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2LP black vinyl in a gatefold sleeve, polylined inners and download code. 2 x CD in 6 panel digifile sleeve.
When Darren Hayman made his debut in 1997 with the acclaimed indie band Hefner his lyrical remit was the broken hearted. His early songs told the story of the lonesome and lost, and broken dreams of love on the back streets of London. After Hefner, Hayman’s palette grew to include a unique take on place and memory. In the early 2000s he wrote a trilogy of albums around the history of Essex. In 2012 he made an instrumental album describing the tranquillity of Lidos. In 2016 Darren was awarded ‘Hardest Working Musician’ by the Association of Independent Music for his epic project on Thankful Villages, the 55 villages that survived the Great War with no casualties. His most recent record, 12 Astronauts, tells the personal story of the only men to have walked on the Moon. Darren is continually obsessed with the idea of what songs can be, and the stories they can tell. As he explains, “With projects like Thankful Villages, I became interested in what a record could be, using field recordings, interviews and songs to make sound collages. I wanted to return to the stricter art of song writing and try and make the twelve best compositions I could. I wanted to make useful songs, words that could be comfort, not just thoughts that would depress.” // "bold and unique" The Sunday Times // "Its delicately observed song cycle unfolds like a novella or short film, with tracks that might seem slight in isloation gaining resonance in situ." Q // “Bugbears is a rich and warming curio, and there’s something quietly noble about Hayman dragging the thoughts of these long-dead writers back into the light.” Mojo // “uniquely intimate and very satisfying” - BBC // “Hayman has hit a creative purple patch… a treat”. Mojo

After a year of releases exploring recent musics from the USA, Europe and the southern hemisphere the Horn of Plenty presents a survey of archival private, demo, and live tapes from local avant-anarcho-punks The Apostles. The tapes were (poorly) recorded in Islington & Hackney squats between 1981-1983 and they capture the fledgling band exploring various line-up’s, styles & techniques with limited means and ability. In 1983 The Apostles released their first vinyl EP and switched mainly to a more straight-ahead anarcho-punk style. They gained a strong following then called it a day in 1989. Their vinyl output is still regarded highly by fans and collectors and their ‘official’ demo tapes have become highly sought-after, particularly since being namechecked by Ty Segall in a 2014 interview. In a 2009 article charting the band’s history (frontman) Andy Martin gives these early tapes a mere footnote and states that, in his opinion, they are ‘Best Forgotten’. With respect Andy, I beg to differ. Best Forgotten shows the band grappling with the political, racial and cultural tensions of the time whilst exploring radical politics and issues around homosexuality and mental health. Their sympathies with The Angry Brigade’s ‘direct action’ ethos extended to their involvement with the squatted Centro Iberico and The Wapping Autonomy Centre where they worked closely with Crass, Poison Girls, Flux of Pink Indians and The Mob among others. Viewed retrospectively, it’s easy to draw comparisons with early Fall records, The Door and The Window etc… but also at their melodic best they echo 60’s beat groups and even 70’s blues-rock. A keen interest in tape collage (supplied here by Ian Rawes who later became established with his London Sound Survey project) and the avant garde also inform the mix. Highlights include a bleak reworking of Lemon Kittens’ Chalet D’Amour and a live version of Simon & Garfunkel's I Am A Rock segueing into their take on Alternative TV’s Splitting In Two recorded at The Recession Club in Ponsford Street, Hackney. The short-lived Recession Club, which The Apostles co-ran and where Andy Martin worked the door, also hosted the first ever Coil concert. On that night he refused entry to Death In June on account of their ‘inappropriate attire’. Best Forgotten comes in a hand stamped, stickered and assembled edition of 500 copies and includes an A3 poster and 32 page A4 zine collecting archival photos and images from The Apostles tapes & zines along with liner notes and reflections on the tracks written by Steve Underwood (Harbinger Sound), Chris Low (former Apostles drummer) and The Apostles frontman Andy Martin, who thought this whole thing was daft.

For over two decades Bjørke has cut his own path, as a solo artist and enthusiastic collaborator. Bjørke’s Copenhagen home may be one of Europe’s great cultural hubs, and he’s certainly added a paragraph or two to that story, but his music is distinctly international. Even a cursory listen exposes an impressive, ever-evolving career. However, few expected him to initiate the collaborative ambient / neo-classical project Kasper Bjørke Quartet. In 2018 The Fifty Eleven Project was released on Kompakt Records, a deeply personal record that musically documents Bjørkes encounter with, and triumph over, cancer. The album topped many critics' lists, and was included among The Guardian’s Best Contemporary Albums of the year.

Mother, which will be released on October 28th, represents a quantum leap forward. Literally, when you consider the terrestrial shifts that informed it. Six compositions explore what the evolution of our planet sounds like. While Holst may have gotten there first, Mother singularly focuses on the orb where we reside, from its formation, to its likely conclusion. Other artists have tackled song cycles that parallel a day, a year, or even a lifetime. Mother spans a timeframe from 4.5 billion years ago up to humankind’s impending demise. It hints at how that may be sooner than we think, as well as the earth’s resilience, and the promise of another chapter.

Additional gravity comes courtesy of evocative choir arrangements - - and marimba recorded at the Copenhagen Opera House. “Formation” condenses 20 million years of runaway accretion into 20 minutes. It is sublimely padded by feature artist Sofie Birch’s gentle synths. “Abiogenesis” intimates a different type of emergence: the first life to inhabit our nascent planet. The entire cosmos is condensed into the layered vocals of Philip|Schneider. Birch returns on “Miocene,” which signals the divergence of proto-humans from primates not with foreboding, but rather cascaded notes and swells adumbrating a pure and curious being, revealing nothing of what the Catch-22 of knowledge will bring. That’s addressed in the diptych of “Anthropocene” and “Tipping Points,” respectively marking the dawn and foreshadowing the probable downfall of homosapians, through wondrous advancements and their climate damaging byproducts. It’s tempting to think the album’s finale, “Requiem,” implies only a dark conclusion, owing to its sparkling verrillon’s coronach, and the return of Philip|Schneider’s empyrean vocals, but its juxtaposition with revolving, enigmatic piano chords infers the earth will enter its next act.

Mother is a staggering achievement, encouraging contemplative thought. The album is released October 28th on Kompakt Records, both digitally and on limited edition double vinyl. The atwork is designed by multidisciplinary artist Trevor Jackson.

Seit mehr als zwei Jahrzehnten folgt Kasper Bjørke seinem ganz eigenen Weg, sowohl als Solokünstler als auch als umtriebiger Kollaborateur, während er gleichzeitig das Beste aus Techno, Pop, Elektro, New Wave, House, Ambient, Italo und klassischer Disco aufgreift und in seinen Produktionen zusammenfügt. Bjørke’s Heimat Kopenhagen gilt als eines der großen kulturellen Zentren Europas, und die Stadt hat dieser Geschichte sicherlich den einen oder anderen Absatz hinzugefügt, aber Kasper’s Musik ist eindeutig international. Schon ein flüchtiges Hineinhören gibt den Blick frei auf eine beeindruckende, sich ständig weiterentwickelnde Karriere. Nur wenige hätten jedoch erwartet, dass dieser Werdegang 2018 in der Gründung eines neoklassischen Quartetts gipfeln würde. In diesem Jahr wurde “The Fifty Eleven Project” auf KOMPAKT veröffentlicht. Ein sehr persönliches Album, das musikalisch dokumentierte, wie Bjørke seinen Kampf gegen den Krebs gewonnen hatte. Es wurde unter anderem in die Liste der besten zeitgenössischen Klassik-Alben des Jahres von The Guardian aufgenommen.

“Mother”, das am 28. Oktober erscheint, ist ein Quantensprung für das Kasper Bjørke Quartett. Im wahrsten Sinne des Wortes, wenn man die tektonischen Bewegungen bedenkt, die dem Album zugrunde liegen. Sechs Kompositionen erforschen, wie sich die Evolution unseres Planeten anhört. Gustav Holst (englischer Komponist, dessen bekanntestes Werk die Orchestersuite “Die Planeten” darstellt; Anm. des Übersetzers) war vielleicht zuerst da, aber “Mother” konzentriert sich ausschließlich auf die Erdkugel, auf der wir uns befinden, von ihrer Entstehung bis zu ihrem wahrscheinlichen Ende. Andere Künstler haben sich mit Songzyklen beschäftigt, die einen Tag, ein Jahr oder sogar ein ganzes Leben abdecken. “Mother” umfasst etwa 4,5 Milliarden Jahre, vom Anfang aller Zeit bis zum bevorstehenden Untergang der Menschheit. Das Werk deutet an, dass dies schneller geschehen könnte, als wir alle denken, aber auch die Widerstandsfähigkeit der Erde und das Versprechen auf ein neues Kapitel.

Für zusätzliche Erdanziehung sorgen stimmungsvolle Chor Arrangements und eine Marimba-Sektion, die im Kopenhagener Opernhaus aufgenommen wurde. "Formation" verdichtet 20 Millionen Jahre unkontrollierter Akkumulation in 20 Minuten, subtil untermalt von den sanften Klängen der Ambient-Künstlerin Sofie Birch. "Abiogenesis" beschreibt das erste Leben, das entsteht und unseren Planeten besiedelt. Der gesamte Kosmos verdichtet sich hier in den vielschichtigen Vocals von Philip|Schneider. Birch taucht erneut im Track "Miocene" auf, in dem das evolutionäre Streben des Proto-Menschen weg vom Primaten noch keine böse Vorahnung enthält, sondern mit kaskadenartigen Sounds und langsam anschwellenden Klängen musikalisch vom reinen und neugierigen Wesen des Menschen erzählt, in dem noch nichts von der Zwickmühle zum Vorschein kommt, in die ihn sein Wissen bringen wird.

Das wird im Diptychon "Anthropocene" und "Tipping Points" thematisiert, die den Anfang vom Ende, den Beginn des wahrscheinlichen Untergangs des Homo sapiens durch die Folgen des Fortschritts und seiner klimaschädlichen Nebenprodukte vorhersagen. Es ist naheliegend zu denken, dass das Finale des Albums, "Requiem", nur das düstere Ende von allem darstellt. Doch as funkelnde Glockenspiel und Philip|Schneiders eindringlicher Gesang in Gegenüberstellung mit sich windenden und erratischen Klavierakkorden deuten an, dass die Geschichte der Erde ein neues Kapitel aufschlagen wird.

Mother ist eine beeindruckende Performance, die zum Nachdenken anregt.

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Levon Vincent returns with his fourth full-length studio album Silent Cities a striking departure from his previous records. This, his first release experimenting with the cassette format, Silent Cities is a kind of mixtape through more private moods and personal pitches (literally given Levon’s non-standard tunings).

While Levon has always pro
duced dance floor jams with the intention of raising people’s heart rates, Silent Cities began with 72 bpm: his average resting heart rate, and the concept of tuning the music he was making to his own body rather than increasing anything. This brought the tempos down to 72 bpm or even half of that, at 36bpm. Programming the record during the empty cityscape of Berlin lockdowns, this is the first time Levon’s created an album for the home stereo or for headphone listening whilst navigating through a city. A mixtape specialist in his youth; he was always wanted to play with the cassette format. The results are sure to delight any listener, with the ever-present ambient, krautrock, shoegaze, hip-hop and electro influences coming to the foreground on this work.

“I was expanding further along the lines of a surprise favourite from my previous LP, a song called She Likes To Wave To Passing Boats which was not a 4 on-the-floor piece to play in clubs but a more impressionistic piece of music that I wrote to expound some emotions one day” says Levon. “It was a song written using just intonation. I really love how warm the pure 4ths sound, so when working on the new LP Silent Cities I decided to use my own tunings”.

Historically, the use of just intonation has meant that such instruments could sound "in tune" in one key but at the expense of more dissonance in the other keys. None of the songs on Silent Cities use standard Western equal temperament, Levon created his own scale designs coupled with the ancient ratios found in just intonation.

Born in Houston in 1975, Levon’s life changed dramatically when his parents moved their family to New York in 1981, uprooted from what he knew, the shock, the change from Houston to New York at 6 years old, is referred to constantly in Levon’s Musical output over the years. Levon's family moved houses in and around NYC from 1981 -2010, never more than a mile or two from the WTC. He lived on the Lower East Side during his teenage years and early 20s. This time period and this locale are also a big theme recurrent in his music as he tries to convey how the "downtown" lifestyle and culture-melding affected him so much at a tender age. He cut his teeth working in record shops around lower Manhattan, and while working at the Halcyon Record shop in Brooklyn he (alongside DJ Jus-Ed) was instrumental in creating the wave that came to be known as the "NYC House Renaissance" circa 2010. During the Y2K years he studied 20th C post-minimalism at Purchase college of New York under James McElwaine (who tangentially produced Man Parrish’s Self-Titled proto-hip-hop debt LP). Levon was fortunate to study theory with avant-garde composer Dary John Mizelle and orchestration under conductor Joel Thome. He undertook masterclasses with Philip Glass and also served as intern for John Kilgore, engineer for Steve Reich, where he was present for notable mix sessions such as “Violin Phase.”

Post-minimalism clearly remains an influence not to mention the early sampler stars of 80s freestyle and synth pop. Mixing such far-reaching influences is something Levon executes tremendously well. The first track Everlasting Joy moves at a head nodding 96 BPM tempo, reflecting formative influences like Paul Hardcastle’s Rainforest or Art Of Noise’s Moments in Love. “Those types of songs were a big eye opener for me as a youth, because it was where I realised songs in popular culture didn’t have to be kept to just 3 minutes, and they didn’t require vocals either. So, Everlasting Joy is a song with that intention, one that might be radio-friendly, despite the long arrangement and without vocals. You could say it was inspired by 107.5 in NY because that was a station I listened to a lot in the 1980’s.”

The majority of demos on Silent Cities were recorded before Covid-19 hit the world - when Levon had found a studio space outside of home in his adopted city of Berlin. It was a career first - working on music outside the bedroom. This riding the train or bicycling ‘going to work’ in Berlin opened up a new mood in his music, using the time back and forth to be inspired - commuting as an NYC transplant who still feels as a tourist in Berlin, with a pair of headphones, looking out the window on the train, or stopping on bridges and parking his bike to enjoy Berlin's skyline and horizon. Then, the pandemic struck and “work” came to a halt. Levon had recorded so much material during that year in the studio out of house it seemed like an inflection point for him to lighten the burden of the possessions he was carrying.

“People close to me have watched me give away synths and hardware regularly and I have given away my record collection every few years for my whole life. As a struggling artist in my 20s who had worked in record stores that whole time, I learned that moving constantly with 12k records just wasn't the way to live. So, in light of the pandemic, I set up a shop online, and sold all my music equipment. I also created a separate shop for all my sneakers and clothes. Easy come, Easy go. This provided me with a slow drip type of income that carried me quite well through the pandemic and it allowed me to focus on my own art and music. Getting rid of all my possessions felt like a weight being lifted from my shoulders and I was able to stay the course and remain committed to the music. I needed a further 2 years to mix and arrange the LP. If it weren’t for the pandemic, I would not been able to make this type of LP, so in light of everything, I was able to turn a depressing time in to something lasting and musically very positive.”

You can hear how his approach to a cassette release retains the "Medium is the Message." ethos. Silent Cities is a spooling, warm piece about life memories and embodiment.

OUT OF PLACE ARTEFACTS, the collaboration alchemizing the sounds of german producers Rødhåd and .VRIL, embarks on a new sonic exploration with “II” on Rødhåd’s label WSNWG.

This second longplayer ventures significantly deeper into the spheres of electronic music - exploring a wide range of abysmal drums and breaks as well as focusing on flickering sound sketches and elusive noises whose origin will have to remain a mystery for the listener. It aims to leave them in inexplicable realms between the dance floor and deep listening, unfolding its magnetism beyond genre definitions.

Throughout the listening experience, one is exposed to bewildering surprises such as traces of lightheartedness and stronger use of samples, vocals and strings. “Universian” invites a softer tone, revealing a more seductive, gloomier and poppier facette of the duo.

The closing track “Triskaideka” concludes the journey by featuring classical musicians Angelina Delgado (Violin) and Alexandra Ivanova (Viola).

OUT OF PLACE ARTEFACTS considerably developed the rapport between both artists' contributions for this LP- merging them into a more harmonious, yet very distinct expression. Each of the 13 tracks showcases layered, intricate arrangements so that they become their own microcosms, forming a radiant universe as a whole album.

CHIARA CIVELLO'S NEW SINGLE ADDS NEAPOLITAN VIBES TO BRAZILIAN FUNK TO CELEBRATE DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION

Four Flies is proud to present a new, exciting single by internationally acclaimed Italian singer, multi-instrumentalist and songwriter Chiara Civello. Co-produced with Neapolitan pianist, beatmaker and producer Dario Bassolino and with lyrics by Civello and Sicilian artist Kaballà, "Sono Come Sono" is the first Italian adaptation of the Brazilian song "Olhos Coloridos", a celebration of diversity, mixed roots and inclusion written by Macau and made famous by singer Sandra de Sa. To respect the spirit of the original and its soul-funk sound, Civello decided to produce the song in Naples, a city with many similarities to Rio de Janeiro, including its multicultural history. The result is an irresistible eighties-inspired boogie-funk track brimming with positivity and joy.

"Sono Come Sono" comes out on 21 October 2022 as a 12" VINYL MAXI SINGLE containing the song plus three fantastic remixes by eclectic Neapolitan DJ/producer Whodamanny that add groovy and tribal influences to the mix and further enhance its dancefloor potential.

Civello's adaptation has been praised by the writer and singer of the original, as well as by another great name in Brasilian popular music:

"Cada Qual com seu Cada Qual, e muito Respeito pra Liberar Geral…" Chiara has expressed this idea truthfully, beautifully and with dignity. I'm very excited, proud and happy! This is a fantastic version of "Olhos Coloridos". "Limitar…, é humilhar o Infinito…" Thank you, sister" – Sandra de Sá

"Chiara, I couldn't contain my emotion when I listened to your Italian version of "Olhos Coloridos". Beautiful vocals… a beautiful brass arrangement… pure black-Rio! You put colors into my eyes and light into my soul with your magical performance, I have no words. I must really thank you for the joy you gave me. "somos o que somos", Olhos Coloridos, Sarará Crioulo"" – Macau

"Another smooth and super groovy creation by Chiara Civello, this is a perfect Italian version of the classic Rio de Janeiro soul-funk song, "Olhos Coloridos", made famous by Sandra de Sá. It respects the spirit of Black pride contained in the original lyrics but adds to it new sounds and meanings. Well done, Chiara!" – Nelson Motta

SPLASH RECORDINGS DROP 4 UNRELEASED GEMS ON A BEAUTIFUL PICTURE DISC!

The recent popularity of the Undercover Agent compilation released via Suburban Base proved that there is incredible demand from jungle connoisseurs in the ground-breaking music from the Juice Records & Splash Recordings labels.

To celebrate this heritage, a special limited edition picture disc has been pressed to showcase 4 tracks that represent the labels historic discography, including some in demand unreleased exclusives.

Back in 1994 Splash Recordings released its debut single Barracuda b/w Rougher Pt 3. The A side of this picture disc see’s these 2 pioneering tracks remixed and remastered.

Rougher gets a 2022 update from X Nation, who adeptly keeps the spirit of the original which bringing a fresh twist on this classic cut. Track 2 see’s the high value Barracuda getting a full phat remaster from the original studio DAT recording.

The flip side see’s two previously unreleased versions of SPLASH005, one of the labels most sought-after singles, with these versions finally seeing the light of day. This unreleased version of Liquidizer has been hidden in archives for 27 years now. Originally recorded for DAZ & DJ’s who supported the label to test on acetate dub plates back in the day.

The Identity (DAZ VIP Version), again was created strictly for the artist to play in his sets so has also never seen an official release until now.

The artwork for this picture disc is styled around the labels original artwork, created to look like an expanded oversized version of one of the centre labels pressed onto vinyl. A great addition to any junglists record collection, will look stunning framed on your wall or spinning on your 1210’s!!

San Francisco-based R&B / Funk / Rock group SASS was formed in 1974 by lead singer Fred Ross and producer, guitarist, vocalist Andy “Andro” Ernst. During the mid 70s SASS recorded three now rare demo singles released on San Francisco’s INS label. The group performed live alongside well-known artists such as Lionel Ritchie & The Commodores, Esther Philips, The Main Ingredient, Brass Construction and Tower Of Power. In 1976 SASS got signed to 20th Century Records which released remixed versions of their demo songs “I Only Wanted To Love You” and “Do It” on a 45. A full-length album was later recorded in 1977 but none of these songs ever saw the light of day...until now. The unreleased tracks featured on this present issue were the last songs recorded by the band for their major label album project that was unfortunately abandoned. Transferred directly from the only existing 2 track master tape of the sessions, these never before heard songs can now be listened to in their full glory. At long last, High Jazz Records is happy to present the complete recordings from SASS.

Talkbox is multidisciplinary artist Michael O’Mahony’s third album and his first for 33-33. It’s his most complete and cohesive music project to date, a culmination of ideas, happy accidents and compositions that have been cut up and re-arranged over many years. The album’s sonic signature is the Vocaloid software synthesizer – the titular ‘talkbox’ – famously by Japanese cartoon Hatsune Miku. O’Mahony became aware of Vocaloid in 2015 through the popular Nyan Cat meme, which em marketed ploys the software. Excited by the emotive potential and realism of Vocaloid’s voice synthesis, he began to imagine an album that combined its capabilities with italo disco- and UK garage-inflected sounds. As the version of Vocaloid O’Mahony had access to sang only in Japanese, O’Mahony relied on Google Translate to obtain the required characters to enter into the software. In early experiments with the software, the north Londoner translated BBC match reports from his beloved Arsenal FC. Eventually, he amassed a library of syllables and phonetic sounds, from which he created the melodies crystallised on the record. As far as we know, these vocal lines have no meaning in lyrical terms. O’Mahony works largely in an iterative way; song ideas are reworked over and over in different styles, sometimes over a period of years. Multiple versions of a song might appear on an album, each one with its own particular nuances in feeling. Music perhaps does not always flow out of O’Mahony, but emerges over time. O’Mahony’s album forms part of his wider project: an analysis of his subjectivity through art and psychotherapy. The music complements his writing and video work, which feature in his performances. He writes in chains of association, speculating on topics such as family dynamics, or the meaning of recurring dreams about a childhood game console. His video practice features footage of objects found in his parents’ house, such as his sister’s childhood My Little Pony toy and his retired psychiatrist father’s lecture tapes. The music, at once synthetic and heartfelt, imbues the writing and video work with a strange tenderness. Taken together, these various aspects of O’Mahony’s work form a meditation on the emotional attachments we make to consumer objects and the role of early life in character formation. Tracklist 1/Talkbox 2/More Succinct 3/Electricity 4/Not Giving Up 5/Dinosaur 6/Trumpet 7/Electricity (Rock Version) 8/Aliss 9/Be Good 10/Not Giving Up (Slow Version)

Repressed finally. Sometimes a single is released that reaches such dizzying heights of success that it becomes a pinnacle of the decade they're indelibly tied to. "Groove Is In The Heart" by dance-house trio Deee-Lite is one such single. The infectiously quirky, and eminently danceable track is prominently based around samples of "Bring Down The Birds" by Herbie Hancock, and "Get Up" by Vernon Burch, among many others, (Courtesy of dual producers DJs Dmitry and Towa Tei) paired with top-tier guest contributions from JB's veterans Maceo Parker and Fred Wesley, background vocals from Parliament-Funkadelic's own Bootsy Collins, and even a guest rap from Q-Tip, not to mention frontwoman Lady Miss Kier's own siren-like vocals. All disparate and disconnected elements, but ones that would come together to form dancehall greatness, and chart-topping success worldwide for Deee-Lite. "Groove Is In The Heart" managed to reach #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, but excelled at its best on the Hot Dance Club Play chart, where it reached to the #1 spot. On top of its success in America it was a smash internationally, climbing the heights of the charts in the UK, Canada, Australia, and a variety of other countries. It remained in heavy rotation for much of 1990 on MTV as well. As the decades went on, "Groove Is In The Heart" would be ranked among the greatest dance tracks of all time, as well as one of the greatest songs of the 1990s by VH1, Pitchfork, Buzzfeed, and many more. "Groove Is In The Heart" was a potent single for Deee-Lite to lead with, but the album bearing it was nothing to slouch at either. The group's debut record, 1990's World Clique was released to major commercial and critical success, owing just as much to its addictive hybrid of seductive retro aesthetics, modern dancefloor flair, and esoteric, socially conscious messaging, on the back of celebratory club staples like "Power Of Love", "Good Beat", "E.S.P.", and of course "Groove Is In The Heart." World Clique would reach top 20 charts in the US, UK, and Canada in sales, as well as earn rave reviews from NME, Chicago Sun-Times, Rolling Stone, and Slant Magazine, who called it an "essential pop album." A1. Good Beat A2. Power Of Love A3. Try Me On…I’m Very You A4. Smile On A5. What Is Love? B1. World Clique B2. E.S.P. B3. Groove Is In The Heart B4. Who Was That? B5. Deep Ending

If you ever wondered what ambient music of the 21st century could sound like, then you should explore the musical spheres of "ifsonever". This colorful debut-album draws a blueprint of an urban ambient club record of a parallel universe. A collage of beautifully improvised pieces, strictly recorded in "one takes". A gripping fusion that brings together the warm analog textures of classic vintage synthesizers and electronic urban ambiences.

Trying to appreciate the recent times of silence and deceleration, Daniel Helmer aka ifsonever has quickly developed a tonal language as a solo artist. With a non-compromising approach he would visit his studio, a cozy garden shed, to record one new track a day in strictly analog fashion as "one takes". His aim for this project was to capture the innocence and instinctive creative energy of the present moment. These 9 timeless pieces invite the listener to explore hypnotic and meditative atmospheres such as on the opener "transpose" or on "jonesy dreams of birds", as well as gloomy and almost mystical sounding tracks such as "total global" or "an unexpected error has occurred". ifsonever is a wonderful amalgamation of organic, laid-back sounds and electronic, club oriented elements.

Recorded at a time when social contact was forbidden and culture was at a standstill, many professional musicians felt challenged not to feel useless when performances and sessions in public were cancelled, while the need for expression, participation and communication persisted. What happens when you've read all your books, when you're tired of looking at screens, and when you're digitally saturated? Then the unbearable lightness of being will begin. Daniel Helmer decided to let his creativity flow into a picture depicting that moment in time. He gave himself the opportunity to reflect this period through the creation of music. Not always an easy thing to do when the only social interactions would be cats passing by or the sound of children playing nearby. However that can be exactly the perfect tranquil surrounding to ground oneself in the here and now and draw inspiration from the inside. This self titled album reflects a peaceful journey from start to finish.

Two old friends have been invited to contribute overdubs in hindsight. MillianX is a film composer and noise artist, a colleague from the viennese filmacademy. Both worked together on the film score for the science fiction movie "Rubikon" while the album was in its final stages. So a collaboration was an obvious choice. The creamy arpeggiated synthline created for "jonesy dreams of birds"' was extended by Millianx with some field recordings and a big cloudy synthwave that dips into a vast sea of noise.

Guido Spannocchi is a london based jazz musician. Both knew each other for several years but never had the chance to work together. When Daniel Helmer wrote "an unknown error has occured" he imagined a saxophone layer to accompany the existing synthline. But when the two musicians finally got together to record in the legendary jazz club "Porgy & Bess", Guido just let his creativity flow and jammed freely to the track with a totally unique jazz vibe.

Between film, music & sound Daniel Helmer is continuously searching for a spot to call his own. Expanding boundaries, pursuing the unheard and breaking genre definitions are byproducts of his curiosity and his drive to avoid repetition. Daniel Helmer resides in Vienna where he studied at the local film academy. He became one of the founding members of the techno-punk band "Gudrun von Laxenburg" with album releases on the legendary Skint label, collaborated with Sam Irl on "International Major Label" as the production duo "Mantra Mantra" and released an album as "Yogtze" on Gerd Janson's imprint "Running Back Incantations", together with Feater. At the moment he is focusing on his work as a film composer and is currently working on two feature films in Austria.

"ifsonever" offers a timeless ambience to help you slow down, reflect and enjoy the beauty of nothingness. It might help us to learn and accept a state of being unutilized without feeling futile and benefit from this rare silence.

The cover artwork is a collaboration between Jazz & Milk graphic designer Tim Schmitt and photographer Frank Hulsbömer. A scan of the artist's head, hand and foot was 3D printed, photographed and transformed into an otherworldly scenery that visualizes the musical atmosphere.

Red vinyl LP. Lars Finberg, confirmed genius guy and poet laureate of sunken 21st century Rock, acts as manager in perpetuity of THE INTELLIGENCE, primary vehicle for his prolific creative swirl and a project that has taken on new shapes across myriad trials and shifts. The project began in his Seattle bedroom – a lad and his Tascam cassette 8 track – with the classic Boredom & Terror and has now landed in his Los Angeles studio apartment – an urchin and his Tascam digital 12 track – with Lil’ Peril, a new album that finds Finberg 1000% back at the controls. Over the course of 11 albums (!), The Intelligence has established a backbone that boogies through revolutions, allowing each jam-crammed dispatch to feel and sound admirably unique. The angular sharp shocks heard in earlier years have steadily evolved into the ballooning grooves heard on more recent releases (including Finberg’s recent solo work). Lil’ Peril is a dreamy gamble that captures this current bubbling penchant in The Intelligence’s inaugural homemade mode. With inspirational templates as far-flung as LES PAUL, THE SPECIALS, LEE PERRY and MARY FORD, Lil’ Peril pulls off the absurd shift “from ‘No-Wave SANTANA’ to ‘SCREAMERS recorded by JON BRION’”. Playing shoulder parrot to studio engineers has no doubt informed Finberg’s approach to home recording, specifically in how much further he can go without wincing budget-minded eyes staring him down. This is immediately sensed on the opener “Maudlin Agency,” which begins with canned minimal bleep and closes with a full recreation of the “Brass Monkey” hook. These surprise-attack conclusions are a running current throughout the Lil’ Peril’s program and demonstrates that the main lesson Finberg has learned in The Intelligence is to never reel it in. Centerpiece banger “My Work Here Is Dumb” ranks among the finest Intelligence moments existent and an apex in Finberg’s songcraft, boasting a bonkers arrangement and a thematic gnaw that is both brutal and playful. The collection closes with the epic “Soundguys,” a suite cut-up that fuses CAN and STEELY DAN into one of the most dastardly tunes available for consumption in the plague age. As Finberg himself states, “They may say this is ‘lo-fi’, but I say it’s ‘no-CGI’”. “The band disintegrated, so it devolved back to the core idea: if I do every aspect, it’s indestructible.” 20 years on and Finberg has finally let everyone know what The Intelligence actually means! All those wily experiments and warm flubs have come back full circle and the shit’s pure goddamn gold. Proof positive that there is always some sort of cute trouble, farcical tragedy and Lil’ Peril at play with The Intelligence. - Mitch Cardwell, 2022. Tracklisting: 01 Maudlin Agency 02 70's 03 Keyed Beamers 04 Purification 05 My Work Here Is Dumb 06 Lil Peril 07 Frog Prints In Preset City 08 Portfolio Woes 09 Soundguys

Ringing from hi-fi headphones and blown-out boombox speakers alike
comes the overloaded guitar genius of "Easy Listening", a record of rock
n' roll daydreams and terminal boredom, and 2nd Grade's long awaited
second LP.Like a blue slushy on a hot day, Easy Listening is a sweet
respite
Like the Blue Angels touching down on the Las Vegas Strip, Easy Listening is
impossible to ignore. And like a janitor mopping up beer on the floor of the
Hollywood Palladium in 1972, hours after the Rolling Stones have finished
Ventilator Blues and climbed onto the bus, Easy Listening knows the glory and
cost of escapism, abandon, and the soul of rock n roll. Philadelphia's 2nd Grade
(Peter Gill, Catherine Dwyer, Jon Samuels, David Settle, and Fran Lyons) is a band
both obsessed with and worthy of rock stardom, and Easy Listening proves their
status as virtuosos of the power pop renaissance.Sonically and lyrically, Easy
Listening pays tribute to a guitar lineage linking the Stones to the Flamin'
Groovies, to Redd Kross and Guided By Voices. With its spiraling hooks and
handclapped quarter note beat, lead single Strung Out On You sounds like an
alternate reality post-Radio City Big Star cut. In 2nd Grade's world, music history
is a prism, not a linear progression. Famous teens transcend time on the outro to
Teenage Overpopulation, a shouted cacophony of names including Tommy
Stinson, Lizzie McGuire, and Joan of Arc. The line between the love of an
audience and that of a romantic partner is blurred on songs like Hands Down and
Me & My Blue Angels. Across the album, hi- fi and lo- fi styles splice together;
playful references and surreal hints of impossibility build a complex, believable
world atop a foundation of simple and sticky melodies that resonate on very first
listen. Pressed on Blue Jay Color vinyl.

Pressed On Clear Vinyl! 1991 was the year that it all broke loose for producer Pete Rock and his rhyme partner, CL Smooth. But the duo was far from an overnight sensation. The two friends had been on the grind since high school in Mt. Vernon, NY in the mid-'80s, and Pete had been building up to his big moment since he first manned the decks on WBLS's hugely influential 'In Control With Marley Marl' radio show, starting in 1987. In '91, Pete's talent finally forced him from the studio shadows into the spotlight, and after remixes and co-productions for Heavy D (1989's Big Tyme album); Johnny Gill ('Rub You The Right Way,' 1990); and Elektra label-mates Brand Nubian ('Slow Down,' 1990); it was time for top billing. As Pete's rep skyrocketed with a revolutionary remix to Public Enemy's 'Shut 'Em Down' in 1991, the stage was set. The duo's debut EP, 'All Souled Out', was the perfect set-up - and bridge to - their flawless LP, Mecca & The Soul Brother, which appeared only one year later. Fans new (thanks to a recent revival, resulting from the song's use in a Google / Android commercial) and old are sure to know the EP's only single, 'The Creator.' The cut is a perfect slice of early '90s hip-hop - jumpy, funky and rolling along at a sprinter's pace, with killer horns that sew up the chorus. Interestingly, it's the only song on the EP where Pete Rock rhymes (and solo at that, with lines written by Brand Nubian's Grand Puba). The remaining five of the EP's songs, with CL Smooth in full charge of the mic, are no less impressive. The sleeper is perhaps 'Go With The Flow,' a kinetic groover with an egregiously thick, muted bassline, surgical cuts and never-endingly captivating lines by the liquid-tongued CL. 'All Souled Out' boasts all of the Pete Rock trademarks - a jumpy, filtered bassline; beautifully stitched horn samples on the hook; and this time with a faster tempo. CL has no issues with Pete's BPM challenge, proving he can drop knowledge at any speed. And of two different versions of 'Good Life' on the platter, the EP's final cut, the 'Group Home Mix,' is perhaps the winner, with an abundance of musical action to back up CL's lyrical musings on ways to achieve success and comfort in life. 25 years after its initial impact, 'All Souled Out' sounds as heavy and essential as ever, and will remind fans how important this duo was to the artform.

Melody Tomb is the first album in a new collaboration between Tokyo artist Teruyuki Kurihara and London drone pop band The Leaf Library. The nine tracks here have in common a metallic hum and a minimal, austere kind of beauty that recalls Teru's work on his 2020 Frozen Dust album (Mille Plateaux). Machine tones mix with static, noise and warm drones, whilst in other places the lineage of classic mangled Warp hardware is visible. In March 2020 The Leaf Library sent their friend Teru a batch of synth drones to play with in the hope a new collaboration would be born. "From the first time we heard Teru's music we knew we wanted to make something with him," say the band. "It has been such a pleasure seeing him take our minimal synth parts and turn them into something really strange and beautiful." The track Kite Beach was the first to arrive, featuring on The Leaf Library-curated Object Ten compilation on Objects Forever in 2021, with the rest of the album slowly appearing over the last year. The artists hope to continue the collaboration with another album in the near future.

For fans of: Autechre, Biosphere, Ben Frost

LIMITED EDITION picture disc from the iconic Juice Recordings!

Oh Gosh… Don’t leave it too long to get your hands on this eye-catching picture disc as stock is extremely limited!

A supplementary addition to the recent Juice / Splash compilation, this collector’s item piece is the ideal companion piece for all vinyl completists. Don’t miss you chance to own the full audio collection on vinyl.

Undercover Agent has raided his original studio recordings to find exclusive cuts for this beautiful slice of wax. Cut to heavy weight vinyl, features 4 tracks from the incredible Juice Records back catalogue, all remastered for optimal listener experience.

Opening with a brand new 2022 remix, B-Key reworks of one of the labels biggest releases Oh Gosh! Which has gained widespread support throughout summer 2022 events. While being brand new, retains the original jungle flavours from back in the day.

Under his M.T.S alias, Undercover Agent has included the in-demand original version of Assembly Line from 1995. A massive bassline finished with stripped back drum work and heavily dubbed out samples remastered for this picture disc make for a sure fire winner.

On the B-side we’re presented with a never before released 96 Dub Mix of ‘Dream’ sourced from original studio DAT recordings.

Finally, the wobbly bass tones of the high value Undercover Agents own remix of Hypnosis rounds out this beautifully curated collectors item.

Limited Edition of 7,000 on Purple & Green Vinyl. Limited Edition of 3,000 on Purple & Green Vinyl w/ Bonus 7“. Celebrating the 15th anniversary since its original release, Dinosaur Jr. is reissuing “Beyond” on limited edition coloured vinyl with a special edition white vinyl 7”. With J Mascis on guitar & lead vocals, Lou Barlow on bass and vocals, and Murph on drums, the 2007 album was the first from original lineup Dinosaur Jr. since 1988’s “Bug," kicking off a Dinosaur Jr. reunion which has lasted longer than the band’s original run. "Less a theme park of the past and more of an actual trip there… Beyond is nostalgic for everything but the band's own glory days. If anything, it's an exercise in making their entire twenty-year output sound contemporary again.” - Zach Baron for Pitchfork // "very existence of this new album is a surprise, but the real shock is that Beyond is a flat-out great record, a startling return to form for J Mascis as a guitarist and songwriter and Dinosaur Jr. as a band… Beyond isn't merely a worthy album from a reunited band, it's simply a great record by any standard.” - Stephen Thomas Erlewine for Allmusic Guide // "There is something almost eerie about how exactly the Dinosaur Jr of 2007 sound like the Dinosaur Jr of 1988: on occasion, listening to Beyond feels discombobulating, like meeting an old school friend 20 years on…" - Alex Petridis (The Guardian).

Limited Edition of 7,000 on Purple & Green Vinyl. Limited Edition of 3,000 on Purple & Green Vinyl w/ Bonus 7“. Celebrating the 15th anniversary since its original release, Dinosaur Jr. is reissuing “Beyond” on limited edition coloured vinyl with a special edition white vinyl 7”. With J Mascis on guitar & lead vocals, Lou Barlow on bass and vocals, and Murph on drums, the 2007 album was the first from original lineup Dinosaur Jr. since 1988’s “Bug," kicking off a Dinosaur Jr. reunion which has lasted longer than the band’s original run. "Less a theme park of the past and more of an actual trip there… Beyond is nostalgic for everything but the band's own glory days. If anything, it's an exercise in making their entire twenty-year output sound contemporary again.” - Zach Baron for Pitchfork // "very existence of this new album is a surprise, but the real shock is that Beyond is a flat-out great record, a startling return to form for J Mascis as a guitarist and songwriter and Dinosaur Jr. as a band… Beyond isn't merely a worthy album from a reunited band, it's simply a great record by any standard.” - Stephen Thomas Erlewine for Allmusic Guide // "There is something almost eerie about how exactly the Dinosaur Jr of 2007 sound like the Dinosaur Jr of 1988: on occasion, listening to Beyond feels discombobulating, like meeting an old school friend 20 years on…" - Alex Petridis (The Guardian).

ASA 808's new album Boy, crush is a very personal inner journey as well as a call to fight and free ourselves from toxic masculinity. In eight tracks that subtly merge electronica, ambient, breakbeat and house, the Berlin-based artist process their own quest for gender identity. Out on vinyl and digital via the TOYS Berlin imprint, the album proposes new, softer and more diverse forms of gender fluidity.

ASA 808 invites listeners to expand their views of the gender spectrum. The title Boy, crush plays with the term "boy crush" and is meant as an encouragement for all men to "collectively crush manhood" with all its toxic traits and consequences:

"Toxic masculinity has kept our grandmothers and mothers small and brought deviant boys into line. It took me a long time to unlearn so much sexism and queerphobia and find my inner queer child again to let it grow, bloom and shine. I dream of a world in which men emasculate themselves. In which masculinity (if we feel it's still needed) will embrace softness, weakness, vulnerability, solidarity, consideration, mindfulness, self-reflectiveness and nonviolence", explains the non-binary producer and DJ who discovered their gender-nonconforming side already at an early age.

Dynamite Cuts is proud to reissue these amazing super funky grooves from this iconic funk & soul legend Carl Sherlock Holmes. This release is a 7” gatefold version, with a Q&A with Mr. Holmes on the inner sleever, about this iconic band.

Includes Breaks, rare groove clubs’ classics and a wonderful little soul gem.