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Houston’s premier street griot is stepping into his most profound chapter yet with his highly anticipated upcoming album, O.Y.N. Throughout a decorated career that spans over 1.2 billion global streams and a fiercely loyal fanbase, Maxo Kream—born Emekwane Ogugua Biosah, Jr.—has established himself as one of rap’s most authentic, uncompromising storytellers. From the raw trenches of Alief to the critically acclaimed triumphs of Punken, Brandon Banks, Weight of the World, and his triumphant 2024 independent pivot Personification, Maxo has long been celebrated by Pitchfork, NPR, and Complex for his cinematic, hyper-detailed world-building. Now, O.Y.N. finds the Houston icon turning his gaze inward, pairing his signature Texas grit with an expansive, global perspective that redefines his artistic boundaries.

If his previous work was about Maxo taking full creative control as an independent force, O.Y.N. is about him uncovering who he is at his core. Following the passing of his father, Maxo found himself searching deeper for his family origins, leading to a pivotal moment of artistic and personal rebirth. For the first time in his life, Maxo traveled to Lagos, Nigeria, anchoring his new music in a profound celebration of his Nigerian heritage. The emotional centerpiece of this journey is the JPEGMAFIA-produced single “Time Out,” an introspective track that moves away from the frantic energy of his past releases to offer a stripped-back look at love, loss, and legacy. Featuring a heavy, resonant drum presence on the outro, the song’s accompanying music video was filmed on location in Lagos, capturing Maxo navigating his ancestral roots in real-time.

While O.Y.N. reaches new emotional depths, it doesn't sacrifice the hard-hitting, volatile street persona that made Maxo a star. The album expertly balances soul-baring vulnerability with cutting-edge hip-hop experimentation, showcasing elite chemistry with some of the genre's most forward-thinking visionaries. Look no further than “Fake Jeezy,” a collaborative explosion featuring Denzel Curry and masterminded by JPEGMAFIA. The track is a masterclass in industrial chaos, combining sharp lyricism and early-2000s trap imagery with cold, surreal visual aesthetics. This duality highlights Maxo's unique positioning in the culture as a trusted street general who can effortlessly trade bars with rap's avant-garde elite.

From his early days flipping Kendrick Lamar's “Rigamortis” to sharing marquee tracks with the likes of A$AP Rocky, Travis Scott, and Tyler, The Creator on hits like “Big Persona,” “Cracc Era,” and “Cracc At 15,” Maxo Kream has always been a rapper's rapper. O.Y.N. represents the ultimate synthesis of this incredible journey. It is an album born from the soil of Alief but elevated by the spirit of Lagos—a raw, beautiful, and heavy-hitting testament to an artist who has survived his past, honored his losses, and fully embraced his destiny.

You have to wonder why Railcard took so long to be born: their debut album feels like it should have been in your collection for years.


But it wasn’t until 2025 that Rachel Love (Dolly Mixture), Ian Button and Peter Momtchiloff (both Heavenly) met at a gig, realised that they were exactly the same age, and decided that this was an excellent reason to form a new band. The shared history, the same pop references, the parallel lives… Railcard had to happen, and there was no time to lose. Two Steps At A Time - the album title and theme song - express exactly how quickly Railcard have worked since then - jumping over pavement cracks and whistling past graveyards to get these songs written, recorded and released while they are still sweet and fresh.


The band released three digital EPs in early 2026, which were then gathered onto a CD and released by Skep Wax and Slumberland. They sold out very quickly. The critical response to a mail-order-only CD was far greater than anyone expected.


Railcard made their live debut in December 2025 and had by then recruited their fourth member: Allison Thomson (Trash Can Sinatras, The Love Band), whose flawless trumpet and swirly keyboard-playing complete the Railcard sound, allowing the band to fulfil the significant ambition and range of the songs, which are mostly co-written and often co-sung by Love and Button. “Flannelette” and “Sunday Sun”, delicate and swoony, could almost be Slapp Happy at their most Bacharach. “Foxy”, mysterious and charming, has more than a hint of Kate Bush December magic. The raucous duet “I’m A Disaster” is The Kinks meets deadpan Shangri-Las. The title track could have been an alternative theme tune for Whatever Happened To The Likely Lads. “Runaround” is like a school choir doing The Raincoats. “Unstable Neighbour” is mesmerising and insistent: it might make you think of Stereolab; we might imagine an indiepop Hawkwind. Peter Momtchiloff also contributes two wonderful songs on the album: the fragile and hallucinatory “Paper Thin” and the Love-meets-Undertones rush of “Hillman Minx”.


As with the first EPs, Railcard enlisted the sonic services of Medway psych expert Allan Crockford (of The Prisoners, James Taylor Quartet and many more) who has delivered mixes that pump with vintage valve energy and reverby depth.


Railcard have a string of UK dates through the summer and Autumn.

Four years after Les Mystères de Lorient, Il Est Vilaine returns with Best Service, a rich and cosmopolitan album that broadens horizons in a bleak era.
Twelve tracks and interludes crafted with the aesthetic the duo has been refining since its inception: a blend of analog electronics, techno, vintage rock, and synth-pop.
Tailor-made atmospheres, oscillating between raw energy, groove, and dark romanticism, provide perfect spaces for unexpected guests.

Dublin-born, thirty years an immigrant. That's the spine of henryohenry's debut, Apocrypha, not as a concept but as a condition. He's spent three decades in the United States working in the trades, absorbing the country's mythologies and building what he calls "an idiosyncratic American language" out of them, something closer to Whitman's vision than what he found. He is, by his own account, "formally and informally not a musician" — all but two of the songs were written on a $6 charity-shop guitar with a repaired headstock and strings that distorted unpredictably. It doesn't appear on the record. Produced by filmmaker Rick Alverson, the album is anchored by guitarist Eamon O'Leary and his son Ned Steves, recording together for the first time, without rehearsal. Erik Hall mixed and contributed overdubs; Emilie Rex of Lean Year lends harmonies to three songs; poet Callie Garnett appears on another. Album standout "There" captures something harder to name: how powerful feelings drive you to the page, and how the thing you make can outlast the feelings that made it. "It feels like a triumph over something," he says, "even if you're a bit embarrassed by some of the sentiment."


Apocrypha arrives as a debut but carries the patience of a life lived in full. For fans of John Cale, Nick Drake, Leonard Cohen.

Tiffany Day has quickly emerged as one of the most compelling voices in hyper-digital pop, blending emotional chaos, internet-born edge, and forward-thinking production into a sound entirely her own. Born in Toronto and raised in Kansas, Tiffany first broke through with a viral cover of “Hallelujah,” building a YouTube audience of over 500,000 subscribers before graduating high school. She began releasing original music in college, quickly developing a devoted fanbase drawn to her wit, vulnerability, and genre-fluid instincts.

A self-directed creative force, Tiffany has made her live show a defining pillar of her artistry, fusing choreography, visuals, and electronic-driven transitions that push her beyond traditional pop performance. In 2024, she independently funded and sold out several headline shows across a North American tour. She later expanded into the DJ scene, launching BASSFLUFF, a series of standalone events that generated viral moments DJing everywhere from gyms to nail salons.

Her 2025 releases marked a sharp sonic evolution, leaning into electroclash and hyperpop textures. Singles like “BREAKUP,” “TELL ME WHAT I DID,” and “START OVER” generated millions of views across platforms and earned coverage from NME, Ones to Watch, On The Radar, and beyond, positioning her at the forefront of a new wave of digital-native pop artists.

That momentum culminates in her album HALO, released April 3, 2026 via Broke Records. The project debuted at #1 on the Apple Music Electronic chart and #25 on the Billboard Electronic/Dance Albums Chart, drawing early co-signs from artists like Laufey and Yunjin (LE SSERAFIM) alongside coverage from Pitchfork, The FADER, NYLON, LA Times, and more. To mark the release, Tiffany staged three headline shows—each of which sold out in under five minutes. With her production across nearly every track, HALO marks Tiffany's most cohesive and ambitious work to date, solidifying her not just as an artist to watch, but as a defining voice in the next era of hyperpop.

Tiffany Day has quickly emerged as one of the most compelling voices in hyper-digital pop, blending emotional chaos, internet-born edge, and forward-thinking production into a sound entirely her own. Born in Toronto and raised in Kansas, Tiffany first broke through with a viral cover of “Hallelujah,” building a YouTube audience of over 500,000 subscribers before graduating high school. She began releasing original music in college, quickly developing a devoted fanbase drawn to her wit, vulnerability, and genre-fluid instincts.

A self-directed creative force, Tiffany has made her live show a defining pillar of her artistry, fusing choreography, visuals, and electronic-driven transitions that push her beyond traditional pop performance. In 2024, she independently funded and sold out several headline shows across a North American tour. She later expanded into the DJ scene, launching BASSFLUFF, a series of standalone events that generated viral moments DJing everywhere from gyms to nail salons.

Her 2025 releases marked a sharp sonic evolution, leaning into electroclash and hyperpop textures. Singles like “BREAKUP,” “TELL ME WHAT I DID,” and “START OVER” generated millions of views across platforms and earned coverage from NME, Ones to Watch, On The Radar, and beyond, positioning her at the forefront of a new wave of digital-native pop artists.

That momentum culminates in her album HALO, released April 3, 2026 via Broke Records. The project debuted at #1 on the Apple Music Electronic chart and #25 on the Billboard Electronic/Dance Albums Chart, drawing early co-signs from artists like Laufey and Yunjin (LE SSERAFIM) alongside coverage from Pitchfork, The FADER, NYLON, LA Times, and more. To mark the release, Tiffany staged three headline shows—each of which sold out in under five minutes. With her production across nearly every track, HALO marks Tiffany's most cohesive and ambitious work to date, solidifying her not just as an artist to watch, but as a defining voice in the next era of hyperpop.

Bonnie "Prince" Billy veröffentlicht ein Live-Album mit neu arrangierten Songs aus seinem umfangreichen Katalog.

Am 18. September erscheint Ghosts of American Psychonauts, das neue Live-Album von Bonnie "Prince" Billy. Aufgenommen am Valentinstag im Pico Union Project in Los Angeles, führt das Album durch verschiedene Stationen von Will Oldhams Karriere als Bonnie „Prince“ Billy. Zu hören sind neu arrangierte Stücke von Letting Go und I See A Darkness bis zu jüngeren Songs wie I Made A Place und The Purple Bird. Begleitet von London May, Jacob Duncan und weiteren Gästen, rückt das Album Oldhams Qualitäten als Live-Musiker und seine ausgeprägte Fähigkeit zum musikalischen Storytelling in den Mittelpunkt.

Coloured Vinyl. Harsh Reality - the fourth studio album by Seattle's The Drowns - is an unapologetically political punk record, coming this September from Pirates Press Records. Recorded at The Blasting Room in Fort Collins, CO by punk rock legend Bill Stevenson (Descendents, Black Flag) and mixed by Jason Livermore (Teenage Bottlerocket), this collection of 13 new songs fuses everything fans have loved about the band's previous sonic experimentation and focuses it into laser-tight melodic songwriting firmly rooted in punk rock, but with the potential to reach listeners from all walks of life. Singer-guitarist Rev Peters, singer-bassist Andy Wylie, and drummer Jake Margolis largely bashed out the tracks themselves, with the exception of additional guitar work on "Vengeance" by Zach Blair (Rise Against, Only Crime, GWAR), and a touch of accordion on "3rd & Pike" courtesy of Matt Hensley (A-100s, Flogging Molly). While the title of lead single "Relentless" could easily refer to The Drowns' infamously non-stop touring regimen, it refers instead to something far more humanitarian: the crushing weight of capitalism on the working poor. The song acknowledges the toll it takes on one's mental health, struggling day in & day out with no breaks only to be left farther & farther behind. "I wish life would just give it a rest", laments Rev. The album contains its fair share of venom, however, like all great political punk in the tradition of The Clash or Stiff Little Fingers, the lyrics prioritize people over polemic, reaching out with compassion in an age where it is in distressingly short supply. "I'm sure that we could change it all if we only had a heart", implores Andy on "Have a Heart". This is life-affirming music for hard times, made for everyone that could sorely use it right now, and a record poised to give the band's hard-earned position as a fan-favorite in the global punk scene an even greater trajectory. For a band that has won over fans around the globe, record by record and show by show, it is a big statement, but simply put: Harsh Reality is The Drowns at the top of their game.

A recent signee to Chess Club Records, Jo Geller aka jo from school, finds herself among the independent label’s pedigree of homegrown artists who have gone on to attain major success. Alumni such as Billie Marten, an artist long admired by Jo, as well as Wolf Alice, are just a couple of names who found their initial support through Chess Club.

At 22-years-old, jo from school’s graceful, carefully crafted but devastatingly delivered songs hit with an air of maturity that lands far beyond her years. An embrace for spontaneity and imperfection gives her material its character; primarily as an artist focussed on doing things her own way.

Writing on the piano since the tender age of nine, Jo self-taught herself guitar as a teenager during lockdown, joining the illustrious Brit School: “I was the only musician in my world until I went to Brit School, then I was the worst musician there,” she says. “It gave me a kick. I went from thinking that it was cooler to not care about anything, to realising the more you cared, the cooler and more individual it made you.”

Largely produced by Rich Cooper (CMAT, Billie Marten), so far both singles from the EP have been supported by BBC Radio 1, Radio 2 & 6Music. Huw Stephen's has invited Jo to feature in his Huw You Are segment airing on 6Music on 29th July, and Jess Iszatt has already had Jo as her Introducing featured artist on BBC Radio London. Rolling Stone UK featured jo as their Play Next artist last month, along with CLASH who just confirmed a Next Wave feature to run on EP release. Outlets like Line of Best Fit, DORK, DIY and Wonderland have all came to the table to champion jo too. We've also seen impressive audience growth in just 2 months – with jo adding more than 3k new followers across platforms since her debut single 'Chicken' was released on 6th May.

On the live front, jo was invited by Dirty Hit's Skullcrusher to support on her UK + European headline tour in June, with past supports also including TTSSFU, Daffo, Esme Emerson. Jo has been booked for Night Currents festival in Portsmouth and invited to support 1000 Rabbits, both in October, and will be Playing Estrella Soundhood Festival in London in September too.

Palace return with their most open-hearted collection yet, 'Ox', out September 18th. The announcement of the new album arrives alongside the release of its latest single, ‘Dream On’. Palace’s fifth album, Ox, finds beauty and wisdom in the most human of revelations: watching a child encounter music for the first time, feeling overcome by gratitude, or sensing that the possibilities ahead are endless The album arrives as Palace continue to thrive as an independent act. What began in 2016 as Palace Presents, a monthly takeover at The George Tavern in London, has evolved into a worldwide community. This autumn, the band will embark on a major North American run, following a sold-out homecoming show at London’s iconic Somerset House this summer. 'Ox' will be available on CD and in four LP formats including 180g heavyweight black vinyl from the official store and a black cherry vinyl available from independent record stores.

Richmond's IRON REAGAN returns with their original lineup for the thrashing new EP, DEMONETIZATION. 6 blistering tracks clocking in at just 10 minutes, DEMONETIZATION shows the band (Tony Foresta, Ryan Parrish, Dr. Guitar, Phil Hall, and Adam Guilliams) crushing through the Punk, Hardcore, Fastcore, Thrash Metal, and more that have made IRON REAGAN a mainstay since their original 2012 demo. IRON REAGAN's most Punk lineup returns to deliver breakneck music at breakneck speeds. "Very excited to release new music with the original Iron Reagan lineup," says Foresta. "This is the first time we've released something with Paul since 2014 (Exhumed Split). This is some of our strongest/heaviest material we've done to date. Looking forward to getting back on the road with these guys and seeing everybody." Reactivated and ready to roll, IRON REAGAN promises that DEMONETIZATION is just a taste of things to come! Short: Richmond's IRON REAGAN returns with their original lineup for the thrashing new EP, DEMONETIZATION. FFO: D.R.I., Power Trip, Iron Age, The Accused, Nuclear Assault, Anthrax

Liam Hayes is an acclaimed American musical artist known for his songwriting and uncompromising approach to making records. He started cassette multitracking while a preteen and made his first real studio recording at twenty one. This started an obsession that ultimately led to his releasing a 7” single (Found A Little Baby/Three Quarters Blind Eyes) on a small US indie label. Those tracks garnered the attention of the UK music press, and on the strength of those songs a career was launched. The follow up was highly anticipated by critics and listeners alike, but rather than playing to expectations he delivered a highly personal album of solo piano/vocal songs (More You Becomes You). Not one to repeat himself, Hayes started off the millennium by serving up the extravagant pop/soul opus (Fed). Both records are now considered to be masterpieces.

Hayes’ songs are recognised for their exquisite melodies, poetic lyrics and distinctive vocals. He’s released seven albums, two singles and a soundtrack, and applies his craftsmanship to a variety of genres from orchestrated pop to stripped down rock. Comparisons to Brian Wilson, Laura Nyro, Carole King, Harry Nilsson, Badfinger (and even Prince) are numerous. His music takes the best of radio and stellar classic pop records of the 60’s and 70’s and brings it into the present.

Along with making records Hayes has appeared on screen performing his music in High Fidelity (directed by Stephen Frears) and A Glimpse Inside the Mind of Charles Swan III(directed by Roman Coppola) which he also wrote the soundtrack for.

In this, their first production for Hayes, are (executive producer) Terrence Washington and (multi-instrumentalist/producer/arranger) Vincent Carlo with additional contributions from Terrence’s father, legendary arranger TOM TOM 2084 (Chi-Lites, Phil Collins, Plush).

His latest album, Dancing Backwards, sees Liam stepping through the shadows in his life and into a new musical day.

"New six-song collection to feature “Who Told You That,” “Sunburn,” “Proving Me Right” and three unreleased tracks NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Award-winning country hitmaker Tucker Wetmore announces his six-
song Sunburn Mixtape.Tailor-made for the season's hottest stretch, the collection pairs three previously released fan favorites with three brand new tracks."

The story picks up when Connect 3 loses their opening act for a major reunion tour, returning to their beloved Camp Rock to discover the next big thing. As campers vie for the chance to open for their favorite band, tensions rise, and friendships are tested, leading to unexpected alliances, revelations and romances. ​Camp Rock’s all-new campers include bold and determined Sage (Segura) and her easygoing brother Desi (Stone), camp bad boy Fletch (Barton), cello prodigy Rosie (Pollack), drummer with his own beat Cliff (Trotter), choreo queen Callie (Pitts) and intimidating influencer Madison (Jean).

Basel-based producer Tim Shatnyy made a welcome return to his home label, Resonance, with a massive and satisfyingly complex body of work.

The media ecosystem of Beyond Dualism combines a game, an Instagram bot, generative radio, and a full-length album at the forefront of the high-concept universe. The rhizomatic blend of web development, sound engineering, and conceptual framework does not diminish the joyous energy of Tim Shatnyy’s sonic adventures. Beyond Dualism’s digi-charms coalesce into a dynamic tension of minimalist electronic music, funky glitch, club-ready heaviness, and a boundless, idiosyncratic approach of disorientating arrangements.

Beyond Dualism is the result of Shatnyy’s deep, ongoing process of inner listening, constant change, and spiritual inquiry. It is a perfectly closed cycle of artistic creation, featuring hyperrealistic sound design and visionary manipulation on meta-levels of composition. Beyond Dualism offers the listener a continuous experience, revealing a nearly tactile and visual experience of a sound. Going beyond dualism is a journey. The way the artist has transformed his perception going through this path is reflected in the album's development and its structures.

Born and raised in Oklahoma City, Jason Scott & The High Heat return with their boldest statement yet on Play Boy, a gritty, swagger-filled collection that pushes the band's signature blend of heartland rock, Americana soul, and country grit into new territory Following the breakout success of American Grin and viral momentum surrounding "Too Good Too Bad," Play Boy captures the chaos, charm, and late-night recklessness that have made the band one of the most exciting rising acts in roots-driven country music. Fueled by razor-sharp songwriting, lived-in storytelling, and the electrifying chemistry that's earned them stages alongside acts like Morgan Wallen, Wyatt Flores, and 49 Winchester, Play Boy leans into the band's wild side without losing the honesty and substance at the core of their music. Equal parts dive-bar confession, desert highway soundtrack, and modern outlaw anthem, the album reflects a band fully embracing who they are: loud, fearless, and impossible to box in.

The " This Is ..." greatest hits collection brings together some of his most beloved recordings, capturing the raw emotion, timeless storytelling, and unmistakable voice that made him a legend. Featuring classics like " Jambalaya (On The Bayou), " " Hey Good Lookin'," "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry," and "Your Cheatin' Heart," and "Cold Cold Heart," the album showcases the incredible run of hits that shaped generations of country, folk, and rock artists. From heartfelt ballads to upbeat honky- tonk anthems, this compilation is a perfect introduction to one of country music's true pioneers.

Pressure Chords is the first joint album by composer-performer John McCowen, trombonist Weston Olencki and cellist Lucy Railton. McCowen’s composition is based on the spectral analysis of contrabass clarinet multiphonics, and the tuning system corresponds with the overtone spectrum of McCowen’s instrument. The trio adaptation of Pressure Chords presents itself as an exercise in both patience and intensity, slowly building towards an expressive finale. Across its 34-minute runtime, restrained minimalism slowly gives way to maximally affective sonic force.McCowen, Olencki and Railton first shared the stage for an improvised session at Berlin’s KM28. McCowen realised that he found two capable partners for creating orchestrations of his works for the contrabass clarinet. Olencki, who also contributes field recordings to the album, has worked across different genres and traditions, while Railton has made a name for herself as a composer and improviser as well as a performer of Just Intonation music. Weston and Lucy both have immense experience performing and composing music outside of equal temperament, so it seemed like a perfect situation, McCowen says. The trio first presented Pressure Chords live at Berlin’s Morphine Raum in 2023 before recording a studio version with Adam Asnan in the following year. The recording—mixed and mastered by Albert Finnbogasson in Reykjavík—elegantly captures the multi-layered tonal and sonic qualities that the musicians so carefully explore. As a result, their performance doesn’t so much invite but necessitate deep listening—time passes differently on and with Pressure Chords.

Could it be that the world is finally ready for the tempestuous folk-rock opera that is "All the Leaves are Gone?" In 2004, only the truly informed and forward-thinking heads "got" this mini masterpiece. Critics scratched their heads and usually resorted to comparisons of past artists, like ol Grace Slick and her Great Jefferson Society, Fairport Convention (but which era? SURELY Judy Dyble's early reign?), and at best, Shirley Collins. A few fans attempted to connect the record to even more obscure "freak folk/rock" like Mellow Candle, Fear Itself, or Trees. "All the Leaves are Gone" was made by unique personalities not concerned with influences or copying any bygone era. Surely, some things are in our DNA or even early childhood, as Josephine Foster's roots in opera manifest themselves as much as any other influence in this organic song cycle. Sure, guitarist Brian Goodman may have heard Richard Thompson before, but his alchemical and molten guitar spray is purely his own, in tunings and intervals still not meant for normal humans to understand, mostly because his 2004 guts were poured into every sublime note (I think even Brian himself never even understood how good he was). That fiery emotion is also in every nuance of Foster's songs--like life, there's disquieting, jagged moments of unease, and there's calm both before and after the storm. There are moments of utter gentleness along the journey---because yes, every concept album should be a voyage, and this is one everyone should take. - Steve Krakow.

Formed in New York City in 1993 around singer, guitarist and songwriter Chris Leo, the band emerged from the same fertile underground scene that gave rise to many of the most influential post-hardcore, indie rock and emo acts of the decade. Yet while many of their contemporaries went on to achieve wider recognition, The Van Pelt chose a different path: one built on artistic independence, restless experimentation and a stubborn refusal to fit comfortably into any scene or trend.
Across two landmark albums — Stealing From Our Favorite Thieves (1996) and Sultans Of Sentiment (1997) — The Van Pelt developed a singular language that combined intricate guitar interplay, spoken-word intensity, literary lyrics and emotional depth. Their music occupied a unique space between post-hardcore urgency, indie rock invention and the introspective sensibility that would later become associated with emo, influencing generations of musicians while remaining largely outside the spotlight.
After disbanding in 1997, the band's reputation continued to grow. What began as a well-kept secret among underground music fans gradually became a touchstone for listeners searching beyond the obvious narratives of 1990s alternative rock. Reunions in 2009 and 2014, the release of the long-lost Imaginary Third, and a series of acclaimed live performances introduced their music to a new audience while reaffirming their enduring relevance.
In 2023, The Van Pelt returned with Artisans & Merchants, their first collection of new material in more than twenty-five years. Rather than revisiting old formulas, the album expanded the band's sonic vocabulary while preserving the qualities that made them unique: curiosity, intelligence, vulnerability and an unwavering commitment to following their own instincts.
Now, more than three decades after their formation, The Van Pelt are set to return in 2026 with Remain Obscure, their fifth studio album. Continuing their tradition of defying expectations, the record pushes beyond the familiar boundaries of the band's sound while embracing the same spirit that has defined them from the beginning. A band whose influence has consistently exceeded its visibility, The Van Pelt remain one of independent music's most enduring and rewarding secrets.

Lovemonk and Barcelona’s Marula Café bring back their Marula Soulfood 7" series with two standout tracks taken from The Jade’s debut album, "Love Harder". Behind The Jade is Oli Stewart, aka Casbah 73, leading a transatlantic ensemble of top-tier musicians equipped with heart and heat, bridging worlds while remaining firmly centered around home base Madrid.

‘Let The light In’ is a radiant burst of sunshine and a riotous cross-pollination of sounds. Nebraska’s Josh Hoyer delivers a powerhouse vocal performance, soaring over exuberant rhythms and fluid grooves that feel right at home in sweat-filled basement clubs or an open-air set as the sun dips low over the horizon. On the flip, ‘At The Queensboro’ is a beautiful jazz-funk instrumental that stretches out with elegance, giving its wonderful groove plenty of room to breathe. It was highlighted as one of BBC 6 Craig Charles’ favourite tracks of 2025.

505 Games und Laced Records präsentieren die mitreißende Musik von „WUCHANG: Fallen Feathers“ auf Doppel-Vinyl.

Die gesamte Musik wurde von Joe Caithness speziell für Vinyl gemastert. Das Gatefold-Cover ziert ein Artwork des Entwicklers Leenzee, das den Protagonisten Bai Wuchang darstellt.

Die Handlung spielt im Land Shu während der Ming-Dynastie, und die Filmmusik spiegelt eine Welt wider, die von kriegführenden Fraktionen, einer mysteriösen Krankheit und monströsen Kreaturen heimgesucht wird. Die Musik fängt die feierliche Schönheit der Landschaft und die darunter lauernde Furcht ein und verbindet traditionelle chinesische Instrumente und kraftvolle Gesangsdarbietungen mit grandiosen Orchesterarrangements und unheilvollen Gesangseinlagen.

Zusammen bilden Musik und Artwork ein Werk, das sich zugleich elegant und unheilvoll anfühlt – ein Artefakt, das der untergegangenen Dynastie, die es repräsentiert, würdig ist.

The follow up to her UK number 1 album This Is How Tomorrow Moves, the stark and striking fourth album by beabadoobee is named for the electricity towers that dot every major artery in the world—the strong, spindly structures that reminded Beatrice Laus of her connection to friends and family at home while she was staring down extreme disconnection and isolation on tour over the past few years.

The title can also be read as an allusion to Laus’ spiky, forceful new sound—the waves of distortion that crash and shatter across this record’s 14 songs mirroring the intense crackle you hear when walking under power lines. The pylon is also a fitting symbol for an album that reckons with the repetitive anxieties of your mid-twenties: What if I’m always going to be this way? What if life is just pylon after pylon on the road?

The album’s first single is available to stream and buy from today: “Sun Has Set” introduces Pylon as, in essence, a set of songs that began as diary entries, words that Laus thought she’d never be able to say out loud. “A lot of the songs on this record are things I wish I could have said to someone,” she says. “This song has this petty tunnel vision—it’s like, I hate you. You’re gonna stay here and listen to how much I hate you. Because I never got to say that.” The single comes accompanied by a striking first person video directed by Bea’s partner and longtime visual collaborator Jake Erland.


Ever a devotee of pure rock music—both as something to be cherished and something to be played with—Laus casts these feelings in songs that touch on classic grunge, midwest emo and ‘90s radio rock, zeroing in on a sound that is both harsher and more direct than any of her previous records. She says the music she’s loved has “always been an influence” on her music, and so for B4 she went straight to the source. A fair few of Beabadoobee’s composite influences contributed to Pylon, a fact that speaks to the goodwill and respect Laus has amassed over the course of her relatively brief career.

Hayley Williams sings on “Nothing to Prove,” a deeply anthemic indie-rock song about getting your power back from fairweather friends who just want a bit of your success. The moody “Powerlines” features a verse from Turnstile singer Brendan Yates, a master of matching vocal force with emotional nuance. Elsewhere, you’ll find contributions from Pinegrove’s Evan Stephens Hall, Deftones’ Chino Moreno, and Title Fight’s Shane Moran, as well as, on “Write Me A Letter”, production work from Laus’ longtime friends and collaborators Matty Healy and George Daniel of The 1975.

Beabadoobee will debut songs from the record on the Powerlines Tour, her first ever arena shows and biggest tour to date, taking in shows across North America, the UK and Europe this autumn-winter. The Powerlines Tour kicks off 1 October and includes stops at Madison Square Garden, The Kia Forum, The O2 and more (full routing below). Support comes from Wisp in the US, Canada and UK and Violet Grohl in France, The Netherlands, Belgium and Germany.





Born in the Philippines and raised in London, Beatrice Laus emerged as a British alternative music icon across three acclaimed albums and five EPs. She has garnered multiple BRIT Award and BBC Sound Of nominations, and won NME’s Radar award, whilst amassing over 10 billion streams worldwide and more than 12 million followers across her social channels.

This Is How Tomorrow Moves became her first record to reach number 1 on the UK Official Album Chart in 2024, following her Top 10 albums Fake It Flowers (which reached number 8) in 2020 and 2022’s Beatopia (#4). Earlier this year, beabadoobee released the one-off single ‘‘All I Did Was Dream Of You,” teaming up with Grammy-nominated best New Artist The Marías, the result of a longtime mutual creative admiration between María Zardoya and Bea.

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When we go searching for a Black avant-garde, we have to be prepared to look in unexpected places. The route to a Black avant-garde involves walking down – what some might consider – peculiar highways. Where they see strangeness, a road leading them nowhere, we see nothing but beauty. The paths Darren Cunningham went down, the highways he took to make Actress, are a chapter in the story of the Black avant-garde. Cunningham the footballer. Cunningham the Wulfrunian. Cunningham the ex-footballer. Cunningham the DJ. Cunningham the Londoner. Cunningham the producer. Cunningham the painter. Cunningham the writer. Cunningham the composer. This is where the Black avant-garde in Britain is made. This is where you have to go to find it.

Across an expansive discography of more than ten LPs, Actress has created his own arcane language of hermetic references and inter-dimensional electronic composition.

Radical Frame arrives 18 years since debut album Hazyville, and it feels like an apotheosis. The image realised. We get the full gamut of Actress signatures. Short bursts of broken down music. Tiny sketches of zoomed-in sound. Refracted dance floor heat. And we get more.

Perhaps Radical Frame is a container for everything that Cunningham has built so far. A frame he is handing over to the next in line. The next artist to make their own way in the Black British avant-garde.



Wenn wir nach einer schwarzen Avantgarde suchen, müssen wir bereit sein, an unerwarteten Orten zu suchen. Der Weg zu einer schwarzen Avantgarde führt - wie manche finden mögen - über ungewöhnliche Pfade: wo sie Fremdheit sehen, einem Weg, der nirgendwohin führt, sehen wir nichts als Schönheit. Die Wege, die Darren Cunningham beschritt, die Highways, die er befuhr, um Actress zu erschaffen, sind ein Kapitel in der Geschichte der schwarzen Avantgarde. Cunningham, der Fußballer. Cunningham, der Wulfrunianer (Anm.: Einwohner von Wolverhampton). Cunningham, der Ex-Fußballer. Cunningham, der DJ. Cunningham, der Londoner. Cunningham, der Produzent. Cunningham, der Maler. Cunningham, der Schriftsteller. Cunningham, der Komponist. Hier entsteht die schwarze Avantgarde in Großbritannien. Hier muss man hingehen, um sie zu finden.

In einer umfangreichen Diskografie von mehr als zehn Alben hat Actress seine eigene, geheimnisvolle Sprache aus hermetischen Referenzen und interdimensionalen elektronischen Kompositionen geschaffen.

„Radical Frame” erscheint 18 Jahre nach seinem Debütalbum, „Hazyville”, und fühlt sich wie eine Apotheose an: das Bild ist vollendet. Wir bekommen die ganze Bandbreite von Actress' Markenzeichen zu hören: Kurze Ausbrüche reduzierter Musik, winzige Skizzen von vergrößertem Klang.

Vielleicht ist „Radical Frame“ ein Gefäß für all das, was Cunningham bisher geschaffen hat. Ein Rahmen, den er an den Nächsten weitergibt. An die nächsten Künstler:innen, die seinen eigenen Weg in der britischen Avantgarde der Schwarz.

Product Text:

When we go searching for a Black avant-garde, we have to be prepared to look in unexpected places. The route to a Black avant-garde involves walking down – what some might consider – peculiar highways. Where they see strangeness, a road leading them nowhere, we see nothing but beauty. The paths Darren Cunningham went down, the highways he took to make Actress, are a chapter in the story of the Black avant-garde. Cunningham the footballer. Cunningham the Wulfrunian. Cunningham the ex-footballer. Cunningham the DJ. Cunningham the Londoner. Cunningham the producer. Cunningham the painter. Cunningham the writer. Cunningham the composer. This is where the Black avant-garde in Britain is made. This is where you have to go to find it.

Across an expansive discography of more than ten LPs, Actress has created his own arcane language of hermetic references and inter-dimensional electronic composition.

Radical Frame arrives 18 years since debut album Hazyville, and it feels like an apotheosis. The image realised. We get the full gamut of Actress signatures. Short bursts of broken down music. Tiny sketches of zoomed-in sound. Refracted dance floor heat. And we get more.

Perhaps Radical Frame is a container for everything that Cunningham has built so far. A frame he is handing over to the next in line. The next artist to make their own way in the Black British avant-garde.



Wenn wir nach einer schwarzen Avantgarde suchen, müssen wir bereit sein, an unerwarteten Orten zu suchen. Der Weg zu einer schwarzen Avantgarde führt - wie manche finden mögen - über ungewöhnliche Pfade: wo sie Fremdheit sehen, einem Weg, der nirgendwohin führt, sehen wir nichts als Schönheit. Die Wege, die Darren Cunningham beschritt, die Highways, die er befuhr, um Actress zu erschaffen, sind ein Kapitel in der Geschichte der schwarzen Avantgarde. Cunningham, der Fußballer. Cunningham, der Wulfrunianer (Anm.: Einwohner von Wolverhampton). Cunningham, der Ex-Fußballer. Cunningham, der DJ. Cunningham, der Londoner. Cunningham, der Produzent. Cunningham, der Maler. Cunningham, der Schriftsteller. Cunningham, der Komponist. Hier entsteht die schwarze Avantgarde in Großbritannien. Hier muss man hingehen, um sie zu finden.

In einer umfangreichen Diskografie von mehr als zehn Alben hat Actress seine eigene, geheimnisvolle Sprache aus hermetischen Referenzen und interdimensionalen elektronischen Kompositionen geschaffen.

„Radical Frame” erscheint 18 Jahre nach seinem Debütalbum, „Hazyville”, und fühlt sich wie eine Apotheose an: das Bild ist vollendet. Wir bekommen die ganze Bandbreite von Actress' Markenzeichen zu hören: Kurze Ausbrüche reduzierter Musik, winzige Skizzen von vergrößertem Klang.

Vielleicht ist „Radical Frame“ ein Gefäß für all das, was Cunningham bisher geschaffen hat. Ein Rahmen, den er an den Nächsten weitergibt. An die nächsten Künstler:innen, die seinen eigenen Weg in der britischen Avantgarde der Schwarz.

Zed Bias (aka Maddslinky) is a pioneering producer and DJ whose influence has helped shape UK Garage, 2-Step, Broken Beat and UK Funky.

The second release in the archival series opens the Biasonic vaults once again, uncovering rare and essential recordings that span multiple genres and decades of groundbreaking music.

Pressed in strictly limited quantities, this is a collector’s edition for devoted fans and curious crate-diggers alike. Once it’s gone, it’s gone—secure your copy while you can.

Archimboldos have clawed their way out of the starcaves of their primordial past and into the tranquil light of a coral garden on their third full length album, Crusta Arcana, a gumbo stewpot of transcendent electronica suffused with tribal rhythms and liquid ambience. Across a stereo field smeared with tolling bells, post-industrial folk percussion, and tinkling keys, Archimboldos soundtrack a science fictional journey, not into the depths of space, but deep beneath the waves.

In the past the Chilean duo of Nicolás Carcavilla and Felipe Crocco have described their music as “liminal shrimp folk.” Here they continue this strange exploration when they visit the court of the prawns, producing stately electronic chamber orchestrations. Perhaps these are the frequencies used for ritual dream initiation into the mystery schools of drowned Atlantis. Weaving an ancient sacred science, Archimboldos take listeners on a mystic vovage into their singular crustacean mythology, the crusta of their hidden arcana.

Archimbolodos are masters of conjoining cyclonic and centrifugal lines of electricity into spellbinding incantations. These deep-sea transmissions envelope the listener into aquamarine forcefields that are as hallucinatory as they are hypnotic. Navigating these strange fantasias could lead one to getting lost at sea, but the work is buoyed by the somnolent melodies of lonely harpsichords and swelling synth pads whose sustained tones reach towards distant shores. Sailing across a vast expanse of oceanic harmonies and percolating percussion, these pieces are as precise as the hand of a sailor on the rudder, moving with the tide.

Casting their net wide across eight pieces, Archimboldos have made a big catch. From the emotive electronic counterpoint found on “Bursting Armor” to the blocks of seaweed tangled sonic sculpture trawled up from the ocean floor on “Aphelion IX.” Other songs are like samples of biological ambience collected from luminous tide pools: resplendent tones placed into a Petri dish of sound, swirled, cultured and fermented until it undulates with the rhythmic movement of microscopic lifeforms. Alternating between rippling minimalist sonority and pounding, progressive, synth-heavy entrancement, Crusta Arcana charts its own idiosyncratic itinerary of instrumental invention.

All the while light is down streaming from the heavens to pierce the waters, here calm, there choppy. The intrepid musical captains commanding Archimboldos have laid a course for new archipelagos of the imagination, guided by heavenly constellations.

-Justin Patrick Moore, author of The Radio Phonics Laboratory, Telecommunications, Speech Synthesis and the Birth of Electronic Music

After meeting and working with Janko Nilovic - the extraordinary French library maestro - on a new album, while traveling and performing together around the world for almost 10 years, Igor Zhukovsky & Romeo Miussky - the multi-instrumentalist production duo, and rhythm core of The Soul Surfers - were inspired to make a record of free, spiritual, esoteric sounds which blended together on tape and made Sound Excitement happen.Drawing on their experience as soundtrack composers and using heavyweight Soviet analog equipment, including a few vintage personal instruments belonging to some legends of the Soviet leftfield music scene, Igor & Romeo started experimenting with genre-blending music. The outcome of their recordings are a mixed bag of different moods and genres."It's something similar to a library record or more like a compilation of many different library records on one LP for a good decade if you know what I mean? It's the work which we're really excited about and excited to share with you! ...oh that's hell of a wordplay!"

Von 1964 bis 1980 zauberte Lenny ,King Creole" LaCour auf verschiedenen geheimnisvollen Labels eine knallharte Mischung aus R&B, Keller-Beehive, Hard Funk, Gruppenharmonien und Proto-Disco aus dem Hut. Dieses Deluxe-Doppelalbum versammelt 26 soulige Tricks aus dem Zylinder von Magic Touch, ergänzt durch eine ganze Illusion an Notizen, Fotos und Ephemera im beiliegenden Booklet. Abracadabra.

Oscar Later is the solo project of one half of Once Twice, formerly known as Parallels. The EP takes its premise from the 1967 Outer Space Treaty, which ruled that no nation could claim ownership of the Moon or any other celestial body. Across six tracks, that idea of ownership, distance and free imagination runs through the record, which combines breakbeat and shimmering synths with processed vocals and clips from vintage ads and obscure films.

"I wanted the record to feel like public-domain myths, commercial promises and space-age optimism all colliding," Oscar says, "blurring the line between memory and fantasy."

Opener 'Air Time for Andre' channels chopped-up breaks reminiscent of Skee Mask, combined with processed found audio. 'Wenlocked', named after the East London street where it was written, develops from a downtempo sketch into a heavier club track as the bassline builds, inspired by releases on Voam and Floating Points' live sets. 'It Never Made Sense' steps away from the dancefloor, built around a granulated Orion Sun vocal that, as Oscar puts it, "ties the track into quite a surreal space," leaning towards Burial, Overmono and Radiohead.

The title track, 'The Moon Belongs to You', runs a vocoded 90s ad through a detuned one-note synth. It's the track Oscar says "best encapsulates the intention of the EP as a whole: surreal, wacky and clubby." 'Yaya' keeps the energy up as a straight techno cut, its gated bassline locking in around a chopped vocal and pitched samples. Closer 'That's Quite A Lot Of Zeroes!' expands from a stripped-back Buchla line into something huge, driven by chopped samples and inspired by sci-fi scores like Dune and Annihilation.

The cover is designed by art director Will Millner with designer Josh Lowe, a homage to space food and 80s industrial design geared to survive life on the moon. It's available as a limited vacuum-packed 12" record.

The EP launches alongside a music video for 'It Never Made Sense', directed by Louis Mackay, telling the story of a group of kids who steal the moon for themselves.

Windy & Carl Meet Optigan Conservatory is a purposefully misleading title for the first collaborative work from four friends who met close to thirty years prior. All active participants in Michigan independent music circles since the early ’90s, Windy & Carl are well-known for their foundational contributions to drift and guitar-born ambient sounds, with songs characterized by deep connections to the natural world and a hard to pin down yet impossible to miss emotional vulnerability.

Optigan Conservatory is another duo, made up of Frank Rotondo (leader of Detroit area free music ensemble Laughing Gas) and Fred Thomas (songwriter and producer most often associated with his band Saturday Looks Good To Me), who have been making minimalistic and time-defiant electro-acoustic sounds since 2016. The album came together almost effortlessly in a very short timeframe, but the idea had been building steam for many a year.

In the last days of 2024, Windy & Carl and Optigan Conservatory got together, falling into a mode of sound creation that was almost hyper-natural. Without any discussion outside of the usual stream of jokes and chatter, the quartet set up and started communicating. Added to Windy & Carl’s hovering augmented chord voicings and vaporous guitar drones were electric piano and synth bedding from Frank & Fred. After the initial sessions, all involved parties took time to consider what they’d made, adding new layers and editing the pieces into more definitive articulations.

A beautiful and hermetic energy larger than the sum of its parts is captured in the process. There are echoes of the earliest releases from Windy & Carl as well as refractions of the same opacity that surfaced in the early kranky catalogue.

Originally produced over two decades ago, Wormhole returns fully remastered for 2026, pairing the unmistakable sound of DJ Quest & Odissi with a fresh remix from Spanish breakbeat heavyweights Destroyers.
The original remains everything that made early Cyberfunk stand out: deep rolling basslines, futuristic atmospheres and precision-engineered breaks that still sound ahead of their time. Alongside it, Destroyers inject modern dancefloor energy, tightening the groove with their trademark Spanish breaks sound while keeping the character of the original firmly intact.
This is another key release from the Cyberfunk vault, bridging the classic Bassline Breaks era with today's generation of producers and DJs.

Tracklisting
A. Wormhole (2026 Remaster)
A timeless Cyberfunk classic featuring Odissi, combining hypnotic melodies, heavy low-end pressure and rolling breakbeats that continue to work on modern systems.
AA. Wormhole (Destroyers Remix)
Destroyers deliver a contemporary club weapon, adding their signature percussion, energy and production polish while respecting the original's unmistakable identity.
——

The Toxic Funk series keeps pushing the boundaries of funk and hip-hop on wax, and Volume 23 welcomes DJP with two heavyweight remix cuts tailor-made for party-rocking DJs and golden-era hip-hop lovers alike. Packed with dusty breaks, sharp cuts and undeniable boom-bap energy, this 7” delivers pure underground flavor from start to finish.

On the A-side, The Nod Factor (DJP Remix) flips a true hip-hop classic into a groove-heavy breakbeat weapon loaded with crisp drums, funky rhythms and that unmistakable head-nodding swing. DJP injects fresh energy into the timeless vocal flows while keeping the raw essence fully intact.

The B-side, How Many Emcees (Must Get Dissed) (DJP Remix) dives even deeper into rugged East Coast vibes with rolling breaks, punchy basslines and expertly chopped funk elements that hit hard on any sound system. DJP balances classic hip-hop attitude with dancefloor-ready funk pressure, making this another essential weapon for selectors who like their beats raw and funky.

Toxic Funk Vol. 23 continues the series’ tradition of bringing heavyweight grooves to 7” vinyl, serving up another limited edition double-sider for crate diggers, breakbeat heads and party DJs worldwide.


b B1: How Many Emcees (Must Get Dissed) [DJP Remix]


[b] B1 | How Many Emcees (Must Get Dissed) [DJP Remix]

2026 Repress

Celebrating dubwise origins, Mole Audio delivers two fresh remixes of their very first release: Andy Martin ft. Gavsborg's Plato & Caves.

Gavsborg is a towering figure in Jamaica's dancehall scene. So when Andy found an acapella, he set to work on a renegade edit. Subsequently approved and embraced by Gavborg himself, Andy's interpretation provided the launch point for Mole Audio - and is re-envisioned twice more here.

Paired with the original A-side, the B-side remix comes courtesy of south London’s legendary Dub War. Benny ill & Bill Robin are progenitors of the original London Dubstep sound, and their Dub War releases on Tempa are highly prized among collectors.. Pairing hypnotic beats with spacious textures, an insistent analog bass line weaves its way through an infectiously dystopian atmosphere.

Taking a minimalistic house-driven approach, Andy's all-new Mad Magnetism Version brings Gavsborg's original vocal to a prime time environment. Sizzling high hats and diving bass drops combine to keep the dancefloor in motion before insistent dub chords further elevate the urgent atmosphere.

Combined with the original and Nit Yardman's remix, the resulting package once again showcases Mole Audio's unique approach to modern dub aesthetics.

Planet Mushroom, a new sub-label from Kimchi Records, drops its first release, made from field recordings and instruments sampled by Que Sakamoto, along with unique handmade instruments built and played by Paulo Santos in Brazil. Produced by NT and Que Sakamoto across Japan, the tracks fuse dense jungle textures, raw breakbeat energy, and warm house grooves, all threaded with a meditative, spiritual atmosphere.

Originally released in 1995 Methodrone was the first Brian Jonestown Massacre album. Redolent with the spirit of such high priests of effects and delay as Loop, Spaceman 3, and My Bloody Valentine, not to mention a fair dollop of the Jesus and Mary Chain ,over 70 minutes long Methodrone clearly is the sum of its influences..

Frazer Ray lands on Time Is Now with Masha EP. Four tracks of killer, stripped back FWD facing proto/future garage effortlessly pushing the sound into a new direction.

FACTS:

1. Frazer Ray knows how to make a dance. IYKYK…. Recently he’s been shelling Live UKG cooked right in front of you on a custom modular rig. Mad energy. 100% party business.

2. Frazer Ray knows a thing or two about making UK soundsystem music. The artist FKA Soundbwoy Killah is now a decade deep in his discography. And first as ‘Soundbwoy Killah’ and now as ‘Frazer Ray’ he is 2 for 2 with aliases that never miss.

3. New Frazer Ray is always something to get excited about. For 10+ years he’s kept it super tight. Quality over quantity. Always holding dubplates. When releases have landed they drop on only the best labels; including both Rinse and Rinse’s new INGRAM imprint, Ninja Tune’s Technicolour imprint, Sneaker Social Club, Interplanetary Criminal’s Locked On and IPC & Main Phase’s ATW Records. (side note - his Soundbowy Killah - ‘Halcyon Daze’ LP on Sneaker is IMO an all time classic - do not sleep on that one). Aaaannd… if the dubplates got too heavy he’s also occasionally dropped weight on his own U-Phorix label.

Also…..what has always struck me about Frazer’s music is that it’s simultaneously integral in the hardcode continuum while also pushing it forward. It’s always complete. Fully formed. You never bristle. There’s no failed experiments. Just a firm nod to the future for anyone looking.

OK… Run the tracks.

Masha’s vocal licks tell it straight, this one is “Fire”. Proper club business to test the stacks. The drums roll steady in front of a wall of sub bass. A killer mix of post dubstep era goodness, techno sound design and the shuffle & swing of proto dubstep.

Settle Down There’s something 90’s tek step about this one. Dark and moody with a wall of bass. It bristles with texture and atmosphere before – a moment of reprieve in this absolute weapon – Frazer opens up into a dubwise oasis before skittering back into the darkness.

Syren Song is exactly what it says on the tin, alluring Dancehall vocals chatter and roll. Who knew auto-tune and Garage paired so well… Frazer did that’s who.

No Reasons Left is an ethereal closer for the end of the night / start of the morning after. Gliding warm & introspective dubwise breaks with a Reese bassline that hangs in the space between garage and hardcore.

Frazer says…

“This EP feels like I've finally nailed integrating my modular setup (and VCV rack for all you nerds out there) into my productions. I wanted to create deeper production while still ensuring the tracks translate well in the club.”

If this is only the beginning then strap in.

There is a pivotal scene in “August in the Water” (dir. Sōgo Ishii, 1995) where the surface of a pool turns into a stone wall. The water that gave the protagonist's life its meaning becomes a threat. As you fall through this stone wall, you appear in a set of underwater coral-reef corridors, and one of the most beautiful musical themes begins to play: Aquatic Ambience, composed by David Wise for Donkey Kong Country (1994). It's a theme that represents the weightless vibe of your new deep-sea life, where you go about your mundane errands, collecting bananas while driving on a swordfish, or, as HerzMayhem put it: "Poor monkey... always swimming, never going anywhere..."

Synthetic Water Music is the second of three compilations, following Synthetic Bird Music and timed to mappa's 10th anniversary. As with the birds, it gathers friends of the label, artists who have released with mappa or played our shows. Most of the music is new, made to measure for this compilation, much of it from Central and Eastern European hands. Birds and water mix well, so please feel invited to play them together, creating your own environments.

Where the birds were in one flock, water is dispersed across four chapters. You live your life as a droppity drop: vapour in the heavens, condensing in clouds, falling into a swamp, trickling into the deepest sea.

Tlālōcān (Cassette 1, Side A)
A place of eternal spring, of aquatic energy that nourishes everything and allows all things to bloom. Bubbly and splishy-sploshy, it is full of dripping sounds and moist caverns (“Emerald Pool” by Pauline Anna Strom), a landscape filled with living fountains (“Oh, to be a Fountain” by Eva Sajanová) and winding streams that flow through the area, forming part of its organic architecture. It is also a paradise reserved for those whose deaths were water-related, where the aquatic and terrestrial beings live in symbiosis and perspectives shift rapidly, from observing a single droplet (Shakali, Lau Nau) to dew (Feronia Wennborg & Lucy Duncombe) and on to flowing currents (Visible Cloaks) that gradually transform into river music (Ursula K. Le Guin & Todd Barton).

Nephelora (Cassette 1, Side B)
A celestial anti-gravity sound world made of evaporation, steam and the formation of clouds, as if looking at “The Sky At The Bottom of the Well” (by Natalia Beylis) or at “The Cloud That Never Rains” (by Henrique Vaz).

If a cloud never rains,
it is not a cloud at all, but a veil that parches the earth with its gaze.
It generates only its own shadow —
a looming mass of suspended longing,
a sky that hoards but never yields,
a reservoir that swallows every river and returns nothing but echoes.

The water in this world is often invisible but sometimes all the more present, as Bint Mbareh describes it: “Recently been obsessed with invisible waters because I come from a place where you have to imagine the water is there even though you cannot see a river, a sea, usually no rain, so water is in the air, the voice and the imaginal realm, drought is imagined to be negotiable.”

Žaboglach Zha-bo-glahch (Cassette 2, Side A)
A fusion of Scottish lochs and Slovak ponds: a misty, foul-smelling, swampy realm, the kind of place that swallowed Artax from The NeverEnding Story. Stagnant waters full of decay become a blooming habitat for sirens (“thereby losing the weightless delight of being swept along with it” by Adam Badí Donoval) and beings straddling the line between fauna and flora, inventing their own communication systems (“Water-lily phase” by Action Pyramid).

R'lyeh (Cassette 2, Side B)
A brooding sunken city at the bottom of the ocean. It’s a journey to get there. Let this chapter guide you, from the shore down to the depths, to the gates of an unexplored world that is inherently dark, unfathomable, and beyond the limits of human perception: starting with seasickness ("Seasick" by Nikolaienko), passing through a classic Poe-esque maelstrom ("Flurry at the Whirl-pull" by Atte Elias Kantonen), a gateway into the darkness and emptiness of the ocean floor, and finally traversing the city itself (“last waves of 2025” by Jules Reidy).
But what is pulling you to a place like this that only a few explore and even fewer leave? Maybe “the darkness that water can contain, the expanse of things we don't know and that can trigger fear instincts even as we try to rationalise them and think we are in control of the rest of nature” (“supercritical fluids” by Diane Barbé).

Dive in and surface wherever you like. Always swimming, never going anywhere. Just don’t forget to take water breaks.

P.S. Birds, then water, can you guess what comes next? Synthetic Soil Music, an elegy for insects and worms? Synthetic Glaciers, or maybe Pollinators? Which sounds would you miss the most if they disappeared? Or what if the third one never comes at all, and somebody, or something, makes Synthetic mappa Music instead. Don't you worry, with the right training data, it can all be replicated, better than the real thing.

Tommy McCook was not only a founding member of the legendary Jamaican Ska group The Skatalites, but also a brilliant musical arranger. His informed understanding of Jazz, R&B and in fact most music styles would always add another layer to any song put his way. This made him the go to guy for most of the Jamaican producers, who would use his arrangement skills to pepper up their latest tunes.

Tommy McCook, (b1927, Havana, Cuba) came to Jamaica with his mother from Cuba aged 11 and entered renowned Alpha Boys School for underprivileged children, a school that placed great emphasis on musical tuition. At the tender of 14, such was his talent he has left to join Eric Deans Orchestra and took on stints with other bands led by Don Hinchman and Roy Coburn. All the bands played in the Swing and Jazz style of the times. He relocated to the Bahamas in 1954 where he further developed his Jazz technique and upon his return to Jamaica in 1962 began working Coxsone Dodd’s Studio One and became involved in the development of Ska. His knowledge of Jazz, R& B and Jamaican musical forms helped set the tone for the group of musicians he was working with and would name the Skatalites. The group, consisting of Don Drummond (Trombone), Roland Alphonso (Tenor Saxophone), Jackie Mitoo (Piano), Lloyd Brevett (Bass), Lloyd Knibbs (Drums), alongside Tommy himself on Tenor Saxophone. The group would back all the major Ska vocalists pf the day and would also go on to cut a catalogue of instrumental music. The Skatalites split up in 1965 and Tommy McCook moved over to work with Duke Reid’s Treasure Isle Studios where he formed The Supersonics. A set of musicians under his guidance that consisted of Lynn Tait and Ernest Ranglin (Guitar), Neville Hinds and Winston Wright (Organ), Gladstone “Gladdy” Anderson (Piano), Hugh Malcolm and Arkland “Drumbago” Parks (Drums), Clifton “Jackie” Jackson (Bass), and Tommy and Hernon Marquis (Saxophone). The more laid back sounds from 1966-1968 would be given the name Rocksteady of which again McCook was at the forefront. The top producers like Bunny Lee would use the musicianship of Tommy McCook and his arrangement skills to enhance this new sound.

We have compiled a great selection of rhythms that featured McCook blowing over tracks stripped of their vocals and replaced with some fantastic lead lines played by Tommy and some of his fellow horns men.
We hope you agree like we do that they do this in fine style.

Amyl and The Sniffers kündigen mit Truth Or Consequence ein Live-Album an, das alles andere als ein klassisches Konzertdokument ist. Im April vergangenen Jahres nahm die Band gemeinsam mit Freunden im legendären El Coyote Mexican Restaurant in Los Angeles eine einzigartige Performance auf und interpretierte ihre Songs erstmals in reduzierten, country-inspirierten Versionen. Das Album vereint neu arrangierte Fan-Favoriten mit zwei bislang unveröffentlichten Songs sowie einer Coverversion von Slim Dustys Klassiker "Lights On The Hill". Die Aufnahmen zeigen Amyl and The Sniffers von einer ungewohnt intimen, lockeren und verspielten Seite und fangen die besondere Atmosphäre einer spontanen Session unter Freunden ein. Zur Veröffentlichung erscheint auch ein begleitender Konzertfilm mit exklusiven Einblicken hinter die Kulissen. Im Mittelpunkt steht jedoch die Musik: Truth Or Consequence präsentiert die Band in einem völlig neuen Klanggewand und eröffnet einen frischen Blick auf ihr Songwriting. "The hope for this record is that it is listened to as it was made, in a ruckus exclamation between a cherished group of friends", erklärt die Band. Mit den ungewöhnlichen Arrangements und der entspannten Live-Atmosphäre dokumentiert Truth Or Consequence eine besondere Seite von Amyl and The Sniffers und erweitert den Blick auf eine Band, die bisher vor allem für ihre energiegeladenen Rockshows bekannt ist.