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Knucks takes the Hip Hop world by storm as he gears for the release of his highly anticipated new project "Alpha Place"'.Following the release of his unorthodox visuals, Knucks delivers heartfelt messages through addictive rap compositions

A dynamic new face to the genre, "Alpha Place" focuses on the feelings and thoughts that the artist and producer has been experiencing growing up in London, channeled through the stirring essence of music. Highlighting important narratives and revitalising the Hip Hop genre, with a composition which is both soulful, moving, and memorable, the rising new artist is changing the rules of the
game.Knucks is taking his artistry to new heights in Alpha Place, with soulful samples and distinctive production styles paired with some of the UK's biggest names in the rap game. The project is more than just an ode to the neighbourhood Knucks grew up in Alpha House but a representation of life and culture on all sides of the capital. Giving a voice to many experiences shared by young people growing up. Knucks makes his mark on the industry with this new body of work pushing boundaries and channelling his authentic flow and flair.

From selling out headline shows and opening for the likes of Wretch 32, Knuck's approach and unorthodox style has garnered over 150 million streams across all platforms independently as well as earning critical acclaim from outlets such as GQ Style, Wonderland, Notion and many more. Boasting a range of noteworthy features including contributing show-stealing verses on collaborations like "Beg To Differ" with Emil, "Ting Tun Up, Pt. II '' with Montreal's Skiifall.

ke and Tina Turner formed a duo in 1960 and were soon seen as “one of the most potent live acts on the R&B circuit. The duo released their sixth studio album River Deep - Mountain High in 1966, which was produced by the legendary Phil Spector with his “Wall Of Sound”. They recorded the album with session musicians Jack Nitzsche, Leon Russell, Jim Horn, Glen Campbell, Darlene Love and Clydie “Brown Sugar” King.

The opening title track became a major hit and is still seen as one of the songs that shaped rock and roll. It is also the track that was arguably the high point of Spector’s “Wall Of Sound” production style. The 12-track set included three more successful tracks: “A Fool In Love”, “I Idolize You” and “It’s Gonna Work Out Fine”.

Italian dream team production for this new Balearia wax: Memoryman aka Uovo, Ivan Iacobucci, Leo Mas and Fabrice hosted by Dj Fede & Robert Ownes.

A superb groovy release, where all the elements lift your dancefloor spirit. A must have release!

REPRESS

Acid bass, slow funk and cosmic energy make for a mind expanding trip in the Liquid Canoe.
Load up on edibles, make it a macro-dose and let the music lead the way.

Whether you’re hard at work on a Hamburg allotment, basking in the heat of a Balinese beach or enjoying the cool waters of the Salish Sea, remember that the same sky stretches over all of us.
And if you forget your finger for a minute and soak in the heavenly beauty instead, you might just catch the cosmic vibrations of Liquid Canoe, the latest members of the Growing Bin family.

A loose ensemble, Liquid Canoe is the brainchild of Wolfgang Matthes, a lost Angelino who’s swapped the rush and push of a mega city for the space of the Pacific Northwest - and listening to this eight track offering, you’ll realise that space is the place. Armed with an array of vintage synths and programmed rhythms, Wolfgang sketched out a slew of inter dimensional transmissions, inspired by the commune electronics and space rock of 70s Germany and inhabited by the spirit of the boogie. Inviting friends to drop by and lend their own instrumental skill, Wolfgang quickly turned Liquid Canoe into a true collaboration. Finalised in a converted stable on Galiano Island, the LP is a perfect marriage of the electronic and organic, shimmering arps and spheric synth bass intertwined with American primitive guitar, nuanced hand percussion and glassy chimes. As this mind expanding collection stretches out towards infinity, you’ll hear Floyd-ian funk, cosmic dub, tangerine daydreams and micro-dosed ambience, all imbued with the memories of New York lofts, Bay Area warehouses, skyscraping pines or the world wide web of fungi. Liquid Canoe taking you on an oarsome trip.

ft. Tamar Osborn

Emerging labels and established producers, Don Pascal (Afro Atlantic) and Tom Funk (Lazy Robot Records) collaborate as "September Sun" for this two track release.

With special guests Myele Manzanza on drums and flautist/saxophonist Tamar Osborn adding their signature sound to this Leon Thomas-esque release.

Harnessing spiritual delicacy and timeless melodies, this debut two track release covers a cross section of Jazz, reminiscent of the 70s, with a contemporary UK edge.

Kendrick Lamar released his first album in 5 years, Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers

Cerrero, Llorona Records founder's solo project, joins young "Gaita flute" and trumpet wizard El "León" Pardo (Ondatrópica) for an acid cumbia infused dub journey to the underground electronic sound of south America. Blend of ritualism and futurism, rough ethereal sound, melancholic voices and analog dub mixing for a unique record that presents the work of the thriving electronic acts from Colombia. Llorona's in-house act, Cerrero, teaming up with another Colombian, gaitero and trompetista, El Leon Pardo. The enigmatic and cult like figure has featured on many-a-Colombian record in recent years, including, Ondatropica and Velandia y La Tigra. Though this might be one of the most exciting match-ups yet. Cerrero's minimalistic electronic beats channeled through an analogue console alongside the abraded howls of gaita and accentuated trumpet work. The deep and bassy four-track EP, Canción Para Un Amigo, was justly named to mark the meeting of these two brilliant minds. Mixed in the extemporaneous ambience of a live recorded session, it makes for a riveting listen. Six standalone tracks, bound through crescendoing loops which culminate in an ethereal and atmospheric ritual of sound which evokes Colombian ancestry. From the spellbinding opening of gaita-led "Canción Para Un Amigo", the EP evolves through "Todo Te Llevaste", a track skillfully stitched between its vocal interludes by the rat-a-tat of accented tambor, a fanfare of trumpets and underpinning bass line. Closing out via "Cumbia en Lejanía"'s, gaita / trumpet led interplay into "Despedida", a pining jazz melody soaked in reverb, it's as complete of a work we've heard yet from Cerrero and represents another glistening gem in the ever increasing bows of the Llorona catalogue. Inescapably mesmeric as it is a true delight.

The newest psychedelic space ranger Cumbia band from Bogotá's infamous DIY scene have been sent to earth to save the party! Los Cotopla Boyz make the walls sweat, they set fire to your feet on the dance floor. It all started in Bogotá, which you might say is the tropicanibal venue par excellence, a place that has brought life to acts like Frente Cumbiero, Los Meridian Brothers, Romperayo, Chúpame el dedo, Dub de Gaita, Los Pirañas, Onda trópica and León Pardo, among other eccentricities that have taken the world and stand out not only for their virtuosity but also the connection that lives between that salvaging of traditional folklore and lysergic futurism that expands hypnotically around the world. From this musical hotbed that emerged in the second decade of the new millennium, there is now a new generation to continue the tropicanibal scene, with groups such as La Sonora Mazurén, La Tromba Bacalao, Los Yoryis, El Conjunto Media Luna and, of course, Los Cotopla Boyz, a five-piece that formed in Bogotá in 2018 but inhabit a post-pandemic dystopian multiverse where their mission is to save the party. So their live performances have that illusion of frantic Power Rangers singing about their adventures, as if these were epic chants, except instead of heroic feats they sing with humor about their everyday lives. Mamarron, Vol. 1 consists of seven millennial cannon shots inspired by Los Mirlos, Los Hechizeros Band, Anan, Wendy Sulca, La Sonora Cordobesa, Bad Bunny, Yandel and Los Corraleros de Majagual. The tracks were laid down on their debut record that saw the light in 2020 in the middle of the pandemic and are now re-released in 2022 by ZZK Records imprint AYA records and being pressed on vinyl. The vinyl album also will include the bonus track "El Peruanito" remixed by Colombian producer Santiago Navas. Los Cotopla Boyz are a sweaty, schizophrenic cumbia experience that has been witnessed by emerging Bogotá clubs like Matik-Matik, Boogaloop, El Chamán, Tejo Turmequé, Videoclub and the festival Hermoso Ruido, providing nights of wild abandon to the beat of an outrageous big cumbia sound, a ritual of release giving those present a maximum catharsis that has no compare, not even the most animalistic moves of any metaller shaking his powerful mane. Los Cotopla make the walls sweat, they set fire to your feet on the dancefloor, drawing amorphous moves from their fans on exquisite nights.

Retro house sounds from Italy on this release... tunes that still go down well with some of the big name festival dj's during their summer tour! A track that remained unpublished for 33 years until Devil Dee decided to make it public and bring his own voice to the spotlight joined by jazz-blues singer Joan Faulkner, (former supporting voice of Boney M and Milli Vanilli, also known by her stage name 'Dee-Vah'). Devil Dee is Davide Mancori - a cinematograph with a flattering career as a club-dj from 80s-90s onwards - who lovingly produced this release which differs from most of the releases on Best Record by its housey vibe. 'And The Beat Goes On', was written in Germany in 1989 by Leonie Gane and Ryan Paris. Laying the crucial foundations for an evolutionary step of the italian disco music. A step forward for the 'Italo' movement which at the end of the 80s was been considered obsolete and defunct. In fact, the track is also referring to the latest Italo-Disco which entirely covered the scene of the 1980s with furious activity, If the meeting between Devil Dee and the famous interpreter of 'Dolce Vita' - Mister Ryan Paris - creates the alchemy, the explosive mix is completed with the precious work of Marco Magrini. The arrangement by Pierluigi Cerin and the executive work of Claudio Casalini close the magic circle. Five friends and a great singer from Indiana to fill the dance floors all over Europe, while the images of the provocative and surreal video-clip capture the audience by splitting in two. There are those who do not want to see certain issues publicized and those who appreciate their cheekiness, such as Best Record which by publishing the vinyl printed at 180 grams celebrates the 40 years of activity.

Along with Wolfgang Haffner, Jost Nickel is one of the very few top German tour and session drummers whose name also enjoys an excellent international reputation.
He succeeded as a drummer and musical director in the band of Mousse T and played with Sasha, Johannes Oerding, Marla Glen and SEEED, among others. Since 2006, Jost Nickel has been the drummer in Disko No.1, the band of German soul superstar Jan Delay. Involuntarily slowed down by the corona induced standstill of the cultural scene, Jost has used the time wisely and written and recorded his debut album ‘The Check In’, which has been eagerly awaited by many.
Besides the top German musicians Claus Fischer, Mark Smith (bass), Hanno Busch, Dirk Berger (guitar), Simon Oslender (keys), Lutz Krajenski (arrangements), and the colleagues of Disko No.1, international jazz stars like Jimmy Haslip (bass), Barry Finnerty
(guitar) and Jeff Lorber (keys) recorded the album.
Good things take time, as the saying goes, and Jost Nickel truly took his time writing and
realising his debut album. But the wait was worth it!

Come for the leopard, stay for the stone cold jams. Yet another thrilling, funky-prog jazzy-rock fusion beauty from Ian Carr’s Nucleus. Originally released on Vertigo in 1975, Alleycat was never re-pressed so those original copies are now very tricky to score. Like all the Nucleus records, it’s aged ridiculously well and this Be With re-issue, re-mastered from the original analogue tapes, shows off just why this deserves to be back in press.

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

Under bandleader Carr, Nucleus existed as a fluid line-up of inventive, skilled musicians. This constant evolution and revolution was all part of the continuous musical exploration and discovery that took jazz to new levels. And the music has stayed relevant. To steal a line from a recent review of our re-issue of Roots, when it comes to anything Nucleus “it’s basically already hip-hop”.

Alleycat was the last Nucleus album recorded for the Vertigo label. Released in 1975, it was again meticulously produced by Jon Hiseman and is every bit as sinuous as anything else the group had recorded. As far as riff-laden accidental cop-funk goes, there’s so much energy coursing through the music that at times it sounds like a live recording. It’s pretty unbeatable.

Uptempo opener “Phaideaux Corner” is a funk-flavoured opus with a groove that simply swaggers. This trademark Roger Sutton piece benefits from Trevor Tomkins’s percussive expertise and some excellent sax and keyboard soloing. Check out Geoff Castle on squelchy, stabbing Moog duties. Ian Carr’s elegantly laidback title track is a lengthy suite of magisterial themes. Typically complex, it still gets you hooked and is just riddled with the funk. Carr builds up his initially “straight” trumpet solo with later use of echo to mesmeric effect. And there’s some excellent wah-wah guitar shredding by Ken Shaw too. Nice.

The second side opens with the killer “Splat” and finds Nucleus really ripping it up. A fat, funky bass guitar riff introduces us to the track and stays with us until the end. The often mangled bass groove is pushed along by rattling drums and percussion, dropping out for some restful moments of spacey calm, and along the way picking up some lengthy keyboard noodling by Castle. So so good.

The cool “You Can’t Be Sure” is a gentle jam with Shaw on 12-string acoustic guitar, together with Carr’s muted trumpet and some marvellous fretless work from Sutton for extra colour. The album closes with Bob Bertles’ galloping “Nosegay”, written perhaps as a response to some of the faster Mahavishnu Orchestra pieces. It’s an example of well crafted jazz-rock that doesn’t compromise any of its jazziness, yet it still very definitely rocks.

This Be With re-issue of Alleycat has been re-mastered from the original Vertigo master tapes, Simon Francis’ mastering working together with Pete Norman’s cut to weave their usual magic with these wonderful recordings. The cool AF cover - that leopard was just a cat before he heard Nucleus, you know - has been restored as the finishing touch to this long overdue re-issue.

Mind Dance’s first release of the year, ‘Furious Frank – Wavepool', offers up four emotive, yet unique, club cuts. Including a proggy remix of the A1 by NZ’s own Eden Burns, which skillfully weaves between energetic perc build ups, catchy vocal synths and indulgent chords.

Terrace Martins neuestes Projekt Drones beschreibt der Künstler als "Black Disneyland" - eine Mischung aus überdimensionalen, farbenfrohen Charakteren, die als Avatare von Emotionen in kleinen Welten innerhalb einer größeren Welt funktionieren. Um seine Vision zum Klingen zu bringen, rief Martin - ein dreimaliger Grammy-Nominierter, der einige der größten Namen der Rap-Szene von Los Angeles sowie legendäre Genre-Pioniere wie Herbie Hancock und Clark Terry produziert hat und gleichzeitig Teil des West Coast Get
Down ist (zu dem auch Kindheitsfreund Kamasi Washington, Bass-Architekt Thundercat und andere moderne musikalische Koryphäen gehören) - Freunde, Nachbarn und Kollaborateure an. Kendrick Lamar , Snoop Dogg , Ty Dolla $ign und James Fauntleroy tauchen im Titeltrack auf und meditieren zu Slinky Funk und R&B darüber, wie wir in Beziehungen als Automaten funktionieren können. Die Töne, für die Martin bekannt ist, tauchen auf "Griots of the Crenshaw District" auf, einer instrumentalen Jazzexplosion, die von Grammy-Gewinner
Hit-Boy produziert wurde und bei der Martin, Tenorsaxofonist Kamasi Washington und Urban Maestro Robert Glasper verschlungene Noten in die Luft blasen. Aber es macht auch Platz für Songs wie das butterweiche "This Morning" von Arin Ray und Smino und "Reflection", James Fauntleroys digitalisiertes Plädoyer für Sehnsucht und Sinnlichkeit in einem ruhigen Sturm

Following on from Le Motel’s knockout release in February, Brussel-based producer DJ JM lands on Maloca Records with a new EP ‘Squash’. The prolific producer is known for his impressive output of production-only mixes and releases on labels such as Nervous Horizon, Goon Club Allstars, and Even The Strong. The DJ JM project was first established in Vilnius, Lithuania in 2015, becoming quickly known for off-kilter club records. Heavily driven by percussion, DJ JM continues his powerful stride, this time providing six weird and wonky dancefloor anthems. With the Maloca Records ethos built upon global collaborations, on this record DJ JM teams up with Ugandan MC Swordman Kitala on ‘Funicular’. Launching Maloca Records in 2020, Le Motel aims to bring together an international network of makers which was highlighted on the label’s first compilation, Maloca Vol. 1. The release focused on a terrestrial and borderless percussive sound that has been bubbling in clubs and Le Motel’s orbit, featuring tracks from Nick León, OMAAR, DJ JM, Dengue Dengue Dengue, Coen, DJ N.K. and Tsongo. Maloca has also released solo EPs from Howie Lee, Farsight and Griffit Vigo.

For Fans Of… Dr. John, Allen Toussaint, The Faces, Joe Cocker, Leon Russell, Buddy Miles, The Meters, Father John Misty. "I just wanted to be honest about everything, from my musical influences to my story," muses Neal Francis. After years of dishonest living - consumed by drugs, alcohol, and addiction - such sincerity is jarring from the 30-year-old Chicago-based musician. Liberated from a self-destructive past and born anew in sobriety, Francis has captured an inspired collection of songs steeped in New Orleans rhythms, Chicago blues, and early 70s rock n' roll. There is a deep connection between Francis's childhood - his obsession with boogie woogie piano, his father's gift of a dusty Dr. John LP - and the songs he's created. The result is an astonishing collection of material without parallel in the contemporary funk and soul scene. The influences are unmistakable: the vocal stylings of Allen Toussaint and Leon Russell; the second line rhythms of The Meters and Dr. John; the barroom rock 'n' roll of The Rolling Stones; the gospel soul of Billy Preston; the roots music of The Band. Francis pays tribute to the masters but has his own story to tell: "It's the life I've lived so far." After playing his first live show in November 2018, Francis was signed by veteran agents Joshua Knight and Phil Egenthal of Paradigm Talent Agency. 2019 brought a North American tour supporting Australian band The Cat Empire as well as radio play on KEXP, KCRW's The Morning Becomes Eclectic, and BBC Radio 6. Francis and his four-piece band performed at festivals such as Summer Camp and the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival and shared the stage with The Meters and Lee Fields & The Expressions. Francis continues to tour relentlessly to promote his own music. "I'm doing this to fulfill a drive within myself, but also to pay tribute to the gifts I've been given. And it comes from a place of immense gratitude. I've been given so much in my life, especially in the last two years, that this feels like a bonus." Also Available From Neal Francis: These Are The Days 7”.

'Livin' My Best Life' is the follow-up to Scott's Nothing To Do Town EP
Produced by Will Weatherly, Matt Alderman, Jim Ed Norman, Curt Gibbs and Mark
Holman, the new record delivers a personal set filled with the backroads,
barstools and church pews that defined the Louisiana native's youth. The singer/
songwriter co-penned eight of the album's 16 selections, whose credits boast an
all- star lineup of writers like Morgan Wallen, HARDY, Ashley Gorley and more.
Notable highlights include fiery heartbreak single "New Truck," unifying anthem "In
Our Blood (feat. Jimmie Allen)" and No. 1 hit "Nobody."
Bob Harris BBC Radio 2 -mulitple plays
Included on Baylen Leonard's Spotlight Tracks on the Absolute Radio Country
playlistFeatures to run in Country Music People and Maverick
Full page ad in Country Music People, Quarter page ad in Maverick

French pianist, jazz vocalist and songwriter Matthieu Boré grew up surrounded by music and the arts. While his great-grandfather loved to give impromptu renditions of famous opera arias, his father's tastes were more modern and Matthieu's childhood was punctuated by the sounds of Eric Clapton, Bob Marley and the Stray Cats. At age 7, Matthieu began taking piano lessons, focussing predominantly on classical repertoire. In the 1990s he took his first steps into the music profession, singing in various punk and trip hop outfits, before pursuing his love of 1930s and 40s jazz. In early 2000, the young singer-pianist began playing the Parisian jazz club circuit and a year later, released an entire album of Fats Domino covers. In keeping with his fascination of 1950s R&B music, he issued Doo Wop in 2003. Sometimes on My Own (2007) is inspired by his idols Irvin Berlin, Hoagy Carmichael and Gershwin. 2009 saw the release of FriZZante!!, an album featuring a blend of covers and his own originals, with full orchestra. Matthieu Boré has performed at festivals and concert venues in both France and around the world, including the Montreal Festival, the Jarasum Festival (Korea), the New Morning and the Olympia. In 2011, he released a live album recorded at Paris's iconic Duc des Lombards. Roots (2012) was a surprising cocktail - a strong dose of New Orleans funk, from with Matthieu draws his own nonchalant style, combined with a predilection for acoustic sounds and syncopated grooves. In 2015, grammy-nominated Leo Sidran produced Naked Songs which explores the idea of pearing back songs to their defining elements. In Gumbo Kings (2019), Matthieu pays tribute to Allen Toussaint and The Meters through twelve original songs whilst his most recent release Till The Morning Light(2022) combines Jamaican ska and 60's garage rock influences.

Jazzrausch Bigband stands for a truly unique concept: jazz meets techno meets big band.

After the powerful, song-like album ‘techné’ from 2021, which featured a cast of prominent musical guests, new release ‘Emergenz’ focuses on the core line-up of the band. And a more subtle, yet broader approach, which incorporates elements of minimal music, drum & bass, literature and stronger jazz influences without giving up the
trademark of the band; pulsating grooves and powerful horn arrangements.

When comparing ‘Emergenz’ with earlier albums, what is most striking is how the band’s expressive palette has become even more differentiated and refined. The moments when the energy levels are
at their highest are still dominated by techno jazz, which is only to be expected, but, in between, the regular four-on-the-floor pulse of the bass drum is increasingly suspended, so there are sections
where the forward momentum comes from intricate interlocked horn parts, or just voices.

• Leon Thomas’ debut as a leader was this classic of spiritual jazz recorded for Bob Thiel’s Flying Dutchman label. Originally pressed in 1969, it features an all-star band including Pharoah Sanders (under the name Little Rock), Lonnie Liston Smith (piano), James Spaulding (alto sax), Cecil McBee (bass), Roy Haynes (drums) and Richard Landrum (bongos).

• “Spirits Known And Unknown” features versions of ‘The Creator Has A Master Plan (Peace)’, the classic ‘Song For My Father’, ‘One’, ‘Echoes’ and the topical ‘Damn Nam (Ain’t Goin’ To Vietnam)’. Subtitled New Vocal Frontiers upon release, the rear sleeve noted that “Thomas is searching as far into himself as he can go for spirits known and unknown and is creating new dimensions of vocal expressiveness to bring these spirits – these feelings – into the experience of others.” The fact that this album is hailed as a classic shows that he succeeded.

• Pressed on 180gm vinyl we have remained faithful to the original pressing replicating the Flying Dutchman label style and gatefold-sleeve.

Circles ist LÉONs drittes Studioalbum nach Apart (2020) und erscheint jetzt endlich auch als Vinyl-Version. Von PopMatters wurde es als "deutlich persönlicher als ihr bisheriges Werk" beschrieben, während American Songwriter die Platte als "fruchtbaren Schritt vorwärts in
ihrer Beziehung zu den Fans, selbst aus den entferntesten Ecken der Welt" bezeichnete.

Die von der Kritik gefeierte schwedische Künstlerin, die 2019 ihr selbstbetiteltes Debütalbum veröffentlicht, hat sich seit der Veröffentlichung ihrer Debütsingle im Jahr 2015 eine treue Fangemeinde erarbeitet. Mit jeder Veröffentlichung stellt LÉON ihr Talent für gefühlvolle, zarte und unvergessliche Popsongs unter Beweis. Neben ihrem Debüt im Spätfernsehen in der Late Late Show mit James Corden hat sie weltweit ausverkaufte Headline-Shows und Auftritte auf US-Festivals wie Coachella, Bonnaroo und Lollapalooza bestritten.

Pink Floyd are to release two physical versions of their first newly recorded music in over 25 years, ‘Hey Hey Rise Up’. The single, which was initially released digitally in April in support of the people of Ukraine and was #1 in 29 countries, will be available on 7” and CD single. Both formats will also feature a newly reworked version of ‘A Great Day For Freedom’ from the band’s 1994 album, The Division Bell. The track sees David Gilmour and Nick Mason joined by long time Pink Floyd bass player Guy Pratt, with Nitin Sawhney on keyboards and a lead vocal by Andriy Khlyvnyuk of Ukrainian band Boombox. It also has vocal harmonies by Romany and David Gilmour

When the track was first recorded at the end of March, Andriy, who left his band’s US tour to return home and fight for his country, was in a hospital bed in Kyiv recovering from a shrapnel injury. Proceeds for the physical release and the ongoing digital proceeds will go to Ukraine humanitarian relief.

For this limited edition release, David Gilmour revisited The Division Bell track ‘A Great Day For Freedom’. He has reworked the song using the original tapes which, as well as David, feature Nick Mason on drums and Richard Wright on keyboards, along with backing vocals from Sam Brown, Claudia Fontaine and Durga McBroom. The artwork for the track ‘The Sunflower Look’ features a painting of the national flower of Ukraine with a twist by the Cuban artist Yosan Leon. The cover is a direct reference to the woman who was seen around the world giving sunflower seeds to Russian soldiers and telling them to carry them in their pockets, so that when they die sunflowers will grow.

Sounds like supergroup. Rarely have outstanding figures of such a variety of musical styles collaborated on one album to pay homage to a nearly forgotten artist, one of the few black Beatnik poets, Bob Kaufman.

"All Those Streets I Must Find Cities For" by The Plastik Beatniks is an attempt to acoustically reanimate Bob Kaufman, to return the Beat to him in a transatlantic collaboration. It is a shimmering psychedelic, at times jazzy concept album, sometimes reminiscent of Krautrock or hip hop, about a Beat-era poet who was as great as he was forgotten. It takes spoken word to a new level, as a transatlantic showcase of musical avant-gardes and a joyful "sound archaeology" of modernity, in which the tracks of the "Plastik Beatniks" meet the best voices of America.

The 12 wildly different songs and audi collages, on the transatlantically-produced album, "All the Streets I Must Find Cities For," is based on lyrics by Beat author Bob Kaufman. They were originally part of the radio play "Thank God for Beatniks," for which author Andreas Ammer ("Ammer & Einheit"), Notwist‘s Markus Acher and Micha Acher and loop maker Leo Hopfinger ("LeRoy") formed "The Plastik Beatniks." On the eastern side of the Atlantic they composed music and crafted soundscapes. On the west side of the ocean, they asked three of the most renowned singers, activists and producers in the U.S. to recite or sing Bob Kaufman's poetry.

Punk-pop icon Patti Smith immediately signed on to read Kaufman's poem "Ginsberg (For Allen)". Free jazz vocalist Moor Mother passionately performed Bob Kaufman's "War Memoir". American jazz clarinetist, composer, singer and “International Anthem” labelmate Angel Bat Dawid, a legitimate successor to Sun Ra, polyphonically read and sang such poems as "The Sun is a Negroe" and "West Coast Sound 1956" and included some clarinet solos on top. Also on the album, Bob Kaufman himself recites his previously unknown poems "Hollywood Beat", "Would You Wear My Eyes", and the "Jail Poem" "All Those Streets I Must Find Cities For". Beat chronicler Raymond Foye, who still lives at the Chelsea Hotel in New York, contributed an interview he conducted with late beatnik Allen Ginsberg about Bob Kaufman. Completing the circle was hip-hop artist Adam "DoseOne" ("13&God"), who once gave Markus Acher a well-thumbed volume of Bob Kaufman, whom he admired. He contributed some raps. Thus 12 tracks emerged, as diverse as the artists, poets and musicians who contributed to it. More than an album. An epitaph. A work for the eternity of Beat.

Regarding Bob Kaufman - of course the FBI kept a file on him – first as a sailor, then a communist, and finally a Beat poet. As one of the mainstays of the movement, he edited the literary magazine "Beatitude" in San Francisco and defined "Beatnik" to Allen Ginsberg: half rhythm, half sputnik. Bob recited his poetry loudly on the streets (when he wasn't sunk into years of silence in protest of the Vietnam War) and in the bars and bagel shops of North Beach. Once, he almost landed a pop hit ("Green Green Rocky Road"), which then made Dylan's companion Dave van Ronk famous. That Kaufman is today less known than his friend Allen Ginsberg may be because he was a black Beat poet, and also a Jew. This was not compatible with fame in the US of the 1950s. Though Kaufman had the same publisher, City Lights, as Ginsberg, he was frequently arrested and jailed, and was treated with electric shocks until he developed serious mental heath issues. There he wrote his "Jail Poems". The seventh of these lent this album its name:

"Someone whom I am is no one / Something I have done is nothing Someplace I have been is nowhere / I am not me What of the answers / I must find questions for? All these strange streets I must find cities for, Thank god for beatniks."

Now onto its fourth volume, NuNorthern Soul’s annual Summer Selections EP is fast becoming a must-check for fans of slow-motion sunshine sounds, contemporary Balearic beats and sumptuous downtempo grooves.

Summer Selections Four showcases six hand-picked tracks from EPs and albums to be released by NuNorthern Soul in 2022. A genuine ‘cream of the crop’ or ‘best in class’ feel, with NNS label boss and curator Phil Cooper putting together a varied EP piled high with evocative melodies, atmospheric chords, tactile grooves and ear-catching instrumentation.

First to step up to the plate is experienced producer James Bright, whose cut ‘Amber’ offers a bubbly, colourful and analogue-rich stroll through mid-tempo Balearic house territory. The track is one of the highlights of Bright’s forthcoming Totem EP. It’s quickly followed by ‘Nana a Leon’ from Be.Ianuit’s Entre Dos Islas EP, a gorgeous mixture of deep bass, twinkling pianos, sultry synth-strings, sparkling synthesiser arpeggios, echoing machine drums and spoken word vocals from guest performer Marcos de la Fuente.

San Francisco’s Cole Odin offers a snapshot of his forthcoming Songs For Suns EP via ‘Growing’, a slow-motion sunset soundscape built around ethereal chords, chiming melodies and head-nodding drums, while Gold Suite’s ‘The Cowboy’ – taken from the On My Horizon EP – brilliantly joins the dots between jangling Americana, mid-‘80s Balearic reggae and sun-soaked instrumental synth-pop. While brand-new, it could easily be mistaken for the kind of obscure, hard-to-find gem that gets Balearic record collectors so hot under the collar.

Next up is another new signing to NuNorthern Soul, North of the Island, whose debut EP Feeling Free is undoubtedly a highlight of the label’s 2022 release schedule. ‘I Feel’, the track showcased here, adds attractive, sunset-ready musical flourishes to a chugging, delay-laden rhythm track and the kind if squelchy bass-line most often found in proto-house and early ‘80s electro-funk cuts. It’s a spaced-out, mind-altering delight.

Rounding off another sizzling Summer Selections excursion is ‘Smoke & Fly’ from fast-rising twosome Residentes Balearicos, an Ibiza-based Italian duo who impressed many with their 2021 EPs on Balearic Ensemble. Dusty, bass-heavy, drowsy and picturesque, the track is a simply gorgeous chunk of Balearic dub piled high with organic percussion, undulating acid lines and mazy solos. It provides a fittingly triumphant conclusion to another essential sampler EP from NuNorthern Soul.

The latest album by California based Austrain Folk Noir specialists Son
Of The Velvet Rat - released by Fluff & GravySon of the Velvet Rat was
founded in 2003 by Austrian songwriter Georg Altziebler and organist and
accordionist Heike Binder
Their style is described as folk noir, folk rock, garage rock and Americana, and
they cite musical inspiration from Townes Van Zandt, Georges Brassens and
Dead Moon. Son of the Velvet Rat have also drawn comparisons to Bob Dylan,
Leonhard Cohen, Tom Waits, Nick Cave and Radiohead.

The co-curated Air Texture Compilation series returns with two Brooklyn based selectors.

As the cost of living in Manhattan proper moved artist minded migration patterns further afield, places like East Williamsburg, Bushwick, and Ridgewood became post-cultural centers in a way, with producer after producer gaining international recognition in the last 10+ years. New clubs such as Nowadays, Knockdown Center, and Elsewhere furthered the momentum, anchored by first mover Bossa Nova, and important festivals like Mutual Dreaming and Dweller came soon after.

Collectively, the stage was set for a beautiful moment in electronic music history, still unfolding, and maybe something that could only happen in the States in a place like Brooklyn.

Reissue of 1995 low-fi folk debut of band
featuring Geoff Farina (Karate)

The Secret Stars debut was a cassette-only release issued
by Shrimper Records in 1995. Geoff Farina and Jodi Leo
would record two more full length releases on Shrimper in
the mid to late ’90s along with some seven-inch singles and
scattered tracks.
Geoff Farina would continue to write and record both
solo and in the band Karate. Leo has recorded some solo
records in the years since The Secret Stars disbanded.
This reissue of the first cassette has never sounded so
good. It has been painstakingly mastered from the original
cassette by Carl Saff. The vinyl pressed at Smashed Plastic
Pressing, the CD and digital taken from this mastering.
Attention has been paid to detail, making the experience
of listening analog or digitally reminiscent of the cassette
experience. The tracks are banded as two tracks, side one
and side two on the LP and as track one and two on the CD.
The first press of the LP is on limited edition clear vinyl
with a tour poster reproduction insert. The CD press is in a
digipack. Both include new liner notes by Dennis Callaci.

Stolen Body Records is thrilled to announce the release of Mexican Doom Metal band Terror Cósmico’s first album in 4 years - Miasma.

Miasma is the fourth album from Mexico City based duo, Terror Cósmico. The record takes a different turn in production from past albums, having a more aggressive tone, having drums and guitar recorded separately in the studio, being able to create an intense and surrounding sound.

Miasma is made up of 8 tracks which deliver a great range of emotions, going through desperation, anguish and desolation mixed with an air of nostalgic mystery.

Recorded in January of 2021 in Testa Studio in Leon, Guanajuato, Mexico. The sessions held a vibe of doubt and fear to what the pandemic could bring. The album is charged with all the emotions of a very strange moment in our timeline. The artwork was a commissioned task by Portland artist Jason Barnett.
Tracks:

Finally the 4th volume of "The Encyclopedia of Civilizations" is here! This time it is not a split LP, but a collaboration. Modular synth maestro M. Geddes Gengras and left-field pop priestess Leyna Noel aka Psychic Reality join forces to compose together their new project inspired by Zoroaster: M.Goddess. An exquisite modern ambient record mixing leftfield, kosmische, new age, dub vibes... Very original and rich compositions with genius arrangements combining spacey synth sequences, dreamy guitars, modular sounds, weird rhythms... Along the lines of Craig Leon, Conrad Schnitzler, or the Mecánica Clásica's contemporary approach to the kosmische masters. "Zoroastrianism is an ancient religion that is still actively practiced today by a small population of people worldwide and has had a massive influence on western culture. Many things that appear to be integral to western thinking (and thus “wholesome”) indeed have their roots in ancient Iran. Dualities such as good and evil, light and dark, heaven and hell—even paradise is an old Persian word. For this project, we are exploring this Zoroaster moment—set in the bread basket of the Iranian plateau, six to seven millennia before the Common Era—that’s like a cross-fade. The fading of goddess worship and the first strains of the patriarchy. Not the -ism of today’s still-living religion, but the moment when this man Zoroaster came along and created a new religion that centred one god instead of the many. Forcing the divine feminine underground, if not fully occulted, obscured and engulfed into the mainstream enough to be forgotten. Goddesses that before had their own dedicated cults were converted into lesser players. We’re reviving those flames too."

D'Arcangelo is the duo of Marco and Fabrizio D'Arcangelo and Arium is their first release of sublime introspective electronics for A Colourful Storm. Throughout EPs and seminal albums for Rephlex, Nature and Suction Records, D'Arcangelo forged a sleek and sensuous sound alongside their label mates Bochum Welt, Leo Anibaldi and Lory D. Arium is their latest EP, containing new studio productions and a lost gem produced during the Shipwreck era, hinting at the seminal Broken Toys' Corner and Eksel albums. Full-colour sleeve with insert and liner notes by Marco D'Arcangelo.

"The letter X marks the spot, crosses over, literally with a cross. It’s the former, the ex-. The ex-lover known simply as “an ex”. Ex- is the latin prefix meaning “out”. Exterior, an exit. Extraordinary. Excellent. It’s exciting. Generation X. X-files. X is the unknown. X is Extreme“

Extreme is Molly Nilsson’s tenth studio album. Recorded in 2019 and throughout the 2020 global pandemic at home in Berlin, Extreme is a departure for Nilsson, an explosion of angry love. It’s an album of anthems for the jilted generation, soaked with joy and offering solace, bristling with distorted, Metal guitars and planet-sized choruses that bring light to the dark centre of the galaxy. It’s an album of the times, by the times and for the people. It’s a record about power. About how to fight it, how to take it and how to share it.

Absolute Power explodes with massive guitars, double kick beats and the instantly iconic line “It’s me versus the black hole at the centre of the galaxy.” Nilsson’s performance itself portrays absolute power in its confidence but the song is a call-to-arms, an entreaty to grasp the here and now, to take the power back. It’s Nilsson pacing the ring and we’re instantly in her corner. Earth Girls takes familiar Molly Nilsson themes - female empowerment and subverting the patriarchy - but casually throws in one of the choruses of her career. “Women have no place in this world” she sings, but it’s the world that isn’t good enough. Stadium-sized but still warmly hazy, Earth Girls has its fists in the air, glorifying in harmony, almost ecstatic in its feeling good. Nilsson’s Springsteen-level conviction and righteousness bleeds through the speaker cones, the cognitive dissonance between the song’s cadences and angry lyrics redolent of Bruce in his prime. Female empowerment isn’t always an angry energy on Extreme, however. On Fearless Like A Child, Nilsson’s anthem to the female body and women’s sovereignty of it, she croons over a mid-80s blue-eyed Soul groove. It sets a nocturnal scene as the narrator surveys her past and her surroundings. Before we’re fully submerged in a dreamlike, Steve McQueen-era Prefab Sprout poem to learning from your mistakes the song erupts into one of those lines only Molly Nilsson can get away with: “I love my womb, come inside I feel so alive” she fervently sings. Against the backdrop of ever-encroaching, conservative rulings on women’s reproductive rights in places like Texas, it’s simultaneously angry and full of love.

Every song on Extreme is a gleaming gem in a pouch of jewels. On Kids Today, Nilsson is the voice of wisdom, archly commenting on the eternal struggle between youth and authority. Wisdom infuses Sweet Smell Of Success with a transcendent love that forgives the narrator’s shortcomings and celebrates the moment, it’s a letter to the author from the author that asks “what is success” and concludes that this is it, this song, this moment. It’s a rare moment of simple reflection that is generous in its insight to Nilsson’s inner life. “Success” is a tool of power and we don’t need it… We need power tools and there are moments on Extreme where it feels like Nilsson is showing us how to find them. It's an open conversation through out Extreme. She’s a warm, comforting presence through out the album and specially on these songs of encouragement, songs perhaps sang to a younger Molly Nilsson or, really, to whomever needs to hear them. “They’ll praise your efforts, they’ll call you slurs a rebel, a master, an amateur / Merely with your own existence, you already offer your resistance.” On Avoid Heaven she’s even more direct, pleading with us to avoid concepts of purity and to embrace the glorious, ebullient, emotional mess we’re often in as a method of upending the power structures who need things to be perfect.

They Will Pay brings back the big, distorted power chords in the form of a agit-punk, pop slammer. Of course, when Molly Nilsson does punk pop we get the catchiest chorus this side of The Bangles or The Nerves. It’s rendered in an off the cuff, throwaway manner that is just perfect in its roughness. However, it’s on Pompeii that Nilsson delivers the album’s epic, emotional heartbreaker. Like 1995 on Nilsson’s album Zenith, or Days Of Dust on Twenty Twenty, the lyrics of Pompeii are heavy with a transcendent sadness, an aching poetry that cuts to the truth of the heart like the best Leonard Cohen lines, though here delivered with an uplifting, life-affirming love. It contains the most personal moments of Extreme, a song lit by the dying embers of romance. Yet it’s here where the alchemy at the base of all Nilsson’s best work is found. Turning small nuggets of personal truth into big, generous universal moments that invite everyone to cry, to love and to fight the power. In an album of jewels, it might be the shining star.

Molly Nilsson’s biggest, boldest and most vital album to date, Extreme is about power. Against the love of power and for the power of love.

LIMITED TO 500 COPIES // HIGH-QUALITY TIP-ON COVER // INCL. DOWNLOAD CODE

OFFICIAL RE-ISSUE OF GÖTZ TANGERDING'S BHAKTI JAZZ DEBUT ALBUM !!!

Born in Donauwörth, a small town in Bavaria in 1951, Götz Tangerding studied piano to concert level at the Leopold Mozart Conservatory in Augsburg. In the 1970s he started to make a name for himself on the local Munich jazz scene and traveled through East Europe with drummer Rudi Roth. In 1976 he came to New England Conservatory of Music in Boston to study compositions with George Russell and Jaki Byard with whom he played in the New York Big Band in 1978.

In 1980 he returned to Munich, Germany and founded his formation Bhakti Jazz as well his own record label Bhakti Records. "First Step", recorded at the Loft in Munich on May 1st and 2nd that same year, was the debut album and showcases the huge talent of the young and gifted band leader.

The two best known tracks are probably "Glimpses of Truth" and "Eastern Moods" which have been re-released back to back on 45RPM single by another german reissue label in the late 2000s. However, these are just two out of nine outstanding compositions from the prolific pianist to be found on this album. Tangerding's tasty style of playing, combined with the psychedelic maze created by his fellow band members on flute (Alan Ett), sax (Alan Ett again!), drums (Rudi Roth), and bass (Urs Hämmerli) plus Lisa Dawson's exotic vocal harmonies are sure grab your ear for a mind-blowing experience.

Götz Tangerding, who died much too young early in 1991, left us with dozens of wonderful compositons. "First Step" does not contain a single weak track. It's a true masterpiece and definitely one of the finest independent german jazz albums from the 1980s.

This is the first OFFICIAL RE-ISSUE - limited to 500 (HAND-STAMPED!) COPIES. The record is housed in a HIGH QUALITY TIP-ON record jacket and comes with a FULL ALBUM DOWNLOAD CODE.

“I’ve been playing since I was 11 years old,” says Charlie Gabriel, the most
senior member of the legendary Preservation Hall Band. “I never did anything in
my life but play music. I’ve been blessed with that gift that God gave me, and I’ve
tried to nurse it the best way I knew how.”
 While he’s faced plenty of challenges nursing that gift for more than 78 years,
none likely rank with last winter’s passing of his brother and last living sibling,
Leonard, lost to COVID-19. For the first time ever, Gabriel put down his horn,
filling his days and weeks instead with dark reflection, a stubborn despondency
broken now and then by regular chess matches in the studio kitchen of Hall
leader Ben Jaffe, working overtime to bring his friend some light.
 One such afternoon also included Joshua Starkman, sitting off in a corner
playing his guitar and half-watching the chess from a distance. When Charlie
returned the next day, he brought his saxophone. “I was just inspired to try it, to
play again. It had been a long time, and a guitar makes me feel free. I do love the
sound of a piano, but it takes up a lot of a space, keeps me kind of boxed in.”
That day was to be the first session for ‘Eighty Nine’, almost entirely the work of
Gabriel, Jaffe and Starkman, recorded mostly right there, in the kitchen, by Matt
Aguiluz.
 Charlie Gabriel’s first professional gig dates to 1943, sitting in for his father in
New Orleans’ Eureka Brass Band. As a teenager living in Detroit, Charlie played
with Lionel Hampton, whose band then included a young Charles Mingus, later
spending nine years with a group led by Cab Calloway drummer J.C. Heard.
While he’s also fronted a bebop quintet, played and/or toured with Ella
Fitzgerald, Tony Bennet, Aretha Franklin and many more, this is the first time his
name appears on the front of a record, as a bandleader.
 Since 2006, Gabriel has been a member of the Preservation Hall Jazz Band,
featuring prominently on ‘That’s It, So It Is’, and ‘Tuba to Cuba’. ‘Eighty Nine’ was
different, and not simply due to a smaller ensemble. “We had no particular plan,
or any particular insight on what we were gonna do. But we were enjoying what
we were doing, jamming, having a musical conversation,” Charlie says, further
musing, “Musical conversations cancel out complications.”
 The album includes six standards and three newer pieces on which Gabriel is a
writer: ‘Yellow Moon’, ‘The Darker It Gets’ and ‘I Get Jealous’. The record also
marks Charlie’s return to his first instrument, clarinet, on many of the tracks. “The
clarinet is the mother of the saxophone,” he says. “I started playing clarinet early
in life, and this taught me the saxophone.”
 Finally, ‘Eighty Nine’ includes three tracks of Charlie singing. “I always sung, but
it wasn’t my forte to become a singer,” he says. “The truth is, people often
develop a real relationship with a song once they hear the words. Sometimes I
enjoy singing them.”
 First pressing on translucent gold Loser Edition coloured vinyl

After releasing on Atomnation's Unfold Vol. 2 last year, Berlin-based Italian NOCUI returns with more rich and uplifting grooves on his new 12” “Entrain”.

Leonardo Di Fiore (NOCUI's real name) is a Rome-born composer and a classically trained pianist who brings a performative approach to how he makes music. An early love of jazz also permeates his work and he now considers himself a "studio and sound design obsessive." That shows in the meticulously crafted, always fresh music he makes on his go-to drum machine, the Jomox Alpha Base. NOCUI is also adept at speaking through other key bits of gear such as the Roland SH101, Acidlab 303, DSI Prophet 6, and Haken Continuum Fingerboard - machines that lend his music its signature sound and have taken him to labels like Traum and Wildfire.

Vinyl mini-EP compilation with 5 songs, selected from the 80´s ex- jugoslavian / croatian Disco, New Wave & Electronic Synth Pop scene with mostly unreleased material from original studio & cassette tape, and private archives.
Denis & Denis is a croatian electropop music band from Rijeka, founded in 1982. The band released four studio albums.
Igor Savin is a very famous Disco & Electronic Synth Pop musician & producer, who released 7 albums and is involved in noumerous song compositions.
Davor Rocco is a croatian bass player, composer and producer & owner of Studio Rocco & Partner. He was part of the band "SPEKTAR", the band of which we have reissued an album in 2015.
Vinil Desant is the secret tip and a more unknown project by Ivica Druzak on Casio VL-1, Boss DR-55 & Zoran on guitar, recorded on Zoran's cassette player.

'Mellow Moon' is the debut album from Alfie Templeman - an album that
"feels like something of a miracle, landing somewhere between an
otherworldly trip and a joy-filled ode to life back on earth"
Like all journeys, the change in mood is palpable throughout Mellow Moon, with
songs like the nostalgic '3D Feelings' or 'Broken', which is about "all the little
wobbles of being a teen and figuring yourself out," that bristle with the energy of a
life being lived again.
There's nuance in there, too. Candyfloss suggests that life can sometimes appear
too good to be true, something Alfie has felt since was a kid. "There's always a
downside to the cool shit," he says. "Candyfloss is what it all appears to be until
you get deeper into it."
The result is an easily accessible comfort place. Across 14 tracks Alfie closes his
eyes and imagines another world, one where he's at ease and not distracted by
life's many challenges.
Inspired by modern influences like Steve Lacy, Khruangbin and Leon Bridges, as
well as Alfie's constant cosmic guide Todd Rundgren, Mellow Moon flows with an
ease that belies its difficult creation. "It's a moment in my life that I want to
remember forever. I've put so much effort into this and it's a real experience to
listen to."
Acting as both an intimate diary entry and a communal call to arms, Mellow
Moon is Alfie's most complete work to date and a platform from which he will
surely use to propel himself further into the stratosphere. If ever proof were
needed that music is a salvation or a transportative force, this is it.
Live sessions with Radio 1, Radio 2 and Virgin have now aired.
TV performances confirmed with Sunday Brunch (22 May) and Blue Peter (20
May), the week prior to album release (EMBARGOED!!!!!).
135M total global career streams

Very Limited yellow vinyl LP. By popular demand, we are proud to present Ekundayo Inversions (Instrumentals). Liam Bailey released his debut album Ekundayo on the label at the end of 2020, then in the Summer of 2021 El Michels Affair took the tapes from that and did a dub version of the album in his own style aptly titled Ekundayo Inversions. Both of these releases quickly became cult classics in their own right. The chemistry between Liam and producer Leon Michels is undeniable, each pushing the other to new places in their sounds. Here we take the vocals out of the mix and focus on the production and the players pulling instrumentals versions from both the Ekundayo album and the Ekundayo Inversions album. This is a limited one time pressing of 1000 pieces.

Strut present an exclusive collaboration between two jazz greats, Bennie Maupin and Adam Rudolph, on 'Symphonic Tone Poem For Brother Yusef', originally commissioned by the Angel City Jazz festival in Claremont, to mark the late, great Yusef Lateef's 100th birthday on 9th October, 2020. The album weaves a magical, meditative path across five movements, combining electronics, saxophone, voices and Rudolph's wide palette of percussion from hand drums to thumb pianos and gongs. Both artists bring unparalleled experience to the project. Detroit's Bennie Maupin is best known for his work with Miles Davis on Bitches Brew, Herbie Hancock and The Headhunters and Eddie Henderson. Chicago percussionist Adam Rudolph was Yusef Lateef's percussionist for 20 years and has worked with many other jazz luminaries including Pharoah Sanders, Wadada Leo Smith and Don Cherry. His work with Mandingo Griot Society during the '70s and '80s and, more recently, leading Hu Vibrational and Go Organic Orchestra constantly break new ground in the use and context of percussion.

Propulsive tabla percussion and meditative drones collide in deep instrumental conversation on Shruti Dances, the debut collaborative album between UK heavyweights Auntie Flo and Sarathy Korwar, forthcoming on the newly relaunched, Make Music imprint.

Across six exchanges of dynamic electronic production and richly layered Indian classical percussion, Shruti Dances discovers two architects of rhythm and movement on an explorative journey through South Asian tonality and diasporic identity.

One an elemental force on drums, the other on the decks, London-based, Indian-raised drummer/composer, Sarathy Korwar and Scottish-Goan producer/DJ, Auntie Flo first connected back in 2019, unaware both were navigating opposite ends of the beat equilibrium. Where Auntie Flo (aka Brian D’Souza) was new to Korwar’s reimagining of jazz, Indian classical music, electronics and spoken word, Korwar was already a big admirer of Auntie Flo’s intl-facing club output, having first discovered D’Souza’s Rainfall On Red Earth off his Soniferous Garden 12” and 2019 SAY award-winning (Scottish Album of The Year), Radio Highlife. Once properly acquainted, Korwar invited Auntie Flo to remix a track off his landmark 2019 album, More Arriving, described by The Guardian as “a stylistic leap from jazz to hip-hop to spoken word…a protest record encompassing the breadth of immigrant experiences”.

The seeds of an unlikely yet powerful musical bond had been sown and when mutual friend, co-founder of Mixcloud, and Make Music label organiser, Nikhil Shah, asked the duo to inaugurate the label’s new live/electronic direction (previously home to Leon Vynehall, U and George Fitzgerald), Korwar and D’Souza hit the studio. Expanding on early conversations around traditional Indian instrumentation, practicing meditation and improvisation, Shruti Dances (a riff on free dance movement, Ecstatic Dance) was born. Meaning 'that which is heard' in Sanskrit, shruti refers to a note in musical terms, but in this case also references the album’s most prominent influence and instrument, the shruti box.

“The shruti box formed the basis of the sound of the project. It’s a drone instrument, similar to a harmonium, and it makes an amazing sound. I’ve spent the last two years studying sound therapy, and immersing myself in ambient and drone through the Ambient Flo project, and am particularly interested in how they can induce meditative states of consciousness. I was really excited to hear what the Shruti box could do with this EP.” Auntie Flo

Across six tracks, (each named after 6 of the 7 main musical notes in the Indian solfege system), Shruti Dances draws on a celestial mix of traditional percussion and processed digital effects. On opening track Dha, Korwar’s sparse tabla rhythms hop across D’Souza’s scattered, arpeggiated synths, where as on Pa, a Balearic shuffle channels Moroccan Gnawa music and Senegalese sabar meets Mark Ernestus’s Ndagga Rhythm Force. Harmonic speed tabla and roaming drones provide a sense of the ethereal and fourth-worldly on Ma, a track that’s resplendent, curious atmosphere would fit snug into the deep listening-focused programming of Auntie Flo’s Ambient Flo online radio station, a curatorial platform and avenue exploring his interest/promotion of mental health, launched over the UK’s first lockdown. Ni sees Korwar pick up the sticks, thrashing toms in a spirited frenzy, whilst downtempo album closer Sa offers some room for reflection, its slow, swirling chords cloud our focus, leaving us with all but the distant sound of birdsong.

Focusing exclusively on 7"s, Ferry Lane Records launches its first release with the debut of Leona Jacewska AKA Charlie. Having garnered a following with her DJ and live performances, the record sees the Polish producer merging seamlessly Italo, synthpop and wave.

Limited to 200 copies, hand-stamped labels, download code include