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Yumi Zouma release a special one off coloured vinyl (colour in colour red), a cover version album of Oasis seminal album (What's the Story) Morning Glory reimagined by Yumi Zouma - first time pressed on vinyl for retail. On bands own imprint.

Billy Preston’s mastery of the organ was such that he was commissioned for collaboration by The Beatles, The Stones and countless others, his classic Hammond work a defining element of ‘Get Back.’ Released in 1964 when Preston was still 19, The Most Exciting Organ Ever mixes swinging originals such as ‘Low Down,’ ‘Soul Meetin,’ ‘The Octopus’ and ‘Billy’s Bag’ with expressively soulful covers of standards such as ‘If I Had A Hammer’ and ‘Don’t Let The Sun Catch You Crying,’ ably showcasing Preston’s awesome dexterity and unmatched ability on his chosen instrument. With every track a winner, the title rings true!

“Crystal Motion” were a vocal quartet of Cape Verdean descendancy from New Bedford Massachusetts. The group’s original members being lead vocalist “Kevin Gomes”, Kevin’ s cousin, Rodney “Skeeta” Santos, Daniel “Buddy” Monterio and John Paris, the man responsible for coining the group’s eventual performing name “Crystal Motion”.

Entering a local now defunct recording studio “Metcalf’s” the grouped recorded the Kevin Gomes penned demonstration song, the sweet soul ballad “There’ll Be Another”.

A copy of this song was eventually submitted to the recently formed Independent Recording Studio, “Omega Sound Productions” in Philadelphia, PA. The label was owned by Frank Fioravanti who having just hit paydirt with William DeVaughn’s smash hit “Be Thankful For What You Got” continued with his policy of supporting up and coming talent and upon hearing Crystal Motion’s demo decided to offer them a recording contract. Although deciding against using their submitted demonstration song (which was to remain unissued) Fioravanti chose to record the group on a song he had co-written with another Philly writer and recording artist Pal Rakes, the title of the song was “You’re My Main Squeeze (Part 1 & 2)” an exciting disco dance orientated song that Frank released on them in 1975 on his Sound Gems label imprint. The song became a minor hit in Boston MA, Providence RI and Philadelphia areas also receiving extensive airplay in Atlanta GA and Houston TX. John Paris was to leave the group being replaced by a longtime friend of the other group members Douglas “Dougie” Mendes. With attention coming from the producers of “American Band Stand” and “Soul Train” the group toured the East coast circuit throughout 1975 and 1976 in preparation for an upcoming album project which was never finished before lead singer Kevin Gomes left for unforeseen personal reasons and ultimately the group broke up. Little did “Crystal Motion” know at the time but their solitary 45 release was finding a new audience across the pond in the UK with “You’re My Main Squeeze” being championed by inspirational DJ Colin Curtis in the hallowed halls of Blackpool Mecca, a timeless classic that never fails to bring a smile to the listening audiences faces even to this day.

Returning to the groups unfinished Sounds Gems album project only one track was ever completed, the Fioravanti/Rakes composition “Million Dollar Baby” which along with “There’ll Be Another” has been licensed from their respective owners and paired together for a long overdue 45 release for your delectation. With ‘Crystal Motion’s’ “You’re My Main Squeeze” cult and anthemic status being forever assured with Northern/Modern Soul devotees we’d like to think the discovery and release of these two slightly differing Sweet Soul offerings will garner and enhance the group’s wider appeal with the growing aficionados of the Chicano, Group Harmony and Lowrider genres, Enjoy.

Originally released as part of Perc's Greed Dance 12" in late 2021 Resistor has since taken on a life of it's own, receiving plays & support from I Hate Models, Randomer, Somniac One, Cera Khin, Umwelt, New Frames, Cassie Raptor, Ghost In The Machine and of course Perc himself. Now Resistor returns with three brand new remixes, each taking the original mix to entirely new places.

First up is UK underground hero and Skuxx Records main man Tassid delivering a festival slaying slice of sub heavy UK techno which has been Perc's closing track at his gigs, including at Awakenings in April, from the moment he heard it. Next Jensen Interceptor takes a completely differed approach dropping subtle elements of the original mix of 'Resistor' and a sprinkling of science fiction samples over a hard jackin' groove sitting perfectly between techno and electro.

Finally Berlin based Wallis, shows why she is leading the new school of French producers with a gritty industrial groove, with just the slightest hint of 'Resistor's infamous lead lines breaking through the dirt, to round off a diverse, yet satisfying remix collection.

Recycled Col. LP

McKinley Dixon calls the late Toni Morrison the greatest rapper of all time; and the way he tackles topics like survival, violence, and religion within the expansive landscape of the Black experience, evokes her novels. It is from the title of Morrison‘s Beloved trilogy where he finds the title of his new album with City Slang Records: Beloved! Paradise! Jazz!? Musically his household was defined by “artists whose first name was Mary,” including Mary J. Blige and gospel duo Mary Mary. Discovering Outkast was formative for Dixon, deepening his love for hip-hop while he also grew curious about the more theatrical rock of groups of the day, bands like My Chemical Romance and Panic! At The Disco that his Maryland friends introduced him to. “Those groups also helped me with my sense of longing, since their music reflected a sense of longing,” he says. Eventually he channelled these competing influences into a debut EP he released in 2013. With time, his music became his primary means of self-expression, whether discussing Blackness or his own relationship with healing. Across his next releases, his style evolved and his confidence grew, especially when it came to live instrumentation. His 2021 debut album For My Mama and Anyone Who Look Like Her was a game changer, as Dixon set his sights on heartache and grief. “I was making these really dense and chaotic songs, stuffing whatever thought I had into five and a half minutes,” Dixon says of that project. Beloved! Paradise! Jazz?! is an attempt at channeling different impulses. Sometimes rough and other times delicate, this record is a journey into is a journey into the psyche of McKinley Dixon, with all of the of the attendant peaks and valleys.

**BACK IN PRINT ON SINGLE LP**After three albums filled for the most part with quick song bursts and the occasional longer track, the eight-song long Bullhead found the Melvins stretching out a bit more at points, this time allowing the heavily stoned tempos plenty of time to really sprawl all over the place. There are fewer sudden shifts between fast and slow moments as well, and a lot more pure lava-flow beat-over-head feedback sludge and noise. It's not all ten mph deliberation, though - "Zodiac" shows the trio at full speed and blasting aside anything that might be so foolish as to get in its way, not to mention one unhinged Osbourne vocal lead. If grunge was achieving breakthrough status in Seattle, it was being perfected in its rawest sense on this album. Opening cut "Boris" does all this in excelsis - the band's longest recorded song at this point, nearly ten minutes long, it practically drips from the bongwater of eight million potheads, with Osbourne invoking his own brand of demons over the deep crawl of the music. Osbourne here really has got the dramatic, theatrical Ozzy Osbourne attitude down, with the occasional double-tracked vocals adding to the off-kilter intensity of the performances. Crover again shows his worth on the drums - he plays things slow most of the time but, crucially, never once sloppily - while Black keeps the bass going, however relatively unheard under Osbourne's guitar attack. "It's Shoved" is the not-so-secret highlight of Bullhead, Crover's brisker drum work and Black's sharp bass playing heralding a wild lead-guitar melody and a great ensemble performance. However, efforts like "Anaconda," with its slowly uncoiling power, and the intense "If I Had an Exorcism," which gets all the more wired and wound up as it goes (Black's bass here is some of her best), are no slouches. (All Music)

zake's fruitful contributions as an artist to his own Past Inside The Present label continues on this new album Deep Into The Unknown We Shall Endlessly Roam. It is an assemblage of arrangements made using archaic tape machines such as a Sony M-570V microcassette voice recorder and obsolete VSC Soundpacer, all on analogue tape. Of course that lends the music a misty, grainy quality that defines much of zake's ambient. Here his loops and found sounds meld and melt to create vast open spaces that are pregnant with emotion and tension. It's another magical work of ambient art that, says the artist, "is dedicated to those who continue to yearn for greater understanding."

Carole King’s The Legendary Demos will be released April 24th, 2012 via Hear Music / Concord Music Group. A previously unreleased collection of 13 history-making Carole King recordings of some of her most celebrated songs, The Legendary Demos traces King's journey from her days as an Aldon staff writer in the 1960's, where she crafted hit after hit for other artists, to the dawn of her own triumphant solo career in the 1970's, and contains her original recordings of future standards like "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman," "It's Too Late," and "You've Got A Friend." Featuring liner notes by acclaimed author and Rolling Stone contributing editor David Browne, the collection brings to light a heretofore missing link in the chain of King's career. Fittingly, The Legendary Demos serves as a companion to King’s long-awaited memoir, A Natural Woman, which is being released April 10th, 2012 via Grand Central Publishing.

Aldon Music used these demos—short for “demonstration records”—to pitch King's material to other artists, from Gene Pitney and Bobby Vee to Aretha Franklin and the Monkees. While the recordings have long been coveted and collected within the industry, they have never before been released to the public.

Whether it was a potential single for the Monkees or a solo performer like Pitney, King’s demos were remarkable in their completeness. “When she sat down to the piano and played a demo of one of her songs, the whole arrangement appeared right in front of your eyes magically,” recalls Brooks Arthur, who engineered a number of these efficient sessions for King at one of several midtown Manhattan studios. “A lot of the smarter producers would adhere to Carole’s demos. If you stuck to that, you’d come home a winner.”

King and then-husband / songwriting partner Gerry Goffin signed with Aldon Music in 1959, and anyone who listened to the radio during the first half of the ‘60s will recognize the songs of teen passion and devastating heartbreak heard in King’s original recordings. “Take Good Care of My Baby” was a No. 1 hit for Bobby Vee in 1961. Goffin’s gift for tapping into teen anguish—in this case, hiding behind a stoic public face—was never conveyed better than in “Crying in the Rain,” which the Everly Brothers took into the top 10 in early 1962. “Just Once in My Life” was the Righteous Brothers’ follow-up to their still-spine-tingling “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’,” and King’s demo reveals how she and Goffin were instantly able to tap into the duo’s (and producer Phil Spector’s) dramatic, impassioned sound.

Like many of their fellow songwriters at the time, King and Goffin wrote songs for Don Kirshner’s TV show about a fictional, Beatles-derived pop band that debuted in September 1966. The Monkees turned out to be more credible singers (and musicians) than anyone initially expected, as their high-charting 1967 version of King and Goffin's “Pleasant Valley Sunday” revealed. The Monkees also cut “So Goes Love,” a dreamier ballad heard here, but the track didn’t make their first album and wasn’t released until long after they’d disbanded.

The Legendary Demos includes early takes of six tracks that formed the basis for King’s world-wide solo breakthrough Tapestry. King and lyricist Toni Stern’s ever-poignant “It’s Too Late” is here, along with King’s own “Way Over Yonder,” “Beautiful” and “Tapestry,” all three bursting with the artistic and spiritual renewal infusing King’s life during this period.

Among the collection’s numerous gems is the original 1967 demo for Goffin, King, and producer Jerry Wexler’s “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman,” a song that would later appear on Tapestry and of course be famously cut by Aretha Franklin later that same year. King’s version offers several different takes from the Franklin and Tapestry versions. Her delivery in the opening lines is looser (check out the way she stretches out “Lord” in “Lord, it made me feel so tired”), and the bridge is even more imbued with palpable romantic and sexual heat.

And finally, there’s King’s initial take on “You’ve Got a Friend,” a classic entry in the Great American Rock Songbook. Milling around in the Troubadour balcony during soundcheck, her friend James Taylor heard King perform the song on a bare stage and was immediately taken with it; his own version, a massive hit, would arrive the following year.

Sylvie Vartan's most wonderful songs beautifully remastered by Mr. Nick Robbins at Sound Mastering... Super cute, lovely, yet Rock n Roll artwork by Mr. Allan NoMan

Detailed liner notes by M.Jean-Emmanuel Deluxe, author of the acclaimed, beautiful, and definitive book "Ye-Ye Girls of '60s French Pop"

Imagine..if you will...a world in which your dearest chic girl pop singer guests a couple of humour records, goes on to have hit after hit, is all over TV and media, with the coolest radio shows and magazines for youngsters being almost fanzines for her. Then she gets her own TV shows and um, marries Elvis, and does a multi-night stand at the Paris Olympia where The Beatles are supporting HER! That world existed, it was early 1960s France, a marvellous, self contained world of music, film and art, where Vince Taylor was not a weird guy in leather pants who never really clicked with the kids,but the major star he was in his own head! And..Well, obviously, it wasn't really Elvis, but the French-World analogue Johnny Hallyday (handsome, good hair, and a great dancer!), so..in France it WAS!... But the hits? The TV shows? And the magazines and radio? Yes! Those really happened....and The Beatles did support her (and it was a big and lucky night in their career!)...Now, don't you wish we were there, in that world? A bizarro technicolor mix of....I don't know, Viva Las Vegas/HELP!/Les Demoiselles de Rochefort? I certainly do...or maybe pop this record on and let's pretend? Oh, I think so, yes...

In a world of endless, bottomless content, to find something that stands out from the crowd is a rare thing. But it’s something that 7ebra manage without breaking a sweat. Based in Malmö, twin sisters Inez and Ella Johansson deal in sparkling indie-rock that’s pretty without being soft, sweet without losing its edge and catchy without being cheap. With Inez on guitar and vocals and Ella on keys, organ and Mellotron, their minimal set-up makes a virtue of simplicity – with a sliver of guitar fuzz, and organ lines snaking around stark, striking vocals, augmented by shivering harmonies, they don’t need a lot to make music that’s colourful, kaleidoscopic, and effortlessly original.

7ebra debuted in 2022 with the double-single “I Have A Lot To Say”/ “If I Ask Her”, two helpings of psych-tinged, street-smart rock and roll, and the music scene around them wasn’t slow to notice. They opened for the Future Islands and the Dandy Warhols, were picked out by Apple Music’s Matt Wilkinson as a Hidden Gem of 2022 and were booked for prestigious showcases SXSW and Eurosonic. With a packed schedule of shows across Europe and the UK already planned for 2023, their world looks set to get a lot bigger – something that their debut album Bird Hour makes certain. The record is a warm, elegant introduction to the sound 7ebra have crafted. The songs are full of personality and character, but also retain a little bit of enigma, a sense of keeping something secret to themselves. To unwrap that elusiveness is a daunting task, but one the listener can’t resist leaping into.

Ella and Inez’s parents played in bands as they were growing up, so picking up music was a natural thing for them. The origins of 7ebra start with Inez whiling away the hours playing guitar in her bedroom. “I learned by playing covers by myself in my room”, she says. “Ella didn’t do that as much, but we sometimes played and sang together, country songs”. Eventually she would start writing her own. Ella wasn’t involved originally (“we did play together a few times”, she says, “and it just went to shit laughs. We fought a lot”), and Inez was originally reluctant: “I was a bit unsure whether I wanted to be in a band with my sister. Because you get clumped together all the time, when you’re twins”. But Ella was keen to join, and eventually persuaded Inez to let her join for a show. It went – so well that producer Tore Johansson (The Cardigans, Franz Ferdinand), saw it and asked if they’d like to record with him. That changed things, says Ella: “It made us think there might be something in this music”. As a duo, 7ebra were in flight. “In the end, it’s kind of a nice thing too being sisters in a band”, Inez says. “It doesn’t bother me anymore. It just made sense to play together”.

On the album that they eventually came up with, the talent that caught Johansson’s eye is immediately obvious. Opener “Secretly Bad” has a way of walking along your nerves, an eerie echo of a hymn in Inez’s vocal backed by a swirl of woozy blend of guitars and organ. That’s followed up by “I Like To Pretend”, an easily charming song that has a sleepy brightness about it, like morning sunlight breaking through a window. They take a couple of different genres for a whirl on Bird Hour – they’re tense and snappy on “If I Ask Her”, breezy and cocky on “Lighter Better”, and there’s even a couple of droplets of blues and folk in the mix, in the raw intensity of the emotions in the slower songs, the vulnerability and aching of songs like “Lean” and “Stripey Horsey”. The record has a way of sweeping you along in its mood and tones, fuelled in part by the band’s use of repetition, sometimes fast and fevered, sometimes crawling and hypnotic. The duo’s musical input blends perfectly, with Inez’s guitar and vocals forming the core, and Ella drawing in the detail with keys, organ, and harmonies, to really bring out the vivid nature of the songs. Indie rock that’s melodic and sweet, but with enough shadow mixed in to make it really compelling.

On Bird Hour, what strikes you first about 7ebra’s sound is how fully formed it is, how much they’ve carved out their own sonic territory, perfected by trial and error in the studio with Johansson. “Tore wanted us to try everything possible”, says Ella. “We had moments where things weren’t working. But that was necessary in order to find the good stuff”. 7ebra’s signature might be found in the deft way they deal with emotion – unafraid of being open, but a little too clever to make things too clear cut: “You can’t take yourself that seriously. It’s too emotional to take it seriously, to start hating yourself. But at the same time, it is quite serious”, says Ella. Another trademark is the simplicity – a 7ebra song has just enough to make it work, and nothing more. “I think it was important for me that our voices were at the centre of the songs”, says Inez, “that all the little melodies have their place, and don’t get overwhelmed. With lyrics, I sometimes come up with something, and just feel ‘there’s no need to add more to this’. Sometimes a line works by itself. You don’t have to add a bunch of lyrics”. Finally, the album’s themes are ones that will resonate with most people that have set foot on this planet. “I guess it’s about trying to understand yourself, in relation to others. Just life. ‘Why am I not good at this, why is this thing happening to me, why is this thing so hard, why am I so stupid?’”, laughs Ella.

7ebra haven’t been around for very long – but a handful of songs and their fizzing live shows have stirred up the biggest buzz in Scandinavian music in quite a while. Their debut album justifies it all. It showcases the magic they’re capable of conjuring up, and hints at even more to come in the future. But from where they are right now, they’ve made something very special. Bird Hour takes all that promise and turns it into something concrete, in the form of one of the year’s best rock debuts.

Previously unavailable on vinyl for more than 50 years, this rare collection of tracks presents a wealth of hits that helped define country music in the ‘60s - and beyond!

If you don’t remember Western Swing in its heyday, or the first generation of Texas Honky Tonk, you may not know Billy Gray. Aside from a select group of music aficionados and musicologists, Billy Gray’s name and significant contributions to country music and western swing have simply gone unrecognized for far too long.

Musically, there were many shades of Billy Gray. Singer, Songwriter, Musician, Performer, Arranger, Bandleader. Whether on stage or in the studio, Billy Gray personified what this music was – and still is – all about.

Billy played behind some of Country Music’s biggest names – Hank Thompson, Ray Price and Willie Nelson – served as Thompson’s and Price’s bandleader – and built quite a following in his own right with his own bands, The Western Okies, The Nuggets and The Cowtowners.

Billy Gray, together with the legendary Hank Thompson created a wealth of hits that helped to define the country music of an era, and beyond, helped launch the career of future rockabilly legend Wanda Jackson, and greatly influenced the future sound of country music.

-- Joe Hopkins

Recorded entirely in 2021, "Perfect Worlds," the newest album by San
Francisco's mysterious lo-fi pop legend Tony Jay, delivers an intimate
record of thirteen dreamy, assured arrangements.Fresh off the heels of
"Hey There Flower," "Perfect Worlds" marks Tony Jay's first album with
Slumberland Records and further cements Tony Jay's status as dejected
crooner of the quotidian par excellence
Drawing inspiration from failed relationships, lack of sleep, a bicycle injury, and
depression, Tony Jay pairs catchy melodies and hushed vocals with ethereal
instrumental tracks. Headed by Michael Ramos, the former drummer of April
Magazine, and current member of Flowertown, Al Harper, and Sad Eyed Beatniks,
Tony Jay began recording in 2006 and added a live band in 2017. "Perfect
Worlds," recorded in Ramos's bedroom and mastered by Mikey Young, features
Kelsey Faber, Alexis Harper, and Cameron Baker, with guest vocals by Karina Gill
(Cindy, Flowertown, Sad Eyed Beatniks).
Studded with instant classics, Tony Jay's new album encapsulates the isolation
and loneliness of the past few years. "In a perfect world I'd find a place down in
the basement," begins the title track, and the refrain repeats, "You just can't
escape it." Interspersed with otherworldly instrumental tracks that call to mind a
machine struggling to work underwater and whale mating calls combined with
droning synth, horns, chimes, this album also provides space for listeners to
make new worlds of their own. Our times may be inescapable, but we're fortunate
to be able to wall ourselves in with fantasies of our own creation alongside
"Perfect Worlds.

In a world of endless, bottomless content, to find something that stands out from the crowd is a rare thing. But it’s something that 7ebra manage without breaking a sweat. Based in Malmö, twin sisters Inez and Ella Johansson deal in sparkling indie-rock that’s pretty without being soft, sweet without losing its edge and catchy without being cheap. With Inez on guitar and vocals and Ella on keys, organ and Mellotron, their minimal set-up makes a virtue of simplicity – with a sliver of guitar fuzz, and organ lines snaking around stark, striking vocals, augmented by shivering harmonies, they don’t need a lot to make music that’s colourful, kaleidoscopic, and effortlessly original.

7ebra debuted in 2022 with the double-single “I Have A Lot To Say”/ “If I Ask Her”, two helpings of psych-tinged, street-smart rock and roll, and the music scene around them wasn’t slow to notice. They opened for the Future Islands and the Dandy Warhols, were picked out by Apple Music’s Matt Wilkinson as a Hidden Gem of 2022 and were booked for prestigious showcases SXSW and Eurosonic. With a packed schedule of shows across Europe and the UK already planned for 2023, their world looks set to get a lot bigger – something that their debut album Bird Hour makes certain. The record is a warm, elegant introduction to the sound 7ebra have crafted. The songs are full of personality and character, but also retain a little bit of enigma, a sense of keeping something secret to themselves. To unwrap that elusiveness is a daunting task, but one the listener can’t resist leaping into.

Ella and Inez’s parents played in bands as they were growing up, so picking up music was a natural thing for them. The origins of 7ebra start with Inez whiling away the hours playing guitar in her bedroom. “I learned by playing covers by myself in my room”, she says. “Ella didn’t do that as much, but we sometimes played and sang together, country songs”. Eventually she would start writing her own. Ella wasn’t involved originally (“we did play together a few times”, she says, “and it just went to shit laughs. We fought a lot”), and Inez was originally reluctant: “I was a bit unsure whether I wanted to be in a band with my sister. Because you get clumped together all the time, when you’re twins”. But Ella was keen to join, and eventually persuaded Inez to let her join for a show. It went – so well that producer Tore Johansson (The Cardigans, Franz Ferdinand), saw it and asked if they’d like to record with him. That changed things, says Ella: “It made us think there might be something in this music”. As a duo, 7ebra were in flight. “In the end, it’s kind of a nice thing too being sisters in a band”, Inez says. “It doesn’t bother me anymore. It just made sense to play together”.

On the album that they eventually came up with, the talent that caught Johansson’s eye is immediately obvious. Opener “Secretly Bad” has a way of walking along your nerves, an eerie echo of a hymn in Inez’s vocal backed by a swirl of woozy blend of guitars and organ. That’s followed up by “I Like To Pretend”, an easily charming song that has a sleepy brightness about it, like morning sunlight breaking through a window. They take a couple of different genres for a whirl on Bird Hour – they’re tense and snappy on “If I Ask Her”, breezy and cocky on “Lighter Better”, and there’s even a couple of droplets of blues and folk in the mix, in the raw intensity of the emotions in the slower songs, the vulnerability and aching of songs like “Lean” and “Stripey Horsey”. The record has a way of sweeping you along in its mood and tones, fuelled in part by the band’s use of repetition, sometimes fast and fevered, sometimes crawling and hypnotic. The duo’s musical input blends perfectly, with Inez’s guitar and vocals forming the core, and Ella drawing in the detail with keys, organ, and harmonies, to really bring out the vivid nature of the songs. Indie rock that’s melodic and sweet, but with enough shadow mixed in to make it really compelling.

On Bird Hour, what strikes you first about 7ebra’s sound is how fully formed it is, how much they’ve carved out their own sonic territory, perfected by trial and error in the studio with Johansson. “Tore wanted us to try everything possible”, says Ella. “We had moments where things weren’t working. But that was necessary in order to find the good stuff”. 7ebra’s signature might be found in the deft way they deal with emotion – unafraid of being open, but a little too clever to make things too clear cut: “You can’t take yourself that seriously. It’s too emotional to take it seriously, to start hating yourself. But at the same time, it is quite serious”, says Ella. Another trademark is the simplicity – a 7ebra song has just enough to make it work, and nothing more. “I think it was important for me that our voices were at the centre of the songs”, says Inez, “that all the little melodies have their place, and don’t get overwhelmed. With lyrics, I sometimes come up with something, and just feel ‘there’s no need to add more to this’. Sometimes a line works by itself. You don’t have to add a bunch of lyrics”. Finally, the album’s themes are ones that will resonate with most people that have set foot on this planet. “I guess it’s about trying to understand yourself, in relation to others. Just life. ‘Why am I not good at this, why is this thing happening to me, why is this thing so hard, why am I so stupid?’”, laughs Ella.

7ebra haven’t been around for very long – but a handful of songs and their fizzing live shows have stirred up the biggest buzz in Scandinavian music in quite a while. Their debut album justifies it all. It showcases the magic they’re capable of conjuring up, and hints at even more to come in the future. But from where they are right now, they’ve made something very special. Bird Hour takes all that promise and turns it into something concrete, in the form of one of the year’s best rock debuts.

Wirski’s debut on MISBHV Recordings offers a nuanced narrative operating in its own genre of Eastern European rough-edged club melancholy.

MISBHV004 opens with Inside The Dark Echo – a claustrophobic, stifling, relentless, sensual dance with desire. Darkroom complexity with heavy surface tension built on an EBM undercurrent flirt with subtle psychedelia and traces of acid that slowly firm up their multi-layered grip through its running time of six and a half minutes.

Warszawa paints a stripped-back, tantalizing picture. Opening with a brutalist, militant drum programming and surprisingly spacious, warm bassline, its rigid rhythm, tightened up by a repetitive, cold breath mantra eventually opens up to bright, shimmering synth flickers evoking olibanum – the sacred scent of altar candles. Warszawa is looking at the multilayered melody of its landscape – from eerie Soc-realist blockhouses, through neon-lit, seedy strip clubs of the 90s to opulent sacral architecture.

Warm Waters Of Eternity subtly weave a cinematic, Carpenteresque soundscape with a sense of overpowering, ecstatic innocent euphoria that invokes a dream of an early 1990s rave deep in the dark woods of Poland.

Eponymous collaboration between Jim Ghedi & Toby Hay - their first
since 2018's 'The Hawksworth Grove Sessions' and their debut for Topic
Records
Postponed for two years due to the small matter of a global pandemic, finally, as
some semblance of normality took shape, in February 2022, the duo headed into
Giant Wafer Studios, mid-Wales, with very little rehearsal time and recorded the
entire album live, with no edits or overdubs over three days.
Jim Ghedi and Toby Hay are both prolific, praised and established artists in their
own right. Hailing from South Yorkshire, Ghedi's previous work has often been
instrumental, exploring the natural world and his relationship to it, as seen on
2018's A Hymn For Ancient Land but also developing into using his voice,
songwriting and traditional material on his more recent album, In The Furrows Of
Common Place. Toby Hay, hailing from the Cambrian mountains, professes
likewise, that the landscape serves as eternal muse and the spiritual groundwork
of his entrancing guitar playing which has dazzled critics and listeners alike
throughout his career. All of this makes their collaboration with the world's oldest
independent label and custodians of UK folk music, Topic Records, a natural
home for this exceptional record.
The album arrtwork includes beautiful liner notes by Andrew Male, senior
associate editor of Mojo magazine; film, radio and TV writer for Sight and Sound
and Sunday Times Culture.

Under the production moniker of Material Things, 12th Isle co-founder Stewart Brown unveils a part debut album part compendium of musical collaborations spanning from 2015-2020. Some recordings began as long, one-take improvisations (How's Life, Peckham) spliced together and revisited years later. Others were based upon chance opportunities to record with musicians operating a long way from the parameters of 12th Isle.

Cult private-press loner folk guitarist Bob Theil, whose 1982 album So Far counts as one of the Scottish greats of the era, is at the heart of 'Westway'. Synth and guitar fragments recorded by the pair in Stewart's family home one summer form a low-key conclusion to the collection, whilst London based percussionist Pike Ogilvy brings an array of drum sounds and natural percussion to 'No Direction'. Regular 12th Isle affiliate Vague Imaginaires also features heavily, contributing synth work on Grenoble and his own extended digi bonus remix of 'How's Life'.

As a collection, the 8 tracks show a studious, concise vision and combine influences from minimalism, concrete and avant-garde jazz and techno yet also embrace friendship, experimentation and curiosity whilst capturing 5 years of the artists own personal life. Some of the tracks have been circulating in various versions for a number of years now, with DJ support from Bake, Ivan Smagghe, Optimo, Lena Willikens, Huntley & Palmers, Orpheu The Wizard and, of course, 12th Isle.

Potatohead People's classic tune "What It Feels Like'' featuring T3 (Slum Village), Kapok and Illa J gets a remix treatment from in demand bass player and rising star Carrtoons. Switching up the order of the verses, dubbing out the horns and adding in his signature basswork, Carrtoons gets the song into a whole other groove of its own while retaining the original vibe in a unique way. Look out for a 7" coming in Spring of 2022 with the remix and the OG on it!

Erik K Skodvin's alter persona “Svarte Greiner” re-appears with another chapter in his “zen music for disturbed souls” series, channeling both spiritual distress and meditation in a live recording from the bunkers of a bombed out brewery.

The first piece, entitled “Devolving Trust” is recorded live in the bunkers of Schneider Brewery in Berlin, 2018. Erik explains : “I was invited to use the vast old cellars located underneath the site for a performance / installation. Wet and hollow with a dark past and long reverb, it was a perfect location to channel a cello and electro-acoustic improvisation in the spirit of my two long-form, meditative albums Black Tie & Moss Garden. As a 30 minute piece, it was left looping in the room for hours after it ended as an echo of the performance, allowing people to walk around and soak up the sounds and empty hallways alone.

I am usually not into the idea of releasing a live recording, as there are so many factors that are lost in the translation from being present and listening to it in another space. The eyes, ears and body can often see beyond small mistakes once a live performance unfolds in front of you. The details are usually lost in translating it to a pure recording. I made an exception for this as I feel it translates the live feeling in a way I like. Very personal and full of small mistakes it creates its own life. Also, as an improvisation, I am very happy with it, and have been listening to it on and off since a few years. With this in mind I decided I want it to be another document in my ongoing series of longform, atmospheric pieces following the aforementioned two albums.

The second track simply called “Devolve” is mostly constructed out of fragments from the performance as a sort of minimal, reversed echo, further tunnelling into the unknown. These pieces has given me calmness, reflection and escape from the madness escalating outside of our doors. I hope it can do the same for you”.

LOCUS returns with its latest VA ‘LOCUS Trax Vol. 3’, welcoming label debuts from Jamahr, Mehlor, Project89, Manuel De Lorenzi and Giacomo Silvestri.

Now established as a standalone label in its own right, FUSE’s sister imprint LOCUS continues to prove itself as a go-to stop for forward-thinking and fresh house music with minimal-leaning influences from both established and emerging talent. Returning with the third instalment of its VA series ‘LOCUS Trax’, April brings five new names to the label as Captea boss Jamahr, Leeds-based DJ/producer Mehlor, and Dutch talent Project89 serve up fresh singles alongside a slick collaboration from Italian pairing Manuel De Lorenzi and Giacomo Silvestri.

Jamahr opens the package with an impactful combination of slick drums, resonant vocals and warped basslines across ‘Night Tales’, while Mehlor’s ‘BSOD’ offers up off-kilter electronics, skippy percussion and woozy low-ends. On the flip, Project89’s ‘What’s Going On’ delivers a peppy groove accented by atmospheric pads and spaced-out aesthetics, before closing via the tight, rolling grooves of Manuel De Lorenzi and Giacomo Silvestri’s ‘Sit Down’ as the two unveil a heads-down, hands-up terrance anthem.

LOCUS Trax Volume 3 drops on 26th May 2023 via digital and physical formats.

Sasu Ripatti presents the third volume in his "Dancefloor Classics" series with five 10" releases coming throughout 2023. Music for imaginary dancefloors, released on Ripatti's own label "Rajaton".

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”Look up, into the light” she said, while the camera shutter clicked. ”Like this? Does it look holy?” His neck felt stiff. Her reply: ”Yes, just like that. What do you mean holy? Like religious? ”No, more like trying to look very far, somewhere beyond what we can see.” ”Okay, stand still, I’m going to come close to you now. The light hits your face great.” click, click, click.

He noticed her fingernails. They were not polished. Natural. Even somewhat rugged, as if something wore out the fingers slightly. What had these hands held besides the camera? What made the edges of her fingernails drift off?

He thought it’s weird to look straight into the camera. The photographer had closed her left eye, the one not looking into the lens. Then it opened, she looked up, perusing the surroundings, then she closed her eye again, then looked up, closed, looking up, very quickly. It all seemed very professional. Maybe she calculated the light, making sure it’s close to perfect. ”What will these photos look like?” – the thought popped into his head briefly. It was liberating to think it wouldn’t matter.

”What’s that song playing?” he asked. ”Wait a sec, Ol’ Dirty Bastard?” she replied. ”Oh yeah, right. But the sample?” ”Hey, could you look up again, like that. No, lower.”

New directions: ”Look out from the window, turn left.” ”My left or yours?” ”Yours, I always try to think from the direction of my model.” How professional! This is a good shoot, so natural. Should I worry about how the photos look like? No, I don’t want to. His thoughts bounced around. What would the story be like? It’s a big newspaper, everyone will read it. Maybe someone drinks coffee and eats a stroopwafel while they do it. Will they place the waffle on top of the mug for a brief while, so that it gets hot and the syrup melts a little? Then it feels wet, and you can bend the cookie.

She broke his train of thought off midway through: ”Now turn right, but look left, and slightly up, but don’t turn your face right.” ”Umm, like this? Sounds like a set of pilates instructions.” she laughed ”You do pilates?” ”Yeah, it’s hard sometimes. Have you tried?” ”No”, she said. ”I’m not good for sports that are done in groups.” ”Yeah, but in pilates you can just be inside your mind, drowning in your private thoughts.”

”What are you thinking in pilates?” she asked, taking more photos. ”Well, mostly just which way is right. And which left.” click, click.

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