is too magnétique and alluring: A fuckin’ sexy chanson, très léger and yet such a hard-knockin’ head-nod anthem, it’ll make you stay for sure, hungry for la petite mort.

Before the expansive denouement – a bank robbery in style: with bangs and a bucket bag (“Danger Walked In”) – the session gets super loose on “The Getaway,” head scarves and berets shimmering in the cabriolet, and featuring Jena Ezzadine on vocals & Headnodic on bass.

Mike Walti aka Organi is an Oakland-based musician and producer. A third generation Bay Area native, Walti has been running wyldwood Studios in Oakland CA for 10+ years (recording artists like Why?, Latyrx, Del, Dan The Automator, and Big Freedia, to name but a few). A longtime friend of Odd Nosdam, he loves to work with analog equipment (“We just love us some analog!” “Just listen to those relays purr...”). Recorded and mixed by Mike Walti at wyldwood, and mastered by Odd Nosdam.

The iconic album series Back to Mine returns once again in 2019 with the first DJ imx compilation from world dominating indie-dance band Jungle, showcasing their personal tastes for the after-hours. The series was renowned for its eclectic selection and selectors which includes some of the biggest names in electronic and pop music, from the likes of Faithless to Pet Shop Boys, Groove Armada to New Order.

Building on Back to Mine’s heritage for quality this edition comes with limited edition heavyweight vinyl and extra thick cardboard sleeves with full coloured bespoke artwork, commissioned from illustrator Rich Fairhead, depicting the artist’s influences alongside personal sleeve notes from Jungle.

The collection includes an exclusive track from Jungle themselves and takes the listener on an eclectic musical journey. From 90s disco by Merle to more recent house tracks by Manuel Darquart and Drumtalk. Bristol DJ Admin provides the percussion heavy ‘Space Cadet’ and the irrepressible Mocky supplies good vibes on ‘How It Goes’. There’s sophisticated pop from The Marias and Sam Evian and there’s some spotlight for modern jazz with tracks by Kamaal Williams, Mansur Brown and BadBadNotGood featuring Kaytranada. There’s also room for some gospel influenced soul by The Flying Stars of Brooklyn NY, lo-fi dream pop from Paul Cherry before ending with the always impressive HNNY.

To coincide with the series release, Jungle will embark on an extensive Back to Mine global DJ tour.

Leif Elggren and Kent Tankred, 3 September 1999, Fylkingen, Stockholm – a small chamber play where The Sons put the small animals on pasture and let them live their own lives, but under strict supervision and with a fixed eye so that no accidents may happen, so that no one is injured, so that no one is ill-informed, or how it might be if not everything is organized and supervised in a well-structured society. You can't just let things be without direction, then there would be nothing at all (or death !!!). No, The Sons give a taste of a well-balanced diet in this presentation, which is expected to take four hours, which will be beautiful and moist and will be able to give a much-needed sense of well-being in these difficult times. Maybe we need another clarification: The animals, here at the service of The Sons, give away their little sounds, The Sons, however, direct them with firm hands (and sometimes a little with force) to follow their wishes. The Sons simply get the cute little fellows to produce sound and together form a musical structure that is not of this world. We'll see how it goes.

WRWTFWW Records is beaucoup happy to announce the official reissue of Pierre Barouh's hard-to-describe-but-easy-to-enjoy French flair meets Japanese avant-garde lost treasure of experimental-electronic-chanson-pop with a new-wave-minimal-bossa touch, Le Pollen. Originally recorded July 1982 at Nippon Columbia Studio in Tokyo and composed, arranged, and played by a who's who of Japan's most groundbreaking musicians of the 80s, the album comes as a LP with bonus 7inch, housed in a heavy sleeve displaying two immaculate photos of Barouh and holding a printed lyrics insert.

A free-spirited world traveler with an incredible ear for music, Paris-born singer and activist Pierre Barouh introduced the sounds of Brazil (and more) to Europe and pushed the envelope with his pio-neering label Saravah, home of adventurous innovators Brigitte Fontaine, Areski, Jacques Higelin, Naná Vasconcelos, and Roland Bocquet's Catharsis among many others. His bohemian border-free vision of modern chanson, blending musical tradition from various parts of the globe with forward-looking artistry, resonated particularly well in Japan, where the scene spearheaded by Yellow Magic Orchestra fell in love with everything Barouh.

And so one day in 1981, Pierre Barouh received an invitation from a Japanese label to come record an album in Tokyo. Not one to turn down an escapade around the world, the French visionary jumped on a plane and landed in a studio surrounded with a dream line-up of musicians: Yukihiro Takahashi (who had named his solo debut Saravah! after Barouh's imprint) and Ryuichi Sakamoto of YMO, Yasuaki Shimizu and his Mariah bandmates Masanori Sasaji and Hideo Yamaki, members of the Moonriders, Motohiko Hamase, Mitsuru Sawamura of Interior, Kazuhiko Katoh and the list goes on. Also participating in the making of the album were longtime collaborator Francis Laï and the mys-terious and beautiful David Sylvian.

The result is Le Pollen, a sincere and affectionate mix of nouveau chanson, techno-pop, post-punk, jazz, bossa, ambient, and minimalism. And probably something else entirely. Honestly impossible to classify in a particular genre, Pierre Barouh's fascinating cosmopolitan music melting pot is, above all, a reassuring ode to humanity, where friendship, exchange, and collaborative creativity breeze freely. Making music together. It's all love.

Pierre Barouh sadly passed away in December 2016, leaving behind a monumental legacy of music and art for us to cherish, and a life philosophy that's well worth considering:

La vie, qu'elle soit longue ou brève
Moi, tous mes rêves
Je les prends toujours au sérieux
Quand l'utopie brise les chaînes
C'est l'oxygène,
De ceux qui sont restés curieux

Life, be it long or brief
Me, all my dreams
I always take them seriously
When utopia breaks the chains
It's the oxygen,
Of those who've remained curious

From the song "L'Autre Rive" on Le Pollen.

Turning into a label and putting out our first record was an exhilarating process. Shoutouts again to everyone who's bought Aroent's "Eleese" EP, gave it airplay or left positive feedback. All of this certainly left us hungry for more, which is why we couldn't be happier to announce our next EP, AWK002 - "Nines" by Lårry.

After solid recent releases on Super Hexagon and Fusion Diagnostics, our dear Lårry goes from strength to strength with this versatile and atmospheric four tracker. From idiosyncratic techno swirls to emotive peak time bangers, every track has its own story and character, all served with immaculate sound design and the inimitable Lårry touch. Without further ado, we'll stop our excited rambles and let the music do the talking.

Thanks for the continued support and we hope you enjoy!

Hot Creations continues its 2021 release schedule this February with a four-track EP from Josh Hvaal. Getting Better sees the UK talent return to the label, fresh from releasing his maiden EP, The Sound, on the imprint in March last year.

Basic leads the charge and takes no prisoners as it goes, pairing rapid kick-hat combos against layered vocal tones to create Josh’s signature late-night sound. Getting Better comes next, blending a retro acid vibe with an up-tempo lead bassline before the near six-
minute Oi takes the form of a heavyweight techno number. Tiptoe brings things to an emotive close, showcasing Josh’s eclectic style with drawn-out chords and percussion- laden breaks.

Josh Hvaal has become a household name in the contemporary house sphere in recent times. It was in March that the young UK-native achieved a remarkable feat: releasing his debut EP on Hot Creations. Such an achievement didn’t go unnoticed, with industry heavyweights soon playing his music in the form of Joseph Capriati, Andrea Oliva and many more. Releases have since followed on Yousef’s Circus Recordings, Malgado’s Distortion and Hot Creations’ offshoot Hottrax, standing him in good stead for another successful year in 2021.

Originally recorded and released in 1980, "Six of One" beautifully captures the detail in Evan Parker's high frequency split tones for which he is now perhaps better known. Five years on from "Saxophone Solos" and with circular breathing and polyphonics well worn into his live performances, Parker's experimentations here produce sustained passages of brilliant flight. Set into the echoes and resonances of St Judes On The Hill church, the results are stunning. "The recital commences with a split tone line of twining sine waves that expand and contract in telepathic collusion. Pitch dynamics narrow and redefine themselves more emphatically on the second piece where sliding legato rivulets born of Parker's compartmentalized tonguing create the sonic semblance of up to three separate voices emanating from the single reed speech center. It's a feat he's accomplished innumerable times since, but every fresh hearing never fails to open an aperture into a style of improvisatory expression that is at once wholly alien and intensely mesmerizing. There's also something strangely subterranean about the flood of sounds, like the rush percolating water through an underground aquifer system enroute to unknown tributaries. The third piece trades tightly braided tones for leaner and more linear phrases, but a vaporous trail of phantom notes still clings to the central line. And so it goes, with the illusion of repetition guiding the momentum, though Parker never explicitly repeats himself." - Derek Taylor, All About Jazz Transferred from the original master tapes at Abbey Road Studios and released in an edition of 500.

In between acting as Producer on all of the Black Jazz label releases, keyboardist Gene Russell also cut two fine albums for the imprint, of which this is the second, released in 1973. Judging by the quality of their respective solo outings for the label, the fact that Russell’s band includes bassist Henry Franklin and guitarist Calvin Keys bodes very, very well for the quality of this record. And indeed, Talk to My Lady represents a sterling stylistic leap for Russell from his New Direction album, which was the first release issued on Black Jazz; here, he’s leading an electric band instead of the basic piano trio format found on the former record, and playing a number of original, soul jazz compositions like “Get Down” and the title tune. As for the covers, both “Me and Mrs. Jones” and “You Are the Sunshine of My Life” are heartfelt renditions given a little extra bounce by Russell’s ivory tickling and Franklin’s expressive bass playing in particular, while the version of “My Favorite Things” goes way out beyond what John Coltrane played on his original Atlantic studio version. It’s hard to go wrong with a Black Jazz album and you won’t on this one from the label’s creative helm. First-ever LP reissue!

‘PEACEMEAL’ is yet another reinvention for Ron
Gallo - a human being on a lifelong chase of
himself and using music as the main vehicle.
On his third LP, he exits the noisy confines of the
garage and goes outside where there’s no limit to
embracing all aspects of himself.
The result is a colourful hodgepodge of 90’s hiphop, r&b, weirdo pop, jazz and punk. The sounds
change but the sense of humanity, humour and a
truly eccentric worldview is the common thread in
all of Gallo’s music.
Mostly written and recorded during a period of
self-isolation in summer 2019, it’s an uncanny
foreshadowing of the global situation that was to
come and give all the songs a new meaning. This
is feel-good music that attempts to confront and
understand human existence.
Ron Gallo just wants to be himself, destroy
expectations and encourage you to do the same in
a world that does just about everything to try and
box us in - not to mention, this is his best most
fun one yet.

Driving anywhere in Texas can cost you half a day, easy. For example, it’ll take you over four hours just to get from R&B singer Leon Bridges’ hometown of Fort Worth down to Houston, where the psychedelic wanderers in Khruangbin hail from. The state is vast, crisscrossed with rugged expanses of road flanked by limestone cliffs and granite mountains, forests of pine and mesquite, miles of desert or acres of sprawling grassland, all depending on what part you’re in. And it’s all baking under the Texas Sun that lends its name to Bridges and Khruangbin’s new collaborative release. “Big sky country, that’s what they call Texas,” Khruangbin bassist Laura Lee says. “The horizon line goes all the way from one side to another without interruption. There’s something really comforting about that.” On ‘Texas Sun’, these two members of the state’s musical vanguard meet up somewhere in the middle of that scene, in the mythical nexus of Texas’ past, present, and future - a dreamy badlands where genres blur as seamlessly as the terrain. It calls equally to the cowboys bootscooting at Billy Bob’s in Fort Worth, the chopped-andscrewed hip hop fans rattling slabs on the southside of Houston, the art-school kids dropping acid in Austin, the cross-cultural progeny who grew up on listening to both mariachi and post-hardcore out on the Mexican borders of El Paso. All of these things, overlapping in a multi-coloured melange, purple hues as vivid and unpredictable as one of the state’s rightfully celebrated sunsets. A journey through homesick reminiscences, backseat romances and late night contemplations, the kind of record made for listening with the windows down and the road humming softly beneath you. Like the highways that inspired it, ‘Texas Sun’ is guaranteed to get you where you’re going - especially if you’re in no particular hurry to get there. Khruangbin and Leon Bridges are critically acclaimed artists with extensive coverage in print and online, including the New York Times, NPR, FADER, four Grammy nominations (Leon Bridges), The New Yorker, Washington Post and Pitchfork, among many others.

“Sex Miami”. Let those words melt into your soul like creamy, creamy pink ice cream in on your tongue. This album by Deux Control is a smooth genre crossover paradise of 808s, Yamaha keyboards and deep mesmerizing vocals side by side with more hardcore synth elements found in bands like DAF or Nitzer Ebb.

Deux control’s sound is a mix your favourite soundtracks of electronic music with a large portion of body synth. It is sexy, cool, and a bit frightening. The music on “Sex Miami” is familiar and goes out to all listeners of all ages but especially to those in the French/Italian disco fandom out there. This is the kind of music an eighties international business traveller would listen when kicking back and clubbing after landing a fat new contract.

Deux control is the act that got bumped from the Miami Vice soundtrack last minute because being a bit to edgy for mainstream USA. They are the group that Gorigio Moroder tried to copy when he wanted to update his sound. Deux Control are the new rulers of psychedelic electric body-disco!

A few years ago, a certain Robin Schulz released a DJ mix on SoundCloud. Hailing from the town of Osnabrück, Germany and completely unknown at the time, he dubbed his mix “Wenn Träume fliegen lernen”, referencing the Peter Pan movie “Finding Neverland”. Seven years down the line, Robin Schulz hasn’t only found his Neverland, but keeps adding new chapters to his fairy tale.
Take this one, for instance: Robin Schulz is now the only German artist in the country’s chart history with three diamond-certified singles. Following “Prayer in C“ and “Waves“, his hit single “Sugar“ is the latest to officially reach this rare feat. Add his 275 gold and platinum awards in 30 markets, sales in excess of 20 million and nearly 8 billion global streams and you get the idea why the German DJ and producer is considered an exceptional phenomenon.
It should come as no surprise that he didn’t get there by accident. That also goes for his coming fourth album “IIII”, slated for a February 26 release. Over the course of three years, the creative powerhouse that is Schulz created ideas and worked tirelessly on the album whilst touring all around the world. “Of course, I’m absolutely stoked about gaining the third diamond award in my career”, Robin shares. “However, in my head I’m still that bloke from Osnabrück who wants to make it out there with his creative vision. With that ambition, I also approached my new album.” Some of the album’s songs are already well familiar – “Speechless” (feat. Erika Sirola)”, “All This Love” (feat. Harloe), “Rather Be Alone” (feat. Nick Martin & Sam Martin), “In Your Eyes” (feat. Alida), “Alane” (feat. Wes) and the current single “All We Got” (feat. Kiddo). Another 11 tracks are still to see the light of day and Robin is looking forward to releasing them soon: “I can’t wait to share the new cuts with you. I really hope you’ll love them as much as I do”, he says.
Robin is ready to write the next chapter of his very own fairy tale.





e 5. All We Got (feat. KIDDO) Explicit

Doppler Vinyl 2x180g (1xRed 1xGreen vinyl)

A few years ago, a certain Robin Schulz released a DJ mix on SoundCloud. Hailing from the town of Osnabrück, Germany and completely unknown at the time, he dubbed his mix “Wenn Träume fliegen lernen”, referencing the Peter Pan movie “Finding Neverland”. Seven years down the line, Robin Schulz hasn’t only found his Neverland, but keeps adding new chapters to his fairy tale.



Take this one, for instance: Robin Schulz is now the only German artist in the country’s chart history with three diamond-certified singles. Following “Prayer in C“ and “Waves“, his hit single “Sugar“ is the latest to officially reach this rare feat. Add his 275 gold and platinum awards in 30 markets, sales in excess of 20 million and nearly 8 billion global streams and you get the idea why the German DJ and producer is considered an exceptional phenomenon.



It should come as no surprise that he didn’t get there by accident. That also goes for his coming fourth album “IIII”, slated for a February 26 release. Over the course of three years, the creative powerhouse that is Schulz created ideas and worked tirelessly on the album whilst touring all around the world. “Of course, I’m absolutely stoked about gaining the third diamond award in my career”, Robin shares. “However, in my head I’m still that bloke from Osnabrück who wants to make it out there with his creative vision. With that ambition, I also approached my new album.”



Some of the album’s songs are already well familiar – “Speechless” (feat. Erika Sirola)”, “All This Love” (feat. Harloe), “Rather Be Alone” (feat. Nick Martin & Sam Martin), “In Your Eyes” (feat. Alida), “Alane” (feat. Wes) and the current single “All We Got” (feat. Kiddo). Another 11 tracks are still to see the light of day and Robin is looking forward to releasing them soon: “I can’t wait to share the new cuts with you. I really hope you’ll love them as much as I do”, he says.



Robin is ready to write the next chapter of his very own fairy tale.

“For six years now I’ve been arranging and booking Ella
Fitzgerald’s concert and club dates, and wherever she goes, her
reception bears out an opinion that I have long held: People who
love good popular music are the same all over the world. Take, for
example, this record – “Mack The Knife”. It was recorded during a
concert at the Deutschlandhallen in Berlin which holds almost
12,000 people, and you can hear the same enthusiastic reaction,
the same eager applause, that mark similar recordings Ella has
made before live audiences in America. That concert – and this
album – have come to be regarded as something special because
of Ella’s version of Mack The Knife. It was the first time she’d sung
the song, and not knowing the lyric too well, she substituted her
own – for what may well have been an improvement on the
original.” - Norman Granz

Vangarde's 11 songs represent the culmination of not only what this year has wrought, but also the talents of Lif and Bangas, an emcee-producer duo built for this. And you can hear that for yourself as soon as the second track, "Shelter in Place," blasts its way into your speakers. From the driving production to Lif and Blacastan's bars, the single embodies the raw, visceral feel of the entire LP. It carries through to the previously leaked "Basquiat," the stirring and gripping posse cut "8 Minutes 46 Seconds," and the highly personal "Now is Only Now," in which Lif explains how he wrote most of his lyrics secluded from his wife and young son due to the pandemic.

What makes Vangarde so impactful, however, is that it doesn't beat you over the head with the same sound or approach. Lif and his guests may tackle subjects related to oppression and corruption throughout the record, but it's done through nuance. The same goes for Bangas' stellar production, which maintains the momentum of his vocal counterparts. It's no surprise then that the two speak so highly of each other, with Bangas referring to Lif as a "storyteller and a reporter," and Lif noting that he was saving the name "Vangarde" for a project with an "elite producer."

“The Vale” is in immersive electronic album of dark soundtrack work. It’s the first of several Everyday Dust releases scheduled for Castles in Space in 2021.

Everyday Dust is RJ McConnell. Based in Scotland, RJ ditched piano lessons when he realised I had no interest in being an instrumentalist. Instead he wanted to create his own musical works from the ground up. He goes on, “I was much happier working my way through music theory books on my own and applying my learning to my own music. We had a little home studio when I was a child. My Dad was also a musician and was involved in local amateur theatre where he prepared and operated all the sound cues on reel to reel tape. So from an early age I was messing around with tape machines, making tape loops and recording music. For years I tried to make the most interesting tones I could from a Yamaha home keyboard by passing it through my Dad’s guitar pedals, or recording to tape and playing it back at different speeds etc. My first proper synth was the Roland SH101.” He went on to study music and sound for theatre and worked for many years as a theatre composer before branching into larger events and eventually film and documentary work.

The Vale story starts in 2018. RJ again, “I was brought in as composer for an independent horror short that was being filmed in Istanbul. The film was a vampire movie, very atmospheric and beautifully shot. I was aware of being a Scottish composer on a Turkish film and therefore didn’t want to attempt in any way to make anything that sounded traditionally Turkish. I wanted to represent the idea of these ancient beings who had existed in one of the oldest cities in the world for centuries. I wondered how I could imply this “ancient” world with the instruments I had to hand. I recorded various old metal whistles, which were slowed right down to become eerie arcane horn blasts that sounded like they had come from another time. I also recorded lots of melodica, which was again slowed down to sound like wheezing old harmonium drones. I spent another day recording inside an old piano, plucking individual strings and also hammering them percussively with wooden beaters. Using synthesizers and effects as the “glue” to bring these sounds together I started to work on the cues for the film. I had scored most of the film by the time I heard it was being cancelled. The concept and story had been taken over by a streaming site who wanted to make it into a series - with a drastically different tone and style.

“Later that same year I had worked on a project that incorporated the folklore of a celtic water sprite who kept the waterfalls and streams running smoothly so they could turn the mills of the local village. In return the villagers would bring the water sprite bannocks (Scottish flatbreads) each day. I started to daydream about a darker, Lovecraftian twist on this story. Some Ancient One dwelling in the forests and controlling the water - the very life essence of the village - in return for offerings of the soul. The concept was filed away in the back of my mind for some months.

“The following year I was on a flight to visit my friend in Bodrum. He had been the producer and editor on the original disbanded Vampire film, and I found myself thinking about the project again. I wondered if the sound cue files were still on my laptop, which they were. It had been a year since I’d even heard them. Hearing the eldritch folk-tinged sounds of the whistles and plucked strings my mind instantly returned to the idea of the Lovecraftian folk horror story. I started jotting down notes and musical ideas and by the time I landed in Bodrum I already had the album title - The Vale. Having the album concept and prototype ideas to work with was a huge head start in making the album. Although all of the original cues were so dramatically developed and transformed that they really just served as the initial clay on the wheel.

“I used a Doepfer A100 modular synth to create the animalistic yelps, conches and horns that were improvised over the original cues as a response to the arcane “folk” world of the acoustic instruments. This half-acoustic half-modular landscape was the sonic scene-setter I needed to move onto the composition and musical journey of the album. I composed and developed most of the musical parts on an Oberheim Matrix 6 synthesizer. However all the percussion, rhythmic sequences and ornamental synth sounds were created from improvised modular sessions multitrack recorded. A lot of editing later, the soundtrack to the movie in my mind was finally there.

Wretched Cuts is the new solo EP by gender-nonconforming techno artist, Projekt Gestalten. The release comes via the New York’s Mild Fantasy imprint run by DJ Elle Dee and features three original themes focusing on introspective techno plus a remix by veteran, The Lady Machine.

The project reflects an array of themes using as the starting point the story of Estamira and the Brazilian documentary of the same name, telling her life story. Estamira was an incredibly enlightened older woman who scattered one of the largest landfills of Rio de Janeiro for food. Not because she had to, but because she loved that place as she loved “her own children” and enjoyed making a living out of other people’s disposable goods. Simultaneously, while dealing with schizophrenia and abuse, she believed she was a superior spiritual being whose magical powers could control time, space, and other elements of nature.

The tracks are inspired by some of her most memorable quotes and moments that made an impact on Projekt Gestalten. “Wise People In Reverse” goes into a darker approach and samples Estamira’s voice talking in a mysterious unknown language with an unrevealed force, using only a broken piece of a telephone that she had just found it in the trash. “Morte Macaca” takes a rhythmic approach towards dub techno, and “Holographic Principle” gets trippier and hallucinogenic with Projekt Gestalten’s signature acid lines. The Lady Machine’s “Wise People In Reverse” remix takes the original theme to a driving, peak hour approach and transforms it into an effective DJ tool.

“There are no more innocent people on Earth, only wise people in reverse”.

Four albums in, the convenient and generalized catchphrase for Here Lies Man’s erudite sound — if Black Sabbath played Afrobeat — might seem a little played out. But Ritual Divination is perhaps the best rendering of the idea so far. Particularly on the Sabbath side of the equation: The guitars are heavier and more blues based than before, but the ancient rhythmic formula of the clave remains a constant.
“Musically it’s an opening up more to traditional rock elements,” says vocalist/guitarist/ cofounder Marcos Garcia, who also plays guitar in Antibalas. “It’s always been our intention to explore. And, as we travelled deeper into this musical landscape, new features revealed themselves.”

The L.A. based band comprised of Antibalas members have toured relentlessly following their breakout 2017 self-titled debut. Their second album, You Will Know Nothing and an EP, Animal Noises, both followed in 2018. Third album No Ground To Walk Upon emerged in August 2019. All of them were crafted by Garcia and cofounder/drummer Geoff Mann (former Antibalas drummer and son of jazz musician Herbie Mann) in their L.A. studio between tours. Ritual Divination is their first album recorded as the full 4-piece band, including bassist JP Maramba and keyboardist Doug Organ.
Ritual Divination continues with an ongoing concept of HLM playing the soundtrack to an imaginary movie, with each song being a scene. “It’s an inward psychedelic journey, the album is the trip,” Garcia says. “The intention and purpose of the music is to create a sonic ritual to lift the veil of inner space and divine the true nature of reality.”

Likewise, musically and sonically, the album is self-reflexive. “On this album the feel changes within a song,” Garcia says. “Whereas before each song was meant to induce a trancelike state, now more of the songs have their own arc built in.” Similarly, the guitar sounds themselves herein eschew the fuzz pedals of previous recordings, going for the directness of pure amp overdrive and distortion using an interconnected rig of 4 amplifiers. And, here, the well-versed live band is able to record as a unit, giving it much more of a live and dynamic feel.

Rough Trade named the band’s self-titled debut in their prestigious Top 10 Albums of 2017. BBC 6 & Classic Rock Magazine deemed it among the year’s best, as well as countless other press outlets singing its praises. Each subsequent album furthered the band’s reputation for genre-smashing rhythmic experimentation, topping many year-end lists as well as earning features from countless metal and indie rock outlets, plus cover stories in weekly papers.
“We’re very conscious of how the rhythms service the riffs,” Garcia explains. “Tony Iommi’s (Black Sabbath) innovation was to make the riff the organizing principle of a song. We are taking that same approach but employing a different organizing principle: For Iommi it was the blues, for us it comes directly from Africa.”
Ritual Divination will be available on LP, CD and download on January 22nd, 2021 via RidingEasy Records.

Four albums in, the convenient and generalized catchphrase for Here Lies Man’s erudite sound — if Black Sabbath played Afrobeat — might seem a little played out. But Ritual Divination is perhaps the best rendering of the idea so far. Particularly on the Sabbath side of the equation: The guitars are heavier and more blues based than before, but the ancient rhythmic formula of the clave remains a constant.
“Musically it’s an opening up more to traditional rock elements,” says vocalist/guitarist/ cofounder Marcos Garcia, who also plays guitar in Antibalas. “It’s always been our intention to explore. And, as we travelled deeper into this musical landscape, new features revealed themselves.”

The L.A. based band comprised of Antibalas members have toured relentlessly following their breakout 2017 self-titled debut. Their second album, You Will Know Nothing and an EP, Animal Noises, both followed in 2018. Third album No Ground To Walk Upon emerged in August 2019. All of them were crafted by Garcia and cofounder/drummer Geoff Mann (former Antibalas drummer and son of jazz musician Herbie Mann) in their L.A. studio between tours. Ritual Divination is their first album recorded as the full 4-piece band, including bassist JP Maramba and keyboardist Doug Organ.
Ritual Divination continues with an ongoing concept of HLM playing the soundtrack to an imaginary movie, with each song being a scene. “It’s an inward psychedelic journey, the album is the trip,” Garcia says. “The intention and purpose of the music is to create a sonic ritual to lift the veil of inner space and divine the true nature of reality.”

Likewise, musically and sonically, the album is self-reflexive. “On this album the feel changes within a song,” Garcia says. “Whereas before each song was meant to induce a trancelike state, now more of the songs have their own arc built in.” Similarly, the guitar sounds themselves herein eschew the fuzz pedals of previous recordings, going for the directness of pure amp overdrive and distortion using an interconnected rig of 4 amplifiers. And, here, the well-versed live band is able to record as a unit, giving it much more of a live and dynamic feel.

Rough Trade named the band’s self-titled debut in their prestigious Top 10 Albums of 2017. BBC 6 & Classic Rock Magazine deemed it among the year’s best, as well as countless other press outlets singing its praises. Each subsequent album furthered the band’s reputation for genre-smashing rhythmic experimentation, topping many year-end lists as well as earning features from countless metal and indie rock outlets, plus cover stories in weekly papers.
“We’re very conscious of how the rhythms service the riffs,” Garcia explains. “Tony Iommi’s (Black Sabbath) innovation was to make the riff the organizing principle of a song. We are taking that same approach but employing a different organizing principle: For Iommi it was the blues, for us it comes directly from Africa.”
Ritual Divination will be available on LP, CD and download on January 22nd, 2021 via RidingEasy Records.

white vinyls

5 years after his last studio album, Wax Tailor is back with "The Shadow Of Their Suns" a darkly elegant "sound feature" accompanied by a new and prestigious cast.

Behind this allegorical title hides a long period of brainstorm. The luxury of time in a world where everything goes fast. Time to observe the light from the shadow, the "whirlwind of life", its excesses, its drifts and its symbolic violence. Time to think and translate into music as a privileged witness of our society.

Among the guests of this new album, the rock legend Mark Lanegan & his unique voice, Del the Funky Homosapien (Gorillaz, Hieroglyphics), D Smoke (Winner Netflix Rythm + Flow, the new west coast scene sensation), the late Gil Scott Heron, Rosemary Standley (Moriarty), Mr LIF (Thievery Corporation, Def Jux), Yugen Blakrok (noticed alongside Kendrick Lamar & Vince Staples on the Black Panther album), Adeline (Brooklyn’s Best Kept secret soul singer), Boog Brown (Detroit femcee).

On to my short review. I have to admit that I'm biased in favour of Charles Tolliver. He plays with a combination of strength and sweetness that goes beyond mere language. The fact that he is self -taught is more miraculous. This particular recording has the best sound quality I've ever heard. The clarity is stunning and all the music is magnificent. The recording is so good, one can hear the sound of a musician's fingertips accidentally brushing across the bass strings, for example. Alvin Queen is always brilliant on the drums. This group has a synergy that just goes so deep, it feels like they're reading each others' minds. But I can't recommend this enough. It's some of the best recorded jazz I've ever experienced.

"When Candy Opera first appeared on the kaleidoscopic early 1980s Liverpool music scene, by rights they should have changed the world" ~ Louder Than War
"Very welcome news as a highly underrated band who is now back with a force. While their previous output is stellar, this new single is even more commanding of attention. This is absolutely stunning, the band reaching higher than ever before" ~ Big Takeover Magazine
Sometimes it takes a while to realise what you’ve got. So it goes with pop craftsmen Candy Opera, who emerged during Liverpool’s 1980s golden age and whose new LP 'The Patron Saint of Heartache' is their first collection of new material in nearly three decades.
Ahead of that, they present 'These Days Are Ours', a rally cry of hope for the current times and the first single from this long-play, which is due for release in mid-November via European / UK label A Turntable Friend Records. The video was created / produced by James
Davies and Paul Malone.
Mixed by Grammy award-winning producer Guy Massey and featuring back vocals by Paul Simpson of The Wild Swans, the track was recorded at Elevator Studios in Liverpool.
With all the hallmarks of an enduring pop anthem, this impeccably produced, adrenalin-fuelled song captures the essence of Candy Opera’s infectious energy and celebrates life with a genuine wonder-lust, whilst delivering the excitement of their live performances.
Following the overdue release of two archival sets - '45 Revolutions Per
Minute' and 'Rarities' (released in 2018 by Firestation Records., quickly selling out of their first runs) - their new album 'The Patron Saint of Heartache' picks up where the band left off, with 14 fresh songs ready for discovery of a sound as timeless as any Candy Opera output.
Candy Opera were formed in Liverpool in 1982 and went through various incarnations before calling it a day in 1992. By 1985, the band had played alongside the likes of The Pogues, The Go-Betweens and The Redskins, as well as appearing on Granada TV.
The band's current line-up is drawn from all eras of the band’s existence and features Brian Chin Smithers (guitar, vocals), Alan Currie (drums), Frank Mahon (bass), Paul Malone (vocals, guitar), Ken Moss (guitar) and Gary O'Donnell (keyboards, vocals, percussion).
This new LP also features a swathe of friends and contemporaries, including Paul Simpson (The Wild Swans) and Phil Jones (Afraid of Mice). The result is an exquisite piece of pop craftsmanship that brings their songs into the light. This is a labour of love born of experience, but retaining the sense of wonder that brought the band together in the first place.

"When Candy Opera first appeared on the kaleidoscopic early 1980s Liverpool music scene, by rights they should have changed the world" ~ Louder Than War
"Very welcome news as a highly underrated band who is now back with a force. While their previous output is stellar, this new single is even more commanding of attention. This is absolutely stunning, the band reaching higher than ever before" ~ Big Takeover Magazine
Sometimes it takes a while to realise what you’ve got. So it goes with pop craftsmen Candy Opera, who emerged during Liverpool’s 1980s golden age and whose new LP 'The Patron Saint of Heartache' is their first collection of new material in nearly three decades.
Ahead of that, they present 'These Days Are Ours', a rally cry of hope for the current times and the first single from this long-play, which is due for release in mid-November via European / UK label A Turntable Friend Records. The video was created / produced by James
Davies and Paul Malone.
Mixed by Grammy award-winning producer Guy Massey and featuring back vocals by Paul Simpson of The Wild Swans, the track was recorded at Elevator Studios in Liverpool.
With all the hallmarks of an enduring pop anthem, this impeccably produced, adrenalin-fuelled song captures the essence of Candy Opera’s infectious energy and celebrates life with a genuine wonder-lust, whilst delivering the excitement of their live performances.
Following the overdue release of two archival sets - '45 Revolutions Per
Minute' and 'Rarities' (released in 2018 by Firestation Records., quickly selling out of their first runs) - their new album 'The Patron Saint of Heartache' picks up where the band left off, with 14 fresh songs ready for discovery of a sound as timeless as any Candy Opera output.
Candy Opera were formed in Liverpool in 1982 and went through various incarnations before calling it a day in 1992. By 1985, the band had played alongside the likes of The Pogues, The Go-Betweens and The Redskins, as well as appearing on Granada TV.
The band's current line-up is drawn from all eras of the band’s existence and features Brian Chin Smithers (guitar, vocals), Alan Currie (drums), Frank Mahon (bass), Paul Malone (vocals, guitar), Ken Moss (guitar) and Gary O'Donnell (keyboards, vocals, percussion).
This new LP also features a swathe of friends and contemporaries, including Paul Simpson (The Wild Swans) and Phil Jones (Afraid of Mice). The result is an exquisite piece of pop craftsmanship that brings their songs into the light. This is a labour of love born of experience, but retaining the sense of wonder that brought the band together in the first place.

Far heavier than their previous record. That’s evident from the get go, as they bash their way through the opening track “Give Me Your Hand,” a rhythm-heavy number fueled by fiery guitar solos, strident vocals, and a hard rocking sound. Yet the band still takes some interesting excursions along the way. “Good Lord,” for instance, encompasses Latin rhythms, a Southern rock segment, space rock passages, and even pop. The Beatles get a nod on “Any Way,” and funk goes psychedelic on “Get One Together”. Still it’s a hard rocking extravaganza. In later years, Charge’s reputation among prog rock fans soared, more so than their self-titled album.

Charge! is available as a limited edition of 1000 individually numbered copies on silver coloured vinyl.

Collection of some of Frank’s finest songs presented as a collector’s edition picture disc.

When Lindstrom and Prins Thomas get together, expect the unexpected. The Norwegian production duo's third album III is also their first outing together in eleven years, since II from 2009 and as ever, Lindstrom and Prins Thomas have crafted their own unique sonic world between the two of them. This is expansive, luscious electronic music rich with texture and intricacy, patiently revealing every eccentricity while constantly pulling the listener in. Getting lost never sounded so good. Since the release of II, Lindstrom and Prins Thomas have remained more than busy with their respective solo careers, but work on III was taking place behind the scenes the whole time - slow and steady by sending files back and forth. "There's a different process with every album," Thomas explains. "With the first two albums, we had a door between separate rooms in the studio, so I could open my door and play him something. We also toured together a lot after the first album, and after that experience we realized that we work better together at a distance. We're doing our best work by not worrying too much about what the other one of us is doing." Eventually, the bulk of III came together over the last year, as Lindstrom and Prins Thomas teamed up to craft a lush and lovely work that recalls the hazy atmospherics of Air, the loose-fit jazz of Lonnie Liston Smith, and the genreresistant electronic music that both artists have made their name on over the course of their impressive careers. "Our partnership is very democratic "we never turn down each other's ideas. And if it goes wrong, we blame it on the other guy," Thomas says with a laugh. "The tracks that Lindstrom sent me this time were almost like standard house tracks. I already had an idea of what I wanted to do, so I forced those tracks into new shoes and dresses." Above all else, III is a testament to the adventurousness of Lindstrom and Prins Thomas when it comes to soundcraft. Both artists have established separate careers on bodies of work that feature infinite twists and turns, thrilling their audiences with the suggestion of where they've been and where they're about to go. Together, they've crafted what might be their most beguiling and inviting work yet, a jeweled box of electronic music ornately crafted but never losing the sense of playfulness that so many have come to love from them.

Alfredo "El Inca" Linares is one of the best and most beloved musicians in the history of salsa. Fans love his piano playing because of his authentic Cuban feel and 'swing' combined with progressive arrangements and uncompromising phrasing. "Lo Que Tengo" is full of rock solid dance floor killers and no filler, recorded in 1980 with some of the cream of the crop of contemporary Venezuelan salsa musicians (members of Mango, Madera, El Trabuco Venezolano, Los Dementes, Los Melódicos, Dimensión Latina, Guaco, and La Salsa Mayor) and launched there on the indie label A.L.G. Records as ¡Con Todo!, and then a year later on the much larger Velvet Records with a different cover. This a classic Alfredo Linares album, but with the updated studio sound of 1980s Caracas. With five perfectly paced salsas, one funky cha cha chá, a steamy bolero and a dance-friendly Latin jazz number to top it off, there is something for everybody on this record. Thankfully today's generation can now enjoy this rarity at a fraction of the cost of an original copy. Presented in its original artwork and pressed on 180g vinyl. Good to know: Alfredo "El Inca" Linares is one of the best and most beloved musicians in the history of salsa. Fans love his piano playing because of his authentic Cuban feel and 'swing' combined with progressive arrangements and uncompromising phrasing that puts one in mind of Eddie Palmieri. As a composer, arranger and band-leader Linares is highly respected as well. Ever since the 1960s in Lima Peru when his career began, his records have always been on point, being super tight, sharp, and hard as hell, what salseros call salsa brava con afinque. It's no surprise that Lo Que Tengo is exactly that: full of rock solid dance floor killers and no filler, played with verve and flair. Unlike some of his other records that were patched together from various sessions made in different studios (sometimes even in several countries!), this album has the advantage of being produced, recorded and mixed by Alfredo Linares all in one studio and block of time, and backed by hand-picked seasoned professionals who Linares had already played with, both in the studio and on stage, lending it a consistency and sonic integrity that is excitingly manifest in every groove. The album was recorded in 1980 in Caracas with some of the cream of the crop of contemporary Venezuelan salsa musicians (members of Mango, Madera, El Trabuco Venezolano, Los Dementes, Los Melódicos, Dimensión Latina, Guaco, and La Salsa Mayor) and launched there on the indie label A.L.G. Records as ¡Con Todo!, and then a year later on the much larger Velvet Records with a different cover. The LP was also released in Colombia (INS, 1982) and the US (Gallo, 1984), both editions utilizing the Velvet Records cover. During this time Linares had been in Venezuela for some five years and was under contract with a nightclub in Caracas. Through being on the salsa scene there he became friends with the band Mango and even guested on an album with them in 1976. After the contract was up Linares was a free agent again and he was able to draw on his friendship with Mango and assemble a band to back him, first for the Colombian/Venezuelan production Salsa de Verdad (Fonodisco, 1976) and then again with ¡Con Todo! / Lo Que Tengo. One of the distinctive aspects of Alfredo Linares tunes is the 'break' (la cierre)-there are always plenty of dramatic hand-clapping breakdowns followed by an infectious tumbao (sustained vamp) section that sends shivers up the spine and makes the dancers go crazy. In addition, Linares always lets his musicians stretch out, especially in the percussion section. Again, Lo Que Tengo is no exception: there are so many examples of typical arrangements here that one could call this a classic Alfredo Linares album, but with the updated studio sound of 1980s Caracas, which was awash in petro-dollars at the time and so had the latest equipment and a strong consumer base for the salsa market. The album's title tune (originally credited on the Venezuelan edition as 'Lo que tengo que crear'-'What I Have To Create') is by Mango's timbalero José "Cheo" Navarro and sums up Linares' central career philosophy: the musician lives every day to create music, to spread joy and create a party, without complications, wherever he goes. With five perfectly paced salsas, one funky cha cha chá, a steamy bolero and a dance-friendly Latin jazz number to top it off (note the bluesy piano solo from Linares and the sublime vibes of Mango's Freddy Roldán), there is something for everybody on this record. Thankfully today's generation can now enjoy this rarity at a fraction of the cost of an original copy.

"Who is this guy? Who is this insane fucking guy? A guy who produced Trap tracks on his last EP and is now paying homage to Neue Deutsche Welle, as if he has never done anything else before and in a way that we never want to hear anything else ever again? To whom the crowds are devoted to in Paris, a guy who sleeps naked in the woods in the middle of Germany, who sings of the shimmering
girls („Schimmerndes Mädchen") and who doesn’t only embrace sadness but takes it to the club and goes wild with it?

I am telling you: It’s the guy who we desperately need right now: He is making music for, as he is putting it „young hipsters with Apple AirPods who wear big white sneakers but also for the 40 year old Goths who are still listening to El Deux“. He is making music for you, you and for you, too. He makes music for German Schlager fans, for the raver descending into the endless night and for next Sunday afternoon’s come down.

Luis Ake is the guy, and he is from Stuttgart of all places, where Germany basically invented its Germanness. And he is releasing this album that's as cold as the winter in which he recorded it. Of course „Bitte Lass Mich Frei“ was born in winter, in a backyard without heating – how could it be any different? Who needs? heating when your heart is broken, shattered even? Yes, the album was written
after a breakup. Obviously it was. And so it describes all forms of that special kind of insanity that comes with a broken heart: Loneliness, shallow sex, blame, longing, all of that, and more.
Vinyl tastes better ...

This mini LP is an explicit message from Lustpoderosa's sonic continuum. These 7 tracks show the deep connection of Marlene Starks' work as a writer and an artist to her role as mother and DJ in times when there is an urgent need to dismantle the patriarchy in our society and rave culture.
Marlene Stark is telling us much more than a great musical story with the symbolic title "Hyäne". Marlene wants to direct our attention to a reviled creature while she reflects on its literary and symbolic meanings. Although hyenas live in a matriarchal society, its transmutation can be perceived as the ongoing struggle of the non-male body in an androcentric world view.
Marlene Starks reinterprets the figure of the hyena in a very poetic, self-ironical and honest way, as shown in the tracks 'Hungry As a Hunter', 'Hyäne' and 'Language Of Old Woman'. It's a neo-ceremonial call to rethink established structures without missing out the turbulent landscape of today's politics.
From early trip-hop to post-rave elements, Stark combines her sonic adventures with an impressively nonchalant and colloquial vocabulary. Her voice, as well as the voice of guest singer Stefanie Mader, achieves a remarkable vocal structure that goes beyond the mainstream.
This is the contemporary body music for the next generation.

A fresh but already affirmed face, Joannes likes his techno solid. With Noordster he gives us a showcase of a certain aesthetic, which on a certain day, for a certain ear, on a certain floor is simply the shit. Spartan in his sparsity, varied in diversity, Joannes knows what he wants. With 3030 he takes us into a Millsian orbit warp, Whisper lands us on Hoth where ice and wind abound. Tripyness is the chugger here, deep and beautiful, like the sea in a storm. Wake goes down the quirky path, with small audio-phonic nuances piercing the air and the riddim holding the groove. And then, out of nowhere comes Ghetto bird, as soft and gentle as the Nightingale and the Rose. Wilde stuff. To top off the package, we go south, to the lands of sun, sea and dance with Housey Yo! Nice tribal atmospherics and smart Four Tet-like melodies. This one has that B-side moment. Let’s make it happen. All in all, a welcome addition to the label, bring on the sounds Johnny boy.

SUMMER OF SEVENTEEN are MONIKA KHOT (NORDRA, ZEN MOTHER), WILLIAM FOWLER COLLINS, DANIEL MENCHE, FAITH COLOCCIA (MAMIFFER), and AARON TURNER. (SUMAC, SPLIT CRANIUM).

Wildfires plagued Washington state during the summer of 2017, their smoke drifting westward toward the Seattle area and toxifying the air. Shortly before that trauma, MONIKA KHOT, WILLIAM FOWLER COLLINS, DANIEL MENCHE, FAITH COLOCCIA, and AARON TURNER had gathered at the latter two musicians' House Of Low Culture studio on idyllic Vashon Island with revered producer RANDALL DUNN. There they cut eight songs that capture the makeshift band's feelings of what COLOCCIA calls "a kind of doomsday lurking in the background." It's as if these highly attuned players had a premonition.

"Summer Of Seventeen" -which was edited and arranged by MONIKA KHOT, who records apocalyptic music solo as NORDRA and plays in the avant-rock band ZEN MOTHER—is a nuanced admixture of these musicians' sounds and a culmination of all of their previous collaborations. COLOCCIA and TURNER have created eldritch folk and chamber rock for over a decade in MAMIFFER while engaging in various solo and group projects that explore their profound spirituality in sound. MENCHE has been a fixture on the abstract composition scene for 31 years and COLLINS is a savvy explorer of drone and ambient forms. Their ephemeral summit meeting has yielded a masterwork for the ages.

A heaven/hell and beauty/beastliness dichotomy pervades the album—as if a titanic struggle was transpiring in that small studio. The fearsome trumpet fanfare that starts "Chorus Of The Innocents" heralds a baleful fate. With a subliminal industrial rhythm bristling beneath the eerie exhalations, the song submerges us in a slow-motion maelstrom, a horror-film facsimile of MILES DAVIS' "Bitches Brew". "Perceived Slight" threads death-metal screams through a stark, suspenseful atmosphere, with austere glints of guitar and beats like fists on a casket lid intensifying the dread.

Angelic chants and celestial drones perfume the air in several of the songs on "Summer Of Seventeen", countered with muted blast beats, serrated hums, jagged glitches, simulacra of grinding gears and lightning. It's as if no good deed goes unpunished. "Spirits Of Redeemer" could be an elegy for the human race while "Cultural Orphan" sounds like a symphony for a malfunctioning factory. The album ends with "Theatre Needs An Audience," a harrowing ballad somewhere between EINSTÜRZENDE NEUBAUTEN and MERZBOW; it's a savage rent in the space-time continuum.

"Thinking about this record now," COLOCCIA recalls, "it seems like we were all sort of anticipating something like this current pandemic happening, although we were thinking about it as fire in the hands of man (literal fire, and also gunfire) that would overturn the normal running of things and reveal the current false beliefs systems holding up most of America."

That grave aura infiltrates "Summer Of Seventeen", However, a hopefulness bubbles beneath the foreboding architecture of sound and noise summoned here. The bunker is the new penthouse.

-Dave Segal, April 2020

5LP Boxset featuring classic tracks from across the catalogue of reggae’s greatest superstar.

The second instalment of the ultimate collection of tracks from legendary reggae superstar, BOB MARLEY! Marley sold more than 20 million records throughout his career, making him the first international superstar to emerge from the so-called Third World. Also available, Volume 1.

East London record shop World of Echo debuts on the other side of the counter with a reissue of Two Wishes, the solitary 12" by Anglo-German collective, Mutabor!. Seemingly lost to time, Mutabor! were first brought to World of Echo's attention when drummer/singer, Gary Asquith, played at the shop's first birthday celebrations while promoting one of his other bands, Rema Rema. And so the story goes...

Mutabor! emerged wraith-like from the monochromatic grit of Berlin's art punk underground late in 1981 when Asquith left London to set up temporary residence in the city following a chance meeting with Malaria's Bettina Koster backstage at a Birthday Party gig at the Lyceum earlier that year. Beguiled by the possibilities of collaboration, musical and otherwise, he was soon to make his own contributions to what was an already fecund scene. Partnering with Koster, and Gudrun Gut and Manon Duursma also of Malaria!, Mutabor! were publicly birthed via an impromptu performance at punk rock polestar the Risiko. Asquith found himself playing percussion in what would be a first, while the rest of the band ossified in front of him in typically idealistic post-punk democracy. Little documentation of the performance survives beyond that which exists in the memories of those playing - that itself shaky enough - though there was clearly sufficient encouragement for them to commit to a recording session.

Later that winter, the four booked time at Music Lab, the studio operated by Harris Johns, for what would ultimately be their only studio visit. Two songs were laid to tape, and soon after a photoshoot was to take place at Koster's flat, resulting in a handful of images that, along with the music, comprise the sum total evidence of the band's existence. 1001 Nights and Treats both found their way to Peter Kent, a co-founder of 4AD who had recently left the label with the ambition of starting his own imprint. Entitled Two Wishes, the two track 12" was to be the first and only release on Loaded. It seems that Mutabor! were to represent a series of firsts and lasts, a trend that continues now as they open the World of Echo imprint.

It's fitting to think of Mutabor! in these prescient terms given how they sounded. Berlin at that time shared a spiritual axis with New York, the conceptual & aesthetic discordance of no wave and a nascent off-beat dance culture underpinning much of the respective creative activity. There are shared signifiers, but even in that context, Two Wishes sounds oddly out of step, moving to its own unusual rhythm. 1001 Nights stutters along on a tribal beat that seems to run independent of skronking sax, spidery guitar lines and deadpan vocal incantations, the ghosts of two songs meeting in some kind of incompatible voodoo union. On the reverse, Treats slows down and dims the lights further, as Asquith sardonically recites desirous threats as an increasingly malevolent sax and guitar grinds behind him. No surprise the darkness within the music given the parent bands and the backdrop of a crepuscular early 80s Berlin, though there remains a complex compositional element to these songs that suggests a broader spectrum of emotion - desire, romance, and ultimately, infinite possibility.

Recut and mastered, Two Wishes is now presented with the original front cover artwork alongside additional imagery, including a 16 page booklet, all culled from Asquith's own archive. A brief bolt of energy at a crucial juncture in music history, Mutabor!'s story is emblematic of the mutli-verse of post-punk and the creativity its ideology necessitated.

London duo Andy Clutterbuck and James Hatcher – better known as HONNE – have cultivated a huge and fiercely dedicated global fan base since the release of their critically-acclaimed debut LP, ‘Warm on a Cold Night’, in 2016. Boasting over 150 sold-out shows outside of the UK, collaborations with everyone from Tom Misch to BTS and over 1.4 billion global streams, their music is deeply emotive; from the glistening, sugar-coated highs of international hit ‘Day 1’, to the heartache and angst played out on ‘Sometimes’ – both standout cuts from 2018’s sophomore record, ‘Love Me / Love Me Not’. Laying themselves bare in their songs, HONNE are hyper-connected with fans both in the UK and all over the world – in 2018 alone, they played a sold-out Brixton Academy for the first time, embarked on an extensive, 26-date US headline tour and saw ‘Warm on a Cold Night’ officially certified as 6x Platinum in South Korea.

Running the anything goes travelling warehouse rave "Fusion mes Couilles"
Emma DJ and Ishaq have created a unique situation with their party series in Paris. The two have been able to do what not many have, which is create a party environment strictly on their own terms, with no outside influence, no pandering to agents or the trends of the day and no outside money rearing its head trying to influence. This endeavor is no small feat considering the oversaturated and bland nitelife climate over the last years in the city. The result of their hard work, has been a large scale dedicated fanbase that trust them, hands down.

Over these years both Emma DJ and Ishaq had been working independently on their own productions as well, with Emma DJ recently releasing a slew of tapes in a hyperactive, machine gun manner, while Ishaq makes his first appearance on wax here.
On the "Fusion" split lp we get four tracks from Emma DJ on the a-side and four tracks from Ishaq on the b-side...both artists bring their unique takes on modern dance music on each side of the record from gnarled acid, to tweaked IDM, to broken techno, or ADD chopped guitar loop beats, this is a truly unique release documenting the sound of the top crew in the Paris underground.
Artwork licensed from NYC street photographer Richard Sandler

One year after the landing of his long-awaited eponymous debut album, French producer Zimmer is back with a massive remix package to make the pleasure last, and he’s certainly put on a great spread for the occasion.

Up on duty for this second round of synth-splattered, stargazing goodies, we find none other than Herr Gerd Janson in the saddle for a pair of ‘short' and ‘extended’ dance versions, expert vibist Lauer, Mexican outfit Zombies In Miami, US-based producer Amtrac, with French clique homeboys Kendal and You Man completing the set.

All synths blazing, Gerd Janson gets the ball rolling with a pair of prismatic reworks of ‘Rey’, tailored to take the dancers on a wildly fun and light-hearted space jaunt. No need for an intro, the ’short edit’ goes straight for the audio G-spot and takes no byway to get its point across - pure mellifluous, horizon-widening dancefloor carefreeness on the menu.

Don’t get too easily distracted by its title, the ‘extended version’ is no basement creeper but rather an enhanced summer-flavoured earworm that lays further emphasis on the drums and bass for optimal peak time functionality.

French duo You Man pick up the torch with an equally sturdy and emotional reshape of ‘Wildflowers (ft. Panama)’, nicely contrasting Panama’s suave vocals with thoroughly funk-oozing bass arpeggios that’ll melt any sweatbox down to the ground.

In comes Lauer’s reinterpretation of ‘Mouvement’ - a dynamic late-afternoon weapon meshing the hectic bounce of cascading synths and incendiary bass, hazed-out poolside vibes and pop-indebted melodic motifs. The result is a fast-paced heater primed for extended use from sunset to sunrise with vibrant variations in shades throughout.


A true solar-powered, mystique-imbued affair, Zombies In Miami’s take on ‘Mayans’ propels us in a fascinating continuum of pulsating rhythms, hyper-modern textures and smouldering ritualistic vibrations.

Adding his spin to ’Techno Disco’, rising talent Kendal shoots his shots with deadeye accuracy, luring you into a junglistic intro to better surprise you with his usual tsunami- like deluge of serpentine keyboard chords and epic buildups.

Topping off this variegated sonic journey, Amtrac takes us on a soul-healing trip with his revisit of ‘Make It Happen’ - laying down a particularly tasty downtempo pop jam for you to chill and dream yourself to sleep with, fully enlarged with his trademark streamlined, balmy signature.

This fifth record, On/Off, Bachar wanted to record it in his native Lebanon. More precisely in the main room of his family house, a stone house standing alone in the mountains north of Beirut.

In this big room there is all that’s needed: a piano, a chimney, the stove and some rare instruments who have been sleeping there for years, serving as decorations. For two whole weeks, Bachar welcomes, shapes and celebrates the urgency of creation. The recording takes place in decembre 2019, it’s rhythm follows that of the popular uprising which is shaking Lebanon since october.

In his own way, Bachar contributes to it - emotion is raw, his music is stripped down, just liked his country.

In the house, electricity goes on & off twice, a day. During the night, hostile and freezing, hyenas are heard; during the day, the birds whistle with serenity, and the light of day shines through the windows, each day slightly differently…

This constant duality becomes a source of inspiration for Bachar, obsessed as he is by this rustic environment which exacerbates the senses.

The record has 11 tracks, all written on the spot, as well as a duo recorded in 2017 with the french singer Christophe -Jnoun (unreleased up to now).

Five years after his critically acclaimed debut album Throwback, Glenn Astro returns with his deeply personal album Homespun.

Marking a change in course from his first release on Tartelet Records, Glenn Astro is set to showcase his sophomore album Homespun, a testament to a visionary artist who has come into his own. Made up of ten tracks spanning 45 minutes, the record twists and turns between electronic meditations, soulful vocals by Ajnascnet, and futuristic electro, carving out a world of spacey eclecticism that is as nostalgic as it is experimental.

“This album is in all facets different from the first one, which was a deliberate decision. No vintage sounds and references, no sampling, combined with futuristic sound design and song structures.I tried to keep it as current and intuitive as possible,” he says.

Known for his chunky beats and fuzzy textures, Glenn Astro has released on labels such as Ninja Tune and Apollo, leaving a distinctive signature on everything he touches.

But Glenn Astro has quietly been crafting a new sound for himself. Sometimes taking detours – morphing into his dark alter ego and experimenting with artist collaborations.

The sound of Homespun is a culmination of several years of reflection and artistic development – however, the album itself was produced in less than three months. “I set myself an ultimatum to finish the album within three months. If I didn’t make it, I’d
have to rethink my career path and keep music as a hobby, he says.

On the introspective first single and album title track “Homespun,” Ajnascent’s vocals lend a sincerity to the melancholic production. “It’s about the regret of not taking chances and giving in too much, but also about taking responsibility and being honest with yourself. Homespun is a nod to nostalgia and a desire for simplicity and prudence, being equally the culprit and the cure,” elaborates Ajnascent.

On “The Yancey,” an homage to J Dilla, Glenn Astro paints his vision of contemporary dance music with shimmering melodies, deep ambient soundscapes, and advanced drum programming. “Moreira” and “Look at You” feel like spaced-out electronic funk hybrids, while “Taking Care of Business” goes back to the future with Glenn Astro’s take on jungle. Other tracks such as “Mezzanine,” “Slow Poke Flange,” and “Viktor’s Meditation” provide the finest dubby electronics.

Two versions of this much-loved gem (covered by Led Zeppelin and Roger Daltrey from The Who more recently), ‘As Long As I Have You’ was the

title track of Garnet Mimms’ first solo album from 1964 which made a brief appearance as a seven inch and now goes for £500.

The slightly longer ‘Single Version’ made it to demo-only in France in 1967 and is a super rare cut - an edited live version with brass courtesy of

The Senate that goes for around £400 if you can find a copy. Remastered here from the original sound source.

Record Kicks proudly presents "Damaged Heart", the first single taken from The Tibbs forthcoming new album "Another Shot Fired", that will hit the streets on November 20.

"Damaged Heart", a catchy mid tempo soulful gem, will be released on October 09 on digital streaming/download and a limited edition 45 vinyl. On the flip-side of the limited 45 the soulful album's bonus track "Ball and Chain". The 45 is limited to 500 copies worldwide.

According to the band, "Damaged Heart" is a love song and "It's about being in a relationship where something is just slightly off. Sometimes developing serious feelings for someone can be scary. Being vulnerable, and knowing that someone could hurt you very easily can be scary".

Based around Amsterdam, The Tibbs took off in 2012 working right from the start with producer Paul Willemsen (Beans & Fatback, Lefties Soul Connection, Michelle David & The Gospel Sessions). In 2016 their first LP, "Takin' Over" marked their debut with Milan based imprint Record Kicks. The singles "Next Time" and "The Story Goes" received critical acclaim on radio stations throughout Europe and North America and the 45s flew out the door in record time. The release of "Takin' Over" delivered the band far richer rewards. Playing sold-out venues in both Milan and Frankfurt. The Tibbs' profile rose further still with wonderful festival performances in Germany and Hungary, followed by a successful sold-out tour of Spain. In late 2018, Elsa decided to follow her heart and focus on a solo career. The Tibbs duly began their search for a truly worthy successor, bringing astonishing vocalist Roxanne Hartog and the band together for the first time. With new recordings in the bag and a great new album about to be released, The Tibbs are once more ready for lift off.

LIMITED REMASTERED VINYL REPRESS WITH NEW COVER ART AND SLEEVE NOTES.

The La’s are one of the most enigmatic bands of the last few decades releasing only a handful of singles and one 'official' critically acclaimed album (which was disowned by the band itself!).

Lee Mavers (singer/songwriter) has stated repeatedly, that the closest he came to capturing his perfect vision was with the original recordings- which now appear here on limited vinyl with an undisputed spirit and freshness that could never be recaptured.

With so much mythologising around the bands early recordings, and their eventual disappearance, Viper are proud to present the songs which appeared thirty years ago on The first La's album, only as nature intended- authentic, endearing and quite simply magical.

Amongst many highlights is the first ever recording of There She Goes, 'Live'- now correctly considered to be a standard. Noel Gallagher famously stated that :'Oasis wanted to finish off what the La's had started' It's fair to say it's right here where Brit Pop started.

The Detroit assault continues with the second release in the WPH U.S. Series coming courtesy of Brian Kage. Brian has been an integral part of the fabric of Detroit’s house & techno scene for as long as you can remember and has released many timeless grooves on his own Michigander label and many other outlets, including the brilliant ‘Shut Your Eyes’ on the Omar S-run FXHE label.

Opener ‘Werkit’ sets the bar high with a chugging groove, mind-melting strings and piano chords, all produced to perfection. The challenge is met by the two remixes. Detroit’s Patrice Scott goes on his classic deeper tangent that never fails to deliver and WPH boss Red D fires up an electro banger reminiscent of 313 staple Aux 88. Brian rounds things off himself in style with ‘Groove La Tape Deck’, a serious slice of hypnotic house music that will make you nod more than just your head. Timeless stuff once again from the WPH camp!

After spreading several music videos and EPs all year long, Jumo starts the decade with a first much anticipated album. More than a compilation of his past works, “Et le vent?” extends the artist’s experiments and add new colors to his palette.
Featuring Léonie Pernet, Pénélope Antena, Hyacinthe.
Staying on the line traced by the previous tracks, “Et le vent?” perpetuates Jumo’s taste for narration with all its forms.
Six years ago Clément Leveau gave birth to Jumo a musical avatar with whom he asserted a singular identity characterized by a sophisticated production of heady melodies and a cinematographic atmosphere allowing him to give free rein to his passion for the image. The release of the Radio Nova hit 'Aléa' marked the beginning of a fruitful collaboration with the Parisian label Nowadays Records (Fakear, La Fine Equipe, Clément Bazin, Leska). As a graphic designer Clément makes Jumo a true transdisciplinary project in which sound and video feed off each other, putting his collective Cela at the service of a dark and arty visual universe that perfectly matches the contours of his music.
After spreading several music videos and EPs all year long, Jumo starts the decade with a first much anticipated album. More than a compilation of his past works, “Et le vent?” extends the artist’s experiments and add new colors to his palette.
Staying on the line traced by the previous tracks, “Et le vent?” perpetuates Jumo’s taste for narration with all its forms. “L’exode”, first single of the album, is a perfect example. It gives the album’s tone and also dives us into Jumo’s powerful aesthetic thanks to the music video.
“Steve (Ft. Léonie Pernet), is a tribute to Steve Maia Caniçot, young man who dramatically died during a police charge on Nantes docks on June 21st, 2019. A track on which Jumo confronts with Léonie Pernet’s grunge intonations, an unexpected collaboration sounding like an evidence.
Another main track of the album is “Une Belle Personne (Ft. Oré)” where the producer’s synths converse with the French singer and offer us an original and efficient pop song.
The great Awir Leon, the French rapper Hyacinthe, Hier Soir (Jumo’s side project) and Penelope Antena complete the cast of an album that goes from the calm contemplation of the world to the underground clubs filled with energy.

"Lugar Alto's newest project is the idiosyncratic album MUMIA (portuguese for MUMMY). Never released before, it is a work that was originally recorded on cassette and combines elements of post-punk, industrial and ambient music.

Kodiak Bachine and Celso Alves formed the ephemeral and eponymous duo in 1988. The partnership resulted in a single recording derived from improvised sessions using minimal amounts of electronic equipment at Celso's country house, located in the interior of São Paulo.

Bachine was an important figure in the São Paulo underground. His most renowned project was the band Agentss from 1981, which also consisted of Miguel Barella, Eduardo Amarante, Elias Glik and Lyses Pupo (later replaced by Thomas Susemihl). In its brief duration, the band released only two seven inches that were considered seminal artifacts in the Brazilian post-punk scene: “Agentes / Angra” from 1982 and “Professor Digital / Cidade Industrial” from 1983. These two rare records are highly sought after by collectors and DJs from around the world for their inventiveness and originality.

Similar to Agentss, MUMIA brings with it extreme authenticity, managing to extrapolate the barriers of more traditional Brazilian music and interact with unorthodox elements. The lyrics are a mixture of Portuguese and English and it is still possible to identify picturesque fragments of Spanish, French and German. In addition, sonically, the record portrays aesthetics from the eighties and dialogues with themes relating to LSD. Another notable feature is the fixation on Egyptian post-mortem themes, providing a cinematic and lysergic experience of the desert landscapes from the African country.

It is a recording with comic passages which provokes an unpretentious reaction from the listener. However, it still has more ethereal and atmospheric moments, such as the opening song “Ave do Deserto”. In the final two tracks, it is possible to enjoy a darker MUMIA, which with “Massacre da Serra Elétrica I” and “Massacre da Serra Elétrica II”, provide a sound experience capable of accompanying intense scenes from the macabre productions by Tobe Hooper and George Romero.

The striking new artwork was created by the Sometimes Always studio, a partner of Lugar Alto and responsible for diverse graphic collaborations with artists, venues and parties in Brazil. The album, mastered by the prolific Arthur Joly, also has a booklet containing Kodiak’s texts in Portuguese and English, in addition to the lyrics, which serve as a logical exercise for further understanding of the album.

MUMIA was unearthed by the renowned Brazilian DJ Millos Kaiser, who in addition to kindly curating this album, put together the compilation “Onda de Amor: Synthesized Brazilian Hits That Never Were (1984-94)”, released by Soundway Records.

Now, after 32 years in its tomb, the MUMIA has risen and thanks to Lugar Alto it can finally be celebrated and appreciated."

When Upset The Rhythm released Normil Hawaiians’ lost album ‘Return Of The Ranters’ back in 2015, the band members got back in touch with each other after a 30 year break and starting playing music together again. Out of this the group played a launch show for the album and followed that up with more concerts, including an appearance at Supernormal, a residency at the Edinburgh Festival, gigs at Cafe OTO and supporting Richard Dawson in London too. They even recently toured Greece in support of having all three of their renowned exploratory post-punk albums finally back in print.

Throughout this time, Normil Hawaiians revisited their original songs for these live performances. However for a group always so interested in evolving their sound and seeking nuance, it comes as no surprise that they shirked the idea of a faithful retread of old material in favour of reimagining their songs. The group experimented by pushing their songs into new inventive dimensions, still progressive at heart, but now imbued with a cosmic uncanny. A cinematic, even pastoral approach that was always quietly present has come to the fore. The quaint weirdness of folk song, the humanity of communal practice and the group’s ecological mindedness have all found a place in Normil Hawaiians’ current sound world. With this conducive atmosphere brewing, the band’s first new songs in decades started to emerge.
Being far-flung across the UK, the Family Hawaii encamped to Tayinloan, a small village on the west coast of the Kintyre peninsula in Scotland with the intention of recording new music. They set up their own studio in an isolated, windswept house overlooking the sea and started the tape rolling. Noel Blanden from the band explains how the spirit of the location was such an inspiration to the group during this initial recording session: “Our time immersed in the place and the unique energy it generated in us allowed us to write ‘In The Stone’. It goes right back to our first album, this need to document experience before it passes over and eludes us. We were grabbing at the musical ether and letting it shape itself through the band.” From loose, improvised sessions and reflective periods of listening in Tayinloan, Normil Hawaiians captured the moment. ‘In The Stone’ is a motorik thrill of distorted guitars, locked rhythms and morphic resonance. Guy Smith is joined by Zinta Egle on vocals, skilfully sharing lyrics informed by Alan Garner and Nigel Kneale’s ideas around recurring events being linked to place and historical artefact;  a kind of residual haunting known as ‘Stone Tape’ theory. In keeping with the context of the song, sounds from several previous live recordings of the track were woven into its present being. Flipside ‘Where is Living?’ is a decidedly more delicate affair of questioning lyrics and eerie traces, droning strings and impressions smudged. This resultant 7” is a tantalising glimpse of Normil Hawaiians now, an echo from the past, an echo from the future.

When Joakim aka Cray76 moved back from NYC to Paris in 2019, he knew he wouldn't have access to a studio for a little while. And although he welcomed that forced pause in making music, he felt the need to take at least one piece of gear with him in his suitcase. It was the legendary Roland TB303, one of the simplest and quirkest synth ever made and maybe the one that had the most important influence on electronic music since the mid 80s. Having recorded a few beats on his Roland TR808 before he packed his studio in Brooklyn to be shipped back to France, Joakim decided to make a record only using those 2 machines, an « exercice de style » that is a tribute to 30 years+ of acid house and techno and a way to make tools that he could use in his DJ sets. It goes deep, it goes hypnotic, it goes rough, many flavors of acid are packed in this 808+303=1111 12inch.

The MINDFULNESS HIPERNORMALISATION album itself marks a new turn in Eduardo's work, breaking away from any musical style or stereotype and always trying to seeking freedom of expression,marked also by a strong connotation of voluntary ostracism.A new stage in which Eduardo uses this double vinyl like a tool to mark a distance with the current international scene and also support the Adam Curtis theories shown on his acclamed documentary "The HiperNormalisation" 2016 . The album show influences that goes from romantic ambient melodies to the most complex and experimental electronica,also including easy listening techno where it is difficult to differentiate the line between techno and ambient.

Francois Kervorkian,DJ and official engineer of albums belonging to Depeche Mode or Kraftwerk, gives support to this great work of Eduardo which will remain in the near future and without any doubt as a cult album.

Westcoast Goddess first came to our attention at the end of 2018 following his debut release on Canadian label Heart To Heart, but his productions actually date right back to ’93 (under various different guises) when he first began making music with his trusty Roland DR550 and Kawai K1. With a fresh and distinctive sound, WG successfully fused soulful touches and late 80’s-era digital synths with raw, punchy grooves and a euphoric, ravey atmosphere. Since then, the Berlin-based producer has built a solid following amongst underground house heads with subsequent releases dropping on esteemed labels such as Omena, Slam City Jams and Let’s Play House.

Opening up the EP we have Step Inline (The Narcotic Soul), which is a piano driven, uplifting slice of house heaven. A simple repeating 2 bar chord pattern lays down the foundation for soaring strings, cascading chimes and seductive echoing vocal hook.

Next up we have The Devil In Mr Holmes (The Erotic Soul) which once again goes heavy on the piano stabs but this time developing the arrangement into something that feels more like an instrumental dub of a long lost Prelude release. Crystalline synth lines come and go, whilst electronic tom hits add pace and energy to the unrelenting house groove.

Flipping over we have the epic I Might Be Ok (The Faithful Soul) coming in at over 9 minutes and being all the better for it. A dirty Moog bassline leads the charge with beautiful synth lines layering up on top, creating a blissed-out vibe which can’t fail to lift your spirits.

This is the 1973 solo album by Ghanaian percussionist Anthony Kwaku Bah, who was given the nickname „Reebop“ by American
jazz legend Dizzie Gillespie. He passed away early at the age of 39 in Stockholm in 1983, but before made himself a name for his
works with UK 70s rock heroes TRAFFIC and German Krautrockers CAN, amongst others. If you might expect here the prototypical
Afro Beat and Afro Rock you mostly know from British bands, you will be surprised that this is only one part of the deal. Yes, there
are African elements to be found, buried somewhere in this boiling cauldron where polyrhythmic grooves are the base for jazz
improvisations by the brass section, that range from naughty swing and bebop, to freaked out free jazz and enchanting soul jazz
the way it was popular in the late 60s. The arrangements are utterly lush with so much going on here in every aspect that you
would get lost if there was no trace of melody to be discovered, but there they are and they tell you fantastic stories of exotic
places that only exist in your wildest dreams. Kwaku Bah’s rhythm patterns grab you by the horns and pull you into a world of
their own. Hypnotical, irresistible, hot and vivid. The tunes combine jazz, soul, funk and each one is constructed like a self –
contained story. One could imagine these tunes being used as library music for 70s movies from action to romance. All pieces
though are characterized by the constantly pulsating rhythm. To avoid drifting into the field of insubstantial disco dance music,
the performances witnessed here were executed with the highest possible emotional intensity and dedication. Lay back, close
your eyes and float away on a raft of sound upon the wild river of grooves and melodies. Some haunting Exotica jazz passages
with a typical „jungle“ feel get thrown in for the good measure. There are even vocals in an African language hard to identify,
which create and even more mysterious atmosphere. This is just an introduction part of another powerful speed funk groover but
the vocals stay and make this a clear standout track. Saxophone and guitars seem to have a duel here. You will not sit still while
having this tune „Iphonohimine“ coming down on you like a thunderstorm. Blues, Afro Beat, Psychedelic Rock, Funk, it can all be
found in here and the band goes wild into an everlasting improvisation that deprives you of your breath. Can this record get even better? Do not ask, just enjoy what comes next. If you think that some melodies by the giant brass section sound a bit too catchy
just reach out beyond these harmony lines and find yourself in a thicket of grooves, pulsations, bits and pieces of melody with a
dense, sultry atmosphere. Some smaller parts might make you think of cruise ship big bands and white suits, but everybody will
soon drop these and dance in their underwear for the hot blooded power funk base of the tune called „Africa“, which will take
over one’s soul and set it on fire. So clean, so nice and so filthy and dangerous at the same time, this album is a masterpiece of it’s
style. The exciting and very sensual funk rock of „Lovin‘ you baby“ with crazy fuzz guitars and a dark and haunting approach is
another reason to kneel down when you put this record onto your turntable. Great clean lead guitars give it a latin garage rock
edge Carlos Santana would commit serious crimes for. If you love bands like OSIBISA, Eric Burden & WAR, GINGER BAKER
AIRFORCE, SANTANA, Miles Davis, all around 1969 to 1973, this is what you always wanted to listen to. Grab your copy now.

On the Corner goes beyond being a record label. It is a story of innovative artists from hotbeds of ancient-future* music across the globe. This 'Door to the Cosmos' compilation is the 10th full release (and an eclectic array of 20 EPs). OtCs rawkus sonic explorations are brought to the fore via 24 tracks making a heady blend of label mainstays and fresh family recruits. The label is an inimitable mixture of Miles Davis' 'call it what you want' attitude, the afro centric futurism of Sun Ra and the evolving electronic frontier where black music kicks it to the dance floor. 'Door to the Cosmos' expresses On the Corner's adventure; future sounds referencing the source, be it Detroit, UK bass culture, New Orleans or the Niger delta. The title riffs off of the otherworldly, afro futurist jazzer Sun Ra's infamous chant 'dare to knock at the door to the cosmos'. Sun Ra's sound and narrative bending inspires us to kick at the rules and push at the infinite, the ecstatic and the unknown through music by knock, knock, knocking at the door to the cosmos. The compilation is the first outing for a new raft of artists who are celebrated by the label and welcomed to a creative space brimming with the tales of unsung pioneers of the past and champion sonic explorers of the future.

Two rare and mystery-shrouded party-in-the-house sides from 1976.

Willi J Coe’s Cleethorpes anthem ‘Boogie With Your Baby’ was a no-hit wonder that goes for around £100 if you can find a copy on the original shortlived Ki Ki label.

Produced by Willie J Key and arranged by Bob Holmes (Joe Tex / Freddie North / Slim Harpo) it’s a slice of funky party disco. A proper floorshaker. V Rare Function’s ‘Disco Function’ was originally on Soul Unlimited in 1976 and fetches around £50 a copy these days.

Sampled by Luke Vibert in more recent times, it’s a brass-stabbed party anthem with a nod to Kool And The Gang when they were funky.

The man in the crowd is a wonderer with relaxed habits. In him the course of things and movement of the city is reproduced. The Düsseldorfer Detlef Weinrich is such a man in the crows. Some one who is constantly listening to future winds through rushes of the past. He loves the night for its free will. And his music tells stories about it. You might know him as a member of the band Kreidler. As a solo artist he goes under the name Tolouse Low Trax. And he's already got three Eps and two albums under his belt. His first solo album „Mask Talk“ thrives on a feathery beat frequency and cool new-wave-strength. His recently released piece „Corridor Plateau“, which appeared as a limited edition to accompany the exhibition „Corridor Plateau“ contains percussive electronics and Industrial sounding like its from the second industrial revolution. His third album „Jeidem Fall“, is also not from here. It sounds like music brought down to earth from the heavens. But its a dark cosmos in which there are only fleeting glimpses of light. All eight tracks were composed in a short space of time over the period of just a few months and fit together perfectly atmospherically. With a musical expressiveness that undoubtedly twists your emotions, „Jeidem Fall“ attacks the subconscious and clouds the mind. The drums have more movement that on „Mask Talk“. Along with the constant tapping of drumsticks goes melodical arpeggios dancing dark and dirty. At times longing vocals drift abstractly through the room, as on „Sa Seline“ or „Geo Scan“, without telling any obvious story.

To sound like stylistic cross references from the present and past is all just speculation for nothing on „Jeidem Fall“ really sounds like anything that has gone before. You could compare the dark minimal timbre of the drum computer aesthetic with Craig Leon's first reductive album „Nommos“. There is also a hint of the minimallist industrial of the Spanish band Esplendor Geometrico in the bubbly textures. But Tolouse Low Trax is still looking from the present into the future and filter and filters all his personal preferences through his MPC and his small synth setup to make them come alive here and now in a new way. Again Tolouse Low Trax has created a truly mysteriously vibrating drum computer music which offers hypnotic magic for the shadowy dance floor. Only a little light should illuminate the whole thing and the bodies that move above them should have no fear from threatening percussion which are displaced into a misty trance. A dark swaying shadowy mass, ideal for a journey at the end of the night and all those non-places where longing sleeps and the last romantics dance while getting drunk.

On the Corner Records was awarded 'Label of the Year' at the Worldwide Awards 2018. OtC is a story of artists and scenes that goes way beyond being a record label. DJ and label owner Pete On the Corner has created a home for innovative, bordercrossing, genre pushing artists. The OtC vision is to bring music to the world that is knocking at the 'Door To The Cosmos'. The label is an inimitable mixture of Miles Davis 'call it what you want' attitude, Sun Ra's Afro Futurism and the ecstatic soul lifting influence of black music on electronic dance music. On 'Door To The Cosmos - Dancefloor Sampler' Pete has curated a volume of cuts from present and future label family. This first in the series, is not just knocking at the door but giving it a kick! It's club music referencing the source, be it Detroit, or UK bass culture combined with future sounds rising from cosmopolitan hotbeds of sonic heat. On this maxi EP Venezuela meets India via New York, the street sound of Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania pulses through UK Jungle. Undergrounds pushing the dance, breaking borders and genre alike. Rhythms from the ancestors channelled for future times.

Hello Everybody,

I hope that you will have as much enjoyment from my music here as I had performing it!! I would like at this time to give you a little "History" of myself and as to how I came to love the music that I play! Coming from a "Musical Family"; my father was Tyree Glenn, Musical Director and Trombonist with Louis Armstrong and played with the likes of Cab Calloway and Duke Ellington among others and my brother, Roger Glenn, a very "Talented Musician" in his own right, it was not difficult for me to be "Influenced" and get into "Show Business" as a Musician and Entertainer! My early years in the "Fifties" were spent playing the Saxophone with my "Teenage Band" in New Jersey and later, after 4 years at Marietta College in Ohio, in the "New York City Area" in the "Sixties"! As the song goes: "IF YOU CAN MAKE IT THERE, YOU CAN MAKE IT ANY WHERE" which I did and it was in New York City where I got my "Musical Education" which would become a part of me for the rest of my life! In the "Mid-Sixties", I was offered a "Partnership" in a Night Club in the Algarve Portugal and readily accepted the chance to perform "In My Own Club"! Moving on to Lisbon after a few successful years in the Algarve, I performed in TV and recorded records there in Lisbon! By the way, I played Professional Basketball for "Benfica Lisboa" which was and remains to this day, my "Big Love for Basketball" and was to be a big part of my life! From Lisbon, I eventually went on to live and play in Italy in the early Seventies with Rocky Roberts. Returning to Lisbon in the mid-Seventies, I worked with my buddy from my "New York City Days", the very talented "Singer & Entertainer" Wayne Bartlett, and we formed the "Duo": "Wayne & Tyree" and performed in the Casinos in Portugal! We accepted an offer to perform our show in Germany and as things worked out, I have been living and playing my music here since 1976! I have enjoyed bringing my "R&B" to everyone and showing just a little bit of how it was performing "R&B" in NYC back in the "Sixties"! I hope that you will enjoy this Compilation of my work here in Germany from the past years and I would especially like to thank Tramp Records for making this record possible and being a "True R&B Fan" of Tyree Glenn Jr. and my Music!

With the sole exception of Louis Armstrong, Nat "King" Cole was one of therare black artists to enjoy such celebrity in the Forties and Fifties. He began his career as a pianist, forming a trio in 1937 with guitarist Oscar Moore and bassist Wesley Prince, but he was so successful as a singer that he went on to make many recordings as a vocalist.

Capitol, his record label, was quick to capitalize on Nat Cole's velvet tones. The hits came one after another: Straighten Up and Fly Right (1943) sold a million copies, and Nature Boy (1948) and Mona Lisa (1950) sold over three 3 million each. Some of his other (numerous) popular hits can be found on Side B.

Nat Cole's popular songs, however — some were so sentimental they were even slushy — should never conceal his talents as a pianist and musician, which he displayed with the best jazz orchestras around (Side A), his own trio (Side C) or in outings with Latin rhythms (Side D).

His fame earned him his own NBC television show in 1956, while Presidents Truman andKennedy would consult Nat on complex racial issues. He also appeared in some fifty films, and continued to record profusely (at least a hundred of his titles entered the sales charts). Nat "King" Cole deserved his title: not only did he sell over fifty million albums, but he also belongs to those artists who wrote jazz history.

Black Vinyl Edition

The Log and the Leeway follows a 6 year journey of personal exploration and drastic change for Bram Bosteels and his singular Kaboom Karavan universe. What entails is a sound-curiosity of rare format, following a metamorphosis that goes beyond the musical.

Early in the process, Bram was struck by the word/concept of a Leeway : the gradual departure from an intented course due to external influences. Following a boyish fascination for explorers travel journals, logbooks and the far fetched corners of the world, he could not have forseen how fitting of a title he had chosen. Drastically all of a sudden one day, completely unexpectedly, Bram experienced his own father dying in front of him from a rare disease. Shocked and confused by this intense encounter, his perspectives and musical course departed from its original path. But at the same time it was an enlightenment and a necessary influence for him to realise the initial idea and finish this album, started over half a decade before.

The ones familiar with Kaboom Karavan already know that nothing really sounds quite like it. Bram’s musical (and non-musical) universe is of the rare breed that seems to be entirely his own. Self-contained, but never opaque. Quite the opposite actually. Bram never pushes us away, instead, by listening to his music we are given view to a synesthetic wunderkammer of images, places, objects and possibilities. Distant but magnetic, alien but intimately familiar, Kaboom is folk music from another dimension. Listening to The Log and the Leeway is like waking up next to a bonfire in the middle of a swamp wearing somebody else’s clothes: You may not know how you got here, but whatever is happening seems to very directly involve YOU. What will happen?

Note from Erik K Skodvin (Miasmah): All the sounds, fabrics, instrumentation and stories that binds The Log and the Leeway together go far beyond what can be touched up in this simple writeup. As someone who have followed this journey since the beginning, and seen it shift from lighthearted fun to the most crepuscular personal experience, heard the stories behind (almost) every field recording and gone through boundless amounts of clips, visual details, notes, and inspirations – I can only say that it is with great pleasure and certain nostalgia I can present this record in full through Miasmah and close this quite extraordinary chapter. Bram is without doubt the most fascinating person I know. Like I told him in April 2020 during a trying time: “If everything fails, we´ll open a Kaboom Karavan museum” - an idea that might not be as far-fetched as it sounds.

Featuring: Cover painting by John Lurie. 16 page booklet of Musical illustration / collagés by Walter Dhoogh & Erik K Skodvin that more or less connects (or confuses) the dots between the music and stories behind. Mastered by Lupo at Loop-O

2x12"

Parisian label Another Moon are pleased to announce the imminent release of the second collaborative album by Scott Monteith aka Deadbeat and Paul St Hilaire aka Tikiman entitled 4 Quarters of Love and Modern Lash. When asked about about the album's motivations and production process, Monteith had the following to say: “I first heard Paul's voice back in 1996 when I stumbled upon the first Burial Mix 10 inch in a local shop, and it would be no exaggeration to say it has echoed in my mind ever since. We began working together in 2008, and it's fair to say the experience of performing and learning from him has left an indelible mark on my artistic process and my outlook on life in general. He is possessed of a truly electrifying spirit. I’ve had a folder on my hard drive called “For Tiki” for 14 years now, for those more often than not late night studio moments when I stumble upon a rhythmic or musical phrase and hear that unmistakable voice bubbling up in my mind. When that folder fills up with enough of those little magic moments I know it's time to call him, though strangely enough, he more often than not ends up calling me around those times. Such is his deep universal awareness.” “I wrote the initial sketches for what would eventually become this new album over the course of last year to a large extent as a way of trying to process what I perceived as a creeping darkness and sickness in both my own life and the world in general that desperately needed exorcising. When I received his initial responses I nearly fell off my chair. It goes without saying that Paul is a lyricist and poet second to none, and anyone familiar with his enormous body of work can attest to that. And yet, there was something in these latest pieces that hammered the proverbial nail clean through the wood. They perfectly captured this sense of rising tension, of a world that was getting almost psychedelically weirder and darker by the day, and both held a mirror up to this and offered some much needed release. Little did we know, nor could we possibly have imagined, that by the time the record actually hit the shelves, things would get exponentially weirder and darker still.” “It is my great hope that at some point in the coming months we will be able to get back on the road and share these new pieces with people in a live setting, as performing with Tiki is truly one of my greatest joys, and I think it’s where the fire in our work together truly burns brightest. In the meantime, it is my great hope that these 4 long form meditations might provide a little solace for people in their isolation, be it quietly, eyes closed lying on the coach, or cranked up, full on raving in their living rooms.”

Actual Music is a Swiss record label with a focus on Detroit House, Deep House, and Nu Disco. Taking inspiration from the masters of Detroit, the label was started by Alexandre Gazzola & Michel Catanese in 2017.

Alex Mota is a DJ and producer based in Switzerland and as a member of Los Cruzeiros, he released on Crossfontier Audio, Monique Musique and Tenampa Recordings, working with Pier Bucci, Marc Poppcke, Hernan Cattaneo and Nima Gorji.

Here Mota provides us with a diverse four tracker. Opener ‘Senses’ is an uplifting nu disco stomper with nods to New Order with the vocal. ‘Buenos Aires’ fuses Flamenco guitar and Latin flavours a plenty fitting for the most Balearic dancefloor scenes, whilst working itself up into a rhythmic house beat too.

The relentless ‘Chicago’ goes heads down and four to the floor with some well-placed trumpet flourishes. Closing out the EP is ‘Bogota’. Latin flavoured House as the title would suggest, with scattered percussion and cheeky vocal samples.

"Lost Ark Music" proudly present to you another labour of passion "Praying for the Angels" by Pura Vida. 'The heart of the Last Ark' is beating on the riddim of the drums" ... Play it loud!

"Crawling" is about Puraman's personal struggle in life (...) trying to blend a stepping, jazzy reggae groove with some psychedelic stuff, Pieter De Naegel & Mathieu Vilain provide some "Last Ark Fyah Horns". "Song to Bob" is Puraman's tribute to Bob Marley, with a haunting Bassline provide by Aston "Familyman" Barrett, Orginal Wailer (...) His son Aston Barrett Junior hits the drums like Lightening!

"When the right time come" was recorded in an oldschool fashion, Recording the riddim in one take (...) Puraman on Vocals and Guitar, Boris Perck on the bass, Xan Albrecht on the drums, Wouter Rosseel on Lead Guitar. Bos Debusscher provides a wicked synthline!
Are you ready?

"Pretty Stranger I wrote this song for you... You shurely look like danger but that's what I like about you". Pura Vida goes Psychedelic Rock (...) "Les Eaux Sauvages" is a Love-Song with the Wonderfull voice of Nina "Vitalia" Schelfthout!

"O sopro de Inae" features the warm voice of Alessandra De Queiroz...Straight from Brazil she came to the Mare Altar forest under the guidance of Maarten Rosa in search for the "Arka Perdida".
This song has Portugese Lyrics, praying for the Spirits of Iemanja and Inae (...) The Spirits of the Ocean! "Find a way Home" is a Soultune features Alessandra De Queiroz!

The Title Track "Praying for the Angels" is another combination of Puraman & Alessandra's voice. In a Sixties Psychedelic Spirit (...) Singing about the Lost Souls dwelling the streets of the Ancient City! It was recorded on Puraman's Birthday (...)

"And the lights of the city, drive them crazy. And there's nowhere to run (...) And they're praying, hear them praying for the Angels...".

"Blessings from the Last Ark" features the amazing voices of Roydel "Ashanti Roy" Johnson, Derrick "Watty" Burnett & Kenroy "Tallash" Fyffe from 'The Congos'. Ashanti Roy provides the Bassline and Percussion. Watty & Tallash provide extra magic percussion. Puraman on Vocals, Melodica & Guitar. Pieter De Naegel & Mathieu Vilain play humble and bright on this Deep Roots Tune. Blessings from the Ark. Beyond Time & Space (...)

"Ancestor Spirit Dance" is an Afrobeat inspired tune features the voice of Puraman's Great-Grand-Mother Mathilde Spruytte, who
was a local folk singer.

White vinyl, picture sleeve, limited pressing of 500 copies, includes Peaking Lights remix

Montaine’s “Mount Nod” is a delicate, shimmering slice of DIY pop music. The lo-fi charm sits on that knife-edge between happy and sad, its repeated “I’m on the bottom line but I’m doing fine” changing meaning as the song goes on, plotting the course of Mr Montaine’s sensitivity. What starts out small gently unfolds into an understated English confidence by the end. On the B side Peaking Lights dive into the mysterious undercurrents beneath the surface of Montaine’s worldview. Like all good remixes it sets the artist in a parallel universe, this one a utopian disco slowscape, complete with bubbling clouds and dayglow fountains. We have to sincerely thank Sam Potter of 00s band Late of the Pier for coming to Be With with the story of February Montaine back in the spring of 2017. When we first heard “Mount Nod” our jaws dropped. We immediately thought of all the people that would love it. Of friends and family, far and wide. Of fans of timeless, soulful pop music everywhere. Championed by Trevor Jackson and Efficient Space, it’s perfect, addicitve pop which generously gifts the listener eternal goosebumps. Three years later, we are absolutely delighted to finally bring this out as the second release in our Be Pop series of 12″s. In Be Pop fashion it’s pressed on white vinyl and this time limited to 500 copies for the World.

Carving out an enviable reputation across the globe for his distinctive and highly personal brand of House music, Kiko Navarro's voyage of sonic discovery has been going strong for almost three decades now. From London to the Far East, Kiko has travelled far and wide with his music, embracing sounds from each continent as he goes. Kiko's new album, Afroterraneo- also named after his music label- defines the sound of his home. The album incorporates sounds touched by the Mediterranean Sea, drawing influences from Europe, Africa and his roots in the Balearic Islands. Afroterraneo is all about fusion. It includes Afro-Cuban songs like "Okere", "Karabali" and "Ekobio Monina", Midwest-African flavour on "Ihabogi Rawaly" and "Beréde", Flamenco with "La Fatiga", Balearic emotions with maestro Joan Bibiloni on "El Salto Del Martin" and "Vida", South African vibes on "Olwakhuthando", Afro Mbira lines with European TB303 acid blips on "Cacao Ceremony" and it all ends with his own tribute to his mother on "Para Mama". Born on Mallorca, Kiko's sound reflects the sun-drenched, slow living atmosphere of the Balearic island he still calls home. Obsessed from an early age with the more soulful side of US House music, Navarro's DJ skills soon attracted the attention of nightlife behemoth Pacha who offered him club residencies both in Palma and in Ibiza. Next came a monthly gig at Space Ibiza and the rest, as they say, is history. A true Renaissance Man; now also a family man, today's Kiko Navarro is perhaps even more focused and dedicated to his life in music than ever before. An album tour this year will see him play DJ sets in Italy, Bulgaria, Macedonia, Greece, Japan, South Korea, China with many more to be confirmed. Whether in the studio crafting records or in the club controlling the dance-floor, Kiko's musical mission has become the habit of a lifetime.

After nine years of quality assured house music, FINA Records hits release number 30 with another of its forward looking offerings, this time from red hot young Frenchman Armless Kid.

Well known on his native Paris circuit, Armless Kid is now breaking out on the wider international scene. He's released his bustling, heart felt house grooves on Rekids and the legendary Classic Music Company, is a Rinse FM regular and has an anything goes approach that has won him high profile fans like DJ Harvey and The Black Madonna.

Opener Shadows is a superbly warm deep house cut with real drive in the silky smooth drums. It's perfect for cosy dance floors, while Lost Days picks up the pace with raw and hurried kick drums and dusty piano keys bringing real beauty to the groove. Brute Factor Disco pumps any party with its urgent drum programming, explosive sense of energy and dazzling disco chords and last of all, NaturaL FL Groove slips into a funky bass riff, with organic licks and authentic old school production values that make it a timeless classic in the making.

Tyyni is the third album by Finnish-born sound artist and musician Cucina Povera aka Maria Rossi. The second album recorded using a more studio-based scenario – as opposed to last year’s Zoom, a collection of in-situ, spontaneous recordings – Tyyni feels like a slowly unfurling mediation on the clash between nature and mechanical living, a rumination on the complexities of modern life that begin to unveil more about the inner landscape of the artist as it progresses. A Finnish word referring to still, serene weather, the title belies a new note of turmoil in Cucina Povera’s soundworld. Tyyni represents a more detailed focus on the sculpting of sounds that curl around Rossi’s hymnal vocal performances. It’s a more adventurous work than Rossi’s previous output that goes further into noise elements and vocal abstraction while maintaining the balance and ecclesiastical ecstasy of her debut Hilja.

While tension at the core of Cucina Povera is always prevalent, previously it was organic sounds that were used to counterpoint Rossi’s singing but on Tyyni these are often replaced with aggressive synths and distortion, profane clashes with the seemingly sacred hymns. Whether close mic’d and intoning in a loop or in full flight, Maria Rossi’s voice remains in the foreground, set here against a more synthetic backdrop. This development builds new worlds for Cucina Povera, a digital environment which brings in a sense of the alien for Rossi’s vocal to duel. The effect is often dazzling. On Salvia Salvatrix, an ode to the medicinal plant used to ward off evil spirits, Rossi’s invocation is encircled by a distorted synth sound tearing at the fabric of the composition. It’s an inspired juxtaposition, leaving the listener to appreciate both sounds as separate and as a duet. Anarkian kuvajainen embraces a sense of chaos, an accidental transmitting mobile phone’s pulse is swept up gently with looped synth swells as Rossi’s prayer-like vocal rhythmically teases the composition into loops that embrace and then drift apart. Teerenpeli flirts with a minimal beat rendered by sampler and processed, layered field recordings of capercaillies, while Side A ends with one of Rossi’s most beautiful, simple tracks yet recorded. Varjokuvatanssi is an a cappela recording built on top of a wordless glossolalia, a shadowy interplay which foregrounds the solo vocal.

Pölytön nurkka is the most melodic song yet recorded by Cucina Povera. While it still maintains an off-the-cuff performance style, the synthesized chimes and 4/4 beat are smothered by a distorted synthesizer which almost replicates the bravado of an electric guitar feedbacking into the night. Rossi’s subject matter talks of trying to start anew, getting rid of extraneous material, perhaps still feeling powerless to affect positive change. On Haaksirikkoutunut, the protagonist vocal is lost, a vessel rudderless on the ocean, buffeted by waves metaphorical or real, digital, atonal chords gurgling and splashing against the bow, a storm forever brewing on the horizon. Saniaiset recalls Coil in its eldritch, nocturnal tone and digital-bell like synth, Rossi’s half-spoken/half-sung voice attaining a creepy tone before flipping into flight. Album closer Jolkottelureitti uses an escalating, sequenced synth that splinters into both abrasive tones and harmonising chords creating a kosmische effect, reminding the listener of Kluster or synth-era Popol Vuh, all the while elevated by Rossi’s searching vocalising.

For an artist with such a singularly unique musical language, Cucina Povera is continually teasing new strands and emotive tones from an evolving palette. Most importantly, Tyyni appears to be pulling back the veil to uncover an artist finding a synergy between her own emotional inner world and practice. As such, on her third album, Maria Rossi has found a third way between abstraction and extraneous emotion, personal experience turned inside out to reveal more about the listener.

After shooting out his introspective album NACHT, AFN-Head Johannes Klingebiel goes for something completely different with his first full solo EP for his label. The title track "It's such a beautiful day" and "Dream" follow roughly the patches of that genre labeled "Lo-Fi-House" without simply imitating them. On the flipside you'll get Johannes' trademark melodic melancholic house vibes with slow-burner "Here + There" and cosmic beast "Under The Hood". Four tracks ready for a festival summer that wasn't meant to be. But maybe we can still enjoy this very beautiful day...

In the deepest hour of nightfall, an explosion occurs on the horizon. An explosion so bright that daylight shows, just for a moment.

For the brief second, the landscape is exposed, vulnerable, like the alb of a high priest. 4 figures stand on a stand of gold leaf, staring out into a slow sea of crude oil. Invoke a violence from the sea, they say. The light goes out, and stays out. She Luv It carries in them an energy similar to a ritual of violence that can be heard in the music of Northern Europe as well.

The recording quality is bright with vocals that chug through an almost cassette-like sound. Bent notes harken back to Northern European scenery of "woods" and "darkness", but where they waded into shit politics rather than better music, She Luv It begins on a sturdy foundation of technical skill and intentional sound. Invoke the violence in yourself, stare into the black sea, and scream until your throat bleeds. This is 'She Luv It'.

Repress

After last year's lauded 3-track EP "TOPINAMBUR" we're more than happy to announce ROBAG WRUHME's return to SPEICHER. On the A-side, Robag delivers a deep hypnotic chugger that goes by the simple but ultimately affirmative name "YES". In all its simplicity, it's one of those tracks that gently tosses you down the famous rabbit hole. The flip side "CALMA CALMA" is pure summer festival bliss, resurrecting the spine-tingling a cappella from C'Hantal's proto techno classic "The Realm" for the 2020's. Both tracks are 100% Robag... highly emotive, über sexy and yet somehow hazardous.

Nach der hochgelobten 3-Track EP “Topinambur” freuen wir uns sehr, ROBAG WRUHME’s Rückkehr auf SPEICHER anzukündigen. Auf der A-Seite liefert Robag einen tiefgehenden, fast hypnotischen Track, der den simplen und durchweg bejahenden Titel “YES” trägt. In all seiner Einfachheit ist das ein Stück, das dich behutsam das berühmt-berüchtigte Rabbit Hole hinunter bugsiert. Die andere Seite “CALMA CALMA” ist pure Festival-Sommer Wonne: Es lässt das A cappela von C’hantal’s Proto-Techno Classic “The Realm” wieder aufleben und sorgt damit auch in den 2020ern für Gänsehaut. Beide Tracks sind dabei 100% Robag... extrem gefühlsbetont, über sexy und doch irgendwie gefährlich.

Studio Mule drops “Anthologia”, the final chapter of a close look on the work of the Tokyo born DJ and producer Takayuki Shiraishi, a jack of all trades, that sways through Tokyo’s vast music scene since the late 70’s, a time when post punk grooves called the tune. As part of the band BGM he released in 1980 the album “Back Ground Music” on the legendary Osaka based underground label Vanity. Last October Studio Mule reissued BGM’s no wave, free funk mini-mal treasure. A few Month earlier Studio Mule already published “Missing Link”, a thrilling retrospect on Takayuki Shiraishi's unreleased material from the late 1980s, a creative period of which only a little ever saw the light of the day.

And now “Anthologia”, a record that is dedicated to his work during the years 1990 to 1996, a time span, in which Shiraishi moved on to produce house, downbeat and playful electronica. In 1995 he released the ambient/techno 12inch “Spectral Colours” on the R&S sublabel Apollo under the alias Planetoid. Two years later he manifested his techno leaning creativity under his given name on the album “Photon”, a record that helped launching Japan’s techno scene. It was followed by two more long players, that display his wide musical taste with ambient, house, breakbeat and other genre blending styles. Besides producing, Shiraishi was also a prominent figure of Tokyo’s club nightlife, DJing alongside Jeff Mills as well as Krautrock icons like Holger Czukay.

“Anthologia” features three unreleased tunes of this lapse of time, as well as highlights some work Shiraishi produced together with his friend Jun Sonohara as Musica Nova and a hidden gem he tuned in for the “Isolated Audio Players 1” compilation, published by the Tokyo based Pickin' Mushroom Recordings label in 2000.

The three unreleased tracks display his love for diversification. “Distant Thunder” is a drone driven ambient voyage, that slowly melds into a gentle rhythmic sensation driven by loose hi-hat patterns and a soft chord crescendo. On the opposite, “Lapis Lazuli” comes around as a mellow melodic downbeat trip enlarged with twisted rhythms and cosmic infiniteness. “A Voy-age” shows his love for house music with a grooving arrangement that comes close to the kinky house gems of contemporary producers like Lowtec. Also, the already known “Isolated Audio Players 1” compilation tune “Flicker” is located in the house spheres, delivering nervous jacking minimal vibes emerging from a precise produced dance of melodies, grooves and sound effects.

In comparison, the four Musica Nova tracks show again another side of Takayuki Shiraishi’s many musical talents. “Birds in Paradise” is an elegant triphop tranquilizer, while tunes like “Nocturnal Tribes” and “Green on Green” express his passion for electronic arrangements that think out of the box with airy melodies, slow-motion big beat rhythms, jazz particles and an overall cosmic sound complexion. The tune “Shifting Sand” goes the same direction, while adding esoteric reverberations and a touch of Drum and bass.

Together the eight tracks turn “Anthologia” into something more than just an anthology of Takayuki Shiraishi’s work. In association, all compositions work like an album that overwhelms with a reasoned story-arc, who slowly rises to a hypnotizing peak, from where all downswings to a calm finish, that makes you want to start all over again.

It goes without saying that the global metal scene would not be the same without Sepultura. For 35 years now, the Brazilian icons are not only a band revered worldwide; they have been, are and forever will be at the very forefront of Thrash Metal, trailblazing ever since they released their long-since legendary debut album “Morbid Visions” in 1986.
While quickly establishing themselves as leaders of the second wave of Thrash already in the late eighties, to this day they never came even close to stagnation. “Quadra”, their mighty new undertaking, is proof of a will unbroken, a thirst unquenched and a quality so staggeringly high it’s a wonder this band doesn’t implode. Now three albums deep into what may very well be their strongest incarnation yet – uniting the talents of old-school members Andreas Kisser (guitars, vocals) and Paulo Xisto Pinto Jr. (bass), vocal force of nature Derrick Leon Green (vocals) and drummer Eloy Casagrande – Sepultura are an unleashed power to be reckoned with, uniting bucketloads of experience and youthful vigour in a totally revived way.
“On ‘Quadra’, we felt the urge to revisit that old thrash feeling of ‘Beneath the Remains’ or ‘Arise“,’ only seen through the eyes of today,” Andreas Kisser utters the magic words. “Add to that the tribal percussion, the orchestral elements, the choirs, the melodies and the clean vocals and you get a thorough run-through of our entire career, backed by a very contemporary approach.” Fuelled by an energy almost uncanny for a band that has been active for so long, Sepultura storm through a contemporary thrash monument, backed by sublime melodies, a very eerie atmosphere and a fiendishly high level of technicality. Kisser is appreciating these compliments, still maintaining his very down to earth approach. “We don’t heed the past and we don’t try to be preoccupied by the future too much,” he shrugs. “We’re in the now, trying every day to make Sepultura a little bit better. That’s what keeping us strong.”
And that’s what they have been doing for the last 30+ years. Album after album, tour after tour, no gap in between records longer than three years. “Music is all we do,” Kisser states matter-of-factly. “If it wouldn’t be for Sepultura,” he laughs, “I would be a sad and lonely guy. Sepultura is what we are.” And “Quadra” is living testimony to that. The old Sepultura echo through the very fibre of the songs in all its raw and morbid splendour, but yet it’s the present, the experienced and refined beast that is Sepultura in 2020 that’s blasting out thrash metal anthems for a fucked-up age.
With now 15 albums under their belts, Sepultura are the work horses of the metal world, always ready to attack. In many ways, “Quadra” broadens the vision the Brazilian thrash troopers had on “Machine Messiah” (2017), again relying on the impeccable talent of Swedish producing giant Jens Bogren and his Fascination Street Studios. “He is so full of passion, it’s unbelievable, man,” Kisser raves. “He’s really there, he really cares about the projects he’s doing. For Sepultura, he’s like the fifth member of the band. The chemistry was so amazing, 99 percent of what we were trying do to actually worked. That was insane!” Even after more than 30 years at the forefront of international thrash, guitarist Kisser sounds positively baffled by working with Bogren. “We felt like we were in our rehearsal room.”
Bringing together a monumental grandeur and a wild, untamed ferocity, Sepultura stepped up their game musically – and conceptually as well. “We were possessed by the number four, by the numerology of it”, Kisser starts to explain. “I divided the album into four parts as if we were doing a double vinyl. Side one is the pure and raw thrash side. Side two brings in the rhythms and percussion from our ‘Roots’ era. Three is getting a bit experimental and four brings forth the melodies and the acoustic guitars.” With John North’s book “Quadrivium” as a further source of inspiration, Sepultura dive deep into a mystical world full of hidden meanings. “You have four seasons and twelve month in a year just to pick one example. A lot of stuff in our culture is divided like that.”
Plus, Quadra also is the Portuguese word for ‘sport court’ that by definition is a limited area of land, with regulatory demarcations, where according to a set of rules the game takes place,” he adds. “We all come from different Quadras. The countries, all nations with their borders and traditions; culture, religions, laws, education and a set of rules where life takes place.” In the Quadra of thrash, however, we all are the same. And we bow our heads in unison to the mighty leader that is Sepultura.

die ANGEL, the duo project of ILPO VÄISÄNEN (ex-PAN SONIC) & DIRK DRESSELHAUS aka SCHNEIDER TM, starts its 3rd decade of sonic explorations with the release of album #10 which bears the programmatic title "Utopien I".180g LP and DL on KARL.

die ANGEL (or just ANGEL in the early days) was born in 1999during a joint European tour of PAN SONIC and SCHNEIDER TM with the aim to use electronics, string instruments and effect loops to develop a sonic world that goes beyond fixed structures and clearly defined genres. Coming from different musical backgrounds proved quite an advantage for the duo as it meant that ILPO VÄISÄNEN (ex-PAN SONIC) & DIRK DRESSELHAUS (SCHNEIDER TM) had to find their particular modus operandi: communication through noise and action, instant composition, spirit.

Over the course of over 2 decades now, die ANGEL crafted a catalogue of 9 albums released on labels like EDITIONS MEGO or EDITION TELEMARK that were recordings of either the core duo or featured like-minded artists like cellist HILDUR GUDNASDOTTIR, OREN AMBARCHI, LUCIO CAPECE or BJ NILSEN. die ANGELdelve deep into the microcosms of tones, shaping nuanced layers of abstract sound that integrate elements of Musique Concrète, Minimal Music, Industrial, Noise, Blues and Psychedelia, and yet bear the unmistakable die ANGEL signature.

"Utopien I" is not only the duo's latest effort (feat. OREN AMBARCHI) but also a clear political call: in a world of a general decline, we need new ideas and approaches to design the future.

All tracks performed & recorded December 2015 - January 2016

by Ilpo Väisänen & Dirk Dresselhaus at ZONE, Berlin

Overdubs on 'Cargo Cult'by Oren Ambarchi (Milano, Italy) April – May 2016

Edited & mixed by Dirk Dresselhaus May 2016 at ZONE, Berlin

Mastered by Helmut Erler at D&M, Berlin, December 2019

Ilpo Väisänen : electronics & effects

Dirk Dresselhaus : electric guitar & effects

Oren Ambarchi : electric guitar & effects

Following on from an excellent debut in 2019, with ‘Karoussel’, Mow Records unveils its second album. A further exploration of label head Mowgan’s penchant for house music and authentic African sounds, ‘Soya’ features percussion and vocals from Solo Sanou, an artist whose roots lie in Burkina Faso - though he’s based in Toulouse, where the album was recorded.

Comprised seven Afro house cuts that utilise organic instrumentation and Solo’s raw, emotive voice, the album is the second installment in a series of five long-players recorded by Mowgan in the space of a year. This new LP goes deep into the heart of Africa’s rich musical culture, delivering contagious rhythms, rousing atmospherics and a pure, organic, unadulterated sound that has been cultivated through electrifying jam sessions at Mowgan’s studio. Also featured on ‘Soya’ are Yoan Hernandez and Yaya Dembele who play guitar, Gauthier Djalate on bass, alongside Mamadou ‘Madou’ Dembele, a multi-instrumentalist who plays flute and ngoni, while also handling backing vocals with Adama Coulibaly aka Demsi and teaming up for a duet with Solo on ‘Badenya’. Another vocalist, Fanta, was intrinsic to this LP. The granddaughter of renowned Malian performer Kandia Kouyaté, Fanta appears on ‘Fatanya’ and is a crucial component of the album’s conception…

The story goes that Mowgan was making an album with Fanta when he realised he needed a percussionist. Fanta brought in Solo Sanou, who was very timid to begin with. Mowgan liked his style and decided to work on some music with Solo separately. As the relationship blossomed, and they recorded more music, Solo brought more and more instruments to Mowgan’s studio. During those sessions Mowgan gently encouraged Solo to try using his voice, eventually he did and, when he heard how good it sounded, ended up singing across the whole LP. So, the beauty of this album, beyond the wonderful instrumentation, is the fact that you’re hearing Solo Sanou sing for the very first time.

With all the songs recorded in his native languages, Bobo and Bambara, ‘Soya’ is an exhilarating blend of electronic production and African influences that emanates a feeling of authenticity throughout. From the opening cut ‘Adamine’, which is about Solo’s first meeting with Mowgan, to ‘Badenya’ which refers to family bonds - “There may be quarrels, but it will never catch fire,” Solo says.

There is social commentary, such as that featured on ‘Fantaya’, which is about poverty - “While some people worry about what they will eat at night, others have fun without worrying about them,” he says.

A soul-nourishing, vibrant and utterly contagious collection of raw, authentic Afro house, ‘Soya’ marks another step forward for Mow Records and a triumph for all the artists involved. Look out for further installments…

Two essential and eternal classics from New York Hammond legend Larry Young with vocals by the talented Linda "Tequila" Logan.

Rare groove standard "Turn of the Lights" I would hope needs no introduction, I well known album track that does actually exist on a rare promo arista 45 but it is HARD to find and goes for around $250+ when it turns up once in a blue moon (probably more now people know it exists).On the flip Linda's amazing free vocal on "Fuel for the Fire" is cut on 45 for the first time, one of those out there records you play on a good night when people are feeling open and it all comes together. I have spun both these records for over 20 years and no format surpasses the cut done here by Timmion Lab from the new Sony masters, I'm very happy I don't have to break out the album tracks any more.

Larry died in 1978 from untreated pneumonia and Linda disappeared from music apart from a few writing credits on 90s pop artist Betty Boo's tracks. If you love that voice be sure to check out her great vocal on Tony Williams Lifetime track 'You Make It Easy', great folky Jazz.