Search:p sol

It's been over 10 years since the release of Gui Boratto's breakthrough full length debut 'Chromophobia'. As to what its title suggests, he shook up the techno game with a contrast of lushly coloured minimal grooves and melody, whilst many will recall that the album included the highlight single Beautiful Life' which became a dance floor anthem for that era. Four albums in and countless EPs and remixes under his belt, the Brazilian producer's unique savoir-faire in carving out a functional album out of diversely routed singles and features is back at it on his fifth studio LP, 'Pentagram'. Here Gui Boratto lays down a nuanced 12-track narrative that reinvigorates his signature sound into a refreshingly different perspective that feels all too familiar - including the return of Beautiful Life' vocalist (and Gui Boratto's wife) Luciana Villanova on the single "Overload".

Through his signature kaleidoscopic approach, Boratto delivers an album built as a far-reaching hub-and-spoke system, broadly inclusive as can be. From the opening cut, 'The Walker' - hot on the trail of Tears For Fears 'Elemental' (one of Boratto's "favourite 80's bands") - to the hi-NRG euphoria of 'Forgotten' and its pounding tech alter ego 'Forgive Me'. "I was going into 2 different directions", Boratto says, "the typical indie- electronic-rock' Boratto kind of production like It's Majik' or Like You' and a much more techno approach." He goes on, "I decided to split them into two twin sister songs. When I play live I always put these two songs together."

The Brazilian Producer further embraces the pop-friendly essence of his past work on tracks like 'The Phoenix', featuring vocalist Nathan Berger, and 'Overload', both melding acidulous synthlines with laser-precise breaks, vox hooks and drops calibrated for extended radio and club use, although sieved through his distinctive rainbow-hued musical prism. For the symbolists out there, the album's pared-down closer '618' duration accidentally happens to equate the proportions of the said pentagram. "Coincidence" Boratto questions, and capsulises, "not so ufanista and supporter of Brazilian neo-concretism, but I guess the brazilian sculptor Lygia Clark also inspired me a lot. Not the meaning of her sculptures, but the shape of the hinge of most of her work. I've wanted to transmit the scientific pentagram's point of view. It's not a religious kind of thing."

Whereas 'Spur' (a field-tested 808 and 909-heavy "purist track", "very, very old school" Boratto insists) and 'Alcazar' are sheer smooth-edged four-to- the-floor epics, the album also shares its lot of startling moments, such as with the John Barry'esque 'Scene 2' (with a hint of Amon Tobin, 'Easy Muffin' style, throw in) and its refined string-laden buildup, 100% fitted for a 007 opening credit sequence, or with 'Hallucination' (feat B.T.) and the further James Holden-ish title-track 'Pentagram' (think 'The Idiots Are Winning'), "one of those exercises I did when I got my Buchla modular synth" Boratto analyses, "I think I've used more then 30 different snares, with different delays and reverbs. The whole song is alive". And so is 'Pentagram' in its entirety: alive and definitely just as manifold and hopeful as its architectonics are the stuff of science and dreams all at once.

Es ist zehn Jahre her seit der Veröffentlichung von Gui Borattos bahnbrechendem Debütalbum - Chromophobia . So wie der Titel vermuten ließ, war das Album mit seinen kontrastreichen Minimalgrooves und den üppig gefärbten Melodien ein Schocker im besten Sinne. Ihr erinnert euch sicher noch an die Hit-Single - Beautiful Life , eine Dancefloor-Hymne aus dieser Zeit. Nach vier Alben und unzähligen EPs und Remixen ist das einmalige Savoir-faire des brasilianischen Produzenten, aus vielfältigen Singles und Features stimmige Alben zu schaffen, auch auf seinem fünften Studioalbum - Pentagram zu hören. Hier legt Gui Boratto ein Zwölf-Track-Narrativ vor, das seine Handschrift auf erquickende Weise wiederbelebt. Wiederbelebt wird auch die Stimme von - Beautiful Life (die der Frau Gui Borattos gehört) auf dem Stück - Overload .

Durch seinen charakteristisch kaleidoskopischen Ansatz liefert Boratto ein Album, das gebaut ist wie die Speichen deines Fahrrads, von dem Opener - The Walker - direkt auf der Spur von Tears For Fears - Elemental (einer von Borattos - favourite 80's bands ) - zur Hi-NRG-Euphorie von - Forgotten und seinem stampfenden Counterpart - Forgive Me . - Ich bin in zwei unterschiedlichen Richtungen gegangen , sagt Boratto: - den typischen ,Indie-Electronic-Rock'-Weg wie in - It's Majik oder - Like You und den Techno-Weg. Er fügt hinzu: - Ich hab mich entschieden jedem Track seinen Zwillings-Track an die Seite zu stellen. Immer wenn ich live spiele lege ich die zwei Stücke zusammen.

Der brasilianische Produzent erschließt weiter die Pop-Essenz seiner vergangenen Arbeit auf Tracks wie - The Phoenix (feat. Nathan Berger) und - Overload . Beide kombinieren zwitschernde Synthi-Melodien mit lasergenauen Breaks, Hooklines, Drops und sind wie gemacht für die Rotation und den Club. Und für die Symbolisten da draußen: die Länge des reduzierten Closers - 618 beträgt zufälliger Weise genau die Proportionen des besagten Pentagramms. - Fügung , fragt Boratto und fasst zusammen: - Ich bin kein Anhänger des brasilianische Neo-Konkretismus , aber ich glaube die brasilianische Künstlerin Lygia Clark hat mich sehr inspiriert. Nicht die Bedeutung ihre Skulpturen aber die Form der meisten ihrer Arbeiten. Ich wollte den wissenschaftlichen Blickwinkel auf das Pentagramm übersetzen. Nicht im religiösen Sinne oder so."

Während - Spur (ein erprobter - purist track auf der Basis von 808 und 909, - sehr, sehr old school , wie Boratto betont) und - Alcazar glatte Vierviertel-Epen sind, hält das Album auch Überraschungsmomente bereit. Z.B. das John Barryschen - Scene 2 (auch eine Spur von Amon Tobins - Easy Muffin ist darin zu hören) und seinem Streicher-Aufbau, der hundertprozentig geeignet wär für eine Eröffnungssequenz in einem Bond-Film. Auch - Hallucination (feat. B.T.) oder der James-Holden-hafte Titeltrack - Pentagram (wir denken da an - The Idiots Are Winning ) wäre da zu nennen. - Einer dieser Übungen, die ich gemacht habe, als ich meinen Buchla-Modular-Synthesizer bekommen habe, war , erinnert sich Boratto, - mehr als 30 verschiedene Snares, Delays und Reverbs zu verwenden. Der ganze Song sollte am Leben sein. Und so ist - Pentagram im Ganzen: lebendig und sicher genau so vielfältig wie sein Bauplan, der auch der Wissenschaft und den Träumen zugrundeliegt.

Only one month after the release of their first ep on MT on May 2018, Vactrol Park continue surprising, this time with a full LP in the shape of 'Music from the Luminous Void'.The album sees VP delve much deeper into more atmospheric realms. Using modular synths and unexpected drum machine sequencing they leave the 4X4 beats behind in favor of off-world rhythms and ever growing bass. Starting with Drops's high frequency tension, laying on top of those heavy kick drums it keeps on growing and growing. From there it moves to the 'End of the party' groove that is Novikov's Notation, and its trippy monotonic rhythm. The A-side ends with the heavy sampled ambient track Macbeth, bringing forward that mesmerizing flute solo by Italian artist Luca Spagnoletti yet succeeding in avoiding the kitsch, and with a touch of class. The B-side delves even deeper into ambience and atmospheric muzak. Starting with Bells, that features again Spagnoletti on flute. Then we get into the real gems of the album - Anstruther and Glove. The first is a pure trip into modular psychedelia and repetitive jazzy-like drum rhythms, creating tension right from the start and plays with it throughout the track before decaying slowly into Glove, which is in sense both the catharsis and the decompression session of the album. Like a 2018 version of Vangelis, this track's soundscape will keep you dreaming with your eyes closed long after the album ends.

180g vinyl

The First Maxx Rossi Solo Ep !! After More Than 30 Records It Was High Time. And, At Least, On His Own Mlabel... For The... Helas, Last One Ever !

Red Vinyl Harfloor electro...

Bluestaeb's Evolution From A Beatmaker To A Producer Is His Sophmore Album everything Is Always A Process'.

He Is One Of The Key Figures Of A New Generation Of Up And Coming Hiphop Beatmakers, Who Have Emancipated From Genre Thinking And Instead Merge Old School Aesthetics With A New School Attitude And Organic Instrumentation.

Everything Is Always A Process Re-iterates Bluestaeb's Overall Approach To Life (and Thinking), But Also Has Direct Reference To The Making Of The Album Itself, Which Began With Moving From Berlin To Paris In 2015 In The Search Of New Influences And A New Creative Environment.
Created Between 2015 And Early 2018, Eiaap Embodies The Process Of This Transition - As Well As Collaboration With Instrumentalists And Vocalists From All Over The World And Recording In Different Studios In Paris, London & Berlin.

"meeting All Those Musicians And Trying Out New Ways Of Producing By Using Real Analogue Synths, Rhodes, Drums And Percussion Etc. Made It Possible To Overcome The Creative Boundaries Of A Home Studio With Just A Midi Keyboard" / Bluestaeb

Influenced By Madlib's "shades Of Blue" And Trained In African Drum Techniques Such As Djembé And Daruka, Bluestaeb Had Been Crafting His Own Beats Since His Teenage Years And Gradually Found His Sound Identity Through Experimenting With Hiphop And Jazz - First To Be Heard By A Broader Music Community In 2013, When He Released His Debut Album "1991 Extraterrestrial" (radio Juicy). Since Then The Prolific Young Artist Has Released Numerous Solo And Collaboration Projects ("b.l.u.e. Friday" In 2015 And - sidekicks With S. Fidelity In 2016). In 2016, He Produced Collaborative Album "lit - Lost In Translation With Rapper Juju Rogers, A Keen Manifesto Against Racism, Xenophobia And The Rise Of Anti-heroes Such As Donald Trump.
Today, Bluestaeb Lives And Works In Paris And Berlin And Is Set To
Release His Third Solo Album everything Is Always A Process', A
Smooth Neo Soul-induced Epic Featuring Artists Such As Noah Slee, Harleighblu And Melodiesinfonie, Via Jakarta Records In 2018.

LB aka LABAT is a regular cat in the french circuit with releases on Disques Solaires, DKO or recently WOLF Music. This ep highlights once again his unique style with an all inside MPC production blending samples with sharp signature beats. The opener is stone cold disco house jam in the deep Parrish tradition. Nothing New is a spacey hip hop joint taking you a ride to destination Spice Go- a detroish hip house beat. On flipside, CELESTIAL PLAN is a special party break with deep jazz samples mixed with a mpc signature that gives this track a very uncommon signature and groove. Better be ready for this one before landing to STICKY GREEN countryside.

Forest Flame is the debut solo effort of the Texas-based Shea McGilvray. His previous works have been featured in compilation and remix releases on labels such as Echovolt, Shimmering Moods, and Bokhari's Swamp Tapes.

Taken from Gabe Gurnsey's upcoming debut solo LP, 'Physical' on Phantasy, 'Eyes Over' zones in on a proto-Hacienda groove that's undistilled militant funk, loose and lucid elements of electro and dub-laden drums conspire to offer an alluring landscape for Gurnsey's restless vocals. The harder-hitting Extended Dub takes more precise aim at the dancefloor, allowing each disparate, analogue element more room to unfold across a throbbing baseline.

Jaar's Other People is pleased to present a new solo record of guitar and live custom electronics artist Patrick Higgins, an American avant-garde composer and producer from New York City. Higgins is known for his work in experimental and contemporary classical music, playing guitar and composing in the mythical avant-noise-jazz ensemble Zs. His solo work as a composer unites European avant-garde forms with the post-minimalist howl of New York. His upcoming release on Other People, 'Dossier,' is a four-movement piece performed live without overdubs or edits. All of the samples and synthetic patches were custom built and specifically engaged to become elements of live guitar manipulation. The sound world is post-apocalyptic in spirit but builds to an intimate and reflective end. The material was developed over a two-year period and finalized at the end of 2016. Cover art is by Alfredo Jaar.

Two of Russian electronic music's rising stars, Phil Gerus and Alexander Lay-Far, invite you to join them at the Solitary High Social Club. While table service is provided, they'd much rather you throw caution to the wind and head to the dancefoor.
Before joining forces in the studio, both Moscow-based musicians have delivered a string of memorable solo productions. Lay-Far has previously released a wealth of material on such labels as Local Talk, City Fly, Lazy Days and 4Lux Black, while synthesizer fetishist Gerus has showcased his electrofunk and disco-fred cuts on Futureboogie Recordings, Sonar Kollektiv, Public Release
and Superior Elevation Records.
The fve tracks that make up Solitary High Social Club deliver a perfect marriage of the two producers' distinctive solo styles, combining the rich musicality of Lay-Far's house productions with the spacey, intergalactic electronics of Gerus's discoid adventures. In many ways, it's a marriage made in heaven - or in Lay-Far's celebrated In-Beat-Ween Studio, at least.
The duo's spacey and melodious musical fusion is arguably best exemplifed by lead cut City 2 City, Star 2 Star', a widescreen, mid-tempo disco epic rich in tactile Rhodes riffs, supernova synth solos, delay-laden drum beats, tumbling melody lines and heavy analogue bass. Fittingly, the track returns in Reprise' form - think sweeping, weightless ambient bliss - to round off the EP.
Elsewhere, the duo provides further proof of their combined musical talents.
Check, for example, the gentle drum machine electro beats, cascading new age melodies and sparkling, stretched-out synthesizer chords of the impeccably beautiful Am I Tripping', or the devilishly percussive, mind-altering brilliance of Love Life', where mutant electro bass, wide-eyed chords and alien melodies rise above a heavy, Afro-infuenced groove. As for Snowfakes On Her Lips', you'll struggle to fnd a more confdent and positive dancefoor workout all year. Blessed with killer piano parts, darting analogue synth-bass and a range of disco-tinged musical fourishes, it's by far and away the most celebratory moment on an already happy-go-lucky EP. It confrms, too, our initial hunch: at the Solitary High Social Club, life is always good.

Nicolas Lattansio, aka SHIT, was raised in Temperley, a small borough in the city of Buenos Aires, Argentina. In 1996, he had his first encounter with electronic music and has been inseparable ever since. Hes in love with the beats and the dance floor. His tracks are played by the likes of DJs Pareja, Alejandro Paz, Carisma and Mijo. Hes the founder and resident DJ of Te Re Cagamos La Fiesta and TOKYO, the Festival. He defines his music as indie techno, with strong beats, vocals and plenty of attitude. Without a doubt, SHIT is one of the most powerful projects in the neighborhood.


The Solo En La Pista EP shows SHIT's veritable force in the blooming indie-techno scene growing out of Mexico and South America, and the remix with Mexico City's Ali X x Ximena (former Azari III) is an extremely strong dance floor track that has proven itself upon many floors and festivals from Burning Man and beyond over the course of 2017 in preparation for it's public launch this year.

Sing a song fighter have never been more proud and happy than to finally announce and release this unissued and unheard fantastic recording South African in exile Johnny Dyani was one of the greatest bass players. Played with Don Cherry, Chris McGregor, Archie Sheep, Dollar Brand / Abdullah Ibrahim etc etc. He also made many great albums as a bandleader. And a few rare minimal albums where it was mostly him and his upright bass. He died way too early, in 1986. Karl Jonas Winqvist (Sing A Song Fighter) ranks some of Dyani's works ("African Bass", 'Witchdoctor's Son" with Okay Temiz and "Good News From Africa', with Dollar Brand) as "the most natural, creative musical force there is'. KJW investigated for years if there was more recorded Dyani material waiting to be heard. And where After e-mailing endlessly with the National Radio Museum in Switzerland he finally found what he was looking for.In 1978 graphic designer Niklaus Troxler arranged the great Willisau Jazz Festival in Switzerland. A lot of legendary artists like Max Roach, Jan Garbarek, Elvin Jones and Don Cherry were performing, and Johnny Dyani was one of them. He did this rare solo concert with some of the material that two years later would end up on his great album "African Bass". This LP contains the concert from beginning to end, showing Dyani at his very best on piano, gong, bass and vocals. Spiritual, adventurous and truly free,beautiful music.Gatefold cover, with extensive liner notes from Francis Gooding and Niklaus Troxler

Only those who read all the credits on record liner notes will know the full details: Areski is of course Brigitte Fontaine's partner in life, but also her creative alter ego, and the composer of the music of most of her songs. Even though it was his wife Brigitte and not him who wrote the lyrics, Areski is a poet in his own right. Furthermore, he is polyvalent: composing, arranging, singing, improvising, playing every possible instrument and even acting! Areski, to sum up, is the perfect mix of the tradition of Munir Bashir with the European sophistication' of someone like Jean-Claude Vannier, one foot permanently in Versailles (where he was born) and the maghreb. Areski, is left bank French songs without the stylistic effects, revised and updated through contact with arab-andalusian music. He is a Living Theatre style happening with a dose of cosmic free jazz, surrealist poetry viewed through the prism of Kabyle culture... All that and a lot more!

Areski honed his talent observing the stars of traditional chaâbi, testing it out in bars and dives before meeting, during military service, the singer Jacques Higelin with whom he would record his first cult album, and who would present him to his wife-to-be, Brigitte Fontaine. Between 1969 and 1980, with her, Areski would contribute an essential chapter to French underground music including classics such as Comme à la radio (with the Art Ensemble of Chicago), Je ne connais pas cet homme, L'Incendie, Le Bonheur and Vous et nous. For all that, Areski has never really tried to have a career under his own name, in spite of the wonderful Un Beau matin first published in 1970, and which it is high time to de (re)discover (better late than never). Those already in the know will not be surprised to see, especially, Jean-Charles Capon, author of the inspired L'Univers-solitude, Brigitte Fontaine of course, or Daniel Vallancien, author of a no-less inspired duo with saxophonist Philippe Maté. All contributing to an acerbic poetic universe, concerned but never militant, and open to worldwide influences long before they became a fashion.

Inspired, poetic, in a word essential: Un Beau Matin is one of the best albums of the French underground produced by Pierre Barouh on his label Saravah, alongside those by Maurice Lemaître, Catharsis, Claude Yvans, Mahjun, Barney Wilen, Cohelmec Ensemble et Michel Roques.

Blocaus series is proud to present 'Alpha Wave', their second various artists compilation includes 4 tracks of different varieties of great raw pounding techno that stretches from melodic / hypnotic trips to industrial bangers along with great grooves and soundscapes featuring the well respected Kangding Ray as well as some of the most talented producers from the new French generation ABSL, Raar and Rubarb. A strong team that brings the solid vibe together in the 5th record of the label.

Moral Fiber sub-label Souzou is back with it's second release. 'Freedom (SZ002)' is an exclusive EP by Sander Ellerman (Jelly Beast Recordings). As a regular on Souzou's counterpart Moral Fiber, Sander Ellerman is known for his delicate tunes, subtle changes and well thought-out transitions. With three brand new original tracks he perfectly displays the label's bass-driven, minimalistic techno sound. Nima Gorji delivers a penetrating remix for title track Freedom.

Having debuted with a fine EP by Job Sifre, Artificial Dance has returned to the source for release number two. The 12' pays tribute to one of the most influential figures of original DIY electronic music scene of Holland, Hanjo Erkamp.
During the first half of the 1980s, Erkamp had a hand in some of the most experimental and forward-thinking releases on the now legendary cassette label, Trumpett. Famously, he was a member of two of the label's key bands - industrial outfit Doxa Sinistra and new wave combo Ende Shneafliet - but during the period he also recorded a swathe of solo tracks as C. Stein, most of which only saw the light of day decades later.

La Bombe Plastique', a thrillingly spacey and futurist cut rich in proto-techno rhythms, intergalactic electronic motifs and drowsy choral vocals. For this timely reissue, the superb original version comes accompanied by a fresh re-edit created primarily for DJ use.

"After a deceptively quite 2017, Especial picks up the pace pace by welcoming back the peroxide, youth filled Fairplay (re)version and a 2nd EP of old-skool-meets-the-new-school flavoured House and Breaks to lock, jock and spin.

After the criminally overlooked 'How Do You Like Me Now' EP - how is Classic Version not a...classic...version - Junior gets back on the (lino) floor. The EP starts with a look north to the 'other city of 7 hills' that birthed a Warp'd British retake on House in his bleep-dub ode, End Of Love. The autobiographical title belies a forward approach with his trademark echobox kick'n'hats underpinning uplifting keys and nodding bleep finger solo.

Who to join the party then, than another man of mystery, Roy Of The Ravers. After his debut EP on sister label Emotional Response became a most played from Aphex et al, it is only right bring him to E'Special. His brooding, hoover rush Remix 1 heightens the vibes with a heads down bleeping half-steppa. Righteous!

The flip is given over to Junior's roots, bringing the hip-hopper back with the anthemic The Shazsquatch Goes Back Into The Woods. No shoc(k) horror here, just more upwardly mobile breakbeat meets UK techno licks. You can hear Fairplay at one with man and machine, pushing a sound that looks back but most definitely goes forward with 'Sunrise' on the mind.

To close is the swagger of EP title cut, Faxes From The Future. Hair of the (black) dog fuses a swinging break with proto-dub-meets-Giallo stylings to rework the senses and say, now is (still) the time!

A return to making the noise while keeping tongue planted firmly in cheek. What are u like Top. Buzz."

Presenting 'Envelope'. Album written, produced & mixed by Milan W. and pressed on 180g vinyl, by Ekster. Coming out on the 6th of June 2018, with foil-stamped cover-drawing by Gerard Herman. Mastered & cut by Helmut Erler at Dubplates & Mastering.
.
Milan W (AKA Milan Warmoeskerken) is an Antwerp-based musician. In 2015 he released the Slo Mo cassette, on local label JJ Funhouse. The Intact LP a year later. Compositions constructed from gentle, yet persistent, rhythms. Intricately textured downtempo echoes. Brain-dancing, rather than four-to-the-floor raving. 2017`s split with Ekolalis, for The Hague`s BAKK, made clear the direction Milan`s headed in. His contribution being a seventeen minute float. The kick largely removed. The textures cut-up, expanded and magnified. Envelope, for Ekster, builds on this work.

The harlequin turns the handle. The contraption sucks in air, and breathes. Blows out tone poems. Wordless ballads that soundtrack enchanted scenarios. Issues forth magic. A sorcerer`s apprentice casting its spell. Animating the inanimate. To everything a life. Sets the frozen fluttering. Pirouetting in red shoes. Illuminates what was dark. Astma sings a Gamelan lullaby. Summons comforting angels to a post-Industrial landscape. Glaasjes has Jazz ghosts inhabit an empty bar room. Spirits stealing excuse-me`s under its deserted spot. In Limbo amplifies their whispers. Lead soldiers court jewellery-box ballerinas behind shuttered shop fronts. On Heraldic Snippets, a tin infantry marches. Ten thousand men up to the top, and back down again. Keys make-believing that they are massed brass and fife.

The bellows pump, and the pipes all the while wheezing. An automaton philharmonic at the bidding of a steam-punk master. Analogue and digital. Clockwork and glitch. Malady finds sounds isolated, extrapolated, mutated. Orchestral`s organ-grinder moves with urgency, and alchemy. Spinning straw into gold. Snare rolls become bubbling mercury. Metallic, yet fluid. Racing at the speed of flight and escape. Slope is the music of water chasing through crystal caves. Slow Runner, a funeral crawl. Shoved into motion by a drama of strings remembered.
Like the charismatic Rat-Catcher of Hamelin, the harlequin turns the handle, and we bang the cup.

Enfant Terrible was one of the first labels to give recognition and attention to the pioneers of minimal electronics / proto-elektro / avant-garde pop / experimental pop music from the late 1970's and early 1980's. Next to that it is one of the few labels in this field of music that truly invests in the development of new talents in this music tradition. In short: Enfant Terrible has been mapping the field of this counter culture and contributing to its development since the very start of its activities.

But in this world of followers and copycats we have an agenda of our own. We go furthur and dare to move into new territories. Both when it comes to content and ways of organizing the business part we are at the forefront of independent music culture. We keep it real, stay ourselves and a hundred percent independent.

While Enfant Terrible for an important part has built the current niche of minimal electronics we also have always looked beyond rigid style definitions and established artists. All our compilation releases have been highly acclaimed for this.

The time is now... we go for the logical next step... supporting and contributing to the local music scene.

'Kamp Holland' is an overview of the current independent electronic music scene from Holland. Some of the artists on this compilation have been inspired by the music tradition we have been building. Others are inspiring Enfant Terrible in its current development. Always furthur we go...

This is the Royal Dutch Underground!

South African Mbaqanga And Bubblegum Instrumentals For The Dance-floor. First Time Available Outside South Africa. Cult Favorite Among Collectors. Follows The Successful Reissue Of bafana Bafana' Last Year. Professor Rhythm's 1991 Recording Professor 3 Is A Vivid Reflection Of Urban South Africa As Apartheid Was Ending. Thami Mdluli's Production Project Had Young And Old Dancing To A Sound That Sought To Unite Blacks Within Southern Africa. our Music Gave Hope To The Hopeless,' He Says. Mdluli's Third Instrumental Album (which Contains Some Background Vocals, To Be Exact), Portrays The Moment When The Dominant Mbaqanga And American R&b-based Bubblegum Sounds Being Produced In Johannesburg And Other Urban Centers Were Transforming Into House And Hip-hop-inspired Kwaito. The Pop Of The 80's And All That Went With It—from The Models Of Synths And Drum Machines To The Lyrical Style—gave Way To A Changing Melodic Emphasis And New, Much Slower Tempi Using A Completely Different Rhythmic Skeleton. Upbeat, Chipper Bubblegum, Often With Double-time Breakdowns And Upstroke Syncopations, Faded And The Sounds Began To More Closely Resemble Those Of Contemporary Black America—where Hip-hop Was Slowing Down And The Bass-lines And Melodies Were Getting Moodier, Darker In General. At The Same Time House Music Had Briefly Reached Mainstream Acceptance In The States And That Popularity Continued To Feed Into Awareness Overseas. These Two Influences Blended With The Burgeoning House Music Scenes In Johannesburg And Pretoria As Professor Rhythm 3 Was Being Produced In March 1991 (the Same Year Apartheid Ended). Mdluli Explains, we Were Influenced By Foreign Bands And So People Updated Their Sound.' According To Mdluli, The Evolving Sound Was Bolstered By Widening Availability Of House And Rap Records From Abroad While, Most Importantly, An Increasing Sense That Apartheid Might Soon Be Finished Was Met With A New Positivity Vibe Society. 1991, '92, '93... Mandela Was Released. People Were Upbeat, They Were Happy, The Music Was Good.' Professor 3 Came Out On Vinyl As The Lp Business Was Dying In South Africa And Sold Around 20,000 Copies. It Was Mainly Distributed On Tape, Which Sold Closer To 100,000. With The Help Of Engineer Fab Rosso, The Recording Features Backing Vocalists From Mango Groove. After Making A Half-dozen Records As Professor Rhythm, Mdluli Once Again Shifted His Focus Musically. By The Mid-90's He Had Veered Off Gospel Music— And Left Playing In Bands And Started Making His Own Solo Recordings. His Enormous Success In The Gospel Realm In The Years Since Is A Remarkable Story In Its Own Right, But For Now We Are Only Dancing.

'Bugs' is AUS label owner Will Saul's first solo EP in over 4 years and follows his inaugural release on new Aus compilation series, Inside Out. Here's Will on the A side.... 'Bugs' is inspired as much by dancing at Plastic People/Co-op to the Bugz In The Attic as is it is by Carl Craig's Innerzone Orchestra track Bugs In The Bass Bin. Hopefully I bring my own twist to these key influences...... 'The Map Room' tumbles with big, swinging drums as a fervid sense of tension burns throughout before Matt Karmill takes 'Bugs' off on a linear dubbed out excursion to complete the package....

Acid Jazz is pleased to announce that it has teamed up with the legendary Fania Records for our latest 7 inch release.

June 1st will see us release Ray Barretto's Mercy Mercy Baby lifted from his classic album Acid produced by Harvey Averne.

It is backed by an astounding and previously unreleased instrumental version,which is longer than the released version and has a stunning trumpet solo making it a summer dance-floor cooker.

Released on a specially designed label, which pays tribute to the first Gold Fania labels, this will be limited to a run of a 1000.

The Scar Journey Continues With The 'born Again Ep', A 3-tracker Synonymous With The Duo's Much-loved Sound Accompanied By A Digital Bonus Featuring The Incredible Martyna Baker.

Following Up Their Recent Remix For Artificial Intelligence In Impeccable Fashion, This Is Scar's Fifth Ep For Metalheadz, Not To Mention Their 2016 Long-player, All Of Which Have Solidified Their Position In The Label Family.

As we enter the Summer months, Excursions welcomes back The Showfa, with A Gospel Excursion Volume Two. Four more dishes of hot spiritual gumbo for your mind, body & soul.

Once again The Showfa has expertly cut together a concoction of gospel, soul, disco, latin, jazz, funk, and spiritual rhythm & blues. The glorious disco rework of a track called 'Amazing' sets the tone with an infectious piano riff and powerfully uplifting vocal. 'Surely Surely' follows, with a more vigorous strut, a short, sweet slice of disco funk, no messing about. 'Praising' keeps the groove and tempo solidly in a delicious eighties boogie formation, slap bass and sax in tow. The set closes out with beautiful latin-jazz tinged vibrations sauntering through 'I'll Show You The Way', before switching to the sweetest sweet soul you ever did hear. Soul food of the highest calibre.

The previous volume was shown love last year by an assortment of selectors and tastemakers, including Tony Humphries, Horse Meat Disco, Gilles Peterson, Craig Charles, BBC 6Music, Mi-Soul, Rinse FM and Mixmag, and also saw The Showfa spinning on the airwaves on NTS with Charlie Bones, and for Wax Poetics.

Another joyously ethereal platter, and another one that will never leave the box.

'Erpland' was the band's eighth release and was originally released in 1990 and is considered by many fans as one of their finest works. The album will be re-issued on 180g heavyweight audiophile vinyl in this 2 LP set presented in a wide spine packaging.

One of the most influential bands to emerge from the UK's festival scene, the Ozrics layer ambient and ethereal landscapes with freeform dub trips, incredible rave grooves and psychedelic progressive rock. It's an open exploration of music and the soul.

For over 30 years, the Ozrics have experienced the vicissitudes of the rock and roll life. The band has flourished through a number of line-up changes and sold over a million albums world-wide. And yet, the basic motivation behind the band's existence has never wavered. Their signature blend of hippy aesthetics and raver electronics with spiraling guitars, textured waves of keyboard and midi samplers, and super-groovy bass and drum rhythms continues to delight fans across the world to this day.

For his third album for Far Out Recordings, London based multi-instrumentalist and one of Europe's finest saxophonists Sean Khan ventures to Rio de Janeiro to collaborate with iconic Brazilian polymath Hermeto Pascoal. Taking its title from the escaped slave settlement 'Palmares' in the Northeast of Brazil during the 1600s, Palmares Fantasy is Khan's utopian jazz message for the world, and features Azymuth drummer Ivan 'Mamao' Conti, bassist Paulo Russo, guitarist Jim Mullen, and guest vocals from Brazilian chanteuse Sabrina Malheiros, and Cinematic Orchestra frontwoman Heidi Vogel.

Like Hermeto Pascoal, Sean Khan is a self-taught musician. Never able to afford his original dream of studying at Berklee, and having been turned away from Guildhall School of Music for being 'too raw', he became disillusioned with what he saw as the exclusivity, elitism and dangerous institutionalisation of the jazz world. Yet Sean's love for music and the drive to create never faltered.

Hermeto Pascoal, the man Miles Davis once dubbed the most impressive musician in the world', is a similarly independent artist. A true maverick whose ingenuity and freedom from conventional restraints is so great that he has essentially conceived his own musical language, made him the dream collaboration for Sean.

Aspiring to inclusivity and equality also informs the message in Khan's music. Inspired by the 17th Century settlement of Palmares in Brazil's Alagoas region, which was free from the Portuguese crown's murderous exploitation of South America for a century, Khan notes his fascination with the fact that while majoritively made up of escaped African slaves, many deserter conquistadors also joined the settlement.

Hearing the deep-grooving title track with this history in mind, the listener is transported to a futuristic musical eden, with Mamao's insatiable 10/8 rhythm back-boning Hermeto's wild improvised vocals, rhodes and whistles, while Sean's harmonically brilliant sax and flute add more layers of moody, characterful expression. 'Moment of Collapse' is Sean's poetic study on the uncertainties of modern day western civilisation, delicately presented by the gorgeous vocals of Heidi Vogel and drenched in lugubrious strings and Alice Coltrane-esque harp. The two covers on the album are of Hermeto's own 'Montreux' (on which Hermeto plays solos on a teapot and a pint of water), and an uplifting soulful jazz-funk take on Milton Nascimento & Lo Borges MPB classic 'Tudo Que Voce Podia Ser' featuring the vocals of pioneering nu-bossa voice Sabrina Malheiros.

The recording sessions for the album were part of an intensive and hugely productive eight-week excursion to South America for Far Out boss Joe Davis in the summer of 2016, which also saw the sessions for Azymuth's Fênix and a forthcoming album from Uruguayan fusion legend Hugo Fattoruso.

Fantastic' Gilles Peterson

Loving this!' Opolopo

Thank you!' Sassy J

Proper! Great track.' Colin Dale

this is great!' Yannick Elverfeld (RBMA / Needs Records)

I've enjoyed Sean Khan's earlier releases, but this really seems like he's grown into his fairly considerable talent.' Mark Sampson (Songlines)

His last album was his best so far, but I think this one may be even better.' Laurence Pragnell (Soul Brother Records)

dope!!!' Kyri (R2 Records)

this is great - really cool vibe!' Sam Redmore

wonderful track - can't wait to hear the lp.' Simon Harrison (Basic Soul Radio)

This is very tasty indeed.' Gavin Boyd (Soul Has No Tempo)

Stunning!!!' Mark Milz (Further In Fusion)

Oi Oi' Samuel Lloyd (Balamii Radio)

PRESS / ONLINE

VINYL FACTORY (UK) News (Anton Spice) 09/03/18 online

SOUNDS & COLOURS (UK) News (Gabriel Gahan) 09/03/18 online

THE WIRE (UK) Review confirmed (Joseph Stanard) print

EVENING STANDARD (UK) Review confirmed (Jane Cornwell) print + online

ECHOES MAGAZINE (UK) Review confirmed (Laurence Pragnell) print

LIBERATION (FR) Feature confirmed (Jacques Denis) print + online

MUSIC IS MY SANCTUARY (CA) Premiere confirmed (Mike Jones) online

JAZZ MAGAZINE (FR) Review confirmed (Frederic Goaty) print

SHINDIG! (UK) Review confirmed (Grahame Bent) print

MUSICA MACONDO (UK) Premiere confirmed (Tim Garcia) online

RAWCKUS MAGAZINE (USA) News (Randy Radic) online

KIND OF JAZZ (UK) Review confirmed (Fernando Rose) online

TONART MAGAZINE (DE) Review confirmed (Michael Moehring) print

WORLD MUSIC NETWORK (USA) Review confirmed (Raul Da Gama) online

BADD PRESS BLOG (USA) Review confirmed (Kevin Press) online

ORKESTER JOURNALEN (DK) Review confirmed (Patrik Sandberg) print

LIVE

WORLDWIDE FM (UK) Sean Khan live session confirmed (Gilles Peterson)

RADIO

BBC RADIO 6 (UK) Gilles Peterson - Palmares Fantasy (24/02/18) link

OTHER

BRITISH AIRWAYS On board BA flights (June 2018)

Rumored to be one of the most intriguing collaborations of 2018, Rocketgirl presents Pieter Nooten's 4th solo album 'STEM' as Nooten teams up with legendary producer/ mixer/sound-artist Stephen W Tayler (Kate Bush, Underworld) at Peter Gabriel's Real World Studios. 'STEM' is probably Nooten's finest work since collaborating with Michael Brook 30 years ago, producing the timeless cult classic 'Sleeps With The Fishes'.Setting the tone in his 2012 double cd 'HAVEN', Nooten further explores the boundaries between the neoclassical and ambient genre, delivering an album of  heartwrenching, profound melodic compositions that invites you to listen to 'STEM' over and over again.

Stem is 60 minutes long (The CD includes a bonus track)
The vinyl has been specially edited by Stephen and Pieter and comes with a postcard and a download code of the full version.

Press:'Moments in life so often slip by with only the rusted acquaintance of memory to recall them but with a masterpiece like Haven in your collection you won't ever walk alone. No matter the slips and pitfalls you encounter or the loves you recriminate yourself for squandering, Pieter Nooten's newest will allow you to dwell with your thoughts in private with dignity...''Haven is the kind of record that gives modern composition a good name. It will also give countless budding musicians the belief that they can create a valid piece of work with nothing but a laptop. This may not be a bad thing, but it will be a while before anything in the genre matches the maturity, warmth and technical ability displayed by Nooten...'

Nooten's musical career began in the late 1970s. Starting out as the drummer in a local symphonic rock band,2 he quickly changed to bass guitar and later keyboards, playing in different bands. At the height of house squatting culture and new wave, Nooten met Anka Wolbert and Ronny Moorings who had just formed Clan of Xymox together. During the mid-eighties Clan of Xymox recorded two highly acclaimed albums on 4AD.

New Lp-edition of a private press library recordings of the early '70s.
Together with Florian Fricke and Peter Michael Hamel, Deuter is certainly the main responsible of a fruitful encounter between European sensibility and Eastern aesthetics in the German music of the 1970s. Soundtrack was originally produced by Kuckuck in 1973 not for an official and public release, but as a library' to be used for films, TV and radio. As a library it respects the canonical and typological structure of the genre with 26 short sonic fragments, sequences imagined and conceived like fulminating illuminations. There's still a solid electronic vocation that, however, has put aside the most disruptive effluvia of D (1971) of pure kraut' ancestry. In fact, the album is more like an ideal passing bridge between some ritual instances of the previous Aum (1972) and the following successful phase of Deuter during the period when he stays in the Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh's ashram in Poona realizing, in parallel to a renewed inner life, masterpieces like Celebration, Haleakala, Ecstasy and Silence is the Answer. Musically speaking, Soundtrack presents itself as a heterogeneous work with nocturnal, cinematic, galactic and atmospheric-environmental implications. Electronics remains the predominant factor but can vary from mantra drones of more ceremonial and meditative space-relax' tones of some tracks (Triad, Deep Sea, Gothic Velvet or Evening) to the most amused formulations of pulsating analog synths that in the hands of Deuter become toy-equipement' to modulate and explore (Desert Rock, Synth Effect, Flea Dance or Laser). There is no lack of acoustic moments more ethnically inspired with Arabian and Indian (Reed, Arabia) or devotionally solar themes (Tom Bombaddils Dance), so evoking an air of diffuse peace then completely conquered in the beloved India.

Re-mastering by: Ray Staff at Air Mastering, Lyndhurst Hall, London

This jazz recording is considered as the 'magnum opus' of master "drummer extraordinaire'', composer, arranger, producer, and leader Norman Connor's in a career that has spanned 4 decades. This recording is what many will consider the debut of the legendary vocalist Dee Dee Bridgewater who has since gone on to a brilliant career. Connor's put together an all-star group with Herbie Hancock and Onaje Allan Gumbs on piano and Fender Rhodes, Dr. Eddie Henderson on trumpet/flugelhorn, Carlos Garnett on tenor/soprano saxes, Gary Bartz on alto/soprano saxes, Buster Williams on bass, drummer/vocalist Bill Summers and Kenneth Nash on percussion, and effective, crucial cameos by master flautist Hubert Laws. On the song, "Love From the Sun'", Connors added Nathan Rubin on violin and Terry Adams on cello.

The 'best of the best' begins with the exotic theme of Hancock's "Revelation", doubled wordlessly and beautifully by Ms. Bridgewater over Williams bouncing ostinato bass pattern with flights of fancy from Hubert Laws on flute, and superb, luminous solos from Henderson's exotic trumpet, Garnett on soprano, and Hancock on Fender Rhodes. Garnett's "Carlos II" is another great composition with remarkable solos. Connors' own "Drums Around The Worlds'" is influenced by African and latin rhythms with emotional vocals from Summers and a drum-only section that builds in intensity. One of the high points of the album is Dee Dee Bridgewater's awesome, glorious vocalizing on Richard Clay's lovely "Love From The Sun", in one of the greatest performances in her career, arranged by Gumbs. Elmer Gibson's "Kumakucha" (The Sun Has Risen) is a blazing display of uptempo musicianship by Connor's driving drums, the propulsive congas of Summers and Nash, and exciting solos from Bartz, Henderson on trumpet, and Hancock's furious piano solo. The set ends with a marvelous "Holy Waters" composed and arranged by Garnett in a scorching performance by Bridgewater on vocals, Garnett unleashing one of the greatest solos in his storied career, followed by Gumbs' astute solo.

My Highest Recommendation.

By John Braswell

Record Kicks Celebrates 15 Years In The Business With A Collection Full Of Exclusive New Singles. Available In Ltd Edition Double Clear Vinyl Lp, Cd And Digital Download. Side By Side With Similar Outfits Like Daptone, Truth And Soul, Freestyle Or Timmion, Under Its Motto "the Explosive Sound From Today's Scene" Milan-based Independent Label Record Kicks Has Been Pitching The Contemporary Funk & Soul Scene Since Day One.

With Over 200 Releases Under The Belt, Rk Has Released Bands From All Over The Globe And Earnedthe Support Of Vip Fans Such As Kenny Dope, Jamie Cullum, Craig Charles And Not Least Jay-z, Thanks To Which The Label Has Recently Received A Grammy Nomination For Hov's Use Of Hannah Williams' "late Nights And Heartbreak" As Backdrop For His "4:44". The New Instalment "record Kicks 15th" Coming Out Next May 18th On Double Clear Lp, Cd And Digital Download, Celebrates 15 Years In The Business With A Collection Full Of Exclusive New Tracks And The Very Best Of It's Roster.

The Album Kicks Off With Rk's Latest And Youngest Signing:
From Chicago, Heavily Inspired By The Impressions And Leroy Hutson, We Are Proud To Present You "the Devonns" With Their Super Soulful Debut Single "come Back", An Appetizer Of Their Debut Full Length Expected To Land On Rk Next Autumn. Another New Signing To The Label Is Men Of North Country's (acid Jazz Records) Side Project "the Faithful Brothers", Here With Their New Single "one More Time".

Other Exclusive Tracks Of The Comp Are "this Strange Effect", A Coverup Of The Hooverphonic's Single From 1998 Brought To You By Dutch Northern Soul Disciples The Tibbs, "love You Back" From Detroit Deep Funk Outfit Third Coast Kings, "the Sort" By The Buenos Aires Mod Reggae Kings The Crabs Corporation, "top Dog" By British Funk Combo The Hook & Slingers And Straight From Down Under "you Don't Know Me" By The Always Great Dojo Cuts.

Along With These New Exclusive Cuts, Dig On Some Label's News Singles And Heavyweight Classics Such As Dj Shadow's "this Time" Taken From Baby Charles Debut Lp, "don't Throw Your Love In The Garbage Can" By James Brown's Original Funk Diva Martha High Feat Japanese Funk Ambassadors Osaka Monaurail, "psycheground" The Brand New Afro-funk Single By Calibro 35 And Then Portuguese Tnt Dynamite Marta Ren & The Groovelvets, Toronto Soul Queen Tanika Charles, Uk Funk Ambassadors The New Mastersounds, The Diplomats Of Solid Sound And The Already Mentioned "late Nights & Heartbreak" By Hannah Williams & The Affirmations.

Making his debut on the label, Spanish producer Kuo Climax is welcomed to the Hot Creations fold. A solid two track release that has already been heating up dancefloors across the globe, the talented artist showcases his distinct style and proves why he is hotly tipped for 2018.

The EP opens up with Whyte, a pulsating track with a warped bassline and oozing synths. Two and a half minutes deep it disperses into a breakbeat-esque breakdown that dives back into the familiar 4/4 beat. Title track Nacrem is a smooth roller with an underpinning bass and intergalactic vocal stabs. The EP highlights the Spanish producer's ability to bring balance to his output, providing music perfectly attuned for the floor.

Born in Malaga and now residing in Barcelona, Kuo Climax has released on respected labels such as Knee Deep In Sound, Solid Grooves and VIVa MUSiC. 2018 will see the producer launch his own vinyl-only imprint, LFOFL, that aims to recognise the progress in technology without losing the essence of true dance music.

One of the most unique albums on the Strata East label - and that's saying a heck of a lot, given the creative energies flowing through that legendary jazz outlet! Descendents Of Mike & Phoebe is a righteous little project put together by Spike Lee's father, Bill Lee, and his brothers and sisters (Cliff Lee, Grace Lee Mims, and Consuela Lee Moorhead) - working here in a group named after their slave ancestors, who are paid tribute in a beautifully flowing batch of tunes! Lee's round, warm bass tones are firmly at the head of the group on most numbers - recorded at a similar level to his excellent work with Clifford Jordan on Strata East during the same time - and other instrumentation includes piano from Consuela, flugelhorn from Cliff, and percussion from Sonny Brown and Billy Higgins - all used in a wonderfully evocative style that's even better than some of Lee's later soundtrack work. A few numbers feature vocals from Grace - singing wordlessly and with a really heavenly sort of quality - and together, the whole group have an undeniable sense of power and majesty, yet also one that's touched by a really personal sense of poetry too. Titles include a great version of Lee's "Coltrane", which was more famously recorded with Clifford Jordan.

By Drago Museveni

Gifted Culture collective kicks off with Zinnigheddas Jam Berlin, first 12' of a series of three releases recorded exclusively during improvised jam sessions. Gifted Culture wants artists to breath and to represent in music the contemporaneity that surrounds us. Gifted Culture catches that very moment on tape. This is an itinerant music project, to highlight the context as influence on the artistic process.

During the first session Two Thou, Autre, Xinner and Demo gather together during a Sunday night in Kreuzberg with an electric bass and a bunch of synthesizers. There they start to tell us how they feel the 'now'.

Danny McLewin (Psychemagik) and Jamie Cruisey have a new label of original signed artists called SPIRITS. The first release is from Mexican hotness 'Lokier' of She Made Monster and 'Jason Greer' aka 'The Machine', one of the Californian undergrounds best kept secrets. They met in 2015 at a festival in London and after spending a few days together, became musically obsessed with each other. That summer, as Jason bounced around Europe, he stayed with Lokier in Barcelona for some weeks and after long night walks, some tapas and absinthe bars they came up with their first EP together.

A1 "White Room's" slo-mo headnod film score, kick starts the EP, brooding synths buzzing with electric cocaine gloss, their oscillators fluttering like cyborg butterflies around the pulsating strobelight beat. Creepy.
A2 "Stained Glass" hits tough straight out the gate with subterranean bubbling acid bass and charges headlong into deep psychedelic territory with a goth-inspired guitar, reverb on 11, turning the track into a next-level robo-Giallo monster!

B1 "Pearly Hate" begins as if a menacing swarm of bionic rave bees is slowly surrounding you, the tension of their impending drone amping up steadily as your brain thinks: Do I run This midtempo Carpenter-esque jam is atmospheric putty in the hands of sleazoned DJ's and sounds like the beginning of a long, strange trip.
B2 "Red Floor" is a chugging, barely restrained dark disco beast, flagrantly wearing its Weatherall and Neu Beat-ing heart on its tattered sleeve, elliptical melodies keeping you from your sanity with a solid drop for the dancefloor - another one for DJ's who ride it rough.

Thus completes the first release for new label SPIRITS. Four tracks exploring another corner of otherworldly analogue hedonism for extra-dimensional travel. Keep your ear on "Red Floor", as its potential for dancefloor uplift is proven and Machine-ready! Stay jacked in for more missives soon...

Ivan Smagghe:
"When your best Mexican chola low-rider meets our favourite Californian mechanic, you get a proper slice of (Lokier and) Machine funk. This is grease electronics, black leather under the very dark sun of 'Pearly Hate' or in the bright isolation tank of 'White Room''

Suns out, guns out: Darkroom Dubs ease into 2018 slowly with a new addition to their limited vinyl series courtesy of Madrid analogue scientist Eduardo De La Calle.

Last spotted on Planet E and boasting a 15 year back-cat on the likes of Cadenza, Biologic, Just This, Hivern Discs and Mule Muziq, Eduardo is a man you're already well acquainted with. And you're going to want to get even closer once you've digested these four straight-to-business stripped-back traxx. Each cut designed for deep mix tailoring that you can really bend minds with.

'It's Me... The Apple Knocker' ignites the fire with a flash as we're hurled into a hypnotic frenzy from the first loop. A whirlwind comprised of so few parts yet causing a riot in your senses, this stutters and slurs with a precision sense of unease. The troubled ebb and flow of 'Opsimath' follow suit with a twinkling feeling of unknown. An extensive groove weighing in at nearly nine minutes, its unhurried nature alludes to its title; the longer you leave it sizzle, the more enriching it gets.

Flip for 'Breatharian'. The deepest, most disarming cut of the collection laced with yearning strings and poignant chords, it's a solar-inspired sunset piece that gradually morphs into something much darker and serious as the track progresses. Finally we conclude with 'Cybersquatting', a timeless mildly dubbed-out darkroom groove that flows with liquid insistency. Subtly mutating and rotating, forever pumping, it's a true calm before the storm piece, tailored for those moments when you need a little suspense and space in your set.

Four crystal jams. Endless variations. Infinite mixes: Darkroom Dubs have delivered once again. And there's more en route... Watch out for a new Deadstock 33s release and a new compilation 'Darkroom Dubs Presents Summer Love'. Both due before the summer is out. Don't put those guns away anytime soon...

After his debut single "Tell Me That You Love Me" on Timmion's Stylart imprint, Jonny Benavidez is back with a tighten uppish slab of Texas tinged soul. In "Let's Get Together" Jonny pulls out his best dance craze chops and delivers a positive message over the rolling northern soul rhythm track by Cold Diamond & Mink.

It doesn't matter if you get down to soul music in leather soled slicks or sneakers, this 45 should be your ticket to dance floor heaven. With these two tracks under his belt Jonny is set to continue melting hearts and moving feet anywhere you hear him on record or a live performance.

Bar by bar it starts to come clear that Jonny's gentle voice has some of the same emotive depth as legendary cats like Richard Caiton, so it's nice to know that he has fresh material in the pipeline. If you enjoy the crossover soul sounds of classic indie labels such as Ovide or San Antonio's Dynamic, you will undoubtedly get along nicely with this blast of sunshine.

Recorded in Philadelphia in 1969, The Deirdre Wilson Tabac's sole album is a beautiful blend of funk, jazz and soulful pop. Possessing the complex grooves, thrilling breaks and ethereal weirdness that The Rotary Connection pedalled so brilliantly, the LP failed to connect with audiences upon its original release.

In the decades since, it has deservedly attracted a considerable cult following. However, almost inevitably, it has become increasingly tricky to pick up a copy in good condition for anything less than eye-watering sums. As such, we're delighted to present the first officially licensed vinyl reissue of this undoubted masterpiece of freaky funk-rock, limited to just 500 copies.

The Tabac were, in fact, a trio. Discovered, managed and produced by Svengali Sonny Casella (who'd earlier managed garage band The Magic Mushrooms), they comprised Deirdre Wilson, Stu Freeman (formerly of said Mushrooms) and Barbara Payne (formerly with the James Brown Revue). They were backed by session players including jazz guitarist Chuck Anderson, bassist Hugh McDonald and keyboardist Roy Bittan (who went on to be a long-term Bruce Springsteen sideman).

Their first single coupled two fine Casella compositions, each featuring powerhouse vocal workouts, the supremely funk-fuelled blues beat of "The Other Side Of Life" and the psychedelic-flavoured "Look In My Face" - both of which are featured here. This 7" picked enough up airplay to merit an album, which duly appeared early the following year, but, as is often the way with these lost classics, it received barely any press. Correspondingly, sales where low and the trio didn't last long.

And herein lies the real tragedy. The rest of the LP deserves to be heard from start-to-finish - it's that good. A beguiling mix of funky folk and rocky jazz tracks, with some deep, string-drenched harmony soul ballads and a handful of remarkable covers elegantly presented througout. Indeed, they put some sauntered head-nod funk into The Beatles' "Get Back" whilst tearing through a version of "Sittin' On The Dock Of The Bay" which gives Otis' original a real run for its money.

But the real standout cut for most - with its soulful, haunting vocals, swinging hammond organ and stabbing horns, is the incredible 6/8 time jazz dancer "I Can't Keep From Cryin' Sometimes." Staggering.

Since his 2015 Night School debut E.P. Nouveauree, James Donadio - aka Prostitutes - has been traveling stages and rigs from Los Angeles to Berlin, from prestigious festival slots to slimy Glasgow basements, burning his own path through the modern techno and electronic scenes. On Aluminum Garage, Donadio is at his most playful, laying down unmistakably mid-tempo BPM early-electro jams indebted to early sampling before crashing the soundsystem with frantic, detourned Gabber. Unlike his previous LP for Spectrum Spools or indeed his Night School debut which rankled with austerity and minimalism, here Prostitutes is instinctive, multi-layered and unashamedly, brilliantly borrowing from myriad genres.

In past 3 years, Donadio has racked up critically praised releases on labels like Diagonal and CGI, refining his wares into a precise, bludgeoning toolkit that surprises and develops with each release. Aluminum Garage creeps into life with Born Wanderer, before a sub-heavy kick and bongo pattern blasts into a heavy break that feels like the earth moving from under your feet. With the utmost clarity, the track builds disparate layers - a white noise solo, warped sample piano chords straight from 1986 - into a Rave-o-matic climax, holding steady with the BPMs and immeasurably funky. Jah Elegant further blows apart any image we have of Prostitutes' music as austere' with a loping intro based on teased drum samples and a ghost MC. The Jungle break comes in by stealth before the heavy drop blasts the music into Drum + Bass momentum. It's both blistering fun and undeniably cheeky, a driving track that cuts up Remarc on a dimly lit table in suburban Ohio.

On Side 2, Errant Seagull takes the genre mess into techno territory though put through a heavily distorted grinder. Built around a skeleton of sampled bass guitar and thumping kick, the track layers drums upon drums, building in saturation until a searing synth strafes the criss-crossing rhythms. The effect is dizzying, insuring both a propellant, heavy forward motion and a grimey, angst-ridden climax. Before we're at the end of the track, the stereo field is so filthy with distortion and analogue muck the listener is desperate for a palette cleanser. Final track Shroud of Cellophane however, doesn't let up. With a ramped up BPM we're in a Cyberpunk Gabber club, nothing but 160 beats per minute, layers of frequency-tweaked noise and the light at the end of the tunnel racing towards us. It's sweet oblivion and we've earned it.