Search:la guardia

• Following on from the highly successful first two editions
of Dance Masters featuring the classics mixes from
maestros Shep Pettibone and Arthur Baker the spotlight
turns to another remix legend, John Luongo.
• Boston born, John is one of the truly legendary DJ's and
remixers of the Disco era. John got his break at Epic by
overdubbing percussion from salt shakers and spoons
onto a promo and then passing them back the tape. This
resulted in him being flown to New York, and put in a
studio (of his choice) to mix and produce Melba Moore`s
“You Stepped Into My Life”. From this point everything he
touched was a hit. He went onto remix Disco classics by
Jackie Moore – “This Time Baby”, Dan Hartman “Vertigo
/ Relight My Fire” and Patti Labelle “Music Is My Way Of
Life”.

• John, however was not afraid of remixing artists that
didn’t fit into the disco genre and this attitude is borne out
by the tracklisting of this compilation on which Gladys
Knight and The Pips rub shoulders with ZZ Top and Billy
Idol, and Baltimora appears alongside Bill Nelson and ILevel.
• “…if you played this whole thing, just put it on and
didn’t tell anyone it was me, they’d say ‘boy, what a great
group of songs this is!’” - John Luongo
• The collection is housed in a beautiful lift-off-lid box, with
a 16 page booklet featuring foreword by Arthur Baker, an
in-depth essay written by Alexis Petridis (Rock and Pop
reviewer for The Guardian) and complete with rare photos
from John’s personal collection plus a limited signed insert.

• All tracks remastered by Nick Robbins at Sound
Mastering.
• A 43-track 4CD edition is also available, along with a 2LP
vinyl edition featuring 16 highlights.

Having gathered up praise from Mary Anne Hobbs, Cerys Matthews, Jamie Cullum, Gilles Peterson, Huey Morgan, The Guardian, Jazzwise and more, for his lauded ‘Crisis & Opportunity’, drummer and composer Myele Manzanza returns with the fourth instalment of his series, titled ‘Meditations’.

On ‘Meditations’, we see Myele revert to a purely acoustic line-up, channeling a focused and razor-sharp return to his Jazz roots. Showcasing an incredible level of musicianship between three musicians at the top of their game - including Matthew Sheens (Ross McHenry, John Patitucci) on piano and Matt Penman (Joshua Redman, SFJAZZ Collective) on double bass - the trio exchange motifs over the length of 7 tracks.

Opening proceedings with frenetic rhythmic improvisation, complimented by melancholic and cinematic layers of sound, ‘Crayford’s Room’ is a tribute to Myele’s musical mentor back in New Zealand. Remembering his time as a student in Wellington, Myele shows his deep connection to his origins, manifesting itself as lament on ‘Winter’ and ‘Homesick’. Introducing hypnotic, contemplative melodies take centre stage on ‘Something Old Something New’ (the first single to be released from the project)’ It maintains a sense of tension and intrigue throughout, and intensity rises to a crescendo sending sonic particles sprawling into space.

Intuitive, darker and deeply contemplative, Myele shares his innermost thoughts on ‘Crisis and Opportunities Vol.4 - Meditations’. He divulges:

‘The personal angst and existential frustration I was going through across 2020 - 2022 I believe is well reflected here. The album is deeply informed by the musicianship and sound of my trio, Matthew Sheens on piano and Matt Penman on double bass. Knowing that musicians of their calibre were going to be involved gave me licence to go further in my writing, deploying odd time signatures, sharing the melody roles across the piano and the bass, and delving deeper into the nuances of what the acoustic piano / bass / drums trio can do. The compositions present a challenge even to the best musicians, and I knew that it was essential to have a team on this level to really move the music beyond an academic exercise and draw out the emotion and colour from the material.’

Vocal Shades And Tones is a miraculous leftfield library classic from the genius mind of celebrated UK composer/singer/vocal arranger Barbara Moore. It's a heavenly groove-based blend of jazz, Latin, soft-psych, folk-funk and gospel soul. Recorded for the legendary Music De Wolfe in 1972, it's an audacious start-to-finish listen, as dizzying as it is dazzling. It's a perfect snapshot of a musical era, supported by Moore's glorious vocal arrangements. Widely regarded among collectors, DJs, and lounge/easy-listening acolytes as an absolute essential it is viewed as the holy grail by many production music heads, rarely appearing for sale and disappearing in a flash when it does. Indeed, originals now go for over £300 and it's easy to see why. Just one of the reasons why this fresh Be With reissue, part of a wider De Wolfe reissue campaign, is so utterly crucial.

Racing out the gate, the driving "Hot Heels" is a bright, sophisticated scat groove which sounds Brazilian, richly produced as if coming by the hand of Arthur Verocai. Yes, *that* good. It's followed by "It's Gospel" which is, er, a wonderfully slow and deeply soulful gospel treasure. The appropriately monikered "Steam Heat" is a darker, breathy gem, one for salacious crates and one of the record's most infamous tracks. "Fly Away" is pastoral West Coast soft rock, very much in conversation with John Cameron and Keith Mansfield's epochal KPM recording, Voices In Harmony. "His Name Was" is a stop-you-dead-in-your-tracks Beach Boys accapella church-organ stunner, whilst "Swing Over" is another carefree, richly produced sun-dappled smasher. The gentle Bossa and sunshine soul of the aptly-titled "Touch Of Warmth" closes out a virtually perfect A-Side.

The B-Side opens with the easy grace and dramatic build of "Voice Force Nine". The jaunty "Very Fine Fellow" may be the only track to slightly grate so we advise heading to the slower, moody "Shades-Tones", eminently more compelling with sparkling, hypnotic piano throughout, underpinning the gorgeous wordless vocals. Just beautiful. It was sampled by Redman for his Method Man-featuring "Do What Ya Feel" on the great Muddy Waters. We're back in Brazilian territory with the cool, uptempo "I'm Feather" before swooning to the warm, relaxed "Drifting", another total highlight which was famously sampled by Koushik on his legendary remix of Madvillain's "America's Most Blunted (Doom's Verse)". The penultimate track, "Take Off" is a bright, organ lounge groove before this remarkable set is rounded out by the beaty "Fly Paradise". It's so so good, it sounds like Rotary Connection fronted by The Mamas & the Papas. As noted in a recent Guardian article on Moore's life, "there is a plushness and electricity in the tight vocal harmonies that spring out, sung with the precision of cathedral choristers decades before Auto-Tune." Amen.

In the 1960s, Barbara Moore was a member of Top of the Pops’ resident vocal-harmony group, The Ladybirds and sang backing vocals for Dusty Springfield’s TV show. Her own outfit, the Barbara Moore Singers, were regulars on TOTP, singing with Jimi Hendrix when he performed "Hey Joe" live in Lime Grove Studios. An important detail for Moore was the shepherd’s pie she bought Hendrix when she found him alone, looking emaciated, near the BBC canteen. By 1970, she was working as a session singer for De Wolfe and, by 1972, was composing her own tracks for De Wolfe and working within their tight creative strictures. Each short track had to evoke an obvious mood and theme, with no significant key or tempo changes. Her response, this very album, managed to stay between the lines while cohering as an overarching artistic masterpiece.

The audio for Vocal Shades And Tones has been carefully remastered by Be With regular Simon Francis, ensuring this release sounds better than ever. Cicely Balston's expert skills have made sure nothing is lost in the cut whilst the records have been pressed to the highest possible standard at Record Industry in Holland. The original, iconic sleeve has been restored here at Be With HQ as the finishing touch to this long overdue re-issue.

A national musical treasure" The Guardian // Steven Adams, formerly of The Broken Family Band releases new album DROPS on Fika Recordings in November 2023. Since calling time on TBFB at the height of their success, Adams has released half a dozen albums under various names (Singing Adams, Steven James Adams, Steven Adams & The French Drops), his witty, incisive lyrics and melodic sensibilities taking in DIY indie rock, folky introspection, and off-kilter pop hooks. Originally from South Wales, Adams now lives in East London. “Every record I’ve made has been in a hurry of some sort” says Adams of his new album, “and with this one I took my time”. DROPS is the first album to be credited to him as a solo artist since 2016’s Old Magick, his first new music since 2020, and his noisiest record to date. Armed with a new batch of material, he began by upping sticks to the Welsh countryside to experiment with drummer Daniel Fordham and bassist David Stewart - both formerly of psych oddballs The Drink. The trio then took the songs to Big Jelly, a converted chapel on the south coast, with co-producer Simon Trought (Comet Gain, Johnny Flynn, The Wave Pictures) to lay down the basic tracks for DROPS. Eschewing a full band set up (“I wanted to concentrate on one thing at a time”), recording sessions in East London followed with Laurie Earle (Absentee) on guitar and Michael Wood (Hayman Kupa Band, Michaelmas) on keyboards. Adams then took the recordings home and to the French countryside, to work alone. “I finally got my head around home recording in 2020, while things were a bit quiet. Once I worked out how to record things I realised I didn’t have to think about time. I could let the songs evolve and change once we had the basic tracks down. After a while I started to think of them as paintings; trying something one morning, painting over it in the afternoon and attempting something completely different… it was about enjoying the process, making some bangers, playing around... and giving Simon the producer a mess to sort out when it came to mixing the record". Whenever Tom from Fika Recordings checked in to see how the album was progressing Adams would reply, “it’s taking ages but it’ll sound like it was recorded in an afternoon”. The result is a dynamic and spirited collection of songs, with Adams's love of 90/00s US underground rock (Pavement's Bob Nastanovich is a fan) to the fore. DROPS is a sonically compelling piece of work: from bleak/exultant opener Out to Sea and the motorik Living in the Local Void to the weirdly funereal Fascists (where Adams imagines the “little skip in our steps” that we’ll have upon outliving some baddies), and Day Trip's psychedelia in miniature. There are also moments of tenderness: the avalanche of empathy on closing track Cheap Wine Sad Face, and I Tried to Keep it Light’s “worse things could happen… I don’t know how, but give me time”. Adams says: “I'm preoccupied by the passing of time and the way it affects how we feel. This record is about time and bewilderment and trying to make sense of things". “…astonishing tenderness in its simplicity … brilliant lyrics.” Q Magazine //“…the tunes are instant and uplifting, but the real wallop comes from the lyrical imagery.” The Guardian // “…barbed modern life chronicles.”

180 GRAM AUDIOPHILE VINYL

INCLUDES 8-PAGE BOOKLET WITH PHOTOS AND LYRICS
MULTIPLE PLATINUM CERTIFIED ALBUM FEATURING THE SINGLES “IN THIS LIFE”,

“BELIEVE AGAIN”, “YOU WILL ONLY BREAK MY HEART” AND “I CAN’T BREAK IT TO MY HEART”

PEAKED AT #1 ON THE AUSTRALIAN ALBUMS CHART AND US BILLBOARD TOP HEATSEEKERS CHART
FOR THE FIRST TIME AVAILABLE ON VINYL
LIMITED EDITION OF 2000 INDIVIDUALLY NUMBERED COPIES ON GOLD & BLACK MARBLED VINYL

"The Twits" wurde von der Band im Februar 2023 innerhalb von nur acht Wochen in einem provisorischen Heimstudio auf Mallorca aufgenommen und von Marta Salogni abgemischt. Nach einem Kinderbuch von Roald Dahl benannt, zeigt sich das Songwriting von bar italia in rauen, mystischen, ungebürsteten und gelegentlich düsteren Arrangements. Songs wie "my little tony" mit seinen harten Riffs und dem kathartischen Sound ist ein klassischer Indie-Banger für die große Bühne. In anderen Momenten wagt sich die Band auf bisher unbekanntes Terrain, auf dem sie eine hypnotische Dissonanz ihrer Stimmen schaffen. "Jelsy" zum Beispiel spielt sich wie ein Gespräch zwischen Freunden über wehmütigen, summenden Country-Blues ab, wobei die Stimmen abwechselnd tröstlich, ironisch und hoffnungslos sehnsüchtig sind. Der geschmeidige, langsam brennende Walzer "Twist" besticht durch seine nackte Lyrik und scheint jedes Bandmitglied zu einem individuellen Bekenntnis einzuladen. Während "Tracey Denim" von seinen kompakten 2-3-minütigen Songs lebte, besticht "The Twits" durch seine eher offenen und mitunter uferlosen Kompositionen. "glory-hunter" nimmt z.b. spielerische Wendungen, bevor es an einem völlig anderen Ort endet, als es begonnen hat. Das abschließende "bibs" ist ein seltener Fall, in dem alle drei im Einklang zu hören sind. Eine Prozession geradezu geisterhafter Akkorde mit einer zerreißenden Rückkopplung bildet den Abschluss des Albums. Das im Mai veröffentlichte Matador-Debüt "Tracey Denim" von bar italia wurde schnell zum Gesprächsthema der weltweiten Indieszene. Publikationen wie The Guardian ("eines der Alben des Jahres 2023 bisher"), The Times ("excellent debut album"), The Observer ("Artist To Watch"), NME ("a lasting impression that"s all of their own making"), The Quietus ("endlessly evocative") und Pigeons And Planes ("quickly establishing themselves as one of the most enticing upcoming bands") feierten das Album. Im Juni gaben bar italia ihr Live-Debüt in den USA mit fünf ausverkauften Konzerten in New York sowie vier in Los Angeles und auch ihre Debüt-Show in Berlin war binnen kürzester Zeit ausverkauft. Über einen der New Yorker Auftritte schrieb Brooklyn Vegan: "Live spielt die Band ganz natürlich und großartig auf, mit Songs wie "Punkt", "Changer" und "Nurse!" (...), die Post-Punk der frühen 80er mit Indie-Rock der 90er und einem Hauch Trip-Hop mischen".

This Is The Kit is the project of Kate Stables, born in England and based in Paris. They first gained notice due to heavy radio play on BBC 6 - and have twice had LPs named to 6 Music’s Album Of The Year lists. Later they gained more notice as a hand-picked opening act for The National, Iron & Wine, Jose Gonzalez, Sharon Van Etten and Alexi Murdoch - musicians who share a similar independent streak and warm-hearted approach to creating modern yet timeless music. In North America, they are regulars on US Triple A radio stations like KEXP, indie folk festival line-ups, and tastemaking platforms such as NPR’s Tiny Desk Concert.  In the years since ‘Wriggle Out the Restless’ was released in 2010, This Is The Kit have continued to gain momentum. Their 2015 follow-up album, ‘Bashed Out’, was made with The National’s Aaron Dessner (producer for Taylor Swift, Ed Sheeran, Mumford & Sons). Stables then sang on The National’s 2019 album/film ‘I Am Easy To Find’ and became a touring member on subsequent live dates. Finally, in 2020, ‘Bashed Out’’s title track became a streaming hit after an impactful needle drop in a key episode of Netflix’s ‘Sex Education’ series.  Currently signed to the iconic Rough Trade label, they’ve found success on both sides of the Atlantic. New album ‘Careful Of Your Keepers’ was released in June 2023 and is being supported by tours in the UK, Europe and North America.  For fans of Bonnie “Prince” Billy, Beth Orton, Sharon van Etten, Bon Iver, Father John Misty, Joni Mitchell, Sam Amidon, Anais Mitchell.  This is the first time ‘Wriggle Out the Restless’ has been widely available on vinyl. Released here on Clear Orange coloured vinyl.  The band have huge international ‘tastemaker’ visibility thanks to glowing coverage by Uncut, The Guardian, Q Magazine and the BBC

Jamie Lenman made his name as the singer, guitarist and songwriter in alt rock outfit Reuben, who toured and released relentlessly during the 2000s as part of the so-called “British post-hardcore renaissance” along with bands like Hundred Reasons, Biffy Clyro and Frank Turner’s Million Dead.
After the band’s dissolution in 2008, Lenman took a long break from music only to return in 2013 with the colossal double album ‘Muscle Memory’, combining elements of jazz, folk and thrash. Over the next ten years he continued to tour with various backing bands and released a string of records via indie label Big Scary Monsters, including the acclaimed ‘Devolver’ in 2017 and career highlight ‘The Atheist’ in 2022.
He continues to balance his musical efforts with his work as a journalist and illustrator for publications such as The Guardian, Rocksound and Doctor Who Magazine. He lives in Surrey, UK.

• Following on from the highly successful first two editions of
Dance Masters featuring the classics mixes from maestros
Shep Pettibone and Arthur Baker, the spotlight turns to
another remix legend, John Luongo.

• Boston born, John is one of the truly legendary DJ's and
remixers of the Disco era. John got his break at Epic by
overdubbing percussion from salt shakers and spoons onto a
promo and then passing them back the tape. This resulted in
him being flown to New York, and put in a studio (of his
choice) to mix and produce Melba Moore`s “You Stepped
Into My Life”. From this point everything he touched was a
hit. He went onto remix Disco classics by Jackie Moore –
“This Time Baby”, Dan Hartman “Vertigo / Relight My Fire”
and Patti Labelle “Music Is My Way Of Life”.

• However, John was not afraid of remixing artists that didn’t
fit into the disco genre and this attitude is borne out by the
tracklisting of this compilation, on which Gladys Knight and
The Pips rub shoulders with Fine Young Cannibals and
Billy Idol, and Baltimora appears alongside Banararama
and Serge Ponsar.

• “…if you played this whole thing, just put it on and didn’t
tell anyone it was me, they’d say ‘boy, what a great group of
songs this is!’” - John Luongo

• This cut down 16 track essential edition in pressed on 140g
black vinyl and features foreword by Arthur Baker and an indepth essay written by Alexis Petridis (Rock and Pop
reviewer for The Guardian).

• All tracks remastered by Nick Robbins at Sound
Mastering

"The Twits" wurde von der Band im Februar 2023 innerhalb von nur acht Wochen in einem provisorischen Heimstudio auf Mallorca aufgenommen und von Marta Salogni abgemischt. Nach einem Kinderbuch von Roald Dahl benannt, zeigt sich das Songwriting von bar italia in rauen, mystischen, ungebürsteten und gelegentlich düsteren Arrangements. Songs wie "my little tony" mit seinen harten Riffs und dem kathartischen Sound ist ein klassischer Indie-Banger für die große Bühne. In anderen Momenten wagt sich die Band auf bisher unbekanntes Terrain, auf dem sie eine hypnotische Dissonanz ihrer Stimmen schaffen. "Jelsy" zum Beispiel spielt sich wie ein Gespräch zwischen Freunden über wehmütigen, summenden Country-Blues ab, wobei die Stimmen abwechselnd tröstlich, ironisch und hoffnungslos sehnsüchtig sind. Der geschmeidige, langsam brennende Walzer "Twist" besticht durch seine nackte Lyrik und scheint jedes Bandmitglied zu einem individuellen Bekenntnis einzuladen. Während "Tracey Denim" von seinen kompakten 2-3-minütigen Songs lebte, besticht "The Twits" durch seine eher offenen und mitunter uferlosen Kompositionen. "glory-hunter" nimmt z.b. spielerische Wendungen, bevor es an einem völlig anderen Ort endet, als es begonnen hat. Das abschließende "bibs" ist ein seltener Fall, in dem alle drei im Einklang zu hören sind. Eine Prozession geradezu geisterhafter Akkorde mit einer zerreißenden Rückkopplung bildet den Abschluss des Albums. Das im Mai veröffentlichte Matador-Debüt "Tracey Denim" von bar italia wurde schnell zum Gesprächsthema der weltweiten Indieszene. Publikationen wie The Guardian ("eines der Alben des Jahres 2023 bisher"), The Times ("excellent debut album"), The Observer ("Artist To Watch"), NME ("a lasting impression that"s all of their own making"), The Quietus ("endlessly evocative") und Pigeons And Planes ("quickly establishing themselves as one of the most enticing upcoming bands") feierten das Album. Im Juni gaben bar italia ihr Live-Debüt in den USA mit fünf ausverkauften Konzerten in New York sowie vier in Los Angeles und auch ihre Debüt-Show in Berlin war binnen kürzester Zeit ausverkauft. Über einen der New Yorker Auftritte schrieb Brooklyn Vegan: "Live spielt die Band ganz natürlich und großartig auf, mit Songs wie "Punkt", "Changer" und "Nurse!" (...), die Post-Punk der frühen 80er mit Indie-Rock der 90er und einem Hauch Trip-Hop mischen".

The Best of Kris Drever includes all the highlights of his acclaimed career to date including those made with Lau and Drever McCusker Woomble Limited Edition of 500 Black LP's. Featuring for the first time on vinyl format "Wintermoon" , hard to find / out of print classics "Ghosts", "Harvest Gypsies" and "The Poorest Company" alongside two brand new songs "Catterline" and "Punchbag". "The Best of" album features many incredible guest performances from over 17 years of recordings including: Boo Hewerdine, Eddi Reader, Kate Rusby, Ian Carr, Yola, Heidi Talbot, Norman Blake (Teenage Fanclub), Roddy Woomble (Idlewild), Louis Abbott (Admiral Fallow), Andy Cutting (Leveret), Euan Burton, Rachel Lightbody, Elysian Quartet, John McCusker, Tim O'Brien, Megan Henderson (Breabach), Eamonn Coyne and Joan As Police Woman. ' Completely infectious' BBC Music ***** ' Immense yet ultra- supple sophistication, musicianship of the first order ...a breath of fresh air' SONGLINES ' Guitarist with that bravely experimental trio Lau, Kris Drever has all the makings of a solo celebrity' THE GUARDIAN ' Sets the standard for others to follow - Kris Drever is a serious talent' MOJO

Repress!

The Pretty Things Classic Album S.F. Sorrow re-issued with original UK artwork on Madfish. This vinyl edition of the album re-mastered from the original analogue tapes. It is pressed on 180g heavyweight vinyl and packaged with the original UK artwork gatefold sleeve, with cover art from Phil May.


The Pretty Things created some of the most exciting and innovative records of the late sixties and early seventies. Winners of the Hero award at the 2009 Mojo Honours, the band have been name checked over the years by an array of artists ranging from The Clash, David Bowie and Aerosmith through to The Libertines and Kasabian.


'SF Sorrow' is one of the great classics of the psychedelic era. The album stands favourable comparison with 'Sgt Pepper' and 'Piper At The Gates Of Dawn' as one of the defining records of the time. Originally recorded at Abbey Road in 1967 and 1968 it was the first and the most complete rock-opera to be recorded and released, pre-dating 'Tommy' by a full year.

The Pretty Things are active today and still play live regularly.

"a psychedelic masterpiece" - The Guardian

Across the arc of Tristan Allen’s epiphanic, four part journey, Tin Iso and the Dawn, the New York based composer and puppeteer brings sonic life to a fantastical realm of characters whose universal longings mirror our own. In the first release of this mythic trilogy, intricate sound design and spellbinding leitmotifs make sense of loss and what’s beyond.

Formative exposures by way of travel through Asia, studies in Gamelan, a paper mache Christmas angel, and their dad’s Bread and Puppet Theater artifacts formed a web of inspiration from which Tristan’s desire to combine puppetry and their fascination for the narrative power of instrumental music emerged. Years of synchronistic inspirational encounters with “guardian angels” in the form of music mentors and puppeteer masters incentivized Tristan to pursue a project where they could focus on sound and diverse instrumentation.

Through this impulse, Tristan ceremoniously constructed the imaginary world of Tin Iso and the Dawn, loosely based on Wagner’s three act opera Tristan und Isolde. Composed and recorded between 2015 and 2022 across apartments from Boston to Brooklyn, with field recordings from locations of vivid sentiment: Upstate New York—where Tristan grew up, Quebec—where most of their close family lives, and Japan—where they lived briefly as a child, each moment of Tin Iso glimmers with nostalgic immediacy and the prescience of new voyages unfolding.

180gr./4p Booklet/Black Vinyl

Audiophiles 180g Vinyl // Inkl. 4-seitigem Booklet mit Band-Fotos und Song-Texten // Das legendäre Kultalbum aus dem Jahr 1983 mit den Hit-Singles Balls To The Wall, Love Child und London Leatherboys // BLACK Vinyl Edition //

Balls To The Wall ist einer der signifikanten Songs der deutschen Metal-Band Accept. Wahnsinnige Akkordfolgen und stilvolle Soli kennzeichnen die Musik des gesamten Albums. Die 1 0 Tracks sind einzigartig und jeder für sich in einem individuellen Stil gehalten. Balls To TheWall erschien im goldenen Zeitalter des Metals und machte die Band zu einer Ikone ihrer Zeit. Das Album schaffte sogar in die Billboard 200 und hielt sich dort 26 Wochen. Accept ist eine deutsche Heavy-Metal-Band aus Solingen, die von Sänger Udo Dirkschneider, Gitarristen Wolf Hoffmann und Bassisten Peter Baltes gegründet wurde. Ihre Anfänge lassen sich bis in die späten 60er Jahre zurückverfolgen. Die Band spielte eine wichtige Rolle bei der Entwicklung von Speed und Thrash Metal und war Teil der deutschen Heavy Metal-Szene, die Anfang bis Mitte der 80er Jahre entstand.

'Imagination Is A Weapon' lautet der Slogan des neuen GUNSHIP Albums. Diese Aussage fasst das Kernthema ihrer dritten Platte zusammen. GUNSHIP lädt seine Zuhörer ein, die Macht der Vorstellungskraft zu feiern und sich auf die Suche nach dem Einhorn in ihrem eigenen Leben zu begeben. Taucht schwelgend ein in die Fantasie – findet Euer Einhorn. Die entschlossenen Träumer werden die Welt verändern, wenn ihre Visionen in die Realität umgesetzt werden. Mit ihrem dritten Album UNICORN sprengen GUNSHIP weiterhin die Grenzen des Synthwave-Genres. Zu den besonderen Gästen zählen: John Carpenter, Gavin Rossdale (Bush), Dave Lombardo (Slayer), Carpenter Brut, Timmy Cappello (Lost Boys), Health, Tyler Bates (John Wick, Guardians Of The Galaxy), Lights, Power Glove, Charlie Simpson, Britta Phillips (Jem) und Milkie Way (Wargasm).

'Imagination Is A Weapon' lautet der Slogan des neuen GUNSHIP Albums. Diese Aussage fasst das Kernthema ihrer dritten Platte zusammen. GUNSHIP lädt seine Zuhörer ein, die Macht der Vorstellungskraft zu feiern und sich auf die Suche nach dem Einhorn in ihrem eigenen Leben zu begeben. Taucht schwelgend ein in die Fantasie – findet Euer Einhorn. Die entschlossenen Träumer werden die Welt verändern, wenn ihre Visionen in die Realität umgesetzt werden. Mit ihrem dritten Album UNICORN sprengen GUNSHIP weiterhin die Grenzen des Synthwave-Genres. Zu den besonderen Gästen zählen: John Carpenter, Gavin Rossdale (Bush), Dave Lombardo (Slayer), Carpenter Brut, Timmy Cappello (Lost Boys), Health, Tyler Bates (John Wick, Guardians Of The Galaxy), Lights, Power Glove, Charlie Simpson, Britta Phillips (Jem) und Milkie Way (Wargasm).

'Imagination Is A Weapon' lautet der Slogan des neuen GUNSHIP Albums. Diese Aussage fasst das Kernthema ihrer dritten Platte zusammen. GUNSHIP lädt seine Zuhörer ein, die Macht der Vorstellungskraft zu feiern und sich auf die Suche nach dem Einhorn in ihrem eigenen Leben zu begeben. Taucht schwelgend ein in die Fantasie – findet Euer Einhorn. Die entschlossenen Träumer werden die Welt verändern, wenn ihre Visionen in die Realität umgesetzt werden. Mit ihrem dritten Album UNICORN sprengen GUNSHIP weiterhin die Grenzen des Synthwave-Genres. Zu den besonderen Gästen zählen: John Carpenter, Gavin Rossdale (Bush), Dave Lombardo (Slayer), Carpenter Brut, Timmy Cappello (Lost Boys), Health, Tyler Bates (John Wick, Guardians Of The Galaxy), Lights, Power Glove, Charlie Simpson, Britta Phillips (Jem) und Milkie Way (Wargasm).

The undoubted Queen of British Soul and 2023 Olivier Award winner, Beverley Knight returns with a brand new album The Fifth Chapter - on September 29th on Tag8/BMG. The album Includes the first single “Last One On My Mind” which was ROW on R2 and the follow up “Systematic Overload ” which we expcct to also be a R2 favourite
Zoe Ball will be playing Systematic Overload as a first play on R2 on 17th September. Beverley appears at R2 In The Park on 16.09 with appearances on Vernon Kaye TOMY, Rylan KaRyoke appearance confirmed live and interviews with Graham Norton, and a Chris Evans session on Virgin. Press to include Guardian, Sunday Times, and Attitude.
The Fifth Chapter comes on the back of what has undoubtedly been Beverley’s most successful period ever as the iconic Ms Knight celebrates 30 years making music with several top 10 albums and over a million UK albums sold.
UK national TV appearances will support the album release - we expect Royal Variety, Strictly, Sunday Brunch, The One Show and BBC Breakfast news performances and interviews, while Beverley has already appeared on ITN News, and GoggleBox on the launch of the album.
Beverley will take on her biggest ever UK tour throughout October and November, to over 30,000 people, ending with a headline date at the London Palladium on November 14th. The album brings together some of the greatest contemporary songwriting talent including Diane Warren, Seb Coe, Ollie Green and Andrew Roachford, as well as co-production with the likes of AC Burrell, Jimmy Hogarth, Mitch Allen & Josh Cohen/DJ Waldie, The Fifth Chapter is a spectacular journey through the inspirations that have defined her incredible career.
Beverley has collected numerous awards and accolades including an MBE, three MOBO Awards, numerous Brit and Mercury Music Prize nominations and, most recently, an Olivier Award for her role as Emmeline Pankhurst in the critically acclaimed musical SYLVIA at London's Old Vic Theatre. She also recently appeared as a judge on Starstruck alongside Adam Lambert, and Shania Twain.

Factory Benelux presents a limited crystal clear vinyl edition of Dark Light, the eighth studio album from post-punk trailblazers Section 25, originally released in 2013.
Recorded in 2012, Dark Light would be the band’s first collection of new material since the tragic loss of founder Larry Cassidy in 2010, and marked a return to the smooth electro and synth-pop textures first explored on their seminal 1984 album From the Hip. These echoes are amplified by the presence of co-vocalists Beth and Jo Cassidy, as well as a sublime cover image by iconic artist/designer Peter Saville.
Much of Dark Light was produced in collaboration with remixer Derek Miller (aka Outernationale), and includes new versions of single tracks Colour Movement Sex & Violence and Inner Drive. Other stand-out cuts include future pop classic My Outrage, also released as a single on Record Store Day.
“A revelation. The group were once doomy post-punks whose 1984 electronic album From the Hip anticipated house music and thrilled New York clubland. Now the deaths of singers Larry and Jenny Cassidy have inspired their daughter Bethany to carry on the family business and give the band a makeover. The collision of the original members’ brittle rhythms and the angelic voices of Bethany and similarly fresh-faced co-singer Jo takes recent material into shimmering club-pop heaven” (The Guardian, 2014)
Now released on vinyl for the very first time, FBN 145 is limited to just 500 copies pressed on crystal clear vinyl. The digital copy contains several bonus tracks.

Black Truffle is pleased to announce its first release from celebrated London-based Canadian composer Cassandra Miller. Though her body of mature work stretches back almost twenty years, many listeners were introduced to Miller through the success of her astonishing 2015 Duet for Cello and Orchestra, which sets an imperturbable two-note cello part against a series of increasingly dense orchestrations of an Italian folk melody; in 2019, it was selected by The Guardian as one of the ‘best classical music works of the 21st century’. Traveller Song / Thanksong, the first release of her music on vinyl, presents a pair of compositions for voice and ensemble that exemplify Miller’s gently absurd, strikingly beautiful, and utterly unique work.

Like many of Miller’s compositions, these pieces originate in existing music. Traveller Song (2016/2018) begins from a 1950s song of an anonymous Sicilian cart driver recorded by Alan Lomax and Diego Carpitella, which Miller recorded herself singing along to, going on to then record herself singing to her own layered voices. Miller’s untutored voice is an unsteady, wavering wail that has, in her words, ‘more in common with a quasi-shamanistic keening than anything Sicilian’. Heard sometimes alone, sometimes layered, her pre-recorded voice is accompanied by a chamber sextet drawn from London’s Plus-Minus Ensemble. In the first section, Miller’s exposed warble is set to a spare piano accompaniment, somehow both faintly preposterous and magisterial. Following the voice note for note, the piano part often makes use of almost mechanical sequences of parallel chords, reminiscent both of Satie’s Rosicrucian period and the abrupt harmonic movements of a chord organ. The orchestration then opens up to guitar, clarinet, and sliding strings, a delicate environment for Miller’s voice, which, especially when it begins to be layered, generates a powerful sense of intimacy. In its concluding minutes, the folk roots of the original melody return in the form of a glorious full ensemble setting dominated by accordion, clarinet, and strummed guitar. Thanksong begins from recordings of Miller singing along to the third movement of Beethoven’s late quartet in A minor (Op. 132), the ‘holy song of thanks’ the composer wrote to express his gratitude for (temporarily) recovering from illness. Recording herself singing along repeatedly to each of the individual parts of the quartet, Miller created an aural score where each member of the string quartet listens to their own part on headphones, playing by ear. Performed on this recording by Montreal's Quatuor Bozzini, with whom Miller has a decades-long relationship, they are joined by the British soprano Juliet Fraser, who sings material from the Beethoven quartet ‘as slowly and quietly as possible’. The atmosphere of the opening of Beethoven’s Dankgesang, of hushed reawakening and thoughtful reflection, is sustained throughout the fourteen minutes of Miller’s piece, building at points almost to sentimentality before the five individual parts again fall back into a gentle burble of unsynchronised melodic gestures. Like Traveller Song, here the use of the voice is a long way from the mannered performance of much contemporary music, reaching for a human and bodily presence more connected to the reality of the everyday, albeit suffused with wonder. Presented in a stylish sleeve adorned with photography by Lasse Marhaug and liner notes by Cassandra Miller, this is a key release from a major contemporary composer whose work challenges and dazzles in equal measure. .

All vinyl is in a Gatefold jacket w/ two 12pg booklets, printed insert + download card. SH289LPCB // SH289LPIE are both for Indie stores only. CD Packaging: Digipak w/ 12pg lyric poster insert. The Armed return with their new album Perfect Saviors, the first new music since 2021 breakout release ULTRAPOP. Providing a full accounting of album contributors for the first time, Perfect Saviors was produced by the band’s Tony Wolski along with Ben Chisholm and Troy Van Leeuwen, with contributions from Julien Baker, Sarah Tudzin, Mark Guiliana, Justin Meldal-Johnsen, Eric Avery, Stephen Perkins, Josh Klinghoffer, and many more. The album was mixed by Alan Moulder. Vocalist Tony Wolski offered this statement on the album: “Too much information has made us dumb and confused. Too many ways to connect have inadvertently led to isolation. And too much expectation has forced everyone to become a celebrity. Predictable primal dangers have given way to newer social ones. And the result is a world that is confounding and terrifying but ultimately still beautiful. We hope this record is exactly all of that, too. Perfect Saviors is our completely unironic, sincere effort to create the biggest, greatest rock album of the 21st century.” Perfect Saviors is the conclusion of a trilogy of albums examining and dissecting what constitutes “pop culture” in a world of limitless information and access. Using “pop music” loosely as a format in which to express these ideas, each album used composition and presentation as a way to challenge these questions further. Perfect Saviors is the ultimate product of this evolution. Using one of the world’s most well-known mixing engineers to create a beautiful album fully immersed in the language and world of pop through the inherently unique, extreme, and perverse lens, The Armed communicate their art. Perfect Saviors follows 2021’s critically acclaimed album ULTRAPOP which landed on numerous Best of 2021 lists including Pitchfork, New York Times, Stereogum, Revolver, and many more. Album announce along with first single/video "Sport of Form" and which features Julien Baker on vocals and Iggy Pop playing God set for June 27th . Indie Exclusive Sea Blue vinyl in gatefold jacket w/ two 12 page booklets + printed insert Limited to 1500. FADER cover confirmed to run with announce and additional Cover story features confirmed with The Guardian, Revolver and Kerrang! will run. Supporting Queens of the Stone Age on their North America Headline arena tour in August, UK/EU headline tour scheduled for early 2024. An interactive ARG campaign with numerous stages of engagement is underway and will continue through release. A website, media mailings and various social media interactions are leading fans to find easter eggs including songs, album info, videos and much more. Videos for all three focus tracks are completed and will be released along with each song. UK PR handled by Adrian Read at Inside/Ou.

During their original run, Stornoway achieved immense critical acclaim, fan adoration and two Top 20 albums, one of which (their debut ‘Beachcomber’s Windowsill’) was certified Silver. But in 2016 they announced that they were ending on a high (2015’s ‘Bonxie’ being “their best album yet” according to The Guardian) with the following year’s farewell tour, although their rapturously received WOMAD set (“a magnificent farewell”, The Spectator) was delayed until 2022. They still earned new fans, however, when their version of ‘The Only Way Is Up’ exceeded 2 million streams after being used in an advert and in various TV shows.

Vocalist/guitarist Brian Briggs stopped songwriting altogether and instead pursued a new career passion managing a wetland for water voles and lapwings. Nonetheless, Brian and bandmates Jon Ouin (keyboard) and Oli Steadman (bass) stayed in torch, and step-by-step they reconnected with the love of creating music that had first inspired them to start a band.

Das Bristoler Jazz-Kollektiv Ishmael Ensemble verdeutlicht mit "Visions Of Light", dem Nachfolger ihres gefeierten Debüts "A State Of Flow" (2019, "Album Of The Month" Mojo, The Guardian), wie zwischenmenschliche Beziehungen unter den Musikern atemberaubend ehrgeizige und emotional eindrucksvolle Kompositionen entstehen lassen können. Unter Leitung des Saxofonisten Pete Cunningham hat sich das Ensemble als explosive neue Kraft im UK Jazz profiliert, deren cineastischen Tracks Dub und elektronisches Feingefühl aus der vitalen Bristoler Szene kombinieren. Cunninghams Aufstieg als gefragter Produzent führte zu Remixen für Techno-Legende Carl Craig und das legendäre Blue Note-Label.

This song, co- written and produced by Jamie Safir (Kylie, Birdy, Will Young) is from the brand-new collection 'Greek Street Friday' released later this year on all formats. With an ace band, which includes drummer Ian Thomas (George Michael, Van Morrison, Celine Dion) and guitarist David Preston (Melody Gardot, Curtis Stigers), this collection will also feature, on a beautiful new take of Rickie Lee Jones' 'Blinded By The Hunt', the world-renowned saxophonist Iain Ballamy (Everything But The Girl, Hermeto Pascoal, Loose Tubes). 'To Be Held' is a lullaby for our times. The title, inspired by a Truman Capote interview, with Dick Cavett, expands into a beautiful tribute to lost friends, the power of connections, imperfections and navigates the strangeness and beauty of being alive 'on this beaten-up planet of ours'.

Ian Shaw is back with force and with 'the quirks and character tics of every day living, . . . brought into euphoric focus Shaw tours his smart and soulful show' (The Guardian)

Kristin Hersh’s new album is a cinematic road trip; a series of personal vignettes from a fiercely independent auteur, sitting plush with layers of all-consuming strings and mellotron. It’s a watershed moment in a career overflowing with creative firsts and inspirational thinking; an elegant piece of personal reportage, a home movie caught in time. Previously, the juxtaposition of light and dark has been essential to the drama of Throwing Muses and 50FOOTWAVE, but this solo set is something of a departure; more inward looking, quieter but outspoken, underpinned by background noise for ambience and awkwardness. “Passion sounds less angry, more grateful, I think,” Kristin muses, “sweeter, sadder. And somehow, no less alive… over car engines and rain in New England and whistling ducks and wind chimes in New Orleans, it all sounds wistful to me.” ‘Clear Pond Road’ is a life-affirming statement, a further part of the jigsaw, a very personal memoir, from street signs to snapshots; a late blossoming and coming-of-age from a true icon of independence. The record is both intimate yet expansive, written largely within the confines of Hersh’s home, making the proceedings ever more personal. // “Few artists understand the intensity of living one’s art like Hersh” The Guardian // “A fearless rock innovator” New York Times

Nous'klaer Audio presents Martinou - Chiral, the follow full-length up to his 2021 album Rift. This time nine tracks across two vinyls. An album flowing 'in a way' like Rift, but it's different: More outspoken, heavier sound design and it peaks on a blissful note. ''Open up the blinds and take me there. We'll break the surface tension. We'll dive in. I'm locked in your devotion. You give an inclination to our demise. It will be our exit. To bliss, we'll be its guardian. Once there was love. Clear as glassy water. No ripples, no waves. I followed while you led. Our arrival was warm. Hot, even. Stunning to a startling degree. Hands intwined, frolicking towards the blue. Hours passed, and white heat cede to an orange hue. We cooled down. Red. We rallied. Black. It began. Into the deep darkness we ran. White sand, it has a tendency to get everywhere. Salt water will only dehydrate you more. Shriveled and dry. Scratchy and coarse. More. And then we were lost. Fingers once locked grew distant. Morning, dear. Where have you gone? We looked. A glimpse from afar. Red. We rallied. Shall we share a bottle of wine? Black, lost again. Afternoon, friend. Where were you? Red. Alone. Black. We rallied. Shall we try somewhere new? Sand and salt. Evening, sir. Reservation for one? Reservations a plenty, I say. Evening, miss. Dining alone? Aren't we all? Dining, miss, not dying. Oh, yes, alone. Black. Sand and salt. I found you. No. No. Wait, do I know you? You feel like a dream. Don't touch me. Move along, sir. Who are you? Leave. Who are you? Where did you go? Keep moving. I am, I will. Time to move on. I'm moving! Leave. Don't touch me. Leave. Why are you? Exit. Purple. Orange. Yellow. White. Blue. Morning, dear. Shall we have breakfast? I think I'll sleep some more. But it's our last day. I know. See you downstairs when you're ready. OK. I open up the blinds. A bird breaks the surface tension. Locked in. To Devotion? No. Demise. An inclination. Reverie. Take me there. Where? Exit (To Bliss) '' Text by Gregory Markus

Scannoir & Sneaker, aka “GOTT”, explore, transform and mutate. This unique collaboration embodies the perfect symbiosis of passion. “Die Deutsch-Schweizerische Freundschaft” is still profound and continues to have an effect. Now the two exceptional artists present their latest work: GOTT – MUTATIO on the Zurich based label Mattoni Pazzi.

“Alles wird gut” was the motto of the occupied Wohlgroth-Areal in Zurich in 1993, where Sonic Violence was invited to the concert of their “Transfixion” album tour. Industrial beats, dark samples, guitar riffs and moshing punks dominated the scene. At the ticket booth there were CDs to take away: “Sonic Violence – Transfixion”!

A template that now, 30 years later, adorns this memory with the selected track “Malice” in a new guise. GOTT mutates the original into a dark hell ride.

Enter the realm of the Fields of the Nephilim! The guardian waits, a lifetime. Profound and melancholic, he is transformed by GOTT. Dark souls remain dark souls. Daringly and nevertheless tradition-consciously they march through the black terrain. Interwoven by GOTT, guarded by GOTT. Well – GOTT is the guard! Experience this unique metamorphosis with GOTT – MUTATIO.

Das neunköpfige australische Spiritual-Jazz-Ensemble Menagerie um Produzent, Songwriter, Gitarrist, DJ und Aufnahmeleiter Lance Ferguson expandiert seinen Sound weiter in das Musikuniversum. Das neue Album 'The Shores Of Infinity' ist ein zukunftsweisender, rhythmuslastiger Ausdruck des zeitgenössischen Jazz, der, tief in der Tradition verwurzelt, sich jeder Genre-Schublade entzieht. Inspiriert sowohl von der Post-Coltrane-Generation der 70er Jahre als auch von der aktuellen New Wave Of Jazz haben Menagerie international große Wellen geschlagen und bei Worldwide FM, Jazz FM und Jazzwise mehrfach ausgezeichnet.

'So well - and lovingly - executed that it's ultimately impossible to ignore.' - Jazzwise

"There is an overarching sense of profound amazement throughout it all.' - Blues & Soul

'A stunning work, full of integrity and class… Essential.' - Echoes

'Wonderful record, full of some great Kamasi/Donald Byrd/even Art Blakey moments!' - The Guardian

Auf "Crimson Messiah" kombinieren IRON FATE ihren bevorzugten US-Metal-Stil mit Hard Rock Elementen, reinem Heavy Metal und thrashigen Melodien. Das neue Line-up bringt zusätzlich verschiedene musikalische Einflüsse mit ein.
Ein neues Level an musikalischem Können und raffiniertem Songwriting resultiert in einem fast einstündigen Ritt durch rasante, epische, melancholische und sogar aggressive Klanglandschaften.
Lasst euch von Crimson Messiah in den Bann ziehen!

The six letters of Def Jam, like the three of RAL (for Rush Associated Labels), Russell Simmons and Rick Rubin imprinted them indelibly into hip hop mythology. The epicenter is New York, in order to make sure to have in its ranks the best representatives of Boom Bap, Hardcore Funk, Go-Go or Electro. Beastie Boys, EPMD, Onyx, Redman, Method Man, LL Cool J, Junkyard Band, South Central Cartel, 3rd Bass; the list of MC's who left a mark stamped with the Def Jam or RAL logo is a freestyle where catching your breath is difficult. In order to study more closely the footprints left by these behemoths, Uncle O, the man behind the 5 volumes of Shaolin Soul compilations, explored the label's 1985-1995 period. From another age, tucked away behind a photograph of Glen E. Friedman, the man who created the visual history of Def Jam and RAL through iconic covers, they are the work of rap's T-Rex. Dinosaur Beats. Reviews R2, Mojo Blues and Soul, Guardian, Record Collector Ads R2, Mojo.

Ghanas Linda Ayupuka spielt zeremonielle Fra Fra-Musik über schnelle Feuertempi und hypnotische Drumloops, die auf eine internationale Palette elektronischer Tanzstile verweisen, vom DJ-geführten Balani Show-Straßensound Malis über Electro-Acholi bis zu modernem Dancehall/R&B. Auf 'God Created Everything' fängt sie die Unmittelbarkeit früher Aufnahmen von Größen wie Oumou Sangaré und Rokia Traoré ein, um sich als neues westafrikanisches Gesangstalent zu präsentieren. Ihr Produzent Francis Ayamga (Top Link Studios), Live-Drummer von Ghanas King Ayisoba und Produzent der meisten Tracks auf dessen jüngstem Album für Glitterbeat, hebt Lindas Gesang mit seiner spielerischen Produktion von Laptop-DJ-Samples und abstürzenden Drum-Pads in den Himmel.

"(Linda) exists somewhere between the Malian singer Oumou Sangare´ and the lo-fi-to-the-future beats heard on the Nyege Nyege Tapes label." - NPR - All Songs Considered - Best Of 2022

"Combining traditional instrumentation and call-and-response vocals with sparkling synths, rapid-fire beats, and drum machine polyrhythms. Ayupuka achieves an electrifying syncretism on this album, giving Fra Fra gospel its rightful place on the global dance music stage." - BANDCAMP, Best Of 2022

"An uptempo blend of choral chants and sparkling, 80s electro synths." - THE GUARDIAN, Albums Of The Month

"Linda Ayupuka fait du gospel façon disco au Ghana et chante son amour de Dieu sur des synthés entêtants." - LE MONDE

"A mashup of gospel, disco and savannah sounds, produced with all the D.I.Y vim of Balani Show, Nyege Nyege Tapes and the Awesome Tapes roster." - PAN AFRICAN MUSIC - Best Of 2022

"Super interesting!" - GILLES PETERSON, BBC 6MUSIC

'Dream From The Deep Well' is the new album from celebrated Irish singer songwriter Brigid Mae Power. Recognised as a purveyor of dreamier pop with folky leanings, this new album is a departure; a unique marriage of traditional stylings and very modern melodies; a breath-taking soundtrack which underpins her gorgeous vocal. Filled with personal tales of offspring and grandparents, the lovelorn and the lost, it's the essence of re-imagined folk music, from the traditional intro and outro that act as bookends. It's folk music, but not as we know it. In these ever-confusing and often annoying times, Brigid brings us modern folk for modern folk, with her evocative vocal, doubling back on itself with strings, steel guitar, horns and mellotron adding to its baroque loveliness. It's waving back at her rootsy past, daubing new colours on a much-loved canvas. 'Dream From The Deep Well' is a new visionary beginning from a gifted songwriter. Elsewhere, there's the lovelorn longing of her version of Tim Buckley's 'I Must Have Been Blind', alongside a moving tribute to the late Ashling Murphy, a 23-year-old Irish primary school teacher and traditional Irish musician who was attacked and killed while jogging along the Grand Canal just outside Tullamore, County Offaly. It's a harrowing story, delivered with overwhelming compassion. In the best tradition of old school folk music, it opens up a pressing issue to a wider audience. It's an album that's politically primed and socially aware; a broadside for us all, this is Brigid Mae Power's most complete album yet. "Her haunting voice, an instrument that raises the everyday to a near-mystical realm." The Guardian. "The Irish singer-songwriter flits between past and present; between traditional and modern forms; between the heaven in her voice and the earthbound epiphanies of her words." Pitchfork

From Alehouse to Playhouse Bjarte Eike and his barnstorming Barokksolistene capture the vital spark of Restoration London’s entertainment scene with a captivating new recording for Rubicon Classics! The Playhouse Sessions will be released on 23 September 2022 to coincide with Barokksolistene’s concert double-bill at London’s Southbank Centre.

‘A smattering of Purcell, dances from Playford’s Dancing Master, shanties, reels and ballads succumb to a nine-piece ensemble drawing on Baroque, jazz and folk styles for a no holds barred hooley of riotous improvisatory give and take,’ (BBC Music Magazine review of The Alehouse Sessions, August 2019)

London’s musicians, pushed in the 1650s, to the margins of society by order of Oliver Cromwell, found room for new forms of entertainment in city-centre taverns and alehouses. They remained there long after the restoration of the monarchy, performing sets of dances, theatre songs and bawdy ballads to audiences glad to be free from Puritan constraints on pleasure.

Norwegian violinist Bjarte Eike and his Barokksolistene have restored the spirit and substance of those long-forgotten performances with their Alehouse Sessions, hailed by The Times as ‘irresistible’ and ‘fabulously unrestrained’ by The Guardian. Five years ago the Norwegian violinist and his band scored a best-selling album with The Alehouse Sessions on Rubicon Classics. They return to the label with another compelling collection of music and words of the kind on offer more than three centuries ago at Henry Purcell’s favourite Westminster watering holes. The Playhouse Sessions, set for release on Rubicon Classics on 23 September 2022, reflects the uplifting energy and engaging emotional contrasts of Barokksolistene’s Alehouse performances.

“The album contains a sort of inner narrative that runs through the recording,” says Bjarte Eike. “It has become like a play in its own right, with each track being a small tale within a larger story.” The recording’s tracklist includes Eike’s beguiling arrangements of music from Purcell’s semi-opera The Fairy Queen and his own original compositions on words from the play on which it is based, Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream; popular songs and ballads such as ‘The Irish Washerwoman’, ‘I often for my Jenny strove’ and ‘The Three Ravens’; tunes from Purcell’s welcome odes and stage shows, Come ye sons of art and Dido and Aeneas among them; the ‘Willow Song’ from Shakespeare’s Othello; Eike’s own voice in Puck’s monologue from Act 5 of A Midsummer Night’s Dream; and John Dowland’s sublime air ‘Can she excuse my wrongs’.

London’s theatres were closed at the start of the English Civil War in 1642 and remained shut until the Restoration. Alehouses offered redundant musicians, actors and dancers a place to scrape a precarious living and soon became their creative refuge. “Although a few surviving theatres reopened in 1660 with the return of Charles II, there was little money around to rebuild those that had been demolished,” observes Bjarte Eike. “And a generation of musicians had already found an audience in places like the Black Horse in Aldersgate Street. So popular were their alehouse sessions that Cromwell tried to abolish them! But they outlived him and became part of Restoration musical life.” The form of a Barokksolistene Alehouse, he adds, is like a creative room. “Within its framework I can frequently refurbish the show with new contents. The Playhouse project is likewise an extension of the ever-evolving Alehouse Sessions. Together they tell the story of music and theatre in London during Cromwell’s time and after the Restoration. Of course there’s an historical context to what we do. But there’s also the practical context – which is even more important to me – of connecting with a contemporary twenty-first century audience. An Alehouse / Playhouse performance is not something for the museum; it's about music made in the present moment, just as it was in the London alehouses of Purcell’s day -- with their playhouses annexed to the rear of the beer-drinking saloons. The encounter of musicians onstage and the audience in the hall is the real magic of it. We have to fuse the audience into the action of our performance!”

The Playhouse Sessions will be launched on Friday 23 September with a late-night concert at the Purcell Room and a post-concert Alehouse Session in the foyer of the Queen Elizabeth Hall. Soprano Mary Bevan is set to join Eike and his Alehouse Boys for the first half of their Southbank Centre double-bill, offering unique interpretations of songs from Purcell shows and other hits from the late seventeenth-century London stage. “The Southbank Centre is a direct descendant of concerts given in the 1650s in the alehouses of London,” notes Eike. “These alehouses after all staged some of the world’s first public concerts. Later, after the Restoration, it became common for promoters to advertise alehouse concerts in the press and offer subscription tickets. Purcell and his fellow musicians were thus just as at home performing there as they were in the chambers of the royal court or in London’s new theatres.”

Bjarte Eike launched his Alehouse Sessions in company with like-minded musicians 15 years ago. The ensemble comprises a core of regular performers, all of whom have committed to memory a huge setlist of up to four hours of music. Typically they meet a day or so before a concert tour to share a meal and make music together; then next day, re-grouping thirty minutes before the show, they discover Eike’s select-menu for the evening. “That ensures that every show is fresh,” he notes. “I make sure we never repeat the same programme twice. It’s therefore essential to work with people who share my outlook and dare to adventure. We’re into a high-risk sport, with lots of traps and places where the unexpected appears - for good or for ill. And so the audience knows we’re vulnerable. But our skill is seen in how we re-act on the hoof to the unpredictable. That’s authenticity and honesty - and above all it’s a performance that’s genuine.”

Armed with a classical training and a background in folk music and improvisation, Bjarte Eike was drawn naturally to Early Music in all its stylistic variety. “I never really felt at home with only one genre,” he recalls. “Early Music allowed me to study profound, complicated compositions, but performing it has also opened up the chance of rebellion and uproar! Early music offers wide, multi-faceted areas of musical exploration for me. You find, for instance, links to different types of music wherever you look in seventeenth-century English repertoire. And I am fascinated by all these connections. They offer a foundation for the Alehouse Sessions and for all Barokksolistene performance more generally. Every member of the group plays, sings, dances and improvises without limitation. We’re all interested in the many different fields of being a stage performer and pushing hard at the ‘normal’ boundaries of what it means to be a classical musician.”

Please take the five stars not as a statement that this is the best record of 2013, but as a delighted endorsement of a genre classic. With his fifth record (3 with Harpoons, and 2 solo) Ezra Furman has made an album of classicist rock'n'roll that never feels like an exercise, but a living, breathing piece of self-expression. The foundations are obvious, but the simple touches that adorn them are what elevates Day of the Dog. Been So Strange, for example, is the Velvet Underground's chugging R&B reincarnated, but with the delicious addition of a horn section. It leaves you wondering why Lou Reed never thought to do the same, so well does it work. Slacker/Adria is nervy, jittery powerpop until two minutes in, when the bottom drops out of the song and it turns into a doomy riff over which Furman appears to be telling us his nightmares: "I see white crosses burning across a dark landscape." He's seen his critics coming, too: the liner notes contain an index so you can check off the references. Clever, funny, sharp and tuneful – a great rock'n'roll record.” Michael Hann (The Guardian).

Edition of 500 copies. Comes with download code and insert.

' Funkadelic touring the vast Caribbean coastline of Venezuela, together with Afrosound and Grupo Bota, with endless supplies of Aguardiente and other substances, in a “Back to the future” setting. ' ....?

Lola's Dice's debut album is the result of a radical musical transmutation, marked by the phenomenon of massive Venezuelan emigration. The songs contained in "Pura maldad" expose the current point of that process with amazing detail. Rhythms that were considered exclusively "traditional" and almost untouchable back home (Tamborera, Gaita) get twisted, stretched and pushed beyond any imaginary limit, while being combined with healthy doses of Disco, Funk, Electro, Techno and their Caribbean counterparts, Merengue, Salsa and Compass.

Having taken their first steps in the key of Funk-Rock, things first took a turn after the leader Javier Bohorquez met Venezuelan producer Alex Figueira (Fumaça Preta, Conjunto Papa Upa, etc) at a show and he handed him a business card. The tropical psychedelic sound Figueira was specialized on spoke immediately to Javier, as it did combine many of the crazy and groovy elements he loved from the most "out there" Funk (a la Funkadelic), with the countless Caribbean rhythms he had been exposed to, having grown up in Venezuela.

After the first EP "Viaje al centro del ritmo", where everything acquired a decisive tropical tone, a further eccentric exploration of the music of their homeland became inevitable. The subsequent single "Cacri 'e Playa / Sr Cartujo" clearly showed where things were moving towards.

“Pura Maldad” is a true tropical lysergic trip, and while you see vibrant colors and things move in very strange ways, the sun never seizes to shine. Despite its profoundly experimental character, the album proves very useful to anyone in need of getting a party started, maintained or fully blown up, depending at what point of the evening it’s played.

Artwork by Colombian artist Kevin Simón Mancera.

Produced by Alex Figueira at Heat Too Hot, Amsterdam.

Ein zentrales Album für die heutige Zeit: hell, frei, unnachgiebig, optimistisch. Brain Worms ist das bisher vollste und makelloseste Album von RVG. Auf "Brain Worms" wird deutlich, dass die Band in bester Form ist. Der Album-Opener 'Common Ground' gibt den Ton an für das, was kommen wird; ein glänzendes, mitreißendes, schlagkräftiges Album mit allen geliebten RVG-Merkmalen. Vagers Stimme ist ungefiltert und souverän wie immer, wenn sie ihre cleveren, nicht ganz ironischen Texte vorträgt. Hier fühlen sich diese Texte jedoch viel weniger resigniert und sehnsüchtig an, sondern viel mehr trotzig und fröhlich. Tambourine" ist der einzige Covid-Song, den Vager schrieb, als sie "versuchte, keine Covid-Songs zu schreiben", und es ist ein schmerzhaft ehrliches Porträt der Trauer inmitten der Isolation. Brain Worms" erzählt die nur allzu bekannte Geschichte eines Menschen, der in den Kaninchenbau des Internets fällt und Trost in Verschwörungen findet. Nothing Really Changes" ist ein Keyboarder-lastiges New-Wave-Ding, während das abschließende "Tropic of Cancer" mit Vagers selbstbewusstem neuen Manifest glänzt: Ich weiß, wie ich bin, und ich weiß, wie ich werde. Wenn du denkst, ich bin seltsam, hast du noch nichts gesehen. Bloxham, Nolte und Wallace erwecken Vagers Songwriting mit Bravour zum Leben. Aufgenommen in den Londoner Snap Studios mit James Trevascus (Nick Cave & Warren Ellis, PJ Harvey), strotzen alle zehn Tracks vor üppigen Klängen, klaren Absichten und der Magie einer Akustikgitarre, die einst Kate Bush gehörte und die ihr von Tears for Fears geschenkt wurde (die, so die Legende, "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" darauf geschrieben hat). Die vier Bandmitglieder - Leadsänger und Gitarrist Vager, Gitarrist Reuben Bloxham, Schlagzeuger Marc Nolte und Bassist Isabele Wallace - sind so selbstbewusst wie noch nie bei RVG. Sie haben ihre Einflüsse hinter sich gelassen, sich selbst vorangetrieben und neue Dinge ausprobiert. Und sie haben ein Album gemacht, das sie nach allem, was sie sagen, als ihr bestes bezeichnen können. Brain Worms" fühlt sich an wie die Antithese zu dem, was eine Post-Pandemic-Platte leicht sein könnte. Für eine Band, die bereits Musik über das Zurückgezogensein schrieb, "wir waren deprimiert und gingen auf unseren ersten beiden Alben nicht nach draußen", gab die erzwungene Isolation und die Zeit zum Nachdenken Vager Raum, über alles zu schreiben, was sie wollte. Und es stellte sich heraus, dass sie bereit war, über Akzeptanz zu schreiben. "Wenn wir nur ein weiteres Album machen könnten, wäre es dieses", sagt Vager. Rolling Stone: "Eine Visitenkarte für Außenseiter... dynamischer und vitaler Post-Punk" The Guardian: "Eine der vitalsten Bands der australischen Szene von heute.

Ralph Alessis vierte Veröffentlichung als Bandleader für ECM folgt auf eine einzigartige Albumserie, die von The New York Times bis The Guardian ausschließlich mit Lob überschüttet wurde. Die britische Zeitung pries Ralphs vorherige Aufnahme Imaginary Friends (2019) für die ”elegante Balance aus ergreifenden, verspielten Originalkompositionen und apart forschender Improvisation” und erklärte es zu ”seinem bisher besten Album”. It’s Always Now strotzt jedoch nur so vor Argumenten, dass es einen neuen Anwärter auf
diesen Titel gibt. Auf seinem neuen Album ist Alessis einzigartiger Ton so geschmeidig, durchdringend und präsent wie eh und je, umgeben von einer neu zusammengestellten Quartettbesetzung – Pianist Florian Weber, Bänz Oester am Bass und Schlagzeuger Gerry Hemingway – die mit einem sechsten Sinn durch die eigenwillig swingenden Kompositionen des Trompeters navigiert. Das Album ist nicht nur eine Fortsetzung der Arbeit Alessis, sondern rückt auch Florians Entwicklung bei ECM – es ist bereits sein viertes Album
für das Label – in den Fokus. Seine individuelle harmonische Herangehensweise an den Tasten ist in der Rolle des Sideman ebenso ausgeprägt wie als Bandleader auf seinen eigenen Einspielungen, und sein tiefes Gespür für den Puls von Alessis Kompositionen bereichert diese Session. Das Album wurde von Manfred Eicher produziert.

Sometimes I sink into the dark side of life,
Lucky me to have music to pull me back into the light” Kutiman

Following on from his critically acclaimed Open LP released in October, revered polymath Kutiman returns to Siyal Music with his Dense EP. Kutiman continues to push forward with developing his sound as we see the artist creating his first ever electric leaning release. Not the only first, as the haunting vocals layered throughout are a result of Kutiman debuting his very own voice. Kutiman pulls elements from various musical inspirations, be it moody electronica, garage and 2step, modern classical music, ambient or twisted r'n'b. The outcome is a unique, cutting edge blend of emotional pitched down vocals, melodic airy pianos and glitching sound effects.

“This EP expresses emotions from a dark period that I went through. At the time I was into dark electronics and also found inspiration from Rhythm and Sound, Burial, The Blaze, Plasticman and more. The EP all started from a little "Volca" drum machine, which I hooked up and set up a mostly analogue setup around it with some synths and drum machines that enabled me to "jam" a lot of the music without the need to stop for overdubbing or editing”. Kutiman

With an illustrious career spanning over a decade, Ophir Kutiel aka Kutiman moved to Tel Aviv as a teenager to study jazz at the prestigious Rimon music college. It was during this time that he was able to immerse himself in music, with influences cited as Massive Attack, DJ Shadow, Amon Tobin and Parliament. Fast forward to 2007 and his self-titled debut album received a 8.2 rating from Pitchfork and set the precedent for what was to come. Other tastemakers to highlight over the years include; The Guardian, Billboard, The New Yorker, The Wire, Uncut and XLR8R among others. Kutiman is forever pushing boundaries with his music, and draws on a range of world influences from spiritual jazz to psychedelic funk. ‘Dense EP’ sees Kutiman adding yet another string to his musical bow, as we enter the era of electronic inspired music.

Back on vinyl for the first time in since its original 1976 pressing, 2nd Resurrection by Stairsteps will be reissued on gold vinyl for RSD on Dark Horse Records, the label founded by George Harrison. Originally discovered by Curtis Mayfield, the band was previously known as The Five Stairsteps - famous for their hit song “O-o-h Child,” which saw new life recently after appearing in Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy. Stairsteps were introduced to George Harrison by Billy Preston, who produced and played keyboards on 2nd Resurrection. The album also features contributions by Robert Margouleff and Malcolm Cecil, known for their innovative synthesizer work with Stevie Wonder.