Catren no.5 we call it. It is as special as the well known perfume itself.
Mique it’s one of the young talented upcoming artists out there who has a word to say.
His unique style it’s very easy to recognize for those who are familiar with the sound of the master of electronic music, Ricardo Villalobos.
Take a sit and enjoy this masterpiece.
Limited Edition Blue Cyan Vinyl – 100 units Hand numbered
This production is a sound parenthesis that will make you think and think beyond words or actions. Senses that may be able to break this glass ceiling of these invisible chains but how well anchored in collective consciousness. We are all different, but one humanity. Let's cultivate it.
Wandalhouz
Limited Edition COLOR green lime Vinyl – 75 units Hand numbered
Orlando Voorn is a Dutch DJ and electronic music producer. As a solo artist he has released work since the early 80s under a large amount of aliases containing Balance, Frequency, Baruka, Basic Bastard, Fix, Dope Dog, Boy, Stalker and The Nighttripper. He also produced tracks with Blake Baxter under the name Ghetto Brothers and with Jeff Porter as Designer Loops.
Voorn won the Dutch DMC DJ Championships in 1986 which meant the beginning of a large number of released tracks. As a professional DJ he released his first club tracks under the record label Lower East Side Records. Together with Detroit techno music pioneers Juan Atkins, Derrick May and Blake Baxter he produced tracks under various labels. Voorn's music is characterized by its variety of styles such as Techno, Drum n bass, Ambient, Hip hop and Electro. By many people Orlando Voorn is considered the first one to establish a connection (in music) between Detroit and Amsterdam.
A trio of tracks inspired by ‘90s rave mark Roberto Capuano’s first Drumcode offering in two years.
The Napoli-born DJ, producer and sound designer has been a semi-regular contributor to Adam Beyer’s labels stretching back almost a decade. From the Inner City-referencing ‘Vertigo’, to the elegant techno on ‘Wilford’, part of DC150th release, and the 2020 collab ‘Mad World’ with good friend Luigi Madonna, his tracks have always been characterised by impeccable quality and a timeless sonic palette. Reinforcing his breadth, he’s also responsible for one of Truesoul’s greatest tracks to date, thanks to the 2015 classic ‘Never Stop’.
‘When The Lights Go Down’ EP continues the brain scrambling techno approach he displayed on ‘Mad World’, with all cuts featuring throughout the summer, including supports at Tomorrowland, Awakenings ADE, EDC Vegas, and Movement Detroit.
“Preparing Singularity” is the debut album by Berlin-based EBM act Transhuman Rebirth, currently a one-man side project of renowned German synth-punk artist Ben Bloodygrave.
Already instantly recognizable on the European synth/wave scene and touring circuit with his high octane aggressive minimal synth, Bloodygrave started this new project over the past few years focusing more on classic, first-wave EBM, moulding the nine tracks on “Preparing Singularity” into a sound that’s recognizable to fans of the starting foundations of the genre. While retaining a sound that’s unique and solely its own, elements of minimal wave and synth-punk are fused in these propulsive tracks, with nods to old idols such as Deutsch Amerikanische Freundschaft, Front 242 and Absolute Body Control.
Transhuman Rebirth is subjectually futuristic to dystopian, interspersed with political statements. The lyrics focus on topics that are current and modern, including science, technology, surveillance and artificial intelligence — all delivered through Bloodygrave’s well-known vocal style with a sound that is much rougher and with compositions and sound designs that are more complex than his main Ben Bloodygrave persona.
Jazz music has more than its fair share of overshadowed figures that whilst contributing much to the music have little presence in its collective conscious. One such musician is the talented multi-reedist, Sahib Shihab. Born Edmond Gregory, as he was known before he adopted the Muslim faith in 1946, Sahib Shihab's music background shows a deep and significant evolution, influenced by Thelonious Monk, Dizzie Gillespie (his experience in Dizzie's band marked Sahib's switch to Baritone, the instrument he became most readily associated with), and above all by Charlie Parker's Bop. Had it not been for the post-war migration of many top American jazz musicians to Europe, it is quite likely that the legendary Clarke-Boland Big Band might never come into existence. Sahib, one of this musicians disillusioned with the politics and racism of the United States, accepted to join the band of Quincy Jones for an European tour in 1959. When the tour ended, Shihab he remained in Europe where he joined, in 1961, the Clarke-Boland Big Band. The collection 'Companionship', whose line up consists of seven elements which derives from this original band, spotlights the consummate musicianship and individuality of Sahib Shihab and is testimony to his special musical gifts - not only as a top-rank flautist and baritone saxophone but also as a composer. Furthermore, it provides a welcome reminder of the high quality of the Clarke-Boland Big Band's rhythm section, the lively style of vibraphonist Fats Sadi and the power and personality of two of the C-BBB's horn-playing stalwarts, Benny Bailey and Ake Persson. Here's a real rarity, surely a desert island disc. This double album has it all from frantic banging percussive workouts to modal numbers to beautiful ballads. It's a staggeringly good piece of music and worth every penny of the price tag it commands. Let's have a look to the most significant pieces. Francy Boland's "Om Mani Padme Hum", taken from a Tibetan prayer, shows Shihab in exuberant mood, playing against a vigorous percussion background and making dramatic use of his special technique of combining voice and flute. Boland contributes an incisive, effervescent solo. "Bohemia After Dark", a classic original by bassist Oscar Pettiford which he first recorded back in August 1955, finds Shihab in exultant form on baritone. "Companionship" has a Bossa Nova beat and features Bailey on flugelhorn and Shihab on flute, playing with a limpid, floating sound. Bailey's minor-key original, "Stoned Ghosts" was, he says, inspired by listening to some music written by Bela Bartok before he emigrated to the United States. The piece has an infectious back-beat pulse and showcases the superb walking technique of Jimmy Woode. In "Con Alma" Shihab's mellow flute set against a churning 12/8 beat in this stylish Boland arrangement. Woode's performance of the superb Mei Torme ballad, "Born To Be Blue", reveals his great affection for the song. "lt is the perfect combination," he says, "a beautiful melody married to a great lyric. I really love that tune." It is a song of rueful resignation, putting a brave face on the blues. "Balafon" is an up-tempo Francy Boland original written for the French mime artist, Marcel Marceau. The rhythm section really cooks on this track with Kenny Clarke's cymbal work outstanding. Boland's solo here is notable for its neat, left hand punctuations. "Calypso Blues" has been written by Nat King Cole and Don George. lt tells the wry and wistful tale of a Trinidadian in New York desperately homesick for the land where everything 5 so much cheaper (in New York "a dollar buy, a cup of coffee and a ham on rye") and the girls more natural than the artificial, painted beauties of New York. Woode's composition, "Sconsolato" is a haunting theme in A minor and it brings to a close a truly fascinating album. This is dynamic music played with vigour, verve and vitality - and it is an enormous pleasure to rediscover it. A shadowy fugitive from his home in the land of jazz, Sahib Shihab remains a true unsung figure, worthy of more attention. With his equally expert technique on Baritone, Flute, Alto and Soprano saxophones and his capacity to adapt easily to a variety of musical settings. His warm, individual, singsong sound in improvisation and his unusual and interesting compositions mark him out as a hidden treasure in the dusty corners of jazz archive.
Omni AM presents the long-awaited reissue of “Can We Get / Keep Doing That.” This timeless record sent dance music in a new direction. Euphoria Record’s vaults are open and finally, for the first time since 1997, this seminal tech-house classic is available to everyone for the very first time in over 25 years. This 1997 indie record was Euphoria Records second release – and their first international record. Whether you agree with it or not, many people consider this one of the pioneering records of American Tech-House. Both sides and several mysterious alternate versions have graced the decks of DJs like Evil Eddie Richards, Terry Francis, Derrick Carter, Tyler Stadius, and Magda. The list goes on.
We were lucky. Curve Pusher lovingly remastered the original four tracks from the 1997 studio masters. Then, he went a step further, and remastered some previously unreleased versions – including a live version in Chicago that encapsulates what Omni AM was back then: ambient house. There’s a bit of Chicago, a bit of London, a bit of New York, and a bit of Tokyo in every second of these classic, genre-defining tracks.
A1.
“Can We Get” happily sits with the finest works of Ron Trent, Chez Damier, and Mood II Swing – and goes further, as Omni AM has never feared genre definitions. It opens with classic deep house chords, floating synth pads, and sparse vocals. The bassline is deep and warm. Marky Star and Adam Collins expertly work the percussive effects but always keep the theme simple and clear. Everyone knows this is a classic house track because it hypnotizes you.
A2.
“Keep Doing That” continues the theme with another classic late-night killer. However, this one is totally different – almost industrial, yet clearly housey and ambient. It drives deep into a tough groove that just builds and builds. The dub-influenced bass line gives way to a more angular synth riff that both offsets and adds to the track's forward thinking sound design. It’s dark and dirty, yet terribly sexxxy at the same time. It was and always will be mesmerizing. Once again, musical magic by Marky Star and Adam Collins.
B-Sides
The flip side features two remixes of “Keep Doing That” by UK tech-house legend Mark Ambrose. His bubbly, psychedelic take on the track pumps up the percussive Chi-town groove while going in a distinctly London afterhours direction. Trippy, for sure. Fun for all, for sure. These remixes are guaranteed to make your afterhours weird.
After the successful 7-inch release of Agip, Roman producer and composer Azzurro 80 is back on Four Flies with another triple-single that continues his love affair with dreamy synth-pop and Italian Eighties culture and society.
"Notte Inchiesta", on side A, could be the title music to an imaginary '80s investigative/true-crime program broadcast on late-night television. Clearly reminiscent in mood and texture of the soundtracks of late-70s/early-80s Italian detective-action films, it brings back the jazz-funk, post-prog and fusion overtones that characterized the music of those films. In short: a contemporary-retro sound nestled somewhere between Goblin's funk-oriented recordings, Azymuth's "Jazz Carnival", and electronic disco with a sprinkle of new wave.
Side B opens with "Equilibrio", which could serve as additional, more dynamic music for the same TV program mentioned above. The style is once againelectronic jazz-funk, but here we have abreak built upon a trail of notes chasing each other.
In contrast, "Sambuca", the single's closer, is deliberately nostalgic and melancholy. Perfectly suitable for visual narratives of an Italy that no longer exists, it sounds like one of those great Italian soundtrack themes that are able to convey tension and calm at the same time. The track is titled after the anise-flavoured liqueur that Italians often drink after their espresso, because "making references in my music to things that are part of our national popular culture is really important to me", as the artist has explained.
12" + 7" !
Mind Maze is, amazingly, Trees Speak’s fifth album to be released on Soul Jazz Records in the space of little over two years– an output matched only by the intensity of their music created during this short time.
The first pressing only of the album comes with a bonus seven-inch single containing two tracks that are not available on vinyl anywhere else.
As with all their previous releases, ‘Mind Maze’ is a mind-boggling tightrope walk across an array of musical influences that seamlessly create the unique present-day world of Trees Speak.
The band’s sound is characterized by a combination of German krautrock motoric-beat rhythms, angular New York post-punk attitude, 60s spy soundtracks, psych, rock, jazz, and 70s synthesizers and vocoders. There is also a cosmic spatial awareness to their sound; both personal inner space and galactic outer space, as well as a wilful pushing of sonic boundaries.
Trees Speak are a musical duo based in Tucson, Arizona, composed of Daniel Martin Diaz and Damian Diaz. Their music is heavily influenced by the cosmic magic of the natural desert landscapes of Arizona, creating a unique and captivating sound that is both experimental and innovative.
Here you will find the myriad sounds of 1970s German electronic music (everything from Can to Cluster, Popul Vuh to Tangerine Dream); 1980s New York post-punk and synthcore (from No Wave to Suicide); John Barry’s 1960s movies, John Carpenter’s 1970s horror. You will also hear the influences of French and Italian progressive rock (Magma, Goblin) as well as cosmic, new age and experimental space soundscapes …. an almost endless list of diverse influences that ebb and flow like an ocean of sound, in the process creating a truly unique soundscape that Trees Speak have made wholly their own.
The name Trees Speak reflects their interest in the concept of using future technologies to store information and data in trees and plants, with the idea that trees communicate collectively. This interest in nature and technology, combined with their passion for experimentation, has led Trees Speak to create a truly one-of-a-kind listening experience that is both unique and engaging.
If you ever wanted to hear Can, Neu!, Destroy All Monsters, Pere Ubu, electric eels, John Cage, Liquid Liquid, Tangerine Dream, Suicide, Laurie Spiegel, Art Ensemble of Chicago, John Barry, Mother Mallard’s Portable Masterpiece Company, Sun Ra, Stockhausen, John Carpenter, Electro-Acoustic and Musique Concrete and Mars in one band - then this is it! Trees Speak are a band that defies categorization and offer an eclectic listening experience, both exciting and memorable.
The two bonus tracks (‘Seraphim’ and ‘Orpheus’) included with the album give us a further window into the complex mind maze of the group - two stunning acoustic tracks that explore a distinct early 70s sound of Yes, Argent and other progressive rock accolytes.
To many crowds the world over PBR Streetgang are known and loved for their talents behind the turntables, selecting at most major festivals and clubs of note but to others they are producers and remixers whose eclectic taste and evolving style has seen them enjoy longevity and critical acclaim. This album is a rare selection of originals and remixes that shows the breadth of their work.
Featuring early original hits that propelled them into the limelight, like ‘Downstroke’ and ‘J2Thab’, and more recently their stand out disco tinged nugget from their debut album ‘Late Night Party Line’.
Previously un-pressed remixes like the cult classic rework of Romathony’s – 'Bring You Up' and the slow chuggy sleaze of Bryan Ferry – One Night Stand and the teary eyed euphoria of their remix Hot Chip’s - 'Melody Of Love'.
This compilation represents an honest retrospective of the production and remix talents of PBR - always keeping true to their sound and themselves.
Limited Vinyl Press.
DJ Support from a very broad base.. from Paul Woolford and Bicep to Jennifer Cardini and Daniel Baldelli.
Global pointing Brazilian jazz trio releases their new album Agôra, that sparkles with electric funk and Herbie-esque eclecticism. It features a myriad of guest vocalists and musicians including Brazilians Xênia França and Zé Leônidas, Jembaa Groove's Ghanaian singer Eric Owusu and South African artists Bongani Givethanks & Mpho Nkuzo
Re-wiring the concept of 'fusion' for 2023, Agôra is Brazilian trio Caixa Cubo's resurgent new record with the title referring to 'now', based upon the intuitive and fluid nature of the trio's method, and this inspired recording. With shoots to black music culture, from Brazil to Brooklyn, Ghana and South Africa, Agôra is the group's ninth album yet is their first where they've invited guests, mainly singers, onto each track and follows their last, Angela from 2020, released on Heavenly Records, which won a BBC 6 Music Album of the Year (Huey Morgan's selection) granting them much deserved international recognition.
The core musical elements of Caixa Cubo are Henrique Gomide (keys), João Fideles (drums) and Noa Stroeter (bass), all from São Paulo, Brazil and where they met as teenagers and would continue their friendship and musical bond at the Royal Conservatory in The Hague, Netherlands. Now all in their mid thirties, João and Noa live back in the city where it all started but Henrique has settled in Cologne, Germany where the recording of Agôra took place, over the course of 3 days, at the home cum studio of Chris 'Dusty' Doepke, their friend and owner of the label they signed to, Jazz & Milk.
In line with all their creations where flow and energy provide the magic, allowing what the moment provides, the album shines not only for its virtuosity but for its minimalism, the depth of space, and for the first time, the ability to figure in and outside of the jazz fold, as the trio decided, for the first time, to bring in singers and add a new aesthetic to their sound.
"Agôra is a wake-up call to reality, a reminder that the infinite possibilities of technological progress should not disconnect us from the earth, from eye-to-eye relationships, and from moments lived in person" the band are keen to point out. "And that we must not be consumed by greed, for all we truly possess.... is the NOW."
Turning hope and metaphor into music, the debut single Sábado, an electrified future- jazz-fizz reflects perfectly the spontaneity that permeated the entire recording of the album. "When we got to the studio, we had no idea what we were going to record. We started playing a groove, kind of inspired by Gilberto Gil's 80s albums, and our drummer João started singing this funny song 'Sábado Barrigudão' (Big Belly Saturday) alongside the bass groove and that was that". Inspired by their city of birth, São Paulo, it features long time collaborator and vocalist Zé Leônidas, with cuicas, tamborim, agogo and shakers providing the most obvious Brazilian affect from the album.
Dreams is the band's first foray into R'n'B melding the group's simple and sporadic instrumentation of drums, keys and bass into a Jill Scott inspired song that could have been born in Brooklyn yet sung by Brazilian singer and Grammy nominated Xênia França and Zé Leônidas in both English and Portuguese. Xênia recently performed online for hip-to-it website Colors and it's her latest collaboration with Caixa Cubo, having first met in 2009 for a series of live performances.
South African artists Bongani Givethanks & Mpho Nkuzo come to the record with a wholly different approach on Ndiyakhangela, providing spoken word and vocal refrains on top of an Afro-Brazilian percussion jam with a delivery and verse in Xhosa, Zula and Ndebele. Asase is the album opener and features vocals of Eric Owusu who is part of highlife pioneer Pat Thomas's live band and most recently, co-leader of Jembaa Groove, an Afro-soul band from Berlin. It's a synth wig out with djembe grooves and offers a brand new take on Afro-soul-jazz.
Other contributions come from Cologne based jazz singer Rebekka Ziegler (Oblique Sunshine), São Paulo based guitarist Eduardo Camargo (Caio & Eric) and trumpet player Matthias Schriefl on Kismeti, a gorgeous and rolling number that ebbs and flows, exemplifying the group's effortless ability to craft a sound energised by a belief in one-self and the idea of having faith without the need to look at each other for verification.
As drummer and percussionist João Fideles perfectly surmised upon arriving for the recording session, "What drums do you have? Whatever you have, I'll use it". Agôra is testament to nearly 20 years of camaraderie, friendship and most importantly, trust.
CHRIS CLARK
Ms. Clark is often cited as the Dusty Springfield of Motown, a white soul singer with a black Southern voice. And she is no stranger to the Northern Soul scene with songs like “Love’s Gone Bad”, her version of Frank Wilson’s “Do I Love You” and the unreleased “Something’s Wrong”. But Clark’s Motown legacy continues surprise with the 2018 discovery – “Whenever I’m Without You” – originally recorded in 1968. Finally making its vinyl debut 55 years on!
THE TEMPTATIONS
The Temps need no introduction, they were, of course, Motown’s most successul male vocal group scoring 18 No.1 R&B/Hot 100 singles and 3 Grammy’s. “All I Need Is You Love To Me” is another 1968 recording that eluded release at the time and is one their best, how could this slice of Motown magic escape. Finally making its vinyl debut 55 years on!
Angelo is an LP, named after a car, featuring nine songs Brijean have crafted and carried with them through a period of profound change, loss, and relocation. It finds percussionist/singer Brijean Murphy and multi-instrumentalist/producer Doug Stuart processing the impossible the only way they know how: through rhythm and movement. The months surrounding the acclaimed release of Feelings, their full-length Ghostly International debut in 2021 which celebrated tender self-reflection and new possibilities, rang bittersweet with the absence of touring and the sudden passing of Murphy’s father and both of Stuart’s parents. In a haze of heartache, the duo left the
Bay Area to be near family, resetting in four cities in under two years. Their to-go rig became their traveling studio and these tracks, along with Angelo, became their few constants. Whereas Feelings formed over collaborative jams with friends, Angelo’s sessions presented Murphy and Stuart a chance to record at their most intimate, “to get us out of our grief and into our bodies,” says Murphy. They explored new moods and styles, reaching for effervescent dance tempos and technicolor backdrops, vibrant hues in contrast to their more somber human experiences. Angelo beams with positivity and creative renewal — a resourceful, collective answer to “what happens now?”
Angelo the car is a 1981 Toyota Celica they got off Craigslist during their first stint in Los Angeles, where Murphy and Stuart have since settled. “Such a bro-y, ‘80s dude car, it’s been super fun to drive around in a new town,” Murphy says. “He’s older than us, he’s a classic, he’s got a story.” It is a spiritual vehicle with a cinematic appeal, first dropping them off in an alleyway for the scene-setting intro, “Which Way To The Club.” The question is quickly resolved by “Take A Trip” as a cruising bassline mingles with crowd sounds, hand-claps, cuíca hiccups, whip-cracks, even a horse neigh. Brijean have found some club on this cross-dimensional trip — the kind of
imagined space or chamber within one’s self capable of “shifting a fraction of who you are,” says Murphy. They wrote the track with the simple intention to be “as free as we could be,” adds Stuart, likening the flip on the B section to a realm unlocked: ”What if the world changed completely? You open the door to a new room.”
Next is “Shy Guy,” a motivational anthem for the wallflowers among us. Murphy sets up the daydream: “We are in junior high, we’re on the dance floor, what’s going down, who is dancing, who is not, how are we gonna make them dance?” The narrator, the MC, hypes up the room as conga-driven rhythms bounce between languid synth and guitar lines. “Show me how to move...I feel something...I know you feel it too,” Murphy sings sweetly, calling back to the opening lines of Feelings, and this time the audience chants it back. It is easy to picture Brijean performing this one — something they only got to do a handful of times until more recently, opening shows for Khruangbin and Washed Out, an experience they found informative. Murphy explains, “It was inspiring to be out there and let loose more. To see how people can expand their expression on stage gave me more liberty with how I viewed my musicianship. My role for so long was to be a backup percussionist, so why would I ever leave the drums, you know? But then after playing all these runs, you see these artists and realize you can, you have permission.”
“Angelo” and “Ooo La La” deliver the danciest stretch in Brijean’s catalog to date. The title track adopts a deep house pulse replete with strings, hi-hats, and kicks. The latter opts for a funkier groove that foregoes verses in favor of warbled hums and extended breakdowns. What follows is perhaps the duo’s dreamiest run, a comedown initiated with the honey-hued interlude “Colors” drifting into “Where Do We Go?”, a tropicália reverie where Murphy contemplates the passage of time and space.
It all culminates in “Caldwell’s Way,” a fond farewell to their Bay Area community — “a part of my life that I knew couldn’t come back,” says Murphy. Above shimmering organ sounds, lush strings, and the birdcall of their former neighborhood, she wistfully articulates the uncertainty of moving on by remembering the characters dear to them. There’s the wisdom of their neighbor, Santos, who refused payment when helping them move out: “I’d rather have 100 friends than 100 dollars.” And the song’s namesake, Benjamin Caldwell Brown, a friend and club night cohort for many years. “I’m only miles away, maybe I’m just feeling lonely,” the line resigns to warm nostalgia, and “Nostalgia” runs the closing credits to this healing and transportive collection.
The UK Electro duo Transparent Sound reissue the infamous Slang City EP.
Long before electro returned to prominence Transparent Sound were serving up world class must-check slabs of body-popping electronic brilliance.
In fact, Transparent Sound are now approaching the third decade of continuous releases and and yet remain more current now that ever with releases lined up with Tresor, Pressure Traxx, John Selways - Serotonin and various others in the pipeline along with clusters of live sets and Dj gigs around Europe and US lined up this year.
It seems Orson Bramley the original founder of Transparent Sound one of the UK longest running electro acts is unstoppable.
Dune Castle Records Presents… For Private Use Only by Cantrips, two heaving psychedelic funk pieces composed by Cantrips' Patrick Ryan and recorded over one day by a studio band including members of Surprise Chef and Karate Boogaloo.
Cantrips is a Melbourne psychedelic funk and cinematic soul group led by multi instrumentalist and studio producer Patrick Ryan. With heavy groove sensibilities, Ryan composes head nodding psychedelic funk music from the Dune Castle Throne Room, a DIY studio in Thornbury, Melbourne, from where he operates the label Dune Castle Records. Ryan composed two tracks in homage to David Axelrod's work with Psychedelic Pop band The Electric Prunes in the late 1960s. Ryan performed these pieces with members of Surprise Chef, with Henry Jenkins (Karate Boogaloo, Surprise Chef, Emma Donovan and The Putbacks) producing the two pieces.
This release follows a psychedelic funk LP composed by Ryan under Dune Castle named Dark Age Martial Arts. A self released record; it was nominated for the Australian Music Prize 2022. It received airplay and support from Radio DJs around Australia on stations such as PBS, RRR and FBI, as well as featuring on radio shows across England, Scotland and France. It also received considerable support from record stores in Australia and the UK.
YIAN” (燕), means swallow in Chinese, and is part of “Siew Yian,” the name given to Chua by her parents to preserve her connection with her Chinese heritage. Just as the migratory songbird lives between places, so did Chua, the artist living in the in-between of the English, Malaysian and Chinese cultures that make up her heritage. In the absence of Mandarin as a mother tongue, music became a way to express the parts of herself that couldn’t be described in words; “YIAN” emerged as a way to heal.
A deeply introspective and fully realized vessel of creative expression (Chua self-produced and engineered eight of the ten tracks), “YIAN” emerges as less an album than a worldview, a commitment to learning and uncovering one’s own selfhood honed over Chua’s lifelong reconciliation with her own personal history and identity.
One of Drumcode's solid MVP's Wehbba comes strong with a sci-fi themed trio of tracks to kick off 2023.
The Brazilian enjoyed another stellar year in 2022, with highlights include the excellent 'Dynamo' EP on Drumcode in April, a contribution to A-Sides ‘The Next Step' and collaborating with Adam Beyer to remix the classic Planetary Assault Systems cut ‘In From The Night’.
He likewise played Drumcode's WHP, our NYC event at Avant Gardner and Drumcode São Paolo to round out the year.
His latest EP on Drumcode ‘Premonition’ is an atmosphere-rich, intergalactic-themed trip that plays out deliciously over three cuts. The title track is imagined as a kind of travel through space and time, propelled by sci-fi synths, Wehbba’s trademark full bodied basslines and a cleverly placed sample from a David Bowie interview.
‘The Message’ is a dynamic beast of a track driven by robotic synth stabs, a catchy melodic riff and memorable vocal refrain ‘Mars Needs Women’ sampled from a 1950s sci-fi film. It has all the ingredients to be another classic addition to Wehbba’s discography. ‘Inertia’ is led by a hypnotising riff that builds over six minutes.
“I love to play this track after a series of rave bangers to keep the energy levels up while taking people on a trip,” shares Wehbba.
"Non Masse" is the new LP from Brussels-based artist and producer Apulati Bien.
After several notable releases on the Parisian label Promesses ("OO:NÉ", "RER TRACKS" & "Azone", jointly released on the Belgian label KRAAK) in solo or via the duo XOLOT he forms with artist Vica Pacheco, navigating in a neo-futuristic aesthetic with glitch and experimental influences mixed with juke, footwork and more broadly bass music heritage, Apulati Bien explores this time new territories, devoid of preconceived forms and leaving more space to each element.
Recorded at the time of the finalization of his last album "Azone" released in February 2022, with the will to proceed with a different method, even opposed to the one he knows, "Non Masse" (whose title is equivocal of the approach) is a more aerial object, with unquantified structures and sliding material, reflecting a feeling of "wanting to get out of (his) own mass", according to his words. A feeling certainly shared by many during the troubled period of the last two years, and which echoes a general desire for detachment, for withdrawal combined with a search for discovery in these overloaded times.
"Non Masse" is not however an object apart from Apulati Bien's discography, where we find the main elements of his music : futuristic references, glitch and digital contortions, which should not be approached as a light object but as a complex one, where the subtle details don't aim at diverting the attention, but on the contrary at nourishing a more global speech. The title "Alone Global" of one of the tracks is probably the most accurate definition of this project.
One of techno's most joyous experimentators delivers two intriguing uptempo tracks. Instead of hitting hard and heavy 'In Aggregate' and 'Carob' float delicately, with explosive detail blooming freely and high above what feels rather like a bass-ladden undercurrent than a persistent kick drum foundation.
Both tracks expand on Stefan Goldmann's extensive polyrhythmic research and integrate tonal and metric functions within the same units of sound. Somewhat radically, the central sound of 'Carob' is all
in one: beat, bassline and single-note melody. By contrast, 'In Aggregate' unfolds lush layers of exuberant percussion, countered by rounded drops of bass and an occasional vocal snippet ricocheting off of claustrophobia-inducing walls of glass.
As future-forward as they are organic, these offerings come with appropriately idiosyncratic artwork by Jorinde Voigt.
Running Back welcomes Firas Waez and his studio character 9th House for a flock of heartfelt and intuitive house tracks. Centered around uplifting chords and joyous melodies, upbeat drums and shuffling hi-hats, it feels like being in a circle dance, watching flowers turning into fruits or caterpillars into butterflies.
Made with the tools of today, but with a burdening love for the ancient magic and positivity of this music. The results being highly contagious. Whether its any of the 9th House’s solo works like Reuben or the collaboration with Matrefakt, it’s impossible to hold still. But as no one can live off love alone, there is also an odd one out. The eponym Midas swaps vintage techniques and the love potion of its counterparts for sharp and exact peak-time magic that makes endorphins rush and cheeks blush. Whichever you finally pick of the five tracks, any of them are an amulet against bad times. A Midas’ touch indeed! Happy house painting artwork courtesy of Luciano Calderon via ruttkoswki;68.
After two decades of releasing music on 12" vinyl under multiple pseudonyms the duo from Even Drones have completed their first LP.
The 20 track double vinyl carries the classic "album era" approach of the 60s and 70s into a modern contemporary work.
Each of the 4 sides of "Ethics" feels like the chapter of a story balanced into a synthesis of counterpoints from piece to piece. Twisted arrangements are stringed together with dance-able tracks and are woven into finespun transmutations of sounds. Sometimes peaceful and regulated, sometimes abstract and complemented with tamed feedback, noises, crackling and delightful patterns.
Like a continuous thread through all titles of the album, the multi instrumentalists somehow managed to harmonize a twisted array of methods and structures into a coherent listening experience.
This full feature-length metamorphosis with no boundaries of styles or genres is released just in time for the 10th anniversary of the band on Freund der Familie.
Staran Wake is a collaborative project by Andrew Bunsell and Tom Relleen. After several years creating music in various groups together, followed by countless hazy late night recording sessions at each other’s studios and crisper afternoons producing the results, the British duo’s musical vision materialised with this self-titled instrumental album, taking nearly 4 years to complete.
This collection of pieces is composed with a wide range of instruments and combines multiple dark, experimental genres to form a rather lavish and unique proposition. It is imprinted with intense turgid textures, interweaving the hyper-tactile characteristics of analogue sound with field recording elements and sound effects.
Although the project’s name suggests a rather celestial concept (‘an’ means moon in one of the early protolanguages), the music actually explores the intimate feelings of transient space and otherness. It uses subtle build-ups of tension and repetitive progressions to shape an impression of distended time and space. More than a mere treat for the ears, it’s a multi-layered album that invites reflection.
All tracks composed, performed and recorded by Andrew Bunsell and Tom Relleen at Dalston Studios, Space Studios and The Bunker, London, UK
Arranged, produced and mixed by Andrew Bunsell and Tom Relleen at The Bunker, London, UK
Mixed and mastered by Marta Salogni at Studio Zona, London, UK
Artwork and design by Jonas Meier
One of the greatest soul voices working in the US today, Billy Valentine's latest release, first plotted out in the summer of 2020, sees the artist responding to the chaos of a global pandemic and the seismic impact of George Floyd's murder via legendary works from Curtis Mayfield, Gil Scot Heron and Pharaoh Sanders. In collaboration with acclaimed producer and songwriter, Bob Thiele Jr. (son of Flying Dutchman founder, Bob Thiele), Valentine's rich, velvety vocals breathe new life into these already-powerful tracks, bringing them into the contemporary political context with renewed urgency. Released on Acid Jazz in partnership with renowned US label Flying Dutchman, Valentine's latest output marks the first new music from the label since the '70s - a momentous return for a keystone tastemaker of the American jazz world.
Black Vinyl[30,67 €]
Before MF DOOM donned his mask and became one of the most prolific MC-producers of modern Hip-Hop, he was a member of KMD, an early ‘90s rap group whose work still goes criminally under-appreciated to this day.
Following their 1991 debut album, Mr. Hood, the former trio shed one member leaving only two remaining – Subroc and his brother, Zev Love X (better known today as MF DOOM). Originally scheduled for release in 1994, their sophomore album Black Bastards showed clear progression from their debut. It was a truly amazing record, both sonically and lyrically, full of youthful creativity and tinged with the stresses of growing up as Black men in urban America. Songs like the lead single “What A N*gga Know”, the slippery, bass-driven “Get U Now”, and the album’s title track explore Black consciousness viewed through young-but-experienced eyes. Musically alternating between bouncy and raw – many times both, concurrently – the tracks gave the MC’s the springboard they needed to express themselves clearly.
Sadly, Subroc would face a sudden and untimely death in 1993, just as the duo were finishing the album. Grief-stricken, his brother Zev Love X – now the sole remaining member of the group – was determined to carry the legacy of KMD onward, but Elektra Records unceremoniously shelved the project in the eleventh hour, due to controversy surrounding the album’s provocative cover art. Following the fallout with Elektra, Zev tried for years to release the album on other labels, but he was continually met with dead ends. Struggling through the pain of losing his brother, coupled with the inability to release their final project together, a discouraged Zev Love X quietly withdrew from the scene and began quietly plotting his revenge on an industry that had broken him spiritually. Thus, in order to understand the true origin story of the super-villain, MF DOOM, one must recognize and appreciate the evolution of his former group, KMD, and the backstory of their pivotal album, Black Bastards.
Young Detroit-native Kenny Hooper steps up for his debut release on Elypsia Records with not one but three 12 inches full of prime Motor City techno and electro escapism. Titled ,,Detroit Orbiter Volume 1 - 3", each EP features four tracks, showcasing Hooper's brilliant personal take on classic Detroit sounds. The twelve tracks of the ,,Detroit Orbiter" trilogy signal the arrival of yet another Motor City talent ready to rake the world and dance floors by storm with his chunky and funkafied sonic fictions. Elypsia Records is proud to welcome Detroit's next generation!
Through a musical collaboration between Italian musician Samuele Strufaldi and the villagers of Gohouo-Zagna in the Ivory Coast, a new album called Davorio released on Música Macondo Records, will raise money for a new community library and space in the village.
Davorio is the joint efforts of Samuele Strufaldi, and the Guéré musicians of Gohouo-Zagna, located in the Ivory Coast’s Guemon region. The record is a cross-cultural-conversation that tells the villagers’ stories through a modern musical language; one that blends together Guéré music, jazz, and electronica. More than just a record, Davorio is a story about the villagers of Gohouo-Zagna, with their lives, traditions, and cultures animated across the album’s 16-tracks. The profits from the vinyl and digital music streams of the project and the money raised from a Go Fund Me fundraising page, will be used to help construct a library for the villagers, that will provide them with the infrastructure to help further their culture and storytelling for years to come.
Two years after their previous effort, regular as clockwork, Swiss throbbing synth pop duo Veil Of Light is back with a new album and what can we say? These guys keep on getting better and better.
If you have followed the Zurich-based outfit over the past few years, you must have noticed the constant moving towards 80’s FM new wave and synthpop tones – without losing their electro/body music outline – that have marked the band’s parable, especially since their latest Landslide LP.
Sundancing is their sixth full-length and it stays the course, bringing what we’ve just said to the next step. Nine new dancy and bright tunes with emotional depth that blend lush instrumentation and robust rhythms, guided by funky and rubbery basslines. Syncopated rhythm sections match suburban cool synths in the lead single Apricot Kiss and Hypersleep, while Raindancing and Tonight summon a sinuosity long gone since the mid Eighties. The musical backdrop here serves as the fundament for emotional vocals delivering lyrics dealing with the fragility of love, joy and loneliness.
There’s some subtle addictiveness to these songs, one that will gently grab you by the collar of your coat and stick the refrains from Sundancing inside your head for good.
Veil Of Light might make it look easy to keep it neat without being minimalist, intimate without being depressing, romantic in the most true sense of the word, but we know that’s possibly the hardest thing to do.
Fresh from DOTT’s “Puppy Luv EP” and Rudoh’s “Vinland In Space EP”, Jugaar Records is back and this time with a full-length, double-pack vinyl, and digital compilation bringing together friends from Asia and Europe. The record is testament to the healthy place the Asian electronic music landscape finds itself in and those intrepid producers who are willing to explore new scenes and sounds. It's energy-crew from the off - with UK beatmaker Joe Koshin’s “Astro Wax”, a techy electro work-out that conjures images of futuristic cityscapes and dense urban mazes. Up next, Pakistan-born and label co-boss Rudoh maintains the electro vibe with cut-up hip-hop vocals sprinkled on top of a pulsating bassline in his “KOF”. His records are being picked up by global tastemakers from Emerald to Roza Terenzi to DJ Masda. Don’t sleep!
Moving to the B-side, German-born, London mainstay Voigtmann shuffles and deals a steppy drum pattern and intricate synth-work, with a bassline drenched in that particular brand of funk to get the party going even at the most ungodly hour. Observatory resident Nic Ford closes this disk with an ambient excursion that summons spiritual rave voices from the deep laid atop a lilting synth loop. It’s typical of his ambient performances which have gained much notoriety in Vietnam of late.
Opening the second record is Egyptian gem Hassan Abou Alam whose recent outings on Naïve and Banoffee Pies have gained him much and well-deserved attention. Here, his “Gloom” combines twinkling IDM modes with heavy sub bass experiments primed to stop the most idiosyncratic dancefloors in their tracks. Up on C2, the Version, 3024 and Phonica Records graduate Yak adds breaks to the equation. His “Disk Full” brings together a haunting gated synth and razor-sharp beat programming to devastating effect. Melbourne based, Salt Mines Records honcho Shedbug concludes this side with his hopeful “A Lil Piece” whose soaring synth line will hit all the right emotional chords at all the right times.
On the final side Bangkokian Chalo reminds us why he is one of the masters of this increasingly fully formed scene. His Depth Charge is a muggy dub-laden, electro jam capable of rattling the weightiest sound systems in some of the most twisted raves at the end of some of the darkest Sois. The record is completed by New Delhi linchpin and Boxout.fm resident Monophonik, whose techno/electro “Tumbi” journeys out of the night into a euphoric sunrise moment that will be setting the dancefloors alight come festival season.
As the artwork on the EP depicts, "Darkest hour before dawn" is a dusky scenario representing the Dutch environment known as "the polder" in the lower lands. It questions all kinds of actions taken or not taken to protect, restore, conserve, innovate, or modestly leave the landscape to its own more murky outcome. The darkest hour, full of gloom, will be available around the spring equinox?
Portrait of tracks separately:
"Darkest Hour before dawn"
Is this piece supposed to be an ode to the ancient Dutch hardcore movement, that once and probably only then would be experienced to such intensity or is this still maybe just a little near reminder of it? Anyway starts this unlit track slowly and remains that way but maintains a fat-pumping pulse, possibly reminding of a soldier walking a death march. Settling up those launch pads further down the piece, near the bridge for shooting off some drum-fire 909 snares as if it rocketed. Then, suddenly, the extended delay of that snare turns into a psychedelic drone beside, attending to, or paranoidly chasing comrades soul in his journey throughout and above like a trustful partner?
Arp's LFO that is out of sync with the beat and is being outpaced by it seems to slow everything down even more; meantime creating a pulling, buggy-like effect to the due of all this.
The ascending and descending ghost-pad drawing into the grid of the (tone) key, thereafter parking in them for a while and cycling out again, creating a spatial flow of disturbance and anxiety.
Finishes it with a mountain-big reverberation of organized destruction and chaos. What at first sight seems like simply an innocent route appears to actually be a bit more complex one.
"Lovely memories"
The quite monotonous structure of Lovely memories catchy and groovy song is scanning through your brain files; revisiting, memorizing, and purposely lacking these few "dots above the I" that in some cases you'd gladly be feeling like to square fit it in yourself, of course, when necessary. Connecting the puzzling, dazzling flashbacks together to finally wrap up and perpetuate the pictured events for good, leaving traces of melancholy, loveliness, and perhaps even faith to it.
"24 hours"
Dinginess of 24 hours supposes to be felt in the guts.
The beat, steady with that snare on the 4 & 12, might not be one of the greatest inventions. However, the TR-08's drum line here lays a solid and fertile foundation for a reasonable house track.
Slightly detuned synths weave a scarf pattern around your upper body, and the lower layers carry a warm blanket for the underbelly, providing you with that cozy sense of consolation. Acidy pokes wring itself sneaky and penetrable around, slicing through the song's already solid flesh. Therefore, balancing its bitter sweetness throughout with these soft-hard saw-tooth drops of sourness.
"24 hours" conveys a dispatch or intercommunication that there is little time left to take actions/charge to fix and restore. Something big is about to come if it hasn't arrived already...
"At night"
This remarkable story is a bit out of ordinary.
At night appeared in the artist's dream just the night before his sick father was raised from death in the hospital and got just another year to live before actually passing away completely and anyway. ; ))
And thus also dedicated to the man.
Our second installment is going to be a classic 4-track various artist release. Carefully curated and selected pieces of music, produced by close friends, this release fulfills the label's mission of providing a platform for our loved ones. This issue features some incredible artists and friends united on wax.
The Berlin and Munich-based duo Medus & Niko S. offer a hybrid track with nostalgic elements of techno, breaks, and progressive house, capable of busting any dancefloor. Longtime Munich resident DJ and producer Dancing Lessons contributes a hypnotic tech-house infused tune with elements of breakbeat and electro, taking the listener on a personal journey through time and space. Munich's young and upcoming producer Johnmon and label owner of Powerloader Records chips in a proper 90s bomb with driving drums, dark, and quirky synths. An all-round tool suited for any dance floor situation. Finally, Vienna-based Doesntmatter polishes off the VA with an expertly crafted electro track. He is the veteran out of the bunch with various releases under his belt on labels such as Traumschallplatten, Reboot Prague, Vienna Underground Track, and Zone Focus.
Emerging talent Amazingblaze has unveiled his new EP ‘Can’t Stop’, out on 3rd March on Charlotte de Witte’s KNTXT imprint.
A four track release, the EP opens with trance cut ‘Can’t Stop’, an electrifying club record which is reminiscent of the 90s. Next up is ‘Got The Vibe’ following the theme of 90s raving, a pulsating, high energy cut. Combining heavy hitting techno beats, ‘Enter The Rave’ sets the tone of the EP, whilst the emotive ‘On The Grind’ closes off the EP with driving pummeling techno, laced with captivating hip-hop vocals.
“Can't Stop EP has a very individual vibe, this time I decided to go through some classic 90s trance & techno vibes and added some freshness by using hip-hop vocals.” Amazingblaze explains. “Each track has its own story. Here we got massive bangers for big venues and hard hitting tracks for clubs.”
Charlotte de Witte adds: “Amazingblaze is back on KNTXT with some truly magnificent tracks. Can’t Stop EP is filled with masterpieces that always turn out to be one of the highlights of my sets. His very distinctive sound just never disappoints. I’m very happy to have him on board for another massive EP on the label.”
Amazingblaze is a fast-rising newcomer on the scene who caught the attention of Charlotte de Witte with his unique talent and craft. Surrounded by music since childhood, Amazingblaze was intrigued by the mysterious vibrations of sound, which was his initial inspiration to produce electronic music. Arriving in St. Petersburg as a teenager, he met producer BMB Spacekid, who later became his mentor. Amazingblaze went onto releasing on Charlotte de Witte's iconic label KNTXT for the first time in 2022 with his ‘Venture EP’ that turned heads on a worldwide scale.
The ‘Can’t Stop EP’ showcases Amazingblaze’s meticulous craft as a fresh newcomer on the scene.
Metro is one of the most recognized underground rap producers. He has already collaborated with Guilty Simpson, Wildchild, MED, Oh No, Rakaa, DJ Babu and Percee P to name just a few.
The album "Blunted Fusion" 2LP is his most refined album. This time without guests - only sophisticated samples, cuts and fat beats.
Plus amazing graphics designed by SewerX. This is the most beautifully released album in the 21-year history of JuNouMi Records.
'The album is composed by Cerys Matthews with Hidden Orchestra and features 10 UK poets: MA.MOYO, Raymond Antrobus, Lemn Sissay, Liz Berry, Anthony Anaxagorou, Adam Horovitz, Cia Mangat, Imtiaz Dharker, Kim Moore and Kayo Chingonyi “We are living in extraordinary times, I wanted to respond but had the urge to offer more than one voice, more than one perspective. Not an echo chamber” – Cerys Matthews. In February 2020 Abbey Road studios welcomed each of the 10 poets to record pieces from their collections. Then lock down hit…. But remotely and with the additional help of field recordists and musicians around the world, Cerys and Joe Acheson (Hidden Orchestra) created a sound journey for these poems with the theme of: Genesis: Birth, heritage, a journey about to begin.
After the recent Experiments re-issue with 90's off-style unclassifiable tracks composed by the legendary Dub producer - The Disciples - Androo (NS Kroo) sets out to re-create and freely adapt this material. The fact that Sound Metaphors chose Androo to re-construct these works in to new material is not random. Androo has been producing Dub since he was a teenager but he quickly turned to all kinds of musical experiences, mixing styles and influences. Once past the intimidation of working with material from one of his favorite and revered producers, Androo tried to pay homage to the free spirit that this Disciples album contains. Between reference and irreverence, the album is woven with a playful, DIY, and also serious weave. As you listen, a sometimes very harmonious and controlled landscape takes shape, then suddenly steep slopes and raw ridges appear. Almost like an art of sound drawing. A line in permanent oscillation between supposedly antagonistic registers. Danceable pieces cut for dancefloor brush against strange, problematic, and voluntarily irrecoverable elements. Consensual pop chords rub shoulders with sizzling blurred contours and sounds that are sometimes too loud. 4/4 rhythms get jackhammered out of the tempo with opulent delay effects. The “Dubmix” is here, constantly at work. It is, above all, an art of the hands, fingers handling the console which from then on becomes an instrument in its own right - for Androo Dub is experimental music.
Talla 2XLC is celebrating his forthcoming birthday with the annual
spectacular Technoclub event along with faithful friends such as DJ
Dag, Woody van Eyden, Andreas_Kraemer, Sven Wittekind, Ulli
Brenner ,LXD and Bluefire amongst others. While during his career
has faced many obstacles and unfortunate situations, he manage to
stay ahead of his game by gaining the respect and admiration of his
fans and DJ colleagues. His career is a bright example of an artist
that fight against all odds and work ultra-hard to be always at the top
of download shops charts with his single releases and at the top of
the physical sales charts with his long lasting Mixed CD compilation
Technoclub that in 2023 celebrates its 25th year anniversary. Well
known for his ability to provide brilliant remakes of huge trance
classics on his label Technoclub Retro while on That’s Trance service
original solo tracks or collaborations with brilliant singers such as
Christina Novelli and fellow DJs like Ronski Speed or Ralphie B. Last
year he established his psy-trance label Dreamscape with remixes
by his psy-trance alter ego Zyrus 7. Talla 2XLC is not just a pioneer
in techno and trance music scene but also a frequently booked DJ
performing on the most iconic festivals and club events such as Nature One, Mayday, Airbeat One and many more as he knows excellently to entertain his crowds with memorable DJ sets . Talla 2XLC embraces social media with active accounts in the most of them with hundreds of followers.
During the pandemic lockdowns he conquered twitch with
his very successful live DJ sets receiving donations and support from
his global fan base. What is more Talla 2XLC is taking part in wide
variety of documentaries narrating his contribution in the development and growth of electronic music culture. He is co-founder of MOMEM - Museum Of Modern Electronic Music in Frankfurt that any electronic music follower should visit to learn about the history of our culture.
For his 2023 Birthday he has a huge surprise to all his vinyl lovers.
He is going to release his BDay Bash EP that will include two massive
tracks already released digitally under his techno moniker RRAW on
Technoclub Pure. The two massive mainstage techno friendly anthems Wonderful Dayz and The Promised Land. Both tracks have been fans favorites and have been road-tested extensively by Talla 2XLC and many other well-known artists worldwide. Banging mainstage techno basslines, slamming kicks, haunting dark moody atmospheres, acid touches and strong euphoric breakdowns followed by massive hands in the air dark climaxes, turn both tracks into must have for any vinyl lover who wishes to embrace Talla 2XLC techno moniker RRAW. Wish Talla 2XLC happy birthday by purchasing his Bday Bash EP with hi latest techno alias RRAW out on ZYX Music.
repressed !
From samba and bossa nova through to baile funk, with carioca expressions of jazz, rock and hip hop in between, the sound of Rio de Janeiro, while continually evolving, has always held an unnameable quality which reflects the magic and mystique of the city itself. Multi-instrumentalist and arranger Antonio Neves is the city’s newest trailblazer: the enfant-terrible of Rio’s music scene, leading a vital and diverse constellation of both emerging and well-known artists advancing the city’s musical legacy.
“It all started one sleepless night, after watching a Quincy Jones documentary”. Inspired by the legendary music magnate, Neves began writing a list of artists residing in Rio de Janeiro “people that I admire, that I consider geniuses of their instruments, who share with me affinities, anxieties and projects.” The list included some of Brazil’s most revered living musicians who Neves has worked with in recent years: Hamilton de Holanda, Leo Gandelman and Dorival Caymmi. Neves also called on some of Brazil's most exciting emerging talents including Alice Cayymii and Ana Frango Eletrico.
A Pegada Agora É Essa (The Sway Now) is Neves’ second album: a vibrant portrait of the current Brazilian music scene. From the regional to universal, popular to erudite, samba to rap, Latin rhythms to jazz, MPB and pop to good old rock'n'roll, Neves walks with fluency and mastery amongst all the musical genres that Brazil has to offer.
“My offer to the musicians was complete freedom to express themselves through the songs I proposed – classics like “Summertime”, “Luz Negra” and “Noite de Temporal”, and compositions of my own – creating a space of authorship for the band and the guests. A space for inventions, purges, delusions, laughter. The idea was to bring the freedom of jazz crossed by Brazilian rhythms, such as the traditionals Partido Alto (A Pegada Agora É Essa) and Jongo (Jongo no Feudo and Luz Negra); rhythms of African-Brazilian religions like Candomblé (Noite de Temporal) and Umbanda (Forte Apache); and a tribute to newest Rio de Janeiro’s contribution to Brazilian music, the Funk Carioca (Simba)”.
Coming from a musical family, Antonio’s father, Eduardo Neves, was a renowned conductor and a professor at Juilliard School of Music and the California Jazz Conservatory. In the bohemian neighbourhood of Lapa, aged 14, Antonio began his career as a drummer, before experimenting with brass. He would soon become a skilled trombonist and arranger achieving the recognition of his teachers and peers. It wasn’t long before he would be playing with some of the biggest names in Brazilian music, such as Hamilton de Holanda, Leo Gandelman, Moreno Veloso, Kassin and Elza Soares.
His debut album as a trombonist was PA7 (2017, Rock It), released at the same time he was travelling the world playing with artists like Moreno Veloso, Kassin and Leo Gandelman, and recording the albums Jobim, Orquestra e Convidados (2017, Biscoito Fino), with Mário Adnet and Paulo Jobim; and Elza Soares Canta e Chora Lupi (2017, Coqueiro Verde Records). More recently, Neves was the arranger for the acclaimed Little Electric Chicken Heart album, by Ana Frango Elétrico, which has been nominated for a Latin Grammy and voted 2019’s ‘Brazilian Music Revelation’ by The Art Critics Association of São Paulo.
In 1975, under the oppressive air of military dictatorship in Brazil, brothers Lelo and Zé Eduardo Nazario invited bassist Zeca Assumpção to join their musical experiments in a basement under Sao Paulo’s Teodoro Sampaio Street. As teenagers, the trio had already been playing together in Hermeto Pascoal’s Grupo, alongside guitarist Toninho Horta and saxophonist Nivaldo Ornelas, and it was while working together under Hermeto’s direction that the Paulista rhythm section (as they were then known) began to realise their own potential.
With many nightclubs and venues closed in the mid-70s and government censors dictating the output of radio, TV and art galleries, many Brazilian artists fled during the years of dictatorship. But underground, Grupo Um were fusing avant garde ideals with contemporary jazz and Afro Brazilian rhythm; making phenomenally free and expressive music - in stark contrast to the sterile, conservative conditions being imposed above ground.
Just like Hermeto Pascoal’s Viajando Com O Som from the following year, Starting Point was recorded over two days at Vice-Versa Studios, by revered engineer Renato Viola. The studio was one of the best in Sao Paulo and musicians communicated with engineers through cameras and a monitor, allowing the group complete immersion in the process. They also made use of the studio’s hemispherical tiled room, which served as an acoustic reverberation chamber.
The album begins with Zé Eduardo Nazario’s thunderous drum solo on “Porão da Teodoro”, before clearing the clouds with the lone Berimbau which opens “Onze Por Oito”. Built around a hypnotic electric bass line, heady Fender Rhodes improvisations, and more rip-roaring drums, it’s a rapturous, electrifying freak-jam in 11/8.
Like some invertebrate deep-sea curiosity, the free-form “Organica” is made up of Lelo Nazario’s playfully eerie prepared piano, with Zé Eduardo’s percussion flurries darting around Assumpçao’s double bass. The equally non-conformist, percussion-only piece “Jardim Candida” features many of Zé Eduardo’s home-made instruments, including a long saw blade played with vibraphone sticks and violin bow. While working with Hermeto, Zé Eduardo famously built his own all-in-one percussion set-up known as the “Barraca de Percussão” (Percussion Tent) - the first of its kind in Brazil, which he would also use on Hermeto Pascoal’s Viajando Com O Som and throughout his career.
“Suite Orquidea Negra'' (Black Orchid Suite) was written by Lelo Nazario as the score for an imaginary movie - the story of a rare, black orchid which produced a substance meant to cure all diseases, but which had mysteriously disappeared from the laboratory… “As a screenplay it’s not very good” reflects Lelo in jest, “but the music ended up being very interesting, the way its parts are chained to one another carries a little of the mystery I imagined for the movie.”
The album closes with the triumphant “Cortejo dos Reis Negros” (Procession of Black Kings) - a groovy variation on the Maracatu rhythm, with a two-note bassline underpinning piano improvisations, exultant wordless vocals, cuicas, slide-whistles and a very special guest appearance from Zé’s dog Bolinha.
Starting Point was to mark the inception of one of Brazil’s most daring instrumental groups. Their debut now sits in the lofty echelon of otherworldly 70s Brazilian music, alongside the likes of Marcos Resende & Index’s self-titled debut, Cesar Mariano & Cia’s Sao Paulo Brasil, Azymuth’s debut and indeed Hermeto Pascoal’s Viajando Com O Som. But just like all of those titles, which were either shelved or largely ignored at the time, Grupo Um - so radically ahead of their time - struggled to find a label to release their debut album. So Lelo kept the tapes safe in his archives, which is where they sat for almost half a century. Finally, almost fifty years later, this mesmerising piece of history is here, and it was only the beginning...
Grupo Um’s Starting Point will be released by Far Out Recordings, on vinyl LP, with an insert featuring unseen photos and liner notes by the Nazario brothers, as well as a CD on 17th February 2023.
DJ Girl is a DJ and producer who was raised in Detroit, but since the pandemic has been based in Austin, Texas. She's the co-founder of the up and coming Eat Dis Records and her recent releases have been generating excitement in all the right places.
In some ways, 'Hellworld' feels like a direct relation to a lot of early 2000s Planet Mu releases. It could sit neatly alongside Hellfish or Neil Landstrumm, with a similar anything-goes, gleeful attitude, but instead DJ Girl mashes together a driving sound that is founded upon Detroit techno and electro, Chicago juke and Miami bass, with an old school/new school production style that's finessed with distortion and sparse IDM production.
It's a midwest USA style that takes a leaf from DJs and producers such as the wild-style hard techno of Lenny Dee, the tough midwest acid of Woody McBride and the system wrecking electro of Dynamix II, with a joyful, take-no-prisoners bounce.
'Hellworld' kicks off with the industrial juke of 'Get Down', followed by the powerful electro of 'Opp Pack Hittin' (the first of two tracks to feature MC Malik McFly).
'Technician' is a chirpy old school electro track that gets crazier as it progresses, while 'Lucky' mashes together samples and rough beats like an electro version of breakcore.
'Gallery' again features Malick McFly and switches between footwork beats, pumping techno and electro.
'So Hot' is hard 8-bar electro while 'When U Touch Me featuring Irish producer Lighght feels like a very manic take on hyperpop.
The album ends with the tough, spiralling acid of 'Groover' which wouldn't be out of place on a late nineties Jeff Mills mix. The fun is infectious on this one.
Zurich’s Elvis Cassetta delivers a dazzling four-track debut EP to his brand-new WhyNot imprint. Complete with a refined deep house sound, this is an expertly crafted body of silky smooth grooves to get floors shaking.
'Down With Us' instantly displays Cassetta’s effortless ability to create a hot house swing using just a handful of elements – subtle groove, skittish percussion and a sultry vocal sample. The whole track is thrown out wide in the breakdown, but then as the bassline is brought back in, Cassetta draws it all back in close for an intimate dancefloor moment. Definitely one of those hands-in-the-air peak-time scenes.
Dreamy synth pads steadily build under a thunderous kick drum pattern on the EP’s second track, 'Focals Finest', which takes the tempo up a notch for a real sweat inducer.
Finally, it’s all about a raw bassline on the metallic and techy 'Jupiter Groove'. Contorted slices of spoken word dip in and out throughout to create another level of leftfield, danceable percussion. While the low end is the main focus on the original, in Silat Beksi’s remix, we hear a brighter take on the deep groove. There’s a swirling sample, more prominent key stabs, eerie vocals and a teasing smattering of melody. Percussive elements are thrown from all angles, and they pulsate up into the rafters of the lofty house track, leading you further into a state of hypnosis.
Overall, these are house tracks made right – a classy release fit for warming in crowds in style.
SlothBoogie Records return for 2023 with a five tracker from Moonee.
Groovence Discs boss Francois Lefevre is well versed in deep grooves and has been releasing some of his finest discoveries on the label since 2015. More recently he's been making his own deep and atmospheric productions under the Moonee moniker which took off in 2020 thanks to debut track Faith & Sorrow. Collaborations with some of the French scene’s finest producers Mangabey and Tour Maubourg soon followed as well as a remix for Sweely’s banger 'I Gotta Keep On'.
The Wabi Sabi EP on the label landed in 2022 and was highlighted by Juno's editorial team as 'a sumptuous, slowly building chunk of intergalactic deep house beat loveliness'. That same EP caught the SlothBoogie crew's eye and they immediately began working on presenting a selection of Moonee's tracks that would celebrate their shared love of deep yet pumping Disco and House sounds.
The Primal Groove EP was born and it starts off with 'Apples', a Motor city soul drenched track with filtered bass, dusty horn samples and spaced out guitar licks. Shuffled along by MPC beats before an otherworldly vocal washes over and brings it all to a close. 'Shishingo' is up next with it’s clever vocal manipulation, bouncy drums, subtle organ flourishes and a skipping bassline that builds up to some good ol’ time piano workout. Completing the A side is 'Dinner At Michelle's'... the most disco cut of the 12''. More shuffling shakers and filtered guitar loops backed by a thumping kick and ever circling strings leading the way for a full on 4/4 workout.
Flipping over to the B sides introduces us to the title track 'Primal Groove' that takes us deep into a nostalgic trip with its string swells and filtered bass. Moonee is flexing his deep house muscles on this one as snappy percussion punctuates more MPC sampling, building tension towards the reveal of the main heads down groove section… classy business. Finally for dessert is 'Boka' a sumptuous glistening track that’s primed for beachside sunsets. Saturated with hypnotic vibes that’ll help you drift away into a calmer, more peaceful sanctuary
Derek Carr, one of the most creative Techno producers in recent years, was kind enough to give an exclusive access to his production hard-drive and share some amazing music with Pariter. After few months of digging, Derek and label head Yossi Amoyal put together a very exciting and extended compilation.
This beautiful 4x12” gatefold set inc. 16 rare and unreleased cuts that were written sometime between the late 90’s and early 00’s. Here you will find some of the best, strong recordings of the Irish mastermind, raw 909 grooves, hypnotic acid lines and beautiful Detroit-influenced melodies.
An essential compilation of Derek Carr and Sushitech sub label - Pariter. Monstrous!
You Can Can is an echoed affirmation, an album which traces song forms around silence, field recordings, and degraded analog memories. This is folk music transmogrified and mutated, as if recorded and reconstructed in Pierre Schaffer’s GRM studio.
Not your typical Mariposa folk duo, the group is comprised of Toronto avant-music scene stalwarts, vocalist Felicity Williams (Bernice, Bahamas) and bricolage artist and synthesist Andrew Zukerman (Fleshtone Aura, Badge Epoch). The album feels like a somnambulant conversation, fragmented and half-remembered with Williams’ vocals traveling through a landscape of field recordings and Zukerman’s saturated concrète topographies. It is an electro-acoustic assemblage, both analog and digital, comprised of air, electricity, minerals, wood, and water. Although the album nods towards traditional forms of folk and musique concrète (if at this point it can be called a traditional form), it is outwardly and inwardly contemporary; non-linear, citational, opaque, and sui generis. In a way it feels like a sonic index of the narrative experiments found on the infamous Language school-related publisher The Figures, in the work of Lyn Hejinian, Clark Coolidge, and Lydia Davis. In the musical continuum, the album picks up where Linda Perhacs left off in the early 70’s—explored by Gastr Del Sol in the ‘90s—a convergence of rural acoustic idioms and urban avant-electronics. This is country music for the discerning cosmopolitan citizen of the 21st Century.
RIYL: Luc Ferrari, Brannten Schnüre, William Basinski, Oval, Eric Chenaux, Emmanuelle Parrenin About Everything In Time and Failure Figures, Felicity Williams says:
Everything In Time is indebted to the language of Brazilian author Clarice Lispector (as translated by Alison Entrekin). Drawing on insights from psychoanalysis, we trace the roots of melancholy to render them available to consciousness; words from the ghostly realm of the transpersonal filter through dreams and shine a beam of light onto a lone trillium in a forest at night. Other influences include the experience of not knowing, of being subject to a gestation outside of one’s control. This is an ode to the power of naming to obliterate, to set free.
Failure Figures is a meditation on the radical contingency of reality and the vicissitudes of the will. With Slavoj Zizek as my guide (think: “Hegel for dummies” - I’m the dummy in this scenario), I wander through the valley of the shadow of death, and take heart. The last verse refers to an experience I had recording at a studio in Brussels. I was singing in French, with which I have some fluency, and the producer was complaining to the artist whose song it was that my delivery was not convincing. Thinking I was out of ear shot, he said in French, “c’est comme elle n'est pas là”; I was pronouncing the words correctly, but I failed to express anything. So what or whom is responsible for conveying meaning, if not the form of the word itself? And if the connection between meaning and form is broken, how do we fix it?
Gratitude to Thom Gill (guitar) and Daniel Fortin (bass) who joined us on the recording of Failure Figures. Thanks as well to my old roommate Christopher Willes, who unwittingly left behind his hand bells deep in the hall closet. We unearthed them by accident, and the bells became an important sound element. Thanks to other past roomies Robin Dann and Claire Harvie, whose childhood piano and guitar respectively still reside with us, and were used in the recording. Field recordings were made in Toronto, Canada and Celestún, Mexico in 2020.
"‘Soil’ by Amsterdam-based producer and musician Jelee is heavily influenced by video game world-building. Like a beat alchemist, he carefully pours his love for beats into his lifelong passion for video game soundtracks. That far exceeds your typical 8-bits and bobs: Soil unfolds like a challenging adventure game, held together by a sonic palette of hip-hop-minded drum programming, jazz-inspired chords, and synthesized sounds.
The album features tight-knit homegrown collaborations with jazz multi-instrumentalist Guido Hoek, rising deejay Jerrau, producer lofi prototype (“one of Amsterdam’s best-kept secrets when it comes to beatmaking,” says Jelee), deejay, producer, and keyboardist Mo Wrights, and singer Erosi. With influences ranging from Brainfeeder’s roster to Zelda games, Jelee presents a multifaceted take on music.
Jelee’s music has been featured on compilations by Resilienza Records, Stamp The Wax, and Carista’s ‘Modern Intimacy Volume 1.’ Jelee is also known for his expressive live sets, such as the support act for Onra, Samiyam, and Salami Rose Joe Louis."
It’s difficult to describe Partiboi69’s sound; words feel subordinate to the energy and personality he presents. This personality bleeds into his sound, as seen with his latest EP ‘Naughty By Nature’, in which the Aussie enigma brings born boundary-breaker MCR-T into his ‘naughty’ nirvana.
Bridging the gap between Techno, Hip-Hop, Trance, Booty House, and a further multitude of other genres, MCR-T is, like his partner in crime for this EP, Partiboi69, equally difficult to categorise: a compliment that few modern artists can claim. His pioneering mentality makes him a perfect fit for Mutual Pleasure; a label that bulldozes genre boundaries for fun.
From the sweet, funk-infused bassline of ‘Go To my Show’, to the devilish ‘Blow My High’, to the wildly outlandish anthem ‘Sex In The Club’, and ultimately the brazen ‘Get Freaky’, every track within ‘Naughty By Nature’ has a mind of its own, and its own unique character.
To partner the infectious production of each track, both Partiboi69 and MCR-T flex their muscles with vocal work, as the pair masterfully manipulate the microphone to create a dynamic element to their sound; one that is totally controlled by the devious double act.
Despite their differences, each track shares a common ancestor in Partiboi69 and MCR-T: mischief, rebellion and exuberance are deeply embedded into their DNA, and consequently, these qualities characterise the overall personality of this EP.
Time to welcome Session Victim back to Delusions Of Grandeur following some heavyweight releases on Toytonics and Rhythm Section International. The German duo show absolutely no signs of slowing down continuing to impress with their unique sound which combines organic live elements, fat, floor-filling beats and a deep, musical approach. Here on The Intangibles EP we’re treated to three original tracks spanning high energy jazz disco meets techno, soulful uplifting house and downtempo blunted beats.
Opener Motivation features spoken word from Ras Stimulant backed by urgent looping Rhodes stabs and an uptempo disco groove. An instant Session Victim dance-floor shaker if ever there was one, the energy cranked up to the maximum without losing sight of that all important groove.
Next up we have Dromedary Twist which keeps up the pace but goes deeper on the jazzy organ chords and lays down a heavy syncopated bass- line which ensures the funk factor remains present and correct.
Rounding out the EP in fine style, Green Run drops the BPM’s as we head into lazy, hazy, blissed-out jazzed-up beats territory. Lush strings and layers of analogue synths come together on this simple yet enchanting little tune which compliments the other tracks perfectly and will appeal to fans of SV’s more home-listening output from their 2020 LP Needledrop.
The next transmission from planet BRUK comes courtesy of Lårry, an enigmatic artist ploughing an individualist furrow through various fields of electronic expression, one hand tweaking the tiller and the other casually dismissing the rules of rave. You might have caught their sharply-pointed sound on Super Hexagon or Awkwardly Social, or perhaps stumbled across their fabled 2021 live performance from Fitzroy in Berlin, or even unconsciously swayed to something spun in a set any time over the past five years. Lårry's discography is modest but mighty, and How Was That For You builds into that idea with four
precise tools for forward-leaning soundsystem communion. From the fractalised barbs of electronica stepper 'In Water' to patiently dread-eyed wobbler 'Angela's Knife', 'Uniform Uninform's icy incisions to the snaking spiral staircase of 'Yargachin', this is brain fodder first and foremost, with bassweight impact threaded through as an added bonus. Keeping fine company amongst the other oddities inhabiting the Bruk mandate, Lårry continues to keep us on our toes, literally and figuratively.
Eric Clapton’s eponymous first solo album, originally released in August 1970, represents one of rock history’s most successful reinventions. After emerging as one of the seminal guitar heroes of the ’60s, the English superstar decisively re-established his musical priorities with Eric Clapton. The album marked Clapton’s transition from flashy instrumental icon to well-rounded recording artist, downplaying sonic pyrotechnics in favour of a song-focused ensemble approach that would lay the groundwork for his massively successful solo career. For the occasion, he surrounded himself with a new cast of American musicians, tapping into a rootsy musical foundation that provided an inspired framework for his talents. This Anniversary Deluxe Edition presents Eric Clapton – Eric Clapton in three separate mixes –
The Eric Clapton Mix, The Delany Bramlett Mix and The Tom Dowd Mix (The UK Version). The Eric Clapton mix is being released in full for the first time. This anniversary collection also includes some singles, alternate versions and session outtakes.
Having been given the seal of approval from Rolling Stone, NME, TheFace, Danny Howard (TOTW), Jack Saunders (TOTW), Zane Lowe, Mary Anne Hobbs, Matt Wilkinson and more. An artist on the rise and poised to soon be one of the world’s most recognisable names, in the last year alone, Nia has won a MOBO award for ‘Best Electronic/Dance Act’, the NME Award for ‘Best Producer’, been hotly tipped by BBC Radio 1 Dance as a ‘Future Star’ and Spotify as their ‘Our Generation’ cover star. With additional accolades such as #3 in the BBC Sound of 2023 Poll and a Brit nomination for the ‘Rising Star award’. Alongside her cover debut on one of the world’s most prestigious dance music publications, Mixmag, Nia Archives has been given the seal of approval from tastemakers across the board from British Vogue, Pitchfork, The Fader, i-D and CRACK. Sunrise Bang Ur Head Against The Wall is available across retail on Limited Edition Red Vinyl and will be released on Friday 10th March. This game changing EP features ‘Biana’, ‘So Tell Me’ and brand new single ‘Conveniency’ released on Friday 3rd Feb.
Warp setzt die Autechre Reissue-Serie mit den Alben #6 und #7, 'Confield' (2001) und 'Draft 7.30' (2003), fort, die beide seit Ende der Nullerjahre nicht mehr erhältlich waren. 'Confield' erscheint als Doppelvinyl mit bedruckten Innentaschen und DL-Code (WAV/FLAC/MP3). 'Draft 7.30' kommt als Doppelvinyl mit bedruckten Innentaschen im Hochglanz-Cover und DL-Code (WAV/FLAC/MP3).
- 'Confield promises elegant production, accessibility in moderation, and one of the most enveloping, thought-provoking listening experiences to come forth from leftfield this year.' - Pitchfork 8.8/10
- 'Autechres Tracks sind trotz ihrer maschinenartigen, holperigen Insektenhaftigkeit sehr organisch, humorvoll und manchmal auf eine ganz eigene Art groovy. Dadurch vermeiden sie es, akademisch und kopfig zu erscheinen, so dass experimentelle Musik bei ihnen richtig Spass macht.' - Jazz Thing
2023 Repress
It's always a huge pleasure to have him back. Lewis Fautzi's astronomic ascension is well known and we are delighted that he decided to 'play home' one more time.
Although the years are passing by, Lewis is faithful to his principles. His personal style is almost a trademark and impossible not to recognize. Techno scene has evolved and he has evolved with it but always in a straight line, adapting himself perfectly to the new tendencies and keeping his touch and his vision.
This new ep is full of trippy pads and powerful bass lines. Mesmerizeng techno as its finest and with a small cherry on top of the cake: a remix by Rødhåd. His first time with us and there is no greater feeling, specially knowing the huge artist he is. Established nowadays as a techno force, the german producer combines the hypnotic with different theatrical approaches and came a long way demonstranting the uncontainable nature of his brand of shadowy dance creations, as someone once described his work. We couldn't be happier with the result.
In summary, the first ep by Lewis Fautzi on his own imprint with a remix by Rødhåd.
Lewis, welcome back home!! And thank you for bringing such an illustrious guest.
"After Outer Edges we were trying to find a new direction for Noisia. This resulted in an extensive journey that took us through a lot of new ideas and music.
Although we eventually decided to stop, we are proud of the things we made along the way, and these tunes were always meant to be part of a larger whole. So before we finally close the book on Noisia, we wanted to share them with you, on one last album. Previously released or newly finished, they all represent directions we enjoyed exploring.
In the end, we didn't manage to figure things out. But we did get closer." - Nik, Thijs, Martijn (Noisia)
Cristiano Grim produced Parisian multi-instrumentalist DJ SOLANGE for the second release on his sub label FINALE RECORDS.
DJ SOLANGE runs Radio Belleville, certainly themost vivid underground project in Paris not only for the obscurity of the program, because of its location: a deep cave under the classic Belleville neighborhood of Paris, a few steps away from the Cemetery of Pere Lachaise.
The EP has been recorded down to the center of the earth in 2019, right before the fall of the world. A journey into the idiosyncratic bond between dreams and frustration.
Oneiric, evanescent, rough (Fruste in french), dark, claustrophobic, morose, sexy, improv, lost: like a dream, it ends only when you open your eyes.
FUSE welcomes back core family member Rich NxT as he partners with Childe for ‘Brakelights’.
One of the original FUSE residents and a cornerstone of the collective’s ever-evolving sound, Rich NxT remains one of the scene’s favourites as he continues to push his trademark low-end heavy sound and represent his home city on a global level. An ever-present name on the label, delivering a wealth of solo and collaborative EPs alongside artists such as East End Dubs, Seb Zito and head honcho Enzo Siragusa, he returns for his first outing on the label this year - joining with Childe for the hypnotic and heady sonics of ‘Brakelights’.
A trippy cut merging warping vocals with sweeping synths and snaking bass patterns, ‘Brakelight’ showcases a hazy after-hours production as the two artists take things deep into the night. The EP also comes loaded with two further interpretations, with the ‘Dub’ leaning deep into the music and emphasising the track’s wicked acid-flecked baseline, while the ‘Club Mix’ raises the energy levels to harness the hooky vocal snippets and journey to the heart of the dancefloor.
NYC’s Jkriv delivers a package of proto and golden era house re-edits for longtime pals Pleasure of Love.
The Razor N Tape label co-founder has reliably delivered dancefloor ready cuts on Z Records, Glitterbox, Barefoot Beats, Rocksteady Disco as well as his own imprint. On his first Pleasure of Love release Jkriv explores house in all its NYC glory; extending the energy on mid-late 80s proto (Got a Thing, Don’t Take Your Love Away) and masterfully looping and building tension with underappreciated early 90s house (G.D., Feel It). Expert level re-rubs by one of NYC’s finest producers.
Empress Enigma:
The contradictory language of speech, rhythm and melody generate this musical paradox.
Drivetrain (Detroit, USA)
It Can Never Be The Same (Parts 1 & 2)
Deep and moody, Part 1 is driven by a captivating bass groove with lush, silky pads constructing a mesmerizing wall of sonic euphoria. The vocal hook echoes the commentary with one simple phrase.
The stripped down Part 2 replaces the drums with hand percussion while Drivetrain shows off his bass guitar chops charismatically with an emotional solo throughout.
Rennie Foster (Vancouver, CAN)
Guiding Light
A ghostly banger, poised in atmospheric essence. Shifting layers of sound harmonize to the unyielding bass line as Alejandra Garcia sprinkles vocal seasoning on top.
I Haven't Forgotten
Built on the foundation of a rock-solid bass progression, the ambience of melodic strings and piano blend an audio sedative accompanied by an airy vocal presence and bits of acid integration.
ENARCHY is the debut album by Leipzig-based producer and singer Maria die Ruhe. It is the result of a deep and thorough look the
artist took into both her own inner workings and the world around her. In 14 tracks, she explores different types of energy,
oscillating between head and heart. Final destination of this sometimes painful process of self- exploration is the embodiment of
her own power and creativity; the realization, that she manifests her role as catalyst, healer, and fighter for freedom and equality
by reporting on her experiences. These songs are about nothing less than that. And you can also dance to them.
In a musical sense, Maria surpasses herself compared to previous releases. She is bolder, more explorative and dissolves genre
boundaries. Acoustic instruments like the cello and the piano unite playfully with electronic beats. Her expressive voice speaks and
sings from the lowest lows to the loftiest heights. Her self-disclosing lyrics communicate the deepest messages of the soul. One can
tell right away: something is at stake here, this is about a real human living through something real, and now reporting from the
front lines of the human experience.
With lines like „Things are changing all the fucking time“ (ENARCHY) she posts a reminder for the current zeitgeist and the resulting
global uncertainty. „Some things need to be destroyed before they can heal“ is a demand for openness towards change, even if it is
challenging, requires energy, and leaves behind some scars.
In ART IS THE ONLY REAL TRANSLATION OF LIVING FOR ME, Maria uses sentences like „I’ve been trying to please you, I got headaches
and I still don’t fit“ to express her desperation with existing structures of injustice and the lack of livability of the artist lifestyle.
„Ah, you’re an artist - and what do you do professionally?“ Everyone loves music and art! When, o when, will the understanding
follow that there need to be people who make this art as a central part of their lives?
Frustration takes turns with hope and a growing acceptance of the self. In EQUALISTA, Maria discusses antiquated conditions like the
inequality between the sexes in a kind of manifesto, with a simple proposal for solution: „Let’s both be selfish and raise our
energies, to create a whole world with all the things we need.“
In WE BELONG TO NEVER, Maria sings about the everyday horror of toxic relationships. Lines like „Disengagement and rage, I’ve become such a slave.“ express the despair of the emptiness that results from a lack of affection. She also describes treacherous
narcissistic manipulation: „You cut me small just to feel tall.“
In SKIN, she confesses: „I’m not as enough as everyone else.“ and describes the long and painful way from rejecting her own body
to loving herself unconditionally. „I hate what I feel, while I pretend to be free“ means she doesn’t want to be reduced down to
her body, doesn’t want to be seen as an instagrammable, thoroughly designed product; she wants to be acknowledged as an
individual.
In LOST, she poses a question that many are currently forced to ask themselves: „What do we do with all this solitude?“ Maybe
making use of the reclusion by exploring the shadow self. „Can you cope with the truth?“
The conclusion: energy is being freed up through the means of self-experience and living through the personal darkness -
ENARCHY. The realization: every human being is self-determined and should simply do what they feel. It is everyone’s right to
choose their own life’s path. Here, intuition serves as a signpost. This is both feminine and strong.
ENARCHY celebrates an embodied anarchy by working through the personal shadow and the genuine, healthy integration of the
struggle survived - not as a destructive rebellion, but as a testament of shameless, joyful self-empowerment.
„In the end, I want to be alive, because in reality, I’m free.“
Repressed & Recut
The title track "Ghost In The Shell" has a light and a dark side that fight with each other somewhere in 2077, and it's up to you to decide which one wins. “Ramayana” is an interpretation of the ancient Indian epic in the form of a meditative dub-techno-trance. "Wow!" dedication that occurred on August 15, 1977. A strong narrowband radio signal was detected by Dr. Jerry Eiman while working on the Big Ear radio telescope at Ohio State University. "Wow!" was the only signal in the history of mankind intercepted from the depths of space, which could not be deciphered, but the musicians tried. The EP closes with a slow track with an unearthly atmosphere, shimmering with contrasting electronic sound. "After Glow" - a neutrino of a thermonuclear sun, making its way through thunderclouds and bringing hope to the bright future of the present time. So Komponente & Kurilo made mystical EP with an unpredictable plot, which is a symbiosis of dub-techno and trance melodies.
Holly Lester’s Duality Trax Label has quickly become synonymous for its blend of future facing sonics and mind-warping melodies, served together with a healthy dose of nostalgia. A label just as focused on making dancefloor destroyers as it is exploring left-leaning, personal projects, it’s within this duality where the label has found its success, never afraid to shy away from b side oddities or tracks edging more towards good-old-fashioned-fun.
DUALITY5 steers towards the latter, with Manchester based DJ & producer Aiden Francis providing the serotonin on tap with three lively dancefloor cuts, including a huge remix from Italy’s Matisa. Aiden had a big 2022, releasing music on Magic Carpet, Gestalt and beloved music platform and label Houseum, solidifying himself as one to watch in the euphoric unity of house, trance and techno.
Title track ‘Plastic Fantasy’ is the star of the show, a suitably sassy roller that places everyone's favorite blonde icon front left of the speakers. Subtle old school strings contrast with alien electronics, providing familiarity in an otherwise unfamiliar world. A bubble-gum vocal then rolls in cheekily over a driving bassline and dynamic percussion - used in a way I’m not sure the original creators had in mind. ‘Future Proof’ meanwhile demonstrates Aidens’ knack for contemporary progressive house music. With warm pads, swirling sonic textures and moments of blissful euphoria, it’s energetic enough to move a dancefloor, but gentle enough for home listening too.
The record comes to a close with ‘Aquamarine’, with Aiden opting in favour of free flowing breakbeats and mind expanding synths, together radiating a feeling of warmth and hope for days to come. Italian DJ and producer Matisa is on hand to round the EP off with a bass-heavy rendition of ‘Plastic Fantasy’ a no-holds-barred speed garage licked stomper, with the power to lure smokers back inside the club with their feet firmly planted on the dancefloor.
OTHR is the techno alias of KHIDI resident and Tbilisi native Ladouka Ninua releasing his first EP on BITE 'Scythe Of Vyse'. One of the most prominent musicians in the Georgian electronic music community, his involvement and support has left a legacy that has established him at the center of Tbilisi's club scene. 'Scythe Of Vyse' represents Ninua's accumulation of uncertainty and isolation from the past years in Tbilisi and cathartically releases it into a triumphant record with singular sound design of metallic samples of groove that sound of a bygone age yet from a cybernetic future. With releases on KHIDI's own label and collaborations with Ancient Methods already, this EP marks a new beginning for OTHR as he steps into new, uncharted territory in electronic music with his singular style.
Featuring music from a lost tape of devotional keyboard jams, field recordings of migrating birds, mysterious bells, meditative noise and crooked new beat/EBM, made god-knows-when and subsequently discovered in a Thessaloniki charity shop years later. It now somehow finds its way to vinyl, newly mastered by Rashad Becker, and sounding like a lost Hype Williams x Muslimgauze madness.
Originally discovered in a musty charity shop by Live Adult Entertainment, and issued in minuscule numbers on CD in ’21, Christian Love Forum’s raverential debut ‘Naked Light’ documents the fraternal post-church jams of siblings, Scott, Kiro and N•X, plus their mate Steve, who would regularly channel the light and pain of Sunday mass sermons into their ecclesiastic crud.
As previously heard on their blink ’n miss ‘Unconditional Love’ tape, the trio express their higher purpose thru ribboning microtonal keyboard jams that sound like Gurdjieff with a Casio and a knackered drum machine after too much sacramental wine. They hit the strangest, most affective seam of religious cinematic epic soundtracks, gnarled noise and clandestine Belgian new beat that seriously pushes our buttons, sounding quite unlike anything in the contemporary sphere, but eerily also echoing sentiments explored on record by James Leyland Kirby or Bryn Jones.
Now reshuffled and clad in custom artwork, ‘Naked Light’ is unveiled to believers and skeptics as a definitive article of faith. The lord works in mysterious ways within, manifest in stages of sun-bleached post-church field recordings, whirligig melodies, blown-out bouzouki and choral tape howls and a Béla Tarr soundtrack-like campanology on the A-side, before letting their passions flow in ‘Wicked City (Parts I-IV)’; a spellbinding side-long collage of slurred synths, neo-noir hardbeat rhythms and speaking-in-tongues vox recalling V/Vm’s new beat apocrypha as much as bits from Hype Williams’ hypnagogic ‘One Nation’, thee dustiest gooches of Dirk Desaever’s archive, or even aspects of Rat Heart at his cruddiest.
‘Naked Light’ rarely fails to induce uncontrolled eye movement in susceptible skulls, destined to become an occult hit with lapsed churchgoers, new beat fiends and anyone missing the enigma and ineffable flavour of ‘00s underground noise tapes in this auspicious year of AD2023.
Dynamite cuts release a first-time masterpiece The George Semper Music Archives & Dynamite Cuts Records
“Knowbody’s Gonna Love You” is a masterpiece vocal demo written by George Semper almost 50 years ago. Lost and almost forgotten, lying dormant on a master tape recorded late 60s. Such a wonderful and fresh song, perfect swing and groove.
Finding this demo completed the puzzle with an unknown one-off press acetate record. That was within Georges collection, now we know he had wrote it. The acetate was titled “Knowbody’s Gonna Love You” Joanne. With a little more investigation Joanne became the lesser known soul singer Joanne Vent. She recorded one LP on the label A&M back in the late 60s, which just happened to be the same time George worked for the label… One off press limited edition x400 copies with heavy card sleeve
The timeless ‘’Rhythm of Life ‘’ album by James Mason is possibly one of the greatest vocal Jazz fusion releases of all time. When I first started Dynamite cuts I wanted to make a 7” box set of ths LP. But instead released a double pack (2x7”); plus, another 7”, making 6 tracks from the album. Now 2022 we have been able to release two further monster tracks. “Rhythm of life” the title track from the LP is an up-tempo vocal dancer, a groovy driving jazz fusion masterpiece. And very excitingly, we have been able to make an exclusive 7” cut, the vocal soul gem “Good Thing”, on the flip. This one is huge.
Dancing as an act of rebellion is the first Abraxas LP in collaboration with the Valencian label Soil Records. A compilation of the first project recordings released between 2020 and 2021 plus some new tracks and, in addition to this, a second vinyl by other darkwave electronic artists remixing the first one: Geistform, We Are Not Brothers, Ober Dada, Melting Dogmas, SMforma, HBK1, José Rodríguez, SOJ and PanDemian.
Abraxas is a halfway project between dark dance electronic music, philosophical reflection, socio-political activism and musical entrepreneurship. Its main goal is to shake bodies and minds by spreading messages of individual and social self-criticism from the point of view of duality, extremes and contradiction, inherent to the human being and capitalist society.
The next issue in the on-going Mastermix series features a centerpiece of Frankfurt’s club history: Wild Pitch Club.
A predecessor to the esteemed Robert Johnson and a stepping stone for Panorama Bar’s very own nd_baumecker.
Founded by Playhouse masterminds Ata and the late Heiko M/S/O it was a Thursday club night that heavily featured house music as a prescription to the ongoing techno fever. Enamored with the US-American roots of it and all things deep, it not only presented the right records, but also their creators and protagonists. With a string of guest DJs from Robert Hood and Claude Young to Kerri Chandler and Theo Parrish as well as talent from the UK and Europe, it was one of the culture’s hubs at the time.
Here you have its testimony. Selected and mixed by Ata and nd_baumecker, it’s an authentic snapshot of the club’s vibe and spirit, spread over two 2x12” volumes, a collectable tape (download included) and a pleasant streaming version, it’s the full dosage. Like Roach Motel confessed: Wild Pitch, I love you.
2023 Repress
Originally given a digital-only, Bandcamp-only release back in the summer of 2016 RVDE's '90s Hammer' has become a sleeper hit, slowly but surely growing through word of mouth, YouTube plays and DJ support. Now Perc Trax has licensed it from its original home T/W/B, added two brand new remixes and given it the vinyl release it always deserved as the label's final release of 2019.
It all starts with the original mix, a whirlwind of heavy kicks, triplet synths and gangster shout-outs. Heavy music isn't often as hook laden as this and you can see why Perc has been a huge fan of the track since its original release.
Next up Perc Trax welcome's Slovakian legend DJ Boss to the label for the first time. Boss is already a hero to many Perc Trax artists including Sawf and Perc and as usual he doesn't disappoint with a sub-heavy rolling 4/4 mix.
Flip it over and up steps Perc for the second of the new remixes.
The Perc Trax boss pulls no punches as he adds gun shots and his trademark slicing snares to an explosive arrangement that has been a highlight of his sets around the world since summer.
Finally Anthro's excellent remix from the original T/W/B release completes this four track 12". The noisiest and grimiest of all the mixes on show here, it rounds off one of Perc Trax's most solid pieces of vinyl in a long time.
The next issue in the on-going Mastermix series features a centerpiece of Frankfurt’s club history: Wild Pitch Club.
A predecessor to the esteemed Robert Johnson and a stepping stone for Panorama Bar’s very own nd_baumecker.
Founded by Playhouse masterminds Ata and the late Heiko M/S/O it was a Thursday club night that heavily featured house music as a prescription to the ongoing techno fever. Enamored with the US-American roots of it and all things deep, it not only presented the right records, but also their creators and protagonists. With a string of guest DJs from Robert Hood and Claude Young to Kerri Chandler and Theo Parrish as well as talent from the UK and Europe, it was one of the culture’s hubs at the time.
Here you have its testimony. Selected and mixed by Ata and nd_baumecker, it’s an authentic snapshot of the club’s vibe and spirit, spread over two 2x12” volumes, a collectable tape (download included) and a pleasant streaming version, it’s the full dosage. Like Roach Motel confessed: Wild Pitch, I love you.
The second EP from this mysterious edit series and they definitely don’t disappoint!
On the edit block this time... Tropical Jazz funk, African boogie, killer lost female AOR, & a Rare Gospel meets Street Soul cut. The first EP sold out fast so don’t sleep on this one folks!
An artist with a rich history within modern house music and longstanding ties to Hot Creations, Ali Love makes his solo debut on the label with collaborator and Brazilian rapper Prince Andre. Ali takes on production duties here, and the result is a pretty unique slice of Brazilian hip house. ‘Da Da On’ brings a driving bassline, samba inspired percussion, whistles, and Prince Andre’s effervescent rhymes. This is an explosion of energy built for Carnaval. The dub highlights the track’s rolling drums and Carnaval atmosphere. Remixes are to follow on Hot Creations.
One of the premier songwriters of contemporary UK dance music, Ali Love has released material via Crosstown Rebels, Keinemusik, and Defected in recent times, and collaborated with The Chemical Brothers, Justice, Camelphat and Róisín Murphy, amongst many others. It was, of course, on Hot Creations, where Ali collaborated with Jamie Jones, Lee Foss and Luca C as Hot Natured, and whose ‘Benediction’ has now become a contemporary dance music classic. This is Ali Love’s long-awaited return to the imprint.
Holy Shit! A new player in town with 2 smart dancefloor classics.
Joyful A side with polish reggae mash up hero Dreadsquad with one of his most classic mash up.
The flip sees the debut of Albanian artist Toni Cicoria. All the way from Tirana, Toni take advantage of this long time classic Italian rap, and deliver a real SM Click experience.
Wax Tailor announces the release of his new album "Fishing For Accidents" on February 10th, 2023, accompanied by a new international tour.
"The starting point of this record is a quote from the film director Orson Welles, which evokes the notion of accident in the creative process. I always thought that accidents were an integral part of creation and the job of a film or music director is also to know how to capture them in order to make the accident an artistic intention. I decided not to follow a well established concept but this more instinctive guideline and to go fishing for accidents".
In this new opus, Wax Tailor explores with his sampler a world of vinyls and cinematographic references, brandishing as a flag a stamped musical culture and multiplying references to the 7th art in a music written in 33 rpm and 24 images seconds. After the dark "The Shadow Of Their Suns" released in 2021, Wax Tailor takes us with "Fishing For Accidents", on a brighter and more colorful side without ever betraying his universe and his convictions.
A multi-recidivist talent scout, he gathers around him a prestigious cast ranging from hip hop (Mick Jenkins, Mr. Lif, Kuf Knotz, Lojii, Napoleon Da Legend, Ill Conscious, Voice Monet, David Bars, Mattic) to the indie rock scene (Jennifer Charles, singer of the legendary band Elysian Fields and Victoria Bigelow).
With one eye on the past and the other on the horizon, Wax Tailor instills the incandescence of an organic sound and distills his art of sound anachronism in a wide gap between nostalgia and modernity that has made him one of the leaders of the international electro hip hop scene for over 20 years.
2023 Repress
Almost 2 years after the success of the album The Tony Allen Experiments and a few months after the release of the 7inch Amore, Nu Guinea returns to the scene with a new LP published by their newborn label NG RECORDS.
After touring the world looking for sounds suitable for their vibrations, NU GUINEA decided to go back to square one, Napoli, where Massimo Di Lena and Lucio Aquilina were born and raised. They watched their city from a distance reconstructing its energy from their studio in
Berlin, calibrating the synths on the meridian of Vesuvius, the volcano that has always protected and threatened Napoli.
Nuova Napoli is the result of a long musical research that has become a historical investigation on the sound that shaped Napoli during the ‘70s and ‘80s, starting from the contamination of genres (disco, jazz-funk, African rhythms) which ended up in Nu Guinea’s DNA.
In this album the synthesizers fill the spaces between the past and the future, tightening in a single body acoustic instruments, electronics and voices in Neapolitan dialect. It is the first time that the duo has worked with such a large group of musicians, some of whom are exponents of the contemporary Neapolitan scene.
WARNING: We recommend listening to Nuova Napoli while walking in the alleys of Napoli’s
historic center, around wet clothes hanging and street vendors on tiny three-wheelers.
"Onyeabor 80" draws equal influence from War, William Onyeabor, and Isaac Hayes. This steady groover is sure to keep the dance-floor moving! On the flip side we have "Bongo Grove", an Incredible Bongo Band influenced, upbeat horn-driven anthem. This one features Mitchum Yacoub on Bongos. Members of The Sure Fire Soul Ensemble, Mestizo Beat, and Mitchum Yacoub exploring new tones and directions!
Following up on the success of House Of Riviera released in 2019, Mona Musique releases House Of Riviera Volume 2 curated by label head Nick V, a compilation that pays homage to forgotten gems of the classic Italian House scene, circa 1991-1994. 9 tracks from the artists and record labels that were central to this seminal era of House music, including two never released cuts from Ricky Montanari, Davide Ruberto and Ivan Iacobucci.
In the early 1990s, Italy hosted one of the most prolific scenes in the burgeoning world of House music. Whilst the majority of Europe was only just beginning to digest the arrival of this new musical genre born in the US, Italian clubs, DJs and labels were hot on the heels of their counterparts in the already established scenes of New York and London. The clubs of the Adriatic coast, also known as the Italian Riviera, were full every weekend, hosting the major US and UK Djs of the time, but also seasoned resident DJs that had been honing their trade since the early 80s. By the early 90s, Italian House music was regularly exported around the world with labels such as UMM, MBG, Flying, Palmares, DFC, Oversky, Zippy, D:Vision, Irma - and its sublabels Antima and Calypso, releasing tracks inspired by the original New York House and Garage sound, but with a very different, unique and emotional take. This was the specific aesthetic that was to become the House sound of the Riviera, the soundtrack to the golden era of Italian House music.
With all releases between 1992 and 1994, House Of Riviera Vol. 2 unites a selection of 9 tracks that encapsulates the atmosphere, the energy and creativity that reigned during that era. Including 2 previously unreleased tracks from Ricky Montanari and Davide Ruberto, and Ivan Iacobucci, both in the vaults since 1992, the compilation spans the different shades of the genre : from classic deep vocal house by Ricky Montanari and Sound Set, to the more dubbier late night dance floor cuts by Workin’ Happily and Night Communication, with Mental Detector and More Heavy Soul bringing some well chosen disco samples to their contributions, without forgetting the characteristic deep Italian dream house style by Green Baize. Artists featured are iconic producers and DJs from the day : Ricky Montanari & Davide Ruberto, Alex Neri & Marco Baroni, Ivan Iacobucci, Workin’ Happily and More Heavy Soul.
COLLECTION OF SIGH'S EARLY DEMOS, EP & RARITIES ON VINYL -
INCLUDES AN INTERVIEW & LINER NOTES COURTESY OF MAINMAN
MIRAI KAWASHIMA ON THE FORMATIVE YEARS OF THE JAPANESE
LEGENDS.
Cult Japanese black metal legends Sigh formed in 1989/90, featuring
mainman Mirai Kawashima, Satoshi Fujinami & Kazuki Ozeki
Following initial demos, Shinichi Ishikawa was brought into the band. It was following this shift that the band set about recording the masterpiece debut 'Scorn Defeat' for Euronymous' Deathlike Silence Productions, going on to become one of the country's greatest & most revered metal exports. With a journey through the strange & the psychedelic, incorporating a whole eclectic mix of genre styles & experimentation throughout their career, Sigh has remained a
vital creative force in the avantgarde field. However, at its core, Sigh has always remained true to its roots of old school metal.
'Eastern Darkness' contains a collection of Sigh's early rare works showing their swift musical evolution as well as the strong utilisation of keyboards in their compositional process throughout. The collection includes the band's legendary demo tapes, 'Desolation' & 'Tragedies', plus their 'Requiem For Fools' EP, along with the 'Far East Gate In Inferno' version of 'The Zombie Terror'. 'Eastern Darkness' is presented on the vinyl format & includes an interview with Mirai Kawashima about the early years of the band, along with his recollections of the origins of each title contained within the release, three decades on from Sigh's formation.
KINGUNDERGROUND TO RELEASE A SET OF 45s, FROM
CAVENDISH MUSIC CATALOGUE. PAYING HOMAGE TO
LIBRARY MUSIC, FURTHERING ITS EXPOSURE TO A NEW
GENERATION OF LISTENERS.
Library Music experienced its heyday in the 60s and 70s, as
thousands of instrumental tracks were produced by musicians and
composers for the purpose of placements in radio, television, and
film.
The second record in the Cavendish Music series is classified as
‘Frantic’ and features 2 compositions by Sam Fonteyn. Frantic
energy is no doubt present in the horns and percussion on the A
side of the 45 “One Way Trip (Warm)” but the high energy gives off a
dancehall vibe, leaving you in a sweat as if you were in the club.
Fonteyn was a key contributor to the Boosey & Hawkes Music
Library. His output held a strong presence amongst other
composers, there’s an “it” factor or a swagger to his productions.
The compositions are timeless and feel hip in any era, especially on
“One Way Trip (Cool)”. Which is appropriately titled because it
doesn’t get much cooler than the feel on this track!
In all there will be 8 individual 45s, licensed from Cavendish Music
Library & released by KingUnderground. Including compositions by
Tony Kinsey, John Scott, Sam Fonteyn, Ray Davies, and more.
recut and repressed !
Summer is here, and we at OFF are proud to be once again a steady provider of sunny vibes with this lovely 2-track EP.
Purple Disco Machine from Dresden, Germany step up to the plate with a soul/disco-infused house tune with a driving flow and a killer beat, one made both for the club and the beach.
Second track comes from praised producer James Silk, from Liverpool, already familiar to the likes of Defected or Exploited, who delivers a west coast influenced deep house tune with an inspiring breakdown and a groove that will make everyone smile.
Another hit from OFF aimed straight to the soul!
---- Malente & Teenage Mutants - Blow My Mind
After the immense success of chart topper 'Hanging On' (Co-produced with Andre Crom), Teenage Mutants (Stil Vor Talent, Nurvous) makes yet another promising collaborating alliance with german superstar Malente (No Brainer, Defected, Fool's Gold, Southern Fried) to provide another hit single of huge proportions.
'Blow My Mind' is a nu-disco influenced funk bomb with a rocking synth bassline and hypnotic vocoder vocals that create a deep and spacey atmosphere. Another quality OFF installment destined to take dancefloors all over the world on a deep funky trip!
Sampler 1[13,87 €]
Sampler 2 Red Vinyl[29,83 €]
Sampler 4 - Purple[28,53 €]
Sampler 1 - Yellow[14,08 €]
In anticipation of Kerri Chandler’s forthcoming album Spaces and Places, his first in 14 years, that sees the New Jersey legend celebrating club and soundsystem culture by recording, writing and performing a track in twenty-two of the worlds most distinguished nightclubs, Kaoz Theory drop the third in a series of vinyl album samplers.
Sampler 3, another stunning gatefold, double 12 inch package sees Kerri place himself front and centre in six more of the best clubs the world has to offer. Setting up shop in the dancefloor meccas that are DC10, Industria, Basic Club, Sir Henrys, Club Qu and Barbarellas, Kerri bottles up the atmosphere, euphoria and vibe that each hallowed spot nurtures, in a way that only he knows how. Trademark precision, packed with soul and delivered with a weighty bottom end, this is Kerri Chandler of the highest order.
After last year’s Black Clouds Above The Bows, Amsterdam-based collective Wanderwelle presents the second entry of their trilogy for Important Records, which is dedicated to telling the story of the climate crisis and its effects on coastal areas around the globe. For this album the artists incorporated the sound of a dying organ, fatally wounded in a climate related event.
All Hands Bury The Cliffs At Sea consists of electro-acoustic threnodies for an environment at risk due to the effects caused by receding coastlines around the globe. Wailing odes tell the story of the catastrophic activity of eroding waves and winds shaping the land that are enhanced by the climate crisis. First hand experiences and meetings with local maritime experts on the subject of these receding coastlines inspired Wanderwelle to compose these albums.
During their travels, the artists stumbled upon a small church in a town on the east coast of Scotland. The building was quite damaged, the roof was being stabilized and the ancient walls showed great tears running vertically down the structure. One of the church’s volunteers told Wanderwelle that the damage had been caused by a nearby cliff that collapsed in the sea. An event increasingly common in the region.
The church organ was ruined in such a way that it was deemed unplayable, as most of the pipes were gravely damaged and in dire need of restoration. Musical instruments directly affected by the environment -and especially the climate crisis- are quite rare. Despite the damage, the artists were allowed to record a few tones of the instrument with their equipment, which was actually meant to be used for field recordings later that day.
In Black Clouds Above The Bows, antique cavalry trumpets were recorded and manipulated by Wanderwelle to sound an environmental alarm in the same manner as they were once used to warn men on the battlefield. Similar processing was used on the recordings of the dying organ, resulting in spectral, deconstructed tones beyond recognition. In addition to the damaged organ, the artists recorded piano, cello and harmonic additive synthesizers in later stages of the composition process, manipulating these sounds to mimic the perpetual activity of the sea shaping the land.Furthermore, a great deal of inspiration was found in maritime superstition, lore and mythology.
As told in the legend of Aspidochelone, a legendary sea creature of enormous size, was once mistaken for an island. After sailors docked and lit a fire, the beast submerged resembling a land mass sliding into the sea. The album’s title is derived from the saying ‘All Hands Bury The Dead’, a maritime burial phrase, as the duo likes to think ‘All Hands’ refers to all of mankind since we are all responsible for these impending catastrophes.
Cello, violin, voice, pipe organ (damaged), bowed guitar, EBow, Prophet-6 synthesizer, modular synthesizer, field recordings.
RIYL: Oliveros/Deep Listening, Arvo Part, Lambda Sond, Sarah Davachi
Purgate is Frederic Arbour’s latest project and although new to metaphysik, Purgate needs no introduction. Having previously released as one half of Stärker (Zhark Recordings, Hospital Productions) and Visions (Cyclic Law), Purgate presents Hæresis, part three of the Trinitas split, and captivates with a set of flawless yet reflective tracks.
Trinitas unites three prominent artists in one flow of energy constructed from three strong sequences with no dissipation: Kalve, Colapso and Hæresis. This collection of works is composed by SKD, Sturqen and label newcomer Purgate, the latest project of Frederic Arbour of Stärker (Hospital Productions) and Visions (Cyclic Law). *Note, only selected tracks are on vinyl.
Music From Memory is delighted to be turning 50 with a special release: MFM050 - V/A - Virtual Dreams: Ambient Explorations In The House & Techno Age, 1993-1997 (3xLP/2xCD). The first in a series of compilations, alongside more in depth artist-focused releases, Virtual Dreams will delve into music produced during the 1990’s that redefined the boundaries of ‘Ambient’. This was music that explored the possibilities of Ambient music within a new setting, created often by House & Techno music producers for a world beyond dance floors but made very much with the pre and post-clubbing listener in mind.
When House and Techno exploded out of America in the mid 1980s a whole generation was redefined not only musically but also culturally and chemically speaking. Peaking, quite literally, with a second ‘Summer of Love’ in 1988, millions of young people across the world would experience the life-changing ups of a brave new world but with it of course came the downs; enter the concept of a ‘Chill-out’ room. Whilst early Chill-out rooms lacked a specific sound and were often soundtracked by music such as reggae and soul, slowly young Techno and House producers themselves would become increasingly interested in developing a futuristic ‘Ambient’ soundtrack to a world beyond the thud of the main room.
‘Ambient’ in this new age now though had sharper teeth than in Brian Eno's key text for ‘Music for Airports’, instead here the sounds were the mode of transport rather than the backdrop. While the melodies were pretty, the soundscape steered away from the pastoral, dreaming of outer-space and technology as opening up exciting new dimensions. Much like in the first Summer Of Love; the musicians were again exploring psychedelic, mind-altering and transcendental possibilities of music. And also much as in the first Summer Of Love, a psychedelic visual language would accompany the music. Though now the tracks could be accompanied by music videos, utilising early CGI techniques, they would look almost entirely to the future: envisioning technology, nature and humanity intertwined in a new Utopian future. Virtual Dreams of a better world.
From Ambient and early Chill-out classics, to lesser known one-off projects, as well as Ambient deviations by some of House and Techno’s leading producers, Volume One of Virtual Dreams features tracks by Bedouin Ascent, LA Synthesis, LFO, Marc Hollander, Mark Pritchard & Kirsty Hawkshaw, Richard H. Kirk and more.
To celebrate our 50th release the first 1000 copies include a holographic 'Virtual Dreams' sticker plus a special insert poster with artwork by Victoria Pacheco and design by Steele Bonus.
2023 Repress
Those with an internet connection may be familiar with Paolo Di Nicolantonio through his incredible YouTube channel, SynthMania. His channel is hub showcasing his endless arsenal of synths and drum machines from his home studio in Italy. Unlike his italo-heavy channel, this record consists of two original tracks; one old-school deep house number and an additional beatless Juno-60 jam to boot. Craigie Knowes also welcome their first remixer to the label, the impeccable UK deep techno producer, John Shima.
High Focus Records are excited to share a new full length offering from prolific Brighton based producer Mr Slipz, this time with a fresh label signing, Australian rapper Nelson Dialect. A landmark release and signing for High Focus with Nelson being the first international signing on the label. UK listeners might have first heard Nelson collaborating with Verbz & Mr Slipz on the song ‘Hope’ from their acclaimed LP ‘Radio Waves’ released on High Focus in 2020. Nelson has a cult following in his own right in Australia, and previously released music on the legendary U.S label Fat Beats to great acclaim. Now teaming up with one of the most exciting and respected UK producers, Nelson & Mr Slipz deliver ‘Ever Since’. A statement piece by two artists with well over a decade spent on their craft which sounds as urgent and refreshing as if it were their first time releasing music. The album’s title is a reference to the endless quest for a timeless sound, reflecting the creative partnerships which spark from a seemingly forever existing thread of music. The two artists crossed paths whilst Nelson was on tour in Brighton, and a chance introduction to Slipz made this album a reality. As fate would have it, due to a cancellation of plans and changing of schedules during Nelson’s tour, the pair ended up in the studio for 8 days straight together which is when the bulk of the album was created. They each saw this as a cosmic alignment and thus played into the albums astrological artwork themes and overarching concept. Striving to capture the lightning in a bottle moment, what resulted musically on this album was an inspired surge of energy and intense creative output that is felt across the entire LP. Equal parts personal and lyrically dextrous, Nelson explores a multitude of concepts over the hard hitting drums and jazzy samples producer Mr Slipz is renowned for through his previous work with artists including Verbz, Kofi Stone, Vitamin G & Datkid among many more. The album features a slew of impressive guest verses including label mates Vitamin G & Verbz on the emphatic ‘Oxford Scholars’. Two legends Jehst & Confucius MC combine on ‘Smooth Ride’. Bronx pioneer & D.I.T.C legend A.G delivers a show stopping verse on ‘Trembling the Marrow’. There are hypnotic singing performances by Indira May on ‘First Date’ & ‘Open Book’ as well as Hiatus Kaiyote back up vocalist Jace XL on the soul stirring anthem “Figure Out What’s Right”. U.S rappers SickInTheHead & Cazeaux O.S.L.O round out the impressive guest list on the album with their inspired verses. Listeners caught their first glimpse of the duo with their debut single ‘Only Just Begun’. A whirlwind 3 verse tune showcasing the relentless wordplay and imagery Nelson is regarded for over a moody, hard hitting Slipz production. With a buzz already around what Nelson Dialect & Mr Slipz are brewing, the duo have just released their second single ‘Oxford Scholars’ featuring label mates Vitamin G & Verbz
It was released on February 2, 1993 and is celebrating its 30th Anniversary. Lead MC Grand Puba left the group to pursue a solo career in 1991, following the release of their revered debut One for All. DJ Alamo also left to work with Puba, leaving MC's Sadat X and Lord Jamar, who enlisted DJ Sincere to join the group. It was a safe bet that In God We Trust wouldn't have attempted any new jack swing crossovers or tie-dyed imagery. Though the makeover is drastic, it is convincing, with Lord Jamar and Sadat X stepping up with some of the era's fiercest, most intense rhymes and lyrics that were extremely militant reflecting the group's identity adhering to the philosophy of the Nation of Gods and Earths. The album produced two singles, Punks Jump Up to Get Beat Down and Love Me or Leave
Me Alone which both charted on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
Moiss Music is dropping two slabs of heat this month - their sixth and seventh EPs overall. Both are various artists' collections with plenty of 'floor-facing disco fun. Mathew Ferness opens this one with 'Paradisio' which has plenty of inspiration taken from late afternoon dances somewhere like Ibiza. 3kelves & We Are Neurotic get you working your feet with the busy percussive grooves and squelchy synth funk of 'Laguna Reservoir Funk' while Naux brings lots of loopy fun and throwback vocal goodness to his steamy 'Foxxy Cleopatra.' Partner Music rounds out the EP with the most energetic and busy of the lot - the restless melodies of 'People Should Romance.'
Shift Into The Rogue presents two tracks from an as-yet unreleased album Pier Bucci recorded using only one synthesizer for all parts of the entire project - his 25-year companion, the Moog Rogue.
Combining his unique musical and rhythmic sense, love for alternative electronic music from the 90’s (particularly sounds coming out on WARP Records at the time), and the technical abilities gained from years in the studio, Pier has crafted emotional, groovy, raw yet nuanced tracks - inspired by ‘the analogue, alternative, positive, very beautiful music from that time.’
The follow on from Viewfinder Vol 1:PHOSPHENE mixtape, released in 2019.
The artwork for the mixtape is an orb of colours, reflecting how Sam see’s various tones and shades through each track on the mixtape.
Featuring previous releases ‘Intertwine’, ‘Serotonin’, ‘Gullible’ and ‘Name To A Face’. Focus track of EP is ‘The One’. There is also the original demo version of ‘Picture In My Mind’ before PinkPantheress joined the track earlier in 2022.
This whole mixtape is solely written, sung, played, produced, mixed & mastered by Sam (apart from the addition of one sample from a folk show he found on Youtube).
recut and repress !
Charlotte de Witte, without doubt one of Belgium's fastest rising talents in the techno circuit, and known from two strong EP's on Tiga's Turbo label, makes her debut on OFF.
The EP starts off with 'Trip', aptly name due to its cinematic sound design and arrangement. Charlotte's trademark use of vocals ooze character, and haunting synths complemented by a laidback but steady drum-foundation are the ingredients of this track.
Sweden's Techno-legend Cari Lekebusch delivers the first remix, a functional and linear interpretation, which is sure to be heard on festival dancefloors during the late summer.
TWR72 of Amsterdam, themselves very much what you would call a 'current breakthrough act', are responsible for remix number two, a contemporary interpretation based on syncopated rhythms.
The EP is completed with 'Repeat', a reduced drum-tool built around a repetitive vocal hook.
Altogether a strong statement of a promising young artist and another proof of the ongoing evolution of OFF Recordings.
Meiosistosis is a unique and creative descriptive innerstanding created by DemoDc taken from the scientific terminology of Mitosis - a splitting of one cell to create 2 identical cells and Meiosis - a splitting of 1 cell to create 4 very unique cells. Combining these 2 findings to create its own unique expression of what Demo feels earth herself is potentially going through in what most humans refer to as 'crazy mad' times.
‘Call me mad or crazy yet my artistic take on all this madness of change, coming from a more spiritual aware perspective, I feel its very possible and plausible that earth herself is shifting from an energetical vibrational frequency resonance, shifting from a lower to a higher frequency that has souls who inhabit at this present time on Earth, have choices made available to either shift to these higher frequencies of perception or to chose to remain in the lower frequencies of perception’
….says Demo when explaining the meaning of the titles chosen for his brand new releases. Hence, from this perspective it would give more purpose and meaning with the Earth splitting itself from 1 earth into 2 with the merging of it being identical and unique all at once.
True or not, through creative expression can we all individually make sense in our own rights, which then gives more power to the inner-standing of what co-creating with any greater power outside of ourselves, is. Each track holds its own unique expression to what has been described here and of course gives each listener a chance to give meaning to what is embraced in their own connection made when absorbed in the creations these ep's offer.
Weorus is back. This time with four deeply minimalistic tracks.
The opening track comes with Andrea Ferlin’s masterpiece “TRK”. The evolution of the sound rising in it uplifts the sense of a deeper inner self. Perfect meditative notes bound together with miscellaneous hi-hats and organic tones.
The journey continues with Neem’s “Joke or serious”. Master Neem knows well how to touch souls and push the right buttons. The track is an evolution of a higher time space perspective. Listen carefully, it will change you.
Fabrizio Siano’s “L’erosione monometrica” flips the vinyl of the B side. Constant evolutionary and revolutionary sound design brought together with majestic writing. The micro minimalistic approach stands out in front of a constant kick and bass roll. The background piano gives the right atmosphere for a newer meaning of the track.
To close the 12” is Dragosh’s “Kardiomomo”, a one shot production that brings out drum based percussion throughout the track. Vocals and drifting concepts melt together with the less electronic touch of a piano. Perfect for afters and sophisticated mixes.
Weorus strikes again.
Watch out for its (r)evolution
Tod Dockstader's Aerial series, an electronic/drone masterpiece, is cherished among fans of the artist's work and this second volume is available in an audiophile quality double LP edition.
Tod Dockstader's Aerial series is sourced from his life long passion for shortwave radio. Dockstader collected over 90 hours of recordings, made at night, and comprised of cross signals and fragments plucked from the atmosphere.
Opening with airwave drones, Dockstader gradually allows elements to slowly come and go, summoning an ominous atmosphere of ethereal cloud clouds. Malignant placidity continues, giving the feeling of eavesdropping upon late-night audio activity not unlike discovering number stations while sweeping the dials. These sounds pull you in as their density and rhythms come and go.
Backward voices, deep echoing choruses of conversations flowing under the surface, ocean sounds, pulsing electro-rhythms, all seem to be created via the collaging of many hours of source recordings. A masterwork of collage and juxtaposition by an overlooked pioneer of American electronic music.
Artwork by John Brien (Imprec) is inspired by the propagation of shortwave radio signals throughout the earth's atmosphere.
"This return of Dockstader is something to cherish, not just because his output has been so limited and scarce but because what we do have is so intriguing, persuasive and cliche-free; the music of an inspired explorer who trails in nobody's slipstream." The Wire
"One of the great figures of musique concrete composition." Dusted
The Aerial project
I've written before of my interest in shortwave radio, in the notes to the Quatermass CD. Also, in the notes to the Omniphony CD (which has my first "Aerial" mix, "Past Prelude," in it), I mentioned "The Aerial Etudes," which was my working title for what became the three CDs you have. And, at the end of an interview with Chris Cutler (which can be found in the "Unofficial TD Website"), the piece I mentioned I was starting to work on at the time became Aerial.) When I was very young, people got most of their entertainment from radio. They called it "playing the radio," as if it were a musical instrument. That's what I've tried to do in this piece. About this time, a few people encouraged me to look into using a computer for this work.
I'd never used one, but I saw it would allow me to keep my mixes digital - no more transfer losses. So, at the end of 2001, I got a computer and an editing program for it, and spent what seemed a long time learning it. I began selecting mixes and loading them into the computer in late March, 2002. Out of the 580, I selected 90 "best" mixes - eventually reduced to 59, the ones on the CDs. Finally, in assembling the CDs, I followed David Myers' suggestion to allow each piece to flow into the next - making a continuous journey to the end. Tod Dockstader, 14 september 2003
About Tod Dockstader: Dockstader moved to New York in 1958 and became a self-taught sound engineer and sound effects specialist and apprenticed as a recording engineer at Gotham Recording Studios. It was around this time that he started to use his off-work hours to experiment with mixing and manipulating sounds on magnetic tape (musique concrète). By 1960 he had amassed enough material to assemble his first record Eight Electronic Pieces which was released on the Folkways label in 1961 (this would later be used in the soundtrack of Fellini’s Satyricon). The last of the eight pieces was later re-worked into his first stereo piece. In 1961 he applied to use the facilities at the Columbia-Princeton Electronic Music Center and was denied access by Vladimir Ussachevsky. Ussachevsky’s official reason was the “overstrained” scheduling of the studios, although many suspect that Dockstader’s lack of academic training was a factor in the decision. He continued to create music throughout the first half of the 60s, working principally with tape manipulation effects. His last piece at Gotham was Four Telemetry Tapes in 1965, after which he left to work as an audio-visual designer on the Air Canada Pavillion at Montreal’s Expo ‘67. It was around this time in 1966 that some of Dockstader’s pieces were released on three Owl L.P.s, and his work became known to a larger audience. He achieved modest recognition and radio play alongside the likes of Karlheinz Stockhausen, Edgard Varèse, and John Cage.
Tensor Norm is back. In this ocassion, we visit differents locations of the world geography to bring you an EP full of electro, breaks, acid and IDM.
Side A goes into the coordinates of dark electro in different ways. "Cell Reprogramming" by Clone Theory (one of its members is Heuristic Audio) is a spatial track with smooth percussion, a heavy, oscillating bassline and minimal melodic design. On "Automorphism", Sigma_ALgebra resorts to smooth percussion and a drone-like oscillating bassline to generate a floating feel, over which choppy, lightning-like melodic profiles occur. Finally, north american LectrO cOd-E, speeds up the tempo to expose the military round bass, synth twitches and vocoder transmissions of “Morphology”.
Side B is incided in borderline spaces with the incorporation of acid sounds as main elements. After an opening that programs the rhythmic structure and adds pad atmosphere, "Amenacid" by Liðvarð aka DJ VLR ratchets up the tension through a brief acid line modified steadily but subtly. The EP closes with "Phanaire Luses", a track with typical IDM resources with which, through the accumulation of bleep-like emissions, acid figures, sparks and amorphous sounds, Jaquarius builds a psychedelic track.
NOW CLOSE YOUR EYES, PAUSE QUIETLY FOR A FEW MOMENTS, AND BE HERE NOW. ATTUNE YOURSELF WITH YOURSELF AND THE UNIVERSE AND, SO, WITH ALL OF US. IF YOU ARE MOVED BY THE SPIRIT, THANK YOU FOR SHARING THE SPIRIT WITH US.
Duane Pitre's Varolii Patterns was made with an eight-voice synthesizer, tuned in Just Intonation. These consonant pieces explore shifting polyrhythms that slip in and out of rhythmic focus and "Common Rhythmic Pulses" that carry over as the pattern evolves within a piece.
Duane Pitre's statement:
"While experimenting with microtonal electronics for a piece I was writing for Zinc & Copper, which would eventually be titled Pons, I came across a process-based technique that I was quite keen on. Although I wouldn't use this technique on the Zinc & Copper piece, I would later implement said process to make up some of the electronics on Omniscient Voices. During this time I carried out dozens and dozens of instances of this process and recorded them all. Varolii Patterns is composed of a small collection of these recorded takes, ones I felt were stand alone pieces on their own and that worked well together as a whole."
Speedy J and Steve Rachmad join forces as Speedy & Steve for a four-track techno EP on Luke Slater's Mote-Evolver this February.
Dutch artists Speedy J and Steve Rachmad have long been defining the techno underground with seminal tunes on a range of influential labels. For their new release, the duo jammed in Speedy's studio for their new release, working the live results into four fresh and powerful new tracks, kicking off a new series of live collaborations on Luke Slater's Mote-Evolver.
The intense and textural 'Reddo' kicks off with industrial synth lines designed for maximum warehouse impact before 'Dabler Nine' brings its deep rolling drums and mind-melting synth lines late into the night. 'Right Well and Clean' has fresh, airy kick drums rolling beneath harsh and icy hi-hats before 'Rotor' closes the release in cosmic fashion with spiralling pads and intensely layered synths and drums.
This new series will see artists collaborating in person, with each EP capturing the creative moment as it happens, with results aimed squarely at the dance floor. Each release in the series has artwork in a specific style that combines one item from each artist, which means something to them, into one new image.
The debut studio album from multi-platinum singer RAYE. Featuring number one single Escapism feat. 070 Shake.
Four times BRIT nominated, RAYE is one of the most streamed artists in the world with over
2.3 billion streams of her music. She has a double-platinum, four platinum, two gold and
three silver singles to her name. She is also indisputably one of the UK's premier
songwriters. Her songs have amassed over 3 billion streams, having written for some of the
world’s biggest artists including: John Legend, Ellie Goulding, Khalid, David Guetta, Diplo,
and Beyonce. In 2019 she was awarded The BMI Impact Award in recognition of her 'groundbreaking artistry, creative vision and impact on the future of music, in 2022 she was
nominated for the Ivors Songwriter of the year, landed R1 Brits List and made her debut solo
TV performance on Jools Holland. During the summer of 2021, her cries of frustration for not being able to release her album were heard worldwide, leading to a mutual separation from her label and allowing her to
carve her own path. Having made her public tirade, followed by her personal 'declaration of
independence', Raye in effect has obligated herself to deliver the ground-breaking first
album that her 2019 BMI award prophesied.
It is a huge honour to present the Disco Gospel 12”, curated and edited by Chicago's Marc Davis and Sadar Bahar. Featuring two under-the-radar disco / gospel fusion tracks that have been given a new lease of life courtesy of these masters of their craft.
We first came to know Marc through his always on-point Black Pegasus record label, which he’s been running since 2006. As a renowned international DJ, record collector, and an integral part of Chicago's underground music scene, we knew anything he sent our way was going to be serious and he didn’t disappoint. Joining forces with Sadar Bahar (Soul in the Hole), who is himself a gospel and disco legend and a DJ's DJ favourite across the globe, they dug deep and put us onto two absolute gems from their beloved collections. As DJs who play a wide range of genres, their ability to spot the real heat within any sound has placed them at the top of their game. As Sadar puts it, "We are always digging for records and these fit the criteria of disco and happen to be gospel”.
First up is the feel-good joint 'I'm So Happy' by Fountain of Life Joy Choir Under The Direction of Kevin Yancy. Originally released in 1978 on a subsidiary label of T.K. Productions entitled Gospel Roots, the clue is in the title with this one. It's an unadulterated, uplifting, joyous dancer. Marc and Sadar’s fizzing edit brings out the best elements of the song and extends them. Working the addictive vocal hooks and building the funky instrumental grooves produces a spirit-lifting mood that is bursting with enough energy to light a fire under any dancefloor.
'Optical Illusion' on the flip, takes the tempo down, but doesn’t let up on the vigour. It’s a driving, stomping anthem that features another lung-busting vocal performance. Working with a live recording of Rev. Charles H. Nicks and The Baptist Assembly Of Free Spirit Churches Mass Choir, this one proves to be the perfect accompaniment to the ecstatic vibe of the A-side. The duo has condensed and heightened the drama of the song and added some light-touch production elements to clean up and enhance the sound. We guarantee this will be filtering its way into the sets of discerning DJs worldwide.
Marc described the selections best when he succinctly put it like this, “We both knew these were two heaters on our first listen”.
We completely agree, and with recording and engineering contributions from Tone B. Nimble (Soul Is My Salvation) and Rahaan, here we have Chicago royalty creating an unmissable release that celebrates the crossover of dance music with the musical traditions of the church.
Individuality, Harmony, Wit.
Originating from the heart of Asia - Taipei, Taiwan, Zy The Way is a fusion collective spear-heading a new musical movement in a digital age. As the offspring of a film director, entertainers and multi-genre musicians, Zy The Way aims to create artistic content that will rock your socks. We believe that true balance is achieved not through the uniting of different social groups, but when we come together with our stories as an individual. Voices and vision, musical styles, personalities, and our own beliefs, Zy The Way is the fabrication of our collective imagination, where no one is left out.
limited to 200 copies!
After we have been rolling out three singles and two remixes, it’s time to present to you the full album by the Belgium duo Pelace, titled ‘Echoes’. The digital version drops October 7 and to make it even better, the album will appear on vinyl too at end the of 2022, which will be the first ever vinyl release on Infinite Depth.
The album represents the energetic sound of Pelace (Jordy Cosemans & Janick Warnier), hailing from Hasselt. Besides being Pelace they are very good friends in life, which is playing big part in their tracks. They dug deep into their own experiences and emotions that have been influencing their lives and this resulted in the album. The careful composed collection of tracks forms a 10-track story of uncompromising breaks, deep and compelling melodies and beautiful repetitive vocals.
The album starts off with ‘Trapped Forever’. An ambient intro to immediately show their characteristic raw and uplifting synthwork. When it stops it makes sure you want to carry on listening. After the intro, ‘Deep Sea Dreaming’ follows, through which they bring forward their strong breakbeats and firm basslines. Where ‘Deep Sea Dreaming’ is pretty low-key, the next one titled ‘Patterns’ is one of the more compelling tracks on the album. Long-stretched bass lines are forming a solid base, on top of which uplifting arps and pads are making this track very lively.
The fourth track ‘Kali’ goes a bit deeper. The track was written and produced when there was the news that clubs were allowed to open in Belgium again. A hard 4×4 kick, raw percussion elements and a driven bass are the key elements. After this it goes through to ‘Forever Together’. This one is about always being Pelace together. It’s a break track with a suppressed, but also very special energy.
‘Break Ups’ represents the more calm and dreamy side of the album. The regular beat gets broken up by a breakbeat, after which it continues in its lo-fi focused four-the-floor pattern. Throughout the track harmonious pads are melting together with high pitched synths, giving you a hopeful and warm feeling. The main song ‘Echoes From The Past’ defines the signature sound of Pelace, a blend of all kinds of electronica. Broken beats, intertwining synths, an appealing repetitive vocal and a reese bass, combined to evoke intense moments on the dancefloor.
The eighth track is called ‘Floating’ and refers to old-school no-nonsense electronica. A pulsing and stabby synth, a powerful jungle kick and the up-tempo rhythm are providing a powerful energy. ‘Pushing You Away’ brings us back to the duo’s characteristic drum parts and vocal use, but with a deeper lower part and a somewhat trancey and ravey higher part. Then the cooling-down begins in the form of the outro ‘I Won’t Hesitate’. A very hopeful end to this story told by Pelace
Benjamin Damage is back on ARTSCORE with a stunningly crafted record that explores the deepest parts of his mind.
We strongly believe that an Artist should have the freedom to express many phases of his thoughts, and doing it with the power of Techno is one of our main goals to inspire you. Benjamin is clearly on top of his game, and we are proud to deliver something very powerful here, done in one of the most elegant ways.
Dear listener,
On behalf of re:discovery records, it is with great excitement that we announce the release of Stryke – The Introspection Trilogy (1994-2022). rd011 features a track that is very close to my heart. My senior year in high school. I was heavily into chill-out music at the time. Labels like FAX, Instinct Ambient, Reflective, Astralwerks, em:t, Silent, Moonshine, Rising High, Warp, Exist Dance, Visible, Eye Q and others were giving me such a wide array of beautiful sounds of more subdued techno and rhythmic ambient music. I was buying every compilation I could at the time that looked remotely different based on the artwork, the unusual artist names or the tracks. I was soaking in everything I could under the chill-out style. That year 1994 I picked up the 2nd edition of Moonshine's 'United State of Ambience 2'.
It has so many good tracks on it. One track that always held a special place in my heart was Stryke's 'Introspection pt.1'. The simple but catchy melody layering. The easy atmosphere made me feel like I was floating in the ocean. The deep 808 bass notes (I hope one day you and I will hear this on an amazing sound system). The amazing strings reach a crescendo nearing the end. This track has so many simple but beautiful sounds on it. It's a great example of what I call sequencer-styled electronic music. At a time when producers layered tracks in more of a sequence then building or placing sounds. In 2021 I was able to get a hold of Greg Chin to see if he was interested in putting the track on my label and letting it breathe freely on its own side alone as the highlight of an EP. Greg was enthusiastic about the opportunity and told me that he always wanted to complete the trilogy he had in mind of a part 2 and 3. The ominous and eerie part 2 adds a terrific tension to the finale of part 3. The last being almost an updated part 1 really concluded the trilogy for me. Both parts melded together on side B pushing near 17 minutes. I want to thank Greg for letting us be a home to complete his journey.
- Tim Humphrey aka TIM aka errorsinspace
UV1 is the debut release by Unity Vega. Scaling BPM's from 140 through 210, the EP reveals a one of a kind sonic vision. Head-spinning percussion and higher dimensional synths mesh with club-ready rhythms across all four, deftly spanning many moods and eureka moments.
Northern Soul legend Billy Prince returns with his next Common Good Records dancefloor filler. Following up the sold-out Angel/I Need You 7” with a Detroit-styled uptempo heartfelt offering. Born and raised in the Motor City, Billy developed a passion for music at a very young age, in part due to him spending much of his childhood in his father’s record shop during the Detroit soul explosion. Billy is one of the founding members and lead singer of The Precisions, who are best known for the legendary Northern Soul stomper, “If This Is Love (I’d Rather Be Lonely)”.
In October 1974, the first number of “L'Indépendant du Jazz”, a small self-produced magazine DIY -before punk supposedly invented the concept- was launched by Jef Gilson, Gérard Terronès, Jean-Jacques Pussiau and a few other specialists of a different kind of jazz in France, it looked at the already long career of Jef Gilson and in detail at the album with saxophonist Philippe Maté:
“The ‘Workshop’ is, with Philippe Maté (alto-sax), an undeniable success. Maté is genuinely ‘the’ most inventive French saxophonist since Michel Portal burst onto the jazz scene (who has also worked with Jef Gilson on both “Enfin” and “Gaveau”).”
Even though the author of the article is a mysterious I.H. Dubiniou, and it is difficult to know if it is a real person or a pseudonym used by one of the merry bunch, it is also tempting to hear it as what Jef Gilson really thought about his new discovery. Even more so as the two men would work together over a long period, as Maté became one of the key figures of Gilson’s Europamerica orchestra up until the 1980s.
Philippe Maté had started to make a name for himself with the Acting Trio when they released an album on the BYG label in 1969, and he was also one of the regular sidemen for the Saravah studios (he can notably be heard on albums by Higelin, Fontaine or his cult duo album with Daniel Vallancien).
The album was recorded on 4 February 1972, at the Foyer de Montorgueuil, where Gilson had set up his studio, with more or less the same team found on “La Marche Dans Le Désert” by Sahib Shihab + Gilson Unit (recorded ten days later). This was drummer Jean-Claude Pourtier and pianist Pierre Moret (regular Gilson accomplices since “Le Massacre Du Printemps”), alongside Maurice Bouhana and Bruno Di Gioa on various percussions and/or wind instruments. On bass is Didier Levallet, of the now mythical Perception, (Jean-François Catoire would replace him with Shihab) and Philippe Maté who took top billing, rather than the American saxophonist afterwards. The two albums are however quite different. This “Workshop” is more abrasive, more free. Made up of two long improvisations each of over 22mn, “L'Œil” on side A and “Vision” on side B (Gilson specialists would recognise the nod to one of his albums from the 60s), the album plunges you into the depths, attempting to drown you in electronic waves, dragging you back to the surface by the collar, giving you a good shakedown, before showing you the light, leaving you breathless on the shore after 46mn of the most intense music French has to offer. “An undeniable success”, they said. (by Jérôme "Kalcha" Simonneau)
For its first release, Caprices Music relies on Brizman, an Israeli based in Berlin. In a competitive market of international DJs and producers, Brizman's distinctive sound consistently delights the hearts of listeners. He has produced a massive collection of minimal house tracks that have already been released on renowned labels. Now he's hitting his notes on Caprices Music with two original tracks "Mama Shelly feat. Linn Stern" and "Berlin Moment" in tribute to the recent death of his mother. If one is a melancholic and haunting ballad, the other is distinguished by a deep but heavy sound. As for the remixes, Tripmastaz and Silat Beksi deliver two dancefloor bomb. The remix of Silat Beksi will appear only on the vinyl version.
It was in the year 1981 when Belgian electronic musician Michel Huygen and his Spanish colleague Carlos Guirao, both better known as Neuronium, met with Evngelos Odyss as Papathanassou, better known as Vangelis, to record a joint session in London.
Michel Huygen remembers: "The music we played together starting from my score, was flowing, flowing so fast and smoothly between the 3 of us, that I can now, many years after, say: We recorded all the music's parts in one single "shot", since the result was absolutely what we all wanted and Vangelis told us: "Don't touch what we have recorded, it is lovely " and so we did."Now, after some rather unofficial releases, the opus "In London" is finally released for the first time in its entire length, titled "In London - The Platinum Edition", fondly reworked, remastered and sonic refined to perfection exactly 45 years after Neuronium released their first album on the famous Harvest label.
Michel Huygen had intended to celebrate this anniversary with Vangelis in Paris. But fate had other intentions, on May 17, 2022, Vangelis died as a result of a Covid-19 disease.
Huygen: "I feel honored to have been able to meet him, to play music with him and to have him as a funny friend too. And mainly to have been able to meet a huge musician, a classical composer for the forthcoming generations, without doubt. R.I.P, dear Vangelis."
Bernard Szajner is a French composer, musical theorist, visual artist. He is credited with the invention of the laser harp, which he patented.
Between 1979 and 1983, Szajner released five albums of innovative and Avant-garde electronic music. He became renowned as a light and visual effects technician with artists such as Magma, Gong, Stomu Yamashta and The Who.
During the 1970s, he became a pioneer in the field of using laser technology as an artistic tool. As a measure of his success, he became renowned by his work with companies such as Cartier and Renault. In 1980, inspired by the novel, Nova, by Samuel R. Delany, he first created the laser harp. The laser harp became so successful that Jean-Michel Jarre ordered a version from Bernard Szajner for his tour of China. Despite all this, Szajner would only occasionally use this instrument in his own performances. He has stated that he would rather the public not know him solely for his work on the laser harp, and that it not be allowed to take precedence over his work in musical composition that it enables. This is also why he continues to develop other instruments which use other innovative methods of interaction, such as tactile or holographic.
Towards the end of the 1980s and disgusted with the music industry, he chose to abandon music entirely, and shifted his focus towards digital and visual arts, and theatre.
From Bernard Szajner : “These tracks are my preferred ones .... Ever ! ... For a long time I've been waiting for a record label to release what corresponds to what I like playing these days... Until Sleepers records decided to release this compilation which contains most of the tracks I enjoy playing live on stage ! At last my wish is fulfilled !”
![Camilo Gil & [ØNE+1] - Privilege EP "In loving memory to Octavio Gil ...1952 / 2017"](https://www.deejay.de/images/l/6/4/1000064.jpg)
FAFO RECORDS Welcomes Camilo Gil from Chile and ONE+1 from Spain to the artists' family.
We are very happy to present you the Privilege Ep ..... in loving memory of Octavio Gil, a fanatic music lover, and father of Camilo Gil.
The EP is already a superlative category as it contains two original tracks plus Dubbie House like PRIVILEGE, and a powerful remix, from the golden child of Frankfurt as the great Sascha Dive is in the legend category, with his groove and deep house.
And the other side, we have already immersed ourselves in the house of law, with Venganza Poetica that makes you dance at any time of the day in its original mix, and needless to say that the remix, by a creator of Detroit's first generation of techno, the same as Juan Atkins - Derrick May - Kevin Saunderson - Shake Shakir - Blake Baxter, and we have in the FAFO family the legend in life like Santonio Echols, from the motor city.
A very creative ep that delivers, dance and culture at the same time.
FAFO Records All rights reserved.
2024 Repress
Egypt-born Barcelona resident Ahmed Raxon has proven himself to be one of the most consistent DJ producers of his generation. His ability to make big room techno FUNKY and highly entertaining has landed him releases on some of techno's finest powerhouses like Cocoon, Drumcode or Ellum. His new double header for Speicher again ticks all the right boxes. "Slipmode" is a robotic workout with that trademark irresistible Raxon drive. "Nu Waze" is more of a cheeky affair, combining an arab quarter tone hook with an ultra funky back beat that would make "Phunk Phenomena"-era Armand Van Helden proud.
Der in Ägypten geborene und in Barcelona lebende Ahmed Raxon hat sich längst als einer der konsistentesten DJ Producer seiner Generation bewiesen. Die höchst unterhaltsame Art und Weise, wie er Big Room Techno FUNKY macht, hat ihm unlängst zu Releases in den feinsten Technoschmieden wie Cocoon, Drumcode oder Ellum verholfen. Seine neue Doppel A-Seite für Speicher hat wieder alles, wofür man ihn lieben gelernt hat. "Slipmode" ist ein typischer Raxon Stomper: robotisch, prägnant, sexy. "Nu Waze" kommt deutlich frecher daher... Ein arabischer Viertelton-Hook paart sich mit einem superfunkigen Backbeat, der Armand Van Helden in seiner "Phunk Phenomena" Phase alle Ehre machen würde.
An aura of mystery is hidden on this magnificent album released on EMI Nigeria in 1974 and today a collector’s cult object was the only one named Moonrakers Band.
Steve Black tells: “We were the original members of The Moonrakers and were based in Zaria, then in 1972 we left band management and started The Elcados. The original management of The Moonrakers sold the name to his elder brother who had a club in Kano and they brought Prince Bola Agbana to get other musicians to continue The Moonrakers while we moved in as The Elcados.”
Moonrakers Band and Elcados were the two bands that inflamed northern Nigeria in the early 70s with a more rocking and virtuoso sound, and especially with tons of rare grooves, then everything else around it.
Coming to the album content tracks like Wait For Me, Cut Your Coat According To You Size, Yara Manyan Gobe, but also Enia Sa Pele and Move on, will make floating camels appear on the dancefloor, or in your house.
Recut & Repressed
With ´Future Romance´ a new chapter of storytelling house & techno music is opened. After running the mighty Parquet Recordings label for 15 years, german DJ and producer ´Solee´ is starting an additional vinyl & digital imprint with focus on quality deep & expressive sounds.
Future Romance starts off with „Reboot“ a new single by the labelboss himself showcasing once again his ability to build up a track like no other and combine extensive melodies with big basslines & clever invented synth-work. As remixers for this promising debut release we could win no less than one of the greatest icons of melodic techno worldwide ´Recondite´ (wellknown for his releases on labels like Afterlife or Innervisions) and italian master of organic deep and emotional house sound ´Lehar´, member of the Diynamic family and owner of the ´Multinotes´record label together with Musumeci and Olderic.
Early DJ support by DJ Hell, Innellea, Kevin De Vries, Fur Coat, Pig & Dan, Timo Maas, Quivver, Musumeci, Oliver Huntemann, Dave Seaman, Mira, Rinzen, Markus Kavka, Nick Warren, Eelke Kleijn, Nhar, Martin Roth and more.
Alignment is back on Charlotte de Witte's KNTXT label for a fourth time with his Attack EP. It offers four more forward-thinking tracks of trance infused techno.
Berlin-based, Italian-born artist Alignment, whose real name is Francesco Pierfelice, has emerged as a real force in the techno world in recent years. He has had an outstanding array of vital productions, and his sound helps carry forward the diversity and musical identity KNTXT stands for. His sound has smartly evolved since as he continues to pick up new influences. All that comes out on this superb new release.
Says the artist, ‘I am more than happy to contribute with ‘Attack EP’, another release on such a renowned imprint like KNTXT. Charlotte has supported me since day one, and I am hugely grateful to release for the fourth time on her label. Four tracks that are straight to the floor, they are the outcome of touring clubs and festivals again now in 2022. Enjoy this selection and see you soon on the dance-floor!’
Says label boss Charlotte de Witte, ‘Alignment is one of my favourite producers out there. His high energy style and sound always deliver on the dancefloor. I'm very proud and honoured to have him once again on board for another four killer tracks on KNTXT.’
Attack opens up with hammering drums and turbo-charged synths. It is an all powerful track that drills deep and brings a real sense of rave to the club. There is an ever present sense of euphoria to Dream State as the trance synth loops bring real light and emotion to the flat footed and slamming drums. Some steamy vocals add that all important hook and ensure real dance floor destruction. Multiverse brings bouncing techno funk beneath edgy synth stabs and industrial percussion design for soot-black warehouse spaces. Last of all is The Way, another unstoppable and supersized techno offering with hands-in-the air synth designs and drums that just don't quit.
This is another fiery offering of new school techno from Alignment.
Samuel L Session and Van Czar drop a four-track techno EP on Unrilis that showcases a deeper and more hypnotic sound with dystopian atmosphere and driving percussion. Rino Cerrone launched the Unrilis record label over 15 years ago, and part of the label's back catalogue is its iconic Rilis series. 2022 sees the relaunch of the Rilis series that has a focus on underground DJ tools with raw analogue sounds. The Rilis series was originally launched in 1999, and was restricted to a concept on only 10 releases, each pressing a limited run of vinyl. It was hugely popular with each one often selling out in only a week and picking up DJ support by people ranging from Jeff Mills to Richie Hawtin. Those first 10 releases were focused on Rino Cerrone's own music, but since his retirement from the industry, the revitalised Rilis series will welcome other artists whose sound matches the label's underground concept.
This latest release in the Rilis series features collaborative tracks by Samuel L Session and Van Czar who have previously teamed up for releases on other imprints ranging from Marco Bailey's MB Elektronics to Ben Sims' Hardgrooves. Both are also successful solo artists, Sweden's Samuel L Session being well-known for his headline DJ sets at clubs around the world, along with the music he has released via iconic imprints such as Slam's Soma, Shlomi Aber's Be As One, Len Faki's Figure and Emmanuel's ARTS plus his own imprints SLS, Cycle, New Soil, and Klap Klap Belgium's Van Czar is also an accomplished DJ who is well-established across Europe and he has also released music on respected record labels ranging from Kevin Saunderson's KMS Records as well as the classic imprint, Yin Yang.
'Air Raid' opens the release with its eerie pads, spine-tingling melody loop and machine-driven percussion. It's got a raw aesthetic with dramatic claps and snare fills that add to the building suspense.
'18-022' is a dark and stripped back track with modulating synth textures layered with fast-flowing high-end percussion. Its pounding kick drum and clap rhythms add rigid structure to its expansive atmosphere and dance floor focused groove.
'Route 200' has thrashing cymbals punishing claps and rippling pads that create a stripped back groove submerged in deep atmosphere. Rich with analogue textures and gritty sound design, its relentless energy is tailor made for club sound systems.
'Objectivism' closes out the release with it's funky bassline and bleeping melody. Whirling textures and fluttering percussion maintain an unrelenting tension that's driven forward by the pounding kick drum.
18 track compilation of cult '80s French rock band Les Calamités,
includes their biggest hit "Vélomoteur" and tracks with the bands the
Dogs and The Barracudas Available as a digipak CD with 36-page booklet and vinyl with 8 page booklet and download code, with liner notes in French and English. Wouldn't it do them justice to rid Les Calamités (literally "the calamities") of the embarrassing phrase "girl band", durably stuck to their skins and plaited skirts? It's nothing but a pink puffy cloud obscuring their true importance as a "band" full stop, as well as their fleeting though mind-bending trajectory. In just a few months after going on stage with a handful of original songs recorded here and there, they became, from Dijon to Rouen, Paris to Toulouse, Bordeaux to Strasbourg, the darlings of an uncompromising rockers' demanding scene. Tolerated by some, maybe, they were also consecrated, certainly (should they have needed the accolade). The trade-off was a succession of quick and distinctive verse-choruses for which the adjectives "fresh" and "light" seemed to have been invented again.
They delivered just as many covers, which gave an idea of the origins of their songwriting: one foot in the fifties (on the dancefloor), the other in the sixties (in the garage). All of this leading to their final hit, a successful incursion in the top sales with a popular song for everyone to hum at ease, from seaside campsites to the cool kids of the capital.
Everything the Calamités touched, with their classy, rigorous, casual ways - plus just enough amused detachment - turned into gold.
2023 Repress
When the reopening is slowly approaching, chaos is slowly dissolving. We pushed the button to try the new reality and for the soundtrack we've got for one of the more club oriented releases we have made till date.
Dakar's newest affiliate midnight menace starts the release with his already known schranz alike beat, dark and acidic pushing the Dance floor limits.
Cressida strikes with a funk push which could have totally fit in a Black Nation record from 2002, one of the very few produces using swing in his tracks these days. Freshness guaranteed.
Debuting the Spaniard Jheal Bashta deliver a hyper futuristic song, amen breaks, autotune, which year is it again?
Closing the issue, we warmly welcome to the legend Deeon, who deserves no introductions. Ghetto-punk. For disc-jockeys and collectors.
We spit on your plate f*kers
#oftenplusneverminus8
Fukuinn's 3rd release on vivid blue color vinyl. A1 is edgy electro sounds from Bristol's "Lost Signal" resident trackmaker Fazack. A2 is a deep and floating track by Relaxant. He's released an EP on Florklang Records and is one of the hottest young artists out there. On B1, Böhm, known for his acid and bleep sounds, surprises with an acid-heavy masterpiece. His successes and releases in recent years have been very inspiring. Lyon's genius, Foreign Sequence, played the best bizarre sound with pleasant melody on the last track.
Fresh off the heels of 2021’s collaborative LP, Gotham from Talib Kweli and Diamond D, the BX icon returns with his sixth studio album, The Rear View. Comprised of 13 tracks, the album proves that without a shadow of a doubt, Diamond D’s reputation as the best producer on the mic remains unrivaled.
Never one to bogart the spotlight, Diamond is joined by a supporting cast of guest appearances that include Westside Gunn, Dre (Cool & Dre), Posdnuos (De La Soul), Ashtin Martin, Stacy Epps and KP, with a momentous introduction from the great Chris Rock. To boot, Diamond adds to the unblemished production value with additional board work from the likes of Nottz, Focus, D.R.U.G.S. Beats and Mr. Brady.
"I took my time crafting this LP to make sure every track could stand on its own as a possible single,” says Diamond. “Every feature and track was carefully selected from an elite group of artists and producers that I had the honor of working with. The end result is top tier bar work over pristine production,” he concludes.
Expanding on the blueprint of previous releases, Trieste-born, London-based producer Sohrab is the Kalahari clan’s latest inductee. OYSTER43 is a distillation of the Italian producer’s stylistic scope in its purest form; impeccably crafted dance music with a healthy dose of prog.
Running deep with this one. Smartly refined constructions primed for meditative club use, the first four tracks are rendered in pristine detail. From the widescreen and tunnelling to straight-up utopian, there’s a life-affirming vitality like only the most quintessential '90s prog-house can achieve.
The record begins to veer into realms of dilated abstraction on the second plate. Where ‘Fleeting Thoughts’ unfurls like a slice of hi-tech IDM undergoing an ayahuasca ceremony, ‘Sunseeker’ and ‘Deconstruct’ keep the ritual going at a lysergic, slo-mo chug. ‘Crystal Clear’, on the other hand, evokes the ‘70s with a bucolic, avant-garde synth lullaby.
This mini album was originally published on Semantica Records in 2010 as a extremely limited 100 copy only reference. 12 years later we recover this for the Drivecom’s catalogue and fans of the label. This is a re-press edition with a new mastering and cutting, focused in the audio quality more than trying to get a maximum volume or gain. So this is one of the reasons that the side A cutting is trying to keep the tracks in the outside area of the vinyl in the most possible way, trying to avoid distortions or other artifacts from the inner vinyl curvature.
This 12” contains the same tracks on vinyl as the original edition but a couple of bonuses as a digital download. Those tracks called "Axonal Destruction (1999 Rework)" and "Automatic Reconstruction" were never released.
Note: For the people who purchase a physical copy in the shops, please take a picture of your purchase and share it on social networks, then we’ll send you a special download code.
In the musical eld, this reference was introduced with minimal and repetitive mental synth lines, mainly triggered from TB303 sequenced lines as the vertebral spinae, slow and progressive cadence rhythms with a touch of experimental electro and vocoders on board, exception is the rst tittle “Ultralink” which gives the name to the reference and it’s also the most club-oriented track in the mini album. About the thematic is all surrounded of such as mental driving musical lines so all the tittles were focused in the neuroscience
On every copy sold 2 euros minimum goes to Mealespoirs : An NGO association who fight for Childhood rights, malnutrition and education.
lets talk about music now :
Crazy meet up between 2 monsters !
Atomic Compressor, the GTI number one composer who did the best of KSI records, and more recently a brilliant Komum brings a full side of his best recent tunes : Speed pityless kickerz bringing "le Père Noël Est une Ordure" special Thérèse édition !
On the flip you'll get Leatherface, newcomer from Cellul R production, with 2 Industrial psychedelic rolling kickerz : the first one is a C.Mantle hit combo, light kick mentalism ; and the second a powerfull Brotherhood lesson.
Subtil's 25th release signs Romanian duo Alsi, formed by Alex Florea (Limpid) and Silviu Tanase (Einzig), marking their debut on the imprint. Since 2016, Alsi have created their very-own concoction of minimal, hypnotic and profound music, showcasing sharp drum programming skills and creative, intensely detailed sound synthesis.
'Madness EP' sees Alsi at the top of their game, displaying three tracks brimming with power, detail and bold sophistication. Under the infinite structures of expertly crafted rhythmic syncopations and hefty basslines, and as indicated by the EP's name, the themes of madness, hallucination, and hypnosis echo through the entire sonic palette. Such sound design techniques evoke several mental states one usually doesn't find in minimal techno, certifying there are enough layers of musicality for the boldest of DJs and the most curious of listeners.
Flexi Cuts is pleased to introduce Lazy Snail's new EP, Lucky Life. A truly valuable work, the result of time and research, where Alessandro (aka Lazy Snail) wanted to explore different sides of electronic music of an inner and mature nature at the same time.
Lucky Life is like going up to the attic and finding something precious to take care of; it sums up a long musical journey, from the past to the present, in five tracks full of meaning.
The first track, Remèrcier, is a tribute to 'dance' music, an intense talk over a hypnotic moog bass.
This is followed by Vagrants, dedicated to his hometown (Cudgnola), where we find an 808 rhythmic patterns as involving and beating as a walk in the rain.
The B-side opens with One Place, which features a vocal stunning collaboration with Flicker Fox, who brings the track into a techno universe with percussion and intimate echoes.
Climbin' High was inspired by Alessandro's passion and admiration for the mountains. He composed it imagining an extreme climb, and immediately afterwards an equally dangerous but necessary descent. Just like in reality.
The record ends with No Evil, an ambient-flavoured gem that opens on the climax in a riot of expert snares and synths.
Mathis Ruffing’s Transatlantic debut cuts to the chase. This is getaway music, music designed to vaporise your long-dormant adrenal glands. ‘Skybox’ is made up of tracks that surge like quicksilver through veins, pulsing, flexing, relentlessly disciplined in execution. These tunes are crystalline and shimmering, eight sleek and streamlined club constructs rendered with what feels like the precision-engineering of some advanced alien DAW.
Opener ‘Ultranova’ hits like a cyborgian headbutt and refuses to let up. It’s followed by the one-two punch of the title track and ‘Hitherto’, which install cooling, gaseous pads and synths within breakneck drum&bassian exoskeletons. ‘Crater Edge’ and closer ‘Raytraced’ offer cryochamberesque respite from the cold-blooded fury enclosed within this release — well-earned breathing room in an album that takes hold with crisp and calculated force. Pure focus.
R.A.N.D. Muzik Recordings welcomes back Jay Gadian for his second EP. This time a 4-tracker of psychdelic progressive house.
Right on, right on! The Godfather of Soul gets a fresh feeling of funk courtesy of the main man Opolopo with these two exquisite edits. On one side the extended, on the flip the instrumental, Opolopo’s ready to get up and do his thang, giving a modern twist to this funked up dancefloor bomb.
Nearly 10 years on since his last solo LP, Berlin techno icon Marcel Dettmann arrives on Dekmantel with an expansive album captured in a flash of inspiration.
In many ways Fear Of Programming is a reflection on the artistic process – the critical hurdles one has to overcome, the constant strive for originality, the ability to capture inspiration in its pure moment of inception. Bar the closing title track (and we all know Marcel loves a surprise closing), these 13 tracks came together during a period in which our hirsute host was able to immerse himself in studio practice and set the intention to record an album’s worth of material every single day. From the resulting mass of work there were many options to choose from, and Fear Of Programming stood out as one of the most complete statements on Dettmann’s approach in the here and now.
Unconcerned with an overarching concept, it was the work in the studio which drove the musical direction. No labouring over knotty arrangements, no painstaking mix downs – just honest expression, a moment caught, a groove locked, a stroke of synth sent pirouetting over a cavernous bed of texture. The results are varied, and while you might well hear plenty of bruising machinations in line with the techno Dettmann has made his name on, there are plenty of other shades expressed across the album.
Ambient sojourns, beatless epics and angular electronica have equal footing with strident, floor-friendly workouts. Standout piece ‘Water’ offers an icy ballet of swinging minimal and drip-drop melodics fronted by Ryan Elliott on lesser-spotted vocal duties, urging, ‘give me a sign, just a little something to let me know that you’re mine’. It’s playful, but still underpinned with the sincerity that comes with Dettmann’s work.
Running on instinct, Dettmann presents an honest version of himself in the here and now, speaking through the sonics and not over-thinking the results. His decades of experience helming a thousand techno parties speak for themselves, while his evolution as a musical entity through collaboration and his own BAD MANNERS label demonstrate his appetite for change. Indeed, the working method which resulted in the album also spurred him on to create a live set beyond his well-established DJ practice. Without resorting to a conceited overhaul, Fear Of Programming opens up the idea of what Dettmann represents in the modern techno landscape.
RAMZi's 'hyphea', the new album by Montreal based artist Phoebé Guillemot. It is her latest sonic quest containing 10 new tracks, of which some are versions of the score she made for a documentary about mushrooms called 'Fun Fungi' (directed by Frederic Lavoie).
Recorded between November 2021 and May 2022, writing 'hyphea' started off somewhat as an attempt to escape boredom and frustrations imposed by the severe restrictions during the pandemic. For Phoebé it was a way to reconnect with RAMZi who's spirit brought her back to mystical feelings and gave hope for future magical adventures after having felt disconnected for a while.
RAMZi is a wild spirit from the forest and refers to a parallel autonomous world that keeps evolving. In her own words: “The music remains as a doorway to that world. It has never been about me, I always see that entity bigger than myself. The process of writing 'hyphea' was rather intuitive. I don’t think about styles of music before producing tracks. Those are more like an adventure in itself, each one set in a different ecosystem.”
Artwork by Marinka Grondel.
Presented together for the first time, American composer John McGuire’s Pulse Music series (1975-1979) blurs the popular narrative that Minimalism was a reaction against Europe’s angular, intellectual, inscrutable high-modernism. McGuire, born in California, studied at Occidental College in Los Angeles and UC Berkeley before going to Europe to study with Karlheinz Stockhausen, Krzysztof Penderecki, and Gottfried Michael Koenig. His compositions lock serialism’s warped geometries onto an evenly spaced grid, perfectly preserving serial music’s multi-dimensionality while smoothing its wildest disjunctures and sharpest angles. If serialism is Montreal’s Habitat 67 modular housing complex, McGuire’s Pulse Music compositions are the primary-colored grids of Le Corbusier’s L’Habitation apartment complex — an exuberant expression of the same materials and principles.
Every layer of pulses is made distinct through its timbre, register, and tempo. We hear them as a plurality, organized like stars in the sky. Every so often the sky rotates and the stars appear in a different arrangement. Our ear naturally starts to draw connections and, as it sweeps between one layer and another, what was discrete becomes continuous. Pulses become flows; quantitative reality becomes qualitative experience.
Quantum Records has physically manifested their first vinyl.
This one is energetically composed by the creativity of three very eloquent Argentinean artists, with two fantastic original tracks and two remixes ready to move the dancefloor intensely.
"Quantisize" has a deep concept about the infinite possibilities that the universe has for us. It expresses it with flexible and coherent sounds between them, highlighting minimal, deep, house.
The Lagaffe boys have a special one for you. Lagaffe 10 marks the 10th EP in our vinyl series and serves as a perfect way to end our 10th year in existence. To mark this occasion we are releasing a 4 tracker with our founders and label regulars.
The EP opens up with Cohen Social Club by Flexi Leifs aka Felix Leifur. Our man Felix lost his drum machines last spring but luckily he found a guitar and some drums. The track starts off with suspicious sounding guitar notes that somehow end up as pure beauty, giving hope in the darkest of places. Frodo with the ring stuff, if you know what I mean. Playful reverbs and echos give the tune the classic Felix Leifur feel to it!
Moff & Tarkin has the next track "Pure Fury", some breakbeats and cheesy disco vocals, why change a winning recipe?
Next up is "We are not alone " by label boss Jonbjörn. I think this is what Elton John meant when he said "thank god for those electro bangers!" Solid 909 drum work featuring dramatic chords and some original vocal work. If you can spot the sample write us on Soundcloud and you might win a year's worth of LaCafe Tales!
With "Að handan" Viktor Birgiss comes back to the label in style. Our mastering engineer described it as having the loudest kick drum in history, imagine that! Lo fi dub sounding drums interlaced with atmospheric chords, made for those late night intimate moments on the dancefloor, again Frodo with the ring stuff, if you know what I mean.
Lucca Leeloo releases his new LP “Prosperous”, the sequel to his debut LP “Beyond Infinity” from 2020. Once again he’s collaborating with Italoconnection and Fred Ventura & Paolo Gozzetti have given the album their own special vintage-modern italo-disco treatment. The lead single “Say Goodbye” is a duet with the french singer and multi artist Pierre Pascual. The main themes of the album revolve around longing, transformation and redemption.
Time for another chapter in the ever expanding Yellow Jackets series from Mother Tongue!
On the A side we have a real definition of a Banger….Marcellus Pittman’s rework of the Belgian 1983 cult track ‘Death Disco’ by Arbeid Adelt! Not much to say about this one, it's simply a nasty piece of industrial acid disco!
On the flipside Chicago’s modern answer to Sun RA , Jamal Moss, brings the listener to an astral ceremony with ‘An Astronomical Object’. Another crucial moment in Hieroglyphic Being’s breathtaking discography.
Yellow Jackets..Loud & Proud!
One of the most effective ways of exposing the nature of any sphere is when it is interrupted, in a kind of alienation effect, by children. Whether one imagines that troops of them storm the foyer of a luxury hotel, occupy public squares and buildings with a view to getting on with their specific activities, whether they shape the profile of public political assemblies, whether owing to a security lapse they enter a television studio in large numbers during a live broadcast - in every case the reified character of each context, its rigidity, and the fact that the sphere is always that of adults, immediately become apparent as well as what is play and what is not and what is work and what is play and what is playing and who is playing with what or whom for what or whom ?
Another one from the fruitful collaboration with LA's highly regarded Patrick Houchen aka Shakaman. After Shakeena's “I bet you” 12" re-issue flying off the shelves, we deepen the exploration within Shakaman's treasure chest of Reggae/Dub gems with Shakeena's first and last album on Majicaa Records. Originally released in 1987, this album is a proper act of musical generosity, not so easy to point out the “hit” track here – clearly a case of all killer no filler. Unlike too many albums where the format length sadly gets the best of the artists' work, rest assured with this one you can play from the beginning to end and you'll only have to come back to flip it. The professional execution of what is hands down an ensemble of highly seasoned musicians sets the tone for the dreamy lyrics and arrangements to unravel. Besides expected reggae rhythms, Shakaman brings in other influences with subtle electro/freestyle hints that might have been hard to ignore in LA at the time. New remastered version sounding especially big and cozy on the low end. Can't go wrong!
Deluxe limited edition vinyl LP of the unpublished Nenad Vilovic lost synth-masterpiece Prizma. The Yugoslavian and Croatian disco and pop chart-maker and once a Split International Music Festival headman (also in groups Grupa ST, Mladi Batali, etc.), producer of Dino Dvornik, Ambasadori, Oliver Dragojevic, Meri Cetinic, Leo Martin and many more, recorded this space-prog-electronica album in complete secrecy. It was refused in the 1980s by major Yugoslavian record labels for being too experimental, but it is actually a game changer in the field of socialist YU electronica. Miha Kralj, Laza Ristovski, Igor Savin and Kornelije Kovac now have company in the field of complex analog synthesizer concept albums, with this one being finally released by Fox & His Friends Records after 37 years of being shelved. Every instrument on this album has been played by Vilovic himself. This rare piece of vinyl is cut by Pauler Acoustics, mastered by Antony Ryan and features exclusive cover design by Eric Adrian Lee. The studio master is here presented in its entirety; no track was replaced or changed its order. This is how it was imagined to be released in 1985, when Nenad Vilovic played all instruments, produced, composed, arranged, recorded and even sang on the whole thing. However the title "Prizma" may suggest, this is not a structuralist concept album, but a conceptual use of his studio, instruments and musical knowledge. It mixes the ethnic, electronic, geographical and ambient roots of the crowned festival producer, hit-maker and fast-skilled studio musician who spent all of his money on new machines and his musical progress.
Drumcode is excited to welcome back Rebuke for his first release of 2022 with the sci-fi inspired three-tracker ‘Dystopia’.
The Irishman has been a standout contributor on the label since his debut in 2019 with ‘Rattle’, a classic of the form. Follow up releases ‘Obscurity’ and ‘Wasp’ subsequently stamped him as an infallible go-to producer for Adam Beyer thanks to his ability to create powerful techno music with a memorable sound signature.
A dynamic cut made for 4am raving, ‘Dystopia’ chops and changes between an unsettling melody line and a barrage of buzzing synths as it builds towards a propulsive finish. No surprise it was a thrilling highlight when Beyer played it at Gashouder during Awakenings’ Easter programming.
‘Utopia’ is the lightness to ‘Dystopia’s’ dark. A superbly inventive and colourful track, it soars skywards with reams of euphoric techno energy and multi-layered sounds and stands as one of Rebuke’s most interesting tracks to date. Those in attendance at Circoloco @ DC10 when the Drumcode boss played in May got an advanced preview.
‘Presidio’, so named after the park in San Diego that inspired the track, is imbued with a distinct melodic character reflective of the West Coast music scene. The track is driven by a soaring chord progression and gritty rock-orientated sonics and makes for an exhilarating closing track.
Ivor Cutler is loved by generations of fans - including Paul McCartney, Billy Connolly and Alex Kapranos - for his unique music and poetic humour. A phenomenal stage presence for 50 years, with a prolific output. Championed by legendary DJ John Peel for whom Cutler recorded 21 sessions. 'Privilege' was produced as a vinyl LP for Rough Trade Records in 1983 and has been unavailable for decades. The album is only one of two where Cutler collaborates with other artists. It is unique in that there is a second voice - singer Linda Hirst. Musicians Steve Beresford and David Toop play several instruments and produced the record.
In May 2020 Cocoon Recordings released the third album of Harald Björk. With the club scene on Covid-hold , tours canceled and all of our favorite DJ’s locked up at home… not the optimal conditions to release an album on a nr.1 world wide club empire as Cocoon. How ever we decided not to let a virus kill our beloved culture, as Mr. Sven Väth put it „I would like to share with you the album of Harald Björk… which has soothed me and I hope will also give you a soundtrack for these uneasy days“. It felt right to release it.
The release was shrinked from a thought of vinyl box to a digital release with future plans on vinyl. However covid decided to stay and time went. The queue at the vinyl factories didn’t make the process easier… But at one point the dream factory of Kranglan Broadcast decided, enough! , the world has to keep on dreaming. And what is a better way to embrace dreams then to release a vinyl full of of dreamers, groundbreaking in their corners of the electronic umberella. Dreamers doing their thing not even looking at the norm or what’s the recent hype.
Aditional info:
Houndtooth finest Throwing Snow who Harald met in New York 2013 during their term at RBMA brings a bassdriven rollercoaster with the arpeggios from Spektrum bouncing like rubberballs through an impressive broken drum work. The remix came delivered with a text saying „I like my drums slamming“ and so do we.
Ada takes the eteric pads of Waldmeister and place them in a auditive dreamstate, an emotional hybrid of space and vacuum. Large feelings, yet so close. It builds, stretches and builds until we are shown the enlighted truth in the end of the tunnel. Harald is a long time fan and colector of Adas music which he got to know through the lovely label of Areal and has continued to love through the Pampa era. First remix from Ada on Kranglan was the epic remake of Sabor Latino, Sabor de Ada! We are delighted to have her art on the label once again.
The pandemic 2020 took away the most fun of beeing in the club scene, sharing stages with brilliant interesting dreamers showing and exchanging visions performing music. Under these strange conditions Molø and Harald ended up sharing a physical stage at the stream festival United We Stream. One thing led to the other and Harald took a deep dive in to Molø‘s great melodic techno universe. Some times you find gold in your own hometown. Molø’s take on Waldmeister build on the mellow arpeggio from the original track and brings them to a perfect chilled out afterhours. Imagine watching the sunrise to this beauty.
Swedes are a people of high integracy but as loyal citizens we allways attend formal events by the state. Skudge and Harald met at the Swedish National Radio price anouncement, both nominated for „electronic act of the year 2011“. It was an akward event with radio interviews and canapés, not very techno, the signum of Skudge. How ever Skudge won it all leaving both Avicii and Swedish House Mafia empty handed. Landberg, the swing king of Skudge is the kind of person that will tell you why the TR-909 has to be master clock to get the right groove in a techno performance, if you ask… which you do ??! If you’re looking for techno with groove look no further, Skudge is king! In his take on Walking Path he display the power of minimalistic dirty grooves, a 909 and a 303 what else do we need?
The 12“ vinyl comes with a fresh re-master of album single Medan Du Sov and an unreleased bonus track, Drifting, a balearic sundazed love story.
The train hurtled forward, rocking side to side as field after field rushed by under an unmoving sky. Her gaze was transfixed on the blurred landscape that passed her by. Behind her, she had left a city with lifelong memories, and as her mind cast back to thoughts of home, a salty tear welled in her eye. It did not fall. She yearned to go back, but her heart knew that this would never again be possible. Inhaling, she held her breath for a moment, almost unexpectedly. A nostalgia was within her, but she knew she must continue, direct her own life and maintain this motion before it dwindled into inertia. She exhaled and the tear rolled down. Looking out toward the horizon she dabbed her cheek, then gently sat upright. Her journey was only just beginning.
Tübingen born, then Frankfurt raised Berlin artist - Johannes Klingebiel, unleashes a potent and untiringly emotive work for the fourth imprint on Amsterdam’s Bloomer Records. A man of many disciplines, he combines his background in jazz drumming with an insatiable appetite for all varieties of electronic music.
Beginning with fond nostalgia that is juxtaposed by the driving motion of organic breakbeats, one is immediately engulfed. Rich synth leads play on minor chord variations to begin and work towards complex and richly cinematic compositions. After the first four tracks, ‘Break Something’ stutters in with a club-ready feel. Capable of both at-home and party environments, this thought-provoking release cannot be boxed into clear-cut categories.
Johannes Klingebiel uses delicate percussion skills to speak to his electronic orchestra. His lust for crisp, clean breaks results in an often inexorable motion that punctuates pensive chords and crescendos. Beginning with breakbeat variations the release ebbs towards half-time drum structures, IDM and experimental expressions later on. Among these quirky and often nostalgic gems, one can find a few driving and noticeably danceable numbers, offering glimpse of familiarity amidst emotive and inquisitive soundscapes.
• Gil Scott-Heron’s “Pieces Of A Man” is one of the most important albums in the history of black American music. Although it didn’t set the charts alight, it stands as a masterpiece alongside contemporary works such as Marvin Gaye’s “What’s Going On”, Curtis Mayfield’s debut LP, Funkadelic's “Maggot Brain” and Isaac Hayes’ “Shaft”. All were brilliant in their way, but lyrically Scott-Heron was on a different level from almost every other writer.
• It was a landmark album with its bold, poetic lyrical content allied to progressive and melodic music, and it saw producer Bob Thiele help Gil and his musical partner Brian Jackson paint the picture they needed to get their message across. Thiele put Gil and Brian together with Ron Carter, Hubert Laws and Bernard Purdie, giving them the musical heft they wanted.
• For many years the focus was on ‘The Revolution Will Not Be Televised’, which was included in the Grammy Hall Of Fame in 2014, but this focus sometimes overshadowed the heights which Gil reached throughout the album. Today ‘Home Is Where The Hatred Is’ and ‘Lady Day And John Coltrane’ are also considered standards, whilst the album’s title track is a prescient and heart-breaking warning about the way in which big business dehumanises its workers.
• The album reached its landmark 50th year in 2021 and we decided that we would create this special edition to celebrate its incredible sound. The original master tape was taken to Frank Merritt at The Carvery in London, who cut it as a double disc 2 x 45 RPM record, in an all-analogue chain. The original record - especially side two - was long, and serving it up this way allowed the music a greater level of fidelity.
• The release is packaged in the original album’s gatefold sleeve.
Embrace individualism to improve the community.
With personality loss and society standardization as the background theme, Ownlife's label boss brings his imprint back to the spotlight.
Leiras returns to his natural habitat delivering a five tracker record, combining the traditional signature sound with new textures and tonal palette.
A new chapter in the chronicles, this time, full of dance floor focused straight jams.
(Produced, Arranged and Conducted by Claus Ogerman)
Not long after the dawn of her career, as a teenager in Rio de Janeiro, Joyce was declared “one of the greatest singers” by Antonio Carlos Jobim. Yet despite reputable accolades and the fact that she has since recorded over thirty acclaimed albums, Joyce never quite achieved the international recognition of the likes of Jobim, João Gilberto and Sergio Mendes, all of whom became global stars after releasing with major labels in the US.
There was a moment when it seemed she might be on the cusp of an international breakthrough. While living in New York, Joyce was approached by the great German producer Claus Ogerman. Ogerman had already played a pivotal role in the development and popularisation of Brazilian music in the 1960s, recording with some of the all-time greats like Jobim and João Gilberto, as well as North American idols like Frank Sinatra, Billie Holiday and Bill Evans.
"I met him in New York City, in 1977”, recalls Joyce. “I was living and playing there, and João Palma, Brazilian drummer who used to play with Jobim, introduced me to Claus. We had an audition, he liked what we were doing and decided to produce an album with us.”
Featuring fellow Brazilian musicians Mauricio Maestro (who wrote/co-wrote four of the songs), Nana Vasconcelos and Tutty Moreno, and some of the most in-demand stateside players including Michael Brecker, Joe Farrell and Buster Williams, the recordings for Natureza took place at Columbia Studios and Ogerman produced the album, provided the arrangements and conducted the orchestra.
But mysteriously, Natureza was never released, and what should have been Joyce’s big moment never happened. As Joyce remembers, “I returned home, but Claus and I remained in contact, by letters and phone calls. He was very enthusiastic about the album and tried to hook me up with Michael Franks. He wanted me to go back to NYC in order to re-record the vocals in English with new lyrics, which I actually wasn’t too happy about. But then I got pregnant with my third child and could not leave Brazil. And little by little our contact became rare, until I lost track of him completely. And that was it. I never heard from him again."
While Claus was known to be something of an elusive character, the album’s disappearance might also have been a result of timing. The Brazilian craze was coming to an end, making way for disco and new wave at the end of the seventies, and Ogerman struggled to find a major label interested in a new Brazilian sensation. Additionally, as Joyce mentions, it wasn’t quite finished. Ogerman wanted to add finishing touches to the mix and to record alternative English lyrics for the US and international markets - a critical artistic difference between Joyce and Ogerman.
As the military dictatorship’s grip on Brazil began to subside in the 1980s, Joyce had a handful of hits in her home county, including a tribute to her daughters ‘Clareana’, and the iconic ‘Feminina’ - an intergenerational conversation between mother and daughter about what it means to be a woman. But already a feminist pioneer, these successes were hard fought. Joyce had caused controversy as a nineteen-year-old when she became the first in Brazil to sing from the first-person feminine perspective, and the institutional sexism she faced was worsened by the dictatorship who would often censor her music. Even once the Junta was out of the way, Joyce found herself up against the male-dominated major record companies in Brazil, who sought to dictate her career and sexualise her image, before dropping her for refusing to play along.
A few years after the success of her albums Feminina and Agua E Luz in Brazil, Joyce’s music began to find its way to the UK, Europe and Japan, and “Feminina” and “Aldeia de Ogum” became classics on the underground jazz-dance scenes of the mid to late-eighties and early-nineties.
The full-length version of “Feminina” from the Natureza sessions was first heard on a Brazilian Jazz compilation in 1999 and “Descompassadamente” was licensed for a CD compiling the work of Claus Ogerman in 2002. Following these, word began to get out about an unreleased Joyce album with Claus Ogerman and the legend of Natureza grew.
Forty-five years since it was recorded, Natureza finally sees the light of day, as Joyce intended: with her own Portuguese lyrics and vocals. Featuring the fabled 11-minute version of ‘Feminina’, as well as the never before heard ‘Coração Sonhador’ composed and performed by Mauricio Maestro, Natureza’s release is a landmark in Brazilian music history and represents a triumphant, if overdue victory for Joyce as an outspoken female artist who has consistently refused to bow to patriarchal pressure.
***Disclaimer! While “Feminina” and “Descompassadamente'' were mixed by legendary engineer Al Schmitt and mastered from the original master tapes, the remaining five tracks are unmixed. Due to significant deterioration of the master-tapes, the best audio source for these tracks was an unmixed tape copy Joyce had kept of the recordings. The best care has been taken in the restoration and mastering of this release, but the sound quality may differ from other releases on Far Out Recordings. We advise listening to sound clips before buying where possible.
After a long hiatus, Rotate is back for its 8th release. "Inner Space EP" by the duo Abé & Lowris as Labello is a three-track 12-inch with a strong focus on psychedelic sounds, warped vocals, hypnotic synths and finely-tuned drum programming.
Like yin and yang, both tracks on the A-side of the EP display exquisitely opposed tones crafted for distinct dancefloor moments. The bright, funky and appropriately named 'Goodtimes' stands very different from the dark, cinematic and thrilling 'Invisible Red'. Still, ensembled, they serve as a statement on the raw potential of sonic hypnotization, where shuffling grooves, wacky melodies and cinematic atmospheres work together to set the dancer's minds into a seemingly perpetual state of flow. B-side's extended cut 'Pkaila' is one of the deepest arrangements here, reminiscent of the golden age of techno minimalism where dancefloors needed little more than a rolling groove, shuffling drums and impeccable sound design slapping from its sound systems.
Bandcamp buyers also get "FCT", an exclusive downloadable bonus 18-minute jam that further showcases Labello's explorational side, rounding off "Inner Space" in a delightfully varied manner.
The album began to take shape duringJanuary 2019.
It has been recorded live by Matt Bordin ad Inside Outside
Studio, in Veneto, Italy. The choice of this method is due to the
desire to avoid the use of any post-production tool, to
maintain a natural sound and a hard impact on the listener.
"Robox" is made of nine instrumental songs characterized with
A furious post-punk full of violent and high impact riffs.
The artwork has been realized by Lacy Faery: nine monstrous
creatures, everyone of which portrays a song.
The cover art is the final portrait: the representation of
Dante's infernal journey, here embodied by the Robox, who
goes through the nine circles of Hell and faces the ancestral
traumas that affect the human psyche during its
trasformative path.
On Oct. 14th "Hard Pop" - first official single, published along
with a video - has been released.
The video has been realized by Mauro Romanzi in the ''lounge''
room of the Astro Club in Fontanafredda.
In few days the video reached more than 10k views on Youtube.
A red suite, a robot mask, violent riffs and
furious post-punk: this is Robox.
Francesco “Cesco” Cescato – Bass
Carlo Veneziano (One Dimensional Man, Orfaust, Julinko) – Guitar
Franz Valente (Il Teatro Degli Orrori, Buñuel, Snare Drum Exorcism) – Drums The Robox project was born out of the idea of making music that points towards future and innovation. This music wants to escape
from the monotony and from general music trends of the music industry.
The band uses the sound as a carrier for the lightning of the senses, to give a strong emotional shake to whoever listens to it.
After a long period made of musical experiences and geographical
distance, the Robox project starts to take shape in 2016.
During this period the songs start to sound defined, also because of
the practice coming from the first live shows.
Cesco, struck by a vision, since the first gigs starts to go on stage with a specific outfit: a bright red suite and a golden mask, evoking the image of a robotic man, the Robox: a superhero that fights the eternal struggle between instinct and reason.
Upcoming album 'Fruit Of The Void' to be released later this fall.
Kosmo Sound is a perfect balance of tight rhythms and extended melodies, and they constantly strive to push boundaries with their sound. Having worked together with dub legends Daniel Boyle and Alpha & Omega and having played as the support act for Adrian Sherwood, The Twinkle Brothers and Omar Perry, heavily inspired, they took refuge in the studio to record this album full of meditative sounds and dense grooves.
“It's a slow motion dub explosion.” - Woodburner
“As a mixture of Slimmah Sound, El Michels Afffair and Khruangbin in which deep dub basses flirt with thin desert blues guitars, jazzy drum patterns and tufts of saxophone.” - Indiestyle
“The canvas that these six musicians span as Kosmo Sound has a musical breadth that effortlessly ranges from dub over jazz to psych.” - daMusic
"an amalgation of styles that tickle the senses" - ReggaeVibes
“This remarkable debut makes one curious about future releases” – Irie Ites
With UPGRADES, Fogata Sounds imprint nearly 20 years of collaboration between Troy Berkley & Krak in Dub. This opus follows half a dozen maxi 45's and 300 gigs across Europe, from the One Love Festival to the underground sound system nights. The vocalist and the producer skills take you on a journey into “Sound System” music, from Early Roots to Future Dance-Hall, oscillating between Dub and Jungle. Those styles appear like solar polaroids , bringing images to the minds of neophytes and music lovers. 12 effective and original tunes mixing analog instrumentals like in “Life pon the line” or “CrystalBall” to the uncompromising Stepper from « Roll Call ». Featuring the big tune « Matta » and to singles « Dub plate Dada » et « Sound and Power » feat Sr Wilson.
The treasure chest that just keeps on giving. Another refreshing, reissued dose of solid gold UKG heaters from one of the finest garage acts of the ‘90s, 24hr Experience. Highlighted here, the first EP under the 24hr Experience name from Grant Nelson and Simon Firmin back in 1994 - Dub Essentials Part 1.
Samples galore, grooves upon grooves and that sweet swing to keep the bodies moving. Five iconic cuts from skippy vocal bumpers to percussive workouts and bass heavy whompers, this ain’t one to miss.
Tiger Stripes returns to Drumcode for his annual EP outing, crafting a pair of blue-ribbon dancefloor weapons inspired by the night.
The Swedish artist is a cherished act on the label, his involvement with DC going back to 2009. One of the most creative in his field, he typically mines influence from across the musical spectrum. Indeed, a Tiger Stripes track could employ subtle nods to everything from rock and pop, to reggae and hip hop, all seamlessly integrated into a dynamic techno palette.
For his latest outing, he's drawn on his love of classical music, specifically Chopin, for the powerful ‘Nocturne’. "I loved listening to his compositions as a toddler when my mother played her vinyls for me. I still love and listen to his piano music today and it might be where my taste for drama comes from. In my ears his music still sounds very modern and cool,” he tells. 'Nocturne' switches between driving dancefloor business and a lilting piano-laden break, the energy amplified by his peak-time arrangements.
In ‘Renegade’, his love of rock, electronica and indie is at the fore, as propulsive techno rhythms give way to an emotion-charged mid-section laden with breakbeats. When the beats kick back in, we’re lobbed back into exhilarating laser-kissed territory.
Hailing from Bahrain, sensational and suave producer Zone+ has just rolled out his very first Satya EP titled For Angels. If angels danced, they would flap their wings and soar from just hearing his contagious beats. Expect full body thrills with some emotional chills, as Zone+ delivers signature sounds that are crafted for freeing yourself on the dancefloor and in the outdoors. Optimal listening time? Rest assured - these four tracks will get you rising at dawn and grooving till dusk.
So who’s this mysterious master of deep hypnotic grooves? We’ll happily tell you. Currently based in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, Zone+ balances the art of creating depth and levels in his music to make his crowd move yet fly through emotional landscapes. Widely known for his mesmerizing sets and memorable productions, Zone+ naturally makes his mark on dance floors all over the world. Starting off as a club resident in Soundscapes Bahrain, he has since continued his musical escapades being an integral part of the growing underground movement in the region.
“I always connect with people and love historical things, buildings and old stories.” - Zeyad Mohsen, Zone+
For Angels epitomizes Zone+ for its recognizable grooviness, always generating a playful yet dreamy soundscape for solo or group listening. Adding in eerie and floaty undertones, Zone+ creates a one of a kind narrative within For Angels, alluring the listener to learn more as the tracks progress.
