Pop & Rock Vinyl New Releases - News

Hurting, spiritually-charged, Creole genius from the island of Réunion in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar, recorded in the 1970s and 80s.
Gorgeous songs seamed with Eastern mysticism and the Romantic sublime — about childhood, eschatology, sufferation, fishing, favourite island haunts — explore the existential homesickness of the Creole wanderer, at the crossroads of African, Indian and European cultures.
Gently hypnotic percussion, Fender Rhodes, ngoni, two plastic bags rubbed together... A one-of-a-kind blend of blues, maloya and outernational roots, with strains of reggae, prog and free jazz.

Sold out on vinyl for six years, we are happy to present a limited re-issue of Chicago Underground Duo's Boca Negra album for Record Store Day 2016. The LP is limited to 500 copies worldwide, pressed on virgin vinyl and packaged in an uncoated stock jacket with paste-on photo art card and free download coupon.

Chicago Underground Duo has been part of a new generation of music improvisers that emerged in Chicago in the 1990's. Made up of cornetist Rob Mazurek (Exploding Star Orchestra, Isotope 217) and drummer Chad Taylor (Marc Ribot, Iron and Wine), Boca Negra is the duo's fifth release originally released in 2010. Sold out on vinyl since that time this limited edition vinyl re-issue is available for Record Store Day 2016. As with the previous four Duo records it contains both composed and improvised music. The recording contains powerful grooves along with ambient sound structures, folk song simplicity and polyrhythmic bursts of energy with lyrical melodic vignettes. It also combines high energy music with slow moving ballads. Boca Negra was recorded in Sao Paulo, Brazil at Rocha Studios making it the first record not created in Chicago. It is also the first record that contains a 'cover', that being Ornette Coleman's 'Broken Shadows'.

'More Early Pakistani Dance Music From Original 7" Vinyl 1965-1978' - The music on this compilation is quite different from the filmy music that was featured on the Karachi airwaves at the time. Bands like The Bugs, The Thunders, The Fore Thoughts, The Panthers, The Drifters, Incrowd, The Talisman, etc. played at parties, local hotels, dancehalls or wherever they were invited. They made the hip crowds take the dancefloor and move to the groove. Those were exciting days like we may never see them again.

'More Early Pakistani Dance Music From Original 7" Vinyl 1965-1978' - The music on this compilation is quite different from the filmy music that was featured on the Karachi airwaves at the time. Bands like The Bugs, The Thunders, The Fore Thoughts, The Panthers, The Drifters, Incrowd, The Talisman, etc. played at parties, local hotels, dancehalls or wherever they were invited. They made the hip crowds take the dancefloor and move to the groove. Those were exciting days like we may never see them again.

Das, was sich viele Fans und Anhänger von Macht-Rap über lange Zeit gewünscht haben, hat nun endlich
Form angenommen: ein Labelsampler, der es in sich hat. Acht Rapper haben sich zwei Wochen für ein
intensives Bootcamp im Hauptquartier in Stuttgart zurückgezogen, um als eingeschworene Einheit eine Platte
zu produzieren. Das Ziel: einen neuen Maßstab setzen. Nicht nur für das Label, sondern für die ganze Rapund vor allem Trap-Szene. Es sind insgesamt 29 Songs entstanden: 20 davon sind auf dem Standard-Album
"M8" enthalten, neun weitere gibt es exklusiv nur auf der Bonus-EP "NWO" in der limitierten Fan-Box. Neben
Macht-Oberhaupt Jaysus sind Acts wie Rapsta, Toon, Boysindahood (GoodG & Dieng), Davud, Mosenu &
Kell mit von der Partie. Allstar-Tracks sind auf dem Album ebenso enthalten wie Kollaborationen zwischen
einzelnen Künstlern und auch Solo-Stücke. "M8" ist kein Lückenfüller, um die Wartezeit für ein nächstes
Album zu überbrücken, "M8" ist ein starkes Statement: Es steht für die Gang und den Zusammenhalt: eine
machtvolle neue Allstar-Kombo. Die limitierte Fanbox enthält neben Album und exklusiver EP einen "M8"-
Bag, drei Sticker mit exklusiven Designs, von allen beteiligten Rappern unterschriebene Autogrammkarten,
ein DIN-A1-Poster und eine weitere exklusive CD mit den Instrumentals der Tracks zum selber Rappen oder
Mixen.

10 track Album from King Tubbys released by Dub Store Records

10 track Album from King Tubbys released by Dub Store Records

12 track Album from Lennie Hibbert released by Dub Store Records

12 track Album from Lennie Hibbert released by Dub Store Records

Wah Wah 45s are proud to present the new single to be taken from the hugely anticipated third album from arguably the UK's finest dub and reggae outfit, Resonators.

After a four-year hiatus - mostly spent tirelessly performing headline shows and festivals across the UK and Europe, as well as recording a plethora of new music - this almost peerless Brighton-based collective are ready to unleash their new material to an eager public in the shape of their third album, "Imaginary People".

The title track from the album is a feel good, dance floor friendly slice of sweet soulful reggae that comes complete with a dubbed out "A Future Time Version" courtesy of Darren 'JamTone' Mathers.

With a plethora of new songs under their belt, as well as what's becoming a very healthy catalogue of crowd pleasers from their last two albums, Resonators will be touring the UK and Europe this Autumn. Make sure you catch them as they're one of the finest live acts in this country right now!

Wah Wah 45s are proud to present the hugely anticipated new album from arguably the UK's finest dub and reggae outfit, Resonators.

After a four year hiatus - mostly spent tirelessly performing headline shows and festivals across the UK and Europe, as well as recording a plethora of new music - this almost peerless Brighton-based collective are ready to unleash their new material to an eager public in the shape of their third album, "Imaginary People".

Inspired by the meditative quality and universal appeal of Jamaican roots music the bandradiate a playful and unified stage presence. The two lead singers Kassia Zermon and FayeHouston wipe away the notion of the big-ego front man whilst Darren JamTone provides livedub effects, and the balance is set.

This fine balance is also apparent on the album where sonorous dub moments on tracks like "Come Through" and "Trees" are perfectly complemented by sweeter cuts like "Right Time" and "Swing Easy". As ever with Resonators though, it's the song writing that stands out, and album highlights "Papa Daddio" and the psychedelic "Healer" showcase this perfectly.

With a plethora of new songs under their belt, as well as what's becoming a very healthy catalogue of crowd pleasers from their last two albums, Resonators will be touring the UK and Europe this Autumn. Make sure you catch them as they're one of the finest live acts in this country right now!

Wah Wah 45s are proud to present the hugely anticipated new album from arguably the UK's finest dub and reggae outfit, Resonators.

After a four year hiatus - mostly spent tirelessly performing headline shows and festivals across the UK and Europe, as well as recording a plethora of new music - this almost peerless Brighton-based collective are ready to unleash their new material to an eager public in the shape of their third album, "Imaginary People".

Inspired by the meditative quality and universal appeal of Jamaican roots music the bandradiate a playful and unified stage presence. The two lead singers Kassia Zermon and FayeHouston wipe away the notion of the big-ego front man whilst Darren JamTone provides livedub effects, and the balance is set.

This fine balance is also apparent on the album where sonorous dub moments on tracks like "Come Through" and "Trees" are perfectly complemented by sweeter cuts like "Right Time" and "Swing Easy". As ever with Resonators though, it's the song writing that stands out, and album highlights "Papa Daddio" and the psychedelic "Healer" showcase this perfectly.

With a plethora of new songs under their belt, as well as what's becoming a very healthy catalogue of crowd pleasers from their last two albums, Resonators will be touring the UK and Europe this Autumn. Make sure you catch them as they're one of the finest live acts in this country right now!

Described as "Brighton's Lee Scratch Perry", reggae producer/DJ/remixer RICHIE PHOE drops his debut album on Canada's BALANCED RECORDS. Includes the out of print "BUMPY'S LAMENT", his cut from 2008 "EYES ON THE PRIZE" featuring TIPPA IRIE and "HATE TO LOVE" with EARL 16. Being repressed.

Bonus 7' (Only W/ First 1000 Copies). A legendary, ultra-rare afrobeat killer, restored and presented for the first time in wide release! LP Includes bonus 7' disc featuring the rare 1972 single SON OF THUNDER' b/w ALUPANDU-GBE' limited to 1000 copies. It's 1968 and Fela is in tears. Fela Kuti, the genius of afrobeat. The champion of the people. Fabled for unflinchingly staring down the barrels of state tyranny, enduring beatings within an inch of his life from government stormtroopers and then getting on stage to mock his tormenters in song. Fela the fearless, Fela the invincible. Fela who they call Anikulapo— he who carries death in his pocket.' What insurmountable catastrophe could have reduced this formidable titan of African music to tears Ojo Okeji leaving his band, that's what. From the liner notes, by renowned Nigerian music historian Uchenna Ikonne. In the early years of Fela Kuti's career, well before he would define the genre of afrobeat, and leave an indelible mark on the musical landscape, he was a struggling trumpet player, seeking to redefine the sound of his current group, the art-jazz ensemble Fela Ransome-Kuti Quintet. As he moved his group towards the then-popular genre of highlife in 1963, he lost his bassist in the move towards commercial success, but gained the company of Ojo Okeji, who had a sterling reputation both as a bassist and percussionist in groups like Lagos Cool Cats, Rex Williams' Nigerian Artistes, and Western Toppers Highlife Band, a favorite of Kuti's. Okeji impressed Kuti with his deft jazziness on the bass, so he was in on the spot, and the Fela Ransome-Kuti Quintet became Koola Lobitos. It was Okeji that introduced Kuti to the famed percussionist Tony Allen, (Who would subsequently join Kuti into his greatest years as an artist) as well as conguero Abayomi "Easy" Adio. During his time in Koola Lobitos, Okeji not only contributed deeply melodic, and adeptly rhythmic baselines, but brought his own influence from emerging US soul artists like James Brown & The Famous Flames and Wilson Pickett, heavily pushing Koola Lobitos towards a more soulful direction. This push was often resisted by Kuti, who frequently clashed with Okeji. 1968 proved to be a turning point for the group, as the Nigerian Civil War broke out, and many starving musicians turned to the military for work. Okeji and Adio would leave for the army, while Kuti and Allen kept Koola Lobitos going, where it evolved through different names and iterations and grew into the worldwide afrobeat force that made Kuti an icon during the 70s and 80s. But as Kuti and Allen rose to global recognition, Okeji and Adio would form a new band within the ranks of the 6th Infantry Brigade of the Nigerian Army. Their emblazoned blue jackets earned them the nickname "The Blues', but Okeji preferred the name Shango' after the Yoruba thunder god. Shango took the fundamentals of Kuti's famous afrobeat and brought new layers of guitar and horn arrangements, while often invoking supernatural aesthetics, and maintaining a love for the US soul artists that influenced Okeji so much. Because Shango was an army band however, their records were not readily available to anyone outside of the military so their music, including their eponymous 1974 LP, remained relatively unknown even amongst the people of Nigeria. Decades later Comb & Razor is thrilled to present this long-lost Nigerian gem for the first time to a world-wide audience.

A legendary, ultra-rare afrobeat killer, restored and presented for the first time in wide release! LP Includes bonus 7' disc featuring the rare 1972 single SON OF THUNDER' b/w ALUPANDU-GBE' limited to 1000 copies. It's 1968 and Fela is in tears. Fela Kuti, the genius of afrobeat. The champion of the people. Fabled for unflinchingly staring down the barrels of state tyranny, enduring beatings within an inch of his life from government stormtroopers and then getting on stage to mock his tormenters in song. Fela the fearless, Fela the invincible. Fela who they call Anikulapo— he who carries death in his pocket.' What insurmountable catastrophe could have reduced this formidable titan of African music to tears Ojo Okeji leaving his band, that's what. From the liner notes, by renowned Nigerian music historian Uchenna Ikonne. In the early years of Fela Kuti's career, well before he would define the genre of afrobeat, and leave an indelible mark on the musical landscape, he was a struggling trumpet player, seeking to redefine the sound of his current group, the art-jazz ensemble Fela Ransome-Kuti Quintet. As he moved his group towards the then-popular genre of highlife in 1963, he lost his bassist in the move towards commercial success, but gained the company of Ojo Okeji, who had a sterling reputation both as a bassist and percussionist in groups like Lagos Cool Cats, Rex Williams' Nigerian Artistes, and Western Toppers Highlife Band, a favorite of Kuti's. Okeji impressed Kuti with his deft jazziness on the bass, so he was in on the spot, and the Fela Ransome-Kuti Quintet became Koola Lobitos. It was Okeji that introduced Kuti to the famed percussionist Tony Allen, (Who would subsequently join Kuti into his greatest years as an artist) as well as conguero Abayomi "Easy" Adio. During his time in Koola Lobitos, Okeji not only contributed deeply melodic, and adeptly rhythmic baselines, but brought his own influence from emerging US soul artists like James Brown & The Famous Flames and Wilson Pickett, heavily pushing Koola Lobitos towards a more soulful direction. This push was often resisted by Kuti, who frequently clashed with Okeji. 1968 proved to be a turning point for the group, as the Nigerian Civil War broke out, and many starving musicians turned to the military for work. Okeji and Adio would leave for the army, while Kuti and Allen kept Koola Lobitos going, where it evolved through different names and iterations and grew into the worldwide afrobeat force that made Kuti an icon during the 70s and 80s. But as Kuti and Allen rose to global recognition, Okeji and Adio would form a new band within the ranks of the 6th Infantry Brigade of the Nigerian Army. Their emblazoned blue jackets earned them the nickname "The Blues', but Okeji preferred the name Shango' after the Yoruba thunder god. Shango took the fundamentals of Kuti's famous afrobeat and brought new layers of guitar and horn arrangements, while often invoking supernatural aesthetics, and maintaining a love for the US soul artists that influenced Okeji so much. Because Shango was an army band however, their records were not readily available to anyone outside of the military so their music, including their eponymous 1974 LP, remained relatively unknown even amongst the people of Nigeria. Decades later Comb & Razor is thrilled to present this long-lost Nigerian gem for the first time to a world-wide audience.

21 track Album from Various Artists released by Dub Store Records

16 early vocal & jazzy tunes from the Golden Age of Jive & Kwela in South Africa. Released originally on fragile shellac discs only. Shellac is a very delicate material but the music survived thanks to the archives of ILAM. A truly great source of South African music is being preserved here for new generations, to inspire young and hopeful musicians and singers from all over the world. 180gram vinyl.These pearls of musical genius were recorded in the glory years of jive and kwela, the years 1940-1965 . On side A it is not difficult to recognise the similarities to American popular music like R&B and small combo close harmony singing.
But most of all notice that typical South African swing, that jive, that incredible smooth form of African jazz on side B; Kwela!
The rarest and most treasured finds are collected here, some with the original spoken intro's, 'sketches' as these were called. Characteristic conversations between the musicians, often in a humoristic slang, always extremely funny.
Now available as the fourth issue in the series 'Township Jive & Kwela Jazz'.

20 track Album from Various Artists released by Dub Store Records

Western Saharan musician/activist Aziza Brahim's new album Abbar el Hamada (Across the Hamada), is a commanding and compassionate musical statement about, and for, the tumultuous age in which we live.

Raised in a Saharawi refugee camp in the Algerian desert, and living in exile for more than two decades (first in Cuba and currently in Barcelona), Brahim's life and music embodies both the tragedies and hopes of the present-day migrant and refugee experience. As walls and borders are again being raised though-out Europe and other corners of the world, Aziza Brahim's passionately sung poetic defiance, is especially timely and profound.
Brahim's previous album, the resplendent Soutak, made great strides towards spreading her message of liberation and resistance. Soutak spent an unprecedented three months atop the World Music Charts Europe, and was the chart's top album for 2014. The album was also selected as one of Songlines magazine's "Top Ten" albums of the year and appeared on several other year-end critics lists. An appearance on the legendary BBC television program Later with Jools Holland further cemented her growing reputation. Buoyed by this success, Aziza and her band toured extensively in Europe and beyond.

Recorded in Barcelona in the summer of 2015 with Soutak producer Chris Eckman (Bassekou Kouyate, Tamikrest), Abbar el Hamada, is a wholly persuasive example of Brahim's pan-musical vision and is her most compelling and varied album to date. "It is meant to be a diverse, powerful album," she says, "where Saharawi traditional rhythms (such as Asarbat and Sharaa) are mixed with drums and rhythms from West Africa (particularly Senegal) and of course Mediterranean sounds and rhythms also."

Hamada is the word used by the Saharawi people to describe the rocky desert landscape along the Algerian/Western Saharan frontier where tens of thousands of their people are stranded in purgatorial refugee camps. "For me, Abbar el Hamada (Across the Hamada) is a title that synthesizes our destiny as a country over the last 40 years", Aziza explains. "We are suffering an injustice that condemns us to try and survive in an environment as inhospitable as the Hamada."

Lar De Maravilhas is the 2nd studio album from Brazilian prog-rock group Casa Das Máquinas, originally released in 1975. Though their debut release lacked ambition and personality, that was not the case with their sophomore release; this album is a truly mesmerizing work of prog mastery. Drawing pop influence from The Beatles, of course, but filtered through a crunchy, guitar heavy prog sound that is indebted to Procol Harum, Yes, Genesis, and Camel, and, of course, the Brazilian heroes Os Mutantes. One of the better examples of Brazilian prog of the '70s, Lar De Maravilhas has been out of print on vinyl for the more than 4 decades since its initial release.

Clearly influenced by Black Sabbath and other heavy European rock of the early '70s, the Argentinian outfit Color Humano would release 3 albums in the span of 2 years before disbanding in 1974. This, their second LP, appropriately titled Color Humano II, is considered by many to be their best. Featuring the kind of funky drum work often found in South American hard-rock and a ripping frontman who wields a mean axe, this is one of the absolutely highlights of Argentinian hard rock of the 1970s, back in print on vinyl for the first time in 40+ years.

2 track Single from David Isaacs released by Dub Store Records

2 track Single from Garnett Silk released by Roof

A progressive folk-rock outfit from the Basque region of Spain, this is their self-titled debut from 1977. A five-piece group heavily influenced by the classic British folk-rock of the late 60s/early 70s, Haizea also takes melodic influence from their native country, creating a truly unique sound that is largely unmatched before or since.

Funky, progressive, and distinctly Brazilian, Têrço's second long player, originally released in 1973 is a long sought after classic of Brazilian rock. With a guitar tone straight out of the heaviest of UK rock of the time, and a drummer that would make every beat junkie drool, it's no wonder Têrço have been sampled by folks like Madlib and this record fetches huge sums in the original pressing. A classic piece of funky Brazilian progressive rock that's been out of print for far too long.

From the sweltering tropical depths of Cali, Colombia Will 'Quantic' Holland's studio
band Los Miticos Del Ritmo (The Mythics of Rhythm) return with an album of hip shaking, dancefloor quaking instrumental cumbias. Released on CD, LP and download on the 30th April. The LP is 100% analogue and comes
with an original screen-printed front cover designed by the London based artist Lewis Heriz.

Wolf Muller and Cass. have a new album coming on International Feel as part of our ongoing mini album series. Their album follows two highly regarded releases from Len Leise and CFCF and they haven't let us/you/or anyone down.

Jan Schulte is Wolf Muller. He makes music to dance to and then he likes to pick things up and bang them. He makes funky German sounds from jews harps and odd items that you wouldn't expect. He is like an underground German version of Herbert (but with more groove in his bones). Cass. makes soundscapes that melt your bones and take you elsewhere. Together they are a pretty formidable duo.

YAA AMPONSAH

Limited high quality pressing with handmade silk screen company sleeve. 500 copies only.

Nobody will dance the boogaloo like you do! Certainly not once you have these two steaming dance floor fillers in your record box. Grab your copy while you can.

Into The Labyrinth" erschien ursprünglich 1993 als sechstes Album von Dead Can Dance. Es wurde die
erfolgreichste Veröffentlichung der Gruppe um Lisa Gerrard und Brendan Perry. Der Titel verweist auf die
griechische Sage von Theseus, der in das Labyrinth ging, um den Minotaurus zu töten. Gleichzeitig markiert
es auch einen Einschnitt im Werk der bis heute wegweisenden Band: Perry und Gerrard schrieben ihre
Songs erstmals unabhängig voneinander und auf verschiedenen Kontinenten, spielten das Album allerdings
komplett ohne Gäste nur zu zweit ein - ebenfalls ein Novum. Danach nahmen die beiden Australier SoloArbeiten und andere Projekte in Angriff, es erschien nur noch ein gemeinsames Studio-Album bis zum Jahr
2012, als sie sich mit "Anastasis" zurückmeldeten. Entwickelt und produziert hat Brendan Perry "Into The
Labyrinth" in seinem Quivvy Church Studio in Irland, wo er bis heute arbeitet. Waren Dead Can Dance zu
Anfang ihrer Karriere oft mit dem Klangbild ihrer Aufnahmen unzufrieden, haben sie hier das Optimum
erreicht. Die neu aufgelegte Doppel-LP ist wie die CD-Version noch immer audiophile Referenzgröße. Zudem
wurde den atemberaubend schönen Klängen ein brandneues Cover-Artwork und eine veränderte Titelfolge
mit auf den Weg durch den Irrgarten gegeben.

Das Polit- und Performancekollektiv Schwabinggrad Ballett startete im Frühjahr 2014 die Zusammenarbeit mit
Lampedusa, einem Zusammenschluss von Menschen verschiedener afrikanischer Länder, die vor dem
libyschen Bürgerkrieg nach Hamburg geflüchtet sind und hier bis heute für ihr Bleiberecht kämpfen. Während
Performances und politischen Interventionen in zahlreichen Städten entstanden rohe Musikentwürfe. Sie
umrahmten Agitprop-Lehrstücke und konfrontierten Demos mit experimenteller Tanzmusik, gespielt auf
straßentauglichen Instrumenten wie schrottigen Schlagzeugteilen, analogen Synthesizer, Melodica,
Glockenspiel oder Conga. Im Winter 2015/16 mieteten sich Schwabinggrad Ballett und die inzwischen aus
dem Lampedusa-Kontext entstandene Performancegruppe Arrivati in einer ausgebauten Scheune in
Brandenburg ein. Hier entstand in einer kommuneartigen Atmosphäre in sieben Tagen und Nächten die Basis
für "Beyond Welcome". Das Album handelt von Grenzen, vom Zusammenkommen jenseits einer
Willkommenskultur und vom Durchhalten ohne Papiere, aber auch von Jazz, Postpunk, elektronischer AfroKraut-Musik und genialem Dilettantismus.

Franco Chiari, born in 1927 in Naples, was an eclectic artist who is considered a bit of a wildcard of keyboard instruments: he played the piano, accordion, synthesizer, vibraphone and marimba in both jazz and symphony. For three consecutive years (1957/58/59) he won the National Jazz referendum, was vibraphonist in the national TV Orchestra and participated in numerous important broadcasts. He received many awards in his career, and numerous are the artists who have wanted to play live alongside him, including Lionel Hampton, Stéphane Grappelli, Django Reinhardt, Piero Piccioni, Armando Trovajoli, Lelio Luttazzi, and more.

In this album released in 1973, the most groovy in his career, and now the most wanted from collectors, he rearranges the compositions of Mario Bertolazzi electronically with the use of synthesizer on rhythms ranging from latin beats to funk.

Numbered limited edition with digital downloads included and an amazing cover with splashes of paint, making each copy unique and unrepeatable.

This 1975 album is a studio session organized by Maestro Giacomo Dell'Orso (the husband of Edda) here released under his given name and not the Oscar Lindok pseudonym under which he made a number of recordings including The Fine Machine. This album had the simple purpose of a fun and playful session without preconceived models.

The result is a carefree album, from the friendly cover (Orso means Bear) to the music that is interwoven with bossa nova, samba, jazz and funk in a style that recalls in many ways the work of Maestro Piero Piccioni.

Dell'Orso plays organ, electric piano and Bulisacchio (a synth with metal slats that simulate bass), Nino Rapicavoli on flute and sax, Jimmy Tamborelli on guitars and Ciro Cocozza on percussion.

Limited edition LP + download card.

Far Out Recordings presents the peerless and criminally undervalued Quartin catalogue, beginning with the reissue of Jose Mauro’s forgotten masterpiece Obnoxius. Over the course of the 60s, Roberto Quartin released more than 20 albums in Brazil on his label Forma, by artists including the likes of Eumir Deodato and Quateto Em Cy. Selling the rights of Forma to Polygram in 1969, Quartin struck out for pastures new at the dawn of the 1970s with the launch of his self-titled label. Significant works and high-water marks for Brazilian music overall followed in that decade’s first year, with Victor Assis Brasil Plays Antonio Carlos Jobim and the aforementioned Obnoxius. These singular gems in Brazilian music, difficult to categorise yet compellingly haunting, have for too long gone unheard.

Today, very little is known about Jose Mauro and as a result those searching for some kind of insight on the man behind the music must attempt to glean what they can from the music itself. One rumour claims he died in a car accident shortly before the album’s release, a fact that could have lent his brief musical career a touch of mythology were it not for how scant the details concerning any other aspects of his life are. The political turmoil from which the album emerged is significant also; recorded during an era of oppressive state censorship, the album, like all the Quartin catalogue, is the result of steadfast defiance in the face of a crushing military dictatorship. While many musicians of the era fled the country, preferring their prospects in the affluent, liberated USA, rebellious, young musicians like Mauro chose to stay and reflect their anger at the authorities through thinly veiled protest songs such as the stirring ‘Apocalipse’. Herein lies the basis for a more dramatic theory; that Mauro was in fact abducted by the military! Whatever the truth, the mystery remains unsolved, and all that remains is his bewitching music, all of which is composed by Mauro and Ana Maria Bahiana. Production on the record was cancelled after Mauro’s death and it was never sold commercially until its rerelease decades later. What appeal does Mauro’s music hold to today’s listeners, forty-something years removed from its conception? Simply put, there is very little else that sounds much like it all. Take the title track of ‘Obnoxius’. A wholly singular piece of music, blending string-drenched melancholia with orchestral pomp, sunny psychedelic strumming with propulsive percussion, topped off with Mauro’s yearning vocals. The result is indicative of Mauro’s unique blend of sounds from Latin Jazz and samba to psychedelic folk and baroque orchestration.

Today, Obnoxius retains its strange, otherworldly appeal – A firm favourite amongst a small circle of deep diggers including Madlib, Gilles Peterson, Floating Points. Jose Mauro’s mournful and melancholic vocals create a dark, brooding atmosphere that stands in contrast to the usual joyfulness and high-spirited rhythm of the more prominent Brazilian music of the era. Despite this air of foreboding, Mauro’s confident baritones, chord patterns and sumptuous arrangements have the ability to induce in the listener an almost trance-like state of ecstasy. Mauro’s long hidden masterpiece, a complex and uniquely stunning work is being offered the chance to be heard by the wider audience it has always deserved. A second Jose Mauro release, A Viagem Des Horas, compiling more incredible tracks unreleased in Mauro’s lifetime, will follow, alongside other unreleased jewels from the Quartin catalogue, from the likes of Piri and Victor Assis Brasil…

Behind this incredibly rare 1973 album lurks CAMPO DI MARTE (the highly regarded Italian progressive rock band) in their second incarnation. After the release of their debut album the group performed at numerous concerts but only released this one album under the pseudonym of THE PHYSICIANS. They were called by the producer Giuseppe Cassia in Rome to record this album, which was produced in a day, and it's amazing to feel the harmony between the band members, all from Livorno and led by the excellent guitarist Enrico Rosa who the following year would be transferred abroad in Denmark in order to better express his art.

There are many memorable jazz-rock tracks on the album that recall the British band Nucleus, such as "Jazz in the Cellar", "My girl from Harlem" and "East Side Rhythm" but with a unique and personal style.

The band, besides the aforementioned Enrico Rosa, included Loriano Berti, nicknamed whistle, coming from Capitolo 6 on sax and flute, Andrea Colli on drums (who in the future would also collaborate with Demetrio Stratos) and Sergio Ducilli on electric bass.

Limited edition LP + download card.

2 track Single from Hopeton Lewis released by Dub Store Records

2 track Single from Lynn Taitt And The Jets released by Dub Store Records

Manchester-based duo Shield Patterns return on September 2nd with a new album entitled Mirror Breathing. Released on band member Richard Knox's own Gizeh Records label, Mirror Breathing follows on from the critically acclaimed debut album Contour Lines in 2014 and 2015's Violet EP.
Where it's predecessors took a more stark, electronic and processed approach, Mirror Breathing is an altogether warmer, more cinematic record. The cello of guest collaborator Julia Kent (Antony & the Johnsons / The Leaf Label) introduces a new element and a new energy to the sound, pulling the songs into a more symphonic form. The electronics, drones and field recordings are intricately and painstakingly arranged by the duo, meandering between haunting vocal passages, clarinet swells and delicate synth phrases. The album ebbs and flows through hypnotic beats (Dusk, Blue Shutters, Glow), ethereal and tender piano-led songs (Bruises, Anymore) to more aggressive, heavily experimental, free-jazz elements (Balance & Scatter).
Continuing the fiercely DIY ethos adopted by both band and label, Mirror Breathing has been written, recorded and produced in its entirety by Claire Brentnall and Knox in their home studio in the Peak District. The record is both personal and universal, an exploration in sound and songwriting. The music Shield Patterns are making is difficult to place into genres or pigeon-holes. Experimental sounds are married to striking, inventive melodies throughout, it's contemporary pop music of sorts with a richly detailed cosmic edge.
Some words from Claire about the album:
"The album for me is about feeling connected, exploring what it means to be a friend, to be in love, to be an individual, to be part of a collective unconscious. It's about the beauty of imperfection, of making mistakes, and the discoveries that are made by chance as we learn to exist."

2 track Single from Soul Brothers released by Dub Store Records