Cristina Camargo broke onto the Brazilian boogie scene in 1980 with the single "Moral Tem Hora", penned by the by then already famous brothers Marcos and Paulo Valle. They were soon joined by the arranger/producer/musician powerhouse Robson Jorge and Lincoln Olivetti, who worked with practically all the big MPB stars from Jorge Ben and Gal Costa to Caetano Veloso and Gilberto Gil. Armed with the endless possibilities that the burgeoning Brazilian music scene provided, the group went into the studio and produced the eponymous debut album Cristina Camargo.
The result is a very special record built around that successful single that does what Brazil does best: blending their own musical heritage with sounds in vogue in the rest of the world, in this case the boogie disco that was all the rage in the USA in the first half of the 1980s. Expect endearing choirs, tight grooves, and a killer production value on par with the big-budget studios up north.
Cristina Camargo is available as a limited edition on yellow vinyl and includes an insert with lyrics.
Killer Groove Records presents a new 7" by Electric Circus, pairing "High Fever" and "Ogres": raw, hypnotic funk built on obsessive bass lines, sharp horns, dub delays and wah-wah guitars.
Both tracks are taken from Rites, the band's second studio album, out November 27 on limited-edition LP, CD and digital. The 7" is limited to 500 copies worldwide and is out September 25.
On the A-side, "High Fever" maps Electric Circus's territory: '70s funk, Afrobeat and psychedelia meet in a steady build toward a climax of synths and groove. The track grew from a bass line written over one feverish weekend and runs as a single continuous rise in tension.
The groove takes its cue from The Meters, locking syncopated accents into place while a punchy horn section cuts through from the opening bar. Dub delays and layered textures then open the arrangement out, trading space with wah-wah guitars and a treated clavinet that sounds vintage without dating the mix. After a darker, nocturnal passage, the saxophone rises over percussion and synths for the climax.
On the B-side, "Ogres" was the first track conceived for the album and the last to be completed. It began as a bass-and-percussion ostinato in an Ethiopian pentatonic scale, modelled on a war march, and grew into a dense groove with psychedelic and trip-hop textures. Its rhythm conjures a twilight bestiary of dark, menacing or perhaps merely curious creatures, building to a tense climax before resolving into a smooth, dreamlike finale that suggests awakening, or re-emergence.
Like the rest of Rites, both tracks started in jam sessions and were recorded in stages: live takes of the core arrangements first, then dedicated sessions for synths, horns and overdubs. Marco Sirio Pivetti engineered at Metrò Rec Studio in Riva del Garda, Gio Solo at Sberdia Studio in Turin. Overdubs were reamped through tube amplifiers and analog outboard. The band co-produced with Pivetti, who also mixed; Riccardo Ricci mastered at Velvet Room Mastering Studio in Brighton.
Electric Circus are based in Turin. They released their debut album, Canicola, in 2018 and have toured the U.S. Scoring Contrecourant (2021), a documentary series shot in Senegal and Mali, led them to Sahel Roots, a duo from the north of the country. The two groups recorded On est ensemble (Mieruba, 2023) remotely between Turin and Bamako, each writing two pieces for the other to finish.
For fans of The Heliocentrics, Calibro 35, BADBADNOTGOOD.
Anyone who has had the sheer pleasure of seeing and hearing Leroy Burgess perform in concert will know just how amazing the live renditions of his iconic compositions of Disco Boogie hits and classics sound with a full band and a fully fueled audience. Accompanied by the ten piece French band and long time Leroy Burgess collaborative outfit Saving Coco, BBE Music is releasing live versions of two of those classics Let’s Do It and Big Time. Recorded and released by Rick James in 1980 Big Time is an absolute killer of a track that sounds so fresh decades later in this crowd energising performance. Famously released by Convertion Let’s Do It was a huge club hit in the early 1980s and is the perfect track to accompany Big Time on this release. Leroy Burgess is a certifiably genuine legend of Black music; his compositions have moved dancefloors across the world since the early 1970s as a member of Black Ivory, then Convertion, Paradise Garage favourites LOGG, Kleer and electro outfit Aleem. His collaborations with Patrick Adams, Inner Life, Dazzle and solo artists such as Eddie Kendricks, Rick James and Fonda Rae have cemented Leroy Burgess’ place in the annals of Black Music History. As a founder-member of the Universal Robot Band he co-wrote the massive perennial favourite Barely Breaking Even. Leroy Burgess feat. Saving Coco-Big Time/Let’s Do It is released as a 12″ vinyl and digital download and definitely belongs in the ‘make sure you get this’ category. Mixed by Marc Mac and mastered at the Grammy-nominated Carvery Studio by Frank Merritt. Available as 12″ vinyl and digital download. Release date September 25th, 2026
Nacho Marco drops Colors in Dub Vol.1—deep house soaked in warm analog dub. From the hypnotic “Midnight Blue” and its Satoshi Tomiie remix to the raw pulse of “Bumblebee Yellow” and “Electric Green,” this wax rides late-night frequencies straight from Valencia to Paris.
DJ Feedbacks :
Francois Kevorkian (Wave) : Love the Satoshi mix
Eddie Fowlkes (Detroit Wax, Rekids, Classic Music Company) : thanks
Travis Kirschbaum (Warehouse Preservation Society) : Loving this. Especially Midnight Blue!
Sascha Dive : Midnight Blue for me!!
Brothers' Vibe (Luv4Wax) : Super ep, great works!!
Radio Slave (Rekids) : Another superb ep from Phonogramme and Satoshi's mix is great.
Giles Smith : "midnight blue" is nice
Alexkid (Rawax / FUSE / NG Trax) : Totally my vibe. <3
Aleqs Notal : Yes !!
Italojohnson (Italojohnson) : Track 1 for me!
Ben Sims : Now downloading... will check asap!
Okain (Talman / Infuse / Pleasure Zone) : Electric Green is dope!
Satoshi Tomiie (Abstract Architecture) : Receiving great feedback from the dance floor!
Steffi (Dolly) : lovely release!!
Laurent Garnier : Cool tracks
DJ Bone (FURTHER) : Electric Green and Satoshi Tomiie remix work for me.
Harri (Sub Club) : lovely stuff, will play and support
Rob Pearson (Evasive Records / Sine 102.6fm) : lovely - right up my street, cheers ;-)
Felix Dickinson (Futureboogie, Rush Hour, Cynic) : Solid E.P. current fave Electric Green
Jorkes (Freeride Millenium) : lovely, thanks so much. xo
Kassian (Phonica White / Heist Recordings) : wicked
Jaye Ward (Dalston Super Store / Netil Radio) : massive quality as ever!! super deep and pulsing gear, electric green is ace! thx
Tim Sweeney (Beats In Space) : Sounds great
Chloe Caillet (Smile Records) : love this!
Stevie Cox (Sub Club) : really lush, thank you !
Raresh (ar:pi:ar) : thanks
Ame (Innervisions) : thanks
Geir Aspenes (G-Ha (Sunkissed)) : Thank u
Saoirse (Body Movements) : Super nice dubby vibes
Amotik : Very nice :)
Kai Alce (Real Soon) : Satoshi remix is hot!
Domenic Cappello (Subclub) : nice dubby house
Cee ElAssaad (ENSOULED) : Just the way I like it! dubby and groovy.
Mike Shannon (Cynosure) : Excellent work here from Valencia's finest!
Nacho Marco goes deep on Colors in Dub Vol 2, heavy late-night house pressure straight outta Valencia, with Steve Bug flipping “Pitch Black” into a cold-blooded weapon for real heads only.
Raw deep house pressure from Sascha Dive, four cuts blending soul, groove, and late-night mood, with Roland Clark blessing the mic. Limited green vinyl for those who still move to the real sound.
DJ Feedbacks :
Laurent Garnier : Cool tracks
Josh Wink (Ovum) : Liking 'Im Inspired' the best here.
C-Rock : Those Nights for me, nice NYC dub House touch!
Radio Slave (Rekids) : I've always been such a big fan of Sasha's productions and "There Is No Tomorrow" hits the spot.
Fleur Shore (Undergrowth / Cuttin' Headz) : im inspired, beautiful track
Reboot (Cecille / Cadenza) : schöne tracks ️
Satoshi Tomiie (Abstract Architecture) : Solid release!
Alinka (Twirl, Classic, Crosstown Rebels, Batty Bass) : Nice one
PBR Streetgang : Invocation and Im Inspired are great
D'Julz (Bass Culture) : those night is the one for me here
Damian Lazarus (Crosstown Rebels) : Thanks for sending. Xx
Ben Sims : Now downloading... will check asap!
Archie Hamilton (Microhertz / FUSE) : Nice thanks
Eddie Fowlkes (Detroit Wax, Rekids, Classic Music Company) : thanks
Tim Sweeney (Beats In Space) : Lovely
Doc Martin (Sublevel) : Sascha on a good one,with the voice of house music Roland Clark no less!!!
Terry Farley : THOSE NIGHTS WORKS FOR ME
Chloe Caillet (Smile Records) : love this!
Oliver $ (Classic Music Company / Play It Down) : Sooo gooood!
Ame (Innervisions) : thanks
Danny Tenaglia : Downloading for Danny Tenaglia, thanks!
Robert Owens (Trax / Musical Directions) : Cool tracks
Kai Alce (Real Soon) : Nice deep tracks from Sascha
Mark Farina : dig them.
Lea Lisa (Phonica Records / Folklor Club) : Really good definition of House
Alexkid (Rawax / FUSE / NG Trax) : Phonogramme (and Sascha Dive) on fire at the moment...
Harri (Sub Club) : lovely stuff, will play and support
Dark Entries is ecstatic to announce Terminal Fascination, a retrospective release of the music of Camille O’Grady, subversive artist, leather witch, punk poet, and gender saboteur. O’Grady cut her teeth in New York’s burgeoning punk scene at clubs like CBGB’s, where her band Leather Secrets would share the stage with acts like Television. She became one of the few women to be welcomed into the Mineshaft, Wally Wallace’s legendary Manhattan gay BDSM club. Towards the end of the 70s, she would trek west to San Francisco to be with her partner, performance artist and gallerist Robert Opel, who was tragically killed in 1979. O’Grady would pass away from COVID in 2020, with her voluminous works across various media - text, image, and sound - having been unpublished during her lifetime.
Working with O’Grady’s estate, Dark Entries has assembled thirteen of her finest recordings, including instant classics like “James Dean to the Rescue,” “Tourniquet,” and, of course, “Toilet Kiss.” Two songs, “Angel with a Key” and “Love Comes Like a Cutthroat,” were recorded at a studio in Los Angeles for a 7” release that never materialized, while the rest of the material was recorded live in 1979 at The Ambush, a San Francisco leather club. O’Grady’s songs, often written from the perspective of a gay man, explode like a genderfuck version of Patti Smith, like Buffy St. Marie in leather, like the hedonic utopianism of the 1960s dragged (blissfully) through the broken glass of the 1970s. The release of Terminal Fascination coincides with the publication of ‘A Cross-Worlds Angel,’ a 300-page book of O’Grady’s work by Phillip Zimmerman. The record includes an insert featuring liner notes, lyrics, and photographs. Celebrate Camille O’Grady, the artist Jack Fritscher described as an “earth mother, a leather lioness of the arts.”
At this point, the vast swathes of unreleased Muslimgauze material Bryn Jones left behind when he passed away over 25 years ago are as legendary as any of his work. And sure enough, there's still some being unearthed today.
The fourth entry in a 7" single series is taken from one of Jones' customary completely unlabelled DATs, which he sent to labels seemingly as fast as he finished them.
A new series of singles collecting one of Bryn Jones’ innumerable DAT tapes that would show up at the labels he worked with sans any identifying marks.
Side A layers multiple voices (a background, faraway wail that either is or is akin to a muezzin, and a flatly declaimed two-word phrase that periodically halts proceedings) over his classic, slightly brick-walled hand percussion for a strangely meditative experience, as Jones phases elements in and out, more or less prominently in the mix. Side B however, open in a surprisingly dreamy place for Muslimgauze, with a looped ascending synth pad and beautiful sampled singing only gradually acquiring percussive accompaniment. As with the other side, Jones is content to let these elements interact and swap spaces in the mix for the duration, trusting in the sturdiness of his chosen components to carry the listener through.
Coil’s 17-minute soundtrack for »How to Destroy Angels«, performed on January 19, 1984: ritual music ›for the accumulation of male sexual energy‹, structured around magickal and numerological concepts.
Throughout history man has made and used music for two distinct and separate purposes. In recent years, particularly since the advent of sound recording, the most popular use of music has been for entertainment - the temporary amusement and distraction of as large a number as possible. As a consequence, many people tend to overlook its more fundamental and ancient use as a tool for affecting man's body and spirit. The many varieties of religious music from around the world contain a vast quantity of clues to the way in which sound can affect the physical and mental state of the serious listener, yet many find their associations with religion itself too difficult a stigma to overlook in their appreciation of the sound and its potential, for its own sake.
On this record, hopefully the first in a series, we have tried to produce sound which has a real, practical and beneficial power in this modern Era. Specifically, it is intended as an accumulator of male sexual energy. Although we make neither claims nor rules for its use, we do suggest that for maximum potency it should only be played in circumstances that exclusively male and/or onanistic in nature. What these are is entirely up to you.
The execution of the piece was structured around concepts we felt would work for us - in this case magickal and numerological rather than conventionally musical in form. One image or symbol which we drew upon that may be useful to bear in mind is that of Mars, often indicated by the male symbol.
Should this music have any power, over and above the banal and transitory titillation achieved by most records available now, it is a positive and beneficial power to be used and controlled by the listener, as he desires.
Coil’s 17-minute soundtrack for »How to Destroy Angels«, performed on January 19, 1984: ritual music ›for the accumulation of male sexual energy‹, structured around magickal and numerological concepts.
Throughout history man has made and used music for two distinct and separate purposes. In recent years, particularly since the advent of sound recording, the most popular use of music has been for entertainment - the temporary amusement and distraction of as large a number as possible. As a consequence, many people tend to overlook its more fundamental and ancient use as a tool for affecting man's body and spirit. The many varieties of religious music from around the world contain a vast quantity of clues to the way in which sound can affect the physical and mental state of the serious listener, yet many find their associations with religion itself too difficult a stigma to overlook in their appreciation of the sound and its potential, for its own sake.
On this record, hopefully the first in a series, we have tried to produce sound which has a real, practical and beneficial power in this modern Era. Specifically, it is intended as an accumulator of male sexual energy. Although we make neither claims nor rules for its use, we do suggest that for maximum potency it should only be played in circumstances that exclusively male and/or onanistic in nature. What these are is entirely up to you.
The execution of the piece was structured around concepts we felt would work for us - in this case magickal and numerological rather than conventionally musical in form. One image or symbol which we drew upon that may be useful to bear in mind is that of Mars, often indicated by the male symbol.
Should this music have any power, over and above the banal and transitory titillation achieved by most records available now, it is a positive and beneficial power to be used and controlled by the listener, as he desires.
'The Shadow BoxerÔ - a tale of oppression, discipline, and inevitable revenge - is re-interpreted by British producer Heritage, whose musical style perfectly aligns with the Shaw Cuts squad.
Ku Ding trained in Tai Chi under Master Yeung for over a decade. This discipline prioritizes health, self-defense and above all, the virtue of tolerance. 'Looking Back, Moving ForwardÔ mirrors this holistic training for body and mind through its broken rhythms, dreamy pads, and warm bass.
Despite facing relentless harassment at work from his tyrannical boss Jin Dasheng, Ku Ding remains calm and endures the humiliation. The playful percussions, vocal snippets, and powerful low-end grooves of 'DancehallÔ underscore the protagonist's deep-rooted discipline and resilience.
However, after his lover A Bao is killed and both his master and his friend Hu Binglian are successively murdered, he is forced to rise up and fight back using his martial arts prowess.
'2003Ô comes in swinging, fueling Ku Ding with the perfect mindset for the battle ahead via punchy drums and an energetic bassline.
Driven to mete out justice, Ku Ding prepares for his revenge without betraying his sacred tolerance. The complex breakbeat patterns of 'HaywireÔ carried by recurring, subtle chords, give him a final boost. But can this rational approach succeed? You better find outÉ
Hackney Electronica come to Dark Entries with the Feedback Memory EP, featuring 5 cuts of acidic rave-inflected wave. Quinn Whalley (Paranoid London), Unai Trotti (Cartulis Music), and Margo Broom (Hermitage Working Studios) formed Hackney Electronica during COVID era. Trotti and Whalley were spending countless hours digging through records and making music during lockdown. As their sound took shape – heavy and hypnotic – they invited Broom to join, cementing the motley trio. Following their debut EP, Synaptic Shadows, the five pieces on Feedback Memory muse on the loss of self in the digital era and the fine line between pleasure and paranoia. Each track pulses like a memory from the backstreets of Hackney, where the night transforms the city into an electrified maze of fleeting highs and inevitable crashes. Their hard-hitting dancefloor indulgences shine on “Trapped in the Circuit” and “Six Foot Seven,” which features Mutado Pintado on vocals, while tweaked-out wave sounds blossom on “Feedback Memory” and “Lost Trip - Destino.” Things close out with “Compressed Air,” a lush, breakbeat-laced affair that veers into trip-hop territory. Housed in a sleeve designed by Germán Bardo, Feedback Memory continues Hackney Electronica’s tumultuous journey through the flickering alleys of the mind, where tension and transcendence intertwine.
++REC opens its catalogue with a four-track various artists 12", one cut per artist, two per side. Samuel Jabba sets the pace with System Thriller, a driving electro workout built on a relentless bassline. Tomie follows with Re:Frecuency, tighter and more hypnotic. On the flip, Buraye's Canopy Cells brings hardware-driven acid with a live feel, and Caruan closes with Rocco N'Roll Robot, the fastest and most playful track of the four. Mastered and cut by Marco Pellegrini at Analogcut. Distributed by Outside In Distribution.
Seven years after the haunting resonance of Voids, electronic pioneer Martyn returns to the album format with Music For Existing. Arriving on 15 May 2026, the record is more than a collection of tracks; it is a profound exploration of what it means to remain devoted to a craft in an era of relentless noise.
The album’s announcement is heralded by the lead single "Heavy Sound." The track serves as the perfect bridge between Martyn’s past and present - a masterclass in tension and release that previews the album’s dialogue between the producer, the musicians, and the audience. We live inside a culture that has prioritised and monetised restlessness. The modern apparatus runs on the continuous production of "next," driven by algorithms that value novelty over depth.
Music For Existing serves as a love letter to the communal act of making music - something that is both healing and inherently defiant. For Martyn, a musician often finds solace in musical conversation with others; in the moment we press record, we simply exist together. This record is an invitation to build human infrastructure around what we love, leaning into the fluid nature of community and seeing exactly where the music takes us when we choose to listen.
The album is a sprawling, "off-the-grid" tapestry that echoes Martyn’s profound appreciation for jazz - free, instinctive, and bursting in every sonic direction. This collection features an expansive cast of collaborators, including Duval Timothy, Dan Only, Lucinda Chua, and Mark Cisneros. The record is further elevated by the contributions of jazz talents Mischa Porte and Cees Bruinsma, alongside the evocative words of writer and poet Musa Okwonga.
While the acoustic textures and improvisational spirit of this record may feel like a departure, they represent a homecoming. Jazz has always been ingrained in Martyn’s work; even in his most stripped-back club tracks, the DNA of swing, syncopation, and free-form structure was always present, if not always visible.
Music For Existing marks the beginning of an exciting journey that will continue from the studio to the stage, celebrating the radical act of existing in the moment.
Adam Freeland’s return continues with the relaunch of Marine Parade and the release of the Twister EP, marking his first solo material since 2007.
“Twister” draws on Freeland’s love of psych rock, drone, leftfield techno and breakbeat, combining raw bass, polyrhythmic grooves and cavernous dub hits before building into a hypnotic drone-driven climax and cinematic guitar finish. On the flip, “Kiligurl” pairs pulsing drone and broken rhythms with spring reverb for an organic dub feel.
The EP follows Transhuman, Freeland’s collaboration with Spooky’s Duncan Forbes, and marks the next chapter for Marine Parade, the influential label that helped pioneer the edgier side of breakbeat in the 2000s. After closing in 2009, the label’s return follows Freeland’s decade living off-grid in California’s Mojave Desert and his work with The Acid alongside Ry X.
Harvey McKay’s “Table for One” returns to Systematic Recordings for a special and deeply meaningful vinyl edition. Originally released digitally on Systematic, the EP captures the unmistakable sound of the Glasgow producer: powerful, hypnotic and uncompromising techno, driven by raw energy while always retaining the musicality and soul that defined Harvey’s work. Following Harvey’s passing in Spring 2026, this release inevitably carries a different weight. For Systematic and Marc Romboy, it is first and foremost a celebration of
his music and the lasting impression he left behind.
For the first time, “Table for One” will be available on vinyl, presented as a strictly limited 12” picture disc pressing of only 500 copies. The original version takes the A-side, while Marc Romboy’s remix opens the Bside, offering his own interpretation of Harvey’s distinctive sound. The release is completed by “Mycelium”, another powerful example of McKay’s ability to combine hypnotic repetition, precision and sheer dancefloor energy. More than a vinyl edition of an outstanding Systematic release, this record has become a tribute to an
artist whose music will continue to live on through clubs, DJs and dancefloors around the world.
ALLVEI (pronounced AHL-vay) is an ambient-jazz trio featuring Norwegian guitarist Eivind J. Vullum (HMD,Vibrasjon), Polish saxophonist Jerzy Mączyński (Polish Jazz, UHF) and Swiss drummer Nicolas Stocker (ECM, Nik Bärtsch’s Mobile). With its roots and meaning coming from a specific region on the North-Westcoast of Norway, ALLVEI describes an eternity in time, and the endlessness in space. It’s a musical and physical journey that begins deep in the mountains of Norway via Warsaw, Zürich and ends in Kristiania. It’s a fitting name for the trio’s musical experiments, operating in a continuous evolving sonic space. The five compositions act as a visual site-map of the first cycle of the ALLVEI project. From the subtle minimalism of ‘Almberg’ and unruffled sounds of ‘Driva,’ an enchanting web of rhythmical structures and ethereal sounds unfold, centred around subtle polyrhythms and free improvisation. ‘Mariensztat’ brims with exotic textures and tasteful arrangements, while understated explosions and quietly composed atmospheres dictate the pace of ‘Züri,’ before the album climaxes with the surging ‘Kristiania,’ awash with Stocker’s shuffling drumbeats.
UK experimental multi-instrumentalist Oli Heffernan (aka Ivan The Tolerable) returns to independent label Riot Season Records on October 23rd, 2026, with The Planets, a fierce, tension-fuelled reinterpretation of Gustav Holst’s iconic orchestral suite tailored for the modern age.
Originally composed over a century ago to capture the astrological characters of the cosmos, Holst's masterpiece receives a radical, uneasy update. Where the original composition leaned on grand symphonic sweeps, Ivan The Tolerable strips away the comfort of the orchestra, replacing it with fracturing analog synthesisers, claustrophobic tape loops, and the hypnotic, nervous pulse of modern kosmische music and avant-garde noise.
The Planets is an album forged in the specific dread of 2026—a year defined by geopolitical instability, climate weariness, and pervasive societal tension. Rather than looking up at the stars in awe, Heffernan turns the telescope back toward a fractured Earth. From the staggering, industrial-tinged dread of "Mars" to a hollow, melancholic take on "Jupiter," the album transforms familiar motifs into an immersive exploration of collective psychological fatigue.
Recorded in isolation by Heffernan, the project captures the signature solo vulnerability seen on his recent landmark releases like Psychogeography. It balances moments of deep, meditative stillness with sudden, jarring eruptions of noise, offering listeners a space to both confront and process the overwhelming static of the everyday world.
The songs of Jules de Corte are condensed, folky gems with an almost effortless charm. Poised between the intimate and the universal, between lightness and darkness, they touch on religion, love, loss, and the small dramas of everyday life. Yet they resist easy translation. Packed with wordplay, de Corte’s signature alliterations, humor, and local cultural references, the songs inevitably lose something in another language. Still, when a Belgian quartet of improvisers takes them on, joined by American songwriter Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy, the songs are reborn rather than merely transposed: literal fidelity gives way to interpretation, and what is lost in words is often gained in spirit.
Even without tracing every change, their overall effect is fascinating. Songs are slowed down, often doubled in length, and filled with unexpected musical intrusions. They gain fuller arrangements and are placed in an entirely new context. Replacing de Corte’s piano with guitar can create a radically different vibe, as in “Mariska.” An added solo can heighten the contrast between childlike perspective and the almost matter- of-fact brutality of “Little Anita.” In “The Stranger,” another use of contrast unsettles the everyday harmony, transforming it with a subtle, disorienting twist.
Ultimately, these performances show that interpretation is not successful simply because it is literal. With the groundwork laid by Linus, Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy further liberated the songs from their original versions. Lyrics and melodies become malleable, shaped by his recognizable cadences, timbre, and personal quirks. Like his collaborators, he allows himself the freedom to bend the material to his own approach. There is no radical break between this performance and his other records. Listeners familiar with the originals may be puzzled at first; for those new to de Corte, it is a wholly different experience.
Does it really matter that the original “Little Jesus, Mighty God” is a 100-second nugget combining playful naivete with biblical fervor? In the hands of these five explorers, the song becomes an intriguing contemplation, with subtle musical shades and a recitation in which every syllable carries a maturity that offers a new perspective. Then there is “The Outsider,” which feels as genuine as any original American folk song. The musicians’ process is more than reinterpretation—it is reimagination, bringing new musical compatibility and emotional depth. Whether that depth was there from the start, waiting to be uncovered, or created in the process is beside the point. What matters is that Linus and Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy have made the essence of these songs their own, paying homage yet dancing to their own tune.
Linus is the Belgian duo of guitarist and banjo player Ruben Machtelinckx and reedist and synthesiser player Thomas Jillings. Across five previous albums — Onland (2014), Linus + Skarbø / Leroux (2015), Felt Like Old language at the crossroads of folk, jazz, minimalism, chamber music and free improvisation. Their music is adventurous, shaped by a particular sensitivity to texture, timbre and the subtle interaction between musicians.
What began as a duo gradually grew into a flexible musical world, bringing Linus together with musicians such as Nils Økland, Ingar Zach, Niels Van Heertum, Øyvind Skarbø and Frederik Leroux. Yet each new constellation has remained recognisably Linus: music in which carefully considered forms leave space for intuition, interaction and the unexpected.
For their sixth album, Linus takes a new step by moving into the world of song and text. Inspired by a shared love for the late Dutch songwriter Jules De Corte, the album is a reimagining of De Corte’s unique repertoire. More than simply interpreting De Corte’s songs, they absorb and reshape them, bringing them into dialogue with their own musical language. In keeping with this open approach, they are joined by celebrated vocalist Bonnie “Prince” Billy. With albums such as 1999’s I See a Darkness appearing on several greatest album lists, Bonnie “Prince” Billy is a cult figure in the alternative folk scene, and his highly intuitive way of singing seamlessly matches the subtle interplay Linus has developed over more than a decade.
Pure world magic brims from every groove of this new set of pearlers from the Beauty & The Beat label. We know nothing about Loopico, who is behind the originals, but they blend plenty of Latin, cumbia and expressive percussive sounds into ass-wiggling grooves. Cow bells litter 'Curimbobata', which has stringy rhythms and external synths weaving in and out. 'Maquio' has busy, relentless handicaps and acoustic strings with shamanic spoken words, then 'Upaon-acu' and 'Calma-cara' bring sunny spiritualism to another pair of urgent rhythms. Leonidas lays down hefty, bass-driven rhythms that make these suited to club deployment and open-air dancing this summer.
