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From the sunny shores of Miami, Florida, Fat Produce is leading the charge in today's soul-jazz scene. Their latest release features two classic tracks, "No Way" and "54-46 Was My Number," which are beautifully molded into Fat Produce's unique sound led by guitarist Addison Rifkind and drummer Michael Duffy. This limited 7" single offers a preview of what’s to come from this rising trio.

The influence of Boogaloo Joe Jones is undeniable, so incorporating his 1970s classic "No Way" into their repertoire was a fitting tribute for the band. With a deeper sound and an infectious groove, Fat Produce pays homage to this musical giant, guaranteed to get everyone moving on the dance floor. On the flip side, "54-46 Was My Number" is a reimagination of a Toots & The Maytals original, transformed into the instrumental style of a soul-jazz guitar trio. Rifkind's lyrical guitar work breathes new life into Toots' original vocal melodies, embodying the essence of soul-jazz and crossing genres to keep the spirit of feel-good music alive.

Both tracks were recorded on a Tascam 388 at Studio Del Sol in Boca Raton, Florida, by Travis Acker and mixed at The F-Spot HQ in Los Angeles by D.M.C. With upright bassist Nestor Del Prado joining the duo on this album, Fat Produce's forthcoming sophomore LP is set to be released in October 2025.

"I Became Birds feels like emo once again flipping the switch on its eternal energy source." - PITCHFORK // "One of the most arresting and interesting rock albums in recent memory." - SPIN // "Composed of self-deprecating wails, crashing guitar riffs, and a flicker of lyrical hope that almost feels naive _ in other words, the perfect foundation for classic emo catharsis." - STEREOGUM //// With I Became Birds, Florida's Home Is Where push their unique blend of whirlwind hardcore aggression and warm, open-hearted folksy melancholy to even further heights. Frontperson Brandon MacDonald's Dylan-esque eccentricities are on full display here, from the occasional blast of harmonica (like on early standout "Long Distance Conjoined Twins" or the disaffected, despondency-soaked closer "The Old Country") to their knack for abstractly evocative neurosis-as-poetry. But far from being a copycat act, Home Is Where's wearily raw-throated aesthetic and dynamically vivid compositions feel idiosyncratic and vital. The bittersweet folk melodies seep deeply into the band's DNA, adding an element of accessibility and immediate nostalgia to otherwise churning and angular song structures and sonic assaults. Vocals range from an intimate, gentle, and disarming croon to a full-bodied expectoration of the soul, oftentimes in the same song (like "Sewn Together from the Membrane of the Great Sea Cucumber," which splits the difference between mournful, gothic post-punk and staccato-heeled screamo with aplomb). A devastating rhythm section and nimble, versatile, yet powerful guitar work assist with the record's genre-bending, which ranges from maniacal chemical mixtures to gymnastic flips, twists, and turns. And yet, even amid the din, Home Is Where find ample time for hooks-- the oddball effervescence of lead single "Scientific Classification of Stingrays" and the shimmering, propulsive, delightfully off-kilter late-album stunner "Assisted Harakiri" are more than proof of that. Ultimately, I Became Birds shows Home Is Where hitting an early high-water mark. A brisk record-- six songs in roughly 17 minutes-- it never takes a dip in enthusiasm and inventiveness. Home Is Where's inexhaustible creativity and restless energy is bound to serve them well, and I Became Birds is all the proof anyone needs.

Sublime private-press piano improvisations channeled from another world by Willem Nyland. Remastered from the original tapes and reissued for the first time, with in-depth liner notes by Matt Marble of the American Museum of Paramusicology. A Columbia-educated chemist by profession and a self-taught pianist by affinity, Willem Nyland (1890-1975) is known as a spiritual teacher in the tradition of Greek-Armenian mystic George Gurdjieff. In the mid/late 1960s, a split with Gurdjieff led Nyland to start his own group in upstate New York. There, after a Friday night lecture on 'The Work' and a shot of brandy, Nyland would launch into remarkable piano improvisations on a specially tuned baby grand, sometimes playing for over an hour. Each improvisation was meticulously recorded and cataloged, a major part of Nyland's teachings. 16 of these recordings were released as standalone LPs on Nyland's own Gauge Hill Press, with artwork by Hungarian American decorative artist Ilonka Karasz, Nyland's wife of over 50 years. These records, with their cascading, deeply emotional playing and beautiful cover art, have become highly coveted by collectors and "paramusicologists." Each contains depths of spiritual information and lyrical, almost visual instrumental storytelling. Nyland deftly and subtly shifts moods and tones throughout these truly inspired extended improvisations.

An F-bomb saturated hip-hop call & response club cut...from Sun Ra?!

While the most renown track in this omniversal opus is the atomic expletive-filled repartee “Nuclear War,” there is so much more to this dark mysterious journey through the mind of Sun Ra. The sprawling, suite-like 20-minute title track sustains a lyrical edge in spite of an open framework and textures, which encourage sonorities to surface and emerge from the band as if there was no human intention behind them. In opposition to “Nuclear War,” Ra's organ playing here was built less on bombast and sonic terror than it is on whispers, stutters, shivers, and swells. Fireside Chat offers a wide stylistic array, as was the artist’s intent, reflecting his eclectic, seemingly irreconcilable approach to compositional extremes. With Sun Ra you get everything... except predictability. Pressed on lime green vinyl!

The debut album from Addy Weitzman, ‘Light Months Will Fly Over Us’ explores new-wave, romantic pop and art rock with elegance and ambition, drawing from Weitzman’s scattered network of collaborators, as well as a “frighteningly vast” personal archive of compositions. Sequenced by Seth Troxler and released on his Slacker 85 label, it represents a pivot in musical direction for the imprint, and a showcase for the songwriting craft Weitzman honed as a member of cult electro duo Footprintz, and Montreal synth-pop projects The Beat Escape and Dawn to Dawn.

The title Light Months Will Fly Over Us is derived from a line in a poem by the Russian writer Anna Ahkmatova. Weitzman was immediately struck by its “hopefulness, its mystery… it gives the feeling of being suspended, hanging in a dream-like state”. This interpretation has been translated to the album, rich in memorable songwriting that nonetheless invites the listener to lean in further. Delicately mixed by engineer Pierre Guerineau, known for his work alongside Marie Davidson, each of the eight tracks gently interrogates life’s greater mysteries; fear, love and salvation, each defining and revealing the human soul.

Opener ‘End of The Line’ invites us into an immediately lush space of lounge lizard existentialism, soft brass and piano helping Weitzman introduce “where the journey begins and the fantasy dies”. Across orchestral arrangements arranged by Adam Wilcox, whose sensitive, ambitious compositions are weaved throughout the album, ‘Beyond The Speed of Life’ brings to mind the laments of Scott Walker. Navigating vulnerability via grandeur, Weitzman’s earnest vocals flourish in wide-eyed call-and-response with the object of a transcendent love affair.

Alongside collaborator, Richard Lamb, the next chapter of the LP plunges into contrasting machine-driven moods; the wry, bubbling ‘Entertainment Is All I Wanted (And I Found It)’ is imbued with the playfulness and experimentation of 80s electronic pioneers such as Fad Gadget, while the tougher, icier ‘Stranger To Your Kind’ shifts in a more instrumental direction, recalling Weitzman’s dancefloor experience, as well as contemporaries such as Matthew Dear.

Album centerpiece and striking first single ‘Running & Returning’ is the first of a suite of three tracks in collaboration with Weitzman’s The Beat Escape and Dawn to Dawn bandmate, Patrick Boivin. Blending lush saxophones and angular guitars with a wistful melodic touch and lyrics, its irresistible art-rock rhythm provides the foundation for one of Weitzman’s most involving vocal performances.

It’s followed by an anthem for existential absurdity: ‘Ice Cream Candle’ provides a driving acceptance that “the more and more you learn, the less you understand”; Weitzman submits to this uncertainty with equal grace on ‘No Man’s Land’, as baroque invocations of “words swept through the fields” and meeting “where the water lilies grow” give way to a blistering guitar solo, humbly riding hypnotic percussion.

For the compassionate finale of Light Months Will Fly Over Us, Weitzman narrates the experience of ‘Gabrielle’, a woman slipping between rooms between shuttered blinds in the towering city, “where cigarettes and roses fill the air.”

As lyrically delicate as it is musically ambitious, Light Months Will Fly Over Us is a sublime debut album, enriched with care, love and much-needed enchantment.

Juan Ramos is up to bat for the next Körperspannung release with the four-track stunner EP ‘Hard Bois’. Deeply connected to the ongoing pursuit of gay excellence and endeavors, Juan honors those who have come before us and touches us deeply in our soft spots at all the right moments. Across ‘Hard Bois EP’, the Berlin resident and behind the scenes operator (IYKYK) shows precisely why he’s one of dance music’s most exciting and dependable prospects. Opening the release, ‘Hard Bois’ combines snaking drums in a melange of samples with bff Kris Baha vocalizing sizzling and snaking lyrics winding around this propulsive club cut that could easily be a snapshot right out of a scene from Chicago’s iconic Medusa Club. ‘Saviour Sound’ is music that makes iron pipes sweat with hedonistic abandon. Exposed steel vibrates to a hardcore beat. Gears interlock to move the whole building into autonomous productivity. Conduits of electricity pulsate to the drama unfolding in a dim lit factory with dank corridors leading us on a path to a flowerbed growing and thriving in a subterranean hydroponic garden.
On the flip, the alarm strikes and it’s (shout it out): ‘Werk Day’! This is your call to get buttoned up and ready to make dreams reality. Head to the gym, pump those guns and then house your body. Technological funk winding through a sturdy and rock hard kick that helps you ride through the chasms of pleasure and pain. Rounding out the release is your ‘Acid BB’ rocking and roaring through the airspace of atomized acid matter, a perfect closer to a thoroughly exciting direction Juan Ramos takes with his newfound sound. Play it loud. Play it proud. Juan is one of our own and we do all we can to take care of each other.

A1 - Symbiotic Link
Kicking off another stellar, varied EP, ASC opens Symbiotic Link with an eerie introduction telling of a tense interaction between orcas in open waters before a thunderous break with immensely sharp venom-fueled snares often used by the likes of Photek back in the day aggressively seizes the attention, jolting and stabbing as the juddering bassline rumbles below - as synthy melodies provide respite in the mix.

A2 - A Single Emotion
Serving up another raucous, nostalgia-driven treat for any breakbeat fan, ASC channels his old-school mastery with a thoroughly absorbing journey through a variety of breaks, edited, chopped and filtered to perfection with dense, earthy basslines lying beneath. Lifted by a soundscape filled with light horn melodies, echoing vocal hits and washes of pads, you'll experience more than a single emotion here.

AA1 - Whirl
Time for a Hot Pants break serenade through swathes of atmospheric synths as Whirl expands ASC's diverse repertoire further still - an earworm melody at the forefront is provided by the bassline on this occasion - simple yet immensely effective. The bass intertwines with the breaks effortlessly while sci-fi effects and samples whoosh and fall with several tonal changes keeping things fresh till the curtains close.

AA2 - Frontier
A rousing cymbal kicks off a curious, deep introduction punctuated by melodic keys and a simmering undertone of suspense. Chunky old school breaks suddenly enter the mix with a continuous, enveloping bassline as the atmosphere builds steadily via micro melodies, noir vocal samples and delicate bells, as ASC closes another Spatial EP in his inimitable, unpredictable engaging style.

Words by Chris Hayes (Spatial / Red Mist)

The project’s title track is the perfect blend of gossamer shoegaze and Graveface’s signature eerie nocturnal feel, with the lyrics similarly balancing the purity of love against mankind’s darker instincts in the face of romantic obsession.

“‘For Keeps’ is a story written from the perspective of someone who is so desperately in love, they’d do anything to hold onto that love,” the band shares. “We just wanted to explore a really dark part of the human psyche.”

To further elucidate on these themes, Night School has shared a music video that pairs performance footage with a narrative of amour fou that gets a little bit too fou—I won’t spoil anything, but there is manslaughter involved.

Official reissue of this sought-after Canadian psychedelic hard-rock album from 1970.
Formed in Toronto in the late 60s, It’s All Meat (the name was taken from a dog food commercial!) soon caught the attention of influential character Jack London (frontman of pre-Steppenwolf band Jack London and the Sparrows) who managed the band and secured a deal with major label Columbia Records.
After recording their first 45, the proto-punk MC5/Stones sounding “Feel It”, the band started working on their first album with the tandem of Jed MacKay and Rick McKim as main songwriters.
“It’s All Meat” was released in 1970 and offered a powerful mix of garage-rock, psychedelia and early hard- rock, drawing influences from bands like the Stones, Country Joe & The Fish, Doors, Velvet Underground... tracks like “Roll My Own” or the lysergic “Crying Into The Deep Lake” are now considered classics of the genre.
Sadly, the band would split soon after the LP was released.
*Original artwork in gatefold sleeve *Remastered sound in 24-bit domain *Insert with liner notes by Plastic Crimewave and rare photos / memorabilia
*Download card with non-LP singles and rare tracks
RIYL: STONES, MC5, DOORS, JEFFERSON AIRPLANE, NEW YORK DOLLS,
“One of the classic Canadian rarities. It’s All Meat deliver ballsy Stones influenced hardrock with some psychedelic west-coast moves” - Patrick Lundborg (Acid Archives)

Originally issued on Hut Records in October 2002, Human Conditions built on the success of Alone With Everybody, retaining the new fans he had gained with that record - This re-issue replicates the 2002 UK first pressing and is available on audiophile 180g double vinyl in gatefold sleeve.

"It's a beautiful world," sings Ashcroft on opening track and lead single "Check The Meaning". Its eight-minutes seem a culmination of all of Ashcroft's work to date – a haunting guitar figure, swelling strings, and subtle orchestration back a lyric that catalogues the battle of love over evil, ending with Ashcroft assuring the listener "It's gonna be alright." It is a powerful beginning to a powerful album. "Buy It In Bottles" maintains the introspection of "The Drugs Don't Work", a mood that can be also found on "Running Away" and "Lord I've Been Trying"; while "Bright Lights" and "Paradise" bring the anthemic rock.

When Brian Wilson guests on one of your albums, it suggests a certain status has been attained; Richard Ashcroft demonstrated that he could hold his own in such company; both are songwriters of the human condition, and the song Wilson appears on "Nature Is The Law", closes Human Conditions in stellar fashion.

Smut is the project of lyricist Tay Roebuck, guitarists Andie Min and Sam Ruschman, drummer Aidan O’Connor, and bassist John Steiner. Roebuck, Ruschman and Min started the band a decade ago in Cincinnati, Ohio. Since then, they’ve played alongside Bully, Wavves, and Nothing. After years in the Cincinnati DIY scene, they made their Bayonet Records full-length debut, How the Light Felt. The record was a revelation. Pitchfork called it “a rigorous, decade-spanning study,” and a “well-oiled spin on late-’80s guitar pop.” Under the Radar called it “pop perfection,” that “blends subtle hooks with wistful lyrics.” It was a record that explored grief through the lens of melancholic dreampop, using drum machines and layered, intricate melodies.
Tomorrow Comes Crashing, Smut's first record with O'Connor and Steiner, sees the band re-energized and trained on the limitless potential that comes with making music with people you love. Galvanized with a new lineup, Smut focused on creating a record that possessed the same towering intensity as the records that first got them into music: Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge, Relationship of Command. The outcome is ten of their most intense, bombastic, and focused songs to date.
Catharsis bursts through the seams throughout Tomorrow Comes Crashing. “Syd Sweeney, ”inspired by the actress, is the record's centerpiece. It's about how profoundly strange it can be to be a woman, to be misunderstood by people who don’t even know you. The song is driven by chugging guitars and big, rolling drums. In other words: stadium rock about perception. Paramore meets Dookie. “She connects to the youth and the girls in the water/All she amounts to is someone’s daughter,” sings Roebuck in one particularly poetic moment. The song comes to a thrashing metal-inspired breakdown. It’s ecstatic.
To make the record, Smut recorded “as live as they could,” alongside Aron Kobayashi-Ritch(Momma) in a studio in Red Hook, Brooklyn, over the course of ten days. “We have so much energy right now,” says Roebuck. Right before they went off to New York, Roebuck and Min got married, with the rest of the band by their side. The recording was a true labor of love — driving from Chicago with all their equipment, returning from 12 hour studio days to sleep on friends' couches and floors, Roebuck completely blowing her voice by the end. Smut has always been DIY. Because they love it. Because they have to do it–there’s no other option. Tomorrow Comes Crashing is the culmination of that DIY spirit: making a record that completely encompasses the intensity, moodiness, and emotion of their journey so far.

This album released in 1957 showcases Chet Baker's trumpet skills alongside Bobby Jaspar on tenorsaxophone. The recordings for the album took place between October 25, 1955, and February 10, 1956, at Studio Pathe-Magellan in Paris and features a mix of cool jazz and bop styles with tracks like "How About You," "Once in a While," and "Alone Together." The ensemble of musicians on this album includes notable names such as Jean-Louis Viale on drums, and Benoit Quersin on bass; the album highlighting Baker's distinctive trumpet tone and his collaboration with talented European musicians: "I Get Chet" is a significant work in his discography and reflect his mastery in the cool jazz and bop genres. The tracks are characterized by its relaxed tempos and lighter tone, and bop, known for its complex rhythms and harmonies, it is praised for its lyrical and cool jazz elements. For this and other reasons and considered a gem from Chet Baker's Paris sessions, showcasing his talent during a pivotal time in his career.

Emerging from their subterranean recording studio The House of Vibes, The Grip Weeds have delivered a tour-de-force with Soul Bender, their ninth full-length studio album and their first newly-recorded original tracks since 2019's Trip Around The Sun. This astonishing record finds the band pushing their recording, arranging and songwriting skills into new and evocative territory. On Soul Bender, The Grip Weeds continue to expand: Musical and sonic experimentation abounds, resulting in a record that is bigger and more dramatic than ever; melodically inventive, yet accessible with lyrical imagery and hooks firing at you from all directions. Most impressive of all is that The Grip Weeds are entirely self-contained: From production, engineering, mixing and artwork, Soul Bender represents a complete and total vision of intent. If you like the fearless bold intensity of rock from the classic era yet reimagined for the 21st Century, Soul Bender is for you. Heard on Sirius XM's The Underground Garage, The Beatles Channel and indie/commercial radio worldwide.

After making their mark with their debut album, The Risen Dread returns with their highly anticipated second studio album. Produced, recorded, mixed, and mastered by Marco Mastrobuono at Bloom Studios in Guidonia, Rome, Italy. This new record showcases the band's evolution, delivering an even heavier, darker, and more intense sonic experience.
While not a concept album, death looms large as the central theme, weaving through the lyrics with raw emotion and unsettling storytelling. From existential dread to violent ends, each track explores different facets of mortality, drawing the listener into a visceral journey through the inevitable.
The music delivers heavy riffs, dynamic drumming, and a mix of intensity and melody, further refining the band’s identity while pushing their sound forward.
Set for release on June 13, 2025, via Time to Kill Records, the album builds on the band's signature sound with a balance of aggression, atmosphere, and storytelling.

Two decades after its original release, the trance classic “The Morgan’s Wave” returns in a fresh and contemporary form. Born in 2003 from the creative meeting between vocalist Caroline Eloy and producers Patrick Ketels and Xavier Romain, the track first gained attention through David Altrix (Galaxie Radio), and was signed by Diki Records in 2004 on its sub-label Green Valley.
In 2025, the idea to revive the track came from Caroline Eloy—now performing as Ce’Loy—who teamed up once again with David Altrix to envision a remix with a modern twist, keeping the original lyrics and piano melody while exploring a new musical direction.

They entrusted the remix to Narik (Freegrant Music, Bonzai Progressive, EinMusika), whose timeless production style brings a unique reinterpretation of the track. His version features deep, emotional textures and a subtle deconstruction of the vocal part, blending nostalgia with innovation.

Now released on Clair Obscur, this 2025 remix also serves as a heartfelt tribute to Patrick Ketels, who sadly passed away a few years ago.
“The Morgan’s Wave (Narik 2025 Remix)” bridges eras with elegance — a moving reinvention of a beloved track, available soon on both vinyl and digital formats.

Français

Deux décennies après sa sortie originale, le classique trance “The Morgan’s Wave” revient dans une version fraîche et contemporaine. Né en 2003 de la rencontre créative entre la chanteuse Caroline Eloy et les producteurs Patrick Ketels et Xavier Romain, le morceau s’est d’abord fait remarquer grâce à David Altrix (Galaxie Radio), avant d’être signé en 2004 par Diki Records sur son sous-label Green Valley.

En 2025, l’idée de raviver le morceau germe dans l’esprit de Caroline Eloy — désormais connue sous le nom de Ce’Loy — qui s’associe de nouveau à David Altrix pour imaginer un remix à la fois fidèle et modernisé, conservant les paroles originales et la mélodie au piano tout en explorant une nouvelle direction musicale.

Ils confient cette mission au producteur Narik (Freegrant Music, Bonzai Progressive, EinMusika), dont le style intemporel offre une relecture unique du titre. Sa version déploie des textures profondes et émotionnelles, et déconstruit avec subtilité la partie vocale, mêlant habilement nostalgie et innovation.

Désormais publié sur le label Clair Obscur, ce remix 2025 constitue aussi un hommage sincère à Patrick Ketels, disparu il y a quelques années.

“The Morgan’s Wave (Narik 2025 Remix)” fait le lien entre les époques avec élégance — une réinvention touchante d’un morceau culte, à paraître prochainement en vinyle et en digital.

DJ FEEDBACK
Early support from Jam El Mar, Fedele, Township Rebellion, Themba, Roger Sanchez, Dan Marciano, DJ Fire, Tocadisco, Yalla Techno, Tom Leclercq, ….

Bangladeshi Born Producer Lady Tazz, debuts ‘Sleaze’ with a killer remix from Radio Slave this June. At the heart of Lady Tazz’s mission is Mind Medizin, her label and event series that champions the sound of kindred spirits, now inviting Radio Slave to the mix this June.

Lady Tazz has overcome many cultural obstacles to achieve her rightful place as one of Toronto’s foremost electronic dance exports. A renegade of sorts, as a teenager, she would regularly visit the UK and Germany without her parents’ knowledge to attend London’s Sound Academy and to party in Berlin, whilst continuing to pursue her aspirations of becoming a DJ.

The Bangladeshi producer and DJ is proud of her heritage but is realistic about the social expectations of throwing raves in her hometown. She moved to Toronto in her teenage years, where she grew up, educating herself on music and a place that has perfected a sound that remains organic and raw. Her record label and party series, Mind Medizin, taps into an erotic lifestyle that embraces the unconventional and free-spirited, which inspires and motivates Lady Tazz on numerous artistic levels.

For Mind Medzin’s latest release, Lady Tazz will drop ‘Sleaze’ on the 27th June, to include a special remix from Rekids founder and UK godfather, Radio Slave, making his debut on her label.
Foreboding and dripping with lascivious intent, ‘Sleaze’ brazenly stalks into existence by way of warping synth fills and glitching hi-hats. The lyrical component consists of a series of smouldering vocal hooks which salaciously enrapture one’s senses, tightly wrapping around the creeping melody before succumbing to the beat’s stomping dominance.

On the flipside, Radio Slave’s remix revs and fires with shots of ringing overtones atop a deep thud, husky vocal and swooshing cymbals. Whilst upping the ante of the original, its stripped-back charm remains, culminating in a moody, chugging rework bubbling with tension and fraught with Radio Slave’s brand of dark, fractured house.

3XL’s first new release in 2025 by Italian trio Cortex of Light is a synapse-tickling dose of classic FSOL-era world-building that takes in gloopy trance cooked down with sub-heavy, vaporous dub, mutant acid, breakbeat rave, Artificial Intelligence and a Mark Fell-style algorithmic brainmelt.

You'll know if you've spent any time following Piezo's output that the Milan-based producer and Ansia boss has a knack for lysergically enhancing any club template he sets his sights on. With releases on Idle Hands, Wisdom Teeth, Loefah's 81 and most recently Dekmantel, Luca Mucci has blottered up dubstep, hard drum, 2-step and minimal techno, here re-convening with fellow Milanese journeymen Aitch and primordial OOze/xàr num as Cortex of Light to blur those edges even further

'ILLUMINOTECNICA' isn't the trio's first release, but it's their most substantial and easily most developed. If 2024's 'Aeon Is A Child At Play With Colored Balls' showed off their aptitude for threading their luminous soundscapes into a horizontal soundtrack, then this album is a proper chance for Cortex of Light to show off their versatility in a different setting, matching dancefloor hallucinations with expertly sculpted sound design.

Psilocybin-tainted soundscapes scrape into breathy flute sounds and chest-thumping bass drops on the opener, haunted by a vision of electronic music that's been contrived in back rooms, squats and outdoor raves for decades at this point. Like so much of the rest of the 3XL catalog, there's a drive and coherence here that comes from classic dub techno and chill-out room fodder (think The Black Dog or Pentatonik), but always infused with something that dates it to the present era, be it a tactile sliver of Visible Cloaks-style neo-new age ambience, or a sort of mescaline-dipped take on Photek's bass-heavy, meticulously hazed 'Solaris' period downtempo gear, chopped 'n screwed into the uncanny.

On the occasion of the celebration of the tenth anniversary of our work, in cooperation with PGP-RTS, we prepared a quite special edition: Max And Intro-Return To The Future 1984-1994 LP collects 12 tracks of this legendary Belgrade synth-pop group on high-quality 180-gram vinyl, remastered from the original master tapes with a handful of extras: the record comes with a rare interview from 1985, a lyrics sheet, and phenomenal unreleased photos by Goran Basarić and Max’s Poster.

Format Details: 12” matte jacket, orange & blue side A/B effect colour vinyl, dust sleeve & marketing sticker.

Originally released in 2002, Daylight EP was the follow-up to Aesop Rock’s critically-acclaimed Labor Days album, a cult classic released only six months prior. The EP was built around its titular opening song, “Daylight,” one of the standout tracks from Labor Days, and continued expanding upon the range and depth of Aesop’s multi-talented gifts for writing and producing. In addition to the title track, Daylight EP also included its counterpoint, “Night Light,” an alternate version in concept whose paraphrased lyrics simultaneously refer back to– and stand in stark opposition to– the original's, over darker, more menacing production. The tracklist for Daylight EP boasted seven songs plus a hidden track for a total of eight, and collectively featured production by Blockhead, El-P, Blueprint and Aesop Rock himself, as well as guest appearances from Vast Aire (Cannibal Ox) and Blueprint.
At the time of its initial release, Daylight EP was only offered in CD and digital formats, while the vinyl was stripped back, available only as a three-song 12” single. Now, Rhymesayers Entertainment is pleased to present the complete EP on vinyl for the first time ever, pressed on two-color side A/B effect orange & blue vinyl to complement the original artwork. Finally, fans and vinyl collectors everywhere can own this integral piece of Aesop Rock’s legacy and enjoy the genius behind this project.

Black Hole Superette, the latest album from Aesop Rock, delves into the invisible forces that shape our lives and psyches. It's about the small, often overlooked moments_the everyday experiences that blur the lines between the real and the unreal, waking and sleeping. Aesop's signature gift for transforming the mundane into something dreamlike gives the album a surreal quality, leaving listeners questioning what's truly real as they navigate its vivid, half-remembered imagery. Entirely self-produced, Black Hole Superette is one of Aesop Rock's most technically accomplished works to date. The album's intricate beats and complex structures provide the perfect backdrop for his expansive lyricism, balancing cerebral exploration with emotional depth. From the reflective 'Movie Night' and the eccentric 'Send Help' to the wistful 'Black Plums,' Aesop channels the spirit of a mad scientist, experimenting with sound and concept in ways that defy the ordinary. With a stellar lineup of collaborators that includes Lupe Fiasco, Armand Hammer, Hanni El Khatib, Open Mike Eagle and Homeboy Sandman, Black Hole Superette is dense and kinetic, an album that deftly navigates between complexity and instinct. It's clear this project stands as one of Aesop Rock's most multifaceted and ambitious works yet.

Known for her delicate, subtly psychedelic approach to production - all subtlety is thrown out of the window on the opener, “Parents and God”. We are immediately confronted with a slamming Chicago house style beat in style of Mr Fingers at his most utilitarian. It slams, jerking in and out of tempo like Ron Hardy in beast mode.

Out of nowhere a soulful church organ arrives - at first for a brief respite - but then for an extended solo, which gives way to an 80s electro style breakdown before reverting back to form. It shouldn’t work, but somehow it does - to a dizzying extent - and heirin lies Mayurashka’s magic: a blatant disregard for norms and a deft touch that makes the unorthodox so compelling.

“Notango" takes another big left turn - sitting somewhere between tribal seance and rain dance, it’s mostly organic drums and otherworldly sound effects that combine to drag us deeper into the wormhole before “ Vat Murmur” takes us back into the light with its uptempo disco energy and giving way to heavy chugging bass. This one is equally for fans of idjut boys and Larry Levan.

The EP rounds off with the title track “ LSI dreaming” - to try and describe it is almost impossible, but let’s say it starts of with a mid 2000s Perlon-era tech house energy before things quickly escalate beyond all recognition and then just hover with lysergic intensity. If I ever closed panorama bar, this is the track I’d end with.

Atlanta Based Band Rujen And their Album "Velvet Dream".
Velvet Dream is more than a collection of songs - it’s a cosmic nudge sent to remind you that your future begins with a choice. You close your eyes and a vision begins to form: a life just beyond your reach, patiently awaiting your arrival. It’s the version of yourself you imagine when you tune out the noise and tune in to the things that make you feel. With their Broc Recordz debut, Rujen aim to open doors through that very threshold with 11 tracks of 70s-tinged space rock that thoughtfully weave together lyrical themes of time, personal agency, and the pursuit of silencing self-doubt.

Returning to the Bordello, and the seven-inch, is Real Velour. This secretive figure reappears with two tracks of indie dance that bend and re-shape elements of italo disco, minimal pop and synth wave to create an utterly unique experience. Sleazy basslines and tropical percussion give way to heavily vocodered words in “Lover”, machine amor breaking to spoken human voice as melodies twirl. The romance described is one of passion, of friendship and of fidelity; but, with a hint of control. Clever and addictive, the composition cherry-picks bittersweet sounds to depict this relationship. The flip, “Look What You’ve Done”, maintains the candystore keys of the A-Side; the tone shifting as lyrics adopt a brazen and fortified vigour. It appears maybe that the promises of “Lover” have been shattered. While the love story turns to hurt feelings and regret, Real Velour keep the energy high to revel in the final break-up.

‘Time Flies… 1994 – 2009’ is Oasis’ complete singles collection.

Now available with remastered audio, this quadruple vinyl deluxe box set is released to celebrate its 15th anniversary and ahead of the band’s eagerly anticipated Oasis Live ’25 tour, and includes a limited edition print. Released on Big Brother Recordings, the tracklisting spans fifteen years across Oasis’ staggering seven consecutive number one albums. 1994’s ‘Definitely Maybe’, 1995’s ‘(What’s The Story) Morning Glory?’, 1997’s ‘Be Here Now’, 2000’s ‘Standing On The Shoulder Of Giants’, 2002’s ‘Heathen Chemistry’, 2005’s ‘Don’t Believe The Truth’ and ‘Dig Out Your Soul’ from 2008. Starting with their irresistible debut, ‘Supersonic’ and finishing with their last release ‘Falling Down’, this compilation features all 26 singles - including ‘Whatever’ and ‘Lord Don't Slow Me Down’, which have previously never appeared on an Oasis studio album.

Originally released in 2005, Street Education is the explosive debut from Street Life - longtime Wu-Tang Clan affiliate and Method Man’s onstage partner-in-rhyme. Executive produced by Method Man, the album delivers raw street wisdom, classic East Coast grit and features production from Rockwilder, Allah Mathematics, Inspectah Deck and Fantom of the Beats. Tracks like “Can’t Stop, Won’t Stop,” “A Star Is Born,” and “What’s Up”
showcase Street Life’s sharp lyricism and his undeniable chemistry with Method Man.

THIS SPECIAL 20TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION ARRIVES IN
TANDEM WITH THE WU-TANG CLAN’S ENTER THE FINAL CHAMBER FAREWELL TOUR, A GLOBAL EVENT
CELEBRATING THE LEGACY OF ONE OF HIP-HOP’S GREATEST COLLECTIVES.

Originally released in 2005, Street Education is the explosive debut from Street Life - longtime Wu-Tang Clan affiliate and Method Man’s onstage partner-in-rhyme. Executive produced by Method Man, the album delivers raw street wisdom, classic East Coast grit and features production from Rockwilder, Allah Mathematics, Inspectah Deck and Fantom of the Beats. Tracks like “Can’t Stop, Won’t Stop,” “A Star Is Born,” and “What’s Up”
showcase Street Life’s sharp lyricism and his undeniable chemistry with Method Man.

THIS SPECIAL 20TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION ARRIVES IN
TANDEM WITH THE WU-TANG CLAN’S ENTER THE FINAL CHAMBER FAREWELL TOUR, A GLOBAL EVENT
CELEBRATING THE LEGACY OF ONE OF HIP-HOP’S GREATEST COLLECTIVES.

Originally released in 2005, Street Education is the explosive debut from Street Life - longtime Wu-Tang Clan affiliate and Method Man’s onstage partner-in-rhyme. Executive produced by Method Man, the album delivers raw street wisdom, classic East Coast grit and features production from Rockwilder, Allah Mathematics, Inspectah Deck and Fantom of the Beats. Tracks like “Can’t Stop, Won’t Stop,” “A Star Is Born,” and “What’s Up”
showcase Street Life’s sharp lyricism and his undeniable chemistry with Method Man.

THIS SPECIAL 20TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION ARRIVES IN
TANDEM WITH THE WU-TANG CLAN’S ENTER THE FINAL CHAMBER FAREWELL TOUR, A GLOBAL EVENT
CELEBRATING THE LEGACY OF ONE OF HIP-HOP’S GREATEST COLLECTIVES.

Bobby Lyle is a keyboard legend from the fusion period of jazz in the mid to late 1970s. He was the pianist with Young Holt Unlimited and played with Jimi Hendricks, booked to go on the road with him just ahead of the untimely death. In 1974 he moved to Los Angeles and went on the road with Sly & The Family Stone, and then through dates with Ronnie Laws he met ex-Crusader Wayne Henderson who took him to Capitol Records where this, the first of three iconic albums was released in 1977. Bobby also became Wayne’s keyboard player of choice on his solo albums and productions through the remainder of the 70s and early 80s, contributing to the ‘At Home Production’ sound which defines these albums. “The Genie” was rediscovered in the ‘rare groove’ period of the 80s and is from which Bobby gets his nickname for the lightning pace and magic of his playing. This album is ultimate jazz funk from a period that gave us artists like Lonnie Liston Smith, Joe Sample and Bob James. Bobby still tours to this day with artists like George Benson and Anita Baker.

LA-based producer Real Bad Man and Detroit artist ZelooperZ release their joint album Dear Psilocybin via the pro-ducer’s own Real Bad Man Records. The album marks the duo’s first collaboration, culminating in a full-length project that also features guest appearances from Boldy James, MAVI and a verse from The Alchemist. On Dear Psilocybin, ZelooperZ invokes unconventional production out of Real Bad Man to match his own unpredictable and outlandish delivery, working outside of traditional song structures and existing in a lane of his own. The Detroit multihyphenate, who is an integral part of Danny Brown’s Bruiser Brigadecollective and also an accomplished visual artist, painted the album’s corresponding cover artwork as well.

“I definitely haven’t made anything like this before, it’s a very subtle version of my music as far as tone, ” ZelooperZ explained in a conversation with Real Bad Man for his RBM Radio show. He elaborates on the off-kilter approach to the way he recorded to say, “the album feels like a movie soundtrack for a film about a man losing his mind and getting spurts of memories along the way. ”

Speaking about how the project differs from the rest of his collaborative catalog, RBM says, “It’s trippy and it’s a little different – but the main goal was for it to be authentic to Z and his process. ” That dedication to authenticity rings true across his catalog, drawing back to the foundations of his beginnings as a producer, learning the fundamentals of sampling, experimenting with chords and learning to piece songs together by ear. RBM builds a cohesive production arc around each artist he works with, catered to their strengths as artists, working with a variety of lyrical stylists includ-ing Memphis rapper Lukah, Pink Siifu, Blu, Kool Keith, Elcamino & more.

Real Bad Man is the production moniker of visual artist and designer Adam Jay Weissman. A designer and visual artist first, he made his foray into music through his On High Alert series of imaginative, multi-generational compilations, which have featured the likes of Roc Marciano, ROME STREETZ, Pink Siifu, Maxo and more. In the years since, he’s partnered with some of hip-hop’s most talented and adventurous artists on full-length projects, refining and shaping the trajectory of some of rap’s most exciting independent artists.

We’re thrilled to announce the ultimate collection for fans of Raz Fresco’s groundbreaking “Pocket Operations” album series! For the first time, all three volumes of this critically acclaimed series have been brought together into one seamless release. Featuring over 40 meticulously crafted tracks, this collection showcases Raz Fresco’s unique production skills, with every beat and sound created on the PO-33 – the world’s smallest sampler, designed by the innovative minds at Teenage Engineering.

This special release comes packaged in a stunning trifold jacket, making it a must-have for collectors and audiophiles alike. Available in your choice of vibrant colored vinyl or classic black vinyl, this exclusive edition is now open for pre-order. Don’t miss your chance to own this iconic compilation – secure your copy today!

Strike Up The Band is Little Feat's triumph return to rock n roll with plenty of swampy southern soul with Bill Payne (keys/vocals0, Scott Sharrard (guitar/vocals), Tony Leone (drums/vocals), Fred Tackett (guitar), Kenny Gradney (bass), and Sam Clayton (percussion/vocals). It's their first album of new material in over 13 years with songs written by Payne and Tacket as well as Feat's newest members Sharrrard and Leone. The album was produced by the multi Grammy Award winner, Vance Powell (Phish, Chris Stapleton, Jack White) and Bill Payne. The song "Bluegrass Pines" features speacial guest Molly Tuttle and Larry Campbell & Teresa Williams, and was written by Payne and the Grateful Dead lyricst Robert Hunter, and the title track features Larkin Poe on guest vocals.

Knowledge The Pirate returns with a powerful new statement with his new album, The Round Table, which is now available. The Round Table is produced in its entirety by longtime collaborator and legend Roc Marciano through his Pimpire International imprint.

With roots in New York’s revered ‘90s hip-hop scene, Knowledge The Pirate has steadily built a reputation as one of the genre’s most consistent and authentic voices. A frequent Roc Marci collaborator and key figure in the modern un-derground renaissance, Knowledge fuses golden-age grit with new wave innovation—bridging generations while stay-ing firmly rooted in New York’s timeless sound.

Since his 2018 debut Flintlock, Knowledge has carved a lane entirely his own through his label Treasure Chest Enter-tainment, Inc. With five acclaimed projects under his belt, including the recent 5lbs of Pressure, he continues to deliver unfiltered street wisdom and personal reflection in every bar.

The Round Table stands as a testament to his evolution—an uncompromising body of work laced with Roc Marciano’s signature production and Knowledge’s lived-in lyricism. It’s not just a record—it’s a meeting of the minds, an audio council of kings.

“The Round Table is cinematic storytelling, teaching street knowledge, eating etiquette that will save your life” Knowledge professes. “This album is like an Honorable Elijah Muhammad book; How To Eat To Live. Produced fully by the true creator of the new wave sound, Roc Marciano, you are all invited to a seat at The Round Table; and break bread with the true Godfathers of this new wave rap renaissance.”

Kota The Friend and Statik Selektah reunite for their third collaborative album, "Once In A Blue Moon", a stunning fol-low-up to their acclaimed projects "To Kill A Sunrise" and "To See A Sunset". This album sees the duo refining their sig-nature blend of introspective lyricism and golden-era-inspired production, creating a sonic landscape that feels both nostalgic and refreshingly modern.

Highlights include the electric energy of "BLAH," featuring rap superstar Logic, who delivers sharp, unforgettable vers-es alongside Kota. Violinist Phearnone adds a hauntingly beautiful touch to "What You Need," merging classical strings with Statik's soulful beats for a standout moment of artistic fusion.

"Once In A Blue Moon" is a musical reflection on the rarity and beauty of those transformative experiences that stay with you forever, a vivid journey, showing Kota The Friend and Statik Selektah at the peak of their creative synergy.

Underground Pacific is back with a new double vinyl compilation titled ‘The Only Good Wave is a Dead One’ that confirms, once again, its uncompromising taste for bold electronic music, psychedelic textures, and raw, electrified rock ‘n roll. This release brings together a varied group of artists, each of them adding something special to the journey.

The trip begins with “Excursions” by Gregory Moore, a piece that floats into a humid sonic world, between the nostalgic tones of vintage video game soundtracks, the Fourth World atmospheres of Jon Hassell, and the shimmering calm of ’90s Japanese ambient à la Takashi Kokubo.

Next comes Talee, the Rotterdam-based regular of the label, with “Makes Me Wonder”. Here, grunge-soaked vocals meet a tight dark disco groove, pierced by crystalline guitar chords that shimmer at the track’s heart. A song with its soul in the past and its feet in the club.

Label founder Cantor teams up once again with German duo New Hook on “Achtung! Achtung!”, an homage to the eponymous track by Italian producer Black Saagan. Fueled by vintage drum machines, punk-infused vocals, and melodies echoing the krautrock minimalism of Cluster, the track channels pure Cold War disco energy.

On “Scavengers”, Berlin based World Wild Web and Rasp Thorne deliver a pure mix of electro-rock noir – Suicide by way of David Lynch. Picture a never seen before episode of the series where Martin Rev and Alan Vega are playing live at the Roadhouse in Twin Peaks, while Laura Palmer slowly moves her head to the music, with a devilish smile on her face.

All the way from Grenoble to Berlin, H.L.M. deliver a dirty bass-driven anthem called ‘Fronde’. French spoken vocals spitfire over layers of distorted drones and hypnotic rhythms. The result is rough, hypnotic, and brings to mind the grooves of Death in Vegas.

New Hook return, this time solo, with ‘Unity’: a blend of groovy downtempo percussions, melancholic guitar riffs, and their signature brand of spoken word, a style that’s quickly become their sonic fingerprint.

Then it’s the turn of mexican-wave exponents Montessori featuring Vongold on “Ad Libitum”: a techy sunrise piece with soft pads, subtle build-ups, and an ecstatic sense of endlessness. After-party music for vast, open spaces.
Next up are SX2 from Ireland with their ‘Buttons’, offering a rolling tech-house banger laced with desert guitars. Psychedelic FX’s and whispered vocals drenched in delay slow the pace in a breakdown full of tension, preparing the floor to an euphoric release.

A dream from the pandemic era reappears: Cantor’s “Hannett’s Dream”, originally released in 2020 by Modular’s Project’s imprint ‘Nothing Is Real’ together with their own reworked version present also in two very limited vinyl-collector editions released by Underground Pacific. The introspection and hypnotic structure of the original cut here is replaced by a more stripped down arrangement, with a four-to-the-floor groove that is perfectly crafted for peak-time ignition.

Closing out the release is “Carissima” by the man behind iconic label Wonder Stories, Aimes – a Moroder-esque bassline and sensual vocals play on top of a warm groove that suddenly fractures into jazz-tinged, breakbeat mood, in the style of early Warp Records, just in time to get back into its disco-ish swing.

Contrary to what the title of this release might suggest, the wave isn’t dead at all. It’s well alive in the underground, reanimated by labels like Underground Pacific who are always ready to welcome artists who aren’t afraid to crash genres together and, above all, who are driven by the desire to make free-form, inspired pieces of music.

Co-produced by Lorde and Jim-E Stack, with contributions from Devonte Hynes (Blood Orange), Dan Nigro, Fabiana Palladino, Buddy Ross, and Andrew Aged, Virgin is the sound of Lorde returning to the beat-driven and raw lyricism that propelled Pure Heroine and Melodrama to commercial and critical success. Preceded by lead single ‘What Was That’ (which peaked at #1 on the US Spotify Chart), Virgin marks the return of a truly generational artist.

This 15-track project cements BigXThaPlug's status as one of hip-hop's most authentic and compelling voices. Executively produced by Bandplay—the mastermind behind "The Largest"—alongside longtime collaborators Tony Coles, Charley Cooks and others, Take Care offers a raw and unfiltered reflection of BigXThaPlug's rise to stardom. The album showcases his electrifying energy while exploring new sonic territories, all while remaining true to his signature sound.

BigXThaPlug's artistic evolution is evident in his lyricism, a masterful blend of melodic instrumentation and commanding beats. Drawing inspiration from the sounds of '70s and '80s hip hop, Take Care features a powerful tracklist that includes viral sensations "Mmhmm,” and “Change Me,” along with fresh tracks like "Lost The Love," "2AM," and "The Story of X." Throughout the project, he crafts an innermost narrative that speaks to his journey, proving that success hasn't clouded his vision or altered his core values.

The album announcement arrives with a compelling trailer and the launch of pre-orders, igniting anticipation among BigXThaPlug's devoted fanbase. Masterfully directed by creative director TreySoulss, the intimate trailer features his grandmother's voice guiding viewers through precious family footage and pivotal moments, revealing the forces that shaped his meteoric rise. This project not only promises to further establish him as a leading voice in hip-hop's new generation but serves as testament that his success is no fleeting moment—it's the foundation of an enduring legacy.

Special new 25th anniversary edition of this most popular and highly-acclaimed of all Soul Jazz Records' Dynamite! series - 300% Dynamite is jam-packed with reggae tunes that crossed-over to become dancefloor hits and are 100% guaranteed to rock any party!

Out of print for the last 15 years, this new edition is being released in a one-off limited-edition heavyweight special-edition yellow coloured vinyl pressing + download code exclusively for Record Store Day 2024. This album is fully remastered, relicensed and with new tracks exclusively for RSD 24. Wayne Smith's booming anthem "Sleng Teng", Althea & Donna's worldwide hit 'Uptown Top Ranking', Sister Nancy's classic "Bam Bam", Augustus Pablo, Lee Perry - it's all here as 300% Dynamite joins the dots between reggae, jazz, funk, dub and soul.

REPRESS

New Delhi-based Peter Cat Recording Co. will release their debut album, ‘Bismillah’ on June 14, 2019 via French independent label Panache Records. Debut UK live shows are soon also to be announced by the band.


Peter Cat Recording Co. could almost have a question mark on the end of its name. Not least as founder & frontman Suryakant Sawhney refuses to explain where that name really comes from or what it means (perhaps a reference to the Tokyo jazz club owned by Haruki Murakami), but also since the very existence of the band itself raises a raft of questions. When was the last time we fell for an indie rock band for the right reasons? Not because the band in question nostalgically imitate a perceived ‘golden age’ but because they innately embody the fundamentals of such music: fantasy, sincerity and the freedom to make music without rules or career aspi- rations. And when was the last time this kind of band sounded like Sinatra, Barry White, the sweetest doo-wop, humid fanfares and a psychedelic wedding band, all at once? And all of this coming from India?
In truth, the story of Peter Cat Recording Co. was written within the triangle of San Francisco, Delhi and Paris.
In the first of these cities, Sawhney (a native of Delhi) pitched up to study film-making. More distracted by the city’s peaking live scene of the early noughties, this is where he started to make music and to sketch out an idea for the band.“
The people I lived with supported my idea of writing music, they introduced me to great mu-
sic. There used to be a great garage scene in San Francisco, like The Oh Sees also Ty Seagall, Mikal Conin, all those bands. This is a world I had never seen in my entire life. A big inspiration from San Francisco was that you could record yourself. You don’t need to be in a studio and spend a lot of money to make an album. You can do it”.


At the end of the 2000s, Suryakant returned home to New Delhi, and started his band for real, more or less the same band that plays today. “I wasn’t so concerned about will we be performing, will we be the greatest band, will we be trendy. I just wanted to make something that was consequential and important for us, I think. Something which would last, something people could listen to and be like « this is life changing ». It was for the sake of beauty”.


For the first few years and in India alone, this is exactly what Peter Cat Recording Co. did, in total indifference to the rest of the world. This was until young Parisian label Panache stumbled across the band online via Vice’s THUMP subsidiary, stupefied by the band’s cosmic video for seven-minutes-and-counting track, ‘Love De- mons’. And so in spring of 2018, ‘Portrait Of A Time: 2010-2016’ was released on Panache - making the first international release from Peter Cat Recording Co., bizarrely enough, an anthology of re-mastered, hidden gems from the band’s ramshackle back catalogue, previously recorded in Suryakant’s own living room. With Peter Cat’s off-kilter charm hitherto unheard of beyond the fringes of India, the release provided a gateway op-
Whilst the title track found its way onto Tracks Of The Year lists at the Guardian & NME, it was tricky for new PCRC enthusiasts to get a firm grip on the startling push/pull between the immediate, uncanny music this release gathered, and the cultural backdrop of New Delhi at which it was so startlingly at odds.


Opportunity for a wider fanbase to fall in love with their cloud-like, drunken songs for the first time.
If discovering your favourite new band via a ‘Best Of’ feels a curious premise, then ‘Bismillah’ does more than hint towards the promise of Peter Cat Recording Co’s future. Blending gypsy jazz, psychedelic cabaret, space disco, bossa supernova, Bollywood and uneasy listening with kaleidoscopic ease, in many senses, the band’s knack hasn’t altered. Always different, paradoxical, unpredictable yet somehow familiar. The new album opens to the strains of bird chatter, the whisper of a city’s soundscape and the first few notes from an instrument which seem to be calling us to the departure lounge, a fore-shadow of the flight ‘Bismillah’ launches its listener
on. Suryakant sings with the detached, rueful elegance of Sinatra marooned on a desert island, whilst his band create small space-time capsules which navigate their way through genres and eras – including the future – and between nostalgia and eccentricity.


Peter Cat recently trailed ‘Bismillah’ with the release of ‘Floated By’, an appositely titled musing on failure & missed opportunities, punctuated by the fulsome brass section which weaves through so much of the album.


The languid, blue quality to the track is offset by the attendant music video, created with footage shot, implau- sibly enough, at Suryakant’s own marriage ceremony (needless to say, the wedding band hired for the day was of course, Peter Cat Recording Co.) Sawhney dryly notes; “Hopefully it’s not a many-a-times-in-a-lifetime event. You can’t fake that set, those people actually having a good time, being really emotional and intense.” ‘Bismillah’’s colour-drenched album cover also captures Suryakant’s father-in-law making his wedding toast on that same day - a nod back towards the cover of ‘Portrait Of A Time’, itself a black & white image taken at the wedding ceremony of Suryakant’s own father.


A stumbling but gracious collection of songs rooted in a kind of drunken soul music, the melancholy nature of some of the songs on ‘Bismillah’ renders them almost liquid, before they develop into more dance-like shapes. Suryakant’s rangy voice swoops from the falsetto glide of ‘I’m This’ to the beat-up baritone blown along by the warm breeze of ‘Soulless Friends’. The elliptical structure of album opener ‘Where The Money Flows’ also al-
lows for the use of brief bursts of autotune effect on his vocal without feeling incongruous, whilst the desultory lyrics of ‘Heera’ (a Hindi word for diamond) - sharing something with the Morricone school of grand storytelling - have an emotional weight that would impress even coming from a native English speaker. Perhaps the most gleefully unpredictable moment on ‘Bismillah’ comes with the illusory, vocal loops on the intro to ‘Memory Box’, errupting into 8 exhilarating minutes worth of unbridled, string-backed disco joy. A cat might have nine lives, but on ‘Bismillah’ and beyond, Peter Cat Recording Co. are hinting towards an un- knowable multitude of dimensions. Throw them all together, and it equates less to a listening experience and more to an out-of-body experience.


Peter Cat Recording Co. are: Suryakant Sawhney (vocals/guitar/organ), Dhruv Bhola (bass), Kartik S Pillai (organ/guitar/electronics), Rohit Gupta (horns), Karan Singh (drums)