Search:peri

The free folk/jazz sound of modern Los Angeles. Featuring a heavy bunch of musicians and vocalists including Moor Mother.

"Fearlessly Accessing the Divine Spirit From Here on Out" is the vinyl debut from pianist, composer, and producer Diego Gaeta. He has previously released projects as Club Diego and with the trio Human Error Club (whose members Mekala Session and Jesse Justice helped produce this record). He has quickly become a fixture in a number of Los Angeles musical environments, working with Lionmilk, The Pan Afrikan Peoples Arkestra, Carlos Niño, Black Nile among others. This album is a synthesis of these many LA environments, and carries chamber, jazz, ambient, and folk influences, ultimately giving it an uncategorizable feel similar to works by Arthur Verocai or David Axelrod.

Gaeta recorded the initial ideas for the album by himself after experiencing a burst of creativity during the lockdown of 2020, in the aftermath of a season of protests in Los Angeles, on a piano at his home in El Sereno. "I was constantly not in tune with myself, always awaiting outrage and tragedy in a very unstable world. However, hitting the streets in support of various ongoing pandemic community actions felt necessary and it marked a point in time that ushered in large societal changes. The weight of that era made me feel allergic to making art at the time. All of these ideas came after that period, expressing my reflections subconsciously. I remember that the ideas came in a short amount of time, and then they developed."

Once he had created the tracks as Ableton sessions, he realized the gravity and context of how he was processing his ideas so he, as he puts it, "felt like taking them outside the hands of midi and into the hands of friends." Gaeta was able to assemble his dream band, which ended up being a 9-piece ensemble, or a nonet. "I felt that at some point I was channeling the geometrical balance of that nonet...it's almost as if I had a sextet and then the three of the sextet that's not the rhythm section were doubled. It's a really dense sextet, that's how I see it."

The recording process began the following summer in June 2021 as the musicians were all adjusting to the newfound dynamic of getting tested for COVID, waiting a few days, and then meeting up to record. "We were eating Indian food, some of us were smoking, it was a nice memory, but I felt a little stressed, because I was the bandleader, and I felt the emotional weight of my music."

The title track and single, featuring vocals by Jimetta Rose, begins with a speech by Gaeta delivered when playing with Black Nile in 2019 at the Levitt Amphitheatre in MacArthur park. Gaeta provides the following account: "Even though it was in 2019, socio-political tensions and issues were at the forefront for me at that time. I wrote a speech that was intended to be critical of the US but it ended up becoming a collage inspired by different women that had messages of freedom that spoke to me the most. I quoted Nina Simone and Georgia Anne Muldrow, it wasn't something that I read but something that she said "kicking it with consciousness and style" that phrase stuck with me, so I used it in that speech. Although critical, the speech had a positive feeling to it, and it was hopeful. I gave that speech while fireworks were going off."

Moor Mother & Zeroh are found on their respective tracks, Memory Screen & Eccolo - both delivering a distinct, commanding vocal performance. Low Leaf colors the track Soft Spot with harp, a beautiful ballad nestled in the center of the album. Other players include Gregory Uhlmann on guitar, Jon Kaye on violin, Devin Daniels on alto saxophone, Caleb Buchanan on bass, Dante Luna on vibraphone, Patrick Behnke on viola, Bryan Baker on tenor saxophone/flute, and Mekala Session on drums.

"I’d like for us tonight to embody a freedom oriented life. Freedom isn’t just a dream, it’s a place we must all arrive at together, as one by one the people of the Earth help each other to be Free of power, hate, and insecurities. Let’s kick it with consciousness and style. Can y’all dig that? YEAH. I can too. So now we’d like to present to you a spiritual transmission I like to call: 'Fearlessly Accessing the Divine Spirit of Freedom From Here On Out.' YEAH" - Diego Gaeta

Kid Katana Records teamed up again with KOEI TECMO GAMES and Team NINJA, to bring you the NINJA GAIDEN 2 Black OST on vinyl for the first time.



This physical edition is a 2LP designed in close relationship with the game's creative team:


2-colored vinyl with a unique “corona” effect that is reminiscent of “Sumi (black ink)”: handmade vinyl effect melting white and black colors to shape a unique vinyl color on each product, evoking Ryu Hayabusa style.
Handpicked curation of the game music, mastered for this specific vinyl edition
A Gatefold created for this specific vinyl

Kid Katana Record produced this album with supervision from Koei Tecmo Sound, who composed the original game music.

On Board Music returns with its next remixes package. Following the "Point C Remixes" in 2024, the Rotterdam based label now revisits four tracks taken from its charity compilations "The Meaning of Time" and "The Meaning of Time II" - all reimagined by fellow On Board artists. Born during the global health crisis of 2020, "The Meaning of Time" series explored the shifts, fractures, and altered perceptions of time experienced during that period. This new remix edition not only reshapes selected pieces through the vision of close label affiliates and takes them closer to the dancefloor, but also sees all tracks freshly remastered by Neel. The four tracks were given a new life in two different ways - by remastering and reinterpretation. Luigi Tozzi treats Polygonia's aquatic ambient piece "Magnetic Force" and pushes the track deeper into dark and hypnotic late night territories. Vera Logdanidi's emotionally charged arpeggiated electronic work "Water bubble Floating In Space" receives a peak-time reinterpretation by Non Series head Psyk. Swedish artist Dorisburg reworks Human Space Machine's "Danz7" into a dreamier and more percussive journey. Closing the release in true deep On Board fashion is label head Laura BCR, who reinterprets Bas Dobbelaer's "T2310" in an earthy and textured manner, while keeping its ambient techno & dubby spirit vividly alive. Photography by Marius Renard.

Micro Driver III is here back again, from a large period of such as an hybernation status. As previous targets: the combination and compilation from several electronic music producers are shown in this series to enhance and spread the sonic spectrum of the label.

So we are also proud of this release for a particular reason: A nice moment of having on board two of the greatest veteran electronic music activists from Madrid City, Roberto Gemelin with his aka Groof and Luis Rozalén with his HD Substance moniker gives to this 12" an exclusive meeting to show the most electro side of both producers after their long careers producing and creating full of different electronic music alias and stuff.

In the other hand, sharing the vinyl we are pretty excited by the music of Spectrum Data Forces the Electro alias of the well established techno producer C-System, with his high-energy, powerfull and tigh Electro. And the last but no least track of Emulador with a minimal and futuristic Düsseldorf/Detroit vibes to accomplish this compilation.

This four spanish artists are definately full of talent with four different styles and visions of Electro. Micro Driver is a series compilation from several artists of the Electro community.

French-born, Berlin-based DJ and producer Benabou returns with 'Rise & Merge', her second solo EP and first standalone project since 2018's 'Hottan'. She now presents a body of work that reaches beyond the familiar contours of techno while retaining the rhythmic precision of her core sound. The six-track EP emerged from a period of creative recalibration. Benabou found herself drawn towards exploratory forms, embracing movement via dub structures, broken rhythms and ambient atmospheres alongside more direct dancefloor energy.

Benabou's position as a mastering/cutting engineer at Berlin's Manmade Mastering studio is a central element of the record. Conceived as a vinyl release and brought to life with the assistance of Mike Grinser, the run time is deliberately contained to 15 minutes per side to preserve the EP's warmth and fidelity.

The inky opening track 'Projet G' slinks through cosmic textures and prowling sub-bass, built around layered Korg Mono/Poly and rich analogue components. Kliche's remix follows with a spacious, kinetic dub techno interpretation that teases out the original's deeper currents. 'Interlude' then offers a fleeting bridge between worlds. Conceived during a flight back to Berlin, its unfinished quality is entirely intentional, allowing the listener to imagine where it might lead.

The B-side flows towards club territory with 'Rise' and 'Shift'. Both tracks favour broken beats and fluid arrangements that lend them an organic, elemental quality. 'Merge' provides the EP's emotional resolution. Its experimental/ambient resonance unfolds through wispy melodies and porous textures; the state of separate elements finding their way back to a common origin.

"I’m really happy to present something this eclectic and to go where people might not expect me", Benabou explains. "To step slightly outside the techno world I know, and reach for something more open and luminous."

Back In Stock!

Grammy Award winner Louie Vega has the unique ability to spotlight and highlight the most essential elements of classic dance tracks and remix and recreate them to create something just as powerful for today’s audiences. Currently in the midst of putting the finishing touches on his forthcoming album, Expansions In The NYC, Louie took some extra time to gather together the original members of the seminal New York – based disco funk band Unlimited Touch and collaborate with them at Log Cabin Studio in Manhattan and his own Daddy’s Workshop Studio in New Jersey to produce the 2020 edition of “I Hear Music In The Streets.”

Unlimited Touch consists of Audrey Wheeler (lead singer), Phil Hamilton, Tony Cintron, Sandy Anderson (RIP), Stephanie James and Lenny Underwood. “I Hear Music In The Streets” was originally released on legendary imprint Prelude Records in 1981.

Growing up in the Bronx, from an early age Louie had an affinity and love for all the various musical genres that were bubbling up in New York during that era defining creative period. It is that passion that has stayed with him during a career that has brought him Grammy’s, several worldwide hit records, and a status as one of the world’s most sought after DJs. It was especially fulfilling for Louie to work with the original members of Unlimited Touch, He quickly realized that their talents were still as strong as ever as they performed musical and vocal elements from the original song, and that they had the vision to see how the song could be re-energized by having Louie add his unique production elements to this seminal tune.

Louie is in the midst of an especially prolific and productive period. In 2016 he released the Grammy nominated Louie Vega Starring….XXVIII full length album; 2018 saw the release of the widely acclaimed and chart topping NYC Disco 2 X CD and 4 X vinyl album on Nervous Records. Known universally as “The Maestro” due to the standards of excellence he maintains in his productions, DJ Performances and live appearances with his Elements of Life Band, Louie Vega is now ready to unleash another gem to add to one of the music industry’s most remarkable body of work.

Two rare recordings from the archives of legendary producer Richard Hewson.

Rising Star (Cosmix) began life in 1984 as a vocal single performed by Debbie Sharp. Hewson reworked the original track into a percussive cosmic disco interpretation, aptly titled the “Cosmix”, experimenting with his newly acquired Bel Delay effects unit, which became central to his studio explorations at the time.

Deep Song dates back even further, to the late-70s Richard Hewson Orchestra period - the creative blueprint that would later evolve into Hewson’s cult studio project, The RAH Band. Written, produced and assembled by Hewson in his home studio before additional strings and vocals were layered in, the track was inspired by his deep admiration for Miles Davis, particularly the landmark album Kind of Blue. Deep Song was originally released as a B-side under a mysterious alias in 1979.

M40 Records presents Santa Eugenia EP, a various artists release conceived as the label’s introduction and a statement of its curatorial direction. The title and character of the record refer to an imaginary rooted in the periphery, the margins, and Madrid’s underground context.
Victor Reyes, Mirko Felicioli, Stefano Andriezzi and Santiago Uribe sign this first release. Four tracks that dialogue with each other while maintaining their own identities.

Return to Sky is the follow-up to the band's classic Euporie Tide, which consolidated the band as a crucial underground force in the European psych scene and spread their unique brand of warm-toned stoner rock to a wider audience. The album is a condensed piece of acutely experimental, yet immensely engaging, instrumental rock. Each of the album’s five epics unfolds as a microcosm of the band’s genre-transcending psychedelia at large, yet adds something different to the whole.
The tracks on Return To Sky travel far and wide: heavy, detuned riffs are transformed into wide, pastoral soundscapes, and fluid minimalism warped into swirling crescendos and back again. Occasionally the band even manages to sound turbulent, fuzzed-out yet strangely peaceful at the very same time. Whereas so much of today’s psychedelic scene comes off as merely a tribute to a certain period of the past, Causa Sui has always been on a different mission. More than any other record in their catalog Return To Sky declares their roots in the avant rock of the late 1990s - where different eras and genres merged into something that resonated as much with the present as it celebrated the past. It also reveals the fact that members of the band has had their hands in many different projects since the band’s debut album in 2005: solo excursions into synthesizer music, collaborations with members of Sunburned Hand Of The Man and Tortoise as well as film soundtracks and improv sessions with krautrock legends Faust and Damo Suzuki. It has all worked a subtle influence on the kind of band they have become. On Return To Sky their sound is more earthy and heavy than other Causa Sui record, but it’s also a record that has absorbed everything from shoegaze and vintage Italian film music to spiritual jazz and afrobeat into its fabric. Causa Sui has never sounded deeper or more mesmerizing than on this set.

Double vinyl reissue of Skullflower’s epochal “IIRD GATEKEEPER” album - the first time that this album has been available on vinyl for 30 years. In addition to the original LP this definitive and expanded edition includes extra and unreleased tracks taken from the recording sessions. For the first time all the tracks recorded by the band during this period can be heard together giving fans unprecedented access to material previously only available in the bands’ archives. Recorded in London in 1991 and released in 1992 on Justin “Godflesh” Broadrick’s HeadDirt label in 1992, IIRD GATEKEEPER established a worldwide reputation and following for Skullflower and convinced many who heard it that they had encountered nothing less than the best band on the planet. Arriving at the height of the “grunge” and the expansion of underground guitar “rock” into corporate America, IIRD GATEKEEPER had its roots deep in the UK noise and power-electronics scene. Guitarist Matthew Bower and bassist Anthony Di Franco were both graduates of the Broken Flag school of British noise making with their respective projects PURE, TOTAL and JFK. IIRD GATEKEEPER was Skullflower’s third album and was the first of the band’s albums to feature a consistent line-up throughout its production: Matthew Bower (guitar), Anthony Di Franco on (bass) and Stuart Dennison (drums). Recorded and mixed in four sessions between January and June 1991the tracks on this edition of IIRD GATEKEEPER shows the band’s new line up developing their sound, warping and evolving in real time. As such this edition of IIRD GATEKEEPER provides a unique document of the band in a state of transition, with the chemistry of the individual playing combusting in the studio to create a wave of astonishing creativity. IIRD GATEKEEPER is perhaps the definitive British underground rock album of the 1990’s – unique and never equalled. With this new edition Dirter Promotions allows Skullflower fans old and new to listen to this classic album as it was intended: spark up, crank it up and prepare to have your ears and mind blown

Melody As Truth and Future Days Radio present ‘At the Emerald Pool’, an album by Tomo Katsurada and Jonny Nash.

Netherlands-based artists Tomo Katsurada (Ex-Kikagaku Moyo / Future Days Radio) and Jonny Nash (Melody As Truth) combine forces for an exploration into the sonic potential of the guitar duo, rooted in their experiences performing together over the last 12 months.

Friends and admirers of each other’s work for a decade, their musical collaboration began in 2024 with Katsurada asking Nash to contribute guitar to his debut EP ‘Dream Of The Egg’. Sensing the need to explore this further, they spent the following year performing together in different configurations, with Nash joining Katsurada’s trio and Katsurada in turn playing with Nash as a duo, across a wide spectrum of spaces, from churches and temples to concert halls, theatres and outdoor festivals. With new ideas developing organically out of these performances, recording new material became the next logical step. A short period of three days was set aside with a clear goal: to capture the essence of their fluid, intertwining melodies and guitar playing in a way that felt as direct and unfiltered as possible. Working from a handful of pre-existing sketches, they left ample room for experimentation to unfold within the process.


The results are presented on ‘At The Emerald Pool’, a collection of ten pieces that offer the listener a full immersion into the pair’s sound. With guitar as the primary instrument for both artists, it is no surprise that the core of the album lies here, specifically in the fluid interplay between the two players. Layers of gentle, delay-soaked fingerpicking often make it almost impossible to distinguish where one player ends and the other begins. As soloists, both Katsurada and Nash have a gift for crafting melodic lines that feel open and ascending, expressive and hopeful without becoming saccharine. Longer, more abstract pieces are counterbalanced by a series of shorter songs, with five vocal tracks appearing across the album. The decision to share vocal duties lends the record a unique quality and a strong sense of variation, bringing a wide expressive range out of a deliberately focused musical framework.


‘At The Emerald Pool’ represents the first chapter in an ongoing musical dialogue, an attempt to capture a moment of connection, openness and discovery, laying the foundation for what continues to unfold.

2026 Repress

Mr. G, aka Colin McBean, presents a remastered, 23-track compilation entitled 'OG Retrospective'

'The day I found my original studio masters and got my rights back was the starting point, and then I realised it's 25 years on and it's time to recode, remaster and reevaluate because I've never looked back properly. I've always been like a bat out of hell, never quite thinking I'm good enough or great at what I do, but it's important to celebrate, because there's nota lot of people still here, still doing it after this length of time'.

With new masters provided by Simon at the renowned London mastering house The Exchange London, a direct link to the original mastering done by the late-Nilz (Nilesh Patel) from The Exchange, Mr. G's 'OG Retrospective' marks a reflective period in McBean's life.

'All I've ever done is write and move forward, but more and more, I get the new generation sending me videos of my old tracks and sometimes I don't even recognise them, so finally I thought, 'ok, you're comfortable in your own skin, let's really see how you sounded at the beginning, how you've changed, how have the techniques changed'?

It was quite raw going back over these; some of the memories are riddled with pain and angst - friends dying, where I was in my life at the time, having a heart attack and so on. Having a sound, too, can be a cross to bear. You're only ever competing with yourself, your only game is being better than your last game, so if you dwell on the past too much you can't move forward. Getting to the point where I can look back and feel happy, feels good.

Invariably, what will come from this is 'more', because, with my own label I have endless possibilities and will continue telling my story.'

Looking back on her career in the early 90s, Stevie Nicks described the first track of Rock a Little as “the most exciting song that I had ever heard.” This coming from a superstar who was already closely affiliated with several bajillion-selling Fleetwood Mac albums — to say nothing of her own benchmark solo debut. Her remarks attest to the enthusiasm and effort she invested in her third record, a 1985 work that quickly furthered Nicks’ profile and cemented itself as a piece of 80s pop lore.

Mastered at MoFi’s California studio, pressed at Fidelity Record Pressing in California, strictly limited to 4,000 numbered copies, and housed in a Stoughton gatefold jacket, Mobile Fidelity’s 180g 45RPM 2LP set presents Rock a Little in audiophile sound for its 40th anniversary. Helmed by a cadre of producers and engineers, and recorded for a reported one million dollars, the platinum-certified album teems with a head-spinning array of colors, tones, dreamscapes, and accents. This reference-grade reissue marks the first time they are all brought to light and conveyed with proper balance, dimensionality, and positioning.

Though Rock a Little doubtlessly has period characteristics of a mid-80s LP, Nicks and company spare no expense when it comes to distinguishing the music with expansive sonics distinguished with lush melodies, high-tech percussion, echoing vocals, sampled keyboards, and layers of sophisticated accents. The degrees of spaciousness, headroom, and dynamics are nothing less than inspiring, while the newly enhanced detail, texture, and clarity make the songs sing like never before. As for Nicks’ voice? Wait ’til you experience the transparency and depth.

Those advantages extend, of course, to the aforementioned “I Can’t Wait,” a statement-making opener shot through with modulating synthesizers, splashy drums, metallic guitars, and serious drama. Holed up in a massive studio, Nicks required just one take to nail her part, which she called “magic and simply not able to beat.” The singer-songwriter also distilled the reverberating emotional essence of the Top 20 tune, stating “when I hear it on the radio, this incredible feeling comes over me, like something really incredible is about to happen.”

The same can be said for nearly all of Rock a Little. Crafted by the likes of Songwriters Hall of Fame multi-instrumentalist/producer Rick Nowels, Heartbreakers organist Benmont Tench, bassist Bob Glaub, jack-of-all-trades Greg Phillinganes, and session-pro guitarists Waddy Watchel, Les Dudek, and Danny Kortchmar — along with another two dozen or so participants — the record spills with diverse ideas, shapes, and moods. Everything is in the right place, as evidenced by the swirling glide and sensual undertow of the slightly funky title track to the snapping rhythmic pace and big hooks of “Imperial Hotel,” one of Nicks’ standout moments.

“What was it she wanted?” Nicks queries on “No Spoken Word,” continuing a theme of contemplation that runs through the narratives. Nicks never lands on a definite answer, but hearing her explore loneliness, love, and the secrets we keep to ourselves proves continuously rewarding. Take her passionate performance on a cover of Chas Sanford’s “Talk to Me,” a Top 5 smash furthered by tasteful saxophone lines and understated folk elements. Immersive yourself in the grand sonic corridors of “If I Were You,” laden with Nicks’ signature mysticism.

Moreover, surrender to the gravitas of the closing “Has Anyone Ever Written Anything for You,” a piano ballad composed about the death of Joe Walsh’s three-year-old daughter. As Nicks asserts earlier on the album, she sings for things money can’t buy.

So, rock a little, yes, but dare to feel even more.

By 2005, the Rob & Si partnership had found its stride. Working from Online Studios in Croydon, South London, Rob Pearson and Simon Copleston (Iteration X) continued to refine their unmistakable take on underground Tech House, combining deep rolling grooves with crisp percussion and slick production skills.

Originally released as EVA015, Just Add Water was pressed as a limited white label release during a period of distributor changes, meaning it never received a full release at the time. As a result, original copies have become highly sought after by collectors over the years, regularly changing hands for premium prices whenever they surface on the second-hand market.

The EP features the unmistakable Original Mix, alongside an alternative interpretation from each producer, with the Iteration X Remix and Rob Pearson Remix offering their own distinctive twists while staying true to the stripped-back, rolling sound that defined the era.

More than twenty years on, Just Add Water remains one of the hidden gems from the early Evasive catalogue and a snapshot of London's underground Tech House movement at its most authentic.

With great joy, we are happy to present to you our next release, celebrating the milestone of reaching 40 vinyl releases.

"From Vision To Reality" will not be a simple release, but a collection of 13 tracks produced by 13 different artists, divided across 3 discs. The selection of tracks will be a mix of up-and-coming artists, established ones, and dear friends, many of whom are making their first appearance on the label.

Opening and closing the compilation are the first two hip-hop instrumental tracks ever released on the label, by Chester Watson and Dean Denali.

In between is a selection of different styles, ranging from melodic Broken Beat and Ambient to Electro, passing through Acid Techno and Goa Trance, featuring artists such as Josh Abrahams (from FSOM), Wedding Acid Group, Sohrab, ADSR, Enrica Falqui, and Parand, to name a few.

A special triple gatefold sleeve has been carefully designed, including printed pictures on the inside that show memories from our journey. Starting from the very early days in London in 2012, they bring back special moments shared with people and friends, or simply, for those who were not there, offer a chance to learn more about our history.

A 30 × 60 cm poster will be included, printed on both sides. The full artwork of the release will appear on one side, while the other will feature pictures of the 13 artists along with their biographies.

Limited to only 350 copies worldwide.

Although produced back in 2012, this gem started to make it rounds only around 2018, with the likes of Raresh, Herodot etc.

Already released digitally, now made available on 180g Pressing with an aditional track on the B side , produced in the same period.

Obelix is the brainchild of UK producers Richard George and Corine Trembath, whose timeless take on house and techno has long been cherished by underground heads and vinyl collectors alike.

With releases on Pacific Records, Mosaic and Stickman, their music occupies a distinctive space between early house and techno, raw, hypnotic and deeply musical, built around rolling 909 rhythms, expertly programmed 303 acid lines and the unmistakable character of analogue hardware.

Following an extensive dive into their DAT archives, Pariter presents The Lost Tapes, a collection of previously unreleased recordings made in the mid-1990s. Carefully restored and curated by Yossi Amoyal, the material retains all the rawness, warmth and analogue
character of the original tapes, offering a rare glimpse into a particularly fertile period of UK underground dance music.

The two part release is completed by Whatever, their sought after classic originally released on Offshoot, a timeless slice that stands alongside the unreleased recordings as an essential piece of the Obelix story.

The Lost Tapes documents a sound that has lost none of its power, raw, hypnotic and unmistakably timeless.

Obelix is the brainchild of UK producers Richard George and Corine Trembath, whose timeless take on house and techno has long been cherished by underground heads and vinyl collectors alike.

With releases on Pacific Records, Mosaic and Stickman, their music occupies a distinctive space between early house and techno, raw, hypnotic and deeply musical, built around rolling 909 rhythms, expertly programmed 303 acid lines and the unmistakable character of analogue hardware.

Following an extensive dive into their DAT archives, Pariter presents The Lost Tapes, a collection of previously unreleased recordings made in the mid-1990s. Carefully restored and curated by Yossi Amoyal, the material retains all the rawness, warmth and analogue
character of the original tapes, offering a rare glimpse into a particularly fertile period of UK underground dance music.

The two part release is completed by Whatever, their sought after classic originally released on Offshoot, a timeless slice that stands alongside the unreleased recordings as an essential piece of the Obelix story.

The Lost Tapes documents a sound that has lost none of its power, raw, hypnotic and unmistakably timeless.

In 2023, Kraków-based composer Martyna Basta and Los Angeles-based sound artist claire rousay were invited to Poland by Unsound for a short residency, where they spent a few days trading ideas and concepts, and brainstorming their first collaboration. Initially motivated to create lengthy, expansive pieces together, they also ended up experimenting with shorter vignettes, and ‘hotel room’ expresses these two extremes, featuring three long-form tracks and three brief, euphoric songs. “It wasn’t something we specifically planned,” explains Basta. “It just unfolded that way.” The most important stage of the process, however, was the period that followed the residency, when rousay and Basta began working on their sketches in isolation, trading drafts and sculpting the sounds independently before rousay handled the final mixdown. In the comfort of their own bedrooms, they were better able to reflect their individual creative routines, organically reaching a junction where their music felt truly unified. Even while they were in Poland, the duo joked that it might have been easier if they’d been holed up in separate rooms emailing each other.

Both artists have had an energetic few years: after steadily building a reputation for her diaristic and candid concrète experiments, rousay signed to Thrill Jockey in 2023, releasing the acclaimed ‘sentiment’, ‘a little death’ and the more eaze collaboration ‘no floor’; Basta, meanwhile, followed up 2023’s hallucinatory ‘Slowly Forgetting, Barely Remembering’ and her debut for Belgium’s Stroom imprint, ‘Diaries Beneath Fragile Glass’ with a studio album on !K7’s 7K sublabel: ‘Winged in Collapse’. The title of their collaboration reflects rousay and Basta’s hectic touring schedules in the wake of these releases, the constant feeling of displacement and the emotions that emerge when the environment is in flux. “I know we aren’t the only musicians traveling and creating work at the same time,” says rousay, “but being able to speak about that experience and all the things that come with it was comforting.” And the music itself, assembled from hypnagogic field recordings, spectral voices, electronics and filtered instrumental improvisations, sounds bewitchingly unmoored, not tied to a specific location but hovering around the uncanny space in-between.

Scratchy ASMR sounds introduce us to the opening track ‘zoom’, initially obscuring the duo’s elegiac harmonies. They are careful to let the various elements evolve at their own pace, with the fictile guitar drones melting into the foreground while Basta’s dissociated whispers and rousay’s illusory synths pick out the subtlest subliminal shades. It all builds to the piece’s dramatic third act, when layered chords ring out like organ blasts, enveloping the negative space. The shorter, more anxiety-provoking ‘denim’ is remarkably divergent, a dismantled folk memory pieced together from skeletal piano notes, vaporous choral echoes, haunting string plucks and pulsating feedback. Where the music aligns is in the mood itself, capturing a feeling that’s neither completely abstract nor fully referential. Not ambient exactly, ‘hotel room’ is a suite of soundscapes that gesture towards structure while repeatedly folding in on themselves.

On ‘Lost and Found’, wordless Autotuned ad-libs spiral around delicate guitar plucks and washing waves, coalescing into a faded Polaroid of opiated Americana, and on ‘Where Are You Now’, operatic squeals and corroded orchestral scrapes are juxtaposed with nauseous low-end tones. Evaporating until only industrial whirrs and music box chimes remain, the latter encapsulates the entire album’s chilling liminality, smudging saturated voices with casual electro-acoustic interjections before it erupts abruptly, transforming into a dense, pitch-skewed hymn. ‘hotel room’ plays like a surreal travelogue, teasing listeners with airy familiarities as it humidifies dry, awkward spaces. More a labyrinth of catacombs than a single, fixed chamber, it’s Escher-like – cryptic and seductive – and decked out with personal asides and intimate details that reward the most patient, curious listeners.

Weight meets wriggle on DJ Life's five-tracker for Haŵs, and oh boy is it hefty. Gritty basslines get right under the skin, swinging drums sit deep in the pocket, and skippy FX keep things light on their feet. A murky, moody streak runs through the record, with an electric tension giving even the loosest grooves a touch of menace. Fat low end and a restless edge, with enough bite to leave a mark. Serious tackle with a wicked sense of swing, primed for the dancefloor. Use at your own peril, you’ve been warned!

Music springs eternal. Recognising the enduring power of timeless albums to guide us through life, Forever Records is a reissue series dedicated to rediscovering lost musical treasures from across the spectrum of head-feeding, heart-rending electronic music.

Established by Rush Hour co-founder Christiaan Macdonald and Delsin founder Marsel van der Wielen, Forever Records places heartfelt faith in a carefully curated sequence of seminal, largely forgotten records from disparate eras, scenes and spaces within electronic music history. Tipped towards the mellow and introspective, these are albums that stop time when the needle hits the groove, stirring only when it's time to flip over before you sink back into the experience. That's what albums were always meant to be about, back then, right now, always and forever.



The Release:
Striking the sweet spot between sampledelic downtempo and earth-rooted deep house, Fila Brazillia's Old Codes New Chaos is a maverick patchwork of grooves and soundscapes. Crafted in North East England in the vibrant period before chill-out was co-opted by advertising, Steve Cobby and Dave McSherry's sharp-eared funk formula remains a cult classic suite of exquisite productions spanning deep house, broken beat and ambient shot through with wry humour.
Last physically released in limited quantities in 2002, Forever Records are revisiting this 1994 gem with an extensive reissue led by a triple vinyl pressing. As well as a new LP edition of the album, there will also be a uniquely numbered, limited edition housed in a gatefold sleeve that comes with a bonus 10" featuring two previously unreleased tracks.

'Chemistry' and 'Rankine', plus an exclusive print of Catherine Brennand's watercolour painting that graces the front of the album. All editions also features liner notes by veteran music journalist John McCready.

Press response to Old Codes New Chaos:
"The album that made the world finally sit up and take notice of the avant funk grooves coming from Hull's immaculately stoned tech funk magicians." Frank Tope, Mixmag, UK 1994.
"This album… stands out a mile from most of its peers as a work of untouchable genius." Bill Brewster, DJ Mag UK 1994.

"Fila works because they fit into that no man’s land, the space in your record collection where ambient seems too much like wallpaper and house seems just too braindead for your bedroom " Frank Tope, Mixmag, UK 1994.

"Having already created the perfect desert island disc, "Mermaids" and explored the darker side of sub bass on the 17-minute extravaganza "Fila Funk", Fila Brazillia have just unleashed their moving debut LP, "Old Codes New Chaos", and to be quite honest, you'd be fool to miss out this time around." Mandi James, Melody Maker, UK 1994.

“Where Cobby and Man rip up the rulebook on the four to the floor and probably make the greatest afterhours house album in the word”. Tony Marcus, Mixmag, 1996.

Produced after a period spent alone, surrounded by the elements of nature, this record brought Katatonic Silentio back to her essence and her roots. The result is a dedication to the dancefloor through the genre she first became involved with, and to the music itself as the conductor of her whole life; an ever-changing entity of the essence of the soul; a bridge to the unknown and the depth of existence. A luminous voyage in the profound lightness of sound. Far from being an intellectual exercise, the album - the first club-oriented release by Krisis Publishing - is a physical and spiritual journey. This one is for the body, mind and soul, so that there may be harmony between the parties, between the inside and the outside, between the self and the other.

Much like the fusion resulting in the output of light and heat within a star, the last seven years for Dave Sumner, aka Function, have been defined by immense change and an outpouring of creative energy. What began in late 2016 as a period of burnout from a relentless touring life became a catalyst for the most prolific recording era of his career. At the time, the studio became the only viable escape, a space to transmute exhaustion into a gestalt work.
Aeternum (Existenz) serves as the missing element in this creative arc. It acts as the final chapter of a cycle, that began with the 2019 album Existenz and moved through Subject f (Transcendence), Awakening from the Illusory Self, and Green EP. Drawing inspiration from the seven stages of alchemy, this mini-album represents a cathartic process; a natural end point of a psychological cycle and the beginning of a new curve.
Across the six tracks on the mini-LP, recorded 2016-2019, Function builds a unique world, one which underlines his place as one of the luminaries of contemporary techno. Opening track, Ascent, traverses the space between ambient and techno; second track City Of Luz almost fades into itself across its twelve minutes before Transmutation brings around a reawakening with a beat that would not have sounded out of place on an early Rephlex or even a Sähko release. Final track on the 12”, Growth Cycle is fittingly a re-version/re-vision of a track on the Existenz LP; Robert Owens’ soulful vocal now Stefanie Parnow's floating Siren-like voice with music that feels reborn: fresh, strong and insistent. The digital pack contains two further tracks, the deep electro of November 29, as well as Rubedo, a spacial ambient track that feels like the final glowing red embers of a fire turning to ash as the sun rises to reveal a new, golden dawn.
Aeternum (Existenz) is the final chapter of the soundtrack to Function’s spiritual awakening, the closing of a door and the clearing of a path. It’s a sonic manifestation of the Magnum Opus completed, a moment of total integration, where the leaden weight of the journey is finally perfected into the incorruptible gold of the spirit.
It is dedicated to John Mendez, aka Silent Servant, Sumner’s dear friend and lifelong collaborator.

As WARNING prepares to release Rituals of Shame - their first new music in twenty years,vocalist/guitarist Patrick Walker is self-effacing about what led to this moment. Over the last two decades he continued to write and release music, satisfied that he had achieved what he set out to do with WARNING. In those intervening years, interest in WARNING swelled, organically gathering an ardent fanbase. In particular, the 2006 album, Watching from a Distance, has gained a cult following. In response to a transformative period in his life, Walker turned towards writing new songs, and it soon became apparent that these belonged to WARNING. In early January 2025, he started with a completely blank canvas, and piece by piece, he started to fill it with ideas that evolved to become the songs that make up Rituals of Shame.

His immersion in the project became a full-time pursuit. After successfully demoing the five songs, Walker retreated to a remote house on a hill outside Florence, Italy, to refine the lyrics. Recording took place at The Arch Studio, a 140-year-old former church in Southport, UK. Chris Fullard (Idles, Sunn O))), Ulver) handled the recording and mixing. Walker's lifelong musical inspirations can be traced through Rituals of Shame. The ambitious structural arrangements harken to Marillion’s complex but soaring episodic songs. They retain a sparsity that is reminiscent of June Tabor’s economic arrangements; thick with melody but with a diaphanous air to them. Citing John Brenner of Revelation as an enduring inspiration, Patrick credits him with introducing the idea of how to infuse heavy music with significant emotional depth. Often reluctant to discuss the minutiae of his lyrics, Walker does acknowledge that making this album was a direct response to the immediate concerns of his current life period. Rituals of Shame also echoes the enduring themes and fixations that have marked most of his work: guilt, shame, personal failure, obsession, longing, and separation, but, most of all, he says, love. Short: WARNING return with Rituals of Shame - the pioneering Doom band's first new music in 20 years! FFO: My Dying Bride, Candlemass, YOB, Black Sabbath, 40 Watt Sun, Pallbearer, Pagan Altar

Felipe Gordon is back on Shall Not Fade with his new album Tezeta and f*ck is it special.

Felipe Gordon is SNF label mainstay... (we released his triple repressed debut album "A Landscape Onomatopeya" in 2022 as well as 7 x 12" EPs on SNF over the years plus an extra 12" on Lost Palms)... so given his consistent and exceptional output on our record label you'd probably forgive some complacency with this write up, you might even afford us license to assume we're preaching to the choir and allow us to rest easy knowing that at this stage Felipe Gordon's records sell themselves.... Well none of those things are happening here because when an artist makes a record this complete, this good, you have to try to find the words. You use words like "timeless", "complete and "special". Words that can carry the weight. Because when you've listened to an album dozens of times, and not once, in any part, on any listen in any way has it fatigued you, you need to say. When a record felt so wonderfully familiar from the first listen and just kept on giving you the same feels ever since, you need to say. When a record makes you think about you how you feel about certain Air & St Germain albums (even when you know what it means to put that in a press release), you need to say. So here we are, saying these things.. Tezeta is a special record, one that exists in the rarefied air. A proper album. A record that every time you press play you will immediately remember why you own it and why you love it. A record that your subconscious will know so well that if shuffle is on you will know in an instant. An album that when it's in your collection and the first track starts you get a twinge of annoyance because you didn't listen again sooner and when the final track stops you stop too.

Given paint and a canvas we can most of us paint a picture, but only those that are gifted can paint something that makes us feel. Tezeta makes you feel. Feel familiarity when it's playing, yearning when its not, and absence when it ends. This alone would be enough to make the argument as to why this album is special and justify the gushing opening paragraph of this press release. But we're not done yet.

We don't really have a word in english for what Felipe Gordon has created with this album and how it makes you feel. "Tezeta" that word.

Tezeta is a one of four musical modes within the traditional Ethiopian modal music system known as Qiñit. Mulatu Astatke, the father of Ethio-jazz, frequently uses this mode, often translating it as "nostalgia" or "longing". Gordon says Mulatu's own tezeta recordings convey to him "feelings of melancholy and longing from a point of affection". This is exactly the feeling Gordon has captured. It is what he has woven through every recording on this album. Tezeta is the prime ingredient. It's the base note in recipe, it's sprinkled over the signature jazz-sampled house tracks. It powers the vast array of synthesizers Gordon deploys. It underpins the explorations into trip-hop. It's present in Gordon's varied vocal deliveries and it tunes his guitar. It's in the running order. It's the flow. Tezeta is tezeta in electronic music form, with 4/4, breakbeats, samples and synths.

Gordon says a big part of what differentiates this album from from his previous albums is that is was recorded in a period where he allowed himself to create music without the constraints of time or self-pressure which coincided with a moment of heavy personal growth which allowed him to reflect deeply on his work.

There is a word in Portuguese "Saudade" that Gordon says has a similar meaning to Tezeta - Saudade is defined as a deep, sometimes bittersweet, longing or nostalgia for someone or something that is absent or lost. But here at SNF we think that in Tezeta nothing has been lost. Quite the opposite. Through Felipe Gordon's artistic explorations we have all gained something very special indeed.

The Reloved series – Four Flies Records’ ongoing project where today’s producers reimagine select gems from the golden age of Italian library music and soundtracks – welcomes a new chapter from the formidable pairing of Nicola Conte and Nico Lahs.

The tracks reworked in this vinyl EP all originate from the first half of the 1970s, a period when a fascination with African imagery and sounds was so pervasive among Italian composers that it became a prominent cultural and aesthetic trend. Applying their refined touch, Conte and Lahs have expanded the rhythmic and atmospheric potential of the original recordings without the need for invasive overwriting. Instead, they have emphasized the unique identity of each piece, adding a contemporary club energy that remains entirely respectful of the original spirit, structure, and essence.

The EP opens with Piero Umiliani’s “Nel Villaggio” (originally found on the 1975 library album Continente Nero), which Conte and Lahs have filtered through a hypnotic, sensual tribal-house lens. Side A continues with “Orgiastic Ritual”, a reimagining of Gianfranco Reverberi’s main theme for Black Magic Rites (Renato Polselli’s 1973 erotic-horror film), which elevates the original percussive groove, amplifying its ritualistic dimension and drawing the listener into a mesmeric sonic spiral.

On side B, “Oasi nella Giungla” – from Giuliano Sorgini’s Africa Oscura (recorded in 1974) – takes a more minimalist, electronic approach: the original material remains front and centre, enveloped in delays and subtle rhythmic touches. Closing the EP is Romolo Grano and Gianni Oddi’s “Kilimangiaro”, originally composed for the 1974 documentary Le Montagne della Luce; through the use of sampling and loops, Conte and Lahs transform it into an elegant afro-house cut, at once sleekly restrained and irresistibly magnetic.

This is undoubtedly the most club-oriented instalment of the Reloved series to date, propelling Italy’s library music heritage from the flickering screens and analogue airwaves of the past onto the dancefloors of the present.

2026 Repress

In the beginning of the 1970’s, Guinea-Bissau was a country broken up into many ethnic groups and at the heart of a war for independence. By reviving traditional musical genres as Gumbé and singing in guinean Kriol, José Carlos Schwarz & Cobiana Djazz established an immediate affective bond with their audiences. Through its music and politically engaged spirit of the lyrics, the band played a significant role in shaping the social and political consciousness of the masses. As well as influencing local bands like Super Mama Djombo and giving back a deep sense of cultural identity to bissau-guineans.

The explosive birth of Cobiana Djazz brought about other kinds of detonation. Schwarz became involved in urban guerilla activities which resulted in several bombings in the centre of Bissau, leading to his imprisonment and torture. He remained in lockup for a total period of about 2 years, between 1972 and 1974.

The process of decolonisation, in the wake of the Portuguese revolution of 25 April 1974, led to the recognition, during the same year, of the sovereign nation of Guinea-Bissau.

Schwarz, a key figure in the fight for independence, played an important part in the transition to the democratic regime, profiting from his popularity as an artist. Soon, his criticism (underscoring opportunism and irresponsibility in high places) became a thorn in the side of the political elite. Uneasy with the disquieting effects of his work, government officials effectively separated the author from the masses by assigning him to the embassy in Havana.

José Carlos Schwarz met a tragic and untimely death at the age of 27, when his plane crashed on arrival at Cuba's José Martí International Airport, on May 271th 1977.

Hailed by african giants like Orchestra Baobab, Letta Mbulu or Miriam Makeba (with whom he recorded his first and only solo album), “Zé Carlos” and his poetry won a lasting position in the annals of Guinea-Bissau. However, this collection of songs remains relatively unknown outside the country and its diasporas.

We are proud to offer, in close collaboration with the Schwarz family, this first official reissue on vinyl. Remastered and pressed on heavyweight vinyl.

This is not a Ben Vida, Booker Stardrum, and Will Epstein record; it’s a Play Time record. That’s a subtle but important distinction, for a couple reasons. One, the sound of Magic Object—a polymetric blend of improv and pulse minimalism for saxophone, drums, and Moog—doesn’t really sound anything like any of their many other ensembles or respective solo projects. And two, it was only while making Magic Object, their debut album, that Play Time realized they were a band at all.

Let’s back up. The roots of the trio date to 2020-21, when Will and then Booker moved to the Hudson Valley, where Ben was already living. The three got into the habit of playing together at Ben’s house, and they soon realized that their hang sessions felt fundamentally different from making music in some falling-down studio in Bushwick. Where those experiences were rushed and cramped, a new sense of time and space now suggested itself. Where once they rat-raced the music, now they relaxed into it.

Early gigs yielded similar revelations. A booking at Tubby’s, the beloved Kingston venue, evolved into a kind of residency. Tubby’s is a small space, fitting around 100 people, with a bar in the front room and a stage in the back. Play Time decided that they didn’t want to play on the stage; they wanted to play in front, among the people in the bar. Rather than hogging the spotlight and overpowering the other voices in the room, they blended with the energy of their surroundings and emerged as a sort of minimalist-jazz-krautrock bar band.

Gradually, they discovered a newfound “elasticity”—Ben’s word—that reshaped the music from inside. “It’s this communal thing,” he says. “It’s vibes. And it’s embedded in the community up here, which feels really vital and nourishing.” They were jamming, but it wasn’t just a free-for-all; they found themselves listening to each other in new ways. “Ben and Booker joke that they’re always playing in different time signatures,” Will says. “We’re all going forward with our own ideas, but we’re open to each others’ as well, and they’re all sort of dancing together.”

“We all have our painterly solo projects,” Will says—where, Booker adds, “we do a lot of studio arranging and thinking and composition that takes shape over a period of time.” Play Time, on the other hand, is all about being in the moment. That spontaneity was key to the process of recording the album. They booked two days in their friend Joey’s studio, a converted wooden barn. “It’s just a live room,” Booker says. “There’s no separation or anything. So we’re all in the space together and it’s got this beautiful, woody sound, and that’s very much the sound of the record.” For two days, they just jammed, for seven or eight hours each day. When it was over, they went through, edited down the portions they liked, and added very judicious overdubs designed to enhance the original recordings without fundamentally altering them, staying true to the spirit of the sessions.

The result is something like a snapshot and a mission statement all rolled into one. “You’re hearing us discover the voice of the band in real time,” Ben says. “We finished those sessions and we were like, ‘Oh, that’s what our band sounds like now.’”

Now, with Magic Object, the rest of us get to find out too.

—

Balmat is a label with a cloudy outline. Jointly shepherded by Albert Salinas and Philip Sherburne, two friends living in Cardedeu, Catalonia, and on the Balearic island of Menorca, Balmat grew out of Lapsus Radio, a weekly show born almost ten years ago. Balmat’s mission is simple: to foster new ideas, expand upon personal obsessions, and put enveloping sounds out into the world.

“Balmat” means “empty” or “void” in Catalan. But quite apart from any negative connotations, we prefer to think of it in terms of possibility: a space waiting to be filled.

After ten years 12 Inch Lovers has become a household name not only because of their parties but also because of the fantastic vinyl samplers they released over the past few years, which were sold out in no time and have become true collector's items.

They now continue in the same vein and once again bring a fresh and contemporary mix of hard to find, original house classics or even classics that never had a vinyl release.

These samplers should therefore not be missing from any 12 Inch Lovers collection.

"Gregor Salto" is at it again! Sampler 6 opens with that other and hard to find classic of his "Your Friend". A club classic that has won the hearts of countless clubbers and house fanatics around the world since 2009. And speaking of hearts; Belgian dj-producer "DJ Wout" released this beautiful and emotional remix of "D. Van Horn's" "Somebody Now To Love". A true trance classic and typical in sound for that period that you can find on A2.

On B1 we find a more recent track but which you can already say is a future classic. "MZ" from "Sascha Funke" is still played to this day by top DJs like Solomun and very hard to find on vinyl. A must have! Dutch producer "Karmon" delivered this catchy deephouse remix of "Fabo's" "Where I Stand" in 2012. You can find it on B2.

On C1 we find the beautiful "Andain" classic in the "Gabriel & Dresden Unplugged Mix". "Beautiful Things" was picked up by "Tiësto" at the time and has made it a true classic. Hard to find on vinyl.

"Moko" "Fly" on C2 is a very catchy and quirky track from 2010 that never had a vinyl release! Highly recommended!

D1 brings the dreamy and highly sought after "Today" from "POB & Taylor" in the "Seismic" remix after which we close with D2 with a true classic.

"My Moon My Man" by "Feist" is probably that record which remix is better than the original. "Boys Noize" was responsible for this in 2007 and the rest is as they say history.

Label text:

"Conrad Pack returns to SELN Recordings with a three track EP threading the needle between London sonics and
something beyond.

The primary tracks Praise and Guidance were recorded during the height of the Scram events organised by
Leeway (Guy Gormley), and hosted by the late soundsystem luminary Julian Fairshare at Ormside Projects. The
influence of this period, and in particular of Fairshare himself, on the music is clear; both are stepper-esq, leaning
heavily on London’s musical legacy past and present, whilst still pushing a contemporary sound.

Praise is essentially a Dub track. The percussion and bass are of a familiar steppers nature, with the synths
evoking a true Big Smoke feeling. Although the melody itself wouldn’t sound out of place in a UK Drill number, the
song overall still touches on Industrial and DIY sonics, being all the stronger for doing so.

Guidance follows in solid form. Amongst the driving percussion and staunch bassline, droning pads lock in a dense
mood whilst sparse choral melodies echo throughout. Think Shaka meets Muslimgauze, but recorded in a
Woolwich Office Block.

Grotto was originally produced for the group show “The Grotto” held in January 2021 at Ridley Road Project Space.
Restructuring the track from the original stems, Pack presents a new and enchanted “stereo version” for Praise EP.
Angelic atmospheres flow amongst scattered hi-hats as sporadic Freetekno Kicks reverberate across the void.
Most accurately described as “what Curley in a K Hole might have sounded like”. "

Now, following great acclaim for Volume 1, CTR is proud to unveil another equally eclectic Post-Punk Era Selection Compiled by Jason Boardman ( Before I Die Records) Celebrated Manchester club-night curator & record Label Owner , DJ & digger - supreme.

A second compilation of late 1970s / early 1980s Post-Punk era bedroom & small studio innovations & DIY Inspirations - Featuring more rarely & never heard cuts from that period. Including tracks from the enigmatic Prana, Blank Students, Janet Armstrong & The Native Hipsters ..A rich vein .

Jason Writes Of Volume 2 :
"It was a delightful shock that No Ones Listening Anyway Volume One was so well received - thanks to everyone one who bought & enjoyed it. This led to John asking me to collate Volume Two, so here it is.

This time all the material was recorded & released in the UK between 1978 & 1984.

I was conscious that there was minimal female energy on Volume One so have tried to rectify that here on Volume Two. I have also tried to make it as varied as possible with none hit wonders, oddities, collectables, under the radar B-sides & a couple of previously unreleased on vinyl selections."

New Jon Savage Compilation release alert! Jon Savage's SF Sike 1966-72 (Double Vinyl) Limited Edition. Heavyweight Luxury Gauge Sleeve-Stock & Inners.

The real sound of San Francisco 1966-72." It was the new gold rush, but with drugs, music and freedom the goal. " (Jon Savage -The Guardian August 2012)

A limited edition double vinyl 18 track album celebrating the great pop music and idealism of that time & featuring Moby Grape, Skip Spence, Ron Nagle, Country Joe & The Fish & much more

Full contextual & track-by-track sleeve notes by Jon Savage. Ephemera & archive material from the period.

Michael Forzza unveils Obscure, a two-track EP navigating the darker edges of atmospheric techno with precision and intent.

A) Obscure is a peak-time weapon built on powerful percussive drive and a commanding groove. The rhythm pushes forward with controlled intensity, locking the dancefloor into motion. As the track evolves, the rhythmic pressure gradually recedes, allowing a shadowed melodic atmosphere to emerge in the final moments, adding depth and contrast without losing its dark identity.

B) Torture ventures into a more industrial realm. Dense textures, mechanical tension and hypnotic repetition shape its core, creating a sustained rhythmic strain. Then, when the pulse finally withdraws, the structure opens into a striking melodic finale, transforming the track into a suspended, almost cinematic closing atmosphere.

With OBSCURE, Michael Forzza explores the fragile line between impact and introspection, pressure and release. A release crafted for intense peak-time moments and the shadows that follow.


Français

Michael Forzza dévoile Obscure, un EP deux titres qui explore les territoires les plus sombres de la techno atmosphérique avec précision et intensité.

A) Obscure est un véritable track peak time, porté par une puissance percussive affirmée et un groove implacable. La tension rythmique s’installe et maintient le dancefloor sous pression, avant de s’effacer progressivement en fin de morceau pour laisser émerger une atmosphère sombre et mélodique, apportant profondeur et contraste.

B) Torture s’aventure dans une dimension plus industrielle. Textures denses, tension mécanique et répétition hypnotique construisent une montée intense. Puis, lorsque la pression rythmique disparaît, le titre bascule vers une finale mélodique surprenante, transformant l’énergie brute en une atmosphère finale plus immersive.

Avec OBSCURE, Michael Forzza joue sur l’équilibre entre impact et relâchement, puissance et émotion. Un EP taillé pour les heures sombres et les dancefloors exigeants.

LOS ANGELES—To celebrate the 40th anniversary of the celebrated Talking Heads and Jonathan Demme’s concert film Stop Making Sense, the set will be re-released as a 2LP and 2CD/Blu-ray set this summer.

Released last year, the sold-out Deluxe Edition of the soundtrack will return as a 2-LP black vinyl on Rhino and 2-LP crystal clear vinyl at retail. Both variants feature a 12-page booklet with liner notes from all four band members –Tina Weymouth, David Byrne, Chris Frantz, and Jerry Harrison—and band photos. The 2CD/Blu-ray version includes the entire 28-page booklet from last year’s Deluxe Edition and a Dolby Atmos mix of the complete concert, mixed by Jerry Harrison and E.T. Thorngren, who also mixed the original release. Both will be available on July 26. Pre-order now.

The band appeared together for a sold-out screening and Q&A last night at the Pantages Theater, the same theater at which Stop Making Sense was recorded. They were joined by Blondshell, who performed “Thank You For Sending Me an Angel.” Another special screening with the band will occur in Brooklyn at the King’s Theater on June 13, with the Q&A hosted by Questlove and The Linda Linda’s performing “Found a Job.” The two events cap off a banner year of celebrations for what many consider to be the best concert film of all time.

The inspiration for Stop Making Sense came when director Jonathan Demme saw Talking Heads perform during the band’s 1983 tour for Speaking in Tongues. Afterward, he approached them with the idea of making the show into a concert film. They agreed and worked together over the next few months to finalize the details. Ultimately, Demme filmed three shows at Hollywood’s Pantages Theater in December 1983 to create Stop Making Sense.

The concert film presents a retrospective of the band up to that point, with a performance that weaves together songs from all six of its studio albums. The show progresses methodically, opening with Byrne onstage performing “Psycho Killer” alone with a drum machine. After each song, he’s joined by a new band member until Weymouth, Frantz, and Harrison are all on stage with him. The group continues to grow throughout the concert as members of the stellar touring band are added: keyboardist Bernie Worrell, percussionist Steve Scales, guitarist Alex Weir, and backup singers Lynn Mabry and Ednah Holt.

The band performs 18 songs in Stop Making Sense, including its recent single at the time, “Burning Down The House.” That summer, the song was in heavy rotation on radio and MTV, helping the song become the band’s first top 10 hit in America. It was, however, a different song from Speaking in Tongues that was destined to deliver one of the film’s signature moments. Talking Heads would perform “Girlfriend Is Better” wearing the now iconic, oversized suit inspired by costumes worn in traditional Japanese theater. For good measure, a picture of David Byrne in the suit also graces the album cover.

Stop Making Sense focuses mainly on music by Talking Heads but does include a few songs recorded outside the band: “Genius Of Love” by Tom Tom Club, “What A Day That Was” and “Big Business” from Byrne’s 1981 album, The Catherine Wheel. Limited edition vinyl versions of both of these albums, along with Harrison’s The Red And The Black, were released for this year’s Record Store Day.

When it arrived in September 1984, Stop Making Sense was an artistic and commercial triumph. The film had people dancing in theatre aisles, and the soundtrack sold over two million copies. Just last year, the Library of Congress added Stop Making Sense to the National Film Registry in recognition of its cultural, historical, and aesthetic significance.

Weymouth praises Demme as a collaborator: “…Jonathan was a very enthusiastic, highly adaptive, and imaginative guy who was just as good a listener as he was a talker and collaborator. From the get-go you just got the impression he was as flexible as he was disciplined. Being team players, that boded well for a great relationship and a great film!”

Harrison says the film still holds up today: “To me, Stop Making Sense has remained relevant because the staging and lighting techniques could have been created in a much earlier time period. For example, Vari-Lights, lights with motors to re-aim them, had just come into vogue. Had we used them, there would have been a timestamp on the film, and it eventually would have felt dated...The absence of interviews, combined with the elegant and timeless lighting, created a film that can be watched over and over.”

Byrne says it’s interesting that this album was – for many people – an introduction to Talking Heads. “We had done a live album before this, but coupled with the film, and with the improved mixes and sound quality, this record reached a whole new audience. As often happens, the songs got an added energy when we performed them live and were inspired by having an audience. In many ways, these versions are more exciting than the studio recordings, so maybe that’s why a lot of folks discovered us via this record.”

Frantz recalls the sheer joy surrounding the entire Stop Making Sense experience. “I’m talking about real, conscious, transcendent joy… I’m talking about what the Southern gospel people call ‘getting happy,’ which means ‘to be filled with the Spirit.’ That is what happened to us onstage every night, and from my seat behind the drums, I recognized that this was happening to the audience too. Joy was visible in front of me and all around me every night.”

Kercha’s debut album ‘Open The Door’ arrives this April via DNO Records. The Black Sea artist’s mystical, disorienting style has set the tone for the label since he dropped the inaugural release six years ago. Now, across 16 tracks — including collabs with Mystic State, Congi, NST, Khromi and Finnoh — his smoky sampledelic dubstep is tighter, heavier, and more curious than ever, with a new sense of danger and bubbling rage that feels fit for our chaotic times.

Themes of movement and change course through the LP. On the opening gambit ‘A Path Into The Unknown’, twinkling arpeggios emerge from the gloom like stars lighting the way. Tracks like the eponymous ‘Open The Door’ and ‘Mind Extraction’ deliver that classic Kercha sound, where left-field samples dart in at right angles. ‘Dangerous Road’ weaves between the call and response action of grotty stabs and devilish subs. ‘Take A Break’, featuring Mystic State, goes on the attack with searing acid. ‘Can’t Wait For Today’, though lethargic in its pace, sees San Francisco-based rapper Finnoh deliver stream-of-consciousness bars that skewer our present and nudge us to revolution.

Work took place over the course of several years, during which Kercha relocated with his family from Russia to Georgia, where he now resides in the capital, Tbilisi. “Sometimes I wrote music while travelling on a bus, sometimes late at night while my family was asleep, sometimes just sitting on the grass in a park, and of course in my home studio as well,” he says. “By the time the album was finished, it included music from different periods, and it may vary in sound and concept.”

Any major upheaval in life will result in moments of hardship, but also hope. Both can be found throughout ‘Open The Door’. There’s times when the darkness threatens to envelope everything: during the cold, crackling ‘Disclosed’ and the eerie, dystopian ‘Infection Of Lies’; on ‘Trigger Activation’, with its grunting lows and broken glass hook, and ‘Ballistics’, where a wall of sub-bass is pierced by shrapnel stabs.

The balancing light comes on ‘4 AM’, featuring Nottingham duo Congi, when clashing swords and cinematic strings, meet a soft Rhodes piano — the juxtaposition between heavy low-end and floaty keys and vox reflecting those moments of transcendence often found in the early hours. From the injection of garage energy on ‘Bubs’, with Edinburgh’s Khromi. And on with ‘My Feeling’, featuring South Russian vocalist NST, which closes the album on a deep but expansive note, bookending the experience with more starlight synth tones.

“It’s a reflection of my life journey and the changes connected with emigration and overcoming various difficulties,” explains Kercha. “This period means a lot to me, which is why the album includes tracks from the time of preparing to leave up to adapting to a new country.”

Still, he wants listeners to be able to derive their own understanding. “I think the essence lies in the ability to contemplate, not in any predetermined meaning,” he says. “I can only say one thing: thank you for appreciating what I do and for your support. I hope it inspires you to make the same firm decisions to change for the better as it did for me.”

Out via 4 x 12” vinyl, ‘Open The Door’ is a captivating artistic statement, showcasing the journey of an artist with a truly original signature sound — a rarity that should be treasured and celebrated.

Rhythms of postmodern realism at the very bottom of the DNO.

POEME ELECTRONIQUE was Dave Hewson (synthesisers, production), Sharon Abbott (lyrics, lead and backing vocals), Julie Ruler (backing vocals) and Les Hewson (bass), formed in 1980 by Dave Hewson in South London, UK, in 1980. Dave was studying music and as a rare kind of student species he had a deep fascination for New Wave and electronic music thus also playing and recording electronic music ever since like using the Boss DR-55, Cosmo Sound Super Drum, Elka Rhapsody 610, EMS Synthi AKS, Korg MS-20(X2)/Polysix/Polyphonic Ensemble 1000/VC-10 Vocoder, Linn Electronics LM-1, Octave Kitten, Roland RS-09/VP-330 Vocoder Plus, Simmons SDS-V Kit and Yamaha CS-80 on this retrospective POEME ELECTRONIQUE album with original material from 1981/82 only. Over the period of more than two years, Dave has remastered these tracks using the latest high-end tools making them sound better than ever before. The deluxe 2LP vinyl album comprises 16 tracks of which 14 have never been published before. “The Echoes Fade” and “Voice” are the original versions taken off their original 7” from 1982. The album “The Echoes Fade” cannot be described other than being a masterpiece and one of the best-ever early 80’s electropop records ever, and it surely has to be lined up with Rational Youth or Experimental Products’ cult albums (in terms of being minimal synth/wave scene reference albums), but to be frank, Anna thinks that POEME ELECTRONIQUE were even above their level.

Truly, they had deserved to go on the successful path like Depeche Mode, OMD or Soft Cell, but fate was against them as it seems. The main difference to other electropop groups of the time was definitely that Dave did not only master his synths technically-wise, no, he also knew how to actually play, and when you hear his amazing multi-track ‘manual sequencing’, programming skills, great harmonies and melodies throughout the tracks, along with the two girls’ performances – well they can really sing! – you will agree there is some something remarkably extraordinary in these tracks. You will find minimal electropop super hits like “Rendezvous”, “She’s an Image”, “Fragile”, or “Dilemma”; hauntingly beautiful melancholic tracks like “A Mourner’s Lament”, “This Night” or “It’s in the Atmosphere”; darkest minimal electronics on “Inside his Head”; and even more poppier tracks like “Follow”. This record will hopefully be loved by any electronic music lover and most probably marks the highlight in the growing Anna Logue Records catalogue – therefore Anna did not shy away from any costs and the album is truly an outstanding release in every single aspect including sound and artwork presentation. Apart from the bonus tracks you will find in the 2LP deluxe vinyl edition glossy inner sleeves with lyrics to all songs, as well as individual mini 7” sleeves for each song designed by our dear graphic designer Steve Lippert plus many additional group photos on the gatefold sleeves’ inner. After so many efforts and more than two years passing by, Anna is so over the moon to see this release being ready now and we have done all we could to make this an outstanding release, so now it’s up to you to give the band their final glory, but Anna is in no doubt that – at least after hearing the sound samples – you will.

Mr Bongo presents a reissue of one of the rarest releases on the illustrious and now ultra-rare tax scam label TSG Records. A label with a checkered past, operated by Lloyd Price and with alleged ties to boxing promoter Don King. The album in question, Disco Party by Reality, is a stunning journey through ‘70s dancefloor-focussed funk into early proto-disco grooves. Back in mid-‘70s Manhattan, Dr. Otto Gomez and a group of fellow New York musicians including Tony Dixon, Norman Drayton, Tony Dupree, Al Jones and Fred Nanton were brought in for a recording session by songwriter and producer, Billy Nichols. Laying down one of Nichols' songs and a selection of the group's own, they were paid as session musicians and thought little of it. The tapes came to the attention of Lloyd Price who struck a deal with Nichols unbeknownst to Gomez and the rest of the band. Price then pressed the album and put it out in 1976 on a newly formed subsidiary label, TSG Records, that would later be documented as one of the US tax scam labels of the ‘70s. Such labels were created to exploit a loophole in the US tax system, running up inflated production costs / losses that investors or the parent label could write off against their tax bills. Releases on these labels were never intended to have commercial success. They would usually be produced in incredibly limited pressing numbers and have little to no promotion or distribution. As such many of these records instantly fell into obscurity, becoming mythical amongst DJs and record collectors. Sadly, this meant that artists like Dr. Otto Gomez and friends never had the chance for their record and their talents to shine at the time. In fact, it was only when Jazzman reached out for their 2022 reissue that Dr. Otto Gomez became aware that the album had ever been released and heard the story behind it. Disco Party is a time capsule where ‘70s instrumental funk edges and intertwines into an early disco sound. The sessions are for the dancefloor, minimalist and groove-based. The bass and drums are at the forefront, providing the pulse of the album. Driving funky guitar licks, and a brilliant horn section weave their way in and out of the productions. Highlights include the uplifting feel-good ‘Let's Party People’, the early disco swagger of ‘Reality’, and ‘Disco Party (Let's Have A)’ with its wah-wah groove and percussion break, which could easily have found its home on a Blaxploitation film soundtrack of the period. It’s not just rarity that makes this record so sought after, but rather the fact that it is a superb example of dancefloor-focussed mid ‘70s funk and disco.

Komatssu, Lefrenk, Vema Diodes y Celine Arnauld comparten este various artists de cuatro cortes para el tercer disco de Undancel.

La tercera referencia del sello discográfico de Undancel se caracteriza por una fase de transición entre varios sonidos. Representado un punto «ni aquí ni allí» donde la identidad o el estado anterior se disuelve antes de alcanzar uno nuevo, cuyo nombre LIMINAL.
Cuatro cortes en vinilo de 12″ de varios artistas más una canciones extra en formato digital con código de descargas en su interior.

A1_KOMATSSU_DESTRUCTOR DE MUNDOS: En activo desde 2005, Komatssu es el proyecto más personal de Héctor Sandoval (Tensal y 50% del reconocido proyecto Techno Exium). Un proyecto cimentado sobre la fusión natural entre la IDM más melódica, el Electro, el Breakcore y el avant-techno espectral que concibe el sonido como catalizador de emociones, dando lugar a un imaginario sonoro sumamente personal.

A2_LEFRENK_INDECENT: Lefrenk es un productor y DJ coruñés con más de 20 años de experiencia y más de 100 lanzamientos.
También es profesor en Fanzine School.
En el ámbito editorial, destaca como cofundador del sello Deep Different junto a Ikke Alra y fundador de Knerfel, su sello centrado en el techno.
Su trabajo se distingue por la fusión de texturas sonoras orgánicas e innovación digital, lo que refleja una constante evolución personal y creativa. Siempre innovando, Lefrenk ha expandido su influencia a través de colaboraciones dinámicas y actuaciones en directo junto a figuras de renombre de la industria.

B1_VEMA DIODES_MINDNIMALIST: Productor con raíces en el Baix Llobregat, cuya identidad se define por la experimentación técnica. Su trabajo es una exploración constante de la síntesis, donde las máquinas dictan el mensaje.
Desde sus primeras producciones en 2002, ha refinado un sonido que transita del electrobass crudo a estructuras más complejas y horizontales, fusionando la calidez analógica con la precisión digital.
Fundador del sello ÚTIL Records, Gente Seria Viste Chándal y Dialecto Periférico, plataforma desde la que reivindica el sonido de máquinas icónicas como la TR-808, tratadas con distorsiones y texturas de corte industrial.
Entiende el electro no como un género rígido, sino como un proceso de «electrificar» la señal. Su música es un equilibrio entre ritmos sintéticos y pinceladas de IDM, buscando siempre una narrativa sonora avanzada.

B2_CELINE ARNAULD_GLITCHED DANCE SYSTEM: Celine Arnauld es el nombre artístico de Pablo Miranda Caballero, artista y productor de música electrónica especializado en géneros como el IDM y el glitch con texturas ambientales. Recientemente, ha creado los alias DJ Don’t Sleep, donde da rienda suelta a la vertiente más rave del jungle y el breakbeat, y Paul Basscoigne, donde explora el electro, el acid, el IDM y el braindance.
Ha publicado su música en varios sellos, como EVEL, Clean Error, Dynamic Form, Mahorka, Hypnotica Colectiva, EC Underground, Dead Trax, Not 4 Human Consumption, New York Haunted, Point Source Electronics Arts, Moatun 7, Polygon Network, Colorsquad Records, Opal Tapes y Zabra Records.

Mastering by Verbo Studio Mix & Mastering.

Design by Beatriz Albaladejo.

Liminal – Undancel 03

"This majestic Italo-Disco tune, arranged by Pierluigi Giombini, possesses something magical and mysterious. "On Ice" begins with Natasha King's a cappella vocals and a sweet piano melody by the same composer who wrote "Masterpiece" and "I Like Chopin" for Gazebo. A classic Italo-Disco piece from the mid-1980s, which, more than its sales, achieved success in live performances and on TV shows for the grace and charm exuded by the artist, who was also a dance teacher at the time. The elegance and precision of every move are the foundation upon which Natasha builds her technique. The reissue of "On Ice" was never fully embraced by lyricist Natascia ''Nati'' Maimone, straying from her tastes in soul, blues and jazz. It was also overshadowed by her previous hip-hop track, "AM-FM" - released from Best Record in 1983 - which made the artist world-famous at the age of twenty. This reissue in both original versions was also created to allow new generations to relive, at least in part, the great musical era of the 1980s, a period of incredible musical richness combined with a carefree spirit."