Buscar:norfolk

Compilation of sweet soul and r&b from Plut Records. 11 tracks (7 unreleased) mostly by Lenis Guess. A couple of moody instrumentals are featured, but vocal harmony groups are heard for the most part. And for the most part this music has been silent since it was recorded and put back on the shelf. Each cut is transferred from master tapes. And for those who want to know about the people, the time and the place; it’s Norfolk, Virginia – early to mid Seventies.

Extensive liner notes with 8 pg insert and full color sleeve.\

One of America's finest guitarists, Gordon Banks is most well known as Marvin Gaye's tour bass player in the 70s and co-writer in the 80s (as well as becoming his brother-in-law). He has also played with New Birth, Edwin Hawkins & Gladys Knight & The Pips. Norfolk and Midnight love were Gordon's post Marvin (Passed in 84) local bands, these two tracks were recorded between 86-88. You can hear Gordon's writing skills coming through with a far more late 80s pop vibe, like late Marvin joints, which I love.

Personally it's an honour to work with such a huge talent, Gordon's bass playing on 'Life is For Learning' still give me goosebumps every time.

James Ruskin's Blueprint Records continue the 30th anniversary with another label stalwart as Mark Broom returns with his new EP, "Reality Check".



Mark Broom is a renowned British techno DJ and music producer whose career spans over three decades. Throughout his career, Broom has released over 150 singles, showcasing his versatility across various sub-genres of electronic music. He has collaborated with esteemed record labels such as Defected, Rekids, Warp, Ifach, M-Plant, Cocoon, Glitterbox and his own Beard Man (launched in 2009).



In addition to his solo projects, Broom has engaged in numerous collaborations. He partnered with James Ruskin to form The Fear Ratio, exploring experimental sounds that blend elements of hip-hop, IDM and techno with four albums (to date) on Skam Records, Tresor and of course, Blueprint. Another highlight has been their "Ruskin & Broom" EPs which have peppered the label's roster.Now based in Norfolk (England), Broom continues to be a driving force in the techno scene.



His work has been described as ranging from "club-ready techno and house to left-field electro, downtempo and IDM" highlighting his adaptability and broad musical range.? Returning to his driving Techno roots, his "Reality Check" EP is an essential release for fans of both Broom and Blueprint.

STRANGER STILL was Julian Cator (guitar), Paul Cator (piano, organ, synthesizer), Tim Warnes (bass), Frank Warnes (vocals, drums) and Ian Johnson (vocals, drums) from King’s Lynn, Norfolk, UK. The two sets of Cator and Warnes siblings had been playing together in bands since 1974, with Ian joining in 1979, and with their musical style evolving from glam influenced rock to punk/new wave (punk came late to Norfolk) and finally post-punk, influenced by Ultravox!, Magazine, Joy Division, Bauhaus and Killing Joke. Their first gig together was in September 1979 with John Peel being in the audience. The Solitude/Survivor single was recorded in July 1981, released in November and sold well locally. John Peel played Solitude, between singles by Winston and Screen 3. When Julian left in autumn 1981 the others continued, later changing their name to Nothing Sacred. Ex-members have since played in a number of other bands, most notably Paul and Tim in Shine!, and Julian and Paul in Ivy.

Solitude opens in a perfect analogue way with a ‚primitive’ rhythm machine pattern and a dark synth sound fading in. We shall be glad for the band’s move towards electronics while knowing „given the negative reaction we got from some of the local bands when we got the synth a Moog Satellite“, quoting Julian. When the real drums, guitar, bass and vocals also come in, you’re in for one of the most perfect post-punk songs, yet playful but ultimately bleak. “And then I can feel nothing more. Alone again, with no sensation.“ Survivor is more uptempo and bass-driven, reminiscent of early Death In June (who came later though). Lyrics like “4 minute warning warning – the sound of today. Our new dream world – Enola Gay.“ set the mood there.

The band composed a dozen of songs, demos to get gigs, which were unfortunately never recorded properly in a studio. So these are demos or rehearsal tracks, never released to the public and presented here for the first time ever as an additional 15 tracks download-only (due to the poor sound quality). You’ll find fantastic tracks like Brave New Berlin or Cardiac Arrest, which is reminiscent of Death In June’s In The Nighttime, and then, there is a demo of Solitude too!

Here’s to a piece of post-punk history!

Balmat began our journey in 2021 with the release of Luke Sanger’s Languid Gongue. Now, three years later, we turn an important corner as the Norfolk musician rejoins us with Dew Point Harmonics, the first repeat appearance on the label. Sanger’s new album feels like a natural extension of his inaugural record for Balmat: It’s a bewitching collection of esoteric synth sketches that slips unpredictably between consonant repetition, poignant melodies, and gnarled bursts of noise that catch in the ear like burrs in hiking socks.

That natural metaphor is perhaps not accidental. Despite having been composed on Sanger’s diverse array of hardware and self-written software, many of the tracks were first conceived while Sanger was hiking in a particularly wild and isolated section of the Norfolk coast. The field recording that opens the album, on “6am Beach Walk,” was taken on one of his many early-morning walks there, in which he and his dog might go for miles without seeing another soul. The album’s title was inspired by the overnight condensation covering the long marram grass in the dunes, glistening in the early light (and drenching everything coming in contact with it) before evaporating in the morning sun. Indeed, the concept of dew point—the temperature at which water vapor condenses into a liquid—feels like the perfect metaphor for Sanger’s music, in which foggy ambience is distilled into glistening quicksilver orbs, transient spheres of perfection eventually absorbed back into the atmosphere.

A shapeshifting collection of richly detailed and deeply expressive electronic miniatures, Dew Point Harmonics is both a testament to the mysteries of transformation and an invitation to get lost in the wilderness of your own imagination.

Death Is Not The End present a compilation gathering a cross-section of early gospel choirs and vocal harmony groups recorded between late 1920s and the mid-1950s - a period when spirituals & jubilee traditions merged with blues, jazz and early rhythm and blues, providing the musical routes for the coalescence of the civil rights movement born out of the black church. In the modern world these perennially vital recordings provide a fitting tonic for the near-dystopia we find ourselves living through.

Death Is Not The End present a compilation gathering a cross-section of early gospel choirs and vocal harmony groups recorded between late 1920s and the mid-1950s - a period when spirituals & jubilee traditions merged with blues, jazz and early rhythm and blues, providing the musical routes for the coalescence of the civil rights movement born out of the black church. In the modern world these perennially vital recordings provide a fitting tonic for the near-dystopia we find ourselves living through.

'Gone Down Meadowland' is the much-anticipated debut album release from Norwich, UK psych outfit Floral Image, releasing 25th April 2025 on the renowned Fuzz Club. More than ever, the band wanted to produce a brand of East-Coast psychedelia that reflected the natural lusciousness and glorious solitude of the immediate world around them. Over 30 songs were conjured, considered and arranged before being whittled down to a final 10 that epitomise what they do best - ten tracks of vivid hue, harnessed live power, all laced together in fluid lyrical harmonies. Taking inspiration from band favourites Woods, KGLW, Stereolab, among many others, a string of at-home recording sessions commenced over a 6-week period across the summer of 2024. Side A is a sun-drenched journey through their whimsical Norfolk countryside, narrated with a surreal sense of lyricism which focuses on the undulating flow of the human psyche and the shape of relationships that can decide its fate. 'Burning 305' follows the mould of the band’s earlier creations with white-knuckled rhythms layered with dashing production and gritty guitars. 'The Score' summarises their love of Revolver-era Beatles and infuses it with a hint of 90's dance grooves. Side B is where the trip takes a heavier turn, the un-hinged night-time of the record. It is where the band best shows the force with which their live reputation has been built on. 'Tiergarten' - a motorik course through consciousness and 'Howling Dog Song' - all raucous, scuzzy-garage riffing. The album concludes with the 7-minute epic 'Sun For Hire'. Born out of a 30-minute live improvisation, it is the earliest written of all songs on GDM and a strong fan favorite for the audiences of the last 2 years. "A lot of themes are anti-establishment commentaries on the state of the modern world. It can feel isolating being bystanders of global concern in sleepy Norfolk, even though it’s easy to slip into a false comfort when you’re surrounded by vast space, natural beauty and friendly folks down the market. Gone Down Meadowland is that egoless escapist fantasy that still can't escape the world caving in on itself; Norfolk isolationism." Produced by the band themselves, mixed by Hugh Fothergill of Volleyball, and mastered by Joseph Carra at Crystal Mastering of KGLW fame, Gone Down Meadowland is Floral Image’s first full flourish. They take the record on the road across Europe and the UK throughout April & May 2025.

Maazn Records unveils its inaugural release "Lost in Transit” by Guzman & Terraflow. Inspired by the breadth of London's current sounds, this record gives a taste of their vision for the future.

The A-side features label co-founder Terraflow infusing his signature style of old-school drums and intricate synth work. "Atomic" lays down a catchy bass riff that summons an ethereal feeling of the past, whilst "Totaled Larynx" takes a hypnotic turn, embellished with haunted melodies suited to the early hours of a certain pit in Norfolk.

Guzman takes the wheel on the B-side, starting with the punchy, sleazed-out rhythms of “Neo (Trance Mix)”, steering the EP further into the depths of the peak-time dance floor. Finally, “Time Deprivation” details clever vocal sampling atop of an arsenal of dangerous waveforms - a fitting verdict that is guaranteed to send the audience into a bass-laden frenzy.

These are no warmup tracks, play out at your own risk

Brown Horse are excited to announce their second album, ‘All The Right Weaknesses’, out April 4th 2025 on Loose Music. The group returned to Sickroom Studios in Norfolk following a multi-month European tour. Road tested and road worn, the band tracked these eleven songs in a whirlwind week of live takes. Building on the stark twang of their debut album, ‘Reservoir’ (9/10 Uncut, **** The Times, **** Mojo), ‘All The Right Weaknesses’ sees an energised Brown Horse meld slacker-rock, folk, and alt-country – equal parts Lucinda Williams, Jason Molina, The Breeders and Silver Jews. Weary, wry and disarmingly honest, these songs flash a smile at the dark and strange. With contributions from the band’s multiple songwriters, the record is a patchwork far greater than the sum of its parts.

The third studio album from Norfolk, VA hip-hop duo Timbaland & Magoo, Under Construction, Part II was released in 2003 by Blackground Records, and serves as the follow-up to Missy Elliot's album of the same name. With Timbaland handling a majority of the production, the album boasts the large and flamboyant beats that we've come to expect from Timbaland as one of the top producers of his time. The album features appearances from longtime collaborators such as Missy Elliot and Sebastian, as well as notable names such as Brandy, Wyclef Jean, and Bubba Sparxxx. Hit songs include "Cop That Sh*t," "Indian Flute," and "Naughty Eye."

Making his debut on Gated, Bristol-based Wiles brings the breaks across four tough but emotive tracks.
Wiles is a professional sound engineer who came up in the Norfolk electro and free party scene in the 2000s. During the lockdowns in 2020 he crystalised a live hardware setup that eventually became an EP for Batrachian.
But with Yellow Light he takes his sound even further, with washes of spaced out melodicism underpinned by punches of sub-bass and classic rave breaks, intricately programmed and devastating on a dancefloor at the right moment.
It’s atmospheric stuff for sure, with one eye on the future but rooted in the timeless dancefloor expressions of the past.

East of Ely is Miracle Mile's first album since 2012 - It was largely written on the Suffolk coast and later recorded between London and Norfolk - Both Trevor and Marcus found bucolic bliss in coastal retreat - The detachment informed the writing process and limited the palette to primary colours - You won't be dancing but we hope that the songs offer some kind of balmy relief to your day.

"Trevor Jones finds the poetry in real life; Marcus Cliffe anchors it in the sweetest pop. Gorgeous as ever. You may cry." - The Sunday Times

This is an absolute mythical hardcore legend of a release. Originally put out in 1993 on Dance Force Records, a record label run out of Norfolk by Les Howlett, a former bouncer for many London raves. But it was his son, Danny, who made the tracks in the backroom of the record shop – at the young age of just 15!

The tracks were never mastered and when doing a deal with Vinyl Fanatiks Danny wanted the tracks remade and finally mixed down – so we put him in touch with Ellis Dee and between them and us, we sourced all the original samples and the EP was remade, with the mixdown that he always wanted!

Originally released on yellow vinyl on Vinyl Fanatiks in 2019 it quickly sold out on the website and no copies ever made it to distribution – until now!

Only 140 have been pressed on 180g pink marbled vinyl.

Alabama native Drayton Farley has as honest a voice as you're likely to hear in this burgeoning scene of country, folk, roots, and Americana music we're all wrapped up in. With songs and lyrics pulled from real life experience, there's a grounded feeling to his stories, a confessional quality that rings true to those who know. His voice fills the room like cigarette smoke, curling into every corner of you, with a fine grit rasp that smooths out every rough edge. It lingers hours, days, after you've left the bar - turns of phrase that tumble around your mind, bittersweet and familiar. He sings as deeply about the love he holds as the love he's lost and there's something so broken-in and comfortable about that Southern inflection that every song feels like coming home. Sharing stages with musicians on the rise such as Zach Bryan, Arlo McKinley and Mike and the Moonpies, Drayton has quickly gained a loyal fan base. Twenty on High, Drayton's first release with Thirty Tigers, was produced by Sadler Vaden (Morgan Wade) and recorded with Chad Gamble, Jimbo Hart, Sadler Vaden, Peter Levin, Kristin Weber and Katie Crutchfield at Nashville's Sound Emporium Studios. “Lyrics that are immediately reminiscent of the humor and subtlety of John Prine, the directness and honesty of Bob Dylan, and the everyman gravity of Pete Seeger, Farley firmly establishes himself as one of the great American voices in folk and Americana music.” - Americana Highways

I'm Not Your Fool is the fourth single from Norfolk based singer songwriter Jodie.
A retro soul stuck in a millennial's body, Jodie has released three Northern Soul
inspired songs over the last two years, with her debut single Pushover selling out
on vinyl in less than 24 hours.
I'm Not Your Fool is an ode to people who have been through relationships that
make them feel like they are being taken for granted. When you have finally
given up second guessing every move you make, this song will be your
realisation of your self worth.
I'm Not Your Fool is out 21st April on all streaming platforms.

Anthology introducing the first of a series of albums based on the concept of Aquapelago.

‘’ Since the earliest days of the planet there has been a rhythm of tides that creates coastal interzones where humans have foraged and pursued various livelihoods. Developing boats to fish from and technologies that enabled them to immerse themselves deep underwater, the aquatic realm has been one explored, experienced and imagined in various ways. In an effort to express the vitality and richness of this environment I coined the term aquapelago in 2012. The wordplay was deliberate. The neologism was designed to distinguish the liquid inbetweenness of this space from the dry, scattered, lands of archipelagos.

The concept of the aquapelago coalesced around themes taken from various places. Epeli Hau’ofa’s idea of an Oceanic “sea of islands’” was formative but a number of songs were also inspirational. Torres Strait islander Seaman Dan captivated me with his experiences of pearl diving in the Darnley Deeps in his song ‘Forty Fathoms’ and Norfolk Islander singer Kath King imaged how sea-turtles might have experienced ecological change in her song ‘Tech me how fer lew’. Other reflections on watery realms also appealed. Debussy’s solo piano piece ‘La cathédrale engloutie’ soundtracked me as I researched myths of lost Lyonesse while Mike Cooper’s Kiribati, an ambient exoticist album about the imperilled archipelago (recently re-released on Discrepant), caused me to reflect on the social and cultural impact of sea level rise before that topic became a high-profile concern.

This compilation album takes the concept of the aquapelago into new depths and breaches it on fresh shores. The tracks are soaked with the aquatic. Bassy sonorities boom as if heard deep underwater. Bubbly textures breach the surface, water drips and seabirds soar high above waves. Sugai Kei samples fragments of text concerning the Ningen, a fantastic humanoid/whale that reflects the ‘aquapelagic imaginary’ of modern Japan and its preoccupation with industrial whaling. Andrew Pekler continues the orientation of his Phantom Islands project - a sonic atlas of imaginary places - with a soundscape as if heard by a swimmer just offshore, mixing sounds of the island and the sea together. Mike Cooper’s sonic reflection on Hong Kong’s Lamma Island is similar, combining the island’s ubiquitous barking dogs with the slurp of waves on rocky shores, conjuring a languorous time before Chinese crackdowns on the territory.

Taking another tack, the Dead Mauriacs gleefully water-ski through collage of tropical island exoticisms, replete with glitchy orientalism, while Babau combines skittering idiophone melodies with resonant glissandi. Vica Pacheco moves between dense and airy sounds, as if crossing between surf lines and the space above. Yannkick Dauby’s track is also imbued with in-betweenness, evoking ambient sounds heard through a ship’s hull. Sculpture’s ‘Froth Surfer’ realises its title, with bubbling sounds and rhythms that evoke Hawaiian surfing filtered through layers of time and distance. Reminding us of the shore necessary for aquapelagic spaces, Franceso Cavaliere and Tomoko Sauvage’s composition anchors the album, centred around shaken rhythms and resonant ringing tones and drones.

Taken together, the album sketches the contours of the aquapelago as it might be imagined and conjured in sound – an endless oceanic realm that laps on to beaches and crashes against cliffs. The performers navigate this space under alternately starry and cloudy skies, orientating themselves with sounds, textures and sonic samples of their terrestrial homes while we float with them. ‘’
Philip Hayward December 2021

Nathan Fake's fourth album, Providence, crafted in the wake of a crippling two year spell of writer's block. Is his most personal and profoundly emotional work to date.
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Providence sees the British producer collaborate with vocalists for the first time, joining forces with Prurient (aka Vatican Shadow / founder of Hospital Productions) and Raphaelle Standell-Preston from Braids. Both arose from chance meetings in Geneva and Osaka as their tour schedules crossed. Prurient contributed the heavily distorted vocal to 'DEGREELESSNESS' - I was a huge fan of Dominic's (Prurient) music before we met and I love the way he situates his vocals in his productions. I really like how you can't make out what he's saying at all...' - whilst Raphaelle, who lends her voice to 'RVK', was introduced to Nathan by their mutual friend Jon Hopkins. I deliberately kept the first half of the track instrumental and I love the way her vocal lands,' he says. It's quite unexpected when she starts singing.'

It's the quickest album I've written and because of that it's got a close thread running throughout,' says Nathan of his creative process. It also has a distinct sonic signature as a result of the producer refreshing his set-up. I was feeling nostalgic and bought a cheap Korg Prophecy on a whim and it ended up being the backbone of the album,' he explains. I remember reading an article in Sound On Sound back in 1995-96 and I didn't really know much about music production then, but I remember thinking that it must be AMAZING. As it turns out, it's actually quite crap really... It's very hard to program, looks unimpressive, doesn't sound great (laughs), but I recorded it through loads of different pre-amps and tape and mixers and roughed it up. I'm always intrigued by low-end gear, I like the challenge and the limitations it poses.'

Norfolk born and bred, Nathan's first encounters with electronic music came via the radio (hearing the likes of Aphex Twin and Orbital) and reading about the equipment that they used in magazines. This was the stimulus for him to buy some gear and begin his own sonic experiments and, linking with James Holden in 2003, Nathan's early output came via his fledgling Border Community label. His debut album Drowning In A Sea Of Love' (2006) was a triumphant record, drawing a rapturous reception from the likes of Pitchfork, The Guardian and Mixmag (who hailed it among the best of the year). Recording two further albums for Border Community, Hard Islands' (2009) and Steam Days' (2012), Nathan found himself in frantic touring mode for two years and, in this nomadic state, found it impossible to write any new music. On his return, events in his personal life intertwined with, and exacerbated, this creative block. I didn't write any music at all for about two years,' Nathan explains. Overall there was roughly a three year break from writing.'

Emerging from this extended period of inactivity with renewed vigour and lust for life, Providence was recorded during the first six months of 2016 in Nathan's home studio / living room. The meaning behind the title is two-pronged: on the one hand it's a nod to the aforementioned Korg Prophecy synth that features so heavily on the record. But on a deeper level it means guidance or divine guidance' - not necessarily in a religious sense but more to be guided by a higher power - or more specifically to Nathan, music as therapy and a path out of a dark period in his life.

The music on this album includes the audio explorations and experiments that led to the creation of the finished soundtrack - the used and unused elements as I worked to find the ‘Delia’ sounds I felt best connected not only directly to her life experiences that influenced her music, but were expressive of, and representative of her. The compositions are inspired by my research of the Delia Derbyshire audio archive, Delia's original compositional notes and techniques which in combination with my admiration and love of Delia’s

work provided a way to integrate her style and approach to music with my own. An alliance of our sensibilities. Cosey Fanni Tutti

Instrumentation: Synthesisers, Guitar, Cornet, Coolicon, Cymbals, Nagra Tape Recorder,Tape Manipulationsand Field Recordings.

Vocals by: Cosey Fanni Tutti & Caroline Catz.

Music written, composed, performed and produced by Cosey Fanni Tutti 2019 - 2021. Recorded at Studio 47, Norfolk and Twickenham Studio 3, London. Mastered by Chris Carter.