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After two UK #1 albums, 2 million album sales and an array of international acclaim, you might’ve thought you knew what to expect from Royal Blood. Those preconceptions were shattered when they released ‘Trouble’s Coming’ last summer. Hitting a melting pot of fiery rock riffs and danceable beats, they delivered something fresh, unexpected and yet entirely in tune with what they’d forged their reputation with.
The reaction was phenomenal, with highlights including 20 million streams, a premiere as Annie Mac’s Hottest Record and a run on Radio 1’s A-list and earned alternative radio support and media attention across the globe. In short, Royal Blood are primed to be bigger than ever before. That feat is set to be realised when they release their eagerly anticipated third album ‘Typhoons’ on April 30th via Warner Records.
When Mike Kerr and Ben Thatcher sat down to talk about making a new album, they knew what they wanted to achieve. It involved a conscious return to their roots, back when they had made music that was influenced by Daft Punk, Justice, and Philippe Zdar of Cassius. It also called for a similar back-to-basics approach to what had made their self-titled debut album so thrilling, visceral and original.
“We sort of stumbled on this sound, and it was immediately fun to play,” recalls Kerr. “That’s what sparked the creativity on the new album, the chasing of that feeling. It’s weird, though - if you think back to ‘Figure it Out’, it kind of contains the embryo of this album. We realised that we didn’t have to completely destroy what we’d created so far; we just had to shift it, change it. On paper, it’s a small reinvention. But when you hear it, it sounds so fresh.”

Those traits pulsate throughout the new single and title track. Kerr’s spiralling bass riff casts an hypnotic allure as it grows in intensity, while his vocals switch at will between a raw rock roar and a soulful falsetto. It’s underpinned by Thatcher’s thundering beats, his taut rhythms infused with groove-laden hi-hats.



After setting the tone with ‘Trouble’s Coming’, the album opens in breathless, take-no-prisoners style with the fierce metallic grooves of ‘Who Needs Friends’ hitting an early visceral peak. Royal Blood further reference their fresh array of influences by deploying vocodered vocals on ‘Million & One’ before dynamically switching between the biggest contrasts of their sound with ‘Limbo’. Already a fan favourite having been a regular during the duo’s 2019 shows, ‘Boilermaker’ lives up to its reputation and is more than matched by ‘Mad Visions’, which evokes a hyper-aggressive Prince. It ends with a final surprise in the shape of the stark piano ballad ‘All We Have Is Now’, a vulnerable and revealing reminder to live in the moment.

That song’s unguarded sentiments gives the album a redemptive finale. Whether directly or allusively, the album focuses on exploring the flipside of success that they’ve experienced. It comes from the realisation that success is much more complicated than it seems and that having the time to regain perspective is a precious commodity which becomes ever more elusive. The situation called for reflection and change, which Kerr addressed in Las Vegas. He downed an espresso martini and declared it to be his last drink, and soon discovered that his new-found sobriety would have a positive impact upon his creativity and life as a whole.

That new approach manifested itself in the duo’s decision to produce the majority of ‘Typhoons’ themselves. ‘Boilermaker’ was produced by Queens of the Stone Age frontman Josh Homme, the two bands having first connected when Royal Blood supported them on a huge North American tour. Meanwhile, the multiple Grammy Award winner Paul Epworth produced ‘Who Needs Friends’ and contributed additional production to ‘Trouble’s Coming’.

Serj Tankian is the vocalist of iconic much loved metal band System Of A Down

2020, The Year Of Our Pandemic: A year of social unrest, police violence and a monumental US election. The year of COVID-19 and its mounting death toll. A massive explosion and mass death in Lebanon. Political upheaval in Belarus. A spiraling world economy. Global protests. If ever a stage was set for new music from Serj Tankian, this is it.
With his trademark eclecticism and one-of-a-kind vocal style, Serj delivers, Elasticity, a five song EP that run the gamut from hard-driving, electronically enhanced anthems like the title track to rallying cries for his beloved Armenia (“Electric Yerevan”) to the tongue-in-cheek political mash-up of “Your Mom.” Elasticity is comprised of songs originally intended for System Of A Down. But it didn’t quite work out that way.

The EP will delight fans of System who have waited a long time for new music. Alongside the release of the EP, Serj will release the documentary ‘Truth To Power’ which he directed himself and is released in conjunction with Oscilloscope Laboratories and Live Nation. The documentary features music from the EP and there are comarketing initiatives in place with the film company.

After appearing on the label's Time Is Now Allstars compilation, Bristol's own Wilfy D makes his second appearance with Shall Not Fade, adding to their new Time Is Now White label series. The young garage star serves up the smooth and soulful two-step he is known for, plus two killer remixes from Time Is Now family DJ Crisps and Soul Mass Transit System.

"Garage Tools" opens out the EP with staccato sampling and a rumbling sub bass wobble dominating the track, the most headsy on the record while "All About U (3am Mix)" takes on a gentler vibe. Using luscious vocal chops and glimmering synths, Wilfy D creates a kind of garage love song, delicate and soothing. He kicks things up a notch on "Know U Like It", a slice of speed garage that grooves along to an earworm melody.

On the B-side Wilfy D's original "Midnight Shift", a clean classic noughties garage sound palette, is reimagined twice by DJ Crisps and then Soul Mass Transit System. DJ Crisps gives the track a drum and bass edge replete with teeth-gritting sub bass power; Soul Mass close out the record with a dirty up-tempo remix perfect for a soundsystem.

300: Rise of an Empire is a 2014 American epic action film written and produced by Zack Snyder and directed by Noam Murro. It is a sequel to the 2007 film 300, taking place before, during, and after the main events of that film, and is loosely based on the Battle of Artemisium and the Battle of Salamis.

Its score was created by Dutch DJ and composer Junkie XL. This was made possible because in 2013, Hans Zimmer became responsible for the creation of the score to Snyder’s Man of Steel, for which he asked Junkie XL to collaborate with him and Snyder loved the end result. The score to 300: Rise of an Empire was performed by the Hollywood Studio Symphony, led by Nick-Glennie Smith. The vocals were provided by Hilda Örvarsdóttir and MC Rai. Junkie XL himself added the guitar, bass, drums, piano and synthesizer parts and mixed the full soundtrack at the Computer Hell Cabin studio.

180 gram Vinyl LP Producer - Jah Thomas Toyan aka Ranking Toyan (born Byron Letts, died 1991) was a Jamaican reggae deejay active since the mid-1970s and best known for his early 1980s recordings.
Toyan began his career in 1974, deejaying on Kingston’s sound systems, such as Socialist Roots and Romantic HiFi. He recorded his debut single, “Disco Pants” in the late 1970s for producer Don Mais. He went on to work extensively with Joseph Hoo Kim and Jah Thomas, resulting in a string of hits including “Girls
Nowadays”, “Kill No Man”, “John Tom”, and “Talk of the Town”, as well as combination hits with The Mighty Diamonds (“Pretty Woman”), Badoo (“Rocking the 5000”), and Freddie McGregor (“Roots Man Skanking”).
In 1981 he joined Henry “Junjo” Lawes’ Volcano Sound system, and toured Canada. With Lawes, he recorded the album How the West Was Won, and went on to produce his own work and that of others such as Billy Boyo and Anthony Johnson. He toured the United Kingdom with the Jah Prophecy band and performed in Jamaica alongside Dennis Brown. He was murdered in Jamaica in 1991.
Mailout to relevant music press and radio. Promotion across social media platforms Advertising in Riddim, Black Echoes and Record Collector Magazine

LTD. NEON PINK & NEON GREEN VINYL

The Impossible Kid, released in 2016 on Rhymesayers Entertainment, marked Indie-rap mainstay Aesop Rock's first solo venture since 2012's Skelethon. Aesop continued finding new ways to improve on the skills that have made him one of the kings of indie hip-hop. His creative process now includes a newfound willingness to open up about his personal life, going deep on topics like depression, his sometimes rocky relationship with his family, and the turbulent handful of years that culminated in Aesop leaving his adopted home of San Francisco to live in a barn out in the woods, where he recorded the foundations of The Impossible Kid. There's also moments of levity though, as Aesop taps into the funny side of his persona that he suppressed during the period where being taken as a serious lyricist was more of a priority. Like Skelethon, Aesop exercised complete creative control over every aspect of the album, from the production (which he handled himself, with instrumental help from Philly's Grimace Foundation) to conceptualizing the cover art by his friend Alex Pardee.

Just in time for the holidays comes a brand new Christmas classic from Academy Award-winning composer Michael Giacchino (Up, Ratatouille & Lost) and if the world ever needed a shot of positivity right now then this is it!

The idea of writing a Christmas single happened whilst hosting a Christmas party with Richard Kind at the Royal Albert Hall in 2019. During that party, they heard a radio announcement regarding a Christmas song competition, and they immediately began trying to

write a song and find someone to sing it! Throughout the party, guests turned up, but no one wanted to sing the song, that is until Himesh Patel and UK band Itchy Teeth knocked on the door and took up the challenge. Himesh was fresh from starring in Danny Boyle’s film Yesterday, and Itchy Teeth were the band that performed with him throughout the movie.

Recalling classic Christmas earworms such as Wings ‘Wonderful Christmastime,” the single is written by Michael Giacchino, Elyssa Samsel and Kate Anderson and performed by Itchy Teeth. The B-side is a beautiful smokey lounge version of Christmas Number One performed by the John Robert Wood Yule Sextet.

The LTD 7’ comes complete with a digital download card and is presented in gatefold Christmas card cover, ready and waiting to be given as a gift and inscribed with your very own holiday greeting.

Let us see 2020 out in a flurry of positivity, optimism and fun, so get ready to be singing this song around the christmas tree this year with all your family (even if that mean doing so on Zoom)

Happy Holidays!!!

"Flowers Bloom, Butterflies Come" is the result of a dialog between the stunning Japanese photographer and artist Miho Kajioka and the wonderful UK musicians and composers Ian Hawgood and Craig Tattersall (The Humble Bee), initiated by IIKKI, between August 2019 and January 2021.

Born in the United Kingdom, Ian Hawgood spent most of his adult life living in Japan, Italy and Poland. Currently he calls Peacehaven (on the south coast, near Brighton) his home. Since 2009, he’s well-known with his work as the curator of the Home Normal label. He makes music using an array of reel-to-reel and tape machines in his studio by the sea, where he also master works for many labels and artists alike. You could often catch him on the coast with his faithful Nagra recorder, hydrophone and field microphones. These days his focus of music is on decayed ambient works using old synths and reels mostly, alongside his childhood piano. (site)

Craig Tattersall is a former member of The Remote Viewer and Famous Boyfriend bandmate Andrew Johnson. Tattersall's music can be found these days more often under his alias The Humble Bee; as a founder member of The Boats; and in his collaborative works with the likes of Bill Seaman in The Seaman And The Tattered Sail. He has run the wonderful label Cotton Goods from 2008 to 2015 and since 2009 he has recorded 12 albums on his moniker The Humble Bee.

Miho Kajioka (b. 1973, Japan, lives in Kyoto) is an artist and a photographer since 2011. Kajioka’s work has been exhibited in Spain, Italy, France, the Netherlands, the USA, Germany, Belgium, Portugal and the United Kingdom. Kajioka’s latest book ‘so it goes’ won Prix Nadar in October 2019. "Kajioka's artistic practice is in principal snapshot based; she carries her camera everywhere and intuitively takes photos of whatever she finds interesting. These collected images serve as the basic material for her work in the darkroom where she creates her poetic and suggestive image-objects through elaborate, alternative printing methods. Kajioka regards herself more as a painter/drawer than as a photographer. She feels that photographic techniques help her to create works that fully express her artistic vision. Her images evoke a sense of mystery in her constant search for beauty. The focused, creative and respectful way in which she uses the medium of photography to creating her works seems to fit in the tradition of Japanese art that is characterized by the specifically Japanese sense of beauty, wabi sabi. (…) According to her, photography captures moments and freezes them; printing impressions is like playing with the sense of time and getting lost in its timeline." (Ibasho Gallery)

His father used to be an electrician. Twentysomething years after leaving the cradle, he lets his lifelong-influence show with a superb debut single that will convince all minimal lovers with its subtle charm and dreamy ambience. "Blond" is the prototype of a KOMPAKT EP. Two tracks ambient, two for the floor.

Dettinger’s Vater war Elektriker. Knapp zwanzig Jahre, nachdem der kleine Olaf das Kinderzimmer hinter sich gelassen hat, lässt seine großartige Debütsingle irgendwie immer noch den väterlichen Einfluß erkennen. Eine Platte, die mit ihrem subtilen Charme und verträumten Ambiente alle Liebhaber des Minimal überzeugen wird. "Blond" ist der Prototyp einer KOMPAKT EP. Zwei Tracks Ambient, zwei für die Tanzfläche.

Tom Smith (Editors) and Andy Burrows (We Are Scientists,
Razorlight) return with their second album and follow up
to their 2011 debut ‘Funny Looking Angels’ (which every
year grows in stature as the alternative go-to soundtrack
for the Winter / festive season).
Produced by Grammy Award-winning producer Jacquire
King (Kings Of Leon, James Bay) and packed with classic
songwriting, the new album ups the pop ante with a
cannon of heart lifting songs including three singles
already lighting up both radio and streaming playlists
across the world.
The video for ‘Parliament Hill’, directed by Mat Whitecross
(Coldplay, Liam Gallagher), was shared by Coldplay to their
12.2 million Instagram followers.
Just before Christmas they also turned in an amazing
filmed performance of ‘When The Thames Froze’ (from the
first album) for The Late Late show with James Corden in
the US, with James declaring it “the perfect song for
Christmas 2020” and the album being “the greatest
Christmas album ever.”
‘All The Best Moves’ also elicited an apt response from Ben
Stiller, who tweeted “if this was a 45 I would have bought
it.”
TV - The Late Late Show with James Corden, Channel 4
Sunday Brunch.
Press - Reviews & features in Sunday Times.
Radio - Radio 2 playlist, New To 2, Jo Whiley, Ken Bruce Tracks
Of My Years feature, 5Live Nihal chat & session, Virgin Chris
Evans session.
Online - Tim’s Twitter Listening Party feature.

Following recent super-deluxe editions and multi-format releases of classic Who albums – ‘My Generation’, ‘Tommy’ and ‘Quadrophenia’, and the success of ‘Live at Fillmore’, we follow with The Who Sell Out – this set shaping up to be the most superlative of all…!!
Released in December 1967 – the album reflected a remarkable year in popular culture. As well as being forever immortalised as the moment when the counterculture and the ‘Love Generation’ went global, 1967 produced tremendous musical upheavals as “pop” metamorphosed to “rock”.

Originally planned by Pete Townshend and the band’s managers, as a loose concept album including jingles and commercials linking the songs styled as a Radio London broadcast – born out of necessity as the band’s managers wanted a new album and there weren’t enough songs.

The original plan was to sell advertising space on the album – Jaguar cars, Coca-Cola etc. The jingles pay tribute to the pirate radio stations and expose the myths of ‘pop-culture’ and mock consumer society – way ahead of their time…

The homage to pop-art is evident in both the advertising jingles and the iconic sleeve design – created by David King (art director at the Sunday Times) and Roger Law (who invented Spitting Image) producing four giant images for each band member – Odorono deodorant, Medac spot cream, Charles Atlas and Heinz baked beans (Roger apparently caught pneumonia from sitting in the cold beans for too long).

Photography by renowned portrait photographer David Montgomery (rare out-takes included)

The album is a bold depiction of the period in which it was made – the tail-end of the ‘swinging-60s’ meets pop-art mixed with psychedelia and straight-ahead pop craft. It’s glorious blend of classic powerful Who instrumentation, melodic harmonies, satirical lyrical imagery crystallised for what was only the group’s third album – the ambition and scope is unrivalled by the Who, or any others from that period.

Within the bold concept, were a batch of fabulous and diverse songs – I Can See for Miles (a Top Ten hit) is a Who classic, Rael, a Townshend ‘mini-opera’ with musical motifs that reappeared in Tommy and the psychedelic blast of Armenia City in the Sky and Relax are among the very best material of the 1960s.

One of the most extraordinary albums of any era – it’s The Who’s last ‘pop’ album. Two years later came Tommy – a double concept album about a deaf, dumb and blind kid…

“We were hoping to get free Jaguars. We got fifty tins of free Baked Beans”

Pete Townshend

• Although no longer part of the current Band line-up, Hamish Stuart remains integral to the continuing Average
White Band catalogue reissues, a band that is widely regarded as one of the best ever soul and funk bands.
• For the last 40 years, Hamish Stuart has been an in-demand songwriter, producer and studio/live performer,
working with Paul McCartney, Chaka Khan and Aretha Franklin, being part of the Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band,
or the occasional meet-up of the 360 Band, which also featured former band mates Steve Ferrone and the lateMalcolm ‘Molly’ Duncan.
• Hamish has also written for Smokey Robinson, George Benson, Diana Ross Jeffrey Osborne and Atlantic Starr,.
• ‘Sooner Or Later’ was his first solo album, released worldwide between 1999 and 2000, so although celebrating
it’s Coming-of-Age, 21 years later, it’s the album’s debut release on vinyl.
• ‘Sooner Or Later’ has been edited and reconfigured by Hamish to give it a tighter sound and includes the single
‘Midnight Rush’, co-writer with Incognito’s Jean-Paul ‘Bluey’ Maunick.
• Other song writing collaborations include ‘It Is What It Is’, with Richard Darbyshire and Frank Musker and ‘I Don’t
Wanna Be A Rock’, with Graham Lyle.

‘Any Other City’ by Life Without Buildings, the only
album recorded in their brief existence, is
repressed and available again. Originally released
on Tugboat Records (a Rough Trade affiliated
label) in February 2001, ‘Any Other City’ has slowly
become a widely admired cult album.
Life Without Buildings formed in Glasgow in 1999,
they existed for three years and then split in 2002,
having released just one album and three double A
side singles, yet they’ve continued to build a
strong underground following in the years since,
which has culminated in copies of the original
album on vinyl changing hands for exorbitant
figures and numerous musicians citing it as a
major influence and inspiration.
Frontwoman Sue Tomkins’ unique vocal delivery
which is somewhere between talking and singing,
a kind of narrative, combined with the often spiky,
course backing that the rest of the band provide,
tends to prove magnetic after a few listens.
Life Without Buildings managed to be utterly
unique in the sound they made and ultimately
that’s what has made this album’s reputation grow
over time to be deemed absorbing, timeless and
utterly essential listening.

The term "Guitar Hero" is bandied about loosely these days. Seems like all you have to do is look good holding the thing and you qualify. But if you ask the actual guitar heroes---like Brian May, Jeff Beck, and Eric Clapton---who THEIR Guitar Heroes are, Steve Cropper is definitely on the shortlist. If all he had done were the records with Otis Redding that would be enough, but shortly thereafter he was leaving his fingerprints on records by Wilson Pickett, Sam & Dave, Johnny Taylor, Albert King, and virtually anybody worthy who came within earshot of Memphis. He was a Guitarist's Guitarist, and a Songwriter's Songwriter.

Fire It Up is Steve Cropper's first album of new Soul/R&B material in 10 years. The album was produced by Steve and Jon Tiven, and will be released worldwide on April 23, 2021 via Mascot Label Group/Provogue.

Los Angeles emcee Pawz One returns with Featured Unreleased Collab Kollection Issue Two (F.U.C.K I.T!), the second installment in the series that features guest appearances, unreleased songs and remixes.

The 16 track album includes artists like Talib Kweli, Ras Kass, A.G. of D.I.T.C and others are featured on the album along with artwork done by Gift Revolver who recently did artwork for Conway, Wu-Tang and Big Pun. Producers include Snowgoons and many others from Japan, Netherlands, Chicago and Los Angeles.





e 05: Mind Power (Remix) [feat. Termanology & Ras Kass]




[j] 10: Avalanche Warning (Remix) [feat. Percee P]





[e] 05: Mind Power (Remix) [feat. Termanology & Ras Kass]




[j] 10: Avalanche Warning (Remix) [feat. Percee P]

Favorite Recordings and Charles Maurice proudly present the 5th edition of the AOR Global Sounds compilations series: 8 rare and hidden tracks, produced between 1977 and 1984 in various parts of the world. Started in 2015, the AOR Global Sounds series was born from the will of Charles Maurice (aka Pascal Rioux) to share his longtime love for the AOR and WestCoast movement and highlight its influence for many artists in the late 70s and early 80s. In this 5th volume, he selected again highly forgotten productions, deeply infused with Disco and Soul flavors.

Half of the compilation’s tracklist is naturally coming from the US, homeland of this music style, while the other half is made of productions from all over the globe, from France or United Kingdom to Venezuela. And for most of these beautiful songs, it came from artists and bands rather unknown and often released as private press.

Often, these records will have a special story, sometimes they’re just part of the universal quest of finding true love. Nonetheless, they all carry a wide range of emotions magnified by the music.

For example, “Don’t Take It Away” by Westside is as a love song about a new relationship, recorded in Minnesota and mastered on Sunset Bld. (Hollywood) by Bernie Grundman, who worked on Thriller – funny thing, the original LP is a picture-disc, which was still quite rare back in the days because the singer saw one from Mickael Jackson when visiting the studio. “Til’ Mornin’ Comes”, the only release by The Ferry Brothers, is also a love song, recorded in NYC with notably Gwen Guthrie, Vivian Cherry & Patti Austin singing as backup vocalists. On “What Its Meant To Me”, Jonathon Hansen remembers with emotion the good times spent with the members of his band including the vocalist he was in love with. On “J’Irai Squatter Ton Cœur”, Didier Makaga better-known as a French Boogie & Pop singer, arranger & composer, sings a charming declaration of love on a heavy and groovy eighties production. “You Never Know” by Rhapsody, recorded in Connecticut, sounds more like an East coast fusion of Soul and Jazz-Funk à la James Mason. “What You Do To Me” by Sugar Cane was highlighted on a Pittsburgh Rock Radio compilation: listening to this smooth ballad with its amazing Moog synth break will lift your soul. “Kailua” by Venezuelan Jazz-Funk band Esperanto, is a song about Hawaii which evocates bucolic dreamy nights facing the ocean, a typical AOR vibe. Finally, “I Need You” from Mark Williamson is a blue-eyed soul UK groover ending on a four-on-the-floor climax!

And we could detail stories but our guessing is the best way to learn more about all these gems is to listen to the compilation, fully remastered from originals, and whether your preference is for vinyl or CD formats.

Freddy Cole's 'The Cole Nobody Knows' is available as digipack-CD & limited vinyl-LP / Holy Grail soul jazz album by Freddy Cole, singer, pianist, Nat 'King' Cole's youngest brother and uncle of Natalie. Privately pressed LP recorded 1976 in Atlanta, including famous version of 'Brother Where Are You' and nine more excellent rare groove tracks, most of them suitable for the jazz dance scene. Outstanding quartet takes throughout with stunning jazz ballad performances of 'Live For Life' and 'Miss Otis Regrets', jazz dance pearls 'Wild Is Love', 'Moving On - Place In The Sun' plus rough blues tracks like 'A Man Shouldn't Be Lonely' and 'Waiter Ask The Man To Play The Blues'. First 1:1 reissue of an extremely rare and highly sought after vinyl LP on the small imprint 'First Shot' from Georgia, remastered and with original first press cover art. Sonorama is proud to release a legendary and sought after soul jazz LP that will send shivers down your spine. 77-year-old singer & pianist Freddy Cole, youngest brother of Nat 'King' Cole and uncle of Natalie Cole, is a truly unique interpreter with an impressive career from 1952 until 2010. This very rare and privately pressed LP was recorded back in 1976 and finally gets its first remastered 1:1 reissue with original cover artwork (First Shot label), including such greats as 'Wild Is Love', 'Brother Where Are You' and 'Live For Life'. The original press album is highly sought after all over the world and fetches ridiculous prices at auctions. Even another LP release of the same set of recordings with different cover art, pressed 1977 on the Audiophile label, is nearly impossible to find today. 'Freddy Cole has had a great career, wether or not you've ever heard of him' (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette 2006) and he is still going strong: His quartet is currently touring the U.S., Switzerland, Germany or Lebanon and will come back to Europe for more shows in May 2010. Check 'freddycole' to find out about the man who 'just might be the most attractively understated jazz singer currently at work' (The Chicago Sunday Times 2000).

Sometimes a work of art comes unintentionally from a place from deep within the soul. It meanders and flops onto a table and sits and waits for its birth.
The album begins with "Wait Till The Stars Burn", a planetary ode to the Sun. The second track "Tribute to the Pharoahs Den", is a requiem for Danny Ray Thompson (R.I.P.) of the Sun Ra Arkestra, his music and legacy now floating above us in the infinity of space. Both tracks and featuring Marshall Allen and Knoel Scott (of the Sun Ra Arkestra).
The album ends with a requiem for Hal Willner (R.I.P.) whose devotion to celebrating the weird and insane was like an insatiable thirst leading to deep introspection and joy in harmony and sonic dissidence.
These compositions have all come from this place inside my bipolar, seroquil ridden mind. It is as much a tribute to the great composers who have inspired me; Alice Coltrane, Rahsaan Roland Kirk, Philip Kelan Cohran, Bernard Herrmann, Ennio Morricone, Miles Davis, Sun Ra, John Carpenter, Quincy Jones, Old Bollywood, Film Noir, to name just a few. In my 23 years of being a composer of music I have had the great opportunity to score several films all of which never got any commercial fame. These films were made from the blood and sweat of film directors and their crews who tirelessly made incredible documents that were ultimately ignored by humanity. But that never stopped them nor will it stop me. These tracks are from the infinite celluloid that runs deep in my mind, body and soul. In my lifetime i never thought i would see the deaths of "Celluloid" or "analog recording". I refuse to accept the coroner reports on said fatalities, so here is my offering to the canon of cinematic overtures and analog self-preservation, for the films in our heads yet to be made.

Excellent EP, with 4 tunes into 4 different styles... Including 2 Harfloor tunes, a Techno-tribe 156 BPM track and... A good Spoacecore tune from Got X, bringing out a rare fishkopf kind of kick (not as core).

Kink Gong is back with his unique take and re-interpretation of the music he’s been recording and documenting for years in the South East Asian highlands.

Zomia Vol.1 takes the conceptual idea of ZOMIA, proposed by James C Scott in The Art of Not Being Governed, an Anarchist History of Upland South East Asia, to construct its very own mythological soundscape inspired by a semi-utopic region where state rules don’t apply. Zomia might be (almost) gone but Kink Gong is keen keep its spirit alive by releasing a series of albums celebrating the region’s quasi mythological features.

‘’Zomia is an idea, a concept that, not so long ago, there were two very distinct worlds in southeast Asia, the valley VS highland/hinterland, the civilisation VS the primitive, paddy rice VS slash and burn agriculture, Buddhism VS Animism, fixed territory VS movement/migration, written system VS oral culture, the state VS anarchy, property VS squat, controlled population VS autonomy, bricks VS bamboo and wood and, at my level museumified traditional mainstream music VS real emotions/songs of devastated lives and/or gongs ceremonies with buffalo sacrifices, extreme heat in the valleys VS shade in the jungle. I could go on and on but let’s not forget that ZOMIA is disappearing fast, if not altogether already. How many of the people I’ve recorded are still alive?

As you might know, before composing new music from my own ZOMIAN experience (from 2001 to 2014 in Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Thailand and China) I had to find those musicians, be able to communicate with them, record them as good as I could with very limited finances and gradually release a collection of 160 CDrs. It is very important for me to make sure you to listen to the fantastic original recordings before or after you’ve listened to this experimental reconstruction I called ZOMIA!

Expect more volumes to come, this is my biggest source of inspiration, and the reason why I’ve been involved for years in constructing a mythological experimental musical ZOMIAN soundscape.’’
Laurent Jeanneau, Berlin 2020

Overview: Ultravox’s ‘Vienna’ album was originally released in July 1980, their first with Midge Ure on vocals/guitar. Produced by legendary German producer Conny Plank (Neu!, Kraftwerk), it reached number 3 in the UK album chart and top ten in Australia, New Zealand and several European countries.

The album contains 4 UK Top 40 singles; All Stood Still, Passing Strangers and Sleepwalk (which was recently reissued as part of Record Store Day 2020) and the title track ‘Vienna’ which reached No.2 in the UK and Top 10 in seven countries around the world. The single went on to sell over half a million copies in the UK. This new vinyl edition has been mastered and cut at half-speed by Alchemy Mastering using the original 1980 production tapes. The second bonus vinyl includes single versions and b-sides from the 4 singles released from the album, including a previously commercially unreleased US Promo Edit of Vienna, which is exclusive to this edition.

One Night in Miami is a 2020 American drama film directed by Regina King (in her feature directorial debut), from a screenplay by Kemp Powers, based on his stage play of the same name.

It had its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival on September 7, 2020 and was the first film directed by an African-American woman to be selected in the festival’s history. It received overwhelmingly positive reviews, with critics praising King’s direction, the performances and the writing.

It is scheduled to be released in a limited release on December 25, 2020, followed by digital streaming on Prime Video on January 15, 2021

On one incredible night in 1964, four icons of sports, music, and pop culture gather to celebrate one of the biggest upsets in boxing history. When underdog Cassius Clay, soon to be called Muhammed Ali, (Eli Goree), defeats heavy weight champion Sonny Liston at the Miami Convention Hall, Clay memorialized the event with three of his friends: Malcolm X (Kingsley Ben-Adir), Sam Cooke (Leslie Odom Jr.) and Jim Brown (Aldis Hodge).

Based on the award winning play of the same name, One Night In Miami is a fictional account of the actual night that these formidable figures spent together in the hotel. It looks at the struggles these men faced and the vital role they each played in the civil rights movement and cultural upheaval of the 1960s.

More than 40 years later, their conversations on racial injustice, religion, and personal responsibility still resonate.

When Nkrumah Jah Thomas hit Number 1 on the
Jamaican Charts in 1976 with his debut single
‘Midnight Rock’ on Alvin Ranglin’s GG label it gave the
new DJ a theme song and an entry into the world of
music. Within three years he had launched his
Midnight Rock label and, alongside more music under
his own name, he produced a series of classics by the
likes of Tristan Palmer, Anthony Johnson, Early B and
many more.
In 1997 he signed a deal with Acid Jazz’s Roots label
and since then his career as a producer has been
developed and anthologised; the release of a series of
archive King Tubby and Scientist mixes, the use of his
masters to be sampled by Nas (on ‘The Don’), Protoje
and others, plus reissues of his classic albums.
To celebrate 40 years of Midnight Rock, Thomas went
back into his tape archive to unearth another 10
tracks, either with original vocals or guest names
brought in.
Behind original rhythms recorded at Channel 1, Tuff
Gong and others, featuring the Roots Radics and The
Midnight Rock Band and mixed in places like King
Jammy’s and Tubby’s we are presented with a line-up
of stellar talent - Linval Thompson with the plaintive ‘I
Can Be Your Man’, the forthright Super Cat on ‘Me
Glad She Gone’ and Luciano on the rare ‘Good Thing
Goin’ On’. They are joined by Courtney Melody,
Pinchers and Joesy Wales, Daville and more. Keeping
the circle complete, Thomas appears on two tracks,
including the future classic ‘Sounds A Go Dead
Tonight’ with Junior Vibes.

Two new vinyl releases mark Martha Argerich’s 80th birthday in June: Her recording of Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1 with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and Charles Dutoit; and her 1984 recording of Schumann’s Kinderszenen and Kreisleriana. To preserve the greatest possible audio quality, the Schumann release sees a new split, presenting Kreisleriana, Parts 1-6 on Side 1 and Parts 7-8 on Side 2, followed by the complete Kinderszenen.

In 2019, Parisian cinema composer Jean-Gabriel Becker and Japanese composer and multi- instrumentalist Susumu Mukai embarked on the making of an album that was ultimately going to become ‘Time Very Near’.
The album was finally released to great acclaim in April 2020 through the strangest time in history for its singularity and originality. Prompted by a few unsolicited offers for remixes, Becker & Mukai saw an occasion to invite their community of musician and producer friends to re-invent, deconstruct and rebuild the songs on ‘Time Very Near’.
Joe Goddard (Hot Chip), who, from his studio next door, had witnessed the birth of the project from day one, was kind enough to unleash his killer beats on Spice War. Old friend Jas Shaw (Simian Mobile Disco) transformed the tropical sounds of Dark Fields Of The Republic into a dance-floor ready techno workout.
Long-time collaborator and friend Sasa Crnobrnja (In Flagranti, Mytron & Ofofo, Auf Togo) took Time Very Near on a trip to Jamaica. Label mate AMA//MIZU stripped Tout Azimuth down to its core to rebuild it with his unique production skills. Dreems delivered a sweltering 19 minute version of Dark Fields Of The Republic and a shorter version more suited for a vinyl listen. And finally Becker & Mukai chose to don their alternative monikers (Zongamin and Lux Prima) to re-interpret the duo’s own compositions.
Like the original album, this remix project gathers sounds and inspiration from an ever-expanding palette of influences, assembled into something amorphously intangible that’s simultaneously refreshing and sharp, meandering and cosmic, futuristic but timelessly vintage and manages to expand where the original album left off.

Songwriter and fingerstyle guitarist, Jason McNiff releases his 7th full length album, Dust Of Yesterday, on April 16th. Produced and engineered by Roger Askew (Joe Strummer, Wilko Johnson, Christy Moore) the album was recorded throughout the summer and autumn of 2020 in Roger's home studio in Eastbourne, UK. It features McNiff's signature acoustic guitar work throughout with significant contributions from Beth Porter (of Eliza Carthy's band) on cello and Basia Bartz (most London based folk bands) on violin. 
 
His first album since leaving London - McNiff is now based in Hastings - Dust of Yesterday is an elegy on moving away from a beloved place and a lament for lost youth. We are treated to a musical tour of McNiff's life to date, from his 8-year residency as a Flamenco guitarist in a Spanish bar in Waterloo (Damaged Woman) to hopping the northbound train from King's Cross, hiding in the lavatory up to Nottingham (A Load Along). All the songs on Dust of Yesterday, in one way or another, speak of the past. But it is not bleary-eyed nostalgia. 

"I read somewhere that it is possible to literally change the past and I became very interested in this idea. It so happened around the same time that I discovered the Greek/Egyptian poet, Cavafy. In his poems he would talk about the past, but the memory is not a thing of the past, but something that is still part of him in the present. I could relate to that. "

Musically, Jason is influenced by the British acoustic guitarists (Jansch, Graham, Wizz Jones) and the great folk/rock troubadours of the 60s and 70s. He loves Mark Knopfler in the early days; the English teacher turned reluctant rock star, singing about Leeds and Newcastle and sounding like JJ Cale. For McNiff, the lyrics are central, and he has been especially captivated by those considered poets and writers as well as musicians. He loves literature and cites Hemingway, Chekhov and the aforementioned Cavafy, as major influences in his work. ( He has 'translated' Hemingway's 'For Whom the Bell Tolls' into a song on a previous album, 'Nobody's Son')
 
 
Jason McNiff was born in Bradford, Yorkshire in 1974 to an Irish father and Polish mother. Academically gifted, he did well at school and went to the University of Nottingham to study French and Russian. He fell in with the Folk & Blues scene in that city before moving to London in the mid-nineties to do another degree in English Lit. He was just in time to catch the Bert Jansch residency at the 12 Bar club. For 6 months, every Wednesday night, McNiff would be in the front row of Soho's tiny club learning fingerstyle from the master. He would later sign his first record deal with Snowstorm Records, a label run by Bert's brother-in-law and found himself opening for Bert on numerous occasions. 
There followed a string of albums on various labels, including 2003's Nobody's Son (Americana UK album of the year) and 2011's April Cruel (nominated for best alt-country album at the Independent Music Awards in the US.)

With no touring in 2020, and possibly this year, Woods
decided to take a deep dive into their archives and put
together the first volume of their much discussed archival
series, Reflections. Featuring rare and unreleased
recordings from 2009 - 2013, including a ghost town desert
jam off the side of the highway, their first live performance
in Big Sur, the first recorded version of “Bend Beyond”
and some shelved diamonds in the rough that were finished
up during quarantine. Their hope is that it plays like a “lost
record” from an extremely strange and fruitful period in
Woods history.

Melvin Ukachi needs little introduction, the Lagos (Nigeria) based vocalist and bandleader is a living legend. Melvin is known for his fantastic solo albums, his vocals for the afrobeat star-groups M.F.B. and Ozzobia_but his biggest legacy is without a doubt him being the singer and bandleader of Ofege. Melvin formed Ofege in the early 1970s (when he and the other band members were all still a bunch of teenagers). Due to their vibrant combo of sweet harmonies, hooks & fuzz, Ofege would become one of the most legendary Nigerian groups of all time, with expressive sales and national stardom to follow. At the turn of the century (and because of tracks appearing on various compilations) Ofege would receive international acknowledgment for being the first of their kind and THE ultimate West-African psychedelic funk band! Melvin Ukachi recorded four milestone albums with Ofege: 'Try and Love' (1973) 'The Last of The Origins' (1976), 'Higher Plane Breeze' (1977) and 'How Do You Feel' (1978). When the Ofege story came to an end, Melvin recorded two astonishing solo albums: 'Evolution-Bring Back The Ofege Beat' (1981) and 'I am Ok' (1985). Both of his solo recordings have now become much sought-after holy grails for collectors and fans alike. On the album, we are presenting you today (Evolution-Bring Back The Ofege Beat) the listener is treated to the trademark Ofege sound (as the title of the record obviously suggests). Next to the rootsy and raw Ofege sound, we're shown a perfect glimpse of the late '70s afrobeat works combining soul, jazzy rhythms, William Onyeabor style synths & fluid boogie-danceability Expect some serious 'all-star' guest musicians as well_featured on the album are Chyke Madu (The Funkees) on drums, Berkley Jones (Ofege) on guitar_and many other local legends. To top things off the tracks were recorded and mixed at the legendary Abbey Road Studios in London_all slickly engineered by Rafiu Ayoade (The Apostles) and produced by the president of sound himself Odion Iruoje (known for his work with Manu Dibango, Fela Kuti_and many others). 'Evolution-Bring Back The Ofege Beat' was released on EMI Nigeria in 1981 and is a total Afro-psych-funk classic that begs for a special place in your record collection. It's tight, funky and Melvin's soulful vocals are to die for. This record is a monster! Tidal Waves Music now proudly presents the first-ever reissue (supervised by Melvin Ukachi himself) of this amazing Nigerian Afrobeat album. This RARE classic (original copies tend to go for large amounts on the secondary market) is now finally back available as a limited 180g vinyl edition (500 copies) complete with the original artwork made at Grafikad (who were responsible for designing landmark sleeves for renowned artists such as Fela Kuti).

For volume 86 in the Brazil45 series, we return with a pair of stellar 1970s Brazilian-Funk / Black Rio nuggets by two of the greats of the genre, Toni Tornado & Zeca Do Trombone.

'Sou Negro' (I'm Black) is taken from Toni Tornado's (aka Antônio Viana Gomes) sought after 1970 four-track compacto EP on Odeon Records. Already having had some experience in show business as a dancer in the 1960s, Toni started his musical career in 1970 and adopted the stage name 'Toni Tornado'. The influence of James Brown flowed through his music, with Toni becoming one of the first Brazilian artists (alongside Tim Maia) to introduce the soul and funk sound into Brazilian music. Together with other contemporary musicians and bands such as Banda Black Rio, Gerson King Combo and Cassiano, this new sound led to DJ's throwing soul parties. This unique Brazilian take on soul and funk (and later on disco) became coined as 'Black Rio'. A movement that celebrated pride in its Black identity and consciousness.

Zeca Do Trombone has an impressive repertoire which has seen him releasing a handful of solo albums and working with some of the greats of Brazilian music, such as Tim Maia, Ivan Lins, Joyce, and Luis Vagner. The track 'Coluna Do Meio' is taken from his 1976 collaboration project 'Zé Do Trombone E Roberto Sax' with saxophonist Roberto Sax, which additionally features the heavyweight Wilson das Neves on percussion. This catchy Wah-Wah guitar-led dancer has become a favourite with DJ's over the years and will continue to be championed for years to come.

Demon Records presents Distortion: 2008-2019, the third in a series of four expansive vinyl box sets chronicling the solo career of legendary American musician Bob Mould.
Bob Mould’s career began in 1979 with the iconic underground punk group Hüsker Dü before forming the beloved alternative rock band Sugar and releasing numerous critically acclaimed solo albums. Volume three in this new series covers the period 2008-2019 and contains many of Bob Mould’s most celebrated recordings including Silver Age (2012), Patch The Sky (2016), and Sunshine Rock (2019).

With his seventh studio album, Shapes of the Fall, Piers Faccini, pursues his passion for the kind of cross-cultural dialogues that have long been heard on Mediterranean shores throughout the centuries, bridging southern Europe with the Near East and Africa. Although the songs are written and sung in English, the musical influences in Shapes of the Fall draw heavily on Faccini's own Mediterranean ancestry, creating a musical voyage whose geography varies from song to song, crossing multiple frontiers with his voice over the course of the journey, from the snow tipped anglo-american Folk registers of songs like Paradise Fell or Together Forever Everywhere to the eerie desert blown notes of Middle Eastern or north African modes in tracks like Firefly or Dunya. Ruin or repair and hope or despair are the album's parallel narratives and if shapes of the fall are the myriad endangered forms that make up the mosaic of our environmental collapse, the descent, Faccini sings, is of our doing or undoing. ''Bring me my home back'' the chorus of the album's emblamatic opening song They Will Gather No Seed is not then, the singer's personal cry for a home but the animal lament of innumerable species on the brink of extinction. Faccini who has previously collaborated with cellist Vincent Segal for their 2014 duo album Songs of Time Lost has collaborated over the years with musicians far and wide in search of musical dialogue such as Ballake Sissoko, Ibrahim Maalouf or Jasser Haj Youssef. Two exceptional voices feature on the album; Californian singer-songwriter Ben Harper, a collaborator from his 2005 album, Tearing Sky and Moroccan singer and master of the trance traditions known as Gnawa, Abdelkebir Merchane. The album was co-produced by Piers Faccini and Fred Soulard.

Having become one of the premier German death metal bands - and rapidly rising the ranks of the genre as a whole - Endseeker storm back into the fray with Mount Carcass. Building on the groundwork laid down on 2017’s Flesh Hammer Prophecy and having the difficult task of besting 2019’s stunning The Harvest they have returned with a streamlined, powerful collection that further raises the bar. To keep the genre sounding fresh in 2021 Endseeker focused on the production, having just a touch of the old school vibe to remain rooted, and they did not limit themselves too hard to the Swedish death metal style of songwriting they previously embraced, but also let other influences into their songs. “You can hear all kinds of stuff that is inspired by bands like Morbid Angel, Bolt Thrower, Slayer, Dissection, Gorefest, etc. We listen to so many different bands and somehow a bit from all of this keeps adding to our music.”

Built on a foundation of authenticity, passion and innovation, Archie Lee Hooker & The Coast to Coast Blues Band is a spearheading group that has established itself in the world of music. Formedby Archie Lee Hooker, the nephew of John Lee Hooker, Archie and his leading handpicked team arehighly recognised for creating compelling, soul-enriching productions that leave their audienceswanting more.
Archie was born on Christmas Day of 1949 in Lambert, Mississippi, just 20 miles from thecrossroads where Robert Johnson supposedly sold his soul to the devil. He was the son of a sharecropper, and up until age thirteen, that was the life he was accustomed to. That all changed when he headed up north and found himself standing in the big city of Memphis,Tennessee.
The paved roads and city lights felt like a new world to Archie, one that was filled with opportunities. Inspired by the Memphis music scene, it didn’t take long for Archie to begin singing with his first gospel group called The Marvellous Five. However, December of 1989 was when hispassion for Blues started to surface. During this time, Archie lived with his uncle, John Lee (the Boogieman himself) until his death in 2001. Being surrounded by him and other committed, talented, and influencing musicians is what became the catalyst for Archie to crave sharing his own life experiences through music and leave his lasting impression.
Though Archie left for France in 2011 to join Carl Wyatt & The Delta Voodoo Kings to tour Europe, he eventually chose to seek the right musicians to have on his side. He wanted a team that resembled family, chemistry, and a bond unlike any other. Once he found them, Archie founded the Archie Lee Hooker & The Coast to Coast Blues Band, which was specially named after the late John Lee’s Coast to Coast Blues Band. Since then, the crew has done nothing but thrive and impress.
They released their first album called ‘Chilling’ under the French label Dixiefrog in 2018, which received a 5-star review in Rolling Stone Magazine. Fast forward to today, they have recorded a new 12 song CD called ‘Living in a Memory’, and this all-original playlist of storytelling art is set to be released through Dixiefrog worldwide on April 16th, 2021. In the end, every song and performance that Archie Lee Hooker & The Coast to Coast Blues Band creates paints an incredible picture that inevitably provokes uplifting emotional influences and invested attraction.
They are entirely passionate about delivering remarkable music, and continuously provide fully authentic productions that have shaped them to become what they are today. With their immense drive and determination, it is exciting to see what they will launch next.

Chet Baker was the epitome of cool... the possessor of the kind of
looks that usually only featured in the most elegant of Hollywood
movies. He also played the trumpet in a way that transcended jazz
boundaries, and won him countless admirers among those who didn’t
normally stoke their hi-fis with bebop sounds. An opportunity to play
alongside the legendary Charlie Parker provided Chet’s start in the
jazz life - and that same year, 1952, he became a member of Gerry
Mulligan’s ground-breaking piano-less quartet - a combo that made
the sort of recordings that were essential to those of a hip genre.

Color Vinyl With no touring in 2020, and possibly this year, Woods
decided to take a deep dive into their archives and put
together the first volume of their much discussed archival
series, Reflections. Featuring rare and unreleased
recordings from 2009 - 2013, including a ghost town desert
jam off the side of the highway, their first live performance
in Big Sur, the first recorded version of “Bend Beyond”
and some shelved diamonds in the rough that were finished
up during quarantine. Their hope is that it plays like a “lost
record” from an extremely strange and fruitful period in
Woods history.

Old school Minimal Hardtek Tribe...Material base for the dance and for the Mix. Dj tool... euh... DJ Weapon:)

Following the Four Tet, Batu, Damian Lazarus, remixes of electronic hero Krust’s critically acclaimed album ‘The Edge Of Everything’, the A-list versions keep flowing with Calibre, LCY and Flynn each re-working a different track from the LP on Krust - TEOE Remixes #2.

Fellow D&B don Calibre turns ‘It’s A Lot’ into a warm, glowing two-step roller with serrated analogue bass and a subtly masterful musicality befitting of his classical training.

Rising new school queen LCY is clearly a kindred spirit, rivalling Krust with her future-facing breakbeat science that’s equally as compelling and inventive as the original, but also totally unique.

Rounding off the remixes with a rugged halftime head-nodder and bringing things full circle is Krust’s brother Flynn; a fellow member of 1989 ‘Wishing On A Star’ hitmakers Fresh 4 alongside Krust – and also a jungle legend in his own right – as half of veteran duo Flynn & Flora.

With such inspiring source material, it’s unsurprising that all of the remixers have brought their best game to this impeccable collection.

feat Roy Of The Ravers remix

Cross-platform entertainer and all round good guy Romeo Taylor, is a cherished personality on the DIY Glasgow music scene, as well as a hilarious presence on the Twitch, YouTube & Twitter-sphere and his Limmy-approved cult rave bop The Kingdom of Scotland (described by Eclair Fifi as 'our new national anthem') finally lands on vinyl, courtesy of Newcastle's Acid Waxa Recs, with bold as brass artwork from Henri Claudel (aka Lewis Cook from Free Love + Fuun Haus et al) + a blistering remix from Roy of The Ravers, to boot!