quête:not me

“The Soul Of Tommy Youngblood” 1970 Kent LP had many fine tracks, especially ‘Tobacco Road North’ though it was not attributed to the rightful writer, Jimmy Radcliffe, at the time. The music has been sampled for various hip-hop adaptations, including one by Ghostface Killah of the Wu-Tang Clan, but the original stands on its own and deserves a 7” format.

The Other Brothers ‘Nobody But Me’ is another UK Kent exclusive that sold out on its first Kent Select press and is still highly sought-after and now very expensive.

repressed !

This vinyl only Simple Things re-issue will mirror the original release, cut over 4 sides and using the original artwork but now pressed on heavyweight 180g vinyl. Cutting is by engineer Kevin Metcalfe using his original cutting notes.

Simple Things is a timelessly classic album and the essential soundtrack to any laidback summer chilling.

Zero 7 were formed in 1997 by producers Henry Binns and Sam Hardaker. In 2001 their debut album Simple Things was released selling over a million copies to date and was nominated for the Mercury Music Prize. Zero 7 were also nominated as Best Newcomer at the Brit Awards 2001.

Simple Things peaked at no.28 in the UK album chart and spent 89 weeks on the chart. Stateside, the album hit no.4 on the Billboard Dance / Electronic album chart and stayed on that chart for 52 weeks.

Singles taken from the original album included I Have Seen featuring Mozez, Destiny featuring Sia & Sophie Barker, In the Waiting Line featuring Sophie Barker and Distractions featuring Sia.

On 'Models', Lee Gamble liberates sonic spectres to inform a suite of illusory anthems, subliming vulnerable, half-remembered fragments of dream pop, Soundcloud rap and trance in the process. Sung by cybernetic voices in an almost wordless language, his widescreen memories reverberate across the last few decades of pop history, smudging Elizabeth Frazer's surreal poetry into disembodied diva cries and Lil Uzi Vert's abstract, AutoTuned mumbles. Extracting haunted fragments of synthetic corrupted chatter and indecipherable non-words to sculpt dreamy pop simulacrums, Gamble takes the concept of the pop producer to its logical extreme; examining how intonation and language is engineered to monopolise our attention, his magical inversion of pop playing like a bewitching symphony of earworms.

ECHOES OF GLORY return with its second instalment – after the widely received ISSUE ONE – ISSUE TWO see’s SEAN JOHNSTON’S Hardway Brothers guise and GRANT DELL’S Masonic Noodles moniker, meet in fine style. Sean, known for his lengthy residency with the much-missed ANDREW WEATHERALL at A LOVE FROM OUT OF SPACE has also successfully transferred this innate understanding of a dancefloor into studio alchemy. The Hardway brothers mix of ESCAPE ON THE MIDNIGHT EXPRESS has all the hallmarks of being a ALFOS classic, a real - lights off – smoke machine on - ready for a heady dubby trip across the dance floor. The Masonic noodles mix takes it down a notch with bubbly acid undertones and good use of the samples, taken from Giorgio Moroder’s score of the classic Midnight express Film. Heavy Heavy stuff ! Only 300 pressed on this vinyl only outing.

"Pulso is about sexual desire, my desire. Me as the subject, not only the object of it. I sing my pleasure and daydreams, because it's my body and my imagination, so I know what I like to feel."

Sonically inspired by reggaeton, a genre that is personally nostalgic and reminiscent of times spent at parties listening to the imported genre as a teenager in her home country, Spain.
Clara! works with producers who don’t usually dabble in the genre - SKY H1, Pearson Sound and Low Jack - in order to mix their own, unique universes with it.

COTONETE IS BACK! After a first album acclaimed all over the world by the fans of the genre and shows all over Europe, COTONETE is back with a first single with an overflowing energy. Free percussion, incisive piano (Florian Pellissier), crazy horns and the cherry on the musical cake, the voice of Leron Thomas (producer and musician of Iggy Pop), with his punk and hip-hop flow. Let's take a trip with the French Jazz-Funk band ! "Come baby take a trip with me" repeats Leron Thomas. Impossible not to follow them ! The new COTONETE album produced by GUTS will be released in early 2024.

L+P-2 is Rivet's second album following his acclaimed debut, On Feather and Wire, released on Editions Mego in 2020. The wheels were already in motion for a subsequent album on the same label, but tragedy struck. Peter "Pita" Rehberg, the legendary owner of Editions Mego, suddenly passed away at only 53 years old, leaving the experimental electronic music community in a state of pitch-black grief. Rivet was among the many deeply affected by this loss. The inspiration and support from Rehberg had propelled Rivet to create at a level he himself was uncertain he had mastered. For Rivet, Rehberg's death felt like the death of music.

However, that brooding sentiment was abruptly shattered when Rivet's beloved dog and companion, Lilo, was diagnosed with incurable cancer just a couple of months later. They were inseparable, and now they would be separated nonetheless. The only way Rivet could cope with this double blow was to compose—for Lilo, for Pita, for his own sanity. L+P-2 is the result.

While the album naturally emerges from a place of despair, it's remarkably comforting. Partly, this stems from Rivet's singular ability to make machines not only sound human but also act human—sincere and warm, yet flawed. In more than one track on L+P-2, you'll encounter a distinctive melody and a gnarly bassline dancing hand in hand with Rivet's eccentric and captivating drum patterns. Then, seemingly on a whim, the melody takes off on its own, leaving the faithful bassline behind—much like a dear friend that suddenly vanishes from your life without warning. Yet life goes on, and so does the music. But never unchanged. Never.

L+P-2 is an album of lamentation, yet also of resolve—a dedication to those who go through life losing more than their share because they always carry too much.

Building on their shared exploration of forward-leaning UK club sounds, EM + STAV herald the arrival of their new label JoyLift with the Endless EP. Having entrenched themselves within the free-spirited landscape of Bristol’s music community, the pair home in on a focused sound which draws on the city’s storied bass mutations as a springboard for their own take on modernist dance music.

There’s a tough, brooding quality to Endless EP which speaks to the meditative pressure of soundsystem immersion, but equally EM + STAV build out evocative, shifting narratives within that club-ready framework. From dubwise processing to deft sound design, a broad church of processes are wielded to shape out these pieces, and physicality comes in many forms whether in weightless sub lines or pointed, angular drum programming. Given their long-standing connection to developments within the underground music scene, there’s a keen instinct for the dynamic shifts which can set a dance alight, while the ill- defined shape of the wider genre-not-genre allows plenty of space for movement and experimentation.

Alongside the three original productions from EM + STAV, kindred spirit Forest Drive West steps up for a remix of ‘Odd' which aligns with the aesthetic intentions of JoyLift while demonstrating the idiosyncratic qualities associated with the scene’s most vital artists. The cohesive feel of Endless EP extends to Luke Griffin’s artwork, in which natural source material undergoes heavy processing to wind up in a striking new form, shot through with colour but ultimately shrouded in a moodiness that harks back through the lineage of hardcore-rooted UK dance music.

By its very nature the future is unwritten for JoyLift, but EM + STAV’s new project commits itself to an ever-evolving palette of sound, rendered as music with a strong sense of identity - tracks to shake the dance without resorting to obvious tropes, responding to and feeding into the inspiring tides of ideas emanating from the environment around them.

Dance Floor Rituals kick things off strong with the first release on the label by a producer that will be no stranger to people in the know.

DJ and producer, Jorge Gamarra, has been crafting his skills for the best part of a decade. You can quickly notice his dedication to interesting sounds and strong baselines whilst listening to DFR’s first release. 4 tracks tailored for dark dance floors and long after hours. Emotional tracks with spiritual feeling and built intuition. The perfect music and artist to kick things off for this new label.

This is not one to be missed. Be quick!

Celebrating twenty-five years of Aficionado as a place to play away from suffocating mainstream club culture, DJs Jason Boardman and Moonboots have compiled a contemplative set of 16 tracks that holds a deep meaning to both themselves and attendees of their now legendary parties. The compilation includes two new tracks exclusive to the release: J Walk’s ‘Cool Bright Northern Morning’ and Begin’s remix of Canyons ‘Akasha’.
Reflecting on how it all started 25 years ago, Moon considers their no-plan-plan to be a makeshift plateau which evolved organically: “All we did was try to play good records one after the other without any consideration for fashion. And people wanted that”. Alternative approaches were not unknown at the time, but Aficionado, as Jason and Moon’s Sunday sessions became known, pressed the reset button with unique resolve.
Jason elaborates: “It was 1998 when we started. It was our own 'fuck you’ to the Super Club regime - almost everywhere then. The ‘anything goes’ Balearic ethos was in abeyance. It wasn’t cool at the time, but we both just wanted to keep that original spirit alive. ‘Keep it open’ had always been my approach to DJing - even from playing at Youth Clubs as a teenager. No rules or generic constrictions. Play anything that you like from any era, any style from any time. We always encouraged our guests to dig deep and play outside of their comfort zones, their usual styles”.
The lovingly crafted musical mystery tour of this compilation, considering its pleasantly hypnagogic intent, may not reflect the madness of these now distant memories. This is an older and considerably more responsible collection and this is what we need right now - a temporary respite from a world almost capsized. A mood, a meditation created by masters of their craft. Odd socks from disparate global locations making new sense side by side. An assemblage, if you like. A thread through many different kinds of thinking. A new picture pieced together from the lost pieces of many jigsaws.

On his new single "Pacifico Waves", Joel Sarakula takes the scenic route down a pacific coastline, searching for peace, enlightenment and the perfect sunset.

Travelling and searching is nothing new to Sarakula: it's almost his default way of being. Born and raised in Sydney, Australia before swapping oceans to live in the UK and more recently onwards to Gran Canaria: "I've been busy making my islands smaller" he jokes. But the music on "Pacifico Waves" sounds like none of these places: with its easy drum shuffle, soulful guitar hooks and smooth vocal harmonies it distinctly evokes Southern California. It's such a potent portrait of the West Coast that if not for the contemporary lyrics and some modern production techniques, it could be a long lost hit from an early 80s LA studio band.

"Pacifico Waves" is ultimately about memory, fantasy and the powerful emotion of reminiscing when Sarakula sings 'The sound of the ocean gets me so high, helps me remember what I left behind'.

Hailing from Mexico City, Louie Fesco is as cool as his name states, he is never lame. Louie can make a Tiesto t-shirt cool, just by cutting off the sleeves and wearing it. Mr. Cool has graced many top labels over the last decade and made these labels even cooler, his outing on CV

Could be one of his best and coolest, #truestorybro.

On this crispy 12 inch he delivers a masterclass on party rocking grooves, proper basslines and drummy hooks (not to be confused with dummy hookers).

So to speak- a perfect weapon in your vinyl arsenal (not “Vinyl Arsenal” the amateur football team made up of various aging UK Djs).

On the remix duty, we get some heavy hitters from the ever mysterious Gathaspar. We heard he gets his inspiration from tiny elves that are only found in Munich catacombs. When asked about these tiny elves on Instagram, he leaves you on “seen”. His OP vinyl series are instant hits and collectors items among bearded vinyl nerds, and people who use a lot of bedroom hand lotion. These remixes are monsters- I know, I tested them myself in raves to people and they responded by dancing.

In short, if you are a Dj who likes nasty records to rock parties, this is a must, and if you’re a creepy Discogs shark, this is sure to go up in value.

Why do we even write these write ups?
I’m not sure, and if you are still reading this instead of listening to the 12 inch, I don’t know what else to say to you.
I guess I’ll give you the “ your good enough, your smart enough, and god darn it- people like you” words to get you thru the day.



Sincerely, Jay-the writeup guy.

Following much love for his EPs, remixes and club sets, the virtuosic DJ/producer Simo Cell’s debut album 'Cuspide des Sirènes' doesn’t disappoint. In fact, it takes things to a whole new level.

With a fantastical menagerie of anthropomorphism, sounds create characters and tools; the mermaid-like Sirens, the mind controlling Octopus and the Magic Conch Shell:

“Have you heard of the legend of 'Cuspide des Sirènes'? This is not a simple tale, but an incredible tapestry woven over many years and through countless wondrous adventures. I will recount the legend as it was recorded in the ancient scrolls.

The album’s story explores the themes of magic, enchantment, charm, and allure, but also personal fears. The protagonist (me) embarks on a quest to find the hidden lake and confront his own demons, in order to understand and master his own power.

The protagonist is armed with a powerful conch shell. As he embarks on his journey, he will encounter Sirens who will teach him various chants. These melodies hold unique powers and grant the main character the strength to confront and overcome any danger that may arise.” Simo Cell

Musically, the LP is a continuation of Simo’s journey that began with the ‘YES.DJ’ EP, with a synthesized/modernized take on noughties hip hop, bass music, trap, ghetto house and ghetto tech – but here he broadens the scope, massively.

Exploring new pathways through magical landscapes, via infused melodies, emo and pop, the sensations are bright and addictive, like a sugar and endorphin cocktail. There’s a screen sheen and video game quality too, sounding like the high-octane score to an action flick from the year 3000, with unimaginably wild SFX.

'Cuspide des Sirènes' is the kind of record to stop someone in their tracks, to ask “what IS this?”, provoking bass face, perplexion, fascination and manic glee, all at once. Not so much organised chaos as intricately-crafted-borderline-unhingement, the album is slightly bonkers, in a very good way. There’s a boundless sense of childlike, unencumbered imagination at play, and an abundance of fun, but there are moments of serious-deep-beat-science for the heads, and introspective passages too.

There’s a lot going on, with detail, layers, flourishes, arrangement, melodies and myriad fresh sounds – but it’s never too much; just a really engrossing listen – the kind that that ruins ones appetite for prosaic, vanilla dance music, rendering such 2D pursuits boring and obsolete.

Ideally, the album is meant to be experienced as a seamless narrative from start to finish, so leave any inhibitions or preconceptions at the door, and let the pied piper of electronic futurism lead you way down the rabbit hole.

The interstellar cosmonauts of Staatseinde create a theatrical mix of pulsing electro with nostalgic hopeful synthlines, all performed live with synthesizers, a sequencer and tantalizing vocals. From Wave to EBM, from NDW to Punk and everything else in and out of the box. It is like walking into a club meeting Kraftwerk on speed and The Sex Pistols on acid.

Their new release “De Nieuwe Golf” is characterized by dystopian prospects and hopeful sounds, confirming Staatseinde’s name as the founder of the “Neue Niederländische Welle”, in other words the New Dutch Wave.

The uplifting italo rifs in opening track “Grauw” take you on a journey through a gray world in which color cannot be taken for granted. Minimal wave track “Einzelganger” makes you feel like an outsider who can’t keep up with society. “Geef Me De Tijd” sounds like a schizophrenic dreamer swinging casually, but ending as a hard hitting track. Dystopian doom and pessimism is captured in EBM/techno floor filler “Doembeelden”. The raw West Coast Sound of Holland infused “La Haya” is a tribute to the city of The Hague which calls out on everybody to get wasted. The epic ode to space travel “Ruimtevaart Vooruit (2022 Refix)” is back in a rendition inspired by Rude66’s 2010 remix version. “Isla Inutile” is a dark and tropical delirium. In the hopeful “Alles is Weg”, Staatseinde takes you from the downfall on the way to…?

Staatseinde’s “De Nieuwe Golf” holds up a mirror to humanity…progress has not helped us any further. There is hope…but will this new wave be on time? Or is it already too late?

Having featured on the Diamonds in the Night series with the epic “Midnight Opera”, it was only a matter of time before Lukas Zeringis, better known as Zakmina, had his own 12” on Bordello A Parigi. Following appearances on Correspondant, Future Boogie and XXX, the Lithuanian born musician arrives with two tracks that break the mould. A speeding rhythm sees “For U” race out of the stocks. Bright strings arc before a generous break and this old-school rave anthem reveals itself in all of its brazen glory. Glowsticks at the ready for this seven minute romp into sweaty ecstasy. The flip is inhabited by a completely different animal. “Take Me Back” comes to life with blissful notes before rasping rhythms give way to a rumbling arpeggiator. Sailing strings are countered by squalid acid undercurrents as Zeringis finds a sweet spot between braindance bleep and soulful electronics. A seriously strong debut.