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"Cinematic Visionaries Calibro 35 and Noir Master James Ellroy Pay Homage to L.A. with a Pure Crime-Funk Original Soundtrack. Out October 9" There are collaborations that feel inevitable like they were waiting to happen in some shadowed corner of culture. The union between Italian cinematic funk visionaries Calibro 35 and internationally acclaimed master of noir fiction and New York Times bestselling author James Ellroy is undoubtedly one of them. When Calibro 35 were invited to compose the original soundtrack for Francesco Zippel's documentary Ellroy vs L.A., they didn't simply write music for film. They stepped directly into Ellroy's universe the most dangerous corners of American crime fiction and discovered, to no one's surprise, that its darkness felt strangely familiar. The result is Ellroy vs L.A., the band's new album out October 9 on Record Kicks. Twelve brand new tracks of cinematic crime funk, psychedelia, and hypnotic groove that don't accompany Ellroy's world so much as inhabit it. The soundtrack's move through Ellroy's fictional and real-world mythologies with deliberate precision. Stylistically, the album finds Calibro 35 in their most natural yet most cinematic state: crime funk, psychedelia, and hypnotic groove pushed into darker, more narrative-driven territory by the weight of Ellroy's world. From the gloomy, suspense-laden groove of the opener Black Dahlia to the evocative closing piece Moonlight Sonative, the album unfolds as a complete cinematic arc, showcasing Calibro 35 at their very best. L.A. Confidential delivers a super-suspenseful, thrilling tension that feels like a chase through neon-lit streets, while Riots erupts into explosive cinematic funk, capturing chaos and urban unrest in full force. LSD on Sunset Boulevard drifts into a hazy, instrumental soul journey psychedelic, warm, and disorienting, like a late-night hallucination of the city itself. The Big Nowhere (Part I & II) expands the narrative into a slow-burning, atmospheric descent, unfolding like a two-act crime saga. Welcome to the Land of Vacation and Probation hits with kick-ass, uptempo crime-funk madness, urgent and relentless in its propulsion, while White Jazz is a mood of suspended, noir-infused jazz tension cool, shadowy, and unresolved. Together, the tracks map Los Angeles as a fractured yet hypnotic landscape suspended between glamour and violence, beauty and decay, myth and reality Born in Milan in 2007 with the mission of excavating the golden age of Italian film music Morricone, Piccioni, Trovajoli, Calibro 35 have spent nearly two decades transforming that initial obsession into a singular artistic language. Their work bridges vintage Italian soundtracks with contemporary jazz and cinematic funk, earning them a global following rare for an Italian instrumental act. Their music has been sampled by Dr. Dre (Compton, "One Shot One Kill" feat. Snoop Dogg), Jay-Z ("Picasso Baby"), and Damon Albarn's The Child of Lov. Rolling Stone described them as "the most fascinating, retro-maniac and genuine thing that has happened to Italy in the past few years," while Far Out Magazine called them "one of the most skilful and innovative instrumental outfits on the planet right now." The band (Enrico Gabrielli, Massimo Martellotta, Fabio Rondanini, and Tommaso Colliva) continue to evolve without losing their core identity. In 2025 they released the critically acclaimed Exploration, further expanding their sonic universe, and were invited to perform at the closing ceremony of the Winter Olympic Games at the Arena di Verona, confirming their growing international stature. With Ellroy vs L.A., Calibro 35 don't just compose a soundtrack they translate a mythology into rhythm, tension, and groove. Between fiction and reality, they find a city that never truly sleeps, only pulses in darkness. Press play, and Los Angeles begins to unfold in sound.

The third release on Uprising pairs a sax-driven rockabilly thumper with one of the coolest dance craze records of the mid-60s. ‘Red Hot Car’ was Bobby Verne’s only recording and came out on the tiny Californian Doc Holiday label in 1962. Judging by the current price and collector demand for an original copy only a small quantity were pressed. This is a powerhouse of a tune that has been filling dancefloors across the globe for some time now.
As for the flip, in 1965, Buddy Wayne added self-penned lyrics to Gary Paxton’s rendition of the James Bond theme. Released on the Big Ben label – that only put out four records − it sat unwanted for decades. Then the rockabilly scene picked up on it in a big way when they discovered that it was the perfect stroller. This was closely followed by the northern soul and mod scenes. Today, it is at last crossing over to a more mainstream audience.

“Simply put, it’s unlikely we’ll encounter a mix that leaves a cultural footprint and defines the sound of a generation quite like Northern Exposure again. Both mixes are absolutely 100% astoundingly brilliant”

DJ Mag

“Their best-loved mix CD is a trippy traipse through the verdant world of progressive house, a genre with one foot in the rave and the other somewhere in the great beyond” Rolling Stone - The 30 Greatest EDM

Albums Of All Time

Originally released on 27th September 1996, ‘Northern Exposure’ is widely regarded as one of the greatest mix compilations ever made. Thirty years on, it sounds as vital as ever - a testament to the fearless vision that went into its creation.

At a time when DJ culture was still writing its own rules, Sasha and John Digweed pushed against the grain. Drawing on sounds discovered during early trips to America - from Rabbit in the Moon to Future Sound of London - they built something that prioritised atmosphere over dancefloor convention. DJ Mag panned it on release. History changed their tune.

Northern Exposure Redux marks the 30th anniversary with a definitive reissue of both original mixes. The CD version also includes a newly created ambient mix. Shaped by the spirit of Bill Laswell and Mad Professor, it explores the deeper, more hypnotic DNA that always ran beneath the surface. Northern Exposure Redux North includes classic tracks by Keiichi Suzuki, The Future Sound Of London, and Banco de Gaia. Northern Exposure Redux South includes classic tracks by Dope On Plastic, Pete Lazonby, and a newly recreated version of ‘Dark And Long (Dark Train)’ by none other than Darren Emerson himself. Both vinyl versions also include a download code for both the North And South mixes, as well as the individual tracks.

Canonical then. Essential now.

Larry June has built a career on making hard work look effortless, and his album Who Coppin’ stands as a masterclass in smooth, lifestyle-driven West Coast hip-hop. The album delivers a high-grade mix of Bay Area luxury, entrepreneurial motivation, and unbothered charismatic flows. Spanning a laid-back audio palette designed for early-morning juice runs and late-night freeway cruises alike, Uncle Larry balances the discipline of a hustle-first mindset with warm, sun-drenched production anchored by crisp organic instrumentation and heavy-knocking bass.

The album features a tightly curated roster of collaborators who align seamlessly with Larry's signature aesthetic. Spoken-word encouragement from Wallo267 sets an intentional tone on the opener "Go Outside Intro," framing the record around execution and focus. Soulful contributions from Jhené Aiko on "California Dream" and Musiq Soulchild on "Pretty Green Eyes" provide lush R&B textures, while NorCal legend B-Legit and longtime partner DJ.Fresh reinforce June’s deep West Coast roots. Meanwhile, Swizz Beatz injects high-energy bounce into "Flex," offering a vibrant contrast to Larry’s understated, cool-headed cadence.

Behind the boards, top-tier producers like Cardo, Teeko, Beat Butcha, Jay Versace, and June Santana craft a nostalgic yet modern backdrop filled with warm sample flips, smooth G-funk synthesizers, and relaxed soul grooves. The project builds to an emotionally grounded conclusion on "God Got Us (Ain't Too Many)," where June strips away the flexes to offer direct encouragement to his audience, proving once again that consistency, self-belief, and steady progress remain the ultimate luxuries.

2xLP, Gatefold Jacket, 18x24 Poster Included

2026 Repress

December 2012 I showed up totally exhausted in Vancouver BC after touring stupidly and relentlessly for however many straight months and got a job at a call centre raising money for the Red Cross. It was a scent free office but one time this woman cooked a piece of fish in the microwave for 10 minutes on low and hot boxed the whole office - we got sent home early no pay. There was the other woman I named the Call Centre Coltrane because her pitch and routine usually involved improvised flights of fancy that went off in both directions at once somehow landing back down with a credit card number and a donation. I used to sleep under the desk. I was there a few months and at the time I reconnected with John Brennan who I had played with briefly in Montreal at the Mutek Festival. In Montreal John was running an experimental music night at a burrito shop downtown called Garbage Night. While in Vancouver I began connecting with the music scene there and would go hang out with the Shearing Pinx lads who I think lived with Sydney the bass player at the time. I knew Nic and Jer from an AIDS Wolf Tour and was so stoked to get to know them both better. I really fell in love with that era of Vancouver's music scene.
Fast Forward to today. 2024
Actually it was the dying days of 2023 but you get it and John asks if I'll sit in with Earth Ball and I keep thinking about Earth Balance, the vegan butter everyone eats here. I brought my aching bones and my ipads on the beautiful ferry named the Queen of Oak Bay and out to Nanaimo BC, home of the nanaimo bar (a dessert treat - special to this region - that seems to be more popularly found under the weird glass sneeze guards in office building deli's out east in Ontario.... anyhoops ). No one in Nanaimo wants to talk to me about the famous treat. I asked a couple of people. Silence. Nanaimo is like London, Ontario but more fried and by the sea. The town is filled with blown out old sea dawgs with tin coffee pots and loose leaf tobacco, then there's the usual streetfolk you find in this part of the Canadian Pacific Northwest and a bunch of bohemians who I guess have left Vancouver behind - that fine city having become uninhabitable for those not making over 100k a year. And then up the way are all the retirees.
Yup Nanaimo is a strange one. They mined the shit out of this region and Nanaimo is surely haunted by those buried in mining shafts or maimed by the heavy machinery or blown up by accident in the explosives store house. And when Earth Ball fire up the amps in Izzy and Jer's basement you can hear the voices of the ghosts hum through electrical lines and out the speakers, Kellen's hued feedback, Izy's sturdy basslines, Jer's paperbag guitar tone and rumble pack zaps, Liam's (aka the Kid) sheets of sound and Brennen's multidirectional drums.
You wouldn't guess Earth Ball was auto-composing and from what my rat brain can tell - the lyrics are improvised too...Improvising lyrics and singing them is the hardest thing to do in all of music.. Izzy and Jer are pros. And their attitudes are pro too.
The live show is scorched and without naming names they've been known to make headliners nervous. Lucky ones will get to see them live as they tour this beast of a record entitled ‘It’s Yours’ (out May 17th on Upset The Rhythm) and I hope I'm one of them.
But now you, fan of fun but totally fucked up music, have the opportunity to Ball with them thanks to Upset The Rhythm. Enjoy
-Alex Moskos, Montreal QC, Feb 2024

2x12" Vinyl

Limited Edition 500 Copies

Remastered

Inside Out Cut - Starlight Coloured Vinyl

Original, Baby Doc & The Dentis, John 00 Fleming, Reinier Zonneveld, Charlotte De Witte, Red Jerry remix

Embark on a nostalgic journey through the pulsating beats of the 90s with the iconic anthem “The First Rebirth” by the visionary duo Franky Jones and Axel Stephenson. Since its inception in 1993, this timeless classic has etched its place in dance music history, and now it returns in a dazzling new avatar.

The much-celebrated track has been meticulously repackaged in a sleek, cool sleeve, accompanied by an electrifying array of both recent and classic mixes. Some of these renditions, previously confined to digital realms, make their long-awaited debut on vinyl, adding an extra layer of allure to this collector’s dream.

This exclusive 2 x 12" vinyl edition is strictly limited to just 500 copies worldwide and features a unique Inside Out cut, pressed on stunning Starlight vinyl — a striking black colour with vibrant coloured speckles, making each copy visually unique.

Don’t miss your chance to own a strictly limited piece of dance music history and immerse yourself in the reawakening of this electronic masterpiece. Only 500 copies available — once they’re gone, they’re gone.

,Sharp Pins" ist das äußerst starke Lo-Fi-Pop-Projekt des talentierten Musikers Kai Slater aus Chicago, bekannt von Lifeguard und Dwaal Troupe. Aufgenommen von Kai Slater. Abgemischt von Kai Slater. Gemastert von Amy Dragon. Aufgenommen im Stülo Gulo in Chicago, Illinois. Ursprünglich als Hallogallo-Kassette im Eigenverlag veröffentlicht. ,Youth Revolution Now". Von Kai: ,Der Soundtrack zu meinem 18. Sommer, in dem ich mit einem chinesischen Taotao 50-ccm-Roller durch die Gegend um die Taqueria Moran fuhr und meinen Sta-Prest-Träumen nachjagte. Ich dachte, es wäre cool, eine Reihe von Songs aufzunehmen, die nie wirklich aufgenommen wurden, und zwar auf eine etwas durchdachtere Art und Weise. Aufgenommen auf einem Tascam Porta One im alten Beton-Stulogulo mit einer imaginären Band namens ,Men in Green Striped Trousers". Der ursprüngliche, von Sharp Pins geprägte Garage-Pop-Sound in seiner ganzen rohen, rauen und kreischenden Pracht _ Ich glaube, ich habe davon etwa 50 Exemplare angefertigt. Nun gehört mein Teenagertraum Ihnen.".

South Asian super-producers Lapgan and Baalti – the former a Madlib-disciple spinning hip-hop grooves out of dusty desi samples, the latter duo purveyors of intricately tapestried dance music – holed up in the California desert in early 2024 for a songwriting session to blend their complimentary styles. They ended up with several albums worth of club material built upon decades of Indian music history – floor fillers that move like early Four Tet meets The Avalanches. They’ve been teasing this material around the world during live sets – from Paris Fashion Week to Glastonbury, London Clubs to BK Warehouse parties, sessions at Lot Radio and Karachi Community Radio, and anywhere else they find an aux. The result has been endless ID requests for unreleased gems like “Ipa Ma” and “Lime Tikka”, calls which should finally be answered with the release of Threads.

Lapgan Bio
Chicago-based archivist and producer Lapgan has become renowned for his signature style: unearthing rare and forgotten Indian & Pakistani sounds and recontextualizing them into hip-hop and dance beats that evoke J Dilla and Madlib. He has cultivated a reputation for quietly revolutionary sample-work across his beloved solo projects History and Duniya Kya Hai, as well as LAFANDAR, his critically acclaimed team up with Heems (of Das Racist / Swet Shop Boys). He has worked with a range of artists from both the West (Your Old Droog, Saul Williams, Cool Calm Pete, Kool Keith, Open Mike Eagle, Blue, Quelle Chris) and the East (EXCISE DEPT, Baalti, Sid Sriram, Sid Vashi, Dynoman), and has been featured in global media including Pitchfork, FADER, Stereogum, Passion of the Weiss, Mixmag, Homegrown, and Vinyl Me, Please. Over the past year he has headlined clubs and performed at festivals across the world from Chicago and New York to London and India, and was personally invited to soundtrack back to back Paris Fashion Week shows for the similarly norm-shifting designer Kartik Research. In 2026 he will soundtrack his third Kartik Research runway show, as well as reissue Duniya Kya Hai for its five-year anniversary alongside a companion EP featuring remixes from peers and supporters Arushi Jain, Loris, Mera Bhai, Malkfunktion, and Maral.

Baalti Bio
Baalti makes electronic music built around rhythm, pressure, and collective release – weaving through leftfield bass, dusty hip hop, tripped out dub and raw house all while maintaining a throughline rooted in South Asian culture seen through the lens of a sweaty dancefloor. In the last year they have experienced a whirlwind rise and growing global recognition: from their EP Mela vividly evoking West Bengal’s sound system culture to their Tamil-cinema-infused filter-house project with Anish Kumar Stunt Doubles, in addition to wide-ranging collabs and remixes alongside DJ ADHD, Naya Beat, and A.R. RahmanThey have also built a reputation for their frenetic live show, with appearances at international festivals like Glastonbury and MELT, headlining shows across Australia and Europe and supporting influences turned peers like Four Tet and Disclosure across North America. Their explosive, percussion-heavy sets have been platformed by Rinse FM, NTS, The Lot Radio, Beats In Space, and Refuge Worldwide, and their music has been renowned by publications including Pitchfork, Bandcamp Daily, RA, and MixMag. Their forward momentum continues into 2026 with slated headline tours in India, Australia, and Asia along with appearances at Coachella, Party in the Paddock, Fvded in the Park, and We Out Here festivals.

Between the late 1960s and the mid-1980s, musicians across the Dutch Caribbean islands of Aruba, Curaçao, and Sint Maarten created music that crossed stylistic boundaries, forming a close-knit network shaped by common histories and identities, while rarely receiving wider recognition.

From the psychedelic funk of local stars Sugar Ice Tea and Cryptus Confession to the Latin influences of visiting musicians like Puerto Rican star Mon Rivera via Surinamese-influenced soul and the garage rock of Los Honda, the islands nourished a huge array of styles and talent.

Antiyano Progresivo unfolds against the backdrop of a rapidly transforming Caribbean. During the twentieth century, oil industries, migration and tourism reshaped the islands, creating unparalleled cultural exchange while deepening social divisions. African, Latin American, North American and European musical traditions intertwined with local forms, producing a rich and distinctive musical landscape. Tambú, tumba, calypso and Caribbean dance music coexisted alongside soul, funk, psychedelic rock, reggae, Latin music and American and British pop. Musicians moved fluidly between these styles, developing sounds that were unmistakably local while remaining connected to wider currents across the Caribbean and beyond.

The period also coincided with growing movements for cultural and political self-determination. Events such as Curaçao's Trinta di Mei uprising in 1969, the emergence of Black Power movements and increasing calls for greater autonomy fostered renewed pride in African heritage, local languages and cultural expression. These ideas resonated through music, inspiring artists to challenge conventions and create work that reflected changing identities.

In The Dark Again continues to stand for timeless electronic music at its finest. Release No. 14 is yet another testament to that.

The journey begins with the stunning anthem «Tomb of Ligeia» by Scottish artist Sebastian Swarm.

Next up is synth master Heinrich Dressel, delivering the beautifully melancholic and effortlessly cool «Elka Snow Cat.»

Electro hero Konerytmi rounds off Side A with a deep and bleepy cut.

The flip side opens with the massive, brooding «Ruined Horizons» by Be Dellow, a project by Violet Poison, whom the label fans will also know as Bakunin Commando.

Another familiar face brings the record to a close: Igors Vorobjovs, whose unmistakable sci-fi electro never fails to captivate.

Boston based production duo and room-mates John Barera & Will Martin continue their journey into sculptural, storytelling House music, with their debut album on Dolly - ' Graceless'. The pair's work has found a wider audience since the success of 'Reality', which found its way into the hands of Berlin's Steffi, and acted as a central gear and in her 2013 Panorama 05 Mix. John Barera has been a firm disciple of the House and Techno world for the past 10 years, and after launching Supply Records in 2011 has brought an elegant, resoundingly universal mixture of underground club tracks to the fore. A fresh and fruitful partnership with close friend Will Martin grew out of the pair's rapidly growing studio, and the latest results can be found here over the 8 cool, classy and refined contemporary House tracks.

From the discovery of her smoke 'n' honey battlecry, through her baptism of fire in the Bronx blues clubs, onto backup vocals for giants like Joe Louis Walker and Popa Chubby - before finding her own voice with the solo career that exploded in 2016 - the award-winning New York singer-songwriter's road-scuffed leather boots have barely touched the ground. Now, Schorr releases Running Wild: the highly anticipated third album whose songs pulse with empowerment in dark times. "It's about defiance, selfdiscovery, reflection, resilience and freedom," she says. "I want these songs to lift people above the grind.

The results of the recordings were a charming, thoroughly entertaining Christmas record, highlighted by fine versions of "White Christmas", "Let It Snow! Let it Snow! Let It Snow!", "Winter Wonderland", "Baby, It's Cold Outside", "The Christmas Blues", "Rudolph, The Red- Nosed Reindeer" and bonus broadcast recordings of "Silent Night", "Silver Bells" and "It's Beginning To Look Like Christmas."

Nach dem durchschlagenden Erfolg ihres selbstbetitelten Debüts legt „Rise and Shine“ die Messlatte noch höher – mit prägnanterem Songwriting, furchtloser Musikalität und jenem Feuerwerk auf den sechs Saiten, das zum Markenzeichen der Band geworden ist. Es ist ein Album, das die Tradition des Lone Star ehrt, ohne sich von ihr einengen zu lassen. Hätte das texanische Gitarrenspiel eine definitive DNA, würde sie dem gemeinsamen Werdegang von Moore, Moeller und Dayton sehr ähnlich sehen. Seit mehr als drei Jahrzehnten hat jeder von ihnen seinen eigenen Weg durch Blues, Rock, Country und Americana beschritten. Moore brachte schwebende, gefühlvolle Psychedelia zurück in den Blues; Moeller bereicherte die Austin-Szene mit messerscharfem Funk und wildem Saitenbending; und Dayton injizierte Punkrock-Adrenalin in das Herz des Outlaw-Country. Insgesamt haben sie sich zu einer der spannendsten Gitarrenbands entwickelt, die Texas seit Jahren hervorgebracht hat. Seit der Veröffentlichung ihres Debüts haben sich die Texas Headhunters mit ihrer furchtlosen Mischung aus Blues, Rock, Country-Soul und Roots-Musik breite Anerkennung verdient. SiriusXM spielte gleichzeitig drei Songs der Band in den Sendungen „Outlaw Country“, „Bluesville“ und „Little Steven’s Underground Garage“, wo sie zudem die begehrte Auszeichnung „Coolest Song in the World“ erhielten. Auch die Kritiker zeigten sich begeistert. „Guitar World“ und „Guitar Player“ lobten das Trio als „Triple-Guitar-Threat“, das „die Lone-Star-Tradition am Leben erhält“, während „No Depression“ ihre Liebe zum „rauen Barroom-Blues“ feierte. „Goldmine“ bezeichnete sie als „das Original“, The Alternate Root erklärte: „Kein Füllmaterial, nur Riffs“, American Blues Scene lobte ihre „Vollgas-Rückkehr zu den Wurzeln“, und Blues Rock Review fasste es einfach zusammen: „Jedes einzelne Mitglied ist ein meisterhafter Musiker, aber als Trio sind sie außergewöhnlich.“ Mit „Rise and Shine“ beweisen die Texas Headhunters, dass authentische texanische Gitarrenmusik immer noch am besten laut, locker und kompromisslos lebendig serviert wird. Formate: - CD im Mini-Gatefold Sleeve inkl. bedruckter Innenhülle - Yellow Rose Vinyl inkl. bedruckter Innenhülle

Phwoar! TD go four for the floor on Volume 9, letting loose with a set of sure-shot hits from all corners of their sonic spectrum.
A tag team match up, this action spectacular trades peak-time pump, Balearic cool, Italo thrust and dance-punk theatrics on its way to snatch the championship.

Obviously TD ooze subtlety and taste, so as we sat sipping Schnapps from our Stanley cups, we couldn't help but take a little inspo from our kitchen decor. 'Live Love Pump' - what a mantra. In musical form, this philosophy takes the shape of a capital D-isco delight, equal Pats Cowley & Adams, EQ-freaked and filtered into something dafter than a pair of chrome clad millionaires. Big room mirrorball magic if ever we've heard it.
The A2 sees the drunk AOR funk of 'Sure Line' take a leisurely stroll down the coast, a Gauloises in the gob and tattered Baldwin in the back pocket, flipping and flopping along the prom to buoyant bass, melting brass and more than a little melancholy.

Booting off the B-side, 'Un America' is a massive mid-tempo chugger replete with laser fire, synth scree and nipple high guitar. Powering along on a serious bass sequence armed with hooks-a-plenty, mostly incomprehensible lyrics and a groove which won't quit, this has all the ingredients required for an Italo all-timer.
The finale finds us in the company of some punk pioneers at their absolute silliest, bringing the kind of whacky vocal vibe, surf-centric style and off kilter groove the B-52s made a career of. Add in animal chatter and scratchy guitars and you've got the sort of secret weapon the Idjuts unleash waaaay post peak.

Limited Press - Numbered Insert - Drum Fun Guaranteed

"Spiritual Jazz 19" besteht aus zwei Doppel-LP-Sets, die den Einfluss und die Ausdrucksformen jenes Underground-Jazz beleuchten, der sich in der zweiten Hälfte des 20. Jahrhunderts in Kalifornien und den angrenzenden Bundesstaaten entwickelte. Die insgesamt 24 Titel erscheinen in Gatefolds und enthalten Liner Notes, Fotos und Download-Codes.

Die US-Westküste wird oft mit dem Boom des Cool Jazz in den 1950er Jahren in Verbindung gebracht; doch überall dort, wo Jazz gespielt wurde, florierten auch modale, afrozentrische und spirituell geprägte Strömungen – und die Westküste bildete da keine Ausnahme. In der Nachkriegszeit rangierte die Central Avenue in L.A. als bedeutendstes Jazz-Viertel Amerikas direkt hinter Manhattan. Auch wenn Manhattan in jenen Jahren das faktische Zentrum des Jazz-Universums war, übte Kalifornien eine stärkere Anziehungskraft auf die Kultur im Allgemeinen aus und zog Menschen aus dem ganzen Land in den Bann seiner aufkeimenden Gegenkultur der 1960er Jahre.

Hier untersuchen wir die Auswirkungen dieser Gegenkultur auf den Jazz. Wir beleuchten den Einfluss der Black Panthers – der prägendsten Kraft innerhalb der schwarzen politischen Bewegung nach der Ära der Bürgerrechte – und widmen uns den neuartigen spirituellen Praktiken und Religionen des aufkommenden New Age. In Kalifornien waren zahlreiche eigenwillige Independent-Labels wie Arhoolie, Theresa und Nimbus sowie viele weitere private Unternehmungen ansässig; wir präsentieren die Ergebnisse ihres Strebens nach musikalischer Freiheit. All diese Faktoren beeinflussten die Entwicklung und Blütezeit des Jazz und der Jazzmusiker an der Westküste – und die Evolution des Spiritual Jazz in dieser Region wird hier eingehend betrachtet.

Spiritual Jazz 19" besteht aus zwei Doppel-LP-Sets, die den Einfluss und die Ausdrucksformen jenes Underground-Jazz beleuchten, der sich in der zweiten Hälfte des 20. Jahrhunderts in Kalifornien und den angrenzenden Bundesstaaten entwickelte. Die insgesamt 24 Titel erscheinen in Gatefolds und enthalten Liner Notes, Fotos und Download-Codes.

Die US-Westküste wird oft mit dem Boom des Cool Jazz in den 1950er Jahren in Verbindung gebracht; doch überall dort, wo Jazz gespielt wurde, florierten auch modale, afrozentrische und spirituell geprägte Strömungen – und die Westküste bildete da keine Ausnahme. In der Nachkriegszeit rangierte die Central Avenue in L.A. als bedeutendstes Jazz-Viertel Amerikas direkt hinter Manhattan. Auch wenn Manhattan in jenen Jahren das faktische Zentrum des Jazz-Universums war, übte Kalifornien eine stärkere Anziehungskraft auf die Kultur im Allgemeinen aus und zog Menschen aus dem ganzen Land in den Bann seiner aufkeimenden Gegenkultur der 1960er Jahre.

Hier untersuchen wir die Auswirkungen dieser Gegenkultur auf den Jazz. Wir beleuchten den Einfluss der Black Panthers – der prägendsten Kraft innerhalb der schwarzen politischen Bewegung nach der Ära der Bürgerrechte – und widmen uns den neuartigen spirituellen Praktiken und Religionen des aufkommenden New Age. In Kalifornien waren zahlreiche eigenwillige Independent-Labels wie Arhoolie, Theresa und Nimbus sowie viele weitere private Unternehmungen ansässig; wir präsentieren die Ergebnisse ihres Strebens nach musikalischer Freiheit. All diese Faktoren beeinflussten die Entwicklung und Blütezeit des Jazz und der Jazzmusiker an der Westküste – und die Evolution des Spiritual Jazz in dieser Region wird hier eingehend betrachtet.

The Stockholm-based duo continues their flirtation with Chicago disco house, clearly indebted to DJ Sneak's bump-and-swerve school yet filtered through Scandinavian cool. It's affectionate without being slavish, and just irreverent enough to avoid museum-piece territory.

This EP is another testament to the soundscape Ari Bald & CJ Scott strive to showcase as a duo. Built on a deep love for digging through jazz, funk, soul, disco, and cinema, their sound captures a nostalgic vibe from the late '90s and early '00s. "Dart 2 Da Heart EP" highlights their playful approach to samples and raw, straightforward production. Produced and mixed in Sätra Studios in the southern suburbs of Stockholm, this record is made exclusively for the mobile-free dancefloor.

A glorious night of no particular significance, Totally, the new album by Baba Stiltz. Recorded in Helsinki in studio with a drummer and overdubs committed in 5 days. Ballroom- sink songs of loss, grief, long drives on the I-5, centralized acquisitions, and corrective conditioning towards the prolonged effects of computerized lifestyles.

Every song looks you straight in the eyes, crooked and veering towards a light fixture off the side of the mirror. Ambivalence and assertions track us, down some gauzy networked afternoon. Relatively, perfectly, three dimensional. Proportions as they appear to us from outer intuition. Sometimes meaning is evoked through pure nothingness. Concealed and nothing known. We have no need for any paradise informed by anything beyond what is directly in front of us.

Stone repetition thwarts the possibility of control and surrenders itself to understanding. Who are we, and what are we trying to understand? To understand being universally greater than being understood. There are soap operas everywhere for those with eyes to see. You don’t have to look as hard as we currently look. The dramatic is everywhere, we breathe it unintentionally, then we come to hate it. Haptic, embodied facts of a tedious life lodged in the jowls of history. Everything under the
sky being the best bedlam has to offer. Your family, your relationships, your memory. As you eat a burger you are reminded of every sharp protrusion and corner under the florescent lights, the same lights you see when you’re born, and although unconfirmed, when you die.

Some of these songs were written years ago, some recently. The bookshelf and television set come into full view. Women/men come and go. Stars and poseurs collapse under their alienated contradictions, the search for truth yields to continued gradients of probability (collapse). Spatial order maintains itself through perceptional feeling. Silence, singing along to Roger Miller, people entering and leaving, figures hovering over you in your dreams and waking hours. Cool and fun, Totally

Text by Barrett Avner

2026 Repress

What an unbelievable record. From the wild cover to the iconic breakbeats, Roots from Ian Carr’s Nucleus is one of the dopest albums we know. This is seriously thick, funky-prog jazz-rock heaven. Originally released on Vertigo in 1973, other than a couple of versions at the time for other territories, Roots was never re-pressed since so it’s gone on to become another one of those impossible to find records.

Maybe it was a little too out there for the time, but it’s aged very, very well indeed and this Be With re-issue, re-mastered from the original analogue tapes, shows off just why this deserves to be back in press.

Genius trumpeter and visionary composer Ian Carr was one of the most respected British musicians of his era. He was a true pioneer and saw the potential in fusing the worlds of jazz with rock, just as Miles Davis and The Tony Williams Lifetime did in the US. In late 1969, following the demise of the Rendell-Carr quintet, and tiring of British jazz, Carr assembled the legendary Nucleus. Regarding music as a continuous process, Nucleus refused to “recognise rigid boundaries” and worked on delivering what they saw as a “total musical experience”. We can get behind that.

Under bandleader Carr, Nucleus existed as a fluid line-up of inventive, skilled musicians. This constant evolution and revolution was all part of the continuous musical exploration and discovery that took jazz to new levels.

Working together with producer Fritz Fryer and engineer Roger Wake, the seven compositions by Carr, Brian Smith and Dave MacRae that make up Roots flirt with perfection, and Nucleus at that time made up of the cream of 1970s UK jazz with Brian Smith on tenor saxophones and flutes, Dave MacRae on piano and electric piano, Jocelyn Pitchen on guitar, Roger Sutton on bass, both Clive Thacker and Aureo De Souza on drums and percussion, Joy Yates delivering the vocals and of course Carr on trumpet.

The spellbinding title track immediately renders the album indispensable. Riding the illest of loping breakbeats, “Roots” is low-slung, doped-out heist-funk. An absolute monster. If it sounds familiar then that’s likely down to it being sampled by Madlib for Lootpack and Quasimoto’s “Loop Digga”, as well as by a whole host of beat manipulators. “Roots” conjures prime instrumental hip-hop / beat music, only 20 years ahead of its time. Truly, these are the roots. Through sinuous bass, twinkling keys and a hypnotic guitar riff, a smoky brass motif weaves its way into a gloriously deep haze around Carr’s solos. “Roots” is over 9 minutes long, but there’s not a single wasted second, not surprising given that this is a condensed version of an originally 40 minute long commissioned composition.

The soothing vocal fusion delight of “Images” follows. Meticulously constructed, with gorgeous flute work from Brian Smith, with Joy Yates’ silky vocals and Dave MacRae’s Rhodes never sounding better. The cool, driving “Caliban” closes out the first side. Originally the third movement in a four part commission to celebrate Shakespeare’s birthday it stands up on its own, all robust rhythms and blended brass. Keyboard colour and Carr’s trumpet are splashed across the funk drums and basslines (and there’s even some bamboo flute). This really is fusion: the elements of jazz and rock coming together in beautifully synthesis.

Side two opens in riotous fashion with the short, thrilling samba of “Wapatiti”. Next up, “Capricorn” forms a smoothed-out, jazzy constellation. Mellow and dreamy, its twinkling percussion and languid horns slowly build the vibe before head-nod drums and a killer bassline enter the fray. With a distinct heaviness that Black Sabbath would’ve envied, “Odokamona” is a venomous slice of riff-soaked jazz metal (yes, you read that right), elevated by Carr’s wah-wah horns.

The album closes with MacRae’s exceptionally cosmic “Southern Roots and Celebration”. Very much in conversation with Weather Report, it opens as a languorous, spiritual jazz of chiming keys and serene guitar that turns slowly, gorgeously into a mid-paced, brass-laced banger. It’s another sure-fire party starter and the sound of the band having a righteous blast, building an ecstatic chaos that ends with Yates screaming.

And of course we need to talk about Keith Davis’ cover for Roots. Perhaps the coolest record cover of all time? Certainly one of the most bonkers. Just your run-of-the-mill high-gloss, acid-tinged airbrush dystopian/utopian living-room party scene. Consider this your chemical flashback trigger warning.

Front-and-centre the hip-to-death green robot holds court with their giant ball of yellow barbwire wool, hooked up to… something(?) being teased out from under the stairs (probably best not to ask). A thoroughly zoned-out, long-legged Pop Art party-goer lounges half-plugged in to the painting behind her as a pair of legs flail into shot from the the top of the stairs opposite. We won’t even begin to guess what the chap’s up to in the middle, but the view out of the windows is rather nice, and someone’s already got the hoover out ready to tidy up. All of the Nucleus sleeves are something special, but this particular one? Crikey.

This Be With edition of Roots has been re-mastered from the original Vertigo master tapes, Simon Francis’ mastering working together with Pete Norman’s cut to weave their usual magic with these wonderful recordings. The crazy cover has been restored at Be With HQ as the finishing touch to this long overdue re-issue.

There is a hush most of us only knew as children, the warm drift between familiar household sounds and being carried to bed, a place that belongs to you and to some self you have not met yet. June McDoom’s debut full-length, Follow the Light, lives in that dream space and then keeps walking, slipping out of time and waking somewhere new, barely familiar enough to feel like home yet wholly your own. She came up in a Jamaican household on the edge of the Florida Everglades, an existence built of extended family, communal care, bass and harmonics. Her father, a carpenter and a student of sound, built his own speakers and kept three sound systems going across as many rooms. His low end would rise through her bedroom floor like some wayward cat while she lay above it with folk records, finding harmonies that were new and hers alone. Two musics in one room. Lushness as past and premonition. She found folk on her own, somewhere between the cast recording of The Sound of Music and Simon and Garfunkel, while everyone around her called it sleepy music. She did not mind being the only one. The solitude let her fall for harmony first, before words, before anything else, and harmony is still the thing she reaches for. Generationally speaking, the music was already in the air. Her grandfather, Colin Smith, is a distinguished mento man who played banjo and guitar and built his own rumba boxes, worked to keep Jamaica’s oldest acoustic folk form alive. Mento is the root of all of it: ska, rock steady, reggae, dub and everything after. He is the one who put a guitar in her hands. An inheritance, a gift and a map. Even her name is part of it, though she will tell you she landed on it more by feel than reason. She records as June McDoom, born Alyssa, June being a nickname one of her grandmothers, Joan, went by, a name she thought was cool to carry and simply liked the sound of. An etheric channel that reverberates all the same. A dub all its own.


Made slowly and by hand with her longtime partner Evan Wright, Follow the Light lays the harmony of folk over the rhythm of dub, with Dionne Warwick, Minnie Riperton, Pentangle and the washed guitars of Cocteau Twins haunting its outer edges. Voice and guitar seeking each other out first, then everything else stacked across long days in the studio they keep at home, restraint kept on purpose. The lead single “Without You” is the whole method surfacing, split open and sparkling like a geode in a creek bed. Angelic heroics, and nothing less.


At the heart is family. Her grandmother Aggie, the light behind “Memory,” guiding still. And underneath, the quieter truth the record keeps: none of us are only one person, but a continuum of selves, the ones who shaped us and the ones we have yet to meet. Future you is an ancestor your current self gets to greet. Press play and the same invitation is yours: A few minutes out of time, a place that turns familiar the longer you stay until you surface somewhere new and find it was yours all along

There is a hush most of us only knew as children, the warm drift between familiar household sounds and being carried to bed, a place that belongs to you and to some self you have not met yet. June McDoom’s debut full-length, Follow the Light, lives in that dream space and then keeps walking, slipping out of time and waking somewhere new, barely familiar enough to feel like home yet wholly your own. She came up in a Jamaican household on the edge of the Florida Everglades, an existence built of extended family, communal care, bass and harmonics. Her father, a carpenter and a student of sound, built his own speakers and kept three sound systems going across as many rooms. His low end would rise through her bedroom floor like some wayward cat while she lay above it with folk records, finding harmonies that were new and hers alone. Two musics in one room. Lushness as past and premonition. She found folk on her own, somewhere between the cast recording of The Sound of Music and Simon and Garfunkel, while everyone around her called it sleepy music. She did not mind being the only one. The solitude let her fall for harmony first, before words, before anything else, and harmony is still the thing she reaches for. Generationally speaking, the music was already in the air. Her grandfather, Colin Smith, is a distinguished mento man who played banjo and guitar and built his own rumba boxes, worked to keep Jamaica’s oldest acoustic folk form alive. Mento is the root of all of it: ska, rock steady, reggae, dub and everything after. He is the one who put a guitar in her hands. An inheritance, a gift and a map. Even her name is part of it, though she will tell you she landed on it more by feel than reason. She records as June McDoom, born Alyssa, June being a nickname one of her grandmothers, Joan, went by, a name she thought was cool to carry and simply liked the sound of. An etheric channel that reverberates all the same. A dub all its own.


Made slowly and by hand with her longtime partner Evan Wright, Follow the Light lays the harmony of folk over the rhythm of dub, with Dionne Warwick, Minnie Riperton, Pentangle and the washed guitars of Cocteau Twins haunting its outer edges. Voice and guitar seeking each other out first, then everything else stacked across long days in the studio they keep at home, restraint kept on purpose. The lead single “Without You” is the whole method surfacing, split open and sparkling like a geode in a creek bed. Angelic heroics, and nothing less.


At the heart is family. Her grandmother Aggie, the light behind “Memory,” guiding still. And underneath, the quieter truth the record keeps: none of us are only one person, but a continuum of selves, the ones who shaped us and the ones we have yet to meet. Future you is an ancestor your current self gets to greet. Press play and the same invitation is yours: A few minutes out of time, a place that turns familiar the longer you stay until you surface somewhere new and find it was yours all along

The sun sat high above the desert outside Joshua Tree on October 17, 2024, baking the rocks and shrubbery outside the Farrington Observatory as a small group of invited guests ventured up a steep path towards the telescope. Kyle Simon, the artist and printmaker who founded the Observatory, was standing outside the print studio sat below the towering cylindrical building, greeting friends alongside his wife Sarah and lifelong friend Brian Weitz, the musician widely known as Geologist of Animal Collective. Simon and Weitz had spent the previous day testing and retesting a system that would transform the light of the oncoming full moon captured by the gigantic telescope into a signal that would modulate the control voltage of Weitz’s modular synthesizer. As the sun dipped below the horizon line, the audience gathered on a small wooden patio surrounded by speakers while Weitz readied himself behind the array of patches and knobs. Simon addressed the group, presenting the history of The Sirens, the sonic exploration of the night sky’s mystical and scientific significance about to unfold.

The music conjured under the Hunter’s Moon that night is now documented on this first official release of The Sirens, which was conceived by Simon and Weitz as a recurring performance piece and sound installation. Over a decade ago, Simon began immersing himself in literature on humanity’s sonic relationship to the celestial realm, including Homer’s Odyssey, Plato’s “Spindle of Necessity, ” Kepler’s Harmonices Mundi, and the field of astroseismology. He fitted homemade telescopes with photodiodes and optical sensors to make the images audible, finding latent patterns in the noisy sonic signals he began receiving from the stars. With Weitz, the process expanded as the signal was routed through an analog amplifier and set to modulate the pitch, filter, and other elements of his synthesizer. Together they developed a system of improvisation, with Simon adjusting the telescope to change the intensity of the light based on its relationship with the moon’s position (imagine a theremin player moving their hands in subtle, meaningful motion), and Weitz responding to that input in real time: bending it, amplifying it, or letting it stand on its own. The duo debuted the piece at the Integretron in Joshua Tree in 2018, providing a crucial proof of concept for the performance at Farrington featured here.

The first thing the listener hears on The Sirens is the opening of Farrington Observatory, the cranking of motor and metal. As the lens of the telescope is exposed to the evening air, a wavering drone emerges from the synthesizer, flickering at the margins, the tuning of the oscillators adjusting to the rapidly cooling desert air. The piece progresses and the drone becomes a luminous, spherical constant, bathing the listener in pure tone as Weitz draws out harmonically ambiguous melodies that spiral upwards. Electronics crackle and convulse, coalescing into dense dissonance before widening out into an open octave. Just as the moon orbits the Earth and the stars shift as the planet rotates, so each sonic element appears in flux, interrelationships slowly forming and falling away. Divided into two parts, The Sirens flows as a continuous conversation between the artists and the starlight completing its thousand-year journey across the galaxy.

The Sirens belongs primarily to a lineage beyond music: of sea captains navigating by looking skyward, of astrophysicists studying the formation of the Milky Way, of the modern myths of werewolves, of the stories embedded in constellations. As Simon writes in the album’s extensive liner notes, “These stories and explorations reveal a collective yearning to become conscious of our connection to the universe, our deep-seated desire to understand how we fit into it all.” This music underscores the history of the night sky as the place where poetry and science find common ground, where exploration hinges on the imagination. Driven by curiosity and ingenuity, Weitz and Simon look up and wonder.

Theory Therapy presents “Smoker’s Choice,” the second release and first full-length from Alien D, the project of New York producer Daniel Creahan. Following last year’s “For the Early Hours of a World in Bloom” EP, the record takes on a decidedly more spacious, inward bent, with softened rhythms and arrangements given more room to breathe, folding electronics and acoustic composition into a shifting, ethereal wash.

Featuring a range of collaborations across the record, including guest vocals from his wife Ellen, Creahan’s electronics serve as a base for a series of dubwise interpolations of his collaborators’ work, from washed-out zither and bowed banjo to scorching saxophone leads.

There’s a particular pleasure in the obfuscation here, each instrument buffed into a mass of sound. A sub-bass tone might linger beneath the surface before receding into the haze; a groove can feel steady one moment and subtly shift the next. Repetition becomes less about locking into a pattern than watching it slowly change, like the same view seen through moving water.

“Smoker’s Choice” finds its depth in these small shifts, with dub rhythms, soft-edged electronics and acoustic inflections reaching something dreamlike but tactile, where atmosphere and groove are never quite separate. The record feels like a snapshot of several forces moving in slow motion – a landscape of drifting forms and blurred boundaries, where nothing feels entirely fixed.

2026 Repress

Folksongs and Ballads by Tia Blake & Her Folk-Group, is more than just a “lost classic”. As clear and honest as can be, Folksongs and Ballads is a magnetic record, a refuge like only Nick Drake, Nico, and a few others have been able to create. A graceful, delicately minimalist approach to classic Appalachian and British folk songs.The perfect balance between melancholy and daydream. Originally released only in France in 1971, Ici Bientôt is very pleased to present the first-ever reissue on vinyl.

When she recorded her only album, Tia Blake was nineteen years old and had just arrived in Paris a year and a half beforehand. She spent most of her time at Disco’Thé, a record shop in the Latin Quarter, a free space, peaceful and inspiring, a hub for students as well as the local artistic community.

There, Tia would occasionally sing—when she managed to overcome her shyness. Two young guitarists who were passionate fans of folk music and regulars at the shop began to accompany her, forming “Her Folk Group.” One year later, they cut 11 tracks at Pierre Barouh’s Studios Saravah.

Folksongs and Ballads is composed of traditional tunes that have been covered many times, but they’re not the best-known folk standards. A collection of stories ranging from the Middle Ages to the 1960s, bringing together sublimely doleful ballads, lamentations for a lost lover, and an unexpected, brilliant version of the road anthem “Plastic Jesus.”

Tia Blake's haunting, unaffected voice captivates and comforts us, wrapping us in its cool embrace. Meanwhile, the tasteful, stripped-down, mellow acoustic arrangements provided by the guitarists, reminiscent of Bert Jansch and John Renbourn, occasionally supported by a kena flute, have created the space Tia Blake needed to reinvent these traditional songs.

Folksongs and Ballads is a timeless record, deep and unique, a longtime companion for repeated listening, in the vein of works by Sibylle Baier, Bridget St. John and Vashti Bunyan.

This five piece combines their love for pop music and dark sentiments with a punk ethos. Drawing inspiration from a wide range of artists they've crafted a sound that's truly and twistedly their own. Part of the Dutch indie wave that includes bands like Personal Trainer, Real Farmer, Lewsberg and Pip Blom, The Klittens consists of Yaël Dekker (vocals), Winnie Conradi (guitar), Katja Kahana (guitar), Marrit Meinema (bass guitar), and Laurie Zantinge (drums) (vocalist Dekker is also a member of The Hobknobs with Lewsberg's Arie van Vliet). This debut album follows their EP's "Citrus" (2022) and "Butter" (2024). With these EP's the band has toured extensively across Europe and the UK, including as the support for Otoboke Beaver and BODEGA during their European tours. The band combine their love for pop music and dark sentiments with a punk ethos, drawing inspiration from a wide range of artists - such as The Ronettes, MF Doom, Dry Cleaning and Kate Bush - crafting a sound that's truly and twistedly their own. Reviews for Klittens Butter EP: 'Ambition meets weirdo cool on Amsterdam gang's superb EP. By executing both indie-pop and brittle post-punk styles with ease, the band unearth a vibrant space of their own' NME, 4/5 - 'With glorious harmonies, off kilter beats, jangly guitars and a whole manner of instruments throughout it's a joy.' CLASH

Over the last decade and a half, Rotation Sound System’s annual gathering in the Staffordshire countryside has become one of underground dance music culture’s true success stories – an intimate gathering of like-minded friends and partygoers, powered by a custom-built six-way sound system, with music provided by a carefully curated line-up of dusty-fingered diggers, selectors and hand-picked live performers.

At the heart of the collective’s unique and much-loved approach lies a dedication to finding and sharing lesser-known gems and audio obscurities – fantastic records whose charm and quality has long been overlooked.

Last year, the core members of the crew – founders Dean Meredith and Ben Shenton (renowned for their productions as Mind Fair), and Wrekin’ Havoc trio Rob J, Stuart Robinson and Rich Hall – offered a snapshot of their unique musical approach via debut compilation Everything You Are About To Hear Is True, Volume 1, in the process introducing a global audience to some of the countless unknown mid-tempo classics nestled in their collections.

Fresh from another sold out edition of their acclaimed micro-festival, they’re back with volume two, another must-have collection of slept-on classics, loved-up shufflers and wide-eyed Balearic beats, all of which have played a part in Rotation’s story over the last 13 years.

Appearing on gatefold double vinyl with extensive liner notes telling the stories behind the tracks, Everything You’re About To Hear Is True, Volume 2 is full to bursting with music that sounds mind-blowing on the crew’s high-end sound system.

For proof, check the analogue-rich intergalactic shuffle of Paul Atreides’ 2015 jam ‘Arrakis Walk’, the relaxed boogie-soul of Rocky Winters’ Chaz Jankel produced ‘Vicious Circle’, the easy-listening-jazz-rock bliss of Vincent Maclin’s ‘Should’ve Took a Chance’, the 80s soul squelch of ‘Ecstasy (Centurion Mix)’ by Endgames and the immersive British dub drift of Sigma’s ‘Remember (Dub Style)’.

Everywhere you look, you’ll find eye-opening and ear-pleasing delights. There’s Pinky’s lightly acid-flecked, breakbeat-fuelled, acid house-era street soul classic ‘I Wanna Be The One (Instrumental Groove)’, the 1992 new age downtempo seduction of Linda Myers (‘Shine On Me’), the Clavinet-and-synth sporting jazz-rock/space-rock fusion of Wolfhound (1984 gem ‘Another Moon Song’), the Gallic colour of Buzy’s ‘Keep Cool (Version Maxi)’ and the guitar solo-laden electrofunk explorations of mid-80s UK act Lifesighs (‘Get Serious’, here presented in its extended instrumental form).

The first Jet Set series is back in print and now repressed on colored vinyl. St. Louis producer Bonus Points scores high with Off Topic, an outstanding four-song EP for the Cold Busted label. With previous appearances on Chillhop Records, Sundae Sauuce, Horizon, and others, Bonus Points delivers a dazzling take on boom-bap beats and future funk. Bonus Points is a graphic designer by day and, in turn, his musical compositions reflect attention to color, form, and detail. These beats are visual. The release’s title cut opens things with a spacey intro before delving into some serious sunshine lounge vibes. A cool breeze wafts through these melodies. “Zoned Out” follows with a distant, romantic guitar and a lonesome, pensive feeling that’s perfect for seaside pondering. Next up is the old-timey jazz bop of “Coffee Lounge,” recalling the St. Louis swing of yesteryear over some phat beats. Off Topic closes with “Back And Forth

Dire Straits' arresting self-titled debut arrived in the midst of punk's reign but couldn't have been further removed from the era's slash-and-burn style. Recorded in West London in February 1978, the band's tasteful, jazz-inflected set embraces folk, blues, and pub rock while also tracing a direct line back to the beat-oriented sound of early rock n' roll. Country and roots accents further distinguish the British quartet's stripped-down music from any 1970s peers, as does the transparent production, which has remained revered among audiophiles the world over – and which has never been better than on this meticulous pressing.

Mastered from the original master tapes and pressed at RTI, Mobile Fidelity's 180g 45RPM 2LP version of Dire Straits features natural tonalities, superb balances, you-are-there imaging, deep-black backgrounds, and pristine clarity. Even if you've heard this album hundreds of times before, you've never experienced it with such lifelike sonics and premium richness. This numbered-edition collector's set immerses you within the smoky, laidback atmospherics of every song. This is how all vinyl should sound.

Crucial to every arrangement, Mark Knopfler's winding guitar lines emerge with supreme transparency and multi-hued textural detail. His intricate playing comes across as if it's being transmitted via his 60s-era Fender Vibrolux amplifier placed right before you. The cleanliness, dimensions, and live feel are that good. His bandmates, too, benefit from the extra groove space afforded by this 45RPM edition. Rhythms skate and swirl; percussive effects resonate with crispness and attack; the leading edges of notes naturally decay.

Dire Straits' strong, well-edited batch of original material further enhances the overall enjoyment and makes the record one whose pleasures go far beyond the organic sonics. Just as Knopfler's narratives pour forth with poetic and surrealist texts, the musical settings – an intoxicating combination of easygoing shuffles, back-hall boogies, and pop-honed ballads – mirror the old-fashioned soulfulness inherent in the classic recordings of the late 50s and early 60s. The lyrics are equally captivating.

Drawing from his time as a youth in Newcastle, Leeds, and London, Knopfler invests tunes with an autobiographical slant and emotional connectivity that become obvious the moment he opens his mouth to sing. "Down to the Waterline," "Wild West End," and "Lions" all feature colloquial touches that add to their reach. By extension, "In the Gallery" functions as a tribute to Leeds sculptor Harry Phillips (father of future Knoplfer collaborator, Steve Phillips) while the record's breakout smash, "Sultans of Swing," pays homage to struggling bar bands.


Through it all, Dire Straits performs with a subtle cool and clever poise that no band ever matched. Just how good is the chemistry? Bob Dylan heard the quartet and invited Knopfler and drummer Pick Withers to play on Slow Train Coming. But even Dylan himself didn't hear Dire Straits sound this magnetic back in its original heyday. Now, everyone can.

Best Remixes is an album by Two Brothers On The 4th Floor, released in 2023. Best Remixes includes a.o. the following tracks: “Dreams 2016 (will Come Alive) (louis Bailar & Dimitris Kops”, “Dreams (will Come Alive) (twenty 4 Seven Remix)”, “Do You Know (where You're Going To) (ferry Corsten Remix)”, “The Sun Will Be Shining (ferry Corsten Remix)” and more. The album is a Coloured Vinyl, High Quality, Gatefold Sleeve dance 2-LP.

Italian cinematic funk heroes Calibro 35 announce a limited edition 45 rpm vinyl featuring two previously unreleased singles. The record is pressed on clear orange vinyl, limited to 600 copies, making it a must-have collector’s item.

On the A side, Calibro 35 reimagine Grover Washington Jr.’s jazz-funk classic “Mister Magic” with an ultra-groovy cinematic funk stormer, perfect for DJs and collectors alike. On the B side, the Milan-based combo revitalizes Can’s krautrock anthem “Vitamin C” with a fresh jazz-punk energy, a track recently brought back into the spotlight through Kanye West’s sampling. Both tracks are taken from the Deluxe Edition of their latest studio album Exploration, set for digital worldwide release on February 6th via Record Kicks.

Praised by Rolling Stone as “the most fascinating, retro-maniac and genuine thing that has happened to Italy in the past few years,” Calibro 35 have built an international reputation as one of the coolest independent bands around. Their music has been sampled by Dr. Dre, Jay-Z, and The Child of Lov (featuring Damon Albarn), and they’ve collaborated with icons such as PJ Harvey, Mike Patton, and Stewart Copeland, continuing to push their cinematic funk universe further.

To celebrate the release, Calibro 35 will hit the road starting mid-October, with two special U.S. shows in Miami and Los Angeles, followed by a European tour including Barcelona, Berlin, Paris, and London.

2026 Repress

Keni Burke's signature hit 'Risin' To The Top' gets an official remastered, reissue alongside the 12 inch mix of his '81 killer jam 'You're The Best'.

'Risin' To The Top' quickly became a clear favourite of the soul crowd back in the '80s, with Keni's sensuous vocals, a timeless bassline of epic proportions and those dreamy, sunshine chords proving a winning combination. Since then countless producers, from the likes of Doug E Fresh and Slum Village, to LL Cool J and Mary J Blige, have utilised 'Risin' To The Top' as a choice sample for their own productions. A quick glance at this seemingly endless list, just goes to show how much of an impact this record ended up having.

On the flip, 'You're The Best', takes a more boogie paved path, filled with an undeniably groove laden bass synth, cosmic keys and Keni's infectiously soulful vocals. It's early eighties synth boogie at it's best, placing the electronic elements at the forefront whilst holding onto that unquestionable funk at its core.

Two Keni Burke classics for soul heads, sample spotters and anyone with a keen ear for a gem.

After a quarter-century hiatus, the legendary jungle artist M-Beat has resurfaced with Mekatune, his newly established label. Mekatune serves as a platform for unveiling not only his extensive back catalog but also fresh, innovative material from himself and other luminaries of the jungle music scene.

This exclusive boxset comprises five vinyl records, each elegantly housed in a black paper sleeve ensconced within a high-quality, 3mm-spined card housebag. Renowned DJ Mag designer Martin Brown has lent his artistic touch to each housebag, featuring a captivating montage of M-Beat's illustrious history spanning three decades. The reverse side of these housebags reveals an in-depth interview conducted by Dave Jenkins, delving into M-Beat's origins, his prolific career, and the enigmatic disappearance that kept fans in suspense for so long. The five housebags nestle snugly within a beautifully crafted card slipcase, forming a stunning piece of jungle and drum & bass history.

Moreover, each track in this boxset has undergone meticulous remastering by Dapz at Compound Audio and precision vinyl cutting by Beau at Ten Eight Seven Mastering, ensuring an unparalleled audio experience. These 20 handpicked gems represent the pinnacle of M-Beat's discography, each highly sought after and commanding a premium on Discogs. With a limited run of just 500 units, the majority of which have already been claimed through pre-sale, this is a rare opportunity to own a piece of music history. Once sold out, there are no plans for a repress, making it an essential addition for collectors and jungle music enthusiasts alike.

Morcheeba return with the second EP in their Remix The Chaos project - a year long series of releases reworking all the tracks from their 2025 studio album Escape The Chaos. Volume 2 is headlined by London art-rockers Django Django who inject a fresh garage pulse into Hold Me Down and prolific producer Rex The Dog who transforms the Latin subtleties of Dead To Me into an extended electro powerhouse.

Elsewhere, experimental producer Daedelus takes Cooler Heads into leftfield IDM territory, and regular Morcheeba remixer Merther Hum turns the album title track Escape The Chaos into deep, refined dub.


Ready in equal parts for the dancefloor or your sofa late at night, these bold reinterpretations push Morcheeba’s seminal sound further towards electronic music’s outer edges. Presented on rubber duck yellow vinyl in classic disco bag packaging, Remix The Chaos (Volume 2) is just the latest in a series of unmissable releases from the trip-hop titans.

Flamingo Pier, the New Zealand–born, London shaped trio of Luke Walker, Dominic Jones and Brad Craig, step confidently into a new chapter with the announcement of their second album ‘Woven Together’ arriving in October. Long celebrated as one of the southern hemisphere’s best kept dancefloor secrets, the group now move firmly into global view with a record written, produced and released entirely on their own terms. Since first emerging with their Kitsuné debut in 2015, Flamingo Pier have carved out a distinctive space in contemporary dance. Their 2019 Soundway EP earned international acclaim was played on BBC Radio 1 and KEXP, with their 2021 debut album featuring jazz icon Nathan Haines.

Further releases on Razor 'N' Tape and Soundway included collaborations with Nigerian disco legend Steve Monite.

The first glimpse of ‘Woven Together’ arrives with lead single ‘Cool Nights’, a modern, playful take on 80s Italo Disco - powerful on the dancefloor yet built for top down drives along the Italian coastline. A late night story of connection and possibility, the track sets the tone for an album that brings Flamingo Pier’s melodic warmth, rhythmic precision and global influences into sharp, confident focus.

The first leader album by Ryo Kawasaki, a jazz and fusion guitarist whose talent was recognized by Gil Evans and who went on to work internationally. The album presents a cool cosmic sound, including "Agana," where Kawasaki delivers breath-taking guitar playing over high-speed percussion, and the dazzling jazz-funk number "Phil."

‘Unfindable Ring', out October 23 on Bayonet Records, is an adventurer’s epic. The arc of the journey, like any good Spirited Away or Neverending Story, lands its wide-traveled protagonist right back at home before bedtime. Grumpy, like many great hero tricksters before him, has always been a project of juxtaposition: upbeat radio-ready hits whose buoyant, goofy hooks belie the dark thoughts they describe. Much of this, Schmitt acknowledges, owes its due to the matter-of-fact morbidity of the trans experience in America. It’s from these experiences—personal, romantic, political, and existential—that the tale of ‘Unfindable Ring’ unfolds.
Ambition and play have always defined the Grumpy sound. Late last year, the Fader praised their “demented, hooky” EP, “Piebald,” whose innovative fuzz-pop confections earned them coverage in NPR and the New York Times. Stereogum heralded them as “wonderfully weird,” and Paste designated them “the best of what’s next.”” Through boisterous collaborations with the likes of Sidney Gish and Claire Rousay, they’ve effortlessly ingratiated themselves with the titans of DIY, and, more recently, Schmitt has become an unlikely favored collaborator of chart-topping country giant Zach Bryan, who named his new record––which prominently features Schmitt’s harmonies–– conspicuously, ‘With Heaven On Top.’
In Grumpy, Heaven Schmitt is joined by Anya Good, Ellie Long (Kid Lake), Austin Arnold, Diego Clare (D.A. Crimson), and Lane Rodgers, who each contribute to every step of the process—engineering and recording, mixing, drafting artwork, producing, and making music videos. A kind of interdisciplinary thieves’ guild, the project, while once Schmitt’s solo eponym, is a labor of communal love.
“We are living these happy lives, and there are people we come across who don’t know us at all who want us to die,” Schmitt, explains. Often the visibility of the joy itself is what prompts the vitriol––“I’m so happy I could die,” Schmitt belts over and over on the chorus (a familiar figure of speech, sure, but one which, upon any scrutiny, shows Schmitt’s hand in the macabre.) A middle finger to fate, Good started asking, “What are you going to do with your One Beautiful Life?” Grumpy is going to keep playing, touring, searching, finding.

Elastica’s iconic self-titled debut album is set to be reissued by Rough Trade Records on 2 October in a new edition boasting rarities and b-sides.

Striking their own, distinct path in March 1995, Elastica proved uniquely fresh-sounding as the London four-piece delivered on the reputation they had built up gigging around the capital beyond in the months ahead its release.

Home to the likes of Line Up, Waking Up and Connection, singles at once timeless yet in the moment, Elastica’s debut captured the fraying emotions, hazy experience and burning energy of life, love and after-hours adventure.

Absorbing atmospheres and attitudes of their post-punk and new wave forbears, Justine Frischmann (vocals, guitar), Annie Holland (bass), Donna Matthews (guitar, vocals) and Justin Welch (drums) poured their own identities into the album’s 15 tracks which balancing youthful swagger, with sage-like observation and a knowing cool that made Elastica and their debut effortlessly timeless.