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‘Black Butterfly’ is Brooklyn Funk Essentials eighth studio album and includes the bands recent hits ‘Never Give Up’, ‘Bust The Bus Stop’ and ‘Life During Wartime’. Playlisted on BBC Radio 2 and Jazz FM and supported by Craig Charles and Cerys Matthews at 6 Music as well as many stations across Europe and the Americas. The album was produced and co-written by bassist Lati Kronlund and features Alison Limerick, Ebba Åsman and Desmond Foster on vocals.

Kronlund and Limerick have been enjoying the recent renewed interest in ‘Where Love Lives’. Kronlund wrote and produced it for Limerick in 1990, it was remixed by Frankie Knuckles and David Morales and became a club classic and was featured in this year’s John Lewis Christmas TV Ad. Arthur Baker heard the original in a club in 1991 that he contacted Kronlund about working together and they then formed Brooklyn Funk Essentials.

Since then, Brooklyn Funk Essentials have built a devoted international following and notched up over 100 million streams. Fusing Soul, Hip Hop, Spoken Word, Jazz, Latin, and, of course,
Funk, the band’s journey began experimenting with drum machines and loops in Baker’s Shakedown Sound Studio in Jersey City—hunting for that perfect beat. The early recordings featured greats such as Maceo Parker, Lenny Pickett, Tower of Power Horns, Michigan & Smiley, and Dizzy Gillespie, leading to the acclaimed debut ‘Cool & Steady & Easy’ (1994). Fast-forward to April 2024, when Kronlund reunited with Baker in Miami, rediscovering recordings featuring percussion prodigy Bashiri Johnson, which inspired new creative sparks for the next chapter of Brooklyn Funk Essentials.

10 songs from No You - the debut, self-titled LP by Davy Kehoe (Wah Wah Wino, IE) and Diego Herrera (Suzanne Kraft, US). Sharing both vocal and instrumentation duties, D & D venture somewhat off of their respective musical paths - with the collab throwing up a big, small-studio sound. They are maybe at their most melodic on ‘Baby’ where their voices play off each other over bent feedback and crunching drum machine. There’s a real low slung swagger to ‘So Far Gone’ and ‘Miracle Mile’ met with a blown out and blasted approach on songs such as ‘Invisible’ and ‘Side Effect’. The song ‘Put Up A Dream’ exhibits the duo’s more unhinged side.

Sixteen killer 70s reggae funk and soul cuts from the likes of John Holt, Lee Perry, Cornel Campbell, The Cimarons, The Chosen Few and more featuring superb reggae takes on songs by artists including The Jackson 5, William DeVaughn, Diana Ross and The Supremes, War, The Temptations, Roberta Flack, The Stylistics and others!

Well-documented is the influence of American black music on Jamaican styles of the 1960s – from the birth of ska music, when The Skatalites ska-ified the jump-up southern USA rhythm and blues music of Rosco Gordon, Louis Jordan and Fats Domino, through to the creation of rocksteady when Jamaican artists like The Techniques, The Paragons, Alton Ellis and The Melodians turned to the slower rhythms and soulful harmonies of groups such as The Impressions and The Drifters for inspiration. 

Less-well established is that in the 1970s Jamaicans didn’t (shock!) stop listening to American black music styles, with many 70s reggae artists as invested in soul, funk and the proto-disco sounds of Philadelphia, as was the case with rhythm and blues in the previous decade. In the 1970s, while Jamaica promoted its own roots reggae styles around the world, powerhouse USA soul labels such as Motown, Philadelphia International and Stax Records were at the same time all popular on the island.
This interaction between American and Jamaican music was not limited to Jamaica. In Britain, first-generation Caribbean-émigré children in the 1960s and early 70s grew up with an equal love of both soul and reggae, which manifested itself in the home-grown arrival of lovers rock in the mid-1970s.
Soul Jazz Records’ new ‘Reggae Island Soul’ tells this story of how soul and funk-infused reggae in the 1970s united the sounds of Jamaica, USA and the UK into a highly addictive cultural hybrid of styles.

Xistence Records is destroying the boundaries between house and techno. The Rise E.P. simply goes to show you a good label does not lose it's competency after 4 years of releasing music. This 4 tracker sounds sublime! If you like deep emotional melodic music, you should have this 12”.
Difficult to pick a standout track as they all offer something different…

The original version of Resilience is a stunning track, reminds of the early Octave One sound with a great mixture of percussion, classy bassline, nice layering of textures and melodies.

While Gerald Mitchell (Underground Resistance/Los Hermanos) retouch is a soulful stripped back tune with elegant drum work, linked together by a uplifting synth pattern.

Sunset To Sunrise, a delightful piece of haunting electronica. It’s a real journey back to the birth of Los Hermanos. Class!

Meteoric Rise original version came out as digital earlier on the label, Journey Around The Sun Mix here has the UR sound. It’s more complex, Detroit lesson in syncopation and rhythmic programming with chord stabs and shuffling drum work drives this one forward..epic!

“Without Hope None Of Us Have Anything “

Schwarzes Vinyl! Doppel-LP im Klappcover. Ursprünglich 2017 rausgebracht und jetzt zum ersten Mal in Europa über Sub Pop erhältlich! Pure Comedy, das dritte Album von Father John Misty, ist eine komplexe, oft sarkastische und ebenso oft berührende Reflexion über die verwirrende Torheit der modernen Menschheit. Father John Misty ist das Projekt von Singer-Songwriter Josh Tillman. Wir könnten viel über Pure Comedy sagen, zum Beispiel, dass es ein mutiges, wichtiges Album in der Tradition amerikanischer Songwriting-Größen wie Harry Nilsson, Randy Newman und Leonard Cohen ist, aber wir denken, es ist am besten, wenn sein Schöpfer es selbst beschreibt. Los geht's, Mr. Tillman: Pure Comedy ist die Geschichte einer Spezies, die mit einem unvollständig entwickelten Gehirn geboren wurde. Die einzige Überlebenschance dieser Spezies, die sich auf einem grausamen, unberechenbaren Felsen wiederfindet, umgeben von anderen Spezies, die in dieser ganzen Sache viel geschickter zu sein scheinen (und für die sie eine Delikatesse sind), besteht darin, sich auf andere, etwas ältere, halb ausgebildete Gehirne zu verlassen. Diese Abhängigkeit bekommt im Laufe der Geschichte verschiedene Namen, wie ,Liebe", ,Kultur", ,Familie" usw. Mit der Zeit und da sich ihre Gehirne als bemerkenswert gut darin erweisen, Bedeutung zu erfinden, wo keine ist, wird die Spezies zum Lieferanten immer bizarrerer und raffinierterer Ironien. Diese Ironien sollen helfen, mit der abscheulichen Verletzlichkeit der Spezies fertig zu werden und zu versuchen, ihre Fantasie mit der Monotonie ihrer Existenz in Einklang zu bringen. So in etwa. Pure Comedy wurde 2016 in den legendären United Studios (Frank Sinatra, Ray Charles, Beck) in Hollywood, Kalifornien, aufgenommen. Produziert wurde es von Father John Misty und Jonathan Wilson, die Tonarbeit übernahm Mistys langjähriger Tontechniker Trevor Spencer und die Orchesterarrangements stammen vom bekannten Komponisten und Kontrabassisten Gavin Bryars (bekannt für seine umfangreichen Soloarbeiten und seine Zusammenarbeit mit Brian Eno, Tom Waits und Derek Bailey). Black Vinyl. Originally released in 2017 & now available for the first time in Europe via Sub Pop! Pure Comedy, Father John Misty's third album, is a complex, often-sardonic, and, equally often, touching meditation on the confounding folly of modern humanity. Father John Misty is the brainchild of singer-songwriter Josh Tillman. While we could say a lot about Pure Comedy including that it is a bold, important album in the tradition of American songwriting greats like Harry Nilsson, Randy Newman, and Leonard Cohen we think it's best to let its creator describe it himself. Take it away, Mr. Tillman: Pure Comedy is the story of a species born with a half-formed brain. The species' only hope for survival, nding itself on a cruel, unpredictable rock surrounded by other species who seem far more adept at this whole thing (and to whom they are delicious), is the reliance on other, slightly older, half-formed brains. This reliance takes on a few different names as their story unfolds, like "love," "culture," "family," etc. Over time, and as their brains prove to be remarkably good at inventing meaning where there is none, the species becomes the purveyor of increasingly bizarre and sophisticated ironies. These ironies are designed to help cope with the species' loathsome vulnerability and to try and reconcile how disproportionate their imagination is to the monotony of their existence. Something like that. Pure Comedy was recorded in 2016 at the legendary United Studios (Frank Sinatra, Ray Charles, Beck) in Hollywood, CA. It was produced by Father John Misty and Jonathan Wilson, with engineering by Misty's longtime sound-person Trevor Spencer and orchestral arrangements by renowned composer/double-bassist Gavin Bryars (known for extensive solo work, and work with Brian Eno, Tom Waits, Derek Bailey).

SCHWARM (Martinou Remix)
Martinou reshapes SCHWARM into fluid sound currents and a glowing, hypnotic arpeggio. Intimate yet euphoric, it's a slow-burning dream. He and Harald Björk first connected through Myspace in 2008. Martinou has since released on Nous'klaer and Mule Musiq, among others.

SCHWARM (Sniper Mode Remix)
Gregor Tresher revives Sniper Mode with sharp 808 electro - minimal, deep, precise. After meeting Björk via Cocoon, the link continued through Break New Soil.

ALUCO (Revisited)
Björk reworks his Cocoon Recordings release into a deeper, more spacious trance journey. A staple in his live sets and championed by Ida Engberg and John Digweed, it returns stripped, atmospheric and hypnotic.

ALUCO (AD Remix)
AD is the deeper alias of Alexi Delano, a key figure since the SVEK era. His version drifts through nocturnal Stockholm - dubby, cold, immersive.

Fresh off the back of the successes of Work Money Death, The Flying Hats and The Library Archives: Volume 4, ATA Records is proud to present The Karman Line by Outer Worlds Jazz Ensemble.

When musicians are on tour conversations naturally turn to music. Two years ago, whilst exploring the jazz kissas and record stores of Tokyo, woodwind maestro Chip Whickham and ATA mastermind and bassist Neil Innes discussed their shared influences of Yusef Lateef, David Axelrod and Alice Coltrane. The seeds for a new project were sown and soon seven tracks of deep, spiritual, groove driven jazz were laid down and on tape.

The moods of the album are varied yet share a sense of reverence and exploration. On Karmen Cantala and All Is Chip’s flute floats and soars, propelled by dreamlike harp and waves of impressionistic piano. Low Orbit takes things in a funkier direction, arrangements with Steve Parry’s horn (including the unusual instrumentation of bassoon, French horn and tuba) channelling 1970s Quincy Jones and the loping swagger of Archie Shepp’s Mama Too Tight. The Celestial Matari and Molecules recall the flowing, cosmic sounds of Joe Henderson and Alice Coltrane’s masterpiece The Elements, and Earthly Elements gets earthy indeed. Driven by a heavy, dance-floor bass line and an array of percussion, Chips flute gets huskier, dirtier and more insistent, drawing deep from Yusef Lateef’s Psychicemotus and Roland Kirk’s Blacknuss.

“Released on Joe Boyd’s Hannibal label here was a band rooted in Thompson/Swarbrick Fairport but also a snatch of the Velvet Underground and a sprig of The Byrds. The Eighteenth Day Of May evoked a legendary era, and now they are a justifiably legendary band too.” – KLOF Mag

Beginning life as a trio in London, 2003, the original line-up consisted of Allison Brice (vocals, flute), Richard Olson (acoustic guitar) and Ben Phillipson (guitar, mandolin) before expanding the following year to include the rhythm section of Mark Nicholas (bass) and Karl Sabino (drums, autoharp) and finally Alison Cotton (viola).
This being the mid zeros, the independent music scene in the UK was reluctant to embrace a sun-dazed folk band but this, their sole album, has gradually feathered a bed of affection amongst international folk fans. Twenty years on, the album is now rightfully seen as a trailblazer for the myriad alternative/psych folk bands that emerged in its wake.
Andy Childs who signed the band originally takes up the story. “I first heard their music on a cover mounted CD with the much missed Comes With A Smile magazine and as far as I could tell no-one was making music like this anymore, certainly not with such panache and confidence. To my jaded ears it all sounded so uninhibited - old weird folk songs, Americana, original psych-folk, minimalist drones. Great melodies and all six of them could sing! A joyous, unfettered sound that could in one moment conjure up flashes of The Byrds and then effortlessly the spirit of Velvet Underground would drift through. They even covered a Spacemen 3 song. I loved the fact that they had the aplomb to tackle traditional folk songs like Lady Margaret and Flowers In The Forest and not be afraid to stamp their own identity on them.
Signing them to the Hannibal label was straightforward. If anything the album somehow sounds fresh and undated, even better than it did in the day when perhaps eclecticism was out of synch with the times; its subtleties have become more apparent.”
“Their rendition of Lady Margaret builds to a headswirling crescendo that challenges anyone who claims Shirley Collins, Buffy Sainte-Marie or Trees have recorded the definitive version and the hallucinatory The Waterman’s Song To His Daughter raises an already brilliant album to an unholy level” - IT’S PSYCHEDELIC, BABY Magazine

Convergence is an ambient album formed through a series of morning rituals during rehabilitation following a severe medical event and an extended hospital stay. After weeks immersed in the constant alarms, beeps, and environmental signals of medical equipment, the act of listening itself became recalibrated. The music was performed and assembled using glass marimba, flute, and analog synthesizers, with each instrument treated as a source of resonance and gradually dissected through spectral analysis—allowing melody to emerge from fragments through repetition, attention, and daily practice, where synthesis functions not as traditional composition but as an exchange of signals.


Working slowly and intuitively, Stardust Multiplier approaches sound as a communicative medium between humans, the natural environment, and non-ordinary states of perception. Motifs evolve through repetition and subtle variation, informed by ceremonial music, mythic structures, and speculative communication frameworks associated with non-human intelligence—not as narrative devices, but as metaphors for attuned listening and pattern recognition.

Rather than moving toward resolution, Convergence documents moments of alignment—instances where intention, system, and environment briefly synchronize. The result is a restrained, deeply focused record, less concerned with atmosphere than attention, where synthesis functions as both a grounding practice and a method of inquiry.

MP06 introduces DHAEUR to the Moving Pressure catalogue. The Berlin-based producer carves his sonic worlds through a strong sense of rhythmic architecture and a deep understanding of dancefloor dynamics. Here, he channels club-driven sensibilities into a mature and conscious 4 tracker.

The concept behind the EP reflects the principles of the label - namely, the pressure of sound and its resulting movement. Minimalism meets maximum technical intention, where swollen basslines and tightly coiled rhythmic progressions open up in signature DHAEUR style. The groove carries a distinct elasticity, punctuated by vocal inserts that add a subtly funky, almost soulful essence to the flow. Every element sits with purpose: dynamic yet
stripped back, intricately offset in ways that keep the body locked and the mind wondering. While the A-side leans into this physical immediacy - driving, playful, and sharply articulated - the B-side slips further into the tunnel. Atmospheres thicken and the palette turns eerier, stretching its essential rhythmic backbone into darker territories. Spatial details begin to seep through the structures, pulling the listener deeper while maintaining that firm gravitational pull toward the dancefloor.

Together, the two sides reveal different shades of DHAEUR's language. The result is a beautifully balanced narration between propulsion and immersion, where groove-led functionality meets a more shadowy, atmospheric depth.

KKYV09 is a four-track EP by Helsinki-based producer and DJ Valeria Croft, exploring a refined intersection of house and minimal shaped by funky rhythms, rolling grooves, and detailed, tactile sound design. Alongside three original cuts, the release features a remix by Romanian DJ and producer Lumieux. The EP opens with Measured By The Silence, a hypnotic, groove-led track that defines Valeria Croft's sound through subtle progression and layered detail. Floating within a vibrating minimal house framework, the track delivers warm, positive dancefloor energy across its eight-minute journey. Lumieux's remix flips the mood, pushing the arrangement into a tighter, more driving house direction while carefully reworking elements of the original into a fresh, high-impact version. On the B-side, Flex Your Body leans into an old-school minimal feel, enhanced by sensual vocal sampling and a darker, late-night atmosphere. The EP closes with Night Shift Funk, a deep, immersive track that pulses with nocturnal energy, unfolding slowly and methodically as textures stack and tension builds. Together, the tracks form a cohesive, dancefloor-focused release designed for extended DJ sets and late-night sessions.

MASK Records founder ZentaSkai joins forces with Berlin-based creative Laura Merino Allue under the name Cuddling Monsters, a project centered on analog processes and tactile sound design. Debuting in March 2024, the project explores Detroit-infused House, dub Techno, and minimal soundscapes shaped by raw texture and spatial depth. Working exclusively with analogue instruments, the duo prioritise warmth, imperfection, and presence over polish. Alongside her music work, Laura Merino Allue is also a graphic designer, bringing a strong visual identity to the project’s wider aesthetic.
‘Cuddling Monsters' is inspired by real-life experiences — the raw, imperfect, beautiful moments we move through. We believe in staying present, feeling everything deeply, and embracing the analog flow of the now. It’s about living the moment fully — and like a cuddle on the dancefloor, creating a space where sound holds you, warmth surrounds you, and even the wildest monsters feel safe enough to soften.’ -
Cuddling Monsters
The Cuddling Monsters ‘Vol. 3’ EP opens with ‘Bubble Bloom’, a melodic house track featuring warped, filtered synth tones that set a hazy foundation before a dub-leaning beat settles in. It’s layered with aquatic, bubbly textures and fragmented samples, adding warmth and movement. ‘Warm Waves’ shifts into a lighter, more atmospheric space, increasing the tempo slightly while maintaining a restrained, ethereal character. The B-side closes with ‘Secret Signal’, a long-form techno piece stretching over ten minutes, where evolving synth lines gradually merge with soft, dubby drums and analogue percussion, building steadily without excess before easing out.

Nach einer dreijährigen Pause kehrt der schwedische Singer-Songwriter Thomas Jonsson mit ,Give Up Together" zurück, seinem sechsten Album als I'm Kingfisher. Nach dem 2023 erschienenen, hochgelobten Album ,Glue", das größtenteils gemeinsam mit Jazzmusikern arrangiert wurde, hat sich Jonsson dieses Mal für einen etwas anderen, härteren Sound entschieden - mit einer brillanten Sammlung von Americana-Songs, die von ruhigen Drums, markanten E-Gitarren und satten Streichern umhüllt sind, während sie gelegentlich zu reduzierten Folksongs dekonstruiert werden. Als eines der bestgehüteten Geheimnisse Schwedens und als einer der besten Songwriter der nordischen Folk-Welle hat Jonsson still und leise ein mehr als beeindruckendes Repertoire aufgebaut, während er die Bühne mit Kevin Morby, Courtney Marie Andrews, The Weather Station und Damien Jurado teilte, und ist nun endlich bereit, neben seinen berühmteren Zeitgenossen ins Rampenlicht zu treten.

SXB Deep Tales Part 2
Smallville is happy to welcome Axel Fischer aka El Kazed to the family, proudly presenting his very own SXB Deep Tales, hitting the stores worldwide in May 2026 as Part 1 & 2.
El Kazed is a DJ & producer from Strasbourg, France. Together with a group of like-minded friends, he is running Ordinaire Records– a vinyl imprint fully dedicated to House music. The collective is throwing parties and a festival, building an underground house community in the heart of the Alsace Region. Next to releases on his own imprint, El Kazed also appeared on Chez Damiers' „House Of Chez“ label, contributing a track to catalogue number 01, as well as releasing on Brawther's Interweaved label.
On SXB Deep Tales, he delivers 8 amazing tracks, stretched onto two 12“ parts, containing all the quintessentials of house music, driving cuts next to deepest shades, solo work as well as collaborations with friends- the result is magical.
Full cover artwork from Stefan Marx – don't miss Part 1 of the series.

DJ Support: Carl Cox, Gorgon City, SethTroxler, BLOND:ISH, Noizu, Sam Feldt, Armin VanBuuren, ALOK, MistaJam, Judge Jules, Martin Garrix,MK, Wax Motif, Dombresky, Danny Howard, Afrojack,Oliver Heldens, MK, Lucas & Steve, ACRAZE & more

Toolroom’s next Sampler showcases 4 big releases from Low Steppa, Rue Jay, Reza, Chuck Roberts, Fedde LeGrand, Crusy, Jem Cooke, Martin Ikin & Hayley May.

The Byrds were one of the earliest groups who could combine the best of two worlds. They caught on to the energy of the British Invasion and combined it with the lyricism & musical elements of the contemporary folk movement. Along the way they pioneered Psychedelic and Country Rock, always keeping things recognizable with their vocal harmonies accompanied by their jangly guitars.

On their third album Fifth Dimension from 1966 they started showing a more LSD-tinged side of themselves with the Psychedelic Rock of songs such as "Eight Miles High" and "I See You" and a preference for the Indian raga. One of their most pioneering albums!

Fifth Dimension is available as a 60th anniversary edition of 1500 individually numbered copies on orange vinyl.

More G.D.M... General Electrix-Secret Order synergy continues with the third EP '3'. Consisting of four night-drives for selected purposes.