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Upon examining the eventful life of Can bassist Holger Czukay,
one might conclude that this intrepid musician was a loner. His
turbulent career exuded an enduring eccentricity governed by a
boundless free spirit. Yet Czukay, who passed away
unexpectedly last year at the age of 79, constantly emphasized
that his creativity was always contingent upon a musical
partner, whether that was a skin-and-bones counterpart or an
anonymous manifestation that interacted with him through
radio waves or, as happened later, the internet. Nonetheless,
most of his partners were of flesh and blood.
His oeuvre, which is in itself cinematic in nature, boasts a cast
worthy of a Martin Scorsese film. Only the most interesting
character actors were cast: Brian Eno, Phew, Rolf Dammers,
David Sylvian, Annie Lennox, Jah Wobble, his Can bandmates...
the list could go on and on.
Many of these masterpieces are now out of print, so Groenland
Records, who already released the highly acclaimed
retrospective 'CINEMA' to mark the occasion of Holger's 80th
birthday at the beginning of the year, has taken it upon
themselves to release reissues of Holger's music in order to
make it accessible once again.

"This is a live album that was taken from the tour for YTILAER. Songs tend to mutate after they"ve been recorded. These songs were mutating faster than usual. Like whatever happened to Bruce Banner in the lab - I knew these songs were about to get superpowers. As far as I was concerned, this change needed to be documented. The best thing about documenting something is that it gives the creator permission to move on should they wish to move on. I usually prefer to move on. These songs were recorded in Chicago, America"s heart. And at one of the best clubs in the country - I try to only work with venues that are not entangled with LiveNation/Ticketmaster. Thalia Hall, baby. Stay free. The date was mid-point in the tour, so I knew we"d be as hot as we were going to get. Not too green, not too brown. There was the thought, "let"s take this op to make it something special." So we took advantage of Chicago"s easily accessible players - we got Nick Mazzarella to add alto sax to one song, and from the opening band, Pascal Kerong"A to sing on a song, and Nathaniel Ballinger on piano on one song - and I couldn"t pass up the opportunity to invite Joshua Abrams and Lisa Alvarado to play on "Natural Information." The hardest part of making the record was cutting songs out - it could have been a triple album. But I don"t know, maybe the show should have been this short?" - Bill Callahan

Ruby Red - Transparent - Galaxy effect vinyl in dub style jacket (jacket sleeve with center hole cut out so label of LP shows through) a black paper inner sleeve and poly bag.

PART ONE’ METAL HAMMER - 8/10 review. FOR FANS OF : Lustmord, Om, Sunn O))) . “An exercise in freeform ambience, ritualistic repetition and the rapturous, womb-like power of bass…strange and affecting. We remain lucky to share in the great man’s vision.”


At its heart, music has always been a questioning of inheritance – a dialogue with predecessors and forebears, the forging of one’s own perspective in relation to what has come before, and for some, a plunge into the boundless realms between. For Steve Von Till, that process has always taken on an added dimension to become the most sacred of tasks. Whether through the apocalyptic uprising of Neurosis, the sonic deconstructions of their sister project, Tribes of Neurot, the invocatory intimacy of his eponymous solo albums or his instrumental psychedelic reveries in the guise of Harvestman, that dialogue has never just been with musical influences, but with what underpins them: the primordial, elemental forces now banished to the peripheries of our contemporary consciousness, yet still broadcasting a signal for all who will listen.
Drawn to the megaliths, ruins and ancient sites mapped out along the British and European mainland’s geographical and psychic landscapes, the folklore and apocrypha forever resurfacing as portals from a rational world, “Triptych” is a meditation forged from traces and residues, and an hallucinatory recollection of artists who have tapped into that enduring otherworldliness embedded within us all. It’s a dream diary narrating a passage through Summer Isle where Flying Saucer Attack are wafting out of a window, a distant Fairport Convention are being remixed by dub master Adrian Sherwood, celestial scanners Tangerine Dream are trying to drown out Bert Jansch and Hawkwind are playing Steeleye Span covers, all prised out of time yet bound to its singularity.
Woven together from home studio recordings that span two decades, this latest outing as Harvestman finds parallels with nature’s cycles not just in its release dates but in the repeated structure that binds each album, like an imprint refracted through three separate strata. As with April’s “Part One” and the forthcoming “Part Three”, “Part Two”, starts on a collaboration with Om bassist and long-term friend of Steve’s, Al Cisneros, with a dub take opening the B-Side. Here, the opening track, “The Hag Of Beara Vs The Poet”’s languid, tribal groove expands into a chromatic wash, like an endless drip of oil spreading out under a midsummer haze.
A filtering of the alpha-state travelogues of its predecessor, “Part Two” reaches even deeper into primal yet pristine states. It journeys from the undulating drone and slow-thawing wonder of “The Falconer”, as if the Myst soundtrack were being broadcast from outer space, through “Damascus”’s perpetual-motion, dreamtime bazaar and “Vapour Phase”s seismograph frequencies measuring supernatural tremors to “The Unjust Incarceration”s distorted bagpipes, sounding a noise-frayed lament
If “Triptych” is a multi- and extra-sensory experience, it extends to the remarkable glyph-style artwork of Henry Hablak, a map of correspondences from a long-forgotten ancient and advanced civilization. As with “Triptych” itself, it’s an echo from another time, an act of binding, a guide to be endlessly reinterpreted, and a signpost to the sacred that might not indicate where to look, but how.

"The Anthology" wurde ursprünglich 1999 veröffentlicht und enthält die erfolgreichsten Tracks aller ATCQ-Alben bis zu diesem Zeitpunkt, wie z.B. "Can I Kick It" (275m+ Streams), "Electric Relaxation" (160m+ Streams) und "Vivrant Thing" (50m+ Streams), sowie Songs aus Soundtracks. Auch dieses Album war außerhalb der USA seit vielen Jahren nicht mehr auf Vinyl erhältlich und erscheint jetzt als schwarzes 2LP-Vinyl-Set.

Lange vermisste Hip-Hop-Scheiben sind endlich wieder auf Vinyl erhältlich - A TRIBE CALLED QUESTs "The Low End Theory" mit den Kult-Tracks "Check The Rhime", "Jazz (We Got)" und "Scenario" gilt weithin als ihr Meisterwerk, und dieses einflussreiche Album ist außerhalb der USA seit vielen Jahren nicht mehr auf Vinyl erhältlich gewesen. Erscheint als 2LP-Set auf schwarzem Vinyl.

DJ Support: DJ Support by Spiller, Alex from Tokyo, Coyote, Fango, Pete Gooding, Ally Tropical, Steve Cobby, Gold Suite, Luca Averna, Will Nicol, Danilo Braca, La Guardia De La Luz

Federico Costantini aka Luminodisco is back on Hell Yeah having long since assured his legacy with the label. Over the years, the Italian has dropped many cult and still widely played cuts here from across the disco-sphere ('Ragazzini,' 'Diavolo di un Disco,' 'Oh Mary' and more all still bang) and now he is back with a newly moved sound. A compulsion to produce something with "a more adult approach" is what defines this latest era, and a fine one it is too. Opener 'Solero' will surely become as revered as those classics above with its irresistible grooves guaranteed to bring ultimate dance floor satisfaction. The punchy drums are peppered with percussion and drum fills while gloriously sugary chords add the heat and wispy pads take things into cosmic realms. 'Jazzclub' is an unhinged rhythmic interlude that chops up vocal stabs, screwy synths and whirring machines into stomping brilliance then 'Bigfoot' slows things to a dubbed out crawl that has you gazing at the twinkling star-like synths. Things then get wonderfully wild on closer 'Soko', a jumble of percussion and tribal vocals over swaggering drum loops. Playful leads bring the sun as the dumpy bass plods on, pixel thin pads squirm all around and a celestial carnival in the sky plays out with irresistible charm.

Prolific visionary Yetsuby makes her debut on all my thoughts with a celestial concept LP that chimes into the deeper, inner emotions.

Yetsuby is the solo project of South Koren artist Yejin Jang. Since 2019 she has carved out a reputation as
something of a prolific visionary, with 6 albums, 7 EPsand a flurry of singles between her two projects to date. Her recent album “My Star, My Planet Earth” received the “best electronic album of 2023" award at the KoreanMusic Awards.

Beyond her solo work Jang is also one half of the critically acclaimed electronic duo Salamanda, which has been featured in Pitchfork, Crack Magazine, and Dj Mag. The duo also host a residency called “shadow dance” on NTS radio. Yetsuby’s debut release on Seb Wilblood’s all my thoughts label is a heartfelt and forward thinking mini LP.

Yetsuby’s debut release on Seb Wilblood’s all my thoughts label is a heartfelt and forward thinking mini LP.
The 6 track release effortlessly chimes into the deeper, inner emotions whilst providing a window into her
abundant breadth of skills through tantalising themes of sonic alchemy.

“I want to put comfort into the music and give some message to people who blame themselves” - Yetsuby

The resulting effect is a release that feels sincere and deeply personal but has a celestial magic about it that feels both kaleidoscopic and transcendent. It effectively creates a world for the listener to inhabit, whilst inviting them to connect with the album’s themes on a personal level.

Adam Beyer continues his elite studio form with ‘Ghost Kiss’.

The boss has been enjoying the most prolific production period of his career in recent times, while reinforcing his sonic range in the process. Recent highlights have included his standout ‘Let’s Begin’ EP which mined classic Drumcode influences, while his remix of Sharam’s PATT (Party All The Time) with Green Velvet and Layton Giordani showed a different side to his repertoire, and delivered his first overall Beatport no.1 along the way.

His latest three-track offering ‘Ghost Kiss’, continues the creative purple patch. The title track sounds like a techno outtake from ‘Requiem for a Dream’s’ soundtrack, deliciously unsettling and striking. This was made for big moments, propelled by a commanding vox that urges us to move our bodies. ‘Pilot’ shows Beyer’s musical breadth and commanding sound design, taking in elements of synth wave and indie pop all within a driving techno context. A captivating listen. The finale ‘Jack’, continues the inspired sonic referencing; a narrative-led dancefloor jaunt that takes in subtle elements house and electro, with Beyer’s unique twist.

DJ Support: Saorise, Moxie and Niks

Semi Delicious return for their 19th edition via label head Demi Riquisimo’s ‘Perilous Joy’ EP.

The 5 track release effortlessly meshes the classic influences synonymous with the Semi Delicious sound whist maintaining a forward thinking approach to the dance floor.

The A-side consists of ‘Sinewinder’ & ‘Direct Fix’. A pair of four to four tools that can be noted for their functionality as much as their unique sound. ‘Sinewinder’ being a more diva, big room affected track and ‘Direct Fix’ airing on the side of deepness with a head turning bass line. The flip kicks off with the title track ‘Perilous Joy’ which offers a nod to the sonics of dreamy, progressive Italian house of yesteryear. Up next is ‘Thyme After Time’ and with it more psychedelic house deepness. Demi slows the pace on the balearic chugger Autoglide’ to close out yet another impressive outing for one of 2024’s most talked about imprints.

The widely beloved Romanian producer and DJ Barac delivers his new EP ‘Hypnotic Grayscale’ via Yecad this May, comprising three original compositions across the vinyl only release.

Since his debut release over a decade ago, Bucharest, Romania’s Barac has grown to become one of the most prized producers and DJ’s in the microhouse movement coming out of his home turf. A name synonymous with high quality, subtly nuanced and hypnotic grooves tightly woven together to create a sound that’s distinctly his and has found a home on many reputed labels such as Meander, Pressure Traxx, Adam’s Bite and of course his own Shamandrum. Here though, we see Barac joining the roster of Yecad, a fledgling London based imprint that has played host to music from Sepp, Vlad Arapusu, Mihai Pol, Dragutesku and Constratti since its inception in 2023.

The title-track ‘Hypnotic Grayscale’ opens the EP and encapsulates all that is loved about Barac’s productions, delicately unfurling atmospherics, haunting voices and softly reverberated chimes intertwined with airy dub chords and stripped back drums.
Following to open the B-Side is ‘Everything that is seen comes from the unseen’, stripping things back to a rawer, percussive driven state with crisp drums and a bubbling acid- tinged bass line carry the groove while sporadic resonant flutters and vocal murmurs ebb and flow within. ‘He restores my soul’ then rounds out the EP and sees Barac explore his more experimental side, fusing together ghostly synth melodies, echoing chords, spiraling resonant swells and a hypnotic Romanian spoken word vocal.

Während ihr Stones Throw-Debüt Overstand instrumental war, fühlten sich Apifera bei den Aufnahmen zu Keep The Outside Open zu einer intimeren Herangehensweise bereit. Sie ließen ihrer Vorstellungskraft freien Lauf und verpackten persönliche Alltagsgeschichten in Fantasie und fiktive Charaktere.
Die Mitglieder von Apifera - Nitai Hershkovits, Yuvi Havkin, Yonatan Albalak und Amir Bresler - sind alle tief in ihrer musikalischen Community verwurzelt: Yuvi veröffentlicht als Rejoicer elektronischen Jazz, Yonatan ist Frontmann der Post-Rock/Psych-Jazz-Band Geshem, Amirs Gruppe Liquid Saloon mischt Afrobeat mit Jazz-Funk, und Nitai ist vor allem für seine Solo-Piano-Platten bekannt, von denen ein Album 2023 bei ECM erschien. Für den Schlusssong des Albums, „Sera Sam“, haben sie ihren Freund, den Trompeter Avishai Cohen, mit ins Boot geholt. Der Titel des neuen Albums entstand, nachdem jemand nach einem Auftritt in ihrem Lieblings-Jazzclub gerufen hatten: „We're closing the outside“. Keep The Outside Open ist ein Appell an die Welt, offen zu bleiben. Zu ihrem freien und wilden Zustand zurückzukehren.

Matthias Koch isa totalnutcaseDJ and producer of some o’the fiercest music ever to come out of Germany.Fromstarting out DJing and creating musicat the beginning of 2000, playing frequently in many of Germany’s notoriously fiendish clubs, an untimely long break of 17 years beckoneddue to unforeseen circumstances. However, he’s now back and ready to turn up the bass once morein search of a new balance in his free time. Franticallyproducingsince 2022, he’squickly developed his ownbrutalstyle, instantly catching the feverish ears of RIOT Radio Records as it’s definitely, defiantlyand undeniably not off-the-peg techno!Continuing with the ‘Limited As Fuck’ series of releases, on our fiercely independent techno label based in Scotland,we’re immensely proud to present Matthias Koch’s first evervinyl release.This is one of the most whackin’, jackin’ and beat crankin’ releases to have ever appeared on our label. Featuring six lethal stompers for the darkest of dance floors and smoke filled basements, each track a lesson in how to pound ravers into submission. Withadditional intrinsicallycontortedmachinations by Nomad, JoeFarr, Angelsand othervice-ridden vintagedemonic consoles, Low Entropy’s Doom laden ‘Stripped’remix for example, this release isgonna leaveyou bewilderedlybeatento the core. The full digital release also features twobonusmonsterous tracks, one of which isarelentlesslyfierce 303 mangling by the acid mastermind himself,Bdacid. Scream if you wanna go faster ..................

WARNING: RIOTous ANGELICSCREAMERS WILL ALWAYS TURN INTO RENEGADES

Debut album by N.W.A and pioneering 'gangsta rap' album - including Dr Dre, Eazy-E and Ice Cube. Download included.

Repress

M.O.S. are celebrating the 4th anniversary of their Melody Of the Soul imprint with an exclusive vinyl-only Ep entitled 'Ask The Universe'. This very special release showcases 4 outstanding tracks, carefully crafted to ignite the dancefloor with its hypnotic rhythms and soul-stirring melodies.

2024 Repress

Make The Ting is a project born out of my writing on creativity that lives online as post it style notes known as the ‘Yellow Squares’ found across Instagram and Twitter. The first square was posted on July 31st 2021, as covid-19 restrictions were lifting in the UK and I was thinking about what the music scenes and wider creative communities are after 18 months of lockdown. The idea’s developed into lectures presenting them in real life, but the platform felt right to explore my own creativity more broadly to challenge my own ideas in real time. My history as a DJ, Label Owner and Promoter in the Grime scene wasn’t at the forefront of these ideas, but I wanted to reconnect back to the ecosystem that inspired and gave me a creative career in the first place. Blay Vision’s ‘Cammy Riddim’ in the summer of 2022 inspired an idea to translate the ideas in the squares into song form. I approached Grime MC Jammz about the idea, and the first song ‘Yellow Square’ was done with the core principles that I had written about so far. 6 months passed, and while on a Muay Thai retreat in Thailand in February 2023 I thought about expanding the musical side of the Yellow Squares further. I text Jammz about turning this idea into an album, that we make as quickly as possible using my writing as a guide, and his voice and creativity to turn them into songs. We gave ourselves two weeks, set up a shared notes in iPhone did two zoom meetings, one phone call, exchanged messages on iMessage and he wrote 7 songs in a week, then recorded them all in one day at Ten 87 Studios in Tottenham, London. Jammz wrote all of the songs to one of his own beats, then we selected the final instrumentals we liked that we thought fit the ideas from both our camps the day before recording. The speed forced our hands creatively and it would have been a completely different project if we worked on it for months. Time is the creative director. Albums don’t have to be blockbuster projects with big budgets and huge campaigns behind them. Albums are just collections of ideas. Removing the pressure of trying to make a perfect one meant it got done and released with the least stress possible. Even the business of the album took 5 mins to handle. An equal revenue split on each song between me, Jammz, and the producer. Everyone gets paid quarterly into their own account automatically by our distributor. On announcement of the album in March 2023, we released the acapellas, for people to do their own versions, before most of the original songs had been heard by anyone. We encouraged people to Remix The Ting, and I did custom artwork for everyone that sent me a complete remix before the album came out on the 30th June 2023. The front covers are drawn individually by me. I wanted to make the record an extension of what I do with the yellow squares themselves and capture the energy of where my head is at in 2023. If it’s blank, it’s space for you to draw your own yellow square. Maybe what you think about the album, what it’s inspired for you, or just a snapshot of where your creative brain is at on the day you are picking up this record. This could be the first of many albums, this could be a one off. Nobody knows what is going to happen next. It all may make sense in the end – Elijah

Repress!

As ever, the next project on Opilec Music is one with a rich back story this time paying homage to a very specific disco scene of the early 80s: it finds label boss I-Robots turning out one of his brilliant reconstructions, namely of a classic and cult track by one hit wonders Ahzz.

Once upon a time on planet -M-E-L-M-A-K- two teenagers visiting
their grand parents at their village compound were blissfully sleeping
late in the morning when a LOUD BANG!!! made them jump off their
beds. The bewilderment quickly grew into confusion of how was this
possible and then into respect. It appeared to be a soviet era polish
made vacuum tube TV set thrown out the window of the 2nd floor of
the house. Grandfather was doing the spring cleaning of the house,
obviously, the Balkan way – almost meeting the criteria to qualify for
Valhalla! The old cathode ray tube usually being under pressure as a
technology were famous to make a loud violent and deeply sounding
burst when broken that it reminded us a heavy drum machine and the
almost perfect and most brutal and deep and powerful bass drum we
have ever heard. So, us… being techno freaks by that time and
fascinated by the idea of techno music inspired and recreating the
heavy industry and machinery in an auricular way – we took a field
recorder, found another old TV set of the make and…. threw it out the
window… while recording all the sounds coming out of the impact ?
Later dissected and re-looped and re-worked through sampling here’s
a record that’s been years overdue in the making.

Although all three tracks offer the listener valuable insight into the level of music production ingenuity that was going on in Japan at the time, it's "Electric City" that really stands out as an unmistakably unique dancefloor track, where the then teenage female vocalists from Shohjo-Tai are left out and a galloping 120BPM beat sets a blank canvas for a number of unexpected elements to present: completely unorthodox accents in a wide range of unidentifiable sounds, a very enthusiastic electric guitar solo, the Ennio Morricone-esque Spaghetti Western vocal moments, all of which get contrasted with a blissful chorus that reminds one that this is somehow still a collaboration with a Japanese female idol band from the 80s. A hard track to forget even in the less sober dancefloors, it is no surprise that it would be a fundamental secret weapon in the repertoire of diggers such as Dea Barandana. Can't go wrong, buy on sight. Remastered with new artwork.

Benny Howell (aka DJ Subaru) is a UK based producer, DJ and overall promoter of good times who's undoubtedly propelling a new generation of music appreciation with an honourable respect for the earlier beginnings of club culture. Benny Howell might also be the pioneer of a new post-Brexit Eurodance genre, with "Surrender", a catchy Pop oriented production with strong influences from Italodisco and HiNRG, written and produced entirely from scratch with best friend Bella Quirin who co-wrote the lyrics after a break up with her ex. Innocent and charming lyrics over 120's BPM drum machine and a simple melody that you'll be humming in the back of your mind for days to come. Equipped with a Yamaha TX81Z, a few guitar pedals and a makeshift bedroom studio, "Surrender" is the product of a dear friendship between the two music lovers, as per Benny's recount: "Bella came and sung on the track in my bedroom during one of the gaps between Covid lockdowns after I asked her at the pub if she knew any singers and said me of course, and we went from just friends to best friends."
The remix on the B-side by Castro takes a darker turn into what almost sounds like a Techno version with heavy dubbed out effects taking the "Surrender" theme through an unhinged Ketamine flanger vortex. Full cover artwork and mastered at Manmade mastering in Berlin.

The record ‘Rīgas Elektromašīnbūves Rūpnīca (RER)’ has many distinctive characteristics. I would like to draw listeners’ attention to the fact that the recording was made with 16 microphones in an abandoned factory in Sarkandaugava (Rīga, Latvia). Over two days, KODEK recorded how the music sounds specifically in this vast space – how the window panes vibrate, how the metal lockers rattle, and how the sound waves propagate uniquely. This created a special and unparalleled musical sound. In this record, KODEK not only plays musical instruments but also the space itself, resulting in an added value or a new chapter in the history of world music – The Sound of Sarkandaugava. – Kaspars Rolšteins Artist bio: Musician Raivo Vainovskis, widely known as KODEK represents a narrow nonacademic electronic music genre while having proven his excellence and gained international recognition performing in countless electronic and experimental music festivals like CTM Festival in Berlin, Amsterdam Dance Event in Amsterdam, Cynetart Festival in Dresden, MUTEK festival in Montreal among others. KODEK is a core figure behind the globally acclaimed Latvian electronic music instrument manufacturer Erica Synths and often uses their synthesizers in his work. Since 2011 he co-organizes experimental music mini-festival Brīnumu Nakts in his native city of Madona which is one of the rare occurrences of such events outside the Latvian capital Riga. Since 2005 both in his releases and live performances he challenges his audiences with his unique stage presence and sonic aesthetic that is rooted in the spirit of truly independent music and art. KODEK has been nominated (and has won) The Annual Latvian Music Recording Award in the category ‘’The best electronic music album’’ for his ‘’Flavours From The Future’’ LP in 2012.

Temporize focuses on putting out diverse and leftfield electronic music with no real boundaries. The label is based in Palermo, Italy and is run by Scottish native Maiú DJ. Mastering: Martin Maischein Artwork painting: Janne Räisänen Photography: Jussi Jääskeläinen Design: Juha Puuperä Gruth: Black arts, misanthropy & abhorrence KuJo: Original violin, cello and kantele recordings Igor Souza: Throat singing on track 6

Modern Soul Anthem - features Backstabbers' sample
Includes Hex Hector remix

Resonance is one of the most powerful forces this world has,
simply because there is no way to stop it. A drop of
condensed water separates itself from the concrete ceiling.
Propelled only by its own weight, it plummets down towards
a cacophony of naked bodies and §ailing arms to shatter on
a the forehead of an ecstatic dancer. And while all this is
happening, a voice resonates through the entire room,
making the walls shake and the crowd lose themselves even
further : “Move Your Body, Move Your Soul”. Narciss emerges
from a grimey basement in Berlin to bring us two heavy
utility dance§oor cuts on Actions Speak Louder Than Words,
his ¦rst Solo EP on Seelen. The title track is truly something
to behold. With a breakneck tempo, hard hitting percussions
and a legendary house vocal, it wields an absolutely
hypnotizing power that, before you know it, will make
everyone in attendance grind and juke till the early morning
hours. There is a palpapable vibe of mid 90s Detroit-Techno
but still it manages to cut out an identity for its own, with
razor sharp sound-design and a very uplifting attitude for its
genre. And while the tracks arrangement and sound-design is
very minimal, it is on Brennpunkt that Narciss really §exes
his trademark way of building tension with remarkably few
elements. Everything here is stripped down to its most
functional core. The synth-lead is simple yet menacing, the
kick-drum hits like a boxer, and you can be pretty sure that
the hihats will leave burns if you get too close to the record.
As is custom on this label, the B-side is dedicated to thereconstructive efforts of friends or family. This time the
mastermind of Manhigh and Grounded Theory, Mr. Henning
Baer, and Seelen’s very own Shaleen have both let their
actions speak. Henning Baer has taken on the title track in
his Remix and has transformed it into a true vintage electro
cut. A distorted synth and pad add heavy grit to the original’s
vocal, and the warehouse sized kickdrum will knock anyone
unprepared off their feet. Meanwhile Shaleen’s reinterpretation of Brennpunkt strips it down even further,
swirling the original’s elements into a groovy maelstrom.
This version rumbles, clicks and sneers, with sampled voices
from a Shakespeare play giving the whole ordeal a truly
macabre feeling. This is a tool for only the most darkest of
warehouses when the night is at its peak. So now, to
summarize this record : it is a call to action. And because of
this, it continues to resonate, even when the last track has
been played. And a resonance can never be stopped.

Cinthie returns to her 803 Crystal Grooves label with You Know How EP German mainstay offers up three varied and vital house weapons to relaunch her label after 2.5 year hiatus Cinthie is one the most revered voices in underground house music and has been for more than a decade. Her take on the genre always puts the groove first.

It is informed by the classics but with a contemporary edge and comes on 803 Crystal Grooves as well as cultured outlets like Aus Music and Heist. As a DJ she mixes up records from her vast collection with equal style and skill, and is also now live artist who serves up impromptu jams on her collection of hardware.

Hot on the heels of several remixes already this year, the Elevate. Berlin record store boss is back with a new release just three days before her birthday. As a gift to herself she is relaunching her label after a 2.5 year hiatus due to pressing plant delays during the pandemic.

Opener 'You Know How' is a joyous piano house anthem that will get hands in the air. Classic, smartly deployed vocal samples inject an old-school edge while the textured bass brings serious low-end weight to this utterly timeless gem. The superb 'Mellifluous' rides on smooth drum bumps as waves of synth wash over the dance floor.

They bring feel-good warmth in a subtle, dynamic fashion that locks dancers in for a blissed-out ride. Last of all, 'Can You' swings irresistibly with punchy kicks and dry, raw claps. It's a physical house sound with chopped-up vocal fragments and rolling bass that makes a huge impact.

Cinthie's You Know How EP comes on 803 Crystal Grooves on DATE.

2024 Repress

Mariah was a Japanese outfit in the field of art pop, way back in the very late 70s and early 80s with 5 albums up their score from 1980 to 1983. The album from 1979 entitled as “Mariah” was actually made before the band Mariah was formed, and was released as a solo album by Yasuaki Shimizu. The album at hand is the fifth and for the time being last album in this row, released as a double vinyl back in 1983. Original copies, that are at least in very good condition, are hard to find. The brand new reissue on Everland, unlike the original and the first vinyl reissue from 2015, comes housed in a thick and artfully designed gatefold sleeve with OBI, which finally does justice to the progressive spirit of the music you will find here.

The musical basement of Utakata No Hibi is a fusion of dreamy synthesizer pop and haunting new wave music, that could be found all around the globe back in 1983. In the vein of TEARS FOR FEARS or more adventurous DAVID BOWIE stuff, with a touch of KRAFTWERK or even BRIAN ENO here and there, but all this gets spiced up with an atmosphere of Japanese traditionalism, with a few bits and pieces from the old music from this Far East island, which sounds so magic to us Westeners. The progressive, wacky art pop of this project was led by the popular Japanese composer and musician Yasuaki Shimizu, a relentlessly exploratory saxophonist who even dared to rework Johann Sebastian Bach’s cello suites for saxophone.

As brilliant as this man is, the music on „Utakata No Hibi“ turns out to be. And the master himself approved and much appreciated the brandnew remastering of this album by assisting a highly professional team of sound engineers who dusted off the ancient tape reels. For certain the record sounds and feels 80s through and through, electronic to the very rhythmical bone of each song sugar coated with catchy melodies that resemble Japanese classic and Enka music, which is a kind of folksy pop music. The listener gets directly drawn into a feverish dream of steaming Far Eastern cities and their darkest and most depraved corners where you find everything cheap in sleazy bars and unlighted backyards and alleys. The next moment he strolls through a beautiful Japanese park surrounded by a sea of blossoms. This change in mood and style you will experience in the sparsely instrumented tune „Shisen“, which indeed comes closest to classic Japanese folk tunes without any too catchy and pop oriented melodies. But we certainly find these harmonies allover the album. Some tunes even feel like ancient BEACH BOYS compositions and Brian Wilson creations played by a then contemporary electronic pop act and sung in Japanese.

An amazingly colorful album with songs that are based on solid substance rather than cheap pop structures. This is music for the bold listeners and music lovers and this awesome reissue should quickly find it’s way into the record collections of 80s synth and art pop aficionadoes.

Yasuaki Shimizu did what he wanted with MARIAH, pushed the borders of popular music further than anybody would have thought. Listen to a track like „Shonen“ with a repetitive rhythm pattern that hypnotizes you and somehow silky melodylines by saxophone and synth piano upon which a female voice sings in a very spiritual way. Praising pop or whatever this can be called, it is sheer magic put in music. I wonder if this would have made it into the charts back then, but you never know. It is a piece of musical art that shall be listened to.

After his highly publicized breakup with Taylor Swift at LA’s Viper Room ,Iain Howie returned to Vancouver.

Taylor released “Bad Blonde Boy”, a breakup song about Iain and Iain quickly rebutted with “ Patterns” about Taylor.

He began working on his solo album and got a remix of Patterns by his shady neighbour “Jay Tripwire”. Partly because of the fact Taylor could never stand Tripwire.

Over the course of a year Tripwire churned out 10 different remixes for an alternative vinyl only release. Jay would have his friend Anton play various remixes from his hot dog cart in Bucharest.

One early morning it caught the ear from Cally. Cally had only intended to buy a foot long Frankenfurter after Guesthouse, but he was so captivated, that he asked Anton for a cassette tape of the song. Most Romanian DJs often look to Anton’s hot dog cart to find obscure unreleased gems.

Cally began his closed door ritual of compiling songs for closing Sunwaves that year. When getting his tea leaves read, his spirit guide advised him on using “Patterns” as the closing song to the festival.
Whether it was the come down from drugs or low serotonin, SW attendees could be seen crying on the dance floor during the song.
The tears were then collected and drank by Raresh

Esencia is beyond proud to share the fourth and final album by Culross Close. Like previous albums it’s both inward and outward facing, something for the individual and the group and ‘Learning To Let Go’ follows this tradition.

Becoming Present is a peaceful refrain, littered with percussion and devotion,encouraging the listener to sit with what is, while Reactive State taps into something else entirely. It’s a hard-hitting ride filled with percussion and decimated drums, woven into a serenading flute that captures the mind for the song’s duration.

The mood changes with Attachments. A tale of two halves, twisting between hypnotic and swirling. Surrender requires time and immersion, as the listener bears witness to an enthralling interaction between drums and keys,eventually drifting into the soul-inflected Grounding.

The magic in Letting Be unfolds naturally. From the majestic string and harp arrangements, to the metronome of the percussion, each musician finds equanimity, place and peace in the composition. Letting Go…well, that speaks for itself.

The album closes with Forward, Only. This is the sound of a group of musicians comfortable in their stride and confident in their thinking. Ready to move with whatever happens.

Darren Roach’s debut album lands on Limo! With its sights set squarely on the dancefloor, ‘Low Ranger’ may seem to have come out of nowhere, but to those who have been paying attention, his music has never stopped making an impact. Roach boasts a catalog of releases that begins in the ‘90s, and a few of these long-lost pearls resurface here, freshly mastered and ready to go.

The bulk of the album, however, consists of freshly crafted nuggets that will surely stand the test of time just the same. The album is a testament that truly good music doesn’t degrade over time, and the decades of quality behind ‘Low Ranger’ reveal a master of his craft.

2024 Repress

Ferdinger returns to his own label with an eagerly anticipated 8th vinyl release, an EP titled "Second Nature." This captivating EP features two original tracks from Ferdinger himself, as well as two remarkable collaborations with renowned artists Introversion and JakoJako, who shouldn't require any introduction.

The EP begins with the collaborative tour de force "Air France," where Introversion and Ferdinger effortlessly blend percussive elements, groovy rhythms, and dubby chords. Intricate layers of delay create a mesmerizing atmosphere, delivering on the ethereal promise suggested by the title. Following this captivating opener is "Bottom Lines", a relentless and uncompromising pounder infused with hypnotic acid lines that will leave listeners spellbound.

Flipping over to the other side of the record, we encounter the title track "Second Nature", a high-octane and melodic journey that showcases the artistic synergy between JakoJako and Ferdinger. With finesse and elegance, they expertly merge their individual styles, building up to a breathtaking climax that will undoubtedly leave a lasting impression.

Closing out the EP is the introspective and somber track "Heart Break", which transports us back to the dubby stratosphere first introduced in the A-Side. Its more intimate nature provides a reflective and introspective conclusion to the EP, leaving listeners in a contemplative state.

Jasper Street Co. is one of the House Music community’s signature artist endeavors. Produced by Baltimore’s legendary production team The Basement Boys, and consisting of a collection of singers who can emote on the highest level of gospel, soulful and peak hour house, this collective has been riding high for years and is now going next level with the recent release of the “Rejoicing” album on Nervous Records. Prior releases from the album have skyrocketed to the top of DJ sales and club charts, with “Praying For You” being nominated for a Grammy for the Louie Vega remix in the Best Remixed Recording (non-classical) category.

Up next is a cover version of a song originally recorded by Teddy Pendergrass. Written and produced by Gamble & Huff, “You’re My Latest, My Greatest Inspiration” was originally released on Philly International Records in 1981. It was a massive R&B & Disco hit back then, and now has been updated by Jasper Street Co. for the house music community. The single package has an outstanding collection of remixers on board who make the project something even more special for the purists but also will launch into the larger worldwide music community. Teddy Douglas produced the original album version, but comes back for another take while adding some serious bass / kick drum juice with his Teddy Douglas Bass Intro Remix. Micfreak and DJ Spen put a highly creative spin on the original with some added effects on the vocal and a piano line that soars into the highest level of peak hour house energy with their Higher Love Remixes. Tensnake also gives it a very distinctive and infectious groove, while Dr. Packer takes all the original elements and uses his great talents and appreciation for soulful house and disco to make this project even more essential for house purists than it already is!

Double Vinyl package on Feb. 5 on Nervous Records. Includes custom jacket and yellow vinyl.