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Haze - released via Ki Records - is Greek producer and composer, Hior Chronik's latest creation. Aligning with his previous critically acclaimed album, Descent, Haze creates an electro-ambient world which accentuates modern classical minimalism. It is an album which deeply embodies tranquility, fulfilment and meaningful connection, aspirations born out of Hior Chronik's past in Athens, and realised by his relocation near to a forest in Berlin, where he can truly feel at-home, surrounded by the awe-inspiring beauty of nature. Through 15 tracks, Hior Chronik guides his listeners in an immersive journey which features magical soundscapes built using DX7 and Roland synthesizers, beats from the Lofi drum machine and Volca samples. Inspired by the best of his previous work in moody electro soundscapes, alongside his own history as a listener and lover of early 90's electronic music, artists like, Lali Puna, Solvent and Remote Viewer, this album demonstrates a new dimension to Hior Chronik's artistry which exudes light optimism.

No stranger to making sick beats in their own right, Lampa and Senncoria have teamed up to deliver 5 slices of absolute sublime music for Deep, Dark & Dangerous.

We simply had to give this release the vinyl treatment! The EP traverses the landscape of sound design from middle eastern inspired melodics, crunchy gnarly basses, triplet rollers to chill vibes, it's a diverse yet cohesive release full of high notes.

The basislager crew from Stuttgart celebrates its first release with a four track techno ep by HLLW. After having run several parties in their hometown the boys decided to do the next step with their own record label. The ep consists of three original tracks by HLLW and a banging remix by Rove Ranger.

Ten years into his role as poster boy for pop soul and peak-hour R&B, Syl Johnson did an unlikely about-face and cut the most inspiring and powerful song he'd ever touch. Issued on 45 in September of 1969, "Is It Because I'm Black" struck an immediate chord within the black community, forcing the song up the charts by sheer volume of call-in requests. It would be Syl's biggest hit for Twinight, climbing as high as #11 on the Billboard R&B chart during its 14-week stay, marking the defining moment of what had become more than just an occupation. Syl had his hands on a career and worked tirelessly rehearsing his next opus, an album of songs reflective of the changing times. With "Is It Because I'm Black" still bolding the pages of Billboard, the coming LP's title appeared to Syl plain as day _ or, in this case, black as night. Issued in April 1970 _ a full 13 months before Marvin Gaye's What's Going On _ Is It Because I'm Black can rightly be called the first black concept album, a distinction few give it credit for. But that factoid, whatever its meaning then or now, failed to inspire music buyers: Johnson's record never got a whiff of the two million copies Gaye's did in its first year of availability. Syl lays the blame squarely on the record's lack of marketability to a white audience. The album's cover didn't exactly move units either. Photographer Jerry Griffith dragged Syl to a burned-out building on 43rd Street to shoot the back cover image, and he finger-painted the iconic title over a stock photo of an eroding brick wall. The title track, coupled with the politically charged "I'm Talking About Freedom" and ghetto conscious "Concrete Reservation" sealed the album's cool reception as the work of an "angry black man." Which is unfortunate, as "Together Forever," "Come Together," and "Black Balloons" are positively uplifting, forming their own pot of gold at the end of a grayscale rainbow. The album's closer burns the brightest. "Right On" devolves into a full-on party track, ending with Syl riffing on the line "I'm gonna keep on doing my thing," as if to answer his critics before their needles reached the run-out groove.

(Re-Issue)

This reissued standard vinyl edition of Jóhannsson’s brilliant and seven years in the making work 'Last and First Men' is replacing the limited edition box set, that has originally been released with the album. Please note the Blu-Ray and art prints from the limited edition box set are not included. While composing haunting, elegiac concept albums of lost utopias and working for TV and film the Icelandic composer Jóhann Jóhannsson was thinking about a project on an even larger scale since 2010 - a multimedia work that would include his own visual concept, direction and music. Based on the cult science fiction novel by Olaf Stapledon, Jóhann Jóhannsson's opus magnum Last and First Men artfully combines music, film and narration from Tilda Swinton, sitting somewhere between fiction and documentary to form a poetic meditation on memory and loss.

In the vast musical archive that is Roman Flügel’s discography, Ro70 holds a special place. Written, performed and produced between January and July 1995, it is his debut album as a full-fledged solo artist. Enquired and inspired by a certain David Moufang from Heidelberg, who used to share a classroom with Jörn Elling Wuttke at the SAE Institute and revealed himself to be an Acid Jesus fan and also of the Roman IV 12“ project, it seemed like a good fit for his (and Jonas Grossmann’s) Source Records label.
In the days before file sharing that meant going back and forth with various DATs in his mom’s Volkswagen Polo Fox for actual listening sessions between Darmstadt and Heidelberg. The time was as special and idiosyncratic one as was the sound of Source Records and of course Ro 70 itself. While the rave-olution was ready to eat its kids with the commercial outlook of former underground phenomena looked bright and the scene’s prophecy seemed grim, enterprises like Source and artist like Roman Flügel were defying any competition out of those corners with their own means.
Listening back to the ten tracks of Ro 70, it proves them, their taste and artistic vision right. Probably still being put into the ambient, downtempo, electronica or chill out sections of most record shops, this music could have been made, relished and cherished anytime between 1995 and now. Made in Roman’s home studio in his parent’s house or in the Klangfabrik studio in Egelsbach, this was made for before or after the rave – or for people who din’t want to have to do anything with it at all. His signature is all over it. Well balanced soundscapes with an almost uncanny presence and clarity. Bittersweet symphonies that doesn’t seem to be in an inferior position to modern classical or electronic studies.
It is also a very personal testament to a time in the artists’s life that was ready to get caught in the maelstrom of the oscillating techno city called Frankfurt am Main and its halcyon days between the Delirium record shop, Sven Väth’s marathon sets, the early days of the label triumvirate Playhouse, Klang & Ongaku. In a musical journal without lyrics, those memories will have to stay pantomimic and private. All for the better, that we can at least still listen to them.

This spring, Atomnation is to serve up three remixes from Sam Goku's cultured East Dimensional Riddims album. The original full length landed in spring last year, and now contemporary innovators Lauer, Paula Tape and Ineffekt all offer their own unique versions.

Goku sees this remix EP as a way of showcasing the sort of tunes he plays in his mixes, most recently for the RA podcast series as well as for Ransom Note and Live At Robert Johnson. The Chinese-born but long Munich-based artist is an assured DJ who unites his different heritages when he plays. He's someone who taps into the similar emotions and motivations of east and west and does so with a nuanced, storytelling brand of house and techno that is warm and uplifting.

Meaning all things magic and supernatural, the root of the word occult is that which is hidden, concealed, beyond the limits of our minds. If this is occult, then the Occult Architecture of Moon Duo’s fourth album - a psychedelic opus in two separate volumes released in 2017 is an intricately woven hymn to the invisible structures found in the cycle of seasons and the journey of day into night, dark into light.

Offering a cosmic glimpse into the hidden patterning embedded in everything, Occult Architecture reflects the harmonious duality of these light and dark energies through the Chinese theory of Yin and Yang.

Following the Yin (feminine, darkness, night, earth) represented on Occult Architecture Vol. 1, Vol. 2 presents the Yang. Yang means “the bright side of the hill” and is associated with the male, sun, light and the spirit of heaven, and as such Vol. 2 explores the light and airy elements of Moon Duo’s complex psyche.

“In production we referred to Vol. 1 as the fuzz dungeon, and Vol. 2 as the crystal palace,” guitarist Ripley Johnson explains. “The darkness of Vol. 1 gave birth to the light of Vol. 2. We had to have both elements in order to complete the cycle. We’re releasing them separately to allow them their own space, and to ensure clarity of vision. To that end we also mixed Vol. 2 separately, in the height of Portland summer, focusing on its sonic qualities of lightness, air, and sun. Listeners can ultimately use the two volumes individually or together, depending on circumstance or the desired effect.”

The song, subtitled “A Garden of Personal Mirrors”, was written in 1968 by the film’s marketing strategist Mike Kaplan. Kubrick proposed it immediately following an unsuccessful pitch by MGM Records, who wanted to release a single to tie in with the film, and amid reports the Beatles were also writing a song. Presented by Wave Theory as a historical release, 2001: A Garden of Personal Mirrors adds a new chapter to the film’s mythology. This limited edition 7” vinyl will be available for the first time ever on 26th November 2021
2001 is infamous in the annals of film music history for the way that Kubrick abandoned Alex North’s original score in favour of classical and popular pieces that have become synonymous with the movie. Following a digital release last year that caught the imagination of the film’s fans, Wave Theory is now releasing a limited edition vinyl that will give the opportunity for soundtrack aficionados to own a piece of movie history.
Mike Kaplan explains, "The Single's intent was to capture the different responses 2001 was generating from audiences and the media, the many levels of interpretation and appreciation, from its hypnotic visuals to its metaphysical illuminations. We also wanted to instil curiosity among audiences who had not yet seen what was becoming a cultural phenomenon.”
Co-founder of Wave Theory Records Dan Jones said, “Attempting to write any music for Kubrick would be a daunting task, as Alex North — and now we discover Mike Kaplan — were both to discover. Both of them are examples of the complex creative interactions that Kubrick’s films distilled.”

During 1978 to 1980, Fashion released one album and a handful of indie club hit singles mixing Punk & Reggae vibes. They toured the US extensively supporting The Police in 1979. Limited Edition of 800 copies 2LP set with printed inner bags. All tracks completely remastered. Contains every studio recording of the first lineup of Fashion including US singles. Includes unreleased tracks. Liner notes from lead singer & Guitarist Luke Sky. Fashion went through several line-up overhauls during its initial existence between 1978 and 1984. John Mulligan (synthesiser, bass) and Dik Davis' (drums) were constants, but the band's frontman changed with each of the band's three albums. Post-punk years: Fàshiön Music Fashion was formed originally as Fàshiön Music, in Birmingham, England, in 1978, and consisted of John Mulligan (bass, synthesizer), Dik Davis (drums), and Al James (vocals, guitar). James became known as Luke Sky, or simply Luke or Lûke (short for "Luke Skyscraper" - a reference to the Star Wars character Luke Skywalker and the fact that James was tall and thin), while John Mulligan was known simply as Mulligan and Dik Davis simply as Dïk (or "Dik Mamba" on their debut single). In 1978, they also founded their own Fàshiön Music label; from this point forward, the band was generally (though not completely consistently) identified as Fashion, as distinct from the name of their self-owned label. Fashion released their first two singles ("Steady Eddie Steady" and "Citinite") as independent issues on the UK in November 1978 and June 1979 respectively. The group was quickly picked up by I.R.S., who put out a third single in the US in September 1979, "The Innocent". Their sound was varied, playing punk, post-punk and indie repertoire, although Mulligan at that time also had a synthesizer which later characterized the future synthpop years of the band. Still signed to I.R.S., in 1979 they recorded and released their first album, Product Perfect. All three members were credited as having written the songs collectively. Between 1978 and 1980, Fashion played shows with performers such as Toyah Willcox, UB40, Hazel O'Connor, & Billy Idol, who later became well known. A then-recently formed Duran Duran opened their shows; they toured the UK with U2, both the UK and US with The Police, and opened for The B-52's on their first British tour. In March 1980, no longer associated with I.R.S., Fashion released their "Silver Blades" single, again on their own Fàshiön Music label. Later in 1980 they also released one more song, "Let Go", on a Birmingham bands compilation called Bouncing in the Red (EMI). In June 1980, after a last gig in London with U2, Luke James left the band, and later moved to the United States.

"We never seem to take the easy road and we never seem to fit in. We are never in step with what is going on, we’re always the weird kids, with our own weird ideas, following our own weird path." - BLOOD RED SHOES

Back in May 2019, Vancouver trio Corner Boys released their sole album… and promptly split a few months later. In retrospect, they couldn’t have known that the album’s title (‘Waiting For 2020’) would soon seem grimly ironic - and we all know why, right? No reason to go over all that shit again. But while the past two years have at least seen drummer/songwriter Patrick McEachnie staying active across two essential records with hardcore heroes Chain Whip, lockdown saw him switching roles. Basically, he bought a guitar and made an excellent record all on his lonesome, and as followers of his other projects will have come to expect, it’s fucking excellent. ‘Glad To Be Forgotten’ is the debut album by Pack Rat - in some ways you can see some level of crossover with Corner Boys in its manic energy and dedication to hooks (cuts like ‘Next Time Hit Me’ and ‘My Own Reality’ are so damn catchy, you could be forgiven for thinking you’ve already been listening to ‘em on repeat for the past 20 years). Familiar reference points show up (the melodies of the Pointed Sticks; the garage-slanted rifferama of Rudi or The Undertones) while a tinny budget synth keeps things ticking along nicely, just to remind you that this is a homespun DIY project. But honestly, this has the feel of a fully fleshed-out project and leaves you desperate for another fix of its sweet’n’sour tang. For anyone who loves the collision point between ‘New Rose’, powerpop sunshine and sheer rock’n’roll exuberance, this is essential. For everyone else, this is surely the gateway to all of that good stuff. You want to hear the tunes that’ll star on future generations’ equivalents to the Killed By Death comps? That’ll set your pulse soaring and your pogo muscles into overdrive? That’ll remind you of why this punk rock business still feels worth dedicating your life to, even after all this time? Hey, Pack Rat’s got ‘em. Now do your part

Some things take time to happen, some things perhaps take a bit longer than they should but, finally, we are delighted to present an issue of the iconic, and sought-after, Brazilian album 'Alucinolândia' by Zito Righi e Seu Conjunto from 1969.

The trippy, surrealist 60s cover design with hands holding eyeballs is somewhat confusing. Rather than the stoner acid rock record that the art may suggest, 'Alucinolândia' is actually a quintessential 60s gem, mixing samba, MPB, bossa nova, quirky organ-led mod-jazz groovers and easy-listening crooners with a relaxed cool swagger.

Zito Righi aka Isidoro Righi, the Brazilian saxophonist, instrumentalist, conductor and composer brought together an illustrious cast for this masterpiece, including the much-loved vocalist Sônia Santos. Sônia delivers a masterclass on the album's opener, and maybe its crown-jewel 'Poema Ritmico Do Malandro’. The song is fierce and driving with an enticing funk intro that bursts into a Samba / Batucada workout. A real monster that works magic on the dancefloor. Sônia would later re-visit this track in 1971 on a recording for Copacabana Records, which Mr Bongo released as part of the Brazil45 series. The Brazilian songwriter Roberval penned three tracks on the record, including another highlight and the far too short 'Birimbau'; a catchy Brazilian jazzy-samba dancer at its finest. Other musicians include the drummer Fernando who also recorded with the greats Dila & Guilherme Coutinho.

The fact the record was released in 1969 meant it was probably a bit out of step with its contemporaries in comparison to the works of artists such as Os Mutantes, Gilberto Gil et al. The core of 'Alucinolândia' is that of a more optimistic early to mid-sixties party feelgood vibe rather than the angsty, psychedelia, and rebellion of the Tropicália movement. Over 50 years since its release, the work can finally be judged on its own merit; and what a beauty it is.

The legendary Disk Union Japan and 180g present the best of today's Brazilian music!

A completely unique and beautiful album from contemporary Brazil blending soft pop, indie folk, sixties psychedelia, lo-fi and flavors of the brazilian Clube da Esquina!

- First ever vinyl release of this top album out of contemporary Brazil
- Essential solo effort from former member of Brazilian underground leaders Diesel, Udora and Transmissor
- Analog recording process
- 180g heavy vinyl, comes with download card

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Leonardo Marques makes a kind of music that creates bucolic and romantic scenarios whose sound goes among indie folk, sixties psychedelia, lo-fi and the brazilian Clube da Esquina.

As Chicago's Dusty Groove tell us about the album:
"A really beautiful album from contemporary Brazil – but one that resonates with some of the best soft pop elements of the late 60s and early 70s! Vocals are in English and Portuguese, and the instrumentation is this fantastic blend of light elements given a really airy spin – almost as if Nick DeCaro and Sean O'Hagan got together in the studio to work on a set that has slight bossa inspirations – but is something completely unique! This is the first we've ever heard of Leonardo Marques, but we'll sure be watching out for him in the future – as he's got this way of embracing so many elements of things we love, yet never stays slavishly in their own territory – wending his way beautifully through songs that include "Ainda E Cedo", "All The Hearts", "Nao Te Escuto", "The Girl From Bainema", "Um Sopro", "In Your Arms", and "So Que Me Enfeita"."

Platform 23 presents Ani-Roy, a project from friends Aniruddha Das and Gary "Roy" Stewart, who recorded two 12's of improvisational acid-house meets drone and samples in 1990.

They met over a love of principally reggae and post punk at Trent Polytechnic, Nottingham in 1982, and started combining equipment, to make tape loops and delays for exploring the basics of dub, all the while building their own Sound System.

This learning and experimenting converged their interests in early possibilities afforded for programming sounds and effects. They moved to London / Birmingham respectively and continued their collaboration until all things aligned in 1990. Coming together with Andrew Campbell, a community / social entrepreneur based in Nottingham - and with access to the Marcus Garvey Centre studios - they recorded two improvisational jams to 2 16 track; Ani arranging drum and bass lines, programming 'counter melodies' with a TB-303, and Roy looking after the ominous ambient loops, melodies, riot and Prince Far I samples.

The fact there were so many "versions" compelled Andrew to put the results out on two 12's instead of one. Fari 116 and Tilt were self-released on hand-stamped white labels.

Archival testaments, but set apart from the burgeoning acid house scene - here they are re-mastered and reissued some 30 years later by Platform 23.

25 years of perpetual, subtle and occasionally lunatic compositional, recording- and production-wise workouts finally result in the first and withal last album „Asphalt“ from the realms of Rico Puestel's childhood pseudonymous getaway „Tetzlaff“.

„Asphalt“ tells genuine stories of mobility and industrialisation, freedom and boundaries, the reciprocity of humanity and technology within the tension of past, present and future. Beneath its overall nostalgic and somehow timeless electronic retro charme it has been inspired by different currents, questions and approaches from philosophy to diverging sciences that shaped this long-haul monument of creation.

Following numerous artistic and technical ordeals, the consistently analogue production went through an emotional roller coaster ride while growing up, defined by the diverging poles of magic momentums and withering setbacks and combined with a fear of never finishing what once has been initiated, wanting to become reality some day.

Years and years of striving and searching for the right gear and recording setups to make this miniature album sound the way it should, never left out the central aspect of one perceptible and pure storytelling. Each song, as intimate, neat and almost predictable it might appear, has been elaborately designed moment by moment, second by second, byte by byte, revised hundreds of times, scrapped and recreated, dismantled and reconstructed.

„Asphalt“ enters and exists stage as a conceptual and musical unicum of its own that claims its self-fulfilling destiny by an endless circularity of endings and new beginnings...

Repress

To emerge from a global pandemic with a renewed sense of situational awareness, hard won insight, and a new album is the kind of move we've come to expect from THRICE over the last twenty years. With Horizons/East, Dustin Kensrue and his bandmates address, with candor and courage, the fragile and awkward arrangements that pass for civilization, while inviting us to dwell more knowingly within our own lives. Without surrendering any of the energy and hard edge of their previous albums, they've given us a profoundly meditative work which serves as a musical summons to everyday attentiveness. Since forming THRICE with guitarist Teppei Teranishi, bassist Eddie Breckenridge, and drummer Riley Breckenridge in 1998, Kensrue has never been one to back down from a mental fight. This mood is set by the opening synth-driven number "Color of the Sky," which sounds well-suited to accompany the closing credits of the Stranger Things season finale. Think Flying Lotus giving way to Elbow and setting the listener down in a new dimension. A self-recorded effort, Horizons/East conveys a palpable sense of danger, determination, and possibility.

With Plum, the songwriting partnership rooted in the creative rapport between bandleader Molly Hamilton and guitarist Robert Earl Thomas continues to expand on shared visions, delving deeper into what was always there: dusty guitars, ear-worm melodies, warm expansive arrangements. Each entry to their catalog has marked a subtle reimagining of Widowspeak's sound, though perennial points of reference remain the same: 90's dream pop, 60's psych rock, a certain unshakeable Pacific-Northwestness. Speaking to the timeless feeling of each, the albums continue to be discovered well beyond their respective PR cycles, made beloved by new listeners through word of mouth. The band's fifth album feels comfortable and lived-in: humble in structure, heavy on mood. Perhaps that came taking time off from the touring grind, instead working full-time jobs and settling into the rhythm of daily life in a small upstate New York town. Plum was recorded over a handful of weekends last winter by Sam Evian (Cass McCombs, Kazu Makino, Hannah Cohen) at his Flying Cloud studio in the Catskills, and was mixed by Ali Chant (PJ Harvey, Aldous Harding, Perfume Genius). In addition to Hamilton (vocals, guitar) and Thomas (guitars, bass, synth), it features instrumental contributions by Andy Weaver (drums), Michael Hess (piano), and Sam himself (bass, synth). Plum nestles into the band's canon like it was always there, but with new textures coming to the fore, like the polyrhythmic pulse of "Amy" and "The Good Ones", or the watery, Terry Riley-influenced track "Jeanie" Plum navigates the spaces between the lesser emotions of modern life. Hamilton's lyrics speak to the unique turmoil of anyone who creates as their work, who must somehow survive off such "fruits of their labor." Yet, Widowspeak have always made a bitter pill much easier to swallow. The majestic "Breadwinner", the luminous "Even True Love" - these songs here were made to be listened to, enjoyed. "Money" is particularly hypnotic, built around a repeating, cyclical motif that serves as both skeleton and body. "Will you get back what you put in?" Hamilton asks over an insistent guitar riff. The line is delivered with a knowingness that transcends its surface critiques of late-stage capitalism, asking both herself and the listener whether this is, in fact, the world we want to live in. Through Plum, Widowspeak have brought something into the world that seems to know its own worth, even as it wonders aloud about what is to come. What value and meaning do we assign ourselves, our time, and how do we spend it?