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Dub Shepherds are back with their 4th album, more accomplished than ever. Thanks to the experience they have accumulated in the BAT Records studio, they offer a multi-faceted album worthy of their talent.

The amphibian song revival begins here! This classic of both biological fieldwork and natural sound recordings, compiled and narrated by renowned herpetologist Charles M Bogert, was originally released by Folkways in 1958, and presents sounds of 57 species of frogs and toads (remastered from the original tapes) that were recorded in swamps, lakes, woods, creeks, and roadside ditches all over North America Listen to the bewitching tones of the Pig Frog, Dwarf Mexican Treefrog, Little Green Toad, Southwestern Woodhouse's Toad, Great Basin Spadefoot, and other unsung heroes of the bog creek. In a time when frog and toad populations are in rapid decline, this recording reminds us of the remarkable diversity and beautiful sounds we are in danger of losing.

Limitierte Jubiläumsausgabe des zeitlosen und einflussreichen Indie-Pop-Klassikers von Belle & Sebastian, der der Band einen Brit-Award als Bester Newcomer 1999 einbrachte. Das transparent-hellblaue Vinyl im Gatefold ist dem Original-Werbeposter und T-Shirt von 1998 nachempfunden und kommt mit einem exklusiven Kunstdruck mit Behind-The-Scenes-Fotos aus dem damaligen Promovideo zum Album, aufgenommen von Bandmitglied Sarah Martin. 'The Boy With The Arab Strap' erreichte #12 der britischen Albumcharts, der NME wählte den Titeltrack im Jahr 2011 unter die '150 besten Tracks der letzten 15 Jahre'.

Bad Wolves refuse to follow. Instead, the platinum-certified Los Angeles band — John Boecklin drums, Daniel 'DL' Laskiewicz lead vocals, Doc Coyle [lead guitar, backing vocals] and Kyle Konkiel [bass, backing vocals] — circumvent convention by stretching the boundaries of hard rock with earthquaking heaviness, enigmatic experimentation and enthralling melodies. Bulldozing boundaries is nothing new for the boys and their upcoming album, 'Die About It, maintains that narrative. With a story that emphasises the sarcastic statement pointed towards those defending their own beliefs into absurdity, wrong or right, Bad Wolves believe that if you're gonna cry about it then you might as well Die About It,

Das Quartett aus Iowa bringt das Publikum mit einem Doppelschlag aus treibenden Metal-Grooves und beeindruckenden Melodien zusammen. Mit mehreren Millionen Streams und positiver Resonanz von Revolver, Guitar World, Loudwire und vielen anderen, festigt die Gruppe auf ihrem zweiten Album "This Is It… The End Of Everything" via Spinefarm eine unzerbrechliche Bindung zu ihren Hörern. Für dieses Album arbeitete die Band mit dem Produzenten Kile Odell (Motionless In White, Nita Strauss) zusammen.

Saul kamen 2017 aus dem Mittleren Westen und bahnten sich unermüdlich einen Weg an die Spitze des modernen Rock. Sie traten an der Seite von Motionless In White, Atreyu, August Burns Red, Crown The Empire, Bush, 10 Years, HELLYEAH und Nonpoint auf und zierten die Bühnen von Festivals wie Rebel Rock, Rock Fest, Rock USA, Inkcarceration und Blue Ridge Rock Fest mit Rob Zombie, Mudvayne und Slipknot. Mit Brother", einer Hommage an den verstorbenen Bruder Caleb der Mitbegründer, landete die Gruppe einen echten Hit. Es war ihr erster Nummer-1-Hit auf Sirius/XM Octane und erreichte über 9 Millionen Spotify-Streams und ebnete den Weg für ihr Debütalbum Rise As Equals, das 2020 erscheint.

Nach dem gefeierten Debütalbum "Wie Du - Hommage an meinen Vater" (bisher 29 Wochen in den deutschen Albumcharts) verneigt sich Art Garfunkel jr. nun mit seinem zweiten Longplayer vor weiteren
internationalen Klassikern und Welthits. Der Albumtitel ist Programm, denn auf EVERGREEN lässt er die große musikalische Ära der 1960er Jahre wieder aufleben. Vier Songs singt Art jr. sogar im Duett mit seinem berühmten Vater, der mit Simon & Garfunkel und als Solokünstler Musikgeschichte geschrieben hat. "Mein neues Album ist eine Art Klassentreffen der Lieblingsmelodien meines Vaters, die er schon immer gehört hat und mit denen ich auch aufgewachsen bin.", verrät der in New York geborene Sänger seine Intention.

Das neue Album von Laura Pausini heißt " Anime Parallele " und erscheint fünf Jahre nach ihrem letzten Studioalbum "FATTI SENTIRE" von 2018. Fünf Jahre der Vorfreude haben Laura eine Welttournee, ein Biopic, einen Golden Globe und eine Oscar-Nominierung sowie zahlreiche Auszeichnungen beschert, bis 2023 das Jahr ihres Comebacks ansteht. 30 Jahre einer unglaublichen Karriere, die mit einem rekordverdächtigen 24-Stunden-Live-Marathon, drei besonderen Auftritten in New York, Madrid und Mailand und der kürzlichen Nominierung zur LATIN RECORDING ACADEMY PERSON OF THE YEAR 2023 gefeiert wird. "An dem Tag, an dem ich das ganze Album zum ersten Mal hörte, ging mein Verstand in einem Augenblick von Null auf Tausend, besonders als ich den ersten Track hörte, der diesen neuen Weg eröffnen wird. Alles ist bereit, ich bin bereit, ich kann es kaum erwarten, dich mit in diese neue Welt zu nehmen! Ich warte nur auf dich!" Anime Parallele zelebriert die Individuen, indem es die Geschichte des Einzelnen durch verschiedene Erfahrungen erzählt. Ein echtes Konzeptalbum, das die Geschichten verschiedener Menschen erzählt, darunter Laura, deren Traum es ist, in einer Welt zu leben, die Orte, aber nicht unbedingt Ideen teilt und in der Respekt und Liebe vorherrschen. Die Veröffentlichung des neuen Albums ist ein Vorgriff auf Lauras Welttournee 2023/2024, die im Dezember in Italien beginnt und die Künstlerin anschließend in die renommiertesten Arenen Europas, Lateinamerikas und der Vereinigten Staaten führen wird.

Otto Klemperer hat die Zauberflöte mit ihrer symbolischen Dramatik in gewohnter Noblesse gestaltet und wird dabei von einer herausragenden Besetzung unterstützt. Gundula Janowitz singt die Pamina mit erhabener Schönheit, und die junge Lucia Popp brilliert in der Rolle der Königin der Nacht, die sie berühmt gemacht hat.

Nun erscheint diese legendäre Aufnahme aus dem Jahre 1964 als 3LP-Set. "Nicht zuletzt verlangt diese wunderbare Mischung aus Erhabenem und Menschlichem von allen Musikern das Beste... Diese Ausgabe ist besonders denjenigen zu empfehlen, die das Geheimnis und die Erhabenheit der Zauberflöte suchen".

Gramophone "So perfekt gesungen und gespielt wie in dieser Aufnahme wird die Zauberflöte zum Meisterwerk." Neue Zürcher Zeitung

Das Boot ist ein erfolgreicher deutscher Kriegsfilm unter der Regie von Wolfgang Petersen, in dem Jürgen Prochnow, Herbert Grönemeyer und Klaus Wennemann die Hauptrollen spielen. Der Original-Soundtrack, komponiert von Klaus Doldinger, wird nun erstmals als 1LP auf farbigen Vinyl (Crystal Clear) aufgelegt und
erscheint am 03.11..

Der Film erhielt sehr positive Kritiken und wurde für sechs Oscars nominiert, wobei zwei dieser Nominierungen (für die beste Regie und das beste adaptierte Drehbuch) an Petersen selbst gingen; außerdem war er für einen BAFTA Award und einen DGA Award nominiert.

Der Soundtrack zum Film wurde von Klaus Doldinger komponiert und produziert, der für seine Arbeit im Jazz und als Filmmusikkomponist bekannt ist. Die charakteristische Titelmelodie des Soundtracks
verselbständigte sich, nachdem die deutsche Rave-Gruppe U96 1991 eine neu abgemischte "Techno-Version" geschaffen hatte. Die Titelmelodie "Das Boot" wurde später zu einem internationalen Hit.

Extra Muros - Czech Republic is the result of the fourth edition of FLEE's creative residency program which took place in December 2022 on the dance floor of Prague's most infamous nightclub Ankali.

For two weeks on wooden floor, and under a yellow-tinted skylight, the room usually filled with movement and vibrations became home to six musicians and producers from the Czech Republic and all over the world who came together to experiment on new sounds, inspired by a large variety of artistic environments and soundscapes.
Documenting from various perspectives the music production process, capturing those exchanges, this compilation celebrates a unique form of artistic expression and collaboration.

LP

Extra Muros - Czech Republic is the result of the fourth edition of FLEE's creative residency program which took place in December 2022 on the dance floor of Prague's most infamous nightclub Ankali.

For two weeks on wooden floor, and under a yellow-tinted skylight, the room usually filled with movement and vibrations became home to six musicians and producers from the Czech Republic and all over the world who came together to experiment on new sounds, inspired by a large variety of artistic environments and soundscapes.
Documenting from various perspectives the music production process, capturing those exchanges, this compilation celebrates a unique form of artistic expression and collaboration.

Breezy headwinds, orange-tinged skies, hazy, serene bliss – just some of the profound feelings to be had on the latest release from Oath, a masterclass in melody and mood from one of the finest ever to do…..

Italian producer and DJ Jacy remains one of the stand-out musical characters from a dazzling ensemble of atmosphere builders who were so prevalent during the late 80s and early 90s. His craftsmanship is simply legendary, his music quite simply some of the finest to exude from this period of time, and of which is still making waves in the collective sands now. His dedication to the creation of emotive sweeps, gorgeous rippling tones and easy going, freeing atmospheres has remained a cornerstone of his sound, from the early days through to his excellent work on his imprint Home of House, along with sublime releases on Kalahari Oyster Cult and Hot Haus Recs. Jacy’s sound was broadcast to the world once again via Safe Trip’s ‘Welcome To Paradise’ compilations, where his inclusions were something that lingered long in the memory – an essential component of what is known as the ‘Dream House’ sound. It’s difficult to convey into words exactly how a Jacy record can take the listener, but perhaps it’s different for everyone – one thing can be agreed on though, it’s an experience like no other.

‘Night Fantasy’ is Jacy’s first EP in 4 years, and much like his other records, this one blesses us with warmth, delight and joy, in the softest and most subtle of manners. The title track, which opens up the record, greets the listener with a familiar drum pattern, one which then gives way to the rock-hard bass line, and then the pads arrive. Heavenly angelic in form, their presence is complimented by the arrival of the breathy vocal sample, which evolves to provide a wondrous narrative with the cascading synth line that comes soon after. As a combination its intoxicating, with the breakdown giving us time to get to know this mixture very well, indeed, before powering home with excellence. ‘Just Change’ comes on next, and this one opens up with that classic and explicitly dreamy chord sequence we all know and cherish, with Jacy allowing us to soak up this goodness before shifting the perspective to the rhythm. The interplay that occurs here between keys and drums is something different, before everything transitions into a sequence to close your eyes too. ‘Dat Tape’ shifts perspective to more of a swing in terms of the groove, with sweeping background pads doing much to tug at the heartstrings. The vocal sample is so very effective at crafting an audial narrative, inviting the listener to swim deeper into the goodness, with the subtle transitions doing much to keep things ticking over. Finally, we have ‘Come On’, and this one keeps a spacious feel between the keys and the drums, and it works ever so well. The bass line occupies the bottom ends superbly, with interchanges in chords and some ever-so-familiar vocal samples thrown into the mix – and its simply wonderful.

To convey deep set feelings is to have faith in musical dexterity, to understand the grooves in the record, to follow instinct and trust in the process and precedent. Jacy has always found the sweet spot in his music by following this approach, it seems, and this new record of his is an accumulation of a lifetime of dedication and passion to music and all of its many flavors. Soaring, effective melodic undulations and rapturous, fluctuating rhythms, coupled with atmospheres to drift into – what more could you wish for? Lets get lost within it once again….

Toupaz is a new name on our radar but he'll stay firmly on it after this release on forward-thinking London label, Well Street. The EP kick-starts with a fusion of techno, bass and club rhythms spliced with brilliantly bubbly toms & synths that fall down the face of broken beats. The flip side explores a new take on UK funky with whirring machines and fractured vocals, whilst the closer 'Maudlin Lakitu' features the most experimental and skeletal rhythms of the project.

Elissa Suckdog returns with an anthemic two-tracker on her DOG-imprint.

“Azazel” is the second vinyl release of this year and the EP debut from Priorato (MX), with some interesting and outstanding remixes by Colossio, Ludviq, and Chinosynth. This vinyl release will offer a diverse range of remixes, each bringing its own interpretation and style to the original track "Azazel".

A1. Led by Rubén Torres, a DJ and producer from Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua, focusing on indie dance and techno, the original track for "Azazel" is characterized by a solid bass sequence, hypnotic vocals, and a blend of electronic and organic elements.

The song creates an enigmatic and immersive atmosphere, gradually building a powerful and addictive groove, it offers a musical experience that transports listeners to a trance-like state, inducing feelings of euphoria and escapism.

A2. For the first remix we have the honor to have again on board Colossio, he’s also known as one of Mexico's most talented producers, with previous releases on labels like Duro, Calypso, and Exit Strategy. His remix of "Azazel" is expected to bring a mix of high energy and darkness to the track, showcasing his signature style.

B1. Originally from Guadalajara, Mexico but now based in Barcelona, Spain, Head honcho Ludviq, delivers a remix that promises to be energetic, groovy and psychedelic, incorporating unconventional percussions and sounds recorded from the city chaos and nature calmness environments.

B2. Based in Culiacán, Mexico, Chinosynth's remix aims to infuse a human touch into the track by incorporating analog sounds from studio instruments such as guitars, bass, and synths, while maintaining a dance floor-oriented vibe.

Una epopeya electro-techno-cyberpunk es la nueva aventura que nos propone la referencia 18 de HC Records, donde alta tecnologia, radiaciones gamma e incursiones en la matriz se entremezclan con los futuristas ritmos rotos del artista andaluz C-System bajo su
encarnación Spectrums Data Forces.

Hackeamos los códigos de acceso del sistema del ritmo que nos permiten escuchar los primeros sonidos del track que da nombre al Ep, X-Tremely Deeply, una secuencia tan épica, como obsesiva e hipnótica, aderezada y reforzada por un inteligente uso de arpegios
ácidos y etéreos pads. A modo de reflejo en el hielo, el segundo corte de la cara A excita nuestra glándula pineal guiándonos en el lisérgico remix firmado por el artista inglés Featherstone. Herrumbre, óxido, procesos mecanizados y propulsiones de pura energía se
alternan en formato rítmico en Sector 90, primer track de la cara B, que combina en industrial armonía electro y techno fusionando primitivos y contundentes ritmos rotos con oscuras y abisales secuencias melódicas cargadas del primigenio espíritu trance.


El track B2 titulado Viny, nombre del gato del productor, sigue la senda de melodías densas y reconfortantes, como el ronroneo de un felino, sin perder un ápice de dinámica y emoción. El último tramo del surco de vinilo corresponde al remix elaborado por el músico Ampler
Clap a Viny, que redirige la composición hacia parajes sonoros misteriosos y casi terroríficos dignos de un Slasher de los 80´s o un futurista Giallo.

Como es habitual los bonus track en formato digital cierran la experiencia sonora en esta decimoctava referencia, por un lado 36th que aborda una oscura espiral electro saturada por siniestras secuencias sobre un huracán de metálicos y demoledores ritmos rotos. Y por otro Raw Rat, composición que parte de un minimalista ritmo inicial que crece y evoluciona en cada uno de sus ciclos como en el nacimiento y expansión de un cuásar. De nuevo dentro del apartado gráfico encontramos un encomiable cuidado y mimo por el
detalle, dirigido por Daniel Requeni y a su vez los videos elaborados por Frank-F dotan de una quinta dimensión al concepto artístico global. El master como es habitual corresponde a Steve Voidloss en Black Monolith Studios en Londres (UK).

Well, we're two full months into 2017 and the world continues to burn like an avalanche of flaming biohazard material sliding down a mountain of used needles into a canyon full of rat feces. But hey, it's not all bad: Portugal. The Man has a new album coming out called Woodstock.


PTM's last album came out over three years ago—a long gap for a band who've dropped roughly an album a year since 2006. And in true, prolific band fashion, they've spent almost every minute since 2013 working on an album called Gloomin + Doomin. They created a shit-ton of individual songs, but as a whole, none of them hung together in a way that felt right. Then John Gourley, PTM's lead singer, made a trip home to Wasilla, Alaska, (Home of Portugal. The Man's biggest fan, Sarah Palin) and two things happened that completely changed the album's trajectory.

First, John got some parental tough love from his old man, who called John on the proverbial carpet or dogsled or whatever you put people on when you want to yell at them in Alaska. What's taking so long to finish the album' John's dad said. Isn't that what bands do Write songs and then put them out' Like fathers and unlicensed therapists tend to do, John's dad cut him deep. The whole thing started John thinking about why the band seemed to be stuck on a musical elliptical machine from hell and, more importantly, about how to get off of it.

Second, fate stuck its wiener in John's ear again when he found his dad's ticket stub from the original 1969 Woodstock music festival. It seems like a small thing, but talking to his dad about Woodstock '69 knocked something loose in John's head. He realized that, in the same tradition of bands from that era, Portugal. The Man needed to speak out about the world crumbling around them. With these two ideas converging, the band made a seemingly bat-shit-crazy decision: they took all of the work they had done for the three years prior and they threw it out.

It wasn't easy and there was the constant threat that the band's record label might have them killed, but the totally insane decision paid off. With new, full-on, musical boners, the band went back to the studio—working with John Hill (In The Mountain In The Cloud), Danger Mouse (Evil Friends), Mike D (Everything Cool), and longtime collaborator Casey Bates (The one consistent producer since the first record). In this new-found creative territory, the album that became Woodstock rolled out naturally from there.

Remember that mountain of burning needles we were talking about Good. Because Woodstock is an album (Including the new single Feel It Still') that—with optimism and heart—points at the giant pile and says, Hey, this pile is fucked up!' And if you think that pile is fucked up too, you owe it to yourself—hell, to all of us—to get out there and do something about it.

Originally released in 2012 following unprecedented changes in the music industry, Mourning in America and Dreaming in Color found Brother Ali reborn and rejuvenated. Teaming up with famed platinum-selling producer Jake One (Drake, J. Cole, Wiz Khalifa, MF DOOM), Brother Ali was prepared to tell the American story from a very different viewpoint. Inspired by his first trip to Mecca, the 2011 uprisings in the Middle East, and the Occupy movements that were building steam worldwide, Ali linked with Jake One during a two-month sabbatical in Seattle to create this brave new phase in his remarkable discography. The album presented a scathingly honest critique of America and its many flaws while simultaneously presenting a hopeful outlook for the future and its possibilities. At a time when many felt powerless against an overreaching government with all its militarist and corporate interests, Mourning In America and Dreaming In Color provided the voice of a critical American consciousness, as well as a beacon of hope for those that hold fast to its ideals and potential. In honor of its 10th anniversary, we've pressed this limited edition 2xLP vinyl offering with redesigned packaging and layout that features a custom-built slash case with an illustrated flag, a full-color jacket housing tri-color red/white/blue galaxy effect vinyl, printed record sleeves and a 4-panel lyric booklet.

Vladislav Delay presents the fourth EP in his "Hide Behind The Silence" series with five 10" releases coming throughout 2023. Intuitive and raw music, momentary and reflective, released on Ripatti's own label "Rajaton".

Stillness is a myth. Consider concepts such as ”still water”, or ”still air” for that matter. Go to a restaurant, ask them for a glass of still water, hold it against the light and see where we’re at. Even though the water itself has been captured and imprisoned in the glass, it never stops breathing. It’s filled with tiny particles, dancing. Everything can be explained on a molecular level, but since we’re not scientists – and even if you happen to be – it’s the natural world of perception that moves me.

Still air is very similar. A hot summer’s day with zero wind feels completely still. It’s the closest I have felt to complete stillness. Or for a more urban adaptation, imagine the same vibe inside a normal apartment. In those moments, revelations and mind- blowing experiences can be had with experiments in stillness.
Try this: Just sit down for a minute on a sunny day, making sure there’s enough natural light. Do absolutely nothing. Try not to breathe for a bit. (If you need a mental anchor, you can play Cage’s 4’33” in your head but nothing else.) Watch the tiny dots of dust dancing :..’ ̈.:; ́ ́*°.,’:,. ̈ ̈ ̈ ̈:,.’
The movement is crazy, but the feeling of stillness comes from witnessing how subtle it is. In (perceived) complete stillness, every act of microscopic mobility seems to speak volumes. Yet, it feels both reassuring and oddly threatening that the stillness is never complete. What if we would need absolute stillness? Or is it just enough that we can perceive something as such? Extremes attract, so for both water and air, extraordinary movement is equally fascinating. That is also a luxury item of sorts. For us to enjoy a very ”loud” body of water or air, we need to be safe, in enough control of the situation. So when you are, it’s worthwhile to pay attention and take it all in.
A rapid flowing free with extreme strength and just barely in control. Look at that water go! No still water on this one, only ”sparkling”. A windy day when birds seem surprised how hard it is to fly, but in the end they make it. Trees bend but don’t break. The wind shows you its movement but doesn’t hurt you. It feels friendly, like a big clumsy dog that doesn’t quite understand its size.
It’s beautiful to be a guest of the elements, but not at the mercy of them. A new kind of dialogue forms.

Q&A with Sasu Ripatti:

1) Tell us something about the EP series ”Hide Behind the Silence”, what’s the idea and what can we expect?

Exploration of inaction. Of many kinds. In arts and in personal life, or at bigger and more serious levels. Questioning myself as a human being as well as an artist. Acknowledging the growing activism all around, and the very clear need for it, and how it reflects my own inaction.
Musically speaking, after Rakka, Isoviha and Speed Demon, I finally found some relief, but more importantly lost the need to go musically ever more outward and intensive. I felt quite strongly certain periods/moods from the past and they made me revisit some musical ideas or states of mind I was exploring early on.
It’s about live moments being captured, not much premeditation or editing. More intuitive and raw, even though the end result (to me) feels and sounds quite introspective and calm. It’s not very ambitious. Momentary and reflective.

2) Your music doesn’t sound very silent. Does it come from somewhere behind the silence?

Oh, this time to me it sounds quite quiet and playing with space if not silence. I don’t know what’s actually behind silence, but I think silence is the source of everything. We just don’t understand it yet.

3) What kind of thoughts or experiences gave inspiration to this series?

Writing this in Nov ’22, it’s not a stretch to say the world has been really unwell. Sometimes, like Mika Vainio put it, the world eats you up. I feel a bit like that. And I try to hide in my studio and stay away from it all, but it’s getting harder by the day. I’ve been questioning myself and thinking if what us artists are doing is worth anything, and whether it’s just a selfish thing I’ve been doing for the past 25 years, running away from everything. I haven’t come to a conclusion yet.

4) Is it easy for you to be in silence, or around silence?

Absolutely. I not only hide behind silence but I also love silence. It’s only since I started going back to nature as a grown-up person that I sensed and was enveloped by silence, true silence. I have begun to appreciate it a lot. I think all the people should spend more time in silence.

All tracks composed and produced by Sasu Ripatti.
Artwork by Marc Hohmann, photography by Shinnosuke Yoshimori.
Mastering by Stephan Mathieu for Schwebung Mastering.
Vinyl cut by SST Brueggemann.
Publishing by WARP Music Ltd.

Taking its name from the campaign of the same name launched to
prevent sexual assault in the UK, the material on forthcoming debut
album Ask For Angela variously reflects on the band's collective
experience growing up in the South Wales Valleys, and explores the
myriad lived experiences of young women
Exploring infighting within the feminist movement, the oppression of trans rights
in the UK, violence against women, and other weighty but hugely important topics,
the trio ultimately invite the listener to a place of safety and empowerment with
their inclusive music.

Repress!

First ever reissue of "A la memoria del muerto" (1972), Fruko y sus Tesos' second album, featuring the soaring and soulful vocals of Cali native Edulfamid Molina Díaz, aka "Píper Pimienta". Produced by Fruko's uncle Mario "Pachanga" Rincón, the LP has an uncompromisingly stark, hard sound that is appealing to today's collectors of 'salsa brava' just as it was impactful on the Colombian scene when it was made. Unlike the first Tesos album, with a two-trumpet line-up and fairly simple arrangements, this more mature recording added another trumpet and two trombones for a more robust brass attack. Additionally, instead of basic salsa, there are many different rhythms - guaguancó, bomba, plena, oriza, bolero, cha-cha-chá, descarga and Latin soul. Includes the bonus track 'Tihuanaco' (a cover of Peruvian pianist Alfredito Linares), which appeared on the US edition of the LP. Presented in facsimile artwork and pressed on 180g vinyl.

Repress!

In the mid-1970s, a force of nature swept across the continental United States, cutting across all strata of race and class, rooting in our minds, our homes, our culture. It wasn’t The Exorcist, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, or even bell-bottoms, but instead a book called The Secret Life of Plants. The work of occultist/former OSS agent Peter Tompkins and former CIA agent/dowsing enthusiast Christopher Bird, the books shot up the bestseller charts and spread like kudzu across the landscape, becoming a phenomenon. Seemingly overnight, the indoor plant business was in full bloom and photosynthetic eukaryotes of every genus were hanging off walls, lording over bookshelves, and basking on sunny window ledges. The science behind Secret Life was specious: plants can hear our prayers, they’re lie detectors, they’re telepathic, able to predict natural disasters and receive signals from distant galaxies. But that didn’t stop millions from buying and nurturing their new plants.

Perhaps the craziest claim of the book was that plants also dug music. And whether you purchased a snake plant, asparagus fern, peace lily, or what have you from Mother Earth on Melrose Avenue in Los Angeles (or bought a Simmons mattress from Sears), you also took home Plantasia, an album recorded especially for them. Subtitled “warm earth music for plants…and the people that love them,” it was full of bucolic, charming, stoner-friendly, decidedly unscientific tunes enacted on the new-fangled device called the Moog. Plants date back from the dawn of time, but apparently they loved the Moog, never mind that the synthesizer had been on the market for just a few years. Most of all, the plants loved the ditties made by composer Mort Garson.

Few characters in early electronic music can be both fearless pioneers and cheesy trend-chasers, but Garson embraced both extremes, and has been unheralded as a result. When one writer rhetorically asked: “How was Garson’s music so ubiquitous while the man remained so under the radar?” the answer was simple. Well before Brian Eno did it, Garson was making discreet music, both the man and his music as inconspicuous as a Chlorophytumcomosum. Julliard-educated and active as a session player in the post-war era, Garson wrote lounge hits, scored plush arrangements for Doris Day, and garlanded weeping countrypolitan strings around Glen Campbell’s “By the Time I Get to Phoenix.” He could render the Beatles and Simon & Garfunkel alike into easy listening and also dreamed up his own ditties. “An idear” as Garson himself would drawl it out. “I live with it, I walk it, I sing it.”

But as his daughter Day Darmet recalls: “When my dad found the synthesizer, he realized he didn’t want to do pop music anymore.” Garson encountered Robert Moog and his new device at the Audio Engineering Society’s West Coast convention in 1967 and immediately began tinkering with the device. With the Moog, those idears could be transformed. “He constantly had a song he was humming,” Darmet says. “At the table he was constantly tapping.” Which is to say that Mort pulled his melodies out of thin air, just like any household plant would.

The Plantae kingdom grew to its height by 1976, from DC Comics’ mossy superhero Swamp Thing to Stevie Wonder’s own herbal meditation, Journey Through the Secret Life of Plants. Nefarious manifestations of human-plant interaction also abounded, be it the grotesque pods in Invasion of the Body Snatchers or the pothead paranoia of the US Government spraying Mexican marijuana fields with the herbicide paraquat (which led to the rise in homegrown pot by the 1980s). And then there’s the warm, leafy embrace of Plantasia itself.

“My mom had a lot of plants,” Darmet says. “She didn’t believe in organized religion, she believed the earth was the best thing in the whole world. Whatever created us was incredible.” And she also knew when her husband had a good song, shouting from another room when she heard him humming a good idear. Novel as it might seem, Plantasia is simply full of good tunes.

Garson may have given the album away to new plant and bed owners, but a decade later a new generation could hear his music in another surreptitious way. Millions of kids bought The Legend of Zelda for their Nintendo Entertainment System back in 1986 and one distinct 8-bit tune bears more than a passing resemblance to album highlight “Concerto for Philodendron and Pothos.” Garson was never properly credited for it, but he nevertheless subliminally slipped into a new generations’ head, helping kids and plants alike grow.

Hearing Plantasia in the 21st century, it seems less an ode to our photosynthesizing friends by Garson and more an homage to his wife, the one with the green thumb that made everything flower around him. “My dad would be totally pleased to know that people are really interested in this music that had no popularity at the time,” Darmet says of Plantasia’snew renaissance. “He would be fascinated by the fact that people are finally understanding and appreciating this part of his musical career that he got no admiration for back then.” Garson seems to be everywhere again, even if he’s not really noticed, just like a houseplant.

Run-D.M.C. leaves no doubt about its intent on King of Rock. The New York trio's hard-hitting sophomore album begins with a statement of purpose ("Rock the House") that serves as a stereophonic primer for the title track, a hybrid warning-anthem-theme song that swarms with justified boasts, heavy metal riffs, booming beats, cowbell accents, and dance-worthy grooves. The back-to-back tunes set the tone for a 1985 record that largely established the blueprint for the hip-hop that would follow for the next two decades – and which helped make rap a mainstream currency via the previously off-limits channels of radio, TV, and the national stage. "It's not Michael Jackson/And this is not Thriller," the group broadcasts early on in the record. Truer words – and music recorded with such honesty, pride, rawness, and integrity – have seldom been committed to tape.

Artist and multi-instrumentalist Flaer looks to the landscape to explore pastoral melancholy on debut release, Preludes.

Ensconced in his family home in rural Leicestershire in the early months of 2020, painter and musician Realf Heygate (b. 1994) picked up his childhood cello for the first time in several years and began to play. Setting himself parameters to only record onto 4-track tape with acoustic instruments – cello, piano and acoustic guitar – he assembled a suite of instrumental compositions that form the basis of Preludes, his debut album as Flaer and the inaugural release on Odda Recordings.

Channelling the tension and unease between the pastoral idyll of the English countryside and the darkness which lurks beneath the surface, the mini-album draws inspiration from the analogue aesthetic of 1970s folk horror films, weaving field recordings of birdsong, church bells and the natural environment into chimerical melodies that reflect on Heygate’s childhood experiences of rural England.

“It was really important not to isolate the sound from its environment,” he explains, describing the compositional and recording process as “site-specific”. Developed over a series of intuitive musical enquiries, the mini-album’s uncanny quality emerges from combining raw demo takes with overdubs of almost orchestral grandeur.

Heygate points to the final track as indicative of the work as a whole: “‘Follow’ really is the mantra for the release and embodies the practical approach I was taking to music making: not to force the music but see where it takes you.”

As a painter, Heygate’s practice takes artefacts through sequences of reproduction that embrace the fluctuating materiality of the copy. Since obtaining a degree in Fine Art from Central Saint Martins in 2017, he has exhibited solo at Peter von Kant and Springseason galleries in London, and has participated in group shows at Saatchi Gallery, Cob Gallery and Senesi Contemporanea.

Describing his artistic practice as one of self-erasure, music instead provides Heygate with a more personal and autobiographical outlet. Where the two worlds combine is on Preludes’ striking artwork, which features paintings of 13th century stone carvings from the font of the church in the town where he grew up.

Speaking to a time where people were connected to the land in a more profound way, each symbol is assigned to a track on the album, which Heygate likens to giving them a title.

“To add that one juxtaposition might open a whole new interpretation or language that might be hard to find otherwise,” he explains.“Over time it might reveal itself to you, which is why I'm excited about it being released. To throw them out there and see what comes of it.”

Chyskyyrai, whose real name is Valentina Romanova, comes from Yakutia (Republic of Sakha), the northernmost republic of Siberia.

She sings in a variety of traditional vocal techniques, drawing on folk songs, animal imitation but most of all on the ancient mythological epic Olonkho, which has a multitude of archaic delivery styles. Olonkho performance is a traveling one-man theatre and a solo improvisation. Traditionally, the Olonkho storytellers, olonkhosuts, travelled from community to community, tribe to tribe, and performed the same function as a shaman. Mostly they were regarded as spiritual guides, teachers and keepers of cultural values. Their performances could last for several days, and were not just entertainment but also the way of teaching that people are not separate from nature and attuned them to it.

The songs presented on this LP capture a period of her life when she met with Tim Hodgkinson (Henry Cow) and Ken Hyder (Talisker) who had been performing together since 1978, and are well-known for their explorations in the field of shamanic cultures and free jazz. Their collaboration with the “Soviet Jazz Federation” goes back many years until finally in 1990, the duo went on an extensive tour in Siberia as “The Shams” during which they also visited Yakutia. Since then they have made numerous trips to Tuva, Altai and Buryatia playing with the local musicians and studying shamanism.

Recorded in Ken Hyder’s basement, early May 2005. Sleeve artwork by Sophie Lécuyer.

Cititrax present two new releases by Cosmetics, a Vancouver-based synth wave duo formed by Nic Emm and Aja Emma in 2008. Cosmetics reappeared in 2022 after having been relatively quiet since its very memorable releases on Captured Tracks in 2010. In 2023, the band returns with a phenomenal full-length LP entitled ‘Baby’ and a 7” single entitled Pillow Talk / Tell Me (Alternate Versions). Their music is sultry, minimalist, and atmospheric, backed by lush analog synths and sparse drum machines. Aja’s seductive vocals cut through the perfectly crafted dark synthpop forming a filmlike narrative that draws us in. The ‘Baby’ LP will have you listening on repeat and the single featuring alternate versions of two songs from the album will bring you from your bedroom listening to the dance floor. Cosmetics continue the lineage of Minimal Wave into the present day.

The Pillow Talk / Tell Me 7” is pressed on black vinyl and presented in a 6-panel fold-over sleeve.

Joe Hisaishi, Japans einflussreichster Komponist für Film und klassische Musik, veröffentlicht A Symphonic Celebration, sein Debüt bei Deutsche Grammophon. Hisaishis Klangschöpfungen wurden zum Synonym für die erfolgreichen Animefilme des oscargekrönten Regisseurs, Animators und Studio-Ghibli-Gründers Hayao Miyazaki.

Schon in den 1980er-Jahren begann ihre kreative Partnerschaft, heute wird sie in einem Atemzug genannt mit legendären Duos wie Hitchcock und Herrmann oder Spielberg und Williams. Nun sind die Studio-Ghibli-Hits in symphonischen Arrangements zu hören, darunter Soundtracks von Chihiros Reise ins Zauberland, Prinzessin Mononoke oder Mein Nachbar Totoro. Hisaishi hat sie in London mit dem Royal Philharmonic Orchestra unter eigener Leitung eingespielt.

Zu Gast sind Grace Davidson, Avi Avital, The Bach Choir und Stephen Morris.

For the third of Sonic Youth's sound experiment series, they teamed up with legendary nosie-nik Jim O'Rourke. Building on the ideas from the brilliant extended version of "The Diamond Sea" (from WASHING MACHINE); the series explores the (mostly) instrumental side of the band. Though sold as an EP, the three tracks on the CD version of clock in at just over 56 minutes, and can sit quite comfortably with any of SY's best work.

The title track opens the record with over 20 minutes of drenching feedback, saxophone tints, and cut-up television dialogue suggesting the soundtrack to a film-noir set in an industrial wasteland. The comparatively short (at 6 minutes) "Hungara Vivo" is the middle track of this extraordinarily strong trio and is the band's first true "ambient" soundscape: even the master himself, Brian Eno, might be a little envious. The closer, "Radio-Amatoroj," is a 29-minute mediation that structurally recalls "Hyperstation" from the seminal DAYDREAM NATION album. Though this record, and indeed the series to which it belongs, is not aimed at fans of the band's more pop-oriented material, as a whole, it is easily the best work they have done in years. All text written in Esperanto. Eye-fucking cover art.

Second release of Berlin-based Shiver records.

DJ Seen takes you through a field of mesmerizing frequencies. The record's A-Side opens up for the waves of relaxation & dream. The title track Hypnotique lushes you into a continuous state of trance-induced easiness emphasised by a plain repeating chant.

Adam Collins’ remix takes you into a bubbling dreamworld underlined by a soft acid bed and a heavy deep neverending blanket of warmth.

The B-Side performs a natural switch, activating the brainwaves & inducing a woke state while trying to understand the sudden synth-explosions hailing through the tribalistic grooves of Bandicoot.

The trip ends with a burst of Insight at 6 am. A hymn to the frequencies of dance before it all settles down again.

Following on from the Primal Scream frontman’s brilliantly-received previous release for Ace, ‘Sunday Mornin’ Comin’ Down’ (accolades included being short-listed for Rough Trade’s compilation of the year), Bobby Gillespie brings us another slice of the music that soundtracks his life. And in this case, it’s his touring life. Drawing on the experience of ‘the way that the noise and clamour of the road can tire you out, wear you down and frazzle your nerves to shattered fragments of jangled exhaustion’, these are the records Bobby turns to for solace, for comfort, for empathy and for resourcefulness.

The compilation features an introduction from the man himself, talking us through his personal choices as though he’s sitting cross-legged on the carpet going through records with you in his lounge. Also long-time cohort of the band, Kris Needs has written extensive liner-notes, serving up an intensive track by track insight and analysis.

Titled after and kicking off with the Willie Nelson track of the same name, ‘I Still Can’t Believe You’re Gone’ leads us through a darker and deeper exploration than its predecessor, featuring Nick Cave’s funereal version of ‘By The Time I Get To Phoenix’ and Ry Cooder’s sparse and beautiful reworking of ‘Dark End Of The Street’. And we get there via such greats as Bob Dylan, JJ Cale, Donnie Fritts, Crazy Horse, Lee Hazlewood, Al Green, Thin Lizzy and so many more.

In Bobby’s own words: ‘These songs are soul savers to soothe frayed and battered nerves and to ease and settle the heart. They work on me like medicine every time. I would like to share this wonderful music that has given me strength, joy and inspiration over the years with you the listener, so that you too might get the same feelings of protection and inspiration that I do whenever I listen to these songs. We're all travellers on some kind of road through this life, and we all need respite from time-to-time - the music on this compilation is soul food of the highest order - I hope you enjoy it.’.

Alex Wilcox drops an expansive eight-tracker for his debut on bbbbbb recors, ‘BANG BANG BANG!’

Alex is a distinctive and quirky DJ/producer and live artist whose unique take on electronic music has welcomed curiosity and intrigue from a wealth of leading talents within techno, electro and leftfield territories.

Fusing his own brand of eclectic club music with a self-described style of DJ sets that come as a ‘genre-less, chaotic whirlwind’, it’s no surprise that his next adventure finds a perfect home on Bjarki’s bbbbbb recors - a label known for entrancing, idiosyncratic future-focused output without limitations from distinctive talents across the globe.

“When I first approached Alex about releasing on bbbbbb, he reminded me, "I sent you those tracks years ago”. I regret overlooking them. That mistake won't happen again. I'm thrilled to include him in the bbbbbb narrative. His music exudes a punk essence and undeniable quality. Alex also has a playful side, which is refreshing. I've grown weary of the prevailing scene. The stereotypical, intense techno DJs are resurfacing, making it even more special to have Alex as part of our label's fresh lineup. His sound aligns seamlessly with the likes of Skrattar, Volruptus, and other artists, solidifying his place within our collective.” - Bjarki.

Entering into the bbbbbb universe stacked with an unconventional eight-track selection of chaotic, fun-fulled and eccentric records built for the dancefloor, through to sonics that could soundtrack even the most unhinged and peculiar of scenarios and situations, Wilcox’s ‘BANG BANG BANG!’ is an exhilarating, endorphin-induced, helter-skelter rush through styles and sounds - showcasing an oddball trip into his mind and welcoming a fun-filled yet impactful selection of productions undeniably at home on the label. As always with bbbbbb, expect the unexpected and enjoy the ride.

Alex Wilcox ‘BANG BANG BANG!’ drops via bbbbbb records on 27th October 2023.

NYC experimental producer Neud Photo is up next on EYA's LONEWOLF series with a killer 5 tracker named 'Echoes.

The EP brilliantly oscillates between various inspirations with a strong machine sound; an incredible and hauting journey into electro,new beat, minimal and techno.

The 45rpm double disc Audiophile Analog Collection features a variety of recordings from the world of movies, blues, percussion ensembles, world music and jazz. This is part of a special series of compilations of analog audiophile recordings at their best, with emphasis on execution and great sound.

The 2xHD Fusion Mastering System is an innovation in audio restoration for a virtual audio reality. In the constant evolution of its proprietary mastering process, 2xHD has progressed to a new phase called 2xHD Fusion, integrating the finest state-of-the-art analogue Nagra-T tape recorder modified with high-end tube playback technology, wired with OCC silver cable for better transparency and 3D imaging. 2xHD Vinyl are sourced from first generation analogue recordings without any digital corruption. The cutting is done at Bernie Grundman Mastering Lab on tube cutting equipment.

The visionary French musician stays true, in this third compendium too, to his path of planetary asceticism. A new treasure chest of secrets reveals to us the same spirituality of total experimentation, by balancing the universe and the inner soul. In Taste The Fullness Of Life Ariel builds his symphonic pillars toward the cosmos, eternal architectures that always smell of Indian fragrances. The music always communicates a state of full grace, spreading balms of bliss. An unprecedented whispered narrating voice, evident especially in Spiritual Chanson D'Esprit, is embellished with textures of harmonic bells, tropical flutes, spacey harmoniums and drones of mystical light. In the recordings of Going Inward, also made on the occasion of a Tantric workshop, Kalma oscillates between tribal electronic dances, metalic almost industrial rhythms, but then always falls back in a comfort zone made of desert carpets of synths and baths of sound (gong/bells). Harmonica Galactica crowns interestellar dreams with unscrupulous drum-machine gears and pulsing saxes, superb use of VCS3 with arabesque and Schulzian overtones, and suave touches of fingerpicking guitar with freak vibes typical of psych-folk.

Folk Magic Band represents one of the most interesting and original, yet lesser-known experiences of the italian jazz scene of the 1970s. In the legendary alternative environment of the Folk Studio in Rome, an open 18-members lineup is inspired by the free jazz of its time, a music that encompasses the whole world and its polychromy of sound. The echo seems to resonate the pan-ethnic motifs of Don Cherry and his Organic Music Society, but also the spiritual jazz of Pharoas Sanders and the orchestrations of the Sun Ra Arkestra. The textures chase a chinese melody, ignite with african scents and south american jungles, flow into fusion violin drifts a la Archie Shepp's Attic Blues or Mingus-like orchestral sections. The fascination of this collective affair still strikes for its playful and ironic nature, still impressing for its strength and willingness to open and influence new directions.

Debut album from The Goa Express, led by Clarkey alongside his brother Joe and best friends Joey, Naham and Sam They met as young teenagers in Burnley - growing up in the rural shadow of England's industrial north, music was a means of escape and a vessel for friendship. Their shared adolescent experiences shaped their collective attitudes and behaviours and, ultimately, the sound and spirit of their band. 6music playlists and Radio 1 support has followed along with a heavy touring scheduleeoAgCwAgA&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

Wide Mouth Mason's debut album is available on vinyl for the first time
ever
Released in 1997 on Warner Music, the album compiled re-recordings of a selfreleased album, The Nazarene and new compositions. The new album would be
the band's eponymous major-label debut; it was released in 1997 in Canada and
the U.S., and a year later in Japan. It established the group's fusion of pop/rock/
blues, and yielded the hit singles "Midnight Rain", "My Old Self", and "This
Mourning". The album went Gold in Canada and the band was nominated for Best
New Group at the 1998 Juno Awards.

In the 1950s and 60s, the blues was the dominant form of Black vernacular music throughout Texas and the surrounding areas In segregated neighborhoods, community members gathered in saloons, dancehalls, and each other's homes to hear their neighbors sing their stories of sorrow, heartbreak, jubilation, and triumph. Robert "Mack" McCormick, an academically untrained but fanatical devotee of the blues, stepped into this world and became one of its most devout advocates and documentarians. By photographing Black and Latino Texans and their neighborhoods, as well as recording and interviewing musicians, many of whom never stepped foot into a proper recording studio, McCormick endeared and eventually embedded himself into these communities. By the time he died in 2015, McCormick had amassed a collection of 590 reels of sound recordings and 165 boxes of manuscripts, original interviews and research notes, thousands of photographs and negatives, playbills, and posters. Because McCormick never published or released most of these materials, his collection became a thing of legend and intense speculation among scholars, blues aficionados, and musicians alike. 'Playing for the Man at the Door..' is the first compilation of music drawn from this fabled collection, which indelibly documents a pivotal moment in African American history. It features never- before- heard performances not only from musicians who became icons in their own right, including Lightnin' Hopkins and Mance Lipscomb, but also, crucially, performers whose names may be unfamiliar to even the most devoted blues fans and scholars. Newly mastered recordings and accompanying photographs bring to life many of these forgotten figures: offering insight into their lives and illuminating in new, enlightening ways their joys and anguish, deep social connections, distinctive voices, and cultural networks. The collection spans gospel, ragtime, country blues dirges, the unclassifiable music of George "Bongo Joe" Coleman, and more, showing that no community, no matter how tight knit, is monolithic. Accompanying the music is a 128- page book, which contains breathtaking photographs by McCormick and his associates, as well as contextual essays by producers Jeff Place and John Troutman on McCormick's life, and by musicians Mark Puryear and Dom Flemons on some of the marginalized communities throughout "Greater Texas" to which McCormick devoted his life's work.