quête:max m

- For this brand new chapter in the highly acclaimed Wamono series, DJ Chintam goes digging into the vaults of one of the most revered Japanese labels, Trio Records, and unearths some killer drum breaks, dope bass lines and funky horns, for an essential selection of jazz funk fusion and rare groove vibes produced on Trio between 1973 and 1981!

- 180g heavy vinyl pressing, reverse board jacket.

- Fully licensed Trio Records masters.

- Mastering and lacquer cut by Jukka Sarapää at Timmion Cutting Lab, Helsinki, Finland.

- Signature artwork by Yoxxx.

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After many years working as a buyer for several record stores, DJ Chintam opened his own Blow Up shop in 2018 in Tokyo's Shibuya district. A member of the Dayjam Crew and a specialist of soul, funk, rare groove and disco music, Chintam is also an expert of the home-brewed Wamono grooves. He supervised and wrote the legendary Wamono A to Z records guide book together with DJ Yoshizawa Dynamite.

For this brand new chapter in the highly acclaimed Wamono series, our man Chintam goes digging into the vaults of one of the most revered Japanese labels: Trio Records. Established in 1969 by audio manufacturer Trio Electronics, now known as Kenwood, the label - and its subsidiaries such as Showboat and Trash - released high quality music spanning a large variety of genres including rock, jazz, fusion, soundtracks and popular songs, until its end in 1984. Through the eight tracks selected here, Chintam unearths some dope drum breaks, heavy bass lines and funky horns, for an essential selection of jazz funk fusion and rare groove vibes produced on Trio between 1973 and 1981.

Put the needle on the record, turn up the volume and dig right now into the Wamono sound - the cream of the Japanese jazz, funk, soul, rare groove and boogie music developed throughout the years since the sixties in Japan!

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180GWALP05 - Manufactured and distributed by 180g.

Solomun & CASSIM remix two of the track rake from Radio Slave’s Venti album released earlier this year

Diynamic boss and Ibiza titan Solomun remixes Radio Slave ‘The Lunatics’ on Rekids, following the original’s inclusion in Matt Edwards’ acclaimed ‘Venti’ album in May. The original, a rework itself, reimagined the 1981 Fun Boy Three track ‘The Lunatics Have Taken Over The Asylum’, with Edwards’ ode to the band’s late lead vocalist and The Specials frontman Terry Hall winning support from Saoirse, Erol Alkan, Jennifer Cardini, Laurent Garnier, Paul Woolford, and Honey Dijon.
Solomun’s remix of ‘The Lunatics’ is sparkling aural nostalgia executed with total joy. Crisp 80s drums, Stranger Things-esque Jupiter 8 synth swells, the vocoded titular vocal, and a gloriously rich sliding bassline combine to drag the listener back to 1983 in the best possible way. As the track builds, rousing guitars join the ensemble, completing what is a hypnotic, melodic trip to the 80s via what’s set to be a 2024 anthem.

CASSIMM’s remix of Radio Slave vs Audion’s ‘Mouth To Mouth’ continues the story of Matthew Dear’s classic, which Radio Slave revived and reinvented as part of his 2024 LP, ‘Venti’.
Radio Slave’s hi-NRG disco cover of Audion’s minimal/maximal 2006 and era-defining anthem has dominated dancefloors since it emerged as a single in late 2023, with the likes of Erol Alkan, Job Jobse, Sean Johnston, Jennifer Cardini and Eats Everything continuing to play it today and the latter awarding it an Essential New Tune whilst sitting in for Pete Tong on BBC Radio 1.
Now, recent Rekids alum CASSIMM continues his huge run of form with a chunky, main-room house interpretation that shows just why his recent release, ‘House of Moves,’ won DJ support from the likes of Tong, Arielle Free, Paul Woolford, Honey Dijon, and Jennifer Loveless.
CASSIMS’s remix of Radio Slave vs Audion quickly follows Lindstrom and Solomun’s remixes of the ‘Venti’ LP’s tracks, which have seen support from the likes of Ivan Smagghe, Chloé Caillet, Nightmares On Wax, and more.

The mighty U Roy is the originator, the man who put the DJ phenomenon on the map and made it an artform. From Kingston Jamaica to the corners of all the Dancefloors, Clubs and Sound Systems across the world. U Roy (B. Ewart Beckford, 1942, Kingston, Jamaica) began his musical career spinning records for Doctor Dickies Sound System way back in 1961. The mid sixties saw him working for Sir George The Atomic before moving in 1967 to the man who best shaped his sound King Tubby on his Home Town HI - FI. Tubbys work in the dub field, dropping out vocals on his versions for the Sound Systems allowed U Roy to voice over these spaces adding to the excitment of the Dance!!!

U Roy moved into the recording arena firstly cutting two disc's for Producer Lee Perry 'Earths Rightful Ruler' and 'OK Corral' and then following this with 'Dynamic Fashion Way' and 'Riot' for Producer Keith Hudson. Producer Duke Reid seeing the protential in this new found form brought U Roy to his Treasure Isle Studios to voice over his back catalogue of Rocksteady Hits. His first three releases for Duke Reid 'Wake The Town', 'Rule The Nation' and 'Wear You To The Ball' held the Top 3 positions for 12 weeks in early 1970's.

We have compiled some of U Roy's best loved cuts from his mid 70's period when all were still looking at him for guidence.  The opening cut Call On Me sees him working over Delroy Wilson's 'Got To Be There'.  You Never Get Away gets U Roy answering Delroy Wison's 'Keep On Rocking'. Johnny Clarke's 'Time Gonna Tell' with rootsy bassline turns into Every Knee Shall Bow. Cornell Campbell the Gorgon himself gets his 'Check Mr Morgon' turned into Gorgon Wise. Johnny Clarke's Hold On gets reworked. Jeff Barnes 'Blowing In The Wind' tuned into Number 1 and alongside King of The Road which sees Lennox Brown blow his saxophone over the instrumental 'In The Swing of Things', was one of U Roys first releases. Linval Thompson's 'Let Jah Arise' is versioned to Joyful Locks. I Originate which lends us to the title of this compilation, says it as it is, a classic built over Dave Barker's 'Shocks of Mighty'. Linval Thompson again provides the backbone with his Cool Down Your Temper cut for U Roys version. The mighty Burning Spear's Creation Rebel although providing our next track, it is Johnny Clarke's version that gets worked over. Leo Graham's 'Birds of A Feather' turns into Stick Together. Soul Syndicates instrumental 'Goliath' grows into Riot. A big hit for Max Romeo Wet Dream sounds great under U Roy's new rendition.

Two extra tracks for the CD release of this album sees the great voice of Slim Smith on his 'Let's Stick Together' becomes ‘Ain’t To Proud To Beg’ and Cornell Campbell's 'Stand Firm' works with
U Roy to sign us off with ‘I Shall Not Remove’.  A fine collection i hope you agree to the Daddy of all DJ's who in his own words ''I Originate, so you must appreciate, while the others got to imitate'' says it all really……

`Think Differently' is the debut LP by the duo of Callahan & Witscher. Jeff Witscher has been one of the most daring voices in underground American music for two decades, highlighted by releases on Pan and NNA Tapes. Jack Callahan's focused, uncompromising approach to sound caught the attention of both Demdike Stare's DDS label and Swiss composer Jürg Frey, who took Callahan on as his first composition student. Fans of their individual work might expect opacity, disruption, or rhythmic irregularity from their collaboration, but `Think Differently' sounds like a pitbull in a convertible, a sand-kicking beach party, the dopamine hit you get from 311 or Smash Mouth. It's a punchy, crunchy, highly infectious record. How did Callahan & Witscher cut the path from the ghostly margins of avant garde musics to the gutters of post-grunge American hard rock? In the words of Callahan, "at some point, you start to need a stronger drug." The most potent characteristic of this stronger drug is the guitar. And not just any guitar, but a sassy, contagious, blithe guitar. Its presence is a drastic shift for two guys who've combined to make dozens of records over the years, not a single one of which has a recognizable guitar sound on it. Alongside the cool breezes and hyperactive fretwork of Callahan's guitar playing, the songs are backboned by strutting, groove-happy vocals: all bark, all bite. Every song is a careful collage, light but dense, ornate with gang choruses, soulful femme vocals, autotune and whisper scratches. This accumulation almost manages to hide the record's potent undertow of dread. `Think Differently' unfolds carefully, a slow-motion demolition that reveals the anxiety of second guessing, the exhaustion of tour, creative bankruptcy, willful misunderstanding, the pain of caring. Setting this lyrical cynicism against such sonic glee isn't a spoonful of sugar, it isn't a bait-and-switch, it isn't a prank. After all, the dumb bliss of Sugar Ray's "Fly" shades a song about Mark McGrath's mom dying. "All Star" is about climate change. Most Sublime lyrics are a bummer. But there's still room for a raised beer, for a dumb grin. Like these ancestors, Callahan & Witscher aim at maximum uplift, at sounds that warm and dazzle like a sped-up sunrise. In spite of overdraft fees, in spite of bad art, in spite of self-doubt.

Black Truffle is thrilled to present a Song for two Mothers / Occam IX the first ever solo release from Laetitia Sonami. Born in France in 1957, Sonami studied with Éliane Radigue in Paris before moving to California in 1978 to study electronic music at Mills College, going on to make important innovations in the field of live electronics interfaces and multi-media performance. Sonami is perhaps most closely associated with one of her inventions, the Lady’s Glove, an arm-length tailored glove fitted with movement sensors allowing the performer fluidly to control digital sound parameters and processing, as well as motors, lights and video playback. Having performed with the Lady’s Glove for 25 years, Sonami retired it in 2016, turning her attention to the interface/instrument heard and pictured here, the Spring Sprye.

In Sonami’s own description, “The Spring Spyre is composed of three thin springs that are attached to reverb tank pickups, mounted on a metal ring. The audio generated when the springs are touched, rubbed or struck is analyzed in Max/MSP. The extracted features are then used to train machine learning models in Wekinator and Rapidmax and control the audio synthesis in real time. We never actually hear the springs.” After decades of aversion to documenting her work on recordings, a Song for two Mothers / Occam IX treats listeners to two side-long performances with the Spring Spyre: the very first piece developed for the instrument and the most recent, the two contrasting remarkably in sound palette, energy and form. A Song for two Mothers (2023) spins an intricate web of rippling synthetic burbles, rapid sweeps and fizzing textures. Performed in real time with the sensitive and partly uncontrollable Spring Sprye ("a bit tyrannical," Sonami calls it), the music is delicate yet chaotic. Abrupt gestures hover against a backdrop of silence, "devoid of spatial or temporal direction". After several minutes, the sound-world becomes metallic and percussive, tapping and ticking in pointillistic flurries before a wavering harmonic cloud emerges, sprinkled with resonant drips and pops.


Occam IX is a radically different proposition. At the outset of Sonami’s exploration of the Spring Sprye, she asked her former teacher Éliane Radigue to compose a piece for it—and her: like all of Radigue’s work since she ceased working with analogue electronics at the beginning of the 21st century, Occam IX is written not only for an instrument but also for a particular performer. These scores are developed verbally, through meetings and conversations between performer and composer; each is grounded in an image (usually kept from listeners, to avoid influencing their experience); all magnify the subtlest acoustic phenomena and require great commitment and patience from the performer. Sonami’s is one of the few Occam pieces to make use of electronics, bringing it closer to Radigue’s famous longform pieces for ARP 2500. Beginning from a rumbling low tone, the listener is gradually immersed in slowly lapping waves of synthetic tones, eventually thinning out into delicate bell-like pings against a background of white noise, reminiscent of one of the most beautiful sections of Kyema from the Trilogie de la Morte.


Accompanied by notes from Sonami, her longtime collaborator Paul DeMarinis, and Radigue, and illustrated with scores, photographs and images of the Spring Spyre, a Song for two Mothers / Occam IX is an essential document celebrating an under-recognised pioneer of electronic music and performance.

Cardinal Fuzz and Feeding Tube Records are proud to present to you the 2nd LP from TOMOYUKI TRIO (Tomoyuki Aoki, Mike Vest & Dave Sneddon) following their debut LP ‘Mars’ on the esteemed Riot Season Record Label. Tomoyuki Aoki is the founding member and lead guitarist of the legendary Tokyo Psych Monsters UP-TIGHT. Of all the Japanese psych-rock groups that emerged in the late nineties and early noughties, Up-Tight are the most reverent, the most directly plugged into the source, from their name (Velvet Underground) with knowing referential song titles like “Sweet Sister” to their extended heavy, dark black clad acid fried one chord psych melters -- we're talking bands like Fushitsusha, White Heaven, Kousokuya, Shizuka, and the grandaddies of 'em all, the deservedly-legendary, Les Rallizes Denudes. Shitsuren If anything has got an even heavier, dronier edge than what we heard on the last one. Super fuzzed guitars, sad ballads, grinding distorto epics and numbed, narcotic rhythms. This is one to play at maximum volume so that you can soak up its molten magik as over 2 sides of Shitsuren’s grueling guitar hypnotics you uncover the darker side of the ensembles personality to find them digging deep to drag the audience with them into the shadows of stoner psyche. If you can picture Okhami No Jikan, Asahito Nanjo. Musica Transonic & Toho Sara then you’re close to the outrageous levels of psychedelic excess captured here, a riotous concoction of ferociously brooding, locked down heavy bearing intensity of fierce/brutal speaker battering in the red levels.

Einer der größten Club Hits aus dem Jahr 1999 jetzt wieder als 12“ Vinyl erhältlich: „Arabian Pleasure“ ist eine Gemeinschaftsproduktion der beiden italienischen Kult DJs Mauro Picotto und Mario Piu. Die farbige 12” Max Single enthält neben 4 Original Mixen aus dem Jahr 1999 einen neuen Remix von Karl8 & Andrea Monta.

After years of visiting graveyards, combing through haunted houses, and pursuing (heh heh) dead ends, we finally tracked down the rights to the legendary Frankie Stein and His Ghouls series! Why did we risk life, limb, and livelihood to find these records? Well, first of all, long-time Real Goners know we LOVE these campy ‘60s takes on horror rock—witness our previous macabre moves into the Zacherle, Munsters and Groovie Goolies franchises. But there’s something extra special about these Frankie Stein and His Ghouls records. You wouldn’t think that Halloween records released by a subsidiary (Power Records) of a children’s specialty label (Peter Pan Records) would be so…er…visceral, but these records are definitely the most out there of their kind. And there might be a reason for that…you see, it has been revealed that the Power label enlisted the aid of some very, very interesting musicians for some of its projects. For instance, the imprint’s 1966 album Batman and Robin by The Sensational Guitars of Dan and Dale was actually produced by Tom Wilson of Bob Dylan, Velvet Underground, and Mothers of Invention fame—and the band was made up free jazz legend Sun Ra and members of The Blues Project! Which has led to all sorts of speculation about who Frankie Stein and His Ghouls actually were; among the names bandied about are guitarist Duane Eddy, jazz saxophonist Max Greger, and, yes, Sun Ra and the Blues Project again. At any rate, prepare yourself for frenetic rock-and-twist workouts punctuated by deranged howls and shattering sound effects. And with a back story like this, it’s no wonder original copies of these albums sell for downright horrifying prices…here come the last two for a truly fiendish finale!

Comes with download code.
Short stories in form of micro-compositions by international legend PGY. Limited tape with interactive cover design by DJ Shlucht. Mastered by Maximilian Schweizer at SMS™.

All killer, no filler type biz as Naarm hardware donny Furious Frank makes his Oyster Cult return.

Strictly dancefloor wreckers from beginning to end. Girder-strength rhythm and driving, direct torque on the menu as Frank opts in favour of club-ready ordnance. Those with a taste for the rough n’ ready have never been in safer hands.

He’s bringing the heft like it's going out of style while keeping true to sci-fi and hallucinatory tendencies. Future-proofed forays into acid and trance backed with some of the toughest breakneck groove you’re likely to hear this summer. Darting synths, flourishes of 303; all the good stuff.

Dealing damage from the controls of his drum machine, urgent basslines and lacerating percussion are primed for maximum impact. Quintessentially Furious."

Die britische Singer-Songwriterin und Musikerin Martina Topley-Bird wurde durch ihre Zusammenarbeit mit
den Trip-Hop-Pionieren Tricky und Massive Attack in der Musikbranche bekannt. Besonders hervorzuheben
ist ihr gefühlvoller Gesang auf dem Track ”Teardrop” von Massive Attack aus deren Album ”Mezzanine”,
der zu seiner atmosphärischen Wirkung beiträgt. Auch auf Trickys Debütalbum ”Maxinquaye” (1995)
hat ihre eindringliche Stimme den unverwechselbaren Sound geprägt. Als sie 2003 zu einer Solokarriere
überging, erntete sie mit ihrem für den Mercury Award nominierten Debütalbum ”Quixotic”, das bei Independiente Records erschien, großen Beifall der Kritiker. 2004 erweiterte Topley-Bird ihre Zusammenarbeit
und lieh ihre Stimme den Gorillaz-Tracks ”All Alone” und ”Kids with Guns” von deren Debütalbum ”Demon
Days”. Seitdem hat sie weitere Alben veröffentlicht, darunter ”Anything” (2004), ”The Blue God” (2008)
und ”Some Place Simple” (2010).
Martina Topley-Birds von der Kritik hochgelobtes und für den Mercury Award nominiertes Debütalbum
”Quixotic” wird zum ersten Mal auf Vinyl veröffentlicht. Diese erweiterte Ausgabe enthält das Originalalbum sowie drei B-Seiten und einen unveröffentlichten alternativen Mix der ersten Single ”Sandpaper
Kisses”. Sie wird auf Doppel-Vinyl gepresst und in einem Gatefold-Sleeve verpackt sein.

What better time to resurrect and regurgitate one of the most extreme (and downright indefensible) releases in Alternative Tentacles history? OG Grindcore/Death Metal to the max, here’s their second-ever, from ‘92. Whole concept at the time was one big celebration and tribute to those super-gory Mexican crime weeklies, like Alarma, Peligro and Alerta. Where do you think the cover came from?? Identities were secret, all lyrics en Espanol. Rumors link some big names, from Fear Factory, Faith No More, Sepultura, and more... Why the name? Besides the obvious "Witchcraft" translation, “Santeria = animal sacrifice, but Brujeria = human sacrifice!” Or so they say. Featuring 6 amazing tracks this is Mexican death grind at its best. Enjoy.

Denzel Curry's forthcoming King Of The Mischievous South Volume 2 finds him presenting a sequel to the project, and bringing back the sound, that helped launch his career. While the first installment of King Of The Mischievous South was performed from the perspective of his Raven Miyagi persona, a name bestowed upon him by Raider Klan founder SpaceGhostPurrp, Volume 2 finds Curry operating under his Big Ultra persona -- an elevated version of Raven Miyagi that is bragadocious and revels in the success that Curry has seen over the last decade of his career. Creating King Of The Mischievous South Volume 2 has been a goal of Curry's for some time, though his earliest attempts to do so ultimately morphed into other projects, namely his 2016 album Imperial and 2020's 13LOOD 1N + 13LOOD OUT. It wasn't until he stopped overly attempting to create Volume 2 that its songs started to emerge naturally. 

Given the project's sound, which pays homage to the great musical heritages of the South -- from Memphis to Houston and Curry's own South Florida -- its features include the region's greats, both old and new, as well as others whose style is indebted to the South's musical legacy. Features include fellow former Raider Klan member Key Nyata, Memphis stalwarts Juicy J and Project Pat, Texas' Maxo Kream, That Mexican OT and Mike Dimes, North Carolina’s TiaCorine, Atlanta's 2 Chainz and Kenny Mason and South Florida's Ski Mask The Slump God and PlayThatBoiZay, as well as ASAP Ferg and ASAP Rocky, among others. The project more broadly and the intentional inclusion of Rocky and Ferg is Curry's attempt to show what could have been had relationships not soured with SpaceGhostPurrp, fulfilling the promise that existed at the rise of their respective careers in the early 2010s.  

With all of the otherworldly adventures Denzel has taken listeners on over the course of his last few conceptually-driven albums, this project serves as a showcase for the fun, spontaneity and technical mastery that has made him one of rap's most in-demand talents over the course of the last decade. 

This is the quartet's second LP, recorded in 1971, and contains mostly Peruvian songs with a strong Cuban flavor where Pancho Acosta’s electric guitar reaches vertiginous heights and is combined with outstanding conga and timbales playing. Extremely rare and hard to find in its original issue, this is the first-time reissue. Remastered from the original tapes. The guitarist Francisco "Pancho" Acosta Angeles (1946) played a significant role in spreading love for Cuban rhythms across Peru, those sunshine beats breaking through the cloudiness that hangs over Lima most of the year, as the city bears a closer resemblance weather wise to London than to Havana. In 1967, after making a name for himself with his six-stringed skill, he made his vinyl debut with Compay Quinto. Shortly after Pancho left Company Quinto, he joined Los Kintos. When Los Kintos disbanded, Pancho Acosta swiftly moved on to his next project for MAG: the Cuarteto Yemayá, formed by tumba drummer and singer Miguel Montoya, bassist Máximo Pecho and timba drummer José Luis Fiallega, all under Pancho's direction and arrangements. The quartet's debut album, "Ecos del Trio Matamoros", was a tribute to the Cuban trio of the title and comprised cover versions as well as a couple of their own songs. This is the quartet's second LP, recorded between July and August 1971. "El Tic Tac" contains mostly Peruvian songs. The foreign versions on the album include the classic 'Compay Gallo', written by Miguel Matamoros; 'Toribio carambola' and 'El Tic Tac', from the repertoire of the Cuban Trio Servando Diaz; and 'Sandunguéate', best known in Celia Cruz’s version. ‘Oye Mi Son' and 'Oye Mi Guitarra' were composed by the album's lead vocalist, Miguel Montoya. Percussionist Jorge Mariazza (Los Pachas, Manzanita y su Conjunto) co-wrote 'Descarga Yemayá' with Pancho, which features outstanding conga and timbales playing. Pancho also composed tracks on his own: 'Me Voy a Monsefú', 'Mi Provinciana', 'Yo Me Voy de Aquí' and 'Flaca y Fea', the latter
with a Beatle-like intro where his Japanese electric guitar reaches vertiginous heights (he never used sound effects in his recordings). Cuarteto Yemayá released one more album for MAG. In 1973 Los Kintos reformed, with the addition of the bass, percussionist and guitarist from Cuarteto Yemayá. Pancho Acosta has continued his career as a composer and arranger to this day

Los Angeles-based ASHRR are back on 2020 Vision ahead of a new album and this time serve up their own superb version of The Romantics's 1983 hit 'Talking in Your Sleep.' In their hands, it becomes a club-ready sound with a vocal you may recognise as it featured in the Mad Max episode of Stranger Things. Add in some DFA-inspired punk funk vibes and with all the instruments reapplied while new layers of bass and synth are added and you have one fantastic new version. Balearic don Fernando steps up for two remixes, first stripping things back to a deep house sound and then bringing some dub disco vibes to the fore.

Ambient Maximalism in Synths, Strings, Harps, and Horns. A sonic excursion, taking inspiration from public parks across the globe, Big Majestic features Kronos Quartet soaring above desert vistas on West Coast Sky Forever, Shabaka Hutchings' kaleidoscopic shakuhachi and tenor saxophone meditations on Spiritual Sun and Primrose Hill, James McVinnie performing an electrifying synth organ epic on Blue Sky | Mirrored Glass, and the otherworldly voice of Lisel beckoning the listener into the unknown.

American Pulitzer Prize winning composer and sound artist Ellen Reid is set to release ‘Big Majestic,’ an album of music written for her acclaimed GPS-enabled work of public art, Ellen Reid SOUNDWALK, that reimagines urban parks as interactive soundscapes. The album features performances by the Kronos Quartet and Shabaka Hutchings. SOUNDWALK premiered in New York's Central Park, and continues to expand to urban parkland around the world, including Los Angeles' Griffith Park, London's Regent's Park & Primrose Hill, and Tokyo's Ueno Park. The project has already been featured on NPR, the New York Times, the Washington Post, and the LA Times.

"Even God Has A Sense Of Humor" is the long-awaited follow up album to Maxo's critically acclaimed 2019 release Lil Big Man. Across the 14-tracks, Even God Has A Sense Of Humor pays tribute to the mercurial nature of life and includes features from Liv.e, keiyaA, LastNameDavid, and Melanie Charles along with the previously released singles "Free!," produced by Dev Morrison and "48," produced by Madlib and featuring Pink Siifu. The FADER recently sat down with Maxo to discuss the album, which they described as having "a defiant glow, like a bronze statue still standing after an intense tornado."

Born Maxamillian Allen, Even God Has A Sense Of Humor finds Maxo earnest, full-hearted, and lyrically agile. His delivery punches as he poetically unpacks the trials and blessings that have marked the last three years since Lil Big Man, his stirring and meditative debut album. “Life is always gonna be life-ing,” Maxo says, speaking to the spiritual lessons that inspired this new project and an album process that has revealed to him the many ways in which he’s divinely protected.

The album’s striking cover features three casted sculptures of Maxo by legendary NYC-based artist artist John Ahearn, photographed by the rapper’s friend Steven Traylor. The image both preceded the music and set the tone for the record’s overall aura. Experiencing the casting process—which required long periods of stillness for form, and breathwork to avoid claustrophobia—became a metaphor about ego death for Maxo. “I had to go to a space where I was just not there,” he says. As the molding was poured over his body and the voices of those in the room became distant, Maxo’s inner world came into focus. “By the time it hardened, it seemed like the sculpture had risen to be 20 feet above where it was first— almost like it grew tall,” he explains. EGHASOH, in its aural ebbs and flows, honest questioning, profound revelations, and elegant verse, is Maxo standing spiritually tall following a period of challenges with family and friends.

Maxo’s writing process has always been rooted in imagery, observation, and capturing moments. Growing up in Southern California, Maxo spent a lot of time combing through old family photo albums, some of whose contents have become the artwork for prior releases. But his fascination with visual memento is less about nostalgia or remembering, and more about exploring concepts of growth, healing, and cycles. His artistry is intentional and deeply sensitive: “If I’m not feeling it, I’m not gonna record.” While his past records openly grappled with emotional turbulence, anger and depression, EGHASOH is Maxo’s acceptance stage: “I can't really judge nothing. I can't sit up and be mad at shit because everything is, everything is kind of coexisting,” he says.

Musically, EGHASOH is an impressive evolution from Maxo’s earlier, unornamented lo-fi projects. With an emphasis on jazzy instrumentalism and soothing, intricate vocals from both the artist and featured chanteueses Liv.e, Melanie Charles, and keiyaA, EGHASOH is a welcome and beautifully complex sonic effort. Its contributors include a range of musicians: Pink Siifu, LastNameDavid, Madlib, GrayMatter, Karriem Riggins, Beat Butcha, Lance Skiiiwalker, and more. The album was executive produced by Mount Kimbie’s Dom Maker.

“Nobody talks about the fact that we’re changing as we get older... Everybody just acts like you supposed to know,” Maxo says on album standout, “Face of Stone”. It's moody bassline meets a cinematic accordion melody that paradoxically both broods and uplifts—a fitting production choice that mirrors the song’s story. “I’m seeing how this world is chipping you and withering your bones,” Maxo says. “I’m talking about myself, talking about my bro. But it’s never nothing you gonna do that’s a one stop shop in this life. You gotta keep staying diligent and consistent.” For Maxo, Even God Has a Sense of Humor is nothing more than another moment on the timeline of his offerings of self-expression as an artist—one whose sole intention is to, in his words, develop as a human being and heal.

KIM SALMON. Muss man da tatsächlich noch mehr Worte verlieren oder reicht es, zu sagen, das Mr SALMON der unerreichte Meister des Swamp Sounds ist? Mit seinem neuen Projekt und ,Rock Formations" ist er über alle Grenzen erhaben und entwickelt eine Theorie maximaler Brutalität. Dazu tragen auf den Instrumental-Stücken sicherlich die sechs Gitarren und zwei Schlagzeuge bei. Das erinnert an eine potente Mischung aus frühem Grunge der MELVINS oder GREEN RIVER mit BLACK SABBATH in der Ozzy-Ära und dem modernen Sound von Kim Salmons eigenen SCIENTISTS oder SURREALISTS.













[m] PUNK FATWA/AXES OF EVIL SEGUE INTO CHEAP'N'NASTY [LIVE] 04:40





[s] CHEAP'N'NASTY SEGUE INTO LICENSED 2 ROCK [LIVE] 02:30
[t] S.M.R [LIVE] 01:20
[u] THE AXES OF EVIL [LIVE] 03:34