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This is a special one. Very much indeed. I was on a train on my way to Galicia earlier this year when my phone started off. It was Mike. Me and him exchange a call every now and then, so I thought it was the classic how-you-doing thing, which of course was. Only that this time the call ended with him saying “I’ve emailed you something, a couple of vocal takes plus the only music line that survived that session which is some great drumming by Gad”. Nothing more. Gad (scratches head)? Who the hell is Gad? When I arrived at destination and found some steady wifi connection I downloaded the stuff and found out “who the hell” Gad was. Nothing less than the “most recorded drummer in the history of soul music” aka James “Big Foot” Gadson who, beside the Kirklands, in his career has been drumming for the likes of Marvin Gaye, Charles Wright, Bill Withers, The Temptations, Martha Reeves, Quincy Jones, you name a Soul Star or a famous album, or a legendary recording session, he was there beating snares and kicks. Having been much satisfied by our work on the “Love Scenario” release Mike wanted us, and I quote him literally, “to do our magic”. We did our best of course, but you just can imagine the pressure. This time we went the extra mile though because at some point, listening again and again to the verses and choruses I figured out it would have been a great experiment to give an ultra retro feel to an original recording of 1980. So, while we were doing our thing I’ve asked my mate Paul from Blue Lotus Recordings in Saint Louis, if they could “do their magic” themselves. They gladly accepted the challenge, I handed them over the vocal takes and Gad’s drumming and the result is this 4 tracks 7”/33 rpm biscuit which we hope you will enjoy as much as we all have enjoyed producing it.

Born in 1999, Charlie Hickey grew up in South Pasadena,
just minutes from Downtown Los Angeles. Raised by two
singer-songwriter parents, Charlie’s second language was
music since day one. As early as grade school, he was
making sense of the world through songwriting, and by
middle school he was writing, recording and performing
songs that attracted a community of collaborators and could
silence a room.
 A turning point for Charlie came at around the age of
thirteen, when he covered a song by then up-and-coming
artist Phoebe Bridgers, who was still in high school herself.
The two quickly became friends and collaborators, setting
Charlie on an exciting new musical path. Years later,
Bridgers introduced Charlie to songwriter, drummer, producer
and her bandmate Marshall Vore, who noticed something
special about Charlie. The two began writing and recording
songs together, and soon Charlie dropped out of school to
work on his music full-time.
 Charlie Hickey’s first proper single was ‘No Good at Lying’
and it’s the first track on ‘Count The Stairs’. The Marshall
Vore-produced track introduces us to Charlie’s evocative
storytelling and features Phoebe Bridgers on backing vocals.
“I’m no good at lying / on my back or through my teeth / but
I’m good at dreaming / I can do it in my sleep,” he sings over
hushed guitars and a whimsical banjo, searching for truth as
his unconscious mind runs wild and bleeds into reality. It’s a
slow, quiet, and understated peek to the world of Charlie
Hickey, who is barely of legal drinking age, but taps into such
universal themes that showcase a wisdom beyond his years
and exudes promise for what’s to come.

Born in 1999, Charlie Hickey grew up in South Pasadena,
just minutes from Downtown Los Angeles. Raised by two
singer-songwriter parents, Charlie’s second language was
music since day one. As early as grade school, he was
making sense of the world through songwriting, and by
middle school he was writing, recording and performing
songs that attracted a community of collaborators and could
silence a room.
 A turning point for Charlie came at around the age of
thirteen, when he covered a song by then up-and-coming
artist Phoebe Bridgers, who was still in high school herself.
The two quickly became friends and collaborators, setting
Charlie on an exciting new musical path. Years later,
Bridgers introduced Charlie to songwriter, drummer, producer
and her bandmate Marshall Vore, who noticed something
special about Charlie. The two began writing and recording
songs together, and soon Charlie dropped out of school to
work on his music full-time.
 Charlie Hickey’s first proper single was ‘No Good at Lying’
and it’s the first track on ‘Count The Stairs’. The Marshall
Vore-produced track introduces us to Charlie’s evocative
storytelling and features Phoebe Bridgers on backing vocals.
“I’m no good at lying / on my back or through my teeth / but
I’m good at dreaming / I can do it in my sleep,” he sings over
hushed guitars and a whimsical banjo, searching for truth as
his unconscious mind runs wild and bleeds into reality. It’s a
slow, quiet, and understated peek to the world of Charlie
Hickey, who is barely of legal drinking age, but taps into such
universal themes that showcase a wisdom beyond his years
and exudes promise for what’s to come.

Far View’ is a compilation of tracks from Joel Vandroogenbroeck’s series of library
music releases for the Coloursound label, a uniquely trippy catalogue of music
vignettes long overdue for their day in the library music sun, remastered from the
original analogue reels.
 The late Joel Vandroogenbroeck was among the rare breed of musicians who defy
all categorization, using music conventions to explore the far reaches of human and
cosmic consciousness. After passing through the jazz and rock worlds from the
1950s through the ‘70s, Joel found new outlets for his expansive vision in the ‘80s
with the Swiss library music label Coloursound. ‘Far View’ draws tracks from these
releases, which form a unique entry in the genre of library music. For the uninitiated,
this is just one way to begin a brilliant musical trip through Vandroogenbroeck’s
undersung career.
 A musical prodigy from youth, Joel arrived at Brussels’ classical Music Conservatory
in the early ‘50s, but his studies were curtailed by the revelation of jazz. Soon, Joel
was touring in groups around Europe and beyond with luminaries like Eje Thelin,
Stan Getz, Bob Brookmeyer and Zoot Sims. As time passed, his musical
consciousness continued to expand: time spent in Africa sparked a deep exploration
of the music of the Middle East. The new rock sounds from England, like The Beatles
and Jimi Hendrix, were mind-blowing. And from Germany came the krautrockers,
with something completely else again.
 Vibing on the eclectic energies of the day, Vandroogenbroeck formed Brainticket,
whose approach to composition fused jazz, rock and a mélange of global musical
traditions, combining a Western rhythm section and analogue synthesizers with an
astonishing array of acoustic instruments; ethnic flutes, sitar, harp, kalimba and all
manner of percussion. Steeped in diverse approaches of playing and listening,
Brainticket drew from prog rock and psych, traditional sounds and minimalist music,
all of which passed through their hands like the tributaries that formed the basis of
what would soon be known as New Age music.
 In the late 1970s, Vandroogenbroeck began composing for sound libraries, with
recordings to be used as underlay music in films, radio and television. Gunter
Greffenius’ Coloursound Library was formed in 1979 with an inclusive vision of
music, including experimental, progressive rock, and some of the earliest examples
of ambient music - styles not well represented in other libraries. Coloursound gave
Joel the freedom to create music in any style or genre, and over the next decadeplus, he embarked on a musical journey that is unmatched anywhere in the world of
library music. Working under the pseudonyms VDB, his output on Coloursound is
some of his most sublime and otherworldly - ranging from dark electronics to
imagined music of the ancient past to ethereal ambient sounds of the future, which
makes sense, as Joel’s records were always ahead and in and out of their time.
 Joel VandroogenbroeckJ passed away in in December 2019, while work was being
done assembling this collection. Curated by David Hollander, whose ‘Unusual
Sounds’ album and book of the same name delightfully explore the library music
world, ‘Far View’ draws from ten of Joel’s Coloursound albums with lovely cohesion.
Featuring brilliantly remastered sound, liner notes from David Hollander, album art
designed by Robert Beatty and reproductions of the Coloursound album jackets, ‘Far
View’ is an entry point to Joel Vandroogenbroek’s mind-bending body of work - sonic
soma to expand your consciousness and vibrate with the cosmos.

‘Of Process and Progression’ is a perfectly balanced combination of hip-hop, jazz, and soul from longtime collaborators Tall Black Guy & Ozay Moore, who continue to push themselves creatively after a collective more than 30 years in the game. On each and every track on this LP, the duo beautifully blend Golden Era boom-bap with modern sounds to deliver something altogether timeless and inspiring. There’s just so much to love about ‘OPAP,’ an easy candidate for one of the year’s best releases, regardless of genre. Both TBG and Ozay have been on a tear these past few years with their respective careers, but it’s safe to say they’re reaching a new peak together with this release.

Repress!

With Robyn, South London's cktrl shares his most ambitious work yet, collaborating with the likes of Duval Timothy, Coby Sey (Micachu, Tirzah, Dean Blunt) and Purple Ferdinand to create a vital exploration of contemporary-classical from the black perspective; out via Errol and Alex Rita's Touching Bass. Spurred on by the overpowering feelings of heartbreak, Robyn impressively creates emotive and heartfelt clarinet and saxophone-led soundscapes about the all-consuming power of love. On the project, cktrl says: "'Robyn' at its core is heartbreak and is just really sentimental. It's a journey of losing a love but it ends with optimism as you find strength to love again." Born and bred in Lewisham, cktrl aka Bradley Miller is an integral part of London's pioneering musical underground. One of the only remaining original DJs on NTS, cktrl has previously worked with and played alongside the likes of Sampha, Sango, Kelela and Dean Blunt. Throughout his career to date, cktrl has also been recognised and heralded by fashion and film VIPs including Virgil Abloh, Bianca Saunders, Tremaine Emory, Nicholas Daley and Jenn Nkiru who recently secured him a cameo in Beyonce's heralded 'Black Is King'. With a shared ethos of elevating and amplifying leftfield black music, he partners with London based label, Touching Bass, themselves a key cog within the city's bubbling musical underbelly.

After Tigerhead’s highly anticipated appearance on HET006 with “Sleeping Paralysis”, she now comes up with her very own release named “Silk Road EP”. The A-Side of the vinyl: “Rave 4 Dave” is just made for the peaktime dancefloor – pure banging power. “Lethal Combination” is breaking things down hard, while citing and quoting the drum’n’bass-genre. On the B-Side Matrixxman deliveres two remixes of Tigerhead’s tracks. His “Darkside Remix” of “Lethal Combination” can be heard as a Techno-Electro-fusion – this one is definitely putting the cowbell back on the map! Finally Matrixxman’s remix of “Rave 4 Dave” is a trippy dancefloor track, that is rounding up the EP nicely.

Part One of Steve O'Sullivan's 'Dimensions' album series featuring collaborations with Ricardo Villalobos, Thomas Melchior, Lawrence, Brawther, SIT, Soela, Ben Buitendijk and Christopher Ledger.

"You ever wonder what Keith Morris does at the end of the day? Does he maintain that wide-eyed stare, the one that pins audiences to the floor with its very intensity, while he’s putting on his pyjamas? Does he continue spitting venom from that heroically ragged throat of his while he’s making his cocoa? Does he lay his head on his pillow with the same righteous fury that launched thousands upon thousands of moshpits? Hey, I’m just wondering. Y’see, all that intensity and venom and fury… it has to go somewhere while he’s otherwise occupied with mundane tasks like taking off his socks or brushing his teeth, right? And listening to the thrilling racket conjured up by Vancouver’s Chain Whip, you’d be forgiven for thinking that they have somehow become vessels for that energy. I mean, they’re Morris’ spiritual successors - if their 2019 debut ‘14 Lashes’ wasn’t enough of a clue, then this six-song blast of blink-and-you’ll-miss-it brilliance should leave you in no doubt. This is hardcore punk as it was originally conceived, and it slays. ‘But who are Chain Whip?’ I hear you ask. Well, they’re a bunch of dudes from British Columbia who’ve also served time in bands like The Jolts, Fashionism and Corner Boys (among others). They’re the ones who are gonna have you slashing the seats at your local cinema, or taking potshots at lines of empty bottles on street corners, cuz they make you feel so damn tuff. OK, I’m just goofing around here - whereas Chain Whip are serious business. No, really. I dare you to listen to the Germs-go-nuclear b(‘)last of ‘Laguna Bleach’, or the garage-slop-at-200-mph rush of ‘Fresh Paint And Philanthropy’, and not want to launch a stink bomb into your teacher’s car. Or, failing that, to bring about the extinction of global capitalism. If that fails, you’ll just end up wearing out the grooves of this very fine six-song EP while bouncing between walls like the DRI logo guy if he wore jet heels and spring-loaded shoulder pads. Jeez, imagine Keith finishing the night shift and giving these guys a handover. As if they’d even need to be told. Look, Chain Whip are the best straight-up old-skool punk band you’ll hear today. You know what to do. Trust your instincts. Dance that two-step to hell with ‘em. This. Is. The. Shit." Will Fitzpatrick.

The Eagles will take the stage once again this Sunday 22nd August at Madison Square Garden to resume their acclaimed “Hotel California” 2021 Tour. In celebration of the band being back on the road, Rhino will release LIVE AT THE FORUM ’76, featuring 10 songs recorded in the autumn of 1976, just prior to the release of Hotel California. LIVE AT THE FORUM ’76 will be available on 12th November as a 2LP set on 180-gram vinyl. The tracks will be making their vinyl debut, as they were previously only available on CD and digitally as part of 2017’s “40th Anniversary Edition” of Hotel California. The live music takes up three LP sides while the final one features an exclusive etching of the artwork.



LIVE AT THE FORUM ’76 was recorded during the band’s three-night run at the Los Angeles Forum in October 1976. The show took place as the group was putting the finishing touches on Hotel California, which would be released that December. The concert recording captures some of the very first live performances of “Hotel California” and “New Kid In Town.” During the show, the band also play hits from earlier albums with “Take It Easy” from the band’s 1972 self-titled debut; “Already Gone” from 1974’s On the Border; and the #1 title track from 1975’s One of These Nights. The concert also includes a raucous performance of “Funk #49,” a song originally recorded by Walsh’s James Gang.



The Forum concert presents a snapshot of the band right before Hotel California became a critical and commercial phenomenon. After its release, the album went on to become x6 platinum in the UK with the title track becoming one of the UK’s most loved classic rock anthems.

A Paean to Wilson is still arguably Vini Reilly and the Durutti Column's most important and consistent piece of work since the demise of the original and seminal Factory Records in the early 1990's. On this release we have the ‘F4 Heaven Sent’ tracks released on vinyl for the first time. They first appeared in 2005 via Wilson's project F4, as being the fourth version of Factory Records. Originally it was download-only release, Heaven Sent (It Was Called Digital, It Was Heaven Sent). A six track CD of personal dedications by Vini ironically the last piece is titled Anthony. Originally this was commissioned for the MIF (Manchester International Festival) where it was premiered in July 2009. Vin had already composed pieces for Tony to listen to whilst he was ill in hospital and it was from here that the project developed. This release belatedly coincides with the new Paul Morley Biography ‘Manchester with Love: The Life and Opinions of Tony ...’Ever critical of Vini's voice, but ever a fierce champion of his talent, the late Tony Wilson would surely appreciate this instrumental tribute by The Durutti Column. ‘Near the beginning of the final night of the Durutti Column's 70-minute international festival tribute to Tony Wilson, A Paean to Wilson, guitarist Vini Reilly announced that he wouldn't be singing: "So you won't have to put up with my awful voice and schoolboy lyrics." If Wilson was with us, he would have chuckled. The Granada presenter-turned-Factory Records boss spent years urging his first signing to stop singing, and concentrate on the virtuosity that led Red Hot Chili Pepper John Frusciante to call Reilly "the greatest guitarist in the world". Two years after his death, Wilson got his way, one of many lovely touches in a very personal, emotional and often warmly funny musical tribute. Wilson signed Joy Division and Happy Mondays, yet never gave up on this cult band he adored, working with them even after his legendary label went bankrupt. A complex man, Wilson was an academic thinker who revelled in Steve Coogan's affectionate, Alan Partridge-style send-up of him. And this tribute was no different. At one point, Reilly known for melancholy launched into something resembling an Irish jig. "Tony loved to laugh," he explained. "He loved absurdities." After the humour came exquisitely mournful music. With Reilly and drummer Bruce Mitchell augmented by bass, keyboard, violin, electric piano, drum machine and trumpet, the band's beautiful pieces reflected Wilson's love of rock and classical. Reilly's plangent guitar work showed grief's emotional spectrum, from sadness to overdriven anger. As in life, Wilson had the last word, his recorded voice expounding thoughts on socialism with an eerie echo. Silence followed as Manchester pondered the loss of one of its truly larger-than-life characters. Then everybody cheered.' Dave Simpson The Guardian 20/7/09

"Life, Love And Faith" - Allen Toussaint (p, g, hca, arr); Alvin Thomas (ts); Francis Rousselle (tp); Clyde Kerr (tp, frh); George Plummer, Vincent Toussaint (g); Walter Payton (b); Joe Lambert, Joseph Modeliste (dr); a.o. & The Meters

Allen Toussaint had it all around him – the voices and spirits of black music, rhythm ’n’ blues, funk and soul. He was born in New Orleans and grew up there, the birthplace of jazz. As from 1960, he worked as a record producer and an A&R man at Minit Records, an independent label, which was closely associated with the transformation of the New Orleans Sound. His compositions for fellow musicians landed them in the charts, he frequently participated by performing with them on the piano, and so became a connoisseur and master of all possible sounds.

"Life, Love And Faith" marks his launch into his solo career, and quite rightly so. In the songs, Toussaint amalgamates all he had mastered with a rocking R&B, funky rhythms and expressive soul to create his highly personal sound.

Although it is a soul album through and through, one has the feeling that one is listening to an album from Reprise’s stable of singers/songwriters – including such artists as Randy Newman, Bonnie Raitt, Little Feat and Joni Mitchell – rather than what usually came out of New Orleans in the early Seventies. And also because "Life, Love And Faith" captures an eccentric genius who pursues his own idiosyncratic vision. It is a structured, multi-layered album, which does not show Toussaint in his purest form, but it is his only album that shows just how widely ranged and profound his many talents were.

This Speakers Corner LP was remastered using pure analogue components only, from the master tapes through to the cutting head.

All royalties and mechanical rights have been paid.

Recording: 1972 at Jazz City Studios, New Orleans, by Cosimo Matassa and Skip Godwin

Production: Allen Toussaint

Empty surrounds all of me. It’s a poignant line from the third album by Blackwater Holylight that encapsulates the search for self when suddenly everything has changed. There’s a theme of processing vast personal trauma throughout Silence/Motion that eloquently — both lyrically and musically — and simultaneously embodies the crushing emptiness, sorrow, strength and rebuilding of recovering from personal devastation.

“There was so much grief both in the world and interpersonally during the process of creating Silence/Motion,” says vocalist/bassist Allison “Sunny” Faris. “The four of us gave one another more space to be ourselves, to experiment with each other’s ideas and to be gentle with one another more than we ever have before. So, we knew this tenderness would manifest in extremely honest arrangements, and I think that you can hear that throughout the record.”

Curiously, considering the dark times in which it was created, this is the band’s most melodic and catchy music so far. Blackwater Holylight, as the name suggests, is all about contrasts: It’s a fluid convergence of sound that’s heavy, psychedelic, melodic, terrifying and beautiful all at once. And, Silence/Motion finds the band honing those contrasts, letting ideas and moods fully develop from song to song, rather than filling every song with a full range of their capabilities. It allows the band to go fully prog-rock here, and simply stay hushed and intimate there. There’s a new confidence to the band in how seamlessly they wield their stylistic amalgam.

“Writing this album was extraordinarily difficult emotionally, however it did come to fruition fairly quickly,” Faris says. “In the past, the theme of vulnerability has always been a big player and it definitely showed up full force while writing this album.”

Blackwater Holylight recorded the album as a four piece: Faris on vocals and guitar (on “Silence/Motion”, “MDIII”, “Around You” and “Every Corner”) and bass for the remainder, Sarah McKenna on synths, Mikayla Mayhew on guitar (and bass when Faris plays guitar) and drummer Eliese Dorsay. New second guitarist Erika Osterhout will perform the songs with them live. For Silence/Motion the band chose to work with a producer for the first time, bringing in A.L.N. (of Mizmor, Hell) to produce, along with recording engineer Dylan White — who also helmed their previous album Veils of Winter (2019) — at Odessa Recording Studio in Portland, OR. Guest vocals on album opener “Delusional” are by Bryan Funck (Thou.) Mike Paparo (Inter Arma) and A.LN. (Mizmor, Hell) lend guest vocals to album closer “Every Corner.”

Silence/Motion opens softly with interwoven folky single note guitars over an ominous sounding drone for the first minute, akin to moments from Pink Floyd’s Echoes. Suddenly an irresistibly head-nodding, groovy droptuned riff kicks in with the drums and it’s a full on blackened rocker with soaring synths and Funck’s witchy whispers over the top. “Who The Hell,” the track quoted above, takes proceedings into a Krautrock direction, centered around McKenna’s arpeggiated synth loop and Dorsay’s tom-tom triplets, while 16-note guitar strums add tension as Faris wearily sings, “So tell me who the hell would want to live this way — so afraid/ To feel this void, to dwell in it… I can’t describe this pain I wear/ It suffocates and you left it here.” It’s an incredibly powerful 6 minutes. The title track delivers the 1-2-3 punch of the album’s brilliant opening trilogy. It starts with lightly plucked acoustic guitar, plaintive piano chords and Faris’ voice gliding so softly it sounds more like a Mellotron. The song builds slowly toward crescendo, led by a swinging tom pattern, that abruptly switches back to a heavier version of the opening melody.“Silence/Motion” is about digesting and healing from sexual assault. As Faris explains, “It is an ode to the juxtaposition of feeling paralyzingly blank and and like your entire life is moving through you simultaneously.” Elsewhere, Black Metal guitars collide with dreamlike melodies. “Around You” brandishes a hopeful, hummable synth melody and shimmering shoegaze guitars like throwing down a gauntlet. In the end, it becomes undeniably clear just how completely into their own Blackwater Holylight has come.

“The analogy is that with our first record (Blackwater Holylight, 2018) we were getting into to the car and buckling up,” Faris says. “The second (Veils of Winter, 2019) we were turning the car on, and with this third we have kicked into drive toward our destination. Our destination is a bit mysterious and has the ability to change from day to day, but we’re on our way.”

Empty surrounds all of me. It’s a poignant line from the third album by Blackwater Holylight that encapsulates the search for self when suddenly everything has changed. There’s a theme of processing vast personal trauma throughout Silence/Motion that eloquently — both lyrically and musically — and simultaneously embodies the crushing emptiness, sorrow, strength and rebuilding of recovering from personal devastation.

“There was so much grief both in the world and interpersonally during the process of creating Silence/Motion,” says vocalist/bassist Allison “Sunny” Faris. “The four of us gave one another more space to be ourselves, to experiment with each other’s ideas and to be gentle with one another more than we ever have before. So, we knew this tenderness would manifest in extremely honest arrangements, and I think that you can hear that throughout the record.”

Curiously, considering the dark times in which it was created, this is the band’s most melodic and catchy music so far. Blackwater Holylight, as the name suggests, is all about contrasts: It’s a fluid convergence of sound that’s heavy, psychedelic, melodic, terrifying and beautiful all at once. And, Silence/Motion finds the band honing those contrasts, letting ideas and moods fully develop from song to song, rather than filling every song with a full range of their capabilities. It allows the band to go fully prog-rock here, and simply stay hushed and intimate there. There’s a new confidence to the band in how seamlessly they wield their stylistic amalgam.

“Writing this album was extraordinarily difficult emotionally, however it did come to fruition fairly quickly,” Faris says. “In the past, the theme of vulnerability has always been a big player and it definitely showed up full force while writing this album.”

Blackwater Holylight recorded the album as a four piece: Faris on vocals and guitar (on “Silence/Motion”, “MDIII”, “Around You” and “Every Corner”) and bass for the remainder, Sarah McKenna on synths, Mikayla Mayhew on guitar (and bass when Faris plays guitar) and drummer Eliese Dorsay. New second guitarist Erika Osterhout will perform the songs with them live. For Silence/Motion the band chose to work with a producer for the first time, bringing in A.L.N. (of Mizmor, Hell) to produce, along with recording engineer Dylan White — who also helmed their previous album Veils of Winter (2019) — at Odessa Recording Studio in Portland, OR. Guest vocals on album opener “Delusional” are by Bryan Funck (Thou.) Mike Paparo (Inter Arma) and A.LN. (Mizmor, Hell) lend guest vocals to album closer “Every Corner.”

Silence/Motion opens softly with interwoven folky single note guitars over an ominous sounding drone for the first minute, akin to moments from Pink Floyd’s Echoes. Suddenly an irresistibly head-nodding, groovy droptuned riff kicks in with the drums and it’s a full on blackened rocker with soaring synths and Funck’s witchy whispers over the top. “Who The Hell,” the track quoted above, takes proceedings into a Krautrock direction, centered around McKenna’s arpeggiated synth loop and Dorsay’s tom-tom triplets, while 16-note guitar strums add tension as Faris wearily sings, “So tell me who the hell would want to live this way — so afraid/ To feel this void, to dwell in it… I can’t describe this pain I wear/ It suffocates and you left it here.” It’s an incredibly powerful 6 minutes. The title track delivers the 1-2-3 punch of the album’s brilliant opening trilogy. It starts with lightly plucked acoustic guitar, plaintive piano chords and Faris’ voice gliding so softly it sounds more like a Mellotron. The song builds slowly toward crescendo, led by a swinging tom pattern, that abruptly switches back to a heavier version of the opening melody.“Silence/Motion” is about digesting and healing from sexual assault. As Faris explains, “It is an ode to the juxtaposition of feeling paralyzingly blank and and like your entire life is moving through you simultaneously.” Elsewhere, Black Metal guitars collide with dreamlike melodies. “Around You” brandishes a hopeful, hummable synth melody and shimmering shoegaze guitars like throwing down a gauntlet. In the end, it becomes undeniably clear just how completely into their own Blackwater Holylight has come.

“The analogy is that with our first record (Blackwater Holylight, 2018) we were getting into to the car and buckling up,” Faris says. “The second (Veils of Winter, 2019) we were turning the car on, and with this third we have kicked into drive toward our destination. Our destination is a bit mysterious and has the ability to change from day to day, but we’re on our way.”

Channeling her innermost depths, Oshana reveals her widest body of work to date, “Disciples of Dystopia;” a multi-faceted expression of the emotions, influences, and sounds that have guided her on her musical journey. The album aptly marks the fourth release on her very own, Psionic label, and is the first double 12” in the catalogue.

As you lift into orbit, “Disciples Of Dystopia”, seduces your senses with an ominous vocal of what lies ahead. The opening track simmers gently with a progressively rising atmosphere as the down tempo vibe flows inside you-Automatic connection. “Mind Over Matter” is a futuristic breaks experience, familiar nostalgic hip hop scratches flash in and out, winding into a spiraled synth labyrinth that introduces you to dimensions unknown. Slowing the pace down a notch is “Labor Of Love;” emotional chords and floaty melodies work their way around the steady and pitched down body of the track.

As we coast into the B side, “Embrace The Wave” offers some italo energy; clean disco kicks meld into retro synths; this one cruises on a loose, irresistible, and unrelenting groove. “Take Me Away” sweeps you right off your feet and includes a feature from long time collaborative partner, Anthea. Anthea’s transcending vocals set the tone for a harmonious quest, enriched with positive and imaginative energy; the type you want to absorb as the night concludes. However, the night is far from over.

As we coast into part two, we’re introduced to “Odyssey,” a slow rising track that takes you from the intergalactic ocean all the way to the techno tides. As the track progresses, all of the mechanical cogs converse in absolute harmony. Who doesn’t enjoy a “Heated Moment?” Crisp and punchy drums drive the track as a trance bassline ripples throughout, making an impression on the most discerning of dancefloors.

Riding a squelchy, arpeggiated acid line from the start is “Astral Flight”, a psychedelic club room charmer that revolves around warm and direct bass. The closing track of the LP “Automated Beats,” is a raw, animated affair structured around chunky 808 arrangements and hip hop percussion; playful with a pinch of ghetto booty charm for good measure.

“Disciples Of Dystopia” is more than just an LP; each of the tracks feed off of the next, and Oshana’s never-ending creative energy shines as she bends through genres with effortless ease.

German electro producer Martin Matiske has recently breathed new life into his Blackploid alias. The project's revival continues to bear fruit with the Strange Stars EP, Matiske's third Blackploid release of 2021 and second for Central Processing Unit after issuing March's Cosmic Traveler EP through the Sheffield label.

Blackploid's two CPU drops have more in common than just stargazing titles. Those who enjoyed Cosmic Traveler will find plenty to like again in these four tracks, with Matiske serving up another quartet of snappy machine-funk joints this time around. However, while there is certainly a throughline between Cosmic Traveler and Strange Stars, this EP also finds Blackploid pushing the envelope at points by taking risks with his synth tones which thrill and enliven the record.

In keeping with the cosmic theme of Blackploid's recent output, Strange Stars kicks off with 'Star Patrol'. While this opening cut is full of the same needle-gun basslines and dinky synths that characterised Cosmic Traveler, the drum programming eschews the broken beats favoured by many in the scene for a straight house/techno snap. It makes for a very groovy jam, one with Drexciya, Computer World-era Kraftwerk and a pinch of Space Dimension Controller in its mix.

Indeed, the only track on Strange Stars which skips along on a broken beat is second entry 'The Signal'. 'The Signal' also features some of Blackploid's most impressive electronics programming to date, announcing itself with a brilliantly unusual synth that sounds like an old video game unit which has just gained sentience. When this alien tone is combined with another precision-engineered bassline the track invokes the grizzly bangers of the L.I.E.S. label, though the keyboard stabs which enter periodically also hint to the funkier electro of, say, Egyptian Lover.

'The Unseen', the first B-side of Strange Stars, finds Blackploid bringing together many of the things which made the two previous tunes such standouts. A steady four-on-the-floor and a slightly haunted feel to the synth choices casts back to 'Star Patrol', but much like 'The Signal' this joint also features some rather weird tones which are a hair's breadth away from machine malfunction. It's a feeling which runs through to closing cut 'Light Corridor', a number where melodies and anti-melodies zip around an array of gurgling electronic cells.

Martin Matiske's fine run of Blackploid EPs continues with the intergalactic electro stylings of Strange Stars.

RIYL: Drexciya, Cardopusher, Legowelt, Beau Wanzer, Jensen Interceptor

The Handy Records crew return once again with a stunning EP from none other Mr Bobby Cazanova.

A1 is an absolute gem. Nostalgic, catchy, euphoric and all-round feels. Just what we needed after the 2 year hiatus from nonsense. It’s a speedy emotive number with all the bells and whistles for a great time. Definitely one for the 6AM sunset. Following; the A2 is a sub aquatic bubbler. Low slung bass and rich strings lead this into a deep technical groover. Again Bobby has nailed the feeling of having heard this before but never quite like this. The A3 is something quite special. Acid lines and driving bass make this an absolute heater for the floor.

On the flip we have another fast-paced rhythm. This time capitalising on the darker side of Bobby’s mind. Between pulsating baselines and inquisitive synths there is an emotive and paced production that is sure to get people moving. Rounding off the EP is a darker piece. Glistening pads and pensive arpeggiation make this a slow but sure burner for the dance floor.

In 2019 Christian Savill found himself alone and with a year off from playing guitar for his grown up band Slowdive. He started writing and demoing songs with no particular plan. From 2001 he had recorded with longtime friend and collaborator Sean Hewson as Monster Movie releasing several albums on Graveface Records. These new ideas felt different in that they’re more personal and honest.
Christian sent these sketches to good friends and multi instrumentalists, Ryan Graveface (Dreamend / The Casket Girls) and Steve Clarke (The Soft Cavalry) and Beachy Head was formed. Ryan and Christian put flesh on the bones in Savannah just before Covid struck. Matt Duckworth (Flaming Lips) added drums. In between lockdowns back in the UK Steve added harmonies and other instrumentation. The final touch of recording was Rachel Goswell (Slowdive / Mojave 3 / The Soft Cavalry / Minor Victories) contributing vocals on a few songs.
Beachy Head is a chalk cliff in Sussex. It’s one of Britain’s most popular beauty spots but also a notorious suicide spot.

We are elated to invite the multi-talented and multi-national musical mastermind Portable in to the Circus family finally. After many years of traveling in similar scenes and orbits, and thoroughly enjoying his vast output on some of our favorite and best friends’ labels, the time has come to join forces with our now-fellow Parisian dweller.

The My Event Horizon EP is a truly creative treat, chock full of the charm and studio ingenuity that permeates all of his work, and a first look at what’s to come on his full length LP we have in store for you in the coming months as well. Two versions of the lead track “I Feel Stronger Now” are accompanied by an exclusive club cut, just in time for the world’s hopeful dance floor reopenings.

“I Feel Stronger Now” is one of those perfectly balanced tracks that is equal parts soft and edgy, mellow and exciting, and features a rich mix of sharp percussion, warm jazz-inflected piano motifs and Portable’s own inimitable dulcet-toned vocals, making it a sure-shot fit with the label’s modus operandi. The A2 track “My Art Sets Me Free” as the title may suggest, is a more abstract and artistic take on full-scale DSP dance floor equipment - we can already imagine hearing this on some of our most cherished club systems, head-down, fully immersed. Next up “I Feel Stronger Now” gets a fresh facelift treatment from Portable’s own and equally-notorious alter ego Bodycode, which follows suit to the pseudonym’s production quality, giving the avant-garde bounce of the original version a more syncopated and stripped-back feel, imparting a stronger physical sound bed with tasteful synth layering for the vocal Iines to ride over. And as a digital bonus addition to the package we have the Radio Edit of “I Feel Stronger Now” which is nicely tightened in all the right places to drive the point home for broadcast listeners, and further proof that this man’s music can be fully enjoyed in many settings - a big loving welcome to Mr. Portable!

Australia's biggest selling dance act and one of the most popular drum'n'bass acts of the early 21st century, Pendulum are an Australian group based in the United Kingdom. Formed in Perth in 2002, the group was originally comprised of producers Rob Swire and Gareth McGrillen, who worked in tandem with a local DJ named Paul "El Hornet" Harding. One of the team's initial releases, "Vault," became a sensation amid the drum'n'bass community in 2003, benefiting greatly from its high-profile placement at the beginning of J Majik's FabricLive mix album. In 2005, Pendulum made their full-length album debut, Hold Your Colour, featuring the singles "Tarantula" and "Slam."
Pendulum signed to Warner Music U.K. and made their major-label debut with 2007's "Granite," a Top 30 hit. Their second full-length album, In Silico (2008), spawned four singles, including U.K. Top Ten hit "Propane Nightmares". In Silico went on to reach platinum status in the U.K., as well as just missing out on the U.K. number one album chart spot. Their third album, Immersion, was released in 2010, and shot straight to the top of the U.K. albums chart. It featured collaborations with the Prodigy's Liam Howlett, Porcupine Tree's Steven Wilson, and Swedish metallers In Flames. In support of the album, Pendulum embarked on a world tour, playing two sold-out shows at London's Wembley Arena and headline slots at some of the U.K.'s largest festivals.
At the end of 2011, Pendulum took a break from live performing, with Rob Swire and Gareth McGrillen focusing their energy on their side project, Knife Party. In 2018, Pendulum returned from a seven-year hiatus, with Rob Swire, Gareth McGrillen and Paul Harding currently touring as Pendulum - Trinity.

With the release of their new single ‘R&B’, the ever-exciting
English Teacher prove they could be your new favourite band.
 As far as Northern cities go, Leeds probably isn’t the first place
you’d think of as a burgeoning hotbed of fiercely independent
and DIY bands. Often overshadowed by its neighbours further
along the M62, it’s precisely because of this that Leeds’ music
scene is as vehemently independent and self-sufficient as it is.
 The latest band to emerge from the city are four-piece English
Teacher. Keeping Leeds’ longstanding tradition of
uncompromising post-punk alive, the quartet’s latest single
‘R&B’ is three minutes of clattering bass and crisp percussion,
sporadic guitar occasionally punctuating the tension as
frontwoman Lily Fontaine explores ideas of imposter syndrome
and lethargy throughout the creative process.
 Lethargic is one thing ‘R&B’ isn’t, however. Fraught and frantic
perhaps. Imbued with a dry wit and self-awareness certainly,
but no one’s about to level any accusations of indifference at
English Teacher. The band explain, “the song is about the
cyclical, productivity-diminishing paradox of low self-esteem and
imposter syndrome-induced writer’s block that then fuels low
self-esteem and imposter syndrome. It’s also about racial
identity and putting the love that you have to offer a potential
romantic partner back into yourself.”
 Harbouring a cloying sense of paranoia that only increases as
the track progresses, there are elements of bands such as Slint
and Sonic Youth at play. Rather than feel like a ‘90s throwback,
however, ‘R&B’ succeeds feeling not just contemporary but vital.
Providing both a short, sharp gut punch and insight into Leeds’
ever-growing indie scene.
 Recently supported Sports Team on tour.
 Dan Carey is set to produce a forthcoming album and also
plans to release a single on Speedy Wundergound.

With nearly 400 million albums sold worldwide, 17 No. 1 hits and over 16 million weekly global streams, ABBA are one of the world’s most successful music acts of all time!!! One of the most successful pop groups of all time, have today announced that, for the first time in 40 years they are back! Their 9th studio album Voyage will be released on the 5th November. The album will be made aavailable on various formats. Massive marketing campaign as you would expect. Formats include CD, Eco Box CD a MC Gatefold Black LP.

Hungry for some modern melodic death metal with ridiculously catchy pop influences? Well, your dinner has just been served. This steaming nine-course setting is called "Origin" and it is honoringly brought into the table by the renowned Finnish heavy metal band Omnium Gatherum. Omnium Gatherum – OG for close friends – has been offering remarkable pieces of melodic death metal for already twenty-five shining years. While storming through these ferocious decades, Omnium Gatherum has convinced worldwide legions of heavy metal lovers by releasing unstoppable musical onslaughts and touring relentlessly all over the world. "Any sort of popularity hasn't come overnight for OG, and rising to that "next level" has sometimes taken a considerably long time, but one thing has been set in stone: progress has been inevitable. In other words: a lot of great things have happened along the way but the journey hasn't been the easiest one", says longtime singer Jukka Pelkonen. ... And recent times are no exception. Contrary to what you might think, we are not talking about a global scourge that gripped the entire world about a year and a half ago. "Although most of the things around "Origin" have been really good – we have never had so much time to compose and sharpen the material for instance –, there have been some serious roadblocks as well. This, of course, has not come as a big surprise as OG was not born under the happiest stars", laughs guitarist extraordinaire and the band founder Markus Vanhala. "Above all, our dear fans should know that since the previous studio effort "The Burning Cold" (2018), half of the band's line-up has changed. I would say quite surprisingly as we haven't really had any major problems, at least to my knowledge." "This internal turmoil lifted dark clouds into the band's vast sky and everything was falling apart... well, for a few hours at least. After that, as many times before, we decided to turn these difficulties into something better!" Before the arrival of "Origin", Omnium Gatherum's colourful discography features eight studio albums, but the newcomer does not pale in comparison. The truth is, in fact, quite the opposite... By the stylish, majestic and melodic splendor of "Origin", it really feels like the band's original style called AORDM – adult oriented death metal – has reached its peak. Well, so far... "Over the years, OG's material has been deliberately moving further away from the anxiety of the windy Northern shores and traditional melodeath's gloomy despair. These days our music is a powerful mixture of older deadly roots and newer AOR-vibes that you get while listening to Survivor and driving a Corvette along the sunny shores of Miami of us, we will not forget the original enthusiasm for playing heavy metal... And therefore we will never give up!"

The Black Keys release a special tenth anniversary edition of their landmark seventh studio. El Camino (10th Anniversary Deluxe Edition) will be available in several formats including a Super Deluxe edition of five vinyl LPs or four CDs, featuring a remastered version of the original album, a previously unreleased Live in Portland, ME concert recording, a BBC Radio 1 Zane Lowe session from 2012, a 2011 Electro-Vox session, an extensive photo book, a limited-edition poster and lithograph, and a ‘new car scent’ air freshener. A three-LP edition, which includes the remastered album and the live recording, will also be available. The Super Deluxe version will also be available digitally.

El Camino was produced by Danger Mouse and The Black Keys and was recorded in the band’s then-new hometown of Nashville during the spring of 2011. The Black Keys won three awards at the 55th annual GRAMMY Awards for El Camino – Best Rock Performance, Best Rock Song, and Best Rock Album – among other worldwide accolades. In the UK, the band was nominated for a BRIT Award (Best International Group) and an NME Award (Best International Band). The week of release, the band performed on Saturday Night Live, The Colbert Report, and the Late Show with David Letterman, and later that year, went on to perform their first Madison Square Garden show.

Rolling Stone, which featured the band on their cover around the release, hailed El Camino for bringing ‘raw, riffed-out power back to pop’s lexicon,’ and called it ‘the Keys’ grandest pop gesture yet, augmenting dark-hearted fuzz blasts with sleekly sexy choruses and Seventies-glam flair.’ The Guardian said, ‘They sound like a band who think they've made the year's best rock'n'roll album, probably because that's exactly what they've done.’

In the newly written liner notes for El Camino (10th Anniversary Deluxe Edition), David Fricke says:

The story of the Black Keys' seventh album, named after an automobile, long out of fashion and featured nowhere in the artwork, begins on a sidewalk in the middle of a blizzard. On the afternoon of January 9, 2011, singer-guitarist Dan Auerbach and drummer Patrick Carney stood on the pavement outside the Bowery Hotel in New York City, saw the weather turning vicious, looked at each other and came to the same decision: They had to get off the road.

The night before, the duo scored another first in a season getting crowded with them: The Black Keys' debut appearance on Saturday Night Live, performing ‘Howlin' for You’ and ‘Tighten Up’, the breakout singles from their latest release, Brothers. Two days earlier, Brothers – the Keys' first Top 5 album, released in May 2010 – became their first Gold record, passing a half-million in sales thanks to heavy FM rotation and a near-year of gigging, now set to run deep into 2011 including a prestige slot at Coachella and victory laps in Europe and Australia.

The Keys "tried to settle down" after cancelling the tour, Carney says. But that didn't last. "I said, 'We should just make another record.' And I asked Dan if we should get Danger Mouse" – the hip-hop and modern-rock producer, real name Brian Burton, who worked on the Keys' 2008 record, Attack & Release, and co-produced ‘Tighten Up’. Auerbach and Carney did not have any new songs, but as the drummer notes, "Most of our records – we don't have material when we start. Brothers was made up in the studio."

In the UK, the record gave the band their first top 10 hit, and in the US it debuted at #2 on the Billboard Top 200. The band was also the #1 most played artist at Alternative and AAA radio formats for 2012 in the US. The album’s first single, ‘Lonely Boy’: reached #1 on the Alternative and AAA charts; it also entered the top 10 at Rock radio. The second single, ‘Gold on the Ceiling’, also reached #1 on Alternative radio and the third single, ‘Little Black Submarines’, reached the top 3 at Alternative radio.

El Camino has been certified Double Platinum in the US; Platinum in the UK, Belgium, France, Ireland, and the Netherlands; Triple Platinum in Australia and New Zealand; Quadruple Platinum in Canada; and Gold in Austria, Denmark, Finland, Italy, Mexico, Norway, Spain, and Switzerland. Of the album’s singles, ‘Lonely Boy’ was certified Double Platinum in the US, nine-times Platinum in Canada, Triple Platinum in Australia, Platinum in New Zealand, and Gold in Denmark and the UK. ‘Gold on the Ceiling’ was certified Platinum in the United States, Australia, and Canada. ‘Little Black Submarines’ was certified Platinum in the United States. The Black Keys also were nominated for an MTV European Music Award in 2012.

Recently, the band announced their World Tour of America. The Black Keys will perform three intimate shows in Oxford, MS, Athens, GA, and St Petersburg, FL, surrounding their September 25 headlining set at Pilgrimage Fest in Tennessee.

The Black Keys recently released their tenth studio album, Delta Kream, which was recorded at Easy Eye Sound studio in Nashville. The album takes its name from William Eggleston’s iconic Mississippi photograph that is on its cover.

Formed in Akron, Ohio in 2001, The Black Keys, who have been called ‘rock royalty’ by the Associated Press and ‘one of the best rock ‘n’ roll bands on the planet’ by Uncut, are guitarist/singer Dan Auerbach and drummer Patrick Carney. Cutting their teeth playing small clubs, the band have gone on to sell out arena tours and have released nine previous studio albums: their debut The Big Come Up (2002), followed by Thickfreakness (2003) and Rubber Factory (2004), along with their releases on Nonesuch Records, Magic Potion (2006), Attack & Release (2008), Brothers (2010), El Camino (2011), Turn Blue (2014) and, most recently, “Let’s Rock” (2019), plus and a tenth anniversary edition of Brothers (2020). The band has won six Grammy Awards and a BRIT and headlined festivals in North America, South America, Mexico, Australia, and Europe.

The Black Keys release a special tenth anniversary edition of their landmark seventh studio. El Camino (10th Anniversary Deluxe Edition) will be available in several formats including a Super Deluxe edition of five vinyl LPs or four CDs, featuring a remastered version of the original album, a previously unreleased Live in Portland, ME concert recording, a BBC Radio 1 Zane Lowe session from 2012, a 2011 Electro-Vox session, an extensive photo book, a limited-edition poster and lithograph, and a ‘new car scent’ air freshener. A three-LP edition, which includes the remastered album and the live recording, will also be available. The Super Deluxe version will also be available digitally.

El Camino was produced by Danger Mouse and The Black Keys and was recorded in the band’s then-new hometown of Nashville during the spring of 2011. The Black Keys won three awards at the 55th annual GRAMMY Awards for El Camino – Best Rock Performance, Best Rock Song, and Best Rock Album – among other worldwide accolades. In the UK, the band was nominated for a BRIT Award (Best International Group) and an NME Award (Best International Band). The week of release, the band performed on Saturday Night Live, The Colbert Report, and the Late Show with David Letterman, and later that year, went on to perform their first Madison Square Garden show.

Rolling Stone, which featured the band on their cover around the release, hailed El Camino for bringing ‘raw, riffed-out power back to pop’s lexicon,’ and called it ‘the Keys’ grandest pop gesture yet, augmenting dark-hearted fuzz blasts with sleekly sexy choruses and Seventies-glam flair.’ The Guardian said, ‘They sound like a band who think they've made the year's best rock'n'roll album, probably because that's exactly what they've done.’

In the newly written liner notes for El Camino (10th Anniversary Deluxe Edition), David Fricke says:

The story of the Black Keys' seventh album, named after an automobile, long out of fashion and featured nowhere in the artwork, begins on a sidewalk in the middle of a blizzard. On the afternoon of January 9, 2011, singer-guitarist Dan Auerbach and drummer Patrick Carney stood on the pavement outside the Bowery Hotel in New York City, saw the weather turning vicious, looked at each other and came to the same decision: They had to get off the road.

The night before, the duo scored another first in a season getting crowded with them: The Black Keys' debut appearance on Saturday Night Live, performing ‘Howlin' for You’ and ‘Tighten Up’, the breakout singles from their latest release, Brothers. Two days earlier, Brothers – the Keys' first Top 5 album, released in May 2010 – became their first Gold record, passing a half-million in sales thanks to heavy FM rotation and a near-year of gigging, now set to run deep into 2011 including a prestige slot at Coachella and victory laps in Europe and Australia.

The Keys "tried to settle down" after cancelling the tour, Carney says. But that didn't last. "I said, 'We should just make another record.' And I asked Dan if we should get Danger Mouse" – the hip-hop and modern-rock producer, real name Brian Burton, who worked on the Keys' 2008 record, Attack & Release, and co-produced ‘Tighten Up’. Auerbach and Carney did not have any new songs, but as the drummer notes, "Most of our records – we don't have material when we start. Brothers was made up in the studio."

In the UK, the record gave the band their first top 10 hit, and in the US it debuted at #2 on the Billboard Top 200. The band was also the #1 most played artist at Alternative and AAA radio formats for 2012 in the US. The album’s first single, ‘Lonely Boy’: reached #1 on the Alternative and AAA charts; it also entered the top 10 at Rock radio. The second single, ‘Gold on the Ceiling’, also reached #1 on Alternative radio and the third single, ‘Little Black Submarines’, reached the top 3 at Alternative radio.

El Camino has been certified Double Platinum in the US; Platinum in the UK, Belgium, France, Ireland, and the Netherlands; Triple Platinum in Australia and New Zealand; Quadruple Platinum in Canada; and Gold in Austria, Denmark, Finland, Italy, Mexico, Norway, Spain, and Switzerland. Of the album’s singles, ‘Lonely Boy’ was certified Double Platinum in the US, nine-times Platinum in Canada, Triple Platinum in Australia, Platinum in New Zealand, and Gold in Denmark and the UK. ‘Gold on the Ceiling’ was certified Platinum in the United States, Australia, and Canada. ‘Little Black Submarines’ was certified Platinum in the United States. The Black Keys also were nominated for an MTV European Music Award in 2012.

Recently, the band announced their World Tour of America. The Black Keys will perform three intimate shows in Oxford, MS, Athens, GA, and St Petersburg, FL, surrounding their September 25 headlining set at Pilgrimage Fest in Tennessee.

The Black Keys recently released their tenth studio album, Delta Kream, which was recorded at Easy Eye Sound studio in Nashville. The album takes its name from William Eggleston’s iconic Mississippi photograph that is on its cover.

Formed in Akron, Ohio in 2001, The Black Keys, who have been called ‘rock royalty’ by the Associated Press and ‘one of the best rock ‘n’ roll bands on the planet’ by Uncut, are guitarist/singer Dan Auerbach and drummer Patrick Carney. Cutting their teeth playing small clubs, the band have gone on to sell out arena tours and have released nine previous studio albums: their debut The Big Come Up (2002), followed by Thickfreakness (2003) and Rubber Factory (2004), along with their releases on Nonesuch Records, Magic Potion (2006), Attack & Release (2008), Brothers (2010), El Camino (2011), Turn Blue (2014) and, most recently, “Let’s Rock” (2019), plus and a tenth anniversary edition of Brothers (2020). The band has won six Grammy Awards and a BRIT and headlined festivals in North America, South America, Mexico, Australia, and Europe.

Two classic sides from the Michigan soul singer
with a stash of soul goodies in his repertoire.
 The original pressing of ‘What Good Am I Without
You’ from 1967 on Jacklyn Records goes for just
over £200 and one listen explains why.
 Featuring an emotional, heart-wrenching vocal
soaked with flying strings over an impulsive
rhythm, it’s a lovelorn anthem; an emotional
rollercoaster.
 Backed with ‘That Certain Little Something’ from
the Groovy label 12 months earlier.
 A funky guitar-led scorcher with a bluesy brass
break and a spin and drop chorus aided by a
rampaging drummer.
 Two must-have sides from Fletcher, a child
prodigy, who found success in Chicago in the mid-
1960s which led to shows with Stevie Wonder and
BB King, among others.

Flying is the latest track off of Steve Conte’s upcoming album, Bronx Cheer, out November 5 on Wicked Cool Records. While the song is coming out for the first time now, it has a history. zdyrbr says, “This one goes back to 1994 when I was working on a band that was never to be with Brynn Arens of Flipp. We jammed on this in my rehearsal studio very organically and I came up with the lyrics later. I did a few demos of it over the years and it never left my consciousness.” The lyrics focus on perseverance and how, “in the face of adversity, disappointment and trauma, a person of strong will can keep going for their dreams.” The bluesy ballad shows off Steve’s versatility and range, and is just a taste of what’s to come on Bronx Cheer.

On 19th August at 2PM BST, Ed Sheeran will announce his brand new album ‘=’ alongside an album pre-order. 14 tracks in length, the album will be released on 29th October 2021.

Ed Sheeran is an era-defining artist. Through his fusion of thought-provoking songwriting, universal pop and multi-genre influence, his rich tapestry is not only perfectly suited to his audience but it’s something that transcends generations.

Since surfacing on the UK circuit in 2010 with his ‘No.5 Collaborations Project’ – an eight-track EP featuring his favourite grime artists of the time – the Suffolk-raised recording artist has resonated with fans across the world through his peerless songcraft and versatility. And now, with four UK No.1 albums to his name – ‘+’ (2011), ‘x’ (2014), ‘÷’ (2017) and ‘No.6 Collaborations Project’ (2019) – he has sold over 55 million albums and 160 million singles across the world.

Most notably, Ed’s 2017 blockbuster release, ‘÷’ (Divide), saw Ed reign supreme as one of the most in-demand pop stars on the planet – a feat he has continued to sustain ever since. Crowned as the fastest-selling album, ever, by a male artist in the UK, the chart-shattering album housed a swarm of singles including ‘Castle on the Hill’, ‘Perfect’ and ‘Shape of You’, with the latter becoming Spotify’s most-streamed song of the last decade.

But it’s not just his recorded music that’s seen the former Glastonbury headliner become one of the sought-after artists of the 21st century either. Possessing a mystical ability to turn 90,000 capacity venues into the pub back-rooms that he first started playing in, Ed made history in 2015 after becoming the first-ever artist to play Wembley Stadium solo - without a band and with just his guitar and loop pedal - over three, consecutive sold out nights. Move forward to the summer of 2019 and Ed would re-enter history books after the completion of his mammoth two-year Divide tour, which would officially become the most-attended tour of all time after it culminated with special homecoming shows in Ipswich, Suffolk.

Ed Sheeran - who was awarded an MBE for his services to music and charity in 2017 - is the proud recipient of 1 x IFPI Award (best-selling global artist of 2017); 4 x Grammys; 4 x Ivor Novello’s; 6 x BRIT Awards (including two consecutive wins for ‘Global Success’ in 2018 and 2019); 7 x Billboard Awards + more.

At the end of 2019, Sheeran was presented with the Official Chart Company’s first-ever ‘No.1 Artist of the Decade’ award following a host of accomplishments in his native UK including the most No.1’s across the UK’s Official Singles and Albums chart from the years 2010-2019.

Nottingham don Lukas Wigflex and "The Wizard" Tom Smith come correct with their Me & Meds project. Following on from their debut together on Wigflex, the follow up is just as inventive & playful.

2 years in the making- the studio skills of the pair shine through across the 3 tracks. The opener "Curtains Nine Tails" moves and warps over the first few minutes only to penetrate the listener with a crescendo of god-like basslines and tripped out vocals.

Faffhammer which gained big popularity when Lukas played it on that boat party at Love International is an atmospheric, wonked out euphoric number of the highest order.

The records finished off with the offside ramblings of another notorious Notts head - Des Hagenasty. This is his first outing on wax and it does not disappoint, backed by the analog wobbles and techno grit of Me & Meds, this one bites. The videos an eye opener too, just you wait!

0115 is alive.

Carwyn Ellis from Cardiff/Wales is a singer, songwriter, composer, arranger, multi-instrumentalist and record producer. He fronts Colorama, formed the Welsh folk group Bendith and hosts a regular themed radio show on Soho Radio. In 2019, Ellis embarked on the first project under his own name, Carwyn Ellis & Rio 18. Sung in Welsh and recorded mainly in Rio de Janeiro, the album, "Joia!" was nominated for the Welsh Music Prize and followed by "Mas" in early 2020. The new album "Yn Rio" is a collection of new songs recorded in Cardiff together with The BBC National Orchestra Of Wales.

In 2017 Carwyn Ellis joined the touring line-up of The Pretenders. For Ellis, a record collector and fan of Brazilian music, the opportunity to tour South America would present opportunities he couldn't have possibly imagined when he accepted Chrissie Hynde's invitation. "The first place we went to was Rio and by the time I met Chrissie for breakfast the day after our gig, I already had a bag of albums I'd just bought. I'm sitting with her and she says, 'You should meet my mates, and do something in Welsh with them! Nobody's done a Welsh language album with Brazilian musicians?"

In 2018, when Alexandre Kassin, a leading light in that Brazilian scene announced a show in London, Hynde suggested that they see it. "I met him afterwards," Ellis recalls, "and we hit it off straight away." Within weeks, Ellis was on a plane to Rio with songs that would form the basis of the first album. This creative purple patch extended into another album released early in 2021 with Carwyn working once again with Kassin plus long-time friend Shawn Lee. The songs on "Mas" drew on the environmental threats that face both Wales and South America, spidering out around the central theme of water ("rains, no rain, droughts, rising seas and flooded valleys for corporate gain. We're screwed without it and screwed if there's too much").

With "Mas" recorded but weeks away from release, Ellis received a call from Gareth Iwan Jones, head producer of BBC Radio Cymru, offering a third album to be performed in March 2021. Ellis started to reflect upon the life-changing events triggered by his South American adventures. The Welsh word 'hiraeth' which describes the longing that Welsh people feel when they're far from home, was something that he was now beginning to feel for Rio de Janeiro: "'Yn Rio' is based around a day in Rio," he explains. "The events of 2020 influenced the record inasmuch as I wanted it to be a complete antidote to what was going on. If you couldn't go on holiday in real life, you could at least put this record on."

The first single "Olá!", incorporating Jorge Ben's spirit in the chorus and rhythmic breakdown, manages to sound languorous and euphoric. "Cariad, Cariad" was a Portuguese folk poem brought to Ellis' attention by Sonya from Quarteto em Cy and arranged by Christiaan Oyens. "Tristwch 20" is a nod to "Foot and Mouth 68" by Gorkys Zygotic Mynci from "The Blue Trees", 'one of the most beautiful albums of all time', while "Ynys Aur" is named after a 1929 book by Welsh missionary J. Luther Thomas written on returning from his travels to Papua New Guinea. With Kassin unable to participate, Ellis thanks him by translating his "A Paisagem Morta" to create "Y Bywyd Llonyd". For Carwyn Ellis "Yn Rio" is an extraordinary memorial to extraordinary times."There are some days so idyllic you just want tobe able to jump back into them at the touch of a button. That's what I was searching for when I was writing these songs."

With sunshine, blue skies and good times on the horizon, Toolroom is ready to usher in the summer in a huge way with the brand new summer hit from Siege – ‘Reach Out’. Making his return to the label, Siege is back with a record that promises to steal the spotlight and your all-time favourite tune. Big favourite of Carl Cox, Alan Fitzpatrick and Adam Beyer, Siege has firmly planted his foot in the scene having released a selection of quality records already this year like, ‘Give It Up’ with Mark Knight, a collab with Eli Brown and a killer remix of Green Velvet and Technasia’s hit ‘Suga’.

Flawlessly proving just why he is one of the most exciting artists and producers out there in Dance Music right now, Siege flexes his talents on ‘Reach Out’. One of his best releases yet, Siege has reworked classic George Duke’s classic 1983 hit ‘Reach Out’ into the feel-good dance track of the summer. The track itself is pure ecstasy, from the sublime vocals and chorus melodies to the solid instrumentation of the record itself. Siege manages to retain every single drop of the feel-good magic that resonated throughout the original, reinvigorating the sound for the clubs of 2021.

The single also features a killer remix from Michael Gray and Dr Packer who bring their signature style and sound to the record, emphasising the Disco elements to a whole new level and an exclusive VIP edit from Siege himself. This is a euphoria laced Disco House record through and through, ‘Reach Out’ is a sure fire summer hit, classic in the making who has brought the infectiously catchy classic record back to life in a completely fresh and new way.

Soopasoul is a legendary name inthe UK funk scene. Originally known as a producer in electronic music circles, Danny Soopasoul stuck gold one day, putting together a band to record in a session where everything was played in live and loops and plug-ins were dropped in favour of real instruments and talented players. The final piece in the puzzle was realised when he stumbled upon on a local horn section so steeped in tradition and quality that it was immediately obvious they would bring the final magical ingredient to the table. Once they were brought in, the instant classic LP 'Twin Stix' was born.

Pleas for 7"vinyl singles from this revered album have been a constant since it's release. However calls for the album to make it's debut on vinyl too have gone unheard until now. This floor-shuffling, hip-swaying, jazz funk party monster is packed with funky beats and some seriously hefty signature brass action. Add the sassy vocals from ladies like Dionne Charles (Record Kicks /Tru Thoughts) and Sitzka, and you're guaranteed to discover that this gem of an album will be enjoyed for the foreseeable future.

The beast is back in black! And it‘s ready to crush the known boundaries of melodic metal!

Beast In Black, the international battalion of ground-breaking melodic metallers, is ready to blow your mind with their third album ominously titled ‘Dark Connection‘.
If you're into melodic and atmospheric heavy metal with an insanely catchy twist, this is the album you're looking for. There's no other creature like this walking the earth. None other bears these sharp edged riffs or piercing choruses. Not with these epic sci-fi, fantasy and cyberpunk stories to tell. Beast In Black is a wholly unique form of heavy metal evolution.
Dark Connection is an album which gathers all the elements from past, present and future of Beast In Black leader, Anton Kabanen. The raw melodic energy of early Battle Beast remains, but now Beast In Black are crafting their own sound within the genre thanks to the utilisation of wildly melodic guitars and multilayered synthezisers.

Remember the glory days of 80's metal? When you could spend hours and hours staring at the cover art of a heavy metal album as you start to discover what all the lyrics are about? Beast In Black is right there with you.Dark Connection is a deeply intricate heavy metal record. As you start to invest time into the songs, you’ll realise that there's something interesting happening at every layer, from the music to the cover art and also the lyrics. It's all tied up into one, to ensure the ultimate audio-visual metal experience.
”It's not a concept album in the traditional sense, but there are a few ongoing themes on the album. One of them might be familiar for fans of Beast-albums from even earlier than Beast In Black”, Anton teases.

”What if I told you that we're back in the world of cyberpunk? Indeed, there are tracks like Highway to Mars and Moonlight Rendezvous, which will let you into the cyberpunk worlds of the Armitage III anime-series and even some Blade Runner themes. In that sense we're back into the themes of the early Battle Beast albums.”
”Cyberpunk is all over the place on Dark Connection. You will feel it in the mood of the album, it's right there in the cover art and we have even carefully prepared a huge music video for you which is visually pure cyberpunk.”
Anton also gives his praises to insanely talented Beast in Black singer Yannis Papadopoulos, who delivers the best vocal performance of his career on Dark Connection.
”It's always a privilege to work with Yannis. He‘s one of those rare singers who can do anything! If he hasn't tried out something before, he figures out the perfect technique to do it in no time.He is a very physical and dedicated singer. He is ready to try 30 different takes on a song if he feels like that's what a perfect result requires. He doesn't just do one or two takes. He does as many as it takes!”
Thirteen songs, a mountain of irresistible melodies and influences from the retro roots of music to a plethora of futuristic themes and atmospheres. Every single song from Dark Connection could be a single. Beast in Black could create a music video for every last track. That's just how much dedication and passion has been immortalised in these songs.

All these moments on Dark Connection won't be lost in time, like tears in rain. Beast is Black has created a lifetime heavy metal exprience. Are you ready to face this eternal beast?

The beast is back in black! And it‘s ready to crush the known boundaries of melodic metal!

Beast In Black, the international battalion of ground-breaking melodic metallers, is ready to blow your mind with their third album ominously titled ‘Dark Connection‘.
If you're into melodic and atmospheric heavy metal with an insanely catchy twist, this is the album you're looking for. There's no other creature like this walking the earth. None other bears these sharp edged riffs or piercing choruses. Not with these epic sci-fi, fantasy and cyberpunk stories to tell. Beast In Black is a wholly unique form of heavy metal evolution.
Dark Connection is an album which gathers all the elements from past, present and future of Beast In Black leader, Anton Kabanen. The raw melodic energy of early Battle Beast remains, but now Beast In Black are crafting their own sound within the genre thanks to the utilisation of wildly melodic guitars and multilayered synthezisers.

Remember the glory days of 80's metal? When you could spend hours and hours staring at the cover art of a heavy metal album as you start to discover what all the lyrics are about? Beast In Black is right there with you.Dark Connection is a deeply intricate heavy metal record. As you start to invest time into the songs, you’ll realise that there's something interesting happening at every layer, from the music to the cover art and also the lyrics. It's all tied up into one, to ensure the ultimate audio-visual metal experience.
”It's not a concept album in the traditional sense, but there are a few ongoing themes on the album. One of them might be familiar for fans of Beast-albums from even earlier than Beast In Black”, Anton teases.

”What if I told you that we're back in the world of cyberpunk? Indeed, there are tracks like Highway to Mars and Moonlight Rendezvous, which will let you into the cyberpunk worlds of the Armitage III anime-series and even some Blade Runner themes. In that sense we're back into the themes of the early Battle Beast albums.”
”Cyberpunk is all over the place on Dark Connection. You will feel it in the mood of the album, it's right there in the cover art and we have even carefully prepared a huge music video for you which is visually pure cyberpunk.”
Anton also gives his praises to insanely talented Beast in Black singer Yannis Papadopoulos, who delivers the best vocal performance of his career on Dark Connection.
”It's always a privilege to work with Yannis. He‘s one of those rare singers who can do anything! If he hasn't tried out something before, he figures out the perfect technique to do it in no time.He is a very physical and dedicated singer. He is ready to try 30 different takes on a song if he feels like that's what a perfect result requires. He doesn't just do one or two takes. He does as many as it takes!”
Thirteen songs, a mountain of irresistible melodies and influences from the retro roots of music to a plethora of futuristic themes and atmospheres. Every single song from Dark Connection could be a single. Beast in Black could create a music video for every last track. That's just how much dedication and passion has been immortalised in these songs.

All these moments on Dark Connection won't be lost in time, like tears in rain. Beast is Black has created a lifetime heavy metal exprience. Are you ready to face this eternal beast?

Mystery Jets announce that their sixth studio album ‘A Billion Heartbeats’ will be released on 27th September on Caroline International. The band also release ‘Screwdriver’, the first single to be taken from the album.

Screwdriver is an uncompromising look at the rise of the rebranded alt-right in the UK, built around a powerfully positive message: "Fight them with love / then the world will be ours".

Lead singer Blaine Harrison says of the song, “Screwdriver is about the mechanics of intolerance. Looking back at times of economic instability in history, we see how easily deep chasms grow in society and the population seeks change wherever it is most convincingly promised. Conflict arises as cultures and belief systems clash, unwilling to accept one another’s place in society, because we are fed the rhetoric that our neighbours are those responsible for our problems: then inevitably nationalism once more raises its ugly head above the parapet. But whereas political agendas fuel divisiveness, music unites and reminds us of all that we have in common. The message of Screwdriver is not a pessimistic one - because perhaps faced with confrontation we can find understanding, and even maybe learn how to listen to, and love one another.”

Each room of the house in the video is a metaphor for the different sections of society in the UK. It wraps around the narrative of the song, that in order to overcome adversity, you have to “Fight Them With Love”. The visual showcases the song’s inherent message, clashing aggressiveness with tenderness, and culminates in showing after anger, we can always come together through love.
All great albums start from a unique perspective. But try a window on the Strand, in an abandoned office block, overlooking the kind of political upheaval London hasn’t seen in a generation. Blaine Harrison was living as a property guardian right around the corner from Trafalgar Square when he found himself witness to an entire year of protests. Every weekend from January 2017 on, people were marching for a different cause: "In the space of six months it was Black Lives Matter, the huge ‘Our NHS’ march, Unite for Europe," he recalls. "Then the solidarity sleep-out organised by Help Refugees, where we slept in Whitehall for the night... The protestors would wake me up in the morning. I’d just walk down and join in.”

Over the course of that year, Mystery Jets' sixth long-player, A Billion Heartbeats, was born. "This album wasn’t about making pointed opinions,” says Blaine. “It was about being a mirror for what’s going on, reflecting back the way people are feeling.” By turns tender and fierce, abstract and full of classic rock energy, A Billion Heartbeats achieves a balance of passion, fear and hope. Amid the colourful cavalcade of rich harmonies, heavy guitars and rallying cries, the album’s essential message - about personal responsibility, and the power in becoming engaged. In a sense, it's not just their "state of the nation” record but their “state of a generation” record too.

We increasingly hear from musicians that music should be an escape these days - that there’s enough suffering in the world, enough misery on the news, without writings songs about it too. A Billion Heartbeats makes all that sound like a bit of a cop-out. These are songs of protest that get the heart racing in joy; high on hope, and serious in their message. Proof, basically, that music speaks louder than words.

The War On Drugs first studio album in four years, ‘I Don’t Live Here Anymore’. Over the last 15 years, The War on Drugs have steadily emerged as one of this century’s great rock and roll synthesists, removing the gaps between the underground and the mainstream, between the obtuse and the anthemic, making records that wrestle a fractured past into a unified and engrossing present. The War On Drugs have never done that as well as they do with their fifth studio album, ‘I Don’t Live Here Anymore’, an uncommon rock album about one of our most common but daunting processes—resilience in the face of despair.



Just a month after The War On Drugs’ ‘A Deeper Understanding’ received the 2018 Grammy for Best Rock Album, the core of Granduciel, bassist Dave Hartley, and multi-instrumentalist Anthony LaMarca retreated to upstate New York to jam and cut new demos, working outside of the predetermined roles each member plays in the live setting. These sessions proved highly productive, turning out early versions of some of the most immediate songs on ‘I Don’t Live Here Anymore’. It was the start of a dozen-plus session odyssey that spanned three years and seven studios, including some of rock’s greatest sonic workshops like Electric Lady in New York and Los Angeles’ Sound City. Band leader Adam Granduciel and trusted co-producer/engineer Shawn Everett spent untold hours peeling back every piece of these songs and rebuilding them.



One of the most memorable sessions occurred in May 2019 at Electro-Vox, in which the band’s entire line-up — rounded out by keyboardist Robbie Bennett, drummer Charlie Hall, and saxophonist Jon Natchez — convened to record the affecting album opener “Living Proof.” Typically, Granduciel assembles The War On Drugs records from reams of overdubs, like a kind of rock ‘n’ roll jigsaw puzzle. But for “Living Proof,” the track came together in real time, as the musicians drew on their chemistry as a live unit to summon some extemporaneous magic. The immediacy of the performance was appropriate for one of the most personal songs Granduciel has ever written.



The War On Drugs’ particular combination of intricacy and imagination animates the 10 songs of ‘I Don’t Live Here Anymore’, buttressing the feelings of Granduciel’s personal odyssey. It’s an expression of rock ’n’ roll’s power to translate our own experience into songs we can share and words that direct our gaze toward the possibility of what is to come.

When hearing Anna Gréta at the piano, you become witness to an
astonishingly mature artist, with absolutely profound technique, a
complex understanding of style and harmony and an impressively
wide range of musical expression, who has made an extraordinarily
good name for herself in just a few years on the Scandinavian scene.
Over a period of two years, partly influenced by isolation, the twelve
compositions of ‘Nightjar in the Northern Sky’ emerged, for Anna
Gréta not only as a pianist but also as a singer.
 The album title ‘Nightjar in the Northern Sky’ sets the tone for the
world of the album: A metaphor for the Scandinavian expanse,
tranquility and the close connection between people and nature, a
theme that runs through the songs in many pictures. “Nature is just an
enormous force in life. It is so much bigger than most of the other
things that otherwise seem so significant to us. And it is, in its infinite
facets, perhaps the greatest inspiration for my music. A place where
the noise falls silent and you can feel and hear yourself again,” before
adding: “Recently I have been developing a passion for bird-watching
- something that I reflect on in the title track. When you observe
nature carefully you can experience or see something unique. Sort of
like searching for love. The nightjar is a bird that is rarely seen flying
across the sky in Sweden and has been observed in Iceland less than
five times. I feel that everyone is looking for something unique in their
lives. And that nature can offer that to the ones open to see it.”
 With each of the tracks on the album she creates little, self-contained
worlds that fit into a bigger picture. Light-footed, relaxed, reduced,
concentrated. An art that required a great deal of work and attention
to detail. Together with pop-experienced producer Albert
Finnbogason, Anna Gréta chose the perfect, hand-picked line-up and
sound for each of her extraordinarily refined - harmoniously and
rhythmically - compositions.
 Although always in a coherent framework, Anna took elements from a
very diverse range of musical styles, alternating between jazz
elements and influences from pop music to excerpts from classical
and folk. All these elements create a remarkably multi-layered album,
which at the same time tells a coherent, bigger story.
 CD in 4-page digipack with 12-page booklet.
 180g vinyl with digital download code

Ellesmere, a symphonic-prog music project founded and led by Italian multi-instrumentalist Roberto Vitelli, author of all the music and lyrics, surprisingly comes back just one year after their second album "Ellesmere II / From sea and beyond" with an amazing work in terms of freshness, energy, impact and meticulous attention towards its sound and arrangements.

First of all, "Wyrd" deserves admiration starting from the cover artwork made by Rodney Matthews, an iconic illustrator at least equal to the legendary Roger Dean. Musically, it evolves on the same path of "Ellesmere II", so the main references are classic prog outfits Yes, King Crimson, Kansas, plus a good amount of jazz-rock, present in every song; but there are also references to contemporary progressive rock and to artists such as Transatlantic, Flower Kings and Spock's Beard. "Wyrd" is therefore a third epic and even more enthralling chapter than the previous one, almost completely instrumental and captivating from the first minute to the very last one.

As per tradition, "Wyrd" also involves a series of prog-related prestigious guests: Mattias Olsson (Änglagård, White Willow / drums), Tomas Bodin (The Flower Kings / keyboards), David Cross (King Crimson / violin), John Hackett (brother of the famous Steve Hackett and a constant presence in his solo records / flute), David Jackson (Van Der Graaf Generator, Osanna / saxophone), Tony Pagliuca (Le Orme / keyboards), Luciano Regoli (Raccomandata Ricevuta Ritorno / voice), Fabio Liberatori (Loy & Altomare, Lucio Dalla, Ron / keyboards), Fabio Bonuglia (keyboards) and Giorgio Pizzala (vocals).

In a path of musical and stylistic evolution that started from the acoustic and pastoral prog of "Les Châteaux De La Loire" (2015), we hope that "Wyrd" does not represent point of arrival, but another passage towards new unexplored lands!

Over the past decade or so, Chris Forsyth has produced a series of perennially year-end list haunting studio albums of expansive art-rock, from 2013’s Solar Motel to 2019’s All TimePresent , in the process becoming one of the leading lights of the so-called “indie jam” scene, musicians combining omnivorous influences with post-Dead sprawl.

These critically lauded albums have established Forsyth as one of today’s most unique and acclaimed guitar player/composers - a forward thinking classicist synthesizing cinematic expansiveness with a pithy lyricism and rhythmic directness that makes even his 20-minute workouts feel as clear, direct, and memorable as a 4-minute song.

Pitchfork has called his music “a near-perfect balance between 70s rock tradition and present day experimentation,” NPR Music named Forsyth “one of rock’s most lyrical guitar improvisors,” and the New York Times calls him “a scrappy and mystical historian… His music humanizes the element of control in rock classicism (and) turns it into a woolly but disciplined ritual.”

But the studio records are just the tip of the iceberg.

You see, in a live setting Forsyth’s music is never really finished.

He hasn’t had a fixed band in years and plays with a rotating cast of characters. Regulars in Forsyth’s bands have included bassists Doug McCombs (Tortoise) and Peter Kerlin (Sunwatchers), and drummer Ryan Jewell (Ryley Walker, too many others to mention), among others - basically, whoever is available for the given gig or tour.

These are not groups that rehearse, exactly. Operating more like a jazz band, Forsyth and his players treat the songs as frameworks that remain identifieable but morph based on who’s playing them, like weather to a landscape.

Embracing this flux has become a cornerstone of Forsyth’s live sets, rendering every performance special and thereby catching the attention of tapers from his home base in Philly to New York City, Chicago, and Minneapolis. In fact, most of his live performances over the last few years are recorded and posted on the Live Music Archive site.

But the taper recordings, though many are high quality and full of character, are not professionally recorded and mixed multi-tracks.

Which brings us to Peoples Motel Band , the new live LP culled from a set that Forsyth played with NY-based group Garcia Peoples as his band, and is self-releasing on his own Algorithm Free label in a limited pressing of 500 copies.

Recorded September 14, 2019 before a packed and enthusiastic hometown crowd at Johnny Brenda’s in Philadelphia, Peoples Motel Band catches Forsyth and Garcia Peoples (plus ubiquitous drummer Ryan Jewell) re-imagining songs from Forsyth’s last couple studio albums with improvisatory flair.

Forsyth and Garcia Peoples played a number of 2019 shows together, beginning with a semi-legendary jam set at Nublu in NYC in March, through a couple dates on Forsyth’s month-long weekly residency at Nublu in September and concluding with a five-date tour of the Northeast in December. The chemistry between the players is tangible.

As is often the case with Forsyth shows, the gloves come off quickly and the players attack the material - much of it so well-manicured and cleanly produced in the studio - like a bunch of racoons let loose in a Philadelphia pretzel factory.

Recorded and mixed with clarity by Forsyth’s longtime studio collaborator, engineer/producer Jeff Zeigler, the record puts the listener right in the sweaty club, highlighted by an incredible side-long take of the chooglin’ title track from 2017’s Dreaming in The Non-Dream LP (note multiple climaxes eliciting wild shouts and ecstatic screams from the assembled).

This is not the new Chris Forsyth album, exactly, but then again, it kinda is because whenever he sits down to play, something new comes out.