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Following the release of Eric Chenaux's last album Say Laura (2022), The Guardian wrote "the Canadian songwriter has one of the all-time great singing voices in popular music, an intensely romantic Chet Baker-ish instrument that seems to float with piercing direction, like a paper aeroplane thrown hard through mist." With Uncut describing his songcraft "as delicate and lovely as a rare orchid" and Record Collector praising the album's "sublime alien balladry" such are the accolades that have accrued throughout Chenaux's unique and consummately uncompromising solo music for well over a decade now. Delights Of My Life opens a new chapter for the singer/guitarist and formally introduces the Eric Chenaux Trio, with Toronto-based musicians Ryan Driver on Wurlitzer organ and Phillipe Melanson on electronic percussion. Driver is a longtime collaborator, appearing on several of Chenaux's solo albums (even embedded into the very title of the 2010 masterpiece Warm Weather With Ryan Driver). Melanson has a long list of involvements that include Bernice, Joseph Shabason, and U.S Girls, and a recent release with his Impossible Burger project on Chenaux's own experimental label Rat-drifting, but this marks the first fulsome involvement between the two as players on a recording. In many ways Delights Of My Life also picks up right where Chenaux's previous album left off, in its subversions of a classic, timeless jazz-inflected balladry, while the interplay of the trio formation indeed unfurls many new delights. Recording together at Chenaux's spartan home studio in rural France, Driver's harmonically warped organ and Melanson's electroacoustic sampling and percussion hold time in newfound ways. Where previously Chenaux relied on a freeze/sustain pedal and minimalist rhythmic triggers to generate both pulse and chordal foundations, Melanson now paints timekeeping with expressive and intricate colourations, through live deployments of fluid sampled percussion (including orchestral timbres like timpani, kettle drums, and woodblock) that blur the boundaries between acoustic and electronic. Driver also ramps up his role in the song arrangements (prefigured in his support playing on Say Laura), teasing out chords and melodic filigree on Wurlitzer that percolate more prominently with Chenaux's signature fried guitar solos and succulent singing. Both trio members add dulcet backing vocals, most notably on the 10-minute tour-de-force of fuzzed and ring-modulated swing "This Ain't Life" that opens the record. All seven songs on the album groove and sway, simmer and sparkle, like nothing in the inestimable Chenaux discography to date. Chenaux's tunes have the uncanny ability to sound like jazz standards; songs you feel you've heard before, though certainly never quite like this. Yet these are of course all originals, compositionally and interpretively, bent through an inimitable avant/out-music lens. Delights Of My Life conveys warm familiarity, shot through with the exuberantly experimental subversion and playful, even mischievous, iconoclasm that continues to mark Chenaux as defiantly, virtuosically, and genially one-of-kind.

For fans of Duster, LSD and The Search for God, The Microphones. Double LP (NO BOOKS!) First official physical copy of fan-made compilation of alternate tracks and demos from cult phenomenon album Deathconsciousness. Freshly remastered. With the broader adoption of the internet around the turn of the century, how people would engage with and discover underground music would change forever. As a result of the new digital era, DIY was now worldwide, and no band embraced this new frontier better than Have A Nice Life. Formed in 2000 by duo Dan Barrett and Tim Macuga, the Middletown, CT-based pair would, throughout the 00s, self-release and share a number of demos and home recordings via early social media channels as well as establish its in-house label ENEMIES LIST HOME RECORDINGS. These first steps set in motion Have A Nice Life’s rise to renown as an icon of underground music in the internet age, culminating with the release of its pivotal 2008 debut album, Deathconsciousness. Through word of mouth and online discussion, Deathconsciousness became subject to viral praise thanks to its synthesis of bleak post-punk, lo-fi shoegaze, and carpets of hypnotic drone music. Eventually, this humble self-released project would attain the status of a post-internet cult classic, amassing Have A Nice Life a fervent online following that the band would interact with in kind. In an effort to thank and continue to engage with Have A Nice Life’s internet cult following, Barrett and Macuga would regularly share links to old demos, works in progress, and outtakes from the recording of Deathconsciousness. Over time, a group of fans would compile these demos into an unofficial release. Dubbed Voids, this fan-made compilation several alternate takes of tracks from Deathconsciousness, as well as a handful of early versions of songs that would appear on Have A Nice Life’s two following albums, The Unnatural World and Sea of Worry. While undeniably reminiscent of their final album version counterparts, the earlier versions of these tracks each feel distinct in a way that makes the moody, decidedly lo-fi aura of Voids an essential slice of the Have A Nice Life discography. Hungry for more from the enigmatic duo, fans swarmed around this compilation, accompanied by loud calls for it to receive a physical release. Seeing that demand and with the band’s blessing, a pair of fan-made tape pressings of Voids would be released via Music Ruins Lives, a DIY label run by Have A Nice Life superfan Thom Wasluck, also known for his band Planning for Burial. Between both instances of the tape swiftly selling out and the compilation’s long absence from streaming services, Voids has historically been an elusive release to track down, only available in the obscurest corners of the internet or physically on the secondary market at eye-wateringly high prices.
Over a decade since its initial, unofficial release in 2011, The Flenser is proud to reissue Have A Nice Life’s Voids for the first time ever in an official capacity in physical form. Originally released digitally in early 2023 and freshly remastered for the occasion, this reissue of the beloved compilation will receive its first-ever wide release on physical formats (CD/LP/Cassette). This release also marks the first time fan-favorite tracks from Voids “Sisyphus”, “I’m Doctor House”, and “Human Error” will be available on vinyl and CD. Like a symbolic passing of the torch, the physical versions of the 2023 Voids reissue come with a foreword essay written by Wasluck, the previous custodian of Voids during the Music Ruins Lives days.

On a holy roll after the success of their stunning 2023 LP IV: Sacrament, Lancastrian heavy metal apostles Wytch Hazel here ally themselves with the underground pomp wizardry of Phantom Spell for an addictively flippable split seven-inch.). On the flipside, Phantom Spell explore more cryptic vistas with Palantíri, a song about Tolkien’s crystal balls, nailing the arcane, otherworldly vibe of those early
NWOBHM pioneers who used keyboards to project a heightened level of mystical drama.

Bill MacKay and Drag City are delirious with pride to announce the discovery of a new territory: Locust Land, a record which seeks to reflect the nerve-shredding consciousness run amok in our world today - and somehow allay it with sound. Bill"s music is a visceral crackling where it meets the air, and Locust Land can"t help but reflect its era more than any other in his discography. It"s been five years since the release of Fountain Fire - but in the interim, Bill has barely stopped moving, collaborating with artists across the spectrum, including cellist Katinka Kleijn, banjo player Nathan Bowles and keyboardist Cooper Crain. He"s also contributed to recordings by Steve Gunn, Ryley Walker, Bill Callahan & Bonnie Prince Billy (Blind Date Party), and Black Duck (on their self-titled record featuring Douglas McCombs and Charles Rumback). Forget five years - how"d he even get Locust Land squeezed out of his temporal lobes? Bill"s sense of music as art is constantly modulating - lifting off from where it is found and naturally migrating to some other place. Sometimes, that"s elsewhere - others, it"s simply to be found deeper inside the starting point. And so, the action of moving on informs the landscape of Locust Land. This manifests in several different ways. A restless energy and urgency is repeatedly felt - in the driving momentum of "Keeping in Time," "Glow Drift," and "When I Was Here" - while a dogged persistence radiates from the tone colors and percussion of "Oh, Pearl." Mating a dirge-like desolation with sparkling guitars, "Radiator" adds darkness and depth. The sense of searching, displacement and longing in vocal tracks "Keeping in Time," "Half of You," and "When I Was Here" speak literally to the tumult of current vibrations. Within the arrangements, there"s also departure from previous norms - in addition to the brilliant guitar work for which he is known, Bill plays a variety of keyboards, from piano to organ to synth, extending his music with the available voicings, while enriching the sound field without abandoning his signature brevity. For fans of his singing, and following in the recent tradition of Fountain Fire as well as his collaboration with Nathan Bowles, Keys, Locust Land expresses with an increased vocal presence - and heightened engagement, with Bill"s words and melodies drawing us closer. Also different: on his previous solo recordings, Bill played every sound. Here, he has invited other illustrious Chicagoans to join him: Sam Wagster (The Father Costume, Mute Duo) plays bass on three songs, two of which feature the percussion playing of Mikel Patrick Avery (Natural Information Society, Jeff Parker, etc.). Additionally, Janet Beveridge Bean (Eleventh Dream Day, Freakwater) adds otherworldly vocal textures to the elegiac "Neil"s Field." Whether played alone or with companions, this music projects the strength of a universal collective. Even with a piece that might earlier have passed for blissful pastorale, Bill displays some declamatory motives. The reverie which opens the album, "Phantasmic Fairy," embodies both transcendent and desperate moods, with Bill"s ineffable slide guitar playing afloat, with organs and synths, in a dream state suffused with a sense of foreboding - a requiem, perhaps for the days of unencumbered bandwidth? On the other side of the album, the strength to continue to hope appears in the lifting melodicism/exoticism of the album-closing title track, leaving the listener with the sense of having achieved a hard-won space - a place of personal contemplation and dissent, one that everyone on the planet deserves to visit every single day on earth. With cover art also by Bill MacKay (the third of his albums on Drag City to feature his work), Locust Land stands as a thoroughly personal statement from Bill to everyone everywhere.

Bill MacKay and Drag City are delirious with pride to announce the discovery of a new territory: Locust Land, a record which seeks to reflect the nerve-shredding consciousness run amok in our world today - and somehow allay it with sound. Bill"s music is a visceral crackling where it meets the air, and Locust Land can"t help but reflect its era more than any other in his discography. It"s been five years since the release of Fountain Fire - but in the interim, Bill has barely stopped moving, collaborating with artists across the spectrum, including cellist Katinka Kleijn, banjo player Nathan Bowles and keyboardist Cooper Crain. He"s also contributed to recordings by Steve Gunn, Ryley Walker, Bill Callahan & Bonnie Prince Billy (Blind Date Party), and Black Duck (on their self-titled record featuring Douglas McCombs and Charles Rumback). Forget five years - how"d he even get Locust Land squeezed out of his temporal lobes? Bill"s sense of music as art is constantly modulating - lifting off from where it is found and naturally migrating to some other place. Sometimes, that"s elsewhere - others, it"s simply to be found deeper inside the starting point. And so, the action of moving on informs the landscape of Locust Land. This manifests in several different ways. A restless energy and urgency is repeatedly felt - in the driving momentum of "Keeping in Time," "Glow Drift," and "When I Was Here" - while a dogged persistence radiates from the tone colors and percussion of "Oh, Pearl." Mating a dirge-like desolation with sparkling guitars, "Radiator" adds darkness and depth. The sense of searching, displacement and longing in vocal tracks "Keeping in Time," "Half of You," and "When I Was Here" speak literally to the tumult of current vibrations. Within the arrangements, there"s also departure from previous norms - in addition to the brilliant guitar work for which he is known, Bill plays a variety of keyboards, from piano to organ to synth, extending his music with the available voicings, while enriching the sound field without abandoning his signature brevity. For fans of his singing, and following in the recent tradition of Fountain Fire as well as his collaboration with Nathan Bowles, Keys, Locust Land expresses with an increased vocal presence - and heightened engagement, with Bill"s words and melodies drawing us closer. Also different: on his previous solo recordings, Bill played every sound. Here, he has invited other illustrious Chicagoans to join him: Sam Wagster (The Father Costume, Mute Duo) plays bass on three songs, two of which feature the percussion playing of Mikel Patrick Avery (Natural Information Society, Jeff Parker, etc.). Additionally, Janet Beveridge Bean (Eleventh Dream Day, Freakwater) adds otherworldly vocal textures to the elegiac "Neil"s Field." Whether played alone or with companions, this music projects the strength of a universal collective. Even with a piece that might earlier have passed for blissful pastorale, Bill displays some declamatory motives. The reverie which opens the album, "Phantasmic Fairy," embodies both transcendent and desperate moods, with Bill"s ineffable slide guitar playing afloat, with organs and synths, in a dream state suffused with a sense of foreboding - a requiem, perhaps for the days of unencumbered bandwidth? On the other side of the album, the strength to continue to hope appears in the lifting melodicism/exoticism of the album-closing title track, leaving the listener with the sense of having achieved a hard-won space - a place of personal contemplation and dissent, one that everyone on the planet deserves to visit every single day on earth. With cover art also by Bill MacKay (the third of his albums on Drag City to feature his work), Locust Land stands as a thoroughly personal statement from Bill to everyone everywhere.

Deluxe 180g vinyl. Art Edition LP includes set of six 12”x12” art cards.



The follow-up to Kee Avil's acclaimed 2022 debut Crease: "A stunning debut" (The Quietus); "A whiplash style of uninhibited exploration" (The Wire); "Kee Avil's debut is a force" (Foxy Digitalis); "A work of Frankensteinian wonder" (Electronic Sound); "A tightly coiled, finely wrought vision of avant-pop" (Exclaim); "A debut of fiendish creativity" (Bandcamp Album Of The Day / Albums Of The Year) Kee Avil's music is both adventurous and intimate, intellectually challenging and emotionally resonant. The Montréal guitarist and producer's 2022 debut LP Crease garnered plaudits from outlets like The Wire, The Quietus, Mojo and Foxy Digitalis, picking up a Canadian Juno Award nomination and Bandcamp Album Of The Day and Albums Of The Year along the way. Its intricate construction, unnerving atmospheres, and knife-edge take on avant-pop prompted comparisons to early PJ Harvey, This Heat, and Gazelle Twin. A remix EP with work by claire rousay, Ami Dang, Cecile Believe, and Pelada brought collaborative perspectives to four Crease tracks, offering new pathways within those songs. With Spine, Kee Avil strips back her heavily textured compositions, opening up a much rawer sound. She calls it folk… and while traditionalists might scoff, this is urgent music that reflects the precarity of modern life, as well as the jarring mixture of electronic and real-world interactions that have become the fabric of our day-to-day experiences. There's a hypnotic post-punk somnambulance to it all, using the repetition and fracturing of melodic phrases interwoven with delicate electronics to create curious and persistent hooks. While not a concept album, themes of time's passage, remembrance, and decay crop up across multiple tracks. Each track intentionally only has four elements - guitar, electronics, and two other instruments, with Kee's voice and guitar pushed to the front. Within this minimalist framework, the juxtaposition of beauty and discomfort that is key to the Kee Avil sound stands out in skin-prickling relief. "We're shaped by many versions of ourselves," says Avil. "I was looking back at these versions of myself and what could have been, what didn't end up being and what did end up being, and going back like that through time. Seeing the future, the past." Spine was written in Kee Avil's home studio after a lapse in writing while touring Crease and working on other projects. She is a well-known and respected member of the Montréal experimental scene, and formerly ran Concrete Sound Studio with Zach Scholes, who continues to work with her as a producer on Spine. Compared to the three years that went into making her debut, Spine emerged in a matter of months - a process that may also be a factor in its intensity and sharpness: "This record was much harder, like it was really discovering everything from scratch." In her desire to not simply replicate or extend the sound of Crease, she felt she had to rip up the rule book, write in a different way, and pare back songs against her usual instincts. Sometimes, when we work against our ingrained habits, we get to the core of who we really are. Spine is an exercise in that process. Without over-intellectualizing or being didactic, it hits immediately and emotionally, especially if you are a person who has spent much time in the process of self-examination. Kee's voice hisses, whispers, and chants; her guitar bends and rings; electronics skitter and crackle; violin creaks like a door in the wind. There is something so evocative about the atmospheres she creates that it's easy to overlay one's own feelings onto her work, but to do that wholly would be to overlook one of the most important things about Spine: Kee Avil's clear and thoughtful vision. This isn't just the next step forward in her artistic trajectory; it's a stunner of a record that stands on its own, a bracing and thrilling listen that has much to reveal about the contradictions inherent in being human. - jj skolnik

Introducing “Psyche Gems”, the Jakarta Records debut LP from LA based Rapper JUICEBOX & Norwegian producer duo Myeye. Debut LP “Psyche Gems,” a collaborative musical venture sparked by an impromptu Instagram jam session in 2021, is poised to mesmerize audiences. The brainchild of JUICEBOX, a versatile artist known for his roles as a singer, songwriter, rapper, and one half of the acclaimed group Figmore (with 10.4 Rog), “Psyche Gems” emerged from JUICEBOX's admiration for Simen Hallset's psych-pop band Gold Celeste (over 20 million Streams on Spotify). After reaching out to Simen, they swiftly connected with Henrik Norbakk, the other half of Myeye, igniting the genesis of the collaborative project. An Instagram jam session in 2021 gave sonic birth to LP “Psyche Gems”. Buttery vocals meet funky, soul-driven beats, meticulously recorded live, then chopped and repurposed to create an experience that transcends sonic definition. From vibrant head-nodding energy to lush beats seamlessly melded with an inimitable vocal delivery, “Psyche Gems” captures the essence of past and present, offering a kaleidoscope snapshot of life reflected through timeless grooves. The album's distinctive sound is characterized by meticulous layering, where each element is meticulously played, chopped, looped, and jammed over until achieving sonic perfection. United by their shared passion for old soul and jazz records, ‘90’s + ‘00’s hip hop, lo-fi indie, and psychedelic music, JUICEBOX and Myeye seamlessly fuse their diverse influences to craft a musical experience that resonates with listeners on a profound level. "We wanted to create something that inspires, provokes, and sheds light on the truths we all carry inside us," explains JUICEBOX. "Psyche Gems is more than just an album; it's an infinite journal entry of reflection, a testament to the power of music to illuminate the human experience."

Transcendental outernational funk and psychedelic jazz from mystery L.A.- based collective Sun Atlas

Little is known about Sun Atlas. The group members are hidden behind masks and costumes to keep their identities secret and to put the focus entirely on the music and oneness. A sense of community and universal spirit as an alternative to idolization and individualism is heavily reflected in their eclectic musical style.

The sound of Sun Atlas is mystical and cosmopolitan, combining afrobeat, cinematic soul, spiritual & ethio jazz with space sounds, hiphop-breaks and a garage funk vibe.

Their cryptic first 45 single "The Mystic Parade" b/w "Grand Theft" sold out immediately after release and has often been mistaken for either "lost" hiphop samples, 70s habibi funk or another project in disguise from the inner circles of the Mocambo, Big Crown or Daptonefamilies (which it is not).

Return To The Spirit picks up where Sun Atlas' first single leftoff, with everyone wondering where the journey might lead. With the door to a colourful universe opened, the full-length format gives time & space for further exploration.

The ltd.first vinyl edition comes in black vinyl in a deluxe handmade tip-on sleeve.

With this new project, their fourth full-length work, Tupperwear completely departs from the "stylish" electronics and trends to delve into a profound exploration of the fundamentals of music.
It involves a quest or even a game through the extrapolation of geometry into various musical parameters, encompassing classical aspects like pitch, timbre, rhythm, intensity, etc., as well as noise, textures, or the implicit mathematics in natural or irrational elements.
Pentagonono delves into cosmology and nature. It is a musical approach without prejudices to basic numerology that unveils the universe, the harmonic scale, the number e, and logarithmic spirals. The golden ratio (phi) and the omnipresent number pi are also explored. Geometric shapes, proportions, and divisions of vibrating elements are transmitted through the air, internalized by humans, and transformed into music.
Following in the footsteps of previous sound explorers from various spatial and temporal origins such as Gamelan music with its infinite polyrhythmic replication, Psychedelia, Serialism, Musique Concrète, Bach, or J Dilla, this album presents itself as a materialization of ideas and concerns that, while already present in the band's musical understanding, are now brought to the forefront as if it were a vital manifesto.

Electronic Works for Choreography, Soundtrack, and Art Installation 1976-1996

Marden Pond’s “Evaporations” (1976-96) is an archival project showcasing the composers experimental music approaches that utilize synthesizers, electronics, and computer. These rare or unreleased tracks and demos were initially purposed for art installation, dance and theater , music exploration, and ambient listening experiences. Marden was artistically right beside his contemporaries of the Land Artist Movement of the Southwest during the 70’s, as he created soundscapes inspired by the vast and bizarre features of Utah. Some of the other work presented on this record was to inspire physical movement by use of unorthodox arrangements and percussive rhythms, juxtaposed with fleeting synth phrases and environmental textures.

Besides the two tracks included from Marden’s hyper rare 1980 private press LP “Castle Valley Impressions”, this collection of music is being presented on vinyl for the first time.

Manchester’s multifarious sound organiser Andrew Hargreaves (Tape Loop Orchestra, The Boats, Beppu) channels key touchstones of Glenn Branca’s microtonal minimalism, the paranormal, and DIY amateur broadcasting with some of his most enigmatic, intuitive recordings to date.

‘Drones In The Air’ finds Hargreaves deep in a new phase of vibrational investigation where the sentimentality of prior eras gives way to more abstract conceptual processes. Utilising a bunch of oscillators and the Lyra-8, an “organismic analog synthesiser”, plus pedals, Hargreaves works within just intonation tuning systems - or more precisely “intuitive intonation” - to just-about harness a microtonal flux of clashing, beating frequencies, but the project is more about ceding a certain amount of freedom to the machines and allowing aural alchemy to occur, prompting a spectrum of harmonic colours and rich timbral overtones distinguished from previous tape loop-based works.

Comparative to “Glenn Branca’s micro-tonal workouts if he had worked with oscillators instead of guitars”, the result also variously evoke mysteries of The Conet Project, the oceanic feel of Éliane Radigue compositions, and early ambient works by Terre Thaemlitz in their sound sensitivity and scope. In ‘The Sun is Afraid’ he mesmerises with glistening microtones that develop a coarser traction, interrupted by shortwave radio comms and resolving into phantasmic noise gauze that speaks to his long-standing fascinations with entropic decay and the sounds between sounds. ‘Your Hands Are Shaking’ follows with a stealthier approach to coaxing a hallucinatory drone mass inflated by ether voices and thickening up into a sinister gloam redolent of NWW’s ’Soliloquy for Lilith’.

COLD HART is set to release his sixth studio project, Pretty In The Dark. As one of the co-founders of the GOTHBOICLIQUE collective, alongside artists like Wicca Phase Springs Eternal, Lil Peep, Fish Narc, YAWNS, and Lil Tracy, COLD HART played a pivotal role in shaping a bold fusion of emo and hip hop. This unique blend infused a contemporary production sensibility into guitar riffs and samples, evoking a sense of instant nostalgia for those who grew up listening to bands like Linkin Park and Blink-182. In Pretty In The Dark, COLD HART showcases his versatility by exploring dreamy guitars, energetic grooves, and lively pop-punk riffs, transitioning towards an Alternative/Indie Rock sound. Through numerous releases, his musical evolution has led him to hone in on traditional songwriting, aligning more closely with the influences of his formative years-whether it"s the stylings of The Cure or Depeche Mode. These new tracks received a positive reception during COLD HART"s extensive US summer tour, where he captivated fans while sharing the stage with The Drums.

By now one of our most cherished and respected portuguese songwriters, Maria Reis has been steadily creating a legacy that will undoubtedly endure in the portuguese songwriting canon for years to come. Co-founder of the Lisbon based Cafetra label- collective, Reis spent her teenage years honing her craft, particularly with her co- leading role on Pega Monstro with her sister Júlia Reis, with albums like 'Alfarroba' and 'Casa de Cima' on Upset !the Rhythm and whose indefinite hiatus since 2018 opened the gateway for a prolific solo venture. After a raw debut EP released in 2017 – Maria -, 2019 saw the release of the celebrated 'Chove na Sala, Água nos Olhos', a definitive statement of Reis' almost casual gift of painting vivid and impressionistic portraits of everyday life, conveying all the anger, resignation and melancholic joy of moving on. Two years later, following a string of widely praised live appearances, Reis records the 'Flor da Urtiga' EP with musical production of Noah Lennox aka Panda Bear, a sweeter affair, crossed by a witty irony that tackles such subjects as family, love and toxic masculinity, through layered acoustic guitars, lightweight percussion and joyful harmonies. 'Benefício da Dúvida' from 2022, strips back most of the production to rely on simple but affirmative arrangements assembled with the help of her sister Júlia and longtime collaborator Leonardo Bindilatti.

And now, almost two years on the clock after 'Benefício da Dúvida', Maria Reis returns with a newfound maturity with 'Suspiro...' - Portuguese for sigh. Created in close collaboration with Tomé Silva - a young and versatile musician and producer who's been recently leaving a mark on the portuguese scene - and recorded in the intimacy of the latter's bedroom, 'Suspiro...' doesn't cut ties with that recent past but reflects the learning process embedded in previous ventures in its lyrics and arrangements, towards song's eternity. A projection of different emotional states and physical spaces throughout these years, 'Suspiro...' carries in the apparent simplicity of its title the plurality of meanings found in such a natural act, from anger to being in love, from resignation to resilience. Life in a sigh? We've been further from that.

An attentive and sensitive observer of both intimate and surrounding spaces, Maria Reis continues to explore wordplay in her very personal manner, a poetic act as brutally honest as filled with imagery allusions, enchanting the mundane with lyricism. Touched by a resigned and dreamy melancholy, 'Suspiro...' settles, for the most part, on electric and acoustic guitar lines, simple but expressive rhythms, floating vocal harmonies and a voice almost tangible in the way it conveys memorable hooks without fear of appearing both fragile and tenacious. 'Amor Serpente's low key tragedy turned mantra for life, the blissed pop of 'Estagnação' or 'T-shirt', 'Holofote's flailing rawness, the mesmerizing sparkle of 'Pico', 'Meta Data's electrified energy or the playful keyboards and sound effects of 'Coisas do Passado' composing a lively portrait of reality and expectations where we can all see ourselves reflected in. For Maria, almost a second nature, that through all her honesty, know how and imagination, reaches a new life with 'Suspiro...'.

A retrospective of Third Earth Visual Arts and the career of AbuQadim Haqq. From early life in Detroit to his last project for Third Earth Visual Arts in 2023.

Over 100 pages of art.
Over 100 pages of photos.
258 pages

“A corollary is a statement that follows naturally from another statement”

Presenting Corollary1, the first release in a new remix series flipping cuts from O.M.Theorem’s Lemma projects.

For this one we invited good friends DJ Sotofett and Ossia. Regular conspirators in bacalao and dosa dinners, monthly hangouts at Globus-Tresor and sound system parties in Milano & Bristol. Through appreciation of similar frequencies and shared experiences, friendships grow. It felt natural to invite the two to do remixes for us. One evening we bumped into them on the dancefloor during a live concert by Senegalese percussion outfit Ndagga Rhythm. This was a sign. BAM! The EP came alive.

On the A-side, we hear two fresh takes on Lemma1-B2. DJ Sotofett with his dub heavy output on Honest Jon's and Sex Tags Amfibia invites Ghanese Afro-Dub drummer Ekowmania for vocals and usual collaborator LNS for keyboard work on his sub-deep club-stepping colourful remix. We bet the infectious vocals will linger in your mind for a long time. Play it LOUD for full sub bass effect! The second interpretation of the same track is from O.M.Theorem. A techy dubstep banger, this one!

On the B side, Bristol and Peng! Sound's Ossia picked his favorite Lemma1-B1 and drove the mixing desk in true Dub-style fashion with a classic riddim that meets an avant garde melody going in and out of the mix. This is a remix that deserves attention, with every listen revealing new layers and details. Even the premasters sounded phat as a greasy hamburger on the German capital’s legendary Super Power Soundsystem! The second interpretation is from O.M.Theorem, rebuilding percussion and bass from Lemma1-A1. Liberating himself from all restrictions the result is a footwork-reminiscent 160 cut, ready for the dance floor.

"ECHOES PART 1 and 2 scheduled for release on 17th of May is the first of three singles set to introduce the next album project of Ulrich Troyer - TRANSIT TRIBE - to be released later this year.

Featuring the jazz vibes of Flip Philipp of the Vienna Symphony Orchestra, "ECHOES" has all the resonance of pure gamelan in dub, stately, processional and instrumentally rhythmic with its sparser second part isolating contrasting pulses as the complexity unfolds and dazzles.

Twenty years in the making, now the fully developed vision of multi-instrumentalist Vienna-based Ulrich Troyer can be heard coming to its final fruition. The interface of electronics and the unique warmth of human interplay is apparent on this track as well as all the other sounds to be heard on the album where a remarkable array of new and old friends contribute to the proceedings. Thematically the album, as may be gathered from its title, is a clear appeal for humanity to be shown as the people of the world struggle to cope with increasing problems, whether caused by movement or lack of movement."

Steve Barker (DJ, Radio Presenter - On the Wire, BBC 1984 – 2023,

now Slack City Radio & reggae/dub columnist and contributor to The Wire)

Credits:

Flip Philipp: vibraphone, c-marimba

Ulrich Troyer: analog synthesizers, drum-machine, sampler, field recordings, dub effects

Written & arranged by Ulrich Troyer

Recorded by Ulrich Troyer at 4Bit Studio & 4Bit Bungalow except Vibraphone, C-Marimba recorded by Ulrich Troyer at Konzerthaus, Vienna

Mixed by Ulrich Troyer at 4Bit Bungalow, Vienna

Produced by Osman Murat Ertel & Ulrich Troyer

Mastering & Lacquer Cut by Kassian Troyer at Dubplates & Mastering, Berlin

Cover Drawing by Ulrich Troyer

Kindly supported by the City of Vienna (MA7 - Kultur), Federal Ministry Republic of Austria (Arts, Culture, Civil Service & Sport), SKE-FONDS (AT) & Amt für Kultur, Bozen (IT)

Special Thanks: Steve Barker, Osman Murat Ertel, Eva Kelety & Flip Philipp

Following on from his atomic single release, Phonk On The Dancefloor, Sofia’s Raredub now presents his highly anticipated full EP via Mutual Pleasure Records. Rare, Raw and Ready is a high-voltage introduction to the Bulgarian bass baron, a title that is fully justified with this latest venture of sound.

Raredub wastes no time in setting the pace for this project, as we’re thrown straight into the searing furnace with opening track BAMBA. Having been road-tested by the likes of KETTAMA, KiNK, Skin On Skin and Raredub himself, BAMBA, with its infectious vocals, gut-hurdling bassline and devious rave-stab melodies, is a carefully constructed weapon of sound, with proven devastating results.

We’re then brought to Juicy Fruit, which sees both Raredub and Mutual Pleasure’s head-honcho Partiboi69 lock palms to create a deeply sensual, highly contagious dance-floor anthem that sees the producer masterfully blend hissing hi-hats and a series of infectious rising chord patterns and melodies which, when combined, are certainly set to cause nothing but dance-floor destruction.

Since being played as the opening track to Partibo69 and DJ Heartstring’s stingzone set, L.L.L is a track which, with its mind-warping bassline,euphoria ladened vocals and pad-work, has enjoyed a growing sense of anticipation from listeners, eager for its arrival.

Snappy Chulo sees Raredub again use a series of piercing rave-stabs to drive his sound, which is partnered with a plethora of electronic experimentation and instrumentation, before the seismic bassline of Break Of Dawn see Raredub bring the walls and ceiling crumbling down; presenting a suitably fitting finale to this atomic attack on the senses.
Rare, Raw and Ready brings Raredub’s prowess for production to the fore, as the Bulgarian producer conducts wild electronic experiments, bending genres and sound into form, to create a versatile, highly contagious and highly atomic serving of sound.

Embarquez pour une odyssée cybernétique avec "Cyberpunk 2077 : Phantom Liberty (Original Score)", où les rythmes résonnent dans le paysage sonore de Night City. Alors que V se plonge dans les affaires des Voodoo Boys à Pacifica, le LP se transforme en une relique sonore reflétant le quartier sans foi ni loi de Dogtown. Le vinyle noir de 180g prépare le terrain pour un voyage auditif de haut niveau, plongeant les auditeurs dans l'essence des Boostergangs, des Corpos et de l'insaisissable Blackwall. L'insert 12" de l'album, présenté dans une pochette simple, dévoile les crédits musicaux, transportant les fans au coeur de l'intrigue cybernétique. Le titre principal "Phantom Liberty" de Dawid Podsiadło, ainsi que des hits comme "Force Projection" et "Hardest to Be", occupent le devant de la scène, élevant cette édition collector au rang de complément indispensable pour les passionnés de l'univers de Cyberpunk 2077. Plongez dans cette révolution sonore, où chaque morceau devient un portail vers le royaume cybernétique, faisant de cet album une expérience captivante pour ceux qui recherchent l'essence de Night City.

For the first time in vinyl format the work of the Bolivian avant-garde composer, Cergio Prudencio, together with the Orquesta Experimental de Instrumentos Nativos (OEIN). The OEIN is the result of the incorporation of Aymara musical traditions into the realm of contemporary music to produce a new sonic world. The work of Bolivian composer Cergio Prudencio (La Paz, 1955) is indissolubly linked to the project of the Orquesta Experimental de Instrumentos Nativos Experimental Orchestra of Native Instruments (OEIN), which he co-founded in 1980 and of which he is the emeritus director. It constitutes one of the most challenging adventures in the music that has emerged in Bolivia and Latin America. The OEIN is the result of the incorporation of Aymara musical traditions into the realm of contemporary music to produce a new sonic world. In the composer's words, it is about "...finding in the indigenous conception of music, elements of change and transformation, to establish a historical continuity." This incorporation is not only based on using native instruments but also involves integrating their socio-historical context and philosophies from the Andean indigenous world. In addition to forming ensembles with highland native instruments (sikus, tarkas, mohoceños, pinkillos, wankaras, seeds, drums, etc.), the foundation is laid on the three structural principles that govern Aymara music: "arca-ira," which means alternation of sounds between two musicians; "tropa," which involves the formation of large ensembles of instrumentalists and sound amplification; and "wakiña," meaning community strength. According to Prudencio, the acoustic and expressive identity of Andean-highland sounds originates from these principles, as does that of the OEIN. The release of Cergio Prudencio - Antología 1: Obras para la Orquesta Experimental de Instrumentos Nativos Cergio Prudencio - Anthology 1: Works for the Experimental Orchestra of Native Instruments allows us to delve into this wealth of thought and sounds, into the work of a fundamental and radical artist, for whom decolonization is also an opening to experimentation and the new. These compositions project a historical memory into the present, constructing new horizons.

Runar Magnusson is an Icelandic/Danish sound artist and musician, currently based in Austria. With a masters degree in Electronic Music Composition from The Royal Academy of Music, Aarhus, Denmark, he is inspired by the sounds of nature, noise, and meditation. Magnusson specialises in atmospheric disturbances through minimalist compositions. A sly humour cuts through the dark hues of his works.

Magnusson writes: "The two works which make up "Inside Out of Chaos" are somewhat related. They were made at the same time and share the same source materials somewhat – a pool of sounds I had been experimenting with for a couple of years. Two separate projects created the opportunities for me to realise them in these finished forms.

At the beginning of 2020 I was invited to participate in an acousmatic concert series at the Traktorfabrikken in Vienna. Curated by Austrian composer Christian Tschinkel and performed on his Akusmonautikum sound system this particular event, titled Kill & Kaoss, was the last in the series. I named my piece after the event and dedicated it to Tschinkel´s Akusmonautikum system. Without my knowing, I had witnessed this system in action half a year earlier at a concert at the Hermann Nitsch Museum in Mistelbach, with Hermann Nitch playing the organ and Tschinkel operating the sound system – a profoundly enjoyable performance. I was very happy when I connected the dots soon after the invitation to participate. I intended my work for Kill & Kaoss to be a way to greet the new lunar year of the rat – a year which held many surprises… The event took place on 22nd of February 2020 at Traktorfabrikken, Vienna.

"Inside Out (for Trattner)" was composed for Austrian artist Josef Trattner. It was the soundtrack for a film that was a part of his exhibition "Inside Out" at the Kiesler Foundation in Vienna, 2020. I assisted with the installation of the exhibition, itself a filmed action that evolved into the movie of which this is the score. The installation was a very hard physical process that left me bloody and blistered. It was also a fascinating, trance-inducing experience. Mining with ones bare hands, digging out this huge structure and creating a womblike cave, a tunnel system, a playground, a hideaway while experiencing ever-increasing pain in the fingers and hands. The exhibition ran from 27 February 2020 until 23 December 2020.

I consider this release as the final part of a trilogy I refer to as "the three sisters of sorrow". These three releases are an insight into my state of mind at the time – a mental collapse, somewhat triggered by a move to a new country, the death of my friend Jóhann Jóhannsson and the loss of my father a year later. Between 2018 and 2021 I had the trilogy almost ready but had not been able to finish them. I sought professional help to lift me up from the deep and was diagnosed with ADHD, which explained many things in my life. Only after the darkness had lifted could I see that these three releases were connected. They depicted both the mental state I had been in – an incapacitating downward spiral, a crushing chaos – and also my search for the light, a way out of the maze and my path up to the surface."

Runar Magnusson, Vienna, 13 November 2023

On 'Mirror, Reflect,' Amy O returns to form as she documents her transition into motherhood in the early days of the pandemic. Initially conceived as a lo-fi endeavor to record songs made with friends in those days of uncertainty, 'Mirror, Reflect' is an intimate and exploratory work that weaves collected home and field recordings with shimmering synths and Oelsner's playful lyricism. A stalwart presence in the indie-pop underground since 2012, Oelsner shifted her approach to record making on 'Mirror, Reflect' to emphasize process over product, with the resulting songs born out of a myriad of home sessions, song-a-day projects, songwriting workshops and online collaborations. This kind of patchwork, home-spun approach was familiar to Oelsner, who made her name with her sparkling, homemade pop songs before releasing three studio albums, including her most recent album, 2019's Shell. 'Mirror, Reflect' gently shrugs off the sheen of those studio albums, as an early prenatal recording of Oelsner's daughter's heartbeat opens the record in the near-ambient instrumental prelude of "Honey" -- a wonderfully nuanced dispatch from the dog days of summer that's under-bellied by both the precarity and beauty of the early months of infancy and new motherhood. Oelsner's knack for finding magic in the mundane is also deeply apparent on "Dribble Dribble," where the stick-with-you nature of the playful rhyme schemes of the children's books that became a regular part of her literary intake are worked into a lilting reflection on resilience, destruction and loss. Oelsner's initiation into motherhood is inseparable from the poetic heart of 'Mirror, Reflect', but the album is also largely informed by the shifts in Oelsner's relationship to herself. Through playful and emotionally acute observations, Amy O turns the potentially contractive experiences of motherhood, isolation, family and aging into a freewheeling work where ephemerality and humor collide over her deft lyrical phrasing, musicality and her keen observations turned poetic revelations.

Garth Erasmus is an artist and musician based in Cape Town, South Africa. 'Threnody for the KhoiSan' is his first album under his own name. Since 1985 his artistic interests have broadened to include music-making, designing and making his own instruments based on indigenous KhoiSan knowledge. From 1999 to 2012 he was a member of the South African First Nation activist group Khoi Khonnexion. In the past couple of years Garth Erasmus has also been a pivotal part of various international performance pieces and exhibition projects which brought him regularly to Europe. Most of these activities were developed and performed in collaboration with the Hamburg based band Kante and his band Khoi Khonnexion. In April 2024 Garth Erasmus will be part of the group exhibtion 'Oscillations' at Akademie der Künste, Berlin.

His works in music are predominantly characterized by a restless quest for alternative forms of expression and materials including self build instruments, field recordings or various electronic music devices.

In this context the music on 'Threnody for the KhoiSan' takes on a primal and metaphorical meaning. Rather than a formal, physical initiation, this process is more spiritually inclined, yet it is a spirituality which is consistently put into action.. “Ever since I was an art student I have experimented with alternative materials to release me from the Western education values I received. When I started to make these instruments in the 1980s, my intention was to create art objects but when I discovered the sound they made, it unlocked a door that transported me deeper in my quest in the realization that I was on the right path.

In fact all instruments which appear on 'Threnody for the KhoiSan' are products of a process of discovery starting from square one. All this is based and founded on the beauty of simplicity and minimalism as symbolized by the single string Khoisan musical bow and arrow as trance musical instrument. In this sense it soon became manisfest for Garth Erasmus to combine the bow instruments with various electronic instruments. Besides developing his own unique language in music he also shared an expressed interested in experimental sound aesthecis, Avantgarde composition and Free Jazz. However, his non - academic approach towards sound and music was always fueled by the desire for a reconnection to the land and to the idegenious knowledge of the KhoiSan, whose struggle for First Nation status continues.

Song for Morenga
This song is dedicated to a guerilla leader, named Jacob Morenga, who was the leader of the nama/herero anti-german uprisings that occured between 1904 and 1907.

Amaseh Amen
This is a classic mouthbow piece that conjures the spiritual nature of Khoisan cultural praxis.

Gwaing Reverie
It was composed as a personal gift to the other members of newly formed electro-acoustic trio „Gwaing". „Gwaing" is an ancient Khoisan place name, meaning the mouth of the river.

Mcinci Song
A typical meditation on the traditional Mcinci flute. This flute was originally played by shepherds and was made of reed.

The Ascension of Milford Graves
This piece attends to capture the risen spirit of the legendary African American drummer Milford Graves. It was composed soon after his death in 2021.

Song for The Sisters of the Soil
A live improvisation dedicated to Lucelle and Melissa (The Sisters of the Soil) on the occasion of visiting them at their residence, known as „Oppieyaart" on the Cape Flats. On 10 September 2022 there is an online event with them at Kunsthaus Hamburg.

Originally released on tape by SicSic in 2014, Aprilnacht commemorates a decade of music from Brannten Schnüre and marked the spring in a tetralogy of albums about the four seasons when it came out. Back then the Würzburg-based project consisted solely of Christian Schoppik, who later welcomed Katie Rich to take over the vocals. He used to perform as Agnes Beil, but dropped the name when, while making this album realized his music was becoming "much gentler and more fragile". Aprilnacht already captured the particular musical ideas that Schoppik would thoroughly keep exploring, delving deeper and deeper into the use and manipulation of samplers from sources so diverging as to wander between the five continents to post-war German family television and cult cinema. Heir of the ritualistic intensity of Coil, of the intricate sampler assemblies of Ghédalia Tazartès', and of the dusty, dismal old ballads from around the world, Brannten Schnüre manages to make these paths cross in a territory that is as inherent as it is uncanny; sieged by the past and intimate as a hearth. An organic approach to folk, ambient, and sound collage, where ethereal yet thoroughly textured pieces coalesce in enthralling, delicate, and innermost musical rituals.

The album cover paintings reveal the temper: dreary old towns where shadows come to dim the slow passage of crepuscular colors, a soft area of reanimation where wind and light come close and foresee the night of spring. Aprilnacht was inspired by the stories of German philosopher and writer Friedrich Alfred Schmid Noerr, whose work exhaustively examines the conflict between paganism and Christianity, safeguarding myth in a way that Schoppik describes as boldly modern, humorous and unpredictable in its variations of the Germanic folklore motifs. "I wanted to do the same with the music," he states, and the music here could as well be suitable for a night when household deities welcome wandering will-o'-the-wisps, water nymphs, and gyrovagues to discuss Perchta's leadership of The Wild Hunt, but this album is not a folk tale, it's not an elegy to worlds already gone, hidden in years; it's an intersection of routes that open mysteriously before our ears like a congregation of vapors. Aprilnacht is a gathering of voices; "There are too many children, and none of them keeps quiet," reads the last verse of «Requiem für eine Ringelnatter.»

Sensuality drips over the music to celebrate both the voluptuousness and tragic quality of nature; "It's raining on me, urine from your flowers," Schoppik sings in «Urin deiner Blüten» and later on, faced with a snake's erotic features, as if he wanted to be embraced by it: "Your quick, sharp tongue and your warm venom; that's what the pond is missing." Orality is where this profusion of contents thrives. When the voices get closer and condense, the words reveal the saliva employed to pronounce them; we feel the mouth and the tongue, but when breath envelops them in sorrow and softens their edges, they sound distant, diffused in the atmosphere, letting go of the body that held them. These two vocal facets oscillate permanently and interact naturally with the fertile assembly of samplers and instruments that develop throughout the album, which condense and disperse impersonating each other, interweaving to search for a specific syntax. Tangled whisperings of enigmatic phrases, timid voices that stick out to check the scene but hide away quickly, shivering trance chants and monastic ambiances, distant screams and clamors in between chaos and warfare swirl until bursting into subtle songs where even Mother Mary comes forth softly. Soothed by foggy atmospheres and crackling punctuations, these voices shape a vulnerable crowd, an occasion of fragility. Along this swarm of songs thrown into thin air, accordions sound like heavy-breathing lungs; clarinets sigh like curtains shaking; violin solos wander around like bees; Gjallarhorns cries distend like fleeing cattle; glockenspiels evoke remote music boxes and inherited toys; backward emanations emerge like slender waves retreating. On the banks of stretching loops and ember textures is where the songs slowly nest, collecting the words to find their tone.

A poem by Jorge Teillier says, "To talk with the dead you have to choose words that they recognize as easily as their hands recognized the fur of their dogs in the dark. To talk with the dead you have to know how to wait: they are fearful like the first steps of a child. But if we are patient one day they will answer us with a flame that suddenly revives in the fireplace." This may be Brannten Schnüre's main purpose: To find the voice to speak to those of whom we were a vision. Not in mourning, but acknowledging the obscure and volatile nature of spring's regenerative force, searching for the treasure of balance, as evidenced in the lyrics of «Requiem für ein Schwalbennest,» "Its nest was destroyed so many times before it was finished, and despite that, the shallow builds as if it is infatuated." The same idea is here in the words of Schmid Noerr, who made poetry an act of resistance to the horror of Nazism; "Since having seen the ability of a brilliant spirit to die, with a calm mouth that everyone saw, health is true again and we affirm it, even if rivers of blood flow." And as we call for the dusk's kindness, waiting to return home and eat with our kin by the stove, our ears become used to the games of the night. We feel like we're rowing on wetlands, while the "moon musick" keeps us vigilant against the slightest movement of water or sweet moan because eeriness here is imperative for survival. Do not succumb to the insipid howl of death, for nothing may last but mutability. You see, the rock has moved a little during the night; the rest is just wind fleeing from the void.

Mint Condition - A record label focused on excavating the outer fringes of classic House and Techno. Unreleased mixes, classics, overlooked gems and never heard before material, mined from the last 30+ years of contemporary dance music are the order of the day. From Chicago, Detroit and New York to London, San Francisco and beyond. Mint Condition have got their digging hats on to bring you exclusive heat and those rarer than rare jams that have been in your wants list for years. Dig in!

A serendipitous encounter at an SF record store in the early 90s brought together local music aficionados DJ Dan and Jim Hopkins. Their collaboration birthed the legendary Electroliners project, channeling their shared passion for underground and funky sounds into the iconic left-coast rave anthem, 'Loose Caboose', now firmly nestled in your hands. Pooling their musical prowess, Dan and Jim embarked on a journey of sonic exploration, meticulously crafting their signature sound by dissecting samples and breakbeats, infusing the musical landscape with a revitalizing energy. As their reputation grew within the local scene, they found themselves tasked with supplying a track for a promotional CD-ROM by a burgeoning software company.

Through marathon sessions of digging, slicing, sequencing, and exchanging snippets over phone calls, Electroliners hit their creative stride. It was only natural to unveil their creation in the raw intensity of a live rave setting. Thanks to a connection with DJ DRC, they seized the opportunity, and the rest is history. Copies of the record flew off the shelves by the thousands locally, and its overseas acclaim, spearheaded by licensing through XL Recordings in the UK, cemented its status as a bona fide underground classic. But what exactly is an Electroliner you might ask? Jim sheds light on the inspiration: “I delved into books on trains at the public library,” he reveals. “Among them, 'Electroliner' caught my eye, a train line in the Midwest. Given the track's pulsating train horn, 'Electroliner' and 'Loose Caboose' simply clicked.”

'Loose Caboose' is an all-time classic, and still causes much damage on the dancefloor today. Yet another unmissable addition to the MC reissue catalogue, fully licensed from the artists, mastered and cut by Curve Pusher, and available once again available for purchase. Do not sleep.

Born in 1977, in Malang, East Java, Wukir Suryadi began playing music for theatre at the age of 12 with the Idiot The-ater Studio, and later with the Rendra Theater Workshop. In his solo work, and as a member of Senyawa, Error Scream, Bendera Hitam Setengah, Potro Joyo and other groups, Wukir breaks the boundaries of traditional music, death metal and avant-garde performance. On this new release, “Cycle and Prayer,” recorded in 2023, he expands the edges of his unique artistic world further, by digging in to meditative improvisation, art, and community building in his home workshop in the mountains of central Java. These recordings vibrate inwards, toward the microcosmic ecologies of forests and rivers; they distort outwards, resonating with global waves of apocalyptic change that are forcing all living beings to the edges of existence on earth. The result is a meditative poem that moves, as its titles an-nounce, from phenomena to phenomena, praying that humans find a way out from the depths of the depths to the light that illuminates the soul.
An essential mode of creative work for Wukir is the creation of unique instruments, using these sound sources as “bullets of expression.” In addition to the spear-like tube zither Bambu Wukir, he has created the Solet, Enthong, Garu, Luku, Arrows, and Industrial Mutant instruments, which in addition to being used in live performance, have been exhibited in the Instrument Builders Project and the 2017 Jakarta Biennale. In the past few years, Wukir has begun to collaborate with local guitar makers, carpenters, and suppliers of native endemic wood in the mountain region of Salatiga. Using earthen bricks along with local woods (suren, coconut, mindi, and waru lengis) as building materials, he constructed a new studio and workshop space in Tingkir, where this album was made. The trees, water and air of the local environment have exerted a powerful influence in Wukir’s documentations of instrumental sound. On this recording, he uses the simple Cetta guitar, an instrument designed in Bali and made for Indonesian children and local communities of folk and popular musicians, in order to explore the different sonic characteristics of a more “normal” instrument built from local wood.
The themes of the album -- cycle and prayer -- arise from a foreboding series of meta-events that shook Indonesia and the world over the past years, following one after the other: the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ukrainian-Russian war, the Kanjuruhan Stadium tragedy in which football supporters were gassed and killed by police, revelations of govern-ment failures and corruption, the rise of personal vehicles, the increasing disturbance of natural patterns of the rainy season and other ecological cycles. “In these waves of technology and narratives of truth made for certain interests, playing a sound at a certain frequency and repeating can try to bring images and feelings to a certain point of con-sciousness,” Wukir told me. “Sound is a prayer that creates a change, whether gradual or rapid, in the behaviour of living things, to face the demands of the time, as humans struggle to live according to what they believe.” The draw-ings and sketches used for the cover spontaneously emerged alongside the recordings, as an instinctive depiction of “time and sound, nature that is outside of oneself, and nature that is within.”

Kee Avil's music is both adventurous and intimate, intellectually challenging and emotionally resonant. The Montréal guitarist and producer's 2022 debut LP Crease garnered plaudits from outlets like The Wire, The Quietus, Mojo and Foxy Digitalis, picking up a Canadian Juno Award nomination and Bandcamp Album Of The Day and Albums Of The Year along the way. Its intricate construction, unnerving atmospheres, and knife-edge take on avant-pop prompted comparisons to early PJ Harvey, This Heat, and Gazelle Twin. A remix EP with work by claire rousay, Ami Dang, Cecile Believe, and Pelada brought collaborative perspectives to four Crease tracks, offering new pathways within those songs. With Spine, Kee Avil strips back her heavily textured compositions, opening up a much rawer sound. She calls it folk—and while traditionalists might scoff, this is urgent music that reflects the precarity of modern life, as well as the jarring mixture of electronic and real-world interactions that have become the fabric of our day-to-day experiences. There's a hypnotic post-punk somnambulance to it all, using the repetition and fracturing of melodic phrases interwoven with delicate electronics to create curious and persistent hooks. While not a concept album, themes of time's passage, remembrance, and decay crop up across multiple tracks. Each track intentionally only has four elements—guitar, electronics, and two other instruments, with Kee's voice and guitar pushed to the front. Within this minimalist framework, the juxtaposition of beauty and discomfort that is key to the Kee Avil sound stands out in skin-prickling relief. "We're shaped by many versions of ourselves," says Avil. "I was looking back at these versions of myself and what could have been, what didn't end up being and what did end up being, and going back like that through time. Seeing the future, the past." Spine was written in Kee Avil's home studio after a lapse in writing while touring Crease and working on other projects. She is a well-known and respected member of the Montréal experimental scene, and formerly ran Concrete Sound Studio with Zach Scholes, who continues to work with her as a producer on Spine. Compared to the three years that went into making her debut, Spine emerged in a matter of months—a process that may also be a factor in its intensity and sharpness: "This record was much harder, like it was really discovering everything from scratch." In her desire to not simply replicate or extend the sound of Crease, she felt she had to rip up the rule book, write in a different way, and pare back songs against her usual instincts. Sometimes, when we work against our ingrained habits, we get to the core of who we really are. Spine is an exercise in that process. Without over-intellectualizing or being didactic, it hits immediately and emotionally, especially if you are a person who has spent much time in the process of self-examination. Kee's voice hisses, whispers, and chants; her guitar bends and rings; electronics skitter and crackle; violin creaks like a door in the wind. There is something so evocative about the atmospheres she creates that it's easy to overlay one's own feelings onto her work, but to do that wholly would be to overlook one of the most important things about Spine: Kee Avil's clear and thoughtful vision. This isn't just the next step forward in her artistic trajectory; it's a stunner of a record that stands on its own, a bracing and thrilling listen that has much to reveal about the contradictions inherent in being human. — jj skolnik.

2024 Repress

Mannequin Records is proud to present a full length by the Philly minimal-synth princess Void Vision.
Void Vision is a Philadelphia-based electronic project helmed by Shari Vari. It began around 2009 at a time when a wave of synth-revivalists were materializing, but the quality of the songwriting and intense vocals set the band apart from the pack. In a rare instance, Void Vision has managed to combine vintage dance elements with melodic structures, haunting melancholy, and lyrics that have a palpable soul. The songs themselves are dynamic, referencing a cross-section of the last 30 years of electronic music, while simultaneously retaining a uniqueness all their own.

The infamous Wierd Records weekly club night in New York, which showcased a variety of talented electronic and coldwave artists, served as an incubator for Void Vision in it's early stages. After a standout debut performance at the club, they immediately caught the attention of Blind Prophet Records, who consequently released their first 7" single, 'In 20 Years', which received excellent reviews.

Vari has continued performing and recording steadily over the last few years, releasing songs on compilations for various labels, including Rough Trade, and in 2012 the song 'Everything is Fine' was selected for Artforum magazine's 'Best of 2012' issue. In 2013, Void Vision toured the West Coast and later that year released a split 12" with Portland-based band, Vice Device. The first official full-length album, entitled 'Sub Rosa' is set to debut on Berlin-based Mannequin Records, followed by a European tour in 2015.

Shari Vari formed Void Vision in 2009 originally as a duo, during the explosion of the new minimal synth and cold wave scene in United States. Sharing the same scene of the Wierd Records associates like Led Er Est, Martial Canterel, Xeno & Oaklander, Automelodi, in 2010 VV released 'In Twenty Years' on Blind Prophet (Sean Ragon's Cult Of Youth record label), receiving also the attention of the Rough Trade dudes, who asked to put out a track for one of their synth wave compilations.
After other split vinyls, tapes and compilations, Mannequin approached Shari with the intention to continue what Wierd Records started, giving a proper shape to her beautiful and youthful dark electronic sound. The result is 10 hypnotic cold analog tracks dominated by the warm and fragile Shari's voice, some more 'pop orientated' some others belonging to the original 'cold wave' atmosphere.

"Sub Rosa" is an edition of 400 copies on 160 gram black vinyl and 100 copies on 160 gram white vinyl.

Ice Cream Vinyl

Since the release of their debut studio album Do Hollywood (on 4AD) in 2016, The Lemon Twigs_the New York City rock band fronted by brothers Brian (27) and Michael D'Addario (25)_have waved the same revivalist torch as Alex Chilton and his Big Star crew, working to prove that archaic music from the `60s and `70s can still be relevant in digital world. Alongside peers like Foxygen and Drugdealer, The Lemon Twigs have explicitly documented a synchronistic blend of contemporary narrative motifs, old-school recording techniques, and flawless, consistent attitudes collaged from various crucial stages of rock 'n' roll. After a whirlwind 2023, the D'Addarios are continuing the momentum of their own evolving vision and voice, distilling a history lesson of baroque and power pop into A Dream Is All We Know (out May 3 on Captured Tracks). Garnering the top-to-bottom critical acclaim the brothers have long deserved, their 2023 LP Everything Harmony was spearheaded by an impressive string of singles, including "Corner Of My Eye" and "Any Time of Day." It was the kind of record that put all of Brian and Michael's talents on display, be it the former's multi-instrumentalist gifts or the latter's boyish, explosive pop-rock charisma and eye for engineering and vocal layering. But A Dream Is All We Know is not the acoustic, nylon string-based project that Everything Harmony was. Instead, it's a return to the form the Lemon Twigs first introduced on Do Hollywood_an electric guitar-centric, anthemic assemblage of, really, everything the band does great. These two companion records are an immediate example of a band capitalizing on their fire-in-the-belly appetite to make tunes that boast ubiquitous chemistry. A Dream Is All We Know is grandiose yet grounded; meticulous, yet wild and glowing. Made with analog precision, the album was finished in the immediate months after the band completed Everything Harmony during a vibrant, prolific period split between three studios on separate coasts. A Dream Is All We Know is a profoundly dense and charged album, rife with string arrangements and a sonic thesis statement that has quaked through phases of glam, conceptualism, baroque, and Mustang-loud, stone-cold rock `n' roll for more than half-a-century. A Dream Is All We Know sounds like it's lived a thousand lives already.

In 1984, Jasper Van’t Hof, a prominent European jazz pianist, propelled to fame with the energetic ‘Pili Pili’ a 15-minute trance collaboration with Guinea's Isaac Tagul Group. Inspired by a fiery red pepperoni, the track sold over 100,000 copies, leading the group to adopt the name Pili Pili, becoming a hit in the club and disco scene.

Pili Pili's musical roots trace back to Van’t Hof's 1982-83 tour in Central Africa, where he discovered a love for African music. The band embraced authenticity by collaborating with diverse African musicians from Mali, Congo, Senegal, and Guinea. In 2000, Van’t Hof initiat-ed a project with the young Zulu choir Phikelela Sakhu-la from Durban, South Africa.
Pili Pili's style, described as experimental fusion, blends intricate African rhythms with jazz, fusion, funk, and dance. Van’t Hof emphasized the importance of groove over complex solos, stating that intellectual approaches are lost in their music.

The band's performances, marked by their energetic fusion of jazz and African rhythms, gained acclaim across Europe. Regular tours and festival appearances, such as the Jazz Festival of Montreux, solidified Pili Pili's reputation as an excellent live band. Reviews praised the band's dynamic and explosive music, turn-ing every performance into a rhythmic and fiery expe-rience.

BELFAST PARTY THE NIGHT INSTITUTE LAUNCHES NEW ELECTRONIC MUSIC LABEL

The Night Institute, the legendary cult club night at the forefront of Belfast's thriving electronic music scene, announces eponymous new record label.

Spearheaded by scene stalwarts Timmy Stewart of Black Bones fame and Jordan Nocturne, known for his contributions to labels like Correspondent and Polari, this new venture aims to showcase Belfast's true independent club scene on a global scale.
The Night Institute has long been synonymous with cutting-edge music, providing a haven for the city's electronic music aficionados.
With the label, the vinyl and digital project features tracks by both resident artists as well as global artists who've played at the party.
The inaugural release boasts a stellar lineup.

Alongside Night Institute residents Timmy Stewart (Ft. Northern Irish vocalist Megan Sylvan) and Jordan Nocturne, the record showcases guest appearances by Justin Cudmore, resident of New York's renowned The Bunker and regular contributor to Phonica Records, and Hifi Sean, who has been making waves with his collaborative project alongside David McAlmond while working with icons like Ce Ce Peniston and Yoko Ono.

The label aims to capture the essence of Belfast's underground electronic music scene, while joining the dots with global collaborators across four tracks of acid, odd-ball house and dance floor electronics.

Good Vibes for Uncertain Times

After dark country trio Lost Dog Street Band released its 2022 album Glory, bandleader Benjamin Tod decided it was time to retire the project. Tod, alongside his wife Ashley Mae (fiddle), had been working together as a band since 2011. “I came to terms with letting go of Lost Dog completely, which is how I evaluate a lot of things in general,” explains Tod. “Oftentimes when I'm trying to make a really hard decision, I go ahead and go through the process of mourning its death and accepting that I am going to lose it.” But just a month after recording a solo project in January of 2023, Tod felt an urge to revisit the project one more time. “I thought I was done with Lost Dog, but after recording my solo album, I looked over all the songs that I had ready for a new record. These were songs for my band. I had to admit to myself that I wasn't done with Lost Dog.” Though there was heartbreak at the prospect of the project coming to an end, its resurrection has meant all the more in this new context. “Benjamin and I, both individually and together, have been through some professionally grinding and demoralizing personal times over the past five years,” Ashley Mae explains. “To take a step back from that over the past year and realize, ‘Wow, we held it down and withstood that, and we survived that,’ was a really good, bright, shining moment. It was the high point during a demoralizing time.” As such, Survived is a saving grace, a phoenix rising from the ashes. “This record means everything,” adds Tod. “It just feels like salvation.”

Keep It Simple!

That's what Tony Allen told me, whether on stage, in the recording studio or when we were working together on the album "The Source"(Blue Note 2017) in my studio. Obviously, if he repeated it at will, it's because it's so difficult, to express the essential, not to scatter, over-play, over-arrange. So natural for him, so constraining for others! For years he pushed us, the members of his group to develop our projects. I had something in mind, necessarily with him, unfortunately his unexpected demise decided otherwise.
It took a moment to accept his departure, to accept being a voice, to find a new path. The desire to continue the work started together, that of mixing styles, sounds to appropriate them and create new, authentic. The desire also to meet new people, another energy.
After composing music for this project, I asked my friend Ben Rubin, musician and producer to help me record it. I found in NYC what I was looking for, a sense of urgency, that of doing, generous and committed musicians. I knew Jason Lindner, a musician that I have been following for a long time and he was the first person I thought of for pianos and synthesizers. He has this ability to find new and powerful sounds, with a direct and unadorned playing. For the drums, I didn't especially thought about a musician whose playing could come close or far to Tony's. Ben suggested Josh Dion to me, I've been following him since his "Paris Monster" project, I love his ability to make his drums sound like a new instrument by playing the bass synth with his right hand, that forces him to keep it simple! He also plays 2 tracks in drum/synth mode on the album.
I'm also happy that he agreed to sing a song on this album.
So we recorded at the Figure8 recording studio in Brooklyn, Eli Crews providing the sound recording, we decided with Ben to create a powerful and assumed sound from the take. Many biases on the tones, whether on the drums and the keyboards. Back in my studio in Paris, I continued to search, to dig while recording additional saxophones, percussions and keyboards.

I met Tchad Blake during a week-long mixing seminar. His work on the album on is radical.
Keep it simple?
Difficult but I try to remain so on all the phases of evolution of this project, from writing to production, in the improvisation parts. Where I feel it the most is in the immediate joy of playing with Jason and Josh, of tweaking a few sounds in my studio to create the unexpected, surprise in the structures, authenticity. Simple as the desire to go towards something essential, to seek oneself, to find oneself, to doubt but also to invent oneself.

Stuck in the depths of a dark alley, blocked by yet another breeze, hitting a stone wall, road sign ahead: Dead End.
Impasse. "Cul-de-sac".
Hip‐hop. The original, some would say, official music of the late 20th Century Bronx.
Some say it has endured it's fair share of distractions, detractors and defectors. Some say it has murdered itself, having been abandoned by its so‐called best men, those who have gone off in other directions, or who have, simply, just beat‐retired. Yet, there are plenty of Soldier Monks still out there, prepared to sweat it out in the Temple of Machinery and Mics.
Low Cut honored this cause four years ago, with his MPC crafted minimalist version of NY Minute and he's back to ring the bells and unsheathe the samples!

The starting point of Dead End's production remains the 90's boom-bap, but the will to carry it even further brings it to its destination. By decorating it with rich samples flushed out after digging through vinyls pressed several decades ago, it is guided by a compass pointing deposits to the East. With sound quality inherited from a fastidious composition and mix works, using inspiration rather than just being a copycat, Dead End celebrates it without setting it up as a museum piece.

Picturing the beatmaker stuck in the depths of a dark alley, ended with a brick wall, is easy. But far from isolated in his Parisian basement, Low Cut has rung phones in New York, Baltimore and Detroit, rounding up the faithful. He magnetized the hidden but sharp forces, and gained attendance of legends. The casting of Dead End : Ruste Juxx & Nutso, Dirt Platoon, Guilty Simpson, Torae, Rasheed Chappell and the stainless Masta Ace, among other beat crushers. Also starring DJ Duke, Nix'on, Topic and Ordoeuvre with their DMC titles crates, for a deep beatfight on bars scarified of scratches.
Heavy atmosphere, martial beats and street soul, Dead End is also the final episode of the projects initiated by Low Cut, based on the model of a producer inviting various MCs.
He will then replace his turntable needles, refresh his sample banks, and settle the BPMs of his productions on more abstract frequencies.

1998 was a fertile year defined by juggernaut projects from Black Star, Lauren Hill, Outkast, and others, all of whom synced experimentation with foundational tenets that made the 1990s ferociously groundbreaking.


Out of Oakland, California, a collective known as Hieroglyphics were positioning away from industry control, to helm their own assets in manners more suited to their own marketing self-vision. While artists have certainly went solo prior, this came at a critical juncture for the crew during a spiraling and newfound Internet world. Born out of this independent spirit was the crew’s first official studio album 3rd Eye Vision.


The album spans twenty-two songs, all featuring beats by Domino who manned the lion’s share of production. A-Plus, Opio, Del, Casual, and Phesto also contributed beats. MCs each had their own song, short interludes highlighting their individuality through short verses, a clear espirit de corps statement.


Even among standouts like “Oakland Blackouts” or “At The Helm,” perhaps the most celebrated song off the release is “You Never Knew,” a track that propelled 3rd Eye Vision to #88 on the Billboard Top 200, not an entirely easy feat as a new label competing with the late ‘90s’ abundant onslaught of classic material.


In celebration of 20 years of 3EV, Fat Beats and Hiero Imperium are proud to present this CD/Vinyl reissue in deluxe packaging, expansive liner notes and the full original album tracks and a bonus for the very first time in one package.

About 20 years ago, Carlos Giffoni quickly made a name for himself both as a noise guitarist and a laptop noisician upon arriving in New York (via Florida and Venezuela). His expertly curated annual No Fun Festival, as well as his No Fun label, further solidified him as a key figure in the international noise scene. The festival's success proved the formula for experimental and improvised music fests could work with the noise underground as well, but it also capitalized on the faster rate of connections being made between geographically disparate artists as a result of the (still relatively nascent) internet. Back then Carlos would play his laptop like a pinball machine, in contrast to the static stage presence of most laptop performers, and his solo music, like many others' at that time, expressed a less dark and dour vision of the implications of harsh noise. By the close of the 2000s, he had stopped doing the festival, switched gears musically to playing the lighter No Fun Acid sets, and moved to LA. Now he has re-emerged in a big way with Dream Walker, his first full-length since 2018's Vain (and only his second since 2010). Inspired by the masterful performances and diffusions he heard at the February 2023 GRM electronic music festival in Paris, particularly sets by old friends Lasse Marhaug, Jim O'Rourke, and Eiko Ishibashi, he began conceptualizing new music of his own in response, turning to synthesizers and other hardware to produce a work more firmly in the tradition of European electronic music than anything else he's done. Intended as a late night listen that evokes the edge of consciousness, with Carlos getting as close as possible to a trance state during the actual recording and mixing, each of the eleven tracks transition into one another rather than being standalone discrete pieces, forming two side-long suites that proceed like stages of a dream. Unabashedly tonal and repetitive, the glistening opener "Now Dream," the droning "Sleep Walker," and the closing triptych of "Lost in Descanso," "Sunrise," and "The Hidden Path" occupy a power electronics-ambient nexus that feels spiritually close to the Mego label. Elsewhere, "Ticking Clock" is reminiscent of Stereolab's non-easy listening vintage electronic side, while the two-part arpeggiated "Euphoria" recalls early Oneohtrix Point Never (which Carlos released on No Fun). The contrast between "One Breath"'s crackling opening and its remarkably fluid and soaring sustained synthesized chords is a distillation of the album's lingering tension between electronics' ability to project mechanical rupture as well as the organic and the infinite _or "walking between dreams," as Carlos himself puts it. Produced by Lasse Marhaug (who also mastered Carlos' first solo album, Welcome Home, back in 2005), released by Stephen O'Malley (who I remember DJing at the No Fun fest), with cover art and photos by personal friends, Carlos considers the album a family affair. But Dream Walker most of all heralds a maturation of the artist, and stands as a record that exists out of pure desire, rather than obligation or force of habit; a statement of reconnecting with music not by merely revisiting it, but by building on what's come before, both in his own work and in the music he loves. -Alan Licht, New York, December 2023

This release follows Chantal's earlier musical odysseys, including Let Your Hands be My Guide (2013), The Sparkle In Our Flaws (2015), Bounce Back (2017), Puwawau (2019) and Saturday Moon (2021). Each album, a testament to her artistic evolution, has resonated with audiences worldwide.

Silently Held comes to life with the collaborative brilliance of accomplished musicians. Bill Frisell with his beautiful understanding of Chantal’s flow of melody, Eric Thielemans who brings his percussive mastery to the mix. Jozef Dumoulin playing the piano with immense calmth. Thomas Morgan's who seems to be picking magic out of the skies with his bass and Shahzad Ismaily's golden touch as a multi-instrumentalist contribute to the album's rich texture. Colin Stetson, renowned for his avant-garde saxophone work but also his work for Bon Iver, lends his unique voice, creating moments of emotive intensity.

And Joachim Badenhorst, Niels Van Heertum and Kurt Van Herck finishing the album with their beautiful brass. Guided by the skilled production of Philip Weinrobe (known from his work for Dirty Projectors and Adrienne Lenker) the album's sonic landscape is carefully crafted. Most of the songs recorded in one take. One breath to keep close to the realness and rawness Chantal was looking for. Meanwhile, the experienced touch of mixing engineer Phill Brown (Talk Talk, Mark Hollis,..) who has been very present on Chantal’s journey for years.

In the quiet embrace of the music, Chantal unveils a raw and authentic portrayal of vulnerability, where every flaw and feeling is held close. The album becomes a sanctuary, inviting listeners to join in this silent communion with the intricacies of the human experience. Through each note and lyric, Chantal Acda crafts a space where imperfections are not only acknowledged but celebrated, creating a profound and intimate connection between the artist and the audience. "Silently Held" stands as a testament to the beauty found in the closeness of our flaws and feelings, inviting us to embrace them with grace and authenticity.

Silently Held by Chantal Acda & The Atlantic Drifters, released 3 May 2024, includes the following tracks: "Above ", "The Friends Parade ", "Taking Part ", "The Barn " and more.

The upcoming album, How to Build an Ocean: Instructions is a project doused in personal conflict, but simultaneously a love letter to the normal and how beauty can be found in just being. Charged with references to literature, philosophy and film, as well as first hand experiences, the band explore thoughts of what it means to find purpose when everything feels purposeless, all whilst ultimately instructing themselves to find “small joys in the face of cosmic indifference”. Produced by George Perks (Enter Shikari, The Doves, You Me At Six), How to Build an Ocean: Instructions marks an exciting new development for Bears in Trees, being the first album they’ve recorded with the help of consultants outside of the band themselves, having previously relied on drummer George’s expertise, who outside of the band, works as an engineer at Subfrantic Studios. Tenderness, triumph, and a totally unashamed feeling of enjoying the ride whilst they're on it, How to Build an Ocean: Instructions is their definitive statement. Though no matter how far this record takes them, the most important thing is that they are together and doing what they love. Because when all is said and done, that's the connection that will last a lifetime. "We started the band because we loved hanging out with our friends and wanted to make stupid music together"; Iain concludes. "That's always been the reason, and it hasn't changed. All we want to do is make what we do as honest and authentic as possible. That's what it means to be in the Bears in Trees business."

The upcoming album, How to Build an Ocean: Instructions is a project doused in personal conflict, but simultaneously a love letter to the normal and how beauty can be found in just being. Charged with references to literature, philosophy and film, as well as first hand experiences, the band explore thoughts of what it means to find purpose when everything feels purposeless, all whilst ultimately instructing themselves to find “small joys in the face of cosmic indifference”. Produced by George Perks (Enter Shikari, The Doves, You Me At Six), How to Build an Ocean: Instructions marks an exciting new development for Bears in Trees, being the first album they’ve recorded with the help of consultants outside of the band themselves, having previously relied on drummer George’s expertise, who outside of the band, works as an engineer at Subfrantic Studios. Tenderness, triumph, and a totally unashamed feeling of enjoying the ride whilst they're on it, How to Build an Ocean: Instructions is their definitive statement. Though no matter how far this record takes them, the most important thing is that they are together and doing what they love. Because when all is said and done, that's the connection that will last a lifetime. "We started the band because we loved hanging out with our friends and wanted to make stupid music together"; Iain concludes. "That's always been the reason, and it hasn't changed. All we want to do is make what we do as honest and authentic as possible. That's what it means to be in the Bears in Trees business."

"Nothing and no one can extinguish this flame within you," sings Emilie Simon from the opening title of Polaris, her first true album in ten years. An apparent long eclipse that the French singer, musician, and producer has nevertheless used to explore new territories, open uncharted paths, and reinvent her musical vocabulary and narrative threads. Like Ariane in a dreamlike world, she stretches these threads along her journey, inviting us to blindly follow.

After composing music for the film "The Jesus Roll" with John Turturro, and a musical journey between Earth and Mars through a series of singles, in 2023, Emilie Simon chose to revisit her debut album, both in the studio and on stage, to definitively close a chapter begun twenty years earlier. She also published "Phoenix," a gothic tale with a "vampiric" theme, sung and spoken in alexandrines. The central character, Lily Mercier, is the same one found at the heart of the Polaris adventure. Clearly, Lily is a projection of Emilie, on a quest for the North Star that symbolizes the never-extinguished desire to find her way. The dazzlement too, when one is a musician always eager to ignite again for the infinite mysteries of sound and to translate its shivers into songs.

This album, sung in both French and English, succeeds in combining the clarity of melodies with the demands of production. It immediately captivates (the irresistible burn of the Sun) and enchants over repeated listens, like a lasting iridescence of a thousand sonic fragments. Recorded in New York (where Emilie lived for a long time), Los Angeles, Montreal, Rome, and Paris (where she returned to settle), Polaris has its own cartography. Its universe is the standard scale, its pulsation inspired by cosmic rhythms, and its unique poetry both disturbs and captivates. A sign that nothing and no one can extinguish this flame within her.

Keplar presents the first-ever vinyl edition of the 2003 album »From Tokyo to Naiagara« by Tujiko Noriko. This reissue with new artwork by Joji Koyama is an abridged version of the album as Tomlab label owner Tom Steinle and producer Aki Onda had originally intended to publish it alongside the original CD version. Written by the France-based Tujiko while she still lived in Japan, »From Tokyo to Naiagara« followed up on her two seminal Mego albums and marked a turning point in both the artist’s career and personal life: While she was preparing to leave Japan behind, she succinctly connected the dots between her experiments in pop music and her interest for more abstract sounds. Tujiko worked primarily with a Yamaha synthesizer and an MPC sampler while also incorporating contributions by other musicians such as Onda, Riow Arai and Sakana Hosomi into the pieces. Sometimes approaching an IDM and clicks’n’cuts-style production or working with trip-hop and hip-hop beats while using conventional song structures in the most unconventional of ways, the album showcases her multifaceted influences and skills as a singer and musician to full effect.

Tujiko fondly remembers the time when she made the album. »I had a lot of time for myself back then and I didn’t even feel like I was very busy,« she says today. She describes producing it in close collaboration with Onda, who would relocate to New York City shortly after, as »quite Tokyo and very local.« They explored parts of the city that they hadn’t yet been to for a photography project (finding, among other things, a coin laundry called Naiagara—a transliteration of Niagara). This left its mark on a record that mixes melancholia with joy. The driving opener »Narita Made,« named after one of Tokyo’s airports, already makes this clear: Tujiko’s wistful vocals and lyrics like »I miss you terribly« emphasises the sense of bittersweetness that forms the common thread for a sonically diverse and stylistically open-ended album—this music is looking back while moving forward. It is probably no surprise that its reissue too evokes tender memories of Onda and Steinle in Tujiko, while also reminding her of what lies ahead. »I have so much more to do and not enough time for that,« she muses, before quickly adding: »But I also feel less alone having that album again.«

Influenced in equal parts by the experience of strolling through previously unknown Tokyoite back alleys and thinking about the paths not (yet) taken, »From Tokyo to Naiagara« is precisely that: the perfect travel companion for a journey that leads its listeners from past to future.