180g black vinyl Star Birth and downloadcode for "Star Birth" and "Star Death". Gatefold.
'Star Birth' is a flung fisherman's net, mighty in scope, irrevocable as looking up from the stone floor of a cathedral – there is space, yet there is profound intimacy from the immediacy of the lyrics, our thoughts rattling around like panicky goldfish. Race has taken aspects of areas
previously explored, and made a quantum leap into the unknowable. With opening track Can't Make This Up, the gauntlet is flung down – 'what is need, what is greed / it's a new crush, the brain trust/ hive mind rewrite rewind/ falsehood streaming'
'Star Birth' is international maverick and music icon Hugo Race's 15th album with his band of True Spirits. It's a double album and the twin album's name is 'Star Death'. Star Birth was recorded during Australia's bushfire summer apocalypse of 2019 and mixed as the 2020 covid-19 pandemic hit. When the stars align it all makes sense, Hugo explains, adding that one oceanic evening while writing the album a bright star exploded right before his eyes, the sign of a sudden end and a new beginning...
Hugo's writes of trials, tribulations, hopes, fears, heartaches, loves, losses, highs and lows – 'everyday I die a little bit more, in a thousand ways I fight my little wars – and he sings with exquisite pathos and depth, like he's singing just for you about the times in which we live –
political disasters, our planet, the absence and the presence of spiritual values, broken promises, cracked hearts and if any of it really matters anyway. With hell raising lyrics like,Expendable, you'd have to wonder if anyone of us will make it through alive – 'hey sister, are
we all expendable? nobody wins, but so many of you think they do / don't try to fool yourself people, deep down you know the truth - everybody gets their one hot shot but no one's bullet proof'. But then The Rapture reminds us that there will always be stars dying in the glory of
new life – 'give us this day comfort and bread / implant in us the living word / empower us with divine love and deliver us from evil / for you are the one true light / the power and the glory / forever /amen'
Hugo's True Spirit deliver a lush, sonic love letter of rock, electronica and dramatic orchestration, based in blues, hypnotic repetition and sonic exhilaration. Michelangelo Russo is a huge part of this atmosphere; his approach to music is that of an artist with a palette of
mysterious implements and machinery, but the entire band and production is incredible from start to finish. Star Birth is 48 minutes of mind expanding, mind blowing, heel tapping tunes, with its sister album 'Star Death', a dub version of remixes that will send you searching for
your own exploding star somewhere in the sky…
Electro Transmissions 003, nothing to say about this assassin called Electro Nation that you don't already know. This EP contains four tracks produced during the lockdown, each track is full of analog synths, drum machines and vocoder. Very limited units, this time on splatter colored vinyl, packed in a really nice way as we have come to know by the Fundamental crew!
Timeless periods of industrial rhythm: Diarmaid O Meara and Kucera collaborate to release ‘Shadowmen’ vinyl on Gobsmacked Records
Nightclubs around Europe are shut. Even in Berlin, the clubbing capital of the world, nightlife has been reduced to a simmer. “But that doesn’t mean we can’t have a good time and connect via timeless periods of electrifying and industrial rhythms”, said Irish producer and DJ Diarmaid O Meara. Together with long-time Gobsmacked techno stalwart Kucera, the two have dropped their latest vinyl ‘Shadowmen’.
The collaboration has derived from long sessions in the Gobsmacked cavern studios in Berlin. The result: A 12” that is laid out in the style of the perfect rave – with a breakbeat electronica entry that promotes procrastination, freakish, and intensely introverted thoughts created through pulsating rhythms and ghostly frequencies, industrial rave sounds for those moments of release.
Partying is a huge part of Berlin’s identity
By listening to the vinyl featuring a dark rhythm, it becomes obvious that the duo has been heavily influenced by underground techno nights in Berlin, and also regularly sharing the stage together at international events. With the pandemic-mandated closure of clubs stretching through the summer, however, playing gigs and festivals is no longer an option. Hence, illegal parties have sprung up to fill the gap and infuriated some public health officials and politicians, also in Berlin.
“Partying is still a huge part of the city’s identity”, continued Diarmaid O Meara who has been living in Berlin for over a decade and also organising parties all over the city. “Raves are a much-needed way to blow off steam after a period of isolation but we have to consider a more proactive approach, for instance district authorities making public spaces available to party organisers under conditions that ensure hygiene measures are maintained.”
Although there has been no shortage of digital music events either since the pandemic began, clubbing is more than just watching a DJ set. “Rather it’s about the unique space that’s created by artists and the crowd that are pulled together by music”, said Kucera who has been destroying dance floors across Europe with his live sets since 2004. “In times when people are still feeling more isolated than ever, our latest vinyl with the accompanying music video aims to bring a sense of connectedness and community during the lockdown.” The video imagery has been recorded live using Kuceras machine pattern triggering whilst performing the tracks live.
Unwavering dedication to the culture of counter-culture
The name ‘Shadowmen’ reflects the work both artists have contributed constantly and consistently to the scene over the past two decades with unwavering dedication to the culture of counter-culture. The artwork, in classic Gobsmacked style, comes with a tip of the cap to the global elite who have been successfully driving humanity off a cliff. “We’ve thrown a little apparent illuminati symbol in there for those who’ve been confined too long at home and on YouTube for the past 6 months”, said Diarmaid O Meara.
Both artists are working on a multitude of new tracks and events for the post-Covid era. Of particular interest is Kuceras live visual show for Gobsmacked, with visuals triggered from his machine live-set patterns. This is something he has been wanting to experiment with for a long time now and it started to take shape in the form of visual hallucinations of industrial areas and trains he had been filming while traveling across Europe before the world stopped functioning properly due to Covid-19. Diarmaid O Meara has quite a few tricks up his sleeve, including a new politically inspired alias, where both artists will take centre stage in some wacky antics.
"Vapor City" ist das gefeierte Debütalbum von Travis Stewart als Machinedrum welches erstmals 2013 erschien und seit einigen Jahren nicht mehr erhältlich ist. Anlässlich der Veröffentlichung seines neuen Albums “A View Of U” veröffentlicht Ninja Tune eine limitierte Neuauflage des Klassikers auf goldenem Doppelvinyl mit Artwork von Dom Flannigan and Eclair Fifi.
"Vapor City" ist ein Moloch, eine Metropole entstanden in Travis Stewarts Träumen, die ihn schon ein Leben lang verfolgen. Immer wiederkehrende Träume brachten ihn so oft in diese imaginäre Stadt, so dass er diese Viertel für Viertel beschreiben kann und das illusorische Metropolis auch für seine Hörer endlich erfahrbar macht. Das Album ist eine detaillierte Stadtkarte aus Sound-Landschaften, die es jedem ermöglichen sich in "Vapor City" zurechtzufinden - oder auch darin verloren zu gehen. Nach Veröffentlichungen auf LuckyMe, Planet Mu, und Hotflush Records und seinem hochgelobten Album "Room(s)" aus 2011 bastelte Stewart nicht nur an Nebenprojekten wie JETS (mit Jimmy Edgar) oder etlichen Remixen, sondern auch an der Vertonung seiner Vision.
Techno boldness from the depths of Upstate New York. Mysterious L’estasi Dell’oro returns with eight mind-boggling machine songs. Twisted mechanical workouts, enchanted while driving hard like awakened nature recapturing unattended industrial structures. Circular melodies cut through the rectangular metallic clutter. This is the stuff to bring us back together. Following previous releases on Macro, Field, Flaneur Audio, Fifth Wall and Voodoo Down, Christopher Ernst leaves his Brooklyn phase behind and starts afresh with his first long-form release in five years.
Vanish is Julia Reidy’s yearning, fat debut for Editions Mego. Since 2019, Julia’s bubbling 12-string guitar work - sighing streams of crystal plucks drawn closer or echoing on - has moored a tactile, ever-lusher sound. On ‘Guitar’, the Australian, Berlin-based musician melts down sharp synths; electric fuzz and flex; uncanny found sounds; and autotuned voice and harmonica in a heady, overpowering potion.
Reidy’s music sweeps you up. It’s restless, always travelling on. Lonesome tones into machine chorales into hesitant hum. The LP’s side-long cuts sway between scenes but are always rooted: Julia’s guitar and vocal lines seem mapped to the natural ebb and flow of breath and thought, they lull you as they push through vast and secret spaces.
Vanish completes a trio of releases begun with last year’s ‘brace, brace’ (Slip) and ‘In Real Life’ (Black Truffle). The delicious unease, the anxious burning of the preceding volumes has settled, becoming more wide-eyed and resolute. For all its poise, the album’s sense of build - electric licks rasping into glistening synths, punctured by distant kicks - feels freshest. When 'Oh Boy'’s smudged whistle comes, it has fought its way out of the thickets, and hits like heartbreak.
The first vinyl release of 2020 on Nang, belongs to the Parisian producer and newcomer to the label, Kelton Prima. The veteran artist has been producing and Djing since the late 80's, also releasing under the alias of D_Tekt. Prima has released on the Belgian label Disco Praline, Chicago based imprint Mathematics Recordings, Pizzico Nobel and also has contributed remixes for Thieves Like Us and Plastique de Rêve among others. Along side him on this release features Hard Ton, the Italian artist, who released previously on NANG188. The duo deliver a cover version of Culture Club's 1983 hit, Miss Me Blind. The release sticks with a retro aesthetic, yet given a modern high impact make-over and features 4 edits.
The "Miss Me Blind" original takes you you on a voyage, straight to a dance floor worthy of the infamous New Dance Show in the late 80's. The upbeat, nu-disco grooves, with Solid bass lines (that later trans into squelchy acid affair) are counter balanced with Hard Tons sublime vocals. The Vintage drum machine sequence is perfectly matched with shimmering synths and guitar riffs.
Second on the release is the The Caribbean House "Vision". This edit takes things a little deeper with a modulating bass arpeggio, that pans across the stereo field. Spliced and pitched down vocal cuts feature in this version alongside chime bell melody and pads that creates a emotional ride.
DJ Rocca, the Italian producer a Nang Records regular, delivers a rhythmic and percussive remix. This is classic Rocca style with retro drum machine programming, and a variety of smooth and silky Italo synth patches. The final edit of "Miss Me Blind" consists of Club Domani's bouncy, bass heavy club version. This upbeat and energetic remix keeping things rolling with break-downs and snare filled drops.
b 02: Miss Me Blind (The Caribbean House Vision) feat. Hard Ton
[c] 03: Miss Me Blind (DJ Rocca Italo Vocal Remix) [feat. Hard Ton]
[d] 04: Miss Me Blind (Club Domani Remix) [feat. Hard Ton]
Following a stellar run of recent releases including best-of-year EPs from the likes of DJ Plead and DJ JM, Nervous Horizon are back with their first record of 2020 — a unique new collaborative EP by object blue and label co-head, TSVI. Out on September 25th, ‘Hyperaesthesia’ details four sweltering new club tracks — described by the pair as “body music” — that mesh together object blue’s widescreen, experimental club tones and TSVI’s borderless percussive styles. “I was curious to see how TSVI and I could merge our sounds, whether we could supplement each other without eclipsing one another, and I'm so happy with the result”, explains object blue. “I never thought I could write with somebody else but this happened so easily. It's been a liberating process, just a pure pursuit of fun, yelling in our chairs when we dropped the beat.” Inspired by ‘ever-present conversations about machines and sentience’, the EP’s mechanical crux plays out in the narrative of the tracks too; from a sense of machines ‘waking up’ on near 8-minute opener ‘Thought Experiment’ to the frantic, processing energy of ‘Turing Machine’. The record also comes complete with a special remix by Loraine James and vinyl-only bonus track, ‘Syntax’. ‘Hyperaesthesia’ follows a fruitful 12 months for both object blue and TSVI: Following the release of her breakthrough debut EP, ‘Do You Plan To End A Siege?’, for Tobago Tracks back in 2018, object blue has since become one of dance music’s most crucial new artists. As well as releasing her third, critically acclaimed EP last summer (‘FIGURE BESIDE ME’), she’s turned in remixes for everyone from Murlo to Seb Wildblood, been invited to record a BBC R1 guest mix for Benji B and performed live at Paris Fashion Week, after composing the music for Andreas Kronthaler for Vivienne Westwood SS20. object blue was also announced a SHAPE artist for 2020 earlier this year, alongside artists like Afrodeutsche, Rian Treanor, Jay Glass Dubs, Oli XL and more. TSVI’s upward trajectory shows no sign of slowing down either. From the release of his enchanting debut album ‘Inner Worlds’ in 2018, he’s since gone on to put out a series of game-changing records under his Anunaku moniker for both Nic Tasker’s AD93 label and Martyn’s 3024 imprint, including July’s ‘032’ — a joint EP written with DJ Plead. Alongside fellow co-heads Wallwork and Federico Ciampolini, he’s also overseen the rise of Nervous Horizon since the label’s inception in 2015, moulding it into of the UK’s trailblazing new-school dance labels.
Bridging the link between the drummer's hometown in Montana and the love of african rhythms, Beat Bronco Organ Trio offer us this sublime, lilting instrumental full of precussive warmth and mid-tempo syncopations.
This 2-part song is not featured on their recent Road Trip LP, but following hot on the theme of musical travellings. Departing from the land of the shining mountains and heading across continents to the sound of the twangy, rolling guitar, parts 1 & 2 are a delightful yet raw aural journey carried out across a live, 4-track tape machine.
Totally analog and fresh, as we often wish music could be.
The 80s owed everything to the punk revolution ... and betrayed it time and again.
ln 76-77, the incredible explosion of English-speaking bands focused the energies of a whole generation of Western youth - rebels ready to pick up a guitar and use it like a weapon. Yet more than punk music itself, it was the creative burst it triggered that radically shaped 80s pop and heralded an unending stream of inspired performers.
Although we often speak of the British and American golden age of post-punk from 78 to 84, with artists that included Talking Heads, Joy Division, PIL and Devo, France (together with Switzerland and Belgium) joined the movement too. Today, on a new album, the group Nouvelle Vague have paid tribute to this sumptuous "Frenchy" period clothed in the nihilism of punk, along with bitterness fuelled by the economic crisis and, paradoxically, the bewitching spirit of pop.
lts title, Couleurs sur Paris (Colours on Paris) is based on both a famous postcard collection and Oberkampf's 1981 punk anthem, and reflects the period, which oscillated between elation and despair. Written by artists sometimes known as "the modern young people" and including faux naïf electropop nursery rhymes by Elli & Jacno ("Anne cherchait l'amour", 1979), Lio ("Amoureux solitaires" , 1980)
and Etienne Daho ("Week-end à Rome", 1984), along with Lili Drop ("Sur ma mob", 1979) and Taxi Girl ("Je suis déjà parti", 1986), the songs clearly express the hopes and disappointments of the day.
The sense of melancholy suggested by the disenchanted lyrics of "Déréglée" - performed in 1977 by Marie-France, an icon of Paris nightlife - is even more noticeable on the 1981 hit by The Civils, who cynically sang, "Tonight, they're dying in Chad, but l'm buying my dream Walkman" before taking it to the chorus: "The economic crisis is fantastic, decadence is the right feel".
The punk shockwave con also be felt in the music of bands who radically shaped French culture and song. Like Rouen, with Les Dogs ("Sandy, Sandy", 1982), every provincial town and city in France began to produce bands at the end of the 70s and the start of the 80s. Wunderbach's 1983 punk pamphlet "Oublions l'Amérique" was a foretaste of what is now called alternative punk, a genre that won acclaim in 1988 with Mano Negra's "Mala Vida". Indochine, French pop legends for the last thirty years, also encouraged the trend in the summer of 1983 with "L'aventurier", after a first single brimming with the spirit of rebellion, "Dizzidence Politik".
Rita Mitsouko, the duo that emerged from the underground Parisian punk scene of the late 70s, rocketed to stardom in 1984 with "Marcia Baïla". Equally baroque, TC Matic - the first band fronted by Belgian singer Arno - released an ironic, political underground hit in 1983: "Putain, putain". Other artists fuelled a post-punk movement that explored the romanticism of machines and the darkness of new wave, including the cult, much-neglected duo from Nancy, Kas Product ("So Young but so Cold", 1982) and Switzerland's Stephan Eicher, whose "Two People ln A Room" (1985) followed on from "Eisbaer", a hit in a more underground style written with Grauzone in 1981. However, the genre's most influential practitioners were certainly Noir Désir. From their first single in 1987 ("Où veux-tu qu' je r'garde?"), they won mainstream success with their unique fusion of 80s gloom and power rock. Beyond from the meteoric success of Bordeaux's Gamine ("Voilà les anges", 1988) and the subversive spirit of Jad Wio ("Ophélie", 1989), French post-punk reached its climax with the success of Noir Désir, Rita Mitsouko, Stephan Eicher and Manu Chao, whose albums reigned supreme in the 90s French charts. From the underground scene to gold records: the eternal story of pop.
Washington collective, The 3 Pieces, privately-pressed Iwishcan William on their own DL Records in 1982. The 12 has Discogs, for one, confused. Is it soul, rap, jazz, go-go, funk, electro, or educational? By nature of its birthplace and date of birth, it`s all of those.
Synths shimmer in harp-like glissando. The bass grumbles, rumbles, machine-made. The beat pops and locks. The whole thing grooving and exuding positivity. One part the cosmic funk of say Cloud One`s Patty Duke. Another, the balearic chug of Will Powers` Adventures In Success. Like Brother D it looks to “agitate, educate, and organize”, and stirs in the sentiments of Razzy`s I Hate Hate. Imagine if the Last Poets jammed with sister Sarah Webster Fabio. Keys parp like car horns, a real trumpet blows a Don Cherry solo, but the track really revolves around its sweet Sesame Street call-and-response chorus:
“I wish love. I can love. I will love. I am love.”
Swiss gentleman DJ and Phantom Island resident, Lexx, produces a killer remix - smoothing out the OG`s jerky edges, upping its sophistication. Making clear the contributions of Lexx` new bubbling electronics. rescuing a clipped guitar, previously lost deep in the mix, and moving the children’s voices to the fore. Ensuring you’ll remember that
““I am” is the glory of a wish come true.”
Idjut Boy Dan Tyler then ties up the package, well he actually kinda sends it out into space - expanding everything in echo. NYC Peech Boys-esque delay. The result is a mind-blowing, psychedelic, almost ambient, Larry Levan-like, Paradise Garage dub. Where fragments of song fly at you from four corners. Trippily pan from left to right. The horn blasts now paying tribute to King Tubby`s Hi-Fi. François Kevorkian going bang!
All carefully mastered with love from the original master tapes by Sam Berdah at The Wall studios.
Etrusca 3D is a new band that merges two current Audio and visual artists from the 21st Century, Francesco Cavaliere and Spencer Clark.
The album is the first to be released by Spencer Clark's label Pacific City Discs, as a subsidiary and in collaboration with Discrepant.
‘’One cannot underestimate the result of stating the names of certain gods at high voices. Something that sinuous and quiet enters into this disc for you to listen. What if the Etruscan Civilization instead of transforming or amalgamating into the roman one, was instead passed on to other worlds? Were the tombs, their spiral idols and funeral decorations a meticulous method for transmuting to something else?
Etrusca 3D is the juxtaposition of two imagineers friendship, as Francesco says, 'because I am Etruscan and you (Spencer) are 3D." There is a piece of the future of Etruscan civilization contained within this disc. It is with Spencer's remote viewing of a past and future creative culture and Francesco's birthright that we find a true insinuation of civilizations world body.
We decided to invoke various Etruscan deities or spirits by sampling Francesco's voice uttering their name. We put them inside the Emax 2 3D machine and we began to play these deities and thus incorporate a fresh and ancient music language to present the 21st Century Etruscan experience. In the meantime, these musical stories turned into Francesco's imaginary storytelling style to further present a narrated record of the intuited activities of Etruscan Gods...’’ - Francesco Cavaliere & Spencer Clark
All songs by Spencer Clark & Francesco Cavaliere
Hot on the heels of their proud new charity project and first ever compilation ‘Freeride Millenium presents Queer Base’, this agenda setting label returns with an evocative new EP from Brazilian artist Rotciv, also appearing on vinyl in collaboration with Pauls Musique. DJing since 1996 and Berlin based since 2010, Rotciv has been playing places like the acclaimed Panorama Bar, Frankfurt’s legendary Robert Johnson club and the Cocktail D’Amore parties for many years. He runs Mister Mistery, a label focused on house music, while also releasing himself on Luv Shack, Unterton (Ostgut Ton) Skylax and many more. All this comes alongside his The Rimshooters project with Massimiliano Pagliara. He kicks off this fresh EP with ‘Number of Names’, a rugged roller on the border between house and techno with a phased bassline and rolling chords that get you in a meditative state. The more upbeat ‘Glutamate Transmission’ gets you shifting shapes with its daubs of acid, crisp percussive flashes and busy bassline, then ‘True Colour’ has an old school Chicago feel with its chatty claps and acid lines. The moods continue to evolve with style on ‘Bubbles The Chimp’, a tense cut of broken techno, futuristic machine sounds and lively synths. Beautiful ambient closer ‘Soundwaves’ is a lush comedown amongst the stars. This is a fully formed and journeying EP of fantastic underground sounds with artwork by Daniel Rajcsanyi.
We welcome to the Moustache Records family the oldskool electro legend Martin Matiske with his Electronic disco-ish 12 inch EP release "Robotic Theatre" This is a future vision of a theatre run by robots and is the era in which machines entertain mankind. Operas are written and played in a mechanical way. The pieces of "Robotic Theatre" deal with different terms of stage work. Track A1 is called "Acting Faces" and Refers to the rehearsing of the role, as well as the interaction of the actors on stage. The well-being of the actor does not often match what is played. He has to play even If it's painful. B2 is the track called "Machinery" Human beings are machines that build machines today. The advantage is perfection and time saving. Robots as actors are reliable and precise. B1 listen to the name "Transistor Dances"its Like The Hungarian Dances by Johannes Brahms you just need a dance to express happiness and remind your culture. Dances bring people together. A robotic dance should not be missing in a play. The last track of the EP is the tune "Practise" a story about a robot the has to practise to achieve perfection and it is fun." Don'tplay this underwater order now gone is gone.
DJ Lily returns to LILIES this August with the label's sixth release, featuring a collaboration with label partner Sailor Juul and remixes from Inhalt der Nacht and The Mountain Range.
DJ Lily launched the LILIES imprint in 2018 as a Techno focused sub-label of his BROR imprint and has since gone on to release five 12" releases of material from himself, Svagila, Sandra Mosh and Jor-El. Here the label continues with more material from Lily and introduces the debut collaborative material with Sailor Juul, who has now joined ship to run both Bror and Lilies alongside DJ Lily, the fellow Swedish artist features on the lead track here while more productions from the pair will follow soon on the label later this year.
"Bequem ft. Sailor Juul" leads, a high-octane 140BPM cut driven by menacing bass pulsations, dynamic drums, tension building resonance and murky vocal chants. Lebendig label boss and Monnom Black artist Inhalt der Nacht delivers his twist on "Bequem ft. Sailor Juul" next, bringing crunchy percussion, distorted synth sequences and airy pads into focus for a typically upfront workout from the Berlin-based artist.
DJ Lily's solo track "Safeword Tegnell" opens the flip side, fusing bubbling percussion, bumpy drums and 8-bit synth chimes throughout. Christoffer Berg returns under his The Mountain Range (Aniara Recordings) guise next to complete the package, the artist who is part of Robyn's band and was the synth programmer for Depeche Mode on the album Delta machine amongst other things delivers a truly unique take on "Safeword Tegnell", amusingly described by a friend as "Scooter meets Dopplereffekt at Tresor". Berg twists the original elements with psychedelic sound design, ever unfolding drum patterns and a mind-altering feel across its six-minute duration.
We're glad to be back with our latest reissue, a couple undercover soul gems from the Midwest originally self-released in 1984: LaVerne Washington's "The Promise" and "I Found What I've Been Searching For".
LaVerne has dedicated her life to the arts in every possible way. As an artist herself but also behind the scenes, helping and supporting her contemporaries fulfil their callings. Charlie Parker, Count Basie, Ella Fitzgerald, Mary Lou Williams - LaVerne grew up in Kansas City listening to the all time jazz greats, and soon discovered she was blessed with a keen sense for playing music by ear, playing the piano to what she would hear on the radio. In her teens whilst the 60s transitioned to the 70s' disco and funk era, LaVerne was there to witness it all, and she would go on to study music at the Charlie Parker Academy where she was inspired to become an entertainer.
At Langston University, LaVerne kept studying music where her career blossomed, founding and touring the US with the gospel group "Emery Shaw and the Voices of Praise", singing in several college bands and with her choir "The Voices Of Bethel". LaVerne would go on to perform notably with her bands "LaVerne Washington and Rococo" and the "LaVerne Washington Quartet", and record several songs in KC including "The Promise" and "I Found What I've Been Searching For" in 1984 before moving to Washington DC.
In DC, LaVerne was offered a position as a Program specialist with the National Endowment For The Arts where she started supporting other artists through her work. Over the next couple decades, LaVerne became an associate producer for the Rhythm and Blues Foundation and the Pioneer Awards Ceremonies held in New York, Philadelphia and Los Angeles, which saw the likes of Prince, Aretha Franklin and Jerry Butler attending among others. She has also managed and was mentored by DeeDee Sharp and consulted with artists including Bonnie Raitt (who acted as a mentor to Laverne as well), Kim Weston, Kathy Sledge (SisterSledge), Smokey Robinson and G.C Cameron (Spinners). During that time, LaVerne has kept singing, on her own and as a backing vocalist for DeeDee Sharp and Freda Payne and has never stopped her lifelong dedication to music and the Arts.
The Promise original 7" was LaVerne's last recording in Kansas City before her move to DC and the beginning of her involvement behind the scenes. Channelling her gospel roots - with impeccable arrangement, a contagious drum machine led rhythm section, soaring vocals and relatable lyrics, "The Promise" is guaranteed to bring back smiles to dancefloors and living rooms alike! "I Found What I've Been Searching For" on the flip is a beautiful soul ballad which really showcases the strength and emotion in LaVerne's voice.
Back again in it's original 7" format, we've had the audio transferred and restored from the original 24 track tape provided by LaVerne, and got the recordings re-mixed for the best possible sound! Floating Points behind the mixing desk for this new iteration of a lost classic, comes with a 14"x14" poster of the original picture
2x12"
Radio Matrix returns! In the strangest of times a somewhat prophetic message reached us. A message delivered by Immediate Proximity, a collaborative project by Diana Napirelly & Niels Luinenburg, known for his output as Delta Funktionen. Their message comes in the shape of an album called '2334'. It covers nine tracks that perfectly act as the soundtrack for our society during COVID-19 times. With tracks and titles like The Apocalyptic Techno Cult, Broken Ether, Clone Morph or Skynet Skanner, we find our self on the brink of a new era where machines and algorithms have taken over humanity. Metallic beats kick hard and eerie melodies are placed against rhythms that remember us of ancient tribes carrying out ritualistic dances in order to try to escape the machine world. Fortunately, behind this somewhat dark and apocalyptic mood a strong statement appears and calls for hope and experience. It gives the listener a path to look beyond the horizon. This release is limited to 150 copies. Printed on 350g incada silk paper with high UV gloss varnishing. Includes a sticker sheet.
A memorable name with an outstanding cover, Fuzzy Duck is a classic slice of underground London art rock and melodic psychedelia. Originally released on MAM in 1971, it’s truly a musical force of infectious riffs and fiery solos, sharp tempo changes, a tight rhythm section and heavy, Hammond-drenched grooves. With echoes of Spencer Davis Group, early Grand Funk and Vanilla Fudge, it comes on like a heavier Soft Machine or Caravan. No wonder Fuzzy Duck’s cult appeal has endured.
The album features Mick Hawksworth (Five Day Week Straw People, Andromeda) on bass, acoustic 12-string, electric cello and some of the vocal duties, and also Roy “Daze” Sharland (Crazy World of Arthur Brown, Spice) on organ and electric piano. Accompanying those two were Paul Francis on drums and percussion, and Grahame White on guitars and the rest of the vocals.
Originally released in an edition of 500, Fuzzy Duck became legendary all over the world through a holy trinity of scarcity, personnel and its sheer brilliance.
The album kicks off with a heavy, bass-fuelled, Hammond rocker titled “Time Will Be Your Doctor”. This is pure hard-edged blues rock, brilliantly played. Its drum break intro was sampled by DJ Premier for Gang Starr’s “Mostly Tha Voice” on 1994’s legendary Hard To Earn. And we can hear its personality all over Harvey and Thomas Bullock’s Map Of Africa.
Rollicking highlight “Mrs. Prout” follows. At nearly 7 minutes long, it incorporates more psych-leaning guitar and drawn-out keyboards à la Ray Manzarek with the band effortlessly switching from jazzy rhythm section to a progressive one. That magnificent instrumental jam that starts half-way and continues through to the end is a true wonder.
“Just Look Around You” is propulsive folk-rock with a soaring, proto power-pop chorus, backed by frenetic organ and heavy bass high in the rich, intoxicating mix. Back comes the heavy, strung-out psych to both close out side one with “Afternoon Out” and kick off side two with “More Than I Am”. Both tracks are improvisational winners that stylistically nod to the late sixties and “More Than I Am”’s guitar hook, catchy organ and memorable chorus would’ve surely made it a great single.
“Country Boy” quenches the thirst for rhythm and melody, only the lyrics and vibe are wonderfully creepy. The sudden cut of the groove and the drop into a more sinister tempo will make you stumble, before the band pick up speed and toss you back again into the opening jam, this time with a badass organ to ride you home. The final, fully fleshed out track is the majestic “In Our Time”, which oscillates between endless organ-driven boogie and heavenly, genuinely moving vocals. Just stunning.
Infamous instrumental cut “A Word from Big D” rounds out the album. Yes, that’s the band jamming with duck quack sound effects accompanying the music. “Ducking vocals” as the sleeve says. You know, just in case the whole “duck” theme had passed you by. It’s an appropriate closer for what sounds like an album that must have been *a lot* of fun to record. It’s definitely fun to listen to.
Mastered by Be With’s chief sound duck Simon Francis and cut with glee by the veteran Pete Norman, this reissue of Fuzzy Duck’s one-and-only LP sounds as mighty as it should. That unforgettable sleeve artwork has been carefully restored and the records pressed by the wonderful Record Industry in the Netherlands. Essential.
Middle Name Dance Tracks Vol 1 is the second release from Sampology’s new imprint. The Middle Name Dance Tracks project reflects standout live & club nights in Brisbane of recent years, where there has seen a steady cross pollination between the club and soul/jazz communities. The blurred line between these two musical worlds has delivered an array of diverse and joyful events for both artists and avid music fans.
This project is a collaborative creative effort between Sampology, Megan Christensen and Sam Stosuur. The recording process was live in nature with Megan on piano and keys, Sam Stosuur on bass/bass synth and Sampology on MPC drums and programming. Having live conga & timbale from Brisbane based Latin percussion staple Gus Cereiji glues the groove together. These sonic choices were inspired by listening to NYC early 80s disco labels, especially Prelude 12" releases, which balanced drum machine & synths as well as live studio musicians. Vocals on 'Only Joy' were recorded by Kerry Raywood. Vocals for 'Bless' come from Brisbane jazz vocalist Merinda Dias-Jayasinha. The combination of the Middle Name Dance Tracks trio and the additional Brisbane artists offers a specific music palette that’s live in essence, dancefloor in orientation, and magical in delivery.
Middle Name Records Dance Tracks Vol 1. artwork was created by artist Sue Poggioli, Sampology’s mother who also created the artwork for the 2016 Natural Selections EP.
