Search:mod x

WOLFDRIFTA returns to his own Wolves That Drift imprint for its sophomore release via the ‘Control The Code’ EP, complete with remix from Phone Traxx’s Rob Amboule.

The EP kicks off with the titular ‘Control The Code’. A versatile track which seamlessly fuses elements of early Detroit electro and techno with a classic Chicago-esque groove packaged with modern dynamics and functionality. GOSU affiliate and Phone Traxx member Rob Amboule steps up to remix the aforementioned ‘Control The Code’, adding his trademark breakbeat and minimal stylings to proceedings. Closing out an impressive second outing for the burgeoning imprint is the haunting, hardware driven ’Twilight Zone’ to complete the hat trick.

Malted Milk's 1975 album tackles subjects that concern the band's singer in particular, but also paints a picture of a society with which many people identify. Difficult present times, a broken family and dependent children. The character oscillates between moments of great lucidity and optimism, and moments of anger. Feelings that are reflected in a general vision of the world we live in today, devastated by the abuses of the powerful ones and rendered insensitive to the "false" freedoms they offer us. Could it be that the personal condition of the album's character is also the result of a twisted society?

Malted Milk takes a stylistic journey from strong soul and funk roots to resolutely more modern musical influences, all seasoned with sweet hooks ranging from disco to folk-world. Malted Milk is newly committed to speaking openly about uncomfortable subjects and honestly reflecting its passion for American and pop music. The result is an authentic album, in which the singer becomes kind of a spokesman for the band and the listener.

Next from Jerry Harris' new label Motive is this killer modern roots tune, a version of a classic roots rhythm, with excellent dub wise side by Wackie's own Prince Douglas. Top shelf contemporary reggae from two OG's here, don't miss it.

It’s True What They Say is the debut EP from Edinburgh-based, husband-and-wife duo Sarah/Shaun (pronounced simply Sarah Shaun), aka Sarah and Shaun McLachlan (pronounced “McLochlin”).

“Sarah and I both have a love for nostalgia,” explains Shaun. “We watched that amazing old 80’s Sci-Fi, (John) Carpenter movie, Starman, a few months back. Myself and my brother David used to watch it all the time. We must have been, roughly, 5-7 at the time. I remember loving the movie but the end, you know, with the beautiful, atmospheric, synth ending, I love that particular moment the most - best part of the movie, you know, when he goes home… It’s heartbreaking but stunning, all the same. It’s the music that moves you most… It did when I was 5 and it still does to this day. It must have had some form of a (much deeper) impact on me.”

The duo narrates stories across themes of love, hope, family, friends, dreams and sadness - the good that comes with the bad in everyday life, not just on a personal scale but within a community as well.

“Starbed is the first song I have ever written and just came out of the blue really, with Shaun playing a melody and me singing along,” says Sarah. “It’s simple and just about two people in love. Love songs are always the best songs, after all… Music has been a big part of my life from a young age. I was unwillingly dragged to piano and violin lessons, which I’m thankful for now! I’d say the first band I really became obsessed with growing up were the Beatles, and on the back of that a lot of 60s music and fashion. From then on, I had a love for music.”

“Shaun definitely opened my ears to a lot of sounds and got me thinking about soundtracks and all the noises that can be made,” she goes on. “We love just spending time experimenting in the house with instruments, pedals etc and Ali is a real magician to work with, too…”

The recordings took place over the summers of 2022 and 2023, with fellow Delta Mainline member Ali Chisholm (aka Jaguar Eyes) plus long-term friend and collaborator Gavin King. Further collaboration then came via the ‘net from the (international) likes of Chris Dixie Darley (Father John Misty), Darren Coghill (Neon Waltz) and Daniel Land (The Modern Painters), among others (see a full list of credits below).

Both Sarah and Shaun have a love for uber-soundtrack producers such as Hanz Zimmer, Max Richter, Cliff Martinez plus live acts such as Beach House, Spiritualized, M83, Suicide, Moby and OMD (to name a few). Shaun also credits the work of Kyle Dixon & Michael Stein (from Survive) on the Stranger Things score… “Even a moment in a movie, whether it be just 30 seconds during a particular scene, it grips you,” he says. But there’s something much deeper at play as well. “Music is a healer,” he goes on, “and I write from my own perspective but more so for others. Once I've done my bit, it doesn't belong to me any longer. It belongs to whoever wants it or needs it.”

The result is a cinematic, synth-wavey, dream poppy and downright beguilingly beautiful body of work. And they’re just getting started…

REVIEWS/RADIO/FEEDBACK:

“Starbed is folky, flavoured by pedal steel, cello, and brass. Dust Tears, in stark contrast, is a mini synth-pop rave epic. Part Bicep. Part Human League. Keep Your Eyes Closed summons a mood that’s romantic, but also dark and potentially doomed – like David Lynch’s Twin Peaks meets Cliff Martinez’s Drive score. My pick though is It’s True What They Say, whose interwoven jangle and picking recalls New Order’s more introspective moments (Love Vigilantes, Love Less… ). Drums crashing, cathartic. Guitar raising dramatic arcs. Its chorus a rush, like a reprise of Pains Of Being Pure Of Heart’s ‘Higher Than The Stars’.” BAN BAN TON TON
"Dust Tears sees them sharing vocal duties over a synth foundation reminiscent of Moby’s Go - Artist Of The Week” THE SCOTSMAN
"Woozy pop" NEMONE (Mary Anne Hobbs Morning Show, BBC 6Music)
"Nice one, very David Lynch meets Euro dream pop" YOUTH (Killing Joke, Paul McCartney, U2, The Orb, Spiritualized etc)
"Music sounds killer! Real emotion” DAVID HOLMES
"I’m enjoying it” TIM BRINKHURST aka LONDON (IKLAN, Young Fathers, Callum Easter)
“Oh, this is lovely!” SEAN JOHNSTON (A Love From Outer Space)
"It’s totally my cup of tea with milk and biscuit" BRENT RADEMAKER (Beachwood Sparks/GospelBeach)
"Beautiful, ecstatic electronica! Short and to the point" KEVIN BALES (Spiritualized, Julian Cope, Soulsavers, BE)
"Makes me wanna sit in the sun and sip an Arnold Palmer" CHRIS DIXIE DARLEY (Father John Misty)
“Really beautiful - Cocteau Twins / Spiritualized vibes but has its own thing going on, too - worth checking out!” JULIAN CORRIE (Franz Ferdinand, Miaoux Miaoux)
‘Sounded nice on a sunny day, makes me think of Twin Peaks, nice moods’ EAMON HAMILTON (Sea Power)
"Dealing in nostalgia, no bad thing at all, great to play that (Dust Tears) for you” RODDY HART (BBC Radio Scotland)
“I'll give the vocal tracks a spin before the release." VIC GALLOWAY (BBC Radio Scotland)
"Rather good!" IAIN ANDERSON (BBC Radio Scotland)

CREDITS:

Lyrics, Guitars, Keys, Synths, Drums, Drum Programming, Percussion, Mandolin, Glockenspiel: Shaun McLachlan
Lyrics, Vocals, Keys by Sarah McLachlan
Guitars, Synths, String Arrangements, Drum Programming, Engineering: Jaguar Eyes Percussion/Drums/Effects, Fire Extinguisher: Darren Coghill (Neon Waltz)
Guitars by Daniel Land
Slide Guitar by Chris Dixie Darley (Father John Misty)
Brass by Bruce Michie
Keys, pre-production & engineering on “It’s true what they say”: Gavin King
All produced by Jaguar Eyes and Shaun McLachlan and then mixed at Glasgow’s Chem19 Studios by David McCaulay (From Scotland With Love, Rick Redbeard, BBC TV’s Attenborough and The Mammoth Graveyard score).
Artwork: Jamie Walman (Fourteen Admirals)

MORE INFO:

Although Shaun released a pair of solo singles (When We Dance and Give Your Love To Me) during Lockdown, he will be better known to many via his work as the multi-instrumentalist in Edinburgh band Delta Mainline. With two albums released to date, Oh! Enlightened and Bel Avenir, both rapturously received by fans and critics alike, Delta Mainline have developed an international, cult following. Oh Enlightened (2013) achieved widespread critical acclaim on release, earning the band comparisons to Arcade Fire and Echo & The Bunnymen, while 2019’s Bel Avenir pulled in references to The Flaming Lips, Pink Floyd, David Bowie and krautrock. A third DM album is currently being mixed and due for release later this year…

Run since the fall of 2012, Evanton is the italo/synthwave project of Greek electronic producer Evangelos Zacharopoulos (aka Binalog Frequency, Bionic Breaker etc.). With numerous releases under his belt over the years, Evanton has established himself as a leading force on the current new retrowave scene.

On this EP Evanton delivers 5 fresh, unreleased tracks, ranging from modern italo-disco and hi-NRG to 80s-style electrofunk and (surprisingly) downtempo 90s balearic-style sounds. This is definitely the most diverse release of this artist and surely an EP you just can't miss!

New selection of Acid Jazz songs this time from the funkier side of this music. Groove, rhythm and a lot of happy feeling.

Inside some classic artists of the genre such as Black & Brown, Jestofunk, LTJ Xperience, Funky Destination, Lo Greco Bros & Fusion Funk Foundation, Man Sueto, Vito Lalinga (Vi Mode Inc. Project), The Smoke Orchestra, The Last Minister , Gazzara with many versions not available on vinyl for some time or never released on this support.
Limited edition double vinyl.


Groove, rhythm and a lot of happy feeling.

On Gift n Curse Principle, Jnn Aprl puts forth her own signature interpretation of “techno”, relying on her art school drop out sensibilities and analog ear. After spending the better portion of the last decade immersing herself in the heartland of electronic music, The Seoul by way of Chicago by way of Detroit by way of Seoul again producer and DJ is proud to present the debut of her new EP as well as her new label, Rene Koala.

Find on the record a set of tracks spanning the gamut, made with the assistance of a MPC 1000, a Prophet Synth, vocal effect and some grit. For the dancers and for the artist alike, each song represents a journey. 'Gift n Curse Principle' employs a minimal beat with raw intention. ‘Freedom Bondage’ taps into a low frequency and steady modulation, emulating a heartbeat. All tracks ask to be heard in their entirety.

This EP was made with support from Piranhahead of Rustbelt Studios and Bill Skibbe of Third Man Records.




c A3. 323 Ear To Ear
[d] A4. DLASM [Don’t Let Anyone Stop Me]

repressed !

Regular Offcial Authorised Vinyl Version, Original Soundtrack, 350g Sleeve, Black Inner, Sticker, 12 140g Vinyl - The first ever OFFICIAL vinyl release of the soundtrack for Mamoru Oshii's legendary science fiction anime film GHOST IN THE SHELL (1995). - LP cut from the original master reels at Emil Berliner Studios, official Ghost in the Shell artwork

We Release Whatever The Fuck We Want Records is thrilled and honored to announce the first ever official vinyl pressing of the soundtrack for Mamoru Oshii's critically acclaimed and all around legendary science fiction anime film GHOST IN THE SHELL (1995), adapted from Masamune Shirow's groundbreaking manga series of the same name. Cut from the original master reels at Emil Berliner Studios (formerly the in-house recording department of renowned classical record label Deutsche Grammophon), the album comes as a LP accompanied by a bonus one-sided 7 housed in official Ghost in the Shell artwork sleeve with silver gilt printing and a Japanese obi, and contains extensive 24-page liner notes. The haunting score is composed by Kenji Kawai, one of Japan's most celebrated soundtrack composers, alongside Joe Hisaishi and Ryichi Sakamoto, whose work includes Hideo Nakata's Ring (1998) and Ring 2 (1999), Death Note (2006), Hong Kong films Seven Swords by Tsui Hark (2005) and Ip Man by Wilson Yip (2008), and countless others. Kawai's compositions see ancient harmonies and percussions uncannily mesh with synthesized sounds of the modern world to convey a sumptuous balance between folklore tradition and futuristic outlook. For its iconic main theme 'Making of Cyborg", Kawai had a choir chant a wedding song in ancient Japanese following Bulgarian folk harmonies, setting the standard for a time

Danieli presents his new ep on Alpenglühen.
Berglüster is an emotional high-concept EP with 4 tracks that work well together or individually.

The artist from Aachen, owner of whispering signals, transports us into his sonic realm and offers us probably his most mature and honest work to date.

Berglüster is not typical club music, we actually found ourselves facing contemplative lab techno.
The hazy atmospheres, the lowpassed kickdrums and the cinematic pads reminds of the golden years of intelligent dub techno but with a more sophisticated and modern approach.
Those who love the music of Deepchord, GAS or Porter Ricks will find here a delight to be added to their collection.

As usual, this is an only vinyl release. 200 copies pressed.

Mikal Asher, a scion of Jamaica's Morgan family dynasty, reunites with Chocolate Star Records here and does so with a collaboration with disco legend Gary Davis. Asher, akin to his brother Denroy Morgan, upholds the family's legacy of righteousness through music. Known as the Binghiman, he crafts captivating tunes with profound lyrics and has recorded in Ghana's Hustle Hard Studios and collaborated with industry pioneers in Kingston and Brooklyn, setting new standards in musical excellence along the way. Here, 'Wicked Ah Fi' transforms into a modern dub stepper, while 'Black Woman' offers a soulful, laid-back dedication to Davis' wife, Sonjia. This 12" also comes with innovative remixes from California-based DJ and producer Knoe1.

Überkeine sets the tone of his own record label with four esoteric tracks, designed for the club. An obvious intention to establish a radical style with conceptualized sonorities, is revealed throughout the Ep. The sound materials are elaborate, and go straight to the point. Obsessing over the flow of creativity offered by his modular synthesizer, he delivers a very dense techno and already affirms a well-marked identity. Powerful and textured kicks, intricate synthetic sounds contained in an arrangement reduced to the essential. The tracks come to life as the forthright reflection of the thoughts of the producer. Guillotine Whistle instantly plunges into the unbridled world of the Ep. An ominous atmosphere hovers over our heads as it reveals organic and disconcerting tones. A gentle brutality emanates from this whistling guillotine that awaits to cut you up in two. Leading the way towards Drifting Data, a track inspired directly from Jungle Patterns. Überkeine is humbly trying to render DnB to a techno format. The dense, saturated Bassline sustains the idea of breaking the dancefloor in pieces. A hard hitting, broken beat environment accompanied by heavily filtered synthetic chaos. Third track’s the charm, the B side starts with Mirror Moist. A drop-down, wet and straightforward techno track with a carnal Bassline. As sensual as it gets, this track conveys a kinky loop urging intimacy and blasting heat throughout the club. Last but not least, Shaney’s remix of Mirror Moist. Picking up core elements of the original vibe and translating it into the off-beat techno nightmare it deserved to be. Full-on obscure dancefloor piece of equipment.

Griffé is back and starts 2024 on a high note with Five Ten, Lausanne based producer & dj, co-founder of Flight Mode. His Surveillance EP highlights his love for acid, breaks & electro while delivering a gloomy and anguish atmosphere. Four powerful tracks for the darker hours of the night.

The Hammond organ was first manufactured in 1935. In 1954, the now famous Hammond B3 model was introduced with additional harmonic percussion feature. When the company went out of business in 1985, around two million of various models of the Hammond organ have been produced.

The Hammond B3 was originally marketed to churches as a lower-cost alternative to the wind-driven pipe organ. It quickly became popular with professional jazz musicians in organ trios. Jimmy Smith's use of the Hammond B3 inspired a generation of organ players, and its use became more widespread in the 1960s and 1970s in rhythm and blues, rock, reggae, and progressive rock.

This collection is centered on the exciting and dynamic sounds of the Hammond B3 organ!

2025 Repress
Chontane delivers six dynamic techno cuts via his 'Sycamore' EP on Mutual Rytm.

A firm fixture of the VOLTAGE roster and a rising name originating from Ukraine making an impact, Berlin-based DJ and producer Chontane is quickly finding his feet following a string of EPs via ARTS, Lobster Theremin and Rekids Special Projects. Already playing key clubs at the age of just 18, blurring the lines between techno, breaks and electro with his growing trademark sound, his performances across Berlin and beyond have captured the attention of many as he showcases his up-front and powerful sound. Next, he heads to SHDW & Obscure Shape's Mutual Rytm imprint for the first time as he reveals his six-track 'Sycamore' EP.

Lead cut 'Preserved' is a rugged yet soulful opener, settling into a rolling groove guided by crisp hats and sharp stabs, while 'Arakis' propels into more eerie and menacing spheres as waling vocals emerge and disappear into the track's relentless dynamic. Opening the B-side, 'Sitka' fuses jacking drums with playful flute interludes for a production set to get dancefloors moving, while 'Laboe' keeps things fiery as a peppy track which launches into fiesta mode. Closing the flip side, B3 'After Images' reveals the most emotive production on the package,
balancing the hard-hitting kicks with soulful vocals and hazy melodies for a classy slice of techno.

Once again, digital purchasers are treated to an exclusive bonus with 'In Roots' raising the temperature and jumping right back into the action to serve up another energising anthem from a label and artist on the rise.

Louise van den Heuvel is a dynamic Dutch bass player and composer. She's known for blending modern music technologies and effect pedals in her compositions rooted in the contemporary electronic/jazz scene. Louise founded the up-and-coming Belgian electronic jazztrio Dishwasher_, collaborated with renowned artists on stage such as Zwangere Guy & Lander Gyselinck and Bruno Vansina Orchestra, and is part of Stéphane Gallands' The Rhythm Hunters, The Gallands, and the neo-soul group STACE.

For her latest project, Sonic Hug, Louise composed the whole repertoire by herself. The self-titled album, supported by JazzLab and W.E.R.F. Records, features a stellar line-up of some of the leading figures in the Benelux (jazz) scene: Hendrik Lasure on keys, Daniel Jonkers on drums and Daniel Comerford on reets (live replaced by Werend Van Den Bossche). The band is set to tour in April and May 2024 after its release on 5th of April 2024.

Her own creations expose themselves as elaborated melancholic songs filled with elegant grooves, crystalline vocals and experimental jazz excursions. She's brilliantly using her own musical voice - even literally, since you will also hear her sing on some of the tracks.

?Surrounded by three equally inevitable peer musicians in the front of the new Belgian jazz generation (known from acts such as schntzl, Bombataz, Profound Observer, Otto Kintet, Dishwasher_, Kin Gajo, ...) Sonic Hug becamea very personal, unique new project. Influenced by the sounds of Scandinavia and artists such as ADHD, Nala Sinephro, Floating Points, Y Otis and Joni Mitchell, the vibe of Sonic Hug is etheric, elegant, melodically narrative, and always searching for a grasping groove.

RPX 16035 returns with a various, on the A side two tracks by Giuseppe Angeloro with 80s influences. Drum dynamics and abstract sounds composed with the classic keyboards and sounds of those times to complete the 2 grooves.

On the B side, three tracks by Gianluca Pellerano, dark influences and style that recall 80s new wave with the influences of more conceptual techno.

RPX 16035 wanted to collect a retro sound but projected into the future.

The latest 7" single on Bob Stanley's MEASURED MILE label is a floor-filling double-sider.

The percussion-and-woodwind driven ‘Night Of The Wolf’ has been played out at northern soul nights in the UK, at Brooklyn discotheques in the mid-70s, and originally it was an Italian progressive rock album track. Much loved by everyone. It was issued as a super-rare US 45 in 1975 under the name the Al Foster Band, and this is its first official reissue.

ACT 1's 70s modern soul midtempo classic ‘It’s The Same Old Story’ also got played out in the early discos of New York, Chicago and LA, but it was only ever an album track. This marks its first ever release on a DJ-friendly 7". Get it while you can!

Here is the new “EP Volume 2” by Italian dj producers Marco Fratty (FPI Project), Marco Flash and Alex Time.

After achieving an excellent result with the EP Vol. 1 the three DJ producers create this new album with 2 tracks super Afro on Side A, the first is the cover of "Happiness" by Fuhrs Frohling and the second also on Side A is an unreleased modern Afro Beat entitled "OM" already released digitally on their label Audio Recordings.

Side B is instead markedly Funk, with the first track “Ultrafunk” inspired by a song from the 70s and the second, “Excellent Funky”, with a more pronounced dancefloor beat.

2024 repress!

The dynamic NZ brother duo known from Mule Musiq, Rhythm Section and their own In Dust We Trust impresses with a superb collaborative EP of highly emotional music!

‘Emotional Intelligence’ fills the A-side seeing them team up saxophonist and fellow kiwi jazz legend Nathan Haines and South London’s own Dave Koor aka. Modified Man.
On the flip-side they join forces with Chicago’s Lee Pearson Jnr (he's known for his writing for Larry Heard), K. LaDawn on vocals and rising star Joe Armon-Jones on keys.

A blissful experience throughout and another demonstration of "Chaos In The CBD’s" with maturing, amazing production skills!

Hope, you enjoy.

Here is a true delight for all ballet fans and music-lovers. This recording of what is probably Tchaikovsky’s most popular ballet, Swan Lake, by Ernest Ansermet and his orchestra in a masterly performance is now available as a new pressing in vinyl. The Russian composer’s first ballet is offered here on a double LP and although not a complete recording, this compilation (with a minimum of cuts) certainly comprises the most beautiful and expressive scenes, losing nothing in the process. “Ballet specialist“ Ansermet and his wonderfully balanced Orchestre de la Suisse Romande offer here a recording which you’ll want to hear again and again for it captures both the tragic moments of the fairy tale and the festive dance scenes. The precise winds in, for example No. 4, provide a marked contrast to the lively and exciting tutti (No. 5), while the gentle woodwinds blend charmingly with the dreamlike cantilena of the strings (No. 11). The various characteristics of the festive national dances (Polkas, Mazurkas, Hungarian Dance etc.) are performed with temperament, verve and rhythm, but it is the waltzes with their sweet dreaminess which invite the listener most of all to put on their dancing shoes and join in the dance.

Here is a true delight for all ballet fans and music-lovers. This recording of what is probably Tchaikovsky’s most popular ballet, Swan Lake, by Ernest Ansermet and his orchestra in a masterly performance is now available as a new pressing in vinyl. The Russian composer’s first ballet is offered here on a double LP and although not a complete recording, this compilation (with a minimum of cuts) certainly comprises the most beautiful and expressive scenes, losing nothing in the process. “Ballet specialist“ Ansermet and his wonderfully balanced Orchestre de la Suisse Romande offer here a recording which you’ll want to hear again and again for it captures both the tragic moments of the fairy tale and the festive dance scenes. The precise winds in, for example No. 4, provide a marked contrast to the lively and exciting tutti (No. 5), while the gentle woodwinds blend charmingly with the dreamlike cantilena of the strings (No. 11). The various characteristics of the festive national dances (Polkas, Mazurkas, Hungarian Dance etc.) are performed with temperament, verve and rhythm, but it is the waltzes with their sweet dreaminess which invite the listener most of all to put on their dancing shoes and join in the dance.

Warehouse Find!

Following the sold out Theo Parrish remix of Marcos Valle's '1985', here's the second in Far Out's Brazilika 12" with three scorching remixes from UK dance veteran Ashley Beedle. Three peak time excursions into percussive, soulful house on a stylish, cosmic Brazilian party tip.

Following the sold out Theo Parrish remix of Marcos Valle's '1985' back in April, the second release in Far Out's Brazilika 12' series features a highlight from Sabrina Malheiros' 2011 album 'Dreaming': the blissed-out, sun soaked samba classic 'Opara', which gets three scorching remixes from UK dance veteran Ashley Beedle.

Currently celebrating a decade since the release of her critically acclaimed debut album 'Equilibria', Sabrina Malheiros has remained at the forefront of modern, soul-infused Brazilian music. Growing up in Rio, the daughter of Alex Malheiros, bassist of Jazz-funk pioneers Azymuth, Sabrina has taken the legacy of samba and bossa nova and forged her own forward-thinking path, taking with her all the style and substance of the early days.

Produced under his Afrikanz On Marz moniker, Beedle's remix brings all the right elements of the original to the fore. The result is three peak time excursions into percussive, soulful house on a stylish, cosmic Brazilian party tip, infused with rich, warm rhodes, synth and flute throughout.

The vocal mix on the A side provides a spacious backdrop of twinkling keys and buoyant percussion to Malheiros' gently floating strains. The other mixes offer similarly floor-focused variations: the aptly titled 'Galactic Flute Remix' on the flip pairs the titular wind instrument with a deeper groove that retains the loose-limbed appeal of the original, plus a bonus instrumental to boot. A sure fire heat bringer and certainly one of the most colourful dance 12's we've heard this year.

The Brazilika 12' series is the new vinyl home to the previously unreleased dance exclusives taken from the Spiritual South mix on CD2 of Far Out's 20th anniversary double compilation, released in May 2015.

Ozone were a group on Motown between 1980 and 1983. They were put together by Charles Alexander Glenn from Nashville where he had a band The Endeavors. He then brough his best musicians to Los Angeles where Billy Preston recommended to Motown they become the touring band for Teena Marie. They also played for Luther Vandross and then recorded five albums for Motown. “(Our Hearts) Will Always Shine, also credited as “Our Hearts (Will Always Shine)” on Motown has become a timeless and in demand modern soul record, copies of the 7” original now commanding in excess of £300. It has a Gene Page (of Barry White fame) string arrangement and is produced by the group with Michael Stokes (Creative Source, Enchantment, Magic Lady, LTD, Active Force etc)

Natural Selections are proud to present Paul Mahoux’s EP, “Lysergie Villageoise” - the fourth release on Nummer’s oddballs imprint.

Taking a step further into Fourth world music territories, “Lysergie Villageoise” is a meticulously crafted collection of four tracks imagined by Okinawa-based guitarist Paul Mahoux. These compositions sum up 30+ years of experience and experiments by the french-born producer, blending traditional music and modern techniques in a very singular way.

All four tracks feature Paul Mahoux’s unique concoction of flavours, a signature soundscape which brings Jazz, Folk, Ambient and House together. Constantly blurring the lines between proto and advanced sounding, Paul Mahoux’s music recalls deep forgotten feelings and invites us to a psychedelic voyage through rural impressions and ancient times beyond the frontiers of folklore.

Monty Luke release ‘Nightdubbing’ LP on Rekids.The Black Catalogue bosses' second album explores dub-infused dance music and, following the recent two EP drops on Rekids, will be released on Radio Slave’s imprint on 29 March. Succeeding part two of Monty Luke’s ‘Nightdubbing’ series on Rekids, the US-via-Berlin artist unveils an album of the same name on Radio Slave’s lauded Rekids imprint. ‘Nightdubbing’ encompasses the first two instalments and adds five more tracks of intricate sonic material, completing this gorgeous work of art already supported by Fred P, nd_baumecker, Louise Chen, and Laurent Garnier. Luke’s ‘Nightdubbing’ album starts in the club, with the rave-primed ‘40 Acres And A Terabyte’ utilising the rich melodies of deep house alongside the crushing weight of subs. It is followed by the title track, with ‘Nightdubbing’ taking a more traditional house route, its soothing sounds enveloping the listener while honing in on that reverb sweet spot. Black Catalogue boss and former Planet-E label manager Monty Luke’s timeless ‘Nightdubbing’ effortlessly traverses deep house and techno rife with bass-rattling low-end and experimental rhythms. It is no surprise, then, that the album is heavily inspired by ‘70s and mid-80s dub reggae, seeing Luke incorporate and modernise the genre’s iconic rhythms, spoken word poetry, and spacious bursts of harmony across the LP. ‘Bob Molly’ picks up pace with nods to Caribbean dem bow-like rhythms of old, Monty Luke filling the space between its infectious beat with tumbling percussion and echoing plucks. Tracks like ‘Supernova’, ‘New World / Old Future’ and ‘Starstorms’ return to the modern-day traditions of club music while ‘Future Mystic’ and ‘Avant Garde Dance Hall ‘, again find room in between the dancefloor and sound system listening sessions. Monty Luke spent ten formative years in Detroit, where the city's unique musical spirit influenced him immensely. He has since distilled this experience into the music he has released on labels like Rekids, Planet-E, Hypercolour, and his own Black Catalogue. His raw, dub-infused sound comes with plenty of futuristic designs, and this final complete iteration of ‘Nightdubbing’ continues to push the boundaries of his music.

The final volume of this mammoth collection of music from Bristolian electronic music pioneer Krust is finally upon us, and like the previous parts of this collection it boasts an assemblage of music of different energies, vibes and feelings. The music contained within spans decades yet somehow refuses to be locked to one 'era' or 'style'. This is what makes this release unmissable for the hardcore fan, newcomer or completist.

'Irrational Numbers' is a meticulously curated collection of five parts, available on both vinyl and digital formats. The compilation is a treasure trove of hand-picked records and archival gems from Krust's extensive discography, thoughtfully remastered and presented anew for both devoted fans and newcomers.

'Irrational Numbers' features a dizzying array of self-released 12" cuts, exclusive unreleased VIPs and dub-plates, alongside epic major label widescreen classics. It's an unmissable journey through the sonic output of one of the UK's most distinctive and forward-looking producers.

Featured on part 5 are some groundbreaking entries into Krust's massive back catalogue. The live bass driven jazz inflected 'Second Movement' from his acclaimed 'Coded Language' LP jostles alongside the speaker smashing machine funk of 'Break Ya Neck' as well as a couple of more recent productions including the sleek and sinister 'The Portal', which is undeniably the man at his best, in full electronic stealth mode.

For longtime Krust enthusiasts, this project serves as a fond reminder of the boundless creativity and originality that flourished during the early 1990s and beyond. For those new to his work, it presents an enthralling introduction to innovative electronic music that has comfortably set the tone for generations to come. Get ready to experience the evolution of sound and immerse yourself in the visionary artistry of Krust.

This is Fugazi's fifth full-length record, released in 1998.
The 12" LP format was re-cut and re-issued in September 2009.

Ian MacKaye vocals & guitar Guy Picciotto vocals & guitar Joe Lally bass Brendan Canty drums

Heels & Souls Recordings roll into reissue number eight with a double dose of early '90s UK street soul magic, splitting the sides between two sought-after cuts from Elaine Vassell and 3rd Zone.

Step back to 1993, house music has hit, UK Soul is in full flow and its rawer, DIY street soul sibling is making its mark across the UK’s underground. Fuelled by accessible, affordable production gear and ignited through enthusiasm and an influx of ideas and sounds, two acts drew inspiration from a melting pot of genres they were exposed to, providing their take on soul as they saw it.

Up first, Elaine Vassell - ‘Never Give Up’. A rough breakbeat-driven, mid-tempo groover from a North West London production triple threat, made up of Longsy D, Pinky and Murray. Utilising Pinky’s home studio with its DX7, Juno 106, LinnDrum and 808, they masterminded a track that sits at the intersection between soulful house, hip hop and R&B. Its crunching drum loop, chest-rattling low-end and serene synth lines, lay the foundation for Elaine’s powerful yet emotive voice to take centre stage. ‘Never Give Up’ should have been a future classic, but never quite found its feet.

On the flip side another 1993 gem, as Sansel Ali and twin brothers Mark and Stephen Anglin joined forces to form 3rd Zone. Conceived in Mark’s makeshift bedroom studio, the trio laid down their first foray into recorded music, ‘You Stole My Heart’. Originally promoed as a limited whitelabel in 1991, it officially landed on the group's one and only EP ‘No Real Reason' in '93.

Armed with a handful of synth modules, a drum machine and a Korg M1, Mark, Stephen and Sansel hit with a tough but tender, underground triumph. Part dance, part romance, layering synth strings, chunky breaks and M1 stabs underneath Sansel’s heartstrung vocals and Stephen’s hip house rap interlude, it provides another perfect example of house seen through the street soul prism.

Two timeless tracks that fly the flag for the fact that big studios and big budgets aren't necessary to create songs that really resonate. Each side also contains an alternate version, with the A housing a beatless reprise of ‘Never Give Up’ and the B a tougher, bassier remix of ‘You Stole My Heart’.

Licensed from Pinky Music and 3rd Zone respectively and remastered from the original DATs by Justin Drake.

2024 Repress

"I've never met Rod Modell (Deepchord) in person, but we have met through music. He found an obscure cassette of Chi music (from '86), sent it to Astral Industries and paved the way for the release (30 years later) of 'The Original Recordings' in 2016. Since then, we've exchanged ideas and good music. I sent Rod a preview of 'The Kallikatsou Recordings' - he really liked it - and here came the idea for a remix of 'Lanterns'. I started working on some random, lo-fi samples from Youtube, using Audacity, perhaps the simplest way of producing loops and samples. It's the only computer based system that feels like the tape recorders I used to work with. I sent the first sketches to Rod on Facebook, but they ended up in the wrong inbox. I forgot about them, but months later he came back saying he loved them. I decided to go back to working on them, maintaining the lo-fi approach. I began manipulating the samples: time-stretching, tempo and pitch-shifting, mixing different layers and adding old-school monophonic old speaker' effects, delays and loops. I used a few field recordings, voices and samples from my early ambient cassettes, and they matched. Ario from Astral Industries got involved and the experiment turned into a plan - a vinyl release - 'Red Lantern at the Kallkatsou''.

To hear the quintessential synthesized sounds of "El Hombre Orquesta" aka Ricardo Suntaxi is analogous to studying the detailed schematics of your favorite electronic contraption. For the initiated, it's a peek under the proverbial hood, an invitation into the engine of a sound and color that has played a part in powering and defining a treasure trove of modern Latin American sound-system music.

The oblique and annihilating transmissions emanating from the workshop of Polar Inertia have been issued intently and surely over the last decade and more. Environment Control grants access to the biggest consignment to date, with eight tracks of mesmeric play that are fraught with clinical impulsiveness and astringent rushes.

Opening with a didactic panegyric to transmutation, Polar Inertia swiftly counter our recoil with an ominous display of pressure on 'Smothering Dreams'. The intensity is sustained—as if to suggest that there's now no way back—until the menace relents on 'Artic Horizon', its shimmering gravitational pull amounting to an idealism after the unease that delivered us here.

After 2021’s critically acclaimed album “Afraid To Leave”, Berlin based post-punkers Bleib Modern invited artist friends to take an outside perspective on their tracks, resulting in the “2 Afraid 2 Leave” compilation, featuring remixes and reworks from several esteemed names within the darkwave, post-punk and EBM music scenes.

From club bangers like IV Horsemen’s version of “Bitter Smile” and M!R!M’s dreamy lo-fi bedroom synthpop sound on “Into The Night” to Danish deviant pop artist Dune Messiah’s crooner “Loony Voices”. The album also boasts contributions from luminaries like The KVB, The Underground Youth, Blind Delon, Shad Shadows and various Bleib Modern band member side projects.

“2 Afraid 2 Leave” offers listeners a chance to experience Bleib Modern’s music from an altered vantage point, a welcome interlude as the band forges ahead with new creations.

Brownswood Recordings releases the 7th edition of their Future Bubblers Compilation. An expansion of Gilles Peterson's network supported by Arts Council England, the ongoing talent discovery and artist development scheme focuses on developing unsigned talent and building audiences for new left-field music. With support from PRS Foundation as Talent Development Partners, the professional recording, manufacturing and physical release of Future Bubblers 7.0 is made possible. Unlike any other initiatives within music, the compilation acts as a springboard for the musician's careers, with the cooperative model providing direct revenue to the artists by a share of the profits, resulting in a sustainable income to work from. Previous Future Bubblers include artists such as Yazmin Lacey, KinKai, MC Snowy, Forest Law, Victoria Jane, NeOne The Wonderer and Kayla Painter, to name a few.

The 8-track compilation is a musically diverse collection of tracks, fusing genres across Alt-R&B, Dance, Electronic, Jazz, Rap and Trip-Hop. Opening the project, ROMY NOVA flaunts her hypnotic harmonies on a tender offering, 'The Way', whilst Sheffield-born Jackie Moonbather delivers a Funk performance on 'Separate Ways'. Up next, Ney Liqa's 'Blomster' captures a blend of Trip-Hop and Swedish-Pop, fusing her earliest musical influences before Birmingham's very own Landel's cloud-Rap excellence on '2 Many'. Maintaining the ethereal sonic, Petrelli Purple's 'Brisk' is reflective of his ability to curate a "miscellaneous north" sound, followed by MARYSIA OSU's 'Stryder' that highlights her self-coined "harps, beats, and dreams" ethos. Michael Diamond showcases his ability to float between jazz and electronic landscapes on 'Aether' before COEX rounds off the project nicely with 'Reflections'.

Approaching the 50th-anniversary release of Artreform, the label's boss, Kyiv-based DJ and sound producer JOSS is counting on experienced artists. The fresh record
with an updated modern design from the abstract art master Elemetalsource boasts two tech-house powerhouses at once: Fedo, the lead artist from Odessa, and Okain,
the Berlin-based musician and owner of Talman Records, who was invited as a remixer.

The three original tracks from Fedo deliver detached, robotic minimal house that could be playing on an interplanetary station as its well-coordinated machinery works
in unison. It is club-centric music with a moving, inventive groove, albeit without any live emotions. A respectful tribute to those 90s cult Plastic City records, and at the
same time, trendy sound for modern minimal and microhouse parties.

Okain's injection boosts the release's dynamics with more thumping rhythms and a hypnotic atmosphere. Nevertheless, this special guest star from Berlin flows in
organically, enhancing Fedo's material with his trademark style, perfected through years of releases on Bpitch Control and Tsuba, and thoroughly tested on Europe's best dancefloors.

Now in its tenth year, Frankfurt-based record label Die Orakel has earned itself a strong catalogue of classy releases in a distinct sonic and visual attitude, its latest being a compilation called Braindance.

A fair assumption about Braindance as a genre could be, that it's rather in the zone of kaleidoscopic and whimsical quirktronica, less about IDM's futurist tropes. From Die Orakel's point of view, its very own Braindance compilation marks the label's tenth anniversary by releasing an intense listener's atlas, to its own and their creative collaborators' musical slant of mind.

While much could be said about spectral traces of a leftfield past, nostalgia isn't heard anywhere. The more you listen to this selection, the deeper the tracks plug into your brain—stretching from ethereal harmonic licks rippling with fragile glitches, bleepy to bass-heavy electroid steppers of any BPM range, to abstract-scientific neo-modular artistry.

Die Orakel's Braindance transmission can be had as a 15-track digi-release, as well as a 4-track vinyl EP. Pick either for your library of the future. The Braindance compilation will be released on 16 February 2024.

Gratts is back once again, hot on the heels of various Balearic outings like 'Sun Circles', 'Pretty Lights' and 'Jour De Fete' but this time he is in house mode. This release comes under his new Trackhead T moniker and finds him keeping things raw and stripped back. For the sessions, the Belgian artist limited himself to using inly around 12 channels maximum per tune. This Klub Romance EP is the result and a track that harks back to his Berlin stomping ground, with deep but driving house cuts that have subtle hints of everyone from Felix Da Housecat to Boo Williams. The low slung sleaze and muted rave stabs of 'My Miseducation' is our standout.

For release number 5 on vinyl-only label and blog, Bare Bones Wax enlist a couple of new artists to their roster. Valencia based Camiel Daamen offers up two original tracks, while Berlin based Johannes Ortlieb offers up a remix of both compositions. Over his active 24 years, Camiel has released on various labels such as In-house , Viva and Origins alongside many others. Last year also saw the start of his own Freeborn Records which included the release of his own Beatport top 10 smash “Ready For Love”. Johannes has releases on mainstays such as Al Bradley’s 3AM label and Fluid.

Up first on the A1 is the title track “Quintaesencia”, Camiel blends deep beats with swing fuelled hats and Garage licks alongside an uplifting vocal to create a dancefloor monster. On the A2 Johannes takes a modern Deep House feel interlacing the subbase and vocals with cracking affect. Over on the flip “Make Music” opts for a more techy feel with driving beats and a spoken vocal giving a nice pumping feel. Johannes second remix of “Make Music” finishes off the EP taking the track in a tougher Deep House direction that could have come straight from New York.

"After Outer Edges we were trying to find a new direction for Noisia. This resulted in an extensive journey that took us through a lot of new ideas and music.

Although we eventually decided to stop, we are proud of the things we made along the way, and these tunes were always meant to be part of a larger whole. So before we finally close the book on Noisia, we wanted to share them with you, on one last album. Previously released or newly finished, they all represent directions we enjoyed exploring.

In the end, we didn't manage to figure things out. But we did get closer." - Nik, Thijs, Martijn (Noisia)

Rayko the Spanish Disco Producer and DJ extraordinaire has been busy in his Madrid based Studio burning the midnight oil to deliver Vadillo Vice Volume two.

Four reworked funk fuelled bass heavy cuts, tried and tested by the man himself on dancefloors across the globe and due to be released on vinyl only later in the year.

Deeply rooted in the golden era of the 70s and 80s, Rayko’s influences are masterfully interpreted and transformed into modern day dancefloor bombs, and are a key signature sound of his long established label Rare Wiri (Since 2008) an outlet for his productions alongside other likeminded artists such as Daniele Baldelli, Man Parrish, Gazeebo, Ilija Rudman, Ichisan, Spirit Catcher, Mushrooms Project, Eric Duncan among many others.

Guava is the moniker for Bradley Hutchings, a British producer, composer, multi-instrument performer and DJ based in Berlin. Following up on a string of celebrated club-centric releases, Guava is now set to unveil his first solo album “Out Of Nowhere” in October 2023.

This confident and carefully crafted debut stands as the culmination of a colourful journey kickstarted age 17 years old. From early days in cover bands to European tours as a session musician supporting Men I Trust, Band of Horses or Nathaniel Rateliff, Bradley went on to perform on stage at the legendary Hammersmith Apollo, Abbey Road’s Studio 2 and BBC Maida Vale, as well as in many prestigious festivals such as Green Man, Latitude and more.

In parallel, and while still collaborating with songwriters, Bradley embraced electronic and dance music, finding in those modern and cutting-edge sounds a form of escape-ism as well as a sense of community that fed his creative practice in a whole new way. While refining his sound and enriching his production skills, Guava became a regular behind the DJ decks in parties in both London and Berlin and performed in Corsica Studios, :// about blank or Berlin’s hottest ambient café kwia.

The last few years, have seen him release several well received club records on revered underground labels such as Martyn’s 3024 imprint, Bradley Zero’s Rhythm Section and Control Freak Recordings amongst others.

The time has now come for Guava to synthesize years of teachings and crafting in both live performances and electronic production, all brought together in a deeply personal debut, released through his brand new imprint Guava Noise, a home for his own musical explorations. Enriched with several collaborations and informed by his experiences as a songwriter, this confident and explorative debut sees Bradley Hutchings embrace new directions, gracefully blending the best in UK underground club sounds with an electronica feel.

After 10 years of Freakadelle Recordings and an even longer existence of the eponymous association, the time has come for the Salzburg collective to make a change and release its first record under their new imprint vierundvierzig.

It also marks the first solo release by Mad Rider named "fmrann8", which contains 7 tracks that originated during the pandemic and were finalized after the opening of the clubs. These two different states - undecided whether we want to dance or go into hiding – are not only reflected in the music, they are also made visible in the cover design, which can appear colourful and monotonous at the same time.

On the one hand, you can hear the longing for long club nights from a time when going to the club was not possible. On the other hand, the deceleration holds us as if we were sitting on fluffy clouds, not knowing what Mad Rider's modular synthesizer, fed with unconventional drums and field recordings, or the future will bring next.

Lee Burton makes his debut on Up The Stuss with ‘Sinewaves’, a five-track collection of expansive house cuts representing his impactful sound.

With music released via Dorian Paic’s renowned raum…musik through to John Dimas’ Elephant Moon and Berlin’s Taverna Tracks, Greek DJ/producer Lee Burton has been a firm favourite for those in the know, having been embedded within the underground minimal/house scene for the past decade. A constant when it comes to providing ‘secret gems’, with his records in rotation amongst the record bags of leading names across the globe, Burton’s talent as a DJ has also seen him grace legendary parties and institutions from NYC’s ReSolute to Berlin’s Club der Visionaere. Next up, his latest studio voyage brings an impressive label debut on Chris Stussy’s Up The Stuss, opening the imprint’s 2024 schedule in style.

From the acid-electro fusion of opener Sinewaves’ and the breezy tones of ‘Burning’, through to the up-tempo and intoxicating sci-fi sonics of ‘ITICF’ and the modulated, electro-funk of ‘Love Motion’, each track provides a unique slice of Burton’s vast sound palette, crafting an EP that covers all hours of the night. Sprinkle in the digital bonus ‘Oxytocin Overdose’, contrasting squelchy tones and classic chords with that infectious topline, and it’s another must-have record on the imprint.

The Hacker and Italo Moderni join forces with a masterful electro EP, guided by the French G.O.A.T. from Grenoble. Infused with techno vibes and featuring a remix by the renowned Terence Fixmer, this EP is a testament to the cutting-edge fusion of styles. Drawing inspiration from Liaisons Dangereuses, The Hacker weaves intricate basslines and rhythms, exemplified in the track ‘No Señor.’ ‘Me and My Sequencer Part 1 and Part 2’ unveils a clandestine narrative, a hidden tale shared only between The Hacker and his synthesizers—revealing the magical connection cultivated over the years.

There are two versions of the vinyl - classic black and triple-color limited Indie Shop edition.

Both have special insert inside with the bands bio and photos.

Generacja JAZZ is a project showing a fragment of the new wave of Polish jazz, treading its own path, creating, touring and jamming across Europe. Borders don't exist - especially musical - the new generation is engaging with nightclubs, festivals and playlists. The time has now come to show its broader perspective. We created a project which involves a handful of groups that have already racked up debut albums and festival wins, as they set out on their musical odyssey. The groups also have other things in common, like their passion, originality and, for the needs of the project, age - all the artists during the recording of this album were under 30 years old. This is the new generation - the Jazz Generation.

For the Jazz Generation record we invited five bands who had already released debut albums: Immortal Onion, Klawo, Rejoin, Twoosty Mayonez and USO 9001. We also reserved two spots on the compilation for the winners of our open call competition, whereby on the basis of the jury's choice (jury: Monika Borzym, Paulina Przybysz, Envee, Wojtek Mazolewski i Marcin Groh Grośkiewicz) we met the winning bands: Kosmos and quietet.

The sleeve artist is Kornelia Nowak, who won our open call for young designers and graphic artists. Here once again we could rely on the opinion of a prestigious jury comprised of: Beata Śliwińska Barrakuz, Bovska, Maciej Animisiewasz Grochot, Grzegorz Forin Piwnicki i Marcin Groh Grośkiewicz.

Generacja JAZZ LP is also a start of the new imprint - U JAZZ ME, which will be focused on jazz from Poland.

And here are the bands from the album:

1. Immortal Onion - A band from the Tri-City playing a broad spectrum of instrumental music.

Band members: Wojtek Warmijak (percussion), Tomir Śpiołek (piano, synths), Ziemowit Klimek (Upright Bass, synths).

The band Immortal Onion has already established itself as one of the most interesting projects of the new wave of Polish jazz, and is consistently being labelled as such abroad. After two well received albums ("Ocelot of Salvation" (2017) and"XD Experience Design" (2020) U Know Me Records) they released their third album "Screens" in 2022, which was recorded with the well known Tri-City composer and saxophonist - Michał Jan Ciesielski.

The inspiration behind the band's formation were such artists as: Esbjörn Svensson, Hiromi Uehara, Tigran Hamasyan and Tosin Abasi.

The group's guiding principle from the very beginning was the fusion of often disparate musical styles, which bore "post instrumental aggressive gay pop". Despite the stylistic discrepancies, between which they swim, the group has forged its own identifiable language, characterised by complicated rhythmical structures, energetic riffs and trance beats with lyrical melodies.

The trio has performed its original material at many venues and festivals around Europe and Asia.

2. Klawo - seven adventurous adventurers from Gdańsk, who were brought together by their love for music, halvah and throwing Frisbee. Their self-named début album, released in 2022 on the local label Coastline Northern Cuts, is an amalgam of the inspirations of each of the team members and played backwards contains tips on how to reach the Kashubian pyramids. After a win at the international competition Jazz in the Park, held in Cluj-Napoca in Romania, the band began work on their second album. Meanwhile, they were also travelling the length and breadth of Poland on a mission to infect people with the idea of Baltic Funk.

3. Kosmos is a Łódż based jazz quintet. It was formed in 2020 by Pianist Stanisław Szmigero, Saxophonist Iwo Tylman and Trumpeter Jan Ostalski. However, it wasn't until 2022 that Kosmos found its true form when Kamil Gużniczak (Upright bass) and Kacper Kuta (Percussion) joined the line-up.

Their compositions are influenced by Polish yass bands, electronic music and hip-hop. Kosmos music is a mix of lyricism, space, intensity and elements of experiment.

The band members are all eccentric characters possessing different means of musical expression - looking at them, one could even argue they are a group of oddballs. Despite this, for reasons unbeknownst to themselves, the members of Kosmos complement each other on stage and form a unified artistic vision of the world around them.

Kosmos officially released their début single "Ja" in June 2023. They regularly play concerts across Poland and recently were selected as distinguished artists at JAZZiNSPIRACJE (JAZZiNSPIRATION) - a competition held during the 13th Lublin Jazz Festival.

4. Quietet (formed at the beginning of 2023) is the result of meetings between five talented musicians with a deep passion for musical creation. Its sound is a unique blend of Jazz and classical music with a hint of hard rock. The band is inspired by the Scandinavian approach to making music, which brings a characteristic atmosphere and melodies to their work. Their music captivates listeners with its originality, refined improvisations and flawless technique. Both classical and modern musical trends feed their inspiration when creating passionate and emotional compositions.

Their works are full of sound experimentation, which equally surprise and expose new musical horizons. Through their compositions, "Quietet" aims to share their emotions evoked during performances, creating a musical journey that affects and inspires.

5. Connecting jazz with electronic music in fresh interpretations, six young musicians make up the group Rejoin. The group re-formed in 2020 after a four-year break, playing their debut concert at Lotos Jazz Festival Bielska Zadymka Jazzowa. The musicians in Rejoin have performed alongside such artists as: Urszula Dudziak, Krystyna Prońko, Marcin Masecki, Szczyl, Kuba Więcek and Paulina Przybysz.

Most of the members of Rejoin are students from the Katowice Music Academy, where they also develop their own projects. Rejoin was a recipient of the Fabryki Norblin Music Masterclass Foundation scholarship.

6. Twoosty Mayonez is something your grandad would listen to with his younger sister. The non-standard approach to jazz alongside a pursuit of strange sounds, culminated in the conceptual album entitled "Carmin". The material was created by Bartosz Wolerta (percussion) and Dominik Kaniewski (bass guitar/synths). "Triceradiplodocus" tells the story of a mechanical dinosaur that lives on the yet undiscovered planet Carmin.

Hilltown Disco welcome's the excellent Luxus Varta to the label for the effective and powerful 'Retrofiction' EP.

A record with layers of intelligence and emotional synth work-outs. The sounds range from a melancholic A-side, touching on wave with more disturbed vocals on the B-side, all crafted with a woven spine of electro with serious pulsing basslines. Organised and articulated madness tracks for the club.

Nous'klaer Audio and Sound & Vision's RE:VIVE initiative have teamed up for the third and final LP in their film scoring trilogy. Capping off with a soundtrack made for a progressive, angular take on a color-soaked, geometric educational archival film. Combined with a soundtrack for a film that is a personal intensifier to the city of Rotterdam, which is the home of Nous'klaer Audio. The collaboration invites two musicians to compose for these archival films from the collection of Sound & Vision, the national media archive of the Netherlands. This final instalment features through and through Rotterdammer, Kems Kriol and the Amsterdam based Turkish composer, pianist and DJ Loradeniz. Kems Kriol accompanies the amateur documentary collage film "Rotterdam in de Jaren 90", a dark period of strife, economic and social crisis for the now booming metropolis, with the compassion and empathy of someone who experienced those years first-hand but with enough time removed to reflect with heart. Loradeniz angularly and precisely moves her way through the delicate film "Tegenlicht", a surprisingly colorful and fluid educational film about painting, a bold juxtaposition that propels the film into the 2020s. Extended info: Side A, Tegenlicht (English: back lit) is a 1969 education film by Ton Gramsbergen. The short meditative film, follows stained glass artist Leo Hofman through his entire workflow to create beautifully abstract stained glass window panes. Loradeniz?angularly and precisely moves her way through the delicate Tegenlicht creating a bold juxtaposition that propels the film into the 2020s. Employing processed vocal work, deep dry kicks, and jarring percussion-- reminiscent of scratching glass-- Loradeniz's haunting modernization suits the cinema and the club equally, a testament to the rising composer's fluid versatility and creative prowess as a musical pantomath. Side B, Rotterdam in de Jaren 90 directly contrasts the zoomed in artistry of Tegenlicht. The amateur documentary Super 8 footage captures Rotterdam in one of its most tumultuous times from police brutality, poverty, drugs, violence, racism and the city's ongoing architectural modernization. Kems Kriol, who lived in Rotterdam during this time period, brings a deeply emotional weight to the Ed Millecam amateur documentation, as an artist with the compassion and empathy of who experienced those years first-hand but with enough time removed to reflect with heart. Kems Kriol's influences from modern and avant garde composers, jazz, acid bass lines and field recording Kems Kriol made at different locations featured in the film equate to a musical collage wholly comparable to the city's diverse population. The prior installments in this series featured Nous'klaer Audio staples, Ranie Ribeiro, Mattheis, Thessa Torsing (upsamy) and Tammo Hesselink.

This four track EP features the LA band’s single’s Blame and the EP’s title track Bloodline,

Quickly finding fans in the likes of Elton John, Celeste, Paul Weller, Benji B, and Gilles Peterson, the band should soon find plenty more on a record that could soundtrack a David Lynch epic such is its drama and suspenseful, late-night orchestral ruminations. Capped by Lusk’s voice, a weapon that swoops through the octaves breathlessly, Gabriels have that rare ability to make you re-evaluate music, and what it can do, in a heartbeat.

Whilst Lusk provides the wow factor with that ridiculous larynx, Gabriels are very much a close-knit trio. Producer, keyboardist (and full-time video director) Ryan Hope hails from Sunderland but calls LA home. Fellow producer-composer and violinist Ari Balouzian, a man with endless musical projects on the go at any one time, gives Gabriels’ songs a real ‘feel’ to them.

Sultry, soulful mood music certainly isn’t the band’s modus operandi, with debut track If Love & Hate In A Different Time having originally identified Gabriels as a loose-limbed, soul-stirring funk and gospel-flecked odyssey. But this experimental EP should paint an altogether more rounded idea of where Gabriels are at… !

Vinyl Number 3 45 RPM, BLACK vinyl disc, in die cut single pocket out jacket with 2 stickers (1 on front, 1 on back), with paper dust sleeve

Fortunea Records finishes off 2023 with another vivid release by Peletronic. The Hazy Jane EP features 3 new original deep house and electro tracks by the winsome Austrian. The record begins with ‚The Highest Chance‘.

A dazzling composition featuring vocals by M-Jane. Cold engaging pads and simple rhythmic structures are the main elements in this track. In combination with this prose, that can be construed and contextualise for eternity, it absolutely stands out from the mass of modern-day deep house productions. The A-side continues with the title-track. It is a groove-laden, old school house tune that will toss up the audience into new heights with its soulful rhodes, supple bassline and the comprehensive brisk arrangement.

A great tool that definitely will find its way in the recordbags and USBsticks of a house dj. On the B-side Peletronic greets you in his ‚Utopia‘ where impactful electro beats shape the landscape of a prospective scenario. And last but not least a remix of the first track is also included. Slovakian dj and producer Paradiso Rhythm retells M-Jane’s story in a 90s warehouse décor. All in all a warm, deep and beautiful journey to the brim.

The first bunch of remixes for Kito Jempere's Green Monster. The album itself was a versatile journey thought all music styles and patterns you can imagine, remixes are keeping the same direction.

EP opens with a remix from multi-talented and prolific studio genius Ewan Pearson, the man behind hundreds of remixes, production and studio engineering duties for artists like Tracey Thorn, Pet Shop Boys, Depeche Mode, The Chemical Brothers and many many more. And Mr Pearson is taking Kabwato on a journey! Originally recorded as two and half minutes as some say mid-album filler, this boat (kabwato in chewa language) is going deep down the tropical river and through breezy morning rainforest valleys. A perfect trip for your midday staying home alone errands or for your early morning ray of light at the bar with a beautiful panorama.

Same track is getting treatment from the mighty Cable Toy! Unmistakable peak time euphoria manifest - going back to my roots-esque piano meets 90s cable tv dance show house party!

On the flip is the remix by The Dawless. The Dawless are Ramil' Goddeem from LAUD and Sergey Gol'd, producer and owner of GoldxFish Music studio. They recently released their debut album "Broken Aux" on System 108, got remixed by DMX Crew and became residents of LOUD BOYZ label. The project has simple ethics: computers not allowed, only real gear and vibes. The duo has created a true rage rave anthem for Kito Jempere now. Having already been played in a lot of DJ-sets blasting through packed warehouses, now it became available to everyone.

EP closing opus is by Kito's frequent collaborator - UK born and Japan based producer Max Essa. Every Kito's album was accompanied by Max's remixes and this time he's delivering pure beauty again. Creating some Golden-era "8 1/2 weeks" vibes, Max transforms the track into a post-summer voyage anthem.

Repress.

"Alèmayèhu Eshèté is no less than one of the great voices of the heyday of modern Ethiopian music, the swinging sixties which, in this country, went on until the fall of the Emperor Haile Sellassie 1 in 1974. On a par with Tlahoun Gèssèssè, Bzunèsh Bèqèlè or Mahmoud Ahmed, Alèmayèhu is a star at the top level of the constellation that once lit up the wild nights in the capital."

All the gems of Electronic Music in a 5 LP boxset with : Fakear - Kölsch - Fritz Kalkbrenner - Laurent Garnier - Bicep - Kerri Chandler Thylacine - Bob Sinclar - Mr. Oizo - The Prodigy - Alex Gopher - Purple Disco Machine...

The first outing of the new label Way to France records, born in Leipzig and raised in Cologne (including an extra long puberty), comes from none other than Robert Johnson legend Lauer.
The title track Law High heads straight for peak time in classic Lauer style between synth-pop, wave and house. Extraordinary DJ Charlie from Berlin transforms Law High into an analog-sounding EBM-Italo stomper with her first remix ever.

On B1 Lauer shows his other side with Enso: Techno Soul in the melody-man manner. Enso got the remix treatment from Leipzig's highly talented Janthe, who (another remix premiere) pulls off a modern, froggy, timeless version that's playable on any occasion. WTF Records headquarter is more than proud (and happy) to have so much talent on their versatile catalog number 001.

Embark on a rhythmic journey with our latest vinyl release, F4E006 from Frieds 4 Ever. This 180-gram vinyl features two tracks recorded at 45 RPM, each a unique exploration into the heart of African musical traditions. On the A side, lose yourself in the enchanting beats of “Touareg.” Inspired by the nomadic Tuareg people, this track weaves a tapestry of tribal rhythms and modern sounds, capturing the spirit of the African desert. Let the music carry you across the sands with its hypnotic groove. Flipping to the B side, discover the pulsating rhythms of “Afreekah.” This track takes you deep into the heart of the continent, blending traditional influences with contemporary flair. Immerse yourself in the vibrant sounds of Africa as “Afreekah” unfolds, echoing the diverse musical landscapes of the continent. F4E006 is more than a record; it’s an exploration of cultural richness through music. Limited in its release, this vinyl promises a premium auditory experience, where the weight of each beat is felt in the depth of the 180-gram vinyl. Spin it, feel it, and let the rhythms of Africa resonate through your speakers.

Vinyl Number 2 nummerierte 12" in Promo Optik, wie die "Ghost again" diesmal mit 3 Remixen

Boris Divider presents a new original release with this 3 tracker ep. New refreshing stu­ for the Drivecom’s catalogue after the more experimental electro works from the “Generative Operations” series, and after the limited 20th anniversary reissues of “Ultralink” and “Take My Beat”.



Now it’s time to hear and feel “Your Light”. A special work that brings back the puristic electro vibe from the early works on Drivecom but with a new sonic spectrum and powerful sound production. Repetitive and syncopated synthlines as Divider’s ID signature, powerful rhythm patterns and an exclusive and unique vocoder treatment that build-up the original track to open the A side. Meanwhile A2 track “Your Light” (The Variant Version) is a slowed and darker deep version that will remind us some kind of an aseptic and much more minimalistic sound design with some similar soundscapes and echoes of the earlier Arpanet’s stu­. In the other side, “Your Light” (The Infrared Version) is a ready-for-the-‑oor soundtrack with more aggressive FM synth modulations and characteristic pitch-shifted voice, a track that keep the essence of the original title but balances the release into a more solid club-oriented tool.



About the message behind this track. The lyrics represent a desire from an entity who wants to know the deal about the deepest wishes and ever growing curiosity of mankind and their di­erent proles, and with such statement the entity wants to feel what are we made of and shows to the audience if they really understand what scientic evolution means for their own, the human race, with all the pros and cons, an always double-sided sword taking the light as a pure and indomable source of energy. This message is also re‑ected in a special Video clip you’ll nd soon on Drivecom’s YouTube channel as a bonus promotional material.

A great balanced 12” Ep which serves as an introduction for what we’ll have in the near future: “Memories from the Dust”.

A long awaited new B. Divider’s album on Drivecom records.

SY Rockers is the new project from Ryan Aitchison aka Mella Dee and KALLIDA Festival bossman Reuben G. Their story goes all the way back to 2009, when Reuben invited Ryan to be a resident for his party LSS at Hi-Fi Club in Leeds.

The pair went on to bond over their shared love of bass-led music in the UK underground, a sound that was especially important to their native South Yorkshire. Fourteen years on, Ryan and Reuben revisit those early inspirations as SY Rockers. Their debut EP is a slickly produced expression of bleep, UK techno, bassline and dub, redrawing lines between the sound legacies of cities like Sheffield, Bradford and Leeds across three tracks.

True to those roots, the result is a hypnotic blend of raw drums and subsonic impact. ‘Windy Dub’ introduces the record with a hazy, heads-down bass, occasionally shivering into a cavernous space echo before it locks back into a haunting synth hook. ‘Modem’ does what it says on the tin: gameboy tones bounce around a warm sub, calling back the ‘less is more’ aesthetic of the original bleep era. Finally, ‘Rhythm Resonate’ zooms in on where it all started—the drum machine. 909s, lasers and a touch of perc combine to create the ultimate techno tool.

Dee Ervin suffered collateral damage from GRC/Aware’s bankruptcy. He only got to release two mediocre sides on Hotlanta but these recordings match anything he created in a successful career throughout the 60s & 70s.

By 1974 he was as much a composer as artist, but he excels at both on these two numbers that were fully produced and ready for release. ‘You Make Me Happy’ is a terrific uptempo dance track that recently featured on CDKEND 512 “Masterpieces Of Modern Soul; Vol 6”.

‘Give Me One More Day’ was issued erroneously in 1975 as a Tribe LP track on ABC, but the session details clearly have it as a Dee Ervin recorded number.

Between improv, pop and r&b abstractions, and contemplative balearics, Sam Gendel and Ugné Uma “Tam tikri objektai erdvėje” subtly meanders through a fragile and forward cosmos both inward and out.

Sam Gendel and Ugnė Uma’s Tam Tikri Objektai Erdvėje album sketches a layered, melismatic and intertextual view on what both performers define as a lightness of being. Ugnė Uma’s musical stance is influenced by experimental poetry and Lithuania’s 20th century underground music scene - jazz and folk, resulting from the liberation of the country’s independence movements. Sam Gendel, from Los Angeles, is a saxophonist and producer, proficient on more instruments than the saxophone alone, whose recorded work both solo and collaborative has brought him acclaim as a vital new voice in modern jazz and beyond.

Tam Tikri Objektai Erdvėje is Lithuanian and translates as Some Particular Objects in Space. The six tracks on the album stand for every letter of the word Saturn. They sketch out a sound palette both fragile and full of forward momentum. With hints of improv, sampling their own recorded work and sounds of a childhood’s Yamaha Portasound PSS-290 synth into abstractions of pop and r&b, some of these tracks reach an almost balearic feel, the more contemplative end of it. With lyrics delving into cosmic phenomena, Tam Tikri Objektai Erdvėje is an album about space, whether cosmic or inward or the one in between. It easily surpasses the sum of its influences and the materials and tactics used to produce it.

Longtime D&B producer Submorphics launches his new imprint Rosebay Music with a 2 track single showcasing the modern-yet-timeless soul sound that he is known for. Fusing elements of Motown, deep house, footwork, 80s & 90s, funk and orchestral film soundtracks, the nomadic producer displays his love of emotive, eclectic D&B in signature form on this first single.

Rosebay Music releases will connect the dots between disparate styles of soulful music, with unexpected collaborations, remixes and genre hybrids - focusing on melodically strong D&B, adjacent forms of dance music, hip hop and modern soul. Cinematic, visceral, heartfelt music; Rosebay will be a place for honest musical expression.
DJ Support:

LTJ Bukem, Bryan Gee, High Contrast, Logistics, Lenzman, Bredren, Sustance, Satl, DJ Marky, Doc Scott, Bailey, Technimatic.

Varhat unveils fresh music for his Up The Stuss debut ‘Breaking Out’, with Canadian favourite Paolo Rocco returning on remix duties.

When it comes to artists who have managed to carve out and command their own unique place within the modern minimal and house scene, French DJ/producer and live artist Varhat is a name you have to include at the top end of your list. The creative behind an endless list of aliases, plus multiple Unknown Artist projects and mysterious labels via Paris’ illustrious Yoyaku, he now readies an impressive outing on Chris Stussy’s Up The Stuss imprint, delivering an eclectic selection of house cuts for all hours and settings.

From the delicate electronics and hazy tones of the opener and title cut ‘Breaking Out’ to the acid-laced, driving rhythms of ‘Nobody’ and the slinking, signature sounds found within ‘Mopho’, the EP is a celebration of all things house music from one of its modern contemporaries. Add in a deep, dubby and cosmic trip from the returning Paolo Rocco on remix duties, and there’s a slice of genius here for everyone to enjoy. Tip!

What you do is a fundamental question. But it's how you do something that ultimately determines the effect." — Julian Sartorius

With 'RLLRLRLLRRLRLRLRLLRLRLR', Swiss drummer and sound artist Julian Sartorius presents his third album in three years. Together with 'Ensemble This | Ensemble That' Sartorius has created a mesmerizing 39-minute percussion album that conclusively expands his artistic output. For the first time, an ensemble plays an idea conceived by Sartorius, while he assumes the role of an interactive conductor, manipulating the sounds made.

Sartorius is known for his fluid and versatile solo performances in which he continually modulates the sound of his instruments, adding objects and progressively unfolding his sound world. The idea of expanding this practice was already gestating when the 'Ensemble This | Ensemble That' invited him for a collaboration. Together with the drummers and percussionists Brian Archinal, Victor Barceló, Miguel Angel Garcia Martin and Bastian Pfefferli the concept was further explored, elaborated upon in detail, and finally realized.
'RLLRLRLLRRLRLRLRLLRLRLR' is both title and score for the ensemble's four percussionists. The pattern, consisting of 23 individual beats, is played continuously by the ensemble while Sartorius gradually makes alterations to the instruments played. The result is a piece that has a sustained rhythmic flow yet is perpetually changing. Sartorius' interventions and the precise musicality of the ensemble allows the listener to discover an expansive array of moods and intensities.

The album is structurally recursive but develops an almost mystical magnetism through an odyssey of diverse musical landscapes. Sartorius explains: "It amazes me deeply how much the sentiment can change based on a musical mood - this sense of curiosity is made audible with this album." The album recording itself is designed as an endless loop: at the end of the recording, the ensemble's sound has returned to its starting point, thereby completing an endless, self-contained cycle, with no beginning or end. In this way, Sartorius also echoes his 2021 album 'Locked Grooves'.

Julian Sartorius' precise and multi-layered rhythmical patterns are keen excursions into the hidden tones of found objects and prepared instruments, bridging the gap between organic timbres and the vocabulary of (experimental) electronic music. He has released numerous solo albums, creates audiovisual art works, collaborates with musicians, writers, and artists, and performs live in intimate venues and on festival stages.

Ensemble This | Ensemble That (ET|ET) have established themselves not only as interpreters of contemporary music, but also as collaborators to a wide range of artists including projects like Zimoun, Myriam Bleu, Strotter Inst., Lê Quan Ninh, Marko Ciciliani, Jürg Frey, and Michael Maierhof, amongst others.

Demi Riquisimo’s ‘A Lifetime On The Hips’ sub-label returns to make it a hat-trick of releases for2023 with the impressive ‘Body Move' V/A featuring eclectic club cuts from Dreamrdreamr, SY, Papa Nugs, Elfenberg, ABSOLUTE. & YSANNE.

Dreamdreamr’s emotive ‘Zone 4 Booty Call’ kicks off the a-side. A track that effortlessly fuses elements of deep house, trance, and R’n’B, it sets the tone perfectly for an EP not bound by the borders of genre. The title track ‘Body Move’ by SY is up next. A no nonsense house chugger with flourishes of Italian 90’s progressive and acid - a perfect modern interpretation of a foundational strand of club music. The A-side wraps up with one of 2023’s most exciting prospects Papa Nugs and the vocoder infused, percussive, twisted jam 'Loosey Goosey’.

The flip picks up right where the A-side left off with Elfenberg’s ’Solarplexus’, a cosmic, evolving and psychedelic interpretation of house. UK mainstay ABSOLUTE. is up next with ‘Devastating Rhythm’, a peak time techno floor filler that sounds like a Frankenstein mix of seminal imprints Dance Mania & D’jax-Up-Beats’ output - proper gear. Drawing the curtain on the ‘Body Move’ V/A is YSANNE’s ’Tisno Tango’. A slightly more introspective cut but with more than enough groove to make you dance, a perfect closer.

A compilation of Hearn Gadbois' tracks, published here and there along the years (1983- 2020). Most of them are home recordings with very little or no diffusion, so this release tries to shed some light on these amazing compositions. A sound related to Hassell's 4th world, but developed in a very personal way (he even designs & makes some of his instruments) that feels different and goes far beyond. Using mostly acoustic instruments, Hearn combines a love of traditional trance/ecstatic rhythms with the sensibilities of an outsider artist, creating a music that is both archaic and post-modern. A really original and rare work, difficult to classify or explain... In Hearn's own words, included in the liner notes:
"The pieces compiled here tend to fall, with some overlap, into a few broad categories as near as I can tell: Mystery Psychedelic Crime Jazz (Tuba City, Flesh of the Spirit), Ayahuasca Hut Bachelor Pad Music (Night, Take the Waters, Wood), or Party Music that just fell from the sky or bubbled up through a crack in the earth (Flown Home, What the Goatherd Heard)"

As a percussionist, composer for dance and film, instrument designer/ builder, session musician and teacher, Gadbois worked with Meredith Monk, Sussan Deyhim, Gabrielle Roth, Yoko Ono, Patti Smith, Suzanne Vega, The Master Musicians of Jajouka, and Wim Wenders, to name but a few.

The word Datasal paints inner pictures for most people growing up in Sweden during the 1990’s. The datasal (a classroom for computers) was an ordinary classroom with few changes to fit the school’s 10 newly leased computers. The room represented the change of times in Sweden during this period: the fixed institutions and the awaiting digital flood wave.

The music of Datasal sounds captures the feeling of printing a downloaded picture of your favorite hockey player or music artist or the expectations building up as you wait for the modem to log in to interact with the thousands of users of the internet in 1995. The tracks this release manifests the excitement but also the bit of fright you felt connecting to the world in the mid 90’s - a time when the internet still was fun.

The sound is built around repetitive sequencer loops and programmed beats where electric bass, electric guitar and flute improvise around a theme, creating a sound that is best described as cosmic flute house. Datasal is an harmonic reminder of a time where digital progress seemed less harmful than today.

T4T LUV NRG presents “Call Me G”, the new album by Brooklyn’s Russell E.L. Butler, their first full length LP since the release of 2018’s critically acclaimed “The Home I’d Build For Myself and All My Friends” on Left Hand Path. In the intervening years, Russell has experienced an accumulation of personal subjective experiences which are explored through captivating musical modalities and expressions on this sprawling, gorgeous, and deeply emotional album. Russell’s work on “Call Me G” can be described as a unique amalgam of early NY house music, dub techno and poetry. The album’s title track, as well as its instrumentals, are a kind of storytelling for histories that continue to exist without observation as well as for secrets and the power they hold in spite of their truth being obscured and sometimes lost.

Storytellers like Russell have the ability to collapse the past and future into discrete experiences of non-linear time through the emotional landscape of music and voice. Each song contains a palatable loneliness and hurt to which many in this modern world can relate, but each track also suggests the possibility of genuine connection and the formation of the self through communing and reintegrating with the natural world. These parallel concepts are the subject of “Accumulation”, a writing by Russell which accompanies the release of the album. The emotions, conflicts and resolutions that accompany Russell’s storytelling are felt acutely on tracks such as “I’m Dancing No One Is Watching” and “Stare Into The Light Beam”, among others.

On the title song, which closes the album, Russell sings “Can you call me? Will you call me? All that I want is for you to call me by my name...My name is G.” Context is part of interpretation and thus it is left to the listener to feel in the music and lyrics the concept that what may seem erased never truly dies, the traces still exist in the thing that takes its place. The T4T LUV NRG label is in part a continuing effort to facilitate the documentation of true stories that don’t get told—rather than representing a singular vibe or genre. Russell’s album is a stunning and profound entry in this evolving catalog of music and art. The beautiful cover of “Call Me G” is based on a hand drawn portrait of the artist by Diego Guzman.

Orphic Apparition follow up their inaugural release by RAFRAM, the collaborative project of Toronto's Raf Reza aka Raf Rizzla and UK acid house luminary Ramjac Corporation, with a new two-tracker from the transatlantic bass warriors. Where the RAFRAM 12" gifted us five variations on the same live jam cut from Grow Tottenham, here we have a spontaneous track written by Paul (Ramjac) on the A-side and a fully warped dancehall mix from Raf on the B. (short)

'Press 1 to Repeat' began as an on-the-spot demonstration of the musical self, a natural response to being asked 'What is it that you do?'. Within a few minutes Ramjac had his laptop out and was bashing out a quintessentially English sort of kitchen tabletop version of Kraftwerk - Numbers, the tongue in cheek automated voice on the other end of the line querying his account balance in tow. Proudly showing his friend Ryoko his improvisatory skills, a £10 hifi from a Japanese 2nd hand shop served as the portable monitors whilst the track waited to be brought back to his studio in London. The track is anchored by a bouncy, Irdial-reminiscent percussive workout which punches above its weight for its humble beginnings. Add the dubbed out synth pads and sort of electrical static FX in the background and everything syncs together in cosmic harmony. Hopefully Ryoko now gets the gist!

Raf Rizzla takes the stems and channels some inspiration from the Jamaican movie “Third World Cop” by turning the track on its head with a double-time baseline and half-time melody to craft a big dancehall version with a bit of a modern day On-U twist. Here Raf shows yet another side to his truly versatile production chops which have seen him release house, trance, breaks and downtempo cuts on a variety of Canadian labels prior to starting Orphic Apparition.

Hailing from Richmond, VA, Heartracer makes anthemic synthpop, combining modern production techniques with classic pop songwriting. Inspired by ’80s icons such as Duran Duran, a-ha, Peter Gabriel, The Outfield, and Springsteen, Heartracer’s sound is a nostalgic mix of dreamy synths, melodic guitars, and swooning vocals.

On their new album The Feel, the band channels all of that inspiration and filters it through a fresh lens; the result is a retro-inspired modern pop masterpiece. Midnight Mannequin Records is proud to present Heartracer’s The Feel on deluxe white vinyl, complete with OBI strip.

Label head Blue Hour steps up for the next release with an impressive two tracker, offering a new exploration of sound from the Berlin based producer. First up on the A side ‘Dimensions’ reveals a dramatic and eery driving Techno track with an atmosphere akin to early British IDM releases but with a more dancefloor-focused approach. ‘Dimensions’ is punctuated by warped mechanical percussive fx, pummeling drums and relentless groove highlighted by a simple yet effective melodic line which boldly opens things up and cuts through the complex layering of sound as the track evolves. On the B side ‘Sun Dogz’ adopts a similar soundscape, however picks up the tempo with a more Trance orientated production inspired by darker Goa/Psy styles and modern Fast-Trance productions. Hypnotic acidic lines, spatial fx and tribal percussion guide the listener to the main event. A heavily reverbed metallic hook and unique piece of sound design which takes multiple twists and turns along the course of the track. The EP wraps up a year of multiple successful releases from the label, with next year marking 10 years since the labels inception - keep an eye on things to come.

Debut album of heavy Colombian salsa by the obscure and short-lived El Clan Antillano. Founded in 1975 by singer Jacky Carazo and radio personality / composer Mike Char and backed by a studio orchestra comprised mostly of Fruko Y Sus Tesos band members. The record has been remastered from the original tapes, with an additional three bonus cuts taken from two rare 45 singles, including the sought after track ‘Alma’. First time reissue. 180g Vinyl.

El Clan Antillano was an obscure, short-lived salsa group started in 1975 by singer Jacky “El Caballo” Carazo, originally from Cartagena, and radio host / song composer Mike Char, from Barranquilla. The band was active only until 1977, with a mere two albums to its name. Carazo and Char, “los amigos costeños” (friends from the Caribbean coastal area) created El Clan Antillano as a fresh start after the previous group Carazo had been the lead singer for, El
Afrocombo, had become inactive.

Char primary passion was music, especially songwriting. One of his skills in this area was adapting foreign songs, often in a different language, rhythm, arrangement or genre, and refashioning the tune in an uptempo Caribbean dance mode as a salsa or cumbia. This formula, as well as his own original compositions, soon brought him success not only with costeño friends like Carazo and Vicentini, but also with Medellín’s Fruko, allowing him to make a name for himself with record labels in that city. It was at this juncture, in 1975, that El Clan Antillano was born. This is their first album and was recorded with local studio musicians. It’s been said that most on the first album were from Fruko Y Sus Tesos (the voice of Joe Arroyo can be heard on coro) as well as others involved with various groups like La Protesta (de Colombia) and Juan Piña’s La Revelación.

The album kicks off with ‘Donde ‘sta? Donde ‘sta?’, a medley of costeño lyrical phrases quoting various popular porros. Gradually changing the vibe, this is followed by Enrique Aguilar’s ‘El baile del
ratón’, a humorous cumbia that changes into a salsa halfway through. As if El Clan Antillano were not entirely confident about featuring purely salsa from the start, the same cumbia/salsa hybrid formula is used in the third piece, a faithfully rendered version of Eddie Palmieri’s ‘Mi cumbia’.

‘Estás equivocada’ rocks hard like the best Venezuelan salsa of the time. ‘Esta mañana’ is a cover version of an obscure bolero from Curaçao’s Erwin Castaneer with Super Combo Castaneer. ‘En la oscuridad’ is an interesting mashup of Puerto Rican bomba and New York style pachanga. ‘El despertar’ is a sunny sounding pop song reinvented as a Nelson y sus Estrellas style salsa/cumbia hybrid with a fantastic ‘montuno’ section.

Up next is a hard salsa jam in the ‘pregón’ (street vendor’s cry) genre, written by Fruko Y Sus Tesos percussionist Álvaro Velásquez (composer of ‘El preso’). The original album track list closes out with a fantastic rendition of Puerto Rican singer/composer Bobby Capó’s classic ‘El negro bembón’ that the world first leaned to love through Cortijo y Su Combo. Three bonus tracks have been added to the album as it was originally very short. Interestingly, there were four songs from two 45 singles cut by the band that were never included on either long play. While the ephemeral El Clan Antillano may not be as well known as the groups it’s related to, namely El Afrocombo and Fruko Y Sus Tesos, it certainly deserves credit as a worthy participant in the historical evolution of salsa colombiana.

Perfect imperfections come one as Swiss producer Modex
journeys through an array of hypnotic melodies and driving
basslines, culminating in 4 cuts of future dance §oor
classics

DVDE, a Paris Underground Scene icon, debuts "Ultralucid Paris" EP, fusing classic Chicago Acid-house with modern flair, including a dancefloor classic collaboration with San Proper on the B-side, "Dramacid."

On 'Models', Lee Gamble liberates sonic spectres to inform a suite of illusory anthems, subliming vulnerable, half-remembered fragments of dream pop, Soundcloud rap and trance in the process. Sung by cybernetic voices in an almost wordless language, his widescreen memories reverberate across the last few decades of pop history, smudging Elizabeth Frazer's surreal poetry into disembodied diva cries and Lil Uzi Vert's abstract, AutoTuned mumbles. Extracting haunted fragments of synthetic corrupted chatter and indecipherable non-words to sculpt dreamy pop simulacrums, Gamble takes the concept of the pop producer to its logical extreme; examining how intonation and language is engineered to monopolise our attention, his magical inversion of pop playing like a bewitching symphony of earworms.

Warehouse Find!

Cynosure presents the fifth installment in the Focal Point Compilation series. This time with a focus on various studio collaborations with Mike Shannon, featuring recorded sessions from Mathew Jonson to Ricardo Villalobos. A diverse selection of works ranging from a smooth 100 bpm house with the Mole & Hreno to a rolling deep techno at 127bpm with Matt & Mark Thibideau. Mike pulls a few gems out of the recording vault to share on a stunning triple vinyl gatefold package.

Building on their shared exploration of forward-leaning UK club sounds, EM + STAV herald the arrival of their new label JoyLift with the Endless EP. Having entrenched themselves within the free-spirited landscape of Bristol’s music community, the pair home in on a focused sound which draws on the city’s storied bass mutations as a springboard for their own take on modernist dance music.

There’s a tough, brooding quality to Endless EP which speaks to the meditative pressure of soundsystem immersion, but equally EM + STAV build out evocative, shifting narratives within that club-ready framework. From dubwise processing to deft sound design, a broad church of processes are wielded to shape out these pieces, and physicality comes in many forms whether in weightless sub lines or pointed, angular drum programming. Given their long-standing connection to developments within the underground music scene, there’s a keen instinct for the dynamic shifts which can set a dance alight, while the ill- defined shape of the wider genre-not-genre allows plenty of space for movement and experimentation.

Alongside the three original productions from EM + STAV, kindred spirit Forest Drive West steps up for a remix of ‘Odd' which aligns with the aesthetic intentions of JoyLift while demonstrating the idiosyncratic qualities associated with the scene’s most vital artists. The cohesive feel of Endless EP extends to Luke Griffin’s artwork, in which natural source material undergoes heavy processing to wind up in a striking new form, shot through with colour but ultimately shrouded in a moodiness that harks back through the lineage of hardcore-rooted UK dance music.

By its very nature the future is unwritten for JoyLift, but EM + STAV’s new project commits itself to an ever-evolving palette of sound, rendered as music with a strong sense of identity - tracks to shake the dance without resorting to obvious tropes, responding to and feeding into the inspiring tides of ideas emanating from the environment around them.

On his new single "Pacifico Waves", Joel Sarakula takes the scenic route down a pacific coastline, searching for peace, enlightenment and the perfect sunset.

Travelling and searching is nothing new to Sarakula: it's almost his default way of being. Born and raised in Sydney, Australia before swapping oceans to live in the UK and more recently onwards to Gran Canaria: "I've been busy making my islands smaller" he jokes. But the music on "Pacifico Waves" sounds like none of these places: with its easy drum shuffle, soulful guitar hooks and smooth vocal harmonies it distinctly evokes Southern California. It's such a potent portrait of the West Coast that if not for the contemporary lyrics and some modern production techniques, it could be a long lost hit from an early 80s LA studio band.

"Pacifico Waves" is ultimately about memory, fantasy and the powerful emotion of reminiscing when Sarakula sings 'The sound of the ocean gets me so high, helps me remember what I left behind'.