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SP-1200 beats made using postal service. Fredfades and Sraw collaborate through post, exchanging dusty beats for an experimental Hip Hop record. The process of sending floppy discs back and forth, where each producer added element over element on their own SP-1200, has been on-going for almost 10 years, slowly building a collaborative body of work.
The result is Double Density, an LP that oozes with the character of that infamous instrument which laid much of the foundation for the earliest Hip Hop artists and still manages to evoke those raw and visceral sounds of that era. Reinforcing those sounds are the voices of Planet Asia, Pink Siifu and Blue November, who deliver lyrics from US coasts to Scandanavia’s fjords.
The duos collaborative effort swims in a sea of eclectic influences where Jazz, Soul and Hip-Hop thrive in the construct of this unique instrument. The drum machine pops, crackles and hisses on a bed of big bass lines through 12 tracks that go from short instrumentals to fully arranged songs.
Taking Hip-Hop back to its origins, everything is stripped bare to its essentials and for every vocal track, there’s its antithesis in the form of an instrumental break. It’s a record that plays with the archetypes of Hip Hop and Rap as something that we’ve lost over the years that begs for revocation. Double Density sounds exotic in the world of today’s gleaming beats.

Critically-acclaimed, criminally-overachieving Glasgow-based singer and guitarist Alasdair Roberts is known as a superlative original songwriter as well as an interpreter of traditional songs from Scotland and beyond. For the past twenty years, his recordings have alternated between these two complimentary poles, with "pop" records such as The Amber Gatherers and A Wonder Working Stone nestling in his expansive back catalogue alongside "folk" albums such as No Earthly Man and What News (with Amble Skuse and David McGuinness). Additionally, all of these records possess a further dimension, derived from their collation of songs together into one album-length statement. This is part of Alasdair"s great achievement in his career - for him, this thing of music and song hasn"t come the eons it"s travelled to simply entertain. These impulses fully present and well honed, Alasdair returns to his roots with Grief in the Kitchen and Mirth in the Hall, his fifth full-length collection of traditional song. Recorded live in the studio, it is an entirely solo collection of twelve traditional ballads and songs sparsely arranged for acoustic guitar, piano and voice. The majority of the songs originate in Alasdair"s homeland of Scotland, with a couple from Ireland and one from Prince Edward Island on Canada"s eastern seaboard too. The record takes its title from a line in the final verse of one of its songs, "The Baron o" Brackley" - a ballad of feuding clans and matrimonial betrayal from the north-east of Scotland. Grief in the Kitchen and Mirth in the Hall: it"s a title which goes some way towards encapsulating many of the record"s themes. Collectively the songs treat of various conflicts and tensions - those of gender; of class, status and position; and of geography and tribal belonging - and the roles and responsibilities expected at the various intersections of these constructs. That we should never forget! As with many of Alasdair"s recordings, Grief in the Kitchen and Mirth in the Hall contains ballads aplenty: tragic ("Bob Norris"), supernatural ("The Holland Handkerchief") and dramatic ("Eppie Morrie"). There are love songs ("The Lichtbob"s Lassie") and anti-love songs ("Kilbogie"). There are rare, seldom-heard pieces ("Young Airly") and much more well-known ones ("Mary Mild," a version of "The Queen"s Four Maries"). Woven through all of this - a thread of levity, perhaps - is a triptych of zoological allegories - a panegyric to a mystical steed ("The Wonderful Grey Horse"), a lament for a lost cow ("Drimindown") and a paean to a regal waterbird ("The Bonny Moorhen"), which serves to highlight the intersection of the mythic, the eternal and the mundane at which we all find ourselves in every day of our life on Earth. Grief In the Kitchen and Mirth in the Hall was masterfully recorded by Sam Smith at Green Door Studios, Glasgow over an economical two days, and mixed in one day. Its brevity on all levels is an aspect of its expression. Alasdair"s renowned acoustic fingerstyle guitar is understated yet questing, ever in service to the needs of the song, underpinning his soulful tenor voice. Three songs eschew his habitual acoustic guitar in favour of simple piano arrangements. The spare setting and Alasdair"s deeply committed performance gently reminds of the meanings and melodies of these old songs, chosen instinctively and with care, for all to hear and sing in 2023, and the world beyond that is ever coming.

MC/Lyricist Raw Poetic (aka Jason Moore) announces Space Beyond The Solar System, his new album out December 9th on 22nd Century Sound, and presents its lead single, “A Mile In My Head,” featuring legendary saxophonist Archie Shepp. Although Space Beyond The Solar System could be considered a concept album by its outcome, its inception started from a string of experiments between Moore and frequent collaborator/producer Damu the Fudgemunk. These initial sessions had no specific direction but became the catalyst for what would become a prolific wave of Raw Poetic projects; five of which have been released since 2020.

It was these initial sessions and the demos they produced that convinced Shepp—who is also Raw Poetic’s uncle—to record what would eventually become 2020’s Ocean Bridges, a collaborative album from Raw, Damu, and Shepp, praised by The FADER as “modern masterpiece at the intersection of rap and jazz.” The trio’s collaboration continues on Space Beyond The Solar System, which boasts three tracks featuring the jazz legend, including today’s “A Mile In My Head,” a sprawling and thought-provoking album stand-out.

At two hours, absorbing Space Beyond in its entirety may be overwhelming for most, especially in the present day, but Raw and Damu are very aware of this. With a total of over 40-plus years of experience between the vocalist and producer, the two of them went down memory lane taking every influence and experience in their personal histories to extract ingredients for a groundbreaking statement. Space Beyond The Solar System is their most comprehensive environment to date.

The creation of Space Beyond sparked a conversation between Raw and Damu about their creative chemistry, with Raw likening their direction to a “space beyond the solar system.” His comment was a eureka moment for the two artists, giving their wandering efforts a sense of definition that was needed. “I think we’ve been exploring music beyond our limits for a few years,” says Raw Poetic. “It’s hard to tell where we’ll land, but we are constantly pushing our way out of the norm. Hence the title, ‘Space Beyond the Solar System.’ It’s just to say, this is new territory for us. Where the sky was once the limit, now it’s just the start.”

Standard Black Vinyl LP w/ Foil stamped jacket, printed inner sleeves + DL card. Legendary Tacoma, Washington mathcore/hardcore/metal band Botch's debut full-length American Nervoso was originally recorded in 1998, eventually becoming one of the most ground-breaking records during a pivotal shift in heavy music. Now, the band's debut album is set to be re-issued on Sargent House 25 years after its original release. The album features white-hot guitar action, scathing vocals, sweet bass moves, and torrential drums, smashing existing precepts of hardcore and redefining both the word and the music for a generation of kids and grizzled vets alike. Bassist Brian Cook, guitarist David Knudson, drummer Tim Latona, and vocalist Dave Verellen formed Botch in 1993, eventually becoming one of the most significant bands of their time. Their final show was June 15, 2002, the same day as the release of their final EP, An Anthology of Dead Ends. The members would go on to play in These Arms Are Snakes, Minus the Bear, and Russian Circles, among others, with acclaim for the band coming mostly post-breakup. Over 20 years since they played their final show, Botch are reuniting for select dates in the Pacific Northwest in February 2023. 25th anniversary re-issue of Botch's critically lauded debut album. Botch have their first live performances in over 20 years for early 2023. Botch have been included on "Most Influential lists" by outlets like Decibel, Rock Sound, Alternative Press, A.V. club + more

LIMITED EDITION CASSETTE
Formed in 1976, the Damned were Britain's first punk rock band.
By 1979 they had managed to disintegrate and re-assemble, way before it was fashionable.
By then punk rock and its neater sibling, new wave, were regularly producing real hits in the UK and the Damned were no exception, with three hit singles drawn from the “Machine Gun Etiquette” LP released that year.

Toots Thielemans was a jazz harmonica virtuoso from Belgium. Together with pianist Karel Boehlee, bassplayer Hein Van De Geyn and Hans van Oosterhout on drums Toots recorded, as the European Quartet, the album 90 in
2012. The album features two compositions from Antonio Carlos Jobim, “Wave” and “One Note Samba”, “Dat Mistige Rooie Beest” from Rogier van Otterloo, “In Your Own Sweet Way” from Dave Brubeck and 7 more tracks.

90 is available as a limited edition of 500 individually numbered copies on white coloured vinyl.

If you were smart enough to get your grubby paws on the first Scrap Metal compilation, you probably have a pretty good idea of what you’re in for with our second installment. Featuring long-lost gems from ultra-rare 45s and private press singles—plus one previously unreleased banger—Scrap Metal 2 maintains a steady NWOBHM course. Packed with infectious outliers and supremely talented one-and-done metal warriors from the crucial British movement of the late ’70s and early ’80s (and some killer American obscurities inspired by them), this collection delivers all the fist-pumping, riff-mongering and flashy solos of heavy metal’s golden age. As always, every track has been officially licensed and every artist gets paid. As a late entry into the NWOBHM sweepstakes, JJ’s Powerhouse was formed in Merseyside, England, by guitarist Jon “J.J.” Cox with members of his previous band, Quad. Much like the opener to the original Scrap Metal comp, you can hear early Metallica coursing through this legendary ripper. Coincidentally, this ultra-rare 45 was released in ’83, the same year as Kill ’Em All. Taking their name from a 1978 sci-fi novel by Marion Zimmer Bradley, Welsh super troopers Storm Queen reveled in animal-print clothing and flying Vs. The Motörhead-meets-Priest anthem “Raising the Roof” is the flipside to their only single, which the band self-released in 1982. Led by guitarist Dave Morse, Storm Queen’s earliest lineup included bassist Bryn Merrick (RIP), who would go on to join The Damned. Roaring out of Birmingham, England, in 1975, Jameson Raid palled around with fellow Brummies Black Sabbath and named themselves after a failed 19th century attack that helped kick off South Africa’s Second Boer War. Their three-song 1979 debut featured the infectious “It’s a Crime,” which comes across like a deadly hard-glam version of Budgie. Still fronted by vocalist Terry Dark, they’re going strong as of 2022. A.R.C., a punky proto-metal group from the UK, released the boozy single “Home Made Wine” b/w “The Chase” in 1979 and—as far as we know—were never heard from again. They’re not to be confused with a gang of Tolkien enthusiasts also called A.R.C., who released two NWOBHM singles in the early ’80s and actually were heard from again. Nonetheless, the A.R.C. we have here was led by a thirsty lad named Klaus Brunnenkant, who liked to rock n’ roll all night and party every day. Both sides of Metropolis’ sole single bear the legend, “Unauthorized duplication shall result in getting your ass beat.” This San Jose metal squad released their only single in 1986 and dedicated it to Metallica bassist Cliff Burton, who had recently been killed in a bus accident. “The Raven” is the serpentine NWOBHM- and Edgar Allan Poe-influenced flipside to “Time Heals Everything,” and yeah, you can hear the guitars going out of tune on the solo, but that’s part of the charm. Of the two dozen or so metal bands that have called themselves Prowler over the years, we’re pretty sure this particular Prowler is the only one from San Diego. These dudes take a thrashier approach than most of the bands here on Scrap Metal 2: “Temporary Insanity” strikes a deft balance between early Anthrax and early Testament, with just enough hard rock swing to keep it from getting overly staccato. Self-released in ’86 as the band’s only single, the song is the flip to “I Love It.” Not much is known about Christian Steel beyond this: They put out their only single in 1983, which boasted “Need Your Love” as the flip to “I Don’t Want To.” The former, included here, sounds kinda like a dizzy, more metallic version of ’70s Jersey rockers Starz, who famously influenced the likes of Mötley Crüe, Poison and Twisted Sister. Ohio guitarist/vocalist Marty Soski’s career dates back to at least 1969 with the Inside Experience track “Be On My Way,” which we unearthed for our own Brown Acid: The Third Trip. This time, we’ve got a monster Soski cut that he recorded under the name Black Rose. Released in 1982, the absolutely smokin’ “Sidewinder” was the A-side on the band’s sole single. The main riff isn’t far off from Y&T’s major-label banger “Mean Streak,” which was released the following year. When Dark Age titled their 1987 album The Youngest Metal Band in the World, they weren’t even sort of kidding. Legend has it that “Star Trippin’,” which was released as a single a year earlier, was written by guitarist CJ Rininger when he was just 12 years old. His brother Dave, the vocalist, was two years younger. Old photos of the band—complete with pineapple haircuts—seem to bear this story out. Either way, the song is pure flash metal, conjuring Sunset Strip sleaze all the way from Ohio. By now, all you heads know Los Angeles magic men Sorcery from their storied appearance in—and soundtrack for—the death-defying Ozploitation flick Stunt Rock. What we have here in “Whales” is a previously unreleased track from the same 1978 recording sessions. It’s a little bit Zeppelin, a little bit prog, and a whole lotta thundering riffage. Why this languished in the vaults for so long is anyone’s guess. Better late than never!

If you were smart enough to get your grubby paws on the first Scrap Metal compilation, you probably have a pretty good idea of what you’re in for with our second installment. Featuring long-lost gems from ultra-rare 45s and private press singles—plus one previously unreleased banger—Scrap Metal 2 maintains a steady NWOBHM course. Packed with infectious outliers and supremely talented one-and-done metal warriors from the crucial British movement of the late ’70s and early ’80s (and some killer American obscurities inspired by them), this collection delivers all the fist-pumping, riff-mongering and flashy solos of heavy metal’s golden age. As always, every track has been officially licensed and every artist gets paid. As a late entry into the NWOBHM sweepstakes, JJ’s Powerhouse was formed in Merseyside, England, by guitarist Jon “J.J.” Cox with members of his previous band, Quad. Much like the opener to the original Scrap Metal comp, you can hear early Metallica coursing through this legendary ripper. Coincidentally, this ultra-rare 45 was released in ’83, the same year as Kill ’Em All. Taking their name from a 1978 sci-fi novel by Marion Zimmer Bradley, Welsh super troopers Storm Queen reveled in animal-print clothing and flying Vs. The Motörhead-meets-Priest anthem “Raising the Roof” is the flipside to their only single, which the band self-released in 1982. Led by guitarist Dave Morse, Storm Queen’s earliest lineup included bassist Bryn Merrick (RIP), who would go on to join The Damned. Roaring out of Birmingham, England, in 1975, Jameson Raid palled around with fellow Brummies Black Sabbath and named themselves after a failed 19th century attack that helped kick off South Africa’s Second Boer War. Their three-song 1979 debut featured the infectious “It’s a Crime,” which comes across like a deadly hard-glam version of Budgie. Still fronted by vocalist Terry Dark, they’re going strong as of 2022. A.R.C., a punky proto-metal group from the UK, released the boozy single “Home Made Wine” b/w “The Chase” in 1979 and—as far as we know—were never heard from again. They’re not to be confused with a gang of Tolkien enthusiasts also called A.R.C., who released two NWOBHM singles in the early ’80s and actually were heard from again. Nonetheless, the A.R.C. we have here was led by a thirsty lad named Klaus Brunnenkant, who liked to rock n’ roll all night and party every day. Both sides of Metropolis’ sole single bear the legend, “Unauthorized duplication shall result in getting your ass beat.” This San Jose metal squad released their only single in 1986 and dedicated it to Metallica bassist Cliff Burton, who had recently been killed in a bus accident. “The Raven” is the serpentine NWOBHM- and Edgar Allan Poe-influenced flipside to “Time Heals Everything,” and yeah, you can hear the guitars going out of tune on the solo, but that’s part of the charm. Of the two dozen or so metal bands that have called themselves Prowler over the years, we’re pretty sure this particular Prowler is the only one from San Diego. These dudes take a thrashier approach than most of the bands here on Scrap Metal 2: “Temporary Insanity” strikes a deft balance between early Anthrax and early Testament, with just enough hard rock swing to keep it from getting overly staccato. Self-released in ’86 as the band’s only single, the song is the flip to “I Love It.” Not much is known about Christian Steel beyond this: They put out their only single in 1983, which boasted “Need Your Love” as the flip to “I Don’t Want To.” The former, included here, sounds kinda like a dizzy, more metallic version of ’70s Jersey rockers Starz, who famously influenced the likes of Mötley Crüe, Poison and Twisted Sister. Ohio guitarist/vocalist Marty Soski’s career dates back to at least 1969 with the Inside Experience track “Be On My Way,” which we unearthed for our own Brown Acid: The Third Trip. This time, we’ve got a monster Soski cut that he recorded under the name Black Rose. Released in 1982, the absolutely smokin’ “Sidewinder” was the A-side on the band’s sole single. The main riff isn’t far off from Y&T’s major-label banger “Mean Streak,” which was released the following year. When Dark Age titled their 1987 album The Youngest Metal Band in the World, they weren’t even sort of kidding. Legend has it that “Star Trippin’,” which was released as a single a year earlier, was written by guitarist CJ Rininger when he was just 12 years old. His brother Dave, the vocalist, was two years younger. Old photos of the band—complete with pineapple haircuts—seem to bear this story out. Either way, the song is pure flash metal, conjuring Sunset Strip sleaze all the way from Ohio. By now, all you heads know Los Angeles magic men Sorcery from their storied appearance in—and soundtrack for—the death-defying Ozploitation flick Stunt Rock. What we have here in “Whales” is a previously unreleased track from the same 1978 recording sessions. It’s a little bit Zeppelin, a little bit prog, and a whole lotta thundering riffage. Why this languished in the vaults for so long is anyone’s guess. Better late than never!

Winston Surfshirt's album Sponge Cake is a critically acclaimed and highly anticipated body of work that showcases the Australian singer-songwriter's unique blend of soul, funk, and hip-hop. The album, which was released in 2017, has been widely praised for its catchy hooks, intricate production, and thought-provoking lyrics. Now, fans of Winston Surfshirt and vinyl enthusiasts alike can purchase a physical copy of Sponge Cake on vinyl. Whether you're a longtime fan or discovering Winston Surfshirt for the first time, Sponge Cake on vinyl is an album you won't want to miss.

‘How Many Dreams?’ is the highly anticipated fourth studio album from Australian three-piece DMA’S. Featuring the singles ‘I Don’t Need To Hide’ and ‘Everybody’s Saying Thursday’s The Weekend’, the record is another step forward for a band on a still upwards trajectory. Partly recorded in the UK with Rich Costey (Sigur Ros, Muse, Foster the People) and Stuart Price (Dua Lipa, The Killers, Madonna) before being finished with Konstantin Kersting (Mallrat, The Jungle Giants) back in their hometown of Sydney, ‘How Many Dreams?’ is designed to be ambitious, a sonically vast landscape; there are songs to rave to, and songs to cry to. There’s a definite sense of celebration and revolution was brewing within the band on this record. DMA’S exploded onto the scene in 2014 with their debut single ‘Delete’. Since then, the band have released three acclaimed records with their last album THE GLOW (released in March 2020) debuting at #4 in the UK, #1 in Scotland, #2 in Australia. DMA’S have sold out worldwide tours including selling out shows at London’s Alexandra Palace and O2 Academy Brixton, and Manchester’s Castlefield Bowl, and graced the stages on festivals like Reading & Leeds, Glastonbury, Coachella, Lollapalooza, Outside Lands, Osheaga, Gov Ball and many more. UK April tour!

Nachdem 2013 zum 10-jährigen Jubiläum die Deluxe Version veröffentlicht wurde, ist ,Give Up" nun wieder als einfache LP im Original Format zu haben. Man kann alle Zeit und alles Geld der Welt darauf verwenden, das perfekte Pop-Szenario zu erschaffen, aber manchmal müssen sich die Sterne von ganz allein in die richtige Position rücken. Und obwohl die Mitglieder von THE POSTAL SERVICE schon früh darüber Witze machten, dass ,Such Great Heights" der ,Hit" ihres Debüalbums ,Give Up" sei, konnte niemand ahnen, was für einen Einfluss diese Album haben sollte, das in Schlafzimmern des Mittleren Westens konzipiert wurde. Über zehn Jahre sind ins Land gegangen, seit das kleine Projekt aus Ben Gibbard von DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE und Jimmy Tamborello (DNTEL, FIGURINE) scheinbar aus dem Nirgendwo anrauschte und sich tief in die Ohren all derer eingrub, die in Kontakt mit dem ansteckenden Electropop von THE POSTAL SERVICE geraten waren. Natürlich war die Musik von THE POSTAL SERVICE zu jeder Zeit viel mehr als nur Electropop. Die Kraft, mit der Jimmy und Ben den Zeitgeist des Indie Rocks der frühen Nuller Jahre heraufbeschworen, machte sie zu einem derartigen Phänomen, dass Künstler wie BEN FOLDS, AMANDA PALMER, STREETLIGHT MANIFESTO und CONFIDE ,Such Great Heights" gecovert haben. Ein Zeugnis des zauberhaften Funken und der melodischen Kompaktheit des Songs. Der Sound der Band ist ein derartiger Meilenstein, dass der Terminus ,Postal Service-esque" ein akzeptiertes Adjektiv in der Musikwelt ist. Es war unmöglich, vorherzusagen, wie groß ,Give Up" werden würde, aber schon 2003 war klar, dass diese Herren etwas ganz Besonderes erschaffen hatten.

First time available on cassette. Gap Girls led by Jacob Rubeck of Surf Curse. Gap Girls is the synth-pop project of Los Angeles DIY scene mainstay Jacob Rubeck. As half of the electrifying indie rock duo Surf Curse, Rubeck is no stranger to a good hook, but when he trades jangly guitars for synths, an entire new world opens up. On his new album Forever Love, Forever After, that world is one of love, hope, and welcomeness. In contrast to the shadowy wistful sounds of Gap Girls’ previous effort ‘Street Desires,’ ‘Forever Love, Forever After’ sounds like an uplifting triumph of love, in all its mysterious shapes and forms. With punchy drum machines, shimmering synths, and chest-rumbling bass, these songs are pure synth-pop bliss for letting love in.

New Jersey punk legends The Bouncing Souls have announced their upcoming new full-length, Ten Stories High, due out March 24th via Pure Noise Records. For over three decades The Bouncing Souls have been one of the most reliably joyful bands in punk rock, fostering an incredibly close kinship with their loyal listeners. Now on Ten Stories High, the band have taken this connection even further, creating an album of songs directly inspired by the stories of their fans. To mark the announcement, The Bouncing Souls have shared two new songs, "Ten Stories High" and "Higher Ground." Both tracks highlight the band in their anthemic element, with sharp production courtesy of Will Yip (The Menzingers, Title Fight, Tigers Jaw). The new songs bookend the record with massive choruses that are sure to inspire singalongs at upcoming shows.

Gargantuan volcanoes erupting with primal force, fountains of molten lava bursting sky high and massive boulders hurtling capriciously through the air. These potent and violently alluring images in the documentary series The Living Planet captivated Raoul Björkenheim's imagination in 1986. The search for a band name had come to an end. -”I was mesmerised. The name Krakatau sounded like a drum fill to me”. After studying at the Helsinki Conservatory for a year and the Berklee College of Music in Boston for three, Björkenheim relocated to Finland where he played in bands with Jone Takamäki, Antti Hytti and Tom Nekljudow, and later went on to work with composer and drummer Edward “Eetu” Vesala (1945-1999). His always original and highly demanding Sound & Fury workshops were a pivotal hotbed in the local improvised music scene, but after four years of Vesala's strict leadership Björkenheim felt a need to leave Sound & Fury behind and direct all of his attention towards Krakatau. The lineup on the first album “Ritual” consisted of reed virtuosos Jorma Tapio and Tapani Rinne, the bassist Sampo Lassila and two drummers, Michel Lambert and Heikki “Lefty” Lehto. “Krakatau’s debut album was very challenging to make, as I felt that it might be my one and only chance to record my own music, so I wanted it to be as intense and effective as possible”, says Björkenheim, “I was lucky enough to work with an incredibly talented cast of musicians. I can still listen to the album and feel satisfied that it really works. The first guitar solo illustrates what was to become my modus operandi: to try and play the electric guitar in unexpected ways.” Svart Records will release an expanded double LP version of Krakatau’s Ritual. Limited to 500 copies and due out on March 24th, the album contains an album’s worth of previously unheard material recorded in 1987 in Studio Helsinki and at the Finnish Broadcasting Corporation studio.

‘Sinking Ships’ is the much anticipated seventh studio album from the acclaimed Alberta Cross. A gorgeous 10-track collection of modern indie-rock including an irresistible cover of Sharon Van Etten’s ‘Every Time The Sun Comes Up’.

The album is at times expansive & subtly anthemic, beautifully mellow, folk-tinged and awash with a layered, maximalist sound that variously recalls The War On Drugs, Bon Iver & Phosphorescent. At all times, lead singer Petter Ericson Stakee’s un-mistakable high-vocals, which have at times been compared to Jim James & Neil Young, soar through the music – particularly on album stand-outs ‘Mercy’ & ‘Glow in The Dark’.

The album was written mostly at the legendary The Wool Hall in Frome Somerset with Petter’s long term producer and collaborator, Luke Potashnick - who recently bought and renovated The Wool Hall (legendary in part due to Van Morrisson and Tears for Fears recording albums there).

Anish Kumar shares “Bollywood Super Hits!”, a five-track compendium of pulsating Bollywood turned house-and-disco cuts that have been turbo-charging Kumar’s recent DJ sets.

The introductory “Asha” bursts open the doors to the project with thumping four-to-the-floor rhythms and the saunter of sampled electric guitar melodies. Followed swiftly by “Sadhana”, a stomping, effervescent jaunt that’s received widespread club-support from the likes of industry stalwarts Daphni and Four Tet. “Nazia” is delightfully percussive and steeped in analog warmth, a soon-to-be disco anthem that yearns for peak time warehouse usage. The penultimate track, “Ananda”, is laced with wandering basslines and hair-raising vocal sampling, leading steadily into the project's conclusory cut “Lata”. Nocturnal and pressurised, the final track rises like a crescendo of razor-sharp techno synthesis and sheer vocal prowess.

“'Bollywood Super Hits!' is a compilation of 5 Bollywood flips I've been playing out in my sets. Classic Bollywood is a genre that holds great importance to me as I grew up listening to many of the hits from that era. It's been amazing to see faces in the crowd light up when they recognise, for instance, a hook from a track that is commonly played at Indian weddings, or the haunting vocal of an old

Valencian producer Pépe's love of iridescent melodies, velvety pads and complex rhythms has seen him skilfully combine house, bass music and breakbeat in recent years. His music is globally reaching, having garnered attention from top artists including Ben UFO, Peggy Gou, Shanti Celeste, Moxie, Mount Kimbie and Disclosure.

His heartfelt, mercurial and emotive sound is ever present on his new album for Lapsus, which also incorporates a lush sonic forest, resplendent in detail and jam packed with influences. The album 'Reclaim' opens the door to experimentation and sound design, while embracing the braindance and hyperpop sphere with surprising maturity. It is an amalgamation of electronic sounds and pulsating structures in which orchestral sounds, folk music, ambient textures and an strong vocal presence, both synthetic and authentic, sparkle.

'Reclaim' imagines a post-human future, where nature once again reclaims lost ground and is free to flourish and take root around manmade structures. Pépe exhibits his personal reverence for the work of Antonio Cortés Ferrando, the architect behind the Espai Verd building, which broke architectural and urban planning norms by using computation to create structures that promote the organic growth of foliage. It is a building designed for the future, where flora cultivates indefinitely.

In Pépe’s own words, "At a time when we have witnessed how nature strives to regain ground, once humans are removed from the streets, it is important to start thinking critically about new techniques in the creation of art and design, and imagining a future where posterity is embodied in the rejuvenation of a greener world".

This much delayed, and therefore much anticipated box set from old skool legends Dj Force & The Evolution is here at last! This is an amazing set of records, with FOUR highly sought after direct represses of classic single EPs from the early 1990's, all lovingly remastered from DAT. And then some jaw droppingly good remixes from new and old legends alike. Liquid does his usual thing with High On Life, where he changes any classic into something even more classic, with the result that this may now be the definitive version of High On Life. Ron Wells grabs Fall Down On Me and deconstructs it to its core, Liquid Crystal smashed Perfect Dreams, and Dwarde & Tim Reaper take the darker anthem Lost It and bring it right up to todays massive revitalised old skool standards...

Ever since the first white labels appeared at the end of Summer 2013, Emotional Especial has been putting out music that is slightly left of (club music) centre. Influenced as much by and including dub, electro, disco, proto-house, house and techno, guided more by a feeling than a sound.

This thinking has been that exemplified by every 10th release being a label sampler - a showcase of unreleased tracks or remixes of what has come before, plus the odd one off cut by an artist to watch. Some 4 years since the last Sampler, the label's 40th release presents new label heads Giraffi Dog, returning after their recent "live" Multiverse EPs, here teaming up with GF Rich for a breaks anthem. Sub bass rising, the persistent build leads to piano before drop and Acid mayhem ensues, highlight why G Dog are such a producer to watch.

Label mainstay Alphonse returns, with White Pepper from the "Stolen Sunrise EP", here remixed by House stalwart Toby Tobias. Having released for a who's who of labels including REKIDS, ESP Institute, Delusions Of Grandeur and Futureboogie, the illusion these past years of who is Alphonse can finally revealed as Toby himself. The remix of his alter ego takes the 'Balearics' of the original and adds breaks and 303, all retaining a laid back feeling for summers return.

On the flip, the label welcomes rising star, Remotif. With a series of EPs showcasing a growing talent, his recent Coymix release sealed the deal. Here, his comedically titled Beam Me Up Softwoiii belies a party anthem, where breaks and arps rise in unison before an Aphex sunrise burst, drops and heads down in pure dance.

Akio Nagase returns to close with another of his Japanese folk meets lilting 303 Acid House. An Okinawa traditional folk song, conveying a life lesson, here to Hosenka flower is laid across slo-mo acid bubbles to quirkily and perfectly complete another 10th release of the Especial path.

New year, new energy, new music...

We’re all waiting for that tune to land in our lap, reach up and slap us simultaneously in the ears, feels, souls and feet. That big sonic blast of emotion and inspiration that sets the tone and gets us excited about a new season of shows.

Hard Times Records present ‘All I Need’, a powerful, slab of house music positivity that smacks of ‘first anthem of the year’ vibes and comes courtesy of one of house music’s biggest pioneers AND a certified UK House music institution that permanently changed the face of global club culture over 30 years ago... Steve ‘Silk’ Hurley and Hard Times.

Neither Hurley or Hard Times need any introductions, but both have histories that deserve so much more than this hype-fuelled promo blurb. Steve ‘Silk’ Hurley is a certified legend. As one of the pioneering House music artists to emerge from Chicago’s primordial 80s phenomenon and the first ever to score a UK number one Hit with ‘Jack Your Body’, the multiple Grammy nominated artist has been a powerful source of energy and inspiration ever since as one of the most consistent forefathers of this scene.

Hard Times have played an equally influential role and are arguably responsible for some of the most defining moments in uk House Music. One of the first club nights to import the US titans to UK dancefloors, the Yorkshire brand were instrumental in creating a blueprint in international DJ culture as they invited the biggest pioneers and legends to their events that began in the sleepy town of Mirfield, but eventually sprawled across the UK with line-ups that ranged from Todd Terry to Masters at Work to Deep Dish and every titan in between. A dominant force throughout the 90s, Hard Times wound down in the 2000s as its founder Steve Raine took a break from the industry to become a sheep farmer, which he still does to this day... Safe in the knowledge that he helped to create an ethos for uncompromising underground House Music that remains steadfast to this Day.

The Hard Times label originated back in 1994 And ran alongside the club night, boasting a small but elite catalogue. It’s about to thrive on a whole new level as Hard Times returns as a label with its first new material for over 20 years with ‘All I Need’.

Timeless yet forward-thinking, loaded to the brim with precision groovemanship, glazed with a strong Latin twist and sprinkled with the gorgeous vocals of Sara Garvey, who many will instantly recognise from her Nightmares On Wax collaborations, ‘All I Need’ is a pedigree house anthem-in-waiting. Universal in vibe and spirit, fully transcending trend or flavour-of-the-month fickleness, this taps into the source and has full potential to be the first big boundary-breaking house hit of 2023... 36 years after Steve ‘Silk’ Hurley topped the charts with ‘Jack Your Body’!

It comes complete with a rainbow of remixes from some equally eye-opening heavyweights: Alex Arnout, Eddie Leader, Terry Farley & Kevin Swain and DJ Skip (who runs S&S Records with ‘Hurley) all provide different perspectives on ‘All I Need’, giving it even more scope and depth to slap us simultaneously.

The fifth release on Canopy continues to up the ante and expand on the tropical Techni-colour palette already set out by the label.

Alafia was a studio project from the mid 80s in Paris. Masterminded and written by musical maverick Phil Han Mandounou and bringing together musicians from Benin, Cameroon and the French Antilles. The project is a superbly orchestrated and expertly delivered exploration of funk and afro off-beats with 80s synth leanings. Precise musicianship and forward leaning afro synth funk wizardry. Dextrous, extrovert, playful and masterful.

A1. Alafia – Assanssan (Original Mix) (33rpm)
Uplifting vocals are set against shimmering guitars and punctuated by triumphant horns. Growling and bouncing synth bass is underpinned by tight digital drums. Assanssan defies categorisation while encapsulating many vibrant genres and motifs. “A proper mind melting hybrid tropical beast of a tune”!
“Assanssan” refers to a type of quilted fabric popular in West Africa and is a metaphor for togetherness and blending cultures harmoniously. “
Assanssan hé hé hé, come and sing along, Assanssan hé hé hé, come and dance along.”

A2. Alafia – Assiove (Original Mix) (33rpm)
A powerful afro funk groove built around punchy off-beat digital drums and tightly syncopated guitar and bass-lines, augmented by searing synth arrangements and positive vocal passages. Assiove is a highly successful fusion of western and African influences.

B1. Alafia – Assanssan (Bosq Remix) (45rpm)
Bosq, the man with Midas touch, takes Assanssan and pours gasoline on the already raging flames, setting the whole funky situation alight! Swapping out the bass groove for an insistent and pulsing funk, he switches the track into overdrive while the original passages shine sublimely under his benediction.

Dynamite Cuts & The George Semper Music Archives present you this third in a series of soulful dancers 'Do You Know' from Patti Williams! Her powerful, gospel inflected perfromance on the rare gem A, 'Do You Know' is an anthem of Women overcoming scorn.
Written and Produced by George Semper, as part of her unreleased album, 'Do You Know' was recorded at Original Sound Record Hollywood in 1969. The master recording lay dromant in the vault until now!

A triple threat of signature Reflex Revisions for the third release on the fully licensed Discolidays. Bruise’s anthem ‘When Pianos Attack’ is first up for an expert reworking from the French maestro, before Lou Hayter’s cover of the Steely Dan classic ‘Time Out Of Mind’ gets Reflexed twice in a row in dub and vocal mix form.

DJ Support:

Dave Lee / Gilles Peterson / James Lavelle / François K / Glitterbox / Skream / The Blessed Madonna / Bill Brewster

It’s been nine years since Antoni Maiovvi released Trauma on Bordello A Parigi. Since then, and before, the Bristol born artisan has been honing and refining his audio craft with explorations into electronics, soundtracks and rock. Now, in his latest musical incarnation, Maiovvi returns with Birds of Paradise. This avian themed four tracker is beyond anything you’ve heard from this synthesizer wizard. Complex, deep and layered, the EP is testament to a talent rarely heard. From the sheer elation of “Flycatcher”, which pivots and weaves, the listener is taken away. Throbbing rhythms and astral melodies are unfurled, arpeggios rumble as key scale ever higher in the heady notes of “Widowbird”. A steady kick is the morning song of “Streamertail”, warm computer tones scudding next chords that trill with optimism. Birdsong, a feature of the EP, is ever present in this agile and textured close. Drawing on his predilection for movie scores, “Quetzal” completes this feathered foray. Pulsating, drums offer the updraft for a spread of sounds and shape to takes to the wing. A unique record from an artist soaring to ever greater heights.

Terra Magica Rec. first 7’’ release „Chiqui Tan“ by the label heads Hektisch Sprengen DJs will be limited to 250 copies. The A-side hits the listener with some 1980s early Electronic-Downtempo-Cumbia-Colombian-Venezuelan-Tablemountain-Dub-Grooves. This reminiscence is leading to an extra full blown up 21st century Bass-Queen alert. And these HSDJ dials hit you into a stripped naked sample of Nigerian-Swedish DJ-dentist-mainstream-star Dr. Alban and his Eurotrash-90s-Pophouse-anthem “No Hash Hash, No Cocaine”. This is for sure no “Ottonormal”-90s-revival thing!

On the flip side Hektisch’s haptic wood razzle move covers the classic 1994-Liquid-Deep-Netherlands-Trance-House-Track “Paper Moon” by 51 Days which back then sampled the rare 1972-MPB-Funk-Cover-Version of Carol Kings “Corazón”. Guess what! It drops like a late 1990s-Ed-DMX-London-classic gone Electroboogie-Miamibass-Break with a SH101-baseline and Sprengen’s take on Spanish-90s-Trance-Vocals. Watch out 4 TERRAMs “Asi me gusta” title caps series as well! Trigger warning: That hidden Sequential Circuit Sixtrack loves you like a windy horse on Acid. Loads to experience on this little innocent wax disc!

For their second EP Linale Records have dug out two tracks from the Australian production team of Andy Rantzen, Paul McDermott and Anthony Maher. Previously only released on separate CDs in 1997, these tracks have been newly remastered and are available for the first time together on vinyl, presented alongside a brand new rework of Digital Rubber by fellow Aussie Rudolf C.

Dear Friends, it's 2023 and the future of Leftfield Bass, Trap, and Hybrid Grime is here... RATIONAL SOUL's debut EP, "SELF TITLED", is going to define a new era on the dance floor, reimagining 140 beats that typically are stereotyped into narrow catagories. "SELF TITLED" will become the worldwide definition of a style never heard before, sought after and inevitably copycatted by those inspired.

With no surprise, 2023 is set off to a paramount start for the German SATURATE! label, with an EP that “is the future of Leftfield Bass, Trap, and Hybrid Grime” and “it’s going to define a new era on the dance floor, reimagining 140 beats that typically are stereotyped into narrow categories.” The mastermind behind such a project, called SELF TITLED, is RATIONAL SOUL a Virginia-based, veteran electronic music producer. The EP is coming out in full on January 13, digitally and on vinyl, and it features six originals and four remixes. What sounds like a disorienting emptiness at the beginning, makes perfect sense when read as part of the overall narrative of the composition. “One moment you’re living happy-go-lucky, almost like it’s the script of a Disney movie, the next moment you’re questioning why you exist- how is it you’ve become a slave to the 9 to 5? Phone by your side as digital anti-anxiety medication, entertaining yourself with something nostalgic to remind yourself of better times…war against yourself, to reset your identity.” The fight against this subconscious condition was RATIONAL SOUL’s starting point while writing SELF TITLED. The artist’s attempt to light a lighter to ignite a spark in our consciousness and thus reveal the void in which we are immersed. “Wake up” he seems to want to tell us. Don’t be a pawn, be a player of your life. Let’s riot against this status quo and, quoting RATIONAL SOUL himself, “Let’s be gangsta and fuck shit up because we are mad at why our world is falling apart: twerk on a cop car with a fine cigar in your mouth type beat.” He then concludes by spilling one, big truth, “what better genre of music could describe these feelings than bass music?” How could we not agree?

The 6th album from the Ohio band finds them adding a member and polishing the jagged edges off their lo-fi pop anthems ever so slightly, letting the album's twelve tracks dance and shimmer like sun glinting off the waters of the Scioto river, perfectly capturing the undeniably midwestern attitude of melancholic joy. For fans of: Sebadoh, Guided By Voices, Car Seat Headrest, The Men, Mike Krol, The Replacements, The Stevens.

Tape

The 6th album from the Ohio band finds them adding a member and polishing the jagged edges off their lo-fi pop anthems ever so slightly, letting the album's twelve tracks dance and shimmer like sun glinting off the waters of the Scioto river, perfectly capturing the undeniably midwestern attitude of melancholic joy. For fans of: Sebadoh, Guided By Voices, Car Seat Headrest, The Men, Mike Krol, The Replacements, The Stevens.

There's more than a hint of ambition on the double LP sophomore effort from Sam Austin Rabede, the producer known as DJ Black Low. Pretoria, South Africa-born and based, the young man makes amapiano with new ways of expressing this local- turned-global style of dance music. In DJ Black Low's musical imagination, the songs manage to smoothly vacillate between dreamy and firmly-grounded. Adorned with vocalists across most of the twelve tracks, there's a new dimension to Black Low's now-signature approach to abstract, angular deconstruction of the rhythmic developments in his songs. The album references influences and ambitions in its song titles and lyrics while the music itself is anthemic in its sonic and structural aspirations. On many of the songs a slow-burning tension transforms into something unexpected until you're somewhere else as the track concludes. There is an emotional and compositional maturity that builds on his earlier work. Vocals and lyrics are in focus. Production collaborators among Black Low's Gauteng Province circle add to the constantly churning array of ideas that populate this consistently surprising release. Despite being a relative newcomer, DJ Black Low is onto something here.

Liturgy transcends the traditional parameters of what constitutes a rock band. Founded by Ravenna Hunt-Hendrix, Liturgy is a part of a shared discipline of composition, art, and philosophy that thrives on exploring the spaces between. Liturgy"s signature use of rhythmic complexity and repetition are exponentially amplified to maximalist proportions on 93696. Along with guitarist Mario Miron, bassist Tia Vincent-Clark, and drummer Leo Didkovsky, Hunt-Hendrix utilizes Liturgy"s past ruminations on burst beats and circuitous phrases as colors to paint rich murals that overwhelm and invigorate the senses. 93696 is the purest synthesis of the diversity of Liturgy, a sprawling and monumental double album exploring religion, cosmic love, the feminine, and metamorphosis while manifesting the ecstatic with breathtaking grandeur. Liturgy is the project of Ravenna Hunt-Hendrix, whose yearning, energetic "transcendental black metal" exists in the space between metal, art music and sacred ritual. Its current lineup features Mario Miron (guitar), Tia Vincent-Clark (bass) and Leo Didkovsky (drums).

Liturgy transcends the traditional parameters of what constitutes a rock band. Founded by Ravenna Hunt-Hendrix, Liturgy is a part of a shared discipline of composition, art, and philosophy that thrives on exploring the spaces between. Liturgy"s signature use of rhythmic complexity and repetition are exponentially amplified to maximalist proportions on 93696. Along with guitarist Mario Miron, bassist Tia Vincent-Clark, and drummer Leo Didkovsky, Hunt-Hendrix utilizes Liturgy"s past ruminations on burst beats and circuitous phrases as colors to paint rich murals that overwhelm and invigorate the senses. 93696 is the purest synthesis of the diversity of Liturgy, a sprawling and monumental double album exploring religion, cosmic love, the feminine, and metamorphosis while manifesting the ecstatic with breathtaking grandeur. Liturgy is the project of Ravenna Hunt-Hendrix, whose yearning, energetic "transcendental black metal" exists in the space between metal, art music and sacred ritual. Its current lineup features Mario Miron (guitar), Tia Vincent-Clark (bass) and Leo Didkovsky (drums).

MONO have long drawn equal inspiration from the light and dark of life, spawning more than two decades of musical turbulence and melodic transcendence. Heaven Vol. 1 marks the beginning of a new annual tradition from MONO: A new EP released on Christmas Day each year, leaning into the light at precisely the time when we need it the most - surrounded by loved ones and hopeful for what the turn of the calendar may bring us. Recorded by Takaakira `Taka' Goto at his home studio in Japan (with drums recorded by Amak Golden at Golden Hive Studio in Prague) - and mixed by Rafael Anton Irisarri and Jeremy deVine at Black Knoll Studio in New York - Heaven Vol. 1 finds MONO at their most hopeful and cinematic. Of each of Heaven Vol. 1's three tracks, MONO offers these words: Lucia: "This song was written when our beloved longtime partner Jeremy (the owner of our American label Temporary Residence Ltd.) welcomed his second child. The song is constructed with two parts; the first part celebrates the birth of a new life and the second part heads towards dreams and hope. We wrote this song with the feeling of Santa Claus riding a sleigh through the snowstorm, smiling, jumping into the swirl of pure white light and carrying many dreams." Smile: "We drew upon the snowy scenery of Christmas that we experienced when we were young. Your exhaled breath is white. Your heart is dancing in the endless silvery white world, and when you are about to grab the snow with your hands and turn around, your parents look back at you with a smile. We wrote this song whilst remembering moments like this." Silent Embrace: "Time passed and we became adults. Life is like climbing and descending many steep mountains, but the reason we're still able to continue walking is because of our loved ones, colleagues, friends and family who quietly stand by us and giving us courage and strength. We wanted to express our gratitude with this song." Limited (220 copies ww) Single Colour (Purple Vinyl) Edition!

FOR FANS OF: MEGADETH, ANTHRAX, SLAYER.

Vor 42 Jahren im Jahr 1981 gegründet, ist Metallicas Karriere seitdem sowohl außergewöhnlich als auch brilliant. Zur Feier der Langlebigkeit der weltbekannten und beliebten US-Thrasher erscheint dieses atemberaubende und limitierte Live-Album nun als limitierte Picture-LP mit seltenen und raren Radio-Live-Aufnahmen inklusive den Hits Master Of Puppets, Battery und Fight Fire With Fire.

JVXTA is a DJ and producer based in London (UK). He also co-founded the label Hardmatter.
Here, Scissor And Thread, the Brooklyn imprint headed by Francis Harris and Anthony Collins share JVXTA’s new EP - Euston Blues. Elements of free improvisation and experimentation pepper the album, while a strong thread of atmospheric cohesion winds its way through the eight tracks - making Euston Blues a truly rewarding and rich listening experience.
"Euston Blues synthesises deep chords, classic house rhythms and jazz laden influences to chronicle an intimate journey of physical and psychological isolation." says Charles Field, the man behind the JVXTA project. "Scope is relative and this transposition is explored from the seclusion of a single room to the expanses of the Beyond". Euston Blues is available as a four-track vinyl EP and full digital album from March, 24th on Scissor And Thread.

Mongolian producer BODIKHUU returns with a sonic journey through Japan in the form of 13 instrumental hiphop vignettes. “I wanted to portray the 80s Japanese atmosphere through my style,” Bodikhuu writes from his home in Ulaanbaatar, the coldest capital city on earth. “Even though I have never been there, this is my way of saying that I have seen the place.” Unable to travel to Japan, Bodikhuu instead conjures an imagined city through sound. “Tokyo” evokes the neon, sweat, traffic, exhaust, gloaming towers and “monotonous lonely lives” of the sprawling megalopolis through its music. The album is a rich collage of cast-off sounds and razor sharp interpolations of city pop, obscure Japanese jazz, and 80s J-pop, all expertly chopped up on one of the few MPC-1000s in Ulaanbaatar. Faded voices over thundering drums give tracks like “Office Melancholia” and “Subway” a sense of place and emotional weight uncommon in beat tapes. In our new reality, where we all yearn for places we can’t reach, Bodikhuu’s lonesome aural sojourns hit especially hard. “Tokyo” builds on the international success of 2019’s “Rio/Bodianova” (the first Mongolian hip-hop record on vinyl), which found Bodi traveling through Rio on a lush bed of 1970s bossa nova and tropicalia. On this album, we’re jet-propelled into the 80s - all smooth surfaces, shimmering synths, and twinkling lights. Collaged cut-up artwork by Digital Sting (FeelFree Hi-Fi), warm analog master from Dave Vettraino (International Anthem) and loud-cut 160gm vinyl from Smashed Plastic in Chicago complement Bodikhuu’s considered beats.

The highly-anticipated third studio album from critically-acclaimed singer-songwriter Greyson Chance, released through Lowly. Available on black vinyl with gatefold sleeve, featuring "My Dying Spirit”, “Homerun Hitter,” "Athena" & more.

“The album comprises three acts," says Chance. "The first one is rebuilding and growth. The second is absolute pride. The third is a realization. Life will kick you in the ass no matter what happens. It feels timid at points, but there are big confident moments. At the end, the hero falls down a few pegs. I’ve been writing my own songs since I was a kid, and that’s the story behind it.”

Mit dieser Aufnahme von Cello-Klassikern festigte Han-Na Chang im Jahre 2000 ihren Ruf als Interpretin von bemerkenswerter Reife und technischer Perfektion.

Für diese Sammlung hat sie sehr vertraute und weniger bekannte Werke ausgewählt, die - falls notwendig - von Chris Hazell mit gefühlvoller Sorgfalt adaptiert und orchestriert wurden. Seit einigen Jahren konzentriert sich das künstlerische Schaffen von Han-Na Chang ausschließlich auf das Dirigieren.

Seit der Spielzeit 2013-2014 ist Han-Na Chang Erste Gastdirigentin des
Trondheim Symphony Orchestra. Im Jahr 2017 wurde sie als erste Dirigentin zur Chefdirigentin des Orchesters ernannt. Nun erscheint ihre Aufnahme THE SWAN auf LP.

So eine Zeit, die haben wir alle noch nicht erlebt. Auch Herbert Grönemeyer nicht – multiple Krisen treffen auf vielfältige Ängste, auf Sorgen und Unsicherheiten. Wie reagiert man, wie antwortet man auf diese Zeit?

Mit Hoffnung. Mit Mut. Und vor allem mit: Zusammenhalt.
Was ist los? Das ist los: Herbert Grönemeyer veröffentlicht mit seinem neuen, seinem sechzehnten Album ein Plädoyer für den Aufbruch, für die Zuversicht. Nicht für eine blinde Zuversicht, nicht für eine naive
Hoffnung, dass alles schon irgendwie gut werden wird, nicht für kopfloses Losrennen in ein diffuses Morgen.

Sondern für eine, wie er es nennt, differenzierte Zuversicht. Was ist los? Im Zusammenrücken, in der Gemeinschaft finden wir das, was uns in die Zukunft trägt, das ist los.

"It's like nothing I have ever done before."

For the past ten years, the Bulgarian-Turkish artist Alper Durmush aka Impérieux has been carefully developing his artistic style and building strong momentum with a high-profile following.

Now the young Berlin-based producer enters a fresh chapter with his EP named “Extensions” on Sofia Records’s eight release. It is filled with brisk, forward-looking breaks, raw jungle attitude and highly combustible house. In all this we can still trace Impérieux's emotional signature interwoven into delicate soundscapes and ethno antics.


The place to kickstart this new direction is a symbolic one and in a way - coming back home. In his five-tracker, Impérieux keeps consistent with Sofia Records’ establishment as a breeding ground for hyper-energetic, yet intelligent sound.
And to do the honors, a signature stomping remix has been added by the label headmeister himself - KiNK.

The Man Called Love Drop is back with his highly anticipated 3rd release on his sell out series of rework disco rockets.

His deeply enchanted, almost spiritual form of mutant disco packed full of never ending grooves and heavy delays conjures up fond memories of early Moodymann jams. And his releases have attracted plays and support from discerning jocks around the globe such as Gilles Peterson, Art Of Tones, Horse Meat Disco, JKriv, Dicky Trisco and many many more.

A digger's desire for an original source blended together with a dancer's feel for the floor produces a powerful magic spell that is ready to be let loose on your dance floor.

So let's go!

Limited first pressing on clear vinyl. Dick Stusso's third album is a document of slow mental unraveling with a world in perpetual decay as its backdrop. With S.P., California-based singer and songwriter Nic Russo has created his most out-there and toothsome record to date, plunging his listeners into a strange and thrilling new world at every opportunity. S.P. is the first Dick Stusso record in four years, following his stellar Hardly Art debut In Heaven from 2018-but this latest missive is more of an indirect sequel to the buzz-building 2015 release Nashville Dreams / Sings the Blues, diving deeper into the fictional character Dick Stusso's crumbling psyche and dystopian surroundings. If our introduction to Dick was someone trying to pursue their dreams and turning into a failure as a result, S.P. reflects the moment where, in Russo's words, "The character is becoming unlikable. He's succumbing to what is taking place around him."Nearly half of its 18 songs-spanning countrified rock duets, Guided by Voices-recalling anthems, and outro noise-burst sound experiments-were completed before the pandemic, when Russo decided to take a beat and allow the music to sprout new, weird buds in his rehearsal space. With mixer Andrew Oswald accentuating the record's unique feel, S.P. bridges the gap between the ultra lo-fi confines of his 2015 debut Nashville Dreams / Sings the Blues and the lush echoes of In Heaven, with a few helping hands to fully flesh out Russo's vision. Grace Cooper (The Sandwitches, Grace Sings Sludge) contributes vocals to "Dinner for Two" and "Self Reflection (Deep)," while his father Marc Russo-a Grammy-winning saxophonist who's currently touring with the Doobie Brothers-lays down expert horn arrangements on "Garbagedump #1." The myriad of twists and turns on S.P. further establish Russo as a fascinating craftsman who's never bound to do the same thing twice.

The Underground Culture Tourist is a new label from the artists of the same, aka Moss Shamshad. He has been making music since the eagerly 2000s on top labels like Classic Music Company but now takes the power into his own hands on this self-releases 12". It finds him back in the heart of the classy deep house underground with a debut vinyl release that will immediately turn heads. 'House Music Anthem' is stylish, stripped back yet atmospheric with its rolling drums and cosmic synth work while 'P To You' has a little playful funk to its beatdown drums and steamy chord work.

South Africa's reputation for expanding dance music again with Amapiano.
The past five years have seen amapiano, South Africa’s electronic music movement born in the townships of the country’s Gauteng province, evolve from an underground sound to a nationwide mainstream staple. Even with its commercial success though, amapiano’s DIY ethos has continued to disrupt music creation and distribution in the country. Most amapiano commercial successes today began their careers on cracked versions of production software like FL Studio, distributed their work through file sharing platforms like datafilehost and marketed it using social media pages they controlled and influenced. Amapiano Selections, the debut album by DJ and producer Teno Afrika, gives listeners outside the movement’s online release economy an insight into the high-burn nature of amapiano that has spawned a distinct typology under its larger umbrella. Twenty-one-year-old Lutendo Raduvha has spent the bulk of his life moving between different townships on the outskirts of Johannesburg and Pretoria in the Gauteng province. The palette of amapiano styles on the album reflect these influences.

But at first, South Africa’s youngest electronic music movement lived underground with a small, loyal following. “Amapiano is a genre that I chose because I have a passion for it,” says Teno “I started following amapiano in 2016 because I wanted to explore how it’s produced. It was not taken seriously in our country.” Interestingly, Teno Africa only gives vocals prominence on the closing track “Chants of Africa.” As a way of making their music recognizable and relatable for broadcast, amapiano producers have sometimes overly relied on vocals in the form of singing, catch-phrases and party refrains for the purpose. “It was my decision not to use vocals on this project,” says Teno “The reason is I wanted people to feel my instrumentals and style because this is my first album.” On his closing track the young producer gives a glimpse of the considered approach to music which buoys anticipation for greater things from his future releases.

Le Motel and Bruce Wijn met at school, during a school art trip to Munich. They went separate ways for a long time.

Hailing from Brussels, Le Motel's world is a vortex of sight and sound that takes in the many and varied corners of the planet. As a music producer and film composer his versatility has taken him to festivals and clubs in every direction as naturally as he has ventured out to the less accessible areas of the globe as a field recordist. It's somewhere in between these spaces that Le Motel operates, gathering unique experiences and sounds to channel through his studio.

Bruce Wijn is a Brussels-based guitarist who played in several postrock kind projects such as Sound Film, 52 Commercial Road, or more shoegaze Lazy Sin. These collaborations gave him the opportunity to perform in various locations in Belgium, France, England, and the USA. As a musician, his focus has always been attracted by progressively built rhythmic melodies, which would eventually turn into long reverberated or distorted swells, or the otherway round.

All these experiences brought them both to the idea of scoring movies with different yet similar approaches.

That's how their first collaboration happened as Le Motel was working on the soundtrack of the movie Binti, and invited Bruce Wijn for the track Exode, in 2018. Since then, they've been working on other scoring projects, such as the feature film 'Aller Retour' more recently.

Alongside the movie scoring activities another audiovisual live project was born, in collaboration with Antoine de Schuyter and his mesmerizing images.

This one is more focusing on tape textures, field recordings and glitchy effects in order to build atmospheric tracks that they decided to bring together in a first E.P. 'MAAR'.

'MAAR' is elaborated as a soundtrack for an imaginary journey between cold seas and volcanoes explorations.

From the first echoing sounds of playing kids on the shoreside in the opening track 'La Perche' Le Motel & Bruce Wijn let you slide in a technicolor dreamworld, reverbing slowly innocent childhood memories into a chilled, out of range, future.

'MAAR' dives deep into a kaleidoscopic microcosmos watching Nautilus playing hide and seek with 'Captain Ahab' floating on sonic breaking waves, while seagulls gently spread their wings flying through the breezy and misty clouds of Blankenberge.

Lava vulcanica slowly melts in the sad euphorica of the cold North Sea, crystallizing sounds only Le Motel and Bruce Wijn can deliver.

“Pour les gens supercool.” This slick tagline caused a commotion among Belgian electronic music fans in 1985 as a jingle in Liaisons Dangereuses, the infamous radio show on local station S.I.S. Antwerpen. Hosted by Paul Ward and DJ Sven Van Hees and playing an exhilarating mix of EBM, house, new beat, acid house, Detroit techno, synthpop and more, the transmit was without a doubt trendsetting, presenting music on the radio that before was only to be witnessed in dark clubs or underground record stores. Listeners needed to make an effort though, since the S.I.S. waves only reached about 10km out of the city center. But a network of copied tape recordings and a fast growing bunch of fans - some of which even driving their cars to parking lots inside the broadcast area to hear the show - created a buzz that would easily exceed the limits of the transmission signal.

In 1989 Ward and Van Hees formed their own band named after the radio show, but to avoid confusion with the eponymous German new wave band, they signed their records with Liaison D or Liaisons D. Assisted by Jan Van Den Bergh (Mappa Mundi, Kumulus, Buzz), Marcos Salon (Outlander), Frank De Wulf (B-Sides, World Party II) and J.P. Ruelle, Liaisons D released a solid string of EP’s and the album “Submerged In Sound” on USA Import Records between 1989 and 1992. We are extremely proud to present four tracks from the album here as a brand new EP, a must-have for fans of their unapologetically rough and ravy sound, testimony of a unique era in Belgium’s electronic music history.

Orange Vinyl

The garage -psychedelic French duo The Liminanas straddles since 2009 the boundary between psychedelic ,shoegaze,garage & French yé-yé up to cool vocals . Quintessentially French but first known at the start in the US before hitting homeland France. 7 studio albums so far, 2 rare tracks compilations, many Eps,some OST, collabs such as L’Epée with Anton Newcombe & Emmanuelle Seigner : time for a first time Best of, and actually more than a Best of : Double Cd , Ltd Triple Vinyl& Digital editions offer 12 exclusive bonus tracks -new songs + rare songs when they called themselves les Bellas, before The Liminanas-.
“Electrified” also includes 23 classics songs , with featurings such as Peter Hook, Anton Newcombe and French pionners Laurent Garnier, Etienne Daho & Pascal Comelade.
Features liner notes written by Iggy Pop, Peter Hook & Keith Streng (Fleshtones) : because it’s only rock’n’roll.

King Tubby production, originally a Firehouse, 1986

Avid Habibi Funk listeners may be familiar with Libyan composer / producer Najib Alhoush, who’s track “Ya Aen Daly” - the Bee Gee’s “Stayin Alive” cover - was included in our second compilation. While the original track never excited us, Najib’s version managed to strip it from its pop approach that had taken over disco during the genre`s peak. At that time, disco tracks mostly were aiming to appeal to the widest audience possible. Najib had turned the original track into something different and very unique. Upon further research we found that Najib was actually the singer and founder of The Free Music band alongside Fakhreddin, Salim Jibreel, Abdulrazzak ‘Kit-Kat’, Mukhtar Wanis and Mohameed Al Rakibi.
Initially, we only licensed Najib Alhoush’s “Ya Aen Daly” from Yousef Alhoush, Najib’s son, who was pleased to hear that there was interest in his father’s music form someone abroad. In the process of exchanging and learning about Najib’s music and career, our understanding was that The Free Music only recorded the one album. This couldn’t be further from the truth, in fact, there were ten albums produced by the group, all impressively coherent with a clear influence from disco, soul, funk and reggae.
The Free Music album was probably the longest it ever took us to gather information, photos and musical source material in a good enough quality to be reissued. This is largely due to the complicated political situation in Libya, compounded by the fact that Libya is still largely cut off from international payment systems, so getting an advance payment to the right person can be a process that takes weeks. The same goes for getting master tapes to a studio abroad and afterwards back to Libya.
When we look for music that works under the umbrella of Habibi Funk, we often come across albums where bands experimented with influences from Soul, Jazz, Funk, Disco and more, usually on a single track or two but then they often go down to a different path for the rest of the album. This was not the case for The Free Music. All their albums are fully dedicated to their unique blend of Disco, Reggae and Funk and it feels that when we made the selection for this album, we could have chosen a completely different number of tracks and the album would be been equally strong.
The lead-off single is the stupendously groovy “Ana Qalbi Ehtar” out February 3rd along with LP pre-order to capitalize on Bandcamp Friday. From the outset, the rhythmic strumming of the funkified guitars give way to the galloping drums and bass, opening up to anthemic vocals and rounding out with a blistering guitar solo, a certified disco-funk classic through-andthrough.
Second single, out February 17th is the disco slammer “Hawelt Nensa Ghalaak.” Guitars, harmonized horns, synths and bouncing bass and drums collide w/ spaced out vox to make the track a dancefloor sureshot for any party.
Third single is “Mathasebnish,” out March 3rd, a pure disco-funk slammer if there ever was one – with stabbing horns, funky bass riffs, a riding rhythm guitar and anthemic vocals, rounded out with stunning flute and guitar solos – the track will surely be on repeat along with the arrival of warmer weather.
Album focus track “Men Awel Marra” is another standout disco-infused tune, showcasing the immense creativity out of Najib and The Free Music. This past summer we finally had the opportunity to get together with Yousef face-to-face at a coffee shop in Istanbul’s central Istiklal road together with our friend Anas El Horani. Yousef told us the whole story of how his father got into music, the start of the band and his father’s continued conflicts with the Gaddafi regime that probably kept his career from becoming even bigger. As always, both vinyl and CD come with an extensive booklet featuring background on The Free Music and Najib Alhoush, including words from Najib’s son, Yousef, as well as unseen photos, cassettes and more.

Luv*Jam presents The Legend Of Gelert 3000.8 ‘Tryfan’ with Lootbeg.

Anti lockdown nip alert. Lootbeg climbs out of lockdown hibernation and delivers a record to make us wiggle our hearts out with a gigantic dizzy sunbeam smile... Time to climb the 8th highest peak of the 3000’s - Tryfan with its two distinct large slabs marking the summit “Adam & Eve”, not forgetting the widely recorded “cannon” stone too. This is the 8th summit and 8th record of a highly collectable 14 piece series brought to you from the very same NiP headquarters that brought us Crow Castle Cuts and Blind Jacks Journey... Extra Peaky Nippiness from the ever secretive Rucksack Club.

Pressed on super duper yummy yellow vinyl, like the dream house classic “Blorp93” from Gnork!

The MYTHOS rocks! Neptune Kings are presenting a magnificent follow-up to their 2019 debut album "TRITON" in long-play format on vinyl.

"The Neptune Kings play intelligent fusion, which clearly has its roots in 70's music, as performed by bands and musicians such as Return To Forever, Spyro Gyra, The Crusaders, Lee Ritenour and celebrated by many others.", jazzandrock March 26th, 2019)

After their debut, which was equally celebrated by electrified fans and the euphoric press, the four guys from Germany are even upping the ante with their second album. Its title "MYTHOS" can be taken literally. Sophisticated compositions, spherical sounds and energetic songwriting take the listener into a fabulous world of sound, in which the imagination is tickled for 37 minutes and everyone can experience their very own MYTHOS!

Catchy melodies, which come alternately from Nicolas Kozuschek's keys, Daniel Hinte's guitar or Calvin Lennig's bass, run as a central theme through the 7 tracks. Collaborating their dynamic arrangements, in which Dennis Schendzielorz creates a great arc of suspense encompassing his usual energetic drumming, it never gets boring.

As a bonus, every vinyl comes with the CD of the album free of charge.

Ware began as an experimental electronic duo back in the 1980s, when you had to know what you were doing. Comprising Sacha Galvagna, who went on to play with acts as diverse as Rosa Mota, Horsepower, Charles Atlas, Crown Estate, The Last King of England and Carta, and Andrew Wilson a producers’ producer, noise machine maker and DJ, who found underground acclaim for his Crossed Wires output, the band reconnected earlier this decade when they found themselves with some unexpected time on their hands. From across continents the pair took advantage of 21st century technology to resurrect a sketchpad of aural experimentation that would become the foundation of Star Catalogue, Ware’s long overdue long player set for release through Absent Music.

Setting out with the spectral cha-cha of title track Star Catalogue, Ware chart their passage through diaphanous arrangements that veer off mid-song into unexpected new spaces, melting into liminal vibrations that render large parts of the album as continuous pieces inherently connected by overtones and sentiment. Threading its gossamer sounds into a surprisingly unyielding whole, the album takes in the phantasmal glam of Nerve Agency, Sable Bay’s prismatic ache, the infinitesimal disquiet of Eigen State, and the nylon strung desire of New Model. As the pair impart the unhurried entreaties of The Splintered Woods, which gives way to the cabin fever of My Life as a Ghost and its switch up into ebullient arousal, the unexpected focus-pull of Frame, the shadowy elegy of Nepenthe, and the apparitional house of The Apprentice Pillar, Ware artfully draw the listener into a heady intimacy that is a striking contrast to the cookie cutter soul-bearing histrionics of modern pop music.

In an era in which the thrill of anticipation has been extinguished by the attention-free instant gratification of streaming’s ‘what you want when you want it’ model, Ware have delivered a piece of work that is greater than the sum of its exemplary parts. Painted in exquisitely fragile figures that lead inexorably onward through its 11 tracks, Star Catalogue won’t be so vulgar as to demand your attention, but it unquestionably deserves it.

Seit mehr als einem Jahrzehnt halten Night Demon trotzig die Fahne des traditionellen Heavy Metal hoch, unbeirrt von den wechselnden Trends der Branche und unbeeindruckt von globalen Katastrophen. Selbst als sie 2022 zur Unterstützung ihres Compilation-Albums Year of the Demon weltweit auf Tour waren, arbeitete das Trio, bestehend aus Jarvis Leatherby (Gesang/Bass), Armand John Anthony (Gitarre) und Dusty Squires (Schlagzeug), unermüdlich hinter den Kulissen weiter. Das Ziel? Die Perfektionierung ihres ersten komplett neuen Materials seit dem gefeierten Album Darkness Remains von 2017. Make no mistake: Outsider ist Night Demons bisher kühnstes und ehrgeizigstes Projekt. Niemals zufrieden damit, sich auf ihren Lorbeeren auszuruhen, indem sie vergangene Erfolge aufwärmen, hat die Band sich selbst musikalisch und textlich herausgefordert, kreative Grenzen verschoben und ihren Sound weit über ihre NWOBHM-verehrenden Ursprünge hinaus zu etwas wirklich Einzigartigem entwickelt.Erhältlich als 180g LP, Ltd.

Seit mehr als einem Jahrzehnt halten Night Demon trotzig die Fahne des traditionellen Heavy Metal hoch, unbeirrt von den wechselnden Trends der Branche und unbeeindruckt von globalen Katastrophen. Selbst als sie 2022 zur Unterstützung ihres Compilation-Albums Year of the Demon weltweit auf Tour waren, arbeitete das Trio, bestehend aus Jarvis Leatherby (Gesang/Bass), Armand John Anthony (Gitarre) und Dusty Squires (Schlagzeug), unermüdlich hinter den Kulissen weiter. Das Ziel? Die Perfektionierung ihres ersten komplett neuen Materials seit dem gefeierten Album Darkness Remains von 2017. Make no mistake: Outsider ist Night Demons bisher kühnstes und ehrgeizigstes Projekt. Niemals zufrieden damit, sich auf ihren Lorbeeren auszuruhen, indem sie vergangene Erfolge aufwärmen, hat die Band sich selbst musikalisch und textlich herausgefordert, kreative Grenzen verschoben und ihren Sound weit über ihre NWOBHM-verehrenden Ursprünge hinaus zu etwas wirklich Einzigartigem entwickelt.Erhältlich als 180g LP, Ltd.

We are thrilled to announce the release of the first ISARN record P0X by the label head PARALLX. This highly anticipated release marks PARALLX's start of his label, and we couldn't be more excited to share his unique blend of genres and his vision of the label.

With this record, PARALLX draws inspiration from early 2000 techno mixed with bits of EBM, infusing his tracks with a powerful, nostalgicially futuristisc sound that is both familiar and fresh. The production is impeccable, with a level of detail and nuance that is a testament to PARALLX's experience and expertise.

a A1 Die Schattenlaufer Im Strom Der Zeit
b A2 Methane 1/11 [Curse Of Coal]
[c] B1 10000°C [Fever Dream]
[Anthrazit]

As rookies in the thriving Brussels scene, jazz fusion quartet LũpḁGangGang have been making waves the last couple of years. After the EPs 'Stalingrad' and 'Urban Detox', they are now releasing their debut album 'Dopamine Overdose' on March 17 via Sdban Ultra.



Lyrically the inspiration for the album comes from growing up in a digital world and the constant dopamine we all have to deal with because of that. Musically their sound is rich, diverse and hard to pin down, looking at Yussef Dayes, BADBADNOTGOOD and even Black Country, New Road for inspiration.



LũpḁGangGang started out as a jazz/funk cover band in 2017. Anton, Miel, Lena and Rob all met at a jam session summer camp while still in school. Over time, the band started writing their own songs and released two EPs to critical acclaim. Due to the band's desire for creative expansion over genres, they have been able to perform on various Belgian stages for the past three years including Ancienne Belgique to Flagey, Gent Jazz and Handelsbeurs in support of label mates, Black Flower.



The album title 'Dopamine Overdose' is a quote from the track 'Dada Data', a track about the influence social media tends to have on our lives. The album's recurring theme is definitely the struggle with today's hyper virtual society and the overwhelming influence tech is having on society. With unbridled enthusiasm the band tackle relevant themes and combine striking observations with a highly contagious and very diverse sound.



From "Out the Light'', a smooth track about being stuck in the image we all try to create of ourselves, to 'Wanderer', a jazzy tune about the road to self-acceptance, and from 'Candy', combining a punk attitude with infectious hand claps, to 'Time Faded', about the difficulty of finishing your artistic work, LũpḁGangGang constantly showcase their genre-defying versatility.



As a whole, the album is a very balanced collection of tracks, ranging from brooding atmospheres to punky explosions with a constant drive, social criticism and an indomitable energy binding it all together. A promising debut, indeed.

Death and Vanilla return with 'Flicker', presenting their unique pop music that defies categorisation. Housed in a beautifully austere post-ironic de-constructed sleeve; 'Flicker' is a modern reflection on these difficult times. World crises notwithstanding, they return reborn, re-arranged and revitalised after assimilating dub reggae, the motorik spirals of Can, the modal meander of Philip Glass and The Cure's dreamier pop sounds; plus the twice removed symphonic ambience of Spiritualized and Talking Heads under heavy manners from Brian Eno. By osmosis their period of transition since 2019's much darker 'Are You A Dreamer?' has hatched new eclectic electronica anthems riddled with melody lines, and layered for lush love. - Forming in Malmö, Sweden, Death And Vanilla gravitated towards vintage musical equipment; from vibraphone, organ and mellotron, to tremolo guitar and Moog synthesisers. Soaking up soundtracks from the 60s and 70s, listening to library music, kosmiche, French Ye-ye pop and 60s psych, Marleen Nilsson, Anders Hansson and Magnus Bodin were fashioned by the city's austere industrial past and flat pack present, and all in the shadow of the Orsesund Bridge that links their dreamworld to mainland Europe and a darker reality. Death And Vanilla at once sound like everything is possible; but nothing else at all. There is a flicker of hope for everyone. - "Deploying vintage instruments in their quest for melancholic utopia." Electronic Sound * "Baroque pop through a dreampop filter." The Guardian Ltd Indie Retail Only Yellow Vinyl LP including DLC!

Created between Palm Springs, California and Hilo, Hawai'i, V is the first double album from the Hawaiian-New Zealand singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer Ruban Nielson's Unknown Mortal Orchestra band. Designed to play as one continuous movement and road-tested on dry California freeways, V is the definitive Unknown Mortal Orchestra car record. It's also the fifth full-length album Ruban has released in twelve years. Across fourteen sunbleached songs - written solo or with his brother Kody - Ruban draws from the rich traditions of West Coast AOR, yacht rock, weirdo pop and Hawaiian Hapa-haole music. Over a laidback blend of singalong anthems and cinematic instrumentals, he evokes blue skies, afternoons spent lounging by hotel swimming pools and the alluring darkness that lurks below perfect, pristine surfaces. It's a duality expressed in the dilapidated sunset blues and the saltcorroded soul Ruban explores through tracks like `Layla' and `Nadja. ' During the pandemic's early days, Ruban reunited with Kody at a cousin's wedding in Hawai'i. With assistance from their father, Chris Nielson (saxophone/flute) and longstanding Unknown Mortal Orchestra member Jake Portrait, they brought everything Ruban had been thinking about together. The result was V, due for release on March 3, 2023, through Jagjaguwar. When they talked about records that moved them in that spine-shivering manner, Ruban started thinking about the 70s AM radio rock and 80s pop songs that had lurked on the edge of his subconscious mind for most of his life. He wanted to write his version of records like that, leading to the two glorious uptempo singles Unknown Mortal Orchestra released in 2021, `Weekend Run' and `That Life'. However, the golden good times never last forever. Not long after, health issues began to plague his extended family.Putting his recordings aside, he helped his mother and his uncle move home from New Zealand and Portland to Hawai'i, and began dividing his time between Hawai'i and Palm Springs. During this period he reconnected with his relatives, reassessed his past, and started to look at things with fresh eyes. Hawai'i brought back memories of the darker side of his parents' lifestyle as entertainers. On those trips, he heard those classic AM radio rock records everywhere. They were inextricably intertwined with the palm trees, swimming pools, and glamorized hedonism he'd internalized from his childhood. There's a type of music in Hawai'i called Hapa-haole (Half white). You can hear it expressed in signature Unknown Mortal Orchestra style through the humid guitar-led atmosphere of V's penultimate song, `I Killed Captain Cook'. Although the songs are presented in a traditional Hawaiian manner, they're mostly sung in English. Having been influenced by Hawaiian music since Unknown Mortal Orchestra's first album, Ruban saw a space for himself within the tradition. When he reflected on his success, he realised he had the responsibility and platform to represent Hapa-haole music on the global stage.

Yellow Vinyl

Created between Palm Springs, California and Hilo, Hawai'i, V is the first double album from the Hawaiian-New Zealand singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer Ruban Nielson's Unknown Mortal Orchestra band. Designed to play as one continuous movement and road-tested on dry California freeways, V is the definitive Unknown Mortal Orchestra car record. It's also the fifth full-length album Ruban has released in twelve years. Across fourteen sunbleached songs - written solo or with his brother Kody - Ruban draws from the rich traditions of West Coast AOR, yacht rock, weirdo pop and Hawaiian Hapa-haole music. Over a laidback blend of singalong anthems and cinematic instrumentals, he evokes blue skies, afternoons spent lounging by hotel swimming pools and the alluring darkness that lurks below perfect, pristine surfaces. It's a duality expressed in the dilapidated sunset blues and the saltcorroded soul Ruban explores through tracks like `Layla' and `Nadja. ' During the pandemic's early days, Ruban reunited with Kody at a cousin's wedding in Hawai'i. With assistance from their father, Chris Nielson (saxophone/flute) and longstanding Unknown Mortal Orchestra member Jake Portrait, they brought everything Ruban had been thinking about together. The result was V, due for release on March 3, 2023, through Jagjaguwar. When they talked about records that moved them in that spine-shivering manner, Ruban started thinking about the 70s AM radio rock and 80s pop songs that had lurked on the edge of his subconscious mind for most of his life. He wanted to write his version of records like that, leading to the two glorious uptempo singles Unknown Mortal Orchestra released in 2021, `Weekend Run' and `That Life'. However, the golden good times never last forever. Not long after, health issues began to plague his extended family.Putting his recordings aside, he helped his mother and his uncle move home from New Zealand and Portland to Hawai'i, and began dividing his time between Hawai'i and Palm Springs. During this period he reconnected with his relatives, reassessed his past, and started to look at things with fresh eyes. Hawai'i brought back memories of the darker side of his parents' lifestyle as entertainers. On those trips, he heard those classic AM radio rock records everywhere. They were inextricably intertwined with the palm trees, swimming pools, and glamorized hedonism he'd internalized from his childhood. There's a type of music in Hawai'i called Hapa-haole (Half white). You can hear it expressed in signature Unknown Mortal Orchestra style through the humid guitar-led atmosphere of V's penultimate song, `I Killed Captain Cook'. Although the songs are presented in a traditional Hawaiian manner, they're mostly sung in English. Having been influenced by Hawaiian music since Unknown Mortal Orchestra's first album, Ruban saw a space for himself within the tradition. When he reflected on his success, he realised he had the responsibility and platform to represent Hapa-haole music on the global stage.

Created between Palm Springs, California and Hilo, Hawai'i, V is the first double album from the Hawaiian-New Zealand singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer Ruban Nielson's Unknown Mortal Orchestra band. Designed to play as one continuous movement and road-tested on dry California freeways, V is the definitive Unknown Mortal Orchestra car record. It's also the fifth full-length album Ruban has released in twelve years. Across fourteen sunbleached songs - written solo or with his brother Kody - Ruban draws from the rich traditions of West Coast AOR, yacht rock, weirdo pop and Hawaiian Hapa-haole music. Over a laidback blend of singalong anthems and cinematic instrumentals, he evokes blue skies, afternoons spent lounging by hotel swimming pools and the alluring darkness that lurks below perfect, pristine surfaces. It's a duality expressed in the dilapidated sunset blues and the saltcorroded soul Ruban explores through tracks like `Layla' and `Nadja. ' During the pandemic's early days, Ruban reunited with Kody at a cousin's wedding in Hawai'i. With assistance from their father, Chris Nielson (saxophone/flute) and longstanding Unknown Mortal Orchestra member Jake Portrait, they brought everything Ruban had been thinking about together. The result was V, due for release on March 3, 2023, through Jagjaguwar. When they talked about records that moved them in that spine-shivering manner, Ruban started thinking about the 70s AM radio rock and 80s pop songs that had lurked on the edge of his subconscious mind for most of his life. He wanted to write his version of records like that, leading to the two glorious uptempo singles Unknown Mortal Orchestra released in 2021, `Weekend Run' and `That Life'. However, the golden good times never last forever. Not long after, health issues began to plague his extended family.Putting his recordings aside, he helped his mother and his uncle move home from New Zealand and Portland to Hawai'i, and began dividing his time between Hawai'i and Palm Springs. During this period he reconnected with his relatives, reassessed his past, and started to look at things with fresh eyes. Hawai'i brought back memories of the darker side of his parents' lifestyle as entertainers. On those trips, he heard those classic AM radio rock records everywhere. They were inextricably intertwined with the palm trees, swimming pools, and glamorized hedonism he'd internalized from his childhood. There's a type of music in Hawai'i called Hapa-haole (Half white). You can hear it expressed in signature Unknown Mortal Orchestra style through the humid guitar-led atmosphere of V's penultimate song, `I Killed Captain Cook'. Although the songs are presented in a traditional Hawaiian manner, they're mostly sung in English. Having been influenced by Hawaiian music since Unknown Mortal Orchestra's first album, Ruban saw a space for himself within the tradition. When he reflected on his success, he realised he had the responsibility and platform to represent Hapa-haole music on the global stage.

Back in print for the first time since its initial release during lockdown in 2020!
The music of Current Joys has captured the imagination of millions through headphones and laptop speakers across the world. Rattigan's deeply emotive and commanding songwriting feels built for solitary walks or contemplative nights in one's bedroom, and that is why a Current Joys live performance is a whole different experience altogether. On Live At Kilby Court, the band rips through a stacked setlist of fan-favorites transforming these bedroom ballads into adrenaline-pumping anthems, creating an overwhelming feeling of togetherness.

Hit-writing anti-icons, Das Koolies emerge to explode three decades of digression as Super Furry Animals with their electronic depth-charge debut EP: The Condemned. Huw Bunford, Cian Ciarán, Dafydd Ieuan and Guto Pryce restore original Furry vision with techno-inspired, heavy-tech sound inspired by illegal rave roots.

A past fades out for a future to begin as the long-running, secretive DAS KOOLIES ‘dream project’’, emanating from Cardiff’s post-industrial docklands, delivers its first consignment of complex, wired euphoria: The Condemned. Chains of decayed connection and shackles of genre-expectation are audibly broken as Huw Bunford, Cian Ciarán, Dafydd Ieuan and Guto Pryce re-route their paths as notorious scientists of sound, taking the outside lane to arrive close to where it all began for Super Furry Animals.

Soldering human touch to synths and samplers, Das Koolies come through on their manifesto pledge of incinerating acoustic guitars while unsafely loading as much noise- making machinery onto their studio mains supply as possible. The Condemned, a confrontational, synth-driven outsider anti-anthem comes through as a warm-blood-on-cold- steel rope act of strict automation and humanity, commanding computers and code to find compromise with Ieuan and Bunford’s vocals.

The roots of JuJu started in San Francisco after Plunky had met his musical mentor, Zulu musician Ndikho Xaba, helping to form his band Ndikho and The Natives. Three members of The Natives (Plunky, bassist Ken Shabala and vibes / flute player Lon Moshe) then joined Marvin X’s theatrical production The Resurrection Of The Dead, joining local musicians Al-Hammel Rasul (keyboards), Babatunde Lea (percussion) and Jalango Ngoma (timbales).

When the production ended, the six musicians formed Juju. “We had high-energy rehearsals that lasted for hours and, as a band, we became powerful and began gigging around the Bay Area,” remembers Plunky. Although orientated towards Black Nationalism, the

band fed off the Bay Area’s culturally diverse communities as Plunky shaped an inclusive worldview based on collective political, social and artistic activities. During this time, the Soledad Brothers case and Angela Davis were prominent and the band supported Professor Davis and the cause. Juju’s music matched the fire of their activism. “As a band, we blew, pounded and stroked our instruments like there was no tomorrow, like our life’s work was wrapped up in each session. We approached our performances like religious rites and the music mesmerised, informed and awakened people.” The band’s first album, a Message from Mozambique, was intentionally political. While the anti-war movement focused on Vietnam, Juju looked towards wars being waged in South Africa, Angola and Mozambique over issues of white supremacy and control of natural resources. A second album, ‘Chapter Two: Nia’ would follow before the birth of Oneness Of Juju during the mid-‘70s. This definitive reissue is fully remastered by The Carvery from the original tapes and features original artwork and a new interview with Juju bandleader James “Plunky” Branch.

The Well & The Gentle, two of the major works of Pauline Oliveros, are presented here in a first time reissue on double vinyl in a gatefold sleeve with extensive liner notes.

If Oliveros had followed a more conventional path she may have, all social obstacles aside, been considered among the major composers of her time. However, Oliveros approached composition in a more egalitarian manner. She wrote music for musicians to interact with or, in the composers words, she wished to create "an inclusive and interdependent and unfolding world of relationships."

Oliveros' propensity towards inclusion is part of what makes this work so remarkably distinctive. The Well & The Gentle is carefully crafted, allowing performers to participate in the creation of the work. Players are asked to collaborate, focus, react and make imaginative choices. Only then can the performers "pass through stages of awakening to the possibilities inherent in making music, working together, leading to the essence of what can shape musical impulses and individual freedom simultaneously."

Unlike most major composers of the era, Oliveros' work focuses on collaboration and improvisation. For Oliveros, the processes involved in making music are as fundamental as the music itself. Oliveros creates, as Arthur Sabatini put it so eloquently in the liner notes, "A world in which sound and the practices entailed in making music merge; become, at once, source and atmosphere, energy and essence, presence and dynamic."

Pauline Oliveros was an electronic music pioneer, accordionist, composer and educator who resided in Kingston, New York. Her instrument was tuned in Just Intonation and she often included it in her meditative improvisational music. Her music is not meditative in the sense that it is intended for listening to while meditating, rather each piece is a form of meditation, such as her aptly titled Sonic Meditations.

A central figure in post-war electronic art music, Oliveros is one of the original members of the San Francisco Tape Music Center (along with Morton Subotnick, Ramon Sender, Terry Riley, Steve Reich and Anthony Martin), which was the resource on the U.S. West coast for electronic music during the 1960s. The Center later moved to Mills College, where she was its first director, and is now called the Center for Contemporary Music. Oliveros often improvised with the Expanded Instrument System, an electronic signal processing system she designed, in her performances and recordings.

As rookies in the thriving Brussels scene, jazz fusion quartet LũpḁGangGang have been making waves the last couple of years. After the EPs ‘Stalingrad’ and ‘Urban Detox’, they are now releasing their debut album ‘Dopamine Overdose’ on March 17 via Sdban Ultra.
Lyricaly the inspiration for the album comes from growing up in a digital world and the constant dopamine we all have to deal with because of that. Musically their sound is rich, diverse and hard to pin down, looking at Yussef Dayes, BADBADNOTGOOD and even Black Country, New Road for inspiration.
LũpḁGangGang started out as a jazz/funk cover band in 2017. Anton, Miel, Lena and Rob all met at a jam session summer camp while still in school. Over time, the band started writing their own songs and released two EPs to critical acclaim. Due to the band’s desire for creative expansion over genres, they have been able to perform on various Belgian stages for the past three years including Ancienne Belgique to Flagey, Gent Jazz and Handelsbeurs in support of label mates, Black Flower.

The album title ‘Dopamine Overdose’ is a quote from the track ‘Dada Data’, a track about the influence social media tends to have on our lives. The album’s recurring theme is definitely the struggle with today’s hyper virtual society and the overwhelming influence tech is having on society. With unbridled enthusiasm the band tackle relevant themes and combine striking observations with a highly contagious and very diverse sound.

From “Out the Light'', a smooth track about being stuck in the image we all try to create of ourselves, to ‘Wanderer’, a jazzy tune about the road to self-acceptance, and from ‘Candy’, combining a punk attitude with infectious hand claps, to ‘Time Faded’, about the difficulty of finishing your artistic work, LũpḁGangGang constantly showcase their genre-defying versatility.

Death Is Not The End's 333 sub-label follows the reissue of Devon Russell's Darker Than Blue LP late last year with a first-time reissue of a veritable reggae-dancehall holy grail - Robert Ffrench's 1985 LP 'Wondering'.

Pioneering artist and producer (and cousin of the late, great Pat Kelly) Robert Ffrench was born in central Kingston in 1962, recording his first records in 1979 at the age of 17. Coming out off the back of a slew of roots & early dancehall-style 45s cut with a wide range of producers thoughout the early '80s, the Wondering LP followed closely after two acclaimed LP sets ('Showcase' produced with Lord Koos & 'The Favourite' for Ossie Thomas' Black Solidarity label - plus a split showcase LP with Anthony "Gunshot" Johnson for Jah Thomas' Midnight Rock label).

Ffrench would write and produce the Wondering LP himself in it's entirity, laying down the tracks at Herman Chin-Loy's Aquarius & Michael Carroll's Creative Sounds studios with the help of engineer Christopher Daley. Representing the sound of an artist first confidently sriking out on his own, the album elegantly mixes a classic rub-a-dub & lovers rock-inspired sound with nascent digi-esque flourishes. It boasts an enviable list of contributors too, incl. Sly & Robbie, Dwight Pinkney, Robbie Lyn, Nelson Miller (Burning Spear) and Ronald "Nambo" Robinson among others, with Beres Hammond also providing backing vocals in places.

Following the release of Wondering, Ffrench would continue to write and produce, soon after releasing two further self-produced LPs for Edgar White's Parish label - and founded his own 'France' label in the late 80s, through which his productions would start to hit big, most notably alongside Courtney Melody on 'Modern Girl', and with US rapper Heavy D on the track 'More Love'. Robert's productions released through later label 'Ffrench' would go on to boast the cream of the crop of dancehall artists throughout the 90s and early 2000s, and he is often credited with discovering Buju Banton (producing his first single "Ruler" on the Stamina riddim). Ffrench is still actively producing music of his own to this day, having released singles 'Everyday of My Life' and 'Black Is a Colour' in late 2022 and Feb 2023 respectively, available through all digital platforms now.

333, under exclusive license from Robert Ffrench.

The quintet set their sights beyond formulaic confines with their most introspective, uplifting, vital release to date - their first full-length in five years, 2023’s aptly titled The Awakening. The album shines as a massive and diverse offering mixing symphonic, melodic and power metal styles, yielding some of the heaviest tracks in KAMELOT’s history. KAMELOT is one of few bands in the symphonic genre to fully embrace the dark, but of course, there can be no light without it. Inspiring, engaging lyrical themes of determination, strength, overcoming personal battles and growth are abound on The Awakening, provoked by extreme societal shifts and the overwhelming realization that we have such a brief time to be true to ourselves and live life to its fullest. With crystal clear modern production helmed by the band and longtime producer Sascha Paeth, plus mastering by Jacob Hansen of Hansen Studios, KAMELOT’s score-like 13th studio album is accented by guest contributions - from genre star Melissa Bonny (Ad Infinitum), to renowned instrumentalists like violinist Florian Janoske and Grammy nominated, soundtrack-featured cellist Tina Guo. KAMELOT’s intense brand of ultramodern gothic and symphonic theatricality is amplified further and with more emotionality than ever on this inspiring, anticipated addition to the KAMELOT legacy.

Originally recorded at Channel One UK around 1990, the master tape was accidentally wiped and lost. The full riddim was rebuilt from the original drums at Seventh Sense Studio, and has now been updated at Earth Works Amsterdam with additional instruments including a great brass section.


In late 2020 Tena Stelling stapped back up to the microphone and re-voiced this lost classic. Jah Works is delighted to present the resulting fresh-vintage anthem, that remains as relevant as it was when it was first voiced 30 years ago, if not more so.

London four-piece Crows will release their highly anticipated second album, 'Beware Believers', on April 1st 2022 via Bad Vibrations Records. Conjuring a dark and visceral post-punk that's been hardened by years of notoriously rowdy live shows, Crows have amassed a legion of die-hard fans since they formed back in 2015 and cultivated a singular, much-adored presence in the British alternative music scene. Equal parts ferocious and hedonistic, the incoming 'Beware Believers' LP arrives off the back of their critically acclaimed 2019 debut 'Silver Tongues', international touring and festival appearances, and shared stages with the likes of IDLES, Wolf Alice, Girl Band, Metz, Slaves and Protomartyr. Following the release of their long-awaited debut album on the IDLES-run Balley Records back in 2019, Crows immediately set to work on its follow-up and by January 2020 they were already back in the studio tracking what would become the 'Beware Believers' LP and then Covid hit. "Once we knew Covid was here to stay, we took the first break we've taken since we released our first single 'Pray' in 2015. Being locked down for three months unable to finish the last bits of the record was very frustrating but it did mean we could come back to the album with fresh ears and make sure it sounded like it should: a true representation of Crows." Loud, cathartic and abrasive a quintessential Crows record it certainly is. "Beware Believers has felt like a marathon, a real endurance test that's been a long, winding road filled with highs and lows and plenty of twists and turns", frontman James Cox says: "The majority of the themes on the album came from what was going on in the world around Summer 2019 when we started writing the album. Covid wasn't in our lives and the biggest impact was Brexit and the madness our government were putting us through. I was reading a lot of J.G. Ballard and Kurt Vonnegut, mad dystopian novels, whilst all this craziness was going on around us and it was a weird headspace to get into."

Dropping as the second standalone EP ahead of Len Faki’s highly anticipated debut album Fusion (due out later this year), this release provides a new outlook on the producer’s sounds, going far beyond the confines of techno that he previously has been known and lauded for.

Opening the record in bold yet sensible style, Gamma subtly transcends the dancefloor functionality by anchoring its driving momentum in a wistful and enigmatic melody; a regular of Berghain, Faki also occasionally plays the upstairs room - where the bumping house of his own It's Time (to Move Your Body) could well go down as the highlight of a long night, whizzing with of colourful synths and anthemic vocals. Yantra then is a reminder of the powerful, loopy and trippy techno, which Faki (amongst all the newfound sonic explorations) has still not lost his appetite and knack for. A genuine counterpart, Shri Yantra then picks up elements of its predecessor, reframed in an enveloping breakbeat journey through time and space.

Going past the constraints of his previous work, Faki’s signature style is still very much audible on this EP, while also showing how there are still endless possibilities to develop. Stay tuned for one more special EP (x35) before the final release of the Fusion double album!

This series of remixes, stretching all the way back to 1993, continues to progress and expand its base of talented and incredible old skool talent. Part 16 brings some high caliber talent to the table with both Phuture Assassins and Tim Reaper on remixes duty for the first time. Plus we have stellar work from both Mannik and Shoreman, two of Kniteforce’s finest…

Am 17. März meldet sich der mit Platin ausgezeichnete und für einen Grammy nominierte Künstler M83 mit seinem neunten Studioalbum ”Fantasy” zurück.

Über zwei Jahrzehnte hinweg hat sich M83-Mastermind Anthony Gonzalez als ein Künstler etabliert, dessen Werke über bloße Realitätsflucht hinausgehen und stattdessen eine ganz neue Welt erschaffen.

Für Gonzalez war die Richtung und Ästhetik von ”Fantasy” sofort klar. ”Ich wollte, dass diese Platte live sehr eindrucksvoll klingt”, sagt er. ”Die Idee war, dass das Album näher an die Energie von ”Before
The Dawn Heals Us” rankommt. Die Kombination von Gitarren und Synthesizern ist immer Teil meiner Musik, aber auf dieser neuen Platte ist sie vielleicht noch präsenter als auf den vorherigen.”

Gonzalez wollte außerdem den Trend fortsetzen, der sich schon auf seinen letzten Alben immer deutlicher abgezeichnet hat. ”Ich wollte lyrisch und stimmlich präsenter sein, damit das Album persönlicher
wird als meine bisherigen Projekte”, sagt er.
Um die Ausgelassenheit seiner umwerfenden Live-Auftritte einzufangen, änderte Gonzalez seinen typischen Aufnahmeprozess. ”Normalerweise schreibe ich die Demos und gehe dann zu meinem Produzenten, um mit der Arbeit an einem Album zu beginnen”, erklärt er. ”Aber dieses Mal war es ein wenig anders.

Ich wollte einfach die Energie der anderen Musiker spüren. Das Gefühl, dass Musiker zusammen spielen, hatte mir ein bisschen gefehlt.”

repressed !

***Taken from Leaked Whatsapp messages between DJ Absolutely Shit and Il Bosco***

Yo cousin Bosco...how's ya raisin widge?

Nice one for that last lot of dough i'm starting to well buzz off all this music industry bollocks now you know...mad what you can do with a catchy DJ name and pure absolutely mega tunes wot are miles better than anyone elses init?

Anyway i've been diggin' me fuckin' 'ed off ant I recently and got some more well primo gear for yas here...done 8 this time - was thinking if i'm managing to sort me life out banging out EPs for yas - if I do and album or two i'll be mega wedged in no time deffo init.

Yeah i'm thinking fuck this i need to get out this rank shit-hole quicktime... spotted this sick 3 bed thatched cottage gaff in Cadishead the other day, well smart. Detached n everything G, so can deffo get a proper grow on in there piece of piss. Gran's doin me ed in n all here G, big style the old slapper. She keeps robbin' me cash!
Turn me back for 5 mins and she's fuckin chonged it all the little turd... fuckin fuming ta fuck g cant wait to do one from that shitty flat...and if she thinks she's keeping me dodgy sky box she suck me widge haha.

Anyway shout me soon init. fuck knows what to call this album g. ask Pharaoh to come up with a name for it the turd. i can't be arsed thinkin... Seen him the other day actually bumped into him and that Crispy Duck guy who does those sick comics. They was outside some posh coffee gaff in Ancoats with a few other chumps lobbing bricks at a pile of other bricks down near the canal drinking pink hooch the turds. Get em to do the artwork for it n all g. if they want paying or owt tell 'em to suck me widge haha.

Nice one

'The dynamic pop-meets-R&B duo, Two Another, today announce their hotly anticipated debut album “Back to Us”, an album that traverses themes of self-acceptance, queer identity, letting go of the idea of perfection and hope for the future. Blending alt-pop, funk and R&B, the upbeat buoyancy of Two Another’s sleek yet energetic productions on “Back To Us” has an infectious potency to transform a mood or an outlook track after track. The duo again confirm their unparalleled talent as they channel raw emotion into undeniable grooves across the ten tracks which are pumped with compelling stories executed by the honeyed melodies of Eliot Porter and the joyous synths of Angus Campbell.

Manchester based DJ/producer Antagonist cues up a collection of dense and uncompromising electronic tracks on his R&S Records debut. The ‘Rites’ EP pulls together 5 new tracks that lean on the artist’s drum ‘n’ bass roots and influences, a sound that has informed his DJ sets and studio productions since he launched the project in 2004.

Channelling his productions towards the more cinematic and darker side of drum ‘n’ bass and broken beats, Antagonist has released a strong run of EPs for labels such as Samurai Music, Ronin Ordinance, One.Seventy and his own Discipline imprint, stamping his hybrid sound across these well received releases.

Layers upon layers of shadowy ambience and wistful tones are punctured by hard edged beat-science, as Antagonist goes in deep on the complex breakbeats, chopping back and forth knifelike loops and dynamic kicks. A highly accomplished debut for the R&S label from this sonically exciting young producer.

‘Rites’ EP by Antagonist is available on R&S Records from 17th March 2023

Landmark albums deserve to be released on Glorious Vinyl, and that's why Lovemonk is presenting the first ever vinyl edition of Martín Buscaglia's 2006 corker, El Evangelio Según Mi Jardinero.

"Brain, brain, thanks for being in my head and not in my knee, if not, I wouldn't be able to kneel down to pray or keep that promise I cannot reveal". Those are the first words (translated from Spanish) of 'Cerebro, Orgasmo, Envidia y Sofía', the song that kicks off El Evangelio Según Mi Jardinero, the fourth album by Uruguayan pop genius Martín Buscaglia and his second on Lovemonk.

El Evangelio is a wonderful collection of deliciously cheeky and brutally honest songs composed by a man who was lucky enough to grow up in a home where several of his home country's cultural greats (Eduardo Mateo, Urbano Moraes, Rubén Rada, all three of legendary candombe innovators El Kinto, and Hugo Fattoruso, of Opa) would drop by to chat, write and hang out. They, and other heroes like Marvin Gaye, Tom Waits, Stevie Wonder, and Jorge Ben, have had a lasting influence on Martín's music, and it's no different on El Evangelio. Martín wrote most of the songs and plays all kinds of instruments, conventional and not so conventional (the ravanahatha - an ancient bowed, stringed instrument used in South Asia, different toys such as the Simon device and a carousel), and there are cameos by the likes of Arnaldo Antunes, Nicolás Ibarburu and Juana Molina.

El Evangelio Según Mi Jardinero is a dazzling piece of work that will make you dance your ass of and take you to place you haven't visited since childhood. Even 12 years on, the at times complex songs actually sound deceptively simple and stunningly fresh.

The BBoy anthem: Funkshone -Chase the Dream unleashes
Mike’s trademark drum grooves against the usual Funkshone wall of sound; this time with an overall Cinematic Funk driving groove; bass-driven; horn and flutes accents; also featuring: the UK’s maestro Kaidi Tatham on Flute
(more known for his amazing Keyboard delights).
The original mix was catapulted to the forefront of BBoy culture by DJ Skeme Richards whom insisted this was used in his set at the Red Bull BC One BBoy Championship finals in Brazil in 2012. To seal the deal Funkshone also deliver a never before heard BBoy version of the cut on the flip side of this Limited edition 45.

In 2021 Velocity Press published Who Say Reload: The Stories Behind the Classic Drum & Bass Records of the 90s, an oral history of the records that defined jungle/drum & bass straight from the original sources. The deluxe coffee table book has since sold thousands of copies and prompted many to comment that it should have an accompanying soundtrack.

Now author Paul Terzulli has compiled a Who Say Reload album. However, where the book focused solely on classics and anthems, the compilation takes a different route and offers up a selection of top-quality tunes from some of the scene’s most respected artists and labels.

Like the book, the album covers the genre’s nineties golden era, and the many styles of D&B are represented. Pioneering producers and crowd-pleasing favourites sit alongside a few sought-after obscurities by the unsung heroes of the scene. Most importantly, there are some absolute bangers!

The 16 tracks are spread over two volumes of 2 x 12"s, and there is also a 13-track digital version, taking you on a journey through music forged from raw breakbeats and basslines that soundtracked a culture of all-night raves, specialist record shops and pirate radio stations.

Jungle/drum & bass is approaching its 30th anniversary. Its sonic and cultural legacy is still being felt today. There’s still plenty of old music that might be “new” to some, and these tunes still pack as much of a punch as they did back in the day. That unique energy generated by a combination of breakbeats, bass and creativity never gets old.

Produced in conjunction with Above Board distribution. All tracks mastered from original sources and fully licensed. Mastering by Beau Thomas @ Ten Eight Seven Mastering. Liner notes from Who Say Reload author Paul Terzulli. Photography by Eddie Otchere. Artwork and design by Protean Productions.