Several years ago, the born under pitches DJ Crew members got their hands on a couple of original 70s obscurities, while these standout records shone brightly in their own right, the team finally decided to put them out as those obscure old records fetch eye-wateringly high prices on the second-hand market. Due to popular request & lovingly mastered to the highest possible standards, they are now available to play and share in very special moments at parties around the world. This will surely be one of the most keenly anticipated disco release of the year. For our first release, we are extremely proud to bring you at last, two hard to find disco anthems on side A & B in their glorious full extended versions
Suche:lo fi
Craigie Knowes step into the new decade with a 5 track 12" by Dallas resident, Cygnus. Cygnus has a prolific back catalogue that includes several releases on CPU, the legendary Breakin' Records and his own imprint, Biosoft. Impactful IDM and Masterful Electro across all 5 cuts - making this a fitting addition to one of the most impressive back-catalogues of any stateside IDM/Electro long-timer.
When Elena Colombi launched the Osàre! Editions label in the autumn of 2019, she explained that the label would become home to bold, daring, future-facing music rooted in experimentation and free-spirited musical abandon. These are all descriptions that could apply to the label’s latest release, a retrospective album of little-known works by Greek musician and producer Thanasis Zlatanos.
Many will not have heard of Zlatanos, or Nekropolis, the band he fronted alongside dear friend and regular collaborator Trygve Mathiesen, yet the music he made during the 1980s was otherworldly, intergalactic and undoubtedly alluring. These songs and instrumentals made extensive use of analogue synthesizers and lo-fi drum machines, as well as Zlatanos’s trusted Gibson Les Paul guitar and his own distinctive voice.
Stylistically, the musician and producer refused to settle on a specific sound, preferring instead to create inspired, often mind-altering pieces that join the dots between wave music, skewed leftfield pop, ambient, prototype electronic and Madedonian folk music. Operating for much of the period from a crumbling house earmarked for demolition, Zlatanos kept up a daily music-making vigil that resulted in a vast vault of music, most of which has remained unissued since the 1980s.
The breadth of and width of Zlatanos’s distinctive approach is laid bare on Retrospective, a compilation album prepared by Colombi and the artist himself that draws on tracks from his numerous albums, those by Nekropolis – whose sophomore set “The New Europeans” was banned in Norway – and his epic archive of previously unheard material.
The artist’s singular but wide-ranging musical vision is free for all to see across the 13 tracks stretched across the vinyl version of the album (digital buyers also get a further four superb cuts). It veers attractively from the ghostly, traditional-meets-futuristic new age electronica of “The Crystal Sight (Excerpt)” and the doom-laden coldwave throb of “Master Chameleon”, to the undulating, soft-touch creepiness of “Surreal Moment”, the Vocoder-laden operatic poignancy of “The New Barbarians” and the squally guitar solos and effects-laden electronics of “The Light”.
Words from the artist___:
"I live in the Internet. Visits from outer space make me compose. I breathe here. I am the master chameleon, the psychedelic clown. I am not here anymore, neither in the picture, nor the reflection. Our bed is a boat that takes us tomorrow without us.
Here is an album of dreams and digital emotions. Analogue recordings made with a Prophet, a Moog Rogue, a tape recorder and a Gibson Les Paul guitar.
As far as I can remember I have always been in a recording studio. I listen to, understand and live my life through songs and music. I have worked alone and with friends such as Trygve Mathiesen. Although I am a guitarist, I continue to work with synthesizers on music that blends elements of Macedonian folk music, recordings from the streets and embryonic electronic sounds.
Some of my albums have been critically acclaimed, others banned by radio stations. For years I worked on endless recording sessions in a crumbling house that should have been torn down. The music on this retrospective compilation was recorded at various points between 1982 and the present day. Some of the compositions first appeared on previous albums, while others have never been released before. They were sat on tapes waiting for a saviour. Now that saviour has arrived and they can be free.
For further proof of Zlatanos’s unique sonic approach, check the startling contrast between the bass-laden slacker pop headiness of “No Expectations” and the spacey ambience of “The Dead Don’t Remember”. Considered together, the selected pieces and those elsewhere on Retrospective forms a snapshot of a genuinely unique and visionary musician, composer and producer. It’s a celebration of someone whose work has previously been overlooked."
Hello operator, you have a collect call from 1-800 Girl...
Ringing in their fifth releases following appearances on the label from Kasra V, Dream 2 Science, Brian Summers, Mark Seven and more, Feelings Worldwide line up three emotive rave cuts from long time friend 1-800 Girls.
Making serious noise across the digital airwaves and a piece of the furniture on your suggested panel on YouTube, 1-800 Girls delivers his second solo EP via Feelings.
One for the sad crew who like to rave the release features three tracks filled brimming with thick pads and atmosphere for those long dark winter nights in the dance.
- A1: Brian Bennett - Canvas
- A2: Wil Malone - Death Line
- A3: Syd Dale - Huckleberry Fine
- A4: The Harry Roche Constellation - Spiral
- B1: The Ivor & Basil Kirchin Band - Jungle Fire Dance
- B2: The Laurie Johnson Orchestra - The New Avengers Theme
- B3: James Clarke & Sounds - Folk Song
- B4: The Reg Tilsley Orchestra - Strike Rich
- B5: The Barry Gray Orchestra - Joe 90
- C1: Keith Mansfield - Soul Thing
- C2: Ccs - Whole Lotta Love
- C3: Syd Dale - Artful Dodger
- C4: John Gregory & His Orchestra - Jaguar
- D1: Nick Ingman - Down Home
- D2: Barbara Moore - Steam Heat
- D3: Alan Parker - Angels
- D4: Alan Moorhouse - Face Up
The 36 track 2CD album comes with 50-page book featuring text, biographies and photography. It also comes in a limited run two volume double-vinyl super-loud super-heavy gatefold sleeve editions. Compiled by Stuart Baker (Soul Jazz Records) and sleevenotes biographies by Jonny Trunk (Trunk Records).
TV Sound and Image features British composers who worked in television, film and music libraries the second half of the 20th century.
Aside from John Barry, whose work on the James Bond films made him a household name, or Tony Hatch and Laurie Johnson, the majority of composers featured here - Simon Park, Keith Mansfield, Reg Tilsley, Syd Dale, Keith Papworth – remain relatively unknown. And yet ironically they have created some of the most recognisable songs in British popular culture, their music widely disseminated on television.
A quick role call of these would include Neil Richardson (who composed the theme tune to Mastermind) and Barry Stoller (who wrote Match of the Day). The Simon Park Orchestra’s Eye Level, theme song to the BBC series Van der Valk, reached number one in 1973. CCS’s cover of Led Zeppelin’s Whole Lotta Love was the theme tune to Top of the Pops. And so on.
This album is not however a stroll through the TV memories of the mind, but an exploration of the serious contribution that these creative musicians have on the landscape of popular music in Britain.
Here then is a guide to the amazing music of many of the composers (both well-known and obscure) responsible for some of the most widely known music ever to come out of Britain in the second-half of the 20th century.
Reviews:
Quietus
Der Spiegel: "spannende Klänge ... die oft funky und immer lässig klingen"
"thrilling sounds.... often funky and always chilled"
New Zealand Herald: ***** "Every track is a killer... This is more than just music to mooch too."
Irish Times: **** "downright funky"
Volkskrant: "Ze leverden spanning op maat, die onbekende makers van fenomenale Britse film en tv-muziek. Door de cd TV Sound and Image opnieuw in de aandacht"
Evening Standard: "deeply funky"
Uncut Magazine "excellent 36 track set ... welcome additions to your collection"
Q Magazine: ****
Five track EP of previously unreleased drum heavy Gallic hard-bop and risqué acidic folk.
The long-lost Parisian skin flick ‘Jeunes Filles Impudiques’ (AKA ‘Schoolgirl Hitchhikers’) marks a particularly vulnerable period in the career of one of the most underrated and misunderstood directors to emerge from the rising smoke of the 1968 Parisian social explosion.
From a director with early links with the Paris underground, the letterists, the surrealists, improv theatre and the free-press comes the reclaimed audio tracks from one of his rarest celluloid moments - but let’s not confuse this for high-art. Finders Keepers make no bones, this is Jean Rollin’s maiden voyage into adult entertainment, directed under the pseudonym of Miche Gentil with a flimsy plot, questionable acting skills and an awesome little schizophrenic soundtrack.
This long-lost movie has been buried for some 40 odd years, with a musical score bursting to jump out of the can and down your tone arm, now made possible by a recently renovated negative print and new source material. These original Pierre Raph (of ‘Requiem For A Vampire’ infamy) compositions from the publishing Library Of Paris’ Musicale Editions Dellamarre (of Acanthus / Unity fame) come straight from Rollin himself as an introduction to Finders Keepers’ new Rollinade series documenting some of the finest musical moments of the director’s career as an avant-gardener, counter-culture vulture and Gallic vamptramp, all housed in their original hand-painted promotional artwork.
- A1: Nobody Knows
- A2: When You Died (Feat Sean Martin)
- A3: Ohm And Raga
- A4: Little Girl (Feat Rahma Hafsi)
- A5: Astratto
- B1: Art Is A Cat (Feat Beatrice Velasco Moreno)
- B2: Alli Guai
- B3: Carpet Of Green (Feat Georgeanne Kalweit)
- B4: Summer Blues
- B5: Sweet Love (Feat Beatrice Velasco Moreno)
- C1: Nella Sua Loca Realtà (Feat Lola Kola)
- C2: Ghosts
- C3: Two Thousand Parts (Feat Sean Martin)
- C4: Mare Della Tranquillità
- C5: Teach Me To Dance (Feat Beatrice Velasco Moreno & Sean Martin)
- D1: Intreccio
- D2: No Frame (Feat Georgeanne Kalweit)
- D3: I Love You
- D4: She Says I'm Bad
"Art Is A Cat" is The Dining Rooms' eighth studio album - thirteenth if we also consider five remix and rework records - in over twenty years of career. It comes out five years after the fully instrumental "Do Hipsters Love Sun (Ra)?", and shows itself as a new milestone in the artistic path of the Milanese duo formed by Stefano Ghittoni and Cesare Malfatti.
In fact, "Art Is A Cat" hosts every facet of The Dining Rooms' music, mostly nourishing the intuitions delivered in past albums such as "Experiments in Ambient Soul" (2005) and "Ink" (2007). It preserves all the characteristics of their typical signature: songs balanced between folk and soul, dub expansions, instrumental hip hop and cinematic atmospheres. Not to renounce to any of these aspects and given the high quality of the recorded material, Stefano and Cesare decided not to sacrifice anything, and wrote and produced a 19-song full-length for a total duration of about sixty minutes.
"Art Is A Cat" also hosts a large group of guest singers, both historical voices of the band and absolute novelties, who also co-wrote the lyrics; the vocal parts are interspersed with the group's instrumental classics, from funk-fueled visionary downtempos to more experimental micro-songs. Sean Martin and Georgeanne Kalweit therefore return with two songs each (one of the two sung by Georgeanne has its lyrics written by Jake Reid, a London-based singer who already collaborated with The Dining Rooms in "Lonesome Traveler" in 2011).
Among the new entries we have, first of all, the Italian-Tunisian Rahma Hafsi on the sensual ballad "Little Girl" sung both in English and Arabic, while the very young Italian-Salvadoran Beatrice Velasco Moreno sings, together with Sean on backing vocals, the spoken-word "Teach Me To Dance", the spiritual "Sweet Love" and the title-track, an orchestral folk moment among the most inspired ones in the entire band's history; Lola Kola, queen of Tropicantesimo, also brings an absolute novelty in the world of The Dining Rooms, presenting for the first time an Italian-sung piece: "Nella Sua Loca Realtà", a post-melodic song dedicated to the fragility of love.
The vocal parts series ends with two episodes in which Stefano resumes his past as a singer (in the '80s with Peter Sellers & The Hollywood Party) with the Indian-flavoured "Ohm And Raga" and the existentialist ballad "She Says I'm Bad".
"Art Is A Cat" is therefore a complete and very fascinating album, destined to excite and leave its mark.
- A1: Starfish – This Town
- A2: Vampire Lezbos – Stop Killing The Seals
- A3: Nubbin – Windyyy
- A4: Saucer – Jail Ain't Stopping Us
- A5: Machine – Blind Man's Holiday
- A6: Medelicious – Beverly
- A7: Hitting Birth – Same 18
- A8: Nubbin – Wonderama
- B1: Crunchbird – Woodstock Unvisited
- B2: The Ones – Talk To Me
- B3: Pod – 123
- B4: Thrillhammer – Alice's Palace
- B5: Yellow Snow – Take Me For A Ride
- B6: Helltrout – Precious Hyde
- B7: Bundle Of Hiss – Wench
- C1: Starfish – Run Around
- C2: Thrillhammer – Bleed
- C3: Chemistry Set – Fields
- C4: My Name – Voice Of A Generation Gap
- C5: Small Stars – It's Getting Late
- C6: Shug – Am Fm
- C7: Treehouse – Debbie Had A Dream
- D1: My Name – Why I Fight
- D2: Soylent Green – It Smiles
- D5: Saucer – Chicky Chicky Frown
- D6: Attica – The System
- D3: Kill Sybil – Best
- D4: Calamity Jane – Magdalena
Soul Jazz Records new release takes us on a serious road trip into the North-West region of the USA, 1986-97, to explore the amazing lost and forgotten sounds of the Grunge era.
This Deluxe massive 28-track Double CD with 44-page outsize booklet features extensive text, band features and interviews, exclusive photos. Also Worldwide digital release + Ltd.Edition Two seperate double-vinyl albums with full notes and free download code.
The underground music scene of the North-west of America arose from the early 1980's, strung out in isolated towns across the vast state of Washington. In its early days bands who showed an allegiance to their roots of punk. Yet, by 1991,Nirvana, the biggest band in the world, had been born from this community of outsiders.
This compilation features some of the many divergent bands who emerged out of the North-west during this era. Intensely researched and documented this album features many bands who have now disappeared from history after releasing maybe just a couple of singles, or an album, or even never making it onto vinyl – alongside some bands that continue to this day.
Perhaps most fascinating is the wide-ranging styles that these grunge bands incorporated - from punk to metal, experimental and more.
All Roads lead to Nirvana: 17 of the bands featured here played alongside Nirvana in the period 1987 to 93. All 23 bands featured feature members who shared a stage with Nirvana. Jack Endino (The Ones) produced 37 Nirvana songs. Dave Foster (Helltrout) was Nirvana's 3rd drummer. Bundle of Hiss became TAD who played more gigs with Nirvana than any other band.
With fantastically in-depth sleevenotes, interviews with most of the bands, exclusive photography and all sonically remastered tracks this is a comprehensive double CD (and 2 volumes of 2x12" vinyl releases) bringing together the hidden, lost and forgotten sounds of the North-west grunge era.
Reviews & Articles: Seattle Times feature here. Irish Times here. Read article by compiler Nick Soulsby in Nirvana Legacy here Read second article by the compiler here. Read article about the artwork here.
- A1: The Explosions - Hip Drop
- A2: Aaron Neville - Hercules
- A3: Bo Dollis & The Wild Magnolia Mardi Gras Indian Band - Handa Wanda
- A4: The Meters - Handclapping Song
- B1: Eddie Bo - Check Your Bucket
- B2: Professor Longhair - Big Chief
- B3: Cyril Nevilille - Tell Me What's On Your Mind
- B4: Lee Dorsey And Betty Harris - Love Lots Of Lovin
- C1: Mary Jane Hooper - I've Got Reasons
- C2: Lee Dorsey - Who's Gonna Help Brother Get Further
- C3: Huey Piano Smith & His Clowns - Free Single And Disengaged
- C4: Eddie Bo - Hook'n'sling (Pt Ii)
- D1: The Gaturs - Gator Bait
- D2: Danny White - Natural Soul Brother
- D3: Ernie K Doe - Here Come The Girls
- D4: Dr John - Mama Roux
- E1: Allen Toussaint - Get Out Of My Life Woman
- E2: The Explosions - Garden Of Four Trees
- E3: Robert Parker - Hip-Huggin
- E4: Chuck Carbo - Can I Be Your Squeeze
- F1: Gentleman June Gardner - It's Gonna Rain
- F2: Marilyn Barbarin - Reborn
- F3: The Meters - Just Kissed My Baby
- F4: Sonny Jones - Sissy Walk (Pt Ii)
Album features Ernie K Doe’s ‘Here Come The Girls’, The Meters, Eddie Bo, Professor Longhair, Lee Dorsey, Wild Magnolias and more.
This is the definitive collection of New Orleans Funk featuring acknowledged masters next to some of the earlier artists who shaped the meaning of funk. The album is also filled with many rare, sought after and undiscovered funk tracks. It covers the period from the emergence of New Orleans Funk in the early 1960's through to the mid-seventies.
The record is an essential part of anyone in any way interested in Funk's record collection. It has some vital ingredients in it that you can't find elsewhere. With the sound of the New Orleans Funeral March Bands, Mardi Gras Indian Tribes and Saturday Night Fish Fries all as inspiration New Orleans Funk developed into a unique sound.
New Orleans is a port town. Originally owned by the French, this was where many slaves were brought from the West Indies. Many of these slaves came from Haiti and brought with them the religion of Voodoo and its drums and music. It became one of the first parts of America to develop a strong African-American culture leading to the invention of Jazz in the early 1900's.
A main feature of Jazz in New Orleans were the Jazz Funeral Marching bands. Solemn Brass bands accompanying a coffin would, on burial, be joined by a second line of drummers and dancers which would turn the event into a celebration of the spirit cutting free from earth. This African tradition is strong in New Orleans and still goes on to this day. The backline drums play a syncopated style that is neither on the beat nor the off-beat. It is these rhythms that are the basis of New Orleans Funk.
The album comes with a booklet presenting a historical explanation to how and why this music came about, and with lots of information about the people involved.
Reviews: "A Perfect Primer For Funk Fans" Q (Top 5 albums of the year). "Probably the finest compilation that Soul Jazz has released. Essential" Time Out.
For its second vinyl release, Eternal Ocean is proud to present ‘Static Flow’: the debut EP of Timo Bürgler AKA Awo Ojiji. Creating his own unique sonic world, Awo Ojiji has delivered a four track body of work that feels at once fresh and familiar. Opening the EP, ‘Lifeforms’ swings out of left field with an off kilter swagger sure to inspire more than a few unique dancefloor experiences. On the interior comes ‘Grainhive’, a groover that strikes a deep and rare balance of emotive texture and raw bassline energy. Flipping over, we find ‘Laura’s Lodge’, perhaps the most oblique tune of the bunch, where slick and expertly crafted percussion compliments the alien sound design that rides out the tune into its own dimension. Closing the record, ‘Swarm Align’ invites the dancer on a journey inwards, deftly maneuvering through a myriad of sonic waypoints until finally finding its way home, to be filed straight away under ‘Deep/Last Song’. Based in Graz, Austria, and having honed his skills alone and through close involvement with the disko404 family, Awo Ojiji steps up in offerance of a unique and personal statement. Taking influence from the current climate and deep history of electronic music and finding a space that is honest and genuine, this is music for the body, mind and soul.
- A1: Adam E Eve (Feat Patrick Tulippe)
- A2: Ansanm Pou Demen (Feat Henri Louis)
- A3: Konsyans (Feat Patrick Tulippe)
- B1: Elwa (Feat William Casse)
- B2: Yenki Sa An Pa Enme (Feat Leonard Zozio)
- B3: Kan La Line Leve (Feat Francois Dinane)
- C1: La Gwadloupeyen (Feat Thierry Dernault)
- C2: Latilye Valo (Feat William Casse)
- C3: Lekiri A Misie O (Feat Francois Dinane)
- D1: O La Ou Te Ye (Feat Francois Dinane)
- D2: O Moman Lesclavaj (Feat Patrick Tulippe)
- D3: Yo Pe Ke Jen Chanje (Feat Patrick Tulippe)
Soul Jazz Records continues its journey into the world of Afro-Caribbean roots music with this album of newly recorded music of Gwo Ka music recorded and produced by Soul Jazz Records on the island of Guadeloupe, French West Indies.
Gwo Ka music is a fantastic fusion of African-derived musical form ( call and response), with vocal styles that draw upon the equally powerful French chanson singers to create a truly unique combination.
Tradition Ka, made up of some of the island’s finest singers and master drummers, is part of a powerful network of politicised Gwo Ka groups on the island – upholding the traditions and cultural importance of Gwo Ka as part of a larger process of defining the identity of Guadeloupe and its culture.
This album is newly studio recorded in Pointe-A-Pitre, Guadeloupe by Soul Jazz Records. Like the cult music of Haiti’s Vodou and Cuba’s Santeria or the roots music of Belize’s Garifuna (all of which Soul Jazz have also released), Gwo Ka is the musical and cultural product of the region’s African ancestry, forcibly brought to the Caribbean through slavery.
Gwo Ka exists only in Guadeloupe, a very different island from much of the Caribbean, in that it remains a ‘department’ of its original colonial master, France. Here, the currency is the Euro and the baker sells croissant and café au lait.
This constant ‘European-ising’ of the island means that Gwo Ka plays a fundamental and important role in the defining of Guadeloupean identity. As an African-derived music, its position as a counter-balance to French influence means that the definition of how and what Gwo Ka represents is also in a constant state of flux.
These new recordings show how Gwo Ka is both a modern Caribbean music form and one firmly rooted in ancestral history.
Over the last 20 years Soul Jazz Records have been documenting and presenting the often hidden histories and deep musical worlds of Cuba, Haiti, Jamaica, Belize, Trinidad, the Bahamas and more. This documentation encompasses reissuing lost recordings, such as the mighty Studio One catalogue of reggae, producing films/dvds (such as the 3-hour documentary Mirror To The Soul in conjunction with British Pathé, and Dub Echoes), books (check the forthcoming photography book on the Caribbean 90 Degrees of Shade, with text by Paul Gilroy, and Kanaval) as well as travelling to the region to produce new recordings.
Italian cult combo CALIBRO 35 release their highly anticipated 7th studio album "MOMENTUM" on January 24th 2020. "Momentum" follows "DECADE" their previous studio album released in 2018 that had marked 10 years of Calibro 35 and it stands out as a new starting point for the project. In the last 10 years Calibro 35 have dug the golden age of soundtracks and they had been to the future with "S.P.A.C.E.", "Momentum", as the band stated: "represents a look at nowadays and a reflection about making music right in the time that we're living".
Inspired by the work of artists such as Tortoise, Jagajazzist, Dj Shadow, Budos Band, Stelvio Cipriani, Ennio Morricone, Sandro Brugnolini, White Noise, Comet is Coming, JPEGMafia and DJ Signify, compared to the previous Calibro 35's full lengths on the 10 tracks that make up the new album, band's instruments and sounds have increased in number and complexity as well as reality.
The music palette is further extended by incorporating even more synths and electronic sounds, but keeping everything true and 100% real, with all the instruments played live and with no presets or programming. The two featurings on the album serve the cause as well. On the first single "Stan Lee", they collaborated with rapper, producer and songwriter Illa J a former member of super group Slum Village and younger brother of the late legendary hip hop producer and rapper J Dilla.
On "Black Moon", the combo from Milan provided the groove for London-based artist MEI. "If Decade was the sum of everything that the band had felt in the previous ten years", Calibro 35 says, "Momentum is the prequel of what you will hear in the next ten".
To mark the new beginning and come full circle, the recordings took place under the expert hands of usual suspect Tommaso Colliva, in the same studio where Calibro released their self titled debut album twelve years ago.
- A1: Concrete & Glass
- A2: Back To Your Heart (Feat Kate Nv)
- A3: We Forgot To Love (Feat Kadhja Bonet)
- A4: What Makes Me Think About You
- A5: Time On My Hands (Feat Kirin J Callinan)
- B1: The Foundation (Feat Cola Boyy)
- B2: Catch Yourself Falling (Feat Alexis Taylor)
- B3: The Border
- B4: Turn Right, Turn Left
- B5: Cite Radieuse
- C1: Concrete & Glass
- C2: Back To Your Heart (Feat Kate Nv)
- C3: We Forgot To Love (Feat Kadhja Bonet)
- C4: What Makes Me Think About You
- C5: Time On My Hands (Feat Kirin J Callinan)
- C6: The Foundation (Feat Cola Boyy)
- C7: Catch Yourself Falling (Feat Alexis Taylor)
- C8: The Border
- C9: Turn Right, Turn Left
- C10: Cite Radieuse
When Air’s Nicolas Godin released his debut solo album, Contrepoint (2015), he channelled the influence of Bach into a rich, resonant and hugely rewarding spread of musical explorations. One soundtrack (A Very Secret Service) later, Godin builds on equally fertile conceptual foundations for the follow-up. Released through Because Music on 24th January, Concrete and Glass is an exquisitely crafted set of variations on architectural reference points: mounted with minimalist precision and delivered with an abundance of pop warmth, it finds Godin in his element, working seductive wonders with poise and style to spare.
For Godin, the album circles back to his formative work as half of ground-breaking French electronic group Air. Revered modern architect Le Corbusier was an influence on the young architecture graduate’s music, notably on his 1997 debut “Modular Mix”. Twenty-plus years later, Le Corbusier featured on a list of modernist architects Godin was invited to compose tributes for, tributes intended to be heard as the soundtrack to site-specific installations around the world.
In its soft ambient pulse and melting minimalism, lead track “The Border” is a perfect entry-point to Godin’s hymns to buildings, arranged and co-produced with Pierre Rousseau. Its levitating synths, vocoder vocals and scudding bass hove into view with understated elegance, all the better to accommodate the discreet slow-build of delicate details within. As with Air, Godin makes gorgeously light work of every angle: this is music that seems entirely unperturbed by gravity, occupying an elevated atmosphere of its own.
Elsewhere, the title-track’s clean synth lines, crisply apportioned arrangements and tender timpani offer another inviting entry-point, sculpted with architectural clarity. While Godin’s vocoder vocals also hark back to Air’s early work, the album accommodates a diverse spread of guest vocalists elsewhere. Hot Chip’s Alexis Taylor guests on the falsetto-soul dream-pop of “Catch Yourself Falling”, one of Godin’s sweetest melodies yet. Oxnard singer/activist Cola Boyy brings soul to the righteously engaged “The Foundation”; the squelchy synths and buoyant grooves burn slow, allowing the stealthy arrangements and message room to resonate. Psychedelic soul singer Kadhja Bonet sings with measured serenity over tremulous synths on “We Forgot Love”, while Russian experi-pop artist Kate NV brings a gracefully aching romanticism to the blissful swoon-pop of “Back to Your Heart”.
Additionally, Australian conceptual provocateur Kirin J Callinan contributes a vocal of restrained drama to “Time on My Hands”, a midnight-drift soft-pop ballad with a silky allure. One of the quickest tracks to record for the album, it emerged in collaborations between Los Angeles (”During some lively sessions in Mac DeMarco’s studio,” notes Godin) and Paris. After he missed his flight home, Callinan stayed in France for a day as the guitar solos were recorded, complementing the song's air of sleek luxuriousness.
Between its title-track and the sultry, smoky jazz stylings of closer “Cité Radieuse”, Concrete and Glass is an album that truly travels, in tune with its global pitch. For Godin, it marks another milestone in a musical journey that began when Air’s 1998 debut album, Moon Safari, became the sublimely weightless soundtrack of its time. For Concrete and Glass, Godin builds on his storied past with tremendous finesse, charm and fluency, opening fresh windows of perspective at every lovingly executed turn.
"Glenn Jones" needs no introduction, he's one of the finest soul vocalists still making music and started in gospel with 'The Modulations' - came to the fore in the early 80's as a featured vocalist with Norman Connors, and recorded also classic albums for RCA, Jive and Atlantic.
Glenn is currently completing a new album “Love By Design” from which “You & Me” is the first single. Limited edition vinyl is released to coincide with Glenn’s appearance at the January, 2020, Luxury Soul Weekender.
Andras’Joyful is a cornucopic vision rooted in the decay of dance music from one of Australia’s most distinct yet understated voices. Cutting a path through an overgrowth of nostalgia around 70's acid folk and 90's acid house, Joyful is an invitation to till a n old garden in a glistening new light.
A thirteen year old Andrew Wilson sits in the back of his parents’ sedan, driving down the coast from Melbourne. Headphones covering his awkwardly aged ears and connected to a jam-packed mp3 player, he experiences an intense synchronicity when the car careens over a mountain crest in the Otway Ranges right as the track in his ears peaks. A momentary vision of a “first rave rush,” in which Australia’s lauded party history dances tellingly with this dreamer’s destiny.
Not so much later but perhaps more worldly and certainly more aware, Wilson returns home from touring, now a “veteran” of the dance world, to realize a different synchronicity in his record collection. Finding Ian Van Dahl nestled next to John Fahey, William Orbit spine-to-spine with Shira Small, the harmony between folk music of the early 70's and dance music from the 90s becomes perfectly audible in unimaginable ways.
Through an afterglow from both summers of love seeped in shared sonic soil, on Joyful, Wilson cultivates melodic drama and tenderness, memorable hooks and rapturous arpeggios; sentimental strings summon both joyful aspirations and the shadows of faded dreams. Using folk songs as fodder—lyrics, samples, note progressions—each entry of Wilson’s debut album under his Andras moniker is a return to a different springtime of the mind.
Many artists working in Australia can relate to the feeling of “not quite being there,” as Wilson describes it. Always a couple years behind trend. Turning up at the party as it’s winding down. Fearing that in many ways the culture is looking backwards, confirming the narrow outlook of a parochialism that many have worked tirelessly to disprove. Using this disconnect as an invitation to dream another dream, Joyful becomes the soundtrack of early teen Andrew’s fantasy of Utopic parties past, specifically the late discovery of a bygone warehouse rave scene, as well as a return to a guileless chapter of personal history as heard through plain, sane, and simple folk melodies. Joyful is a homecoming, a testament to the evolving euphoria of a flower garden rooted in earth’s tender rot, of birds and bees flying free but not without a changing landscape in sight.
Andras’Joyful is available on LP and digital formats on January 31, 2020 via Beats In Space. On behalf of Andras, a portion of proceeds from this release will benefit the Invasive Species Council on the recommendation of Tim Low, author of the book Feral Future and Where Song Began.
Sei tracce in nero’ is the perfect title to describe the second release of 30D Record’s sub-label Eyes Have It. Produced by Reeko and Group, two renowned artists, with a long trajectory and larger discography, this 6-track EP it’s a record both dark, intriguing, and equally captivating.
The EP is divided into 2 parts, clearly defined but with a common denominator: both Reeko and Group are the perfect example of artists who, even not considered to belong to the dark industrial scene, posses an entrancing ability to craft tracks which sound way more unsettling and contemporary than most of the artists in that scene, not and easy achievement!
On Side A, Reeko brings three cuts based in clanging, minimal and repetitive beats, asphyxiating atmospheres and heavy on distortion. Can’t be beat! Group, on side B, follows his characteristic and recognizable sound, a mix of primal and exotic electronics, mantras and a clear lo-fi discourse. Unique!
‘Reeko & Group – Sei tracce in nero EP’, is without any doubt, an exceptional new release for Eyes Have It!
- A1: Four Below Zero - Esp
- A2: Florence Miller - The Groove I'm In
- A3: Personal Touch - It Ain't No Big Thing
- A4: Jesse Gould - Out Of Work
- B1: Wild Honey - I've Been Working
- B2: Smokie Brook - Long Time Ago
- B3: Sentimental Souls - It's Party Time With Getting In The Groove
- B4: Eddie Owen - Determination
- B5: Hooker - Hooker (Part 1)
- C1: Dennis Mobley - Superstition
- C2: Magnetic Touch - Ain't Gonna Be A Next Time
- C3: Ella Hamilton & Don Willis Spoon Band - I'm Gonna Fool You!
- C4: Eddie Owen - Shake Off That Dream
- D1: Sons Of Darkness - What It Look Like
- D2: Flame & The Sons Of Darkness - Solid Funk
- D3: King David - Hitch Hike One More Time
- D4: Henry Brooks - Mini Skirt
- D5: Otis & The King Pins - Funky Donkey
Peter Brown is one of the ultimate in Harlem underground music business entrepreneurs. From the 70's, all through the 80's he had a stream of releases on a plethora of labels, but ultimately under the
P&P banner. From soul, to disco to the birth of hip hop, he covered all the street sounds of New York and in a series of comps Demon are exploring his legacy. P&P soul and funk covers the 1970's with a number of rare, sought after masterpieces and some
equally essential obscurities.
From the former category we have the magnificent ESP by Four
Below Zero, Dennis Mobley's Rare Groove instrumental version of Superstition and Florence Miller's soul floor filler 'The Groove I'm In' Super rare funk is present from Wild Honey, Smokey Brooks and Flame & The Sons. The roots of disco is well represented with Magnetic Touch's original version of Ain't No Big Thing and Ella Hamilton's I'm Gonna Fool You.
In opposite to other Nigerian acts which hardly got known beyond the borders of their homeland, BLO were always very popular in the Western world. Accompanying Ginger Baker of CREAM fame was the first step to break them into the western popular music market of the 70s and what followed could be called an African fairy tale.
Still this, their fifth album from 1979, waited a long time for a proper reissue, especially on hot black wax with originals in good conditions fetching prices of 300 € and more. For fans of 5th Dimension, The Temptations, Hot Chocolate, Earth, Wind & Fire. First ever and long overdue official reissue of this long lost Nigerian disco classic from 1979. Fifth album by one of The most outstanding Nigerian 70's afro beat acts.
Like many an influential album in rock history, the cultural significance of Happy Monday' Bummed was apparent to precious few listeners upon it's first release on 5 November 1988.
Within a decade or two, Bummed would be hailed as one of the best records of the '80s, often by the self-same publications that had slated it back in the day - a harbinger of the seismic shift about to take place in British popular music, away from the squeaky-clean, corporately ordained pop-radio fodder which had increasingly dominated the charts since punk, and back towards the more aggressive, unruly and experience-hungry urges which had always pulsed through rock 'n' roll.
With artwork lovingly replicated by original Manchester designers Central Station Design, this album is on vinyl for the first time since it's original release. Featured the singles "Wrote For Luck" and "Lazyitis - One Armed Boxer"
Pills 'n' Thrills and Bellyaches was Happy Mondays commercial peak, both a No. 4 victory and a benchmark album in history. That year the Mondays made a generation feel like the freaks were winning again, the dreamers and schemers hurtling in from the shadows to park themselves, like grin-faced goblins, in the daylight glare of the mainstream. Artwork lovingly replicated by original Manchester designers Central Station Design. Featured the singles "Step On", "Kinky Afro" and "Loose Fit".
'WRWTFWW Records' is insanely excited to announce the first ever vinyl release of Tom Raybould’s award-winning movie soundtrack for excellent AI-themed sci-fi thriller The Machine (2013). The limited edition LP boasts 16 superb tracks and is housed in a special glow in the dark sleeve.
"Tom Raybould’s Music For The Machine Is Amazing" - Bloody Disgusting.
Undoubtedly one of the greatest (and most overlooked) movie scores of the 2010's, The Machine finds its influences in the works of John Carpenter, Vangelis, Brad Fiedel, and Tangerine Dream, but presents its own unique twist, one that cleverly evokes the thin line between man and machine that haunts the whole film.
Cold and tenacious rhythms suggest mechanical killer instincts, brooding synths crystallize the fear of an AI-controlled future, but the warm and gentle sounds of guitar and piano ease the tension and bring hope of humanity. From its menacing introduction to it's tender ending, Tom Raybould’s masterwork ingenuously blends ambient, electronic, neoclassical, and synthwave to recontextualize and upgrade the classic 80's sci-fi movie score template, holding it's own against mammoth soundtracks like Blade Runner or The Terminator. Truly.
Cold with a touch of humanity like the perfect machine, Tom Raybould’s movie score won the BAFTA Cymru award for Best Original Music in 2013.
Repress
After recently making an appearance on the 100DSR compilation and having released on Ann Aimee in the past, Area Forty_One now steps up for a full EP on Delsin.
The Dutchman proves himself to be an elegant producer of electro that has a super future soul to it across the four tracks on offer.
First up, 'Nocturnal Passions Part I' skips on snappy drums through an ethereal galaxy lit up with neon trails and twinkling lights. It's a vastly spacious track full of celestial vibes and expert production before 'Reminiscence' deals in more serene pads and glassy melodies and conjures the sense that you are lost floating in deep space without a rudder. It's a beautiful place to be for the way it has no real drive or direction.
Then, 'Freefall' trudges along some heavy, gloopy drums. All around are huge mirrors of melody that shine and reflect light back at you and leave you marvelling at their sheer scale and sereneness. Final track 'Isolated Soul' sure does sound like a forgotten cut from the Blade Runner soundtrack with its sad synths, skipping beats and raining melodies. There's a rather menacing sense of tension pervading the whole track that makes it all the more engaging.
This is a truly captivating and musical EP that exudes a terrifically cosmic and celestial aura.. here's hoping it's the first of many from the still mysterious Area Forty_One.
A few years ago, Ike Release was Chicago’s loss and Brooklyn’s gain. He’s already had releases on stellar labels such as Finale Sessions, Mister Saturday Night, and loads more. Once in Brooklyn, he met Nathaniel Jay of Love Notes (from Brooklyn) and a plan was formed.
Being a producer unwilling to be confined to one sound, Ike switches styles naturally and with great ease, and he’s got his Deep, Spacey House tools out for this EP, which of course is the now signature sound of Jay’s Love Notes. This is an 100% Brooklyn product, through and through.
'I Enjoy the world' is the first solo album by Efrain Rozas. The piece was composed to be listened to as a sonic meditation of 40 minutes. Buh Records (Lima, Peru), previously released the album as a limited cassette edition in 2017, accompanied with an animated video by Muriel Holguin. The album has now been remastered and pressed on vinyl by Futura Resistenza, a new record label from Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
Released in April 1987, the Happy Mondays debut album was a perfect snapshot of a very different kind of pop culture coming from beyond the fringes. It would be an underground album but a game changer. Produced by Velvet Underground legend, John Cale, this was the accidental sound track for the endless housing estates sailing away from Manchester City centre and into Salford-perfectly captured by this gang of misfits.
With artwork lovingly replicated by original Manchester designers Central Station Design, this album is on vinyl for the first time since it's original release. Featured the singles "Tart Tart" and "24 Hour Party People"
A heady mix of digi killers, digital roots, dub, electro, and unlikely vocoder magic, Love Lives Forever is the first ever compilation of Miami reggae-notreggae diva Dhaima. The record gathers a collection of the original Natty Queen’s seminal ’80s and ’90s recordings, including her big 1982 chune “Reggae On Sunset,” the Ninakupenda-issued “Don’t Feel No Way,” the previously unreleased “Loving You Is My Thing,” and “Surrender”—the last song recorded before her untimely death in 2000. Pressed loud on vinyl in a long-playing format to mash up your home speakerbox.
“The 45 Collection” by Lewis Parker is released on a five x 7-inch vinyl set, including unreleased songs and instrumentals from the multi-faceted producer. Record No. 4 is: Lean Back Remix (Inst) B/W Sunny Dedications (Inst). Unreleased instrumental version of “Lean Back” remix, taken from “Put A Beat To Rhime”, 2004. Unreleased Instrumental version of “Sunny Dedications”, taken from “It’s All Happening Now”, 2002. The man with the golden sound is back to showcase some rare material from his personal archives for the first time with this beautifully packaged and limited-edition 45 set. The set of 5 seven-inches features unheard original versions, instrumentals, and unreleased songs from a classic period of output between 2002-2006, including beats from the sessions of his critically acclaimed “It’s All Happening Now” LP and the “Put a Beat to a Rhyme” remix project. All this is available for the first time. After a long stay in Queens, NY, soaking up the energy and grittiness of the city and working with Joey Bada$$, the London-born musician is back in the UK. After several successful previous releases with KingUnderground Records, Lewis is now releasing a special treat for long-time fans. “Sunny Dedications” featured in instrumental form for the first time ever; is a classic beat taken from Parker’s seminal “It’s All Happening Now” album released in 2002 on Massive Attack’s Virgin imprint, Melankolic. The lush strings and hard drums still strike a chord over 15 years later. As Parker continues to maintain his musical integrity and commitment to the traditional Hip-Hop aesthetic while simultaneously pushing his sound forward, KingUnderground brings a rare snapshot of the veteran producer’s cutting-room floor.
“The 45 Collection” by Lewis Parker is released on a five x 7-inch vinyl set, including unreleased songs and instrumentals from the multi-faceted producer. Record No. 1 is: Incognito (original) B/W Instrumental Original and unreleased version of “Incognito” taken from “It’s All Happening Now”, 2002. The man with the golden sound is back to showcase some rare material from his personal archives for the first time with this beautifully packaged and limited-edition 45 set. The set of 5 seven-inches features unheard original versions, instrumentals, and unreleased songs from a classic period of output between 2002-2006, including beats from the sessions of his critically acclaimed “It’s All Happening Now” LP and the “Put a Beat to a Rhyme” remix project. All this is available for the first time. After a long stay in Queens, NY, soaking up the energy and grittiness of the city and working with Joey Bada$$, the London-born musician is back in the UK. After several successful previous releases with KingUnderground Records, Lewis is now releasing a special treat for long-time fans. As Parker continues to maintain his musical integrity and commitment to the traditional Hip-Hop aesthetic while simultaneously pushing his sound forward,KingUnderground brings a rare snapshot of the veteran producer’s cuttingroom floor.
“The 45 Collection” by Lewis Parker is released on a five x 7-inch vinyl set, including unreleased songs and instrumentals from the multi-faceted producer. Record No. 2 is: Fakin’ Jax Remix (Inst) B/W Shaky Dog (Inst) 2 Unreleased instrumentals of “Fakin’ Jax” remix, taken from “Put A Beat To Rhime”, and “Shaky Dog“ Instrumental from Ghostface Killah’s “Fishscale” album. The man with the golden sound is back to showcase some rare material from his personal archives for the first time with this beautifully packaged and limited-edition 45 set.
The set of 5 seven-inches features unheard original versions, instrumentals, and unreleased songs from a classic period of output between 2002-2006, including beats from the sessions of his critically acclaimed “It’s All Happening Now” LP and the “Put a Beat to a Rhyme” remix project. All this is available for the first time. After a long stay in Queens, NY, soaking up the energy and grittiness of the city and working with Joey Bada$$, the London-born musician is back in the UK.
After several successful previous releases with KingUnderground Records, Lewis is now releasing a special treat for long-time fans. As Parker continues to maintain his musical integrity and commitment to the traditional Hip-Hop aesthetic while simultaneously pushing his sound forward, KingUnderground brings a rare snapshot of the veteran producer’s cutting-room floor.
“The 45 Collection” by Lewis Parker is released on a five x 7-inch vinyl set, including unreleased songs and instrumentals from the multi-faceted producer.Record No. 3 is: Nothing But Aces ft. Ace Lover B/W Instrumental, an unreleased song recording from 2002. The man with the golden sound is back to showcase some rare material from his personal archives for the first time with this beautifully packaged and limited-edition 45 set. The set of 5 seven-inches features unheard original versions, instrumentals, and unreleased songs from a classic period of output between 2002-2006, including beats from the sessions of his critically acclaimed “It’s All Happening Now” LP and the “Put a Beat to a Rhyme” remix project. All this is available for the first time. After a long stay in Queens, NY, soaking up the energy and grittiness of the city and working with Joey Bada$$, the London-born musician is back in the UK. After several successful previous releases with KingUnderground Records, Lewis is now releasing a special treat for long-time fans. As Parker continues to maintain his musical integrity and commitment to the traditional Hip-Hop aesthetic while simultaneously pushing his sound forward, KingUnderground brings a rare snapshot of the veteran producer’s cutting-room floor.
“The 45 Collection” by Lewis Parker is released on a five x 7-inch vinyl set, including unreleased songs and instrumentals from the multi-faceted producer. Record No. 5 is: Hold it Down ft. Dynas B/W Instrumental, an unreleased song, recorded in 2004. The man with the golden sound is back to showcase some rare material from his personal archives for the first time with this beautifully packaged and limited-edition 45 set. The set of 5 seven-inches features unheard original versions, instrumentals, and unreleased songs from a classic period of output between 2002-2006, including beats from the sessions of his critically acclaimed “It’s All Happening Now” LP and the “Put a Beat to a Rhyme” remix project. All this is available for the first time. After a long stay in Queens, NY, soaking up the energy and grittiness of the city and working with Joey Bada$$, the London-born musician is back in the UK. After several successful previous releases with KingUnderground Records, Lewis is now releasing a special treat for long-time fans. As Parker continues to maintain his musical integrity and commitment to the traditional Hip-Hop aesthetic while simultaneously pushing his sound forward, KingUnderground brings a rare snapshot of the veteran producer’s cutting-room floor.
Die Gruppe Automat - Jochen Arbeit (u.a. Einstürzende Neubauten, Die Haut), Achim Färber (Phillip Boa & The Voodooclub, Skip McDonald) und Georg Zeitblom (wittmann/zeitblom) - funktioniert wie eine gut geölte Maschine: Sie surrt, sie schnurrt, sie geht unbeirrt ihres Weges. Gemeinsam mit dem Modular-Magier Max Loderbauer sowie Paul St. Hilaire alias Tikiman, Lydia Lunch und Mika Bajinski am Mikrofon präsentieren sie nun mit »Modul« auf Compost Records ihr abwechslungsreichstes und konzeptionell stimmigstes Album.
Die Gruppe Automat funktioniert wie eine gut geölte Maschine: Sie surrt, sie schnurrt, sie geht unbeirrt ihres Weges. Auf seinem vierten Album allerdings schaltet das Trio einen Gang herunter, differenziert seinen musikalischen Ansatz weiter aus und geht fruchtbare Kollaborationen mit anderen Figuren aus der Musikwelt ein. Neben Max Loderbauer, dem Bandnachbarn aus den Candy-Bomber-Studios in Berlin-Tempelhof, mit dem Jochen Arbeit, Achim Färber und Georg Zeitblom bereits im Jahr 2015 für eine gemeinsame EP zusammenarbeiteten, sind das am Mikrofon die Dub-Legende Paul St. Hilaire alias Tikiman, die Königin der Gossenpoesie Lydia Lunch und die Newcomerin Mika Bajinski. Sie alle tragen ihren Teil nach dem Leitprinzip bei, welches »Modul« seinen Namen verleiht: Die acht Stücke entstanden gemeinschaftlich nach einem Baukastensystem, das den Kompositionsprozess dynamisch in Bewegung setzte und gleichmäßig auf alle Beteiligten verteilte. Das Resultat ist ein musikalisches Perpetuum Mobile - ein Album mit dem gemäßigten Ruhepuls einer Dub-Produktion, das unablässig in Bewegung bleiben.
»Modul« bildet als Album einen ständigen Veränderungsprozess ab, der erstmals im Jahr 2018 im Rahmen eines Auftragswerks für das Berliner Festival Pop-Kultur live erfahrbar gemacht wurde. Auf Einladung des kuratorischen Teams erarbeiteten Zeitblom, Färber und Arbeit gemeinsam mit ihren musikalischen Gästen St. Hilaire, Lunch und Gemma Ray ein Live-Set, das konsequent aus dem Studio auf Grundlage einzelner Passagen entstand, die nach dem Prinzip eines Resonanzmoduls miteinander (re-)kombiniert wurden: es geht zwischen den einzelnen Mitgliedern hin und her, die Strukturen morphen und der Sound nimmt immer andere Formen an. Eben dieser Ansatz bedingt auch die ständige Weiterentwicklung der Stücke, die gemeinsam mit dem Produzenten Ingo Krauss zu einem Album geschliffen wurden, das seinen nahbaren improvisatorischen Charakter keinesfalls verloren hat. Im Vergleich zu den drei thematisch ausgerichteten Vorgängeralben »Automat«, »Plusminus« und »Ostwest«, die sich jeweils explizit mit Berliner Flughäfen, dem Genre Dub und der europäischen Flüchtlingskrise befassten, setzt »Modul« auf eine inhaltliche Durchlässigkeit, welche die musikalische Offenheit der Platte widerspiegelt.
Nachdem »Modul 15« das Album mit satten Dub-Sounds und einer rollenden Bassline eröffnet, hebt »Easy Riding« passend zu St. Hilaires vor Fernweh triefenden Lyrics das Tempo mit dezenten Riddims an. Schon im nächsten Song, »Ghost«, debütiert Bajinski mit distanziertem Stimmeinsatz über einem melancholischen Stück, dessen Klangbild von den modularen Beigaben Loderbauers geprägt ist. So geht es weiter über die verzahnten Rhythmen von »Ankaten«, die von den verhallten Stimmen Lydia Lunchs und St. Hilaires begleitet werden, hin zum balladesken »Nothing Strange« mit St. Hilaire über das fiebrige Vocoder-Stück »Who For Eyes« schließlich zu den beiden abschließenden Stücken, »Pavo« und »Modul 11«, welche eine tiefenentspannte Coda zu den vorigen Tracks bilden. »Modul« durchläuft so eine Reihe von Stimmungen, ständig wechselnden Klangfarben und musikalischen Ideen, die sich in immer neuen Konstellationen zusammenfinden. Der erweiterte künstlerische Ansatz ebenso wie das vergrößerte Personal machen das Album nicht allein deshalb zur abwechslungsreichsten, sondern auch konzeptionell stimmigsten Platte Automats, die sich darauf in bester Form präsentieren: Als gut geölte Maschine, die surrt, schnurrt und unbeirrt auf dem Weg ist -
immer in Richtung neuer, unerhörter Sounds.
Future Ethics’ first release is an eight-track compilation on a special USB stick with an accompanying zine. The label wanted to foster a spirit of collaboration with an unusual compilation-building structure. Artists gradually added to the compilation as it grew: each artist received the existing tracks and was asked to contribute or remix a track from the compilation. This took time, but resulted in a cohesive and beautiful compilation, rich in emotion, ranging from a vintage club rant from tati au miel; disoriented housy jams from Bergsonist, Beta Librae, and Violet; tense experimental compositions from Englesia and Odete; a 139 BPM banger from softcoresoft; to a dancefloor-melting System of a Down edit from Estoc & Bored Lord.
The zine features an interview from Discwoman’s Frankie Decaiza Hutchinson, writing on off-Facebook event organizing from Adwoa Afful, a beautiful cover from collage artist Fenna Fiction, and a guide to recognizing opioid overdoses and administering Naloxone from Liz Singh and Sara Martin in Toronto. It also features a comic from Berlin-based artist @juicycomics and a poem from Wafa Ktaech.
The newest solo work by Roger Eno in nearly a decade. This Floating World holds rustic and melancholic piano works, as grey and mossy as a country cottage. I hear the LP chiming from the dark corners of a pub, soaking in the damp wood like spilled ale.
I first fell in love with Roger's music with his 1985 debut album Voices, which cradled many rainy and caffeinated mornings when I was living in San Francisco years back. He played on the infamous Apollo, Music for Films vol. 3, and recorded a theme for the Dune soundtrack. Pad-keyboards and veils of reverb pour through those processed tracks.
I later rediscovered Roger Eno in a different light with his 1997 album The Music of Neglected English Composers. A playful and beautiful album of chamber pieces guised as the works of forgotten (and fabricated) composers from the past century. His compositional sensibilities remind me of my favorite recent English composers... Hobbs, White, Bryars, Skempton, etc.
This Floating World feels like a hybrid of these two styles, a melding of both his ambient and 'prelude'-esque compositions. Warm and feathered furniture music. An antique on the shelf gifted from an a cherished relative.
In our communication Roger has been a real charmer, ending every email with Roger and out.' A curious fellow, with a knack for tracing the understated beauties of this world.
In addition to the lovely LP, Roger wrote some brief stories which are set in a 12-page booklet alongside his photography.
"Recorded early 2018, I feel strongly attached to these five jammed cuts. For some reasons, playing at both Brooklyn Mirage New York and Panorama Bar/Berghain Berlin was a direct consequence of these recordings. Emotions-wise, I owe these tracks a lot : Sarbacane d'Antan EP is about waving a happy goodbye to a bygone past period of my life." - Amandra
Escapism's 7th vinyl EP marks the return of Polish-Swedish producer Glos to the label. "Psalms" showcases his talent for producing quality peaktime-techno as well as his gift for storytelling, delivering three tracks that share the same foundation but vary in approach and intention.
From the cosmic creative musical mind of Swiss/Catalan studio whizz, Zeleste Nightclub engineer, video nasty film composer, occasional Jaume Sisa (Muìsica Dispersa) collaborator and future electronic music therapy pioneer J. M. Pagaìn comes the synth-ridden, vocoder-loaded 1984 sci-funk soundtrack to Barcelona’s daytime TV response to the universal E.T. phenomena. Get ready to meet your new alieniìgena amic and the unidentified flying object of thousands of Catalonian kids’ affections through the 1980's as Finders Keepers present Pagaìn’s lost lunar modular synth score to ‘Kiu I Els Seus Amics’ (Kiu And Friends aka Kiu Is Your Friend).
From the same intergalactic phenomenon that brought such delights as Turkey’s exploito cash-in ‘Badi’ or South Africa’s lo-rent homage ‘Nukie’ to our unregulated small screens and the same craze which filled international airwaves with the likes of Extra T’S electro smash single ‘E.T. Boogie’ or the million selling Columbian ‘Cumbia De E.T. El Extraterrestre’ smash hit... not to mention a wide range of unofficial theme-tune cover versions from Holland, Austria, France and Germany (lest we forget an inspired late period Lee Scratch Perry Album).
In 1982 the diaspora from Steven Spielberg’s small fictional mid-American neighbourhood that played host to everyone’s favourite torch fingered, three toed, Skittle-scoffing space goblin touched virtually every family home in every major city resulting in one of the biggest cinematic merchandise phenomenas of the 21 st Century, resulting in an unexpected high-demand / short-supply play-off in which bootleggers, copyists and counterfeiters rose to the challenge like never before.
When Spielberg regrettably told interviewers that he had no intention of making a sequel to ‘E.T. The Extra Terrestria’ it instantly became open-season for the imitators... but way before somebody squeezed-out ‘Mac & Me’, ‘ALF’ and ‘The Purple People Eater’, a team of kid’s TV executives in Catalunya were ready to fill the widening gap in the market without haste. Created in 1983 by Luna Films and Televisioì de Catalunya (TV3) and screened exclusively in Catalunya, ‘Kiu I Els Seus Amics’ was one of the first E.T. ‘tributes’ to make it out of the gate and with a crew of five individual directors and writers to ensure that the five episode, one-off series hit the wave of phone-home-fever, Kiu has since remained a short but sweet micro- memory in the hearts of an entire generation of Catalonian cosmonauts.
This special Finders Keepers edition comes complete with all of Pagaìn’s cosmic synthesiser soundscapes fully intact (barring striking comparisons with the likes of Tangerine Dream, John Carpenter, Vangelis and the soundtrack music of Suzanne Ciani), as well as some rare, unreleased, incidental TV edits. The bulk of this LP is made up of tracks taken from the rare full-length album, which was released after the TV programme had already been aired and coincided with sales of jigsaws and rubberised play figures in an attempt to catch-up with the unexpected mega-success of the show, needless to say, with a short promotional window, the LP (and cassette edition) did not benefit a re-press and with most copies sold to children, few vinyl pressings have escaped repeat needle scratches and decorated sleeves.
- A1: Graham Dee - Another Night Alone
- A2: Graham Dee - Sampaguita
- A3: Maxine - A Love I Believe In (Horn Version)
- A4: Mike Berry - Soul Ride (Ascete Mix)
- A5: Graham Dee - Carrie
- A6: Graham Dee - Cheatin' On Love
- B1: Graham Dee - As Long As I'm Close To You
- B2: Lenny White - Can't Stop Thinking About Girls
- B3: Mick’s Bunch - I Just Wanna Be Your Friend
- B4: Tony Rivers - Tomorrow's Children
- B5: Razor - It's A Hard Way But It's My Way
- B6: Graham Dee - Somethin' Else
This album is Acid Jazz’s tribute to an eccentric, a charmer, an unsung Sixties hero who still has soul. The character that is Graham Dee has lived one heck of a life, from surviving the blitzing of East London during WW2 to playing with Pink Floyd and Jimmy Page - Graham has done it all and this compilation hopes to look back at the story of his life through music.
Dee was the A&R at Atlantic Records, signing artists and producing their songs plus playing on sessions that included pre-Led Zeppelin Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones. One of his tracks, ‘A Love I Believe In’, narrowly missed being a Number 1 after Tony Blackburn proclaimed the single as his Record Of The Week, only for Blackburn to be playing the flip side, ‘The Bitter With The Sweet’.
Around this period Graham was working with the likes of Georgie Fame, Elkie Brooks and Mike Berry to name just a few and even filled in for the absent Syd Barrett on some Pink Floyd shows.
He eventually parted company with Atlantic after he damaged studio equipment whilst practising pistol fast draws and purchasing a hunting bow and accidentally firing it, flooding the office and terrifying the staff.
A lot of the tracks signal specific moments in Graham’s life that involve a lot of these stories. The stories provide the context for the tracks and this spreads a certain spirit throughout the compilation. Now in his seventies, Graham Dee is still writing, recording, performing and releasing solo records.
Fifth instalment in DJ F’s Prayers For The Long Life imprint under his “Ideograma” alias.
This new release showcases the unorthodox approach of the producer, moving between the electro and electronica styles from he’s very own particular approach.
Real Electro from a unique producer.
Ideograma is DJ F’s most electronic, uncanny and edgy alter ego, as showed before in releases for labels like A Harmless Deed, Frigio, Semántica or he’s own Prayers For The Long Life.
Hand stamped vinyl only release limited to 300 copies.
A record to be enjoyed to its very last second AM Jazz is set to place this songwriter where he just might, finally, receive the recognition he deserves; from unsung hero to a truly worthy candidate for being called up to join the City of Manchester’s ranks of great musical icons. Whether you prefer to know him as Mr. Roberts or simply call him Al, it’s time to become acquainted with the real Jim Noir.
Tossing his bowler onto the hat stand and sliding on his slippers, AM Jazz sees ‘Jim’ putting his feet up whilst Alan Roberts takes the lead. A creative masterpiece for the record player and the mantlepiece, it’s a multi-layered album that features close friends including those dearly departed, and is his truest record to date, by a songwriter painting his own hypnotic Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man.
“I haven’t 'felt' like Jim Noir for a long time. I’m not sure I ever did; it was a construct of other people’s imaginations,” reveals Al. “AM Jazz is definitely the kind of music I make generally. It harks back to when I started making music years ago and didn’t worry about capturing a particular style. It will be nice to show people more of that.
It's the best album I've written; real hypnotic minimalism, the good stuff!” 15 years since he recorded the first ever 'Jim Noir' EP, AM
Jazz is the record all Noirheads won’t be surprised Al had inside him.
Letting the Beatlesesque stylings of his most recent album Finnish Line be (5 years ago no less), AM Jazz suits the Noir repertoire of his catalogue so far and is another homegrown offering which sees the Daveyhulme composer tinkering in his suburban Manchester studio once more, with the magic of his computer work sorcery, analog and tape recordings.
“For this I went back to the slightly more haphazard way I wrote my first album, Tower Of Love, wherein I’d use things in front of me, or a bit wrong like headphones for a microphone, to make the most Hi-Fi Lo-fi album ever.”
Whilst a brief disappearance of Jim’s online persona may have provoked bleak theories as to his whereabouts, Al had little time for digital distraction. Whilst writing and creating with friends, he has worked on electronic pet project, FAX with former Alfie guitarist, Ian Smith, and the vintage analogue house meets electro sound of his own solo EP Granada Personnel Recovery, as well as producing local band, Shaking Chainsor, and helping long-time musical colleague, Aidan Smith with his long-awaited 'The Planets' project; “I’ve been writing in dribs and drabs when I feel like it,” Al says. “I used to write all day everyday but it’s a lot harder now I’m (feeling) over 100 years old.” Never not sonically exploring or being inspired by the sounds around him, there was even a red-carpet moment when he appeared as a film premier guest after a couple of his songs were selected for the OST of director Jason Wingard’s film Eaten By Lions.
Performing all AM Jazz’s instrumental parts himself but also, at the right moment, bringing in present and past pals along the way, sexy lounge song, ‘Hexagons’ features 'Phil Anderson' and Mark Williamson singing and playing “legendary OTT guitar solo” respectively. Meanwhile the orchestration of ‘Peppergone’ waltzes like a beautifully romantic ode to Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata – a tribute to dearly departed best friend 'Batfinks' who originally wrote the chords in his song 'Peppercorn.' “I hope he doesn’t think it’s shit,” Al jests. Listen closely and you may even find a few unsuspecting celebrity guest appearances as, perhaps, it could be the very first album to feature soundbites of podcasts sneaking onto the recordings. “I will have a podcast on if I’m recording; Adam Buxton, Athletico Mince, Frank Skinner or Richard Herring… I’m sure some mics will have picked them up, like in the old Tower of Love days,” he says referring to his breakout debut.
Culled from around 50 tunes AM Jazz moves like the time of the day, from dawn to night, stirring from the pop of ‘Good Mood’ and ‘Upside Down’s Beta Band groove. “As the album was playing, I imagined this smoky backstreet with all those neon signs outside clubs at about 4am,” Al says. Mellow ‘TOL Circle’ is like Percy Faith’s Theme From A Summer Place synthesized, capturing the style of TV library music or movie soundtrack obscurity that has always stirred Al’s curiosity, and the album plunges into a vast chasm of instrumental exploration with ‘Mystermoods,’ visiting Japan’s funky synth whiz duo Testpattern and Hakabashi Sakamoto. Darkening and deepening in intensity, ‘Eggshell’ is like an undiscovered gem from Angelo Badalamenti’s cutting room floor, the Panda Bear shimmer of ‘Lander’ is where blissful positivity and sadness meet, about another of his friends who left the world too young. “By the album’s close, its nearly time to let go and enter the ether,” he says of the album’s story. “Like one would do when they take their final sigh on this earth.”
"21" is the well-crafted, sharp and original first album by the duo HILA, composed by American cellist Artyom Manukyan (who already worked with Kamasi Washington, Daedalus, Flying Lotus, Run DMC, Gretchen Parlato, Raphael Saadiq, Clive Lowe Mark...) and french producer Dawatile.
The combination of jazz, Los Angeles beat-scene and the vibrations of 80s and 90s Soviet Armenia make it a striking and unprecedented fusion. These kind of nostalgic and unconventional references forcefully shake the codes of mainstream culture to create a sincere, raw and intimate expression.
"HILA" was born from a spontaneous and intense creative impulse between Artyom Manukyan, a Los Angeles-based Armenian celloist and his partner in crime, David Kiledjian aka Dawatile, a French multi-instrumentist of Armenian descent. This project is proving to be a true master stroke given that it only took 21 days for the duo to make it a reality.
"HILA" was made in less a moon cycle but captivates and electrifies audiences upon its first outings. "H.I.L.A" colors the warmth of the Californian "High" with Armenian vibes. The artists chose this name for their creation since both have a close and valuable connection to these locales. This journey began in 2007, on the day Dawatile went to Yerevan, the capital of this small country in the Caucasus mountain to realize a first fusion project centered around local folkloric music genres.
There he was introduced to local musicians including the Armenian Navy Band, one of the country's foremost groups in which Artyom played the bass and cello. In this context, he also met many musicians such as Tigran Hamasyan and Norayr Kartashyan. This will be the beginning of connections between Lyon, Yerevan and Los Angeles. The following year, the two artists will be be seen performing next to Taylor Mc Ferrin at the Jazz à Vienne festival. More recently, they partnered up again when the cellist, who had freshly relocated in California, invited Dawatile to produce his album. As soon as the studio’s threshold was crossed, they decided to postpone this record and create a joint project: Hay (as the Armenians call themselves) / High In Los Angeles. HILA was born at the end of these 21 days of intense creation. The association of Artyom Manukyan and Dawatile is the combination of two visions, two versions of Armenia, two personalities, the reunion of the Eastern and Western blocs.
One grew up nurtured by the sounds of hip-hop and jazz in Europe and the other by art music and Russian-influenced 1980s Armenian folkloric music before moving to L. A., Ca. The cornerstone of it all, the glue that unites everything : Armenia and music. They generate a new identity synthesizing two perceptions, their complicity transcending these cultural discrepencies. To achieve this, they will scour through images of Artyom’s childhood, within the popular culture of Soviet Armenia. Together, they revisit this decidedly retro vibe, based on the work of Caucasian groups inspired by African American music. This background is rehashed and fused with ancestral Armenian sounds. The DNA of the album "21" is molded by these dear influences.
We can also hear the ancestral sounds of Armenia, a country at the edges of both Europe and Asia. The presence on two tracks of Armenian music Master Norayr Kartashyan, infuses the languor of past melodies and traditions. These purposeful anachronistic sounds offer a fantastic depth to this powerful opus. Listening to the album, one can appreciate the successful fusion of styles and influences. Those combinations, however, manage to preserve individual identities only to enhance the art through an adamant musical dialogue.
Being driven by the urge to transpose Armenian musical traditions into a unique universe, the daring artists, offer an innovative combination by blending, for the first time, these ancestral sounds with the world of Los Angeles beat-scene and jazz. An invention largely fueled by the magic strings of Artyom and maestro Miguel Atwood-Ferguson, a pillar of the genre in Los Angeles combined. These associations resonate with a triumphant equilibrium. HILA is musical uncharted territory in which Artyom's cello strings intertwine to ignite the harmonies of keyboards, the machines, the vocals and electronic layers Dawatile pieced together. HILA plays the soundtrack of an adventure set between Armenia around the end of the Soviet era and a mysterious near future.
Artyom Manukyan grew up in Armenia in the 90s. At the time, he studied Russian classical music while learning jazz with assistance by his father, a music journalist. Being an unconditional music lover, he went on to sharpen his skills at the prestigious Berkelee College of Music. Subsequently, he’s been lucky enough to travel the world touring with numerous acts and mainly with the Armenian Navy Band. The group has fostered alacritous success honored by a BBC Award as a crowning achievement. He moved on 10 years ago and made his way to L.A. with his cello on his back. In the City of Angels, he quickly became a popular figure of the jazz and hip-hop scenes thanks to his first album "Citizen". He’s accompanied prestigious musicians such as Kamasi Washington, Melody Gardot, Daedalus, Flying Lotus, Run DMC, Gretchen Parlato, Raphael Saadiq, Clive Lowe Mark, or Vulfpeck. He released his solo album on the cello, "Alone" in October 2019.
Dawatile is a bold producer and multi-instrumentist as well as a passionate and resolute musician molded by jazz. As a versatile artist, he handles and juggles the saxophone, the keys, the bass and composition. Simultaneously, Dawatile produces cross-over projects and soundtracks for the movie industry. He, as well, has had the opportunity to be a part of many tours, including with his electro hip-hop band, Fowatile and more recently with the "Future Kreyol" trio, Dowdelin. Being the ever workaholic, he has under his belt a string of prestigious collaborations with the likes of Talib Kweli, Foreign Beggars, Roy Ayers, Tigran Hamasyan, Mathieu Boogaerts, Voodoo Game and Piers Faccini. His taste for developing new musical recipes and his know-how in production make him a much sought-after album producer. In concert, the HILA duo offers a sober, precise and rhythmic performance. "21" is an aerial and lively album taking the audience on an at times joyous and sometimes melancholic dreamlike journey. The magic of "HILA" operates at the speed of light and positions it already as an avoidable group.
The drum and bass chart-topping artist, CURRENT VALUE, whose tunes are often a staple of Aphex Twin’s performances, returns to METHLAB RECORDINGS with his SENEX LP, which features twenty one of his most technical and innovative sonic works on the
ike-minded label.
A twin release with it's more upfront & riotous cousin PUER delivered via Souped Up Recordings, SENEX displays its half of the CURRENT VALUE sound with an expansive array of sonic sequences marked by their forward thinking sonic character and the singular timbres for which CURRENT VALUE is known.
Early in the album’s span come the glittering arpeggios of MEGACITY, which filter downwards above the bassline pursuit that plays out beneath their fluttering rays. Further in, DISMANTLE deconstructs a set of classic rhythms before reshaping them within the milieu of it's hazy pads under the pressure of it's mechanical low frequency generator.
An elysian piano melody wafts through the opening percussion of FRIENDLY TAKEOVER and therein masks the brutalist companion frequencies that await within the track’s second section.
ACCESS POINT surges within a stream of bitcrushed binary at the albums third quarter, and opens the way for the enigmatically warped sonics that course through the albums final sections and flow within the depths of it’s voidborne closing track, CRYSTAL BALL.
With SENEX, CURRENT VALUE delivers one half of his joint 11th and 12th albums as he explores his most experimental sonic leanings to both a further breadth and depth than ever before upon the METHLAB RECORDINGS label.
Ô Paradis was created by Demian Nada in Barcelona during the 1990’s. Ever since then he has perfected his post-industrial minded free spirited folk-pop sound. The music of Ô Paradis is based on repetitive loops and samples on top of which instrumentation is added. The vocals and lyrics are very recognisable and are an important aspect of the melancholy songs and dark tunes.
Among his 20-something albums are some classics that have attracted an audience in the field of post-industrial music. “Cuando el Tiempo Sopla” is one of the classic albums by Ô Paradis …
Originally this record was released on compact disc in 2007 on the now defunct but legendary post-industrial label Punch Records.
This album represents the style and sound of Ô Paradis in a very striking way. After all those years it still sounds fresh and relevant
and has lost nothing of its power and charm … Also it features collaboration with like minded artists Jürgen Weber from Novy Svet and Tairy Ceron from Ait!/Punch Records.
Now “Cuando el Tiempo Sopla” is available for the first time on vinyl and serves both as a collector piece for the fans as well as an introduction to a new audience…
Bombstrikes make a long awaited return to the world of vinyl with this limited edition 7'' from The Allergies. There are two outstanding funk jams to choose from here, both taken from their Funk N Beats compilation, with the guys working their magic in the form of collaborators or remixers.
On the A side, long time friend of the duo Andy Cooper (Ugly Duckling) delivers the vocals on ' Why You Buggin'' a tribute to the legendary Run DMC. Over on the flip, the Bristol duo remix Dr Syntax and Pete Cannon's 'Downtime' in their trademark style with the funk licks complementing the infectious vocals perfectly.
This is pure dancefloor gold and available for the first time on vinyl! Get in quick though as these won't last long.
We are proud to present the first release of Believe! International Records – the re-issue of Kirk Reed "California", "Shawn Lee Mix".
American songwriter and artist Kirk Reed first published the west coast gem "California" in 1979. It was the b-side of the Meca Records 7" release "Lazy Mind". The song is a folky groover that pays tribute to The Golden State through its imagery of sunshine and wide open roads. The original record is in high demand among collectors.
The flip side features an exclusive mix of the track by Shawn Lee (Shawn Lee's Ping Pong Orchestra/Young Gun Silver Fox).
Shawn has performed a full studio re-work of "California" with added instrumentation, vocals and production. The result is a luscious adaptation of the original song that truly captures its casual west coast vibe. creditKirk Reed: California.
Written by Kirk Reed. Producer: Carl Edmondson.
Originally released on Meca Records 1979. Shawn Lee Mix: Mix & additional production by Shawn Lee. Shawn Lee: background vocals, guitar solo, Jen SX1000 synth, Crumar MultiMan-S, bass drum, toms, congas, wood blocks, shaker, tambourine. Recorded by Pierre Duplan.
Mixed by: Pierre Duplan & Shawn Lee at The Shop London.
Wah Wah 45's are proud to present "Cages", the third album from southern soul boys The Milk. Having released "Favourite Worry", their critically acclaimed sophomore album and first for independent label Wah Wah 45's, in 2015, the band are able to trace the seeds of the latest LP back to their recording sessions with producer Paul Butler (Andrew Bird, Michael Kiwanuka, Nick Waterhouse) almost five years ago, blending elements of soul, funk and rock together to create their own unique sound, inspired by some of their favourite artists such as Bill Withers, Traffic and the Isley Brothers.
"I can't wait to hear you write songs that look outward" - these words from Paul subconsciously had a lasting impression on the band. To atone for more inward-looking sentiments on "Favourite Worry", there had to be a shift in perspective. During the formative stages of the new album The Milk started pursuing a Nichiren Buddhist practice. The values and principles they discovered during this have informed every aspect of the record.
"We wanted to write an album that looked outside of the walls, to people, society and the environment - embracing real freedom in musical expression by utilising more complex rhythmic structures, extended harmony and dissonance to paint an original and authentic-sounding record" explains If their debut, "Tales from the Thames Delta", was inspired by hedonism and "Favourite Worry" by introspection, "Cages" is an impassioned conversation with the world. Racism and division are all on the rise. British society is being pulled apart by forces that seek to divide us and rip the compassion and empathy from our minds and hearts. We have become distracted from the more urgent challenges of boundless consumerism, climate change, and the mental health emergency reeking havoc on our streets.
We are the birds in the cage, tied by cheap thrills and fake news to a limited world vision that is no longer fit for purpose. The good news? We can all choose to challenge this view. "Cages" is equal parts the dark black shadow of how far we've fallen and the blazing sunlight whose rays of hope can still change the world. Four life-long friends, Ricky Nunn (vocals), Mitch Ayling (drums) Luke Ayling (bass) and Dan Le Gresley (guitar) formed their first band when they were still at school in Essex, playing countless working men's clubs, and finally became The Milk.
The band have built up a following of dedicated fans around the UK, which has resulted in them selling out venues such as Scala, Koko and Shepherds Bush Empire. Keen to get back on the road where they feel most at home and where the guys really shine, the band offer up a compelling set of diverse styles, matched with an ability to effortlessly intertwine songs together, gives their music a continuous feel to it. Since signing to Wah Wah 45's, the band released their second album "Favourite Worry", which became one of BBC 6 Music's albums of the year, sold out London's Union Chapel, toured with the Fun Lovin' Criminals and completed a sell-out UK tour climaxing at London's KOKO in Camden town. ... More live dates coming very soon!
'Active Imagination' is a result of the bringing together of musicians for a day in the studio, with minimal rehearsal, to collectively experiment and improvise in the moment - in contrast to the more composed and structured recordings of the Paradox Ensemble album 'Awakening' from January 2019. All musicians contributed their distinctive individual voices, creating a united force of spiritual, freeform jazz. Each composition is based on a different mode, all with their own distinctive flavour: "So Long Chef" nod's to Coltrane with its chords jumping by major thirds, before a more static middle section,offering a chance for Walters and Jeff Guntren (tenor sax) to explore the Lydian mode."Ahimsa" is a meditative reflection and group improvisation, based around a simple theme in the mixolydian mode, resulting in a spiritual journey steered by Rebecca Nash's hypnotic piano solo. "Gordian Knot" was conceived as a vehicle for Ed Cawthorne (aka Tenderlonious) to cut loose on soprano sax in the phrygian mode, which he achieves with devastating effect, backed up by Nim Sadot's infectious bass hook and complimented by an equally striking trumpet solo from the band leader. Finally, "Dansoman Last Stop" uses the dorian mode to channel the spirit of a bustling travel interchange in southern Accra, Ghana, conceived further by another exquisite trumpet solo from Walters.
When was the last time EDMX served you what you expected? Maybe you drop the needle down in anticipation of some slick boogie-inflected synth pop and get walloped in the face with hellfire techno. Perhaps you were itching for body-popping electro and got cerebrally hijacked by pagan coldwave.
On this latest magnum opus, his first on Queen Nanny. Ed Upton is in the mood to get down low in every sense of the word. On the frequency range, this is a record dripping with lard-fed bass at every turn. The arrangements too are devilishly low in channel count – raw riddims with just a few key ingredients to do the necessary damage. Then there are the tempos, which predominantly set cruise control at 90 BPM and glide.
It’s not hard to tell where EDMX’s inspiration has sparked from on this album – in the spirit of celebrating the compatability of oddball sonics from all corners of the globe, he’s patched his sound into a specific vibe and struck gold with some of the most distinctive riddims you’re likely to hear all year.
The Venetians were formed in late 1982 as a studio concept band after Rik Swinn (lead vocalist) arrived in Sydney with master tapes of tracks he recorded in England with engineer/producer Vic Coopersmith-Heaven - It's Cat Stevens, The Rolling Stones, The Vapours & The Jam. - He also read a newspaper advert placed by two musicians who were looking for a lead singer.
Within weeks Swinn formed a touring band and enlisted David Skeet on guitar, bass guitar, synthesiser and vocals, and Peter Watson (ex-Scandal, Extractors) on guitar, bass guitar, synthesiser and vocals.
Drummer Tim Powles (ex-Ward 13) joined next and keyboardist Matthew Hughes (ex-Gotham City) completed the line up of the Venetians.
They released their first single, "Sound on Sound", in April 1983 - original copies of which go for upwards of £150 on Discogs.
This 12" includes the original plus remixes by Andrew Weatherall & Zatua (Music from Memory).
Producer duo Hudson Mohawke and Lunice stare at the moon for too long, get abducted and return just in time to deliver their second EP ‘II’. Following the release of the mysterious ‘Serpent’, a lunar chart that was decrypted by fans in minutes and a dangerous Radio 1 Essential Mix, TNGHT’s crescent moon is appearing once again from behind heavy clouds. It has been seven years since Hudson Mohawke (Ross Birchard) and Lunice’s (Lunice Fermin Pierre II) prodigious debut which accidentally changed the sound of the pop music caught in its wake. The pair of bedroom-producers-cum-superproducers hail from Glasgow and Montreal and have aligned once again on a record which aims to chew up and spit out every influence across a single 12”.
Whenever newspapers write of the Great Voices of the 20'th
Century, Billie Holiday will be among them. She is among the finest ever interpreters of the popular song as well as being a great jazz vocalist. The rock musician, 'J.J. Cale' described her appeal by saying, “Billie Holiday is probably the biggest exponent of laidback there is. She always sang behind the beat and I loved that.”Just listen to the miraculous way Billie sings the standard 'The Very Thought Of You' or songs from 'George Gershwin’s & 'Porgy And Bess'.
... LP FORTHCOMING Inc. Soundfiles to the Tracks.
- A1: It Don't Mean A Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)
- A2: I Get A Kick Out Of You
- A3: They Can't Take That Away From Me
- A4: Let's Do It, Let's Fall In Love
- A5: These Foolish Things (Remind Me Of You)
- A6: My Funny Valentine
- B1: Too Darn Hot
- B2: Let's Fall In Love
- B3: Cry Me A River
- B4: The Lady Is A Tramp
- B5: Night And Day
- B6: Mack The Knife (Live)
Ella Fitzgerald’s singing talents were simply supreme. Every one of her contemporaries looked up to her as the standard to be judged by. There are dozens of quotes from everyone including Crosby, Sinatra and virtually all the major band leaders extolling her virtues.
'Ella Fitzgerald' was undoubtedly one of the greatest jazz and pop singers and interpreters of the twentieth century.
Listeners can dance to her work, relax to it, laugh with it, cry with
it, and everything in between as she can satisfy every mood ...
This album gathers some of her very best recordings, and could serve
as a starting point for some deeper delving into her fine catalogue
of songs.
Medicine used to be, we expected, good for us. Albeit with added sugar. Now medicine is a huge problem in itself, with vast companies caught mis-selling dangerous drugs. It’s one of the biggest scandals ever. How on earth did we get here? Who did this?
The Imbeciles are on the case.
“It’s about the dark side of prescription ‘medicines’. Oxy, Xanax, Ambien, all that. Big pharma is pushing these addictive ‘medicines’ that we don’t actually need, to desensitise / numb / kill. All for profit,” says Butch Dante.
A new classic from The Imbeciles. They know. And they made a video. Watch it here.
Now they’ve been remixed. By these people:
C.A.R.:
Impossible to categorise, and all the better for it - London based, Franco-Canadian, C.A.R., flirts with elements of new wave, cold wave, synth-pop, post punk and off-kilter disco; and without doubt wields some of the most satisfyingly other-worldly melodies and synth lines around.
Ryan James Ford:
One of the most exciting underground techno producers on the block - Ryan doesn’t constrain himself to any one rhythm, aesthetic and motif, but can always be found to be hitting the listener with thick atmosphere, dark melodies and an upfront, experimental attitude.
Legowelt:
A true pioneer of left field house and disco, this Dutch master draws from disco, italo, dub, dancehall, techno and many more sonic pools to create his wonderfully engaging, but always envelope pushing sound.
- A1: Sharnell Morton – You Are My Shining Star
- A2: Janice “Nicki” Harisson – Magic Of Love
- A3: Direct Connec Shun – He’s No Good
- A4: James Family- We’ve Got It Made
- B1: Network & Co – Spirit Of The Boogie
- B2: Marlon Hunter – Did You Forget My Number
- B3: Spice Of Ice – Star Struck
- B4: Executive Suite – When It Comes To Lovin Me
SOL DISCOS is extremely happy to introduce the second volume of their Message In Our Music compilation series, selected by WAXIST. This album is the result of more than two years of work in researching the original recordings, the artists involved & licensing the different songs. Focusing once again on the Modern-Soul genre, the album brings back to light eight extremely rare songs from the mid-70's to the mid-80's, all officially licensed. From the heavy synth Gospel Boogie of Sharnell Morton's "You Are My Shining Star", to
the magnificent Network & Co private Disco "Spirit Of The Boogie", most of these songs are highly difficult to find on their original format, not to mention at a decent price. Direct Connect Shun’s "He's No Good" records have been destroyed in a flood, and the few
copies which have sold on the Internet reach the 3 figures price tags for example. Also, the album is proud to introduce to a wider audience some lesser known but exceptional recordings such as Janice "Nikki" Harrison's "Magic of Love", which is taken from a Broadway musical produced & composed by Ted Wortham - who also composed for
Philadelphia International Recordings artists such as Teddy Pendergrass, Anthony White or Jean Carn. Message In Our Music Vol.2 has been fully remastered, and features interview based liner
notes, along with never seen before pictures of the artists selected
Repress
Be With Records present the hugely anticipated first ever vinyl release of r'n'b star Cassie's seductive debut. A late-night classic of chilly electro-soul, the self-titled album has influenced many in the dance music fraternity since its original CD-only appearance back in 2006. Particularly revered by Jamie xx, Four Tet, Hot Chip and Tri Angle Records, the r'n'b cognoscenti went into overdrive when rumours of this release first leaked.
Perhaps most famously, it features the slick summer smash "Me&U" which reached No.6 in the UK charts and topped the US equivalent. Yet the remaining 10 tracks serve to create a "minimalist r'n'b" masterpiece; the intricate and space-filled arrangements are laced with sinister synth bleeps that wouldn't have been out of place on an early 90s Warp record. The dark, hypnotic high ends coupled with Cassie's ice-queen delivery made this stand out from the tired crowd of mainstream r'n'b at the time. It still sounds wholly and eerily unique.
Like all Be With releases, this record is officially licensed and has been cut by Frank Arkwright at the legendary Abbey Road Studios. Pressed on audiophile 180gram vinyl - befitting the heaviness of the music contained within - it also features the original artwork set elegantly within its 12"x12" borders.
This time we'll treat you with a very special branded practical bag.
A small bag, to put inside small things, important things. Once you'll open it that little vinyl smell contained inside ("Air De Wax") will forever evaporate but you'll know that the bag will be forever useful!
Apparel Wax comes back after a long summer with another EP, the 7th of its catalogue and yet again another display of four different musical approaches brought together as one. The EP is, indeed, a 4 tracks one and starts off with a groovy execution of a classic house track, an archetypical and simple house tune with a defined personality and the perfect start, from square one. With 007A2 we start to shift the perspective to a more funky and tribal vibe with the help of the percussions, piano chords and simple bass and guitar lines to close an A side which is a modern view on something classical.
007B1 breaks in bringing an energetic overload since the first seconds with a heavy rhythmic section and keeps up the same pace throughout the whole track even when slowing down. Its insistent and slightly distorted hi hats, along with decisive piano chords helped by some well crafted vocal samples, take us all round this journey through a packed imaginary dance floor. Let's take the foot off the pedal for 007B2 which is instead the most desirable closing with it's smooth yet impactful sounds which create an ideal sunset mood to plunge into. So the sun sets on APLWAX007 and we hope you dig once more what the masked hero brought us this time around.
It’s that time of the year again: we’re finishing our 6th year of Heist Recordings with our annual potpourri of remixes with this
year’s artists on ‘The Round up part VI’. This year, we’ve got a few really cool newcomers on the label like Demuir, Perdu and
Makèz, as well as label mainstays Fouk and yours truly delivering a great collection of remixes.
The EP starts off with label heads Detroit Swindle giving their high-energy take on Fouk’s ‘Need my Space’. They’ve chosen for
a stabby club version of the more introverted original, with different layers of synths building up alongside a pumping drum track
and a punchy Moog bassline. Check the break for a nice dreamy broken beat section before the track comes back into full
dancefloor madness.
Makèz have only just released their well-received debut EP and now they’re flanking Detroit Swindle on the A-side with their
remix of Perdu’s hit ‘Sacramento’. They replace the broken beat vibe of the original and instead go for a 4x4 track with a driving
bassline, warm pads and subtle placement of Perdu’s original elements.
On the B-side, we have Fouk reinterpreting Demuir’s take on Detroit Techno with their remix of ‘3nity returneth’. Their version is
a tom-heavy high-energy club track with a strong nod to the past, whilst still keeping that strong Fouk signature intact. They
mangle the vocal sample in a drunk and twisted break before setting the track back on fire with an extra acid line for good
measure.
The B2 goes to Perdu’s dreamy slow burning remix of Detroit Swindle’s classic house bomb ‘Music for clubs’. His version takes
the tempo down and dials the dreamy level up a notch. A mellow but punchy acid line and worldly synth hits give this remix it’s
cool twist and it’s a great showcase of Perdu’s view on the broad world of house music.
This year’s Round up finishes with Demuir’s trippy ‘playboy edit’ of ‘Random Visits’ by Makèz. He takes the vocal sample and
layers it behind a haunting string, dreamy keys and a steady groove. It’s got a funky vibe where Demuir’s knack for a good
groove fits perfectly with the fresh original.
The Round up is a special moment for us each year and we’re excited to share these reinterpretations of another year’s worth of
house from the world of Heist Recordings with you.
Yours Sincerely, Lars & Maarten.
Favorite Recordings proudly presents Recalling You, a dazzling Disco/Jazz-Funk new single EP by our longtime friend and label mate Andre Solomko. Born in Ukraine and based in Finland for a while, Andre Solomko is a rich and engaging personality, but above all, a talented saxophonist, composer and engineer, with contagious passion. Since they met 7 years ago, Andre and Pascal Rioux’s (founder of Favorite Recordings) collaboration resulted in 3 albums and a couple of singles acclaimed internationally. Primarily known for a sound mixing Jazz-Funk, with European Soundtracks, Pop and Soul influences, Andre Solomko’s skills for composition and production are much wider. Almost 2 years ago, he’s therefore demonstrated his versatility when delivering the hot Disco anthem “Le Premier Disco Sans Toi”. This first attempt definitely seduced many DJs and collectors, and it seems Andre enjoyed the trip too and decided to embark for it again with “Recalling You”. For this new single, Andre’s idea was to revive two of his past compositions, tailoring brand new glamorous Disco suit and arrangements for it. Backed again by a close team of musicians and the beautiful and charming vocals of Charlotta Kerbs, the new session was recorded live and analog as usual, and then brilliantly mixed in France by Jordan Kouby at Question de Son studios. It ended with what might be Andre Solomko’s best level of productions and sound so far. To make it short, “I Recall” and “Teasing You” felt in love and had a baby at the nightclub… here comes Recalling You, packed in a 45rpm 12inch vinyl edition and coming with a hot Dub edit by Charles Maurice on B-side.
Joe Lucas creates music under a few monikers most often as Causa and notably has appeared on Tusk Wax, Boogie Box and Birdie.
The Causa sound elegantly touches on deep house grooves and melodic techno but with contemporary style and is an obvious choice for the Verdant family. The Locks EP is released as Sixtyone leaning towards Detroit flavours with intricate percussion layered with warm soulful keys.
Previous releases have attracted high profile remixes from Kuniyuki, Luv Jam and Young Marco and that trend continues. On the flip of The Locks Stojche provides a burly, peak time reshape of Zelo upping the Detroit vibes. Hiver's reshape of the delicate Tregnanton original adds a firm kick, swinging bassline and heady 303 sparkle with dazzling effectiveness.
As electronic musician Lorenz Brunner sketched his vision for the first Recondite full-length on Ghostly in five years he took a step back to assess who and where he was as an artist. 2013’s Hinterland accelerated a progression — he’s since been touring around the world and releasing music with labels such as Hotflush and his own Plangent Records — yet, for him, the album cast a shadow of pressure that widened over time. As with most art forms, perhaps especially music, there is an expectation to change, to creatively pivot elsewhere with each project. After careful consideration, Brunner rejects this notion with his new work, opting alternately to use the icy Hinterland as an aesthetic and tonal template for a like-minded map of evocative compositions aptly titled after the German word “stillstand,” now presented as Dwell.
“I am coherent with what I do, even if I’m not reinventing myself,” Brunner says contentedly. In regards to the album title, he adds, “It’s like when you’re on a hike and you stop and look at the scenery; you may know which path you want to go next but right now you are dwelling.” The title also doubles as a reference to everyday domestic life, a restorative haven for Brunner between tours. Like Hinterland, he incorporates a subtle range of field recordings to intensify the textural atmosphere. While he worked at home on “Mirror Games,” Brunner noticed the buzz coming from across the room, where his wife was using an electric toothbrush, naturally harmonized with the track. He decided to push that frequency further and record the device directly, syncing vibrations for added urgency across the propulsive piece as well as parts of the ambient “Interlude 2.”
Windswept, moody, and melodic, moments on Dwell linger with emotional resonance. The title track sends an eerie synth loop through a field of techno kicks. The beats recede for a breather four minutes in as if to survey the surroundings. If Brunner pivots anywhere — possibly just a new perspective afforded by being confidently stationary in his craft — it’s by leaning more into hip-hop structures. He’s an avid rap fan and his love for those production techniques is notably present on “Nobilia,” a queasy shuffler (titled in reference to the Super Nintendo game Secret of Evermore), “Interlude 1,” which skitters in lockstep with contemplative synth chords, and “Surface,” an isolatory, ruminative sequence. The closer “Moon Pearl” soothes and shimmers like its namesake, a cherished gem in The Legend of Zelda series that allows carriers of the gem to retain their shape and essence in the Dark World.
In an era where constant reinvention and highly self-reflexive brand awareness reigns supreme in the music industry, Brunner as Recondite does something many artists try to avoid, he dwells in his own established identity, one that has garnered him a devoted fanbase. His murky electronic productions, built around mirage-like pads and clipped drum programming, have proven to be highly functional and spectrally enveloping; Dwell is not a return to form, it is a further study of the shapes, it is the modes, and the structures Brunner has trademarked.
As electronic musician Lorenz Brunner sketched his vision for the first Recondite full-length on Ghostly in five years he took a step back to assess who and where he was as an artist. 2013’s Hinterland accelerated a progression — he’s since been touring around the world and releasing music with labels such as Hotflush and his own Plangent Records — yet, for him, the album cast a shadow of pressure that widened over time. As with most art forms, perhaps especially music, there is an expectation to change, to creatively pivot elsewhere with each project. After careful consideration, Brunner rejects this notion with his new work, opting alternately to use the icy Hinterland as an aesthetic and tonal template for a like-minded map of evocative compositions aptly titled after the German word “stillstand,” now presented as Dwell.
“I am coherent with what I do, even if I’m not reinventing myself,” Brunner says contentedly. In regards to the album title, he adds, “It’s like when you’re on a hike and you stop and look at the scenery; you may know which path you want to go next but right now you are dwelling.” The title also doubles as a reference to everyday domestic life, a restorative haven for Brunner between tours. Like Hinterland, he incorporates a subtle range of field recordings to intensify the textural atmosphere. While he worked at home on “Mirror Games,” Brunner noticed the buzz coming from across the room, where his wife was using an electric toothbrush, naturally harmonized with the track. He decided to push that frequency further and record the device directly, syncing vibrations for added urgency across the propulsive piece as well as parts of the ambient “Interlude 2.”
Windswept, moody, and melodic, moments on Dwell linger with emotional resonance. The title track sends an eerie synth loop through a field of techno kicks. The beats recede for a breather four minutes in as if to survey the surroundings. If Brunner pivots anywhere — possibly just a new perspective afforded by being confidently stationary in his craft — it’s by leaning more into hip-hop structures. He’s an avid rap fan and his love for those production techniques is notably present on “Nobilia,” a queasy shuffler (titled in reference to the Super Nintendo game Secret of Evermore), “Interlude 1,” which skitters in lockstep with contemplative synth chords, and “Surface,” an isolatory, ruminative sequence. The closer “Moon Pearl” soothes and shimmers like its namesake, a cherished gem in The Legend of Zelda series that allows carriers of the gem to retain their shape and essence in the Dark World.
In an era where constant reinvention and highly self-reflexive brand awareness reigns supreme in the music industry, Brunner as Recondite does something many artists try to avoid, he dwells in his own established identity, one that has garnered him a devoted fanbase. His murky electronic productions, built around mirage-like pads and clipped drum programming, have proven to be highly functional and spectrally enveloping; Dwell is not a return to form, it is a further study of the shapes, it is the modes, and the structures Brunner has trademarked.
'TENEBRE' is the 1982 Giallo masterpiece from Director Dario Argento. Although his frequent musical collaborators Goblin had disbanded while he was filming, Argento managed to convince three members of the group to reform and record the score to TENEBRE.
Claudio Simonetti, Fabio Pignatelli & Massimo Morante re-assembled in their studio and managed to deliver one of the greatest soundtracks of the 80's, Simonetti brought with him his love of Italio disco and the mixture of solid disco grooves and their intense, tight Prog Rock stylings is nothing short of astonishing.
The lead track is a vocoder lead freakout that mixes disco, rock with church organs, and screeching synth leads and that pretty much sets the tone for the entire record.
'TENEBRE' is far more electronic based than the majority of the bands scores for Argento and it really shines alongside other classic such as SUSPIRIA and DEEP RED.
Italian production duo natural/electronic.system. is back on their homebase Tikita Recordings. With four immersive deep techno cuts they continue the journey they've started when debuting on the label back in 2016. Now they could be seen as one of the key figures on the Moroccan based imprint with 'Mediterranea' being their third full EP on the label.
'Scirocco' starts in a deep mood, on low pace and mesmerizing percussion improvisations. 'Grecale' is the most swinging cut of all four with its tribal drum flow rambling on a playful up-tempo groove. Flipping to the b-side 'Libeccio' comes in at a lower bpm but still an unavoidable catchy and danceable motive where 'Maestrale' ends this playful EP with a lush and dreamy electro jam in deep blue space atmospheres.
Repress
Mr. G embarked on his first US tour in 2019. The result has been a ton of new inspiration, after which he wrote ''The Alien With Extraordinary Abilities''. PG062 is a collection of six versatile tracks ranging from thumping G sound House / Techno to hazy works of ambient textures.
Concealed within the eclipse, Overdue presents a new black-label 12" series - symbolic of its sinister auditory contents.
Further proof of their unbridled dedication to sound system music and commitment to quality, the Belgian Dubstep imprint unravels
it's fifth physical release. Based in Denver, its newest signee by the name of Ghast returns to the spotlight, following up on heavyweight releases on prominent labels such as Encrypted and Gradient Audio.
The talented American artist sets the stage with two unruly armaments, alongside murderous remixes by Denmark's bass music stalwart RDG as well as the label operators themselves, Substrada & Caba.
Starting the engines, 'Mothership' immerses the stage in flickering echoes and haunting wails - the air bustling with anticipation. Eerily disfigured, granular reverberations materialize amid a pressurized and truly outlandish soundscape, barren at its core. Heading into the second section with renewed vigour, no dance floor remains unscathed in the ensuing aftermath.
The subsequent doomsday scenario, as engineered by Substrada & Caba, strips the ship to its bare essentials - laced with trippy drum instrumentations and the psychedelic foley samples. The meticulous flow presents itself in a bleak dungeon style - hoodlum vocal fragments rounding off the resulting low-frequency inferno.
Flipping the record to its equally profound B-Side, 'Vehement Mess' unhinges another portal into madness - dance floor upheaval guaranteed. Showing no signs of mercy, the infernal armagedon proves to be emblematic for Ghast's dystopian sound design. Profusely industrial and with clinical efficiency, hitting all the right frequencies as the second wave ignites but all available power reserves.
Finishing off any remaining survivors with his irreproachable signature style, RDG's remix marches onwards with unrestrained might in a four-to-the-floor fashion - super-charged, galvanizing the rave in a no-holds-barred shutdown.
Chicago-based contemporary electronic musician Steve Hauschildt has composed panoramas of synthesized sound for over a decade. First within his former band, Emeralds, an American touchstone of 2000s home-recorded psychedelic noise music, and later across a steady and critically-acclaimed stream of solo releases spanning ambient techno, arpeggiated electronica and post-kosmische styles utilizing synthesizers, computers, and digital processing. In 2018, he extended a collection of rich, visceral tracks titled Dissolvi, his first release on Ghostly International and his most collaborative work to date. Just a year later, Hauschildt returns with Nonlin, an album that's freer, leaner, and looser, both structurally and conceptually; less linear compared to its predecessor, but still captivating. Developed and recorded in several studios during and around the edges of tour - Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, Tbilisi, and Brussels - this material emulates an alienating encounter with a smattering of places, a replicant of culture shock, a solitary and stark experience with uncanny environments, melody and dissonance as oblique locales. Nonlin finds Hauschildt evolving his palette of tools, integrating modular and granular synthesis. The improvisatory and generative nature of modular systems, when paired with his signature grid-oriented and hand-played techniques, guides these compositions slightly out of line to hypnotic effect. Opener "Cloudloss" permeates the mix with an unsettling smog, which reappears and all but engulfs "A Planet Left Behind." On cuts like "Attractor B" and "Subtractive Skies," pockets of air rest between sequenced pulses, whose crumpling and flattening folds build into a restrained rapture of crisp frequencies and milky reverb-swallowed coruscations. The album's title track and centerpiece logs on to a foreign network, a fractured percussion signal that modulates and stutters into static amidst curious melodic sparkling in the hazy bandwidth. "Reverse Culture Music" casts an elegant and brooding stream of strings, pizzicato and churning bow from Chicago cellist Lia Kohl, against chiming minimalist synth frameworks. A surprising pattern emerges in the taciturn systems at work. Hauschildt continues to expand his already horizon-wide repertoire, here exploring the effects of corrupting coordinates; a flight subject to the collapsable abilities of time in remote spaces, a smearing of the axis to elegiac ends.
Visible Spectrum is the newly launched creative playground of Yuri Boselie, also known as Cinnaman. Since donning the Cinnaman alias nearly two decades ago, he’s become a well known figure of the Amsterdam nightlife scene with long running residencies at the city's most lauded clubbing institutions like Club 11, Trouw and most recently De School. Next to his DJ sets, he's made early moves in label curation with A&R work for Rush Hour and Kindred Spirits offshoot Nod Navigators, and with his own Beat Dimensions compilations in the late 00s. With Visible Spectrum — defined as the electromagnetic frequencies visible by the human eye — a new chapter is born. It is an outlet for electronic music in the widest sense. Each sleeve will have its own unique screen printed artwork by Marilyn Sonneveld.
The first EP comes from Mor Elian, the Berlin based artist and owner of the Fever AM label. Here she offers the loose and hypnotic rhythms of 'Clairvoyant Frog' which is deep and atmospheric, like some sort of primordial techno soup. 'Shoshana's Roses' then picks up the pace with layers of rumbling drums, wooden hits and snaking synths taking you into a steamy, humid jungle before closer 'Planet Kismet' is a much quicker and more urgent bit of enchanting break-beat techno with pummeling minimal drums and warped synths and perc getting you under their sci-fi spell. A fascinating first outing that sets a high standard from the off.
Releasing his first ever vinyl release 'El Sunset' on James Holden's, Border Community back in 2007, Chilean producer Ricardo Tobar has since been held in high regard by the seminal UK producer. Intricately constructing his way around the parameters of emotionally-lead, highly atmospheric electronic music, Ricardo has brought his sound forward to grace the rosters of Jennifer Cardini's, Correspondant, ESP Institute and MUSAR Recordings. Continuing to extend his already significant discography, he now returns to MUSAR Recordings for a third time with the 'After The Movie' EP.
Ricardo's 'After The Movie' EP forms a selection of cuts that have been held in his locker for quite some time. Uncovered by MUSAR Recordings label head, David on a podcast from way back, it seemed only natural that this unreleased music from Ricardo would find its home on the Amsterdam-Tel-Aviv label.
"This EP is quite special to me because it reflects a long timeline in my work. The 'After The Movie' track had been in the vault for ages until David from MUSAR found it in an old podcast; it really takes me back to those first steps in recording music." Ricardo Tobar
Across his EP, Ricardo plays with varying textures and arrangements that in turn provide a cross-section of his sound that has expanded and developed over time. 'After The Movie' presents the experimental ambience synonymous with his early works, whilst 'Parques' brings an idyllic, cinematic feel with strictly crafted synth arrangements riding high, post-rock influences also show through. 'Regain Your Power' represents a change of course, whilst also channeling a political message punctuated by social unrest taking place in Ricardo's home country, Chile. He abandons experimentalism in favour of tougher 4x4 elements, allowing his machines to run riot.
"The mixture of ideas and feelings on this EP have a politically charged spirit, as electronic music always does. A few weeks after I finished 'Regain Your Power' the whole Chilean social explosion took place with the same ideals I had in mind when recording the track." Ricardo Tobar
Stepping up on the remix is a pair whose names are etched into the history of UK electronic music, Andy Turner and Ed Handley a.k.a. Plaid. Reworking title track 'After The Movie', they produce an emotive, soundscape complete with droning basslines and ex-terrestrial flourishes.
As electronic musician Lorenz Brunner sketched his vision for the first Recondite full-length on Ghostly in five years he took a step back to assess who and where he was as an artist. 2013's Hinterland accelerated a progression he's since been touring around the world and releasing music with labels such as Hotflush and his own Plangent Records. His new album uses the icy Hinterland as an aesthetic and tonal template for a like-minded map of evocative compositions aptly titled after the German word "stillstand," now presented as Dwell. Windswept, moody, and melodic, moments on Dwell linger with emotional resonance. The title track sends an eerie synth loop through a field of techno kicks. The beats recede for a breather four minutes in as if to survey the surroundings. If Brunner pivots anywhere - possibly just a new perspective afforded by being confidently stationary in his craft - it's by leaning more into hip-hop structures. He's an avid rap fan and his love for those production techniques is notably present on "Nobilia," a queasy shuffler (titled in reference to the Super Nintendo game Secret of Evermore), "Interlude 1," which skitters in lockstep with contemplative synth chords, and "Surface," an isolatory, ruminative sequence. The closer "Moon Pearl" soothes and shimmers like its namesake, a cherished gem in The Legend of Zelda series that allows carriers of the gem to retain their shape and essence in the Dark World. Recondite does something many artists try to avoid, he dwells in his own established identity, one that has garnered him a devoted fanbase. His murky electronic productions, built around mirage-like pads and clipped drum programming, have proven to be highly functional and spectrally enveloping; Dwell is not a return to form, it is a further study of the shapes, it is the modes, and the structures Brunner has trademarked.
On this Caribbean island that is Cuba, El Tipo is a pioneer of Hip Hop. The founder of Obsesion group with he has committed three albums, traveled Europe, Latin America, United States. He has invested the mythical scene Apollo Theater of Harlem, shared the stage with The Roots, Common or Kanye West, integrated the Gilles Peterson’s band for the Havana Culture Tour. 500 LTD!In the world of beatmaking, Al Quets (originally known as Quetzal) is a figure. An instrumental designer who cut, loop, program, cadence, compose. A name marked by 5 albums and collaborations with Onra, Guts, La Fine Equipe ou Milk Coffee and Sugar. Between the French beat maker and the cuban MC, there’s thousand of kilometers but a desire to connect so strongly that no force could have prevented the meeting. So, rather than exchanging digital files , Al Quetz preferred swallowing on the same frequencies. Together they drew on all the musical currents of the island and around, absorbed Afro- Cuban sounds, added the freedom of jazz, the metronome of hip hop grooves, smoking riddims and heavy bass of the Jamaican neighboor.
Satin is the first solo EP from Lack, the alias of Manchester based artist Charlie Foy - having previously featured on various twelves for the Cong Burn collective. Recorded between 2016 and 2019, these tracks were started during long train journeys, before being finished in the studio. More introspective than previous material, these tracks offer a unique insight into the window of serenity that comes from movement and being in-between places.
These exceptionally balanced and well-crafted compositions use production techniques that explore the relationship between the natural and synthetic, using transients from field recordings to trigger machines, as well as granular synthesis and resampling techniques that further blur this distinction. Equally suited to listening at home or in a club context, these tracks reward deep listening and continually reveal details with each listen.
"I'm always looking for ways to be surprised," says composer and multi instrumentalist Jeff Parker as he explains the process, and the thinking, behind his new album Suite for Max Brown, released via a new partnership between International Anthem and Nonesuch Records.
"If I sit down at the piano or with my guitar, with staff paper and a pencil, I'm eventually going to fall into writing patterns, into things I already know. So, when I make music, that's what I'm trying to get away from-the things that I know." Despite its musical departures, in presentation Suite for Max Brown is an informal companion piece to The New Breed, Parker's debut release on International Anthem, which was honored as one of the "Best Albums of 2016" by New York Times, Observer, and Los Angeles Times.
"I made The New Breed based off these old sample-based compositions and mixed them with improvising," Parker says. "That's in a nutshell how I make a lot of my music; it's a combination of sampling, editing, retriggering audio, and recording it, moving it around and trying to make it into something cohesive... With Max Brown, it's evolved." Though Parker collaborates with a coterie of musicians under the group name The New Breed, theirs is by no means a conventional "band" relationship.
Parker is very much a solo artist on Suite for Max Brown. His accompanists are often working alone with Parker, reacting to what Parker has provided them, and then Parker uses those individual parts to layer and assemble into his final tracks. The process may be relatively solitary and cerebral, but the results feel like in-the-moment jams-warm-hearted, human, alive. Suite for Max Brown brims with personality, boasting the rhythmic flow of hip hop and the soulful swing of jazz.
We are happy to finally introduce our label newcomer and multi-instrumentalist Lopal with his debut EP. Teasingly and with great finesse Lopal (@lopalmusic) intertwines powerful chords, twinkling melodies and a snugly baseline towards distant climaxes, which seem near and yet far away as he unhastily stacks up hypnotic patterns.
21-year-old New Zealand musician Arjuna Oakes's debut EP,
The Watcher, is a showcase of his ability as a singer-songwriter, instrumentalist and producer, and a testament to his depth of engagement with music. The first two tracks on the EP fit neatly
within the jazz-infused soul music landscape he is quickly becoming part of, but the latter half of the EP is far harder to categorise.
Featuring instrumentation from some of New Zealand’s most exciting young jazz musicians, The Watcher explores a wide variety of themes and musical ideas, with Arjuna’s charismatic soul vocals and robust sonic palette serving as a connective thread. From big social issues to personal relationships and internal self-discoveries, across The Watcher, Arjuna takes his cue from the title track and exploration of mass surveillance, and it’s relevance within our everyday lives.
This watcher theme continues throughout the rest of the EP, with the stories told rendered as if being observed by an outside force. Decorated by cinematic soundscapes, hypnotic grooves, creative improvisation and catchy melodies, Arjuna's debut is a test palette for his future projects, one that makes his enthusiasm to develop and explore themes and style in song abundantly clear.
Dick Verdult, a.k.a Dick el Demasiado is the Philip K. Dick of multi-disciplinary art, the Moby Dick of “cumbia lunática”, and the Charles Dickens of literature and experimental cinema. He first fell in love with cumbia when he heard his nursemaid singing the classic “La pollera colorá”. From this moment on, he adopted the genre and reinvented it, in a perpetual degeneration called Cumbia Lunática, twisting up the elements of traditional cumbia, the “cumbia of the mucamas”, to create an anarchotropical vertebral rhythm, one which supports every moving part.
Celulitis Illuminati is the powerful debut of the anarchotropical gentleman knight of the abstract, Dick el Demasiado, eight dangerous tracks recorded for the first time on vinyl, songs that, upon listening, will liposuck all that grotesque accumulation of adipose tissue out of buttocks and brain. They interweave an amalgam of South American folklore and the cables of electronic music, the plugged-in Ranqueles indians, as in “Asi Que Los Que Sí” (“So That Those Who Yes”) on Side A, surrealist and lugubrious beats, poetry made song and “the dead man’s drool is good for painting watercolors”, as he sings in “Búho Sin Un Ratón” (“Owl With No Mouse”).Euphony that will abduct you away to a viscous street party with “Son Cosas De Hoy” (“They’re Things For Today”) and to an eclectic and excessive dimension with “pero bien bweno” (“but very proper”).
Side B is pure dynamite: “Mecha flan” (“Pudding Fuse”), “Sábado cultural” (“Cultural Saturday”) and “En la jeta” (“In the face”) represent the perfect blend of Lucho Argain (La Sonora Dinamita) and Muslimgauze (Bryn Jones). On top of this, the album includes an as-yet unheard gem, “Llama Mi Abogado” (“Call My Lawyer”), produced by Dick himself and Manuel Schaller, the telepathic mage of the Theremin. When the Dutchman stepped off the boat and onto the block, as well as offering us the TV set, the sculpture of a deranged English woman who devours islands like they were sandwiches, the synthesizer, the sound effect, the African drum, the maraca, the indigenous whistle, he obtained for us the song and the stanza, he provided us with the language and the poetry, the truthful, the epic of the ugly. Cellulite for mortals, cumbia lunática for the enlightened ones! Alfredo Padilla (Trans. Komurki)
French duo Double Mixte bring their digital thunderstorm of neon lit noire to the Italians Do It Better family on their debut EP. Mixed and produced by label head Johnny Jewel, Romance Noire opens the door to a new wave of Italians Do It Better artists coming in 2019.
Fresh Blood. New Tears. The title track arpeggiates and boils as waves of bass flow beneath. Rhythms are carried to the ceiling by a searing cascade of disintegrating color. A heavy backbeat anchors Clara Apolit’s poetry, ready to wear for a night in the face of oblivion.
The cinematic “Arlette” is a call for discovery through a darkness lit only by the glare of headlights in digital rain. Through all of this, Thomas Maan’s incantations search for the lonely, lost in the void of electronic fog. “November” finds in Clara an Anglophonic chanteuse, meditating on the cycles of time.
A blend of suspended sound and an uncertain melody contracts and expands before dissolving. Romance Noire is art that both contemplates and tanscends time’s firm grip. It’s a filmic journey inducing a vague sense of future nostalgia. Happy Valentine’s Day. Double Mixte is Clara Apolit and Thomas Maan.
The duo met in Paris and there was an immediate pull to create music together. They pooled their combined interest in powerful narrative & dark 70’s French film music to write lyrically vivid songs. In 2017, Thomas reached out to Johnny Jewel for what soon became a collaboration that expanded their vision into a haunting debut EP, out today on Italians Do It Better.
For the first time on 12” single, two Curtis Mayfield songs given the Patti Jo treatment and mixed by Tom Moulton. While originally from the early 1970's, these versions were previously only available on 7” originally from the Scepter/Wand labels.
Patti came from Florida and sang in her own group P.J. Smith & Co before releasing just four songs across two singles as a solo artist. Released in brand new Soul Brother 12” range bag.
Pacific Express emerged from Cape Town, South Africa in the 1970s. The band were from the so called "Coloured" community and were ground breakers in both musical and political arenas. The founder members Paul Abrahams (Bass), Jack Momple (Drums) and Issy Ariefdien (Guitar) were joined by Chris Schilder (Piano), Vic Higgins (Pecussion), Barney Rachabane (Alto Sax), Stompie Manana (Trumpet) and Zayn Adams & Kitty Tshikana on vocals for their second album "On Time" in 1978.
On several occasions the group fell foul of Apartheid laws and discrimination by the state broadcaster, SABC. On one occasion they were asked to leave the stage of an international tour by Australian act John Paul Young, because the law forbade racially mixed performers on the same stage. The promoter, management and band members all resisted and once he incident made the Australian newspapers the authorities had little choice and turned a blind eye.
And so to the music. The most important thing. The LP opens up with the slick jazz-boogie funk of "We Got A Good Thing Going On", a perfect vehicle for the vocals of Zayn and the statement-of-intent, on-point musicianship of the band.
"I Hear Music" is the first of three smooth sweet string-laden ballads to feature on the LP. The majority of the songs on the LP were written by keyboard player Chris Schilder. As well as high-craft songwriting Chris also contributes layers of effortless musicality with his Rhodes and piano. "Good Old Days" (the only cover on the LP) is next and its smooth-rock grooves swing effortlessly to the fore. The A-Side of the vinyl closes with the instrumental jazz funk of "Saturday Night".
The flip side of the album opens with the bands biggest commercial success. A sweet soul ballad penned "Give a Little Love". Stepping outside their usual sound. This hit however was not without controversy as the video was removed from the TV airways after the South Africa Broadcasting Corp realised that the group were of mixed race, which was against rules for so called local artists in public performance at the time.
"Dream" follows on with the driving jazz rock and travelling keyboard solos. "Reaching Out For Love" is a power-pop boogie groover powered by guest vocalists Erica Lundy and Kitty.
"Say The Last Goodbye" is the last of the trio of ballads. A smooth style moment sounding all the bit like a 70's US TV drama closing theme. The LP features with a funky workout where the band show off their chops and slick level of musicianship.
Besides the success in southern Africa this album became a regional hit as a pirated music cassette in Nigeria. It was also released in France and Japan.
The band would go on to record one further LP in 1979 and a single in 1981. They carried on performing however well pass that. Throughout their years together the band acted as central hub for Jazz musicians within the Cape Town area. Players as Tony Cedras, Jonathan Butler and Alvin Dyers gaining experience alongside established names such as trumpeter Stompie Manana and alto saxman Barney Rachabane.
Here at World Seven we are ever so pleased to be re-releasing what we consider the bands finest album moment.
Label Boss of UNCAGE label, Marco Faraone delivers a series of incredible remixes of Tin Man's Nonneo single, which was originally released in 2011.
First up is the Floor Mix, which leaves the wispy, undulating acid line form the original in place but layers in more heavy, earth rattling drums down below. It makes for a truly hypnotic track.
Then comes a dub version, which is built on elastic drums with gentle acid riffs floating above the compelling kicks, and last of all is a Dreamy Version that is awash with lush heavenly pads that float up to the skies as the rooted drums keeping things moving down low.
This is a varied and vital package from Faraone, coming on a fresh slab of 10".
Still Loving You, by Twilight, was originally released in 1981. Housed in a low-fi generic album cover, this very polished, professionally produced record sounds like it was made by a super talented band. Strains of Earth Wind and Fire, George Duke and Roy Ayers, flow through a collection of tunes that effortlessly blend soul, disco, funk, Latin and Brazilian vibes.
But looks, as evident with the LP cover, can be deceptive. Twilight was not a band. In fact, with the exception of a guest horn section and one guest vocal, Twilight was, and still is, Lawrence Ross; one man with a clear vision of what his music should sound like, and how he would make it on his own. Working the nightshift at General Mills, Ross was a Head shift packer at a flour mill where, in the twilight hours, there was enough quiet time to create songs.
He estimates it took him about a year to write the album, but recording only took a week. Able to get by with only 3 hours sleep he recorded Still Loving You in a seven-day stretch between 10 am and 11 am every morning, just a few hours after finishing work. Ross showed-up to the studio with a master plan to make a record as he heard it in his head, by playing everything himself. “I laid out a tick track from begin to end on the first day,” he explains. “Then I went in and laid down the bass on the next day, and then drums, and then keyboards etc, with each process taking one hour of studio time each day.”
Black Truffle is pleased to present Realejo, the first vinyl release from Brazilian sound artist and composer Manuel Pessoa de Lima. Having composed works for diverse contexts including cinema, contemporary dance, theatre and television, Lima’s live appearances often take the form of self-reflexive lecture performances that combine electro-acoustic sound, red light, video and spoken text, moving unpredictably from the hilarious to the distressing.
Realejo consists of two side-long pieces of highly idiosyncratic electro-acoustic collage, beginning with recordings Lima made of himself playing the organ in the Schloss Solitude Chapel in Stuttgart. Exploring the peculiarities of the instrument’s mechanics, Lima made hours of recordings with the organ stops half-way open, moving from haunting gliding tones to oddly tuned fair-ground melodies reminiscent of the record’s namesake realejo, a hand-cranked organ traditionally found in Brazil as the musical accompaniment to the work of fortune-telling parrots.
To these organ sounds, Lima added recordings of a security guard made in São Paulo: ‘Just before coming to Stuttgart, I started making field recordings of a security guard in São Paulo. It's something pretty common in residential areas: they sit in a chair with a whistle, and use that to signal when people arrive, leave or pass by in the street. This particular security guard, Miguel Viana, works on the same street my parents live, and where I had my childhood, and he has worked there since I was a small child. He has watched the street at night, from 8PM to 6AM, every single day, except Sundays, for over 30 years’.
The poignant sounds of the security guard’s whistles punctuate Lima’s electro-acoustic environment, which also includes raw digital synthesis, recordings of his friends’ infant child, audio lifted from Youtube, and, on the LP’s second side, elements taken from an earlier work, ‘36 English to Portuguese Lessons’. Finely chiselled from dozens of hours of source material into a detail-rich, mercurial structure, Realejo is alternately jarring and seductive, introducing listeners to a young composer with a powerfully individual voice.
Named lovingly after the venerable boozer from Only Fools and Horses, Interpret 'The Nag's Head' is the sonic moniker of Brighton artist Stephen Maskell. Combining on the fly recordings, kitchen sink instrumentation and addictively constructed beats, Maskell's music is as one customer puts it - at times moving, at time hilarious and sometimes just great dance music. Following a trilogy of tapes, 'ENTROPY NOODLE' is Maskell's first LP proper, and signals a maturation of sound - bending, twisting and manipulating synthesis to explore every microtonal corridor of the sonic spectrum.
Kicking off 2020 in style, Life And Death welcome Madrid based groove maker Bawrut for some of his distinctly off kilter brilliance.
Italy born Bawrut makes warm, heartfelt electronic music that crosses the musical spectrum, doing so with a true left of centre perspective. He imbues his productions with weird and wonderful sounds and an exquisite sense of craft that make them both unusual and engaging. He has done so on the likes of his own Silencio label as well as Ransom Note and PETS Recordings and has become a mainstay of the DJ circuit as a result. Next to high profile shows at places like Nuit Sonores he has also toured as far afield as Vietnam, and here he brings some worldly perspective to this latest for DJ Tennis’ always cultured label, Life And Death.
First up is 'Rollin'', almost ten minutes of synth based excellence that takes you on a real sonic adventure. The drums are firmly rooted and hypnotic while the various pads up top unfold like aural fireworks. It's a tense track that never lets up and keeps you locked for the epic duration. Equally fantastic is 'Terza' with its twisted, tortured synth lines and vocal yelps all bringing real drama to the deep and rolling drums. It's a turbulent track to bring real edginess to the club. Lastly, the grinding 'Drum Beat' has a menacing bassline and tribal vocal stabs cut up with rave sirens. It's a sweaty, strobe lit monster that takes you to the heart of the dance floor.
These are three perfectly slow-release but high impact tracks from this ever more vital talent.
- A1: Michna - Triple Chrome Dipped
- A2: Dabrye - Temper
- A3: Dark Party - Active
- A4: Tycho - Cascade (Live Version)
- A5: Jdsy - All Shapes
- B1: Deastro - Light Powered
- B2: Matthew Dear - R+S
- B3: Flyamsam - The Offbeat
- B4: Cepia - Ithaca
- B5: Aeroc - Idiom
- C1: The Reflecting Skin - Traffickers
- C2: Ben Benjamin - Squirmy Sign Language
- C3: Kill Memory Crash - Hit + Run
- C4: Osborne - Wait A Minute
- D1: Milosh - Then It Happened
- D2: 10 32 - Blue Little
- D3: Mux Mool - Night Court
- D4: Solvent - Hung Up
Legend has it that Brian Eno’s concept of ambient music came to him while laid up in a hospital bed after an automobile ac-cident in the 70's. A friend brought him some records, playing them too low to be properly heard, and Eno couldn’t get out of bed to adjust the volume. While the record spun softly, Eno’s idea for music you could ignore as easily as you could give it your full attention, like a sort of sonic wallpaper, was born. It’s in that spirit of quiet isolation that Ghostly International, in associ-ation with Adult Swim, shares Ghostly Swim 2, our way of giving listeners a space to get away from the manic holiday bustle.
For those keeping track at home, Ghostly is wrapping up its 15th anniversary as an Ann Arbor/Brooklyn-based indie. 2014 has seen the company soundtracking video games (Playstation’s Hohokum), collaborating with awesome companies like Warby Parker and VOID watches, and clearing 300 releases of for-ward-thinking music with records from Tycho, Com Truise, and HTRK. What better way to end this banner year than to revisit one of our favorite partnerships from the past decade and a half?
Released in 2008, Ghostly Swim was praised for its adventurous survey of exploratory dance and pop music. Our curatorial focus has shifted this time around, moving further inward (spiritually) and outward (as far as our roster goes) to reflect the electron-ic underground in all of its hazy and vibrant experimentalism. Ghostly Swim 2 is a document of textured ambient zone-outs and woozy, granular house and techno that will help you find some downtime away from The Most Wonderful Time of the Year. So sit back, lower the volume, and enjoy our selections.
THE NEW ALBUM LAUNCH! Available on LP & CD – Artwork & Sound Attached. 'IZIPHO SOUL RECORDS' cannot contain their excitement any longer. The eagerly anticipated follow up to ‘ONE LOVE’, which was last year’s number one independent soul album of the year, is soon upon us. ABSOULUTELY is an album described by Cornell as ‘Songs that came through my Soul and out of my Heart!’
No sales pitch required - suffice to say it’s all killer - no filler.
Eight original songs and two classic covers from our heroes Curtis Mayfield and Marvin Gaye (Mr Gaye’s heavenly spirit filled the room when CC & Co laid this one down!) Songs: Say Yes, I See Love, Earn It, Come Live With Me Angel, I Could Never, Ever Since, Love Thang, Morning Touch, Ghosted & We’re A Winner.
Dukwa is back with the second chapter of his own personal output with a new killer four tracker EP: first cut on A side is the stunning motor city anthem Akira, an epic soulful winner which reminds some of the best Inner City’s moments thanks to its catchy vocal parts and twisted up grooves. If you are more a fan of instrumental club tracks on the second cut instead you will find Akira’s dub version where drum parts , strings, its original wicked bass line and the romantic piano solo totally stand out!
We stuck in the Detroit with the raw jam of Violet opening the flip-side, a wonky lost brother of Strings of Life that through its original arrangement and a clever broken beat will be able to amaze any dance floor. Dukwa’s pinnacle of poetic and compositional intensity happens with the poignant combination of dramatic strings together with beautiful piano notes and acid tinged bass within the closing track Water. Timeless stuff and absolute burners to enrich your record collection.
smokey vinyl / label sleeve / incl. dl code
Next on the label that only releases tracks at One Hundred and Seventy Five beats per minute, come two tracks that are quite different from one another.
"The Opposites" strongly relies on the contrast between melody and extremely energetic percussion, tied together by the voice of a girl who wonders how close two people can get without triggering "their crazy". The track's friendly atmosphere almost makes it a Crossbreed love song of sorts.
The much harsher flip side of this release entitled "More Primitive" deals with a different kind of issue: what happens when people get pushed hard, forced to act on instinct... the moment their true, often damaged, selves are revealed.
The seventeenth release on One Seven Five is proof that The Outside Agency still has a lot more tricks up its sleeve, showing the world what Crossbreed is all about.
Dwight Yoakam occupies a singular position in contemporary country. No artist has better balanced mainstream commercial success with
artistic, alt-country credibility, while somehow managing to embody both the music’s most traditional and its most progressive impulses. ‘Blame The Vain’ marked a milestone for Yoakam as his first self-produced effort since splitting with producer / guitarist / bandleader Pete Anderson. Released in 2005 to critical acclaim, ‘Blame The
Vain’ has sold nearly 200,000 records to date. In honour of the 15th Anniversary of this album, New West Records are proud to present ‘Blame The Vain’ on vinyl for the first time.
Gatefold sleeve, 140g vinyl.
After taking time out to search for the right blend of carefully curated tracks, Bristol-based dancefloor futurists Innate return with a third multi-artist EP - shot through with melody, warmth and soul.
A quartet of timeless-sounding tracks full of stargazing sounds, undulating acid lines, far-sighted electronics and crackling beats, the A side kicks off with Perseus Traxx's "Drifting In Space": a loose-limbed exercise in analogue house deepness that wraps slowly shifting pads, meandering melodies and pulsating TB-303 motifs around broken house drums.
Welcoming Australian scene stalwart Ewan Jansen to the fray with "Sinders", he effortlessly blurs the boundaries between far-sighted, Motor City style techno and the kind of head-in-the-clouds analogue sounds that have always been his forte.
On the flip, Reedale Rise adds his touch with "Coral". In keeping with the brilliance of his 2018 debut album "Luminous Air", he drops a colourful, picturesque voyage into deep electro territory rich in ear-catching melodies, engaging chord sequences and crunchy machine percussion. To round, label co-founder Owain K returns with "Teifi", another ultra-deep treat: an enveloping, dancefloor excursion rich in fluttering lead lines, slowly expanding chords, vintage bass and punchy drums. A fitting conclusion to Innate's latest immaculate, eyes-closed voyage."
Kicking off the year in style, with a new album by someone we've greatly admired and whose music we've followed for many a year; the mighty William Burnett aka Willie Burns / Speculator and Black Deer.
We first were introduced to his music through the wonderful Grackle remix by our pals T.Keeler & Capablanca. Over time we've followed his many aliases with much enjoyment and can still recall hearing the first Black Deer music being played one afternoon in Phonica and NEEEEDING to know everything about it. There's also fond boat party memories in Stockholm soundtracked by the UTTU release. Not to mention WT Records putting out some brilliant records by now familiar faces - our favourites include Art Crime, Kartei and Tummy Tummy!
Recently, William has started a new long form interview podcast, Talk Video on The Lot Radio and Marc Maron comparison isn't far off the mark. Well worth digging into. He's also been making music for himself and we're chuffed to be releasing some of that with you now.
Artwork by Belgrade's finest, floating.bstrd
- non-gatefold sleeve without 7"
Rush Hour announces their second artist compilation Patchwork, curated by one of the label’s most loved family members, Sassy J. The Swiss DJ is the very embodiment of passion and long-standing dedication to the craft of the DJing, but also to the community surrounding the music that she lives and breathes. For the past fourteen years Sassy J has run the Patchwork night in her native Bern and in London, with guests ranging from Theo Parrish and Little Dragon to Floating Points and MF Doom invited to share their respective musical visions. Her collaborative approach stands out in a DJ world that is too often weighted in favour of promoting the individual. This compilation grows out that unique sensitivity, foregrounding a theory of curation that centres on long-term bonds, articulated through Sassy J’s personal relationships with the contributing artists.
Patchwork speaks to the grass roots values that Sassy J espouses, showcasing music by many of the artists that have joined her throughout the years in clubs, on the radio, and at home. It is an expression of Sassy J’s individual musical path that casts its gaze firmly in the future: Patchwork is made up almost entirely of new and unreleased songs that are exclusive to this collection. Patchwork captures a sound that has continued to evolve in its restless search for new musical directions. Across thirteen tracks we find forward thinking electronic music rubbing elbows with cosmic jazz and deep percussion workouts from Brazil and beyond.
There are irresistible calls to the dancefloor: 2000 Black’s UK boogie and the syncopated rhythms of WaH-chU-kU nod to the West London sound, whilst the early rave of Nu Era and Aardvarck’s sub-rattling techno channel the grittier edges of the club experience. We find machine music imbued with humanity in Larry Heard’s deep house classic “Survivor” and in Ron Trent’s WARM project, whose gentle breeze points to a different side of the legendary producer. Patchwork also opens a more immersive listening space in which the radical indie soul of Georgia Anne Muldrow, the ambient spiritual jazz of bandleader Carlos Niño & Friends, and the lament for the Amazon rainforest by Azymuth’s drummer Ivan Conti can channel the overall spirit of group interplay and solidarity. Patchwork also includes Sassy J’s collaboration with veteran producer Alex Attias, marking her own place in a universe that is held together by her singular thread.
"This is the compilation of the year!" - DJ Spinna
"In popular imagination, the early 80s were dreadful. Thatcher and Reagan led the world on a diet of austerity, unemployment and depression. The Berlin Wall separated East from West. The Sex Pistols had broken up. In sum, the future was unsure. Belgium was no exception. While Punk had been declared dead by some, its spirit was still roaming in country parishes and city alleyways. As the Catholic bourgeoisie provided young people with few opportunities, music was an obvious pastime. Teenage hopes of starting a band and putting out a record were everywhere. Organized Pleasure and Satin Wall were two bands living the dream. In contrast to a thousand others, they left us sounding evidence. This split 7” gathers two tracks originally recorded in 1981. It was the first and only studio excursion for both groups. After some local gigs, the people involved moved on to other projects. While their music is illustrative for the era, their story is distinct. Same but different."
TERANGA BEAT proudly presents MAR SECK, a delicate singer and songwriter who marked the history of Senegalese music. TIP!A cross over between Cuban compositions and Senegalese Folklore, his songs gave birth to Salsa-Mbalax, the popular dance music of '70s Senegal that went onto influence a new generation of Senegalese musicians including a young Youssou N'Dour. Featuring 12 tracks recorded over three different sessions, ‘Vagabonde’ focuses on the best of MAR SECK’s career. The first recordings are taken from a raw and unreleased 1969 session at the Dakar National Radio. Recorded with his first group SUPER CAP-VERT from Rufisque, it captures an 18-year old MAR singing the first version of his now famous composition “Vagabonde”. The remaining six tracks from the session includes a beautiful cover of Fonseca’s “Sibouten”. A 1973 live recording is also featured here, made with the STAR BAND de DAKAR in Saint Louis. Previously unreleased, it comes from a time when MAR was establishing his name playing at the legendary Miami Club in Dakar, the “École de Passage” for all great Senegalese musicians. The final two tracks (one of them unreleased) finds MAR accompanied by the most complete band of Senegal, the NUMBER ONE de DAKAR. The 2LP & CD booklet includes photos and liner notes outlining MAR’s career. LP version comes with silk screen print, European 60s style, gatefold sleeve. All tracks are mastered & mixed from the original recording tapes.
- A1: Fort Van Walem
- B1: Pipistrellus Pipistrellus & Myotis Daubentonii | Mono-Rubber Extrusion Line And Fire At Varec 2017
- B2: Pipistrellus Pipistrellus & Myotis Daubentonii | Fire At Varec 2019 (Includes Fire Engine)
- B3: Pipistrellus Pipistrellus & Myotis Daubentonii (Including Feeding Buzz) | Rubber Mixing Chamber & Mono-Rubber Extrusion Line
- B4: Pipistrellus Pipistrellus & Myotis Daubentonii | Cnc Machining Center & Rubber Injection Press
- B5: Pipistrellus Pipistrellus & Myotis Daubentonii (Time Expansion Recording) | Mono-Rubber Extrusion Line
- B6: Pipistrellus Pipistrellus & Myotis Daubentonii (Time Expansion Recording) | Mono-Rubber Extrusion Line & Fire At Varec 2019
- B7: Outro
The record sleeve of Dark Loops was injected with carbon powder by the artists. Please be aware of this on purchase and handling of the record and inlays.
Dark Loops is the third instance of Carbon Theater, an ongoing research project by the Institute of Incongruous Translation (Natascha Sadr Haghighian and Ashkan Sepahvand). As the other acts in the series, Dark Loops unfolds from a found site, the abandoned Fort Walem, which was now turned into a bat habitat. The field recordings and synthesised loops on the record further investigate the discrepancies between sensing and knowing and challenge the anthropocentric narratives within current discussions on planetary climate change.
Aussie house maestro, Matt Meler debuts on House Puff with a tasty club-focused four track release. The A-side kicks of with 'The Looker' full of freq'd 'n' filtered stabs and pads that'll get the juices flowing. A2 strips a few layers off for a hypnotic bumper, 'Rub- A-Dub'.
Incognito Cognito, thumps us with a heavy hearted groove with etherial textures and psychedelic atmospheres. Closing out the B-Side is 'Nice Things', Saturated with classic deep influences, wonky LFO's and hats for days. Wrap your head around this all class EP.
Holy Fuck have today announced details of new album 'Deleter', which will be released on January 17th and is further previewed with the video for acclaimed latest single 'Luxe' (ft. Alexis Taylor). Having just concluded a US tour alongside Hot Chip, the seminal Canadian band will play a selection of European headline dates later this month (with a London show at Moth Club on October 23rd selling out immediately).
Arriving at a moment where attention spans are shot and anxieties are going into overdrive, 'Deleter', Holy Fuck’s fifth studio LP, is a defiantly full-bodied affair. Polyrhythmic and pleasure- focused, 'Deleter' sees Brian Borcherdt, Graham Walsh, Matt Schulz, and Matt “Punchy” McQuaid utilises their signature sound - seamlessly fusing the gauzy drive of krautrock and deep house’s dreamy ineffability, expertly blending purring motorik percussion with the sort of fuggy synthetic fizz and tang they are renowned for.
From the thrusting minimalism of opener ‘Luxe’ through to the triumphant chug of closing track ‘Ruby’, via club-ready rollocker ‘Free Gloss’ and the cosmic clatter of ‘San Sebastian’, Deleter is a record that joins the Holy Fuck dots within their widescreen, technicolour, crescendo- heavy sound.
A truly special reissue of a fantastic and incredibly rare Afro-disco 12” from 1978, Tumblack - 'Caraiba/Invocation'. Originally released on the seminal French disco label Barclay, you'd be hard pressed to even find an original copy in the UK, let alone for a reasonable price, so it's high time an officially licensed, remastered reissue came around.
Taking the A side of this EP Stefano Ritteri provides a “Spaziale Version” of 'Caraiba' that seamlessly blends elements of African, Afrobeat, Funk and Disco styles, with segments that continually morph and evolve into new tracks. Irresistibly funky and percussive drumming patterns and melodies hypnotise the listener, with only the occasional outbreak of African chanting breaking up the grooves.
The B-side contains the original version of “Invocation” that is effectively one long drum track broken down into 7 segments that never drop a beat alongside the original version of 'Caraiba' in all it's glory. As EP's go, this really does take the listener on a journey to Africa, via 1978 New York, and is a true one of a kind. And for all those sample-spotters out there, there's no end of complex drum patterns and basslines to dive into.
Rockets Audio starts the saga with 4 finest minimal house trackers by Matheiu, Denis Kaznacheev and the master trio Wareika. A rocket (from Italian rocchetto "bobbin" is a missile, spacecraft, aircraft or other vehicle that obtains thrust from a rocket engine. Rocket engine exhaust is formed entirely from propellant carried within the rocket before use. Rocket engines work by action and reaction and push rockets forward simply by expelling their exhaust in the opposite direction at high speed, and can therefore work in the vacuum of space.
In fact, rockets work more efficiently in space than in an atmosphere. Multistage rockets are capable of attaining escape velocity from Earth and therefore can achieve unlimited maximum altitude. Compared with airbreathing engines, rockets are lightweight and powerful and capable of generating large accelerations. To control their flight,
rockets rely on momentum, airfoils, auxiliary reaction engines, gimballed thrust, momentum wheels, deflection of the exhaust stream, propellant flow, spin, and/or gravity.
Rockets for military and recreational uses date back to at least 13th century China. Significant scientific, interplanetary and industrial use did not occur until the 20th century, when rocketry was the enabling technology for the Space Age, including setting foot on the Earth's moon. Rockets are now used for fireworks, weaponry, ejection seats, launch vehicles for artificial satellites, human spaceflight, and space exploration.
SOUND rockets are the most common type of high power rocket, typically creating a high speed pitch by the wave of rythm with an oxilator. The stored delay can be a simple pressurized detune or a single filter delay that disassociates in the presence of a curve (EQ + FILTER ), two hats that spontaneously react on contact (RANDOMIZER), two snares that must be ignited to react, a solid combination of effects with oxidizer (solid GROOVE), or solid fuel with liquid oxidizer (hybrid FILTER BAND DELAY). Chemical rockets store a large amount of energy in an easily released form, and can be very dangerous. However, careful design, testing, construction and use minimizes risks.
Lost Soul is an uptempo funk song recorded and written in Kunming, China with a killer breakbeat that has already become an underground hit in the b-boy scene, finally receiving a release on 7" vinyl via Dinked Records. DJ DSK, The People's Rhythm & Angela Cory penned ideas for the song while touring the Chinese club circuit together.
DSK then approached different musicians living in different parts of China at the time for their help in recording the song. The song has been played at many high level b-boy battles including the final of the UK B-Boy championships by DJ Renegade.
For it’s second-release, Planisphere returns once more to the Berlin studio of Swiss-Turkish producer Mehmet Aslan, who has fast become one of the most fiercely individual and increasingly prolific emerging artists in some time.
This three-track EP is arguably Aslan’s most-refined work to date, aiming squarely at heads-down dancefloors, riding on sophisticated and hypnotic grooves. On ‘Comme II Faut’, a minimal beat unravels Aslan’s textural, traditional samples, delivering a woozy and intoxicating atmosphere.
Meanwhile, ‘Lobster Is Coincidence’ christens the EP with its title and a stop-start slice of unpredictable, cut-up psychedelia, utilizing obscure samples to generate esoteric funk. On the contrary, Aslan executes a tapestry of tightly-wound and no less entrancing rhythms on ‘Kakusui’, which evolves intriguingly with a subtle half-step and further echoes of Aslan’s unique musical heritage.
These two new tracks continue to push the band’s sound into new territory; ‘Overture 1’ is a brand-new composition from Ruby Rushton keyboard player Aidan Shepherd. Taking inspiration from bands like Weather Report and Soft Machine, it's explosive introduction leads you to a dub-like breakdown, creating an open space for Shepherd to let loose his synthesizer for some deep space, Headhunters’esque exploration.
Yardley Suite - is a song first conceived by band leader Ed ‘Tenderlonious’ Cawthorne back in 2012. Having lied dormant for several years it felt like an appropriate time to pull it back out the bag. It’s a composition inspired by Cawthorne’s solo work as an electronic producer, under his alias Tenderlonious. Always wanting to merge his various approaches, ‘Yardley Suite’ is the perfect mix of Jazz and House. With a steady four to the floor beat and snappy horn lines it's sure to work its magic on dancefloors around the globe.
Having focused on improvisation and more “open” compositions in the past, the bands new direction is geared towards tighter, more groove-orientated arrangements. This exciting new material is yet further evidence that this is a highly prolific band at the top of their game, continually evolving, stretching out their own unique sound across the full jazz spectrum.
DJ Support: Tom Ravenscroft, Bradley Zero, Huey Morgan, James Endacott, Kev Beadle, Chris Phillips, Tony Minvielle, Tim Garcia, Delia Tesileanu, Kamaal Williams, Al Dobson Jr, Contours, Poly-Ritmo.
- A1: Zuzu Man
- A2: Quitters Never Win
- A3: In The Night
- A4: She’s Just A Square
- A5: Woman Is The Roo
- A6: The Ear Is On Strike
- A7: Helping Hand
- A8: Danger Zone
- A9: One Naughty Flat
- B1: Bald Headed
- B2: Mama Roux
- B3: Tipitina
- B4: New Orleans
- B5: Qualified
- B6: Loser For You Bab
- B7: One Night Late
- B8: Did She Mention My Name
- B9: Storm Warning
We are privileged to explore on this essential LP a plethora of Dr.
John's earliest and most satisfying recordings. The unique mixture of styles on display is drawn from the music he grew up listening to in the clubs of the Deep South, where he first practised his (witch) craft. The combination would impress many other musicians, including the Rolling Stones and Jools Holland, himself no mean boogie pianist.
'TNT' has never released a record before (aside from the 12" we did last year), so this is a huge fucking honour to be trusted with this material. TNT Roots has continued a solo career since Earthquake quietly folded in 2002, trading short-run CDr's on Ebay and the Blood & Fire forum. His music still survives on not-for-sale dubplates - pushed exclusively by legendary 90's sounds like Aba Shanti.
The result is the Raw Dub Creator LP - a survey of his 2006 - 2018 CDr selected by Bokeh. Urgent steppas for dark dances, heavier than the grave - next evolution soundsystem muzik. These are driving militant sounds for these times made in seeming isolation in Northampton (TNT never plays live, doesn't want Bandcamp, just wants to sell his CDs quietly over email). TNT Roots' contribution to dub is seismic, almost dinosauric, but through some glitch in universe fabric, 'Mighty In Battle' Bokeh 2018 was his first official vinyl release.
As half of Earthquake - he's responsible for the darkest, forward, most slept-on future of dub to grace us. This unique and heavy vision has reset the whole game with long unavailable LPs like Revelation in Dub and Dub Harder Than Steel make obvious an understated lineage flowing from 90's steppas down to jungle, grime, hardcore, darkcore, doomcore, it's kinda pointless to list them. It's dub. TNT and Earthquake's rightful place alongside those mystic giants, Iration Steppas, is more than assured by those that know.
The mostly anonymous producer FSS joins Veyl with ‘MMXX_FFS’, a collection of nine raw, mangled numbers that manage to make lo-fi sound hi-fi. Built in moments stolen from working with DIY punk bands and artists producing for Warp, UNO, True Panther, Lucky Me and Tri Angle.... Originally from New Mexico, now living in London, with NYC on the horizon, FSS is no newcomer, and this isn’t your usual debut.
Inspired by a need to release the rage and disillusionment brought on by the extreme shit show the world has become, the writing of ‘MMXX_FSS’ — “it’s nearly 2020, for fuck’s sake” — doubled as a cathartic process for the artist, providing much-needed relief from the constant struggle of living on this planet.
Urged to push into the wild and off the beaten path, the record’s sound is iltered through an ongoing battle with tinnitus, a heavy fascination with distortion, and a treasure of inspired electronics. Memories of clear, bright landscapes play like loops, bombarded with the shock and suffering of urban action. Based on the constantly vacillating reality between moments of familial bliss to existential terror in white hot flashes, ‘MMXX_FFS’ is a snapshot of this process. Generating more.
FSS’ debut is out this December on cassette and digital, as always featuring artwork by Tomaso Lisca.
Havazelet's story is both fascinating and mysterious. She was born in Aden, Yemen, in 1936 as Havazelet Damari, she immigrated to Israel when she was 8 years old and grew up in the disadvantaged Ezra neighborhood, in south Tel Aviv. Havazelet discovered her love for singing when she was a teen, when she would sing at feasts and family events. At one of these events she was discovered by an impresario who decided to take her under his wing.
He asked her to change her family name from Damari to Ron, as there was already a young singer called Shoshana Damari in Israel, who was becoming quite popular. In March 1960 Havazelet Ron's only Israeli album, "The Music of the Desert" was released, produced by the "Makolit" label, featuring Yemenite folk songs. Both songs on this 7" are from that album. The identity of the promoter, the album's recording date and location, and the identity of the musicians, could not be found.The album was ahead of it's time in that it introduced an innovative sound, comprised of drums, electric guitar and an organ, making it one of the first albums in Israel to record this type of composition.
... However, it confused the Israeli audience of the time: The vocals were in Yemeni-Arabic, preventing it from being played on the radio, which mainly played Hebrew music, moreover, it was too innovative and far from traditional music for the Yemenite scene. The album fell between the cracks and her big breakthrough to mainstream did not happen.
Following the album's failure, Havazelet left Israel in 1963 and went to Germany, where she performed in festivals, TV shows and recorded several more albums. All of this was made possible by her unique singing talent in five languages - Hebrew, Yemeni-Arabic, German, English and Yiddish, her impressive appearance and remarkable stage charisma. The European audience enjoyed the original music she produced and her Yemenite-style cover versions of Hebrew songs.
In 1968 Havazelet married and a year later retired from the music scene. In 1980 she returned to Israel but she left again four years later, this time to Los Angeles, where she worked as a kindergarten teacher. Havazelet Ron passed away in Los Angeles, in 2013, after a long battle with cancer. In Israel, her name is almost unknown among music lovers in general and among record collectors in particular.
New Zealand juggernaut Fat Freddy’s Drop return with a new studio album, ‘Special Edition Part 1’, due for digital release on 15th November, with 2LP Vinyl and CD following up on 10th January. The 45rpm vinyl edition is produced with
a different track order across four sides and promises to deliver super fat loud audio.
Part 1 of a double album, ‘Special Edition Part 1’, comprises of six tracks of which ‘Raleigh Twenty’, ‘Trickle Down’ and
‘Six-Eight Instrumental’ were written and recorded undercover at the band’s Wellington studio, BAYS, while the other
tracks; ‘Special Edition, ‘Kamo Kamo’, and ‘OneFourteen’, have all been developed and evolved from the band’s celebrated live jam sessions, whilst on the road in front of audiences worldwide.
Supremely crafted at Freddy’s own BAYS studio in hometown Wellington, the deep musical and rich vocal layers reflect
Freddy’s inspiration from the black music lexicon and is a response to the crowd energy at their world dominating live
shows.
‘Special Edition Part 1’ is the first release of a long envisaged double album project with separate chapters. The next
journey, Part 2 will be released in 2020 after stringent road-testing with audiences over 35 shows across New Zealand, UK and Europe celebrating the release of the Part 1. These upcoming live performances will allow the band to fully explore new song-writing technology and give rise to a slamming Part 2. The new album follows on from 2015’s ‘BAYS’ LP, which saw support from Financial Times, Resident Advisor, Dummy, the DJ Mag and Clash-acclaimed ‘Blackbird,’ second album ‘Dr Boondigga and the Big BW’ - which gained rave reviews by The Guardian and BBC Music - and the band’s record breaking debut album ‘Based on a True Story’, which went nine times platinum and remained in New Zealand’s top 40 charts for over two years after its release in
2005.
The album cover artwork is by Wellington artist Otis Chamberlain, a continuing evolution from his creation for the its first single ‘Trickle Down’, a work that's morphed from digital cover art to the band’s massive summer tour backdrop and the recently released late-night buttery steppers ‘Kamo Kamo’. Fat Freddy’s Drop have been performing and recording together for more than 15 years, establishing themselves as one of New Zealand's most internationally successful acts. Considered one of the best live experiences in the world, they will embark on their biggest European and UK tour since they sold out a double hitter at London’s 02 Academy Brixton in 2018. Including an already sold out show in Dublin, the band will headline Cardiff’s Motorpoint Arena on 29th April 2020, Liverpool’s Invisible Wind Factory on 30th April, returning back to London’s Alexandra Palace on 1st May – the palace was the scene of two triumphant sold out headline concerts in 2014 and 2017 - before heading north to Glasgow’s Barrowland on 3rd May.
Vinyl Only
Heterogeneous label releases their first record with the intention to deliver diversity throughout this four track extended play.
The legendary Winter of Love was an athletic event of unprecedented scope and ambition held throughout the 1980's. For one beautiful decade, ice lovers from all four corners of the globe gathered at Mount Unity for two weeks of spectacular competition, dazzling snowscapes and glittering nightlife.
Ski Infinity is your official soundtrack to the Winter of Love. Inspired by the electric energy of the event, Ski Infinity will take you directly to the dizzying peaks of Mount Unity where you will experience the agony and the ecstasy of elite athletic endeavour. Bear witness to the epic ice dance battles held at the fabled Rink of Respect. Rub shoulders with the creme de la creme of sport, art and music all night, every night at the grand chalet of Peace Village.
Of course, located at the nexus of skiing, art and music, was the greatest Winter of Love event of all, ski ballet. No wonder the grand chalet named their beloved club, ‘Chaffee’s’ after prima ski ballerina Suzy “Chapstick” Chaffee. Above all, she epitomizes the glamour, the power and the artistry that the Winter of Love stood for.
... Take your ears on a wild ride where sport and music collide!
Jay Clarke's masterful BLACKAXON imprint returns with a shapeshifting EP from Davide Piras.
What began as a sonic sketchbook for Clarke to express his expansive view of electronic music, is evolving. The label is opening up to artists who hold a shared passion for creating dynamic and interesting techno compositions, with a few surprises here and there. Following last October's superb contribution from rising talent Yant, experimental techno artist David Piras drops a quadruplet of cuts to join the BLACKAXON fold.
His BLACKAXON debut, "Beyond Our Reach", is a true all-rounder. It leads with the dusty slow bass monster "Radiation Belt", before the gritty electro noodlings of "Multipolar" enter the fore. The analogue-infused rave cut "System Cartesian" takes the EP into otherworldly realms, before atmosphere-heavy "Pangaea Heritage" closes out the work, evoking a hazy afterhours vibe.
"Davide's productions hold an air of Convextion about them, he's one of my favourite artists. I locked into that right away and knew I wanted to release his music. When I listen to Davide's tracks I feel as though I'm in the middle of a sci-fi movie, they're funky and futuristic tales from the deep. Amazing!" - Jay Clarke
A multifaceted and detached balancing act between
electronica and breakbeats, with a touch of minimalist
elements and spherical sounds, describes the first release on
NL by the currently living in Leipzig, Natalie Luengo. In her
early youth infected with house and techno, she simply never
gets tired of this long-standing double relationship. A touch of
breaky grooves and acid with a breeze of electro and provided
with melodic elements define their mixes and productions.
Tape / Cassette
Mark Gergis is a producer, musician and audiovisual archivist known for his radio and video productions, recordings and performances. His work has focused on regional folk-pop music from the Middle East and Southeast Asia, including choubi and dabke from Iraq and Syria. As an archivist, Gergis is currently working on the project Syrian Cassette Archives, for which he aims to restore, preserve, catalogue and share his large collection of Syrian media from what can be called Syria’s ‘cassette era’ (1970s–2010). As an artist, under his name and others (Porest) he has released music on the Sublime Frequencies, Discrepant and Nashazphone to name just a few. It’s a wonder that amongst this hectic schedule he still finds time to present us with a new (old) collection of early century recordings (1999-2013).
Locational recordings, radio and TV intercepts, cassette excerpts, environments and street music all expertly all expertly meshed up into a vivid sound journey from places that were (and might) never be again.
Paul Young’s debut album No Parlez launched him as one of the most talented musicians of the early ’80s. The record reached number one on the UK Albums Chart and remained in the Top 100 for 119 weeks. After he released the third single from the album, a cover of the Marvin Gaye classic “Wherever I Lay My Hat (That’s My Home)”, the song reached the first position in the UK Singles chart.
Afterwards the second single “Love of the Common People” and the follow-up single “Come Back and Stay” charted all over Europe.
The last one proved that he was capable to chart with his own material as well. His great vocal individuality made him one of the most beloved singers of the early ‘80s.
... Unfortunately he couldn’t hold on to this success, but 'No Parlez' will always remind us of the great musician he once was.
Detailed Information about this LP:
'No Parlez' is available as a limited edition of 2000 individually numbered copies on purple marbled (purple & solid red mixed) vinyl.
Total Refreshment Centre is proud to present a brand new mini-LP from Neue Grafik Ensemble entitled 'Foulden Road'. French producer, instrumentalist and DJ, Neue Grafik, has been building a strong rep for himself over the past few years, releasing records previously on labels such as Rhythm Section, 22a, CoOp Presents and Wolf Music.
His sound is a hybrid of jazz, house and hip hop, all with his unique geographical flavours of African ethnicity, Parisian roots and a love for London sounds like broken beat & grime thrown into the mix. In his own words "this mini album has been conceived as a journey from Deptford to Dalston, right through Peckham. During a personal period of transition, I put this music forward at a crossroad of all my influences, taking the time to share and experiment with a band more than that, an ensemble. The idea is to incorporate musicians with their own sensibilities, collaborating together as a reflection of our society; unreal & rebellious, but with magic moments, and full of hope.
The best representation of that is Total Refreshment Centre. This building and its community were a perpetual source of inspiration for me over the past two years & gladly allowed the creation of this project". Having been first properly introduced to the community of the TRC during an after-hours jam, it came to TRC founder Lex Blondel's attention that New design had some exquisite compositions of his own. A few weeks later, it was decided that Neue Grafik would form a band and that they would do their first gig at TRC, a week after the first day of rehearsals. No pressure … Lex continued; "we paired him up with Emma-Jean Thackray, to arrange his compositions for a quartet, added Vels Trio's Dougal Taylor on drums, Matt Gedrych from MaddAddam on bass and Jordan Saintard on sax.
Then the band got to work…" Title track 'Foulden Road' commences the session in truly energetic fashion, named after the street in North London where TRC is based, and where these sessions were largely laid down. Keeping with the geographical vibe, next we have 'Dalston Junction', a two-part affair starting on a sci-fi boom-bap tip, before switching to the ethereal flute playing of Brussels musician Esinam, and the first outing on the collection for Brother Portrait.
'Voodoo Rain' is next, a sweet slice of afro-funk, featuring the incredible talents of London's own Nubya Garcia on sax, and the tempo picks up once again for 'Something Is Missing' - this live version comes from the afore-mentioned infamous first gig at TRC.
The goosebump-enducing vocals of Melbourne soulstress, Allysha Joy, set off the second half of the record with the beautiful downtempo track 'Hotel Laplace', recorded at a live session at Giant Steps, before kicking the energy levels back up with 'Hedgehog's Dilemma', once again featuring the vocals of Brother Portrait, as does the closing track, 'Dedicated to Marie Paule', a mid-tempo piece akin to 90's golden era jazz-hop, bringing the set to its conclusion.
This collection of tracks reflect the many moods and various genres indicative of Neue's creative approach illustrated above.
iven Jones’ rather slack approach to track titles (both being consistent with and sometimes even just supplying them), it’s a bit of a relief to realize that two tracks with the same name are indeed related. In the case of “Arab Jerusalem”, which makes up nearly half of the newly-released Lalique Gadaffi Handgrenade, that kinship is immediately apparent even though both tracks are clearly their own experiences.
Released as the first track on the Minaret-Spearker picture disc 7” in 1996, “Arab Jeruzalem” (spelling also sometimes being fairly slack) is 5:42 of effectively shifting dark ambience, wordless female vocals drifting over the hand percussion, chimes, and static of the track, with eventual conversational loops discussing... something underneath. The end of that version is especially striking for the way the woman’s wordless singing starts being sampled in such a way that it overlays the whole track (and, slightly, itself). The almost 24-minute “Arab Jerusalem” here might be called the Deer Hunter version of the same story, building with great patience and many more abstract detours towards what now seems like simultaneously an excerpt and, now, a climax. As with many of Jones’ more ambient tracks, the great length just lets it cast its spell more thoroughly and entrancingly.
The other three tracks, meanwhile, suggest some of Jones’ other work but never evoke them as directly as “Arab Jerusalem”. “Jordan River” is nearly as long (a second shy of 20 minutes) but strips out the vocal elements in its predecessor, focusing instead on a more active percussive workout (analogue and digital both) and a river of hiss running down the center of the track. The title track of Lalique Gadaffi Handgrenade might bring to mind the title of “Lalique Gadaffi Jar” from Libya Tour Guide (last reissued by Staalplaat in 2015), but if they’re sonically related Jones must have practically melted the other track to get this one. And the closing “Desert Gulag” (like the title track, a much more manageable length than the first two epic tracks here) bears a slight resemblance to “Negev Gulag” from 1996’s Fatah Guerrilla, here what was a piercing, repetitive drone is softened and looped over more of Jones’ percussion. The result is a well-rounded release that shows off many aspects of Jones’ sound as Muslimgauze, while existing (like many of these DAT tapes do) in conversation with much of his previously released work.
Heinrich Dressel was an archaeologist, epigraphist and numismatist, creator of a table, still in use, for the cataloging of Roman amphorae. For over ten years, one of the founders of MinimalRome, Valerio Lombardozzi, has embraced the name of the German scholar, becoming both the guardian of a dense collection of sounds from the past and the creator of new brilliant electronic ones. “Completion Of The Amphoras Table”, originally released on cd by Legowelt's Strange Life Records, was the final chapter of the so-called 'Studium Amphorae Trilogy', a triptych of albums which tried to 'evoke' in notes not only the discoveries and the studies of Monte Testaccio's fragments made by the former pupil of Theodor Mommsen.
The first vinyl release of “Completion Of The Amphoras Table”, curated by Souterraine.org and Envlp_Imprint, fills not only a recording void, but also gives posterity a remarkable album to rediscover, worthy successor of “Mons Testaceum” (2007 ) and “Escape From The Hill” (2008),
which reconstructs one more time the ghostly atmosphere of a Rome at the dawn of the 20th century. Heinrich Dressel adopts the stylistic features of gloomy soundtracks and, above all, relies on a set of polyphonic synthesizers that, starting from the rare Elka Syntex, favor the composition of abstract textures, punctuated by some appropriate variations, and harmonies which, net of the
deep bass, make every single track even more magnetic.
Berlin based cellist and composer 'Anne Müller', announces the release of her long awaited debut solo album 'Heliopause', on November, 22th. 'Heliopause' follows several Erased Tapes releases featuring Anne, including her celebrated collaboration with Nils Frahm titled 7fingers, appearances on Ólafur Arnalds & Nils Frahm’s Collaborative Works, Nils Frahm’s All Melody and his acclaimed soundtrack for the film Victoria, Lubomyr Melnyk’s Fallen Trees, as well as the two bespoke solo pieces Walzer für Robert and Bel Tono for the label’s 5th and 10th anniversary box sets. In fact, a glance at Müller’s Discogs boasts credits on over 60 releases since she began recording in 2007.
At the start of the year, Rocafort Records treated us to it's first roots reggae outing in the form of 'The Circle of Confusion' featuring the legendary Studio #1 vocalist 'Cornel Campbell'. ... Warm, feel-good, socially conscious, intergalactic dub.
We hoped for more, and finally it's here! Although slightly more digital in production, "Yesterday was History" cannot be claim to differ enormously from its predecessor. But hey, why mess with the formular when the results are pure and damn-near perfect ... ?
'The Circle of Confusion' are a Swiss production duo: Seb.K (Shakedown productions) and Phil'eas (Black Diamond Sound).
Recorded at Addis records in Geneva on the day of Mandela's passing, this track is another slice of dubby humanity-driven peace and love that buoyantly skips along aided by the sweetest scatting voice in reggae, (not showing any signs of it's 73 years), and all the appropriate studio space-age sound effects, harmonics and vintage keys. Modern roots reggae at its best, where the dub version is as banging and cosmic as the A Side.
"When You Died" is the first single that anticipates The Dining Room's next full-length album, four years after "Do Hipsters Love Sun (Ra)?".
Side A contains the original version of the song, a funk cut with a 70's psychedelic taste, featuring Sean Martin on some vocals. On the flip-side (Side B), the same track has been reworked by 'Massimo Martellotta' (Calibro '35) to become an compelling disco soul midtempo tune.
... Medjool's story starts in 2010, at "Samar", it's a Kibbutz in the Arava valley in the far south of Israel, based on a unique, hippic and cooperative community. The band's four members met and lived there after their Military service. Being surrounded by musicians they started jamming together a lot, finding a joint creative language.
... In 2011, three of the band, – Ori, Nur & Aviram, moved to Tel-Aviv, trying their luck in the big city. 'Gilad' joined them in 2013 and the four friends became Medjool. The next three years were hectic with shows all over Israel, from small clubs to big festivals, gathering loyal crowd which followed the band everywhere. Nowadays, the band's members turned their energy to other musical projects, saying "we only took a short break which we're not sure when it'll end".
'Gbells' and 'Savana' are two energetic wild Afrobeat tunes.
The fact that the rhythm section comprises of a double base and percussion, grants 'Medjool' its unique highlife, groove color.
The guitar and saxophone travel through middle eastern to ethiopian melodies, suggesting the listeners the option either dancing or riding a camel in the desert, on your way to a flush oasis.
SOS: This two tracks on the 7", ... which were recorded in 2015, were the only music of 'Medjool', they had recorded professionally !!!!!
- A1: Pinta Manta - António Sanches
- A2: Dia Ja Manche - Dionisio Maio
- A3: Morti Sta Bidjàcu - José Casimiro
- A4: Pontin & Pontin - Bana
- B1: That Day - Fany Havest
- B2: Odio Sem Valor - Pedrinho
- B3: Mino Di Mama - Quirino Do Canto
- B4: Mundo D'margura - Tchiss Lopes
- C1: Po D'terra - Joao Cirilo
- C2: Corre Riba, Corre Baxo - Abel Lima
- C3: Ilyne - Os Apolos
- C4: Sintado Na Pracinha - Americo Brito
- D1: Capchona - Elisio Vieira
- D2: Djal Bai Si Camin - Antonio Dos Santos
- D3: Stebo Cu Anabela - Abel Lima
repress
2LP 140G VINYL + 12 PAGE BOOKLET.
"Space Echo - The mystery behind the "Cosmic Sound" of Cabo Verde finally revealed!" is the 20th release by the fabulous Analog Africa Label.
In the spring of 1968 a cargo ship was preparing to leave the port of Baltimore with an important shipment of musical instruments. Its final destination was Rio De Janeiro, where the EMSE Exhibition (Exposição Mundial Do Son Eletrônico) was going to be held.
It was the first expo of its kind to take place in the Southern Hemisphere and many of the leading companies in were all eager to present their newest synthesisers and other gadgets to a growing and promising South American market, spearheaded by Brazil and Colombia.
The ship with the goods set sail on the 20th of March on a calm morning and mysteriously disappeared from the radar on the very same day.
One can only imagine the surprise of the villagers of Cachaço, on the Sao Nicolau island of Cabo Verde, when a few months later they woke up and found a ship stranded in their fields, in the middle of nowhere, 8 km from any coastline.
After consulting with the village elders, the locals had decided to open the containers to see what was inside - however gossip as scintillating as this travels fast and colonial police had already arrived and secured the area.
Portuguese scientists and physicians were ordered to the scene and after weeks of thorough studies and research, it was concluded that the ship had fallen from the sky. One of the less plausible theories was that it might have fallen from a Russian military air carrier. The locals joked that again the government had wasted their tax money on a useless exercise, as a simple look at the crater generated by the impact could explain the phenomena. "No need for Portuguese rocket scientists to explain this!" they laughed.
What the villagers didn't know, was that traces of cosmic particles were discovered on the boat. The bow of the ship showed traces of extreme heat, very similar to traces found on meteors, suggesting that the ship had penetrated the hemisphere at high speed. That theory also didn't make sense as such an impact would have reduced the ship to dust. Mystery permeated the event.
Finally, a team of welders arrived to open the containers and the whole village waited impatiently.
The atmosphere, which had been filled with joy and excitement, quickly gave way to astonishment. Hundreds of boxes conjured, all containing keyboards and other instruments which they had never seen before: and all useless in an area devoid of electricity. Disappointment was palpable. The goods were temporarily stored in the local church and the women of the village had insisted a solution be found before Sunday mass.
It is said that charismatic anti-colonial leader Amílcar Cabral had ordered for the instruments to be distributed equally in places that had access to electricity, which placed them mainly in schools.
This distribution was best thing that could have happened - keyboards found fertile grounds in the hands of curious children, born with an innate sense of rhythm who picked up the ready-to-use instruments. This in turn facilitated the modernisation of local rhythms such as Mornas, Coladeras and the highly danceable music style called Funaná, which had been banned by the Portuguese colonial rulers until 1975 due to its sensuality!
The observation was made that the children who came into contact with the instruments found on the ship inherited prodigious capabilities to understand music and learn instruments. One of them was the musical genius Paulino Vieira, who by the end of the 70s would become the country´s most important music arranger. 8 out of the 15 songs presented in this compilation had been recorded with the backing of the band Voz de Cabo Verde, lead by Paulino Vieira, the mastermind behind the creation and promulgation of what is known today as "The Cosmic Sound of Cabo Verde".
The field of electronic music were involved. Rhodes, Moog, Farfisa, Hammond and Korg, just to name a few.
‘I Want You To Be Mine’ has all the hallmarks of classic 1960’s Rocksteady, an era which many refer too as the Golden Age of Jamaican music. Over the top of a live one-drop beat, cool & deadly sax and warm analog guitar & bass Deemas J rides the riddim in a ‘old time style & fashion’ whilst Rachel Wallace provides the perfect accompaniment with her gorgeous vocal. On the B-Side we have the deeper cut ‘Questions’, where Deemas delivers a poignant poem over Adam Prescott’s moody instrumental in the style of Linton Kwesi Johnson. Featuring live instrumentation from Harry ‘Papa B’ Bradford (Sax), Clifford Junior (Guitar) & Guillaume Metenier (Hammond Organ). As an integral part of the Reggae Roast Soundsystem team Adam has established himself as one of the finest selectors in the world. Initially with some early support and guidance from Mark Iration (from the Leeds based Iration Steppas), Adam was quickly recognised as one of the key players in the re-emergence of British Reggae, producing first class original songs featuring the likes of Cornel Campbell, Macka B, Sugar Minott, Ranking Joe, Rod Taylor, Johnny Osbourne & Earl 16 to name but a few. Add to that consistent play on BBC Radio One & Rinse FM plus huge support from Sir David Rodigan, featuring Adam on his ‘Best Of British’ show on 1Xtra, Adam has become one of the hottest prospects in the revival of soundsystem music. Deemas J has built a formidable reputation as a go-to MC & vocalist with equally genre-busting credentials; His background in Reggae & Jungle means that his lyrical skills and style holds no bounds. He currently works with 3 of the top London Reggae Soundsystems, Unit 137, Reggae Roast & Solution Soundsystem as well as running his own Sound Limey Banton Bass in Guernsey. He has released music on some very well known labels such as Irie Ites, Irish Moss & Tru Thoughts, which released the cult LP ‘Wrongtom Meets Deemas J in East London’. More recently his latest release ‘Muhammed Ali’ received fantastic support from Don Letts, Sir David Rodigan & Ras Kwame. His virtually endless CV boasts collaborations with everyone across the worlds of Drum & Bass, Old School, Garage, Reggae and Hip hop, including High Contrast, Andy C, DJ EZ and Nick Manasseh to name just a few as well as touring the world with Manudigital
Sir James and King Johnny are the leading figures of the mysterious crew: L'ENTOURLOOP.
These elders, fed on the sound of sound systems, vinyl culture and lulled by the epic dialogues of the cinema of yesteryear, concoct a fine fusion of Reggae and Hip Hop.
These beatmakers like to use scratches and samples, all blended with a vintage french touch that makes us travel from France to Kingston, London and New York! The two unstoppable seniors come back this fall to hit ever stronger with a new EP called "Golden Nuggets" in collaboration with the Jamaican Skarra Mucci aka the "Dancehall President".
"Golden Nuggets" is a 6-piece-EP in which we find all the ingredients that make the magic of the sound of Entourloop and Skarra Mucci.
Cynosure returns with OHMS, a playfully uplifting collaboration from Mike Shannon and Ohm Hourani. The three-track EP features two originals laced with twisted drums and slippery synths, equally fitting for intergalactic exploration or a beachside sunrise. The original tracks’ intimately minimal production is complimented by a remix from Akufen of elegant deep house, making for a record that is both contemporary and classic. “Hightower PSA" slips out the gate with a carefree ambling baseline over a slow, swelling tide-like pad. Breezy, pulsing synth stabs pull the groove together while precise, quick hats and snares weave around buzzing tones like alien chatter. “Nova In The Sun” moves into steadier and darker territory: the bass hops between a stark kick-snare, with hats tastefully drizzled on top.
But when singer Ilhem’s sultry voice cues subtle hand drums and squiggly echoes, the track transforms from a slick minimal affair into a soulful throwback. “Nova In The Sun (Akufen’s Aldo Nova In The Sun mix)” takes the female voice of the original and jumps right in with an upbeat staccato piano and swirling violins. A full-blown house arrangement ushers in lush strings, electric piano chords, and loosely fitting open hats and snares, all conspiring to bring a splash of joy to any peak-time crowd. On the whole, OHMS deliver a versatile EP that swaggers with a smile.
The hyper talneted Stellar Om Source (NOT NOT FUN, RVNG, NO 'LABEL) blowing up new styles on this one!
"If there is one thing that leaps out from Stellar OM Source’s music, it is the sense of a highly active mind at work. There is an indivisible feeling that a real person is behind this dynamic flurry of tones, waves, vibrations and modulations. On I See Through You, the first full Stellar OM Source release in over four years, the spark that first LP piqued the interest of so many listeners is glowing stronger than ever.
In the 2010's, Christelle Gualdi carved a name as one of the most essential live electronic musicians around, dazzling dancers and home listeners in kind with her bombastic, acidic hardware jams. Circumstances outside her control forced a stop for the Stellar OM Source project. It was touring, including two shows in the summer of 2019 at Dekmantel Festival and Listen! that Gualdi credits as year highlights, which proved to be the integral jump-start to the engine.
Inspiration came rushing back thanks to the human connection of performing. Seeing a younger generation connect with her put fresh charge into the circuitry of her gear. All this accrued into new material on the road, and thus I See Through You was born.
The spirit of 2013’s cult favourite Joy One Mile is alive and well on I See Through You. There is once again immediacy, urgency and lust. But Stellar OM Source stepping into a comparatively more poppy and playful mode on these four tracks could also throw some. Fundamentally she says, it comes from a similar place, and ends with an enmeshed and positive outcome. Gualdi credits both “1995 rave” and “the clarity, bass and breath” of hi-def hip-hop productions as being twin northern stars for her to follow.
The artwork comes from friend and highly respected photographer & director Pierre Debusschere, whose work similarly flits between arresting close-ups and, well, the widescreen luxe of Beyoncé videos. “I’m definitely not a purist anymore,” Gualdi laughs – and with club-ready impact meeting human warmth, this shows in abundance.
“Night Alone” wastes no time in getting the listener up to speed. Is that an LFO sample running through “Night Alone”? Is this a lost Metro Area classic? Is that Stellar OM Source taking a diversion into searching Ibiza-rousing vocal for a moment, or did we imagine that in a heat haze? Where are the kicks? Oh there they are. How many elements are buried and revived within just over five minutes?
It’s hard to tell. Before we know it, “Lost Codes” is up and away, keeping pulses racing. A pitter-patter of baby kicks feel like a pre-tremor before a welting electro-Italo lead crashes into play. With fizzing energy, rasping synths and a frisson of danger, fans of Unit Moebius and The Hacker will be doing somersaults of joy.
“White Echoes” wastes kicks off the flip side with low gurgles descending briefly like a UFO reverse parking into the spot SOS had vacated. Soon, 303s are twisting like Chinese burns while warm chords offer a salve. The mood maintains on “Wild Palms”, the only song on this record not to feature additional mixing work from Peaking Lights’ dub-wise sensei Aaron Coyes.
True to form, the B2 is all Stellar: elements switching up and out, with all the fun and frenzy of capital-L Live action. Kick drums and bassline darting back and forth like a synchronised swimming routine, all elements in concert. The momentum of a runaway mine cart that you can’t help but strap yourself to. I See Through You is one for the dancers who have given Stellar OM Source the motive to move forward once again."
It's been 20 years since 'Soul Brother Records' first celebrated the music of Leon Thomas with the "Anthology" collection.
It is also 50 years since the acclaimed avant-garde jazz singer first recorded "The Creator Has A Masterplan" with Pharoah Sanders.
Today his music is as renowned and sought after as ever, and the time could not be better for the pairing of these two songs on 7" single.
Both come from his time at Flying Dutchman in the early 70's and fully reflect the individuality and creative spirit of this masterful vocalist.
Both tracks are reissued here for the first time, originals commanding a sale price of £50.
Two years after an acclaimed first album, Al Sunny and Favorite Recordings proudly present Planets, carrying on their collaboration and bringing it to another level.
Al Sunny is a young and talented singer/musician/composer emerging from the French soul music scene. During his conservatory studies, he refined his knowledge and confirmed his desire to write and compose. He quickly matured the music that he truly loves, inspired by artists such as Tim Maia, America, Al Green, and Al Jarreau. Giving birth to the majority of his compositions through his guitar, he always seeks to bring his songs’ melody to the forefront. During his studies he kept experiencing live performing on different scenes and confirmed his choice for a musical career, while also meeting many brilliant musicians, including Florian Pellissier, who later introduced him to Pascal Rioux and Favorite Recordings.
It resulted in 2017 in Time to Decide release, a dazzling first album establishing Al Sunny’s music and writing style, looking towards the 70s and 80s Westcoast movement, infused with Blue-Eyed-Soul, Pop and Folk flavors. Built on the same influences, Planets is made of 8 new compositions (including a CD and digital bonus), and is clearly a continuation of its cadet, asserting Al Sunny’s talent and singing skills.
Fully recorded live and analogic in Paris, this new album also stands out by an impressive level of production, faithful to some classics of the genre. Mixing catchy melodies, soulful vocals, warm and heavy bass, strong beat and beautiful guitars and keyboards harmonies, Planets just perfectly meets the AOR and Modern-Soul golden era standards.
- A1: Kiddus I - If You Love Me
- A2: Winston Mcanuff - Malcolm X
- A3: Cedric Myton - Row Fisherman
- A4: Ken Boothe - Everything I Own
- B1: The Viceroys - Ya Ho
- B2: Horace Andy - Ain't No Sunshine
- B3: Judy Mowatt &Jah9 - Black Woman
- C1: Kiddus I - Survive
- C2: Cedric Myton - Rebellion In Heaven
- C3: Var, Derajah & Winston Mcanuff - Be Careful
- D1: Derajah - Tribute To My Sista
- D2: Ken Boothe - Speak Softly Love
- D3: Var - Live Good
Stripped down to the roots, these 13 contemporary new versions of classic Jamaican recordings, originally from the likes of the Trojan and Studio One studios, are triumphantly fresh and channel Jamaica’s rebel music history.
With Rastafari sewn into its sonic seams, Inna De Yard remind us of Jamaica’s vast contribution to popular music around the globe with a cast of golden-generation roots artists whilst introducing a new class of roots-enthused artists from the island.
Following the release of the album is a feature-length Inna De Yard documentary-film directed by Peter Webber (3 Oscar nominations for Girl with a Pearl Earring), set for its UK and international cinema release alongside European tour and summer festival dates including a special beach performance at the music industry Midem Festival in Cannes.
After a sell-out debut tour in France in 2017, the trailblazing quartet of Ken Boothe, Cedric “The Congos” Myton, Kiddus I and Winston McAnuff join forces to front a cross-generational super-group of roots-reggae visionaries, featuring Jamaican vocal trio The Viceroys and Bob Marley backing vocalist and artist Judy Mowatt, as well as Jah9, Var and Derajah, three of Jamaica’s most stirring and spiritually-connected artists on the scene today.
Sauce Combo is a powerful and dynamic jazz trio lead by Marcjean, saxophonist from Bestown (Besançon), sided by the mercenary drummer Tom Moretti and the melodious
Victor Pierrel on bass. The trio's music takes place in the modern jazz renewing coming especially from England and the USA. France has now a champion. Inspirated by vintage african and west indies jazz, 70's jazz funk and fusion but also 90's drum & bass, broken beat and hip hop, the repertoire is a rich jazz bomb exploding to the
ears. Each second brings its his new colorful burst to admire. The band's brilliant game makes it a living listening experience. The music is rich and versatile but cohesive and united. Why?
Crash Test came to light in one day during a single 7 hours recording session at the Honey For Bear laboratories. Arnaud Bataillard, the sound's engineer, wanted to try several new
tubes and audio gears added in his studio set up. The trio went to test it in a crash test session. All the recordings could have been compromise somewhere but... What was before planned as a try ended into a fantastic album. The mental disposition, while playing
when you know that all can be lost in a minute, gave the musicians the proper dimension to express their feelings in a total freedom. They were playing for pleasure and without any pressure. It was for all, but it could have been also for nothing. And we can literally feel that. This unique record had to be release as soon as possible to transmit the freshness of this beautiful impact to the listeners. Above all, Clément Laurentin's "Equilibre Précaire VI" achieves this album, offering a painting with four figures at the edge of the fall, in a constant imbalance, playing with time and gravity. It's the perfect allegory for the three band's members plus the engineer while making this record.
Michael Edgehill aka Mikey Melody was born in the parish of Portland, Jamaica. As a youth he constantly raised his voice in song and performing with sound system in the neighborhood community. Known by his sweet voice, his friends gave him the nickname «Mikey Melody».
Mikey Melody was influenced by 60’s and 70’s US R&B icons and Jamaican singers like Bob Marley, Sugar Minott, Burning Spear, Dennis Brown, Bob Andy and Half Pint. In the 1980’s he went to Kingston and was identified early by Lord Sassafrass, who gave him his first recording single “Under Mi Fat Thing” that was covered by many reggae artists. He was then signed by Black Scorpio Corporation which he was a singer on the sound system and recording label. He did songs like “World Is A Disaster”, “Jumbo Mi Jumbo”, “Romance For The Moment”, “Ragga Muffin”, “Unemployment”.
He then moved on to Dennis Star Label which he did songs like “Mona Lisa”, “Maranda” and the hit song “Soldier In Town”. Released in 1988 on Dennis Star International records, ‘’Soldier In Town’’ by Mikey Melody is a pure late 80’s dancehall vocal over heavy digital rhythm by Firehouse Crew.
R.Zee Jackson, a born Jamaican spent his early childhood in Clarendon and later in Old Harbour, St. Catherine, Jamaica, West Indies. In 1975, as a student, he moved to Canada with his Mom. There he met Oswald Creary of Half Moon label and studio. At Half Moon studio, he recorded the original tracks of ''Long
Long Time'' released as a 12'' vinyl record on his own label ''Ital''. Esso Jackson also recorded at ''Dub World'', the dubplates cutting studio in Toronto. All the sound men from all over came to see ''Snipa'' the dub cutter; “It was great, dancehall was rocking in Canada. We have it lock with all the big sound systems and artists from all over the world”. One day, the keyboard master Jackie Mittoo say to Esso “you can't stay cold up yourself in
Canada”. Because R.Zee had many family in the UK, it was easy. So he decided to see what was going on in London. In 1980 he released the album Trodding, produced by Mike Brooks (Teams / Coptic Lion). Few years later, he released "Ina South Africa", a heavyweight digital reggae to fight against Apartheid and also "At The Reggae Party", a pure dancehall anthem to mash up the dance. The songs were recorded at Utopia studio (London, UK) in 1985.
The Planet X invasion continues ... The third release is the most-awaited EP this year featuring the Matrixxman himself. According to the Alien Council, it is his best EP so far. It contains four tracks of serious icebreaking soundscapes, running trough the listener's veins by freezing the complete solar system with a coolness.
Starting the process is A1 with the fall-out Syren track called ‘Hong Kong Day’ played exclusively in the Matrixxman Dekmantel Boiler Room set last year, now finally being released for the hungry trainspotters who have been waiting for quite some time.
Next up A2, the second installment of the Hong Kong- the Night version- the most spooky-sounding spirit-catching meltdown of a track. It is reminiscent of a lethal death scene in a brutal manga cartoon, where the Iron eagle flies over the lands looking for prey.
On the other side- B1 starts with the track ‘Power Drain’ featuring his label mate-Exos- definitely the festival track of the release which then takes the listener to the breakbeat part of town in the final track called ‘Tango Down’ on B2.
This is where the real Matrixxman signature strikes with raw, dirty rave bass turning it back and forth, finishing the EP with some analog screams. The Planet X continues tearing through the galaxy.
“Lugar Alto presents their very first release: the incredibly rare and absolutely stunning “Homenagem”, by Leonardo V. Boccia. This is a forgotten gem from the eighties that examines traditional Brazilian themes such as choro, northeastern folk, and capoeira with touches of eighties electronics and new age.
Leonardo Boccia is a musician, multi-instrumentalist, composer, researcher and university professor of Culture and Society at the Federal University of Bahia, whose interests include sound studies, manipulation of sound media, audiosphere and aesthetics, musical theatre, audio culture and neuromusic.
Born in Italy, this respected academic studied music in Berlin, moved to Rio de Janeiro and established himself in Salvador where he was invited to research the northeastern music of Bahia. There he created the experimental group Macchina Naturale, an eclectic combo that performed regularly during his stay. In November 1980, Boccia participated in the first Instrumental Music Festival of Bahia as a soloist where he performed works of his own.
But it was in 1983 that Professor Boccia composed, directed and produced the LP Homenagem. With photos by renowned photographer and artist Mario Cravo Neto for the front and back cover of the booklet, the album presents new and original compositions for instrumental ensembles, such as: Choro Fantasia – for guitar and berimbau -, Canção para Iracema, Homenagem and Lenda do Sertão. The LP was originally released on January 3rd, 1984, with a live performance in the main hall of the Castro Alves Theatre under the title Tribute to Brazilian Music, with the participation of vocalist Sueli Sodré, who contributes to the album, instrumentalists Zeno Millet and Onias Camardelli, accompanied by choreography and visuals.
Much of Homenagem examines the genre of Brazilian music known as Choro, or Chorinho, a genre which appeared in Rio de Janeiro in the 19th century. Choro is regarded as the first typically Brazilian urban music and, over the years, it has come to be considered one of the most prestigious genres of national popular music. Stylistically, it originates from Lundu, a percussion-based rhythm of African inspiration but also influenced by European genres. The instrumental composition of choro was based on the trinca flute, guitar and cavaquinho. Over time, other wind and string instruments were incorporated.
Here, in Homenagem, Professor Boccia deliberately mixes the old and the new, the traditional and the innovative; the album is the environment of Chorinho reconsidered and recontextualized, and its melodies and harmonies still capable of surprises. Just listen to “Terra e Povo” – it has an almost proto-acid-house quality to it, while the synth washes on “Mãe Natureza” with the ethereal vocal stylings of Sueli Sodré ushering in the progressive quality of the album.
Too long out of print, new label Lugar Alto now offers you the chance to reappraise this fascinating reissue of yet another forgotten chapter in Brazilian music.”
- A1: Canaveral Scape (2 45)
- A2: Source Of Energy (2 36)
- A3: Sequence Of Events (3 14)
- A4: Nuplex (3 58)
- A5: Low Profile (4 53)
- A6: Tension And Release (3 38)
- B1: Keeping Pace (3 36)
- B2: Jaguar (2 41)
- B3: Giant’s Causeway (2 59)
- B4: Fugitive (3 08)
- B5: Rock Climb (2 33)
- B6: Heavy Load (2 26)
- B7: Flight Of The Phoenix (2 50)
They Say: “Descriptive scores for scenes of visual impact”.
We say: Arguably the single greatest album in KPM history. An ensemble piece of staggeringly heavy works from none other than Brian Bennett, John Scott, Steve Gray, Jim Lawless and Johnny Pearson.
For our immense pleasure, Visual Impact includes the insanely ace “Nuplex” by Brian Bennett, a nagging, sweeping, punchy funk piece that exists in a world of its own. If you don’t know, get to know - the record’s worth getting for this track alone. The same goes for the beautifully paced, string-drenched, horn-fed LP opener “Canaveral Scape”, courtesy of John Scott. Truly sublime. Other highlights on the A-side include Bennett’s easy, bass-heavy jazz groover “Sequence Of Events” and the spare, building, undercover funk of Steve Gray’s aptly-named “Low Profile”.
The B-side is straight-up fantastic. The percussive, vibey exotica of Jim Lawless’s “Keeping Pace” is followed by five tracks of slick, weighty funk breaks from Johnny Pearson. Check the pure groove of “Jaguar” with its head-nod drum break intro, the creeping piano-strings combo and… er… giant neck-snapping breaks of “Giant’s Causeway”, the speaker-smashing progressive bass groove of “Fugitive”, the tense "Rock Climb" and the sheer heft of "Heavy Load". Library largeness. If that isn’t enough, John Scott’s incessant “Flight Of The Phoenix” ends the session, brilliantly pilfered by M.O.P. for their much-loved “We Run New York”.
Originally released in 1976 but wonderfully timeless, Visual Impact is a rare example of a library record that’s genuinely great listen from start to finish. Just too good…
As with all of our KPM re-issues, the audio for Visual Impact comes from the original analogue tapes and has been remastered for vinyl by Be With regular Simon Francis. We’ve taken the same care with the sleeves, handing the reproduction duties over to Richard Robinson, the current custodian of KPM’s brand identity.
And don’t worry! Those KPM stickers aren’t stuck directly on the sleeves!
With EXHIBITION's second performance, RICO PUESTEL proudly presents the new series-within-the-series "SOLLING", conceptually fulfilling the "triad of A" throughout the canvas of this record: Acid, analogicity and anachronisms.
After recently telling a vast and mesmerizing story on Adana Twins' TAU label, RICO PUESTEL now immerses into his defining habitat roots and creates the long-planned first soundtrack chapter of SOLLING: A central German uplands area in Lower Saxony, spreading into the North of Hesse, shaped by mixed forests, its rural imprinting, a widespread range of regionally varyiing cultural idiosyncrasies and a century-extending history, including the shattering throughout the welters of the Thirty Years' War.
Being the first of several planned chapters, pre-production mostly takes place there while the music is traversed by sound recorded in that area, leading to an existence irreversibly connected to its birthplace.
The impetuous opener "Tilly", characterizing the essence of Johann T'Serclaes von Tilly who commanded the Catholic League's forces in the Thirty Years' War, overrunning the SOLLING throughout 1624 and 1625, culminates in one retro-futuristic affair, building into a overwhelming storm of percussion tapestry and intertwining layers of acid.
The A2 follow-up "Clava" takes the initial impetus to a superior level, overriding itself with an unpredictable enigma-melody after laying the foundation of a high-density groove architecture - all of this representing the almost intangible chasms of a unicum street and its geographical expanse, filled with Rico's far-reaching primordial retrospections, seemingly connecting several contingent coordinates of mysterious happenings over two decades while anticipating the future.
Ultimately, the AA-flipside delivers the groundbreaking SOLLING composition "Pro Foreste Sulgo", presenting an ancient-like struggle of dark and light as told by the principles of nature with two melodic themes, circling around themselves, bound to collide and meld like atoms - all placed within the treetops, shaken by the wind, overlooking a future that might already has been...
High John & Douniah sind ein Alternative R&B / Neo Soul-Duo aus Hamburg und Berlin. Johns warme, Lo-Fi-beeinflusste Beats und Douniahs charakterstarke, soulige Stimme harmonieren auf eine organische und zeitlose Art, verbinden die Vibes der 90er Urban Music mit den Klangfarben und Themen unserer Zeit. High John hat dieses Jahr zusammen mit Plusma (dem Produzenten von Ace Tees “Bist du
down?”) das Instrumental-Album “High+” veröffentlicht und ist Teil des Raw Suppliers-Kollektivs. Douniah machte in den letzten Monaten mit zwei feinen Kollabos von sich reden: “Don't You Worry” mit Fuchy (aka Farhot) und “Naked Trees” mit Cap Kendricks.
DJ Mad A (Adam Embleton) & Dr. Stevie The Ambient Guru (Stevie Hewitt) originally met when Adam picked up the Saturday shift at 'Record Mart', a record store run by Stevie back in the late 80's. They quickly bonded over shared tastes and enthusiasm for the growing dance club culture in England.
'Balearic Beat' had arrived from Ibiza, house music was taking over, and clubs were pushing boundaries, encouraging DJs to experiment with the dancefloor. Stevie was a regular selector at classic venues like 'Club Havana' and 'Flixx', where he blended house, electro & techno for the loaded English youth. Adam had signed to Island records, at 17, the first signee for newly appointed A&R rep Darcus Beese. Their collaborations in the Island studio is where the early 'Mad A' production techniques were cultivated.
With Adam behind the programming and Stevie on guitar, the two assembled a few songs to add to their explorative DJ sets. They printed a white label tiny pressing of 'The Mad Vibe', four tracks, "sending out waves that shock", their sound was a frantic blend of electro and house. The E.P. sold out fast locally, with their tune, 'Levitating Pharaohs' catching the attention of Drum 'n' Bass duo 'Spring Heel Jack' and labels like Mo'wax. As the 90's rolled on, the two continued to DJ as residents at clubs like Corner House, Brody's, Arena & Dickens.
Smiling C 2019 repress of this cult 12". Remastered and housed in a die-cut 12" jacket with pharaoh's head sticker.
"Play The Trax. Feel The Vibes. Mad as....."
“The third part of our "Ode To The Soundsystem" is here and the abstract sound of the last Ossia album is no longer evident. The influence of the early Disciples 12"s shows up for the first time, with a Drexciyan connection happening on the b-side, creating one of the most lethal and militant 12"s that we have ever released. Ossia is back on Berceuse Heroique and we are very happy about it.”
... BubbleTease Communications and Running Back team up once again for Mim Suleiman’s fifth studio album on vinyl and compact disc. During the course of Si Bure you will find Mim at her very best.
It’s easy to imagine the Zanzibar-born-UK-based vocalist and percussionist dancing and prancing to the 14 songs featured here.
The tropes of house and disco are mixed here with wonderful rhythmic adventures, infectious futuristic pop and ultramodern African music, while the mesmerizing and addictive lyrics are sung in Swahili and deal with love and affection, freedom, oppression, unity and everyday life.
Enchanting, entrancing and entertaining all the way.
- Produced by Maurice Fulton.
Melbourne based producer Louis Marlo returns to Merriware with five meditative cuts, entitled Stained Glass. Recorded between 2014-2018, the EP is the culmination of experiments with tape loops, the 303 and 606, and processed guitars and electric pianos.
Vital Sales Points:
Early airplay from Moxie and Andrew Weatherall.
Upcoming premieres through Orb Mag and Hypno Groove
Remastered and reissued for the first time since their original release, AOTN are proud to present three classic cover versions from the lovers rock era. Al Charles' take on the Gap Band's 'Outstanding' is a full of swagger outing that takes all the sweetest of their melodies and gives it some added bass pressure for the dancefloor.
Tough to track down previously, the Sonia version of 'Easier To Love' was always a favourite amongst lovers fans. After getting a spin on Sam Floating Point's NTS show, its popularity soared and any remaining copies were quickly hoovered up. The final release brings together two of the finest lovers singers to ever duet, the late Jean Adebambo and Trevor Walters, covering Roberta Flack & Donny Hathaway's 'Back Together Again'.
The first press of the 12 comes in a printed AOTN sleeve which is a respectful tip of the hat to the OG dub vendor disco sleeve that many of these original 12s were distributed in.
IZIPHO SOUL RECORDS are thrilled to be releasing JASON ANTHONEY WRIGHT’S 2008 masterpiece, 'RESET TO ZERO' on a 7’’ single! Produced by Absolute’s Paul Wilson and Andy Watkins, 'RESET TO ZERO' is one of the finest pieces of U.K. retro soul.
The soaring lead vocals, layered over a soulful groove has made this a respected song on the musically knowledgeable rare soul scene, whilst still maintaining that wider reaching appeal a feat only achieved by very few compositions. On the B-Side is the Pete and Steve Lewinson produced Motown flavoured LOOKING THROUGH THE WINDOW.
- A1: Miss Love (First Version)
- A2: Here Come I, Here Is Me (First Version)
- A3: Hospitals
- A4: One Moment It Will Last
- A5: North South East The West
- B1: The Rose (First Version)
- B2: Mister Nothing
- B3: Looking For
- B4: Roots Of Life
- B5: What's There Left
- C1: Twinkling Stars
- C2: Blinded By The Lies
- C3: Bullshit
- C4: Foolin
- C5: How's About The Aims In Life
- D1: Intro (Live In Queekhoven 1982)
- D2: Miss Love (Live In Queekhoven 1982)
- D3: Here Come I, Here Is Me (Live In Queekhoven 1982)
- D4: The Rose (Live In Queekhoven 1982)
- D5: Something Between You & Me (Live In Queekhoven 1982)
Early Days maps out Nine Circles interpretation of Cold Wave and Minimal Synth. Unbelievably the tracks are mostly from a brief time period, ’80—’82. Alienation and uncertainty course through the 2LP with heavy Yamaha chords, metallic machine beats and brittle vocals.
Nine circles was formed in the early 80s by Peter Van Garderen and Lidia Fiala. In 1980 there was a band called Genetic Factor. This band split up when their three members got girlfriends and they started to make music together with their girls. So at that time there were 3 bands living together in one house.
One of the couples were Peter van Garderen and Lidia Fiala. Lidia had been writing lyrics since she was 15 years old. Nine Circles was born. Within 2 years they wrote about 60 songs.
Also living in the house was Richard Zeilstra, who had a job at the VPRO radio, hosting a show called „Spleen“ where he gave New Wave bands a chance to play. He asked bands to send tapes to him and the best bands had the opportunity to play live at the radio and also got the chance to be on the „Radio Nome“ compilation. Peter and Lidia sent their tape to him and were the only ones from this house to be on the show. Richard knew their music was special. Nine Circles never played a live show on stage, only one concert live at the radio which is also featured on this LP.
Two years later Peter and Lidia split up and Nine Circles disappeared. In 2009 Lidia’s son googled her name just for fun and found a lot about the band Nine Circles. Lidia was surprised, she never knew how popular Nine Circles have been over the years. She got herself on Facebook and since then she got in touch with many people and decided Nine Circles should come back! Peter was not able to join the band these days, he had a different life but he was supporting Lidia and liked that she enjoyed doing music again. Peter still had all the old recordings and sent Lidia a lot of the music they made together back in the days. The best tracks are collected on this 2LP.
Together with Per-Anders Kurenbach Lidia revived Nine Circles. They recorded new material (released on the album „Alice“) and played live until Lidia had to stop playing live for health reasons in 2016. Nevertheless they‘re working on a follow-up album called „Emerge“ which is planned to be released in 2020 and hopefully Lidia will be able to go on stage again soon.
On The Corner provide the first taste of a landmark recording that the label embarked upon two years ago on the East African island archipelago of Zanzibar.
Pete On the Corner was consulting for the ambitious permaculture development of Fumba Town. The story of Siti Binti Saad, the mother of Taarab is rooted in Fumba. Pete joined the dots to shine new light on the pioneering life of Siti Binti Saad as the innovative town development took shape and looked to connect with the Island's unique history at the centre of the Swahili world.
Whilst steering a recording project that would celebrate Siti Binti Saad's legacy, Pete brought in producer Sam Jones and the pair met with filmmaker Andy Jones (who documented the life and work of the legendary Bi Kidude) who revealed that Siti Binti Saad had a great grand-daughter, Siti Muharam who led a very private life but had a 'golden voice'. With music director Matona on board the scene was set to go beyond celebrating the singular legacy of a Swahili pioneer and find a new hero.
Siti Muharam has a golden timbre and on this 7" we get the first taste of her debut LP that will represent her great grandmother's legacy for the next generations.
Pink fog rises amidst the hills; dew covers all in silver paint glittering in the background. Layers covering layers of low clouds, fog and haze. Shimmering city lights. Silhouettes of figures sitting in the hills, hanging in bridges, on top of houses, looking upon, observing city drive from up high as if it was a meditating bonfire.
A notion of something going to happen. But all that remains is a glimpse of pink fog hanging static in the air.
Risks Issues Opportunities, the third release from berlin based R.I.O. Label brings together a collection of electronic wave music from six different performers with one common ground: their mysterious & slightly melancholic aesthetics. - (R.i.O. - RIO03)
- A1: Jvc Force - Strong Island
- A2: Boogie Down Productions - South Bronx (Truth Version)
- A3: Soul Dimension - Can't Get Enough
- A4: Tall, Dark & Handsome - Call It What You Wanna
- B1: Boogie Down Productions - The Bridge Is Over (Vocal Mix)
- B2: Kd Nice - Get Up (Vocal)
- B3: Djmate & The Latin Mc's - Let's Jam
- B4: K Bee & Ceil B - Who Am I?
- C1: Dj Scott La Rock & D Nice - Scott Made Me Fnuky
- C2: Positive Image - Serious Business
- C3: Money Earnin Crew - Stars Are Shinin
- C4: 5 Star Moet - Let Me Love You
- D1: Busy Boys - That's The Flavor
- D2: Sparky D - Throwdown
- D3: 991 Volts - 991 Volt's Of Noise (Vocal)
- D4: Spicey Ham - Sex, Sex & More Sex
• B Boy Records was a significant player in the development of hip-
hop in the 1980s, but a very short lived label shrouded in mystery.
• This double LP selects the best of the independent label, from the
beginning of the label to including past icons and future legends,
hard-hitting drum programming, synthesize and sampled beats
overlaid with fierce battle rap swagger. This is a snapshot of hip-hop
history.
• The label is best known for issuing the hugely influential Boogie
Down Productions LP Criminal Minded, which is included twice on
this release with ‘The Bridge Is Over’ and ‘South Brox’
• Other highlights include JVC Force’s enduring classic ‘Strong
Island’, DJ Scott La Rock (founding member of BDP) & D-Nic and all-
female rap Sparky D, 5 Star Moet.
2024 Backstock
After having released several solo works of both artists, Dauw announce the first collaborative full album by The Humble Bee & Benoît Pioulard; 'I suppose I'm your future'.
Both artists hold a very special place in the history of the label. The Humble Bee was already present from the very beginning and, in hindsight, definitely has put an important mark on the musical aesthetics we've been developing throughout the years. On the other hand, we crossed paths with Benoît Pioulard several years ago through our ongoing Living Room Concert Series in which he offered one of the most magical evenings to date. Given their mutual love for the tape medium and melancholic compositions, we only had to connect the dots as we were pretty sure that some magic was up in the air.
It goes without saying that we were uttermost happy when they both accepted our invitation to work on a collab album. Even though we didn't know where their efforts would end, it already felt like a victory that we, as a label, were able to link these artists. Above all, the art of curating can be considered as an essential feature of running a label but for us it is also the most wonderful part about it. Linking artists to each other, like we also did in our Dialog Tapes or Illuminine Reworks series, even goes a step further as it makes new connections, pushes boundaries and ultimately can result in an unexpected enrichment of the musical field.
"I always look forward to the Dauw collaboration releases. Most of the creativity for these lays within their curation: it brings together artists that, although arc in the same orbit but somehow never cross paths. The beauty of collaborating is that we learn from having to give space to another creative force, working alone we fall back on what we know and what we have already done. Although I wasn't paired with Tom for earlier projects, the guys at Dauw thought (and rightly so) that it was about time we crossed our musical paths for an lp." (The Humble Bee)
... After his first appearance on Subaltern’s 'Kaleidoscope Vol.1’ with the scorching ‘Alter’, far-east sonic assassin and Back To Chill member Helktram makes his comeback on Subaltern Records with a heavy-as-stone three tracker. Each of the cuts is a dance-floor weapon which shows a different side of the Japanese mastermind’s razor-sharp production.
- Recoil: Opening with a crunchy guitar melody, ‘Recoil’ sets the pace
of the EP: a catchy and relentless bass-line takes us on a march
through forests and mountains, as distant pads and SFXs remind us
to stay alert. After the first round the guitar comes back, warning us
we’re not done yet. A straight hitter which will keep playing in your
head long after the night is over.
- Mineral: The aptly titled ‘Mineral' is hard as diamond and rough as
coal. This triplet juggernaut tramples systems all over the world
leaving its mark on any raver who encounters it. A sinister
thereminesque melody paves the way to a stripped-down beat with a
militant bass riff. Skilfully executed distortion engulfs the low-end
turning it into a powerful growly wobble.
- Beware: A threatening melody paints the post-apocalyptic landscape
of the EP’s third cut in what is Helktram’s trademark style. In this
track distortion is the name of the game: an unforgiving lead
matched by grimy and glitchy stabs evolves into an uninterrupted riff
which carries the rhythm leaving space for the bass melody. As the
title suggests, extreme caution is required when handling this
blaster.
Coming into orbit late November PS001.2 continues the dancefloor focussed explorations of one of Australia’s most loved new labels, Pure Space. Just in time for the Aussie summer the release highlights the sound of the new generation of electro and broken-beat producers emerging from the countries east coast.
On the A-side Point Guard returns to the label with his razor-sharp electro outing ‘Odyssey’. An emotional expedition that harnesses dancefloor euphoria with a powerfully burning bassline. Joining forces to complete the A side is Melbourne producer Disrute and label head Andy Garvey. Here an ever-evolving synthline propels you forward throughout the track that builds infinitely but pauses just to release Garvey’s mesmerising vocal, ‘NRG’.
Flip the axis and you will find swirling synths and scattered percussion that creates the murky club weapon that is emerging Sydney producer PMA’s ‘Hek’. Completing the release, Roy Mills brings you to a full rotation with ‘Aquatic Pressure’. His jittery breakbeat cut that slows to a half step mid way and returns with odd-ball synth mayhem.
- A1: Desencanto - Contraviento
- A2: Tras Tus Ojos - Jaime Roos Y Estela Magnone
- A3: De Los Relojeros - Eduardo Darnauchans
- A4: Kabumba - Hugo Jasa
- A5: El Chi-Li-Ban-Dan - Eduardo Mateo
- B1: En Este Momento - Travesía
- B2: Capítulos - Mariana Ingold
- B3: Llamada Insólita - La Escuelita
- B4: Y El Tiempo Pasa - Hugo Jasa
- B5: Bombinhas - Leo Masliah Y Jorge Cumbo
- B6: A Ustedes - Fernando Cabrera
Synth ambiences, acoustic landscapes, deep songwriting and subtle candombe percussions combine in most of the musical output released in Uruguay during the 80s. A very unique sound was developed within the narrow boundaries of Montevideo by just a small group of very talented artists. These sounds reverberated in singer-songwriting, jazz fusion approximations, experimental music and the work of musicians at the intersections of these worlds.
In “América Invertida”, ethereal vocal arrangements and acoustic guitars cohabit with synthesizers and drum machines; Candombe and Latin American music form a fellowship with new wave and dream pop.
"América Invertida" is presented with obi strip, deluxe artwork finishing and insert including extensive liner notes and previously unseen photos. Most of the tracks are reissued here for the first time.
This compilation is the fruitful output of a collaboration with Montevideo based label Little Butterfly, the first of many to come
I recently discovered a bunch of atmospheric drum & bass I had written around 2006-2008 on an old backup drive that I thought was long gone. Upon discovering the contents, I found a group of tracks that I had totally forgot about, so it almost felt like hearing them for the first time. Clear Skies was due to be released on vinyl around 2007 (I think?), but for reasons I cannot recall, it never happened. Instantly, the thought of putting this out on vinyl came to me and here we are. I felt that out of this specific batch of tracks, Nimbus was the one that complimented Clear Skies the most, which is also a nice dichotomy between having a clear sky and having one full of nimbus clouds. This marks the fourth white label release for the series, and something that might open the way for more releases in a similar vein. - ASC
- A1: Diego Carpitella & Alan Lomax - E Ballamu Tutti Ddhoi Ti Paru
- A2: Diego Carpitella & Ernesto De Martino - Pizzica Tarantata N 014
- A3: Diego Carpitella & Ernesto De Martino - Pizzica Tarantata N 015
- A4: Diego Carpitella & Ernesto De Martino - Pizzica Tarantata N 026
- A5: Diego Carpitella & Ernesto De Martino - Pizzica Tarantata N 030
- A6: Diego Carpitella - Santu Paolu Meu De Galatina
- B1: Bjorn Torske & Trym Søvdsnes - Pizzica Tarantata N 026 (Rework)
- B2: Uffe - Pizzica Tarantata N 015 (Rework)
- C1: Lns - Pizzica Tarantata N 014 (Rework)
- C2: Bottin - Santu Paolu Meu De Galatina (Rework)
- D1: Don't Dj - Pizzica Tarantata N 014 (Rework)
- D2: Kmru - Pizzica Tarantata N 030 (Rework)
After their first issue focus on Benga, a Kenyan musical movement, FLEE is proud to present its new project: «Tarantismo: Odyssey of an Italian Ritual», available on 2LP Gatefold and as a bundle with 2LP Gatefold and a 168 pages Book.
Please note that the book only is not available
Dedicated to Tarentism, this project tells the story of a centuries-old choreo-musical ritual from Southern Italy, mobilizing frenetic rhythms and maniac dances, to exorcise women of a mysterious evil caused by the bite of a spider. Trans-disciplinary, this effort of documentation and artistic re-interpretation of one Europe’s most mysterious trance phenomenon is comprised of a double LP vinyl compilation including original recordings from Italian Maestro's Carpitella, Lomax and De Martino with reinterpretations from Don't DJ, Bottin, LNS, Bjorn Torske & Trym Søvdsnes, KMRU, Uffe and a hardcover Italian/English book.
Spaziale Recordings is born. Setting their sights on reissuing highly sought-after, obscure records, alongside providing fresh new interpretations of these classic gems, they kick things off with a bang.
Presenting an official remastered limited edition reissue of a classic cosmic disco 12”, featuring extended disco versions of three superb Afro and Latin-flavoured tracks taken from John Ozila’s 1979 killer funk album ‘Boogie Salsa’.
- Released on French label Disques Vogue, the A side offers the highly
infectious afro groove of ‘Funky Boogie’, treasured by the likes of
Horse Meat Disco, Dekmantel Soundsystem and Jack J.
- Previously a fiercely-guarded record collectors’ secret, the flip
houses two great afro-cosmic, obsure disco versions of “Let’s Go
Boogie” and “L’Orange Bleue” previously only available as album
versions on the “Boogie Salsa” LP.
- Now fully remastered and cut loud and proud to 12 inch for
maximum audio pleasure.


























































































































![The Circle of Confusion - Yesterday Was History/Yesterday Was History (TCOC Yesterdub Mix) [feat. Cornel Campbell]](https://www.deejay.de/images/l/4/4/943844.jpg)





































