Cerca:no joy

People Of Earth strides into the New Year with a new project called The Elements Series. Part one welcomes some serious names, not least Detroit's ambient and techno master John Beltran who kicks off with 'Nuyorico' a joyous, chord-laced house groove laden with organic percussion. Javonntte's 'Tropical Feelings' is another of his textbook deep house cuts with whispered vocals bringing a spiritual vibe. Atlanta's main man Kai Alce does his do with the jazzy synth energy of shuffling house cut 'Benefit' (NDATL instrumental mix) then Byron The Aquarius pairs things back to dusty drums and humid chords on 'Sun Gods'. This one is only for the real heads.

We Release JAZZ is so happy to announce the fourth Bruno Spoerri release in the WRWTFWW discography, this time focusing on the Swiss legend’s unheard jazz catalogue. The pristine 6-track album Musiques Légères (1976-1982) is available as a limited edition half speed mastered biovinyl LP housed in a heavy 350gsm sleeve with superb design by Nicolas Eigenheer and the classic WRJ obi.

Swiss jazz and electronic music pioneer Bruno Spoerri unveils a treasure trove of never-before-released songs in this rare archival collection recorded between 1976 and 1982 that includes collaborations with the fabled Radio Suisse Romande-backed music ensemble GIR (Groupe Instrumental Romand) which featured the crème de la crème of Helvetic forward thinking musicians with an international reputation. The super team of instrumentalists / composers represented Swiss national radio in endeavors that spanned a vast array of music genres such a jazz, pop, experimental music, or what they referred to as “musiques légères” (light music), their very own brand of jazz and funk infused easy listening. One notable member of GIR was drummer extraordinaire Stuff Combe that We Release JAZZ collectors will know from his Stuff Combe 5 + Percussion LP.

Musique Légères (1976-1982) offers a marvelous blend of easy listening jazz, joyful synth improvisations, and soulful funk ballads, a testament to Bruno Spoerri’s multifaceted talents and ability to approach various genres while keeping his very personal and very magical touch. Among the hidden gems on the carefully curated collection is the immensely catchy "Prince Karl", an undeniable hit that truly deserves to be heard.

This is the fourth Bruno Spoerri release from WRWTFWW, following the synth heavy and galactic Voice of Taurus and The Sound of the UFOs, and the compilation of unreleased experimental tracks Rare & Unreleased 1971-1998.
Musiques Légères (1976-1982) is pressed on biovinyl, a sustainable alternative to traditional vinyl. Biovinyl replaces petroleum in S-PVC by recycling used cooking oil or industrial waste gases, resulting in 100% CO2 savings in bio-based S-PVC production. Furthermore, it is 100% recyclable and reusable, embracing the circular economy ideology.

Clear Vinyl

Blue Lake is the musical moniker of American born, Copenhagen based multidisciplinary artist and musician Jason Dungan, who signs to the Tonal Union imprint for the release of his new longform album ‘Sun Arcs’. It follows 2022’s release ‘Stikling’, earning a nomination for ‘Album of the Year’ at the Danish Music Awards plus warm praise from The Hum blog and musicians and DJs alike including Jack Rollo (Time is Away/NTS) and Carla dal Forno. A self taught player, Dungan began freely experimenting with self-built multi-string instruments, preferring to build his own hybrid 48-string zither and working in the realms of left-field ambient music, off kilter folk and improvised acoustic minimalism.

The starting point of ‘Sun Arcs’ saw Jason travel for a week alone to Andersabo, a cabin set in the idyllic Swedish woods just outside of Unnaryd, known also as the music project, festival and residency space which has been run by Dungan since 2016, hosting artists like Sofie Birch, Johan Carøe and Ellen Arkbro. Whilst writing 1-2 pieces per day, a conscious decision was made to leave behind everyday distractions and shut out the outside world to instead focus on the natural passage of time as Dungan recalls: “My only sense of time came from these daily walks out in the woods with my dog, and an awareness of the sun’s path as it moved across the sky each day.”

The album’s immersive world unfolds with the opener ‘Dallas’, an ode to his home state and a musical synthesis of these two disparate spaces (Texas and Denmark), the touchstones of Dungan’s life. A folk-esque single acoustic builds to a flowing arrangement of clarinets, organ and cello drones coupled with percussion. ‘Green-Yellow Field’ chimes in as the first of two solo oriented zither recordings twinned with the dreamlike title track ‘Sun Arcs’, both densely rich as cascading and overlapping harmonic tones resound. ‘Bloom’ emerges with a krautrock psyche before an eruption of cello drones, slide guitar and free-ranging zither playing, ushering in the anticipation of spring. With half of the recordings conceived in Andersabo, Jason returned to Copenhagen to form the album's centre piece ‘Rain Cycle’ which features a tempered Roland drum machine alongside shifting zither improvisations. ‘Writing’ explores the shimmering harp-like qualities of sweeping playing figurations with Dungan mapping out adjusted tuning “zones” on the zither for unconventional but creatively liberating effects. ‘Fur’ captures the feeling of openness and the momentum of time, seeing Dungan perform waves of solo clarinet, often in one takes and embellished with textural drones, a zither solo, and layers of guitar. ‘Wavelength’ the album's closer is fondly inspired by the film works of Michael Snow and Don Cherry’s seminal live album ‘Blue Lake’ (1974), as it builds out from a drone-generated zither chord and features an alto recorder solo. Dungan found a deep connection to Cherry’s stripped back performance ethos, focusing on the core beauty of minimal instrumentation creating a genre-less meeting between folk and jazz. A dialogue is formed between the solo and the bandlike performances, interlinked in a geographical duality with all finding a sense of commonplace as musical sketches of visited landscapes. The bountiful instrumentation ebbs and flows as further layers emerge with Dungan constructing his material much like an artist would, recording and reviewing, adding and subtracting.

Musically it portrays a form of double life led by an American-identifying person living in Scandinavia, and a new found presence in Denmark, seeking out underdeveloped marshlands and barren stretches of beach adrift from other rhythms and distractions. Highlighting their individual and potent importance Dungan concludes: “Both places feel like “me”, I think on some level the music is always some kind of self-portrait.” ‘Sun Arcs’ depicts the intricate balance of nature’s cycles and the paths outlined by the seasons, from a winter dormancy to a warm sun drenched scene. The album scales new glorying heights and further defines Dungan’s musical narrative, inhabiting a unique space in left-field, improvised and experimental music, borning his most accomplished compositions to date. A singular and visionary expression, drawing on an array of instruments and sound worlds with a renewed sense of joy and discovery.

The album's rich tapestry was mixed by Jeff Zeigler (Laraaji, Mary Lattimore, Kurt Vile /Steve Gunn) and mastered by Stephan Mathieu (Kali Malone, KMRU, Félicia Atkinson).

Tony Boninsegna: Notes From The Underground 1986-1994 (Volumes 1 and 2) Cold Blow / Musique Pour La Danse

The story of dance music is littered with hidden heroes and underground activists whose immense contributions have been overlooked, ignored and under-documented. Tony Boninsegna, a producer who made and released countless classic cuts and forgotten gems during the acid house and rave era, is one such example.

Melding elements of all that was popular in underground clubs at the time to create his own dancefloor-friendly sound worlds, Boninsegna amassed a huge catalogue between 1986 and '94, while hiding his involvement via an array of oddball aliases and opaque pseudonyms. Boninsegna's story first came to light four years ago when he appeared in Join The Future: Bleep Techno and the Birth of British Bass Music, Matt Anniss's critically acclaimed alternative history of UK dance music in the rave era. Now Cold Blow has joined forces with Musique Pour La Danse to deliver a much-needed anthology of his greatest productions and
co-productions - many rare or hard-to-find - for the first time.
Featuring 24 restored and remastered tracks stretched across two volumes on vinyl and digital, including a handful of previously unreleased tracks and mixes, and accompanied by detailed sleeve notes by Anniss, Notes From The Underground 1986-1994 is a joyful celebration of one of British dance music's most under-appreciated artists. The full breadth and depth of Boninsegna's rave-ready catalogue, as well as an indication of
the sheer volume of aliases he utilised during the period, is explored in detail across the two-part compilation.

Fittingly, volume one features two previously unreleased recordings that mark his earliest explorations of the emerging house sound (both as The Rhythm Squad, with Richard Compton), alongside touchstone releases such as Zeco's 'The Witch Trials' (a 1989 production that marked his first outing on vinyl), celebrated workouts recorded with regular collaborator Mykey Tee (Lab Technicians' bleep-inspired 'We Gave U Life', Big Showdown's epic 'They're Here' and AEK's mind-mangling, bleep & breaks number 'Lick It'), and genuinely overlooked gems (the proto-tribal house of Pierrepoint's acid-smothered 'Tonnerre' and saucer-eyed rush of Estudiantes' 'Let The Music Into Your Mind').

It all adds up to the definitive musical retrospective of a genuine underground, rave-era hero whose time in the spotlight may finally have arrived.

This is a reissue of Sea Power"s Mercury Prize nominated Do You Like Rock Music? album. The album will be expanded for this 15th anniversary reissue with radio sessions and B-sides and extensive new sleeve notes (see attached). The album will be released on CD, Double LP (Ltd. Ed. Picture Disc) & digitally. The limited-edition LP will be housed in gatefold glow in the dark sleeve with orange vinyl & a picture disc, plus extensive new sleeve notes written by Roy Wilkinson. This kaleidoscopic record encapsulates Sea Power"s true heart. "Easy, easy..." Only Sea Power could turn a football chant into art... with ease. From this bounding refrain of "No Lucifer", via the serenity of "Waving Flags", the balm-like "No Need To Cry" and the joyous "Trip Out", 2008 album Do You Like Rock Music? reflects the band"s ability to find glacial beauty in the commonplace, making soul-stirring epiphanies an everyday occurrences.

The acclaimed Cleveland-born saxophonist Joe Lovano came to Blue Note Records in 1990 and over the next 25 years became one of the most recorded artists in the label’s history, building a formidable and far-ranging catalog that explored the full breadth of his artistry. Recorded in September 1997, Trio Fascination: Edition One stands out as one of the more remarkable sessions in Lovano’s discography with the saxophonist joining forces with two all-time legends—bassist Dave Holland and drummer Elvin Jones—in a spare trio setting that finds these three masters conversing freely. Throughout Lovano can be heard on tenor, soprano, alto, and straight alto saxophones, as well as alto clarinet, and the set consists of nine creative Lovano originals including the pulsing opener “New York Fascination,” the spacious “Sanctuary Park,” the Sam Rivers tribute “Studio Rivbea,” and a stunning rendition of the lone standard “Ghost of a Chance.” This Tone Poet Vinyl Edition marks the album’s first-ever release on vinyl.

The Tone Poet Audiophile Vinyl Reissue Series was born out of Blue Note President Don Was’ admiration for the exceptional audiophile Blue Note LP reissues presented by Music Matters. Was brought Joe Harley, a.k.a. the “Tone Poet,” on board to curate and supervise a series of reissues from the Blue Note family of labels.

Extreme attention to detail has been paid to getting these right in every conceivable way, from the jacket graphics and printing quality to superior LP mastering (direct from the master tapes) by Kevin Gray to superb 180g audiophile LP pressings by Record Technology Inc. Every aspect of these Tone Poet releases is done to the highest possible standard. It means that you will never find a superior version. This is IT.

This stereo Tone Poet Vinyl Edition was produced by Joe Harley, mastered by Kevin Gray (Cohearent Audio) from the original analog master tapes, pressed on 180g vinyl at Record Technology Inc. (RTI), and packaged in a deluxe gatefold tip-on jacket.

Six years after the group's suicide on stage at the Olympia, Masto and Fanfan (sax and vocals) reunite to compile 25 tracks taken from cassette recordings of their concerts between 1984 and 1989.

Performing in squats, neighbourhood houses and major concert halls across Europe, in sometimes chaotic conditions but always with a crazy atmosphere, "Carnaval des agités" bears witness to the joyous mayhem and raging energy that was the Bérurier Noir odyssey.

Now available for the first time on vinyl (gatefold sleeve, two discs, split red and black finish), with 4 bonus tracks from the 1995 promo maxi-single.

Ein bahnbrechendes Album aus dem Jahr 1975, das mehr als dazu beigetragen hat, den Reggae einem neuen internationalen Publikum nahezubringen. Der Titeltrack ist auch heute noch eine der ikonischen 70er Reggae-Hymnen und das gesamte Album ist randvoll mit Roots-Reggae-Klassikern. Aufgenommen bei Channel One, Randy's & Harry J's und gemischt auf Treasure Isle.
Black Star Liner hat bei seiner Veröffentlichung die Messlatte für Roots-Reggae-Musik sehr hoch gelegt, und die Zeit hat nichts an seiner Majestät eingebüßt.

Fabled jazz-rock group Soft Machine present this heartfelt tribute to one of the greats of British jazz - trumpeter Harry Beckett - covering his stunning “The Dew at Dawn” on this limited edition 7” vinyl, with a cover of a classic Softs tune on the B side.

This is the second 7” in My Only Desire Records’ Brit Jazz 45s series, which sees some of their favourite contemporary jazz acts each making brand new studio recordings of two classic compositions from the golden era of ‘60s and ‘70s British jazz.

Now led by guitar master John Etheridge, an original Soft Machine member since the mid-‘70s and Canterbury scene veteran saxophonist Theo Travis, the band has undergone some recent lineup changes with bassist Fred Thelonious Baker (a former Harry Beckett bandmate) joining for 2023’s ‘Other Doors’ album. This is also the first recording with drummer Asaf Sirkis, who has replaced the late British jazz legend John Marshall.

Etheridge and Travis’ unique arrangement has upped the tempo of the “The Dew at Dawn” (originally released on Ogun Records in 1975) pushing the Caribbean-infused groove to the fore. Beckett’s joyful theme - first played on Etheridge’s guitar and then picked up by Travis’ mesmeric soprano saxophone - evokes the sun rising over the misty Hackney marshes and the hope of a better future. The track is underpinned by Baker’s nimble bass guitar and Sirkis’ scattering drums, with Etheridge’s superb soloing honed over a stellar five-decade career.

4th Press - 600 copies only

It didn't take long for Błoto to become a thing, shrouded by underground secrecy. First, there was the gig during Spring Break 2019 in Poznań where the Blue Note club was packed to the brim. That event gave momentum to 4 more performances in Warsaw and Wrocław, with no music released at that time. Then, the first pressing of the vinyl was sold out within 24 hours without any single nor cover revealed.

The word about Błoto has spread, increasingly gaining ground, reaching Japan, where the album will also be available on CD. No one expected such a turn of events. In fact, neither did the band itself; after all, Błoto came to being accidentally, yet naturally, like a puddle after a rainy day.

It all started in the summer of 2018 when EABS was touring and the band had a day off. As they were approaching Tricity, people were getting off and eventually there were only four musicians. An evening off, a well-tuned rhythm section on the road, harmonious as can be, and a great deal of creative potential within the members of Błoto band forming at that very moment stirred up common enthusiasm. The album was created without much deliberation, stemming from the need of the heart and the joy of making music together. As a result, 90 minutes of music was recorded of which about 40 made it to “Erozje”.

The music is deeply rooted in brutal hip-hop grooves, referring to the sound of 90’s New York. Dirty and uncompromising, this music’s strength lies in the drums and bass as its sound refers to classics such as Wu-Tang Clan and Company Flow. Radical in a sense, it also captures the atmosphere of the times in which it is created. The times of the planet on the verge of disaster, distinct social divisions, hate speech, growing nationalism, police brutality, nepotism, and various political deals. All this is happening before our eyes. The soil of the world as we know it is eroding right now.

- 'Take Her Up To Monto' is the follow up to Ro´isi´n's critically acclaimed Mercury Prize nominated album 'Hairless Toys' and is billed as her most daring and creative yet.
- Never an artist to stand still, 'Monto' features everything Murphy has always done but seen afresh, boasting disco fancy, dark cabaret, the sonorities of classic house and electronica and the joy and heartbreak of pure pop drama resulting in her most magnificent song structures so far.
- The follow on from Roisin's Mercury Prize nominated 'Hairless Toys' album last year, Ro´isi´n is at her most creative peak yet.
- Released on embossed CD / double LP with digital download .

'“Nobody Move!”, so says Philippe Doray and his Asociaux Associés (the Antisocial Associates)! Having dynamited the end of the 70s with two radical albums – Ramasse-Miettes Nucléaires in 1976 & Nouveaux Modes Industriels in 1978, both reissued by Souffle Continu – Doray still hadn’t finished singing. Throughout the next decade he began his Composant compositeur which would document the “second period”, as he calls it, of his Asociaux Associés.

The record includes new schizo-electro songs which make the most of his association with Laurence Garcette, who also plays all sorts of keyboards. A prolongation of the first period of the Asociaux Associés, the duo updates Doray’s poetry: in reaction to the current overcast atmosphere, here are some hallucinatory fantasies to the rhythm of an infernal circle dance (« Le petit géant ») or an ecstatic waltz (“Bombés fluo”) or even coded messages stuffed into bottles and thrown into space (“Secoue le flipeur”, “Choc d’amour”).

On the bonus CD there are further iconoclastic examples: rare recordings (unpublished or even “inaudible”) of the Asociaux Associés but also by Crash, a duo that Doray formed with Thierry Müller (Ilitch, Ruth). At the controls of their experiment- bending machine the musicians multiply the possibilities: peripheral rock, arias in orbit, broken swing, industrial mantras and other joyful falsities. Enough to make you lose your mind? No... as Philippe Doray promised: it is the “jackpot qui frissonne” (the shivering jackpot) which is there to excite.'

Finnogun’s Wake is the delightful portmanteau of a band fronted by Shogun (vocalist of Royal Headache, and later Shogun and the Sheets) and newcomer Finn Berzin. Decades apart in age but united in tutelage and outlook, they have mitigated the Joycean tome of What To Do Now, and crafted the four debut songs of the Stay Young EP from the inside out, sharing the spotlight for a riveting, deafening smear of melodic pop and buzzsaw guitars.

Mourning the departure of his best mate to a life overseas, Shogun started hanging out with his friend’s younger brother, Finn. The two of them started spending their free time together, one having seen a fair chunk of the world through music, the other just starting to figure it all out. They went through the essential lessons that could be gleaned from Definitely Maybe and Hüsker Dü, Finn got himself a guitar, and the songs simply fell out of both of them, with this initial batch as the result. Shogun sings on “Blue Skies” and “Strawberry Avalanche,” and Finn takes the lead on “So Nice” and “Lovers All,” and while there’s no mistaking Shogun’s striking delivery and fatalistic lyrics, Finn proves himself as a carousing foil, holding his ground like the natural he’s become.

Taking into account the fevered, quick-burning success of Royal Headache, this group is the most likely candidate to do it all again, giving the sense that some people can write bounding guitar leads that stick to you like burrs from the brush, and sing so effortlessly you’re embarrassed and a little mad about how great it all sounds. Backed on these recordings by keyboardist Gabrielle De Giorgio (a longtime collaborator of Shogun’s from back in the Sheets era), bassist Campbell Troy (who was in Shogun’s first hardcore band Nintendo Police back in the mid ‘90s), and DMA’s drummer Liam Hoskins (on some COVID-enforced boredom with no tour-dom), Finn and Shogun stare down a changed world from two very distinct poles, and aim to fill it with glorious songs just like these.

Enigmatic Society is the next offering from the multi-faceted, Grammy-nominated supergroup Dinner Party. Full of opulently intricate instrumentation and a range of sleek R&B to smooth neo-soul vocals, Enigmatic Society is mesmerizing in its entirety.

The album features brilliant performances from the debut Dinner Party crew: Terrace Martin, Robert Glasper, Kamasi Washington and 9th Wonder, with additional help vocalists Phoelix, Arin Ray, Ant Clemons, Tank and producers Sounwave, Hi-Tek and Trevor Lawrence Jr. Enigmatic Society serves as a follow up to the group’s 2020 debut self-titled album and continues as a celebration of Black joy, life, art, and culture, as it pays tribute to the duality that manifests in both the beauty and adversity in Black America. This deep sense of community and family flows throughout the project with the album’s artwork designed by Kamasi Washington’s sister, artist Amani Washington.

What I can say about TORRES is I think the music comes from a convicted place. Not convicted meaning a person is narrowly and foolishly committed to an ideal, or unshakably convinced of themselves, or a zealot, or stubborn. I mean dedicated, I mean: If TORRES' music gets weird, gets brainy, gets funny, gets defiant, provokes, deliberately scandalizes, employs the crass to undermine the austere, courts lofty philosophical truth-it's all done with the conviction of an artist with the (essential) belief in the worth of their task. I think you can hear it in the songs, someone reaching, leaning over the boundary between known and not, probing the almighty. After a decade and six studio albums and however many one-offs and tours and articles read and conversations had, the parts of this pursuit I've been able to observe are all marked by a dedication to creation that treats the act-ongoing-with as much preciousness as the evidence of the act that is left in a record. The modes of being are different: heartbroken, broke, furious (right- and unrighteously), awestruck by love, compelled by desire. sometimes resigned to death, sometimes fascinated by and reverent of the future. Sometimes viscerally present, other times suspended in heady awareness, poised on a fulcrum of observation and participation in the phenomenon that aliveness is. The tools are the same: instruments that growl and shriek and moan, a lyrical voice shouting, swooning, chuckling, snarling as the moment commands. TORRES' music-making is conducted in a melodic vocabulary unique to itself-methods, equipment, circumstances shifting around the impulse to affirm the self within the world, to make art that bears all these little artifacts of the divine and of the real and show it to people and know it is valuable. I think that's what Mackenzie's music does. And I think it's just incredibly good music to listen to. -Julien Baker TORRES is the pseudonym of Mackenzie Scott. She was born January 23, 1991, and lives in Brooklyn, New York, with her wife Jenna, stepson Silas, and puppy Sylvia. She has been releasing albums and performing as TORRES since 2013. What an enormous room is TORRES' sixth studio album (her third with Merge). It was recorded in September and October 2022 at Stadium Heights Sound in Durham, North Carolina. It was engineered by Ryan Pickett, produced by Mackenzie Scott and Sarah Jaffe, mixed by TJ Allen in Bristol, UK, and mastered by Heba Kadry in NYC. The album contains 10 songs. Mackenzie wrote all of them. Sarah played bass guitar, synths, drums, organ, and piano. Mackenzie sang vocals, played guitar, bass, synths, organ, piano, and programmed drums. Additional synth bass, tambourine, and shakers were played by TJ Allen.

What I can say about TORRES is I think the music comes from a convicted place. Not convicted meaning a person is narrowly and foolishly committed to an ideal, or unshakably convinced of themselves, or a zealot, or stubborn. I mean dedicated, I mean: If TORRES' music gets weird, gets brainy, gets funny, gets defiant, provokes, deliberately scandalizes, employs the crass to undermine the austere, courts lofty philosophical truth-it's all done with the conviction of an artist with the (essential) belief in the worth of their task. I think you can hear it in the songs, someone reaching, leaning over the boundary between known and not, probing the almighty. After a decade and six studio albums and however many one-offs and tours and articles read and conversations had, the parts of this pursuit I've been able to observe are all marked by a dedication to creation that treats the act-ongoing-with as much preciousness as the evidence of the act that is left in a record. The modes of being are different: heartbroken, broke, furious (right- and unrighteously), awestruck by love, compelled by desire. sometimes resigned to death, sometimes fascinated by and reverent of the future. Sometimes viscerally present, other times suspended in heady awareness, poised on a fulcrum of observation and participation in the phenomenon that aliveness is. The tools are the same: instruments that growl and shriek and moan, a lyrical voice shouting, swooning, chuckling, snarling as the moment commands. TORRES' music-making is conducted in a melodic vocabulary unique to itself-methods, equipment, circumstances shifting around the impulse to affirm the self within the world, to make art that bears all these little artifacts of the divine and of the real and show it to people and know it is valuable. I think that's what Mackenzie's music does. And I think it's just incredibly good music to listen to. -Julien Baker TORRES is the pseudonym of Mackenzie Scott. She was born January 23, 1991, and lives in Brooklyn, New York, with her wife Jenna, stepson Silas, and puppy Sylvia. She has been releasing albums and performing as TORRES since 2013. What an enormous room is TORRES' sixth studio album (her third with Merge). It was recorded in September and October 2022 at Stadium Heights Sound in Durham, North Carolina. It was engineered by Ryan Pickett, produced by Mackenzie Scott and Sarah Jaffe, mixed by TJ Allen in Bristol, UK, and mastered by Heba Kadry in NYC. The album contains 10 songs. Mackenzie wrote all of them. Sarah played bass guitar, synths, drums, organ, and piano. Mackenzie sang vocals, played guitar, bass, synths, organ, piano, and programmed drums. Additional synth bass, tambourine, and shakers were played by TJ Allen.

Svaneborg Kardyb are Nikolaj Svaneborg – Wurlitzer, Juno, piano and Jonas Kardyb – drums, percussion a multi award winning duo from Denmark, with a fast-rising international reputation and with an NPR Tiny Desk concert – number one on many artist’s wish lists - in the bag before even the release of their Gondwana Records debut album Over Tage last November.



Their beautiful, exquisite compositions draw on Danish folk music and Scandinavian jazz influences, resulting in a joyful melding of beautiful melodies, delicate minimalism, catchy grooves, subtle electronica vibes, Nordic atmospheres and organic interplay. All of this and more shines through on their NPR session, first broadcast in May 2022 on YouTube. But of course, not everyone watches YouTube and so here, remastered for vinyl and download, is a strictly limited to 1500 vinyl, four tracker - At Home (An NPR Tiny Desk Concert) featuring bespoke artwork from Gondwana Records’ Daniel Halsall.



Here is what Kara Frame had to say for NPR, “Svaneborg Kardyb's Tiny Desk (home) concert was recorded in the countryside of Djursland, Denmark. "You have to drive for a while on a gravel road, and then you come to a lovely old house surrounded by hills and a stream on one side and a very flat landscape on the other, where you can see 10 miles away," the band wrote to us, describing the location of the shoot. It's this place that inspired Svaneborg Kardyb's second album, Haven (or "garden" in English). "Haven celebrates places we like to be," the duo said.



The Danish jazz duo is composed of Nikolaj Svaneborg on the Wurlitzer, synthesizer and piano, and Jonas Kardyb on drums and percussion. Their instrumentation set-up is untraditional, with the drums and keys facing each other, a position that they play in on stage just as they do in Kardyb's kitchen and living room here. They open up their set with the title track from Haven, which begins with a quiet melody over an effervescent loop. The sound mimics the shimmy of leaves in the breeze.”

Ajay Saggar is BHAJAN BHOY. Since his debut album was released in June 2020 (“Bless Bless”) he has been receiving critical acclaim for his recorded output and his live shows. His second album “Shanti Shanti Shanti” was initially released on a limited edition cassette in November 2022 on his own Wormer Bros. Records. However, when respected label honchos at Cardinal Fuzz (UK) and Feeding Tube Records (USA) heard it, they insisted that this mighty album deserved a vinyl release. This album is part of a triptych. The other two albums in this series (“To Love Is To Love Vols.1+2”) were released in March 2023 to universal acclaim, with publications such as Mojo and Uncut and the Wire heaping praise on the two albums. "Another fine release by Dutch musician Ajay Saggar. His basic thrust is modern psychedelia, minted from radio snippets, dubby reverb flapping, elegant guitar washing, electronic drones interwoven with flashes of mock jaw harp or sploshy drums, and a generally stoned atmosphere. And the concept is spectrally sound!" (Byron Coley / the Wire magazine...January 2023) The songs on this album are varied stylistically. Combining psych, drones, minimalism, free jazz, electronic music and dub in this work, this is another album's worth of musical joy and wonder for all to enjoy.

Bitchcraft was born in a move from New York City, where Bitch had lived for 15 years, to a log cabin in the woods. There was all the time in the world to make art, and it was there, in the cabin, that Bitch began to write some of the songs that would appear on Bitchcraft. 'It gave me space to think about the biggest version of myself that I could be,' she says of those early days in the cabin. The songs she wrote were a departure from anything she'd ever written before, and she began to craft huge pop tracks with the help of her trusty violin. Then, she moved to LA and Bitchcraft began to shapeshift again. In the time that followed, Bitch assembled a coven to complete it. She called on Anne Preven (Beyonce, Madonna, Demi Lovato) and God-des who helped her crystalize her vision in terms of writing and production. She called on Roma Baran (Laurie Anderson) to produce the violins on 'Polar Bear.' She called on Melissa York (Team Dresch, The Butchies) and Faith Soloway (Transparent) to co-write a couple of the songs. The resulting record is one that is full of glorious pop tracks that go in unexpected directions. Bitchcraft is like Joni Mitchell set to a click track, it's queer Cyndi Lauper. It's neon pink, in your face, ready to hex you with its brilliance. It's an unbelievably fun record that is extremely capable of breaking your heart a little bit. It also makes you think: about the state of the world, about evil politicians, about what it means to exist as a woman, and how to find joy along the way.

Analogical Force is kicking off 2024 with a stellar "all things Electronix" album from well known producer Vertical67 (who also runs the Vortex Traks label)! It's hard not to have heard of Thomas Pahl in the electro underwater depths after multiple appearances over the course of more than a decade and under a ton of aliases. With the illuminating title of 'Changes', Thomas gets rid of corsets and presents an entrancing voyage into post-euphoria, displaying a radiant and emotive side which the artist's new discordant sound emerges. A defiant cry in the face of existential angst. Navigating between breaks, dreamy melodies and reflective landscapes 'Changes' could be defined as a deep introspective journey into the machines. Cop while u can.

Samosa Records quickly follows up the first volume of Afrikano treats with Volume 2; a veritable melting pot of Afro beats and rhythms packed in to an exceptional four tracker.

Kicking the EP off on the A-side is Vincent Galgo and J’ngolo. This hypnotic Afro sizzler takes full advantage of the effortless bass, congo beats, African horns and (subtle) funky guitar. Add the mesmerising chanting and you have a perfect ‘Bunny Chow’ of a tune that will tantalise the tastebuds for a long time after the music has stopped. Second helpings? Why not?

A2 unleashes ‘Zaire’ by the supremely talented Matalo! Dark and broody beats take centre stage with this one, as you’re slowly enveloped in a ritual you never knew you were part of but now you can’t help sway with the rest of the worshippers. ‘Zaire’ is one of those rare tracks that you feel could create fire if you let it. With sweeping synths, tribal chanting and a detached sense of being, this monster lives under your bed and waits for lights out. Beware!

On the B-side Leslie Lello ups the tempo with ‘Alcyone’. Solid, punchy bass, driving guitar and gorgeous piano riff and vocal combine with a synth lead you absolutely need in your life. The track morphs and transforms into a full-on (almost housey) stomper; nailing its tribal colours to the mast with intent. A real beast of a tune.

Closing this superbly diverse EP is label boss De Gama and ‘E.T.A’. You know De Gama doesn’t mess about. You know De Gama wants to hit you with all he has and with ‘E.T.A’ he unleashes his ‘inner Chief. Indigenous beats pound, roll and build up to a Ramkie guitar infused chorus that’s as joyful, uplifting and inspiring as the dawn itself. A genuine, incredible slice of Afrikano from a master of the genre.

Afrikano Vol. 2 proves once again that Samosa Records know this genre like no other label out there. If this isn’t in your record box on release day, then we simply can’t be friends.

Lyra Valenza set the tone for their first full-length album ‘Low Gear No Pressure’ with an idyllic ambience, which then tumbles into feisty, heartfelt dance workouts. Across eight tracks, the Danish duo explore the pixellated euphoria of their previous ‘Scan, Deliver’ and ‘Nightshade Edition’ EPs with a more focused sensitivity. At the start of 2020, Lyra Valenza had been freshly nominated by music platform SHAPE. With the pandemic in hand, however, plans changed: instead of playing a slew of festivals, the duo spent weeks in a summer house in rural Sjælland, right at Denmark’s North Eastern coast, making early versions of the tracks in this album. ‘Low Gear No Pressure’ refers to the unusual calmness of that time, away from music industry stress and burnout; inspired by friendship. More than previous EPs, the album is shaped by the duo’s live set, which they’ve been performing in Denmark and Europe for many years now. The album breezes through different modes with confidence and ease, tracks morphing fluidly into one another to create a cohesive listening experience. A cool, expansive breakbeat on track two, ‘True Computer’, hints at the psychoactive journey to follow. ‘Truthwork’ plays with arps over a half time groove: subtle synths which reach their final form in ‘Joy Divided’. These agile swells and drops recall peers-in-precision Minor Science and 96 Back. On the flip, ‘Gameshow’ looks back over one shoulder to eurodance, while ‘Life on the Line’ goes out to the soulful junglists, but with a touches of trance in the samplework. On ‘Who Might Win’, the album’s ecstatic hyperactiveness melts into a slo-mo heartbeat, reminding us there’s a chillout room somewhere in the building. And just when we think it’s time to go home, the album gifts us with “one more tune”, and the soaring pop vocals of featured artist Saltmother on ‘Stretch Your Arms’.

Trailblazing instrumental synth pop experiments created to soundtrack Japan’s booming 1980s cartoon and comic industries. The brightly futuristic instrumentals on this collection reflect the mindset of composers and musicians who believed in a technological future where everything was possible.

In the late 1980s Japan experienced a brief but heady period where societal changes combined with new-found wealth to open up a world of possibilities. A huge influx of cash - artificially created by slashed interest rates after an agreement with the US to weaken the dollar relative to the yen - resulted in the inflation of real estate and stock market at a rapid pace. While the economic bubble it created was unprecedented and impossible to sustain, for a while money was in plentiful supply.

The musical genre City Pop reflected the aspirations of the country’s booming leisure class. Video games flourished with Nintendo's 1983 launch of their Family Computer (or FamiCom). Studio Ghibli was founded 1985 to later became one of the most famous and respected animation studios in the world, and Anime and Manga were established as major forms of entertainment for all generations of the Japanese public.

Music was no mere footnote to the anime and manga boom: the two forms of media often went hand in hand, and not simply through the presence of background melodies. With generous budgets available, even two-dimensional static manga comics could be released with an accompanying soundtrack of original music known as an ‘Image Album’.

Composer and arranger Kazuhiko Izu was one such beneficiary of this open budget approach. Written to accompany artist Katsuhiro Otomo’s manga comic Domu, the composer and arranger took advantage of the world-leading (and wallet-busting) Japanese synthesiser technology available at King Records’ fully equipped studio. Featured on this compilation, A3: Act 2 Scene 26 reflected the story’s sci fi themes with a blazingly futuristic yet warmly funky slice of synth pop that presents a joyful celebration of synthesisers and their seemingly endless possibilities.

Kan Ogasawara was another composer who made early mastery of the litany of synthesisers, drum machines and sequencers that had become available. Two tracks written to accompany the 1985 period manga Yume No Ishibumi are featured here; Honowo’s experimental electronic textures add spice to a jaunty electro pop melody that recalls the Rah band’s 1983 hit Messages From Stars; the jazz-tinged Utage rounds out Ogasawara’s shimmering synth textures with beautifully crafted backing from legendary musicians Yuji Toriyama (guitar), Pecker (percussion) and Jun Fukamachi (piano).

Before becoming one of the pioneers of Japanese Kankyo Ongaku (Ambient Music), Takashi Kokubo worked on the proto techno track Kiki (Jungle At Night). It was put together for the 1984 anime film Shonen Keniya (Kenya Boy) using some of the most expensive music technologies available at the time. This Africa-Inspired dance track offers a contemporary parallel to the early techno music that young Detroit based producers were then creating using cheap Japanese Roland drum machines and synthesisers.

This is the first compilation of Japanese anime and manga soundtracks curated by Kay Suzuki and Rintaro Sekizuka from Vinyl Delivery Service (a Tokyo based online record shop which also operates in East London's renowned wine and hifi shop Idle Moments). With a cover by artist Kazuki Takakura and two pages of liner notes, this vinyl only compilation of music never before released outside of Japan, captures a vital aural snapshot of an era whose forward-thinking sounds went hand in hand with cutting edge technology.

Colbie Caillat is a master storyteller whose breezy SoCal folk-pop songs laced with a country shimmer speak truth to both the pain of endings and hopefulness of what’s to come when you’re brave enough to follow your wild, wild heart. Along The Way, Caillat’s solo country debut, embodies the positivity in heartbreak’s wake. Though her move to Nashville was done as one-half of a romantic partnership - a personal and professional adventure to the southern city for this west coast girl - she thrived in all of life’s changes. In her musical journey and experimentation with new sounds, Caillat vividly captured a moment in her life through song. The California-raised, Nashville-based girl delivered songs with gratitude for having known this love, learned so many lessons and the joys shared along the way. “The love that you shared shouldn’t be wasted: you help each other grow and become a wiser and more evolved person. We needed to be together to become who we are today, even if we didn’t end up together.” If Joni Mitchell’s quintessential Blue is the deep dive into the caverns of grief following a break-up, Along The Way is a bright, shiny compass Caillat offers to guide people through the tough times and raw feelings that accompany any dissolution. Lover, leaver, left, the woman who’s sung at the Nobel Peace Prize Concert wants to sow compassion for all parties involved.

Released on the Cadet label in 1970, this album’s wondrous mix of spiritual and funky jazz and unique instrumentation defy categorization. Harpist Ashby adds the koto, a 13-stringed Japanese instrument to her arsenal, and her long-time arranger Richard Evans blends flutes, vibraphone, oboe, kalimba and Ashby’s own vocals into a singular and soul-affirming set.
This Verve By Request title is pressed on 180-gram vinyl at Third Man in Detroit.

High Vis were formed in 2016 from the ashes of some of the UK's best hardcore bands. Gild-toothed frontman Graham Sayle's anguished lyrics about life in working class Britain were familiar to fans of Tremors' full-throttle thrash, but alongside his former bandmate Edward `Ski' Harper and veterans of Dirty Money, DiE and The Smear, High Vis sought to transform that energy and intensity into something entirely new.Like scene-mates Chubby and the Gang did by pulling in unlikely source material from classic doo-wop or Micromoon have by combining everything from psychedelia and metal into their high potency mix, High Vis' 2019 debut album, No Sense No Feeling showed the band were never going to be constrained by any sense of genre rules or regulations. Its claustrophobic rattle bore traces of Joy Division, Bauhaus, Crisis, The Cure and Gang Of Four lurking in the shadows. 2020's synth-driven EP, Society Exists, was further evidence of the band's restless creative MO.High Vis' second album Blending sees them open their viewfinder wider than ever before. Alongside longstanding favourites such as Fugazi and Echo and The Bunnymen; Ride and even Flock Of Seagulls were shared reference points as the band worked on the album together.From the anthemic sweep of opener "Talk For Hours", through the title track's psychedelic swirl and "Fever Dream"'s baggy groove, it sees High Vis' sound blossoming into something with an unlimited richness. The hazy drift of "Shame" or the melodic jangle of "Trauma Bonds" may take them until uncharted waters, but they still have all the power and bite that made No Sense No Feeling so remarkable.Lyrically, the album represents another leap forward too. Talking frankly about poverty, class politics, and the challenges of everyday life, Sayle's lyrics have always addressed the downtrodden and discarded communities across Britain slipping below the waterline. This time around, Sayle's lost not of that social consciousness, but he's looked at himself and his own emotional landscape, and in the process created something that feels more universal, that reaches a hand-out to people and ultimately gives a message of hope."To me, the lyrics are less selfish," reflects Sayle. "In the past, I couldn't see past whatever was going on with me. It's about accepting things and being open to conversations and learning to talk to people rather than just thinking that we're all doomed."The song "Talk for Hours" is a prime example of that. Born out of an afternoon meeting up with an old group of mates "repeating the same thing and not actually learning anything about each other" it offers to actually break the cycle and to listen and speak frankly about shared feelings and experiences. "Trauma Bonds", meanwhile, traces the broken lines of those living in lost communities, but ultimately realises that despite our shared scars, there's still hope to move on to a better future."The message of the album is you're not who you're told you are," Sayle summarises. "You're not your class background. Whatever it is, you're not that. Don't resign yourself to thinking you can't be this and you can't be that."It's a vitally important message right now, and one that could be the motto for not only Blending, but for High Vis themselves.

KID FRANCESCOLI, leader of the French Riviera Touch is back with the stellar album SUNSET BLUE out Sept 22nd 2023.

After a first sold-out world tour (over 200 concerts in Europe, USA, Asia...), and successful hits such as Nopalitos, Blow Up or Moon (now certified diamond, with more than 200 millions streams), the Marseille-based producer, crooner and multi-instrumentalist, Mathieu Hocine, is eager to share his most accomplished LP ever. This fine collection of soulful songs honor his Mediterranean roots, with elegant and pop melodies. His most recent success and the creation of his first original soundtrack with AZURO, installed him as one of the best French songwriters of his generation, with a unique signature sound.

"I live in Marseille, I spent my childhood in Corsica, I have Algerian origins, my first vacations with friends were in Barcelona, vacations with my first girlfriend in Roma,... Then, I had the chance to perform in Morocco, Greece, Turkey and Egypt: each time I spent time in the Mediterranean region, the people I met there made me feel like I was part of the same country. This shared multiculturalism is really comforting, it has its own poetry and strength, bringing uniqueness and empathy to the people. It is essential for me. I love my city: it’s the perfect place to feel good with sun, sea, family, friendships, love... It gets me emotional, bringing tears with a smile".

With his new musical gem, Mathieu Hocine unveils 11 elegant tunes of his finest craft: sunbathed French Touch (Run Run, 1986), romantic chillwave (Corsica), uplifting synthpop (You Are Everywhere, Like Magic), electronic-soul (Casino Soul), cinematic disco (Solaris), cosmic R&B (Sweet and Sour, Take Time), … Everything is in this record.

For the first time ever, Kid Francescoli paid tribute to his mixed origins with his collaboration with world-renowned lute and mandolin player Hakim Hamadouche (Rachid Taha, Patti Smith, Brian Eno, Tricky...), whom added Algerian patterns to the introspectives songs Drift in Blue and The Morning After.

"My ambition is to create pictures in people's heads with music, to transport them instantly into a movie"

SUNSET BLUE is an instant-crush album: crystal-clear, strong, personal but universal at the same time.

It's an ecstatic soundtrack for this moment when time is suspended, the golden hour when everything seems possible. It feels like Love is in the air, you're living your best life and you're at the right place at the right time. This album embodies this magic moment where we would like to last forever… Like an epiphany, Kid Francescoli's new album is a moment of pure pleasure, a soothing way to escape reality.

"I see myself as a melodist.I would like my music to feel like velvet. There's something cinematic, classy about it, and yet comforting. It's very simple, popular and synonym of love and passion"

His friend French 79 co-produced the album, while the american rapper Bamby H2O brought his NYC swag (on Sweet & Sour), Stan Neff (Polo & Pan, Kungs, Christine and the Queens...) took care of the mix and Alex Gopher (Daft Punk, The Blaze, Bon Entendeur...) added a final touch of magic when mastering. Nicolas Despis (known for his work with Etienne Daho, Hoshi, Juliette Armanet... and many famous French rappers) later joined this dream-team to craft custom-made artworks. SUNSET BLUE is a deeply personal quest, a human adventure for Mathieu Hocine (whom explores his maghrebian origins, his feminine side, his subconscious space, ...). It's a male's work, but don't get it wrong, this LP would be nothing without women’s touch : Julietta (on Run Run and Take Time), Sarah Gaugler from Turbo Goth (on You Are Everywhere and Like Magic), and iOni (on Drift in Blue).

“Music has this magical power to broaden your vision of the world. It's fascinating because, like dreams, it's the kind of irrational things science can't explain and that makes life exciting."

Planets aligned perfectly on this project and thanks to this five-star cast of collaborators, Kid Francescoli achieved his personal holy grail : he orchestrated a great 21st century pop-music album.SUNSET BLUE is a new turning point between organic and electronic, both a mediterranean travel and a Californian dream, a bridge between Ennio Morriconne and modern electronic music.

Also, while it might be called SUNSET BLUE in honor of the sea and the Portuguese / Brazilian concept called “saudade”, but it is a really optimistic album, whose true colors would rather be "yellow-orange-red" in nod to the sun.

Created in the midst of the world tour, SUNSET BLUE is a direct result of the lives’ energy and fans’ joyful vibes: going back in the studio after smiling, singing and dancing with people all around the world inevitably gave Kid Francescoli the desire to retranscribe this ecstatic feeling in music. This album is a sensitive experience, from sunrise to sunset, from first track to last one. It’s an exploration of an everlasting summer, reaching its climax in the very final seconds of the track Corsica, making us want to press play and dive into this jewel all over again.

A beautiful cosmic trip, whether you like to stay in bed cocooning, to travel far, far away or to dance ‘till dawn, to catch the first rays of light.

Make sure to catch Kid Francescoli on his next world tour to have a good time.

Gaucho — Steely Dan's Grammy-winning seventh studio album now on UHQR!
Definitive reissue Ultra High Quality Record, the pinnacle of high-quality vinyl!
45 RPM LP release limited to 20,000 numbered copies
Mastered by Bernie Grundman from a 1980 analogue tape copy originally EQ'd by Bob Ludwig
Pressed at Quality Record Pressings using 200-gram Clarity Vinyl®
Purest possible pressing and most visually stunning presentation and packaging!
Tip-on old style gatefold double pocket jackets with film lamination by Stoughton Printing


Gaucho — the iconic seventh studio album by Steely Dan, released in November 1980 — and Grammy-winner for Best Engineered Non-Classical Recording, was also Grammy-nominated for Album of the Year and Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals. The album represents the band's musical evolution towards a more polished and sleek sound, featuring a collection of meticulously crafted songs that blend jazz, rock, and pop music, while exploring themes of decadence, longing, and disillusionment.

Gaucho opens with the title track, a jazzy instrumental piece that sets the tone for the rest of the album. The standout tracks on the album include "Hey Nineteen," a catchy and upbeat tune that features a memorable saxophone riff and lyrics about an older man's attraction to a young woman, and "Babylon Sisters," a funky and groovy track that showcases the band's impeccable sense of rhythm and melody.

The sessions for Gaucho represented the band's typical penchant for studio perfectionism and obsessive recording technique. To record the album, the band used at least 42 different musicians, spent more than a year in the studio, and far exceeded the original monetary advance given by the record label. Still, the album features multiple layers of instrumentation, carefully crafted arrangements, and the use of top-notch session musicians to create a lush and sophisticated sound that is uniquely Steely Dan.

Despite its critical and commercial success, Gaucho was a challenging album to make. During the two-year span in which the album was recorded, the band was plagued by a number of creative, personal and professional problems. MCA, Warner Bros. and Steely Dan had a three-way legal battle over the rights to release the album. After it was released, jazz musician Keith Jarrett was given a co-writing credit on the title track after threatening legal action over plagiarism of Jarrett's song "'Long As You Know You're Living Yours."

Gaucho marked a significant stylistic change for the band, introducing a more minimal, groove- and atmosphere-based format. The harmonically complex chord changes that were a distinctive mark of earlier Steely Dan songs are less prominent on Gaucho, with the record's songs tending to revolve around a single rhythm or mood, although complex chord progressions were still present particularly in "Babylon Sisters" and "Glamour Profession." Gaucho proved to be Steely Dan's final studio album that Donald Fagen and Walter Becker would make together until the year 2000.

Gaucho reached No. 9 on the U.S. album chart and was certified platinum-selling. "Hey Nineteen" reached No. 10 on the U.S. Singles Chart and went to No. 1 in Canada. Pitchfork, in its review, describes the almost "pathologically overdetermined production" as elegant, arid and a little forbidding. "Every last tinkling chime sounds like it took 12 days to mix, because chances are, it did." The New York Times deemed Gaucho the best album of 1980, beating out Talking Heads' Remain in Light and Joy Division's Closer.

Founded by core members Walter Becker (bass) and Donald Fagen (vocals, keyboards), Steely Dan's popularity rose throughout the late 1970s on, and their seven albums throughout that period of time blended elements of jazz, rock, funk, R&B, and pop. Steely Dan created a sophisticated, distinctive sound with accessible melodic hooks, complex harmonies and time signatures, and a devotion to the recording studio. Becker and Fagen, with producer Gary Katz, gradually changed Steely Dan from a performing band to a studio project, hiring session musicians to record their compositions. The duo didn't perform live between 1974 and 1993. But their popularity nevertheless grew throughout the '70s as their albums became critical favorites and their singles became staples of Adult Oriented Radio and pop radio stations.

After a brief battle with esophageal cancer, Walter Becker died on September 3, 2017 at the age of 67. Steely Dan has sold more than 40 million albums worldwide and were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in March 2001. VH1 ranked Steely Dan at No. 82 on their list of the 100 Greatest Musical Artists of All Time. Rolling Stone ranked them No. 15 on its list of the 20 Greatest Duos of All Time.

This stereo UHQR reissue will be limited to 20,000 copies, with gold foil individually numbered jackets, housed in a premium slipcase with a wooden dowel spine.

Gaucho remains a testament to Steely Dan's enduring musical legacy and their ability to create timeless music that transcends genre and style.

Producer, DJ, Facilitator & Publisher (Balraj) Samrai (of Swing Ting/SEEN Magazine) steps out for their first full length release "Work & Roti" along with a host of talented collaborators on new label Sangha Industries.

The album title came from a phone conversation with Samrai's mum who features on the opener reflecting on first generation Punjabis heading to the UK only going to work and eating roti, not getting a chance to travel until their senior years. In addition the project explores the complexity of migrant experiences - healing, self-love/care, reciprocity and connections to the earth. A theme throughout is the inclusion of South Asian percussion and rhythms such as Tabla, Dholak, Kanjira, Dhol and Mridangam overtly at times as well as covertly which grounds the record.

Samrai is joined by host of talented collaborators across the 8 tracks - SCAPA, Vindya, Vikaash Sankadecha, Pops Roberts, Shanique Marie, LINTD, Gavsborg, Joey B, Fox, Raheel Khan, Thai Chi Rosè, Chesqua and Deepikaa Sreenivasan who all enrich the project with vocals, additional production and instrumentation. Although at times dealing with difficult subjects (Help Me, Oil Money, Dirty Dirty) there's a sense of joy, playfulness (Fresh) and release across the set (Yellow Crocus, Create Your Own Bless) culminating in closer (Breathe) when you feel the sunlight pushing through despite the clouds above…

Producer, DJ, Facilitator & Publisher (Balraj) Samrai (of Swing Ting/SEEN Magazine) steps out for their first full length release "Work & Roti" along with a host of talented collaborators on new label Sangha Industries.

The album title came from a phone conversation with Samrai's mum who features on the opener reflecting on first generation Punjabis heading to the UK only going to work and eating roti, not getting a chance to travel until their senior years. In addition the project explores the complexity of migrant experiences - healing, self-love/care, reciprocity and connections to the earth. A theme throughout is the inclusion of South Asian percussion and rhythms such as Tabla, Dholak, Kanjira, Dhol and Mridangam overtly at times as well as covertly which grounds the record.

Samrai is joined by host of talented collaborators across the 8 tracks - SCAPA, Vindya, Vikaash Sankadecha, Pops Roberts, Shanique Marie, LINTD, Gavsborg, Joey B, Fox, Raheel Khan, Thai Chi Rosè, Chesqua and Deepikaa Sreenivasan who all enrich the project with vocals, additional production and instrumentation. Although at times dealing with difficult subjects (Help Me, Oil Money, Dirty Dirty) there's a sense of joy, playfulness (Fresh) and release across the set (Yellow Crocus, Create Your Own Bless) culminating in closer (Breathe) when you feel the sunlight pushing through despite the clouds above…

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

Believe! International Records proudly presents (U.N) United Nonsense – the debut album by the Swedish Afrobeat band Olumo Soundz.

The twelve band members of Olumo Soundz are solidly rooted in the great musical tradition hailing from predecessors Fela and Femi Kuti. However, the band puts their own spin on a vibrant genre, and packs a punch at each and every show with their own repertoire.

The four track album (U.N) United Nonsense – presented in a high quality 180 gr vinyl edition – is a joyous musical announcement of awareness, resistance and faith.

High Vis were formed in 2016 from the ashes of some of the UK's best hardcore bands. Gild-toothed frontman Graham Sayle's anguished lyrics about life in working class Britain were familiar to fans of Tremors' full-throttle thrash, but alongside his former bandmate Edward `Ski' Harper and veterans of Dirty Money, DiE and The Smear, High Vis sought to transform that energy and intensity into something entirely new.Like scene-mates Chubby and the Gang did by pulling in unlikely source material from classic doo-wop or Micromoon have by combining everything from psychedelia and metal into their high potency mix, High Vis' 2019 debut album, No Sense No Feeling showed the band were never going to be constrained by any sense of genre rules or regulations. Its claustrophobic rattle bore traces of Joy Division, Bauhaus, Crisis, The Cure and Gang Of Four lurking in the shadows. 2020's synth-driven EP, Society Exists, was further evidence of the band's restless creative MO.High Vis' second album Blending sees them open their viewfinder wider than ever before. Alongside longstanding favourites such as Fugazi and Echo and The Bunnymen; Ride and even Flock Of Seagulls were shared reference points as the band worked on the album together.From the anthemic sweep of opener "Talk For Hours", through the title track's psychedelic swirl and "Fever Dream"'s baggy groove, it sees High Vis' sound blossoming into something with an unlimited richness. The hazy drift of "Shame" or the melodic jangle of "Trauma Bonds" may take them until uncharted waters, but they still have all the power and bite that made No Sense No Feeling so remarkable.Lyrically, the album represents another leap forward too. Talking frankly about poverty, class politics, and the challenges of everyday life, Sayle's lyrics have always addressed the downtrodden and discarded communities across Britain slipping below the waterline. This time around, Sayle's lost not of that social consciousness, but he's looked at himself and his own emotional landscape, and in the process created something that feels more universal, that reaches a hand-out to people and ultimately gives a message of hope."To me, the lyrics are less selfish," reflects Sayle. "In the past, I couldn't see past whatever was going on with me. It's about accepting things and being open to conversations and learning to talk to people rather than just thinking that we're all doomed."The song "Talk for Hours" is a prime example of that. Born out of an afternoon meeting up with an old group of mates "repeating the same thing and not actually learning anything about each other" it offers to actually break the cycle and to listen and speak frankly about shared feelings and experiences. "Trauma Bonds", meanwhile, traces the broken lines of those living in lost communities, but ultimately realises that despite our shared scars, there's still hope to move on to a better future."The message of the album is you're not who you're told you are," Sayle summarises. "You're not your class background. Whatever it is, you're not that. Don't resign yourself to thinking you can't be this and you can't be that."It's a vitally important message right now, and one that could be the motto for not only Blending, but for High Vis themselves.

Repress!

Synergy in motion, London five-piece Ezra Collective are proving themselves as a harmonious tour de force. Their sound nods respectfully to a classic jazz footprint, celebrating the originators whilst simultaneously carving a path solely their own.

Ezra Collective marry the delicate technicalities of jazz musicianship with afrobeat and hip hop, tied together by a sound that's unmistakably London. Their live show is one of dynamic union; the strength of their partnership shines in performances that are commanding yet sensitive, soulful and pertinently groove-laced.

Following a joyous and stunningly cohesive show in May 2016, Boiler Room rightly labelled the group as 'pioneering the new-wave of U.K. jazz'. As the genre enjoys a new lease of life that is gaining momentum across the country, Ezra Collective are adding their own fresh and imaginative face to a style that continues to be 'as entertaining as it is educational' (Trench).

In a year that saw them sell out legendary London venue Ronnie Scott's not once but twice, 2017 also bought with it the release of their genre-bending second EP, Juan Pablo: The Philosopher.

After Ezra Collective took the EP on a successful tour across the U.K and Europe and completely sold out of the vinyl, Juan Pablo: The Philosopher went on to win the accolade of Best Jazz Album at Gilles Peterson's esteemed Worldwide Awards Jan 2018

The live version of French pianist's covers album available for the first time on vinyl

Songs covered along with a couple of originals by the pixies • joy division • arcade fire • nirvana • depeche mode / also included: a new exclusive rework of the pixies 'where is my mind' by the toxic avenger

Javier Jiménez Rolo surprises with Saint Malo, a project that explores the intersections of neoclassicism, folk, ambient and electronic textures.

That Saint-Malo is a town in Brittany is the least of it. Even the fact that it exists is unimportant. Javier has never been there. Similarly, his album takes us to remote or not so remote places without moving from where we are. Javier composed these twelve songs between 2019 and 2021 from his room: "One of the problems with recording at home rather than in a studio is that when you move, your recording space changes too. In the case of this album, I was involved in three moves during its whole process. Trying to see the positive side of this situation, I realised that, as well as a collection of songs, it was a testimonial to the different places where I had lived during those years and their respective views: 'Promenade' is an imagined walk from an interior flat; 'Picture In A Frame' is a sunny afternoon in a park in Ciudad Lineal, Madrid, and 'Bells Of Nowhere' is a stroll through the neighbourhood that was once my grandparents' and is now mine."

It's an eminently evocative album but also powerfully narrative, which moves through different emotional states. Along the way, references as heterogeneous as Javier's own tastes come up. From the inevitable Arvo Pärt, Max Richter and Steve Reich to the more unsuspected Thom Yorke, Burial, Caribou, Vulfpeck or even Dua Lipa. Stéphane Grappelli, Andrew Bird, Nils Frahm, Olafur Arnalds or Rene Aubry are other names Javier mentions when he talks about something similar to influences.

The journey, during which the songs miraculously fit with magical precision to the landscapes we are travelling through, begins with the promising 'Beware Of The Dogs' and 'Maltravieso'. It is followed by the obsessive arpeggios of 'Le Havre' that give way to the luminous 'Fields Of Gold', the emotion of 'Cais do Sodré' and the passionate 'Le pont roulant', reminiscent of a restrained Alexandre Desplat. Along the way, dogs will bark, rain will fall on the 'Promenade' and the sun will come out with the perfectly playful 'Dolce Far Niente' ("a mix between elevator music and a song announcing the arrival of summer" according to Javier) in which echoes of Isao Tomita and Raymond Scott resound.

The result of this captivating, unexpected and suggestive mixture is Saint Malo, Javier Jiménez's first album and the empirical demonstration that he does not have, despite his classical training, any red lines. "I've always flirted with jazz, with swing... Then I moved on to messing around with loops, to doing more ambient and experimental things. I also had my folkie phase with the klezmer group Barrunto Bellota Band..."

In Saint Malo the melodies grow, become small, return and intertwine with loops and improbable aromas, to form an album that describes a journey through emotions. From melancholy to joy and the surprise of first discoveries.

The official re-edition of WESTFALEN is now a reality and we are joyous with this opportunity of releasing this cult band from the '80s Belgian Heavy Metal scene! From now on, we will have the opportunity to listen WESTFALEN's 1985 self-titled mini-album on a vinyl reissue, which will include the original artwork concept, as well as live bonus tracks from the 2012 reunion concert at the Metal Legacy Festival in Genk, Belgium

Repress!

Season of Mist is Dead Horse One's second album and the first collaboration with french indie label
Requiem Pour Un Twister (Triptides, Good Morning TV etc.). It's a promising alliance between two of
the best representatives of shoegaze in France. Haling from Valence, the boys managed to impress
Joe Foster of Creation Records who said about their first EP « their music, that spans multiple genres
including Shoegaze and psychedelia, is like an endless extended note, wistful and melancholic....macabre
and beautiful...from which will emerge pop songs ». Mark Gardner of Ride mixed their first effort,
the acclaimed Without Love We Perish and now they're back with Season of Mist produced by the
band helped by John Loring (Fleeting Joys). It's full of catchy hooks, shoegaze and psychedelic anthems
propelled by supersonic guitars that sound like a massive wall of joyful noise. Close your eyes and let
all theses great songs flow in your mind, from season of mist will emerge light.

Led by musical director Scotty Barnhart, the Count Basie Orchestra keeps Basie’s unmistakable style alive and thriving around the world. In the great traction of the Basie Swings albums comes this explosive album of collaborations with some of the greatest living blues and jazz artists, Basie Swings The Blues. In preparation for these sessions, Barnhart took a pilgrimage to the Mississippi Delta to immerse himself in the land where blues began. The resulting album is joyful mix of downhome blues with the deep swing and sophistication that only The Count Basie Orchestra can provide. As Count Basie famously once said, “our blues will make your blues go away.” Produced by Barnhart along with Grammy-winning producer John Burk (Ray Charles Genius Love Company), and Grammy-winning drummer/producer Steve Jordan (The Rolling Stones), the album brings together Buddy Guy, Bobby Rush, Keb’ Mo’, Shemekia Copeland, Robert Cray, Charlie Musselwhite, Betty LaVette, Ledisi, George Benson, and others to bring the blues and swing back together for a set that jumps and jives with an energy not heard since Louis Jordan and T-Bone Walker lit up stages in the ’40s and ’50s.

Rochester emo band CARPOOL released their debut album Erotic Nightmare Summer to widespread critical acclaim in 2020, and have now reissued the LP along with their signing announcement to SideOneDummy Records! Pressed on Blood Red and Black Splatter Vinyl! “Erotic Nightmare Summer is a pretty undeniable collection of mathy, anthemic emo/punk – somewhere in the middle of Joyce Manor, Algernon Cadwallader, Cap’n Jazz, Dogleg, etc. If you like any or all of those bands and haven’t heard this yet, that’s worth changing.” —Brooklyn Vegan

ZWEILASTER SAYS Dies ist ist unsere Platte! Sie wurde aufgenommen im Frühjahr/ 1. Quartal 2022. Das wurde SO gemacht von uns und unserem Pro-duzent Julian Knoth. In dem Album gehts um Pain und Joy, - echte Kunstheraphie halt! "Scheiblettenkäse und Sehnsucht ist ein witziges Drama, gespielt von zwei introvertierten Cholerikern!"(*innen) Viel Spass von Arno und Marie! PS: Das Album gibts schon seit 2022, also ist nur neu, dass es jetzt vom lieben Thomas Götz von "Tomatenplatten" auf Vinyl rausgebracht wurde. Cover von Maxi Messer.

Somebody somewhere once said that music doesn't mean anything; it is meaningful.

The Czecho-slovakian instrumental trio, Inheritance, invite you to rediscover their sonic journey with the reissue of their previous EPs, "Frames" (2014) and "Saturate" (2016), now elegantly entwined into a single captivating package released for the first time on vinyl, on Weltschmerzen. Comprising of the trio Jakub Volovár (guitar), Alex Strapková (piano), and Peter Kušnírik (drums), Inheritance was active in the mid 2010s in Brno, later unfortunately disbanding due to own personal pursuits.

Frames // Saturate embodies the melancholic and melodic tension characteristic of contemporary post-rock, complemented by the whimsy of piano-led instrumentals with a tint of indie-playfulness and a very slight yet powerful grain of sludge heaviness that can be traced back to Volovár's and Kušnirik's earlier post-metal project, Dawn to Come.

"Frames // Saturate" is first and foremost a compact sonic voyage. Volovár's evocative yet precise guitar work builds complex yet airy scaffolding, while Strapková's piano melodies create a tapestry of moods around it. Both EPs showcase Strapková's piano prowess, transforming each composition into a living organism. Kušnírik's drumming then acts as the steady pulse, guiding you through. These songs encapsulate the kind of mutualism and appreciation for (musical) interdependence that you can only develop throughout the years of practice and playing live.

You can hear how much fun it was for the band to play these songs, and that sense of joy translates directly into your own listening experience. It's the kind of music that makes you pick up an air guitar, (piano, or drums) - and sometimes everything all at once. It is music serious and poetic, yet fun and moving and complex at the same time.

'Light Years', released a few days before Kate's 50th birthday, is Rusby's 7th Christmas record and features vocals by Alison Krauss and Ron Block Her love of Christmas music and upbringing on a rich tradition of 'local carols' is no secret to her many fans.' Light Years', a lyric in one of the albums songs, is full of Rusby-fied versions of carols and well-known songs which depict in her own words, "Joyful memories of music, family, community, warmth and happiness - and a little wine!" The album follows in the footsteps sonically of her last two releases, 'Hand Me Down' 2020 and '30: Happy Returns' 2023. Experimental sounds, moogs, layered banjos, lush electric guitars, low subs, soaring acoustics, wonderful effects and of course, her own spellbinding vocals. There are songs old and new on this record. Many standout tracks include Rusby's self-penned 'Glorious', a song about a lost and broken angel and one which takes the listener on a thrilling journey through snow laden trees and a warm glow of the evening sun illuminating only half of the world. Her own version of 'Rockin Around the Christmas Tree & Sleigh Ride,' combined, make a simply wonderful version that will have you spilling your nutmeg all over the dancefloor! 'The Moon Shines Bright' features the gorgeous harmony vocals of Alison Krauss and Ron Block amongst a gorgeous soundscape of guitars and 'The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year' is a true example of how Rusby can take a classic and stunningly make it her own. No Rusby Christmas album would be complete without a little humour and 'Nothin For Christmas' and Chris Sugden's (aka Sid Kipper) parody 'Arrest These Merry Gentlemen' will not fail to make any 'bah humbugger' chuckle. Another superb release from Kate Rusby & Crew. John Lewis, look no further for your Christmas advert music...

Javier Jiménez Rolo surprises with Saint Malo, a project that explores the intersections of neoclassicism, folk, ambient and electronic textures.

That Saint-Malo is a town in Brittany is the least of it. Even the fact that it exists is unimportant. Javier has never been there. Similarly, his album takes us to remote or not so remote places without moving from where we are. Javier composed these twelve songs between 2019 and 2021 from his room: "One of the problems with recording at home rather than in a studio is that when you move, your recording space changes too. In the case of this album, I was involved in three moves during its whole process. Trying to see the positive side of this situation, I realised that, as well as a collection of songs, it was a testimonial to the different places where I had lived during those years and their respective views: 'Promenade' is an imagined walk from an interior flat; 'Picture In A Frame' is a sunny afternoon in a park in Ciudad Lineal, Madrid, and 'Bells Of Nowhere' is a stroll through the neighbourhood that was once my grandparents' and is now mine."

It's an eminently evocative album but also powerfully narrative, which moves through different emotional states. Along the way, references as heterogeneous as Javier's own tastes come up. From the inevitable Arvo Pärt, Max Richter and Steve Reich to the more unsuspected Thom Yorke, Burial, Caribou, Vulfpeck or even Dua Lipa. Stéphane Grappelli, Andrew Bird, Nils Frahm, Olafur Arnalds or Rene Aubry are other names Javier mentions when he talks about something similar to influences.

The journey, during which the songs miraculously fit with magical precision to the landscapes we are travelling through, begins with the promising 'Beware Of The Dogs' and 'Maltravieso'. It is followed by the obsessive arpeggios of 'Le Havre' that give way to the luminous 'Fields Of Gold', the emotion of 'Cais do Sodré' and the passionate 'Le pont roulant', reminiscent of a restrained Alexandre Desplat. Along the way, dogs will bark, rain will fall on the 'Promenade' and the sun will come out with the perfectly playful 'Dolce Far Niente' ("a mix between elevator music and a song announcing the arrival of summer" according to Javier) in which echoes of Isao Tomita and Raymond Scott resound.

The result of this captivating, unexpected and suggestive mixture is Saint Malo, Javier Jiménez's first album and the empirical demonstration that he does not have, despite his classical training, any red lines. "I've always flirted with jazz, with swing... Then I moved on to messing around with loops, to doing more ambient and experimental things. I also had my folkie phase with the klezmer group Barrunto Bellota Band..."

In Saint Malo the melodies grow, become small, return and intertwine with loops and improbable aromas, to form an album that describes a journey through emotions. From melancholy to joy and the surprise of first discoveries.

'Ultrasound', the fifth release under the Banger Factory umbrella, is a further stride forward toward founder and trumpeter Mark Kavuma's vision of bringing together seemingly disparate elements from within the bubbling London jazz scene, uniting sounds, and players from across generations and creating a unique, exciting, and fresh sound all its own Marking the start of a new partnership with alto sax player Theo Erskine strengthening the imprints artistic reach and sparkling ever more creative ideas, Ultrasound is the product of hours and days spent practicing together during the pandemic - hours and days that turned into time spent plotting and planning future musical collaborations and projects when getting together in person became impossible. The recording itself captures the zeitgeist (spirit) of a unique moment in time when musicians starved of creative, collaborative music- making during the pandemic, were able to meet again and record, each track suffused with palpable joy, yet tinged with reflection. 'The Day After Tomorrow' promises respite from a hangover, 'The Return of Johnny Bravo' characterises a re-emergence in a whirlwind of excitement . 'June' describes the glinting skyline of a world- reopened and 'The Loneliest' explores how peace is drawn from inward sources in the loneliest of times. Personnel: Theo Erskin- tenor saxophone, Mark Kavuma - trumpet, Noah Stoneman - piano, Michael Shrimpling - double bass, Shane Forbes - drums

Compiling the follow-up to a very successful first album is always a tricky task, but just 12 months since the release of volume one in the 'With Love' series, miche has excelled himself once again with another glorious, deep dive into the world of rare soul. 15 tracks of independently released music, created by magnificent artists with stories to tell and primed for rediscovery.

The ambition to celebrate under-the-radar artists has remained, but instead of a facsimile of volume one, what we have here is a selection shaped by life changes. Volume two is for the dancers; still soulful, still ultra-rare and slept-on records from the USA, Chile, Brazil and beyond, but the dynamics of the collection have shifted slightly. It represents a move from being immersed in a week in week out environment of beautiful, soulful music in a cosy, dimly lit hi-fi bar to playing livelier, more energetic, dancefloor-focused music in nightclubs. This volume will get you on your feet, make you move and unleash whatever it is that makes you get down.

One of the jewels in the crown of this compilation is a joyous, anthemic gospel version of Stevie Wonder's 'As' by The Family Tree (a project produced by the fantastic Julius Brockington). We are also treated to a rare and sought-after Pennsylvanian funk / AOR bomb by Maxwell, a stunning modern soul tune 'High On You' by Freedom, and self-released Brazilian 45s by Banda 22 and Zé Da Lata. P.J. City's 'Straight Forward (Non-Stop)' is gospel-disco perfection, and we also have 'Dame Solamente Amor’, a sublime, soul beauty from Chile by Rogers Mitchell. Many of these artists featured in this compilation aren't household names, but they deserve their moment to shine, to be heard, loved and appreciated for their artistry.

As Miche says it, “I hope this compilation helps in some way to keep this glorious music alive and play a part in connecting generations of music lovers from the worldwide soul family. As always, it has been made ‘With Love’.”

There’s a big clue to the pacific wisdom of The Orchestra in the Sky in the artist name – Hochzeitskapelle + Japanese Friends. For this is, indeed, music based in, and resonating with, friendship, camaraderie, collaboration, and creative exchange. Across two albums – one documenting recordings from Tokyo, the other an expansive double album of sessions from Kobe – Hochzeitskapelle gather around them some of the finest voices in Japanese independent and underground pop music, like Tenniscoats, Eddie Marcon, Yuko Ikema, and Kama Aina, and explore an open field of music, full of creative encounters.

You may already know Hochzeitskapelle as the German instrumental quintet formed by members of The Notwist, Alien Ensemble, and friends from the jazz scene. Across three albums, one a collaboration with Kama Aina (2018’s Wayfaring Suite), they’ve developed a way of playing together that’s intimate and playful, rich and human; it’s a music that’s deliberately rough around the edges, and that nestles cosily into the everyday. Their relationship with Japanese indie has developed over the years, doubtless encouraged by Saya´s „Minna Miteru“, compilations series of Japanese indie pop for Morr Music. A peripatetic gang, Hochzeitskapelle also recently backed Japanese singer-songwriter Makoto Kawamoto on her new album, Hikari.

In many ways, The Orchestra in the Sky feels like the culmination of a set of ongoing cross-cultural exchanges: the Minna Miteru compilations; tours of Japan by Hochzeitskapelle and The Notwist; and indeed, Markus Acher’s Spirit Fest group with Saya and Ueno of Tenniscoats. The latter are present throughout much of The Orchestra in the Sky, and Saya’s voice is particularly winning on songs like “Tsuki no oto”, where the two outfits are joined by brass ensemble Zayaendo. There are several lovely turns from singer-songwriter Yuko Ikema, and Eddie Marcon appear twice; their songs are still beautiful, spectral acid folk, but with Hochzeitskapelle filling the details with lush, sad brass and strings.

But it’s also the potentially lesser-known names that shine through The Orchestra in the Sky, like the frail folk of Gratin Carnival; the delightful, gentle pop songs by sekifu and Zayaendo member, Kanako Numata; a trio of beautiful, stumble-drunk melodies played in swaying consort with popo. That group, along with the presence of Zayaendo, Fuigo, and Mitamurakandadan?, make strong connections with the Japanese underground’s love of brass bands, partly informed by the tradition of chindon’ya, marching bands that walk the streets of Japanese cities. They also all appeared on the recent Alien Parade Japan compilation of such groups, assembled by Acher and Saya.

All things converge, then, on The Orchestra in the Sky, a smart, spirited collection of heavenly pop songs, intimate folk melodies, lungfuls of joyous brass, deep weeping strings, and swooning sighs. The last words go to Acher himself: “Many things we did in the last years come together here and it feels like something special was captured.” We hope you like what you hear.

There’s a big clue to the pacific wisdom of The Orchestra in the Sky in the artist name – Hochzeitskapelle + Japanese Friends. For this is, indeed, music based in, and resonating with, friendship, camaraderie, collaboration, and creative exchange. Across two albums – one documenting recordings from Tokyo, the other an expansive double album of sessions from Kobe – Hochzeitskapelle gather around them some of the finest voices in Japanese independent and underground pop music, like Tenniscoats, Eddie Marcon, Yuko Ikema, and Kama Aina, and explore an open field of music, full of creative encounters.

You may already know Hochzeitskapelle as the German instrumental quintet formed by members of The Notwist, Alien Ensemble, and friends from the jazz scene. Across three albums, one a collaboration with Kama Aina (2018’s Wayfaring Suite), they’ve developed a way of playing together that’s intimate and playful, rich and human; it’s a music that’s deliberately rough around the edges, and that nestles cosily into the everyday. Their relationship with Japanese indie has developed over the years, doubtless encouraged by Saya´s „Minna Miteru“, compilations series of Japanese indie pop for Morr Music. A peripatetic gang, Hochzeitskapelle also recently backed Japanese singer-songwriter Makoto Kawamoto on her new album, Hikari.

In many ways, The Orchestra in the Sky feels like the culmination of a set of ongoing cross-cultural exchanges: the Minna Miteru compilations; tours of Japan by Hochzeitskapelle and The Notwist; and indeed, Markus Acher’s Spirit Fest group with Saya and Ueno of Tenniscoats. The latter are present throughout much of The Orchestra in the Sky, and Saya’s voice is particularly winning on songs like “Tsuki no oto”, where the two outfits are joined by brass ensemble Zayaendo. There are several lovely turns from singer-songwriter Yuko Ikema, and Eddie Marcon appear twice; their songs are still beautiful, spectral acid folk, but with Hochzeitskapelle filling the details with lush, sad brass and strings.

But it’s also the potentially lesser-known names that shine through The Orchestra in the Sky, like the frail folk of Gratin Carnival; the delightful, gentle pop songs by sekifu and Zayaendo member, Kanako Numata; a trio of beautiful, stumble-drunk melodies played in swaying consort with popo. That group, along with the presence of Zayaendo, Fuigo, and Mitamurakandadan?, make strong connections with the Japanese underground’s love of brass bands, partly informed by the tradition of chindon’ya, marching bands that walk the streets of Japanese cities. They also all appeared on the recent Alien Parade Japan compilation of such groups, assembled by Acher and Saya.

All things converge, then, on The Orchestra in the Sky, a smart, spirited collection of heavenly pop songs, intimate folk melodies, lungfuls of joyous brass, deep weeping strings, and swooning sighs. The last words go to Acher himself: “Many things we did in the last years come together here and it feels like something special was captured.” We hope you like what you hear.

Swim is super happy to welcome their first 12” record into the world, and Mark Lando is up for his second release! The first side is a body affair, with acid-tinged techno dominating both cuts. Formation is a fun, muscular take on the format, while Scope zones in on his industrial forays. The other side gives time to heady, joyous gear, sporting two tracks spreading far in style and tempo. The title track is nimble and fast on its feet, a rhythmic workout indebted to bass music as much as to new age experiments. Rounding things out, In This Light harks back to the heydays of atmospheric trance excursions, leaving in its wake a warm note of care.

ME LOST ME led by Newcastle-based artist Jayne Dent announces a new album RPG via Upset The Rhythm on 7th July, and is touring across the UK including support dates with Pigs x7. RPG (recorded in Blank Studios with Sam Grant of Pigs x7) is ME LOST ME’s fourth outing as a collective, having transitioned from an ambitious solo project in 2017, Jayne now regularly collaborating with acclaimed North-East jazz musicians Faye MacCalman and John Pope.
ME LOST ME delights in experimenting with songwriting and storytelling, creating a beguiling mix of soaring vocals and atmospheric electronics that playfully weave together disparate genres, drawing influence from folk, art pop, noise, ambient and improvised music. Hauntological in part, RPG is concerned with tales and with time - are we running out of it? Does insomnia cause a time loop? Do the pressures of masculinity prevent progress? Jayne Dent asks these questions and more on RPG, her homage to worldbuilding and the story as an artform, calling back to those oral traditions around a campfire, as well as modern day video games - bringing folk music into the present day as she does so.
ME LOST ME presents sound reaching in opposite directions, straddling time towards the archaic and timeless traditions of folktales, and towards the possible and potential futures of pastoral Britain and the world at large. Part speculation, part reminiscence, what results on the new album RPG is music that sounds ultimately displaced and yet omnipresent, adjacent to a hapless Vonnegut hero whose life is scattered throughout time and history, but full of wonder and curiosity rather than fear.
On track “The Oldest Trees Hold The Earth”, we see time stretched out between the branches of impossibly old beings in the woods. This track was co-written in Aarhus, Denmark with fellow Newcastle folk musician (with Danish heritage) Ditte Elly. The pair wordlessly passed a sheet of paper between each other to write the lyrics, inspired by Højbjerg and Mosegård, the woods they were sitting in. “How long should I wait/Before the moss grows?/On my skin, on my outstretched arms,” the lyrics are sung in a round, the close harmonies delicate and detailed.

A central thesis of this album is the joy of creation, something which is paid homage to in the album’s final track, “Science And Art” (Not because we need it to last/just because we needed to make it - so we invented the words/this language). It is also reflected in the definition that Jayne gives for “folk” itself. She comments, “To me, folk is quite an expansive idea. I think of it as creative work that's often made ad-hoc, with things that are at hand and more often than not it's born of a DIY ethos. It is songs and stories of the people, as in the traditional sense, but also creative coding, game design etc. Whatever outlet someone has for their creative expression could be described as folk. It's the things we make because humans need to make things, and the stories we tell about ourselves and the world around us.”
Crucially, on latest album RPG, Dent expands her songwriting and looks towards the unreal locations of worldbuilding in video games for inspiration. She comments, “I think the main similarity is the importance of a song's setting/environment to inform its narrative and textures, I'm often most inspired when out walking in the natural landscape, in cities and travelling to places I've never been before - the environment I'm in really impacts the work I make. While writing this album, however, I found myself inspired by imaginary landscapes, those in video games, paintings, etc. I was writing stories into these unreal locations instead. Even the songs inspired by real places, like The Oldest Trees Hold the Earth, have a very surreal quality to them in the songs, like they're being warped and turned into something not of this world. I think that's the main difference for me in terms of the thematic content and inspiration behind this album - I've been getting more and more interested in balancing surreal and fantastical environmental elements with ordinary and everyday settings.”
RPG upends the concept of the eternal return - we may be in the midst of inevitable repetition, but we tell stories whilst awaiting the passage of time.
"Being familiar with, and a fan of Jayne's earlier work, it was great to get the opportunity to work with her on the production of her new record. I had in mind a sense of what the record might be, but what came of the sessions, led by the vision Jayne had for the record, totally exceeded my expectations. As far as albums go, it has a breadth of writing and a sonic depth that made it a truly brilliant record. Having Jayne join us on a leg of the Pigs x7 tour in April is going to be ace. The creative nature, the sincerity and bold strokes of ME LOST ME put it in that space outside of any genre pigeonholes, and between our two sets I imagine the audience is going to have a proper sonic bath..."
Sam Grant, Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs, 2023
“The music of Me Lost Me is beguiling, idiosyncratic and cinematic - or should that be video-game-omatic? This suite of songscapes often hits the sweet spot between ancient and modern with its masterful blend of stark folk, neon electronic burbling and unusual arrangements. Jayne's singing is refreshingly straightforward and nuanced - it's exquisite! - and perfectly punctures the nebulae of synths and brass which billow around the old wooden frames of the songs. Whilst listening I had images in my mind of what Northumberland might look like through the eyes of Simon Stalenhag - foggy moors, a robot looking across the sea to Lindisfarne, twinkling lights on metal towers.... that sort of thing. It's a really great album.”
Richard Dawson, 2023

Khanate's self titled debut (2001) has all the pleasant ambiance of a plane crash site, a bleak urban waste of mangled and torn metal beams and hissed alarms. When Khanate first issued instructions to the void in 2001, the band was embraced as the next iteration of guitarist Stephen O'Malley's tube-cracking forays into amplifier variance; a fascinating further step of vocalist Alan Dubin and low-frequency shifter James Plotkin's space charts; and a warning for the crawling-pace hammers of Tim Wyskida's drums. But Khanate was not preaching of coming doom or offering emotional catharsis. The band was totally post-dread. The worst had already happened, and would continue to happen, over and over. The 5 songs on Khanate sound like an "orchestrated root canal" (Julian Cope).

Khanate's self titled debut (2001) has all the pleasant ambiance of a plane crash site, a bleak urban waste of mangled and torn metal beams and hissed alarms. When Khanate first issued instructions to the void in 2001, the band was embraced as the next iteration of guitarist Stephen O'Malley's tube-cracking forays into amplifier variance; a fascinating further step of vocalist Alan Dubin and low-frequency shifter James Plotkin's space charts; and a warning for the crawling-pace hammers of Tim Wyskida's drums. But Khanate was not preaching of coming doom or offering emotional catharsis. The band was totally post-dread. The worst had already happened, and would continue to happen, over and over. The 5 songs on Khanate sound like an "orchestrated root canal" (Julian Cope).

One of the most in-demand producers in indie rock, and one half of Foxygen, Jonathan Rado's recordings for The Killers, Father John Misty, The Lemon Twigs, Whitney, and Weyes Blood devour the canon, and return something distinctly modern. On For Who The Bell Tolls For, Rado's first solo release in ten years, the producer unveils a refined version of his signature sound, intricately sculpted by anthemic maximalism and good old-fashioned studio magic. The album is an exercise in mournful maximalism, transforming the mythos of American pop music into a vibrant meditation on death. The spirit of late producer Richard Swift _ Rado's friend and mentor _ can be found across the collection, imbuing tracks like "Easier" with a tangible sense of loss, and Swift-ian turns of phrase. On other songs, such as the addictive "Don't Wait Too Long," Rado paints an arena-ready production with streaks of longing and hopelessness. In many ways, For Who The Bell Tolls For is a musical ode to Swift, nodding to the late producer's legacy with homespun epics that straddle the line between joy and grief. Recorded at Electric Lady Studios, New York and Sonora Recorders and Dreamstar II, Los Angeles, the album features appearances by Rado's frequent collaborators, including The Lemon Twigs, Brad Oberhofer, Andrew Sarlo, Jackie Cohen, and Kane Ritchotte. Despite this esteemed lineup and the gargantuan sound of the record, For Who The Bell Tolls For is a solo album at heart. Rado plays the studio like an instrument, his distinct voice present in every nook and cranny of the structure. This presence can be easily detected in every project that the artist touches, but it's never sounded so honest, so shimmering, or so Rado as it does here.

In the early 21st century on the bustling streets of New York City, Jennifer Vanilla is a container, a portal, a joy delivery system, a self help regimen, a social mirror, a Times Square celebrity, a shark-toothed advertiser, a kicky talk show host and an ebullient mascot. Collaboratively crafted with co-writer/co-producer Brian Abelson , Jennifer Vanilla's debut full length Castle in the Sky is a deft and mercurial "jennifreaky" journey, traversing 90s dance music, no wave, post-punk, art pop, new age and experimental R&B. "Consider this an invitation, I'll be your guide," Vanilla beckons on the album's "Take Me For A Ride," which, like much of the album, is driven by their nimble and virtuosic vocal delivery. Variously steely, theatrical, sensuous and authoritative, Vanilla's vocals harken the sparkling precision of Ann Steel, the growling tenacity of Laurie Anderson and the wispy tenderness of Shelley Duvall in Faerie Tale Theatre. Jennifer Vanilla performances often are exercises in the transformation of reality through fantasy, testing the limits thereof, while the songs of Castle in the Sky are an artifact of that laboratory. Many of these songs took on numerous incarnations over the course of years before arriving at their album form, mutated in direct response to audience reaction. A year after the initial release of Castle in the Sky via Sinderlyn Records, a vinyl edition of the record arrives on December 1, 2023, featuring bonus remixes and reworks from Jerry Paper and musclecars.

Enigma is the first studio album by the space age, glass-harp powered, tropicalia quartet Os Barbapapas. Understandably, those adjectives could invoke images of kitschiness in one’s mind; that concept is smashed by the ice cold shot of Brazilian jazz riffing in the album’s opener and first single, “Se Liga Na Sequência”.

Os Barbapapas trapeze the vast richness of Brazilian/South American music heritage and beyond, as a collective with members who have variously travelled to Morocco to master Gnawa; played in circuses, or were born in the heartland of samba – these experiences and much more inform the complex yet breezy instrumentals of Enigma.

It’s a joy to pick through the notable influences that resound over Enigma. Ethiopian Jazz bursts from "Caminho para Itiwawa", backed by an Afro-Latin swing, fostered by drummer Barbara Mucciollo. There’s tonalities from North African artists such as Omar Khorshidor West African artists such as Tinriwen and Ali Farka Touré, as well as rhythmic influence from Afro-Cuban and Afro-Brazilian music. The dynamite track “(L)Atitude(S)” contains the explorative excitement of Brazilian 60s luminaries like Pedro Santos, however none are as special as layered percussion of “Gaba Gaba”, connected to the very specific rhythms of Northeast Brazil. It's evident from listening to Enigma that Os Barbapapas are an exceptional live band. They have their sights set on Europe soon, with the Glass Harp packed away safely. Until then please enjoy this electrifying album of their work so far, understanding: this is an extremely exciting project, still in its auspicious infant years

Enigma is the first studio album by the space age, glass-harp powered, tropicalia quartet Os Barbapapas. Understandably, those adjectives could invoke images of kitschiness in one’s mind; that concept is smashed by the ice cold shot of Brazilian jazz riffing in the album’s opener and first single, “Se Liga Na Sequência”.

Os Barbapapas trapeze the vast richness of Brazilian/South American music heritage and beyond, as a collective with members who have variously travelled to Morocco to master Gnawa; played in circuses, or were born in the heartland of samba – these experiences and much more inform the complex yet breezy instrumentals of Enigma.

It’s a joy to pick through the notable influences that resound over Enigma. Ethiopian Jazz bursts from "Caminho para Itiwawa", backed by an Afro-Latin swing, fostered by drummer Barbara Mucciollo. There’s tonalities from North African artists such as Omar Khorshidor West African artists such as Tinriwen and Ali Farka Touré, as well as rhythmic influence from Afro-Cuban and Afro-Brazilian music. The dynamite track “(L)Atitude(S)” contains the explorative excitement of Brazilian 60s luminaries like Pedro Santos, however none are as special as layered percussion of “Gaba Gaba”, connected to the very specific rhythms of Northeast Brazil. It's evident from listening to Enigma that Os Barbapapas are an exceptional live band. They have their sights set on Europe soon, with the Glass Harp packed away safely. Until then please enjoy this electrifying album of their work so far, understanding: this is an extremely exciting project, still in its auspicious infant years

“Nobody Move!”, so says Philippe Doray and his Asociaux Associés (the Antisocial Associates)! Having dynamited the end of the 70s with two radical albums – Ramasse-Miettes Nucléaires in 1976 & Nouveaux Modes Industriels in 1978, both reissued by Souffle Continu – Doray still hadn’t finished singing. Throughout the next decade he began his Composant compositeur which would document the “second period”, as he calls it, of his Asociaux Associés.

The record includes new schizo-electro songs which make the most of his association with Laurence Garcette, who also plays all sorts of keyboards. A prolongation of the first period of the Asociaux Associés, the duo updates Doray’s poetry: in reaction to the current overcast atmosphere, here are some hallucinatory fantasies to the rhythm of an infernal circle dance (« Le petit géant ») or an ecstatic waltz (“Bombés fluo”) or even coded messages stuffed into bottles and thrown into space (“Secoue le flipeur”, “Choc d’amour”).

On the bonus CD there are further iconoclastic examples: rare recordings (unpublished or even “inaudible”) of the Asociaux Associés but also by Crash, a duo that Doray formed with Thierry Müller (Ilitch, Ruth). At the controls of their experiment- bending machine the musicians multiply the possibilities: peripheral rock, arias in orbit, broken swing, industrial mantras and other joyful falsities. Enough to make you lose your mind? No... as Philippe Doray promised: it is the “jackpot qui frissonne” (the shivering jackpot) which is there to excite

Circular patterns morphing through time, loop and ritual form the fabric of Proserpine, the latest work by Leeds-based musician, Teresa Winter. Recorded from a summer to a winter through 2021 and 2022, Proserpine is Winter's most cohesive, focused music to date: confidently revelling in space, fixating on isolated sounds and giving way to satisfying, swirling waves of vocal and electronic buzz. Proserpine is Teresa Winter's debut recording for Glasgow-based label, Night School.

On Proserpine, musical patterns revolve and intersect with each other, transmogrifying the music's narrative. Over-arching themes emerge: continual change, elusiveness. Insubstantiality emerges into concrete reality in the form of recognisable field recordings: the purring of a pet cat, the hum of a live cable. The loops and patterns are sometimes just out of sight, the click and whirl on Child Of Nature is the backdrop to hymnal vocalisations by Winter, who intones spell-like text in conversation with herself. On opener Circles, Winter's vocal is pre-linguistic, detached syllables falling into flowing streams, before Plume's field recordings seem to juxtapose nocturnal and diurnal wildlife. "You said I was a Flower Of The Mountain" sings Winter, as James Joyce's Molly Bloom does but the carpe diem desire in Ulysses is dissipated here, spread out by gauzy, droning organs. Here desire is blown up and out, changed into something undefinable but no less powerful.

Change is at the heart of the album. The Roman goddess Proserpine, herself a reimagined version of the earlier Greek goddess Persephone, is always between: between summer and winter, the land of the living and the underworld, constantly emerging into new states of being. It's a fitting metaphor for Winter's work. Like an Apple feels like it soundtracks this in-between state, long, trailing reverb smudging synth keys and Winter's achingly beautiful vocal performance. The effect is stirring but flitting in and out of perception, sometimes Winter's presence feels of this world, of musical instruments and practises and at others it feels like the music is about to phase into a different plane, a different universe.

While Proserpine references the myths and cults of the classical, pre-Christian era, Winter's restless preoccupation with the mechanics of religion informs the album in other ways. Ritual is present through out, either in the mantra-like vocalisations or even the private rituals we are invited to witness: on Fireworks the listener eave drops into the protagonist's private bonfire. On the stunning Lamento, layers of Choral vocal interlock in celestial patterns that recall catholic mass: it's an overt effect that simulates the ecstasy of religious fervour and also reminds the listener of the use of vocal that runs through Proserpine. Winter's vocals often echo with the euphoria of obliteration, of disintegrating in an awful bliss. It's an effect achieved with finality by the closer New Water as the piece begins with voice before burning up in the atmosphere of elegiac violins and enveloping undertows of whirring synth patterns and ghostly pads. Proserpine is forever turning, changing, always elusive and quietly revelatory.

"North London’s midnight man tumbles out his treehouse to deliver twelve potions of minor healing in “Iron Day”, his questing, soul-salvaging songbook. Brimming with majesty and maraud in equal parts, Genghis Cohn synthesises trad. English folk and woe with surrealist dream sequences on this debut long-player. A romance of two hedgehogs, devotional bone temples, broken shadows and sausage kings, GC conjures Brent Hayward strolling through the silver birch and presents to us, in a warmly recognisable form, a grand slab of folk music that challenges its ancient rewards.

Previous acquaintance with GC's lean, amorphous strain of experimental home recordings may encounter a menacing apprehension whilst trying to settle in the splendour of "Iron Day", unnerved by it's posture and the anticipation of songs dissolving or amalgamating in rust and gob at any moment. Still minimalist and direct, but delivered by an altogether different jester, songwriting that has featured in many previous works is smithed into fine, well-wrought suites that build and blend through paced, tempered sequencing and playful, intricate storytelling.

Amidst cavernous inner-dialogue and brilliant, contorted pastoral sequences, GC’s guitar (reported to be over 100 years old!?) laps and thrashes alongside accompaniments of Lauren Collier’s aching violin, a lethargic harmonica and emphatic hand-percussion that drifts in and then out. A dynamic, earthy collection that places future barn-stormers like “Underneath The Oak” and the gentle blaze of “Onion” in cadence with the doom-stricken, ghostly slides as on “Misunderstood” and “Secrets”, all recorded in dazzling clarity that captures the cascading instrumentation as clearly as the settled, tormented humour of GC’s blues. Indispensable candlemeat and essential, joyous listening for fans of; Davy Graham, The Godz, Leonara Carrington, Smelly Feet, Martin Carthy..."

Copenhagen punk rock/power pop band BIG MESS is a pile of hooks and energy. Taking their cues from the timeless masters of melody, loud guitars and high BPMs, their music packs an infectious punch. CLEANING UP WITH is the band's fourth full length and its first collaboration with UK-based label Specialist Subject. The album shows Big Mess at their most accomplished yet, and shows total dedication to reaching the ultimate in hit making. Imagine a singles compilation by your favourite band and you get the idea. Songwriting is key for Big Mess - as much Brill Building sparkle as hardcore punk economy, with no room for duds. Lyrically, the songs are heartfelt and occasionally stupid, with the dangers and difficulties of existence and the joys of rocking holding equal importance. Having been a band for nearly a decade, Big Mess’ playing is instinctive, effortless and relentless topped with vocals that combine a hooky sense of melody and rhythm with the right amount of desperation. This time the band adds a refreshingly shameless amount of backing vocals and harmonies that only add to the effective singalong quality Pink vinyl limited to 500 copies “BIG MESS is actually one big, relentless, overwhelming wall of hooks…non-stop, uptempo power pop/pop-punk with contagious riffs and choruses with their own choruses. This group is due a place on the shelf next to pop-punk’s catchiest tunesmiths, like JAY REATARD, the SPITS, MARKED MEN, SCREECHING WEASEL, etc. etc. Great!” - Maximum Rocknroll

Auf fünf Alben als Frontmann von GUM, ganz zu schweigen von den neun Alben, die er als Co-Leader der Psych-Cosmonauten Pond aufgenommen hat, hat uns Watsons rege Fantasie einige der klanglich vielfältigsten Erkundungen des letzten Jahrzehnts beschert. Auf Saturnia haben sich diese Visionen jedoch zum reichhaltigsten, aber auch kohärentesten Werk von Watsons bisheriger Karriere zusammengefügt. Wenn man die Möglichkeit hat, jede beliebige Kombination von Klängen und Stimmungen zu kombinieren, die einem in den Sinn kommt, ist die Versuchung groß, alles, was man kann, in jede Sekunde des Bandes zu packen. Die Lektion, die Watson dieses Mal gelernt hat, war die Erkenntnis, dass man manchmal eine großartige Idee zugunsten des Songs weglassen muss. Der Opener "Race to the Air" bietet den perfekten Vorhang. Wie ein gigantisches interplanetarisches Raumschiff erhebt es sich in die Lüfte und bietet eine funkelnde Aussicht auf kosmische Disco - mit Robo-Grooves und bebenden Streichern, während "Would It Pain You to See?", vielleicht einer der überraschendsten Songs des Albums, ein glitzernder, sinnlicher R&B-Song ist. In der Tat ist eines der lohnendsten Dinge an Saturnia, wie sich die Songs im Laufe des Albums unerwartet drehen und wenden, als eine Sache beginnen und dann in eine völlig andere Stratosphäre abheben.

As the warehouse-rave season approaches, it’s perfect timing for Shadow Child & Mark Archer to make their collaborative debut on Food Music with a special release that includes 2 vinyl only exclusives that saw a digital release on DJ Haus’ Dance Trax label earlier in 2023. Adding to these is a brand new slice of big-room Techno in the form of ‘Chinwah (Big DJs)’, which will no doubt be pounding its way out of the worlds cooler parties in the coming months with a controversial spoken-word message to boot.

DJ Support:

Horse Meat Disco, Doc Scott, Josh Wink, Pangaea, Joyce Muniz, Benjamin Damage, KE (Kid Enigma), Yung Singh, Anja Schneider (Club Room), Pinch, Tom Findlay (Groove Armada), Elle Clark, Joshua James, Monty Luke, Adam Beyer, Otik, Tom Ravenscroft, Nightwave + Martyn Bootyspoon, Violet, TEED, Addison Groove, Mad Miran, Emerald, Dusky

Parallel Minds’ fifth label release is a major landmark for the Toronto-based label. Not only is it their first full length LP, it is also the debut album from co-founder Ciel, who is also making her first solo appearance on the label since its inception.

In 2021, spurred on by a productive creative streak and the economic austerity of pandemic lockdowns, the Xi’an-born and Toronto-based DJ Ciel (real name Cindy Li) applied for grant funding from the government of Canada to write her debut album. Self-proclaimed “DJ first, producer second”, Ciel never thought she would have the self-confidence and desire to write an album. It wasn’t until after spending prolonged time away from clubs & festivals whilst dedicating herself to daily sessions in her studio that she gained the motivation and aspiration to make a musical statement that only an album could express.

Since the start of the covid19 outbreak, Ciel, like many other Chinese diaspora people in the West, had felt a great deal of anxiety and pain at the rise of anti-Chinese sentiment and racism in the media — even in her corner of the dance music industry. Tired of expressing her frustrations fruitlessly online, she felt inspired to channel that into her music, to turn something that was filled with hate into a thing of joy and beauty. It was within this context that Homesick began to take shape.

After researching the rich history of Chinese instruments, a concept began to form around the album in which she could marry her love of sampling and analogue instruments. Using the eight types of traditional Chinese instruments (silk, bamboo, wood, stone, metal, clay, gourd, and hide) as a guideline, Li began writing each track with a focus on one of the eight. She hired traditional Chinese instrumentalists to play the guzheng and the xiao, whilst purchasing and teaching herself the smaller hand drum instruments like the kuaiban (bamboo clappers), and muyu (temple blocks). With the news that she had successfully been granted funding from Canada Arts Council, she wrote, recorded, arranged, and mixed all nine tracks of her album over the first three months of 2022. More than just highlighting Chinese instruments, the music on this album encapsulates so many musical influences from Ciel’s childhood when she began her lifelong love affair with music. True to her style as a DJ, the LP incorporates a diversity of genres she loves, from drum & bass to house, electro to breaks - even downtempo.

What has come out of these sessions is a deeply personal dancefloor record, a true expression of love for Cindy’s culture that came out of a time of relentless chaos, negativity, and uncertainty. Ciel sees her compositions as a distillation of herself — her life experiences, her wide interests and passions, and her often-turbulent emotions. Immersing oneself in the LP feels like listening to the musical confessions of an artist heading towards the peak of their career, who is finally starting to make sense of her artistic identity. What a joy to witness it.
credits

Die-cut sleeve. In the fall of 2013 Bry Webb was putting the finishing touches on his second album Free Will. Released on May 20th 2014, Bry, with his newly assembled band The Providers, spent the following few years traversing North America playing clubs, festivals and storied stages such as Toronto’s Massey Hall. Nothing new for an artist who had spent the aughts in a constant state of motion with Constantines, a band who on average had performed one of every three nights on a stage somewhere in the world. In fact, running in parallel to Bry’s solo touring schedule was a reunion with his former Constantines’ bandmates to once again present their incendiary live show and celebrate the 11th anniversary reissue of the band’s Shine A Light. It is what happened as the decade wound down that seemed out of character for an artist who had spent close to 20 years immersed in the studio and on the stage: the music stopped altogether. Bry explains his feelings at that time, “I lost the musical plot about 5 years ago and stopped playing music entirely, sold instruments and recording equipment, and committed myself to the idea that I was absolutely done”. Webb dedicated himself to his ongoing work in community radio, months turned to years and musical life seemed to be all but gone from view. Now in an unexpected turnaround 10 years on from the recording of his last studio album, there is not only a return to the stage for Bry but also a new record. Primarily composed in a season of upheaval, Run With Me contains some of Bry’s rawest sentiments. Fresh and painfully present there is an immediacy one can hear as emotional walls collapse in real time. Bry explains the context of the album’s creation: “In early 2023 my personal life exploded. In the process of dealing with that, I started writing music again and started recording at home. Advised that I needed to figure out how to ask for, and accept, help from other people, I sent early recordings of songs to friends from twenty-five years of music making - many folks I hadn’t connected with in years - and asked if they’d contribute anything to the songs. People came through in ways that overwhelmed me to the point that I cried when I wrote out the list of players for the liner notes. I felt incredibly cared for. From Andy Magoffin, who recorded the first Constantines album in 1999, to members of the Cons, to my nieces Addy and Ella playing drums, and a doppler recording of my daughter’s heartbeat, the record is a document of my creative life, and the people who made it possible to make music again.” If the cover of Run With Me looks familiar, it is with full intent. The album’s technicolor marbling and die cut text serve to signal the inclusion of the album in a trilogy started with Bry’s first record Provider. Just as that album starts with the track Asa, this new one introduces itself with the instrumental Webb. The trilogy is now completed with his daughter's first, middle and last names represented as the first tracks on each of the three albums. While the LP’s package signals its place in the collection, and tracks such as Older Than The Dirt and What I Do revisit their predecessor’s familiar sonic starkness, Run With Me is the outlier of the trio. A number of new tracks forego the quietude of Provider and Free Will, clearly recalling the rallying rhythms of Constantines’ anthems. Thunder Bay (instrumental backing courtesy of The Harbourcoats circa 2009), with its insistent kick drum and wall of electrics, support one of Webb’s most indelible melodies, and the not so subtly psychedelic Modern Mind reveal an expansion of Webb’s palette. Perhaps the furthest afield is the contextual centerpiece of the album, Goodbye, where we not only hear a joyful voice that lay dormant for years, but hear it reclaim its power. Backed by Constantines’ Will Kidman, Doug MacGregor and Dallas Wehrle, Bry belts out “I’m through with all the rage, now watch the light pour out of me.” As with all of Bry’s work, Run With Me’s lyrics take their time to settle in. Songs of self-examination, reconfigured love ballads, and songs for those who work to help others. Songs of singing abound. It’s there in Older Than The Dirt’s second verse: "Logic to the last intention, logic in the way we kept holding on forever, singing as the floor- was swept”, ten thousand birds sing a warning song in Thunder Bay and again in Goodbye’s telling of a cathartic return to one’s true self with its celebration of those “Who sing - sing all joy - all joy of language, in a single word”. Joining Bry in singing Run With Me’s songs of “death, transition and hope,” are kindred spirits Jennifer Castle, Julie Doiron, Daniel Romano and Steph Yates. All of these singers elevate the album’s healing sentiments and help express the album’s central plea; a prayer of sorts wrapped in the traditional Scottish Gaelic melody of She Is Here’s second verse: “Let the sun rise in the morning and any witness bring. Let all the blooming cosmos teach us to sing”.

I can say that the album It's not too late has been created by chance.
Few years ago together with Lisa Gerrard we visited synagogue in a small town hundred kilometres from Cracow, Bobowa. When we entered the synagogue Lisa started to sing. It appeared that the place had spine-tingling acoustics. I said then to Lisa: " let's try to record something here".
The rule was simple: I prepared themes and we recorded live performance. Lisa heard what I was playing for the first time during the recording and she improvised. We recorded nine compositions in 45 minutes. It supposed to be a holiday joy.

Six years later I returned to the material we recorded and decided to finish it. What is left from the original recording is the voice of Lisa. I composed and recorded everything else in my studio. Dominik Wania played piano, Magdalena Pluta - cello and Jerzy G?owczewski- saxophone.
That's the way the album It's not too late came in to being.

We live in the most dangerous time since the Second World War.
Lisa Gerrard and I want to tell you about the world we share. Our weapon is music. It doesn't kill, it resurrects, and it brings hope to life.
It's not too late.

Zbigniew Preisner

Vecchio's Afro-Rock is one big horn-heavy, bass-blasting, Latin groove funk-rock party. Only now, you're all invited because this, ladies and gentleman, is officially...a grail no more. With copies currently starting at 400 Euros for an original, this beautifully presented reissue, part of Be With's fresh campaign with Music De Wolfe, is well overdue. A magnificent and somewhat obscure library set that's just a total, cohesive joy from start to finish, this here is the soundtrack to all your smokin' summer BBQs and communal cookouts.

Afro-Rock is the debut album by Argentine keyboardist Luis Vecchio. Recorded for the sound library label De Wolfe, the album is frequently mentioned in hushed reverence among the beat digger DJ collecting crowd. It features fiery brass charts, funky bass lines, fluttering flute, choppy organ and additional hand tribal percussion. The band let loose too and jam hard; yet there's a certain thread of solidity that runs throughout, the tracks just belong together, not disparate sound and rhythm experiments like some library records; this is just straight up, no messin', consistent funk-rock FIRE! Hips will sway, heads will nod to the steady vibes. It's insanely good.

The humid, building funk of the appropriately titled "Megaton" is a dramatic explosion of swirling, dazzling organ lines, ferocious beats and heavy horns throughout. It just don't stop. The tempo slows slightly for the deep and deeply addictive "Renegade". It's all heavy jazz horn refrains, always triumphant, coupled with devastating percussive breakdowns and killer guitar riffing. It's an insistent organ-led juggernaut. The frenetic "Facade", up next, is no less driving, horns high up in the mix over rattling percussion and brilliant organs lines. Just sensational. The bright "Chabati" is another glorious extension of the optimistic Vecchio sound, the organs wilder than ever before. The moody "Green Hell" is a real highlight and closes out the A-Side with some outrageously funky refrains - be it horns, organ or guitars - and is complimented by gorgeous flute work that galvanises the piece, elevating it to downright heavenly status.

Knowing full well that he's on to a surefire thing, Vecchio opens the flipside in much the same vein. Indeed, "Boss" is yet another uptempo highlight, a sensual orgy of proud horns, hand percussion and melodic flute playing over driving organ and guitars. It's followed by "Nsambei", which is rightly adored for its briefly open drum break, fantastically propulsive percussion breakdowns throughout and the jazzy, loose organ and guitar shreds. The bright "Waboco" ups the tempo and the pressure, hanging on one hell of a guitar hook and infectious horn refrain. Perhaps foreseeing how this album would come to be viewed, the aptly-titled "Cult" is possibly the finest song on the record. Which is saying something, because this record is insanely good. Riding a steady, confident organ groove straight out the gate, the kinda melancholic flute line over the top serves as a beautiful counterpoint which the horns often come in and imitate/riff off. Goddamn this is so so good, it needs to be played everywhere. The overwhelmingly mighty 7-minute jam "Ngoma-ku" rounds out this quite staggering record brilliantly in its heavy, mid-tempo blues with countless extended solos.

The audio for Afro Rock has been meticulously remastered by Be With regular Simon Francis, ensuring this release sounds better than ever. Cicely Balston's expert skills have made sure nothing is lost in the cut whilst the records have been pressed to the highest possible standard at Record Industry in Holland. The original, iconic sleeve has been restored here at Be With HQ as the finishing touch to this long overdue re-issue.

Limited to 500 copies ww. Independent heavyweights Spearmint return this year to follow-up 2021's highly acclaimed 'Holland Park', with the superb new album 'This Candle Is For You'. Spearmint have been making great records for a couple of decades now: this will be their tenth album proper. Still the same line-up: Shirley Lee (singing, guitar), Simon Calnan (singing, keyboards), James Parsons (guitar, bass) and Ronan Larvor (drums). This album will be the 60th release on their own hitBACK label. Missed out so far? The new album provides the perfect place to start! The dizzying multiverse of an album covers a wide array of themes, including the search for a missing sister, the ways we remember lost loved ones, Prince's encounters with Joni Mitchell, the story of John Gavin, the James Bond star who never got to make a film, late-night drinking in Soho, the joys of B-movies & video nasties, changing attitudes to mental health, the plight and wonder of older cats, the reaction to the death of Sarah Everard, and the afterlife. Re-united with producer Rhodri Marsden (Scritti Politti), the band feel that this record is their best yet. Singer Shirley explains "We started off just wanting to make an album that would stand alongside our last one 'Holland Park', but it ended up surprising us - we love it!"

Search Party is the debut album from pianist, Rupert Cox. Rupert has made a little following for himself already being a respected player for Myele Manzanza, China Moses, Chris Hyson and many more.

His debut album swings between laidback contemporary jazz and swirling electronics. There are mellow and moving moments alongside joyful, uplifting melodies and dancing rhythms.

The record has already won support from people like Deb Grant on BBC Radio 6 Music and is slowly developing an ardent following.

DJ Support:

Deb Grant (BBC Radio 6 Music) and Tony Minvielle (Jazz FM)

Jacob Collier: “Having known Rupert for more than a decade, I can honestly say that this kaleidoscopic beauty of an album does effervescent justice to his magnificent musicianship. It’s a journey for the soul! I can’t wait for the whole world to hear it.”

Brad Mehldau: “Music is all about storytelling for me at its base and it’s got that going on all the tracks… It really holds together as a singular voice.” “It feels like I’ve heard it before, like it has a familiarity, but it doesn’t sound like something or someone else.”

Available for the first time on vinyl, Whitney Houston's The Preacher's Wife: Original Soundtrack Album is the best-selling gospel album of all time. Released on November 26, 1996, the album features songs performed and produced by Houston, who also starred in the film. From the moment you press play, your heart will move to soul-stirring vocals like the hauntingly beautiful "I Believe In You and Me," and the spiritual "Joy To The World," "I Love The Lord," and "Step By Step." The album features guest artists including Shirley Caesar, the Georgia Mass Choir, and Houston's mother, the legendary Cissy Houston. This 2LP vinyl features a new essay by producer Mervyn Warren and fan testimonials of love.

Available for the first time on vinyl, Whitney Houston's The Preacher's Wife: Original Soundtrack Album is the best-selling gospel album of all time. Released on November 26, 1996, the album features songs performed and produced by Houston, who also starred in the film. From the moment you press play, your heart will move to soul-stirring vocals like the hauntingly beautiful "I Believe In You and Me," and the spiritual "Joy To The World," "I Love The Lord," and "Step By Step." The album features guest artists including Shirley Caesar, the Georgia Mass Choir, and Houston's mother, the legendary Cissy Houston. This 2LP vinyl features a new essay by producer Mervyn Warren and fan testimonials of love.

GER "Wir suchen nach Glitzer, nach dem hellsten Geröll und Blitzen. Wer sich heute Nacht verliert, wird sich nicht finden. Ihr sucht in uns die Perfektion der Generation Maximum.." An was noch glauben. Mit ihrem dritten Album Generation Maximum nehmen CULK den Druck von einer Generation, die den Horror der Gegenwart wie durch Magie doch noch zu etwas Positivem wandeln - und richten ihn bewusst auf diejenigen, die ihre Zukunft zerstört haben. "... Ihr sucht in uns die Revolution, bürgt uns auf, was ihr nicht leisten wollt. Wer sich heute nicht mehr wehrt, wird übrigbleiben." Generation Maximum ist sicherlich kein Album, bei dem im SUV laut mitgegrölt wird, weil der Refrain so schön in die Sonnenuntergangsstimmung passt. Niemand klatscht vor Freude über den nächsten Waldbrand die Hände zusammen. Stattdessen beobachtet Sängerin Sophie Löw ihre Umwelt durch ein Brennglas und nimmt die Zuhörer:innen mit auf eine lyrische Rückblende der letzten zwanzig Jahre, in denen sie selbst vom Kind zur Zeugin wurde. Das selbstbetitelte CULK Debut (2019) erschien beim Wiener Label Siluh Records, einer der verlässlichsten Quellen für spannende Indie-Musik in all seinen Facetten. Vom Spiegel-Magazin gab es dazu das Attribut "Suchtsound". Mit ihrem zweiten Album "Zerstreuen über Euch" (2020) schuf die Gruppe ein famoses Konzept-Album. Es wurde von vielen Seiten als eine Kampfansage an tiefverwurzelte patriarchale Strukturen gedeutet und schaffte es u.a. in die TOP 5 der Jahresbestenliste des Spiegel-Magazins. Mit "Generation Maximum" übernimmt Jakob Herber die Rolle des Bassisten von Gründungsmitglied Benjamin Steiger. Herber ist von Anfang an ein wichtiger Wegbegleiter im engen Zirkelder Band, Sängerin/Gitarristin Sophie Löw hat im August 2022 als SOPHIA BLENDA ihr Solo-Debüt-Album "Die neue Heiterkeit" veröffentlicht. "Die neue Heiterkeit" ist eines der stärksten deutschsprachigen Pop-Statements der jüngeren Zeit" - Spiegel. Für ihr neues und nun drittes Album "Generation Maximum" hat sich die Band mit dem Produzenten Wolfgang Lehmann, vormals Wolfgang Möstl, zusammengetan, der unter anderem für seine Arbeit mit Voodoo Jürgens, Clara Luzia, Jungstötter, Dives uvm. bekannt ist. Und bringen es musikalisch nach draußen zu den Menschen, die vor lauter Existenzkämpfen fast vergessen hätten, die Revolution zu starten ("Generation Maximum"). Kein Ausbaden. Generation Maximum ist ein progressiv lauter werdendes "Nein" zur auferlegten Bürde, ein Appell an mehr Verletzlichkeit ("Eisenkleid") "Jede Rüstung erzählt von Verletzlichkeit. Stärke zeigt, wer Narben teilt." und weniger Elend im Privaten wie im Öffentlichen. Letztlich aber auch eine Suche nach einer neuen "Ode an die Freude" und Mut um uns. "Wir erheben Stimmen, auf dass sie für immer klingen. Wo sollen wir heute Zukunft finden?" Wer genau hinhört, findet sie: Lieder über unausgesprochene Träume, die durch epische Gitarrenklänge und Löws entrückten Gesang näher wirken, als sie eigentlich sind. LP klassisch schwarzes Vinyl.


With their third album Generation Maximum, CULK take the pressure off a generation that magically transforms the horror of the present into something positive after all - and deliberately direct it at those who have destroyed their future."... Ihr sucht in uns die Revolution, bürgt uns auf, was ihr nicht leisten wollt. Wer sich heute nicht mehr wehrt, wird übrig bleiben." Generation Maximum is certainly not an album to be bawled along to loudly in the SUV because the chorus fits so nicely into the sunset mood. No one claps their hands together in joy over the next forest fire. Instead, singer Sophie Löw observes her environment through a burning glass and takes the listeners on a lyrical flashback of the last twenty years, during which she herself went from child to witness. The self-titled CULK debut album (2019) was released on the Viennese label Siluh Records, one of the most reliable sources for exciting indie music in all its facets. Spiegel magazine gave it the attribute "addictive sound". With their second album "Zerstreuen über Euch" (2020), the group created a fabulous concept album. It was often viewed as a declaration of war against deeply rooted patriarchal structures and made it to the TOP 5 of the Spiegel magazine's best of the year list and gained the band a following in various scenes and audiences. With "Generation Maximum", Jakob Herber takes over the role of bass player from founding member Benjamin Steiger. Herber has been an important companion from the beginning. Singer/guitarist Sophie Löw released her solo debut album "Die neue Heiterkeit" as SOPHIA BLENDA in August 2022. "Die neue Heiterkeit" is one of the strongest German-language pop statements of recent times" - Spiegel. For their new and now third album "Generation Maximum", the band teamed up with producer Wolfgang Lehmann, formerly Wolfgang Möstl, who is known for his work with Voodoo Jürgens, Clara Luzia, Jungstötter, Dives and many more. And they take it musically outside to the people who almost forgot to start the revolution because of all the struggles for existence ("Generation Maximum"). No payback Generation Maximum is a progressively louder "no" to the burden imposed, an appeal for more vulnerability ("Eisenkleid") "Every armour tells of vulnerability. Strength shows who shares scars" and less misery in private as well as in public. But ultimately also a search for a new "Ode an die Freude" and courage around us. "Wir erheben Stimmen, auf dass sie für immer klingen. Wo sollen wir heute Zukunft finden?" Wer genau hinhört, findet sie: Lieder über unausgesprochene Träume, die durch epische Gitarrenklänge und Löws entrückten Gesang näher wirken, als sie eigentlich sind. RIYL Nu Wave, Independent, Shoegaze

GER "Wir suchen nach Glitzer, nach dem hellsten Geröll und Blitzen. Wer sich heute Nacht verliert, wird sich nicht finden. Ihr sucht in uns die Perfektion der Generation Maximum.." An was noch glauben. Mit ihrem dritten Album Generation Maximum nehmen CULK den Druck von einer Generation, die den Horror der Gegenwart wie durch Magie doch noch zu etwas Positivem wandeln - und richten ihn bewusst auf diejenigen, die ihre Zukunft zerstört haben. "... Ihr sucht in uns die Revolution, bürgt uns auf, was ihr nicht leisten wollt. Wer sich heute nicht mehr wehrt, wird übrigbleiben." Generation Maximum ist sicherlich kein Album, bei dem im SUV laut mitgegrölt wird, weil der Refrain so schön in die Sonnenuntergangsstimmung passt. Niemand klatscht vor Freude über den nächsten Waldbrand die Hände zusammen. Stattdessen beobachtet Sängerin Sophie Löw ihre Umwelt durch ein Brennglas und nimmt die Zuhörer:innen mit auf eine lyrische Rückblende der letzten zwanzig Jahre, in denen sie selbst vom Kind zur Zeugin wurde. Das selbstbetitelte CULK Debut (2019) erschien beim Wiener Label Siluh Records, einer der verlässlichsten Quellen für spannende Indie-Musik in all seinen Facetten. Vom Spiegel-Magazin gab es dazu das Attribut "Suchtsound". Mit ihrem zweiten Album "Zerstreuen über Euch" (2020) schuf die Gruppe ein famoses Konzept-Album. Es wurde von vielen Seiten als eine Kampfansage an tiefverwurzelte patriarchale Strukturen gedeutet und schaffte es u.a. in die TOP 5 der Jahresbestenliste des Spiegel-Magazins. Mit "Generation Maximum" übernimmt Jakob Herber die Rolle des Bassisten von Gründungsmitglied Benjamin Steiger. Herber ist von Anfang an ein wichtiger Wegbegleiter im engen Zirkelder Band, Sängerin/Gitarristin Sophie Löw hat im August 2022 als SOPHIA BLENDA ihr Solo-Debüt-Album "Die neue Heiterkeit" veröffentlicht. "Die neue Heiterkeit" ist eines der stärksten deutschsprachigen Pop-Statements der jüngeren Zeit" - Spiegel. Für ihr neues und nun drittes Album "Generation Maximum" hat sich die Band mit dem Produzenten Wolfgang Lehmann, vormals Wolfgang Möstl, zusammengetan, der unter anderem für seine Arbeit mit Voodoo Jürgens, Clara Luzia, Jungstötter, Dives uvm. bekannt ist. Und bringen es musikalisch nach draußen zu den Menschen, die vor lauter Existenzkämpfen fast vergessen hätten, die Revolution zu starten ("Generation Maximum"). Kein Ausbaden. Generation Maximum ist ein progressiv lauter werdendes "Nein" zur auferlegten Bürde, ein Appell an mehr Verletzlichkeit ("Eisenkleid") "Jede Rüstung erzählt von Verletzlichkeit. Stärke zeigt, wer Narben teilt." und weniger Elend im Privaten wie im Öffentlichen. Letztlich aber auch eine Suche nach einer neuen "Ode an die Freude" und Mut um uns. "Wir erheben Stimmen, auf dass sie für immer klingen. Wo sollen wir heute Zukunft finden?" Wer genau hinhört, findet sie: Lieder über unausgesprochene Träume, die durch epische Gitarrenklänge und Löws entrückten Gesang näher wirken, als sie eigentlich sind. LP klassisch schwarzes Vinyl.


With their third album Generation Maximum, CULK take the pressure off a generation that magically transforms the horror of the present into something positive after all - and deliberately direct it at those who have destroyed their future."... Ihr sucht in uns die Revolution, bürgt uns auf, was ihr nicht leisten wollt. Wer sich heute nicht mehr wehrt, wird übrig bleiben." Generation Maximum is certainly not an album to be bawled along to loudly in the SUV because the chorus fits so nicely into the sunset mood. No one claps their hands together in joy over the next forest fire. Instead, singer Sophie Löw observes her environment through a burning glass and takes the listeners on a lyrical flashback of the last twenty years, during which she herself went from child to witness. The self-titled CULK debut album (2019) was released on the Viennese label Siluh Records, one of the most reliable sources for exciting indie music in all its facets. Spiegel magazine gave it the attribute "addictive sound". With their second album "Zerstreuen über Euch" (2020), the group created a fabulous concept album. It was often viewed as a declaration of war against deeply rooted patriarchal structures and made it to the TOP 5 of the Spiegel magazine's best of the year list and gained the band a following in various scenes and audiences. With "Generation Maximum", Jakob Herber takes over the role of bass player from founding member Benjamin Steiger. Herber has been an important companion from the beginning. Singer/guitarist Sophie Löw released her solo debut album "Die neue Heiterkeit" as SOPHIA BLENDA in August 2022. "Die neue Heiterkeit" is one of the strongest German-language pop statements of recent times" - Spiegel. For their new and now third album "Generation Maximum", the band teamed up with producer Wolfgang Lehmann, formerly Wolfgang Möstl, who is known for his work with Voodoo Jürgens, Clara Luzia, Jungstötter, Dives and many more. And they take it musically outside to the people who almost forgot to start the revolution because of all the struggles for existence ("Generation Maximum"). No payback Generation Maximum is a progressively louder "no" to the burden imposed, an appeal for more vulnerability ("Eisenkleid") "Every armour tells of vulnerability. Strength shows who shares scars" and less misery in private as well as in public. But ultimately also a search for a new "Ode an die Freude" and courage around us. "Wir erheben Stimmen, auf dass sie für immer klingen. Wo sollen wir heute Zukunft finden?" Wer genau hinhört, findet sie: Lieder über unausgesprochene Träume, die durch epische Gitarrenklänge und Löws entrückten Gesang näher wirken, als sie eigentlich sind. RIYL Nu Wave, Independent, Shoegaze

Available for the first time on vinyl, Whitney Houston's The Preacher's Wife: Original Soundtrack Album is the best-selling gospel album of all time. Released on November 26, 1996, the album features songs performed and produced by Houston, who also starred in the film. From the moment you press play, your heart will move to soul-stirring vocals like the hauntingly beautiful "I Believe In You and Me," and the spiritual "Joy To The World," "I Love The Lord," and "Step By Step." The album features guest artists including Shirley Caesar, the Georgia Mass Choir, and Houston's mother, the legendary Cissy Houston. This 2LP vinyl features a new essay by producer Mervyn Warren and fan testimonials of love.

Der fünffach Grammy-nominierte und mehrfach mit Platin ausgezeichnete Blues/Rock-Gitarrist Kenny Wayne Shepherd hat die Veröffentlichung seines neuen Albums "Dirt On My Diamonds Vol 1" angekündigt, das am 17. November 2023 über Provogue Records erscheinen wird.
Gleichzeitig erscheint 'Goin' Home' aus dem Jahr 2014, das Shepherds größte Einflüsse in der Musik zeigt. Das Album enthält Songs, die ursprünglich von einigen von Shepherds Helden wie B.B. King, Albert King, Bo Diddley, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Johnny "Guitar" Watson, Lee Dorsey und vielen anderen Ikonen des Blues aufgenommen wurden. Er griff tief in ihre Kataloge und wählte Songs aus, die ihn inspirierten, als er das Gitarrenspiel erlernte. '
Goin' Home' enthält auch Gastauftritte von einigen von Shepherds Freunden (die zufällig auch einige der größten Musiker sind, die heute auftreten), darunter Ringo Starr, Joe Walsh, Warren Haynes, Keb' Mo', Robert Randolph, Kim Wilson (Fabulous Thunderbirds), Pastor Brady Blade, Sr. und die Rebirth Brass Band.

"Omoiyari" means to have empathy and consideration for others, and act on it. This fall, the American indie-folk multi-instrumentalist and singer-songwriter Kishi Bashi is set to release the companion album to his forthcoming documentary song film, titled Music from the Song Film: Omoiyari. Consisting of two LPs_"The Songs" and "The Score"_the release showcases what is essentially the soundtrack to Omoiyari, the feature-length motion picture co-directed by Kishi Bashi, aka Kaoru Ishibashi or "K," which is being released via MTV Documentary Films in November. Focusing on K's own six-year journey of discovery surrounding his research of the incarceration of 120,000 Japanese Americans that followed the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, the film is part social justice documentary and part song-film experiment. The album includes K's live improvisations, which are featured in the documentary, many recorded on the sites where the concentration camps stood. Written during and about the artist's transformational dive into his personal identity and serving as a broad survey of the Japanese American experience as well as the incarceration_Music from the Song Film: Omoiyari serves as an evocative musical accompaniment to the lessons of empathy and compassion portrayed in the film and highlights the process and power of one of modern indie's most talented musicians.

God knows enough has been written about Workshop. Surely you haven't read it, but this group has been around since 1985, and what they did was this: musically quite limited, they made the music they wanted to hear, but in an ingenious way. Some played the instruments skillfully and others not so much. Something came out of it! One says: that's just the way I like it. The other one boasts: yes, I understood everything how you play here, sometimes you hit it, or sometimes you play so that the parents cry with joy. In fact, seven records were recorded, which, with the exception of the second LP, are still more than worth listening to today. Are they in danger of being forgotten?

Yes and no. What is worth listening to here has often been banned. One must bring it out again. Make attentive. Against the forgetting. These impetuous songs - just let them get close to you again and listen to them in a new context and forget all the smart-ass talk that was said about them. That means to put the self with all its reality entanglements in the pillory. This is of course not only pleasant. Bravo!