Karen Gwyer returns to Don't Be Afraid with her first new work since 2017's Rembo LP, which gained critical acclaim for its powerful body music and melancholic melody led pieces. Man On Mountain EP is a further evolvement of the duality and nuances in moods and emotions that make Gwyer's music so impactful. Resetting, rebuilding and subverting atmospheres and rhythms is a constant in her music and Gwyer builds on that more in this latest instalment.
The low swung weight of opener Faces On Ankles' bassline is full of suspense, alternating between rolling fluidity and unpredictable kick patterns, while a dubby melody dances alongside glossy, introspective arpeggios. The EP then weaves suddenly into cosmic drone that snarls with tension and desolation on Ian On Fire. You can sense contrasts between these two musical spaces – luscious, bouncing techno that nods directly to Gwyer's Midwest upbringing (Faces on Ankles, Cherries On Shoulders) and darker drone experiments where light peeks through the composition that adds balance to the mood, (Ian On Fire, Ribbon on Neck). Gwyer's music takes a different path with each record while holding onto elements of previous incarnations of her sound and Man On Mountain adds new dimensions to the bold and open minded spirit she embodies.
Suche:mu el
Long time underground innovator Illja Rudman returns with "Sagittarii", a fourth fantastic studio album and his second on Bearfunk.
As boss of both Red Music and Imogen Recordings, as well as being a skilled DJ and diverse producer, Rudman has been an integral part of dance music for years. The Croatian effortlessly veers from electro to disco to house with his own colourful sense of melody and club-ready grooves and has done so on more than 70 releases on labels like Classic, Rong, Electric Minds and Is It Balearic Recordings. This superb new album lands just a year after
his last, "Paradigma", and is another subtle evolution in his style but one that continues to deal in authentic analogue textures with flashes of throwback funk and disco gold and a slick sense of boogie.
Things open up with the glistening future-retro chords of "Dreamscape Planet" a quick,upbeat cut that is ready made for dancing in the sun with its majestic strings and nimble basslines. "Cosmia (Regal Mix)" is another bit of engagingly urgent disco funk with clipped drums racing along beneath heart melting chords. The stylish "If I Keep My Eyes Closed (Mezzanine Mix)" slows things down, with a snaking bassline and wallowing chords making for more cosy and intimate listening while "Synthia 2000" is a more playful cut with wiggling bass and withering chords that bend space and time as you get down and boogie.
The gorgeous glossiness continues with another tight bit of disco-funk lushness on "6th Floor Entrance (Guardians Gate Mix)" and "S.O.S. Flight Theme" serves up some rugged bass lines and mad xylophone patterns on top of corrugated drums that will get any club in a spin this summer. Closing things down in the tropical tinged exotica of "Techniques & Tactics (Nocturnal Mix)" with its long legged drums, blissful Balearic vibes and superb sunset stylings.
This is an album that brims with cosmic disco energy, emotion and excellence from start to finish.
Shimza, one of South-Africa’s shining talents, makes his return to Cadenza with ‘Eminence’, a burning compound of profound percussions and late-night rapturing synths. This Gauteng-born artist is one of the most celebrated African electronic musicians and has garnered the reputation of the “Effect Master” and “Vinyl Assassin” for his technical prowess and intricate mixing abilities. The vibrating drums and persistent arpeggios of ‘Eminence’ make for a captivating peak-time anthem, offering the nostalgic essence of Detroit’s late-nineties splendour. As the EP journeys to ‘Dancefloor Keeper’, the slick trance-inspired stabs and permeating bassline expose its ominous nature as it swells to a seismic drop. On the B-side, Shimza expresses his creative flare with ‘Kunye’; a hypnotic cut that blends the spirit of futuristic synthwave with the soul of African tribalism. ‘Warrant For Arrest’ is a charged number, driven by a snappy compressed kick drum and chiming sequences. As its percussive forces fall away to the second break, a monstrous siren and obscure vocal cuts take focus, guiding it to its summit. The penultimate offering ‘MSC’, is a euphoric gem that flows with expressive phrases and evolving synth pads. The EP’s digital-only bonus track ‘Mirrors’ shuffles effortlessly with a funk-tinged riff, maintaining a high voltage pace, closing the EP in an emphatic manner. Shimza has been on a mission to make 2019 his biggest year to date. Launching his One Man Show concept in Soweto in 2009 to help raise funds for underprivileged children, the project has now matured into an annual event that draws in over 25,000 people each year, hosting some of the country’s most in-demand artists, such as AKA, Black Coffee and Black Motion. The show has seen international editions in France, Spain and Portugal and has helped position Shimza as one o
Shanghai-based female electronic music producer Laughing Ears is releasing her debut album “Tidal Effect” on Ran Music. It includes 8 tracks featuring her signature dark and cyberpunk sound, with heavy suffocating subs, intensive footwork influenced beats, twisted growling bass lines and mysterious cult-feel melodies. Laughing Ears delivers an epic of world-ending tidal effects using her extraordinary sound design technique.
Laughing Ears is a female electronic music producer who currently lives in Shanghai, China. Her music crosses genres which include Experimental, Ambient, Beats, Bass, Footwork and Noise. She treats sounds as building blocks and by layering and combining them, she builds stylized sound castles of her own. She uses vintage tapes and creates unique beats then processes them using modulated effects and granular synthesizers. She has several releases on Beijing-based label Ran Music and has been gaining recognition in the China electronic music scene ever since. She has been favored by many indie labels in China and has also been invited by NTS radio to play music for their program.
Exciting new electronic project E&D burst onto the scene in stunning style with the exhilarating ‘Not Enough’ and ‘Runaway’, released on FCR on 14th June and backed by remixes from acclaimed electronic producers Mall Grab and Ali Berger.
London based E&D have unleashed two scintillating vocal cuts which have UK clubbing culture at their very core, featuring classic Garage influences. The theme of heartbreak runs throughout both ‘Not Enough’ and ‘Runaway’ with an emphasis on harmony and melody which will be integral to the identity of the E&D project.
The deep and atmospheric ‘Not Enough’ presents a beautiful yet powerful female vocal whose tone and expression perfectly emphasises the message of lost love. E&D perfect balance this with contrasting shimmering and stabbing beats to produce a track that already has the hallmarks of a classic.
‘Runaway’ is an up-tempo, vintage-sounding UK Garage themed cut with poignant undertones, as the gorgeous female vocal again mourns a relationship which has moved on.
For the remixes, E&D have called upon two of electronic music’s most respected producers – Mall Grab and Ali Berger. Both offer a completely fresh perspective to the originals. With his remix of ‘Not Enough’ celebrated Australian Producer Mall Grab takes the original into deeper, tougher territory, stripping back and lowering the vocal and adding intense, almost tribal, percussion alongside vintage acid house beats.
FCR favourite Ali Berger also takes his working of ‘Runaway’ deep into the underground, emphasising the bass, cleverly layering the vocal and building to a peak-time floor-filler.
Having just announced his first solo Ibiza residency, Dance or Die, Nic Fanciulli continues his impressive run of form with a long-awaited debut on Crosstown Rebels. Entitled Miracle (Body Rock), the two-track release includes a stunning remix from esteemed UK talent Paul Woolford.
Beginning things in fine form is Nic Fanciulli’s original Miracle (Body Rock). Whispering percussion combines with the subtle plucking of guitar strings, as echoing vocals are layered underneath soft,
moving pads to create a well-rounded, moving number. Paul Woolford’s Endless Bassline remix comes next. Stuttering hi-hats provide rhythm as the titular rolling bassline chugs on, whilst toneful piano keys merge with reverberating, soulful vocals. Unique, yet staying true to the original, the addition of distorted
claps helps create the perfect dancefloor cut; but it is the re-singing of classic Jomanda’s ‘Make My Body Rock’ vocals that links both tracks in a moving, emotive fashion.
A name synonymous with electronic music culture, Nic Fanciulli is a DJ, producer, festival curator and
label owner whose career has spanned two decades. It was in 2005 that Nic founded Saved Records, an
imprint that is now synonymous with releases from some of the scenes greatest, including Adam Beyer
and Hot Since 82. But it was his latest release on Rekids, titled Understand, that further cemented his
reputation as a standout music producer, with a clear-cut ear for the perfect dancefloor melody. Paul
Woolford is a veteran of the UK’s electronic music scene. A prolific producer who has used many
aliases, the British talent has recorded five Essential Mixes for Radio 1 as well as holding down a nine-
year residency at Space Ibiza. His recent releases demonstrate his continued talent for producing,
including You Already Know, Hang Up Your Hang Ups and Story of My Life on Hot Creations.
Repress
Berlin's Monnom Black is back again with the King of The Sewers EP; four cuts of pulsating techno from two of electronic music's most uncompromising young figures, DAX J & UVB. Already well-known for its more fundamentally rugged take on modern electronics, the label's 19th release is another intense transmission deep from the underworld.
The menacing tone of the EP hides the friendship that's developed between these adopted Berliners, two young men who met in the city and discovered a shared passion for raw analogue audio and electronic sounds that marry starkness with depth. Although they began DJing at the same warehouses since 2014, the duo have waited until the right moment to bring together their mutual love of unique mechanised noisescapes and the high-end production values they ve developed over years of experience and experimentation. The King of The Sewers is that record, a gritty soundtrack inspired by forgotten lives beneath eastern-bloc cities.
For Monnom Black this latest release continues a run of unmistakable techno records that challenge the mainstream with a non-conformist philosophy. The label's ethos is to push boundary-testing music by artists who are unafraid to explore a chaotic, divided world in the belief that distinctive music can still create moments of grace and community. This is music for the deepest, darkest parts of the night, breaking beyond the dancefloor and into the liminal spaces where analogue and digital, body and mind meet. The King of The Sewers EP represents another step forward in the development of a record label pressing at the borders of what contemporary techno can be.
Primarily based in Leeds, The Lewis Express is comprised of many of the musicians that have graced previous ATA releases: George Cooper, Piano (Abstract Orchestra) Neil Innes, Bass (The Sorcerers, The Magnificent Tape Band, Tony Burkill), Sam Hobbs, Drums (Dread Supreme, Tony Burkill, Matthew Bourne) and Pete Williams, Percussion (The Sorcerers, The Magnificent Tape Band, Tony Burkill).Recorded over an intense two-day session, 'Clap Your Hands' is heavily influenced by the classic soul jazz recordings of The Young Holt Trio / Young Holt Unlimited, and Ramsey Lewis, from who this group take their name. As with many of the classic Ramsey Lewis cuts this album was recorded live, capturing the rich inter-relationship between the players and leaving in some of that chunky room noise.
Claps your hands/Stomp Your feet was recorded during the sessions for the upcoming Album 'Clap Your Hands'. building on the template set by their eponymous debut album these tracks further explore the 60's soul-jazz of Ramsey lewis and Young-Holt and the latin boogaloo of Eddie Cano and Pete terrace. A-side 'Clap your Hands' opens with cowbell, handclaps and bass before drums and electric piano enter to carry the track onto the dancefloor. This is one for the Djs and it'll do the business in the clubs for sure, but, also perfect for a late night, sweaty house party - shoes off and beer in the sink. B-side 'Stomp Your Feet' is much more in the classic mod-jazz frame with a faster pace and funkier drums, but still with handclaps and electric piano to the foreground. Drummer Hobbs opens up 'Stomp Your Feet' in fine style, and The Lewis Express start to swing with a Ramsey-esque groover that's just made-to-measure for dancers. Everything comes together here, with a mid-60s Cadet record feel throughout. Both tracks were recorded live to tape and were recorded and mastered for a tougher sound perfectly suited for djs to fill a dancefloor.
The Portuguese say that ‘saudade’, the emotional state of nostalgia and the emotional thrills it can trigger, is an extremely powerful thing. It’s certainly hit Tom Trago hard in recent times, with the Dutch producer naming his new self- released single – his first since 2017 – after this distinctively warm and fuzzy heightened emotional state.
Trago’s nostalgia pangs were a direct response to his new life on the Netherlands’ North Sea-facing West Coast, a move that provided the musical inspiration for his 2018 album “Bergen”. While happy in his new home studio, Trago found his mind wandering back to countless happy days and nights spent jamming with friends and contemporaries in his basement studio beneath Volkshotel in Amsterdam.
“Saudade”, Trago’s latest single, was made during one of those all-night Amsterdam studio sessions alongside JP Enfant, a DJ/producer best known for his residency at De School and releases on his LET Recordings. The A- side “Main Mix” fizzes with excitement and the possibilities of the night ahead. Sentimental, emotion-stirring chords, lilting lead lines, chiming melodies and ecstatic electronics rise above a chunky, hot-stepping drum machine rhythm. It’s nostalgic but immediate: a musical marriage of two giddy producers living for the moment.
On the flip you’ll find the “Ambient Mix” set to soundtrack slow-burn sunrises the world over. All immersive synthesizer chords, yearning musical motifs and seductive melodies, it sees Trago delivering a suitably tactile and loved-up soundtrack with which to usher in the dawn of a new day.
Onward and upwards - the Belgian dubstep imprint Overdue maintains its super-heated release schedule with full force. With a meticulously curated artist roster and continued support by the likes of Mixmag and other vital institutions, this release yet again perfectly aligns with their vision of subculture sound system music. Spearheaded by a positively prolific artist, their fourth record features Teffa on the controls. Following up on some massive 12" releases on crucial labels such as White Peach Records and Foundation Audio, the up and coming artist furthers his status as a versatile and highly capable producer with three tracks of unadulterated sound system pressure - including a weighty collaboration with Chad Dubz.
Arming the record, "Shell It" heads straight into the matter at hand, precision engineered weaponry clocking in at 140 BPM. Drums like mountains, effortlessly heaving immense amounts of low-end, smoothly embedded on silky pad swells. Fusing old-school elements with the present like few others, the lively arrangement does the rest to keep the crowd aflame without end. Music with an attitude - rewinds assured.
Fasten your seatbelts as the record kicks into overdrive once again with "Sludge" as faint police sirens and reverberate into oblivion only for it to implode into an instant dubstep classic. Driven by its ridiculously effective and minimal instrumentation, the underground unravels itself in sonic form. Spacious pressure wave emissions, especially primed for the dance.
Stepping up to the title track, "Illegal" tops off the 12" most beautifully - packed with Grime and Breaks influences and mesmeric melodies. As unshackled 808's pound away alongside a murderous set of percussions, the electronic soundscape treads through hypnotic harmonies and dance-inducing groove - Teffa signature style at it's finest.
eudemonia presents a fresh EP by the always surprising Too Smooth Christ. Just in time for summer season the release showcases five playful and versatile tracks ranging from house and electro to ambient - each with their own distinctive character. Profits will be donated to Musicians Without Borders.
Having discovered electronic music at the end of the 90’s, Thomass grew up going to raves where trance was one of the main styles played at this massive partys. The influence it had on him was planted deeply into his DNA and this EP is the interpretation he has these days of the genre. He moved on to different pastures soon after but the style was already in him. Thomass now takes the old fashioned elements he still likes and takes them to new directions. Fueled by gated chords, dreamy arpeggios, trippy vocals and percussions this tracks are destined to take you back into the past and bring you right back to the present. Forget what you learned. Trance not trance.
Check! Brand new EP by The Abstract Eye, the L.A.-based producer also known as GB (Gifted & Blessed), Frankie Reyes and a few other monikers, **Very LTD release !**
Although he is known to have an incredibly wide range of stylistic approaches, he is probably best known for the music he makes for the dance floor. His classic releases Cool Warm Divine (Valentine Connexion) and GB Presents: The Abstract Eye (Eglo) have solidified a unique analog electronic sound of his own as The Abstract Eye that he further explores and expands on in these six pieces. This record displays a diverse range of emotions, textures, rhythms and colors, sounding like it could have been made any time, past, present or future. While simultaneously staying open to the ever-changing world of music and also observing the current record industry in which many factors besides the quality of the music itself seem to take precedence, The Abstract Eye asks the question, what's real anymore? For him, it comes down to the feelings this music evokes. That is as real as it gets.
- A1: Welcome" (Feat Phuzekhemisi)
- A2: City In Lights" (Feat Georgia, Mahotella Queens, Otim Alpha & Nick Zinner)
- A3: The River" (Feat Muzi, Zola 7 & Mahotella Queens) (
- A4: Bittersweet Escape" (Feat Mr Jukes, Nonku Phiri & Bcuc)
- B1: Johannesburg" (Feat Gruff Rhys, Morena Leraba, Radio 123 & Sibot)
- B2: Become The Tiger" (Feat Sibot, Damon Albarn & Mr Jukes)
- B3: Africa To The World" (Feat Infamous Boiz, Dominowe, Otim Alpha, Mahotella Queens, Nick Zinner, Remi Kabaka & Radio 123)
- B4: Absolutely Everything Is Pointing Towards The Light" (Feat Gruff Rhys & Zolani Mahola)
- C1: Mama" (Feat Otim Alpha, Georgia & Radio 123)
- C2: Where Will This Lead Us To?" (Feat Moonchild Sanelly, Radio 123 & Blue May)
- C3: Morals" (Feat Moonchild Sanelly, Mahotella Queens, Muzi & Mr Jukes)
- C4: Taranau" (Feat Otim Alpha & Gruff Rhys)
- D1: No Games" (Feat Sho Madjozi, Pote, Moonchild Sanelly, Ghetts, Muzi & Radio 123)
- D2: The Return Of Bacardi" (Feat Dj Spoko & Faka)
- D3: Sizi Freaks" (Feat Infamous Boiz & Moonchild Sanelly)
- D4: I Can’t Move" (Feat Damon Albarn, Moonchild Sanelly, Mr Jukes, Sibot & Blue May)
- D5: See The World" (Feat Mahotella Queens, Damon Albarn & Gruff Rhys)
Music collective Africa Express announce the release of a brand new studio album titled EGOLI, coming on the newly created Africa Express Records imprint.
Hailed as the most revolutionary force in popular music for two decades, Africa Express was founded in 2006 and brings together musicians from different cultures, genres and generations to break boundaries and offer a new perspective on Africa and its music.
Each record and event is unique, based upon on-the-spot collaboration and filled with unique moments of magic; the collective have hosted trips and concerts in Nigeria, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Mali and UK to date.
Africa Express travelled to South Africa in January of last year to complete an electronic album in just 7 days, a week of discovery, collaboration and music-making. The result is EGOLI - 18 tracks capturing the fresh, joyous sounds of Afro Futurism, straight out of Johannesburg.
Featured artists include Damon Albarn, Blue May, Gruff Rhys, Georgia, Ghetts, Mr Jukes, Nick Zinner, Remi Kabaka, Otim Alpha and Poté as well as emerging and established stars of the buzzing South African music scene including BCUC, Blk Jks, Dominowe, Faka, Infamous Boiz, DJ Spoko, Mahotella Queens, Moonchild Sanelly, Muzi, Morena Leraba, Nonku Phiri, Radio 123, Sibot, Sho Madjozi, Zola 7, Zolani Mahola (Freshly Ground) and Maskandi guitar legend Phuzekhemisi.
This summer, Soundway Records will release a double vinyl compilation
from South African-raised, UK-based DJ and producer, Esa
Williams.Titled Esa Presents Amandla: Music To The People, the
compilation spans electronic music from around the globe, which feature
heavily in Esa's DJ sets and hold a special place in his record bag -
including exclusive versions and hard-to-find tracks from the last two
decades.Esa Presents Amandla will be preceded by a promotional teaser
12" out 31 May, featuring Penny Penny's 2001 impossibly rare Kwaito
House monster "Shilungu".A hypnotic, percussive, groove-driven
anthem, it features chanting in Tsonga, celebrating South African icon
Penny Penny's Shangaani roots.
On the flip is the acid-soaked "Shilungu (Esa & Mervin Granger '99 Mix)",
re-interpreting the track with key elements from the original which are
extended into a late night, Chicago House influenced chugger.Esa
Williams is an ambassador for the South African music scene within the
crowded landscape of the European nightlife - balancing a hectic DJ
schedule, a monthly radio show on Worldwide FM and various live
projects. He is currently in the midst of a long-term DJ residency at
Phonox London, where he embarks on a weekly musical expedition.
Soundway Records presents the eponymous debut LP from in-demand Amsterdam five piece The Mauskovic Dance Band – fusing no-wave dance punk, Afro-Caribbean rhythms and space disco in a “controlled explosion” (The Quietus).
Entirely self-produced, the band has reiterated their favourite elements of the 70s and 80s legacy of the Afro-Latin psychedelic music of Colombia and Peru, interpreting it through the context of modern day Amsterdam. The output is a lo-fi No Wave groove all its own - rooted in a deep love of champeta, Palenque, psychedelic cumbia, chichi, classic afrobeat and picó soundsystem culture.
Since the release of their “Down In The Basement” EP on Soundway Records in early 2018, the band have found themselves on a hectic European touring schedule – not to mention being involved in other side projects. Following stints with Turkish psychedelic folk rock group Altin Gün, and touring with the re-formed 70s Zamrock outfit W.I.T.C.H., Nic Mauskovic also teamed up with Dutch neo-psychedelic artist Jacco Gardner to form the “cinematic Balearic disco” duo of Bruxas (released by Dutch institution Dekmantel) – and together, they mixed The Mauskovic Dance Band debut album in Lisbon.
Lead single Space Drum Machine encapsulates the band’s prototypical brand of busy rhythmic patterns interwoven with insistent synth stabs and vibrant disco toms, layered with an elastic guitar riff drawing inspiration from Kenyan kikuyu and benga styles. High-pitched vocals describe being on a flight together and inciting each other to press a button of unknown consequence with “push it, push it” - and push it they do, at breakneck pace. And of course, the undeniable influence of Amsterdam’s hotbed of underground dance producers shines through as it does on all tracks - with the vintage psychedelic swirl of synthesiser, lo-fi drum machines and tape recording.
Velvet May returns on “ Tears On Waves” with the 4-
tracker EP “Unknown Bodies”.
This time he is joined by the live duo Years of Denial
and the northern-irish artist Autumns who delivered
their own interpretation and vision of the tracks in the B
side.
"Unknown Bodies" tell us a story, a contorted story of
lust and infernal gazes, yet divine that spread infamy
and glory, grief and bliss. A story of lost inhibitions and
sensations. A story of burning breasts. Now is the time
when each flower fades away like incense and sounds
and scents turn in the evening air.
“Bodies entwined
Hearts resounding
The shivers of sweat
Coming and going”
The artist wants to show something. A natural desire
which finds its fulfillment in the body, but that instantaneously dies at the end of the sensations.
Sensations too much strong to last so much time. That’s
exactly why he doesn’t never renounce to let go his
inhibitions completely, having fear to be burnt, devoured
and thrown in the deep end.
On the B side, the original tracks find a completely
different vision, but especially a new light, leading the
listener to a different path of the same perverse and
twisted nature.
Years of Denial is the alter-face of French musician/DJ/
producer Jerome Tcherneyan and Czech performance
artist/DJ Barkosina Hanusova. With the use of hardware
combined with vocals and a plethora of dub devices,
YOD are re-visiting the dark corner of Post Punk,
Industrial music movement and rave culture. Its remix
fully distorts the mood, introducing a new color and
identity, juxtaposing acid sounds and sharp groove
elements. The vocal has a new touch, and processed in
another way, drags everything to it creating a vortex.
Autumns is the solo project of Christian Donaghey, from
Derry, Northern Ireland, an outlet for electronic post-
punk with a lethal pulse. He delivered a train-shaped
remix, making the bass line a key element for the whole
track and finding the perfect “carpet” where to express in
a powerful and straight groove, based on his beloved
Roland 707.
Label copy-credits
Written, produced and performed by Andrea Davide
Following Jaguar Mirror [c.2016] and Night School Of Universal Wisdom [c.2017], psychonaut Thunder Tillman and his personal shaman Pontus deliver another sublime EP, completing an illustrious trilogy with arguably their most expansive work to date, Condor Sunower. The title track is emotionally overwhelming, a drum procession that carries a righteous battle hymn to epic heights, accumulating primitive instrumentation, ceremonial chants, emotive chord changes and Beach Boy harmonies before exiting on a tear-jerking coda. The intermediary track Sväva is just as vulnerable, a modestly-arranged and leisurely-paced lullaby, where angels coalesce with a droning organ and eventually unfurl into the warm glow of rapture. Before we hit rock bottom, Thunder and Pony halt the elevator, abandoning any sense of melancholy and climbing to new heights with Creation Discoteque, an 11-minute Prog beast that chronicles a myriad of their musical adventures. This retrospective of altered states does seem designed to drop the curtain on their meticulously-crafted narrative, but not without foreshadowing their future and throwing in an air-shaking rave-up that sprints toward the nish line. What we nd enviable, spanning 3 glorious Thunder Tillman EPs and short lms, is the duo's creative simpatico, something that many artists in collaboration never truly behold. It's not their joint musical intuition, their intrinsic understanding of one another's craft, or even the power of their improvisational tether, but their spiritual alliance that nobody can touch. It's as if they share a tandem bicycle ride on the highest plane of consciousness to lounge in the members-only spa where they telepathically discuss secrets of high-grade musical alchemy
Repress!
Wiggle celebrate 25 years and relaunch their iconic label with a releases including co-founders Terry Francis, Nathan Coles and Eddie Richards, as well as artists like D’julz, Silverlining, Mihai Popoviciu, and more.
Wiggle, the brand that gave birth to tech house a sound that would power London’s club music community for over two decades, step out into their 25th year. To mark reaching this remarkable milestone, they plan a special series of international shows and a relaunch of their influential and ground-breaking label.
Taking their lead directly from the acid house movement, Nathan Coles and Terry Francis first brought Wiggle to life through their heady warehouse parties in the early 90s. Unpretentious to their core, these now infamous events were known for their purist values – community and a sound that booms. Finding a kindred spirit in another new face, Eddie Richards became resident from early sets and was a key figure from the off.
Through these now historic events, they embedded themselves deeply into London’s party landscape becoming familiar faces at cultural institution fabric. Heavily based around the core residents they also invited parts of the international and local world from Richie Hawtin, Jay Tripwire, Abe Duque and Colin Dale.
It’s about here we acknowledge Wiggle’s place in originating tech house - working the hard line swagger of techno together with the depth of feeling of house, matching rhythm with bass in a way perfectly aligned with endless hours of hedonism. This potent mix of musical elements is where it began and set down the foundation of London’s rich and active community of DJs, producers and ravers.
The label was founded close to the parties, sourcing tracks from the ever building network of producers who were fuelling this sound evolution. For their 25th birthday you can expect to see the Wiggle imprint coming back in strength - returning to cutting tracks to wax and continuing its legacy for bass fuelled party sounds and pioneering new talent.
2019 will see a series of international shows and a quarterly London party bringing the much loved Wiggle sensibilities and celebrate what they are and have achieved.
Following the reissue of ZiadRahbani's "Abu Ali" album, Wewantsounds is pursue its exploration of great Lebanese music with the reissue of "Wahdon," released in 1978 by legendary Middle Eastern diva Fairuz and recorded during the Abu Ali sessions and including the Lebanese dancefloor cult classic “Al Bostah“. 1978 is a turning point for the Lebanese Diva. The 70s had seen her rise as an international star, playing sold out concerts in the US and in Europe, and appearing on national TV in France. She had had a long-lasting artistic collaboration with her husband AssiRahbani and his brother Elias (aka The Rahbani Brothers) who, together, had penned most of the singer's classics. In 1978, Assi who had suffered a brain haemorrhage in 1972 got weaker and the collaboration finally ended (together with their personal relationship). Their 22 year old son Ziad took over Fairuz's musical reins and set to work on their first album together, "Wahdon" ("Alone"), serving as her mother's producer, composer and musicaldirector. Wahdon typifies this key moment in Fairuz's career when she switched from traditional to more modern arrangements. The first side of the album encapsulates the more traditional side of the singer with such mesmerising songs as "Habaitak Ta Neseet Al Naoum" ("I loved you so much i forgot to sleep") or "Ana Indi Haneen" ("I'm Nostalgic"), filled with gorgeous arabic strings and percussion. The Second side though is a whole different affair. Recorded in Athens at the EMI Greece studio at the same time as the Abu Ali sessions, the two long tracksbrings a hipper, contemporary funk and disco feel that has made the album such a collector's item with DJs and diggers around the world. Clocking at almost nine minutes "Al Bostah" ("The Bus") tells the story a woman in love remembering a bus journey with her lover under a scorching heat, enhanced by an hypnotic uptempofunkified disco beat, while "Wahdon" brings a slower and jazzier underlay to Fairuz's superb singing. These tracks shocked some of the diva's fans at the time but they've since passed the test of time and have become highly sought after. Whadon has since become both aclassic Fairuz album and a cult ZiadRahbani production that Wewantsounds isdelighted to bring to a wider audience for the first time.
Tekvision Volume 1 was a stone cold classic, with Rolling Stone charting it at #3 in their top 20 EDM records of 2017. Two years on, Cornelius ‘Traxman’ Ferguson returns with the second instalment, featuring 7 exceptional new Footwork productions. Traxman is a bonafide OG, with a discography dating back to the halcyon era of Ghetto House in the late 80’s and early 90’s. 30 years on, Traxman is a revered figure in Chicago’s urban music scene, having presided over the evolution from Ghetto House to Juke and from Juke to Footwork culture. Originally released in 1989, Work Dat Mutha Fucker by Steven Poindexter is considered to be one of the most influential tracks from the early days of Ghetto House. Traxman remixes it brilliantly on this release, reworking the stripped back, minimalist drum beat of the original into an upfront Footwork pattern. This sense of continuity is equally evident on Let Me See You Naked feat. DJ Juicy, and Traxman’s remix of To Da Hoooz by DJ Deeon. These productions successfully capture the sexual energy and exuberance of Ghetto House, turbo charged at 160 BPM. Elsewhere on the record, Traxman explores different moods whilst always keeping the dance floor firmly in mind. The opening track It’s Lasting Bass lays an infectious vocal harmony over complex drum patterns and a fearsome bassline. Osaka opens with mellow, sultry keys before introducing a wobbling synth and diced up Orchestal samples. 4 Da Lyfe is a soulful and slightly more meditative track, with a vocal loop expressing solidarity and self-affirmation. Wildcard feat. Jana Rush, stands alone as the only track without a vocal element, instead utilising a piercing and insistent synth to create a powerful sonic intensity. Overall this is triumphant record, and a worthy successor to the original Tekvision release, proving once again that Traxman is an unrivalled exponent of MPC-driven footwork energy.
Third studio album from French kraut / experimental / psychedelic act Le Réveil des Tropiques after two opus on Music Fear Satan. LP with obi-strip.
After almost 10 years of existence, two studio albums and a series of live recordings, the exploration by Le Réveil Des Tropiques of the psychedelic worlds takes this time the form of a hybrid record mixing recordings from different eras and contexts: scenes, studios, abandoned factory or even in the middle of nature.
Conceived as an experience of multiple lives, the arrangement of these elements by superimpositions or contrasts echoes the different experiences of the soul as well as the encounters that each makes (or re-made) during his passage on Earth and that does not not only due to chance ...
Named in reference to this mechanical device to synchronize several displacements, and illustrated by Valentin Pinel through the reinterpretation of an engraving of alchemists of the seventeenth century, "L'Arbre à Cames" will lead the listener between several grids of readings that he will be free to interpret and apprehend both as a heterogeneous entity and as a single piece.
Gabe Gurnsey returns with another limited-edition, white label pressing that melds
together two of the standout moments from ‘Physical’ into one irresistible slab of nocturnal electro. Combining the tectonic sleaze of ‘I Get’ with the roll call to rave transcendence of ‘Harder Rhythm’, Gurnsey creates, naturally, ‘I Get Harder’. Mutating his work to further perfect his halcyon club sound, ‘I Get Harder’ releases a slow-crawl ecstasy that’s ideal for dark rooms and open minds. Not one for the faint hearted
rendon Moeller is an artist that needs no introduction. The South African born living in the US, like few of his generation constantly challenges himself with new concepts and ideas, has incorporated techno, dub, jazz, ambient, sound design, to his works throughout the years. Never chased the limelight, but instead the work, one idea after the next, one project after the other, restless. He has collaborated with labels like Echocord, Third Ear, Electric Deluxe, Prologue, Mord to name some. "Materialize" is his first work for Vibrant Music.
From his early days in various bands in the 80's and 90's, Brendon liked indie, shoegaze, ambient, moody, cinematic scapes.
With Materialize he came full circle, reaching out to his early influences, but with the knowledge and experience of many years of exploration of modular synths, to create a concept space that feels intimate, and at the same time vivid evoking visual imaging.
It explores the time space through a minimalist, stoic approach.
It tells the story of how we are all linked into this tree of music we call electronic music, wherever each one is coming from.
A celebration of life through the mind of one of today's scholars of electronic music.
A liberation from the strictness of tempo and metronomes, to reach to a more creative state.
Vibrant Music continuous the quest, to bring to you unique collaborations and sides of artists that we like.
In order to celebrate 5 thrilling and inspiring years, we gathered well-known artists, Goldmin
regulars and emerging talents. It was really important for us to express the elusive nature of
the Goldmin sound, in the form of a compilation tracklisting. Over the past 5 years, we had
the chance to meet most of these guys in person, follow their very own creative path, share
ideas, thoughts and there's no doubt that they all had their part to play in crafting our sound.
This intimate and stimulating kind of collaboration had to be expressed and there couldn't be a
better way to capture what we've been busily working for, than a serie of Various Artists 12".
What it comes down to is a quintessential, hard-to-follow Goldmin selection devoid of any
specific standard or norm. And this whole compilation seems to reflect that non-septate
artistic direction, this little something, which has grown throughout our whole catalogue,
since the label's birth.That's why, picking these select few tracks, that could illustrate Goldmin
Music's essential freedom was probably our toughest work yet. It was also important to pick
only the most original and iconic tracks from each artist. In the end each track had to be their
most Goldmin one and they all have been tried in all types of situations, in club at 1 and 5
AM, on the highway at night or even staring at the ceiling during a sleepless insomnia
session. They all fullfilled their duty.
Where To Now? Records present the debut release from Akiko Haruna. Akiko’s world is one where cacophonic distress lingers, shuffling itself over scapes of percussive damage and driven groove. Akiko presents a fresh take on the current Technoid function through her use of emotive and intentionally disruptive vocal chops and a dizzying ‘wall of sound’ approach to the dancefloor, consuming all yet somehow keeping vibes alive.
Akiko’s artistic background is primarily in Dance, and undoubtedly this performance led background has had an acute impact on her approach to melodic detail & storytelling. Akiko’s tracks rapidly shift & morph states, always restless and searching with fluidity and intent. From the ever present Micro Electronic details to sweeping swathes of Bass flutter the notion of progressive movement remains at the forefront of her sound, minute elements of detail become briefly isolated, intentionally directing the listener to their subtle presence.
‘Delusions’ Leads with ‘A Mother’s Love’ and begins a theme of resentment and dissonance. The Japanase vocal cuts throughout the track roughly translate to “you should die”, here obviously flipping assumed and supposed relationship rules and roles and exposing an inner turmoil, reflected through a continuous anxiety ridden, almost panicked siren detail which pulses over Akiko’s heads down, deep and uniform forward march.
‘Husband Established’ and the opens with the emotive vocal line “I just hate your Voice”. This is the sound of a poisonous & damaging relationship hurtling towards combustion, where Akiko’s elements gather momentum and impact as layer upon layer of detail pummel and puncture this heightened state, pausing and spiralling to evoke a standoff of aggression and imminent outburst. ‘Husband Established’ stands as a frankly stunning piece of sound design, which manages to capture a raw human emotion, and provide release for the associated junk, stress, and occasional banality of Relationship angst.
‘Hetero’ picks up where ‘Husband Established’ finished, further exploring societal character types and submissive gender tropes that are thrust into our sub consciousness from day to day. The concept of Hyperreality and its themes are continuously explored within Akiko’s practice and It would perhaps be fair to say that these themic explorations within her Music are Akiko’s own outlet for traversing human relationships within a complex, heightened, & layered reality, and it is certainly Akiko’s intention for her audience to feel some kind of relief and release within her sound world. Sonically ‘Hetero’ is a much sparser, subtler affair, where swathes of sampled voice & machine swing in and out of focus, against a weightless backdrop of affecting isolated electronics.
The EP closes with ‘Ripehus Alley’, seemingly void of any deeper meaning or message this serves more as a dreamlike parting song to what is otherwise a highly charged collection. Floating itself away from a frantic & incomprehensible world into a calmer space for final thought and reflection. ‘Delusions’ is a complex, exploratory trip, one which fans of Logos, Fis, Alva Noto, Jlin, Jesse Osborne-Lanthier etc will relish exploring.
After presenting Detroit Swindle’s sophomore album High Life in 2018, we felt it was the right time to serve you up a tasty selection of remixes from all over the world and all over the sound palette. We’ve got some dub and boogie from Australia and the Netherlands, classic deephouse from Detroit, dark and dreamy deephouse from the UK and some high energy house from Germany. This set of remixes comes from 5 artists we hold in high regard and have made a serious impact on their part of the scene; some recently and some already a long time ago.
We invited Dutch techno -plot twist alert!- legend Steve Rachmad to come up with a re-interpretation of ‘Yes, no, maybe (feat. Tom Misch)’. His Sterac Electronics remix actually has nothing to do with techno but is an uplifting modern boogie version of the already funky original. Glimmering electronics, some added harmonics and a tight 80’s groove is what this version is all about.
The A2 is reserved for Cinthie, who took the high energy afro funk track ‘Call of the wild (feat. Jungle by Night)’ and turned it into a full on house frenzy with solo’s all around and a groove that just keeps on going and going.
The A side is completed with a remix by Jura Soundsystem, who has impressed many of us with his balaeric influenced synth-boogie, and dub on his own label ‘Isle of Jura’. Here, he chose to remix ‘High life (feat. Lorenz Rhode)’ and has done an excellent job in re-imagining the track into a tamed down, dreamy dub.
On the flip, there’s Matt Karmil’s take on one of the album’s beatless tracks ‘Ketama gold’. He goes in deep with some dusty drums and an arrangement that keeps on building and building, keeping the chord sequence from the track’s outro as a main loop and adding subtle FX, toms and acid hits and a final delivery where electronic cowbells up the energy level by a notch or two.
We finish off the compilation with a moody deephouse re-interpretation of ‘Ex machina’ by Detroit legend Gari Romalis. The twisted machine funk of the original is craftfully replaced by a dusty house loop, dreamy pads and smart usage of the original’s drum effects to build momentum.
This remix package brings a lovely new chapter into the story of ‘High Life’ and we hope you’ll enjoy these reworks as much as we do.
Yours Sincerely,
Maarten & Lars.
Following up on the release of his first album in eight years, Agoria has collaborated with enigmatic French musician Jacques on new EP ‘Visit’, out 14th June.
The two-track offering pairs electronic elements with organic, real-world sounds to masterful effect. Title track ‘Visit’ is the best example of this, with a wonky beat trudging through a plethora of immersive sounds. Meanwhile ‘Jardin’, with a grooving bassline, has a greater dancefloor focus.
“The first time I met Jacques, we were sitting at the same table but we didn’t exchange any words,” Agoria explains. The second time, a year later, we started speaking. A lot. During hours. About Vipassana, a technique of meditation that you practice in silence. The third time, I thought I should share his words and breaths, delivering the untold. So I offered him to record a Sapiens Talk. The fourth time, we both agreed it was finally time to record music together.”
Jacques is a musician who pushes back the border between music, sound and noise, using music as a medium of expression on his quest of transversality. Invited to several TEDx conferences to talk about his obsession with the idea of infinity, he has also revealed his new theory called “Vortex”, which he created with Alexandre Gain in 2015.
His first album in eight years, Agoria described Drift as “sitting on your sofa between your guilty pleasure and your tasteful opinion”. The deeply melodic 10-track LP came off the back of a much-lauded Essential Mix for Pete Tong’s BBC Radio 1 show, which was later nominated for Essential Mix Of The Year.
The new release comes amidst Agoria’s first ever Ibiza residency, which kicked off on 31st May at the Blue Marlin. Named after the new album and featuring everyone from DJ Harvey and Gerd Janson to Groove Armada and Idris Elba, the unique day-to-night parties will take place every Friday until 27th September. He will also take his all new live show on tour this summer, with dates including Barcelona’s Primavera Sound, Belgium’s Pukkelpop and Lowlands Festival in Amsterdam.
Seven Swiss artists & collectives sharing the same passion for music came together for a unique collaboration. The result is a sequence that evolves through rhythm and each contributor‘s colour of sound. Artists involved: Melodiesinfonie, Jack Pattern, Lexx, Look Like, Alma Negra, Manuel Fischer, Les Points.
If you draw a map of electronic music today, you will come to realise that Switzerland still represents a blind spot for many people. Even if you see from the inside the many talented artists romping about in such a small space, you have to admit that interest from the outside is virtually non-existent. Therefore there is only one way: Teamwork! The MEGAMIX is a statement for it.
It's a welcome change to see the dance music industry shift from a sausage fest to a decidedly more diverse scene of artists and DJs, one where challenging and marginalized voices can be heard.
MISS REPRESENTED has such a voice, raw and fearless, an educated woman of experience, who has lived her life on the dark side of Scotland's acid house scene, where she has found plenty of food for thought.
Co-produced by Thomas Von Party of Multi Culti, who enlisted the talents of Kris Baha and Matt Karmil to mix, and brought in the elusive UK-underground legend Johnny Aux to rough up the already rugged Crack That Habit into an extended house banger.
If there's one thing dance music is guilty of, it's escapism. A refusal to confront reality. None of that here. Calling out a culture of lies, empowering female sexuality, facing the perils of addiction, and speaking of the resilience of the human mind, this is heady stuff for the rawest of parties.
FLOAT presents the next release from drummer and composer Andrea Belfi following on from his 2017 debut album Ore & just after the announcement of his tour with Thom Yorke!
Forthcoming Strata is an organic evolution of the unique synthesis of hypnotizing drumming and ensnaring electronic patterns Belfi has become renowned for. Strata's inception is due to Belfi's playful experiments with Gnawa rhythms - a music tradition from North Africa that draws from ancient African spiritual and religious songs - with which Belfi created basic guide tracks that were later expanded upon. Strata's remit expanded from these core rhythmic ideas into a mini-LP, spread across 6 tracks spanning 25 minutes.
Latin orchestra meets Greek bouzouki!!! A true hybrid musical dream, emerging and blending the sound from the migrant communities of 60’s New York. Greek bouzouki wizard Yannis Tatassopoulos injects his electrifying playing into the Latin beats of Roger ‘King’ Mozian. Together these dukes of sound generate a tornado! Non-conventional and ultra refined crossover madness from the Space-Age. Mambo Gitano!
- A1: Afrodite Se Quiser - Fora De Mim
- A2: Lilith - Todo Amor E Bom (Remix)
- A3: Fabio Fonseca - Ladroes De Bagda Feat.marina Lima
- A4: Fernanda Abreu - Hello Baby
- A5: Luna E Dj Cri - Acabou Como Comecou
- B1: Junior - Vim Te Buscar
- B2: Thaide & Dj Hum_Coisas Do Amor (Trepanado Edit)
- B3: As Damas Do Rap - Um Sonho Real
- B4: Mc D' Eddy - Jeito Do Se Menina (Inst)
- B5: Sharylaine_Saudade
I grew up fascinated with the music played late at night on the radio.
As a kid, when times were tough and I couldn't get myself to sleep, I would tune the radio to my favourite FM station and dream on.
This was back in the late 80's and lasted until the mid 90's, a time when I was getting hooked by Hall & Oates, Loose Ends, Maze, S.O.S. Band, Soul II Soul, and other artists that used to rule the dial in the wee hours.
So this music didn't only comfort and nurture me at the time, it also shaped my music personality.
When Renata approached me in order to work on the first ever compilation for Hello Sailor, I knew the selection would end up reflecting this side of me. It had to come from the heart.
It also had to bring to the table something different than what's already associated with Brazilian music, and exploring our own take on the street soul genre sounded good.
It was never done before and it's also faithful to Brazil's musical heritage.
Back in the 80's and into the 90's, it was very common at parties to have a slow dance moment in between the more uptempo sections. A timeout from all the frantic dancing, when people could cool off and flirt in a more romantic way. (It does sound like a great idea to have this intimate just-the-two-of-us moment in the middle of a party; maybe it explains the number of marriages at that time.)
This is a tradition that goes back to the black music balls in the late 70's, which helps to explain why the majority of the early rap acts from Brazil used to have a couple of romantic songs in their albums. When you add to this recipe the power of the mellow pop acts during the aforementioned period, one can realise why it extended its tentacles to deeper depths of pop music in Brazil.
This compilation features some of my favourite music ever, songs that I've crossed paths with in different moments of my life.
Fernanda Abreu, for instance, is a longtime crush - I have been in love with her music since the mid 80's when she used to sing in a band called Blitz, which my mom loved.
Afrodite Se Quiser, on the other hand, created some buzz while the group was active with the minor hit "O Que Que Ela Tem Que Eu Nao Tenho", from their first album (1987), but I didn't know about "Fora de Mim" until 2015. My point is: even if it took me 25 years to find this track, I had a reserved spot in my brain for it and it laid there perfectly as if it innately belonged there.
It's a built memory, and I love playing with this idea when presenting music to people.
Street Soul Brasil is part mellow pop, part R&B, part rap.
One can surely feel a lot of street energy from the B Side. The music reflects the influence of international pop at the time, but it also shows how Brazilians are talented in making any sound their own!
This compilation is supposed to be a mixed collection of songs, something that might trigger the feeling of flipping through an old photo book full of tender memories. These are songs that should speak straight to the heart, music to comfort and heal, music that deals with joy and pain, feelings that I always liked being transmitted through music.
It's among the best forms of therapy. It worked for me and I hope it works for you...
Platform 23 returns with the reissue of songs from Canadian project, Vini Vidi Vici. With just one privately pressed mini-album in 1989 that bridged the gap between the later years of New Wave and the early vestiges of House, the music included in this edited EP highlights a thriving Montreal scene in its heyday.
Vini Vidi Vici was created out of two different music backgrounds. Paul Klopstock was a classical pianist, while Mario Langlois was a DJ, self-taught musician and radio producer, who came together when both worked at the underground arts / club Le Lezard. Starting in 1986 the space mixed painting, drag shows and bands alongside the latest alternative sounds, from Rap to New Beat, Electro to Acid Jazz.
As House and Techno started to filter through, Mario (aka Ave Mario) and the other resident DJs laid the ground of what was to come. From this Paul and Mario collaborated from late 1987 through in to 1988 and created the mini-album, however this EP concentrates on the duo's self penned work.
Recorded at Oliver Sudden Production studio, the A side is made up the raw House of 'Club Stuff" and Native American meets avant percussion of 'Vini Vidi Vici'. Showing a confidence and experimentation beyond their years, the two tracks production and all round hypnotic danceability, highlight why original copies are so prized (and expensive).
The B side follows with two tracks recorded in Mario's home closet studio. Lo-fi to the max and improvised, the no wave / world beat experience of title cut, 'Ou Sommes Nous' and the proto-electro-wave of 'AA HHH' are like something again, a mesmerising fusion and quite unique.
Self pressed, the project ventured to live performance and (sadly unreleased) remix work, before the partners went their separate ways, however this archival document can be seen as their own special conquest.
Stepping out of the dojo with sublime focus - DJ Youngsta's subsequent addition to the Sentry discography unveils its sound system technique in abundant grandeur. Supported by the likes of UKF and Disciple Recordings, the achievements and long-standing dedication to the bass music scene of the London-based artist speak for itself. Now taking charge of the controls, The Others materializes two irreproachable cuts of undiluted Dubstep for the imprint's tenth single outing, bringing forth an exceptional display of the artist's creative ingenuity as well as technical ability, that perfectly falls in line with the label's vision and acclaimed discography.
Anticipation permeates the air. Haunting flute melodies intermingle with tribal drums in 'Shaolin' - introducing itself, saturated in tension. Surges of electric power progressively increase the strain as the sound of the final chimes strikes its apocalyptic verdict. Heading into full-frontal warfare and the midst of a sword fight, a murderous array of distorted overtones leads the way through the trenches, dug by its huge drums and minimal instrumentation. Densely loaded with ingenious sampling and off-kilter groove, the resulting soundscape will wreak havoc on any proper sound system and skanking audience.
Turning the echo up to eleven, the B-Side 'Feedback' boasts an equally effective inferno, culminating in otherworldly levels of pressure and energy. Contemplative synth melodies merge into the melancholic soundscape, feigning brief silence before promptly being reconstructed into a super-charged form. The ensuing shutdown swings to the merciless groove onslaught of its highly fissionable basslines, roaming the dance floor with rhythmic intricacy and a universe of switch-ups and creative breaks - The Other's signature style taken to its fullest extent.
Emerging from the flourishing house scene in Århus, Forte is one of the most exciting producers to make his debut in Denmark in the past years. Having produced and released music under various monikers, Forte debuted in 2017 as Forte with the excellent mini album Techne on 12recs and the standout EP ”Away” on ØEN Records. Intermissions is Forte’s first full length album. Composed and recorded in Århus during 2018 Intermissions consists of six tracks and five interludes and is a study of, and tribute to, intermissions.
Across the albums eleven cuts, Forte effortlessly traverse between ethereal dreamy vibes, intricate electronica and bustling rhythmic explorations. Stretching far beyond the traditional house music boundaries, Forte’s layered and intricate compositions constantly balances melancholic and elevating atmospheres. Perfectly suited whether you are lounging in the living room, standing on a train platform or at discerning and esoteric dance floors. Out on vinyl and digital June 22.
Jacob Long’s reductionist rhythmic ambient vessel, Earthen Sea, ebbs towards a more purely elemental state on his second excursion for Kranky, Grass and Trees.
He describes the creative process as one of “simplifying things as much as possible,” designing uncluttered spaces traced in nothing but breath, field recordings, and “sounds that could be played by hand but weren’t.”
The results feel decentralized but dynamic, low-lit evocations of ambiguous nocturnal environments – dub techno disassembled into stray pulses and spare parts. It’s a music both interior and infinite, languorous yet transformative, made in the outer boroughs of a metropolis but existing in its own liminal wilderness.
Long’s vision is a grounding one, rooted in the physical body but attuned to larger currents: “In response to living in a fairly hectic city, and at a very hectic time for the world at large, creating something more drawn back and restrained felt appropriate.
track listing:1. Existing Closer or Deeper in Space 2. Window, Skin, and Mirror 3. Spatial Ambiguity4. A Blank Slate 5. Living Space and Usually 6. Shallow, Shadowless 7. Less and Less
Coming to the table with a fresh mutant sound, Darker Than Wax is proud to welcome Leeds-based artist Captain Over to our sonic universe with his Deep Blue EP. A solo project from one of the minds behind the band Paper Tiger, Captain Over represents a firm focus on dancefloor experimentation, blending the sounds of grime, broken beat, house, and LA beat music to create an entirely new beast. Much like the chess-playing supercomputer of the same name, ‘Deep Blue’ occupies a space between electronic weight and the human touch, fusing together icy digital synths borrowed from grime with off- kilter grooves and jazzy motifs.
Following a string of releases led by vocal tracks with grime MCs, ‘Deep Blue’ is the first fully instrumental offering from Captain Over, lending the artist a platform to make a strong statement about his creative vision and technical prowess. From the expansive arrangement of ‘4D’ to the duelling sci-fi synths on ‘Mind’s Eye’, the Deep Blue EP is a deeply creative yet functional record, signalling a bright future for the Captain Over project.
Get on board 5 new space alchemists for the next level of “The Orbitants”!
The “Panic Side” (Side A) refers to a synthetic melody transition from the beatless Heinrich Dressel’s intro, to the mystical drama “Source Reality”, a utopistic abstract-composition by Galaxian, who serving his anarchic vision of electronic music.
Falling into the wicked flash born from Foreign Sequence’s Oberheim.
Entering to the “Black Side” (Sibe B), the virus infected the system: it’s the Lake Haze electro hit! Spooky pads triggering the edgy arpeggio, body of the track.
Jensen Interceptor provides yet another one of his tipycal alien incursion with a cruel-core on a beat techno influenced. 5 ruthless tools — Be brave!
JK Flesh is the electronics-only project of Justin K. Broadrick
(Godflesh, Techno Animal, Zonal, The Blood of Heroes). He is a
absolute master of high quality, prolific electronic composition, and has
released JK Flesh on Downwards Records, Hydra Head, and Hospital
Productions. Submerged is the leader and founder of Ohm Resistance.
DJing internationally for 20 years, he has pioneered the sounds of hard
drum & bass and played in the furthest reaches of the globe.
Blacktacular is one of Portland’s most prominent MCs and promoters of
electronic music, dropping articulate, inspiring rhymes over every
Pacific Northwest drum & bass event spanning the last two decades.
Limited Edition Print by Pascuale Belvito
The career of Patience Africa Spanned over 40 years. After almost a decade of success on a major label with her Zulu Disco sound, and a few years in the early 80s experimenting with a more soulful sound, the funky synths of the 80's would force her to stay relevant in the quick changing times. It would be in 1987 that she would sign to the independent Ream Music which with the help of their tight knit in house production team had released hits for upcoming disco artists Makwerhu, Ntombi Ndaba, Sunset, Athena, Percy Kay and more. The label's success in the traditional market made Patience a perfect fit and could have been their first crossover artist.
With the help of owner's Danny Antill and Clive Risko they would cut a 4 track EP that like many others of the time ended up being lost in to the hyper saturated market of the emerging Bubblegum demand. Two tracks would be written by Patience, including the title "Wozani La" Musically these were more aligned with her sound of the 70's accompanied by a purely digital production, but it's the two songs written by label boss Danny Antill that appear on this release. These two songs are unlike anything heard at the time. Embracing full commitment to the digital studio and some extensive and risky experimenting the trio managed to slide heavy house bordering electro pop and a haunting swing beat groove alongside the compositions of Patience to complete this EP for both markets. Although the album had great potential, poor promotion and low sales led Patience to feel cheated and after not earning a cent for the record left the label and took her first break from music since the early 70's. She would later return to her original sound recording up to til 2006 when she released what would be her final album before her death the following year. Still loved by her fans and those who knew her, she is remembered through the Patience Africa Foundation. Founded by her son Mangaliso in 2017 to help create a better South Africa in our lifetime.
Midnight Sun drew his imagination from trips to Iceland and elsewhere, from experiences. Everything has grown, some dates in New York for the CMJ Festival, Berlin, Barcelona or Warsaw, the Pitchfork Festival, Radio Nova, vinyl, meetings.
"Early Morning" extends this first EP and dreams of traveling at the end of the world.
The group is apart, it wanders while preserving its identity - the spirit of Cracki hovers over the project.
First discovery of the label in 2012, the duo barely existed, it is a quator today who just returned from a world tour (more than 100 dates).
The dream sticks to their skin, in fact. Just as when trying to catch one, it flies away, their music is elusive. The first disc spoke of a sun at midnight, the second is dawn.
The chosen horizon is not defined, the four artists are still searching for each other and continue their path with candor.
Pailhead was a collaboration of vocalist Ian MacKaye (Minor Threat, Fugazi), Ministry’s Al Jourgensen and Paul Barker, and drummer Eric Spicer (Naked Raygun).
In 1986, MacKaye was just a few years away from his genre-defining work in Minor Threat and on the cusp of starting an even more influential band, Fugazi. Al Jourgensen was also undergoing a transition with his band Ministry after the release of “Twitch”. He wasn’t the guy who would release the game-changing “The Land Of Rape And Honey” a couple of years later, but he was well on his way.
Alain met Ian when he was living in London. Both found common ground musically and politically and decided to collaborate on a project that would fuse elements of industrial music with hardcore punk. The result was a bunch of unique and unrepeatable hymns.
Pailhead released one first single “I Will Refuse” / “No Bunny” in 1987 and next year the 4-song EP “Trait”, both on the legendary Wax Trax! Records.
Limited edition of 500 copies on grey vinyl with deluxe sleeve with soft touch lamination and sticker with classic band logo.
Legs 11 collaborate with the infamous drag DJ duo Lisa & Lisa for a special, limited 10" vinyl release. They first met at a festival in a community garden, where they both performed, instantly bonding over a shared love for underground pop music and clubbing. While dancing the night away in a tiny, steamy community garden play house, the idea for a collaboration was conceived.
Lisa & Lisa joined Legs 11 for their concert at Oslo Pride in 2018, adding vocals, dancing and fabulousness. The combination of the Lisas' irresistible, rough glamour and Legs 11's catchy, club tinged synth pop brought so much joy, that the obvious next step was a studio collaboration along the lines of Eight Wonder/Pet Shop Boys. The choice of covering Bertine Zetlitz' Girl Like You was similarly obvious, being the only true Norwegian electro pop diva. Adding Edwyn Collins' similarly titled song, proved a perfect choice for a double A-side single.
Regis is the founder of one of techno’s most influential and
uncompromising labels, Downwards Records. His inimitable hard
techno sound, and collaborations with Surgeon as British Murder Boys,
have cemented his legacy as the definition of the Birmingham techno.
Luke Lund is one of the Finland’s fastest rising young composers, with
the ability to move seamlessly between the marshes of dark hop to the
silkiness of deep techno. His own Terranean Recordings label has
been fearlessly documenting the Finnish underground and beyond
since 2010. King Pin Frankie is treasure untold – a live Regis recording
from New Year’s Eve 1997 in Chicago. Pounding classic minimal TR
909 with an accelerating/decelerating arppegiator make this A side a
serious find, with distorted synth moving platforms occurring as the
track winds out. TIP! Luke’s Scourge is an electronic composition
masterpiece – pinning a straight kick underneath a shifting snare,
leaving the question open – is it techno? Is it dark hop? Whatever it
may be, the bass underneath tells it big and fills up a subwoofer.
Limited Edition Print by nem0
The Soulpop Continuum – by Arno Raffeiner
Six songs, one sound signature, one vision. Supreme Beats Series by Drei Farben House is an album
that firmly stands in the tradition of the big records of the disco era: a vinyl disc full of kicks and licks,
just as much as two sides in amazing sound quality can hold.
The album is the latest work of Michael Siegle, the Berlin-based producer and owner of Tenderpark
Records. 13 years after Drei Farben House's first full-length on the acclaimed Force Tracks label, it
features contributions by singer and songwriter Mavin and none other than Robert Owens who's voice
shaped house music forever. The trademark sonic elegance of Drei Farben House blends perfectly
with the timbre of the man behind Fingers Inc.'s Mysteries Of Love. Siegle's work as a producer is not
so much about turning this rich heritage upside down, but about refining it and creating a space within
that realm that's very much his own.
The title of the opening song with Owens states it: I’m Remaining Here. And Supreme Beats Series
invites you to come over and stay there, too, in a refuge of class and funkiness. The record offers
dense layers of rhythm, vintage keyboard sounds, chucking guitar, and vocal samples that indulge in a
many-voiced conversation. Not to forget the prominent, singing rather than walking bass lines
performed by the hands of Michael Siegle himself with his bass guitar.
New Release Information
You could think of Supreme Beats Series as a cross-section in time and space. It allows you to take a
closer look at the here and now of a much bigger picture, both aesthetically and socially. Siegle uses
the vocabulary of house music in a way that transcends its conception as merely a genre and speaks
of the historic evolution and the profound roots of this music as a movement. His record takes
inspiration from 60s Motown hits as well as the blue eyed soul of the 80s, you can discover influences
ranging from Philly's pre-disco craze to new jack swing and on to the heyday when house-pop divas
stormed the charts. By drawing these lines, Siegle deliberately opens up the space of a visionary
Soulpop Continuum.
In the 1950s, the American issue of Vogue magazine had their say about Coco Chanel's work and its
ever-lasting impression on fashion and design. They claimed it was all about “infinite variety within
narrow limits,“ and meant that as a compliment, of course. Michael Siegle likes to think about Drei
Farben House in a similar way. And you should, too.
Info about the artwork:
As far as the cover artwork of 'Supreme Beats Series‘ is concerned, the release of Drei Farben
House’s new album shows the second part of an image series which has been started with TDPR
release # 021 and which revolves around architectural photos taken by Achim Valbracht. Tenderpark
art director Till Sperrle and photographer Achim Valbracht like these pictures of various commercial
buildings erected in Berlin in the 1990s to be seen as a critique of investor-driven architecture which
has been dominating Berlin for several decades now.
The fascination of these pictures lies in their ambivalence of staging a normalised and globally
standardised kind of beauty, but at the same time revealing a strong sense of isolation - noticeable not
only but also in the absence of human beings. This new series of images is to some extent a
continuation of art director Till Sperrle's and label manager Michael Siegle’s interest in architectural
photography. However, at the same time the photo series also embodies a new angle on the subject
since all previous picture series on Tenderpark had been an affirmation of socially progressive
architecture which expressed a longing for socio-cultural utopia.
- 1: Shine A Little Light
- 2: Eagle Birds
- 3: Lo/Hi
- 4: Walk Across The Water
- 5: Tell Me Lies
- 6: Every Little Thing
- 7: Get Yourself Together
- 8: Sit Around And Miss You
- 9: Go
- 10: Breaking Down
- 11: Under The Gun
- 12: Fire Walk With Me
The Black Keys’ long-awaited ninth studio album, “Let’s Rock”, their first in five years, is a return to the straightforward rock of the singer/guitarist Dan Auerbach and drummer Patrick Carney’s early days as a band. Auerbach says, “When we’re together we are The Black Keys, that’s where that real magic is, and always has been since we were sixteen.” The album includes the hit single ‘Lo/Hi’. The Black Keys’ touring begins in North America in September, with further international dates to be announced soon.
“Let’s Rock” was written, tracked live, and produced by Auerbach and Carney at Easy Eye Sound studio in Nashville and features backing vocals from Leisa Hans and Ashley Wilcoxson. “The record is like a homage to electric guitar,” says Carney. “We took a simple approach and trimmed all the fat like we used to.”
The “Let’s Rock” Tour will hit cities including Chicago, Nashville, New York, Los Angeles, and Austin. Special guests Modest Mouse will provide support on all dates, and Shannon & The Clams, Jimmy “Duck” Holmes, *repeat repeat, and Jessy Wilson will each open select shows on the tour. The band also headlines 2019’s Life Is Beautiful festival in Las Vegas on September 21.
Rolling Stone named ‘Lo/Hi’ a “Song You Need to Know” and said, ‘the Keys have officially returned, louder than ever’ and the New York Times calls the song ‘the kind of garage-boogie stomp that the band never left behind.’ In the words of the NME, ‘It’s the soundtrack to the type of party that doesn’t exist anymore, but one you still wish you were cool enough to get the invite to.’
Formed in Akron, Ohio in 2001, The Black Keys have released eight studio albums: their debut The Big Come Up (2002), followed by Thickfreakness (2003) and Rubber Factory (2004), along with their releases on Nonesuch Records, Magic Potion (2006), Attack & Release (2008), Brothers (2010), El Camino (2011), and, most recently, Turn Blue (2014). The band has won six Grammy Awards and headlined festivals including Coachella, Lollapalooza, and Governors Ball.
Since their last album together, both Auerbach and Carney have been creative forces behind a number of wide-ranging artists:
Dan Auerbach formed the Easy Eye Sound record label, named after his Nashville studio, in 2017, with the release of his second solo album, Waiting on a Song. Since its launch, Easy Eye Sound has become home to a wide range of artists including Yola, Shannon & The Clams, Dee White, Shannon Shaw, Sonny Smith, Robert Finley, and The Gibson Brothers; it also has released the posthumous album by Leo Bud Welch as well as previously unreleased material by Link Wray.
Patrick Carney has produced and recorded new music with artists such as Calvin Johnson, Michelle Branch, Damns of the West, Tobias Jesso, Jr., Jessy Wilson, Tennis, *repeat repeat, Wild Belle, Sad Planets, Turbo Fruits, and more. He also created the theme music for the Netflix TV show BoJack Horseman with his late uncle, Ralph Carney.
Dixon Avenue Basement Jams are proud to present "Rainbow Body" by Nightwave on their new sub-label Neutralizer Records.
New music from Nightwave is what life is all about.
Check out her new fantastic release for Dixon Avenue Basement Jams’ Neutralizer sub-label if you’re in any doubt. Rainbow Body EP is 4 tracks of Detroit influenced dance floor damage, taking in and breathing out lush melodic techno, driving ghetto beats, steppin’ authentic electro and bold yet synthy house music. It’s a release that does it all and with such style and confidence. You’d be a fool to miss out.
Limited Hand Stamped Vinyl and crazy story inlay included
A few years ago, Roi took the wise decision of changing his life, he got away from the madding crowd of the city and moved to the coast of Dexo, surrounded by nature and animals. This kind of retreat has been the trigger of an enormous personal growth and a strong feeling of freedom, which has led him to find a certain inner calm, also to feel the constant climatic changes which are so typical of Galicia, alternating between wind, rain and sun. Roi has found himself; this deep self-knowledge has provoked an internal explosion of inspiration that made him to fully immerse in music production after years of experimenting.
Concurring with the 10th anniversary tour of the label and promoter Fanzine Project which he co-manages, the artist from A Coruna will publish his first EP next month of June. He comes with melodies full of power, light and elegance, embracing a wide spectrum of music styles which meet in a perfect point of balance between strength and delicacy. Deixo EP is the outcome of a small tribute paid to his three main sources of inspiration: The wonderful landscape of the coast of Dexo, Seixo Branco Point and his unconditional companion: His dog Tigre.
A very warm welcome aboard to the splendid AMERICAN STANDARD label !!
Critical & hedonistic acclaim have already been lavished on this Charleston based sonic excavator of considerable note, so we won't bore you with an exhaustive biog, mainly because there isn't one.
The music is most definitely left to do the talking as this one man 'Folly Beach Psychemagik' fills the record boxes of the world's most discerning diggers with treasure beyond measure.
So, for this latest 3 piece for American Standard we're firmly in the FM synthesis musical district of early 80's planet earth.
70's session players still strung out from the previous decades' debauchery tried their hand at piloting these electricity powered units to wildly varying degrees of success.
Luckily for you, Jaz has been kind enough to find and reload three of the finest, more esoteric, obscure but eminently playable moments from this fertile era for some primo 'back to the future' frugging...
- A1: Peggy Gou - Hungboo (Dj Kicks Exclusive)
- A2: The System - Vampirella
- A3: Pegasus - Perseguido Por El Rayo
- B1: I:cube - Cassette Jam 1993 (Dj Kicks Exclusive)
- B2: Sly And Lovechild - The World According To Sly & Lovechild (Andrew Weatherall Soul Of Europe Mix)
- C1: Deniro - Epirus
- C2: Psyche - Crackdown
- D1: Hiver - Pert (Dj Kicks Exclusive)
- D2: Aphex Twin - Vordhosbn
When Peggy Gou released her debut EP ‘Art of War’ in 2016, she made a list of career goals. One of them was to become the first South Korean DJ to play Berlin’s techno institution Berghain, an objective she achieved only a few months later. Another item on that list was to record an instalment of !K7’s DJ-Kicks series. “It’s the premier class of DJ mixes,” she says. “Some of my favourite selectors have contributed to it.” Now Peggy Gou can tick that off her list too as she proudly presents the 69th edition of the mix series.
The Berliner-by-choice started working on the mix last year. It was a
busy time for the 28-year-old: she’d just scored her first Mixmag cover
and her single ‘It Makes You Forget (Itgehane)’ was receiving awards
and critical acclaim. Each month she would DJ in 20 nightclubs all over the world. And yet, the goal for her mix was ambitious: instead of trying to capture the energy of her DJ sets, she aimed to create a portrayal of her own musical journey. An 18-track listening session that takes you straight into Peggy Gou’s living room where she plays you the formative tunes from her collection. No genre boundaries – she moves across disco, house, techno and electro. No tempo limits – the mix ranges from 90 to 150 BPM. And no age restriction – the earliest tunes on the mix are from 1983
“The year is 1982. Rita Mitsouko has not yet recorded its eponymous debut album. The pile of ashes that once was Disco is still smoking on the field of Comiskey Park. New Wave is a phrase, Post-Punk Rock a thing. In France, young musicians dream of New York City – some with more devotion than others. Lapassenkoff are to early 1980’s downtown New-York what seminal New Wave act Marie Et Les Garçons (who met John Cale on their way to CBGB) are to the city’s musical scene in the late 1970’s: an unexpected cousin from Lyon.
Indeed, going through Shing ‘n’ Tsé! sometimes feel like an impromptu meeting between John Lurie and Tom Tom Club in the basement of some French record store. If we press pause for a minute, a question comes to mind: how on earth such a unique blend of funk, post-punk, jazz fusion & hip hop (!) – more easily associated with, say, The Mudd Club, than with Les pentes de la Croix-Rousse – made its way to the brains of three French musicians?
The answer probably lies in a Swiss chalet, some 40 kilometers away from Zurich. Sent there by the wise people from Mosquito (the label which also gave Ramuntcho Matta and Carte de Séjour the opportunity to record their first album), the band experiences Alpine ennui and mysterious neighbours (a certain Carlos Peron, for instance). That is probably during this stay in Swiss meadows that they opened a Pandora’s box called experimental music, leading them into recording the mind-blowing sample-based – and accidentally proto-everything – M Le Maudit,, that would later grace Belgian airwaves via the famous Liaisons Dangereuses radio show.
But if we’re looking for a bigger picture, M Le Maudit is just an example of how inventive their approach to music was. This compilation is a testimony of a decade-long feverish flirt between the Lyon trio and dance music. From the infectious electric boogie cuts Shing A Ling and Roadie to the somehow euro-house-fuelled Ma Poubelle Angelina, via many unclassifiable yet iconic songs like Bossi Le Bosseman or Fièvres, Frissons, the compilation demonstrates one thing: Lapassenkoff took the road less traveled by and contributed to a different history of French Pop music.”
Pierre-Arthur Michau.
Leipzig’s Dj Balduin has been a staff favourite for some time as we are avid fans of his GLYK imprint, and in particular his debut EP “Vvigmara”. Dj Balduin proclaims to enjoy producing music that creates “states of hypnosis with an occasional, gentle “hands-up-face-slap” every now and then” which perfectly sums up “Lost Cat” - his first release for KOMPAKT.
“E.W.B.A” came to Dj Balduin while having a shower, so chances are high we have this summer’s rain dance anthem on our hands as it has all the right elements - a classic rave synth meets an infectious open snare to break through the beat.
The kick drum thud of “Sheee” seems to be all too menacing at first, but surprisingly learns how to open itself into a gorgeously seductive uplifting house tune.
This story ends with the perfect set closer; “Lost Cat And An Untied Shoe” brings that beat back with soaring synths and a playful natural bass line that adds just the slightest edge of funk to carry the crowd home at the end of the night.
Leipzigs DJ Balduin und besonders seine Debüt-EP „Vvigmara“ trendet, seitdem wir sein GLYK-Label kennen, unter den Mitarbeitern von Kompakt. Laut eigenen Angaben genieße es DJ Balduin, Musik zu produzieren, die seine Zuhörer in den „Zustand der Hypnose versetzt und gleichzeitig mit gelegentlichen zarten Schlägen ins Gesicht wachhält“, was auf „Lost Cat“ – sein erstes Release auf Kompakt – auch geschieht.
„E.W.B.A“ kam DJ Balduin unter der Dusche, die Chancen stehen also hoch, dass wir hier eine Hymne für diejenigen Raves haben, die unter kräftigen Sommergewittern stattfinden werden – die richtigen Zutaten sind alle da: klassische Rave-Hooks, ansteckende Snaredrums, die hervorbrechen aus dem Bass.
Der Schlag der Bassdrum von „Sheee“ scheint zunächst bedrohlich, lernt aber überraschender Weise sich selbst zu wandeln hin zu einem prachtvoll verführerischen House-Stück. Die Geschichte endet mit dem aller besten letzten Stück: „Lost Cat And An Untied Show“ bringt den Beat zurück zusammen mit aufsteigenden Synths und einer verspielten, natürlichen Bassline, die einen Funken Funk hinzufügt, um die Dancer nach Hause zu begleiten in der Nacht.
7am. Tilburg. Black room. Strobe light. Dutch Soundsystem Wirwar. "Party Like It's '96" celebrates 23 years of musical debauchery, rinsing BPMs and battering bodies in forests, squats or wherever a PA system could be plugged in. Five tracks from five different aliases make up this descent into drum beat battery. Noses are up against sweat drenched wall from the needle drop, the thundering pace of Trippy D's maniacal offering being elbowed in the ribs by Bart Bral's nosebleed inducing "No Shit, Sherlock!" Distortion slices into squalid acid lines in the blazing "Water On Mars" by RAF before broken beats are blended and blitzed by Just So Nah. The night, or morning, comes to an end in Roel's nightmarish fairground ride. "Wurlitzer Express" minces chiptune cuteness with splintered snares, cracked kicks and mutated percussion to leave hearts, minds and souls thoroughly stained.
The Austrian electronic music label fortunea records is back with a new 12“. Viennese label-member "Peletronic" is the key figure on this record.
His intention was to limit himself in the use of external samples, without loosing on his own signature style. He tried to achieve this by recording all essential parts by himself and by flipping those snippets later on in a sample-jam manner.
The opening track "Blyss" is an infectious deep house groover.
Shredded filtered vocals, a bouncing bassline and a sun rising pad are the main characters of this piece.
Salzburg’s globetrotter Demuja is also present on this release by contributing a remix. He did a classic NY style house music treatment of the title track. It peaks with stunning strings and stabs and has a lot of potential for being heard during this years open air season.
The B-side of Peletronic's EP also features the original track "Wrapped In Silk". A gently calm down tune for afterhours. The slow tempo supports the vibe of silky pads and dreamy vocals.
And to wrap it all up, this track has been remixed by a second well-known Austrian artist. LeSale brings the mood of the original perfectly over to the dancefloor and adds some acid flavor to it.
Overall a great selection of music for this summer, made up by all Austrian artists. Check it out!
Limited to 300 copies! There will be no repress!
Mastering by Patrick Pulsinger.
Support by Cinthie, Jacques Renault, Soul Clap, Roman Rauch, Siggatunez
After releasing the single “Čista ljubav” back in 2012, Marinada
and producer Qwerty continued to synthesize the band’s rich
catalogue. This collaboration album features eight songs
where Qwerty utilizes his playful approach to dance music
strongly tying together Marinada’s truthful voice and sensitive
instrumentation. The two sides bring in a wide range of
influences into the mix: from retro techno-pop and new wave
to contemporary braindance and acid house. The electronic
sounds are wrapped around simple and repetitive lyrics that
are simultaneously clearly relatable (if you speak Croatian)
and fully mystifying. Marinada has been a truly productive
phenomenon on the Croatian music scene, putting out more
than 20 albums woven from lo-fi electronica, acoustic
minimalism and art rock. Besides the hometown, the band is
connected to Qwerty via the family tree: the brothers have
been making IDMy techno sounds since the late 1990s and
releasing music on labels such as Phthalo and Breakin’
Records.
Georgian artist Sophia Saze releases her debut two-part album 'Self' on Francis Harris' Kingdoms imprint, with part one dropping on cassette this June. "The record embodies my story of duality within the context of identity, insomuch as the idea that every person has a deeper layer we don't show on the surface."
Born in Tbilisi, Sophia Saze is the daughter of political refugees who's spent her life living in numerous different countries before eventually finding home in Brooklyn. Finding it difficult to find her own identity due to living a nomadic lifestyle, the classically trained musician became entangled with electronic music before becoming a key player within New York's nightlife scene and launching her Dusk & Haze imprint in 2017.
A reflection of her struggles throughout life, 'Self' is very much a memoir of the many different places she's lived during her journey, including Georgia, Russia, USA, France and Canada. Contrasting to her recent productions, which are geared more towards the dancefloor, her debut longplayer is downtempo and features a medley of musical influences - mixed in two parts and released as a concept album on cassette. Maintaining a sonically raw feel throughout, 'Self' draws the analogy of analog to modern day digital culture whilst also taking a stance against perfection, whether integrating the distance crackle of her machines or intentional off-beat piano notes in minor. Part One was conceived, for the most part, during a sleepless yet inspired 48-hour studio session. Processed field recordings accompany samples from her childhood, such as soviet cartoons and intimate VHS recordings of her family. The result is a well-seasoned and personal story portrayed in fourteen tracks mixed together.
"I feel the element of patience is somewhat of a lost commodity in our generation, particularly for albums. We're consumed by track to track interpretations and constantly searching for the next instant stimulation. With this record, I wanted to reiterate the idea that if you don't have the willingness to sit through the whole thing, then you're not stepping into it with the right mindset to begin with."
Every artist who collaborated on the record is handpicked, such as vocalist Ricardo Rivera. The final production was also mixed by Francis Harris himself. All of their involvement means they share a fragment of the concept.
Spearheaded by James Dean Brown (also known from Perlon's Narcotic Syntax) and Victor Sol, and featuring other rotating members, Hypnobeat is a true product of the open-ended spirit of DIY music that proliferated in the 1980s. The prescient project championed deft, machine-powered rhythm programming as its modus operandi long before the practice would become a dominant global cultural form. Since Hypnobeat was revived in 2012 with Helena Hauff joining JDB on stage for improvised live performances based on one 707 and three 808s, there have been a string of archival releases shining a light on the early and more recently recorded works of this forward-thinking venture.
This latest collection for Artificial Dance comprises three freshly unearthed iterations. Long-form A-side track 'Polychrome Desert' is a pure percussive exercise, programmed and recorded by JDB in 1986 with a chain of three 808s filling out a stereo panorama. The intention was to create a pure, meditative rhythm drawing on African influences and reinterpreted through what was then the music technology of the future. 'Spies In Malaysia' is a live recording from a concert Hypnobeat performed in 1985. Its lurid melodic passages and crunchy percussive blasts formed the closing track of the set, which was met with rapturous response. Recorded in the same year, 'Sumatra Railway' was the product of an impromptu session between JDB and Victor Sol. The song finds the pair exploring a more shadowy, surf-inspired sound, laden with echo and freewheeling through seven minutes of sun-kissed, subtly tropical subversion.
With each successive release, the plot surrounding Hypnobeat thickens in a tangle of 1/4' jack cables and ancient effect pedals. From its shifting line-up to the diverse sonic repertoire, it remains one of the wondrous plants of German electronic music in the pre-techno era.
Walls, Corridors, Baffles is the debut album of Swiss musician and producer Samuel Savenberg aka S S S S. Following various releases on Haunter Records, aufnahme+wiedergabe, and Hallow Ground, his LP on Präsens Editionen tries to find an approach to an artistic expression beyond tropes of darkness, harshness and excess. Thus, the aesthetic of Walls, Corridors, Baffles is radically and uncompromisingly sober. Instead of focusing on a conceptual or symbolic treatment of sound as an abstraction, Savenberg emphasizes its materiality. The album consists of eight pieces strung together into a manifesto which calls for a febrile embrace of an unheard-of, intense sobriety.
In Walls, Corridors, Baffles, unadulterated percussive force meets an astoundingly precise and frugal vocabulary of electroacoustic sounds, as for example on the opener “Deserter”. Passages extended over long melodies invite the listener to lose oneself in the contrastive emptiness. Central to the work are the affective qualities of the music which lapses only at moments into a more defined emotional quality – as on the final track “Nothing But the Circulation of Air”.
*Edition of 300 copies
Last year, we got together with The Netherlands Institute for Sound and Vision’s RE:VIVE initiative for the second time, inviting four local artists to breathe new life into four archival films from the Sound and Vision and EYE Filmmuseum archives. Jordan GCZ, Suzanne Kraft, Parrish Smith and Upsammy were all assigned short animated films dating back to 1921. The films and their new scores debuted at EYE on August 2nd as part of Dekmantel Festival 2018. Unsurprisingly, each artist imparted their unique styles onto the films that they previously had no relation with. From Suzanne Kraft's sparse atmospherics that have become more apparent in his new SK U KNO project to Jordan GCZ’s free flowing hardware jams. Parrish Smith showed his contemplative side and sparse orchestrations that he demonstrated on his RE:VIVE release, Genesis Black, a sonic departure from his bombastic releases and DJ-sets while upsammy showed yet again her deft hand for melody and texture, a style that dominates all her releases to date.
These four scores can live apart from their films, fitting seamlessly into each artists' growing catalogs of work. But when combined, it’s as if the films and music were made simultaneously with the artist and filmmaker together in the same room. Dekmantel and RE:VIVE are proud to present these new works as the electronic music scene in The Netherlands continues to show its multifaceted talent that continues to expand far beyond the dance floor.
Borneo’s eighth release brings a sweet little five track compilation of eccentric and exotic electronica. All music is lovingly composed and constructed by the label’s family and close friends.
Ultrastation is the lovechild project of Cosmic Force and Nuno Dos Santos. Their Eau De Voodoo kicks this EP off with a fire starter made out of driving afro rhythms combined with mesmerizing vocal samples.
Phones On Fail Jah by Fader sees a quirky digital take on digidub. Centered around filtered chords, a deftly curated selection of melody and percussion is put through its paces.
The enigmatic Fizzy Veins poured his hart out on the song Handbrake. Guitar play over a subtle synth line, all sprinkled with fragile vocals that are almost drowning in the sea of echoes that lies underneath.
Rotterdam’s Nous’Klaer mainstay Mattheis has contributed V21. A stealthy weapon with synth driven melodies and electronic rhythms that are slowly morphing in and out of each other. This will hypnotize any dance floor.
Samo DJ closes the excursion with a remix. He handpicked OVFiets from the Borneo vaults, an unreleased techno work out by party crew Marck. Samo’s version brings the original in a more airy, wholesome and percussive state of mind.
The mysterious Teisco LP is perhaps the most bizarre artefact to emerge from the phenomenal world of Italian Library music. Originally scored for a 1978 RAI television documentary, the album titled Tuscan Castle and Country Seat conforms to nothing you know or understand about library music. Studying composition under maestro A.R Luciani, the young Teisco composed innovative home studio recordings that parallel the outsider technique of French soundtrack composer Francois De Roubaix. With little resemblance to the standard cues usually found on library music LPs, this is stoned underground psychedelic music of the most eccentric kind. Imagine lyrical Moog oscillations drifting loosely over baroque and hallucinogenic atmospheres, or alternatively, think the DIY guitar jamming of the Velvet Underground and Dream Syndicate mixed with the electronics of some lesser-known Krautrock band. Wherever this recording sits among the dusty shelves of forgotten stock music, it is highly personal, deeply rewarding and without a doubt the most mind-blowing library record you will hear this year. This record is soon to be an outsider classic.
Ibiza Records label was established back in 1989 and was one of the main contributors to the UK underground music scene. Those behind the label were the innovators of Hardcore Jungle, Jungle Techno and Jungle genres in the 90s stemming from Warehouses to clubs and now festivals. Ibiza Records Label returns today with some new releases and a back catalogue of gems for the real Junglists out there.
Another 3 track EP comes out of Ibiza Records archive vault's called Archives Vol 4 produced by Noise Factory. Each of these tracks represents 'The Original Jungle Sound' from back in the 90s.
This 3 track EP called Archives Vol 4 comes from out of Ibiza Records archive vault and produced by Noise Factory. Each of these tracks represents 'The Original London Jungle Sound' from back in the 90s.
A.JUNGLE MYSTIC - This track made back in 1999 produced by one of the member's of Noise Factory aka Drumpella Black. Keeping with the original sounds of Noise Factory and the elements of techno and hardcore the early developments of Jungle.
AA.CAN YOU FEEL IT - This track made back in 1999 produced by one of the member's of Noise Factory aka Drumpella Black feat. Tremma T on the vocals. Keeping with the original essense of jungle, piano stabs and hardcore flavours.
AAA.ROLL WITH ME - This track made back in 2000 produced by one of the member's of Noise Factory aka Drumpella Black feat. Jnr Dangerous on the vocals. Once again showcasing the true elements of jungle.
At the end of last year we quite enjoyed the little spat when Simon Cowell's chosen one, Joe... Something or other had his Christmas number one spot whipped away from under his nose by Rage Against The Machine. Still whilst we enjoyed the sight of the X Factor being given a bloody nose as much as anyone else, there was also an undercurrent of the ridiculous prejudice that ROCK = GOOD & MEANINGFULL whilst POP = CRAP & DISPOSABLE to the whole thing that we found less agreeable.
Here at Hot Pockets we have no truck with such orthodoxy, no, what we need is suite simply better pop music, made with all the passion and spirit of your finest indie troubadour but filtered through the prism of a 3 minute teenage symphony. Listen back to the likes of Roxy Music or Pet Shop Boys and you have music that is as equally up to the task of inspiring as it is of soundtracking a quick fumble on the dancefloor, that is the beauty of great pop music.
Thankfully for those of us that do like smart, clever pop that doesn't come hurtling off a production line but instead is crafted with much love and precision :Kinema: have arrived with their debut release a classic double A-side of pop perfection, Recreation/My Girls.
First up we have Recreation, a slow burning slice of South coast electro-soul inspired by an insatiable thirst for fun and those who would pass judgement on our basic human need for intoxication and ecstatic night time rituals. All in all a bonafide late night disco classic. Flip the virtual release over and you'll find the band's stunning cover version of Animal Collective's My Girls, a live favourite the track has already been the subject of a blogging frenzy when a demo leaked back in December. Finally available the whole world can now enjoy this smooth, autotuned refix of the indie classic.
The new pop revolution starts here
- A1: Cecilia - Si Me Olvidas
- A2: Electropic - Cine Cha Cha Cha
- A3: Laurent Stopnicki - Amour Fonctionnel
- A4: Zig Zag - Ca S\'Arrange Pas
- B1: Bisou - Marre D\'Aimer
- B2: Milpattes - Je Vais Danser
- B3: Janou - Demodee
- C1: Martin Circus - Bains-Douches
- C2: Sonia - J\'Sais Plus Ou J\'En Suis
- C3: Fabienne Stoko - Poupee
- C4: Anne Lorric - Delivrez-Moi
- D1: Yogo - Reve De Star (I:cube Dreamy Edit)
- D2: Arielle Angelfred - Cauch\'Mar Bizarre
- D3: Ronan Girre - Je N\'Sais Pas Avec Qui
- D4: Reserve - Une Fille En Transe
Any historians keen on the subject of "French youth in the 1980s" are holding a treasure in their hands. As a true archaeologist of this decade dedicated to disposable culture, digger-in-chief Vidal Benjamin with his newest compilation, 'Pop Sympathie', offers them a unique journey in the heart of the cyclone of emotions that struck all teenagers during the first seven years of François Mitterrand's mandate. Fifteen musical nuggets, exhumed from the dungeons of history, each and every one of them teaching us about what really obsessed the youngsters at that exact moment, i.e. what happens when the city lights come on at dusk, when irrepressible urges that stir them to get lost even more appear until the end of the night.
The artists gathered here did not have the honour of breaking into the local charts, but they all individually reached for the sky. Each song of 'Pop Sympathie' tells more or less the same story: that of a girl who throws herself into the night like one immerses one's self into the void, who rushes into a one-night adventure to become a star. And too bad if in the early morning she finds herself back at square one. In all these miniature odysseys there is neon lights, lasers, smoke machines, broken glass on checkered tiles, strangers on leather benches, celebrities in the bathrooms, stolen kisses, alcohol, drugs and cigarettes, Polaroids, venetian blinds and radioactive tubes.
If the first opus of Vidal Benjamin, 'Disco Sympathie', focused on the funky mood of songs that could have been played at Le Palace, then 'Pop Sympathie' develops itself as the imaginary soundtrack of another nightclub, Les Bains-Douches, the capital’s epicenter of nocturnal drifts. So what do we listen to, blasé, at Bains-Douches? Mainly synthesizers. The child of punk and post punk, French New Wave celebrates the matrimony of machines and lolitas under the auspices of a retro trend that revisits the atomic age. Trying to surf on that wave and hit the charts, a bunch of producers (Stéphane Berlow, Laurent Stopnicki, Bernard "Black Devil" Fèvre, Johny Rech, Jean-Yves Joanny ...) will spot their talents amongst friends, in a travel agency or at the local bar. These virtual stars are called Cecilia, Laurent, Sonia, Janou, Fabienne, Anne, Arielle or Ronan, not even 20 years old, and often leaving just an overexposed photo and their first name on a single as the only memories of their swift passage in this particular musical story. It took all the love and sweet madness of Vidal Benjamin to bring them back in the light of day.
Clovis Goux
• Debut album by production whiz-kid Mantronix, one of the most important acts in the mid-80s hip-hop. Pioneers of drum machine, sample technology and art of the remix.
• Features NYC club anthems ‘Needle to the Groove’, Fresh Is The World’ and ‘Bassline’ (UK top 40 hit).
• This is raw hip-hop and electronic music of the highest calibre.
• Cult classic proudly reissued by Demon Records on 180gm heavyweight black vinyl with
printed inner sleeve.
Bastard Jazz is proud to present the new EP from Vancouver's AstroLogical, also known as one half of production duo Potatohead People. With a long list of collaborations outside of the group ranging from Pomo, Phife Dogg, Illa J and Chin Injeti - Astro's new EP "Private World" resides somewhere in between jazz, soul, ambient and future electronic vibes with it's lush keys, chunky breaks, and deep musicality.
Nate Drobner aka. AstroLogical is a multi-instrumentalist producer/composer based in Vancouver, B.C. Canada.
After releasing a number of solo instrumental hip-hop projects through the net label Jellyfish Recordings in the early 2010's under the AstroLogical alias, he had began focusing his energy on the producer duo Potatohead People; a collaborative project with his old friend Nick Wisdom, eventually getting noticed signed by Brooklyn-based record label Bastard Jazz in 2012 (with the help of Nightmares On Wax). Their 2018 full-length sophomore album 'Nick & Astro's Guide To The Galaxy' was released to great acclaim and led them to be invited to Jazzy Jeff's annual Playlist Retreat alongside such luminaries as Lord Finnese, Young Guru, and Pharaohe Monch.
It’s always a pleasure to be killed by a beat! But the Enliven
guys will keep you alive with the voice of Jaw from dOP, who
always delivers big hooklines! So, if you want to survive this
summer, reach out for this limited remix edition on a
transparent 180g vinyl and play it loud! UC Beatz breaks it with
an electroish acid soul remix and DJ Jauche will give you a
warm sparkling shower to cool down in the sun.
Italian producer and musician DJ Rocca (AKA Luca Roccatagliati) is back on Nang. Rocca has been around the dance music block a few times; having collaborated with the likes of Howie B, Zed Bias, Daniele Baldelli and Jazzanova. He has also remixed a whole host of artists such as Oliver Koletzki, Luke Solomon, Blaze and even Flock of Seagulls.
Now our friend gets his own spotlight to shine with his debut solo artist album, Isole.
'Isole' consists of eight eclectic songs; the steady, deep beats of 'Alcatraz','Taquile' and 'Hong Kong' juxtapose the euphoric 'Tokyo', a warm sunset of a track. 'Nassau', written with fellow Rome-based Rodion showcases sensual and percussive waves of synth, whereas 'Favignana', written with Kool Water (aptly named after an Island off the southern coast of Italy) takes you deep underwater through its distorted build-up. 'Stone Town', written with Dimitri from Paris who is influenced by 1970s funk and disco, encompasses the marimba in keeping with the beachy feel of the record. Finally, the jazzy track 'London' written with Jukka Reverberi could have been inspired by DJ Rocca's work with the critically acclaimed jazz musician Franco D'Andrea, with whom DJ Rocca created the 'Electric Tree Project' which fuses jazz and electronics.
DJ Rocca has been touring his energetic sets globally over the last few years in clubs in Berlin, Paris, London, Oslo, Bruxelles, Vienna, Zurich, Bern, Helsinki, Brazil, Turkey and Croatia. Stay tuned for more solo and collaborative venture on Nang too.
Mule Driver presents: Rainshadow
Imagine yourself on a deserted bank of the dead sea, a day after the end of days, taking part in the RainShadow tribe’s ceremony, chanting and thanking the spirits.
On this new EP, Mule driver delivers four post apocalyptic tribal tracks with a dystopian feel, fusing obscure techno with dark spiritual rhythms, driven with crushing beats with a hint of disco.
Tel Aviv based Mule Driver / Harel Schreiber has been highly active in the underground techno / electronic scene of Jerusalem and Tel Aviv for almost 2 decades with releases on his Los Jubilee & Confused Machines imprints, Parallax records and many more.
His full analog live shows are constantly evolving and are not to be missed.
Rainshadow is Mule driver’s ultimate treat to date and it was worth waiting for.
Featuring Fab 5 Freddy,Jonzun Crew,Yoko Ono,Class Action,Johnny Dynell,Art ZoydandMore
Soul Jazz Records presents KEITH HARING: The World of Keith...
- A1: B Beat Girls – For The Same Man
- A2: Damon Harris – It’s Music
- A3: Pylon – Danger
- B1: The Jonzun Crew – Pak Man (Look Out For The Ovc)
- B2: Funk Masters – Love Money
- B3: John Sex – Bump And Grind It
- C1: Sylvester – Over And Over (12" Disco Mix)
- C2: Johnny Dynell And New York 88 – Jam Hot (Rhumba Rock
- D1: Art Zoyd – Sortie 134 (Part 2)
- D2: Adiche – Chuka-Ja (Get Ready)
- D3: Class Action – Weekend (Larry Levan Mix)
- E1: Gray – Cut It Up High Priest
- E2: The Golden Flamingo Orchestra – The Guardian Angel Is Watching Over Us
- E3: Extra T’s – E.t. Boogie
- F1: Fab 5 Freddy – Change The Beat
- F2: Convertion – Let’s Do It
- F3: Yoko Ono - Walking On Thin Ice
Soul Jazz Records are releasing this stunning new collection, The World of Keith Haring, featuring
music influential to the artist Keith Haring.
The art of Keith Haring is today one of the most recognisable of any visual artists of his generation,
defining 1980s New York during an intense period when downtown artists and musicians collaborated
like never before. Haring’s musical inspiration took in the punk/dance downtown sounds of clubs like
The Mudd Club, underground disco at Larry Levan’s Paradise Garage, as well the early days of hip-hop
and electro.
The album is released to coincide with the opening of the first major exhibition in the UK of Keith
Haring’s work at Tate Liverpool and which runs for the next six months.
Haring’s many friends included Jean-Michel Basquiat, Andy Warhol, Madonna, Fab Five Freddy,
William Burroughs, Jenny Holzer, Yoko Ono, Grace Jones, Larry Levan, Futura 2000.
If you were looking for a person to guide you through the wide variety of nightclub scenes of
downtown New York in the 1980s, then Keith Haring would have been your man.
This album comes in deluxe artwork and three formats – Double CD + 48-page book, a deluxe 3xLP +
bonus 7” + download code vinyl version, and a standard 3xLP + download standard vinyl version. All
formats of the album feature stunning photography, extensive sleevenotes and interviews.
The music here includes the work of a number of Haring’s close friends, including Jean-Michel
Basquiat, Yoko Ono, Larry Levan, John Sex and George Condo (The Girls), as well as healthy dose of
rare disco, early electro and New York punk/dance tracks.
- A1: Patrick Manent - Kabaré Atèr (Jako Maron Remix)
- A2: Boogzbrown - Timbila
- A3: Loya - Malbar Dance
- A4: Jako Maron - Batbaté Maloya
- B1: Sheitan Brothers - Gardien Volcan
- B2: Ti Fock - Kom Lé Long (Do Moon\\\\'S Edit)
- B3: Boogzbrown & Cubenx - Butcha
- B4: Force Indigène & Jako Maron - Mazigador
- C1: Agnesca - Bilimbi
- C2: Zong - Mahavel (South Africa Dub Studio)
- C3: Labelle - Block Maloya
- C4: Psychorigid - 303 Militan
- D1: Salem Tradition - Kabaré (Alma Negra Rework)
- D2: J-Zeus - Koloni
- D3: Kwalud - Angel Choir
Formerly clandestine, today manifest, both sacred but also profane, sometimes meditated, very often improvised, the Kabar transpires in the daily Reunion, getting rid with insolence of any label that dares to impose. The Kabar is a fleeting but bubbling manifestation of an identity and a local culture that is still difficult to define. A moment of life and sharing where handcrafted instruments, neighborhood meetings, ritual dances and lyrical demands are mixed. A meeting.
Born from the musical union of maloya and electronic music, Digital Kabar is a compilation at the crossroads of cultures, porous to all sound experiences. It's also the result of a friendship that drives InFiné at Les Electropicales festival, from the fascination of a small team dedicated to the independent musical cause for a musical scene and its diversity.
Digital Kabar features tracks & reworks from Jako Maron, InFiné affiliate Labelle, Alex Barck, Christine Salem, Boogzbrown, Loya, Sheitan Brothers,Ti Fock, Force Indigène, Agnesca, Zong, Psychorigid, J-ZeuS, and Kwalud.
"One of the hardest thing as a musician is to maintain this naive, almost utopian and emotional approach to our music. Especially when it comes to a highly codified genre like Electronic music which appeared in the late 80s/early 90s like a promise of a bright future for music, everything sounding so fresh and revolutionary. When Katerina sent me those demos I heard that freshness, that pure intention, something I remember from discovering melancholic Detroit tunes in the 90s or early Warp ‘artificial intelligence’ compilations, bridging the gap between techno and more intricate electronica. It’s been a while since I didn’t hear an EP so sincere - and not JUST nostalgic, that makes me want to dance alone in my living room and forget about everything else. It’s a subtle thing that makes the difference but that difference is everything, it’s Music."
- Joakim
- A1: Airto – Samba De Flora
- A2: Duke Pearson And Flora Purim – Sandalia Dela
- A3: Sérgio Mendes & Brasil '66 – Batucada (The Beat)
- A4: Deodato – Skyscrapers
- B1: Milton Nascimento – Catavento
- B2: Airto – Tombo In 7/4
- B3: Luiz Bonfá – Bahia Soul
- B4: Dom Um Romao – Braun-Blek-Blu
- C1: Moacir Santos – Kathy
- C2: João Donato – Almas Irmãs
- C3: Sivuca – Ain't No Sunshine
- C4: Milton Nascimento – Rio Vermelho
- D1: Tamba 4 – Consolation (Consolação)
- D2: Flora Purim – Moon Dreams
- D3: Dom Um Romao – Escravos De Jo
- D4: Airto – Andei (I Walked)
All of the music featured here on this new Soul Jazz Records collection was created by Brazilian
artists in the USA in the 1970s.
In the early 1970s North American jazz musicians were eager to work with upcoming Brazilian
musicians. Miles Davis invited Airto Moreira to join his new ‘electric’ band, Dom Um Romao (part of
Sérgio Mendes’ legen
dary Brazil ‘66 in the 1960s) joined the fusion group Weather Report, Flora
Purim and Airto both became a part of Chick Corea’s new project Light As A Feather, Wayne Shorter
collaborated with Milton Nascimento, George Duke recorded Brazilian Love Affair, and so on.
With all the attention placed on them from these important jazz artists, North America became the
new musical playground for a large number of these Brazilian artists – Airto Moreira, Flora Purim,
Sérgio Mendes, Luiz Bonfá, Eumir Deodato, João Donato and many others.
Most of these musicians had already experienced success through the earlier popularity of bossa
nova in the 1960s, either at home in Brazil or in the USA. But by the end of the 1960s many
Brazilian artists had left their own country, as the military dictatorship became progressively more
authoritarian and repressive. In the USA, through their critically acclaimed work for Miles Davis,
Weather Report, Lightj As A Feather etc., all of these artists were now given reign to explore new
musical terrains away from the restrictions of both a musical genre and a state censor back in Brazil.
This collection brings together some of these finest works and comes complete with extensive notes
that explains the path these musicians took from Brazil to the USA and shows the political and
musical links between Brazil and the USA that created the conditions for this unique fusion of these
two distinct cultures, North American Jazz and Brazilian music, that occurred in the 1970s.
The album comes as a deluxe gatefold double vinyl LP, complete with download code, full sleeve
notes, exclusive photography, double inner sleeves.
Aggelos Baltas is a veteran of the global electronic music scene, responsible for a handful of celebrated EBM 12”s as Dream Weapons, and a particularly heady and open-ended brand of krautrock as Fantastikoi Hxoi. His newest project, Anatolian Weapons, was conceived as a way to bring together these two seemingly mismatched concepts, with the polyrhythmic percussion and wailing tones of Greek folk music serving as their unlikely bonding agent. His output garners praise particularly around the Golden Pudel scene, such as Vladimir Ivkovic, and Phuong Dan. Lena Willikens, from the same circle, included Baltas’ track “Disillusioned” on her Dekmantel Selectors compilation in 2018.
But where much of what Baltas has released as Anatolian Weapons is instantly recognizable as dance music, To The Mother Of Gods—Baltas’ debut album for Beats In Space—is something else entirely. Created in tandem with Greek folk musician Seirios Savvaidis, it is a work of simultaneous collaboration and subtraction whose meticulous construction becomes more apparent with every listen. An album-length exploration of what happens when the principles of dance music are applied to pre-digital musical modalities. It is a record of psychedelic folk music that has more in common with Kikagaku Moyo, Minami Deutsch, and the Habibi Funk label than it does with anything else Baltas has produced under any alias. It’s difficult to imagine this music in any kind of club setting.
And yet, it’s very much the work of a DJ. Baltas initially heard Savvaidis’ music through a friend, and was absolutely amazed. “It was his very esoteric, pagan [music and] beautiful lyrics that grabbed me,” he writes. Seirios is a composer and performer of traditional Greek folk music with a growing discography of regional psych-rock gems. Baltas reached out to collaborate and the seeds of To The Mother Of Gods were sown.
Savvidis contributed stems of ten songs, which Baltas deconstructs and rearranges with appreciation of the ancestry of their lineage and of the deceptively ancient eerie, droning qualities inherent in the style. Occasionally augmenting Savvaidis’ recordings with his own, Baltas treats these elements as if raw materials for an architectural process.
To The Mother Of Gods showcases Baltas’ arrangement skills. He treats Savvaidis’ songs as landscapes, filling them with slanted, droning light and setting the singer’s vocals in dead center. His years behind the decks have given him an intuitive understanding of dynamics—drums crest and recede like tides, snippets of bassline repeat and swirl. He knows how to entrance, and when to push the music from the head to the body. Opener “Taratchi Katarratchi” (“Stormy Cataract”) is sung as a spell to ward off the fear of death, but Baltas’ orchestration demonstrates that dancing is an equally effective way of dispelling the darkness. The beat he assembles from Savvaidis’ playing recalls the late-night ecstasies of Primal Scream circa Screamadelica.
To The Mother Of Gods is a reminder that folk music and dance music are both powered by their audience as much as the musicians themselves. Savvaidis’ lyrics echo pagan Greek themes, touching on what Baltas calls “the magic of nature.” At times, as on “Kalesma” (“Invitation”), this can feel incantatory. Savvaidis chisels his vocal melodies into hard, clipped syllables, their cadence recalling Gregorian chant, and yet Baltas cloaks these details in washes of distortion. “Ston Stavraito” (“In Stavraithos”) is delivered with a lamentive tenderness that Baltas swells into a prideful stomp, immersing Savvaidis in marching drums and distant vocals that form a resilient protest-song. To The Mother Of Gods is a testament to the ongoing and innate truth that music can take us beyond ourselves. That repetition and drone can shepherd us to a liminal space beyond thought and rationality, where the wall between perception and reality does not exist. Call it spirit, if you want, and watch as it courses its way through modern-day dance music, mid-century psych, and the ancient sounds of the anatol.
Anatolian Weapons’ To The Mother Of Gods will be available from Beats In Space on June 14, 2019 in limited vinyl and unlimited digital forms.
Artist Highlights
• Aggelos Baltas is an Athenian music producer creating and Djing under the monikers of Anatolian Weapons, Fantastikoi Hxoi, and Dream Weapons.
• The Anatolian Weapons moniker is an outlet for Baltas to explore global music—from African to Anatolian and Middle Eastern, while also incorporating sounds from his home country of Greece.
Number Five is alive! Red Ember Records presents nothing short than another subaqueous house odyssey on its ‘Deepsounds’ imprint. On in the wax, number five sees its first duo appearance with Sauco & Prakash, alongside Frankie Soukal, Erell Ranson and ‘TH pressing’ boss Tominori Hosoya.
Continuing the noble pursuit of underground electronic deepness, house music and beyond, from all corners of the globe.
Am 21.Juni 2019 veröffentlichen Hot Chip ihr siebtes Studioalbum „A Bath Full Of Ecstasy“
A Bath Full of Ecstasy vereint den Sound, für den die Band berühmt geworden ist - Euphorie und Melancholie verschmelzen mit bunten Melodien, eigenwilligen Gesangslinien und pumpenden elektronischen Pop-Rhythmen. Für die Produktion holten sie Philippe Zdar, den französische Maestro, der die Magie von Cassius und Phoenix geprägt hat, und Rodaidh McDonald, der mit The XX, David Byrne, Sampha, u.a. zusammen-gearbeitet hat, ins Boot. Es geht zurück auf das, was Taylor als Inbegriff von Hot Chip versteht: "Eine musikalische Formulierung dessen, was gesagt werden muss, oft aber nicht ausgesprochen werden kann".
Low Distance is Deaf Center´s third full-length studio album and perhaps the most focused effort by the Norwegian duo to date. After their last record Owl Splinters (2011) was quite an eclectic endeavor, Erik K Skodvin & Otto A Totland draw their sound back into something more quiet and minimal.
The record starts with a piece of sweeping analougue electronics. It´s a spacious, yet dynamic opener that leads directly into the static tones and piano motivs of Entity Voice, which balances a new sense of abstractation with the classic Deaf Center sound. It´s warm and close while sounding like it´s set in the outer horizon. Overall Low Distance feels both alien and familiar with its atonal synths, close pianos and drowned out noises.
After meeting in studio for the first time since 2011, the recordings came out of a 3 day session in 2017. It was then mixed at both EMS Stockholm and at Erik´s home studio over a longer period to create a blend of deeply layered as well as stripped down pieces. Both Erik & Otto have been active individually since their last meeting as Deaf Center: Otto released 2 solo piano albums, while Erik has furthered his descent into musical abstractation both under his own name and as Svarte Greiner. It´s long overdue to hear them connect their personalities into something new. Low Distance is a welcome return replete with beauty, mystery and uncertainty.
Over the last decade, we’ve come accustomed to Jason Letkiewicz releasing material under a dizzying array of aliases, each utilized to explore a different side of his multi-faceted musical persona. Now, some 14 years after he made his recording debut alongside Ari Goldman as Manhunter, Letkiewicz has joined forces with Into The Light Records to release his first album under his real name.
The Reflecting Pool sees Letkiewicz exploring the uncomplicated and uncluttered in the pursuit of pure aural beauty. While his recent album as Opposing Currents was dense, dark, urban and industrial, The Reflecting Pool is stripped back, quiet and melodious. The contrast between the two projects is marked, with The Reflecting Pool drawing more on Letkiewicz’s love of crystalline ambient, slow burn synthesizer soundscapes, early ’80s library music and the kind of obscure electronic new age music that has been a hallmark of Into The Light’s releases to date.
The set’s 12 tracks gently ebb and flow, with Letkiewicz making great use of dusty old drum machines, effects units and a range of vintage analogue and digital synthesizers. It’s a set-up that results in a range of complimentary mood pieces and interludes, from the delay-laden military drums and lilting lead lines of “Out of Body Experiences”, to the drowsy, sunrise bliss of “Sunspot”, the bubbling Tangerine Dream style shuffle of “Mind Awake Body Asleep” and the outer-space atmosphere of “The Kill Fee”.
Throughout, Letkiewicz showcases his seemingly intrinsic grasp of mood, atmosphere and melody. It can be heard within the glacial guitar motifs, occasional beats and elongated chords of “The Reflecting Pool”, the rhythmic bustle of “Numb Drums”, the glassy-eyed melancholia of “Arhythmia” and the cinematic paranoia of “Burning Off The Morning Fog”. It’s also evident amongst the classically beat-less ambient of closing cut “Weightless”, whose alien electronics, effects-laden pulses and opaque chords recall established masters of the genre.
With The Reflecting Pool, Letkiewicz has provided us with a much-needed dose of stress-free musical escapism, at the same time offering hope that in these troubling times, love may still save the day.
Becoming Real ist ein britischer Elektronikproduzent aus Kopenhagen. Seine neue EP ist beeinflusst von Grime, Cyberpunk und Ambient Dream Music, kombiniert mit einem detaillierten und fesselnden Sounddesign, das fragmentierte Geisterbilder leere Städte der Zukunft heraufbeschwört. Für Fans con Arca, Burial, Four Tet, Varg, HKE und Murlo. Seit seiner ersten Veröffentlichung 2010 hat er mehrerer EPs und Alben auf Transgressive Records herausgebracht, was ihm Aufmerksamkeit von u.a. The Guardian - ‘New Band Of The Week’ und NME - ‘Radar’ einbrachte. Zudem hatter er Auftritte beim Great Escape, Leeds Festival und in der Royal Albert Hall und tourte in Europa/ UK mit SBTRKT, Salem, Grimes und Mount Kimbie.
GILA ist ein Electro-Produzent aus Denver, Colorado. Auf seiner neuen EP "Trench Tones" stellt er seinen vielschichtigen Sound unter Beweis. Seine Ursprünge hat Kyle Reid, wie GILA mit bürgerlichem Namen heißt, im Jazz, wo er zuerst als Schlagzeuger tätig war. Durch eine Verletzung musste er die Sticks jedoch bei Seite legen und begann ab da Musik auf seinem Laptop zu produzieren. Erste Aufmerksamkeit erlange GILA 2012 mit dem Rap-Duo Gorgeous Children; es folgten Solotracks und ein Beitrag auf XL Recordings' "Chapter VI"-Compilation.
- A1: Mindmapper & Fre4Knc - Collessius
- B1: Mindmapper & Fre4Knc - Shutter Angel
- B2: Mindmapper & Fre4Knc - Fenryr
- C1: Loxy & Resound - Civil War
- C2: Theory - Final Confrontation
- D1: Dbr Uk - Stress Levels
- D2: Mindmapper - Orbital Orchestra (Asc Remix)
- E1: Nuage & Eastcolors - Live In Lie
- F1: Nuage & Thrn - Don\\'T Exist (Anile Remix)
- Drops | The Bass-Heavy, Modern-Steppin\\' \\'Stress Levels\\' Back To Back Asc\\'S Eclectic Deep-Space Remix Of Mindmapper\\'S Epic And Cinematic \\'Orbital Orchestra,\\' Out Now On The \\'Without Borders Lp.\\' The Full Fourteen Track Cd Version Of \\'Universal Grooves Lp\\' Is Bundled With Each 12Inch, Featuring An Array Of Tracks From A Spectrum Of Talent Across The Map Including Anile (Uk), Dlvry (Uk), Flatliners (Turkey), Furi Anga (Finland), Lm1 (Uk), Loxy (Uk), Mortem (Poland), Nuage (Russia), And Resound (Finland). A Seamless Story Of The Dog Days Of Summer, \\'The Universal Grooves\\' Lp Is A Refreshing Treat For Any Medium Of Sound
Dutch producers Mindmapper & Fre4knc team up to deliver the 'Martial Manners' EP in celebration of Translation Recordings' tenth vinyl release, which comes on a visually stunning piece of crystal & transparent white vinyl! Up first is 'Collessius,' whose heavy-rolling bassline rushes in with the
force of a tsunami, leaving a wake of dancefloor destruction in its path. 'Shutter Angel' is a futuristic track where tight, snappy breakbeats slingshot back and forth between an electrifying bassline that surges across the airwaves like a beam of focused energy. Mindmapper & Fre4knc
delve into darker territories on 'Fenryr,' whose gritty atmospherics and subterranean low
frequencies deliver a unique and immersive listening experience. They close the EP on a deep, meditative note with 'Mind of Steel' (digital only) where drum edits slice through growling bass riffs with blade-like precision. The 'Martial Manners' EP strikes the perfect balance between dancefloor and experimental to carry on Translation Recordings' ongoing mission to bridge audiences with quality music that can be enjoyed in all listening environments.
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Translation Recordings is proud to unveil its summer 2012 project capturing all moods sublime with the 'Universal Grooves LP'. A limited press on transparent blue vinyl, this special edition 12inch showcases a diverse sampling of Translation's full album that will not disappoint. The A-side brings the thunder showcasing the heavy hitting, rolling and dubby sounds of Loxy and Resound's 'Civil War' and Theory's calculated genius behind the ragga and amen tear-out, 'Final Confrontation.' Flip to a switch in vibe as DBR
Sigha brings his OCS imprint out of hiatus after four years and resurrects his Faugust alias for 'Parallel Rave Fantasies'.
Across five tracks the ep pulls together a clutch of his formative influences, leaning heavily on his early experiences with electronic music and placing them in with in the context of his contemporary production and sound design work.
Often doing away with traditional structures in favour of a more organic approach, the result is a set of tracks that both take in the dynamic of the dance floor and step away from it.
Hailing from the heartland of British techno, Sheffield’s John Shima is one of the leading lights of UK electronics. His beautifully crafted sounds have graced a host of imprints including Distant Worlds, Exalt Records and, of course, FireScope. It is to the latter that Shima returns with his long awaiting debut album, The Lonely Machine.
John Shima is a master melody weaver, with this first LP attesting to his deftness of touch. Celestial chords and star gazing synthwork permeate this ten track odyssey. The musical heritage of Shima’s hometown, the elegance, majesty and subtlety of British electronics, is invoked from the needle drop. A range of influences come to the fore in this 2LP. Skirting around the edges of astral ambience and tonal texture are nods to industrial history, the rasp and resonance of rhythms in “Empires”, with the inspiration of Detroit surfacing in the future funk of “Phase Distortion” and “Linear.” Dreamscapes are painted in delicate hues, the fragile movements of “Accepting”, with brooding works adopting thicker basslines and ruffled notes as with “Distrust.” Nevertheless, it is the incandescent brightness of Lonely Machine that truly shines. Radiant pieces of elating electronics, complex and joyful compositions that chime with unbridled hope and open-hearted optimism.
Original library synth funk sci-fi soundtracks. This promo EP from the vaults of Warner Chappell's production music archive offers four more tracks from Eleven76's mystique Space Voyage recordings. Originally intended for film synchronisation usage as part of Warner's music library, their unique mélange of analog synthesizers, breakheavy drumming, trippy fx and euphoric-melancholic instrumental fantasies has gained them a cult following among witty beatmakers, DJs, cratediggers, tape recording freaks and space age afficionados.
Produced by Paul Elliott, director of The Library Music Film, this promotional vinyl 45 was made to support the library album SPACE VOYAGE and to make the music available outside of film usage. Limited quantities available as most of the pressing is used as giveaway for clients in film, TV and advertising.
- A1: Frequency Guide
- A2: Just Like A Melody
- A3: In Every Way
- A4: A Brand New Day (Feat Asm & Balkan Bump)
- A5: Can\'T Love You More
- A6: Walking Through A Sunlit Forest
- A7: Solace
- B1: Lessons About Life
- B2: Ghetto Child (Feat Awon & Eme)
- B3: Darts Is Not A Sport
- B4: When It\'S Gone
- B5: No Need To Worry
- B6: Melatonin
With more than 220 million cumulated streams in 2013, Poldoore is far to be unknown from international future-beat and hip-hop scenes. His new record, Mosaïc, comes back confirming to be the spearhead of a booming music genre, where beatmakers emerge from the shadows to the light, to assert themselves as artists in their own rights. Coming from Belgium, more precisely Louvain near Bruxelles, Thomas Schillebeeckx began to explore his parents record collection at age 5, when the family moved to the US. Since, the will to combine this musical heritage to his more modern surrounding sounds never left. Because Poldoore music has a credo: assembly the era with sampling, mixing the genres to create a new musical touch.
Since his beginning in 2013, with the album The Days Off, the young musician talents gave him the opportunity to perform for an international tour with famous venues such as Gilles Peterson's Worldwide Festival, Dour Festival, or the giant Tomorrowland. Everything you need to create a huge fanbase, one that never let you down through your musical evolutions. At this stage, Poldoore is already ahead of his time, playing a music focused on the future, making his place among lasting artists by getting to the top sales on Beatport. Six years after, he's still here, more than ever.
The following of his career brings him to Bulgaria, Spain, Turkey, Germany, Greece, and developing remixes for international artists such as Selah Sue, Wax Tailor, Declaime or Talib Kweli.
He is also nominated at the Red Bull Elektropedia Awards in Belgium, for both Album of the Year and Best Newcomer of the year, mostly thanks to the hit: the remix of the classic Fugees song, Fu-Gee-La. Everything to set the stage for his second album, The Days Off in 2016. The natural identity of Poldoore music rings out more than ever, and allows him to sign several projects and EPs on prestigious labels: Chinese Man Records, Nowadays, Cold Busted or Darker Than Wax.
His forthcoming album Mosaïc is a pure exploration of genres. The offbeat hip-hop, beautifully embodied by the track Lessons About Life, the electro-funk with Darts Is Not A Sport, his beloved jamaïcan sounds on A Brand New Day (featuring ASM and Balkan Bump), or the break-electronic on Solace. But it's mainly his unusual ability to give a second groove to 70s soul samples and epic strings, that makes this record truly essential. The whole tracklist is haunted, whether on the excellent Walking Through A Sunlit Forest or on Melatonin, last of the 13 tracks. Always seeking to marry different musical periods, always linking the past and the future. With Mosaïc, Poldoore is not only showing us his talent, but takes the listener through out Time. And isn't it what the music is supposed to do
- A1: Tomás Tello - Valle Interandino (Peru)
- A2: Wellman – Cumbianchina (Argentina)
- A3: Joa Joys – Nadando (Argentina)
- A4: Horacio – Chacbril (Argentina)
- A5: Simón Vs Saimon - Amor10 (Peru)
- A6: M3Y – Aguas (Argentina)
- B1: Manrico Montero - Canto Interandino (Mexico)
- B2: Gil Sanson - Interludio Con Mbira (Venezuela)
- B3: Pandelindio - La Fuerza Domesticadora De Lo Pequeño (Argentina)
- B4: Gustavo Obligado - Gaoh El Gigante (Argentina)
- B5: Ciudad Satélite - Los Muertos De Siempre (Bolivia)
- B6: José Soberanes – Sus (Mexico)
La Danza del Agua" (The Dance of Water) is an eclectic musical journey through Latin American experimentalism - a sort of unofficial companion to the Anthologies of Atypical Portuguese Music volumes but focussing on South American music themes instead.
Originally released as two volumes on digital and tape versions on Papaki Records (2017, Argentina), this new concise edition presents 12 of the original 38 artists. Not to be seen as exhaustive document representing the wide styles of the even wider continent, it hopes to showcase some of its more marginal music with artists from a variety of countries such as Argentina, Mexico, Peru, Bolivia & Venezuela.
As such, this compilation shines a wider light on new and exciting sounds from the vast continent with a wide range of styles such as digital cumbias, sound experimentation, freak folk, noise, exotica, danceable beats and much more, mixed together to give life to the continuing strange world of contemporary South American experimental music.
A logical continuation of our New Weird South American explorations after releasing works from Meridian Brothers, Romperayo, Chupame El Dedo and a tape batch on Sucata sister label featuring Panchasila, Los Siquicos Litoraleños, Bardo Todol, Tomás Tello and more.
Murat Uncuoglu, a prominent figure in the Turkish electronic scene for over two decades, delights us with four tracks that fully represent the current state of contemporary dance music inclined to overcome genres and characterized by great melodies and atmospheres of intense suggestion.
One half of esteemed house duo Waifs and Strays, Amos, launches his new alias: Part Time Lover. Debuting on Crosstown Rebels with Don’t Hesitate, the EP is a stunning six track release that features vocals from Danielle Moore and Oli Gosh, as well as remixes from PBR Streetgang.
The EP opens with Don’t Hesitate. A pure house groover, Oli Gosh’s vocals provide the track with a seductive flare, whilst the swinging bassline rolls alongside dynamic pulsing keys. Second up is the dub version of Don’t Hesitate. Stripped back yet still wholesome, the mix features whirring pads. Tied comes next, as Danielle Moore’s incredible soulful vocals coat the record with a dance-ready warmth. PBR Streetgang are first up on remix duties, providing
an acid-flecked reinterpretation of Tied that harks back to the 80s with electro-like synths and distorted kicks, before their dub mix continues in a similarly driving vein.
English vocalist Oli Gosh has featured on Dutch house music label Armada Deep. Danielle Moore has been the lead singer of Crazy P since 2002, releasing on the likes of Wolf Music Recordings and Smoke ‘N’ Mirrors. PBR Streetgang released their standout album Late Night Party Line last year on the esteemed Skint label.
Cardinal & Nun from Marseille, France delivers his debut ep for L.I.E.S. with a four track no holds barred synth punk assault. Injecting energy into the dead, channeling chaos and turmoil into his music, he rips through four tracks with a rough yet somehow elegant approach...raw to the bone yet flawlessly arranged. Synths that sound like guitars, guitars that sound like synths, metallic drum machines with a human touch and deranged vocals fuel this record til the end. Think Screamers meet Chrome meet Liasions with a healthy dose of southern california gutter punks on meth and you're in the right place. Marseille is where it is all happening right now and this is a documented confirmation of it!
Point G remix by ,the new Point G project for 2019 features a very Serious 12 inch for the summer with two legends and two fresh youngsters on the A side “ Celestial” is getting remixed by New york City Legends Satoshi Tomiie , the Japanese Born who moved to new york to join the DEF mix crew along with Franckie Knuckles and david Morales Delivers a Minimalistic Bomb , a deep rollercoaster Jamed With Modular synth and all type of goodies FXs. A2 is “Can you “ Jay Ka remix who took a complete different angle , here we get a Dope funk trip , the prefect tool for Nu disco Strong driven set B1- The Classic Point G tracks “ Balea “ gets remixed by I Cube , The Mysterious French legend gives a super fresh reinterpretation of that bliss summers classic putting the Balearic feel somewhere else. A Must Have B2- Take Me - Siler remix , we know silver thru his label Pop corn records , he delivers here a Futuristic house vibe that s gonna put the Floor on Fire Point G records gives us a Serious Release for The Summer not to be Missed .
The album starts with 'St. Fabian Tower', named after the now demolished tower block in Chingford where Anthoney used to DJ for Rude FM. The track's lush detuned synths and syncopated drums are girded by stern low end frequencies. Drum and bass, jungle and hardcore are the touchstones here, but the forms he creates make no attempt to imitate the music of those eras. Take the rolling, bubbling, almost jazz-drummer patterns of 'Yeah, I Like It' and 'I Want You' where strange pops and bubbles seem to be forced through the grid almost like they're an effect of pressure. It's an odd juxtaposition next to the soulful vocals but an effective one. 'Edge Of Darkness' meanwhile, is an intense, rough ride of sliding rhythms and elephantine bass. Elsewhere, like on 'A New Consciousness', things are tempered into a more streamlined techno-like hybrid. He lets loose in the claps and kicks banger of 'Fi Di Gyal', but even here there are neat sonic tricks that sound like nods to minimalist composition.
On The Threshold is a balance of smart and energetic, non linear thoughtfulness and makeshift experimentalism that does away with boundaries, but is very much its own self contained world.
Longstanding FUSE resident Rich NxT combines with fellow London favourite East End Dubs this June to release their debut collaborative EP ‘The Four Slip’, featuring two bubbling, heady cuts.
As one of FUSE’s original residents, Rich NxT’s evolution alongside the London brand has seen him become one of the scene’s most respected DJs and producers, releasing a slew of material via their renowned in-house imprints as well as via the likes of Tamango, Elision, Vatos Locos and his own NxT Records. This pairing sees him up alongside one of the scene’s most prolific and consistent producers, East End Dubs, who arrives fresh from a string of EPs via his own self-titled and anonymous imprints, and material on Eastenderz, Infuse and Moxy Musik to offer up the two-track ‘The Four Slip’ EP, marking the pairs debut collaboration, which was over a year in the making, whilst offering a concentric overlap between their own unique sounds to tell another fresh story for the 34th release of the rapidly maturing imprint.
The A side sees the paring combine to offer up ‘E3’ - a slinking and swing-fuelled lead cut that merges woozy, spacey melodies, chunky kicks and warping electronics, before employing crunchy percussion licks, rich chords and a glitchy, low-slung core groove throughout ‘Bubbles’ on the flip to close the package in fine fashion.
Cult, obscure 1976 proto-electronics masterpiece 'Viaje' is a purely brain frying avant garde flipout from the electroacoustic musicians Eduardo Polonio and Horacio Vaggione (probably most known for his album on Cramps). Together, they deploy synths, electric guitars, organs and bass and squash them all up together in sundry sense befouling ways. On the A side, they're tangled into an overpowering threshing machine of spitting electronic mayhem, while the B side moves the proceedings into overtly acidy territory, everything ratcheting down and expanding outward into a delirious psychedelic electronic whirlpool. Beautiful gatefold vinyl reproducing the original artwork.
Lars Dales & Maarten Smeets aka Detroit Swindle make their AUS debut with the 'Rhythm Girl Swing’ EP. We're extremely honoured to release the first EP away from their Heist imprint in over four years. The classy duo continue the sonic exploration heard on their superb 2018 LP ‘High Life’ and deliver 3 electronic cuts varying from warm and soulful to raw and pumping. We’ll see a lot more new music from Detroit Swindle in 2019 and we’re happy to present you their unique sound with this release.
Always one to explore, Shipwrec have set sail and discovered a new isle of musical experimentation. Phainomena is a terrain for ambient introspection, dream-filled drone and stunning soundscapes. An old friend returns to the fold to inaugurate this venture, Julian Edwardes. Seven works of abstract immersion coalesce to create "Consonance." The Dutch artist journeys into far-flung realms and worlds, sweet silken synthlines and juddering noise being his transportation tools of choice. Off-centre echo and muted delay swirl in these audio planets. Mountains, oceans, unending skies are conjured as notes bulge, expand and disperse. Wildlife buzzes, chirps and trills in this land of sonic undulations, plants are given musical form with modulated ruffles as bleeps of cloud scud across an expanse of frequencies. An album of brilliant brightness, shifting shapes and unearthed undercurrents where expression is as ephemeral as it is eternal, a sentiment captured in Rob van Hoesel's sublime cover work.
It was Memorial Day Weekend 2016, and the sun shined bright over the Detroit River. Pontchartrain stepped up to the decks at the Red Bull stage at Movement Electronic Music Festival donning his infamous "Detroit vs. Itself" t-shirt. His first song through the Rane rotary mixer was a dubplate made specifically for his set: “Afterlife”. It’s a brilliantly executed balearic daytime disco rework that warrants the praise of summer anthem that it’s earning.
On the flip is “Pool”, an equally sunny slomo beatdown rework from Blair French. It's a delightful blend of cerebral and soulful, and is finally getting a release after being originally championed by Peter Croce on his Le Mellotron Paris set back in early 2018.
This 7" is pressed heavy and cut loud at 33.3 RPM with a normal non-dinked hole.
Artwork by Gino
Exactly three years after their debut release landed on Studio Barnhus,
MLiR are back with Trans-World Junktion, a summer-ready two-tracker
that packs enough musical twists and turns to put your favourite
quadruple 12-inch to shame. Half part awesome exotica, half vigourous
festival blitzin' from this Barcelona-based Swedish musical collective
fronted by Marco Gegenheimer and Einar Christoffersson. Artwork by
Studio Barnhus logo renderer and a/v show maker Leolyxxx.
Performing throughout the 1980s as Art Carnage to the gloomy hipsters of Portland, Attilio Panissidi III decided he needed a vacation. The result of his creative escape became Art Takes A Holiday, an album of fabricated FM synthscapes and MIDI environments that embrace elements of smooth jazz, new age, and pop.
Attilio had been playing in bands since he was thirteen, and had opened live shows for countless acts, from The Shangri-Las to Bruce Hornsby. The experience of producing, performing, as well as years spent writing for local music magazine The Downtowner, earned Attilio a gig to score a commercial film for a home security systems company. The opportunity allowed him to explore softer elements in his writing, and he created a suite of songs much deeper than the commission warranted. These instrumentals caught the attention of Marlon McClain (Gap Band, Shock), who invited Attilio to produce and release the music on his fledgling Nu-Vision label. Thus Art Takes A Holiday found its commercial release on cassette and CD in 1989. Although originally intended as soundtrack music, the album retains its own momentum, narrative and evocative imagery that betrays Attilio's years of crafting songs. Attilio found a perfect ambience on this mythic retreat, somewhere between William Aura's summer cottage on Half Moon Bay and DJ Alfredo's Balearic island getaway.
Buoyed by the success of Endless, their 2015 primer on forgotten electronic explorer Dimitris Petsetakis, Into The Light Records has worked with the Greek composer to compile a follow-up album that takes an even deeper dive into his archive of previously unreleased material. Like its predecessor, On Shores draws on music recorded in the 1980s and early '90s. It contains just two previous released tracks, the humid 'Clearance (Part 2)' and poignant 'On Endless Shores', both of which first featured on Petsetakis's cult 1991 album Missing Links.
On Shores offers another unparalleled insight into the picturesque and atmospheric soundscapes created in the Piraeus-based composer's basement studio using a mixture of electronic and acoustic instruments, a wide range of global influences and a keen interest in both minimalism and new age ambience. Listeners will encounter a range of stunningly beautiful and beguiling compositions, from the creepy, slow-burn exoticism of 'Pythia's Dance' and rhythmic, otherworldly escapism of 'Violated Asylum', to the gentle bliss of 'Like a Knife' and sun-bright joy of 'Nearxi (Minimal Marimba Edit)'.
- A1: Turning Invisible In An Imaginary Rose Garden One Evening
- A2: Amhrán An Dreoilín
- A3: Jonny Tries To Catch A Pomegranate
- A4: The Road To Your Door
- A5: Requiem For Joe Dillon / Light A Penny Candle
- B1: Somebody Else\'S Blues
- B2: God Bless Little Peter
- B3: That Go To Sleep Rag
- B4: Mad Sweeney’s Day Off
- B5: Again, But With Feeling This Time
- B6: Start Again (Carry On)
"I love it. SO beautiful"
Josh Rosenthal [Tompkins Square]
Songs For A One-String Guitar is the debut instrumental acoustic guitar LP from Jonny Dillon. Better known for his analogue electronic music productions and all-hardware live sets under the ‘Automatic Tasty’ moniker [Lunar Disko, CPU, Wrong Island], Jonny’s records (bearing heavy acid and electro influences), along with live appearances at venues like Berlin’s Panorama Bar and Kiev’s Closer belie the fact that he has been quietly exploring the musical landscape of the guitar for nearly twenty years.
Recorded as a series of sketches over the last 10 years, Songs For A One-String Guitar represents a snapshot taken over a long exposure; one individual’s private response to a variety of currents and inspirations both musical and emotional. While informed in large measure by the world of Irish traditional music and song (of Sweeney’s Men, Planxty and Seán Garvey) along with that of primitivism and the American Spiritual (of John Fahey, Hank Williams and Mississippi John Hurt) these songs are equally a personal attempt to give expression to an inner landscape, from the experience of sorrow and loss to the promise of redemption and renewal.
The LP opens with ‘Turning Invisible In An Imaginary Rose Garden One-Evening’ a contemplative piece played in free-time; “I’ve been playing this piece for years, and it’s gone by so many different names in that time. It’s a sort of shoe-staring daydream, to my mind at least. I want people to disappear when they hear it, and think it suits the LP to open up slowly and reflectively”. While a contemplative strain underpins some of these songs, others are informed more directly by the experience of grief; “I wrote ‘A Requiem For Joe Dillon’ at the death of my uncle. He used play lots of wonderful songs of his own at family gatherings when I was a child, and while a very gifted and sensitive soul, was also troubled by his own demons. The last time I saw him alive was at my family home with my father; I was going out to see some friends and Joe called me back, gave me a hug and made the sign of the cross with his thumb on my forehead, to bless me. It still chokes me up when I think about it. A song of his ‘Light A Penny Candle’ I included to finish the piece in his honour.” A sense of longing and hope is present in other pieces; “Songs like ‘Again But With Feeling This Time’ and ‘Start Again (Carry On)’ come from a sort of hopeful yearning feeling which is always within me; a melancholic sort of joy in search of redemption. For me, music has the strange capacity to express contrary positions simultaneously; to console, redeem and offer transcendence while also expressing suffering and pain. I don’t know what any of this means, but feel as though I’m trying to find my way home by writing the same song over and over again.”
Songs For A One-String Guitar may seem to represent a departure for those who know Dillon for his electronic productions alone, though the reality is that these songs merely represent a new opening onto an old landscape; they are an invitation to more fully share in one individual’s yearning to find meaning through creative expression. “These songs are very personal to me, so there’s a certain nervousness in my seeing them released. I hope that they prove of some use, and that they do some small good to those who hear them.”
“Ta Da” is the debut full length from J. McFarlane Reality Guest, the collective name for the trio headed by the eponymous McFarlane. As a member of the group Twerps, McFarlane has traversed guitar-centric, melodic pop music for some years while honing a highly unique, personal musical language. Ta Da is the first recorded unveiling of McFarlane’s affecting, oblique songwriting panache. Originally released in her native Australia on Hobbies Galore, Ta Da will be released worldwide by Night School in June 2019.
Wheezing into view with a troubled reed instrument set against a s of whoozy synth lines, Human Tissue Act is a foggy curtain the listener is invited to peel back. The dissonant notes are left to dance entwined, with clarinet heralding a Harry Partch-esque mallet percussion interlude. It’s a mood. With no resolution in sight, an audience dragged closer into uncertainty is suddenly drenched with the light of inter-weaving wah wah synth and saxophone. I Am A Toy introduces us to McFarlane’s vocal, an effortless and matter-of-fact, accented statement that quietly takes the reins. While McFarlane’s previous work in Twerps might reference 80s UK and antipodean guitar pop, Ta Da showcases a different influences immersed in psychedelic music and synths. It’s a brilliant, deft concoction swimming in Young Marble Giants-type minimalism washed with bare pop and harmony similar to Kevin Ayers making sense of a Melbourne suburb full of faces half-recognised in the blanching sun.
What Has He Bought begins with a Casio-keyboard rhythm pattern, palm-muted guitars and immaculately enunciated vocal give way to a burnt melodica part that elevates the spirits. Simple patterns repeated, like a well-tempered pop song that does what it needs to do and no more, build into the sound of summer leaking orange juice. They’re moments of joy, layered on top of each other like a melting cake. Do You Like What I’m Sayin’ recalls Marine Girls covering a classic ‘66 Garage nugget, organ lines fighting funk with guitar chords played just behind the percussion. “In a talking world, meanings are the same. Words want to hold on to the people they contain. Do you like what I’m sayin’?” We’re in a Beckett play perhaps, obtuse absurdities rendered pretty. Alien Ceremony is a heart-melter, given a melancholic timbre by bowed double bass it’s a tragi-comic piece that almost reeks of Robert Wyatt at his mid-whimsical twisting a fugue completely out of shape. Beneath the layers of harmony and twinkling instrumentation you sense there’s a genuine sadness somewhere even if it remains veiled.
Through out Ta Da, McFarlane plays with counterpoint and contrast to sometimes delirious effect. On Your Torturer, a simple, upbeat chord progression is hard panned, underpinning a flute solo which seems out of place, hence making it completely in place on this warmly surreal album. My Enemy is a slowly swinging eulogy to a failed relationship punctuated by analogue synth burbles, with our protagonist simply asking, in the aftermath, “can we be nice?” Here McFarlane’s vocal is straight forward, lyrically conversational but still not completely in focus, a surreal kitchen sink drama filtered through a dream where everything is in the wrong place. It’s a fine precursor to Heartburn, which similarly borrows BBC Radiophonic Workshop-style noise synths and the use of space to carve up the simple “You Will Make My Heart Burn” line. At this point, the listener has been in such close proximity to McFarlane’s show, the reality guest in a performance where they’re the sole audience member, that when Where Are You My Love rises on the horizon as a sleepy, psychedelic send off it’s uplifting. The vocal drifts away into the sunset, simple and direct. It leaves the listener slightly confused, perhaps, but grateful for the gentle surprise.
- A1: Aurora Feat Madjo
- A2 5: Th Season Feat Fakear
- A3: Typical Boy Feat Zefire
- A4: Nobu Feat Grems & 20Syl
- A5: Free Flow Feat Sara Lugo
- A6: I Thought Feat Unno
- A7: What Eva Feat Mr J Medeiros
- B1: Lying
- B2: Maluca
- B3: Illa Beez
- B4: The Source Feat T3 & Illa J
- B5: Va Volver
- B6: Fonk Jedi Feat Declaime & Georgia Anne Muldrow
- B7: Ouroboros
New LP from French beat-makers La Fine Equipe featuring Illa J, T3, 20Syl, Mr J Medeiros, Georgia Anne Muldrow, Fakear ...
Let's be clear: La Fine Equipe is a band. The numerous hats wore by its four members are so various that it could mislead one's. Indeed, surrounding Blanka, oOgo, Chomsky and Mr. Gib, there are recording studios, collaborations, lives, side-projects... There is also and especially a whole universe built during the past ten years around their passion for beatmaking, embodied by the release of « 5th Season », new album.
So yes, La Fine Equipe is a band, but it's also much more than that.
Since their creation in 2006 and their first album « La Boulangerie » two years later, the four producers became inevitable when you think about a new scene breaking the barriers between musical genders. Hip Hop is at the heart of their craft, corner stone of their musical background and inspirations where the paths of J Dilla, Madlib, Flying Lotus, Kaytranada and the turntablists A-Trak, C2C and Birdy Nam Nam are crossing ways. Two things gather La Fine Equipe and those big names, the constant need of collaboration with other artists, and this thirst of discovery, main feature of the digger.
From 2008 to 2014, La Fine Equipe mastered its craft with the « Boulangerie », compilation gathering 34 beatmakers on 113 tracks. They also work on the creation of the label Nowadays Records (Fakear, Skence, Unno, Clément Bazin, Leska, Douchka...) and released more than 75 EPs and LPs in five years.
With an outrageous number of shows across the world, tour in Asia, South America, collaborations with several international artists... Their success changed the game: Whereas many producers coming from this environment where isolated, La Fine Equipe federated a growing scene and became its reference.
After years spent paving the way for other artists and creating a structure that could support the growth of a musical scene, they decided to go further and launch a new era with « 5th Season ».
Because the band works with eight hands and four brains, there's nothing surprising in the fact that the album sounds like a condensed of each and everyone inspirations and experiences, from hip hop and sampling, to electronica, jazz and Latinas inspirations. If homogeneity is the new trend, La Fine Equipe isn't ready to sacrifice its wishes to fit the mould.
« 5th Season » is also a glance at the world looking over our planet's current state, the cosmos, the vegetal and these things that are greater and stronger than us, and the things and behaviour that could led to our loss.
It's an almost apocalyptic vision of our future, but full of optimism at the same time. There is something solar and cinematographic in this album, a format that goes beyond the one chosen before, closer to playlist and compilations such as the three Boulangerie opuses remind us.
Loyal to their status of ambassadors, the four beatmakers keep on inviting other artists to complete their universe. Illa J and T3, respectively brother and partner (Slum Village) of the late J. Dilla, make the connection between a glorious past and the future embodied by La Fine Equipe on the track « The Source ». With « Aurora », it's the solemn and mystical voice of Madjo that take this electro-pop track to another level. The American rapper Mr. J. Medeiros on the boom bap anthem « What Eva », the Montrealer ZeFire on « Typical », each and every artists brings its stone to the edifice of « 5th Season », giving to the album a limitless and freed musical richness.
But to release an album isn't enough. In parallel, each member of La Fine Equipe continues to fulfil its multiples tasks and work on a new concept live show bringing a scenic and visual show in addition to their music. It is what the artists looking toward the future do, and La Fine Equipe is looking straight ahead.
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TRACK BY TRACK
AURORA (Ft. Madjo)
Already remixed by the quatuor on the beautiful track « Choose The Heart », it's Madjo's turn to be invited by La Fine Equipe for a collaboration. Her mystical voice, which fragility paradoxically seems to strengthen its power, turns the track into an epic pop anthem.
NOBU (Ft. Grems & 20syl)
The association of these three names seems obvious, like a family reunion. Grems did the visual of the anniversary box of La Boulangerie, 20syl (C2C, Hocus Pocus) was one of the beatmakers who took part in the project.
This time, the two big brothers are side by side behind the mic, for the first French speaking collaboration of La Fine Equipe.
On this trapy/footwork beat, the two rappers ring the alarm before it's too late to save our house, the earth.
THE SOURCE (Ft. T3 & Illa J)
In the family of Hip Hop jewels of 5th Season, here is one coming from the USA. Fans of J Dilla and Slum Village since the first hour, La Fine Equipe pays its respects to its influences by inviting T3 and Illa J. Respectively member of Slum Village and brother of the legendary Detroit producer, these two MCs build a bridge between the eras and let their sharpened flows confuse our perception of time.
5TH SEASON (Ft. Fakear)
A second collaboration with their little brother from the Nowadays Family, Fakear. Eponymous title, it represents the universe of both entities, true road trip through Fakearians melodies and La Fine Equipe's funk declined in five seasons.
TYPICAL BOY (Ft. ZeFire)
With « Typical Boy », La Fine Equipe express its love for House music with chopped rhythms and a heavy but swaying bass line. The freed track oscillate between power and lightness. A beat that quickly becomes ZeFire's playground. The Montreal singer, already heard on Her's tracks, brings a missing r'n'b touch to create the perfect chemistry.
Gianni Marchetti is one of Italy's best kept secrets...
A composer with a long and elaborate list of writing credits in both pop music and movie soundtracks.
He penned proper anthems in Italy's post-war melodic tradition. Amongst his large and varied oeuvre, in 1977-1978 he composed and recorded the original soundtrack for the skin flick 'Disposta A Tutto'
A slow-burning mix of funky clavinets, scat vocals, wah wah guitars and sultry tenor sax lines, all tied together by a distinctly Italian sensibility.
Rather than fading into obscurity, the soundtrack became a prized collector's item for DJ's and rare groove enthusiasts.
In 2019, Heristal and Danilo Braca (AKA Dany B) are very proud to present a new version of 3 tracks from the Disposta A Tutto soundtrack, edited and extended for maximum dancefloor impact.
A fruitful collaboration between lyricist Andrew Birtles, composer David Watts, producer Dave Foister, and the beautiful voice of Kym Amps of which only two tracks were released on a 7". Now, almost 40 years after the original release date, the full album finally sees the light of day through Monte Cristo.
Kym Amps' powerful and moving vocal performance is supported by minimal electronic new-wavish arrangements that were produced with, at the time, cutting edge equipment.
Eduardo De La Calle s recent Distortion Theory III EP on Abstract Reasoning was another impressive piece of work from the prolific producer. Now come four diverse remixes of the title track, each with their own unique twist on the warped machinations of the original.
J - Keel kicks off proceedings with a droning, tense interpretation which toughens up the original considerably. Reversed chord stabs pitch up and down as ominous bass bores a steady course through the track s underbelly, with ticking percussive elements ensuring a motorik pulse.
The masterful Roman Fl gel teases out the chime motif of the original and supplements them with muted marimba-esque arpeggios for a soothing, underwater feel. The beats are kept to a succinct minimum, with subtle swathes of strings bringing a majestic, dreamlike tinge to this refined, minimalistic production.
Fellow Spaniard ORBE brings an ambient feel to the hazy, delicate melodics of his mix, with the delayed, warped synth patterns that struggle to be heard and beautiful atmospherics recalling Carl Craig. Moments of distorted pressure seep through and remind us of the buggedout flavour of the original.
Holland s Conforce rounds things off with plump low end throbs and sparse synth pulses reminiscent of Basic Channel, with gently shuffling hi-hats underpinning the murky yet warm textures and broad, heavily reverbed swathes of chord drama.
Southern Lord have are releasing a deluxe reissue of the quartet’s 2013 album Forever Becoming, featuring vastly improved mix and mastering of the original songs replete with a revised version of the previously Japan-only bonus track “Bardo.”
Initially recorded by Chris Common under optimal conditions at Chicago’s Electrical Audio, Forever Becoming was mixed in less-than-ideal circumstances at a makeshift studio in Los Angeles, yielding mixes that varnished the incredible tones generated during tracking. When the subject of a vinyl repress came up, Common, now helming his own proper studio, asked for another crack at mixing the album. The result brings a new level of low end depth, atmospheric clarity, and tight, punchy heaviness to the album.
Across almost 20 years, five full lengths, seven EPs, and hundreds of live shows Pelican have cultivated a chemistry that borders on telepathy, catapulting the band from basement shows in their native Chicago to outlier appearances at international music festivals including Primavera, Roskilde, Pitchfork, Bonnaroo, Roadburn, and Maryland Death Fest, and headlining tours across four continents.
Picture Vinyl "A balance between things that you know people will like and things that you think people will like" is what John Peel had to say on his BBC homepage about Apparat's music programming concept. Apparat then appeared at the Peel Session in May of 2004 substituting like with die for in JP's statement. Indeed, it's sad but true: John Peel passed away a few months later to a heart attack while vacationing in Peru. Apparat could only find a more fitting farewell mood with the rerecording of his session: a sonic dedication to the huge mentor John Peel from Shitkatapult and their people.
Apparat is known as a fluctuating mood-maker by way of his computer companion. In this case he leaves his garb behind. Apparat swings the composer's stick with emotion to give yearning its segway by conducting pieces of lonely melancholic beauty with godly discretion. New strings are thanks to the violin and cello of Kathrin Pfänder and Lisa Stepf aka Complexácord, whose soul-drenched expression lets your mind sway.
The trio harmonizes with dream-like perfection. It reminds one once again of the experimental modus operandi combining classical instruments with electronic music. Singer Raz Ohara and clarinet/sax player Hormel Eastwood find their chosen virtuous and emotional space on this promising cloud. What remains are warm dark drops of elegiac pop the pour down the back of your heart.
This Apparat John Peel Session was remastered by Bo Kondren at Calyx Studios in February 2019 incl. the digital bonus track - Komponent as Telefon Tel Aviv Remix.
The physical appears as picture disc featuring the wonderful original design by Hanna Zeckau & Carsten Aermes on vinyl.
The original release from 2005 (Strike 153) also contained more Remixes by Bus, Rechenzentrum and Apparat himself.
Henrik Schwarz & Alma Quartet present CCMYK, a new album on Henrik's own label Between Buttons. Produced in collaboration with the Alma String Quartet, it's a free conversation between classical and electronic music, carefully transformed into a set of astonishing tracks, ready for club or concert hall. Though based on free improvisations between Laptop and String Instruments, CCMYK is not a record of bumbling jams. Rather, it's a record of startling density, control and emotional complexity. This is the sound of open conversation between piercing intellects, taking their individual instruments and musical backgrounds to create a new universe of sound. The vinyl comes in a unique, handmade, limited 4 colour CMYK pressing. Every record is unique! Black is available as well.
Everything On Time EP" contains works from a decade that underpin Sinistarr's unique and versatile musical style. At the heart of his second appearance on Defrostatica are two collaborations with label artists Kiat from Singapore and Agzilla from Iceland. While the original version of KNS features hectic and technoid synth arpeggios on tribal breakbeats, the 2019 rework is a cold fusion of autonomic halftime beats and gritty jungle breaks. Emo is Detroit Electro on 170 bpm with a sinister message embedded by Agzilla himself. The b-side opens with the playful Garden as Morgan Neimans voice blossoms in thousands shades of spring. Torpor marks the dramatic end to this release with the intent to mirror unfulfilled desire.
Launching the first of many solo vinyl releases, Inter Gritty and
Controlled Violence are proud to present: Laponia Space
Project. Drawing inspiration from various trips through
Finland’s Lapland region, as well as proximity to Sweden’s
Space Centre, Laponia Space Project perfectly represents the
expansive, awe-inspiring nature of its surrounds. Inter Gritty
has presented himself in a different light to the majority of his
catalogue, drawing on nimble, organic sounds in combination
with a lively rhythm section to embody Laponia Space
Project’s mood. With a classic 4-track E.P. format, each work
evokes a real sense of wonderment, as tracks like Sleepy Tree
and Cassiope integrate twinkling, hollow, and delicate
elements. Basslines bound up mountain ranges, synth pulses
reverberate through the treetops, and groovy percussion
captures the excitement and energy of the local scenery.
TR303 is a clear homage to the machine and the movement
that have shaped modern-day electronic music. And while it
will certainly make its way into the crates and folders of DJs
everywhere, it still manages to incorporate a sensation akin to
being sent out into the most unfamiliar of territories. To close
the E.P., Expo Line’s percussion shakes amongst airy pads and echoed pangs, as though one is shuffling onwards through the
forest.
LP comes pressed on 180 gram vinyl.
On 29th March, Reclaimed Records are proud to present pianist and composer Taz Modi's elegant debut solo album 'Reclaimed Goods', which brings to light his love for contemporary composition – something which may come as a surprise to fans of soulful dance music heavyweights Submotion Orchestra, and jazz trumpeter Matthew Halsall's Gondwana Orchestra - for both of whom Modi plays keys/piano. Whilst also gaining further demand as a musician, including for A-list studio and live work for funk 'n' soul legends Dennis Coffey and Fred Wesley, plus beatmaker heroes DJ Shadow and Mr. Scruff, Modi has been discreetly pursuing an additional passion during down-time for years – and his prolonged, patient crafting shows in the record's tasteful and beautiful spirit.
Calling to mind the piano music of Cage, Frahm, Hauchska, Sakamoto and Aphex Twin, 'Reclaimed Goods' is a graceful affair, in which lush strings and gently pulsing rhythmic flutters sit alongside prepared and plaintive piano, with the tunes ranging from sparse beauty to weightier moments of electronic rhythms. This allows the music to appeal equally to fans of heavier electronic acts such as Cinematic Orchestra and Bonobo, to devotees of ambient and contemporary classical music, as well as those familiar with Modi's work with both Submotion Orchestra and Matthew Halsall.
Positive review by John Lewis for the Guardian's contemporary music album of the month section: 'An even more effective exploration of solo piano territory comes from British pianist Taz Modi; best known for his work in various jazz and funk ensembles, his solo debut Reclaimed Goods features a host of introspective instrumentals that are reminiscent, variously, of Ryuichi Sakamoto (Libra), Nils Frahm (Time to Practise, Crystalline) and Hauschka (Ethical Tourist).
Featured in Music Week's Tastemaker section, 15th April 2019 with Haydon Spenceley: 'Listen to it; it'll lift you high above our care-worn world to a place of safety and grace'.
First single 'Ethical Tourist' featured as a premiere on 18 Feb 2019
Second single 'Crystalline' premiered on Boiler Room's 4:3 video channel, 12 Mar 2019
'A kaleidoscopic album that seductively pulls you in and leaves you curious about the inspiration behind the songs' - AAA Music
Positive review on Magazine Sixty
Support on Soho Radio, Dom Servini
Played on Worldwide FM, April 3, Gondwana Records show
Featured on Bleep's Spotify playlist 'For Your Ears and For Your Head', April 2019
Played by Mischa Kreiskott, NDR Radio Germany, ndr.de
Worldwide FM's Gondwana Records show on May 1 featured an interview with Taz Modi, along with multiple tracks from the album.
Musicians:
Taz Modi – piano, keyboards/electronics, arrangement and production
Natalie Purton – violin + viola
Liz Hanks – cello
Margit van der Zwan – cello
Seb Hankins and Jon Scott – drums
fter Liquid Liquid disbanded in 1985 I continued to record electronic music at my home studio inEdison,New Jerseybut I decided to mix the songs for "Concepts" at another studio so I could have another set of ears to help with the mixes. I was lucky when I looked in the local music ads that I to find Gabriel Farm Studios inPrinceton,New Jerseyowned and operated by Andy Gomory. Andy was a true talent, a keyboardist and arranger, we hit it off immediately. After he recorded my mixes we would record songs together. Andy played drum machines and keyboards while I played percussion, keyboards, & guitar and we both sang. When Andy and I parted ways in the late 1980's I decided to add both drums and percussion as well as overdubs from guest musicians many of which are included on this album. The albums timeframe ends in the year 2004. The later recordings have a jazz feel to it yet still had dance music elements mixed in. The title track "Primitive Substance" really sets the tone as you hear the great playing of Michael Gribbrook on Frugel horn/Trumpet and Gerry Carboy on bass. Also, my favorite song on the recording "Forgiveness" has David Axelrod (not the famous one) playing beautiful melodic bass guitar thru out.
Special thanks to Euan Fryer of "Athensof the North" for releasing this album. As I listened to the songs I decided to use for this recording it brought back memories of the hours spent adding the extra sounds and instruments to the point where I wanted to listen to them again and again to see what I missed hearing . Keep a close ear this might happen to you after hearing "Primitive Substance".
Thanks for listening!
Dennis Young/April 2019
A new Four Flies 45s series, properly designed for DJs, producers, and worldwide music lovers, and focused on the very best Italian library grooves from the golden age, finally released on 7-inch vinyl for the very first time. This first batch was made possible by a collaboration with our friends at Flipper Music, which gave us complete access to eight killer gems that will surely burn your dancefloor, selected from the most sought after DENEB/FLIRT/FLOWER/NUOVA IDEA/UNION albums.
Here we have the ultimate Italian library breakbeat: wicked synths, and cosmic electronic effects, marks the experimental hip hop beats of RULLIO by Ugo Busoni, sourced from the "Valvole" LP on the Nuova Idea label. On the flip side, one will find another rhythmic banger, VIOLENZA by Gerardo Iacoucci, taken from "L'Avventura N. 2″ – a psychedelic b-boy break with heavy bassline and percussive piano, echoing an urban soundscape full of drama and suspense.
XOA, led by London based producer and musician Nick Tyson, is setto
release debut album 'Way West' via Five Easy Pieces.
XOA means to look outwards; to draw inspiration from many
sources.'Way West' is alive withthis: steeped in the rich analogue sonics
of the past,the warmth of machines and influence fromthe sounds of
London's fervent musicscene.
Featuring a blend of contemporary electronic production and
liveinstrumentation, 70s Afrobeat inspired drums and cosmic melodies
are thrustintothe present day with strong cues from house and techno.
Three vocalists contribute across the album, with Tyson choosingto work
with singers he has apersonal admiration and friendship with. HollieCook,
known to many for her ethereal pop tingedreggae, delivers a
sumptuouscontribution on 'Heartland', adding a beautiful emotional
dimensionto the hornled track. Lulu Jones' vocals are treated more as a
sample for the garagetinged 'CallOn Me' and Ruby Wood, of Submotion
Orchestra, has worked with Tysonover a number ofprojects and their
shared love of 90s soul comes to the fore onthe laid back grooves and
sunkissed 'Only One Thing'.
“Every time I play Cour T.’s “Black Magic” the room changes. The entire vibe of the party goes from hands in the air to grinding, sexual energy. This track has arcane properties on the dance floor. I wish I had 10 tracks with this vibe because nothing else sounds like it and when I play it, I always wish I could keep the vibe for longer.
Selfishly, I asked our label manager to hold back this track for 6 extra months just so I could have it all to myself. That’s how much I’m into it. For all the DJs complaining about how everything sounds the same right now, take a risk and drop this one in your sets.”
-VonStroke
“Built By Humanoid” is Humanoid's second album, a mere 30 years after the debut, though Brian Dougans claims the first album wasn't really him anyway.
Humanoid's classic acid house single, ‘Stakker Humanoid’, highly regarded as one of the key tracks from the era (Richard James (Aphex Twin) sights the Stakker project as a major influence), enjoyed massive success in 1988. Reaching No.1 for 5 weeks in the UK dance charts, performances on Top of the Pops, a John Peel session for the BBC and European tours eventually led to an album deal.
Whilst all this was happening, Brian Dougans (one half of electronic legends Future Sound of London) claims he was returning to his squat in Kings Cross with no electricity or water. He not only became disillusioned with the business, but also became increasingly ill from the conditions he was living in. Around 6 tracks into the album, he left London and record label, Streetsounds, returning to Manchester to recover and regroup his thoughts. However, Steetsounds pressed ahead with the album and it was finished in Brian’s absence with guest performers.
Brian left Humanoid behind and went on to create FSOL with Gaz Cobain becoming leading lights in the burgeoning ambient scene, scoring a top 10 album "Lifeforms" on Virgin Records.
In 2003 Rephlex (Aphex Twin’s label) released a posthumous album of 1988 out takes compiled by Brian.
Recently Humanoid tracks have been popping up on modern compilation albums (Touched Music / Gasman, etc) signalling a possible return.
“Built by Humanoid” is a brand new nine track album of future acid cuts, breaks and electronics, a lot of which is credited to 2 synthesisers co-designed by Brian Dougans and English Electronics company Digitana. It is this innovation that has helped usher Humanoid back into the limelight and consequently the album has a rather new and unique sound and style.
The track ‘Polymath’ is created using a possibility / probability theory that results in a track which at no point repeats itself - 303 tinged acidic bubbles. Meanwhile ‘Traktion’ is a break beat, pulse laden, bass heavy monster. ‘Fu*k It’ is the future sound of 303. Fast, frantic and beat driven. Whilst ‘Post Humans’ combines thumping 909 and 303 into an acid hallucination.
Names You Can Trust's long-running Swing-A-Ling party in Brooklyn has become an epic warm weather celebration of all classic styles of Jamaican sound system music on vinyl. The party itself, set in the deepest crevices of BK's Caribbean community, has been known to stretch for 12+ hours each session, serving non-stop musical entertainment and buckets of jerk chicken & curry goat to an adoring crowd of all ages, young and old. The event has also been the occasion of some extremely limited edition record presses that have come to embody both the ethos of the party and the NYCT label. The second in the series of the playfully titled Swing-A-Ling NOW SOUNDS is a new entry in modern reggae production from The Mad Geezers. Like the party's signature sound, the tunes on this double-sided single are timeless, intriguingly left-of-center, and most importantly in deep homage of the vast influences and inspirations that have been carved to vinyl throughout Jamaican recorded history. Elements of rock steady, dub, soul and middle eastern snake charmer sounds all find their way through the hands of the Geezers' skilled musicians and the resulting 45 record is sure to be another sneaky staple in sound systems all over.
Stellar new EP on the way from Dutch producer Qindek. The rising star has been on the up as of late having released on labels on such Wolfskin Records and Invite's Choice Records. This time he's releasing on vinyl only label Dreiklang who have had some scintillating cuts from Edit-Select (who appears as one of the remixers on this EP) and Claudio PRC.
Qindek has really been honing his skills and is known as much for his flowing DJ sets as he is for his masterful live sets. This level of technique is truly standing to the artist as we can see from his comfortability with hardware shine through on this project.
'Come Closer' will be the fifth release from the label: it features the original mix Come Closer and three remixes from VOLTMAR, Edit-Select, and KUF, which show the different facades of the track. The original cut is a primal, tribal number merged with club elements. It enters with a bongo-like drum that is followed by a hi-hat for some pace. A surreptitious synth floats in and levitates back and forth, which is coupled with fluctuating keys and toms. It's a mesmerizing number with an understated tempo, bringing the forest to the club.
Cologne based artist VOLTMAR takes the first remix. Known as a DJ for many years now, he has performed in clubs across Europe. He tends to enjoy a deeper sound and this is prevalent in his take on the cut. The percussions are deeper and more hollowed, which creates a different kind of sway. It feels more tribal, with more jungle elements to it. It has less synth and more of a heavy bassline, designed to connect people on a primal level.
Next to feature is none other than Edit-Select. The British native is well established in the club scene and does not disappoint with this remix. A more complex sound, he takes the track and elongates it. It's a consistent sound with underground elements and a slight bit of tempo. It has this divine gothic synth that oscillates with a certain lilt to it. The beat is enchanting as the cut slowly diminishes.
The last stand is by Swedish artist Kuf. Known for his energetic sound, this cut does not disappoint. It's a high-velocity all-out assault club banger. It has rolling beats, speedy hi-hats and a tempo that is driven forward by hand claps. It has a skeleton aspect to it, whereas instead of using builds, they add and subtract elements inject an ever-changing pace.
Sie haben es wirklich nochmal getan...Calexico und Iron & Wine haben sich fast 15 Jahre nach ihrem ersten gemeinsamen Geniestreich - In the Reins' (2005) für ein überraschendes, zweites Mal zusammen gefunden, in ein Studio eingeschlossen und acht mal die Engel singen lassen. Am 14. Juni wird das Album namens - Years to Burn' erscheinen, und natürlich wird dies ein Feiertag für die Fans der Bands, für alle Freunde von Alternative, Americana, Folk und Roots Music.
LTD Edition!
Sie haben es wirklich nochmal getan...Calexico und Iron & Wine haben sich fast 15 Jahre nach ihrem ersten gemeinsamen Geniestreich - In the Reins' (2005) für ein überraschendes, zweites Mal zusammen gefunden, in ein Studio eingeschlossen und acht mal die Engel singen lassen. Am 14. Juni wird das Album namens - Years to Burn' erscheinen, und natürlich wird dies ein Feiertag für die Fans der Bands, für alle Freunde von Alternative, Americana, Folk und Roots Music.
Emerging artists rarely exceed listeners’ expectations with a complete album right out of the box, but Deena Abdelwahed is the exception that proves the rule. While the young artist of Tunisian origin stood out with her daring DJ sets, it is her surprising first album, "Khonnar", released at the end of 2018 on InFiné which sealed her status of eclectic producer, guaranteeing her a place among the best releases of the year by Resident Advisor, Trax, Tsugi, The Quietus and Vinyl Factory. Khonnar remixes compiles a series of remixes in 12”, inspired by the unique atmosphere of Deena Abdelwahed's first album, while extending it across the entire spectrum of electronic, club and experimental music.
In her varied career that would combine art gallery installations, major film soundtrackings and commissions for Atari, Suzanne Ciani’s earliest experiments remain some of her most challenging, beguiling and timeless... Flowers Of Evil ticks all the above boxes and flicks switches that would power-up a new uncharted universe of her own musical modernité. Finders Keepers present the first-ever release of these vital archive recordings.
As a genuine vanguard of electronic music composition at the forefront of the modular synthesiser revolution in the late 1960s, Suzanne Ciani’s forward-thinking approach to new music would rarely look to the past for inspiration, which makes this unheard composition from 1969 a rare exception to the collective futurist vision of Ciani and synthesiser designer Don Buchla. In choosing to adapt the controversial prose of French poet Charles Baudelaire, Suzanne would join the ranks of ongoing generations of pioneering musicians like Olivier Messiaen, Karlheinz Stockhausen, Serge Gainsbourg, Etron Fou Leloublan, Celtic Frost and Marc Almond (not forgetting Star Trek’s William Shatner!), all equally inspired by the 19th century writer’s works of “modernité” (modernity), a self-coined term dedicated to capturing the fleeting, ephemeral experience of life in an urban metropolis, best exemplified in his symbolic, erotic and macabre ode to Parisian industrialisation, Les Fleurs du mal (Flowers Of Evil).
In her varied career that would combine art gallery installations, major film soundtrackings and commissions for Atari, Suzanne Ciani’s earliest experiments remain some of her most challenging, beguiling and timeless... Flowers Of Evil ticks all the above boxes and flicks switches that would power-up a new uncharted universe of her own musical modernité. For the many enthusiasts that have already drawn the parallels between Baudelaire’s writings and experimental/electronic music (a relationship rivalled only by the likes of J. G. Ballard and Aldous
Huxley) some might instantly recognise an unconscious sistership between this recording and another 1969 electronic adaptation of Flowers Of Evil by celebrated female electronic composer Ruth White. An interesting distinction of White’s excellent version of Flowers Of Evil (released via Limelight records, home to the likes of Fifty Foot Hose and Paul Bley) is that its dark tone generation and vocal manipulation was created with a Moog synthesiser, the commercially triumphant
rival to Suzanne and Don’s Buchla Systems (Buchla and Moog’s historic, simultaneous, neck-and-neck synth developments are well documented.) The fact that Ciani’s version was never intended for commercial release (not unlike her 1975 Buchla concerts, which could easily have taken Morton Subotnick’s Bull by the horns!) is also poetically reflective of the nature of Ciani and Buchla’s alternative perspective. The choice to present this extract from Flowers Of Evil in its intended French language further distances Ciani’s faithful reaction from some of its better-known variations. Having attempted to voice the poem herself, the multilingual Italian-American composer’s French accent did not meet her own standards, resulting in the request for a fellow unnamed French student who lived on campus at Mills College in Oakland to accurately verbalise the section of Baudelaire’s collection entitled Élévation.
Black Truffle is honoured to announce the first ever vinyl reissue of David Rosenboom’s legendary Brainwave Music, originally released on A.R.C. Records in 1975 and here expanded to a double LP with the addition of over 40 minutes of contemporaneous material. Pioneer of live electronics, innovator in music education, collaborator with artists as diverse as Jon Hassell, Jacqueline Humbert, Terry Riley and Anthony Braxton, Rosenboom is renowned for his ground-breaking experiments with the use of brain biofeedback to control live electronic systems.
Each of the three pieces that make up the original Brainwave Music LP integrates biofeedback with musical technology in different ways. In the side-long opening piece “Portable Gold and Philosophers’ Stones”, four performers have electrodes and monitoring devices attached to their bodies to receive information about brainwaves, temperature, and galvanic skin response. This information is analysed and fed into a complex set of frequency dividers and filters, manned by Rosenboom, but essentially played by each of the performers through their psychophysiological responses to the situation. The result is a slowly unfolding web of filtered electronic tones over a tanpura-esque fundamental, possessing the unhurried, stately grandeur of an electronic raga. In “Chilean Drought”, three different variations of a text about a drought in Chile, each read by a different voice in a different style, are associated with the Beta, Alpha, and Theta brainwave bands. Alongside an insistent piano accompaniment, we hear a constantly shifting combination of the three vocal recordings controlled by the relative preponderance of each of the brainwave bands in the soloist whose brainwaves are being monitored. “Piano Etude I (Alpha)”, the earliest piece included here, is based on research into the link between Alpha brain wave production and the execution of repetitive motor tasks. As Rosenboom plays a very rapid, incessantly repeated pattern in both hands – deliberately designed to be difficult to execute without being in an alert, non-thinking state similar to that associated with strong Alpha brainwave production – two filters controlled by monitoring his brainwaves process the piano sound, moving gradually higher in frequency as the average Alpha amplitude increases, resulting in a hypnotic, constantly shifting blur of repeated notes reflected through the shimmering, watery lights of the filters. For this reissue, the original LP is supplemented with an additional LP containing an unreleased 1977 live recording of Rosenboom’s “On Being Invisible”, in which the composer himself performs on an array of electronics that are fed information from his brainwaves. Stretching out over 40 minutes, the piece begins in similar territory to “Portable Gold and Philosophers’ Stones” but eventually becomes far wilder, building up to pointillistic bleeps and dense layers of electronic fizz that unexpectedly cut to near-silence. As Rosenboom explains, the piece creates a situation in which the ‘performer’s active imaginative listening became one of the ways to play their instrument, as well as an active agent in how self-organizing musical forms might emerge.’ Enriched with archival images and new notes from the composer, this expanded reissue of Brainwave Music is essential listening for anyone interested in the history of live electronic music and alive to the possibilities it might still contain.
KÖNIGSFORST – following the 1997 release of ZAUBERBERG (KOMPAKT 370.1), Wolfgang Voigt’s GAS project returned with KÖNIGSFORST, a full length that has stood the test of time as a template for introducing fundamentals of 90’s techno into the principles of contemporary electronic music.
Originally released in 1998 on the iconic Frankfurt imprint Mille Plateaux, and then reissued in 2016 as a part of GAS “BOX”, ZAUBERBERG is now released on his own label KOMPAKT on 180 gram 3LP vinyl in its original artwork.
KÖNIGSFORST brings glimmers of light into Voigt’s dark, magnificent forest. Melodic strings and brass are added to his signature layers of ominous intensity. The forest path is laid out by muffled kick drums as classical music loops incessantly swirl with no direction.
KÖNIGSFORST – following the 1997 release of ZAUBERBERG (KOMPAKT 370.1), Wolfgang Voigt’s GAS project returned with KÖNIGSFORST, a full length that has stood the test of time as a template for introducing fundamentals of 90’s techno into the principles of contemporary electronic music.
Originally released in 1998 on the iconic Frankfurt imprint Mille Plateaux, and then reissued in 2016 as a part of GAS “BOX”, ZAUBERBERG is now released on his own label KOMPAKT on 180 gram 3LP vinyl in its original artwork.
KÖNIGSFORST brings glimmers of light into Voigt’s dark, magnificent forest. Melodic strings and brass are added to his signature layers of ominous intensity. The forest path is laid out by muffled kick drums as classical music loops incessantly swirl with no direction.
2019 is mule musiq’s 15 years anniversary. we’re going to release twelve 12inchs with our friend artists and stefan marx make the collectable artwork. eighth release is a japanese brightest hope iori’s debut release on mule. we wanted to add new japanese artist for this anniversary release series, then we remembered we liked his release on phonica. a side is his trademark deep hypnotic house tune and b side is more dubby and psychedelic. hope you enjoy!
Purveyors of contemporary electronic music Anagram return with their second remix EP that calls upon some of the scene's most compelling and uncompromising names. Coalescence, the next chapter from the label, will unfold as a series of remix EP's reinforcing the labels core values of community, togetherness and growth. The first instalment reflects on their previous three releases reimagining four titles under the controls of Drugstore resident Tiljana T, Ostgut Ton legend Ryan Elliot, Klockworks artist Newa and the Tel Aviv based Yotam Avni. Orchestrating the rework of Elad Magdasi's 'Liquid Dreams' is Serbian talent Tiljana T who runs with the cinematic ideas behind the original but uses snapping hits, ebullient bass notes and plenty delay to fuel the cut with a new lease of life. The accompanying A-side sees Ryan Elliott do what Ryan Elliot does best by keeping things straight up four to the floor transforming 'Sound of the Siren' by Barbara Ford into pulsating peak hour material. On the flip side are two remixes taken from label co-founder Sinfol's latest solo EP 'Pull Back'. First up, Newa gets the blood rushing injecting breaking beats and furious energy into 'Life Of Measure' resulting in a high tempo no-nonsense techno affair that embodies the sound of the bustling Tbilisi scene. Tying together Coalescence Vol. I is arguably the most dynamic choice of the four remixes in Yotam Avni's 'Final Push' Remix. With a meticulous assortment of intricately crafted synth lines and sequences, he manages to deconstruct Sinfol's title cut of its acid workouts and replenish it with an equally rivalled amount of energy. Four artists, four remixes, Coalescence Vol. I!
Over the years, Claremont 56 has played host to some memorable collaborative
projects, most notably Bison, an unlikely super-group whose members included
Holgar Czukay, Ursula Kloss, Liquid Liquid’s Sal Principato, Ben Smith and label
boss Paul ‘Mudd’ Murphy. Now Murphy is at the helm of another collaborative
outft, Hillside, whose seductive debut single contains two deliciously pie eyed
instrumental workouts.
Hillside is very much a family affair, with Murphy joining forces with two old
friends: bassist/guitarist Alex Searle and percussionist Patrick Dawes. The trio
has a collaborative history that stretches right back to Murphy’s time in Akwaaba
in the mid nineties. For their debut outing, Hillside has also welcomed a very
special guest musician: award-winning jazz violinist and long-time Bert Jasch
collaborator Mike Piggott.
As opening gambits go, “Hidden Port” is an emphatic statement of intent. The
audio equivalent of sailing slowly around a cluster of sun-baked islands in
search of shelter from an approaching storm, the track sees Searle wrap bluesy,
Peter Green style guitar passages around a shuffing, Latin-tinged groove rich
in Dawes’ distinctive percussion patterns and Murphy’s languid electric piano
and synthesizer lines. As the track progresses, Piggott steps up to make his
mark, with his undulating electric violin lines complimenting Hillside’s impeccable
instrumentation while adding extra emotional weight to proceedings. It’s a
stunning beginning to the Hillside story.
Piggott also makes a big impression on accompanying cut “The King’s Tun”,
delivering fuid and energy-packed solos that weave in and out of a bright
and breezy instrumental track rich in jangling acoustic guitars, subtly spacey
electronics, freside-warm bass and more sparse-but-intricate percussion
courtesy of the effervescent Dawes. Searle’s eyes-closed, rock style guitar solos
cap another memorable excursion from Claremont 56’s latest in-house band.
U Know Me Records proudly presents a special album showcasing Polish drumming scene - each track was produced by a different drummer - these are their portraits.
official video promo: https://youtu.be/qxuTYjMRUMM
In the 21st century drummers imperceptibly switched from the background to the front line, despite popular music not exactly pandering to them. In the early days of rock culture this joke made the rounds "What's the last thing a drummer says in a band?" "Perhaps we could play one of my songs…?"
In popular music the drummer became the first to compete with machines. They were the first band members that consequently began disappearing, however, as contemporary electronic music took hold, they were also the first to return. First they were incorporated into compositions but gradually - took centre stage. Thanks partly to the ubiquitous culture of Hip Hop recognising the drummer's role as key in any recording, alongside the eclecticism of new music, which demanded fluid transitions between musical forms, a drummer's adaptive skills – as a trained multi instrumentalist – became truly impressive. This new generation of drummers seen on Polish stages today are exceptional even against the backdrop of today's unusually creative and well-educated music scene which rejects narrow minded or genre-centric views.
This album exhibits portraits from the cream of today's Polish drummers. Kovalevo Tone Bank by Michał Bryndal tags the 1980's, the era which began stealing drummers' bread. Incidentally, the heavy groove laid down by the artist references a hit by Wham!, the same hit in which the group decided to cut the drummer's part because he was late and replace him with a LinnDrumm machine. Hubert Zemler in The Life and Death of Ben Bekele and Łukasz Moskal in Father Sparrow show they've found themselves perfectly in close cooperation with electronic instruments.
Multifaceted improvisors - Qba Janicki (Kabina projekcyjna) and Jan Młynarski (Roj) - transform their drums kits into multifunctional devices capable of delivering wildly diverse palettes of sound. Rafał Dutkiewicz (Displaced) showcases drums as the lead instrument on a club track. Marcin Rak (Alpaka) does the same, but with the conventions of Funk and Hip Hop, whereas Krzysztof Dziedzic (Vagabonde) gravitates towards the edges of jazz. Each of them here is a leader and… plays one of their songs.
Bartek Chaciński
(translation: Sean Palmer)
Repress
In 1981, Alexei Borisov, a history student at the Moscow State University, formed his first band "Prospekt (Avenue)", drawing inspiration from kitchen table talks and new wave music coming from the West. They broke up in 1984 and a year later Borisov joined forces with Ivan Sokolovsky, an electronic music enthusiast and a connaisseur of rare synthesizers, to introduce the new and "updated" version of the band. By becoming Notchnoi Prospekt (Night Avenue), Borisov and Sokolovsky started moving towards industrial music and viscous, psychedelic synth pop.
In 1986, after a few conceptual, revolutionary albums as Notchnoi Prospekt, various solo projects and collaborations, the duo reunited in the studio to record their only instrumental album "Kurorty Kavkaza" (Resorts of the Caucasus). Built around the hypnotic meshing of afro-caribbean drum machine percussion and vintage Soviet and Italian synthesizers' vivid sonic palette, the resulting record was something that was absolutely different from Borisov and Sokolovsky's dark signature sound and wasn't well received both by the public and underground scene.
Until now, these tracks were never released and Notchnoi Prospekt never performed them live. Shortly after the recording session the duo focused on a return to their industrial roots that resulted in a number of monumental albums including "Kisloty" that became an instant underground classic.
"Kurorty Kavkaza" lay dormant and forgotten decades, and thirty three years after its recording, it gets the deserved official release.
Vanishing Twin is songwriter, singer and multi-instrumentalist Cathy Lucas, drummer Valentina Magaletti, bassist Susumu Mukai, synth/guitar player Phil MFU and visual artist/film maker Elliott Arndt on flute and percussion; and on this album they have made their first artistic statement for the ages.
Some of its great power comes from liberation. The album was produced by Lucas in a number of non-standard, non-studio settings. 'KRK (At Home In Strange Places)' summons up the spirit of Sun Ra's Lanquidity and Broadcast And The Focus Group Investigate Witch Cults Of The Radio was simply recorded on an iPhone during a live set which crackled with psychic connectivity on the Croatian island of Krk.
The magical Morricone-esque lounge of 'You Are Not an Island', the blissed-out Jean-Claude Vannier style arrangement of 'Invisible World' and burbling sci fi funk ode to a 1972 cult French animation, 'Plane`te Sauvage', were all recorded in nighttime sessions in an abandoned mill in Sudbury. The only two outsiders to work on the recording were '6th member' and engineer Syd Kemp and trusted friend Malcolm Catto, band leader of the spiritual jazz/future funk outfit The Heliocentrics, who mixed seven of the tracks (with Lucas taking care of the other three).
Vanishing Twin formed in 2015 - their first LP, Choose Your Own Adventure, which came out on Soundway in 2016; followed by the darker, more abstract, mostly instrumental Dream By Numbers EP in 2017. The band explored their more experimental tendencies on the Magic And Machines tape released by Blank Editions in 2018, an improvised session recorded in the dead of night, offering a glimpse into their practice of deep listening, near band telepathy, and ritually improvised sound making. These sessions formed the basis of The Age Of Immunology.
Low Distance is Deaf Center´s third full-length studio album and perhaps the most focused effort by the Norwegian duo to date. After their last record Owl Splinters (2011) was quite an eclectic endeavor, Erik K Skodvin & Otto A Totland draw their sound back into something more quiet and minimal.
The record starts with a piece of sweeping analougue electronics. It´s a spacious, yet dynamic opener that leads directly into the static tones and piano motivs of Entity Voice, which balances a new sense of abstractation with the classic Deaf Center sound. It´s warm and close while sounding like it´s set in the outer horizon. Overall Low Distance feels both alien and familiar with its atonal synths, close pianos and drowned out noises.
After meeting in studio for the first time since 2011, the recordings came out of a 3 day session in 2017. It was then mixed at both EMS Stockholm and at Erik´s home studio over a longer period to create a blend of deeply layered as well as stripped down pieces. Both Erik & Otto have been active individually since their last meeting as Deaf Center: Otto released 2 solo piano albums, while Erik has furthered his descent into musical abstractation both under his own name and as Svarte Greiner. It´s long overdue to hear them connect their personalities into something new. Low Distance is a welcome return replete with beauty, mystery and uncertainty.
Berlin based trio Keller Crackers collective likes to shape haunting esoteric sounds, in which self-built instruments dance with ritualistic synthesised rhythms, field recordings, psychoacoustic drones and poetical spoken silhouettes.
After a self-released MC and a mesmerising tune called “Anem” out in February 2019 on the custom-made Kashual Plastik 007 double-vinyl compilation, now they give birth to their own debut record “KC”, a four track EP resulting from various improvisational studio sessions, a bag full of spontaneous visionary DIY sound fashion that melts meandering serialism, foggy ‘Chris & Cosey’-ness, exoticism and freely expressed emotions. Some pieces are given time to evolve, being dragged through long arrangements and slow transitions, while others are playful and short. To close up the magic circle, the release includes a tripping Tolouse Low Trax signature remix.
The opening tune “Specialised” swings on a trance-like hypnotic bass line, while a self-made kalimba played through a tape delay and overtones from a DIY circuit bended device inject dynamics and colour to the composition. Out of the sonic depth, the spoken words of Sylvana Wickman emerge enchanting and unreal, naming a series of technical terms, assembling a deep notion on the specialised society we live in.
“Cow Tongue” follows, a fleeting composition of crackling electronic clicks jumping off a micro-modular device. They got overdubbed again by Sylvana’s voice, delightfully reciting phrases from a recipe of regional delicacies.
The A side of KC`s first strike finishes with a spaced-out synth bass and the lo-fi beats of a Yamaha RX15 drum machine. They are the gripping foundation of “Aithouses Anamonis“, which means “Waiting Rooms”. It describes the scene of a man sitting in a waiting room observing the consumerist behaviour by the folks around him.
The B-side opens with a Tolouse Low Trax remix of “Specialised”, elevating the original with the bass line of “Aithouses Anamonis“, while melting the all into a dark nebulous Tolouse Low Trax signature stripped down funk for endless nights in neon lights.
For their final track “Colours”, Keller Crackers invited a steady free member of their live shows to record with them: free jazz musician Robert Würz. He tuned his flute enthralling over a suspenseful bass line formed in a whirlwind of synth-sounds. The whole frenzy gets divine through sliding chords that rise from a self-built guitar.
A musical bouquet for open spirits, that value charming minimal wave zones, undefinable post-industrial psychedelics and hallucinogenic poetry reflections on the current state of our mechanical times.
J.Wiltshire joins the Black Orpheus stable with five tracks of heat for the dance. On side A, 'Semuta' and 'Lemon Squash' are an acid-soaked take on classic electro and sound like a summer beach party organised by Snake Plissken. The theme of road-ready funk continues with the rolling, squelching bass of 'Hundred'. On the reverse, 'In Your Belly' and 'Cymek' take the release into murkier territory. Two cuts of razor sharp retro futurism, these weapons of choice would turn heads at any post apocalyptic rave or dystopian underground gathering. Eye patches at the ready!
Pale Bloom finds Sarah Davachi coming full circle. After abandoning the piano studies of her youth for a series of albums utilizing everything from pipe and reed organs to analog synthesizers, this prolific Los Angeles-based composer returns to her first instrument for a radiant work of quiet minimalism and poetic rumination.
Recorded at Berkeley, California's famed Fantasy Studios, Pale Bloom is comprised of two delicately-arranged sides. The first – a three-part suite where Davachi's piano acts as conjurer, beckoning Hammond organ and stirring countertenor into a patiently unfolding congress – recalls Eduard Artemiev's majestic soundtrack for Andrei Tarkovsky's Solaris. "Perfumes I-III" employs the harmonically rich music of Bach as a springboard for abstract, solemn pieces that sound as haunted as they are dreamlike.
While the first half of Pale Bloom showcases Davachi's latent Romanticism, the sidelong "If It Pleased Me To Appear To You Wrapped In This Drapery" reveals the Mills College graduate's affinity for the work of avant-garde composers La Monte Young and Eliane Radigue. Softly vibrating strings rise and fall like complementary exhalations of breath. As the fluctuating pitches create overtones that pitter and pulse, the piece slowly and subtly evolves – suggesting a well-tempered stillness, yet without stasis.
Pale Bloom finds Sarah Davachi coming full circle. After abandoning the piano studies of her youth for a series of albums utilizing everything from pipe and reed organs to analog synthesizers, this prolific Los Angeles-based composer returns to her first instrument for a radiant work of quiet minimalism and poetic rumination.
Recorded at Berkeley, California's famed Fantasy Studios, Pale Bloom is comprised of two delicately-arranged sides. The first – a three-part suite where Davachi's piano acts as conjurer, beckoning Hammond organ and stirring countertenor into a patiently unfolding congress – recalls Eduard Artemiev's majestic soundtrack for Andrei Tarkovsky's Solaris. "Perfumes I-III" employs the harmonically rich music of Bach as a springboard for abstract, solemn pieces that sound as haunted as they are dreamlike.
While the first half of Pale Bloom showcases Davachi's latent Romanticism, the sidelong "If It Pleased Me To Appear To You Wrapped In This Drapery" reveals the Mills College graduate's affinity for the work of avant-garde composers La Monte Young and Eliane Radigue. Softly vibrating strings rise and fall like complementary exhalations of breath. As the fluctuating pitches create overtones that pitter and pulse, the piece slowly and subtly evolves – suggesting a well-tempered stillness, yet without stasis.
Idiosyncratic producer DMX Krew offers up four playful acid-tinged tracks for the Malekko Phase Mod EP, released through eclectic Spanish label/club night/promotion agency, Fanzine Records. The vinyl-only release is the first output of 2019 for the Coruna based imprint currently celebrating their 10th anniversary and is the follow up to C44's bizarro-techno Res Publica Populi Romani EP, and Dijuma's dubby and atmospheric Cold Tracks EP.
For DMX Krew's first Fanzine release the eccentric producer adopts a much lighter and brighter sound, in line with his recent records on Hypercolour and his classic output on Aphex Twin's Rephlex Records. The EP also comes hot on the heels of the prolific producer's latest album, Glad To Be Sad - twelve wavey cuts of vigorous electronic funk released in March through Hypercolour.
Kicking off the A-side with "Maleko Phase Mod", DMX Krew immediately conjures an effortlessly enjoyable mood. From the opening bars, a bouncing synth line is met with a classic acid house beat - prominently featuring the requisite skipping snares, rustic rimshots and phasing percussion that gives this track its distinctly Chicago feel. Meanwhile, shimmering chords fill the track with sunny warmth and enthusiastic energy.
Next up, "Smoke Stack" matches a groovy acid bassline with vintage drums, clusters of claps and a mischievous marimba-esque lead. Don't let the whimsy fool you, however, DMX Krew is a master craftsman at sequencing intricate synth lines and programming complex drum patterns.
On the flip, "Low Star" imbues DMX Krew's familiar elements bubbling bass, sparkling synths, and a pumping groove with a twisted 80s lo-fi essence. Crunchy claps, distorted hats, and tumbling toms keep the track bouncing at a frenetic pace, while a glossy lead contrasts with solemn pads to create a mood at once exuberant and earnest.
Closing track "Suspicion Ruff Mix" once again finds the producer riding a classic jacking 80s house beat, filling any gaps in the groove with crashing cymbals, rolling snares, and cascading claps. With his squelchy bass, vibrant lead, and oddball melody, DMX Krew concludes the Malekko Phase Mod EP with a sense of effervescent joy undeniably his own.
- A1: Five Synthesizers
- A2: Two Bonangs Coated Spheres Piano Two Synthesizers Natural Objects
- A3: Three Synthesizers
- A4: Vibraphone Marimbaphone Malleted Wood Two Synthesizers
- A5: Synthesizer Two Idiophones Rin Gong
- B1: Two Bells
- B2: Carbon Steel Four Spheres Four Drums Three Synthesizers
- B3: Two Vibraphones Two Bowed Marimbaphones_ Wooden Xylophone Two Bells Handheld Wo
- B4: Four Synthesizers Two Bells On Tuned Wood
We’ve got something a bit different from usual for our next release: Meeting of Waters by Josiah Steinbrick.
Back in 2017 the unassuming Los Angeles-based multi-instrumentalist and producer released his first collection of solo pieces and we’ve been listening to it compulsively since then. Given that its initial release was only in North America, both on cassette with Leaving records and in an extremely limited vinyl self-release via BANANA editions, we felt that this meticulously crafted, essential work righteously deserved to get a proper spin in Europe too!
The album is composed of what you could call nine sculptural environments, each a mixture of organic sketches and improvisations, recorded rapidly and more or less free of any processing. Each piece is based on up to five simple elements - electronic and/or (tonal) percussions - used to create subtle evolving patterns and harmonies. The sounds explore the wilderness of jazz in a concrete setting, devotional in nature, creating a timeless cartography.
- A1: Spirit Thru The Ceiling
- A2: An Empty Shell
- A3: Nunhead Reservoir
- A4: 500Miles2Go (Feat Message To Bears)
- B1: Put The Runes On U
- B2: Club Viscous
- B3: Drubjnk Song
- C1: Y U Stuck There (Feat Mr Yote)
- C2: The Order
- C3: Many Blessings, Fantastic Sky
- C4: Duel
- D1: Clanggg
- D2: Storm The Palace
- D3: Shadows
- D4: Solstice
- D5: Last Few Hours
Nach zahlreichen Releases auf Ninja Tune, Anticon oder Planet Mu erscheint das dritte Studioalbum des britischen Electronic-Produzenten Greg Feldwick aka Slugabed auf seinem eigenen Imprint Activia Benz und trägt den rekordverdächtigen Titel: "Any Attempt To Control The Environment Or The Self By Means Which Are Either Untested Or Untestable, Such As Charms Or Spells".
"A manner or style, a frame of mind, thought or existence" (Mode).
"Intelligence quotient, the use of perception or awareness." (IQ).
Mode I/Q, the self-proclaimed unknown band, was a richly textured, bold project starting life in 1979 out the embers of punk and new wave resulting in a hypnotic convergence of love, the future, life and art.
Lucian and Nicolas, two creative spirits who viewed the world through their own prism, augmented by a moving cast of friends and acolytes, were together compelled to make great music. This was a concept from the heart, with transformativelive performances, channelling spaces into art "Mode" events orchestrated to bring about a full integration of site and sound.
Psychedelic, punk overtones. A funky electronic hybrid, mixing Kraftwerk with black music. Guitars delayed and twisted through echo boxes and micro synths. Casio and Commodores delivering the machine funk. CBGBs, Max's Kansas City and Danceteria - Mode I/Q played and much, much more.
Just 3 releases deep, 1984's mini LP Mind/Soul captures the band at their best. 6 songs to immerse, dance and shake the mind.
With such a raft of quality music coming across the Summer from NuNorthern Soul, we thought we would put together an EP of some of the tracks featuring across the upcoming months...
We have taken our favourite tracks from various digital releases and present them on one vinyl 12" EP On the A side we take Nick J Smith's 'Waves Take Hold' from the Waves Take Control EP'
'Waves Take Hold', is a kaleidoscopic, life-affirming exercise in late 1980's style Italian Dream House, that's so warm and rush-inducing that it's likely to get the hairs on the back of your neck standing to attention.
Full of ricocheting drum machine hits, sun-bright lead lines, elongated chords and rich bass, it sounds like it was tailor-made to soundtrack sunrise in Rimini...
Bonnie & Klein 'Ocean Leap' taken from the Ocean Leap EP
There's a deeper and dreamier feel to the 'Ocean Leap' track, whose bubbly melodic motifs and synthesizer panpipe flourishes offer subtle nods towards 1980's Greek new age electronic composers such as Vangelis Katsoulis amd Dimitris Petsatakis.
Bonnie & Klein's synthesizer-heavy melodiousness comes accompanied by dub disco strength bass and undulating, off-kilter drums, but retains the rush-inducing bliss associated with the pioneering work of their Greek predecessors.
AA is given up to the 10 minute + track from Mirage: 'Endless Ocean' taken from their Reflections of the Sun EP.
'Endless Ocean' is a slowly building masterpiece. After a hushed, atmospheric opening, the track bubbles away on waves of hazy bongo beats, lapping water sounds and seductive chords before rushing skywards in a swarming swirl of trance-style synthesizer lead lines, echoing electronics and picturesque piano motifs.
180gr vinyl. Recorded in 1987 and now released for the first time ever with artwork by Sarah Yu Zeebroek.In 1987 Gerry Vergult (Aroma Di Amore ) and Gerrit Valckenaers (Adult Fantasies) created an abstract universe where minimal post-punk basslines blend together with dub, tropical vibes, jazz, and dreamy electronica.
Most of the october nights in 1987 you could find Gerry Vergult (Aroma Di Amore / Fred A. / Adult Fantasies) and Gerrit Valckenaers (Adult Fantasies /The Colorist Orchestra / multi-instrumentalist) in a desolated Top studio in Gent. At that time and place they sneakily crafted and shaped this Nasca record while they were supposed to finish a new Fred A. record. They created an abstract universe where minimal post-punk basslines blend together with radio sounds in 'Nothing Toulouse', tropical tribal vibes oscillates between futuristic nostalgia and hunted dreams in 'Ketama' and 'Ritz', a sampled heartbeat slowly mutates in mesmerising midnight jazz and a drugged out dub groove of 'Kamayacha' transforms into the inner city blues of 'Josaphat'.
All tracks composed, arranged and performed by Gerry Vergult & Gerrit Valckenaers
Gerrit Valckenaers: piano, saxophone, clarinet, synths, samples, electronics
Gerry Vergult: guitar, bass, synths, samples, electronics
Produced by Koen Van Regenmortel
For people who like Jah Wobble, Jon Hassell, Brian Eno & David Byrne, dub, world, jazz, and dreamy electronica
Recorded in 1987 and now released for the first time ever with artwork by Sarah Yu Zeebroek.
• Dinosaur L was a band produced and directed by Arthur Russell and 24-24 is their seminal
album of twisted post disco grooves
• This is Russell’s excursion into early electronic composition, future funk and a touch of jazz.
• One of dance music’s key building blocks, this album features the hit single ‘Go Bang!’ an
instant dance floor filler
• One of Gilles Peterson’s favourite albums, influenced dance producers like Todd Terry,
Basement Jaxx, UNKLE to Floating Point.
• Cult classic proudly reissued by Demon Records on 180gm heavyweight black vinyl with
printed inner sleeve
Legendary artist Mick Harris (Napalm Death, Painkiller, Scorn…) kicks off his 2019 with this EP of tar-black, bass heavy sonic violence. This EP features 4 reworks of “Salford Priors”, one of the heaviest tracks from his return-to-form album “Over Depth”, the first by Mick Harris himself, and 3 more by his longtime collaborators in the production guises of Fausten, Stormfield, and Monster X. The EP begins with an apocalyptic, dubbed out violent rework by the man himself, creeping in with a cold, calm eerie drone that quickly goes from zero to 100%, blasting into a full force attack of artillery percussion and strafing, shrapnel textures atop the landmine subs and characteristic Harris snarling mono-bass.
Julien Caraz has caused much distress over the years with the sheer rage and precision sonic assaults of his Monster X project. Here he eschews his usual frenetic tempos for a solid 130BPM, a sleek techno destroyer built for giant spaces and huge soundsystems in mind. The Combat Recordings boss has worked audiovisually with Mick since the Scorn AV at Bangface Weekend in 2011, touring with Fret AV in 2018. Here he switches back into audio mode to rework Salford Priors into a hard electro assault for the Stormfield remix.
Fausten is the shadowy, twisted collaboration between Monster X and Stormfield.
Having released a staggeringly twisted album on the legendary Ad Noiseam, Fausten
went into hibernation as the pair pursued their own projects, with only a few sporadic tracks surfacing over the years. The pair have been putting together an album’s worth of new material for 2019, beginning with a powerful remix of Salford Priors. Taking Fret back into it’s aquatic, fathoms-deep sonic territory, this remix is a behemoth work that moves at quarter-step tempo, allowing for more physicality and dynamics, the profound pulse of each profoundly deep bassdrum like an underwater volcanic explosion, with skittering percussion the resonates in the stillness.
As a winemaker hailing from the Palatinate, Florian Hollerith understands a thing or two about vintage. It's something that also comes through when you sample his music - rich, full bodied with just the right level of acidity. 2018 was already a good year with Ohrenzirkus featuring on both Sven Väth's Sound of the 19th Season mix CD as well as this year's Dots and Pearls vol. 5 compilation. Florian certainly announced his arrival on the scene in style, so it's only fair that he gets the chance to demonstrate his full range of skills on his very own Cocoon Recordings release. 2019 however, has a darker, more complex flavour...
Florian certainly knows a hookline when he finds one. On the EP's title track Perlas, he's working from the inside out with complex layers creating a vortex of sound. This dense sonic mesh is playful yet dangerous, with ethereal voices and jagged chants adding to the disorientation of the opening exchanges until the congas and skipping bassline give us something to hold onto. The dance floor melts under our feet as a raw, tripped out groove takes hold before the bass suddenly morphs into a brassy acid line that spreads its wings and soars. It's music for the headstrong, a celebration of the timeless tribal ceremonies that have come to define us.
Love Summer adds a contemporary twist to the melodic joys that drenched the early nineties in pure ecstasy. The soulful vocals soothe the mind as horn stabs punctuate the sensual groove, generating power and passion in equal measures. It's a straightforward approach, revolving around a familiar yet eminently seductive riff that just keeps on rolling, propelled forward by the force of its own momentum. There's no need to fuss when you hit on a winning formula like this.
More retro futurism abounds on Electro Indianer as arpeggiated bleeps usher in another vast, sprawling soundscape designed to induce a collective trance on the dance floor. Whistling, circular effects wash back and forth increasing the tension notch by notch as we're led deeper into the wormhole. Finally, the track deconstructs slightly, creating enough space for classic Casio-style bleeps and percussion to embellish a beautiful blissed out ending that trails off into the sun rise, as ancient Native American pipes pick out a haunting melody in the distance.
Introducing a new label and musical direction for Lee Renacre from 100Hz with, PUSHER. His aim is to push the boundaries of electronic music by using different time signatures and poly rhythmic patterns, and by not using 4/4 patterns and the standard hat clap beats it’s possible to create a different style of mood and dancing which is deep loose and skippy. Pusher has a bold new Techno sound and also a gentle side with tracks of deep emotive strings and melody’s.
This Series of tracks is called Drug Music, a stripped down funky style with unusual beat patterns and poly rhythmic elements best enjoyed and fully understood when in an euphoric state, always recorded from a live studio jam where Lee’s improvised sounds come to life with some unexpected results. Lee also collaborates with artist and good friends for some extra depth and to mix up this unique style of electronica.
The first of the Pusher EP’s is a thumping minimal and full on affair with infectious killer acid riffs in odd time signatures. Crisp funky modulating hats monster bass lines and dramatic interplanetary sounds with live tweaks, twists and turns. Also some seriously deep and intense music is coming from this live jam situation with a thrilling string track to round off the Pusher experience.
Sound design masters Benjamin Brunn and Dave Wheels of the Workshop fame team up with the iconic Berlin based Sushitech for a beautiful double 12" LP release.
"2000" is an electronic masterpiece, lush melodies, dubby rhythms and some mesmerising synth lines that we can all recognise from previous milestone Benjamin Brunn releases such as Song From The Beehive that was already released a decade ago together with Move D.
This 2x12" with 8 full length tracks packed in a gatefold sleeve makes a beautiful pack that is a simply must have for any serious vinyl collector - BIG!
Mount Liberation Unlimited are Tom and Niklas, two Swedes from space who have spent the last 5 years
carving out a particularly vivid niche in contemporary electronic music. Their previous work has seen them
connect with an impressive list of global dance powerhouses: New York's Beats In Space, Melbourne's
Superconscious and Munich's Permanent Vacation have all released 12'' heat from the duo, while their
hometown buddies at Studio Barnhus provided an outlet for what has been perhaps their biggest and boldest
release yet, 2017's double smash single Double Dance Lover. Their live shows are fervent, fast-paced and very
multi-instrumental affairs, performed non-stop at an increasingly prestigious list of clubs and festivals, serving
as prime examples of the MLU boys' core obsession: the interaction of human rhythm and electronic pulse.
They have their own great little radio show on Gilles Peterson's Worldwide FM! Australia loves them! They
got their artist friend Tom-Hadar Elde to sculpt their heads for their debut album cover!
That self-titled debut, to be released May 31 on Studio Barnhus, has been in progress since the very formation
of the MLU project in 2014. It contains some of their earliest work and of course their very latest – all perfected
at the Neve desk of legendary Gothenburg studio Svenska Grammofonstudion, in cahoots with mix engineer
Christoffer Berg (Depeche Mode, Robyn, Fever Ray).
The result is a sonically fascinating, endlessly generous and straight up FUN record that takes the listener on a
joyride through bittersweet stoner disco, frenzied scando-kraut jams and some of the sweetest dance pop to
come out of Sweden this side of Super Trouper.
The record is preceded by a limited 10'' release of album track Climb Me Up, complete with an exclusive club
mix of the song.
“Style” can be defined as that special ability to watermark every track with an instantly-recognizable identity. Local Suicide, aka Munich’s Brax Moody and Greek-born Vamparela, has it in spades. And following releases on labels such as Bordello, My Favorite Robot, Multi Culti, Roam, Duro and OMBRA, it only made sense that the duo would eventually find its way to Lumière Noire. After all, “black light” (as per the meaning of Chloé’s label’s name) could describe the way Local Suicide’s music flirts with the more troubling zones of the listener’s psyche, where danger roams and aural comfort is no longer a guarantee. The EP’s two tracks set a dark, shifty sonic tableau, in which German-American multidisciplinary artist - and a unique personality of the Berlin underground - Nicki Fehr comes to blend his voice with Vamparela’s. With its swerving bass slithering over a slow tempo, Leopard Gum is the perfect slow burner, a slice of comatose disco that will find its way to the darkest corners of nightlife - and haunt its DJ sets. The synths that come crashing across the track’s Smagghe & Cross remix add their saturated signature that provide a different kind of hook through its breathless nine-minute run. The same measured tempo is found once more on the more ethereal Already There, where Local Suicide affirm their adherence to the more captivating signatures of new wave and post disco. Permanent Vacation stalwarth Lauer adds a surprizing electro pop shimmer to the track. With Leopard Gum’s opaque and impenetrable atmosphere, Local Suicide have released one of their strongest efforts to date.
Standing tall above his peers, multi instrumentalist Guy Bartell AKA Bronnt Industries Kapital has left an impressive mark on cinematic electronica, having spent the last decade being commissioned to soundtrack everything from legendary silent film Haxan: Witchcraft Through The Ages to 1930s Soviet documentary Turksib, Bronnt has been there long before the 3rd wave of Italian Library Fetishists and long before this thing called Horror Disco even had a name. Force The Line sees a group soaked in the soundtracks of a thousand low-budget-straight-to-video action-slashers, the sound of heavily dubbed Martial Art imports where vampires jump and acid-laced revenge thrillers invented on demoscene message boards. Bronnt’s first studio album since the 2009 Get Physical LP ‘Hard For Justice’ is all that we might ever want from this underground legend, dance floor heavy, krautrock zombie epics for the past present and future. Miss this at your peril.
Detroit native Javonntte, keyboardist to the late Aretha Franklin, delves deep into the Jazz Fusion vaults with Primetime Voyage.
The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt with the heart. Arts Gallery presents Linn Elisabet an Artist that has majestic skills to take you to another world simply by composing music.
Comes with a hand-stamped cardboard cover.
smog’s music has been on a steady path towards monumentalism since emerging out of the recesses of Berlin in 2015.
Originally from Paris, growing up cutting his chops in the capital’s hip hop undergrowth, the young producer makes music that is as challenging as it is evocative. On “sequel’70” – his debut album – bass, techno, electroacoustic music and jungle are rung through his singular take on the hardcore continuum. The production is powerful, dynamic and geared to bulldoze the dance. It’s clear why the likes of Resident Advisor have tipped smog as an “important artist to watch” and why his tracks have been appearing in sets from artists of the calibre and creative range of Objekt, Donato Dozzy, Samuel Kerridge or Go Hiyama.
With his debut album, smog lays bare a world of start and stop mechanics. Tracks twist and turn through stuttering panoramas of crashing beats, majestic peaks and post-rave intensity. On its most moving moments the gorgeously burnt out cinematic pads of “Mécanique Oblique” are a particular highlight – “sequel’70” feels like coming up in the middle of an industrial wasteland. It’s almost as if the end of the world wasn’t such a terrible prospect after all.
Jungle architectures are pulled apart and reconstructed on “Gelid”, “Dazzle” and the phenomenal “Abschluss SCAN”. Souvenirs of gabber echo through heavy handed kicks and speaker defying noise blasts. IDM inflexions creep their way in opportunistically, but even at its most abstract – album midpoint “Straightforward” sounds like a geiger counter being set off – it all sounds more like the possibilities offered by the future of rave rather than an attempt at paying homage to the genre’s heritage.
There’s a special energy and irreverence to smog’s music and there’s deep reflection in how he connects the dots of the subfamilies of rave. His attention to sound design would almost be worth the trip alone, but the album remains superb even at its most disorderly.
Unstable Signal is a new record label focused on quality Electronic music founded by Michalis Vassiliou in early 2018. The label’s vision is to support the underground music culture, through the pressing of records, as well as pushing for quality curations at the events/concerts of the label.
In less than a year of activity it has managed to associate its name with very strong events such as the debut party at About Blank in Berlin, the follow up in Athens with Ancient Methods and the one with SHXCXCHCXSH at Temple Athens.
Also the long awaited EP of Celldöd under the name Myndighetsförakt is finaly available by the label in 12-inch vinyl and digital format.
Celldöd Is the Stockholm based producer Anders Karlsson. Anders has been active in the music scene for some time working on different musical projects, always with a strong DIY ethic.
Celldöd has built a reputation as a strong live act through gigs at Berghain, About Blank and Griessmühle in Berlin, Joy in Moscow, Femur Club in Madrid as well as live performances as far away as the Epizode festival in Vietnam.
His music has been played and supported by DJs such as Ancient Methods, Beta Evers, Alienata and The Hacker.
His EP on Unstable Signal is the debut release for the label.
third reissue of fumio itabashi on mule.
“rise and shine live at the aketa’s” is his 2nd release on 1977 which is recorded at legendary jazz club in tokyo.
but this album was actually recorded before his first release “toh”, so this album is his first album in fact.
“jumping board” on a side is japanese hard bop classic and itabashi’s cover version of “my funny valentine” is very sweet and elegant.
main track(for us)” rise and shine” is one of his best work. it reminds us pharaoh sanders if he plays piano…
limited initial press. don’t sleep!
































































































































































