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2023 was a whirlwind year for Oracle Sisters. The trio—Julia Johansen, Chris Willatt, and Lewis Lazar—followed the release of their debut album Hydranism with a globe-spanning tour that captivated fans and critics alike. From the highways between Knoxville and Nashville to sold-out clubs in rain-soaked Seattle, and festival stages across the UK, they logged countless hours on the road. Their journey was a tapestry of exhaustion and exhilaration, falling apart, brawls and disputes, love and acceptance. By the year’s end, just two days before Christmas, they found themselves in Tokyo, reflecting on the fleeting nature of time and the fragments of inspiration gathered along the way. It was there the seeds for their next album, Divinations, began to sprout. Composing as a true trio for the first time, Oracle Sisters pieced together sketches formed during stolen moments on tour. These fragments coalesced into Divinations, an album shaped by the band’s nomadic existence. The recording sessions spanned cozy Parisian studios, a barn in northern France, and the storied Valentine Studios in Los Angeles. Their creative process embraced experimentation—swapping primary instruments, playing with toy drum machines, and crafting melodies on quirky tools like the OP-1 and a baby Casio keyboard. This spirit of discovery lent the album a sense of spontaneity and wonder. At its core, Divinations channels mysticism and timeless storytelling. The band’s songwriting draws on diverse influences, from the surrealist poetry of Baudelaire and Rimbaud to the introspective philosophies of Carl Jung. Musically, echoes of Talking Heads, Air, and Leonard Cohen resonate throughout the album and tracks like “Riverside” delve into existential questions— “How far are you going? Is it more than money can buy?” Elsewhere on the album “Marseille,” born in the city that gave the song its name, kicks off as a trance with lyrics that play between the sincere and desperate self-help affirmations, we give ourselves while trying to find a bridge between our individual lives and a universal feeling. Lead-single “Alouette” is Oracle Sisters at their most direct; propelled by a driving bassline and exuberant strings, the track summons the sound of 80’s, 90’s, and early 2000’s rock n roll as they sing about “getting out of dodge, finding a pirate ship and sailing home.” Inspired by the book Caliban and the Witch, “Blue Left Hand” is a lyrical tapestry weaving together history, philosophy, and cultural critique. The lyrics, “It’s in the harbor of every page / It’s in the corner of the playwright’s stage / And every player and every fake / And every witch that we burned at the stake,” reflect on the forces that shaped the capitalist society we know today. Across Divinations’ 11 tracks it’s not only geographic boundaries that were crossed but also the boundaries of time and circumstance. While their work may not consciously reflect specific worldly events, they seek to embrace the universal and offer a space for healing. “Good music would make sense to a farmer in 17th century France as it would to a pastry chef in Slovenia in the 21st century,” shares Lazar. “It’s not written for any temporal powers that be. It’s about expressing our common humanity and taking it from there.” This intuitive approach fuels Oracle Sisters creative process - whether composing in a frozen French farmhouse or performing live with an ever-expanding lineup of collaborators, the band remains committed to exploring the unknown. Through Divinations, they hope to leave listeners feeling transcendent, levitating on waves of intuition and discovery.

Black Vinyl / 350 mcn double white coated paper / Poster sleeve / PVC outers / Original artwork / Exclusive 30x30 cm insert with Q&A by Tony Higgins with Ole Matthiessen printed on on 250 gram Gardamat coated paper. Archive picture from original recording session printed on 350 gram Gardamat paper. Archive pictures printed on 375 gram Vintage Bindakote Monolucido. All papers are acid free an printed with food based inks.

Personnel: 

Jesper Nehammer - tenor saxophone
Ole Mathiessen – piano
Jon Finsen – drums
Henrik Hove - bass

Notes:
Danish jazz band founded in 1969. Band line up: Henrik Hove on bass, Ole Mathiessen on piano, Jesper Nehammer (later Thors Hammer, Alrune Rod and Entrance) on tenorsax, and Jon Finsen on drums. Played for a while every Monday in the famous Jazzhouse Montmatre in Copenhagen.
Tordenskjolds Soldater only made this record (1970).
The small record label Spectator Records was founded in 1969 by Jørgen Bornefeldt a former journalist from Danmarks Radio in coorporation with the jazz musician Carsten Meinert. Meinert recorded two albums on the label. He only joined the company in the beginning. Cindarellaistudiet The studio was destroyed august 6th 1972 by a major fire. And that was the end of Spectator Records. From 1969 to the end, the label recorded at least 23 lp albums and 9-11 singles/EP's. The picture shows Henning Kragh Pedersen from Cinderella in Spectators studio. The great Danish rock band Gasolin recorded their first single – Silky Sally - on Spectator Records. It was no success and sold only 155 copies. Silky Sally is now one of the most sought after Gasolin singles among collectors and is of course very expensive.
The music from Spectator Records is mostly jazz, progressive rock and hippie free style. But they also made strange records for children, education etc. Most records were issued in very small numbers (300-500). Some of the best progressive rock in Northern Europe was recorded here.
Quality of vinyl was often poor - even new looking records can have audible problems. Covers and labels are primitive and cheap. On the other hand the creativity could be outstanding - check the Furekaaben cover gallery or the artwork of William Skotte Olsen from Green Grass. Several record from the labels are cult today. A perfect copy of certain records costs a fortune.
Master tapes was never found after the fire in 1972. Unofficial reissues and bootlegs are therefore made on the base of the original records. Recordings that never made it to the vinyl got lost in the fire. Both Cinderella and The Copenhagen based band, Lines lyst, had material readdy for lp's which was never recorded. (Tony Higgins)

After having re-released Reggie Saddler Revue's deepfunk classic "Raggedy Bag" (backed with the equally great "Love Is Just Like A Baseball Game") some time ago we are extremely proud to present their debut 45 from 1968. A true Northern Soul classic, finally available on a fantastic-sounding 45 RPM single re-issue!

Gatefold Sleeve and on sea blue 180 GSM vinyl. Recorded as an instrumental by Tractor in Rochdale in 1971 and originally released on LP in 1972 “Shubunkin” has now been sampled by LA band Broken Bells (Danger Mouse/ Brian Burton and James Mercer, the lead vocalist and guitarist for the indie rock band The Shins) as the basis of their track “To Anyone a Ghost”. Julian Cope writes about the Tractor track “Shubunkin” : ...“Then, one night in mid 1972, John Peel played a track that was more mysterious than almost anything I had ever heard. It was the music I thereafter wanted played at my funeral and was most certainly the sound of a soul approaching the canopy of heaven as it left the earth for the last time.” ..“without the proper printed Dandelion label there to guide me, I left a blob of marker pen on the side that began with ‘Shubunkin’ and that became the ultimate beginning to any LP in my collection.” Originally Issued in late 2019 as a vinyl LP as a protest against Rochdale Boroughwide Housing’s plans to knock down four of the Seven Sisters/College Bank Flats- these blocks of flats were home to Tractor’s drummer in the 1970s as well as their manager Chris Hewitt and Andy and Liz Kershaws’ dad and a whole host of poets, musicians, tv producers etc. Many Tractor numbers were worked out in these flats prior to recording at various studios around Rochdale and Heywood. All songs written by Jim Milne and Steve Clayton. Jim Milne -vocals guitar (and bass most tracks), Steve Clayton -Drums and Percussion, Dave Addison- bass on Northern City. The album now starts the way Julian Cope always wanted to run.

Rare Seventies Big City Street Soul

In 1971, film producer David Gil and his business partners Robert S Sinn and Paul Frankenberg launched a film company called GSF. Over the next few years, it would be involved in a small number of productions. But, in 1971 the movie business was kind of old-hat, music was where it was at, and so GSF Records, a well-funded label, headed by Larry Newton was formed. Today Newton is largely remembered for his attempts to prevent Louis Armstrong from recording 'What A Wonderful World' but that didn’t stop him from growing ABC from a second division company to an industry leader. As he approached his 52nd birthday he was unveiled as GSF Records’ president a full-service music company, involved in records and publishing across all genres. Through a joint venture with drummer Bernard Purdie the label targeted the R&B charts and soul & funk dominated GSF's release schedule.

Black music ruled and this was reinforced by the hiring of Lloyd Price as head of A&R (veteran R&B star), and producers George Kerr (All-Platinum), Mickey Stevenson (Motown) and Jerry 'Swamp Dogg’ Williams. No wonder then, unintentional as it was, that GSF left behind such an extraordinary legacy of rare soul treasures.

NEW YORK’S BEST KEPT SOUL SECRET Features legendary Northern Soul classics courtesy of Anderson Brothers, Skull Snaps and Connie Laverne Produced by hit makers George Kerr and Motown veteran Mickey Stevenson Starring the Whatnauts and Eddie “Hey There Lonely Girl” Holman

This is Music: The Singles, ist ein Kompilationsalbum der englischen Alternative-Rock-Band The Verve:
Richard Ashcroft (Gesang), Pete Salisbury (Schlagzeug), Simon Jones (Bass) und Nick McCabe (Gitarre).
Ursprünglich wurde das Album im November 2004 veröffentlicht und enthielt zwei Nicht-Singles, die aus
den Aufnahmen zu ihrem dritten Album Urban Hymns stammten: „This Could Be My Moment“ und
„Monte Carlo“.
2024 markiert den 20. Jahrestag der Veröffentlichung eines Albums, das nie auf Vinyl gepresst wurde,
und unter der Leitung der Gruppe ersetzt diese längst überfällige Neuauflage die Bonustracks durch die
kraftvollen Singles aus dem 2008er Reunion-Album Forth - ’Love is Noise’ und ’Rather Be’ - und enthält
auch die zweite Single ’She’s A Superstar’ (1992) in ihrer ursprünglichen, achteinhalbminütigen Form (statt
der fünfminütigen Bearbeitung). Somit repräsentiert das Album nun die komplette Geschichte der Singles
von The Verve.
Benannt nach der sechsten Single der Band, der ersten aus ihrem zweiten Album A Northern Soul, dokumentiert es auf brillante Weise die Kraft der relativ kurzen, aber epochemachenden Reise von The Verve
durch den musikalischen Kosmos.

Today, chart-topping vocal powerhouse Teddy Swims releases four new surprise tracks on I’ve Tried Everything But Therapy (Part 1.5). The project includes his chart-conquering smash hit ‘Lose Control,’ which recently claimed the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and has surpassed 1 billion streams across all platforms.

Among the four new tracks on I’ve Tried Everything But Therapy (Part 1.5) is ‘Hammer to the Heart,’ a moody anthem with a stirring, stadium-ready chorus, ‘Tell Me,’ an understated alt-leaning offering that explores loss and heartbreak, and ‘Apple Juice,’ the kind of soulful throwback that Swims does better than anyone. Another unforgettable highlight is ‘Growing Up Is Getting Old,’ an acoustic treasure that captures the Atlanta native’s magnetism like never before.

A recording of a passionate live performance held in the northern land of Nemuro, which continues to be loved along with the first album "Tact." The title song is literally epic, like ice floes colliding in the ocean.

Following the huge acclaim of Matt Berry’s 2021 album The Blue Elephant (“A sonic odyssey” – Uncut) – as well as last year’s one-off album of library music collaboration with the KPM label (“another string to Berry’s impressive bow” – Prog magazine) – we present Heard Noises, Matt’s eighth studio album with Acid Jazz, out 24 January.

We’re hugely excited to offer a beautiful label-exclusive gatefold edition on Psychedelic Swirl colour vinyl, alongside the standard version Sky Blue LP, as well as corresponding soft-pack CD and retro Cassette.

Out now, lead single ‘I Gotta Limit’ finds Matt trading lines with Kitty Liv (Kitty, Daisy and Lewis) as a man after a second chance with a woman impatient with his pleading. With a song structure inspired by Sly Stone, in a little over three minutes ‘I Gotta Limit’ crams in a plethora of musical ideas on an instantly catchy song which is part Northern Soul, part psych.

In contrast to The Blue Elephant’s dizzying trip through an idiosyncratic love of British Psych, Freakbeat, Acid Rock and late ‘60s pop, Heard Noises finds Matt heading for a looser, Californian psychedelia through his love of the trippier sounds of space pop and rock, and his ear for an eerie, haunting melody.

Once again, the album is testament to Matt’s exceptional musicianship, production skills and songwriting prowess. Almost every instrument is played by Matt including guitars, bass, a variety of keyboards (acoustic and Wurlitzer pianos), synthesizers and organs (including Moogs, Vox, Farfisa, Gibson, Eminent organs) and Mellotron.

He is joined by long-time collaborator, neo-progressive drummer Craig Blundell, and guests including Pokerface’s Natasha Lyonne and back with Matt is The Shins/Fruit Bats’ Eric D. Johnson (acoustic guitar, autoharp and backing vocals on ‘Why On Fire?’, ‘To Live For What Once Was’ and ‘Snakes That Slide’), Phil Scraggs (lap steel guitar on ‘To Live For What Once Was’ and ‘Snakes That Slide’), Rosie McDermott (vocals on ‘Sky High’) and the S. Club 60s Choir (featuring Matt’s mum).

In many ways Heard Noises could be considered the perfect distillation of the extraordinary breadth of musical ideas across Matt’s albums to date.

"From the remote reaches of Haparanda, Sweden, Häxkapell presents a black metal masterpiece that resonates with the eternal rhythms of nature and the cyclical dance of life and death.

“Om jordens blod och urgravens grepp” (‘Of earth’s blood and the grave’s grasp’) is a powerful blend of black metal, folk, and atmospheric darkness, interwoven with classical and progressive influences. Traditional instruments such as the violin, viola, willow flute, and hand drum infuse the music with ancient, primal energy. The lyrics, crafted through subconscious writing, serve as a conduit to the mystical and otherworldly.

The album was engineered, produced, and mixed by Oraklet. Drums were recorded at Nordvis Ljudstudio, with the remaining tracks laid down at Studio HMH. Mastering was handled by Tore Stjerna at Necromorbus Studio.

Founded in 2015 in the northernmost part of Scandinavia, Häxkapell is the creation of Oraklet, who embarked on an inward journey to explore the philosophical, spiritual, and mystical aspects of existence. Following the 2016 demo “Om sanningen,” Häxkapell released their debut album, “Eldhymner”, in 2021.

On “Om jordens blod och urgravens grepp”, Häxkapell’s music evolves much like the earth itself: slowly, imperceptibly, yet ever-changing. It reflects the cycle of birth and bereavement, with death and life beginning anew as earthen folk melodies murmur ancient slumbers into dawn. Oraklet channels these profound truths into lyrics and music."

Das gute Leben bzw. die Abwesenheit des selbigen hat die fßnf GewUhnlichen seit Tag eins ihrer "Karriere" beschEftigt. "Es ist immer Sommer irgendwo" thematisiert den in Hamburg sechs Monate währenden Herbst und die zwar weithin bekannte, aber dennoch erstaunliche und irgendwie auch tröUstliche Tatsache, dass, wenn hier der Herbst sein nasskaltes Zepter schwingt, woanders auf der Welt Sommer ist. Man muss auch gUnnen köUnnen! Nun haben wir hier Sommer und ein Sommer ohne Sommer-Hit ist kein Sommer. Da hilft Die Liga Der GewUhnlichen Gentlemen natürlich gerne aus und verUffentlicht ihren Indie/Northern Soul-Ohrwurm "Es ist immer Sommer irgendwo" und zwar nicht nur digital sondern auch als auf 500 Stßck limitierte 7" Single. Ein Song ßüber den Herbst als Sommer-Hit? Verrüßckt, aber deswegen ist die Liga ja auch so beliebt, weil sie immer so Dinger raushaut und so angenehm anders ist. Gemixt wurde die Single vom legendEären Londoner DJ Andy Lewis. "Lege ich gleich nach der neuen Dexys-Single auf!" Gereon Klug

Die Legion des finnischen Power Metal
Dragonknight ist eine neue Konzeptband, die von einem Haufen erfahrener finnischer Metal-Veteranen aus der Taufe gehoben wurde. Sie schmieden
gekonnt eine sanfte und frische Interpretation des klassischen nordeuropäischen Power-Metal-Stils, die sich durch erhabene Melodien, donnernde
Rhythmen und epische Orchestrierung auszeichnet und mit krachenden Riffs verschmilzt - eine unvergessliche Klangreise von legendärem Ausmaß.
Die elf hymnischen Kapitel des ersten Albums „Legions“ erzählen von herzzerreißenden Schlachten, willensstarken Kriegern und der Schönheit des
glorreichen Todes, aber auch von schief gelaufenen Schatzsuchen, Eroberungen und der inneren Kraft, sich im Angesicht der Not immer wieder aus
dem hoffnungslosen Loch der Verzweiflung zu erheben - hört, wie Armeen und Schwerter aufeinanderprallen, Seeschiffe knarren und die Flügel der
Schlangen sich erheben. Bist du bereit, dem Ruf der Drachenritter zu folgen, dich ihrer mächtigen Legion anzuschließen und, wenn dich ein solches
Schicksal ereilen sollte, FÜR METAL zu sterben?!

This Is DJs Choice Vol. 4 brings you a great selection of Funk, Soul, Latin and Hip Hop.

Five years after the last installment of the series, Volume 4 is compiled by Gu, a long-time friend and DJ partner of Unique label founder Henry Storch, and the tracks represent the two decades they have known each other and played records together, as well as the music they enjoyed.

All choices are originally 7 Inch records from Gu's crates put together like a DJ-Set for you to enjoy: The Soul of The Sweet Vandals and Carlton Jumel Smith, the Deep Funk of Naomi Davis & The Knights Of Forty First Street, The Supersonics and Sharon Jackson & The Soul Destroyers, the Latin sounds of Diesler and Eli Goulart E Banda Do Mato and the Hip Hop grooves of Jay Are (aka J.Rawls and John Robinson), The Bamboos featuring Ohmega Watts and Daddy-O of Stetsasonic.

This compilation is a celebration of music from beginning to end.

About This Is DJs Choice:

The series started as a friendship project by Henry Storch, who wanted to immortalise friends and allies from the DJ scene, who picked vinyl as their format of choice. The genre didn't matter, as long as the vibe was right. In 2008 Vol. 1 featured a selection of organic Club Sounds and Break Beats put together by Soulinus & Pun, followed by Keb Darge & Lucinda Slim and their favorite Rhythm & Blues, Rockabilly and 60s Soul tunes on Vol. 2 in 2009. In 2019 Les Intouchables aka Marc Hype and DJ Suspect presented a variety of funky and soulful music with an addition of the occasional Boogie, Reggae and Hip Hop track.

About Gu:

Gu is a DJ, musician, label owner, producer, writer and producer from Northern Germany. His dedication to music started in his pre-teens in the late eighties and he is playing vinyl ever since. Over the years he has worked with a number of his favorite DJs and artists like Keb Darge, Andy Smith, Snowboy, The New Mastersounds, Osaka Monaurail, The Sweet Vandals, The Allergies, Andy Cooper of Ugly Duckling, Daddy-O of Stetsasonic and Chuck D of Public Enemy to name a few. His DJ career took him all over Europe again and again.

In 2005 he started Our Label Records with his brother Tom to release new Funk music on 7 Inch vinyl and added the Hip Hop 45 imprint Origu in 2015. Since 2009 and he is on air every week with his radioshow Home Diggin', which was also picked up by Chuck D's Rapstation in 2019. Additionally he is lead singer/rapper for the Songcore duo Sorry We're Closed and the Hip Hop outfit Alder Ego. He also does readings of his book of one-liners and competing on Slam Poetry stages.

*Avant-garde Pop. Mixing meditation, sacred-geometry, searching for meaning behind the notes, Emika lost her mind trying to escape the reality of the lock-downs. Creativity in overdrive, determined to discover new dimensions: She produced VEGA. Named after the second brightest star after the Sun, VEGA is in the northern constellation of Lyra; one of the most beautiful sounding- instruments in Greek mythology. Vocals. Electronic. Classical. Collabs with Horace Andy (Massive Attack) +more.

Skeletal Family are: Anneka Latta - Vocals, Stan Greenwood - Guitars, Roger "Trotwood" Nowell - Bass, Ian "Karl Heinz" Taylor - Keyboards / Saxophone, Adrian "Ozzy" Osadzenko - Drums and Percussion. Formed in 1982 with vocalist Anne Marie Hurst, their debut album 'Burning Oil' topped the National UK Indie Charts for three weeks in Autumn 1984 above other contemporary northern bands The Smiths and New Order. The band subsequently recorded seven BBC Radio One sessions for John Peel, Janice Long & Kid Jensen. They Signed to Chrysalis Records in 1986. Their discography includes the studio albums: 'Futile Combat', 'Sakura', 'Songs of Love Hope and Despair', 'Day of All Days'. The current line up came together in 2021, with the introduction of vocalist Anneka Latta with the band performing live at 'Wave Gotik Treffen' in Leipzig and 'Darker Waves Festival' in Huntington Beach, California as well as various dates in the UK and USA. Their latest album 'Light From The Dark' was recorded at Paul Weller's 'Black Barn' Studio and received critical acclaim already earlier this year.

Mount Jacinto is the creative vision of Costa Rican artist Sonya Carmona, formerly a member of Colornoise and Las Robertas. Inspired by the majestic Mount San Jacinto in Palm Springs and the expansive landscapes of Northern California, Sonya sought to embody a sense of freedom and openness in her new musical project.

The band lineup includes Gini Jungi of Annie Taylor on guitar, drummer Adrian Oesch, and a touch of Latin American flair with Peruvian Joel Morales on bass and Mexican Yan-Cey on synthesizer.

In their music, chamber music elements intertwine with gentle bass lines reminiscent of Air’s Moon Safari and melodic compositions rooted in raw alternative rock. Their debut EP, Outward Signs, released in March 2023, explores modern pop-rock psychedelia with a groovy touch of twang.

The album was recorded with JooJoo Ashworth from Froth and mixed by Alex Newport (Bloc Party etc.).
The title track, Silver Lining, is a standout on the album, showcasing the evolution of Mount Jacinto's sound over recent years. Sonya explains:
"This song is my favorite at the moment from the album. I think it kind of represents it well and reflects that there is always a 'Silver Lining' in everything, where something good can come from a difficult or bad situation. It’s very exciting to play it live and marks the evolution of our sound through this last year. It has its own character and creates its own sonic universe. It’s a homage to the synth wave era, a mix between Depeche Mode, Eurythmics, and Lebanon Hanover."

The debut album Silver Lining is more than a collection of songs—it’s a deeply personal journey through love, loss, and self-discovery. Created during a period of transformation in Sonya Carmona's life, it captures raw emotions and the resilience required to find one’s true self. Tracks like Forest delve into the path to self-acceptance and the importance of confronting inner struggles, whileThe Reason explores the inner dialogues we have during pivotal moments. The album blends heartfelt, intimate lyrics with lush, soulful soundscapes.
Musically, Silver Lining combines classic 60s and 70s influences with a modern indie vibe. It reflects the profound changes Carmona has experienced, offering listeners a moving musical journey.

Writing music, for singer-songwriter and producer Fine, “feels like being entrusted with a secret.” On Rocky Top Ballads, the Copenhagen-based musician’s debut album, these secrets take the form of minimalist compositions that search for glimpses of beauty in the everyday. Recorded, produced, and mixed by Fine, the album is a mystical soundtrack to a captivating songwriter’s explorations of process and intuition.

“The whole album is about the moments when you see a crack in something,” Fine explains, “where you briefly see another side of yourself or of someone you've known forever.”

Fine grew up in Denmark’s rural Northern Jutland; there, her father’s guitar and banjo playing formed the sonic backdrop of her childhood. In the years since, her musical curiosity has led her to work across a range of styles and sounds. In her early twenties, she became part of Danish electronic trio Chinah, which released three albums. You might also have caught her sampled vocals on the joyfully rollicking Two Shell song “Home,” from 2021. Then, last year, she — along with Erika de Casier and Smerz — co-wrote three songs for the massive, critically lauded K-pop group New Jeans. Fine is also a part of Clarissa Connelly Canons group back home in Denmark, and writes music under the moniker Coined with composer and songwriter Astrid Sonne.

But Rocky Top Ballads is a turn back towards a more personal, stream-of-consciousness songwriting style. Fine wrote and recorded these songs sporadically over the course of the last few years. In light of Chinah’s collaborative, piecemeal production style, Fine craved a more organic, intuitive process for these songs. Her work on the record combines sample-based production with the sounds of instruments she and her collaborators could hold in their hands, ones that inspired free-flowing improvisation: electric and acoustic guitar, even the Ensoniq keyboard that was in her childhood home. The resulting songs are equally inspired by the country and folk of her childhood, the hazy beauty of Mazzy Star, the avant-garde pop of Dean Blunt, and the songwriting of ’90s singer-songwriters like Suzanne Vega.

Fine describes her songwriting process as a “magical thinking method”: being in contact with the present moment and pretending as if she already knows the song she’s about to write. Many of the songs on Rocky Top Ballads use the original takes of Fine’s vocals, an attempt to capture a song’s initial essence and avoid disturbing the song’s generative idea as much as possible. You can hear that well-preserved spark on songs like “Losing Tennessee,” a minimalist and wistful reflection on the inherent loss and change of growing older. She wrote other tracks, like the piano-led “Whys” and the woozy “Coasting,” through a process of cutting and layering her improvisations, carefully merging multiple musical snippets into newly seamless compositions. And the stunning closing track “A Star” is the product of a slow process of evolution: beginning as an understated expression of sincerity before dissolving into a rich, distorted guitar-driven exploration.

As a songwriter and producer, Fine’s work often peers into the universes of experience that can be hidden inside a fragmentary moment. Sometimes she explores this literally — as in “Days Incomplete,” which she built off a short sample from “A Star.” This impulse — to zoom in, to recontextualize, to excavate — threads throughout her lyrics, too. What happens, her songs ask, when we pay close attention to those everyday images and physical realities we might otherwise ignore: the sky, the rain, the sun, the sea? On the spacious and swoony “Big Muzzy,” with its gentle sway and Cocteau Twins-inflected vocals, Fine sings about watching the “summer turn blue”; the grooving, propulsive “Remember The Heart” is a love letter to the sea where she grew up. In her airy voice, Fine traces meandering melodies that continually unspool with fresh insights.

A particular mantra guided Fine’s songwriting throughout the creation of Rocky Top Ballads: “Everything has potential.” In these songs, small moments are worthy of deep contemplation, and gentleness can evoke worlds of emotion. The resulting songs offer a gift of momentary pleasure, flowing and unhurried as a gentle breeze.

Marissa Lorusso

Das von Percussion und Bläsern getragene 'Night Of The Wolf' wurde bei Northern Soul-Events in GB als auch in Brooklyn-Discos in den 1970er Jahren gespielt und war ursprünglich ein italienischer Progressive-Rock-Albumtitel. Es wurde 1975 als äußerst seltene US-45er unter dem Namen Al Foster Band herausgegeben und ist die erste offizielle Neuauflage. Der 70er-Jahre-Modern-Soul-Midtempo-Klassiker 'It's The Same Old Story' von ACT 1 wurde auch in den frühen Discos von New York, Chicago und LA gespielt, war aber immer nur ein Albumtitel. Dies ist die erste Veröffentlichung überhaupt als 7inch.

Das britische Trio Saint Etienne veröffentlicht am 13. Dezember 2024 ihr zwölftes Album 'The Night', eine atmosphärische Flucht aus dem Alltag und fängt die Essenz der späten Stunden ein.

- Ltd. Col. LP: (Splatter Vinyl)

Irishman Dom Martin is a multi award winning artist from Belfast Northern Ireland.
The 34 year old's music is steeped in the atmospheric celtic hallways of the past with many likening his style and stage presence to the likes of the late greats Rory Gallagher and Belfast's own Gary Moore.

Equally at home with an acoustic guitar in hand tearing at the heartstrings of the audience, he's an inducted UK Blues Hall of Fame Artist as a result of three consecutive acoustic awards, and his trusty telecasters and Les Pauls that lead his power trio, delivering him two consecutive Instrumentalist of The Year Awards, Dom tours internationally on a regular basis and has built a reputation for his emotional and powerful legendary shows.

His latest album 'Buried In The Hail' garnered rave reviews and was voted Best UK Blues Album of 2024 at the UK Blues Awards.

Whilst touring the UK and Europe in 2023/2024, many tracks from 'Buried In The Hail' were recorded live along with several from his previous albums, 'Spain To Italy' and 'A Savage Life'.
The result is 'Buried Alive', a double live album by one of the most exciting artists to come out of Ireland in a very long time.

The Kings of Northern Hyperblast wear the crown once more with pride: “In The Arms Of Devastation” is a monster of an album that strongly reaffirms KATAKLYSM´s pole position in the world of extreme Metal. Produced by the man himself, KATAKLYSM guitarist J-F Dagenais, “In The Arms Of Devastation” received its accolade through the mixing of mastermind Tue Madsen at the Danish Antfarm Studios. Their 8th album shows the band at its best after a long journey of evolution through the folds of all things brutal, technical, extreme and, most of all, heavy! All the trademarks we love so much about KATAKLYSM bare their teeth in the indeed devastating nine tracks of “In The Arms Of Devastation”. “Like Angels Weeping The Dark” is a killer of an opener and guaranteed to tear the whole place to pieces, whilst the slow, grinding and almost doomy “Crippled And Broken” is the tank that will flatten the remains of the wreckage. “It Turns To Rust” is a first in the band’s history: the first time vocalist Maurizio Iacono has ever recorded a duet for KATAKLYSM. Together with KITTIE singer Morgan Lander he turns the track into a fierce duel loaded with screams and growls from hell. A lesson in violence – just like the whole album, so prepare for total devastation, prepare for the return of the mighty KATAKLYSM!

"Fresh off the release of their critically acclaimed singles The Colour in Everything & Walking on Broken Glass, their albums “The Borderland”, “At Her Majesty's Pleasure” (recorded at 10 HMP prisons) & “Fly the Flag”, Hardwicke Circus is a band that’s breathing new life into the British music scene.
Their upcoming unplugged album, recorded live at The Pizza Express, Holborn in London is set to drop into the still waters of the indie music world on their own label Alternative Facts Records on Vinyl & CD. These lads are proving there’s more to their sound than just amplifiers and attitude. ”Cumbria Pizza” is the soundtrack of northern nights – raw, real, and soaked in the sweat of a thousand gigs."

Ten years after its original release, after having sold thousands of copies on CD and collected millions of plays all over the world, "Canzoni" is finally available on vinyl, in a deluxe edition – double vinyl with gatefold sleeve – the album that revealed Chiara Civello's talent as an interpreter, attesting her artistic depth on international stages.

A record which embraces the Italian musical tradition in all its facets, capable of moving through Northern Soul, Bossa Nova, Blue Eyed Soul, Jazz and Pop. Produced by Nicola Conte, recorded in analog between Bari, New York and Rio de Janeiro, and enriched by the participation of extraordinary guests, including Gilberto Gil, Chico Buarque, Ana Carolina and Esperanza Spalding, with orchestral arrangements by the legendary Eumir Deodato, "Canzoni" still proves to be a very successful work today, capable of honoring the beauty and depth of Italian music, demonstrating once again Civello's status as a timeless musical icon.

CREDITS

Produced by Nicola Conte
Executive producer: Quarter Moon Inc.
Additional production: Ettore Caretta
Bari production coordination: Bass Culture

Orchestral Arrangements: Eumir Deodato
Flutes arrangement on "Senza Fine": Magnus Lindgren

Recorded mixed and mastered by Tommy Cavalieri at Sorriso Studios, Bari, Italy
Additional recording studios: CNSO Recording Studios, Prague / #AC Studio, GG Studios, Rio de Janeiro / Pat Dillet's Studio, New York City
Additional engineers: Eduardo Andrade, Renato Godoy, Pat Dillet

Gilberto Gil appears courtesy of GEGE Producoes Artisticas
Chico Buarque appears courtesy of MAROLA
Ana Carolina appears courtesy of Armazém Produtora e Editora Ltda

Album cover: Daniela Boccadoro
Photos by Fabio Lovino
Graphic layout: Eugenio Crippa















[o] 15: I Mulini Dei Ricordi (The Windmills Of Your Mind) [feat. Esperanza Spalding]

'Den Helder is the northernmost city of the province of Holland in the Netherlands. It is largely surrounded by water and seems to edge into the North Sea. It has had a military function since the 16th century, but few know that it is the most heavily bombed city in the Netherlands. Seventy years ago it was almost completely wiped off the map. The following is a story imagined in Den Helder...'

'the third of may' was written and recorded in 2020 over the course of six days spent in an old pumping station in the dunes of Huisduinen near Den Helder.

NEW ORDER continue the series of Definitive boxsets, with the band's 1986 album Brotherhood. The boxset will include the original album remastered on CD and 180g LP, plus an Extras CD with previously unreleased demos and rarities, as well as two DVDs featuring the band's performances at Festival of the Tenth at the GMex, Manchester 1986 and Live in Brixton, 1987 in support of World AIDS Day. The DVDs will additionally include live TV performances, interviews and rare band footage. The extensive hardback book will include contemporary articles and liner notes by Irish radio DJ Dave Fanning.





CD Tracks:
1. Paradise
2. Weirdo
3. As It Is When It Was
4. Broken Promise
5. Way of Life
6. Bizarre Love Triangle
7. All Day Long
8. Angel Dust
9. Every Little Counts
10. State of the Nation

CD2
1. Shellshock (AOR Version) *
2. State Of The Nation (Japan Demo) *
3. Paradise (Robert Racic Remix)
4. As It Is When It Was (Japan Demo) *
5. Broken Promise (Instrumental) *
6. Bizarre Love Triangle (Stephen Hague 12” Remix) *
7. All Day Long (Instrumental) *
8. Evil Dust
9. Every Little Counts (Full Length) *
10. Salvation Theme
11. Skullcrusher (Full Length) *
12. Touched By The Hand Of God (Salvation Version)
13. Let's Go (Salvation Version)
14. Sputnik
15. Blue Monday 1988 (Michael Johnson 12” Remix) *
(* previously unreleased)

DVD1
Live at the Academy Brixton, 1987
1. Bizarre Love Triangle
2. The Perfect Kiss
3. Ceremony
4. Dreams Never End
5. Love Vigilantes
6. Confusion
7. Age Of Consent
8. Temptation
TV Appearances
BBC Northern Ireland – Channel One 1986.
Ceremony
Love Will Tear Us Apart
The Tube 1986.
State Of The Nation
Broken Promise
Top of the Pops 1987.
True Faith
Les Enfants du Rock, Rockline 1987.
Paradise
Bizarre Love Triangle
The Roxy, 1987.
True Faith
11pm, 1987.
Bizarre Love Triangle
Extra Material
Stephen’s Fly On The Wall Documentary 1985.
Recording 'As It Is' and ‘Shame of the Nation’ at Denon Studios, Tokyo (May 1985).
DVD2
Live at the G-Mex, Manchester, 19/07/86.
1. Elegia
2. Shellshock
3. Paradise
4. Bizarre Love Triangle
5. Way Of Life
6. State Of The Nation
7. Face Up
8. The Perfect Kiss
9. Ceremony
10. Temptation
Live Extra Material
Glastonbury, 1987.
True Faith
Sister Ray
San Giovanni, 1986.
Dreams Never End
Pier 84, New York, 1987.
All Day Long
Angel Dust
Shellshock
Weirdo
Rapido, Paris 1987.
True Faith
G-Mex, Manchester, 1988.
Touched By the Hand of God
Every Little Counts

Next from the label that brought you "You Time", "Unrest Hazard 1" and "First Sign of Trouble" is a sizzling 5 track slice of 12" from renowned DJs and producers who get the crowd jumpin and pumpin, Deejay Atlas and K Super. The pair are known for an impressive back-catalogue of tracks the last few years on Ruff Cutz, SweetBox, Parallax and more, as well as for running the Certain Sounds label and parties in Manchester, UK.

This one takes a look at the less glamorous side of northern England's rave scene, the goings on under a dark night sky at a free party in a field somewhere near Manchester. Illustrated through tunes that possess the brooding spirit of 1993 and 1994 jungle and ferocious vocals, albeit as always when it comes to Erupt, with a modern twist for the 2020s that tells a story of the here and now.

Also featuring appearances from Buda and Wild Swan, as well as an EXCLUSIVE fifth track that you won't find on any digital releases of this EP!

High Hopes - New album from the Mole.
High Hopes is 17 songs across 40 minutes on one slice of wax that, as advertised, sounds nothing like last month’s Ep, High Dreams. Here, rather than the long form dance form, is a continuation of the beat tape pacing from the last album, a collection of moments posing as ideas posing as a narrative stuffed with oddities and surprises that reward the close listen.
What’s heard on High Hopes is the Mole’s exploration of a love letter, from one person to a family, from the northern Pacific to the southern Atlantic, from a boy to a painted bird. Vancouver Island to Manantiales. The songs range from ambient sound bath and hip hop sludge, up to micro boogie and almost House before tumbling back down and forth again. Bubbling synths, MPCs swung out, samples chopped and chewed, bass and violins from Rick and Sophie, field recordings of birds and frogs and beaches, friends and family and fiestas. Did we mention the love ?! This album has got it all! Original collages from Antonio Carrau envelope this wax: jacket, sleeve and cookie. Antonio’s work is typified by playful combinations and bold statements about living in a embrace of analog and digital health. His co lages marry the corporeal world with an updated, digitalized age of reproduction, inducing feelings of gratitude for the simple everyday scenes we sometimes lose touch with when we forget to slow down. Good living, like breathing, requires inhaling as well as exhaling.
We can’t always produce content, make art, we must also pause, and listen. And enjoy. The Mole is joined by friends and colleagues on several songs included on High Hopes. Rick May plays bass on both Que Rico and album stand out GoinF4er. Sophie Trudeau (Godspeed You Black Emperor) plays and arranges violins on GoinF4er and Danuel Tate (Cobblestone Jazz) and Julz Chaz (Wagon Repair) both play Vibes and Emaxx throughout the album. Working with these incredible talents not only enriched this album, but fulfilled a long standing goal of the Mole’s; to work again with the musicians from whom he learned so much. People who helped inform the shape of Mole to come.
The Mole who was As High As The Sky. The Mole has been ‘recognized’ by the ‘global underground’ since his critically celebrated premiere album, As High As The Sky, but his earlier Eps (Wagon Repair, Philpot, Musique Risquee) got the attention of Top DJs, clubs, and festivals around the world first. His sound remains unique, fresh and deep: enjoying plays in a wide variety of spaces and places.
High Hopes is the Mole’s 5th solo album and his 2nd album for Circus Company (The River Widens) who have also proudly released two eps of Mole magic (Little Sunshine, High Dreams).
*Isn’t that too much time for one record? Short answer - No. Long answer - depends on the material. Due to the many quiet passages in the album, the groove spacing can be modulated and the needle can slow it’s progress towards the center/end resulting in longer sides with continued high gain and low distortion.

High Hopes - New album from the Mole.
High Hopes is 17 songs across 40 minutes on one slice of wax that, as advertised, sounds nothing like last month’s Ep, High Dreams. Here, rather than the long form dance form, is a continuation of the beat tape pacing from the last album, a collection of moments posing as ideas posing as a narrative stuffed with oddities and surprises that reward the close listen.
What’s heard on High Hopes is the Mole’s exploration of a love letter, from one person to a family, from the northern Pacific to the southern Atlantic, from a boy to a painted bird. Vancouver Island to Manantiales. The songs range from ambient sound bath and hip hop sludge, up to micro boogie and almost House before tumbling back down and forth again. Bubbling synths, MPCs swung out, samples chopped and chewed, bass and violins from Rick and Sophie, field recordings of birds and frogs and beaches, friends and family and fiestas. Did we mention the love ?! This album has got it all! Original collages from Antonio Carrau envelope this wax: jacket, sleeve and cookie. Antonio’s work is typified by playful combinations and bold statements about living in a embrace of analog and digital health. His co lages marry the corporeal world with an updated, digitalized age of reproduction, inducing feelings of gratitude for the simple everyday scenes we sometimes lose touch with when we forget to slow down. Good living, like breathing, requires inhaling as well as exhaling.
We can’t always produce content, make art, we must also pause, and listen. And enjoy. The Mole is joined by friends and colleagues on several songs included on High Hopes. Rick May plays bass on both Que Rico and album stand out GoinF4er. Sophie Trudeau (Godspeed You Black Emperor) plays and arranges violins on GoinF4er and Danuel Tate (Cobblestone Jazz) and Julz Chaz (Wagon Repair) both play Vibes and Emaxx throughout the album. Working with these incredible talents not only enriched this album, but fulfilled a long standing goal of the Mole’s; to work again with the musicians from whom he learned so much. People who helped inform the shape of Mole to come.
The Mole who was As High As The Sky. The Mole has been ‘recognized’ by the ‘global underground’ since his critically celebrated premiere album, As High As The Sky, but his earlier Eps (Wagon Repair, Philpot, Musique Risquee) got the attention of Top DJs, clubs, and festivals around the world first. His sound remains unique, fresh and deep: enjoying plays in a wide variety of spaces and places.
High Hopes is the Mole’s 5th solo album and his 2nd album for Circus Company (The River Widens) who have also proudly released two eps of Mole magic (Little Sunshine, High Dreams).
*Isn’t that too much time for one record? Short answer - No. Long answer - depends on the material. Due to the many quiet passages in the album, the groove spacing can be modulated and the needle can slow it’s progress towards the center/end resulting in longer sides with continued high gain and low distortion.

Lili Holland-Fricke and Sean Rogan’s debut album “dear alien” is a constellation of radiant improvised impulses, imagined in lucent fragments of cello, guitar and voice. Spacious, tender and glistening with rich electronic distortion, the record melds a spectrum of processed and natural sound as the artists invite listeners into their dreamlike world of synergetic introspections.

Cultivated through a shared spirit of resourcefulness and play, “dear alien” emerges as an organic meeting place in the compositional output of British-German experimental cellist Lili Holland-Fricke and Manchester-born guitarist and producer Sean Rogan. Having studied their respective instruments at the Royal Northern College of Music, both artists have flourished in eclectic solo and collaborative projects, creating intricate and intimate spheres of sound with a deep appreciation for songwriting and improvisation.

Holland-Fricke’s transition from the classical world to writing her own material, and later vastly expanding her palette with electronics, first converged with Rogan’s distinctive flair for production in 2022 on her EP “birdsong for breakfast” and single ‘draw on the walls’. Now, the duo present an album envisioned through true ‘50/50’ collaboration during the summer of 2023, written across two intensive weeks of improvising and experimenting at Rogan’s Greenwich home studio. A convergence of the artists’ sounds and influences, the music was fostered by the idea of making an album with ‘no plan’ and their shared recent discovery of Arthur Russell, to whom the final track is dedicated.

“dear alien” assembles eight compositions that emerged naturally as the duo created sketches with cello and pedals, guitar, tape loops and poetic vocal musings, forming songs that explore themes of waiting, circling back around, and glitchy communication. Moments of drifting through pillowy layers of sound contrast with saturated visions of electronic modification, where the record’s glowing instrumental contours are pushed to the extremes.

The plaintive shades of ‘half blue’ and meandering deliberations of ‘slow thing’ are teased by the friction of static signals and a sense of ever-mutating sonic mass – a sensibility most acutely realised in ‘dawning’, where cello-vocoder eruptions grow in magnitude, the absence of sound between them burdened with something sinister and unspoken. As the artists expand on this piece, ‘It’s the sound equivalent of squeezing your eyes shut to shield against the brightness of something you don’t want to see, only to find that each time you open them again the world is not softening but getting more relentlessly overwhelming, to the point of being totally blinding.’

Three tracks with lyrics – ‘at first’, ‘dear alien’ and ‘seem asleep’ – refract the album’s wistful and melancholic colours into poetic imagery and metaphors, ushering in reflections on relationship tensions and someone close feeling unknown, with hints towards wider unsettled feelings about climate change. In the spirit of lyrical improv, ‘seem asleep’ compiles lone lines from Holland-Fricke’s journals into a cut-and-paste collage around hopeful patience or futile lingering – either way conjuring a softness that welcomes the hazy ambience of ‘for a. r.’, the final composition which soundscapes the summer days spent making the album. As the artists describe of this track, ‘The music kind of leads somewhere, but then kind of leads nowhere, and just meanders around where it is, content to just be walking in a circle back to where it started.’

"VOLUME 1" ist eine denkwürdige Einführung in die Welt von MRCY. Ihre Vision von Soul lässt sich von den Größen der Kindheit (SAM COOKE, MARVIN GAYE) bis hin zu Genre-verschmelzenden Modernisten wie KHRUANGBIN oder SAULT inspirieren - "it's like hearing a distant memory," sagt Barney, "but one that speaks to where you are now". Auf ihrem Debüt blickt der Sound von MRCY tiefer nach innen und weiter nach außen: Die Debüt-Single "Lorelei" war eine ätherische, jenseitige Geschichte über eine Liebe, die in einer Katastrophe enden sollte, während "Flowers In Mourning" Afrobeats und Northern Soul in einer ergreifenden Meditation über Familie und Verlust zusammenbrachte. Das Album wird von einer auffälligen, visuellen Ästhetik begleitet, die in Zusammenarbeit mit Harris Elliot entstand und KI, Adinkra-Symbolik und britische Ikonografie zu einem Look - und Sound - verbindet, der bereits unverkennbar MRCY ist. Auch wenn MRCY sich mit einer ausgereiften Vision präsentieren, haben sie auch hart daran arbeiten müssen. Barney, der inmitten der Schmelztiegel-Kultur von Huddersfield aufgewachsen ist, hat sich als einer der gefragtesten, eklektischsten jungen Produzenten Großbritanniens etabliert; von einem Ivor Novello Award für seine langjährige Zusammenarbeit mit Obongjayar bis zu Mercury-nominierten Künstlerinnen wie Joy Crookes und Olivia Dean. Der in Süd-London aufgewachsene Kojo verdiente sich seine Sporen in der Kirche und sang mit ebenso illustren einheimischen Künstlerinnen wie Cleo Sol und Little Simz. Nachdem sie sich während der Pandemie über Instagram kennengelernt hatten, trafen sich MRCY zwischen den Abriegelungen in Brixton, wodurch sich der Sound der Band - und ihre Verbundenheit - vertiefte. Und obwohl das soziale und politische Chaos unweigerlich in ihr kommendes Projekt einfließt, geht es bei MRCY auch um das Bedürfnis nach einer gemeinsamen Basis: universelle, aber höchst individuelle Erfahrungen mit Klasse, Gemeinschaft und der Qualitätsmusik, die gute Menschen schon immer zusammengebracht hat.

Über diese beiden Mirwood floorfiller muss man nicht viel sagen, nur beide Tracks auf derselben 45er zu haben, ist ein wahrer Luxus. 'That Beatin' Rhythm' ist der Inbegriff der Northern Soul-Tanzszene und seit nunmehr 50 Jahren ein echter Hit. Die Instrumentalversion (die dem eigentlichen Sänger der A-Seite zugeschrieben wird) war damals ebenso populär, wurde in den letzten Jahren jedoch etwas vernachlässigt - die Gesangsversion wird von den meisten DJs gespielt.

Jimmy Conwell ist ein großer Name in der Soulmusik von Los Angeles, sei es als Solosänger bei 4J, Gemini und Mirwood oder als Leadsänger der Exits bei Gemini und Kapp. 'Let It All Out' wurde gemeinsam mit seinen beiden Hauptproduzenten Len Jewell Smith und Hank Graham geschrieben. Eine atemberaubende Northern Soul-Ballade. Als B-Seite gibt es die großartige Ballade 'I'm So Glad' in der Version von The Exits.

Incomparable Northern Irish songstress Janet Devlin is poised to release her courageous country-rock album, "Emotional Rodeo," on 15th November 2024. Recorded at Martina McBride’s Blackbird Studio in Nashville with esteemed producer Roo Walker, tracked by Lowell Reynolds (Shania Twain, Boy Genius, Taylor Swift) and mixed mostly at Spotnick Studios by Grammy-Award winning producer/mixer Vance Powell, (Chris Stapleton, Jack White) Devlin captures the heartfelt essence of country-rock with an authentic edge, blending sharp, witty lyrics with themes of fearless self-empowerment.

"Having already cemented her legacy with a breadth of wondrous outings, Northern Irish artist Sister Ghost has now announced her plans for her long-awaited debut album ‘Beyond The Water’, showcased by its riveting lead-track “Dark Matter”. ‘Beyond The Water’ is an amalgam of sorts, a portrait of Sister Ghost’s 20s as a queer woman from a tiny village in rural Ireland, and her experiences both near and far beyond the waters of home. "

The Rills haben sicherlich ein oder zwei Häute abgestreift, um diesen Punkt am Vorabend ihres spritzigen Debütalbums zu erreichen. Produziert von Dave McCracken (Indie-Mastermind hinter Ian Brown, dEUS, The Rifles), nehmen diese drei jungen Freunde auf "Don't Be A Stranger" die ungenutzte Energie, die sie zu viralen Sensationen und Lieblingen der Grassroots-Szene gemacht hat, und verwandeln sie in etwas Überlegteres, Vollständigeres und Herzlicheres.

- "The Rills sind eine Mischung aus einer Northern Oasis inspirierten und einer trendy Post-Punk-Band aus London. Damit schafften sie es nicht nur mit ihrer Musik, sondern auch über Tiktok zu begeistern." - Budde Talent Agency (Tourveranstalter)

Cass McCombs ist zurück bei Domino. Sammlung bislang unveröffentlichter Songs erscheint am 08.11.2024.

Cass McCombs veröffentlicht mit "Seed Cake On Leap Year" eine Sammlung früher, bisher unveröffentlichter Musik, die in Jason Quevers Wohnung in der 924 Fulton Street in San Francisco aufgenommen wurde, während McCombs zwischen 1999 und 2000 in Berkeley lebte. Alles, was Cass McCombs‘ Fans lieben gelernt haben, ist auf "Seed Cake On Leap Year" zu hören. Bereits zu dieser Zeit beherrschte er die anmutigen, schwebenden Melodien, die wirken, als stammten sie aus zeitlosen Liedern von Jukeboxes und Transistorradios in ganz Amerika; ebenso seine tiefgründige, verschlungene Art mit alltäglicher Sprache umzugehen, die aufrichtige Wahrheiten in Rätsel verwandeln kann. „Songs are sung every day/So what can I say to find my own way?“, verkündet er in der ersten Zeile von „I’ve Played This Song Before“. Und mit diesen Worten schlägt er seinen eigenen Weg ein, immer verwurzelt in Tradition, aber dem Unbekannten zugewandt. Das Bemerkenswerte an "Seed Cake On Leap Year" ist, wie lebendig und roh diese Songs geblieben sind, voller Einsicht und Wunder, im Dialog mit allem, was noch kommen wird. Es gibt eine ungeschönte Ehrlichkeit in dieser Jugend, und obwohl dies vielleicht die ungeschönteste Ehrlichkeit ist, die sich Cass McCombs je auf einem Album zugestand, verstärken und vertiefen diese Songs nur das Mysterium.

Zur Feier des 30-jährigen Jubiläums von The Charlatans drittem Album "Up To Our Hips" gibt es ab dem 08.11.2024 eine erweiterte Neuauflage der Platte. Das Set wird als 2LP, 2CD und digital erhältlich sein und neben dem Originalalbum zehn Bonus-Songs enthalten, darunter Live-Tracks und seltene Mixe. Das Album kommt mit einem neuen von Nik Void gestalteten Artwork und wird als petrolblaues Bio-Vinyl gepresst. Mit dem Album "Up To Our Hips", das 1994 erschien, schlug die Band eine neue Richtung ein. Es grenzt sich von den beiden Vorgängeralben ab, die wesentlich poppiger waren, klingt dunkler, schwerer und bedient sich vermehrt an Orgelklängen. Die Band hörte zur Zeit der Entstehung viel Musik von Künstlern wie Small Faces, The Beatles und Dylan und schaute David-Lynch-Filme. Zur gleichen Zeit gab es einige interne Schwierigkeiten. Viele Lyrics spiegeln diese Unruhe wider. The Charlatans, bekannt für ihre markante Mischung aus Hammond-Orgeln und Northern UK Soul, treibenden Gitarren und Tim Burgess" sehnsüchtiger Stimme, bleiben eine der prägenden Brit-Pop Bands der letzten Dekaden. Seit 1989 veröffentlicht die Band regelmäßig Alben, von denen drei die Spitze der britischen Charts erreichten. Trotz zahlreicher Herausforderungen - Nervenzusammenbrüche, Suchtprobleme, damit einhergehende Geldprobleme und der tragische Verlust zweier Gründungsmitglieder - haben The Charlatans sich immer wieder neu erfunden und erfolgreich Musik veröffentlicht.

The debut album by much-loved Yorkshire band, Shed Seven, Change Giver released on vinyl for the first time since 1994, this reissue faithfully replicates the original Polydor UK pressing and is pressed on high-quality 180gm vinyl. Change Giver was released on Polydor Records in September 1994, on the leading edge of the Britpop movement and established the group as one of the most successful and cherished of the era. Although not garnering the headlines and controversy of other acts of the time, Shed Seven vocalist Rick Witter, guitarist Paul Banks, bassist Tom Gladwin and drummer Alan Leach - established a trademark sound and a fervent fanbase, resulting in a lengthy career and a string of hit albums. Formed in 1990 (and named after a railway shed) after making a name for themselves in their hometown of York, Shed Seven played London, gaining a reputation for their fearsome live shows an came to the attention of influential BBC Radio One DJ Steve Lamacq. After a bidding war, the group signed to Polydor in 1993, and group recorded what was to become Change Giver with producer Jessica Corcoran. First single, Mark/Casino Girl was released in March 1994 ahead of the album, and with each subsequent single release, the group pushed higher into the UK charts. Released as Britpop was accelerating, Change Giver was described by Melody Maker as "a chipper, cocky collection of brassy Northern pop songs." The album reached the UK Top 20,and established the band to be one of the most popular acts of the final years of the 20th Century. Listening to the album today, the bravado of youth combined with strong melody and powerful lyrics put the album on a par with early works of The Jam and Blur.

Paul Kelly"s latest album, "Fever Longing Still", his first of new original material since 2018"s "Nature", delivers 12 additions to his superb catalogue of love songs spanning more than 40 years. "Hello Melancholy, Hello Joy", as one of the new songs says. The album"s title comes from a line in Sonnet 147 by Shakespeare, whose writing has thrilled and inspired Kelly ever since schooldays. With love as the topic, Kelly finds a way to keep replenishing the creative well. Even if it can take some time for a song to surface.