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With this EP an attempt is made at documenting the vibrant action happening during the late 1970s and early 1980s in the Pioneer Valley area of Western Massachusetts, US. The story is richer than the snapshot we present here, and a more detailed account is to be found in the accompanying book that can be purchased separately.

The Five Colleges in Hampshire County congregated a vast student population that inevitably interacted with the towns in the area. Bars, music and record stores, live music and a lot of experimentation and free thinking. Hampshire College, especially, promoted new approaches to teaching, subjects that might be considered radical by some even today, although a more favourable context would now surely exist for openly debating such topics as American Indians, Kayak Design, Black Oral Tradition, Food Management, etc. And the music? The immediate "punk effect" motivated the creation of numerous bands, many short lived, others evolving into New Wave / Power Pop territory, eventually crossing into Post-Punk experimentation. What is captured in "Noho EP" is a more electronic disposition, favoured by the existence of EMS gear and other equipment at Hampshire College and University of Massachusetts. We chose to focus on a group of musicians who, for a time, played together in different combinations under the loose umbrella of the Tekno Tunes label and the structure around it.

These musicians come from very different backgrounds and the nucleus portrayed here consisted of Christopher Vine, Elliott Sharp, James Whittemore and Nicholas Brown.

Of the several line-up changes The Scientific Americans went through, it was actually only the duo of Chris Vine and Jim Whittemore who recorded "Among Bodge Watt". Never before released, it is a companion piece to their track "El Salvador" available on the 1981 ROIR tape-album "Load & Go!". The Sci Ams were founders of the Tekno Tunes label and also created the Tekno Tours "concert promotion agency", under which name they exposed local audiences to bands such as The Stranglers, The Slits, Pylon, Pere Ubu, The Psychedelic Furs, The Bush Tetras, Steel Pulse, etc. Their own sound kept progressing but at its best there's a solid dub undercurrent, pretty obvious in "Among Bodge Watt".

Human Error was born out of a collective jam by Chris Vine, Elliott Sharp, Jim Whittemore and Nick Brown. Elliott Sharp had moved to Northampton in August of 1978 and naturally became involved in the local music scene, hooking up first with Whittemore at a hi-fi audio store where he worked at the time. Basement jams followed stimulating conversations, and other musicians joined the sessions. "Clandestinator" sounds gorgeously loose, an effortless groove coming from a quasi-dub set-up. Nothing here seems calculated, the music just flows, contagious and irregular as the handclaps in the mix.

The Higher Primates later evolved into a "proper" band but started as Nick Brown's solo project. The Primates only ever released a (now sought-after) 7" single in 1980 (on the Tekno Tunes label, precisely). Both tracks on "Noho EP" were recorded the following year and never released until now. "Auto Music in the Disco Dub Style" is self-explanatory, with a steady, mid-tempo TR808 beat running through, supporting synth squelches, echoes and reverbs, a fat bassline, dissonant melodic lines and odd vocal snippets. Kind of a DJ tool when the concept was barely in place. The more uptempo "Teresa Variations" adds a Fender Jazz bass and Selmer sax to the electronics. It actually sounds more "Disco", even with the robotic, unintelligible vocals. On top of this, the vibe is sealed by the overall Radiophonic Workshop analogue strangeness applied to a dance beat.

LTD 260 copies pressed / printed sleeves / Sealed

Jungle master Krak In Dub’s new album Catleya is a vibrant hommage to Colombia and its incredibly diverse musical culture. Entirely recorded in Bogotá with the who’s who of today’s Colombian music scene, the album casts a brand new light on the fusion of beats and Latin-American traditional rhythms and instruments, blending reggae, hip-hop, breaks and house with cumbia , afrobeat, ska, and bullerengue.
Standing out on this sun-soaked yet heavy-on-the-beats-and-bass adventure is the appearance of female modern folk trio La Perla, the Afro-Colombian combo Absalon & Afropacifico, and Bermudian singer Troy Berkley.

The journey of BASIC RHYTHM, all the way from mid 90s pirate radio, to abstract electronic sounds, has eventually seen a return to his musical roots-jungle and drum & bass. Pushing forward into new territories, his tracks often stand out as brutalist and adventurous, while all the time keeping the dance bouncing. After recent collaborations with Sully and Blood Trust among others, there's plenty of more exciting new music to emerge, starting with 'Sound Killa EP' on Straight Up Breakbeat.

As part of Subtext's 20th anniversary, Subtext presents the debut album from bela as a co-release with Unsound.

bela was based in Seoul when they began to develop the framework for 'Noise and Cries (굉음과울음)'.Chewed up by a society that's slow to embrace those who exist on the margins, they and their close friends became fixated on the concept of death. "I wanted to cry, I Wanted to die," they recall. "The precariousness of living in South Korea hits different. I thought, let's share what is killing us." bela refused to lose hope, so they inventoried the sounds, experiences and emotions that had formulated their identity and wondered how this might form a different sort of South Korean musical expression. They considered the guttural death metal growls and industrial music they heard when they began to interface with Western culture as a teenager, the idiosyncratic folk rhythms that rattled away in the background of state events, the evocative, euphoric drones that had offered them solace, and the heady, cybernetic maximalism that's come to define contemporary queer club music.If this was going to be an album about death, bela knew wouldn't it be preoccupied with loss, but rooted in a deep desire to regain the will to live.

'Noise and Cries (굉음과울음)' is the first time bela has recorded their voice, and they metamorphose it from moment to moment, embracing a precarious vulnerability. Opener 'The Sage' references Jungtaryeong, two well-known arias from the Korean Pansori tradition - a folk form that is usually performed by a drummer and a singer. Screaming, whispering and rasping, bela twists borrowed words from the original arias, repurposing them to highlight the hypocrisy and brutality of patriarchal wisdom.

These bellowed phrases contrast with an abrasive rhythm that bela based on the eatmore jangdan, an irregular, traditional beat that's been remoulded into a jerky, electro-acoustic call to action. Even if the gargled Korean wordplay can't be fully understood, the mood translate flawlessly. On 'Death Will I', they reassemble the damaged relationship between a queer child and their

Das fünfte Soloalbum der Sängerin erschien 1993 inkl. der Singles 'Big Scary Animal' und 'Lay Down Your Arms'. Viele der Songs wurden gemeinsam mit Charlotte Caffey von The Go-Go's geschrieben, und die Produktion übernahm Ralph Schuckett, der bereits mit Carole King, Todd Rundgren u.v.a. zusammengearbeitet hatte. Diese Neuauflage wurde von Barry Grint bei AIR Mastering fachmännisch von den Original-Stereobändern mit präzisem Half-Speed-Mastering gemastert. Hierbei handelt es sich um eine Vinyl-Schnitttechnik, die die Groove-Genauigkeit und die Transienten-Informationen verbessert, und ein unglaublich detailliertes Stereobild mit einem natürlichen Hochfrequenzgang erzeugt. Präsentiert in der Originalhülle, gepresst auf 180g schweres, schwarzes Vinyl, mit OBI-Strip und wattierter Innenhülle. Dazu alle Liedtexte und Credits auf einer 4-seitigen Beilage.

The drone-pop consternations of Ekin Fil emerge through vaporous tone and forlorn, distant song, as if plucked from a dream. These exist on their own accord, moving with their own internal logic of an emotion heaviness that belies any the passing observation of this as mere shoegazing ambience. Her songs, her compositions find themselves adjacent the fragmented etherealization of Elisabeth Fraser's voice from a forgotten scene of a particular David Lynch film, as a ASMR trigger for Proustian recollection. Something profound. Something hidden. Something desolately sad.

The Helen Scarsdale Agency has had the pleasure of witnessing Ekin's continued development, maturation, and growth as a composer, having released now seven of her magnificent, under-the-radar gems. Her slow burning, dejected ballads continue to draw from the deep well of sorrow, with varying frequencies and intensities of bitter light poking through. Loves lost. A world broken. All is not hopeless, but there is a considerable amount of shit to wade through.

Sleepwalkers embraces a familiar set of metaphors in her work, that of narcolepsy and the unsettled state of existence between sleep and being awake. But she stretches herself with a set of compositions that run parallel to the work of Tim Hecker as in the gravitation soft-noise of "Stone Cold" or to a slow motion serialism that punctuates the ambient crawl of her ambitious "Gone Gone." Recommended for fans of Grouper, Rafael Anton Irisarri, A.C. Marias, and Carla dal Forno.

We are delighted to bring you the first in the Ivan The Tolerable Archive Reissue Series, Autodidact!

Originally released on a 10” lathe cut by Ack Ack Ack Records in February 2018, this has now been remastered and repackaged, and will now be available on ltd edition khaki vinyl, with only 250 copies pressed. Here’s a bit about the record in Oli Heffernan’s aka Ivan The Tolerable own words-

“I recorded the bulk of this record over a weekend in January 2018, in the midst of a very minor breakdown that was to last for pretty much the entire year. I was living in a big house all on my own, smoking too much and not really seeing any people. Happy days indeed.
It was tracked in the back room of 97 Hambledon Road, Middlesbrough using two questionable microphones, a broken HH 100 amp, my friends drums and a Tascam DP08 (that wasn’t to see the year out, RIP 2009-2018) When I was done, Robbie came round and recorded a ton of violin drones through my amp and i remember feeling like I’d gone into a trance a few times, then Ben recorded his parts at home and sent them over. Mixed and mastered the same night - I released it myself a month later as a lathe cut 10”and then promptly moved on. I listened to the album for the first time in years to write this sleeve note and I think it is possibly the closest I’ve ever got to capturing the sound I hear in my head - I love how grubby and cavernous it sounds, claustrophobic and swirling - the track Autodidact I have recorded 4 more times since this version and I’ve never got that sound back. I’II keep trying.’’
“Oli Heffernan, June 2023’’

Jules Archive is a project founded by Marco Marzuoli and Marco Mazzei in 2016.

By employing various technologies, instruments, and approaches, the duo strives to craft a mysterious and fantastical persona named Jules. Through this persona, they aim to immerse listeners in a dreamlike atmosphere, transcending reality and dwelling in imaginary spatiotemporal dimensions.

Platonic Tales is the second chapter of Jules' journeys, more anthropocentric than the first album Adventures & Explorations (Volume 1), but equally exotic and dreamlike. The musical intention of this record was to rework a set of five (plus one) melodic tape loops, already structured in "song form”, through detailed arrangements. The treatment followed an experimental-pop-oriented production approach.

Recorded entirely at home by the artists, the music on the album features analog cassettes containing loops dating back to around 2016. The remaining arrangements were composed during the 2020 pandemic lockdown.

Several international guests collaborated on the album:

Lino Capra Vaccina, the legendary Italian percussionist/minimalist composer, and Jefre Cantu Ledesma engaged in a musical dialogue on An Ontological Novel.

Andrew Weathers contributed his voice to the tracks A Superior Truth and Exodus.

Christina Vantouz participated in Exodus and concluded the album with a string composition arranged and conducted by Minna Choi, performed by Magik*Magik Orchestra.

Recorded between Città Sant' Angelo (Pescara - Italy, 2016-2020), Francavilla (Chieti - Italy, 2020), and Firenze (2019-2020).

Jeder Song hat die Kraft, Erinnerungen wachzurufen und das Gefühl von Heimat durch Musik nutzbar zu machen: von der psychedelisch-funklastigen Single 'Something's Going On' bis zur kongregativen Energie des neuen Tracks 'We Give Thanks' verschmilzt 'Could We Be More' die Afro-Londoner Synergie, die so natürlich die Wärme und Identität von Kokoroko untermauert. Die Mehrfach-Preisträger Kokoroko sind auf soulige, bläserlastige Sounds mit westafrikanischen Wurzeln und Londoner Einflüssen spezialisiert. Sie spielten bereits auf vielen europäischen Festivals (von Glastonbury über Meltdown bis Elbjazz und Jazz á la Villette) und freuen sich darauf, ihre Reichweite in 2022 und darüber hinaus weiter auszubauen. Die Band trat in mehreren BBC-Fernsehshows auf, ihre beiden Boiler Room-Sets wurden zusammen fast eine halbe Million Mal angehört.

- 'This female-led, multicultural collective of under 30s is a vital example of not only jazz's new form but the shape of things to come.' - The Guardian
- 'Drawing influence from West African highlife and jazz, wellmarinated in enough polyrhythm seasoning to induce fires on the dance floors they play.' - OkayAfrica
- 'Afrobeat, jazz, soul and ’70s psych-leaning funk - luminescent!' - Cool Hunting

After releases on Eilean rec., Dinzu Artefacts and IIKKI, the fourth album by Masaya Ozaki, "Mizukara", is presented by Laaps. A beautiful immersion in the variety of his sounds imprints, using some field-recordings, electro-acoustic and textures to give his excellence to the ambient range.

Masaya Ozaki is a New York/Iceland-based composer born in Niigata, Japan. His work examines the idea of space as a transient entity, the subtleties behind small moments, the sensitivity of the ephemera, and the future of sound in an exceedingly materialistic world. He often finds inspiration in nature, the fragility of human interactions, and the momentums behind them. Masaya's artwork materializes as field recordings and compositions for ensembles, film, dance, visual, and experimental arts.

"This Album is a reflection of my current life in Iceland. Where does the self begin and where does it end?"

HYPERWIDE LUSTRE is Orchestroll’s debut record, a mini-LP released on Montreal’s GARMO – a highly curious and deeply devolved collection of music produced and performed for a run of live club sets by the duo.

Jester-like, this is music that laughs at you: because it’s funny, because it’s not; because you did too much, because you did too little. Because you’re too loud; too quiet. Wrapped in the exquisite production chops of Richard-Robitaille and Osborne-Lanthier, Hyperwide Lustre is quasi-sarcastic and fully irreverent, a shimmering hybrid of spectral dance music and avant classical; psychedelic, cinematic, fluid, and yet bejeweled with a crushing opulence. Lovelorn synths and haunted, clattering, percussion rolls through these halls. Will you follow them to their source? Or turn away?

Like a slow labyrinthine descent into ever-less-familiar passages, Orchestroll have crafted an album that feels genuinely puzzling and new. A warm welcome into a strange world. Two puppetmasters who lost control of their puppets long ago. The keyboard whispers, but the mouse decides the tale.

Posm is a convergence of talents, emerging from a series of spontaneous jams that took place nestled amongst the hills of Kuringgai country. These sessions continued for two months, weaving hypnotic, incantatory suites through improvisation. The instrumental palette rotates between effortlessly blending acoustic and electronic instrumentation into a heady, organic synthesis, creating sounds that harmonise with the verdant landscape and flourishing fauna of the Bilgola hills. The music itself is an unforced fusion, finding the synchronicity in their improvisations. It feels exploratory, and you can follow along with them in the shared joy of making music in tune with each other and their surroundings.

Synthesizers, Tape Recorders and Analog Machines come together into an enchanting atmospheric album reminis-cent of Eno´s, Jarre´s or Vangelis´ space-romantic compositions.
Resonance is the artistic alias of Javier Pérez Rodríguez, a Canary Islands based producer who began his musical activity in the late nineties, blending cinematic experimental music with dancefloor sounds. After releasing several club-focused releases in recent times, he now presents this new departure - a synth based album for a soundtrack to a non-existent film featuring dreamlike compositions, filled with long, immersive passages that effortlessly blend ele-ments of electronic, ambient, and progressive rock music.
'Valediction' is an ambient ode, an emotional missive departing from a personal and intimate space and expands it to the universe - the cosmos expressed through a lens of ideas and concepts that contrast with its compositional com-plexity. Through this work, the author bids farewell to a stage of his life whilst presenting a new born optimistic and mature vision of parting, naturally transitioning to another phase without collision - a romantic and optimistic escape towards the reality of a recent sensitive time, which may not have been better, but perhaps it was.
'Valediction' is Resonance's spontaneous yet conscious escape to the most endearing realms of his own inner uni-verse, subsequently projecting it outward, in a sharing statement to whoever is willing to listen.
All songs by Javier Pérez Rodríguez
Mastered by Resonance, supervised by Eddy Méndez
Artwork by Aristides Garcia
Released by Keroxen records, 2024

The latest on Milan-based DIY label GRAFT, by London-based Italiano, Soreab. Edition of 200, beatless A side and a remix of Equohm's previous GRAFT A side, on the flip.
Each blessed with several hand-stamps to make up the artwork. each one unique.
Comes with a DL code for two extra tracks too.



We're also offering out the 'Early Dub Tapes' on LP, a newly repressed Blakamix classic (originally out in '94, comprising of tracks from 86-90) from the boss Mixman, now available on wax again.
Proper, original UK dub from the 1&only Blakamix crew.

Following hot on the heels of his recent mini-album for Elephant Gait, Italian producer Joseph Tagliabue is back with a full-length album on Glasgow's Invisible, Inc.

With Un' Altra Forma Di Vibrazioni Tagliabue continues to expand on the cosmic foundations laid by such pioneering experimental forefathers as Franco Battiato and his ground-breaking abstract ambient work of the '70s and Klaus Schultze whose legendary Innovative Communications label birthed the “Berlin school” sound at the start of the '80s, then tracing a path toward later luminaries like Boards of Canada and Plaid. There's a personal, emotive and ethereal quality also present here conjuring feelings of 4AD's glory years and the likes of This Mortal Coil and Dead Can Dance. However, backwards-looking music this is not. It's fair to say the Milan-based producer is developing his very own distinct sound as he matures from one release to the next and regardless of his wide range of influences, it's Tagliabue's firm grasp of sound design and audio engineering that takes this album far beyond the realm of just “electronica” or “psychedelia” and plants it firmly into a distinctly forward-looking contemporary space of its very own that's as much music for the heart as it is music for the head.

Tagliabue provides some insight: “Un' Altra Forma Di Vibrazioni (meaning Another Form Of Vibration in Italian) is a concept album inspired by one of the most sensational scientific discoveries of recent years, namely evidence of the existence of the "Cosmic Web". The album is comprised of ten tracks, each linked to one another, much like the various forms of matter in the cosmic web, and whose meaning can only be understood by listening to them as a collective whole, rather than as separate pieces of music. The album therefore is a well constructed sonic experience fusing elements of ambient, psych, rock, experimental and trance and is designed to be listened to continuously from start to finish; the album's journey through the universal elements is reflected in each track, whose rhythms resonate in harmony with the phenomena they represent, whilst a backdrop of drones and mesmeric grooves contribute to an atmosphere of otherworldly mechanical oneirism."

Taroug is the solo project by drummer and electronic music producer Tarek Zarroug with roots in the suburbs of the Tunisian desert and having grown up in Germany. Following the release of his 2020 EP, "Perpetual," as well as a number of notable remixes for artists such as Archive, Taroug has continued to refine his musical aesthetic.

Taroug's debut album Darts & Kites, set to be released on Denovali Records, draws inspiration from the Penrose tiling and explores themes of change and transformation. Fascinated from the pattern's unending possibilities, Taroug incorporated its infinite permutations not only into the album's nine tracks, but also in the cover art design. Darts & Kites showcases a blending of genres and styles, resulting in a sonic landscape, that is both hunting and beautiful. Experimental and abstract soundscapes are enriched by oriental influences, collected field recordings, pulsating dark beats and hypnotic vocals.

The album also features the contributions of other notable artists, including Beate Wolff's cello performance on Jewels I. Benedikt Koch's saxophone adds a sense of controlled chaos with delayed and swelling notes to the track Deguech, while Timo Schieber's piano provides a crucial element of the album's title track, Darts & Kites. Niklas Genschel lends his vocals to Queen of Carthage, which also features the saz playing of Abdallah Abozekry.

Created in collaboration with architect and designer Marie Brosius, the album artwork captures different ornaments reflecting the album's content. Darts & Kites is a mosaic of sound, blending together elements of unfamiliar and familiar.

Music is a form of world building. I love to develop sonic characters and set them into fictional ecosystems with unique textures, acoustics and atmospheres. Each song forms a different landscape, through which a vocal character guides us and tries to tell us its stories." — Ludwig Berger

Ludwig Berger's 'fictional' debut album "Garden Ediacara" unfolds as a musical eco-fiction, guiding listeners through a speculative ecosystem with synthesized vocals. Infused with storytelling techniques from sci-fi and fantasy, the album intertwines melodic songwriting with electroacoustic sound design. Inspired by hydrofeminism and eco-fiction novels, such as "A Door Into Ocean" by Joan Slonczewski, the album delves into the geological period of Ediacara around 600 million years ago — an era so remote it resonates as a glimpse into a possible future. The Ediacaran period was characterised by a peaceful and thriving ecosystem inhabited by soft-bodied creatures without eyes and bones, which were completely wiped out through the appearance of a new species. "Garden of Ediacara" alludes to this period, celebrating both the pleasures of biodiversity as well as mourning its inevitable loss. The narrative unfolds as an exploration of growth and interconnection in the shadow of a coming extinction. The track titles, written by Daisy Lafarge, reveal themselves as a cohesive poem and contribute to the album's narrative.

Informed by his practice of field recording that focusses on intimate encounters with plants, animals and geological phenomena, as well as his studies in electroacoustic composition, Berger expands his palette for his debut in 'fictional' music. The album prominently features a post-human, non-binary death metal voice synthesizer, physical modeling instruments, and microscopic field recordings of plants, insects, as well as aquatic and geological life. With impressionistic strokes, Ludwig Berger crafts vibrant worlds using glassy timbres and more-than-human voices, guiding listeners through emotionally ambiguous terrain, seamlessly oscillating between moments of intimacy and irritation, melancholy and playfulness.

Ludwig Berger is a landscape sound artist, educator and musician. In his compositions, installations and performances, he enables intimate and playful sonic encounters with plants, animals, buildings and geological entities. He is founder and curator of the label Vertical Music, which releases field recordings and experimental music. Berger holds degrees in electroacoustic composition, as well as musicology, art history and literature. As a sound researcher and teacher at the Institute for Landscape Architecture at ETH Zurich from 2015-2022, he studied the sonic dimension of Japanese gardens, alpine glaciers and urban landscapes, which among other things led to the release of the acclaimed album trilogy 'Melting Landscapes', 'Dammed Landscapes' and 'Buried Landscapes'.

repress !


Das Ambient Jazz Ensemble liefert mit "Suite Shop Reworks" elektronische Upbeat-Dancefloor-Versionen seines gleichnamigen Albums aus 2014. Mastermind des AJE ist der Filmkomponist und Musikproduzent Colin Baldry, ihm zur Seite stehen Topmusiker wie Neil Cowley (Adele, Brand New Heavies), Finn Peters (Chick Corea) oder Nichol Thomson (Jamie Cullum). Gemastert wurde das Album von Guy Davie (Jon Hopkins, FKA Twigs, Jamie T) am Mischpult von Fela Kuti in Lagos, Nigeria.

Andi Otto’s Bangalore Whispers gets finally repressed. The psychedelic track which he recorded together with the Indian singer MD Pallavi in 2016 has become a hit in the downtempo scene around the globe (“Saaaa - resa nisa”). Pingipung press a new edition of the much sought after single on the occasion of their 20th label anniversary. In this 2022 edition the original track is paired with the Peter Power remix which has not seen the light of day on vinyl before.The Brazil-based producer slows the track down a notch and adds even more space. A perfect tune both for the dancefloor or meditation.

20th anniversary vinyl repressing from the original DMM-master! - First time available after the original pressing on Stereo Deluxe back in 2001. Heavyweight 180 gram black double vinyl in gatefold sleeve including sticker!


Back in 1997 the Nuremberg based Jazz musician and studio owner Peter Heider started seeing the DJ & nightlife activist Florian Seyberth for regular studio sessions. Within a few weeks they chose the name „Boozoo Bajou“ for their collaboration. With muscial ingredients like Soul, Dub, Country or Brazilian obscurities they created their own trademark sound. With the first two singles „Night over Manaus“ and „Under my Sensi“ they became a much celebrated part of worldwide downbeat scene led by artists like Kruder & Dorfmeister or Nightmares on Wax. In 2001 they created a legendary and much rated masterpiece in that genre by releaseing their debut album „Satta“ on the iconic „Stereo Deluxe“ Label. 20 years later this 60 minute blueprint original of the chill out scene named after the jamaican word „Relax“ is available again on double vinyl pressed from the original laquers.

Zum 20-jährigen Jubiläum erscheint der Boozoo Bajou Klassikler "Satta" erstmalig seit der Originalpressung auf Stereo Deluxe wieder auf Vinyl! Remastered von dem ursprünglichen DMM-Master!

Im Jahre1997 trafen sich der Nürnberger Jazzmusiker und Studiobetreiber Peter Heider regelmäßig mit dem DJ und Nightlife-Aktivisten Florian Seyberth zu Studiosessions. Schnell war der Name „Boozoo Bajou“ für das neue gemeinsame Projekt gefunden. Durch musikalische Einflüsse wie Soul, Dub, Country oder brasilianische Exotica schufen sie ihren eigenen Trademark-Sound. Mit den ersten beiden Singles "Night over Manaus" und "Under my Sensi" wurden sie gefeierter Teil der weltweiten Downbeat-Szene, angeführt von Künstlern wie „Kruder & Dorfmeister“ oder „Nightmares on Wax“. 2001 schufen sie mit ihrem Debütalbum "Satta", das auf dem kultigen "Stereo Deluxe"-Label erschien, ein legendäres und vielbeachtetes Meisterwerk in diesem Genre. 20 Jahre später ist diese 60 Minuten lange Blaupause der Chill-Out-Szene, betitelt mit dem jamaikanischen Wort für „Relax“ wieder auf Doppel-Vinyl erhältlich, gepresst von den Original-Matrizen.

C.Z. debuts on LA's Evar Records with the uncompromising Heat Index EP.

The Los Angeles-based producer, beatmaker and DJ sets a course through IDM, techno, jungle and trance to deliver five frenetic, emotionally-charged dancefloor cuts.

Over the course of an intensely productive career, Colby Zinser (aka C.Z.) has made music spanning genres like pop, rap, hardcore and jungle. As well as releasing music as C.Z., he's operated multiple aliases, including the prolific Ice Underlord. Drawing from a longstanding fascination with breaks, trance and the IDM of artists like Warp Records' Clark, he's developed his own rich and eclectic style of club music - a sound that crystalized on his 2020 debut album Hyperfocus.

C.Z. emerged from 2020 armed with a mass of new dancefloor tracks, freshly inspired to make club music a central focus, after years of smuggling techno, trance and breaks elements into the rap beats he was making for others. As he explains: 'It's great to come back to music and just make what I love, I don't want to be someone else's secret weapon, I want to be my own.' Heat Index refuses to toe a line, steering skillfully through genres and setting a tone that oscillates between club-fuelled euphoria, heartbreak and the looming threat of planetary crisis.

Opener 'Midnight' rattles along at a breathless 160 BPM, transporting you to a breakdown in the middle of a pounding hard trance set. Within a minute the rushing neon trance synths collide with huge, sub destroying kicks. The title track 'Heat Index' follows, with brooding pads bolted onto a tight breakbeat, leaving space open for the razor sharp, searching synth line.

Moving rapidly through the gears, 'Hurricane' is an aptly titled exercise in precision programmed classic jungle breaks, carried forward by bubbling earworm melodies. 'Retrograde' shifts the focus again - a pitch-black, dark, fast and seething techno track ripe for warehouses and dungeons, before 'Radial Lens', a melodic, anthemic set-closer built on a muscular, downtempo break.

C.Z.'s first appearance on Evar Records, the LA label founded in 2020 by Trickfinger and Aura T-09, follows a series of hard-hitting releases from Speed Dealer Moms, Limewax and Kilbourne, all artists who like C.Z., are able to traverse twisted electronica, club music and pure abstraction with ease. 'I want to help encourage a more open electronic music space, less pretentious, and encompassing all genres.' C.Z. says. 'It's an important goal of mine, and one the label shares.' Heat Index is a wide-ranging EP from a versatile producer, and a celebration of unfettered expression, for minds and dancefloors free from inhibition or genre restriction.

Chase & Status liefern die sechste Ausgabe der relaunchten "Fabric Presents" Serie und darin das erste neue Drum'n'Bass-Set. Es besteht aus heftigen 44 Tracks der Crème de la Crème der D&B-Szene, darunter vier neuen Chase & Status Exclusives. Der Mix mit Heavyweights wie Ray Keith, DJ Rap, Dead Dred, Hype und mehreren Tunes des neuen Shy FX-Labels cult.ure fängt die Energie ein, die Chase & Status 2019 mit ihrem "RTRN II Jungle" Meisterwerk entfachten. Acht ausgespielte Highlights finden ihren Platz auf dem Doppelvinyl, darunter selbstredend die vier Exclusives des populären Londoner D&B-Duos.

2024 heißt es 20 JAHRE CHINESE MAN (RECORDS)! Das aus Südfrankreich stammende Trio Chinese Man (bestehend aus High Ku, Matteo & Sly) tritt seit seiner ersten VÖ unabhängig unter der Fahne des eigenen Label Chinese Man Records auf. Gegründet 2004, beziehen sie ihre Einflüsse vor allem aus dem Hip-Hop, Trip-Hop, aber auch aus Dub, Electro und Reggae. Mit über 600 Shows weltweit im Rücken, kehrt die Band 2024 für ihrem dritten richtigem Album zurück, eund einer explosiven Live-Show. Dieses neue Album wurde in den Studios des Labels in Marseille sowie in Paris, im Studio Zarma und im berühmten Studio Ferber in Paris aufgenommen, insbesondere mit dem Orchester "L'Ensemble Hors Champ". Die Leitung des Orchesters wurde Gilles Alonzo anvertraut, einem der Gruppe nahestehenden Musiker, der die Orchesterparts für sechs der 13 Titel des Albums mitkomponiert und arrangiert hat. Zu den Gästen des Albums gehören z.B. General Elektriks, KT Gorique, Stylo G, Isadora, Youthstar & Miscellaneous, FP & Green T (ASM) und Stogie T. Die Gruppe hat außerdem Ferdinand Lemoine für Bläserarrangements eingeladen. Lemoine hat bereits mit dem Funk-Produzenten Dabeull und der Pianistin Sofiane Pamart zusammengearbeitet. Wie schon bei ihrem ersten Album vor zehn Jahren hat die Gruppe beschlossen, Sodi (Studio Zarma) für die Koproduktion und den Mix des neuen Albums sowie Antoine Chabert (Studio Chab) für das Mastering zu engagieren. Die Gruppe kehrt mit dem Wunsch zurück, ihr Album einem erneut größeren Publikum zu präsentieren. Drei Vorab-Singles bereiten dafür bereits den Weg.Doppel-LP (schwarzes Vinyl) sowie CD!

Ambassade’s 2019 ‘Duistre Kamers’ album was a huge favourite here at Optimo Music towers so we jumped at the chance to release the follow up; ‘The Fool’.

Following hot in the heels of the acclaimed ‘Young Birds / Palette’ 12” on Optimo Music, ‘The Fool’ is destined to be another Cold Wave, Synth, New Industrial, Experimental …whatever you want to call it …classic. We asked Ambassade to tell us a bit about the album – Born from several years of research and contemplation on the human mind ‘The Fool’ can be understood as a reflection to the dark energies – natural, political, human and otherwise – that are released when it comes to religion, greed and power.

Historically, some rulers have used religion to legitimise their power. We were also inspired by wanting to examine what negative impact religion can have from the fact that it’s always dominated by men.

This was pursued by exploring a wide range of diverse and unusual types of instruments that took on a new approach of tonal expression, with the use of detuned choral and voice samples, droned tape loops and DIY metal and found percussion. It’s from these diverse sources that the process of creativity keeps persistently mutating. This process was focused through the enigmatic electronic and percussion composition from the band which alternates between foreground and background for the haunting vocal performances.

Repress

Hello Friends,
we are touched to finally present you Pampa Vol. 1! When we decided to go for a label compilation our main goal was: Every single song has to be a star! Almost 2 years we kept chasing and squeezing the best out of our good friends and admired artists until we now finally got what we dreamed of in the beginning: A Firmament of Stars. All tracks have been produced exclusively for this compilation and haven't been released before! Enjoy!

Mighty fine 90's sounding electronica golden era album, for fans of early Warp, FSOL etc..

An edit-reissue of this gargantuan double cassette released back in 2014 under the Typhonian Highlife moniker, 'H.R. Giger's Studiolo' finds netherworld voyagerSpencer Clark at a particularlybeguiling conjunction of his labyrinthine-esque soundworld. With complete disregard for linear timelines and trajectories, 'H.R. Giger's Studiolo' finds both inspiration in the swiss master's vision and the Cenobite iconographypreviously exploredby Clark on Fourth World Magazine's 'Pinhead in Fantasia'. The CD Head Cenobite picture adorning the cover makes the connection more than apparent.

A sprawling, two and half hour excursion on the tape version, here properly edited down to the wax container, the first two volumes of 'H.R. Giger's Studiolo' are some of Clark's most mystifying recordings. A baroque odyssey through an hermetic maze of alien voices, warping sound effects, oneiric keyboards and a quasi-orchestral sense of space and dynamics, 'H.R. Giger's Studiolo' feels like an hallucinatory fever dream still unlike everything else, either from before or after. Time doesn't apply here, anyway.

Mastered by Rashad Becker
Artwork by Spencer Clark

Minds At Large comprise of Zak and Hoj from Watford, North London who were active between 1992 – 1997, releasing on their label Choicest Music. Most of their releases were white label only releases, some handwritten, others stickered. Each release was a limited pressing and since they debuted over 30 years ago, they have become hugely popular and collectable.

Here is out first release with the group – 4 tracks of hardcore/early jungle.

Only 350 pressed on an incredible marbled vinyl.

Multidisciplinary artist Jermay Michael Gabriel and producer Giovanni Isgrò team up as Plethor X to present a debut EP of anti-colonial resistance, an unfolding experiment in self-determination.

Colonial trauma has no linear trajectory, and neither does memory. It seeps and sinks into the fibres without a temporal pattern, crossing generations, back and forth between past, present and future. Plethor X channel the multifaceted dimensions of such phenomena, exorcising trauma through sound, embracing cultural legacies and collective memories as a form of healing.

The driving force behind the record is the Habesha musical tradition, distinctive of Jermay's childhood - samples of the masinko, an Ethiopian and Eritrean one-stringed instrument, are used extensively - transposed into rhythmic structures onto which Isgrò playfully grafts elements of footwork, ghetto house, as well as gqom and singeli—a space-time gateway of complicity and experimentation.

Plethor X's soundscapes are Afro-futurist ecosystems of explicit messages—'Don't use the N word' is distinctly heard in 'Negro'—coalesced with frenzied percussive textures built through destruction. With 'Bet' we experience Muna Mussie's hypnotic recitation of Tigrinya words drawn from a set of nursery rhymes and words emblematic of Eritrean culture. The voice of Mussie, who shares the same origins as Jermay, serves here as a vehicle to express a certain identity melancholia, the repetitive mode sounding like a soothing process of reconciliation. PAN-affiliated producer STILL makes his own contribution by reworking Plethor X's material in 'Fendika', raising the rhythmic tension with his signature colourful, plugged-in dancehall style.

That with Europe is a bridge to an indefensible continent, with a predatory, plundering nature, sold as 'civilisation'. In 'What You Mean', Isgrò and Jermay conspire against their own Eurocentrism, regurgitating it from within.

►Mastered by Giuseppe Ielasi, cover-art by Jermay Michael Gabriel, photo by Jim C. Nedd, layout by incepBOY.

►Limited Edition of 100, 140gr. black vinyl, Includes instant download code.





e 05: Fendika (STILL x Plethor X) [feat. STILL]

7"

Hamburg's long time standing Goth (Not Goth) / Rock (Not Rock) band outfit The Crystal Apes get a full on electronic remix treatment which has been dubplate tested and dancefloor proved by Intrauterin Recordings mastermind baze.djunkiii as a secret weapon on countless occasions over the past years, slowly and carefully building up towards a full vinyl release.
The A-side „I Can't Believe (baze.djunkiii meets The Crystal Apes 'Breakbeats Dream Of 92' Remix)“ hits dancefloors with an original Oldskool Rave / Breakbeat Hardcore vibe,
dramatic panorama strings and seductive vocals for the lighter and whistle crew.
Meanwhile the flipside „Broken End (baze.djunkiii meets The Crystal Apes 'When Time Decays There Is No Need For Architecture' Remix)“ brings forth a different flavor, fusing a blurred out, spatial, minimalist and heavily Dub-infused take on Bass Music / Post Dubstep with more dramatic dramatic string works and a surprisingly powerful Rock attitude for very
special moments on the dancefloor.
Initial pressing will be limited to 200 copies on black vinyl.

"ECHOES PART 1 and 2 scheduled for release on 17th of May is the first of three singles set to introduce the next album project of Ulrich Troyer - TRANSIT TRIBE - to be released later this year.

Featuring the jazz vibes of Flip Philipp of the Vienna Symphony Orchestra, "ECHOES" has all the resonance of pure gamelan in dub, stately, processional and instrumentally rhythmic with its sparser second part isolating contrasting pulses as the complexity unfolds and dazzles.

Twenty years in the making, now the fully developed vision of multi-instrumentalist Vienna-based Ulrich Troyer can be heard coming to its final fruition. The interface of electronics and the unique warmth of human interplay is apparent on this track as well as all the other sounds to be heard on the album where a remarkable array of new and old friends contribute to the proceedings. Thematically the album, as may be gathered from its title, is a clear appeal for humanity to be shown as the people of the world struggle to cope with increasing problems, whether caused by movement or lack of movement."

Steve Barker (DJ, Radio Presenter - On the Wire, BBC 1984 – 2023,

now Slack City Radio & reggae/dub columnist and contributor to The Wire)

Credits:

Flip Philipp: vibraphone, c-marimba

Ulrich Troyer: analog synthesizers, drum-machine, sampler, field recordings, dub effects

Written & arranged by Ulrich Troyer

Recorded by Ulrich Troyer at 4Bit Studio & 4Bit Bungalow except Vibraphone, C-Marimba recorded by Ulrich Troyer at Konzerthaus, Vienna

Mixed by Ulrich Troyer at 4Bit Bungalow, Vienna

Produced by Osman Murat Ertel & Ulrich Troyer

Mastering & Lacquer Cut by Kassian Troyer at Dubplates & Mastering, Berlin

Cover Drawing by Ulrich Troyer

Kindly supported by the City of Vienna (MA7 - Kultur), Federal Ministry Republic of Austria (Arts, Culture, Civil Service & Sport), SKE-FONDS (AT) & Amt für Kultur, Bozen (IT)

Special Thanks: Steve Barker, Osman Murat Ertel, Eva Kelety & Flip Philipp

Valentina Magaletti is an Italian-born, UK-based drummer, percussionist and composer. Her restless output over the last decade has pushed her CV to include a staggering whoʼs who of contemporary, rock, pop, jazz, electronic and experimental projects.

Limited to 600 copies worldwide on black vinyl with three sleeve colour variants: 300 x red, 200x green and 100 x blue (Blue is not available for wholesale). No particular cover colour guaranteed

While the world stood still in 2020, Londonʼs Café OTO offered Valentina the chance to record a solo project for their digital-only Takuroku imprint, and A Queer Anthology of Drums was born. Sales went through the roof and in 2021 the Chinese bié label acquired vinyl rights for a limited pressing. Only a handful of that pressing left Asia and now theyʼre selling for silly prices. Now Permanent Draft, the all-female label run by Valentina with Fanny Chiarello, is making this monumental document available worldwide.

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A Queer Anthology of Drums sees Valentina stepping out alone for the fi rst time with a confi dence that only a CV like hers could afford an artist. Valentina ʼs bold and broad approach to composition is immediately apparent. Her use of fi eld recordings, samples, and piano augment the arsenal of drums and percussion resulting in a deftly crafted suite that transcends what most of us would expect from a solo-drummer. Carefully weighted, and free from macho bombast, A Queer Anthology of Drums weaves its story through a range of infl uences and styles yet remains concise and almost understated.

Keen ears may alight on comparisons to Milford Graves, Harry Partch, or Stomu Yamashta, but this record really feels like itʼs the beginning of a new language weʼre hearing for the first time.

Following up on last year’s first EP by Chris Mitchell, Feral Colony continues to bring grimey cuts. 5 tracks of gutter realness for adventurous DJs only.

A1 Sons of Traders-Anybody Sons of Traders have concocted a distorted jackin banger to leadoff the record. Distorted acid lines, samples and chaotic drums create a frenzy in the tradition of the Sons of Traders Sound .

A2-Chupacabras- Pattern 3/1 Chupacabras delivers a high tempo techno banger complete with blown out 808s that run through an array of patterns over a thick baseline, brutal.

B1- Chris Mitchell-GAF Here label boss Chris Mitchell delivers a slow banger with a tweaked out bit crushed sound over drums that sound like they have been run through sandpaper.

B2- Blackmoon77- Thrash Dance In My Head As the title suggests, this one is a mental trip of samples, percussion and heavy samples float over a booming sub. A very personal melancholic mindfuck.

B3- Benni DF - Freundlich Veteran DJ, Berlin’s Benji DF concocts a wild synth experiment. Rescued from an old cassette, this is a sometimes stuttering flurry of synths over a bouncy bass sequence. Perfect to close this unconventional record.

ABRAN, the young French electronic music producer, presents 'Doppler'. This new EP is the fruit of new experiments in the studio. He has found a way to distort the sound and spatialise the instruments so as to immerse the listener in a unique sensory journey. The aim: to translate the famous scientific phenomenon of the Doppler effect into sound and image.

Embark on a journey that combines space observation, underwater movements, interstellar travel and extraordinary sensory phenomena... 'Doppler': new EP soon available in Dolby Atmos!