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Those not familiar with Jones' style will listen slack-jawed at the sheer anticipatory nature of his sound collage. The five extended tracks are based on hypnotic and somewhat menacing grooves: a repetitive dub bass beat, waves of Middle Eastern strings and voices, layers of building hand percussion. The washes of sound and percussion come and go, often creating a sense of motion and change. All of the tracks are similar and even share elements. Mid-East tension is so accurately captured through the use of the region's instrumentation (especially percussion), sinister electronics, samples of men chanting, women crying, sounds culled from the horrors of war, and occasional angry distortion that the listener will be transported to the belly of the beast.

»Mullah Said« displays two aspects of the work of Muslimgauze. Firstly, musically, it is in the delightful drifting ambient vein. The percussion is mainly acoustic hand drums - providing a rhythm of aural features - the trademark shimmering string sound heard on a number of releases is much in evidence, rhythms are generally slower, there are lots of samples of people speaking in conversation, markets wherever. 'Mullah said' opens the disc with the lovely mix of these sounds. »Every Grain of Palestine Sand« continues the mood, with a slightly faster tempo, and more emphasis on the beat. But it soon locks into a mesmeric lassitude as various effects echo or smear the sounds, drums come in for short moments, different string sounds enjoin the play. »Muslims Die India« follows the mood though the voices seem darker, sadder, and then comes »Every Grain of Palestinian Sand« followed by »Muslims Die India«. Yes - not a typo, these tracks are repeated. Muslimgauze trend – to remix himself. Prime Muslimgauze middle eastern ambience - if you like that side you will love this album. The final track is short and different, a crackling ground over which a singer chants a song interrupted by machine-gun percussive bursts - »An End«.

Blue Hour distills over a decade of artistry into his debut album Selva, unearthing eight tracks inspired by ancient wisdom and forgotten worlds.
Blue Hour is the moniker of Luke Standing, a multifaceted artist, producer, and label owner navigating between past and present electronic dance music. Over more than a decade, Standing has built a career balancing transformative craft with a sharp curatorial approach, earning him respect across the global scene. After years of sonic experimentation, he now releases his debut LP Selva. “I never set out to make an LP – it just wrote itself,” he says. “I followed my intuition, and the music found its own path.”
Born and raised in the UK, Standing grew up in parallel with club culture, moving between Brighton, Bristol and Berlin while running club nights and establishing himself under former aliases Furesshu and Esoteric.
He launched his Blue Hour project in late 2013, shortly after relocating to Berlin. Initially a platform for his own music, Blue Hour quickly became a collaborative hub, blurring the lines between personal output and curation. Over time, Standing has cultivated an international ecosystem of like-minded artists while continuously expanding his own sonic horizons.
Selva marks his first full-length studio album, weaving a lifetime of influences into a cohesive narrative inspired by ancient wisdom and forgotten worlds. The eight-track double LP transforms his inner dialogue into a subconscious story pulling inspiration from a labyrinthine network of influence and experience. “I followed the music obsessively, reflecting and refining until the story revealed itself,” Standing explains.
“To me, the LP evokes Amazonian or Mayan jungles, themes of exploration, the mysteries of the natural world, wisdom passed down through generations. I didn't set out to write about these things consciously,
they just emerged on their own.” he adds.The album was shaped through intensive work in his studio and periods spent in subtropical locations.
Listening closely, Selva unfolds like a modern ceremony: the opening tracks channel his early UK dance influences, shifting into blends of traditional and contemporary techno, then expanding into melodic soundscapes before concluding with transcendental textures and atmospheres. The result is an introspective journey where functionality and emotive storytelling coexist, revealing a depth in Blue Hour we haven’t heard before.
Whether performing, curating, or producing, Standing operates with a deep commitment to sound, culture, and collaboration. More than an artist, he is an architectural thinker of what electronic music could become. “Every release is my own metamorphosis,” he says. “This LP reflects my current form, and I’m curious to see what the next chapter brings.” Few artists can unify a lifetime of genre-spanning influences into a sound as sharp and focused. On Selva, Blue Hour does exactly that, opening a new era of deeper
immersion from his Berlin-based label.

Memory Remains unveils a deeply emotional and intimate Unknown Artist release, a record driven by feeling rather than form.
Shaped and refined through careful dancefloor testing across 2025, these tracks revealed a rare sensitivity: minimalist structures wrapped in warm grooves, gentle tension, and soulful, intimate vocals that connect on a subconscious level.

This is music that doesn’t demand attention. It breathes, resonates, and stays.
Free from names and narratives, the release invites the listener into a private emotional space, where sound speaks louder than identity.
The journey is visually completed by an original artwork from Alisa Kirik, capturing the same fragile beauty and timeless mood that defines this release on Memory Remains.

Totoyov vinyl series returns with a 4 heavy hitters produced in the shores of the Black Sea, by the romanian artist George Heerd.

Massive support around the world from some of the biggest names in the scene and now it's your turn to elevate dance floors with these weapons!

An essential for everyone's vinyl collection! Grab your copy while you can!

Manaccan ep is a blend of dub and Detroit techno tracks.

Merv (Denmark) are known for their dubby Basic Channel like sound. Elevation is a natural successor to the timeless classic 'Dust'.

Ohm (Denmark) and Octal Industries (Estonia) have been industry stalwarts for decades. Their experience is evident in the BS1818 debut track 'Journey': a functional track in the Scandinavian dub techno style.

Kuba Sojka (Poland) is back on Boomstraat 1818 with a remastered version of 'Rain', which was originally released on Rohs! The track deserved a vinyl release and Kuba rebuilt the track from scratch.

Stroef (Netherlands) his track 'Boxed In' was originally released on OHM Series Digital. This version is reconstructed for the vinyl release on Boomstraat 1818.

For this edition, the label meets this duo of producers, that has been created by the musical synergy between Zonker and Daniel Gorziza, who go by the name – “SameSame”. This disc has been titled “Unconditional Society” and has been crafted with a mission to be brought to the worldwide dancefloors and to be foreseen by the adepts of the sound it conveys. The A side is opening with a deep trancey burner “Suspect Zero”, with time passing this side of the record is morphing into the prime-time speaker ripping sound of “Rip the Jacker. The B side will see more mellow feel to it and sometimes even could be said that the vibe turns relatively melancholic by the time the record reaches its natural conclusion. The words that have been shared do not translate the profoundness of the subject that the artists have carried through, but then again, sometimes them letters have to be present even if they are kept to the slightest. The frequencies communicate much superior to the words and by now you can stop reading this and immerse yourself into the sound.

Techno Club Retro Vol. 2 – Vinyl Edition

Sechs legendäre Trance-Tracks aus den 90ern & 2000ern – in den erfolgreichen Talla 2XLC Reworks – auf exklusiv farbiger, streng limitierter Vinyl! Mit seinem Label Technoclub Retro! lässt Talla 2XLC unvergessene Trance-Klassiker mit viel Liebe zum Detail kraftvoll und emotional neu aufleben. Vol. 2 präsentiert die ersten sechs erfolgreichen Veröffentlichungen des Labels:

Side A:
• Dito – Shadows (Talla 2XLC Remix): Das Original aus 2000 – melancholisch und hypnotisch – erhält eine treibende Dynamik mit Gänsehautmomenten.
• Triple Concept – Tonetwister (Talla 2XLC Remix): Von 1998, bekannt für das ikonische NASA-Sample. Der Remix liefert eine wuchtige Bassline und modernes Clubfeeling.
• Alpha Breed – Epic Future (Talla 2XLC Remix): Ralphie B’s Meisterwerk von 1999, jetzt mit psytrancigen Akzenten – energetisch und atmosphärisch zugleich.

Side B:
• Talla 2XLC – Follow The Meteor: Ein Remake des Vectrex-Hits von 2004 – zwischen mystischem Drive und Adrenalinschub, perfekt für die Peak-Time.
• Plastic Angel – Schatten 2021 (Talla 2XLC & Para X Remix): „Schatten“ von 2001, neu aufgelegt von zwei Trance-Veteranen – emotional, druckvoll und voller Tiefe.
• Traveller – Bright Sign (Talla 2XLC Remix): Hardtrance trifft Psy – der 2002er Kulttrack bekommt fette Breaks, bunte Strings und kompromisslose Energie.

Techno Club Retro Vol. 2 ist eine kraftvolle Zeitreise durch die Trance-Geschichte – neu gedacht von einem Pionier des Genres. Für Liebhaber, DJs und Sammler gleichermaßen ein Statement auf Vinyl!

ElCalefón

Salir Del Agujero

El Calefón's 1985 LP Salir Del Agujero is a rare bird.

Self-produced and privately released in Zurich, the albumdocuments one of the very few South American groups that were resident in Europe at the time, and certainly the only such band working in Switzerland. Co-founded by two Argentinians in Europe – the multi-instrumentalist, vocalist and composer Coqui Recaand the guitarist Pablo Miguez–the group consisted of Argentinian and Brazilian musicians, most of whom were present initially Europe as tourists, but had stayed on, without official sanction, as immigrants.Their music gathered its primary influences from the varied sounds of their home countries, fusing these elements drawn from the manifold indigenous styles of Argentina and Brazil with the international sounds of rock,jazz, pop and pan-Latin music.

Honed and polished by the steady gigging through which the group earned their living in Zurich, the music that appeared onSalir Del Agujero was sophisticated, original and filled with light. Resonating with a freshness undiminished in forty years, the album brims with possibility and hums with tropical warmth, bearing testament to the open-hearted musical freedoms of a mercurial musical era.

Jacaranda is an album published in 1973 that highlights Bonfá’s refined approach to bossa nova and Brazilian instrumental music, blending Brazilian melody and rhythms with jazz-influenced harmonies. The album is cantered on Bonfá’s classical-influenced guitar technique. Indeed, rather than focusing on vocals, Jacaranda lets the guitar lead the narrative, creating a relaxed yet sophisticated atmosphere which evokes Brazilian landscapes and moods. Compared to his previous album Introspection (HE72018), Jacaranda is less restrained and inward, it does not have a meditative mood but offers warmer harmonies and a stronger melodic richness. This is the first vinyl edition of this album since its first edition in 1973.

“My auntie asked me what’s my path?” spits Lord Jah-Monte Ogbon on his de but from the celebrated Lex Records. The lyric relatably references the cross roads he’s at in his current life, especially as someone right on the cusp of rap stardom. “Recently I’ve been thinking more and more about what comes next in my life,” the artist reveals.


It’s fair to say Ogbon’s Lex LP features less of the sh*t-talking court jester of old. Instead, there’s more of an imperfect man re-examining past mistakes so he can avoid any future forks in the road. There’s a particular focus on over coming heartbreak, inspiring Ogbon to admit he’s haunted by an ex so badly he now needs to call up the Ghostbusters for assistance.


Since emerging in the late 2010s, Lord Jah-Monte Ogbon has consistently lit up America’s underground rap scene and this is thanks to a refreshingly honest writing style. Amid the exquisitely wavy strings of 2021’s The Missing Link / The Sneaky Link, for example, he rapped: “Everyone thinks they’re play er, until their bitch doesn’t come home.” Biting and snappy, the nasally vocals carry the playful verve of comedian Richard Pryor bravely excavating personal Demons to solicit giggles.


All this brash, wry Redman-inspired storytelling continues on the new pro ject. Its first single is titled I’m Signed to Lex, Now I’m Up – a name that mirrors what a big moment releasing a project on the label that once housed MF DOOM represents for Lord Jah-Monte Ogbon’s legacy. “I’m really driven by being able to level up and give my family more financial freedom,” he hopes.
And, if auntie asked what his path was right now, what exactly would the rap per say? Lord Jah-Monte Ogbon concludes: “Auntie: this rapping thing feels like it’s finally about to pay off!”

DJ Amir takes another deep dive into the back catalogue of Detroit's legendary Strata Records to curate a 2nd volume in his Strata Records – The Sound of Detroit compilations. Whereas volume one took in the soulful edge of the Strata canon this volume, as Amir says, 'leans into the label's groovier, funkier edges whilst still celebrating its bold, avant-garde spirit.' DJ Amir's relationship to the Strata label has resulted in the release of the long lost Charles Mingus live 'Jazz in Detroit' box set released on BBE Music along with re-issues from The Lyman Woodard Organisation and re-imaginings of Strata's genre defying music by Berlin based DJ and producer collective, Jazzanova as well as remixes from Kai Alce, Wajeed, Henrik Schwarz, re.decay and DJ Amir himself and, of course, volume one of The Sound of Detroit. Featuring music from The Soulmates, Fito Foster, Keith Boone & Janice Coombs and The Contemporary Jazz Quintet amongst others, The Sound of Detroit volume 2 absolutely exemplifies the importance of Strata Records in the history of innovative Black music as well as its place in the cultural landscape of Detroit as a powerhouse city for art and music. Released by BBE Music in collaboration with 180 Proof Records as a triple vinyl LP and high res. digital download DJ Amir presents Strata – The Sound of Detroit volume 2 really is a gem of a compilation to grace any serious music head's record collection.

Release week Focus Track: Paint the Rain RELEASE TIMELINE 12/10 - TMR signs Natalie Bergman Announcement with video on Youtube: I Will Praise You (Live) 01/27 - Announce w/ PreSave/PreOrder IG1: Talk to the Lord + (music video) 02/24 - IG2: Shine Your Light On Me + (music video) 03/24 - IG3: I Will Praise You (album version) 04/21 - IG4: I’m Going Home Potential Video Asset - Live set of all the IG tracks released 05/05 - IG5 and Official Music Video: Paint the Rain 05/07 - STREET DATE w/ Focus Track: Paint the Rain Mercy is Natalie Bergman's debut, a self-produced solo album recorded in the strangest of times, during a personal period of profound sadness and reinvention. It's startling, and often beautiful — a rush to the edge of the cliff, with an unflinching look below Recorded at her brother's home studio in Los Angeles, CA, Bergman has already had a lengthy, successful career as one half of the brother-sister duo Wild Belle, but this is the first time she wrote and played all the material. This record absolutely pulses with redemptive power; it is replenishing and original, and deeply cathartic. And before we go any further, you should know that this is kind of a gospel record. It should also be said -- Natalie made this record because she absolutely had to. The music of Mercy began to germinate a few months after she lost her father in a wrong-way, head-on collision. He and her step-mother were killed by a drunk driver. Shortly after, Natalie visited a monastery in the southwestern desert, and there she began to embark on this album. "The first song I wrote on Mercy was 'Home At Last,'" she says. "It is the best song I have ever written. I sing a lot about home on this record. Believing in that place has been my greatest consolation. I had an urgency and desperation to know that my father was there. His sudden death was a whirling chaos that assaulted my mind. This album provided me with my only hope for coming back to life myself. Gospel music brings hope. It is the good news; it’s exemplary. It can bring you truth. It can keep you alive. These songs have kind of written themselves, and they rely on me to sing them.” Natalie Bergman made one of the first great albums of 2021.

During his time with the Yosuke Yamashita Trio, Nakamura poured his entire being into every note, weaving flashes of inspiration and raw impulses into powerful blows in the early 1970s. With this work, he undergoes yet another transformation. As Nakamura himself described: “Sharing space with everyone, feeling as if we’re flying freely like birds that’s the ideal.” Here, layers of sound and moments of silence expand the sonic space, and within it, Nakamura’s saxophone runs vibrantly and unrestrained.

Highlights include the exhilarating “Wolf’s Theme”, inspired by Kazumasa Hirai’s Wolf Guy series; the nostalgic melodies and relaxed groove of “Harappa”; elegant, richly textured interpretations of standards like “Body & Soul” and “I Can’t Get Started”; and the dynamic, liberating energy of “Viva Giappone”. In every track, Nakamura’s ideal is vividly realized. Featuring contributions from Toshiyuki Daitoku, Aki Takase, and Ryojiro Furusawa.

There's a tendency in metal to mistake aggression for honesty, volume for depth. To confuse the performance of darkness with its actual weight. Hidden Fires Burn Hottest, the new album from San Francisco-based post-black metal band Bosse-de-Nage, sidesteps this entirely. It’s the group’s most fully realized work yet, precisely because it refuses to be pinned down.

Bosse-de-Nage have been working with The Flenser for over fifteen years. They were one of the first bands the label ever partnered with and have the longest active relationship in the label's history. But unlike most bands who build momentum through constant touring and visibility, Bosse-de-Nage has largely existed apart from the music world's usual machinery. They've evolved on their own terms, in relative isolation, allowing the work to develop without outside pressure or influence. What began rooted in black metal anonymity has mutated into something that actively defies categorization. The aggression is still there, but it's no longer the point. Hidden Fires Burn Hottest finds the band treating emotions like physical objects, feelings with spatial properties. “No Such Place"" describes a space that can't exist but does anyway, somewhere between thought and location. ""Immortality Project"" examines infinite possibility not as promise but as problem, endless options collapsing under their own weight. These songs don't use metaphor to describe emotion. They make emotion into something you could theoretically touch.
Tracked by Jack Shirley (Deafheaven, Oathbreaker) at Atomic Garden East and mixed and mastered by Richard Chowenhill of Agriculture, Hidden Fires Burn Hottest was years in development, with some tracks beginning in 2018.

The long writing process offered time that most records don't get. Time to live with ideas, revise endlessly, to let structures settle. For the first time, lyricist Bryan Manning wrote everything in advance, creating a surplus to pull from rather than working under deadline pressure. The difference shows.
Coming off Further Still, an album built on constraint and economy, Bosse-de-Nage sought the opposite: sprawl, strangeness, fewer rules. Space for ideas to develop without rushing them. Dynamics that move through quiet as much as noise. Presence earned through atmosphere instead of volume. The record even includes ""Mementos,"" which might be considered the first love song the band has ever written.

Nothing here coheres into a theme. These are pieces pulled from low moments and private feelings made public through sound. The band has never been interested in positivity, in music that resolves cleanly or offers comfort. But bleakness doesn't mean humorlessness. There's something darkly funny running through much of it, even when it shouldn't be.
Hidden Fires Burn Hottest doesn't explain itself. It just insists: what you feel is as real as what you can see."

There's a tendency in metal to mistake aggression for honesty, volume for depth. To confuse the performance of darkness with its actual weight. Hidden Fires Burn Hottest, the new album from San Francisco-based post-black metal band Bosse-de-Nage, sidesteps this entirely. It’s the group’s most fully realized work yet, precisely because it refuses to be pinned down.

Bosse-de-Nage have been working with The Flenser for over fifteen years. They were one of the first bands the label ever partnered with and have the longest active relationship in the label's history. But unlike most bands who build momentum through constant touring and visibility, Bosse-de-Nage has largely existed apart from the music world's usual machinery. They've evolved on their own terms, in relative isolation, allowing the work to develop without outside pressure or influence. What began rooted in black metal anonymity has mutated into something that actively defies categorization. The aggression is still there, but it's no longer the point. Hidden Fires Burn Hottest finds the band treating emotions like physical objects, feelings with spatial properties. “No Such Place"" describes a space that can't exist but does anyway, somewhere between thought and location. ""Immortality Project"" examines infinite possibility not as promise but as problem, endless options collapsing under their own weight. These songs don't use metaphor to describe emotion. They make emotion into something you could theoretically touch.
Tracked by Jack Shirley (Deafheaven, Oathbreaker) at Atomic Garden East and mixed and mastered by Richard Chowenhill of Agriculture, Hidden Fires Burn Hottest was years in development, with some tracks beginning in 2018.

The long writing process offered time that most records don't get. Time to live with ideas, revise endlessly, to let structures settle. For the first time, lyricist Bryan Manning wrote everything in advance, creating a surplus to pull from rather than working under deadline pressure. The difference shows.
Coming off Further Still, an album built on constraint and economy, Bosse-de-Nage sought the opposite: sprawl, strangeness, fewer rules. Space for ideas to develop without rushing them. Dynamics that move through quiet as much as noise. Presence earned through atmosphere instead of volume. The record even includes ""Mementos,"" which might be considered the first love song the band has ever written.

Nothing here coheres into a theme. These are pieces pulled from low moments and private feelings made public through sound. The band has never been interested in positivity, in music that resolves cleanly or offers comfort. But bleakness doesn't mean humorlessness. There's something darkly funny running through much of it, even when it shouldn't be.
Hidden Fires Burn Hottest doesn't explain itself. It just insists: what you feel is as real as what you can see."

There's a tendency in metal to mistake aggression for honesty, volume for depth. To confuse the performance of darkness with its actual weight. Hidden Fires Burn Hottest, the new album from San Francisco-based post-black metal band Bosse-de-Nage, sidesteps this entirely. It’s the group’s most fully realized work yet, precisely because it refuses to be pinned down.

Bosse-de-Nage have been working with The Flenser for over fifteen years. They were one of the first bands the label ever partnered with and have the longest active relationship in the label's history. But unlike most bands who build momentum through constant touring and visibility, Bosse-de-Nage has largely existed apart from the music world's usual machinery. They've evolved on their own terms, in relative isolation, allowing the work to develop without outside pressure or influence. What began rooted in black metal anonymity has mutated into something that actively defies categorization. The aggression is still there, but it's no longer the point. Hidden Fires Burn Hottest finds the band treating emotions like physical objects, feelings with spatial properties. “No Such Place"" describes a space that can't exist but does anyway, somewhere between thought and location. ""Immortality Project"" examines infinite possibility not as promise but as problem, endless options collapsing under their own weight. These songs don't use metaphor to describe emotion. They make emotion into something you could theoretically touch.
Tracked by Jack Shirley (Deafheaven, Oathbreaker) at Atomic Garden East and mixed and mastered by Richard Chowenhill of Agriculture, Hidden Fires Burn Hottest was years in development, with some tracks beginning in 2018.

The long writing process offered time that most records don't get. Time to live with ideas, revise endlessly, to let structures settle. For the first time, lyricist Bryan Manning wrote everything in advance, creating a surplus to pull from rather than working under deadline pressure. The difference shows.
Coming off Further Still, an album built on constraint and economy, Bosse-de-Nage sought the opposite: sprawl, strangeness, fewer rules. Space for ideas to develop without rushing them. Dynamics that move through quiet as much as noise. Presence earned through atmosphere instead of volume. The record even includes ""Mementos,"" which might be considered the first love song the band has ever written.

Nothing here coheres into a theme. These are pieces pulled from low moments and private feelings made public through sound. The band has never been interested in positivity, in music that resolves cleanly or offers comfort. But bleakness doesn't mean humorlessness. There's something darkly funny running through much of it, even when it shouldn't be.
Hidden Fires Burn Hottest doesn't explain itself. It just insists: what you feel is as real as what you can see."

But rest assured - it's still the same excellent band from Ruda ?l?ska, only this time instead of a forest full of ghosts or a land of fairy tale creatures like a Fruwajacy Przestepca the duo of producers takes us on an interstellar journey!

The artists' third album, just titled KOSMOBOTANIKA, is an over forty-minute work skillfully composed from a multitude of various samples, and genre-wise presenting the sounds of deep house, trip-hop, breakbeat, ambient and even jazz. This is electronic music with a very cinematic, visual and imaginative character, something at which ETNOBOTANIKA has undoubtedly achieved mastery confirmed by their first two very well-received albums. This cinematic style (electronic concept album?) is reminiscent of the classic albums of the genre's progenitors from the UK like The Orb (first releases) or The KLF (the iconic "Chillout" album), but also the French Motorbass.

The Silesian duo does it their own way, of course, with a local twist. Thus, in the cosmic journey our guides will be in-sampled familiar voices from Polish television, cinema, radio and dusty vinyls (yes - samples from Mr. Kleks in Space had to be on the album, of course :) ).
There is no shortage of atmosphere-building instrumental fragments here, but also quite song-like tracks with catchy melodies and vocals. Fans of the band will certainly be satisfied.

What is there to say - ETNOBOTANIKA has created another classic, which simply must be on the shelf :) Trust them and let yourself be taken on a cosmic journey - satisfaction guaranteed!

In ,Osni the Flare", dem zweiten Teil von Tristan Allens mythischer Trilogie, zeigt der Komponist, Produzent und Puppenspieler, wie ein Sterblicher durch die Entdeckung des Feuers zu einer Gottheit wird. ,Osni the Flare" wurde über vier Jahre hinweg mit wortlosen Gesängen, Orgeln, Okarinas, einer Menge Spielzeuginstrumenten und einem ausgeklügelten Sounddesign aufgenommen und erzählt in vier akustisch und visuell beeindruckenden Akten von den Ursprüngen der Flamme und der Zeitlichkeit. Allen webt einen Schöpfungsmythos, der zwischen Schönheit, Schatten und wehmütiger Glut wechselt, und schafft so ein Portal zu einem sorgfältig gestalteten, emotional kraftvollen Klang und einer Geschichte, die durch ein fantastisches Reich hallen. Allen wurde in Saratoga Springs, New York, geboren und hat Kindheitserinnerungen an den Aufenthalt seiner Familie in Japan. Sein Weg führte ihn zu prägenden Begegnungen, darunter mit seinem Lehrer Andy Lorio, der das wachsende Interesse und Können des jungen Musikers am Klavier durch Improvisationstechniken förderte, und Amanda Palmer, die ihn mit 16 Jahren während eines Sommerprogramms am Berklee College entdeckte und seine erste Veröffentlichung durch Crowdfunding finanzierte. Nachdem er an der Berklee Klavier studiert, das Live-Elektronik-Kollektiv Nue mitbegründet, mit der Metal-Band Dent durch China getourt und zwei Solo-Klavier-EPs veröffentlicht hatte, zog Allen 2018 von Boston nach Brooklyn. Eine Anzeige auf Craigslist führte zu einer Puppenspielausbildung bei Mike Leach, der ihnen sechs Monate lang beibrachte, wie man eine Marionette richtig führt, was ihnen eine Stelle als Darsteller am renommierten Puppetworks Theater einbrachte. Diese harte Arbeit, zusammen mit dem Kontakt zu den Artefakten des Bread and Puppet Theater ihres Vaters und dem balinesischen Schattenspiel, brachte Allen zu ihrer kreativen Praxis: Komponieren für akustische Instrumente, elektronisches Arrangieren und Auftritte mit Puppenspiel. Osni the Flare erzählt einen Schöpfungsmythos, in dem die Titelfigur in einem Garten aufwacht und Äpfel von einem Baum pflückt. Von einem Loon herbeigerufen, macht sich Osni auf, den Baum vor der Kälte des Winters zu schützen. Als der Loon von einem Drachen verschlungen wird, wagt sich Osni in dessen Bauch und entdeckt dort Glut. Als er diese Glut dem Baum anbietet, entzündet sich dieser - der Ursprung des Feuers selbst. Iso, der Gott des Meeres, greift mit einer Flut ein, die Osnis Garten überschwemmt. Nach seinem Tod gelangt Osnis Seele in das Reich der Schatten, wo sie sich Tin und Iso anschließt und zur Gottheit des Feuers wird - Osni the Flare. Das Album klingt menschlicher und kindlicher als sein Vorgänger ,Tin Iso and The Dawn" und wechselt von der Perspektive der Götter als Beobachter zu der des ersten sterblichen Charakters in Allens Welt. Unterstützt durch neue Liebe, kanalisiert das Projekt Gefühle in Musik, die zu einem ganz eigenen Zauber wird. Wie Tin Iso beginnt und endet das Album mit Klavierklängen als Portal, das die Heimat repräsentiert, während Osni sich auf eine Reise durch drei Reiche begibt: das Land der Lebenden, das Zwischenreich und das Jenseits. Osni the Flare wurde fast komplett mit einem Aston-Kondensatormikrofon in Allens Wohnung in Brooklyn mit Blick auf den Cypress Hills Friedhof aufgenommen und besteht aus Spielzeugklavier und Flöten, Okarinas, Harmonium, Pumporgel, E-Bass und Kontrabass, Gadgets und einer umfangreichen Sammlung von Spieluhren und Glocken. Die Gesangsmelodie - inspiriert vom Summen seiner Partnerin Virginia Garcia Ruiz, das an Pans Labyrinth erinnert - war Allens erster Ausflug in den Gesangsbereich, wobei er eine Melodie ohne Worte verwendete, um den Zuhörern zu ermöglichen, die Protagonisten zu bleiben. Die Flöten wurden Note für Note akribisch aufgenommen, darunter balinesische Sulings, Fundstücke aus chinesischen Souvenirläden und vogelförmige Okarinas. Die Spieluhren wurden langsam aufgezogen, einzeln gesampelt und dann neu arrangiert und gestimmt, um Virginias Summen zu verdoppeln. Ein ausgedientes Casio SK-1 mit einem kaputten Lautsprecher wird mit einem Harmonium kombiniert, um Akkordtexturen zu erzeugen. Stundenlange Improvisationen, die durch Bastl Thyme und NanoVerb geleitet wurden, erzeugten lange, ausklingende Delays, wobei die besten Momente für Songs ausgewählt wurden. Feuergeräusche entstanden durch Fingernagelklicken auf Klaviertasten. Feldaufnahmen hielten das Zerlegen eines Klavieruntergestells, das Löschen von Kerzen und Geräusche aus einem Hospiz fest. Die Stimme des Drachen spricht Worte aus Allens erfundener Sprache. Die Melodie liegt oft im Bass - inspiriert von Goth und Gamelan - mit nach oben gerichteten Verzierungen. Der detailreiche Ansatz spiegelt eine Punktierung wider, die Allens Original-Artwork für das Albumcover ähnelt und durch ihre obsessive Arbeit kleine Teile zu einem großen Bild zusammenfügt - unter der Dusche, vor dem Einschlafen, mitten im Satz. Das Klavier wurde von der Toningenieurin Katie Von Schleicher bei Figure 8 Recording neu aufgenommen, gemischt wurde das Album von Paul Corley. Der technische Leiter Jim Freeman arbeitete vier Monate lang am Halsgelenk und fünf Monate lang an den Schultern der Basswood-Stabpuppe, die von Bruce Schwartz' Ballerina inspiriert ist. Freeman verbrachte Jahre damit, ein selbstgebautes LED-System zu entwickeln, um das Puppenspiel von der Bühne aus zu beleuchten, und sein unwillkürliches Pfeifen während der Arbeit wurde heimlich aufgenommen und ist im Schlussmoment zu hören. Die Herstellung der Puppen wurde von Miryam Moutillet und Lauder Weldon überwacht, die hybriden Köpfe wurden von Duygu Bayar Ekren entworfen. Seit der Veröffentlichung von Tin Iso im Jahr 2023 hat Allen in der experimentellen Puppenspiel-Community von New York City eine Heimat gefunden und wird von der Jim Henson Foundation und La MaMa unterstützt. ,Osni the Flare" steht für Tristan Allens kontinuierliche Weltgestaltung mit akribischer Kontinuität - viele bewegliche Teile, die in funkelnder Kohäsion präsentiert werden, wobei sich jede Komponente aus einer Idee entwickelt, wie eine Fantasy-Serie, die im selben Reich spielt. Das Album erreicht das, was sich Allens kindliches Ich beim Anschauen von Fantasy-Filmen vorgestellt hat: Musik, die nicht so klingt, als würden Menschen Instrumente spielen, sondern wie das Werk der fantastischen Welt selbst. Durch die Kunst des Puppenspielers, ,wahre Lügen zu erzählen", lädt Allen die Zuhörer ein, etwas Ursprüngliches und Unmittelbares zu erleben. Während Osni sich von einem Sterblichen zu einer Gottheit verwandelt, zeichnet das Album nicht nur den Ursprung des Feuers nach, sondern auch den Ursprung des Mythos selbst.

Als Justin Morris 2019 nach einem Leben in North Carolina nach New York City zog, hatte er vor, das Gegenteil von dem zu machen, wofür die Leute normalerweise in die Stadt ziehen: seinen Traum aufzugeben. Seit seiner Kindheit war dieser Traum einfach: Songs schreiben, in Bands spielen, im ,Indie-Rock" leben. Aber als er für einen der größten Indie-Stars der Zeit Merchandise verkaufte, geriet diese Überzeugung ins Wanken. Von seinem Platz im Bus aus betrachtet, schien der Alltag auf Tournee nicht zu den faszinierenden Shows zu passen; Zugaben wichen einer Arbeitsrealität, die ihm die berufliche Seite von etwas zeigte, das er immer nur romantisiert hatte, und ihn fragen ließ, wo der Glanz geblieben war. Für seine naive Weltanschauung war die Kluft zwischen der Fantasie, ,es zu schaffen", und der Realität erschütternd. Wenn das ,der Traum" war, dachte er, musste er vielleicht überdacht werden. New York sollte ein Neuanfang sein, vielleicht sogar der Ort, an dem er einen anderen Beruf erlernen und die Musik hinter sich lassen würde. Doch weniger als einen Tag nach seinem Einzug in die Untermiete in Bushwick trat ein Mann mit einer Waffe seine Schlafzimmertür ein, zwang ihn auf den Boden und fesselte seine Hände mit Fernsehkabeln. In den Tagen nach dem Raubüberfall, in denen er nur noch durch Songs einen Sinn in den Dingen erkennen konnte, begann er wieder zu schreiben. Diese Songs wurden zum Beginn eines neuen Projekts, das er Sluice nannte. Sluice ist jetzt eine vierköpfige Band aus Durham, North Carolina - mit Morris an der Gitarre und am Gesang, Oliver Child-Lanning am Bass und verschiedenen Instrumenten, Avery Sullivan am Schlagzeug und Libby Rodenbough an der Geige - mit Companion, ihrem dritten Album und Debüt bei Mtn Laurel Recording Co. Es folgt auf Radial Gate aus dem Jahr 2023, das still geliebte Album, das Morris aufgenommen hatte, nachdem er aus New York geflohen war und sich mit dem damals noch unbekannten Child-Lanning in einem Haus in Hillsborough niedergelassen hatte, das er über Craigslist gefunden hatte. Dort nahm er Songs im Sylvan Essos Studio Bettys auf, während er als Zimmermann arbeitete. ,Companion" ist ein Album über das Dating, über das Verlieben zu den weitläufigen Refrains von Kenny Chesney und Alan Jackson. Der ,Begleiter" ändert seine Form: Manchmal hat er einen Namen (Sara, Bluey, Of Doe Eyes), manchmal ist er ein Hund, der morgens aus der Tür schlüpft, manchmal ist es Morris selbst, der sein Spiegelbild im Badezimmerspiegel sieht und murmelt: ,Junge, ich liebe dich." Manchmal sind es die Tischler, die Stadtbewohner, die Bandkollegen, die alten Tourkollegen, die wieder in sein Leben treten. In seinem sachlichen, ironiefreien lyrischen Stil, den Pitchfork einmal als ,eine Umerziehung in Aufrichtigkeit" beschrieb, wirken diese Menschen real, weil sie es sind. Und immer in greifbarer Nähe ist die Musik selbst, die Begleiterin, die fast verloren gegangen wäre.

Metal up Your Ass was recorded on November 29, 1982, at the Old Waldorf in San Francisco. The support band was Exodus, featuring Metallica's soon-to-be lead guitarist Kirk Hammett. The band played all their original material (nine songs) that they had written up to that point, which included all the songs from their previous demo No Life 'Til Leather and two new songs (which were later released on the Megaforce demo). Two covers of Diamond Head songs were played: "Am I Evil?" and "The Prince". However, "The Prince" was not recorded as the tape had run out. Both the name and album cover of this demo was to be used as the band's first album name and sleeve. However, Metallica's record company did not let them use the name "Metal up your ass" for an album name. Cliff renamed the album when out of emotion, he said, "I hate the managers. Let's just Kill 'Em All".

Um Jesus geht es auf KOMPASS, dem neuen Album von Prinzen-Frontmann Sebastian Krumbiegel, mal wieder nicht. Dafür etwa um Elon Musks Steuererklärung, den kleinen Prinzen, dass 2+2= 5 ist, warum man trotz allem keine Angst haben und lieber von einer besseren Welt träumen sollte, und es geht um Musik. Um mehr Musik. Knapp 70 Auftritte spielte Sebastian Krumbiegel in den letzten 12 Monaten, knapp 70 Songs schrieb er in der gleichen Zeit. Er testete die Lieder auf Herz und Nieren, arrangierte um, verwarf, erschuf. Das Ergebnis: Sein neues Album KOMPASS. Wie man sieht, liebt es Sebastian Krumbiegel, Songs zu schreiben und live zu spielen. Und er liebt es, vor, während und nach den Auftritten sein Publikum nicht nur zu unterhalten, sondern sich auch mit seinem Publikum zu unterhalten. Und nach und nach kristallisierte sich in seinen Gesprächen heraus, dass eben jenes Publikum in unseren schweren Zeiten nach positiven Liedern verlangte. KOMPASS enthält 14 Songs, in denen das Glas grundsätzlich halbvoll, das Gras grundsätzlich grün und das Licht am Ende des Tunnels grundsätzlich nicht von einer entgegenkommenden Lokomotive ist. Krumbiegel selber hatte, wie er sagt, keinen Bock auf traurige Lieder. Wer jetzt allerdings denkt, der Künstler würde in seichte Gefilde abdriften, irrt: Krumbiegel gelingt, wie wenigen sonst, der Spagat zwischen Unterhaltung und Reflexion, zwischen Kritik und Optimismus. Sebastian Krumbiegel ist einer, der glaubt. Er glaubt an die Kraft der Kunst, an die Möglichkeit der Veränderung zum Besseren, und seine Songs handeln genau von diesem Glauben. Er erinnert daran, den Traum von einer anderen, harmonischeren Welt nicht zu vergessen. Und das gelingt ihm ohne Kitsch. Dafür mit Humor, viel Humor. Auch musikalisch ist KOMPASS ein optimistisches Album, ein optimistisches Album, aber ohne Augenwischerei.

Ol' June & The Ashburns deliver timeless soul with a modern edge. Their new single "What's her Name?" is a slow-burning groove in 6/8, built on lush instrumentation, warm analog textures, and heartfelt storytelling.Inspired by the golden era of Soul, the track captures the mystery of a fleeting moment — the glance of a woman who lingers in memory long after the nightfades.A soulful, cinematic journey for fans of vintage grooves and contemporary soul alike new single release "What's her Name?"

"Can't Let Go" by Ol' June & The Ashburns is a modern soul ballad with a timeless 70s feel. Driven by a steady groove and heartfelt vocals, the song tells the story of a man torn between leaving and holding on to a love that's both beautiful and destructive. Nostalgic yet raw, it's soul music that lingers long after the last note

As Nathan Fake rises from the nocturnal subterranea and rave catharsis of his previous records, on Evaporator, he resurfaces into the domain of daylight, bringing a tangible sense of air rushing against your face, of big skies, and endless landscapes. The idea of pop accessibility that trickled into 2023’s Crystal Vision is refracted here through the prism of sweeping ambient, deep electronica, and trance uplift. Evaporator is Fake’s idea of “airy daytime music”, with each track a different barometer reading across the album’s varying atmospheres, which range from vibrant sunbursts, bracing rainscapes, and fine mists of clement melodics. “It’s not overtly confrontational electronic club music,” states Fake. “It’s quite pleasant, it’s accessible. As I was progressing through making the tracklist, I called it a daytime album. It doesn’t feel like an afterparty album.” For the past decade Fake has been gingerly introducing collaborations with heroes and friends alike into his lone, idiosyncratic working process. Border Community alumni Dextro AKA Ewan Mackenzie transmutes his ferocious drumming for Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs into the blurred choral thump of ‘Baltasound’. ‘Orbiting Meadows’, meanwhile, is his second collaboration with Clark, an eerily idyllic duet where microtonal 18EDO piano clangs slowly twirl around wailing pads. Evaporator marks the junction point of old technology and ever fresh creativity for Nathan. The trusty “dinosaur” age software, particularly Cubase VST5, that has powered two decades of music is rarely updated. “I used to sort of feel a bit ashamed of using such old software, and then I kind of had an epiphany – that’s just how I work”, comments Fake. “That’s just how I play. I’m very fond of these old tools, and I get the most joy out of them, but now I’ve incorporated new technology too.” When an artist accumulates so much synergy with their instrument, music making becomes instinctual. By Fake’s account, much of Evaporator just fell into place. The album title arrived randomly in his head (“it felt completely perfect. Airy.”), ideas looped and developed until things locked into place and just felt right. ‘The Ice House’ is a fleeting glimpse of the sonic world he taps into in this creative state, its glassy FM synths built around a counterpoint between rough-hewn crystalline arpeggios and sparse yet gravitas-bearing bass. “That riff I just wrote out on the keyboard, I just played it forever and ever and ever. The original track ended up being really short. Here you go, and it’s gone!” These unplanned channellings of sound call forth records from Fake’s past while he looks ahead, perhaps getting at the very essence of his musicianship. The opener ‘Aiwa’ (“the breeziest,” he muses) reminds of the introspection that characterised Providence, excited by the fire and grit of Steam Days’ textural experiments, its chunky slams and clatters surging into a flood of harmonic buzzing as they reach out for old wisdom. ‘Hypercube’ stampedes in a similar chronological confluence, infusing an incessant synth line reminiscent of the golden age of rave with the crackling, ecstatic energy of modern festival anthems. Like the vaporisation of liquid to particles, everything that Evaporator presents has a mutant desire to be amorphous. Sounds rarely settle; the irradiated garage beat of ‘Bialystok’ is pitched downwards to driving, rebounding effect, while ‘You’ll Find a Way’ warps static into shivering energy, cinematic synth strings building anticipation into a gradual gush of chords. This translates into a more expansive stereo field than Fake has explored before. ‘Slow Yamaha’ saves the wildest, most kinetic transformations for last with a cornucopia of crispy melodies and fried drums; a sibilance of cymbals on the left, a susurrus of shakers on the right, and kaleidoscopic lasers pulsing and fizzing all around. Evaporation culminating in pure excited atoms. In a world where music has increasingly become background content, making albums remains lifeblood for Fake: “It makes me realise how long; twenty years is ages! It’s weird to see how much the world has changed. Release day back then you did fuck all, now you spend all day on socials. When I grew up the people who made the electronic music I was into were quite mysterious, and the artwork was very abstract. There was a massive distance between you and that music, and that was a key part of it, really. Now it helps to be an extrovert, and I'm just not, but the album marks the first time my face has graced the cover art. I’ve never wanted to do this before, I'm very shy, and generally I don’t like being seen,” he professes. “But, twenty years in, I supposed I could try something new. I'm very lucky that I'm somehow surviving in this world, where the media world favours extroverts and interesting looking people. It’s not my world but somehow I’m still in it.” Evaporator continues to prove Nathan’s necessary presence, with some of his most engaging, varied, and magical music yet.

Demilitarize follows Nazar’s remarkable 2020 debut Guerrilla, which reprocessed Angolan kuduro music with rough textures, field recordings and media clips, telling a personal story of the civil war that exiled his family to Europe, while his father, a rebel General, fought a losing battle in the jungle back home. After Guerrilla, and an extended period of serious illness, now Demilitarize is motivated by a reckoning with mortality and the flowering of new love, turning the ‘rough kuduro’ of Guerrilla inside out.This is a deep sound world, genuinely dreamy, the arc of the album describing shedding the armour of trauma and surrendering to this new situation. A constant and unexpected aspect of Demilitarize is Nazar's gentle, submerged vocal. Insistent and mantra-like, it’s like a cross between Elisabeth Frazer, Arthur Russell and Frank Ocean, and the music is fragile and opaque in response. The rhythms of kuduro are still here,but move around his voice like fish around a swimmer, while precise sound design illuminates from different angles. Chords spiral, ripple and shoot through the beats giving tracks the loosest of settings; songs disassemble; vocals float off-centre.

Now, following great acclaim for Volume 1, CTR is proud to unveil another equally eclectic Post-Punk Era Selection Compiled by Jason Boardman ( Before I Die Records) Celebrated Manchester club-night curator & record Label Owner , DJ & digger - supreme.

A second compilation of late 1970s / early 1980s Post-Punk era bedroom & small studio innovations & DIY Inspirations - Featuring more rarely & never heard cuts from that period. Including tracks from the enigmatic Prana, Blank Students, Janet Armstrong & The Native Hipsters ..A rich vein .

Jason Writes Of Volume 2 :
"It was a delightful shock that No Ones Listening Anyway Volume One was so well received - thanks to everyone one who bought & enjoyed it. This led to John asking me to collate Volume Two, so here it is.

This time all the material was recorded & released in the UK between 1978 & 1984.

I was conscious that there was minimal female energy on Volume One so have tried to rectify that here on Volume Two. I have also tried to make it as varied as possible with none hit wonders, oddities, collectables, under the radar B-sides & a couple of previously unreleased on vinyl selections."

Announcing Maara’s new album Ultra Villain, a deeply personal, narrative-driven record that explores desire, heartbreak, obsession, and the freedom that comes with choosing yourself.

Written from a place of hard-won self-trust, the song marks a shift toward clarity. “I realized people can only meet you where they’ve met themselves.”

Written and Produced by Maara Louisa Dunbar
Additional Production and Mixing by Francis Latreille and Patrick Holland at Jump Source Studios
Mastered by Noel Summerville
Cover Art by Dodleyz
Design by Jesse Osborne-Lanthier

2026 Repress

Rhythm by Nature is back with Somefink Old, Somefink New, a three-tracker from seasoned producer Grant Dell that bridges past and present: sketches first laid down in the mid-2000s rediscovered and reworked alongside a brand-new cut, forming a dialogue between memory and renewal.

The EP opens with Feel Me?, a deep tech construction driven by a heavy low-end, its groove unfolding patiently while flashes of disco glimmer through the framework. On Light of Day, Dell shifts into full deep house territory — spacey pads and floating strings suspended across open structures until acidic stabs break through, twisting the track into brighter, playful directions. Closing with Death Disco in Dub, Dell channels the hallmarks of his Tribalation project: dub-infused atmospherics, light percussion and echo-drenched fragments circling around a hypnotic core, equally suited to open or dissolve a night.

With Somefink Old, Somefink New, Rhythm by Nature traces the arc of an artist deeply embedded in the underground, reuniting past forms with present gestures in a release that reaffirms the label’s consistency in quality and commitment to timeless club music.

Afrikanische Meisterwerke der Akustikgitarre, die auf Mississippis beliebter ,African Guitar Box" aufbauen. 1979 und 1980 machte sich ein junger britisch-kenianischer Musiker namens John Low auf den Weg, um von seinen Helden das Fingerstyle-Gitarrenspiel zu lernen. Er reiste durch Kenia, Tansania, Kongo und Sambia, besuchte Stars wie Jean-Bosco Mwenda, Losta Abelo und Emmanuel Mulemena und wohnte manchmal sogar bei ihnen. Außerdem nahm er brillante, aber bisher wenig bekannte Künstler wie Francis Kitime aus Tansania und Mtonga Wanganangu aus Kenia auf. Unabhängig von ihrem Status ging John jedem Künstler demütig wie ein Schüler entgegen. Er nahm in Häusern, auf Dorfplätzen und an Wasserstellen auf. Die Sessions sind intim und ungezwungen, die Künstler fühlen sich wohl. Johns Kassettendeck nahm einige der größten Künstler des Kontinents auf, zusammen mit dem Klang von Gelächter, spielenden Kindern und klirrenden Gläsern. Fünf Jahrzehnte später bieten diese Bänder einen seltenen Einblick, wie Fingerstyle-Gitarre außerhalb der angespannten Atmosphäre kommerzieller Studios tatsächlich klang. Einige dieser Songs erschienen auf John Storm Roberts' vergriffenen Original Music-Compilations (die Mississippi stark inspirierten). Andere wurden nie öffentlich zugänglich gemacht. Alle wurden von Andrew Walter (Honest Jon's, Abbey Road) fachmännisch restauriert und von den Originalbändern remastert. John Low liefert Notizen und Songtexte, und der tansanische Musikwissenschaftler John Kitime gibt die Perspektive der Musiker wieder. Lizenziert von John Low und den Künstlern, gepresst auf hochwertigem Vinyl bei Smashed Plastic in Chicago.

180g Heavy double vinyl LP with liner notes by Tyran Grillo. Limited Japanese Obi for the first pressing. Original artwork by Russell Mills and photography by Jean-Baptiste Mondino.

The third Time Capsule is a body of dub reinterpretations by celebrated producer Bill Laswell of Ethiopian singer Gigi. Curated by Tokyo record collector, music researcher and seasoned reissue supervisor Ken Hidaka, it is the first time Illuminated Audio is pressed to vinyl after its CD release in 2003.

Ejigayehu Shibabaw was born in 1974 in Chagni, northwestern Ethiopia and by pursuing a career as a singer, went against her father’s strict, traditional gender roles. As Gigi, she embraced the same musical freedom she had strived for in her personal life, incorporating the Ethiopian church, funk, hip-hop, West and South African music into her work. She first settled in Nairobi, then Addis Ababa, where she quickly established herself as one of the city’s leading singers. A move to San Francisco in 1998 led to a long and fruitful creative partnership with bassist and producer Bill Laswell.

Around the same time, Chris Blackwell had stepped away from Island Records to start the art house film company and label Palm Pictures. He took an interest in Gigi and together with Laswell, pulled together an all-star cast of musicians for her self-titled US debut album, including Herbie Hancock, Pharoah Sanders and Wayne Shorter. It won international critical acclaim, not just for its musicianship but for making Gigi a “defining voice for the Ethiopian expatriate community”, as journalist Tyran Grillo praises in his Time Capsule liner notes. From the nation-defining 1896 victory over Italian invaders to the quiet revolutionaries who wear simple shemma garments, Grillo believes the themes in Gigi make it “a shower of sunlight on her homeland for those ignorant of its struggles.”

After its success, Blackwell encouraged them to go back into the studio to rethink the album and Illuminated Audio was born. “Anyone can make a voice sound worldly”, Grillo remarks, “but rare are those who can make one sound inner-worldly.” Gigi was clear with Laswell to give her vocals a minor role “because it’s already been done.” Instead her Amharic verse is fleeting, exhaling through the textures like ghostly fragments; soaring yet muted. Yet the album is still titled under her name, an assertion by Laswell of her central role in the album’s creation. Not only was it a fully endorsed project by Gigi, but she would be present throughout its development, giving feedback on half-finished ideas as Laswell played them back in the studio. “It works perfectly”, she reflected after the album’s release. “We wanted to capture the whole spirit of each track, and Bill’s remixes create a different music language that really puts you in a pleasant place”.

This new vocabulary takes its lead from a technical approach that Laswell had been perfecting during a furtive creative period at the turn of the millennium. Much like his ambient interpretations of Miles Davis (Panthalassa, 1998), Bob Marley (Dreams of Freedom, 1997), and Carlos Santana (Divine Light, 2001), Laswell approached Illuminated Audio by returning to the original multitrack masters. Gigi wasn’t just reworked, but recomposed into an expansive lattice of instruments, submerged in a watery ambience of dub and trance undercurrents.

Sonically, this new language that Gigi refers to, is manifested by the original album’s more understated parts being pushed to the fore. Explaining his contrasting methods, Laswell saw Gigi as being “put together in a way that fits”. Contrastingly, in Illuminated Audio, “a lot of things that I featured in the remix weren’t as audible in the original.” Instrumentation laying near-dormant, deep in the mix, are brought to the fore: the acid rock guitar and Wayne Shorter’s saxophone on ‘Tew Ante Sew’, Graham Haynes’ flugelhorn on ‘Nafekeñ’, Laswell’s bass on ‘Kahn’, the melodica in Mengedegna or the floating synths and talking drums in ‘Gud Fella’.

Brought to his attention by mentor DJ Nori, Hidaka describes Illuminated Audio as a “masterful sonic exploration into ethereal ambience and dub” and made sure this reissue also contained a full remaster to give its “deep musicality” much better dynamics and density in the overall sound. Hidaka admits that Laswell's music “is sometimes so out-there, it is often misunderstood” and, indeed, to dub album non-believers this might seem like a prolific producer imposing himself on another artist’s work; eternally developing rearrangements that never quite get to its destination. But that’s missing its true power and triumph. This is more than the reissue of a remix, but “a wholly unique musical entity”, as Hidaka describes. Illuminated Audio refers to the illuminated manuscripts that comprise the major part of Ethiopian art and its new compositions stand in proud solitude as a rare body of reworks that both informs and enhances their originals.

New Supa Killer Boogie Funk album of Funk Lab "Natural Feeling"

Repress.

Step into a journey through time with Lapa Dula's debut album "Agua", proudly presented by the Early Sounds team. “Agua” is a sonic and aesthetic collage, a tribute to the sounds and memories of Naples and its surroundings in the vibrant cultural and social scene of the mid 1980s, not just a reflection of producer’s Alessandro La Padula childhood memories, but also a nod to the myths and legends of Partenope. Written between Rome and Naples and co-produced by label head Pellegrino, "Agua" is the latest addition to the imprint’s distinctive "Mediterranean sound" blending funk, Latin, world music, and disco, with songs like the balearic title track "Agua" and the nostalgic ode to rural life "Sibilla", also inspired by the myth of the Sibyl of Cumae, this album takes you on a journey of emotions and experiences.

From vernacular "Scemanfu", a fun play on the French expression "je m'en fous" (I don't care), to the contemplative "Navigante", dedicated to those who have found solace in the sea or in the virtual world, and the final track "Baibai", inspired by the adventurous and licentious affairs of English nobleman Sir Nathaniel Thorold, who lived on the island of Capri, each song tells a story and adds a piece to this mosaic of sounds, images, and places.

The Nu’rons were a family group consisting of two sets of brothers and cousins, the four young men in question being brothers Daryl Howard and Raymond Gibson (Daryl’s mother registered him under his father’s surname of Howard and Raymond under her maiden name of Gibson) together with Otho Bateman and Charles Bateman. They were all born and raised in Salem, New Jersey and from the age of ten and eleven began singing with a fifth member and Gibson brother Rudolph as a group called The Gospel 5. They eventually decided to crossover to secular music and as a group known for their energetic dance routines they came up with the new performing name of ‘The Nu’rons’ (taken from the word ‘Neuron’ which is a cell that transmits nerve impulses). However Rudolph was soon to leave the group due to physical illness. Also Daryl Howard and Charles Bateman had also been part of a working group known as The Devotions prior to becoming The Nu-Ron’s.Following hours of practice The Nu’rons eventually felt confident enough to put their own shows together and began to perform at local dances and parties around New Jersey and Philadelphia, often being used as a non-paid warm up act for bigger named artists. They moved between several different managers including Jimmy Bishop (Duo Dynamic Productions) until they came under the tutelage of WDAS radio DJ Georgie Woods (his wife Gilda, being the owner of the Philadelphia Gil, Dion and Top & Bottom record Labels). It was Georgie who introduced them to Manny Campbell who in turn invited them to an audition at his and partner Charles Bowen’s Emandolynn Music studio in Chester P.A. The song The Nu’rons chose to audition with was the self penned “I’m A Loner”, the audition went well, as during late January/early February of 1970 Manny and Charles took The Nu’rons into the Sigma Sound Studio’s with Tom Bell and the TSOP musicians to record “I’m A Loner” and “All My Life” which was released on the Nu-Ron label in April of the same year. The two studio takes presente don this release came short after the band moved on from the collaboration with producer Emanuel Campbell to take music matters in their own hands. Beside recording "Disco Hustle" to be part of the disco boom in Philly of the times, they recorded also “You Came Thru”, a rough yet beautiful heavy bassline driven soul funk recording, and the just amazing “Hurry Up Tomorrow”, here presented in one of the original Studio takes.

On 6th October, multi BRIT-nominated DJ/producer Joel Corry releases his debut album, ‘Another Friday Night’ via Asylum / Atlantic Records, with the pre-order going live on the 18th August.

To be released on both vinyl & CD, as well as via streaming/download, ‘Another Friday Night’ is a collection of Joel’s most iconic records of the last five years, including breakthrough hit ‘Sorry’, ‘Lonely’, multi-platinum UK #1 single ‘Head & Heart’ ft. MNEK, ‘BED’ w/ RAYE & David Guetta, ‘OUT OUT’ w/ Jax Jones, Charli XCX & Saweetie, plus fresh 2023 cuts like ‘Dance Around It’ with Caity Baser and the anthemic ‘0800 HEAVEN’ with Nathan Dawe & Ella Henderson, ‘Another Friday Night’ toasts a remarkable run of releases that’s seen Joel become one of the UK’s biggest and most impactful dance acts.

“My debut album ‘Another Friday Night’ is the biggest moment of my life”, says Joel Corry. “Everything I have dreamed about and worked so hard for has come together with the release of this record. It has been an incredible journey and I am so proud to have reached this moment in my career. I want the songs to make people feel good and bring happiness to their days, and the album includes everyone’s favourite bangers from over the years, as well as some really exciting new material. This is the ultimate Joel Corry playlist, perfect for Another Friday Night.”

Ahead of the release of ‘Another Friday Night’ on October 6th, Joel has also announced a special headline show at London’s Ministry Of Sound on Friday 29th September – his first London headline date since playing at former 5000-cap venue, Printworks, in autumn 2021.

Fans who pre-order ‘Another Friday Night’ will be granted early pre-sale access to tickets on August 24th, before general sale opens on August 25th

Jorge Ben’s 1963 debut, Samba Esquema Novo, introduced his infectious blend of bossa nova and samba, propelled by the timeless Mas Que Nada and Chove Chuva. While his later sound leaned more into rock and Afro-Brazilian rhythms, this album bursts with swirling melodies, rich harmonies, and big-band energy, all anchored by Ben’s distinctive, minor-key guitar work. A vibrant, era-defining classic.