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Rose City Band is celebrated guitarist Ripley Johnson. A prolific songwriter, Johnson started Rose City Band to have an outlet to explore songwriting styles apart from Wooden Shjips and Moon Duo, where he is often not the lead songwriter. Rose City Band allowed him to follow his musical muses as they greet him and not be bound by the schedule of bandmates and demands of a touring group. Stepping out from behind the psychedelic haze that envelops his other output, Rose City Band"s lean yet richly textured arrangements lay bare the beauty of his songcraft. On Earth Trip, Johnson reveals more of himself than ever before, coloring the project"s country-rock twang with a melancholic, wistful undertone. It charts a journey of personal growth and introspection with surprising honesty, from pining for summers spent with friends to meditations on space, stillness and the splendor of the natural world. It continues Rose City Band"s celebration of summer warmth and the great outdoors, seen from a new vantage point, and with newfound appreciation for the freedom and joy that nature provides. Earth Trip was written during a period of sudden shocks and drastic lifestyle changes for Johnson. Forced to cancel extensive touring plans for 2020, the guitarist found himself home for an extended period for the first time in years. No longer in constant motion, he was able to experience and enjoy the simple pleasures of home life, of being in one place: hikes in nature, bathing outside, and waking with the dawn. Forming new connections to his surroundings, from tending to a garden to sleeping out under the stars, Johnson found hope and healing in a more mindful relationship with the natural world. Themes of recalibration and finding personal space are equally mirrored in Earth Trip"s lean production. Recorded at his home studio in Portland and mixed by Cooper Crain (Bitchin" Bajas, Cave), Johnson makes deft use of space while experimenting with new sonics. Shimmering pedal steel, woozy harmonica melodies, and stately piano enhance the album"s introspective tone without ever clouding arrangements. Psychedelic elements that nod to Johnson"s other projects and influences still appear throughout, but hover at the edge of perception, a subtle halo adding colour and texture to Johnson"s songwriting rather than taking centrer-stage. He elaborates: "I told Cooper I was trying to capture that feeling when you take psychedelics and they just start coming on - maybe objects start buzzing in the edges of your vision, you start seeing slight trails, maybe the characteristics of sound change subtly. But you"re not fully tripping yet. He got the idea right away and his mix really captures that feeling." Johnson"s lithe guitar playing throughout treads a fine line between country and cosmic, taut melodies spiralling out into long reverb trails or free-form solos buoyed by a breeze, radiating summer warmth. Through its daring honesty and masteful arrangements, Earth Trip cements Johnson"s place as a singular songwriter of inimitable skill. It"s message of mindfulness and our interconnectedness to the environment expands on a long country and blues music tradition that draws a symbiotic relationship between storyteller and the land, capturing the beauty of the natural world while also emphasising our responsibility in preserving it for future generations

Portland troublemakers Hurry Up are up to it again - They've had it up to
here - and they're here to tell you about it
Lauded + feared for their ferocious 2015 self-titled LP, they've only grown bolder
and sharper, honing their craft in a radon-soaked basement lit by one bare party
bulb. Between tours with Drive Like Jehu, Hot Snakes, Protomartyr and other
luminaries of post-punk firmament, Hurry Up wrote the songs that would become
Dismal Nitch. Recorded on the brink of disaster (late 2019-early 2020), the record
is a cracked crystal ball with fire in its heart. Drummer Kathy Foster (Thermals, All
Girl Summer Fun Band, Roseblood), guitarist Westin Glass (Thermals) and bassist
Maggie Vail (Bangs) share equal writing / singing duties, conjuring a vision of a
world whirling with firestorms - social, emotional, political and literal. Dismal
Nitch is one of 2022's most compelling releases, impossible to ignore

Pye Corner Audio releases a new album, Let’s Emerge!, for Sonic Cathedral. It’s his first studio outing for the label following the acclaimed live recording Social Dissonance, which came out earlier this year, and it features Ride guitarist Andy Bell playing on five of its ten tracks. From the first glimpse of the artwork to the first note of the music it’s a marked deviation from Pye Corner Audio’s more traditional shadowy sounds. Whereas his last outing for Ghost Box (2021’s Entangled Routes) was inspired by the underground fungal pathways through which plants communicate, this one is very much above ground, bathed in sunlight and acid-bright psychedelia.

“This is a departure to sunnier climes, but a departure nonetheless,” says Pye Corner Audio, aka Martin Jenkins. “It’s something that I’d been thinking about for a while. I try to tailor my work slightly differently for the various labels that I work with, and this seems to fit nicely with Sonic Cathedral’s ethos.” Designer Marc Jones’ bold and ultra vivid artwork consciously references the likes of LFO, Spacemen 3 and the early output of Stereolab. “I think it mixes together many of my earliest influences,” explains Martin. “I’ve been a long-time fan of Spacemen 3 and Stereolab.

Their moments of repetition and drone have always seeped into what I’ve tried to create.

“I was living in a small apartment and I’d stripped down my studio set-up when I was recording this album. This enabled me to focus on a few key pieces of equipment and explore them fully.” The recordings were fleshed out by Andy Bell, who Martin first met at the Sonic Cathedral 15th birthday party at The Social in London back in 2019 – the same show that became the live album Social Dissonance.

“New alliances were formed and friendships made in that basement in Little Portland Street,” recalls Martin. “When I met Andy, we agreed that we needed to work together in some way. After I’d remixed a few tracks from his album The View From Halfway Down, he kindly repaid the favour.” The end results – mastered in New York by acclaimed engineer Heba Kadry – are incredible, from the first stirrings of opener ‘De-Hibernate’, via the glorious ‘Haze Loops’ and ‘Saturation Point’, the album slowly but surely awakens, blinking and feeling its way into the light. It all culminates in the epic closing track ‘Warmth Of The Sun’ which, with its vocal harmonies and acid breakdown, is seven and a half minutes of pure release.

“That one’s about life’s simple pleasures,” concludes Martin. “The Beach Boys, tremolo guitars, infinite drones, Spacemen 3. Let’s emerge from this darkened era and feel the ‘Warmth Of The Sun’. “The last few years have seen huge changes, both personally and in a wider perspective. The album title is a reaction to this, a collective (tentative) sigh of relief. Here’s to new beginnings and a sense of hope.”

Decomposed recalls classic American hardcore like Bad Brains, Poison Idea and Jerry’s Kids or Japanese ragers like Paintbox, The Comes, Eiefits and Skizophrenia. But there’s also a healthy slug of classic UK and US punk and even a bit of Krautrock, psychedelia and Black Sabbath in there too. Nottingham has always been a melting pot for heavy music. For a small city, it has boasted more than its fair share of genre defining bands and artists, not to mention record labels. Bands cross-pollinate, form projects and offshoots and play one-off gigs that would result in lengthy careers and world tours if they had happened across the Atlantic. It has always been like that there. No big deal (but yet, a really big deal if you know). One such band/project/offshoot were Endless Grinning Skulls. Formed by guitarist Andy Morgan (also from Bloody Head, Army Of Flying Robots, Nadir and countless more), drummer Steve Charlesworth (Heresy, Wolves Of Greece, Meatfly, Geriatric Unit) and bassist Gords (Hard To Swallow, John Holmes, Geriatric Unit) in the early twenty-teens, they re-set the bar for the 3-piece hardcore band before (perhaps inevitably) burning out in 2018. Morgan and Charlesworth weren’t done though. They’d forged a bond in EGS and wanted to carry on playing together so - in a familiar Nottingham storyline - they recruited former Pitchshifter guitarist Stu Toolin on bass and Anmarie Spaziano (who you might know from running a famous burger joint) on vocals and formed Blind Eye. They knew Toolin was about to relocate to Portland, Oregon so they wrote and recorded an EP (released on Morgan’s own Viral Age Records). Quick-sharp. No messing about. And that – by rights – should have been that: over and out. New band please. However, the demo captured a rare intensity and vitality that more considered projects often fail to achieve. This was a band let loose, free from previous shackles and loving the noise they made. It seemed a shame to stop there. Recruiting Matt Grundy (a former bandmate of Morgan’s in both Nadir and Dead In The Woods) to the bass vacancy they went back to Stuck On A Name Studios in 2021 with Ian “Boulty” Boult at the helm again and delivered the album Decomposed.
Decomposed genuinely rocks out without losing one iota of the effervescent anger that made the demo such an essential listen. From the insistent, minimal opener Ready To Go Now via the unhinged thrash of Straw Man and the menace of the stomping Pero No Quieres, to the measured chugging and epic crescendo of closer Broken Star, this record is a fucking blast. Needle off, flip it back over, play it again. Your neighbours are loving it so much they’re banging on the walls to tell you. “I suppose the intention was to write high energy, catchy hardcore, with a nod to what has come before, but also to do our own thing,” explains Andy. “Lyrically, the album was written during the pandemic, and although it’s not ‘a pandemic album’, I think it deals with a lot of the feelings of loss, separation and isolation

Stolen Body Records is thrilled to announce the release of Mexican Doom Metal band Terror Cósmico’s first album in 4 years - Miasma.

Miasma is the fourth album from Mexico City based duo, Terror Cósmico. The record takes a different turn in production from past albums, having a more aggressive tone, having drums and guitar recorded separately in the studio, being able to create an intense and surrounding sound.

Miasma is made up of 8 tracks which deliver a great range of emotions, going through desperation, anguish and desolation mixed with an air of nostalgic mystery.

Recorded in January of 2021 in Testa Studio in Leon, Guanajuato, Mexico. The sessions held a vibe of doubt and fear to what the pandemic could bring. The album is charged with all the emotions of a very strange moment in our timeline. The artwork was a commissioned task by Portland artist Jason Barnett.
Tracks:

Owing to a focused period of growth as a home recordist and producer,
there is a distinct, refreshing current that charges outtakes from 'bad
summer', the latest full-length album from Philly-via-Portland's cool
original (FKA cool american)
What under other circumstances might have been a string of homespun indie
rock songs is instead an energized pop- focused collection of tracks born from
what Nathan Tucker describes as 'the contrast between total formlessness and
rigid claustrophobia'. As heard almost immediately on album opener 'monad, no
windows', an electric atmosphere envelops outtakes from 'bad summer'. Pitchshifted vocal samples and previously- scrapped drum recordings fill out the
overture, setting the table for a patchwork of repurposed, resampled ideas
shaped into songs that rarely end up in the same place they started. The
unhurried and sentimental 'i just need a second' boasts the full spectrum of cool
original's songwriting prowess: foregrounded, infectious melody over subtly
chopped and screwed drums comprise the foundation for Tucker's own take on a
classic road song'a marked contrast to 'breaking my own rules', an experimental
pop number unlike any previous cool original work. Similar contrasts abound
throughout outtakes, making for a listening experience that's equal parts
rejuvenating and unpredictable.

What if music had no beginning, no end Can music exist 'for itself' or 'of itself,' without structure constraining it, defining it Can music be non-linear, non-narrative, simply experiential, existential The second full-length album on Mysteries of the Deep, Musica Enterrada from Portland's William Selman, neither answers these questions nor supposes them. But in listening, one can't help but wonder: What if I disappeared into this record forever In another time and place, William Selman was known as Warmdesk, an alias through which he issued a series of sharply precise minimal techno records. In recent past, Selman shifted gears, shedding the dynamics of tension and release that characterized his previous alias' output. Under his own name, Selman began releasing process-oriented, freeform experimental music on cassette-focused outlets like Digitalis and Hausu Mountain. Now comes Musica Enterrada, a diaphanous, weightless musical vision not unlike the theoretical square root of GRM and Popol Vuh's early electronic forays. Split into six tracks across two sides of vinyl, Musica Enterrada bubbles, churns, drifts, and dozes. Dulcet tones pile up gently like waves on shore. Patterns repeat and reconfigure, as if heard from different angles. Rhythms appear, shift the frame, then disappear, into the ether whence they came. Play Musica Enterrada on repeat. And if you disappear into it, fret not — you have drifted into solace.

On 'Hurricane Clarice' stringband revolutionaries Allison de Groot &
Tatiana Hargreaves infuse centuries of matrilineal folk wisdom into a
soundtrack to environmental disaster
Produced by indie folk visionary Phil Cook, the duo's energetic sophomore album
features nine pieces, including two epic medleys (carefully selected from their
archival deep dives) as well as a few transcendent instrumental originals.
Recorded during an apocalyptic heat wave in Portland, OR, the album is a
testimony to the relation of community and climate in a dying world. The
Hargreaves- penned title track delves into the surreal world of Brazilian author
Clarice Lespector while the Canadian ballad "The Banks of the Miramichi"
references the "before times" of a polluted river used as a case study in the
environmentalist classic 'Silent Spring'. We turn inward in times of global or
personal crisis, seeking the wisdom of those before us — a human instinct
manifested literally on this record through the recorded voices of the duo's
grandmothers. Any artist unearthing old sounds takes traditional elements and
exaggerates here or there to fit a personal aesthetic or style–there is no authentic
rendition. With 'Hurricane Clarice', Allison and Tatiana propose a third way beyond
tradition and progress. Community might just save us all.

The early days of the man affectionately known to his peers as Tubbs' are chronicled in some detail in the notes to this LP's predecessor and companion volume, not unreasonably titled "King Tubby's Classics Chapter 1". It's unlikely that anyone who buys Volume 2 will not already have Volume 1, but for the few who don't it's only fair that we start the note with a short précis of the early life and career of the boy born to be 'King ...

Ex Washington DC native and now Portland Oregon resident Lida Husik has her 1997 album 'Fly Stereophonic' released on vinyl for the first time. Lida Husik's versatile recording career has been graced by a broad pantheon of labels - the likes of Kramer's seminal NYC imprint Shimmy Disc, Caroline Records / Astralwerks, Alias Records and even an appearance on Rough Trade Singles Club with multi instrumentalist Beaumont Hannant. ' Fly Stereophonic ' is Lida Husik's fifth album, another inventive slab with clever twists and turns. Raised on Washington DC's Punk scene, Lida Husik's 90's Indie Rock template has morphed from 1960s Psychedelia with 1970’s SciFi movie scores and even endorsing Electronica with her collaborative efforts with Ambient specialist Beaumont Hannant. This new vinyl version is a welcome format that enhances the breezy and balanced Pop Psychedelia and Folky gem that is ' Fly Stereophonic'. Laced with three solid minute dream pop confections and balanced with addictive melodies and quiet pop sensibilities. Lida Husik's personal stamp is surreal, mature, with catchy trippy hook laden guitar and a great seductive voice to match. A treasure trove - ' Fly Stereophonic ' splendid celestial rhyme; the cosmic wobble of ' Fade Sister Cool '; the panoramic swoon of ' Chocolate City ' and the giddy cover of the Monochrome Set's great masterpiece ' Eine Symphonie des Grauens ' all served with panache. Mastered for vinyl at Abbey Road by Alex Wharton on limited edition 180g clear vinyl. " three-minute confections that sound like pop hits from another galaxy " Salon // " an alluring 34-minute seduction, the songs revealing new layers of wonder with each listen " Chicago Tribune // " as many psychedelicious, bouncing, organ-drenched pop hits as a Stereolab album " Time Out New York

After the Bend is the second album from Louisville based Flanger Magazine, and the follow up to FM’s 2018 debut, Breslin. Whereas Breslin was the solo creation of Christopher Bush, an album noted for “an astute synthesis of ‘library music’ and solo acoustic guitar,” and “a seamless blend into the uncluttered and airier side of classic 1970’s giallo,” After the Bend is an ensemble affair. An ecosystem, a perfect mutualism bodies forth—of strings, outdoor recordings, electronics, reeds, and percussion—featuring new FM players Anna Krippenstapel (Frekons (Freakwater + Mekons), The Other Years), Jim Marlowe (Equipment Pointed Ankh, Tropical Trash, Sapat), Eric Lanham and Benjamin Zoeller (both from Caboladies). The various combos perform with both a distinguished efficacy and unhurried Sunday drift—charged and beautiful, pulsating and pleasing. The production is subtle and tasteful. Mutating past the old saws of bounded individualism, a strange form of tentacular life accrues, cyborgian-fungral-tangles of the more-than-human variety.

Robert Beatty’s cover art of otherworldly and interconnected river-scape gradients, coupled with song titles like “Reservoir,” “Falls Fountain Removed,” and “Sympathies for the River,” cue and clue the listener toward a river as a singular multitude analogue for the album. Interstitial gaps, clearings and openings give rise and merge into an accumulated flow from the tributaries of spirited improvisational performance, palimpsestic song cycles, and high fidelity studio production. The composite sound-image of After the Bend refuses to put both oars down into any one of the eddies of the folk, sound, chamber, electronic, or jazz idioms, and instead glides along the currents found within the slipstreams between.

Gathering samples, a River Doctor Limnologist inspecting the properties of After the Bend might note the specter of Leroy Jenkin’s free-violin heat-light deepin the water’s thermal stratification. Or mortgage the late-Maestro’s time with Gruppo di Improvvisazione Nuova Consonanza to pay down the growing river heat budget. Or take one’s dirty buckets to the banks of the 19th laundromat where Walt Dickerson plays his vibraphone parts from Divine Gemini with dowsing rods. Or excavate the bedrock in the drainage basin, noting skeletal remains of a Shostakovich string quartet attempting to tune up a Kentucky Fiddle’s subsequent influence on the chemical composition of the water. Or consult the historical revisionist reenactment troupe’s episode of Fishing with John (Fahey) in which Codona, The Sea Ensemble and Nuno Canavarro guest host as their fleet of paddle boats churn river water into a regal lager, and all the fish get drunk in their quest for the leaner enamel Hosianna Mantra GPS coordinates of the Fattened Herb.

Bush and Marlowe recorded and produced the album at End of an Ear Studios, located in the Portland neighborhood, in the west end of the city of Louisville, bordering the Ohio River, between Kentucky’s Upper South and the Indiana’s Midwest, during the first year of the global pandemic, amidst the planet’s sixth great extinction event. As good a time to be alive as any other. (by Kris Abplanalp)

The soundtrack to ‘Pig’ is now available on LP, pressed on pink vinyl and housed in a spined sleeve with double sided printed insert and
download card included.

 The score reflects the mood of the lead character, played by Nicolas Cage, with the simple ‘folk’-like colours of the solo violin and acoustic guitars creating a richly mournful tone.

 More modern, aggressive electric guitars, distorted colours and drums provide a strikingly ominous, propulsive backdrop to the character’s more intense moments.

 Alexis Grapsas says this about the film’s score: “The score was born after lots of trial and error and experimentation under the guidance and vision of the filmmakers, where we tried very original acoustic and electric sounds. In the process of creating an environment that would capture the lead character’s emotional world, we landed on a very unique raw and gritty sound that remains true
to the story while being self-aware.”

 The NEON film, written and directed by Michael Sarnoski, was released in theatres on July 16th.

Meaning all things magic and supernatural, the root of the word occult is that which is hidden, concealed, beyond the limits of our minds. If this is occult, then the Occult Architecture of Moon Duo’s fourth album - a psychedelic opus in two separate volumes released in 2017 is an intricately woven hymn to the invisible structures found in the cycle of seasons and the journey of day into night, dark into light.

Offering a cosmic glimpse into the hidden patterning embedded in everything, Occult Architecture reflects the harmonious duality of these light and dark energies through the Chinese theory of Yin and Yang.

Following the Yin (feminine, darkness, night, earth) represented on Occult Architecture Vol. 1, Vol. 2 presents the Yang. Yang means “the bright side of the hill” and is associated with the male, sun, light and the spirit of heaven, and as such Vol. 2 explores the light and airy elements of Moon Duo’s complex psyche.

“In production we referred to Vol. 1 as the fuzz dungeon, and Vol. 2 as the crystal palace,” guitarist Ripley Johnson explains. “The darkness of Vol. 1 gave birth to the light of Vol. 2. We had to have both elements in order to complete the cycle. We’re releasing them separately to allow them their own space, and to ensure clarity of vision. To that end we also mixed Vol. 2 separately, in the height of Portland summer, focusing on its sonic qualities of lightness, air, and sun. Listeners can ultimately use the two volumes individually or together, depending on circumstance or the desired effect.”

Described as a ’60s garage rock band performing as a mini-orchestra stuck within a Tarantino film, Los Angeles-based Spindrift is a cinematically inspired rock band that has also been described as “Heavy Western” or “psychedelic spaghetti-western rocknroll.” Led by songwriter-producer-composer Kirpatrick Thomas on guitar and lead vocals, along with Portland-based guitarist Becca Davidson, bass / baritone guitarist, producer, and vocalist Riley Bray, and aerospace engineer Joe Zabielski on drums and electronics, Spindrift creates a cinematic scope that has been heard on their compilation albums like Classic Soundtracks Vol 1, 2, and The West (released by Xemu Records), HBO’s Eastbound & Down (Seasons 1 & 2), the Quentin Tarantino-produced biker exploitation film Hell Ride, the film Diablo (featuring Scott Eastwood), and “The Ballad of Darrell Lemaire” from Season 1 Episode 9 of Hamilton’s Pharmacopeia (Viceland). Classic Soundracks Vol. 3 is their tenth studio soundtrack compilation album, co-produced by Riley Bray and Jello Biafra. Released by Jello’s own Alternative Tentacles Records, it completes a trilogy of themes from various feature films, documentaries, and TV mini-series. This final installment reveals a new level of maturity from the band, opening doors to new genres including espionage-esque Bond themes, upbeat guitar duets, “Italian Polizia” car chase electronica, hard rock from the Middle East, psychedelic disco, and progressive “kung fu” rock." "Los Angeles-based cinematically inspired rock band’s third in a trilogy of themes from various features. Songs have been heard on HBO’s Eastbound & Down, the Tarantino-produced Hell Ride, Diablo and Hamilton’s Pharmacopeia on Viceland.

Die experimentierfreudigen US-Metaller EIGHT BELLS aus Portland, Oregon haben ihr Songwriting im dritten Anlauf stark gestrafft und verfeinert. Dieser Soundtrack für das Ende der Welt unter dem Namen "Legacy of Ruin" bietet aber auch Kontinuität der besten Elemente wie die für das Trio typischen Gesangsharmonien, die zusammen mit mal schrillen, mal impressionistischen Gitarrenriffs eine eindringlich berauschende Atmosphäre aus Licht und Dunkelheit schaffen. Inhaltlich liegt der Fokus von "Legacy of Ruin" auf Themen wie die Natur des Menschen, Umweltzerstörung, Tod,, Verlust, Bösartigkeit und Rache.

EIGHT BELLS wurden im Jahr 2010 als Songwriting-Projekt von Melynda Jackson gegründet. Die Gitarristin und Sängerin benannte ihre neue Band nach dem letzten Album ihrer vorherigen Wirkungsstätte SUBARACHNOID SPACE. Nachdem bei dem Trio zu Anfang die Besetzung mehrfach wechselte, wird Melynda mittlerweile von Sänger und Bassist Matt Solis (CORMORANT, URSA) und Brian Burke (NO SHORES, CAVE DWELLER) am Schlagzeug unterstützt.
Nach der amerikanischen Veröffentlichung der "Isosceles"-EP (2011) erlangten EIGHT BELLS bald auch internationale Anerkennung für ihr Debütalbum "The Captain's Daughter (2013)". Das Trio tourte anschließend als Support für SUBROSA durch Nordamerika. Mit ihrem zweiten Album "Landless" (2016) festigten EIGHT BELLS ihren Ruf als heißer Underground-Tipp. Die folgenden Einladungen von VOIVOD für eine US-Tour an und zum Psycho Las Vegas Festival nahm das Trio gerne an.

Nun sind EIGHT BELLS reif für den nächsten großen Schritt auf der Karriereleiter und die weite Welt. "Legacy of Ruin" wurde von keinem Geringeren als Billy Anderson (AMENRA, BELL WITCH, LEVIATHAN, SWANS) produziert, wodurch sich dem Trio eine neue Dimension der Klangqualität eröffnet hat.

"Legacy of Ruin" bestätigt eindrucksvoll, dass zeitgenössischer Metal sowohl künstlerisch anspruchsvoll als auch gleichzeitig frisch und eingängig in seinem Ausdruck sein kann. Höchster Zeit, um sich zurückzulehnen, die Augen zu schließen und sich mit EIGHT BELLS eindringlichem Abgesang auf einen sterbenden Planeten von wundervollen Klangwellen überrollen zu lassen.

"The core of confusion and upheaval that drove some of the band's most fiery earlier work, however, is replaced by a more stabilized undercurrent, a mentality that's reflected in songs not afraid to try new things and honestly explore uncomfortable feelings. When combined with exciting production and songwriting choices, that mindset helps make Feels So Good // Feels So Bad one of the Shivas' best albums.” - AllMusic "Portland, Oregon-hailing psych-surf band The Shivas accomplish another time-traveling, reverb-ridden sound that refuses to get boring. Jared Molyneux’s guitar work knows when to be bright or bashful at the right times, breaking into guitar solos that possess a late-’60s groove… The Shivas seem to blissfully flourish” - Paste "a consistent treat for the ears” - The Vinyl District "Though the psych-tinged guitar riff that drives 'Feels So Bad' was written while The Shivas were still on the road, its lyrics didn’t fall into place until the band was well into lockdown, unsure of when they’d be able to return to their most imperative true love: Live shows... Accordingly, 'Feels So Bad' permeates with a sense of urgent desperation, building off a chugging prog-rock instrumental.” - Consequence (on “Feels So Bad”) "They hooked the audience with their throwback rock sounds. The guitar strums and rhythmic drum beats were layered atop smooth and hallucinogenic vocals. The eyes can tell the take at times and there was a sparkle there that said that the band members just love doing live performances." - California Rocker "This single layers on the fuzz but keeps it dreamy, with an especially sticky guitar riff sure to lodge itself in your brain with minimal effort." - Portland Monthly (on “If I Could Choose”) “'My Baby Don’t' translates the genuine vibrant joy


of the live experience into the studio, bringing the band’s ‘60s garage rock roots, sharp pop vocal harmonies, and fervent performances along for the ride." - Under The Radar "Perfectly straddling the line between a solid-head bopping track and an introspective deep cut, The Shivas’ 'Undone' is a rock & roll gem. The track sounds straight out of the late 60s and fits seamlessly in the Portland band’s electrifying catalog." - The Luna Collective "The first time I clicked play on this track, I knew it was a yes for me." - Ear To The Ground Music (on “If I Could Choose”) "The harmonies would make the “Happy Together” Turtles blush, but the unsettling guitar doesn’t shy away from the woollier implications of the ’60s." - Willamette Week (on “If I Could Choose”) "'Undone' is just the perfect song for the good days and the bad ones." - GlamGlare "another hit" - Austin Town Hall (on “Undone”) "one of the best forthcoming albums of the year" - Austin Town Hall RADIO: #3 Most Added @ NACC - 50 official adds BIO Every working musician has had their life turned upside down by Covid-19. For The Shivas, who had recently released a new LP and normally keep a rigorous touring schedule, it was a particularly screeching halt. “We were about to go to SXSW, the following weekend was Treefort in Boise, and then we were going to open for our friends’ band on tour in the US before going to Europe,” Jared Molyneux remembers. Then everything just stopped. They were faced with a dilemma. “It forced us to adapt or just quit,” Molyneux says. “The reality is that shows are our job.” In truth, live shows aren’t just The Shivas job: they are the band’s greatest love. Shivas shows are bombastic, explosive and thoroughly communal live rock and roll experiences where barriers between the performers and their audience seem to dissolve into the sweat and sound. The stage—or the basement, or the living room—that’s The Shivas’ true element. It’s their raison d’etre. It’s their religion. The band’s live urgency may have been born in 2006, when the band’s young members—who began booking West Coast tours while still in high school—waited without fanfare on sidewalks or in parking lots, before being rushed onstage for their sets at 21-and-up clubs. Maybe it developed a little later, as The Shivas blasted their way through Portland’s storied and unsanctioned mid-aughts house show scene. Whatever the origin of their famously kinetic live experience, it’s the show that keeps them coming back after over 1,000 performances spread over 25 countries in 15 years. In those 15 years, The Shivas have grown tight-knit as a group. Guitarist/singer Jared Molyneux, bassist Eric Shanafelt and drummer/singer Kristin Leonard have all been with the band since its earliest days; guitarist Jeff City, another high school friend, joined in 2017. Together they’ve learned to thread a seemingly impossible needle: They’ve honed and tightened their performances without sacrificing the element of surprise that makes each show special. And despite touring and recording for most of their lives, they speak about their project with humility, in the DIY vernacular of their Pacific Northwest upbringing. They talk up their own favorite bands, play all-ages shows as much as possible, and bring a sort of blue-collar humanism to the live performances they relish so much. “We just want to make people feel good,” Molyneux says. “We want them to forget they have to work tomorrow.” Kristin Leonard elaborates, “The live show is all about that feeling of catharsis—in ourselves and in everyone who comes out. We’re creating this safe space where we can all let go. Where we can exhale. And it feels really good when we are able to facilitate that.” So when Covid hit, the band knew it was time for transformation. After a settling realization that live music would be grounded for the foreseeable future, The Shivas booked significant studio time with Cameron Spies, who also produced the 2019 Dark Thoughts LP. They also transformed their lives: three of the band’s four members found work with a local nonprofit serving unhoused Portland residents. They became engaged in protests and fundraisers for social justice. They spent a whole summer actually living in Portland, settling into the city they had always called home, but that sometimes felt like a temporary stop between tours. “We got into a more community-minded headspace,” Leonard says. “And that did give us some purpose. It felt cool to see everybody come together to stick up for what they believe in. It feels like an incredibly formative last twelve months.” The album that emerged from this new moment finds The Shivas reborn as a band that seems seasoned and perfectly at home with itself. There is a calm, even a hopefulness, to Feels So Good // Feels So Bad that sounds new. The Shivas didn’t write or record the album with a particular theme in mind, but one seems to have emerged: where Dark Thoughts was about confronting your demons with fearless self-examination, much of Feels So Good // Feels So Bad is about what happens once you find that peace: how being honest with yourself changes your relationships and your priorities. “I do think it’s about acceptance,” Leonard says. “There’s a weird relaxation that comes with being at peace with things you can’t control or have regrets about.” Maybe that’s why the squealing, riff-laden break-up song opener, “Feels So Bad,” is such a shock to the system. But it’s more of an exorcism than a melodrama: more a song about not being able to do the thing you love (in


this case, playing live shows) than splitting with a partner. “It’s like part of you goes to sleep,” Leonard says. As bandmates who are also in a long-term relationship, Molyneux and Leonard know that their songs might be seen as glimpses into their personal lives, but their songwriting is rarely autobiography. Leonard compares their process to something more akin to screenwriting. “There’s bound to be some autobiographical material in there,” she says. “But the common denominator is the exploration of universal feelings: ones that everyone experiences or can relate to.” The goal is to use the music to drill down into something genuine and sincere, beyond genre or stylistic affectation. That’s where The Shivas have arrived. Whatever growth led the band to Feels So Good // Feels So Bad, plenty of their fascinations remain. They’re still turning love songs into psychedelic, transcendent epics. “Tell Me That You Love Me” subverts doo-wop extravagance and dabbles in Flamenco rhythms. “Rock Me Baby” is a bubblegum anthem soaked in so much reverb that we might just be hearing it from the stadium nosebleeds. “Sometimes” is almost impossibly huge, like a witchy outtake from the Brill Building era. Those songs feel like logical expansions from a band that has always excelled at a timeless sort of rock and roll that tinkers with and explodes elements from every era. But on the towering and mournful “You Wanna Be My Man,” a slow-burning six-minute shoegaze prayer for a higher sort of love, there is a level of emotional nuance that feels like something altogether revolutionary. It’s there again in the stripped-down vulnerability of the album-closing elegy “Please Don’t Go.” Yes, Feels So Good // Feels So Bad is an album about acceptance. Sometimes that acceptance feels enlightened and sometimes it feels like the end result of a lot of kicking and screaming. The Shivas have adapted in both of those ways. With new tours scheduled and a new album on the way, they’re still hoping--like all of us--for a new era of vibrant, cathartic live music. The lessons they learned from having their normal upended, though, have only helped them grow

Geboren aus den Herausforderungen einer weltweiten Pandemie, geboren unter höllisch-rot-orangen Himmeln, gezüchtet aus wütenden Waldbränden an der Westküste, und gebaut inmitten der jahrelangen politischen Unruhen und Kundgebungen in Portland, OR, Pikes Solodebüt „Pike
vs. Automaton“. ', ist sowohl eine musikalische als auch eine emotionale Erlösung. Die Platte wurde von Pike zusammen mit dem Schlagzeuger
Jon Reid geschrieben, enthält Beiträge von einer Reihe von Familienmitgliedern und Freunden und wurde mit dem langjährigen Verschwörer Billy
Anderson aufgenommen, dem Produzenten, der zuvor bei Prüfsteintiteln wie „Surrounded by Thieves“ das Beste aus Pike herausgeholt hat. und
'Der heilige Berg des Schlafes'

Geboren aus den Herausforderungen einer weltweiten Pandemie, geboren unter höllisch-rot-orangen Himmeln, gezüchtet aus wütenden Waldbränden an der Westküste, und gebaut inmitten der jahrelangen politischen Unruhen und Kundgebungen in Portland, OR, Pikes Solodebüt „Pike
vs. Automaton“. ', ist sowohl eine musikalische als auch eine emotionale Erlösung. Die Platte wurde von Pike zusammen mit dem Schlagzeuger
Jon Reid geschrieben, enthält Beiträge von einer Reihe von Familienmitgliedern und Freunden und wurde mit dem langjährigen Verschwörer Billy
Anderson aufgenommen, dem Produzenten, der zuvor bei Prüfsteintiteln wie „Surrounded by Thieves“ das Beste aus Pike herausgeholt hat. und
'Der heilige Berg des Schlafes'

Geboren aus den Herausforderungen einer weltweiten Pandemie, geboren unter höllisch-rot-orangen Himmeln, gezüchtet aus wütenden Waldbränden an der Westküste, und gebaut inmitten der jahrelangen politischen Unruhen und Kundgebungen in Portland, OR, Pikes Solodebüt „Pike
vs. Automaton“. ', ist sowohl eine musikalische als auch eine emotionale Erlösung. Die Platte wurde von Pike zusammen mit dem Schlagzeuger
Jon Reid geschrieben, enthält Beiträge von einer Reihe von Familienmitgliedern und Freunden und wurde mit dem langjährigen Verschwörer Billy
Anderson aufgenommen, dem Produzenten, der zuvor bei Prüfsteintiteln wie „Surrounded by Thieves“ das Beste aus Pike herausgeholt hat. und
'Der heilige Berg des Schlafes'

Geboren aus den Herausforderungen einer weltweiten Pandemie, geboren unter höllisch-rot-orangen Himmeln, gezüchtet aus wütenden Waldbränden an der Westküste, und gebaut inmitten der jahrelangen politischen Unruhen und Kundgebungen in Portland, OR, Pikes Solodebüt „Pike
vs. Automaton“. ', ist sowohl eine musikalische als auch eine emotionale Erlösung. Die Platte wurde von Pike zusammen mit dem Schlagzeuger
Jon Reid geschrieben, enthält Beiträge von einer Reihe von Familienmitgliedern und Freunden und wurde mit dem langjährigen Verschwörer Billy
Anderson aufgenommen, dem Produzenten, der zuvor bei Prüfsteintiteln wie „Surrounded by Thieves“ das Beste aus Pike herausgeholt hat. und
'Der heilige Berg des Schlafes'

Geboren aus den Herausforderungen einer weltweiten Pandemie, geboren unter höllisch-rot-orangen Himmeln, gezüchtet aus wütenden Waldbränden an der Westküste, und gebaut inmitten der jahrelangen politischen Unruhen und Kundgebungen in Portland, OR, Pikes Solodebüt „Pike
vs. Automaton“. ', ist sowohl eine musikalische als auch eine emotionale Erlösung. Die Platte wurde von Pike zusammen mit dem Schlagzeuger
Jon Reid geschrieben, enthält Beiträge von einer Reihe von Familienmitgliedern und Freunden und wurde mit dem langjährigen Verschwörer Billy
Anderson aufgenommen, dem Produzenten, der zuvor bei Prüfsteintiteln wie „Surrounded by Thieves“ das Beste aus Pike herausgeholt hat. und
'Der heilige Berg des Schlafes'

The Franklin Street Arterial were from Portland, Maine and are the type of band to appreciate since the beginning of A Side.
Late 70s and early 80s light fusion sound (but not smooth jazz!). Definitely more on the jazz side rather than rock, but with well crafted melodies and solid professional playing from all.
Sublime synthesizer, fine guitar, and fantastic sax gives an honest and touchable value to this record.
LIMITED EDITION COLOURED VINYL

I'll Look for You in Others is the bittersweet fruit of a painful time in the Portland, Oregon, electronic musician's life. Patricia wrote and recorded the album in 2020, in the aftermath of losing her mother-in-law to cancer and then, months later, losing a close friend. Created using her habitual materials-synthesizer and voice-in unfamiliar ways, the album served as a means of processing her feelings of heartbreak. Feeling disconnected from everything around her, including her usual approach to music, Patricia found new inspiration in spectral processors-digital FFT algorithms that pull apart and reconfigure audio. As she reshaped her synthesizers and voice into stark, silvery new forms, she realized that the process functioned as a metaphor for grief itself: a representation of the transformation that happens when our loved ones are no longer with us as a physical presence, but are still alive within us in a beautiful new way. I'll Look for You in Others is not just a document of loss; it is a testament to the way the loss of loved ones changes our lives, and the way the presence of those we've lost changes shape after they are gone. I'll Look for You in Others marks Wolf's official debut album, following a long, extensive practice of live performance, sound-design projects, contributions to benefit compilations, and reworks of the music of her friends and peers.

A LOST RECORDING OF UNTAMED APPALACHIAN MUSIC.
160 gram black vinyl LP in gold & black color reverse-board jacket. Co-release with Jalopy Records.
In 1972, the renowned and singular folk musician Roscoe Holcomb left his home in rural Daisy, Kentucky and embarked on a west coast tour with Mike Seeger in 1972, which included a performance at The Old Church in Portland, Oregon - a beautiful Carpenter Gothic church built in 1882. Decades later, two particular reels were discovered deep within a pile of 1/4” tape in a shadowy corner of the KBOO Community Radio archives in Portland. Incredibly, those tapes contained the sole surviving evidence of a strikingly intimate and raw performance by Roscoe Holcomb, whose cascading and haunting banjo, guitar and voice echoed and saturated the room and hushed audience.
In contrast to Roscoe’s rarely documented (and at times restrained) live performances at folk festivals and television programs, Roscoe seems to have felt more familiar and spiritually moved in the old church that night. Heard here are standout versions of Appalachian folk-blues classics such as Single Girl, John Henry, East Virginia Blues, Swanno Mountain and more. Once cited as Bob Dylan’s favorite singer, Roscoe Holcomb appears at the peak of his powers here, showcasing his immense vocal talents on an extended acapella version of “The Village Churchyard”. The recording itself is warm and mysterious, sounding like the room itself is alive with the spirit, while the rumbles of trucks and hints of city sounds peek through the walls from the outside streets.

Ambient folk musician and experimental composer from Portland, Oregon David Allred returns to Belgium-based Dauw Label with a full length record, Driving Through the Aftermath of a Storm on a Clear Day. The underlying theme of this music is about exercising calm and learning to find it in the aftermath of all situations. These modern classical compositions are primarily centered around felt piano, strings, brass, tape, voices, synthesizers, guitars, percussion, etc. with methodical dynamic dub-inspired experimental arrangements throughout.

David Allred is a musician, multi-instrumentalist, composer, songwriter and sound engineer based in Portland, Oregon. While primarily working and touring internationally as a solo artist, David has also released music under various collaborative projects such as Allred & Broderick (with Peter Broderick) and Good Enough for Grandpa (with Greg Eldridge). David has additionally appeared on works by Heather Woods Broderick, Lubomyr Melnyk, Masayoshi Fujita, Chantal Acda, Brigid Mae Power, Birger Olsen, Jung Body, St. Tsunami, The Beacon Sound Choir, etc

Remastered 15 year Anniversary edition of Jenny
Lewis’s first solo album from 2006. The album
comes with all-new gatefold packaging featuring
never-before-seen photos by Autumn de Wilde.
 Known and loved by many as the frontwoman of
Rilo Kiley, Jenny’s vocal and songwriting gifts have
continued to blossom at a rapid rate since that
band’s first album in 2000. This may be her solo
debut but there’s nothing virginal about it.
 The album was lovingly crafted together during
short spurts of recording activity in the San
Fernando valley, Portland, Oregon and Lincoln,
Nebraska - due to the shared production duties of
celebrated finger-picking guitar prodigy M. Ward
and Nebraska’s resident production genius Mike
Mogis.
 The magnificent backing vocals come courtesy of
gospel singers Chandra and Leigh Watson (the
Watson Twins). Talented friends were roped in
between tours and recording sessions and standout track a cover of the Travelling Wilbury’s ‘handle
with care’ - with its phenomenal sing-a-long
crescendo features vocals shared equally by
Jenny, M. Ward, Conor Oberst and Ben Gibbard.

This the debut is being repressed for the first time in a few years. Red Fang is the formation of long time friends and collaborators Bryan Giles (Last of the Juanitas, Party Time), Aaron Beam (Dark Forces, Lachrymator), David Sullivan (Party Time, facedowninshit, Shiny Beast) and John Sherman (Party Time, Bad Wizard, Trumans Water, All Night). Unleashed on New Year's Eve of 2006 in Portland, Oregon, Red Fang stormed out of the gates, introducing a sweaty, seething basement to a new kind of unforgettable fist-pumping, beer-chugging rock music. Since that night, the band has continued with the same intensity, energy, and intimacy to quickly become a touring juggernaut, playing shows all over the US with bands like The Melvins, Big Business, and The Sword, to name just a few. Residing somewhere between Black Flag and Black Sabbath, Red Fang recall a time when rock was more urgent and horrifying. Synthesizing a variety of heavy music influences into their own distinct musical identity, the band easily shifts from barn-burning punk to mid-tempo, hyper-distorted bass destruction all while maintaining a cohesive sound. Red Fang create gigantic rock songs that are easy to listen to (not easy listening, mind you) and qualify the simultaneous usage of both the thinking and the banging head, which are usually mutually exclusive. Their instrumentation is fluid and effortless, and the vocals are delivered melodically and forcefully, with enough rasp and effect saturation to fit nicely within the music. Paired with elemental imagery, the lyrics are immense and satisfying without any pretense.

The brand new single from The Delines - whom will be releasing their new LP next Feb 2022 - much of which is inspired by Amy Boone and Willy Vlautin's shared love of Tony Joe White. Little Earl will be the lead track for the new album and Myrna and McCaughey will be exclusive to this single on physical formats. Recorded with longtime producer John Askew in Portland over 2019/2020 just before Covid hit. It features the classic line up of the band whom gave the world 'The Imperial' lp which was number 1 for two weeks on the official Americana charts with Amy Boone (vocals), Willy Vlautin (guitar/songwriting), Sean Oldham (drums), Freddy Trujillo (bass) plus the amazing arrangements by Cory Gray (keys and horns).

After the worldwide success of their first album Puzzle (1999), which sold over 200,000 copies and went gold in Japan, Xavier Boyer (vocals, guitars), Pedro Resende (bass), Médéric Gontier (guitars) & Sylvain Marchand (drums) reunited with producer Andy Chase to record the follow-up, Wallpaper for the Soul, in New York City. Starting in November 2001 at Stratosphere Sound, the prolific sessions gave birth to twenty tracks, twelve of which appeared on the original tracklist. The eight outtakes were compiled on the mini albums A Piece of Sunshine (2003) & Extra Pieces of Sunshine (2004). This new vinyl edition will be the first time all these songs appear together.

Almost 20 years on, WFTS is a tour de force of contemporary songwriting with obvious nods to the past somehow revisited in a timeless fashion. Tahiti 80’s second effort can also be seen as an alternative and more sophisticated snapshot of an era often associated with the rebirth of rock (The White Stripes, The Strokes…). This set of songs also established them as stalwarts of the Post French Touch cannon, showcasing both their ability to write catchy songs and their knack for mélanges & experimentation. 1,000 Times or The Train are unique examples of blue-eyed soul augmented with French flair (« Prefab Sprout as produced by Thomas Bangalter » suggested Uncut which listed WFTS in their Top Ten’s albums of 2003). Listen to Don’t Look Below today, and ask yourself who was mixing Destiny’s Child with My Bloody Valentine in 2001? Delicate numbers like Open Book or live favorite Better Days Will Come both demonstrate T80’s songwriting skills and their innate sense of melancholia.

Listening back to WFTS today, one cannot help but think of it as an album recorded in a state-of-the-art fashion. All four members would typically perform together in the same room. Basic takes were printed on a 24-track analog tape machine and then bounced onto a computer for editing. A fine example of this method is the title track itself. Originally written on acoustic guitar, Wallpaper … is the result of three eight minutes synthesizer jams pieced together. The Frenchmen were keen to try out multitude of ideas and had developed a taste for experimentation. The sessions also coincide with a rich outburst of creativity from a band on top of their game after several months of touring around the world.

Another typical WFTS characteristic is Richard Hewson’s orchestration. Veteran string arranger, famous for arranging The Beatles’ The Long And Winding Road or writing RAH Band’s ‘80s classic Clouds Across The Moon Hewson gave the songs a sweeping orchestral touch. Strings, Horns & woodwinds were all performed at the now defunct Olympic Studios in London. Urban Soul Orchestra, a 24-piece ensemble who played on Oasis’ or Spice Girls’ hits can be heard on five songs: the opening trilogy Wallpaper…, 1,000 Times and The Other Side, then on the Northern Soul revival Soul Deep and lastly on the album’s closer Memories Of The Past.

Rouen’s most famous four-piece, now relocated in a house on France’s North West Coast, in the quiet seaside town of Étretat, added more bells & whistles and resumed production on the songs. With one last transatlantic leap during the summer of 2002, the boys flew to Portland, Oregon to attend the mixing sessions held by sound wizard Tony Lash (Elliott Smith, The Dandy Warhols…). Suggested by Sub Pop’s craftsman Eric Matthews, also a guest on trumpet and keyboards, Lash would later become a major collaborator on Tahiti 80’s subsequent albums.

In the meantime, Laurent Fétis, the designer behind Puzzle’s iconic artwork, had started working with artist Elisabeth Arkhipoff on a set of nostalgic photographs transfigured with a soft air-bush technique. Those visuals, like their predecessors, have since become an inseparable companion to Tahiti 80’s music.

Many musical fashions and flavors of the month have come and gone, but twenty years after its release, WFTS still sounds fresh and relevant. And always forward-looking, Tahiti 80 is currently wrapping up the recording of their eighth album, to be released in early 2022.

The Ethiopians are one of the great vocal groups to come out of Jamaica. Singing songs of life and times as they found them, themes that resonated with the people of the Island that made them such a treasured group. Lenard Dillon (b. 9 December, 1942, Port Antonio, Jamaica) the founding member of the Ethiopians began his singing career at Clement 'Coxonne' Dodd's Studio One. Initially he recorded under the name of Jack Sparrow, and backed by the Wailers, cutting 'Ice Water' and 'Suffering In The Land'. Under The Wailers encouragement, he went on to form his
own vocal group. Recruiting singers Stephan Taylor (b.1944, Portland, Jamaica) and Aston 'Charlie' Morris to become The Ethiopians. They cut 'Live Good', 'Why You Gonna Leave Me Now' and 'Owe Me No Pay Me'. Although receiving favourable response, Aston Morris decided to leave the band and the remaining pair carried on and cut 'I'm A Free
Man' and 'Don Dead Already' and 'For You'. On meeting contract builder Leebert Robertson who had recently returned to live in Jamaica, ashad he wanted to get into the music business, a session was booked for Treasure Isle Studios. The session produced their seminal 'Train To Skaville' track, which became an immediate hit in Jamaica and in the UK, when in 1967 it reached number 40 in the charts. They also cut 'Engine 54', which became the title of their debut album. Its
follow up 'I Need You / Do It Sweet', did not fare so well and the band moved over to Sonia Pottinger's stable, where they cut 'The Whip / Cool It Amigo' which revived their fortunes and proved another big hit for the band. Two more hits followed 'Stay Loose Mama' and 'The World Goes Ska', after which the band decided to return to a trio, adding
Melvin 'Mellow' Reid to the line up. The band now hit another run of successes with producer JJ Johnson 'Everything Crash, 'Gun Man', 'Hong Kong Flu' and 'The Selah'. Many hits followed leading the band to work with a variety of Jamaican producers. Such tracks as 'I Want To Be a Better Man, ' Conquering Lion', 'Fire A Mus Mus' Tail', and the timeless 'Reggae Hit The Town' to name a few. Two albums 'Reggae Power' (1969) and 'Woman Capture Man' (1970), pulled a lot of these tunes together. Sadly Taylor was killed in 1975 after been struck by a van in a road accident. Dillon returned to Port Antonio till 1977, when he was persuaded to return to Treasure Isle studios with producer Niney The
Observer and cut the Rasta based album 'Slave Call'. Additional members who joined for this album were Bro Fatty, Bro Ewing, Bro T, Mello and Hychi Dread. An album that showed all the Ethiopians magic had not been lost.
For this release we have included the full 'Slave Call' set, 'Ethiopian National Anthem', 'Slave Call', 'Guilty Conscience', 'Hurry On', 'Mus Follow Babylon'(on CD Edition), 'Train To Skaville (1977 version, on CD Edition), 'Culture', 'Obeah Book', 'Let It Be' and 'I Love Jah'. Alongside some of the bands early hits including the original version of 'Train To Skaville', 'Engine 54', the great and poignant 'Everything Crash', 'Reggae Hit The Town' and 'The Selah'. An interesting set to remind us what a great group the Ethiopians really were.

Daniyel’s ability to make art that’s truthful to his experiences is one of the many reasons why local Portland publication, PDX Monthly, has deemed him the next big thing. With the goal to hit full throttle in 2021, Daniyel is set to release his upcoming project, 82, dedicated to 82nd Avenue, the street he grew up on. In keeping true to his roots, 82 digs into the feel-good nostalgia and uniqueness of what makes Portland the place it is and the person it has helped him become, illustrated by the emotional “LOST ONES,” directed by Cole Bennett of Lyrical Lemonade, and the energetic “IT’S OK.”

Songs touch on loss, flaws, hiding places, love. Deep connections to the Bay Area, and
the North Coast, with its unique moods of solitude, beauty, and isolation—a place described and transformed by the chaos and power of river-mouth, wild maritime storms, columns of mist that rise up unexpectedly on the road at night. Portions were recorded on Mount
Tamalpais during a self-made residency years back, other pieces made longer ago in Portland, while the rest were tracked during more recent sessions in Astoria.
Throughout, Harris threads a hidden radiant language of voice, disquiet, and guitar, framed by open space and the sense of being far away.
Echoing a lighthouse, burying the faults of being human / Into things that we project upon the sky at night.

Empty surrounds all of me. It’s a poignant line from the third album by Blackwater Holylight that encapsulates the search for self when suddenly everything has changed. There’s a theme of processing vast personal trauma throughout Silence/Motion that eloquently — both lyrically and musically — and simultaneously embodies the crushing emptiness, sorrow, strength and rebuilding of recovering from personal devastation.

“There was so much grief both in the world and interpersonally during the process of creating Silence/Motion,” says vocalist/bassist Allison “Sunny” Faris. “The four of us gave one another more space to be ourselves, to experiment with each other’s ideas and to be gentle with one another more than we ever have before. So, we knew this tenderness would manifest in extremely honest arrangements, and I think that you can hear that throughout the record.”

Curiously, considering the dark times in which it was created, this is the band’s most melodic and catchy music so far. Blackwater Holylight, as the name suggests, is all about contrasts: It’s a fluid convergence of sound that’s heavy, psychedelic, melodic, terrifying and beautiful all at once. And, Silence/Motion finds the band honing those contrasts, letting ideas and moods fully develop from song to song, rather than filling every song with a full range of their capabilities. It allows the band to go fully prog-rock here, and simply stay hushed and intimate there. There’s a new confidence to the band in how seamlessly they wield their stylistic amalgam.

“Writing this album was extraordinarily difficult emotionally, however it did come to fruition fairly quickly,” Faris says. “In the past, the theme of vulnerability has always been a big player and it definitely showed up full force while writing this album.”

Blackwater Holylight recorded the album as a four piece: Faris on vocals and guitar (on “Silence/Motion”, “MDIII”, “Around You” and “Every Corner”) and bass for the remainder, Sarah McKenna on synths, Mikayla Mayhew on guitar (and bass when Faris plays guitar) and drummer Eliese Dorsay. New second guitarist Erika Osterhout will perform the songs with them live. For Silence/Motion the band chose to work with a producer for the first time, bringing in A.L.N. (of Mizmor, Hell) to produce, along with recording engineer Dylan White — who also helmed their previous album Veils of Winter (2019) — at Odessa Recording Studio in Portland, OR. Guest vocals on album opener “Delusional” are by Bryan Funck (Thou.) Mike Paparo (Inter Arma) and A.LN. (Mizmor, Hell) lend guest vocals to album closer “Every Corner.”

Silence/Motion opens softly with interwoven folky single note guitars over an ominous sounding drone for the first minute, akin to moments from Pink Floyd’s Echoes. Suddenly an irresistibly head-nodding, groovy droptuned riff kicks in with the drums and it’s a full on blackened rocker with soaring synths and Funck’s witchy whispers over the top. “Who The Hell,” the track quoted above, takes proceedings into a Krautrock direction, centered around McKenna’s arpeggiated synth loop and Dorsay’s tom-tom triplets, while 16-note guitar strums add tension as Faris wearily sings, “So tell me who the hell would want to live this way — so afraid/ To feel this void, to dwell in it… I can’t describe this pain I wear/ It suffocates and you left it here.” It’s an incredibly powerful 6 minutes. The title track delivers the 1-2-3 punch of the album’s brilliant opening trilogy. It starts with lightly plucked acoustic guitar, plaintive piano chords and Faris’ voice gliding so softly it sounds more like a Mellotron. The song builds slowly toward crescendo, led by a swinging tom pattern, that abruptly switches back to a heavier version of the opening melody.“Silence/Motion” is about digesting and healing from sexual assault. As Faris explains, “It is an ode to the juxtaposition of feeling paralyzingly blank and and like your entire life is moving through you simultaneously.” Elsewhere, Black Metal guitars collide with dreamlike melodies. “Around You” brandishes a hopeful, hummable synth melody and shimmering shoegaze guitars like throwing down a gauntlet. In the end, it becomes undeniably clear just how completely into their own Blackwater Holylight has come.

“The analogy is that with our first record (Blackwater Holylight, 2018) we were getting into to the car and buckling up,” Faris says. “The second (Veils of Winter, 2019) we were turning the car on, and with this third we have kicked into drive toward our destination. Our destination is a bit mysterious and has the ability to change from day to day, but we’re on our way.”

Empty surrounds all of me. It’s a poignant line from the third album by Blackwater Holylight that encapsulates the search for self when suddenly everything has changed. There’s a theme of processing vast personal trauma throughout Silence/Motion that eloquently — both lyrically and musically — and simultaneously embodies the crushing emptiness, sorrow, strength and rebuilding of recovering from personal devastation.

“There was so much grief both in the world and interpersonally during the process of creating Silence/Motion,” says vocalist/bassist Allison “Sunny” Faris. “The four of us gave one another more space to be ourselves, to experiment with each other’s ideas and to be gentle with one another more than we ever have before. So, we knew this tenderness would manifest in extremely honest arrangements, and I think that you can hear that throughout the record.”

Curiously, considering the dark times in which it was created, this is the band’s most melodic and catchy music so far. Blackwater Holylight, as the name suggests, is all about contrasts: It’s a fluid convergence of sound that’s heavy, psychedelic, melodic, terrifying and beautiful all at once. And, Silence/Motion finds the band honing those contrasts, letting ideas and moods fully develop from song to song, rather than filling every song with a full range of their capabilities. It allows the band to go fully prog-rock here, and simply stay hushed and intimate there. There’s a new confidence to the band in how seamlessly they wield their stylistic amalgam.

“Writing this album was extraordinarily difficult emotionally, however it did come to fruition fairly quickly,” Faris says. “In the past, the theme of vulnerability has always been a big player and it definitely showed up full force while writing this album.”

Blackwater Holylight recorded the album as a four piece: Faris on vocals and guitar (on “Silence/Motion”, “MDIII”, “Around You” and “Every Corner”) and bass for the remainder, Sarah McKenna on synths, Mikayla Mayhew on guitar (and bass when Faris plays guitar) and drummer Eliese Dorsay. New second guitarist Erika Osterhout will perform the songs with them live. For Silence/Motion the band chose to work with a producer for the first time, bringing in A.L.N. (of Mizmor, Hell) to produce, along with recording engineer Dylan White — who also helmed their previous album Veils of Winter (2019) — at Odessa Recording Studio in Portland, OR. Guest vocals on album opener “Delusional” are by Bryan Funck (Thou.) Mike Paparo (Inter Arma) and A.LN. (Mizmor, Hell) lend guest vocals to album closer “Every Corner.”

Silence/Motion opens softly with interwoven folky single note guitars over an ominous sounding drone for the first minute, akin to moments from Pink Floyd’s Echoes. Suddenly an irresistibly head-nodding, groovy droptuned riff kicks in with the drums and it’s a full on blackened rocker with soaring synths and Funck’s witchy whispers over the top. “Who The Hell,” the track quoted above, takes proceedings into a Krautrock direction, centered around McKenna’s arpeggiated synth loop and Dorsay’s tom-tom triplets, while 16-note guitar strums add tension as Faris wearily sings, “So tell me who the hell would want to live this way — so afraid/ To feel this void, to dwell in it… I can’t describe this pain I wear/ It suffocates and you left it here.” It’s an incredibly powerful 6 minutes. The title track delivers the 1-2-3 punch of the album’s brilliant opening trilogy. It starts with lightly plucked acoustic guitar, plaintive piano chords and Faris’ voice gliding so softly it sounds more like a Mellotron. The song builds slowly toward crescendo, led by a swinging tom pattern, that abruptly switches back to a heavier version of the opening melody.“Silence/Motion” is about digesting and healing from sexual assault. As Faris explains, “It is an ode to the juxtaposition of feeling paralyzingly blank and and like your entire life is moving through you simultaneously.” Elsewhere, Black Metal guitars collide with dreamlike melodies. “Around You” brandishes a hopeful, hummable synth melody and shimmering shoegaze guitars like throwing down a gauntlet. In the end, it becomes undeniably clear just how completely into their own Blackwater Holylight has come.

“The analogy is that with our first record (Blackwater Holylight, 2018) we were getting into to the car and buckling up,” Faris says. “The second (Veils of Winter, 2019) we were turning the car on, and with this third we have kicked into drive toward our destination. Our destination is a bit mysterious and has the ability to change from day to day, but we’re on our way.”

The Black Keys release a special tenth anniversary edition of their landmark seventh studio. El Camino (10th Anniversary Deluxe Edition) will be available in several formats including a Super Deluxe edition of five vinyl LPs or four CDs, featuring a remastered version of the original album, a previously unreleased Live in Portland, ME concert recording, a BBC Radio 1 Zane Lowe session from 2012, a 2011 Electro-Vox session, an extensive photo book, a limited-edition poster and lithograph, and a ‘new car scent’ air freshener. A three-LP edition, which includes the remastered album and the live recording, will also be available. The Super Deluxe version will also be available digitally.

El Camino was produced by Danger Mouse and The Black Keys and was recorded in the band’s then-new hometown of Nashville during the spring of 2011. The Black Keys won three awards at the 55th annual GRAMMY Awards for El Camino – Best Rock Performance, Best Rock Song, and Best Rock Album – among other worldwide accolades. In the UK, the band was nominated for a BRIT Award (Best International Group) and an NME Award (Best International Band). The week of release, the band performed on Saturday Night Live, The Colbert Report, and the Late Show with David Letterman, and later that year, went on to perform their first Madison Square Garden show.

Rolling Stone, which featured the band on their cover around the release, hailed El Camino for bringing ‘raw, riffed-out power back to pop’s lexicon,’ and called it ‘the Keys’ grandest pop gesture yet, augmenting dark-hearted fuzz blasts with sleekly sexy choruses and Seventies-glam flair.’ The Guardian said, ‘They sound like a band who think they've made the year's best rock'n'roll album, probably because that's exactly what they've done.’

In the newly written liner notes for El Camino (10th Anniversary Deluxe Edition), David Fricke says:

The story of the Black Keys' seventh album, named after an automobile, long out of fashion and featured nowhere in the artwork, begins on a sidewalk in the middle of a blizzard. On the afternoon of January 9, 2011, singer-guitarist Dan Auerbach and drummer Patrick Carney stood on the pavement outside the Bowery Hotel in New York City, saw the weather turning vicious, looked at each other and came to the same decision: They had to get off the road.

The night before, the duo scored another first in a season getting crowded with them: The Black Keys' debut appearance on Saturday Night Live, performing ‘Howlin' for You’ and ‘Tighten Up’, the breakout singles from their latest release, Brothers. Two days earlier, Brothers – the Keys' first Top 5 album, released in May 2010 – became their first Gold record, passing a half-million in sales thanks to heavy FM rotation and a near-year of gigging, now set to run deep into 2011 including a prestige slot at Coachella and victory laps in Europe and Australia.

The Keys "tried to settle down" after cancelling the tour, Carney says. But that didn't last. "I said, 'We should just make another record.' And I asked Dan if we should get Danger Mouse" – the hip-hop and modern-rock producer, real name Brian Burton, who worked on the Keys' 2008 record, Attack & Release, and co-produced ‘Tighten Up’. Auerbach and Carney did not have any new songs, but as the drummer notes, "Most of our records – we don't have material when we start. Brothers was made up in the studio."

In the UK, the record gave the band their first top 10 hit, and in the US it debuted at #2 on the Billboard Top 200. The band was also the #1 most played artist at Alternative and AAA radio formats for 2012 in the US. The album’s first single, ‘Lonely Boy’: reached #1 on the Alternative and AAA charts; it also entered the top 10 at Rock radio. The second single, ‘Gold on the Ceiling’, also reached #1 on Alternative radio and the third single, ‘Little Black Submarines’, reached the top 3 at Alternative radio.

El Camino has been certified Double Platinum in the US; Platinum in the UK, Belgium, France, Ireland, and the Netherlands; Triple Platinum in Australia and New Zealand; Quadruple Platinum in Canada; and Gold in Austria, Denmark, Finland, Italy, Mexico, Norway, Spain, and Switzerland. Of the album’s singles, ‘Lonely Boy’ was certified Double Platinum in the US, nine-times Platinum in Canada, Triple Platinum in Australia, Platinum in New Zealand, and Gold in Denmark and the UK. ‘Gold on the Ceiling’ was certified Platinum in the United States, Australia, and Canada. ‘Little Black Submarines’ was certified Platinum in the United States. The Black Keys also were nominated for an MTV European Music Award in 2012.

Recently, the band announced their World Tour of America. The Black Keys will perform three intimate shows in Oxford, MS, Athens, GA, and St Petersburg, FL, surrounding their September 25 headlining set at Pilgrimage Fest in Tennessee.

The Black Keys recently released their tenth studio album, Delta Kream, which was recorded at Easy Eye Sound studio in Nashville. The album takes its name from William Eggleston’s iconic Mississippi photograph that is on its cover.

Formed in Akron, Ohio in 2001, The Black Keys, who have been called ‘rock royalty’ by the Associated Press and ‘one of the best rock ‘n’ roll bands on the planet’ by Uncut, are guitarist/singer Dan Auerbach and drummer Patrick Carney. Cutting their teeth playing small clubs, the band have gone on to sell out arena tours and have released nine previous studio albums: their debut The Big Come Up (2002), followed by Thickfreakness (2003) and Rubber Factory (2004), along with their releases on Nonesuch Records, Magic Potion (2006), Attack & Release (2008), Brothers (2010), El Camino (2011), Turn Blue (2014) and, most recently, “Let’s Rock” (2019), plus and a tenth anniversary edition of Brothers (2020). The band has won six Grammy Awards and a BRIT and headlined festivals in North America, South America, Mexico, Australia, and Europe.

The Black Keys release a special tenth anniversary edition of their landmark seventh studio. El Camino (10th Anniversary Deluxe Edition) will be available in several formats including a Super Deluxe edition of five vinyl LPs or four CDs, featuring a remastered version of the original album, a previously unreleased Live in Portland, ME concert recording, a BBC Radio 1 Zane Lowe session from 2012, a 2011 Electro-Vox session, an extensive photo book, a limited-edition poster and lithograph, and a ‘new car scent’ air freshener. A three-LP edition, which includes the remastered album and the live recording, will also be available. The Super Deluxe version will also be available digitally.

El Camino was produced by Danger Mouse and The Black Keys and was recorded in the band’s then-new hometown of Nashville during the spring of 2011. The Black Keys won three awards at the 55th annual GRAMMY Awards for El Camino – Best Rock Performance, Best Rock Song, and Best Rock Album – among other worldwide accolades. In the UK, the band was nominated for a BRIT Award (Best International Group) and an NME Award (Best International Band). The week of release, the band performed on Saturday Night Live, The Colbert Report, and the Late Show with David Letterman, and later that year, went on to perform their first Madison Square Garden show.

Rolling Stone, which featured the band on their cover around the release, hailed El Camino for bringing ‘raw, riffed-out power back to pop’s lexicon,’ and called it ‘the Keys’ grandest pop gesture yet, augmenting dark-hearted fuzz blasts with sleekly sexy choruses and Seventies-glam flair.’ The Guardian said, ‘They sound like a band who think they've made the year's best rock'n'roll album, probably because that's exactly what they've done.’

In the newly written liner notes for El Camino (10th Anniversary Deluxe Edition), David Fricke says:

The story of the Black Keys' seventh album, named after an automobile, long out of fashion and featured nowhere in the artwork, begins on a sidewalk in the middle of a blizzard. On the afternoon of January 9, 2011, singer-guitarist Dan Auerbach and drummer Patrick Carney stood on the pavement outside the Bowery Hotel in New York City, saw the weather turning vicious, looked at each other and came to the same decision: They had to get off the road.

The night before, the duo scored another first in a season getting crowded with them: The Black Keys' debut appearance on Saturday Night Live, performing ‘Howlin' for You’ and ‘Tighten Up’, the breakout singles from their latest release, Brothers. Two days earlier, Brothers – the Keys' first Top 5 album, released in May 2010 – became their first Gold record, passing a half-million in sales thanks to heavy FM rotation and a near-year of gigging, now set to run deep into 2011 including a prestige slot at Coachella and victory laps in Europe and Australia.

The Keys "tried to settle down" after cancelling the tour, Carney says. But that didn't last. "I said, 'We should just make another record.' And I asked Dan if we should get Danger Mouse" – the hip-hop and modern-rock producer, real name Brian Burton, who worked on the Keys' 2008 record, Attack & Release, and co-produced ‘Tighten Up’. Auerbach and Carney did not have any new songs, but as the drummer notes, "Most of our records – we don't have material when we start. Brothers was made up in the studio."

In the UK, the record gave the band their first top 10 hit, and in the US it debuted at #2 on the Billboard Top 200. The band was also the #1 most played artist at Alternative and AAA radio formats for 2012 in the US. The album’s first single, ‘Lonely Boy’: reached #1 on the Alternative and AAA charts; it also entered the top 10 at Rock radio. The second single, ‘Gold on the Ceiling’, also reached #1 on Alternative radio and the third single, ‘Little Black Submarines’, reached the top 3 at Alternative radio.

El Camino has been certified Double Platinum in the US; Platinum in the UK, Belgium, France, Ireland, and the Netherlands; Triple Platinum in Australia and New Zealand; Quadruple Platinum in Canada; and Gold in Austria, Denmark, Finland, Italy, Mexico, Norway, Spain, and Switzerland. Of the album’s singles, ‘Lonely Boy’ was certified Double Platinum in the US, nine-times Platinum in Canada, Triple Platinum in Australia, Platinum in New Zealand, and Gold in Denmark and the UK. ‘Gold on the Ceiling’ was certified Platinum in the United States, Australia, and Canada. ‘Little Black Submarines’ was certified Platinum in the United States. The Black Keys also were nominated for an MTV European Music Award in 2012.

Recently, the band announced their World Tour of America. The Black Keys will perform three intimate shows in Oxford, MS, Athens, GA, and St Petersburg, FL, surrounding their September 25 headlining set at Pilgrimage Fest in Tennessee.

The Black Keys recently released their tenth studio album, Delta Kream, which was recorded at Easy Eye Sound studio in Nashville. The album takes its name from William Eggleston’s iconic Mississippi photograph that is on its cover.

Formed in Akron, Ohio in 2001, The Black Keys, who have been called ‘rock royalty’ by the Associated Press and ‘one of the best rock ‘n’ roll bands on the planet’ by Uncut, are guitarist/singer Dan Auerbach and drummer Patrick Carney. Cutting their teeth playing small clubs, the band have gone on to sell out arena tours and have released nine previous studio albums: their debut The Big Come Up (2002), followed by Thickfreakness (2003) and Rubber Factory (2004), along with their releases on Nonesuch Records, Magic Potion (2006), Attack & Release (2008), Brothers (2010), El Camino (2011), Turn Blue (2014) and, most recently, “Let’s Rock” (2019), plus and a tenth anniversary edition of Brothers (2020). The band has won six Grammy Awards and a BRIT and headlined festivals in North America, South America, Mexico, Australia, and Europe.

Unter der Regie des Produzenten Chris Cohen und mit Gast-Beiträgen unter anderem von Buck Meek und Tenci, weben die organischen und doch akribischen Folk-Klanglandschaften und tief empfundenen Texte auf dem Debütalbum von Le Ren aus Montreal einen reichen musikalischen Wandteppich. Mit der Veröffentlichung ihrer Secretly Canadian EP "Morning & Melancholia" im Jahr 2020 hat sich Le Ren den Vergleich mit der Musikalität und den kargen, eloquenten Texten von John Prine und Neil Young verdient. Auf "Leftovers" zeigt sie uns die lebendige Tiefe ihres klanglichen und thematischen Spektrums und schreibt mit einer kühnen Klarheit, die sie zwischen klassischen Ikonen wie Joni Mitchell, Vashti Bunyan und Karen Dalton sowie einer neuen Klasse von Folk-Ausnahmekönnern wie Adrianne Lenker, Jessica Pratt und Laura Marling beheimatet. "Leftovers" präsentiert zu gleichen Teilen Melancholie, tiefe Liebe und Heiterkeit, um die Trauernden aufzumuntern, während es ein Patchwork aus persönlichen Liedern über verschiedene Beziehungen zusammennäht: die, die wir mit Müttern, Liebhabern und Freunden teilen. Auf "Leftovers" destilliert Le Ren jahrelanges Material zu zehn straff ausgeführten Tracks, die durch das schwelgerische Zupfen ihrer Gitarre und das kristallklare Timbre ihrer Stimme vereint werden. Im April 2021 traf sie sich mit Chris Cohen in einem gemieteten Haus in Portland, Oregon, wo sie warten mussten, bis ein Nachbarsjunge aufhörte, draußen Lärm zu machen, bevor sie aufnehmen konnten. Die musikalischen Gastbeiträge wurden anschließend hinzugefügt: Kori Miyanishi, Cedric Noel, Saltwater Hank (Jeremy Pahl), Eliza Niemi, Kaïa Kater, Aaron Goldstein, Buck Meek und Tenci (Jess Showman) nahmen ihre Parts separat in ganz Nordamerika auf.

Portland, Oregon-based musician Graham Jonson started early: playing piano as a toddler, finding the music of J Dilla in fifth grade, and self-releasing singles by age 16. First appearing under the name quickly, quickly in 2017, his project’s profile has since grown fervently with fans in the beats-oriented corners of SoundCloud, YouTube, and Reddit. Some of his early tracks tally north of 10 million plays on Spotify. The figure isn’t meant to flex as much as it is to point out that Jonson’s work has resonated without the traditional industry levers; he is a wunderkind DIY internet success story, but, by his own assessment at the present age of 20, he’s only now getting serious. With The Long and Short of It, his Ghostly International debut, Jonson reinvents his project as a full-fledged

"WHAT THEN?" is the second album from Irish singer-storyteller David Keenan. The follow-up to his critically acclaimed 2019 debut "A Beginner's Guide To Bravery", which charted at Number One on the official Irish independent album charts, and Top 10 on the national album charts. It was also one of the best selling vinyl album releases by an Irish artist of 2019. At the end of 2019, David Keenan premiered his concert film 'Alchemy & Prose' at the London Doc'N'Roll film festival. "WHAT THEN?" has been produced by Jonathon Mooney of Portland, OR cinematic-indie rockers Other Lives. Guests on the album include celebrated Scottish author, namesake and soul brother David Keenan, Irish poet Stephen Murphy and Nashville drummer Aaron Steele, best known for his work with Portugal. The Man and Hayley Williams. David Keenan will be touring America in September as special guest of Rodrigo y Gabriela before returning to Europe to headline his own tour through October to December.

Unter der Regie des Produzenten Chris Cohen und mit Gast-Beiträgen unter anderem von Buck Meek und Tenci, weben die organischen und doch akribischen Folk-Klanglandschaften und tief empfundenen Texte auf dem Debütalbum von Le Ren aus Montreal einen reichen musikalischen Wandteppich. Mit der Veröffentlichung ihrer Secretly Canadian EP "Morning & Melancholia" im Jahr 2020 hat sich Le Ren den Vergleich mit der Musikalität und den kargen, eloquenten Texten von John Prine und Neil Young verdient. Auf "Leftovers" zeigt sie uns die lebendige Tiefe ihres klanglichen und thematischen Spektrums und schreibt mit einer kühnen Klarheit, die sie zwischen klassischen Ikonen wie Joni Mitchell, Vashti Bunyan und Karen Dalton sowie einer neuen Klasse von Folk-Ausnahmekönnern wie Adrianne Lenker, Jessica Pratt und Laura Marling beheimatet. "Leftovers" präsentiert zu gleichen Teilen Melancholie, tiefe Liebe und Heiterkeit, um die Trauernden aufzumuntern, während es ein Patchwork aus persönlichen Liedern über verschiedene Beziehungen zusammennäht: die, die wir mit Müttern, Liebhabern und Freunden teilen. Auf "Leftovers" destilliert Le Ren jahrelanges Material zu zehn straff ausgeführten Tracks, die durch das schwelgerische Zupfen ihrer Gitarre und das kristallklare Timbre ihrer Stimme vereint werden. Im April 2021 traf sie sich mit Chris Cohen in einem gemieteten Haus in Portland, Oregon, wo sie warten mussten, bis ein Nachbarsjunge aufhörte, draußen Lärm zu machen, bevor sie aufnehmen konnten. Die musikalischen Gastbeiträge wurden anschließend hinzugefügt: Kori Miyanishi, Cedric Noel, Saltwater Hank (Jeremy Pahl), Eliza Niemi, Kaïa Kater, Aaron Goldstein, Buck Meek und Tenci (Jess Showman) nahmen ihre Parts separat in ganz Nordamerika auf.

“Sympathetic Magic” is the new surprise album from Portland’s indie-rock outfit Typhoon. The album is scheduled for a surprise release on January 22, 2021. This is the band’s first new music since the release of their critically-acclaimed fourth LP Offerings in January 2018, followed by extensive touring across North America, UK, and Europe.
“The songs are about people - the space between them and the ordinary, miraculous things that happen there, as we come into contact, imitate each other, leave our marks, lose touch. Being self and other somehow amounting to the same thing.” – kyle / Typhoon
“This marks a major moment of growth for Typhoon. An album born from reckoning and upheaval, the experience is fraught with heavy sentiments and dark themes that are explored in a graceful manner. Sympathetic Magic is one of the band’s most personal and intimate albums yet. Each track is crafted with purpose, further carrying on the message Morton is trying to share. The album came as a surprise, but the love for it was guaranteed, and Typhoon has yet again proven their talents are to be lauded.” – Atwood Magazine

Oregon sextet Elite Beat continue their dubwise world-groove mission with a two track 12" of what sounds like organic, in the moment live takes with an intro count to boot. Layers of psychedelic sax and drums ebb and flow alongside heavy low end, building on their compilation of 'healing and hypnosis' inspired jams Selected Rhythms Vol. 2. Despite being based across the ocean, big Jah Shaka dance vibrations occupy the A-side with a steady house tempo combining with the woodwind across ten minutes of proper body music. The slower, introspective approach to side B takes in elements of post-rock with flourishes of electric guitar yet grounds itself in the dub mentality through pulsing sub-bass and swirling synth work. The wide-reaching bed of influences present in Portland's bands, shops and labels shows itself time again in Elite Beat's work, evident through recent collaborations with Mdou Moctar and past outings here at Research.

Elite Beat is a musical collective from Portland, Oregon with a history spanning back to 2006.

'Selected Rhythms' captures the finest moments from all three of their ultra limited cassette series 'Casual Rhythms'.

Packed full of DIY dub mixing, cosmic orchestration and raw, percussion driven polyrhythms, the recordings have been remastered and put to vinyl for the first time with sections from Casual Rhythms Vol. 1 being re-shaped into previously unavailable single tracks.


Recording plays a big role in the Elite Beat creative process. The studio as an instrument. Much of the Elite Beat music is mixed in an all-hands-on-deck dub style approach - live with an analog mixer and loads of FX being thrown and dubbed in real time. The sound is genre-less rhythm music with an emphasis on live playing, free form expression and technique that borrows from soundsystem culture. Inspiration can be heard from all parts of time and place. Some Ethio Jazz, Black Ark psychedelia, Exotica, Malian blues, even Haight-Ashbury in the summer of love. Each member an accomplished musician in their own right, Elite Beat thrive on collaboration. 2018 saw the release of their astral-Saharan jams with celebrated Taureg guitarist Mdou Moctar.

The players get together every Wednesday evening, sometimes to chat, sometimes to play. The 'record' button gets pressed when they find what they are searching for. For this crew it's all about 'Casual Rhythms / Harmonious Lifestyles' - if things don't fall under that mantra, then it's got to go. 'Less is more' for Elite Beat and their cosmic sounds.

Penny Records presents the vinyl version of the soundtrack from the TV Series "Anna" written and directed by Niccolò Ammaniti. Fueled by Niccolò Ammaniti's passionate and immersive creative style, the score for 'Anna' was approached almost as a character study. 'Anna' exposes a world of extreme conditions where the essentials of human existence flourish in a wide range of emotions and sentiments tainted through the eyes of children. Striking brutality and primal savagery go hand in hand with the beauty of innocence and hope. Rauelsson's musical language for 'Anna' includes tense and spare textures that blend seamlessly with intimate ambient minimalism; classical elements that coexist with electronic drone experimentation and tribal rhythms, candid piano melodies buried in tape loops and otherworldly rituals of wordless voices. To arrive at this music landscape, Rauelsson enlisted an international cast of collaborators including Finnish percussionist Tatu Rönkkö, German cellist Anne Müller, American multi-instrumentalist Peter Broderick and Oslo-based vocalist Simin Tander. With this ensemble, Rauelsson's music documents a journey of survival that highlights the power of imagination and love.

Credits:

Music by Raúl Pastor Medall except A3 (Salvatore Cardillo, lyrics by Riccardo Cordiferro), A5 (Raúl Pastor Medall, Peter Broderick and Anne Müller), B3 (Raúl Pastor Medall and Anne Müller) and A2, B1, B2 (Raúl Pastor Medall and Tatu Rönkkö)

Played by Peter Broderick (Violin), Anne Müller (Cello), Raúl Pastor Medall (Piano, Electric Piano, Synthesizers, Electronics), Tatu Rönkkö (Drums, Percussion) and Simin Tander (Voice) with additional contributions from Christoph Berg (Violin), Aisha Burns (Violin) and Giulia Dragotto (Voice)

Recorded in 2020 at Rockaway Studios (Castelló, Spain; engineered by Raúl Artana), Niu (Benicàssim, Spain; engineered by Raúl Pastor Medall), Old House at Galgeberg (Oslo, Norway; engineered by Olav Torget), Tanum Church (Bærum, Norway; engineered by Olav Torget) and Indigo Studios (Palermo, Italy; engineered by Fabio Rizzo)

Additional recordings by Peter Broderick (Co. Galway, Ireland), Anne Müller (Berlin, Germany) and Tatu Rönkkö (Helsinki, Finland)

Produced by Raúl Pastor Medall and Niccolò Ammaniti. Mixed by Raúl Pastor Medall and Adam Selzer at Niu and Type Foundry (Portland, OR). Mastered by Adam Gonsalves and Adam Selzer at Telegraph Audio Mastering (Portland, OR). Lacquer mastercut by Andreas LUPO Lubich at Loop-O (Berlin, Germany). Artwork by Emiliano "Stand" Cataldo.

Essential Aliensis the 10th Helvetia album. Helvetia is the solo project of Jason Albertini from Duster. Helvetia resides in Portland, Oregon but was formed in Seattle, Washington in 2005 after Duster first went on hiatus. The songs onEssential Aliens were recorded over the last year, in Jason's basement. Since the band's inception, Jason has continued to employ a rotating cast of band members and collaborators, which now includes Steve Gere and Samantha Stidham. Steve and Jason also played in Built To Spill together from 2012 until 2018. In 2019 Duster started playing shows and recording again. During this time Jason started writing what would becomeThis Devastating Map. Released at the beginning of August last year, Post-Trash called it"a constantly shifting project that takes experimental lo-fi into brilliantly colored psych directions with a concise glow."Then the pandemic took hold. With normal life at a standstill and unable to hang with his bandmates, Jason focused his energy on his daughter's homeschooling schedule, and recording. He focused on finishing one song a day and was soon honing in on a new album. Essential Aliensdistills and simplifies the Helvetia sound. Reverb and delay are absent, replaced by warm fuzz and intimate room sounds. Progressions morph with stoner repetition and end in head scratch. Drums distort, muted bass lines prop up acoustic guitars blown out on a cassette four-track. Cheap electric guitars are barely in tune and recorded direct, almost painfully in your face. The songs are short blasts of psychedelic chill, unrooted by genre, a rummage around an alien radio dial. These are simple songs about keeping yourself from falling apart, to remind you that you can be strong. The visual elements for the album come from a recurring dream, which centers around a period in Jason's childhood when he lived in Basel, Switzerland, and believed that he lived with a ghost. In the dream, Jason's life becomes turned upside down because of a series of unexplainable events that turn out to be orchestrated by the ghost, and he wakes up convinced that he is a ghost as well. These are simple songs about keeping yourself from falling apart. To remind you that you can be strong. This is a weird blues.

In 1970, Kevin and David met whilst they were working in the Labour Exchange Office on Aytoun St, Manchester. Both played guitar and had been searching for other musicians who played atmospheric music. Kevin had been playing in small clubs in Manchester and David performed in a few local bands. One evening, they jammed together at Kevin’s family home, and quickly realized that their playing blended together to form the basis of the sound they had been looking for. In the late ‘70s, the music scene in Manchester was bursting with new bands and music.

However, Kevin and David had little in common with the local acts, being disciples of a more meditative approach. They followed a path of their own, reaching for an otherworldly sound that they heard from artists like John Martyn, David Crosby, Erik Satie, Terry Riley, Eberhard Weber, Alice Coltrane, and Ralph Towner. They experimented combining their acoustic guitars and David’s bass with various effects pedals and techniques to try and achieve a warm and expansive sound that rides the line between ambient, jazz, and psychedelic folk Music.

Towards 1981, they had written eleven songs and accompanied a few with Moog synthesizer laid down by Rob Baxter. All were recorded on cassette decks in their simple home studios. They named this collection of music “Light Patterns”, after a poem Kevin had written. With Light Patterns complete, they set out to find a label to represent their music. They started playing a few gigs in Manchester; Band On The Wall, the Gallery, and other venues, such as Rotters which local promoter Alan Wise had organized. They set up with small amps along with their effects and played as though they were back at home. As Kevin remarks, “It was unusual, to say the least, to play such venues in a low volume chilled out way. However, people listened, often in shocked curiosity, and some even asked for tapes.”

Peter Jenner, of Blackhill Enterprises, eventually picked up the album for his new label, “Sheet”. Peter had managed lots of experimental bands and solo artists, including Pink Floyd in their early Syd Barrett days. He always favored outsiders! The tapes were taken to Strawberry Recording Studios in Manchester, who were surprised when Kevin and David walked in with just a couple of home-produced cassette tapes. Fortunately, they liked them and agreed to master the album. It was then sent to Portland Recording Studios in London for final mastering to vinyl. George Peckham, aka “Porky”, did the pressing with a personal message in the deadwax; “Kaftans, Candles and be Cool Man”. The artwork for the album cover was done by the late Barney Bubbles, a truly visionary artist.

After the album’s release, the pair continued to play together regularly until David moved away from the city. Kevin still resides near Manchester in the rolling hills outside of the city. He continues to experiment with dreamy music in his loft, and we are set to share a selection of his ethereal archival and current compositions in the coming months. David lives a quiet life in a small coastal town in the South, he likes to sail and is an avid cricket fan. We’re excited to make Light Patterns accessible again for the first time in nearly 40 years, remastered from the original tapes. As the original press release said, “Put the album on, lie back and enter the land of no floors”.

Cole Pulice is a saxophone player from Minneapolis. An improviser of Ambient Jazz who earned his merits touring with Bon Iver, working with Godspeed You! Black Emperor and releasing wonderful electroacoustic gems with the groups Iceblink (Moon Glyph) and LCM (Orange Milk). With Gloam - his solo debut - Cole Pulice offers us six spacious audio holograms, one-take recordings of his saxophone entangled with live electronic hardware. We hear undulating pitch shifters, ring modulations and spectrally rich harmonizers. Cole applies all signal processing live, augmenting the calm, serene melodies Cole plays on his saxophone. The electronics never serve as a mere effect here. Instead, Cole’s fine-tuned setup functions as one whole instrument with which he effortlessly morphs shapes and colors, like fractals within a kaleidoscope or fragments of stained glass in a rock tumbler. Cole mentions the Synchromism visual art movement as an influence for this record, an American avantgarde style of the early 20th century in which colour and sound were treated as equivalents. It’s a spot-on analogy for these musical gems which serve to immerse us in imaginatory prisms. Cole’s sessions conjoin artificial processes with the vibrations of his breath to create electro-acoustic lullabies which reveal ever more timbral layers with each listen. Gloam was released on tape by the Moon Glyph imprint from Portland during the first lockdown in 2020 and has been licensed to Pingipung for this vinyl edition.

Music From Memory are excited to introduce another new group for 2021, this time presenting the self-titled debut album from Loveshadow.

Currently based in San Francisco, the duo of Anya and Izaak initially met whilst working in an Oakland cafe in 2016. The two Californians quickly bonded over a track by the ’80s disco band Aurra which was playing over the radio and almost immediately their separate journeys in music became interwoven. They soon began to write music and creating their own work would become a way for the pair to get closer to the sound they were searching for, as well as enabling them to discover the healing power of making and listening to music.

‘Loveshadow’ was recorded predominantly in the Bay Area between 2017-2020 as well as whilst traveling to NYC, Chicago and around Portland. Having released previously as the outfit ‘S Transporter’ alongside Detroit friend Ryan Spencer, Loveshadow is formed of Anya as singer and song writer alongside Izaak on synthesizers, bass and percussion. This eight track album is the duo’s first release; exploring emotive Pop and DIY Funk leanings it stands as a joyful homage to the music they bond over, as well as an ode to their own love and friendship.

Concentric Records presents Radiant, the third compilation of its introductory release trilogy. Featuring music by ASWA, HOLOVR, Max Loderbauer, Petre Inspirescu, Supply, The Waves, William Selman, the album evokes luminous, iridescent and ethereal sonic spaces - a journey that overcomes struggles, spinning upward towards the light.

The album opens with calm, bright and assertive tonalities, evoking mental spaces prone to exploration and wondering. Molecular textures and real-world sounds bring us closer to an intimate and physical sphere, a voice. Ultimately everything dissolves into a synthetic domain of acid-like washes, in a cinematic sense of departure.

MAX LODERBAUER has been an active engineer, producer, and musician across four decades. He first came to notice in the late ‘80s as a member of Fischerman’s Friend. Known then as Daimler Max, Loderbauer’s associates included Stephan Fischer and Tom Thiel, as well as producer Thomas Fehlmann. Once the group went dormant, Loderbauer and Thiel established Sun Electric; one of the leading sources of entrancing downtempo and ambient techno through the ‘90s. During the 2000s and 2010s, Loderbauer collaborated in numerous settings, including NSI with Tobias Freund, Chica & the Folder with Paula Schopf, and Moritz von Oswald Trio with Vladislav Delay and Moritz von Oswald. Loderbauer was partly responsible for some of the most progressive and experimental electronic music released during these years. In 2011, he and contemporary Ricardo Villalobos assembled Re: ECM, a project that involved radical transformations of ECM label recordings by the likes of Bennie Maupin, Christian Wallumrød, John Abercrombie, and Arvo Pärt. More recently he consolidated the collaboration with Ricardo Villalobos via the Vilod project, and with Samuel Rohrer and Claudio Puntin as Ambiq - both described as ‘a fertile patch of inspiration, shaking up the principles of minimal techno with the loose, expressive qualities of jazz’. The album opening track - ‘Harmonic’ - feels like a glowing dream. Composed of stunning electronics in a polychromatic, blinding and shimmering light; harmonious interwoven melodies calmly wind down invoking a serene mental state and grounding peace.

WILLIAM SELMAN was the very first artist ever approached by Concentric Records prior to the label’s birth, back in 2018, following his defining release ‘Musica Enterrada’. A musician and multimedia artist currently based in Portland, Oregon, his work employs analogue and digital synthesis techniques, live percussion and instrumentation, and his own rich field recordings to create compositions and sound art focused on the ideas of place and environment. Selman's recent works have been released on Mysteries of the Deep and Hausu Mountain.

PETRE INSPIRESCU is an extremely versatile composer. As co-founder of the legendary RPR Soundsystem together with Rhadoo and Raresh, he mostly produced club-ready, heavily textured takes on tech-house and minimal techno. In 2015 he released his first album on Mule Musiq, considered a significant departure from his previous work, scoring piano, strings and woodwind instruments for the first time, resulting in a set that sat somewhere between ambient and neo-classical. Since then, he continued to explore further sonic territories, adding in vintage synthesizers and occasional nods to dub techno, resulting in melodious sequences of musical movements that relate to the work of classical composers, American minimalists and ambient legends. ‘The Garden’ is a dreamy, intimate and nature inspired composition, recorded in his home studio in Ibiza sometime in the Summer.

DJ and producer SUPPLY (youngest so far on the label) was born and raised in Gießen, within sight of the skyscrapers of Frankfurt am Main, and has been living in Berlin since 2017. Musically socialised through hip hop, he found his connection to electronic music produced in Chicago and Detroit in the 90s by moving to FFM in 2013. For almost 6 years he has hosted his own events in his hometown. His productions connect the dots between hip hop, retro futuristic movie soundtracks and techno, he recently released on YAY Recordings. ‘Inhale / Exhale’ was created during a time of stress and mental tension, partly self-inflicted, partly result of my surroundings, as it turned out in retrospect. The track tries to capture a moment of taking a deep breath by releasing that tension for a moment. I came up with the first sketch one night around 4am, the final arrangement found its way onto a C60 Chromoxid Cassette - inhale - exhale.’ - Supply

THE WAVES is a post-punk and synthwave-inspired project led by Maayan Nidam, that places her vocals at its front and centre. As a musician obsessed with sound and the technology behind its creation, her workflow places a strong focus on the studio environment. Triggering chain reactions between guitar pedals, drum machines, modular synths and acoustic instruments, generating sounds in unpredictable ways. Drum machines keep a steady groove as to give support to an array of guitars and synthesisers, all topped with The Waves own, mostly unmasked, lyrics and voice. ‘Hold On’ was written by Maayan during the 2020 pandemic as she dived deeply in studio work in Berlin. Her lyrics are featured as part of the art print insert, and have became a central statement to the LP and its narrative - the power to hold on and break through.

Jimmy Billingham's HOLOVR project has racked up various releases on some of the most forward-thinking electronic music labels over the past few years, including Firecracker Recordings, Likemind, Further Records, Opal Tapes and his own Indole Records. Though best known for melodic, drifting acid techno and electronica, he's equally at home crafting textured ambient soundscapes. HOLOVR's deeply emotional synth passages and pads will take you on a journey into the outer. 'Melancholy of Time came out of a period exploring ways of producing and recording outside of the grid-based structures that I was previously working with. I wanted to strip it back to what I often find to be the emotional core of a piece of electronic music - ebbing and flowing synth pads - but to push and pull it a bit to create a slight disjointedness, unpredictability and shop-worn texture, as if it's coming apart and fraying, yet retaining a sonic clarity. I recorded it live using looped and layered synth phrases, underpinned by a layer of hiss and pin-prick textures. I find reflections on time and its passing to be a recurrent feature of my work, both in a more straightforward way of harking back to music of a certain period or pieces of equipment but also in a more abstract sense of creating a feeling where time doesn't matter - a deep feeling of now; that escape that you find in music and other ecstatic experiences. Though of course we’re always in - and running out of - time, and hence the melancholy.’ - Jimmy Billingham

Hailing from the German underground scene, ASWA aka Attila Fidan has an intricate, hypnotic style of electro, techno and ambient. Coming from visual arts and not primarily a trained musician, Attila produces under various and multiple monikers: ‘I never really start out knowing which moniker the track will be made under’. Since 2017 he runs a boutique Berlin label named ‘Tape Archive’. ‘Dust Palace’ is a synthetic piece that resonates with a cinematic vastness, closing the LP in an uplifting tone that evokes new departures and new beginnings.

One of the beautiful qualities of the Bellingham music community was the fact that many different groups of various genres could coexist and even perform comfortably throughout the half-dozen venues in this little Northwest college town in the most northwest corner of the most northwest state in the lower 48.

The original roots soulfunk juggernaut of Joel Ricci's "The Lucky Seven" known in their town as "The Leaders of the Funk Revolution," attracted a certain cadre of party goer, as did Dan Lowinger's rugged rockabilly quartet "The Foot Stompin' Trio". At Footstompin gigs, Lowinger would be found deftly chicken pickin' that honky tonk tele' and was known to impress the audience so much with his licks, they would throw buckets of beer on him as a show of their love and appreciation. It was only a matter of time before Dan and Joel were lucky enough to get the chance to perform together and toured the States for a few years together with a fiery ska/reggae/rocksteady powerhouse also out of the Bellingham area, "The Yogoman Burning Band". Dan and Joel recorded many demos together and contributed original material to the Burning Band, but the proto-rock of "Please Some", is pure Royal Dees. This tune, composed and recorded by Ricci, was actually conceived as a submission to Tramp Records and remained unfinished for many years while also suffering from the degradation of the original cassette it was recorded on. The Duo re-recorded again 4 years later when they were both living in Portland, Oregon and that version lives today as side D's "alternate take" which Ricci found in his cassette archive over the summer. This version also came with it's own set of audio issues, notwithstanding the botched ending, which we have retained here for you as the loose and roots funky vibe of the whole take justifies it's inclusion.

Finally, Joel and Dan's friend and comrade Doug Krebs, who happened to also be a well-loved member of that same Bellingham music community, especially as the go-to sound and mastering engineer, came through in spades to rescue the two pieces and prepare them for proper release on this, the one and only Royal Dees release to see the light of day on the bold and inimitable Tramp Records.

Im Jahr 2008 war Portugal. The Man seit etwas mehr als zwei Jahren eine Band und ritt auf einer kreativen Welle, wie man sie nur selten sieht. In den ersten zwei Jahren ihres Bestehens hat die Band drei Alben, eine EP und ein paar Singles veröffentlicht und dabei knapp 500 Shows gespielt. Die junge Band aus Alaska fuhr von Stadt zu Stadt, kaufte säckeweise Reis und gönnte sich nur selten etwas von ihrem Taco Bell-Feed The Beat-Geld. PTM waren engagiert. Sie beendeten die Tour im Dezember 2008 und anstatt eine dringend benötigte Pause einzulegen, trafen sie die Entscheidung, den Höhepunkt dessen aufzunehmen, was ihre Live-Performance geworden war. Sie fanden ein seltenes Juwel von einem Studio in den Vororten von Portland, und versammelten sich dort mit ihrem Live-Equipment und einer Handvoll Freunde mit Handkameras. Der langjährige Mitarbeiter und Filmemacher Graham (Baclagon) Agcaolli und der Tontechniker/Mixer Jacob Portrait (der später zu Unknown Mortal Orchestra stoßen sollte) halfen bei der Dokumentation. Sie spielten ihr komplettes Set einmal durch - ohne Nachvertonungen oder Overdubs - nur die Band in ihrer natürlichen Form. Ein paar Wochen später gingen sie ins Studio, um ihr nächstes Album, "The Satanic Satanist", aufzunehmen, und "Oregon City Sessions" wurde in ein Regal gestellt. Dort lag es über ein Jahrzehnt lang. Nur wenige sahen den ganzen Film. Die Band, ihr Manager oder Tour-Manager boten gelegentlich an, zu den Leuten nach Hause zu gehen und ihn für sie zu zeigen. Manchmal zeigte die Band auf dem Parkplatz eine Handvoll Songs für die lokalen Fans. Sie knüpften Freundschaften, aber wann immer sie gefragt wurden, war die Antwort: "Ja, wir werden das irgendwann veröffentlichen." Jetzt ist die Band seit über einem Jahr nicht mehr unterwegs, die mit Abstand längste Pause seit ihrer Gründung, und die Zeit scheint einfach reif. Hier ist "Oregon City Sessions", ausgegraben aus den Archiven. Unberührt, unverändert von dem Tag, an dem es fertiggestellt wurde. Es ist eine Zeitkapsel einer Band, die ihren Weg findet. Ein Schnappschuss von jungen, rohen Talenten, bevor sie Preise gewannen, bevor sie Millionen von Platten verkauften, bevor sie Headliner von Festivals waren. Nur ein paar Kids aus Alaska, die die Welt bereisen und Musik machen wollten.

RED FANG return with their highly anticipated new album, Arrows! Their first album in five years, everyone's favorite beer-crushing, zombie-killing, air-guitar-contest-judging metal heroes are back in action, doing what they do best- AND MORE. “This record feels more like Murder The Mountains to me than any record we’ve done before or since,” bassist/vocalist Aaron Beam ventures. “It doesn’t sound like that record, but Murder the Mountains was us doing whatever the fuck we wanted, and that’s what this is, too.” Arrows was recorded at Halfling Studios in the band’s hometown of Portland, OR, with longtime collaborator Chris Funk, producer of Murder The Mountains and 2013’s Whales and Leeches. “Chris is a major influencer as far as the weird ambient stuff in between the songs and the creepy incidental noises within the songs,“ guitarist Bryan Giles points out. “I think he definitely creates an added layer of atmosphere that we wouldn’t have otherwise.” Arrows is also a proper title track, which is new territory for the band. “This is the first time we’ve named an album after a song that’s actually on the album,” Beam explains. “We have other albums that are named after songs of ours that are not on those albums. So this time we’re really fucking with you because we didn’t fuck with you.” Similarly, fans might not believe what the song “Arrows” is partially about. “If you’re confused by some of the lyrics to the song, that makes sense,” Beam explains. “But it makes reference to meditation. I started meditating six years ago, but I can only do it when I’m not feeling too anxious. So, when I don’t need it, that’s when I can do it.” Elsewhere, “Fonzi Scheme” was named after legendary Happy Days cool guy Arthur Fonzarelli—if only because it’s in the key of his famous catchphrase, “Aaay.” Producer Chris Funk came up with the idea of bringing in string players from the Portland Cello Project to class up the track. Meanwhile, the opening riff of closer “Funeral Coach” was written 11 years ago. But it took until recently for the song to blossom into its full double-entendre glory. “I was driving around and I saw a hearse that said ‘funeral coach services’ on the back,” Beam explains. “So the first thing that popped into my head was a dude with a headset and a clipboard going, ‘Alright, dudes—more tears! Five minutes in is when the tears are critical, or no one’s gonna believe that anyone cares that this person died.’” In a nod to tradition, Arrows will be available in formats that include all the drums, bass, guitars and vocals. But it could’ve gone another way. “Our original idea was to release the album with no vocals or guitar solos,” Beam explains. “If you want the guitar solos, it’s an extra five bucks. If you want the vocals, it’s an extra ten bucks. So basically people should feel lucky that we didn’t do that. You get to buy the whole thing altogether.” RED FANG think of it as a generous display of gratitude toward their fans. “Yeah,” says Sherman, “Thank you for buying our album, you lucky bastards.”

Wipers were a punk rock group formed in Portland, Oregon in 1977 formed by guitarist/songwriter Greg Sage. The group’s tight song structure and use of heavy distortion were hailed as very influential by many critics and musicians alike.

Land of the Lost is the band’s fourth studio album. It was very well received, with Maximum Rocknroll praising the title track for being “heavier and riffier” than the band had ever sounded before. Spin Alternative Record Guide called the album “the most definitive Wipers record for sound and songwriting”.

Land of the Lost remains a highly sought-after album, but now there’s a chance to get a hold of it again. It’s a limited edition of 1000 numbered copies on yellow coloured vinyl.

Ryley Walker currently resides in New York City. But his latest LP is a Chicago record in spirit. The masterful Course In Fable, the songwriter’s fi@h solo effort,
draws from the deep well of that city’s ferCle 1990s scene, when bands like Tortoise, The Sea and Cake and Gastr del Sol were reshaping the underground,
mixing and matching indie rock, jazz, prog and beyond.
Walker spent his formaCve years in Chicago, absorbing those heady sounds and finding ways to make them his own. Even though he emerged at first in folkrock
troubadour mode, it makes sense that he’s arrived at this point; each LP has grown more intricate and assured, his influences disClling into something
original and unusual. To put it simply: Course In Fable is Walker’s best record yet, full of acCve imaginaCon and endless possibiliCes.
Last October, Ryley went straight to one of the primary architects of the Chicago sound to make the LP. John McEn:re, Course In Fable’s producer/engineer/
mixer, can rightly be called a legend for his work with Tortoise, Stereolab, The Red Krayola, Jim O’Rourke and countless others over a prolific career that now
spans more than three decades. Seeing his name in an album’s liners is preVy much a trademark of quality.
Another Windy City exile, McEnCre is based on the west coast these days, working out of the Portland, OR studio he’s dubbed Soma West. On the seven songs
here, he delivers the signature shimmering and prisCne sonics he’s become known for over the years. But McEnCre was also inCmately involved with Course
In Fable’s overall creaCve process. “I told him to take the mixes and have at it,” Walker says.
The result is a rich, immersive affair — a headphones record if ever there was one. Course In Fable’s songs are twisty, labyrinthine things, stuffed full of ideas
(Walker half-jokingly calls it his “prog record”). But no maVer how complex it gets, the album is never overwhelmingly busy. Wiry guitars melt into gorgeous
string secCons (arranged by Douglas Jenkins of the Portland Cello Project). Tricky Cme signatures abound but feel as natural as can be. Melodies o@en dri@ in
unexpected direcCons but remain downright hummable. Like Walker’s beloved Genesis, the pop element is never too far from the surface even when shit
gets weird. (And speaking of weird, Ryley says that in addiCon to Genesis, much of the album’s inspiraCon comes from “Australian extreme scooter riders on
YouTube and balding gear heads on Craigslist.” Go figure.)
To help put together these various puzzle pieces, Ryley assembled a band made up of several longCme collaborators. Bill MacKay (another Chicago mainstay)
and Walker have made two excellent instrumental duo records of interlocking guitars and warm give-and-take — a rapport very much in evidence
throughout Course In Fable. The freakishly talented drummer Ryan Jewell has performed with Walker for years now in a variety of seangs, from
straighborward song-centric sets to blown-out improv extravaganzas. Bassist Andrew ScoJ Young (Tiger Hatchery, Health&Beauty) has logged many miles on
tour with Walker; he and Jewell are frequently astonishing, a buoyant-but-always-locked-in rhythm secCon, able to navigate someCmes dizzying turnarounds
with apparent ease. Listening to the interplay between Walker and these musicians and you might be fooled into thinking they’d spent a year roadtesCng
Course In Fable’s songs. But it all came together relaCvely fast, thanks to demos, rehearsals and the kind of musical empathy that comes from years of
playing together.
Beneath the wondrous interplay, you’ll find some of Walker’s most personal – if sCll typically crypCc — lyrics, hinCng at some of the trials the songwriter has
been dealing with in recent years. Balanced with necessary doses of dark humor and oddball poetry, Course In Fable feels most of all like a life-affirming
record, fresh air in the lungs, sun on your skin. “Fuck me, I’m alive,” Ryley sings at one point, a moment of both disbelief and pure joy.
Walker has released his albums on a who’s-who of independent labels over the past decade — Tompkins Square, Dead Oceans, Thrill Jockey and Drag City
among them. This Cme around, he’s doing it DIY-style, puang Course In Fable out on his own Husky Pants imprint. You’re in good hands. This is an album that
sounds great (mastered by Greg Calbi), looks great (artwork by Jenny Nelson and design by Michael Vallera). It probably even smells great. Whether you’ve
been onboard since the beginning or are new to the Ryley Walker universe, you’re in for a treat.

The 'Abroad EP' catalogues a period of time spent travelling Japan in the spring of 2019. Throughout the course of the month-long trip, Rudy carried around a portable recorder, capturing various sounds that caught his ear. That collection of found sounds would eventually become the foundation for the EP, each track utilizing a handful of different recordings ranging from bird calls in Tokyo's Yoyogi Park, to windchimes in the coastal town of Kawazu. The EP took a full year of patient, daily work to complete, during which time Rudy invited a diverse group of collaborators in to help finish the songs. Throughout the recording process, harp, saxophone, and violin parts were added to create a unique blend of organic and electronic sounds.

POSY is the recording name of Rudy Klobas, Portland-based producer and multi-instrumentalist with a unique sound that intersects jazz, R&B, and electronic music. Originally trained on classical guitar, POSY gradually taught himself piano, bass, and drums and began writing and recording his first songs on a four-track cassette recorder. POSY's music is lush and densely layered, but maintains an element of simplicity that ultimately leaves one feeling relaxed, nostalgic, and hopeful all at the same time.

Available again on vinyl for the first time in seven years, ‘The Fact Facer’ is
now pressed on jaundice vinyl (clear with hi-melt green and yellow).
Holy Sons is Emil Amos, a musician whose chameleonic tendencies and
technical versatility has lead to him becoming an in demand multiinstrumentalist as a founding member of Grails and Lilacs & Champagne, as
well as a member of Om and a hired gun for Jandek, to name a few.
Holy Sons is at the centre of his many musical personalities and is his
longest standing project, acting as an outlet for some of his most personal
and direct songs. In Holy Sons, Amos puts his restless imagination to work
using a variety of inventive home recording methods to turn melodic slowburners into multi-layered, atmospheric missives.
While his methods and prolificacy provide a kinship with Sebadoh, Ariel Pink
and other musicians who have offered countless transmissions from their
bedroom floor, Holy Sons comes from the mind of someone who has
internalized the minutia of 70s rock music and eschews the stereotypical lofi sound for a much deeper and more varied palate.
‘The Fact Facer’, his Thrill Jockey debut, bathes Amos’ thoughtful and even
at times philosophical, songs in Technicolor darkness and reinforces Holy
Sons as his musical centrepiece. The album is a collection of home recorded
atmospheric slow-burners steeped in 70s rock with an experimentalist edge.
The songs on ‘The Fact Facer’ creep up on the listener, their fiercely
addictive melodies unravelling slowly and purposefully. Jumping smoothly
between many facets of Amos’ songwriting, the album does much to
establish him as a talented multi-instrumentalist.
From the lysergic leads of ‘Selfish Thoughts’ to the Danny Kirwan
referencing solos of ‘Transparent Powers’ and the skilful acoustic flourishes
of ‘The Fact Facer’, Amos proves himself as adept and creative a guitarist as
he is a drummer.
It is telling that Amos has built up two Holy Sons bands simultaneously: one
based in Portland and one based in New York. Wherever the wind takes
him, there are musicians willing to pick up their instruments and follow his
lead.
“The most admirable thing about Amos’s songwriting is his willingness to
leave empty space in his songs, even though multiple tracks of vocals and
instruments go into each composition” - Pop Matters
“‘The Fact Facer’ is easily Amos’ most focused offering yet, and a perfect
entry point into a back catalogue that’s sure to have listeners drinking the
Kool-Aid again and again.” - Exclaim

Corvair is what happens when you trap two Scorpio songwriters in a house together. Comprised of a Portland-based husband / wife duo of two seasoned musicians (Brian Naubert and Heather Larimer), Corvair’s debut album charts a starcrossed love story over three decades, five cities, and six continents. Spanning from atmospheric pop to jangly confessional, 70s AM to 90s FM, this work is laden with stunning turns of phrase and prodigious melodies, two voices leaping to meet in the ether. Corvair’s debut album was largely created during the COVID pandemic shut-down of Spring 2020. It includes work with drummer Eric Eagle (Jesse Sykes, Wayne Horvitz) and Engineer Martin Feveyear (Brandi Carlile, Mark Lanegan, Mudhoney), who also mixed the record. Larimer explains, “Being stuck in a house together with very little outside influence made us more emotionally raw, definitely weirder, and also more patient and intricate in developing the songs. And because we were in a bubble, cooking dinners from paranoidly-disinfected groceries and listening to old records, really disparate references from some of our favorite music ended up colliding in odd ways--an emotional Judas Priest bridge, an anthemic Pixies outro, a spacey keyboard sound from Steve Miller, Jeff Lynne's acoustic guitar tone, a Carpenters-style lush harmony. I think it's a wonderfully weird record, but also very in-your-face pop because what else are you going to do when the world feels like it's ending?" Separately, Naubert and Larimer have created or appeared on more than 20 records. Heather’s musical mainstay was the garage pop band Eux Autres, broadly hailed as a “veritable cult classic” band, radio-debuted by the legendary John Peel, and featured in many shows, movies and commercials. Brian is a longtime fixture of the Northwest rock community, having played in vital bands such as Tube Top, Pop Sickle, and the critically-lauded Ruston Mire, since 1993. More recently, Brian released his first solo record, Hoffabus and a record with the NW Supergroup, The Service Providers. Naubert and Larimer’s decades of separate music making have finally combined, culminating in this tour de force from two formidable songwriters. Corvair sounds like nothing you’ve ever heard and everything you’ve always loved.
Press quotes: “Smart, infectious, jangly pop.” Everett True // “An irresistible set of bouncy indie-pop tinged with surf music and ‘60s girl groups, contrasted with the band’s often-biting lyrics.” KEXP.org // “One of the more exciting independent releases of the year...a veritable cult classic.” Under The Radar // “Three chord garage pop that hangs on a raunchy guitar line and crisp production from Janet Weiss (Sleater-Kinney, Quasi).” MAGNET Magazine // Brian Naubert - vocals, guitars, bass, keyboards, percussion. Heather Larimer - vocals, keyboards, percussion.

Research Records continue their voyage into Elite Beat's extraordinary back catalogue with their second compilation Selected Rhythms Vol. 2. The chosen tracks are lifted from the Portland collective's three-part cassette series Casual Rhythms; a treasure chest of meditative and genre-defying instrumentals where percussion and dub accents prevail.

Remastered for the first time on vinyl, Selected Rhythms Vol. 2 adds to the immersive and interstellar tapestry of Elite Beat. The compilation delves deep into the healing and hypnosis that characterises the collective. For those who were inevitably left looking for more withSelected Rhythms Vol. 1, here's a no-brainer.

ENDLICH....das Live-Album der Bluegrass/Folk-Helden mit 17 Songs! Vor über 6 Jahren entdeckten wir die vier Gentlemen von THE DEAD SOUTH aus Regina, Saskatchewan während der Canadian Music Week in Toronto sehr spät am Abend in einem eher spärlich gefüllten Club. Unsere Begeisterung wurde von einer Vertragsunterzeichnung begleitet und so veröffentlichten wir im November 2014 ihr Debütalbum "Good Company". Natürlich sind wir ziemlich stolz, dass wir eine Indie- Erfolgsgeschichte mit der Band schreiben konnten, die nun mit einem Doppel-Live- Album namens "Served Live" gefeiert wird. Natürlich ist die Idee nicht ganz neu, aber wenn es bei einer Band doch Sinn macht, dann bei The Dead South, denn ihre Live-Shows sind schon jetzt recht legendär und vor allem auf der Bühne zeigen sich ihre Stärken, die doch recht schwer auf einem Studioalbum zur Geltung kommen: unbändige Spielfreude, eine genre-sprengende Live-Dynamik, eine gute Prise Humor sowie ein sich gegenseitiges Pushen sind nur einige Attribute, die mir gerade so einfallen wollen. Die "Die-Hard-Fans" der Band werden natürlich nicht 100%ig zufrieden sein, da trotz lediglich drei Studioalben sicher der eine oder andere Song fehlt - mir vor allem _ÇÜGunslinger's Glory', aber dieser ist halt auch sehr lang. Auch sind einige ihrer Cover- Versionen von Bands wie den Animals, The Decemberists oder diverse Tradionals Teil ihrer Live-Sets, aber hier sollten es halt nur eigene Songs auf die Platten bzw. CDs schaffen. Die 17 Songs auf "Served Live" wurden auf 17 verschiedenen Shows mitgeschnitten, denn die Band wollte so vielen Fans wie möglich ein kleines Dankeschön sagen, aber leider hat Covid-19 diesem Unterfangen einen für uns bedeutenden Strich durch die berühmte Rechnung gemacht und es fehlen jegliche Deutschland-Shows, wohingegen USA (L.A., Seattle, Portland, Boston, Atlanta, Denver, NY), GB (Manchester, London, Newcastle, Portsmouth, Belfast, Dublin) und ihre Heimat Kanada (Edmonton, Halifax, Montreal) vertreten sind. "Served Live" ein unglaublich energetisches und authentisches Live-Dokument, das auch hiesigen Fans von The Dead South sehr viel Freude bereiten wird und ein warmes Trostpflaster für die Zeit des Wartens auf die nächste Tour.

These newly remastered editions of Bill Fox’s second album are the first since its 1998 release, including the first-ever vinyl pressing. Listeners will hear a wider soundstage, more detail, and improved listenability. Recorded on 4-track cassette, the fidelity belies the sophistication and nuance of the songwriting, This adept remaster by John Golden Sr helps bring definition to the intimate, at-home feel of the album. It sparkles.Very similar in feel and quality to Fox’s debut album, much of Transit Byzantium draws from the same group of recordings. It has the same feel of musical inevitability, that the songs exist beyond time itself, their eventual manifestation guaranteed by Apollo. He could’ve given them to the Everly Brothers, or the Byrds, or the Who, but instead they were channeled through an everyman from Cleveland with an aversion to the limelight. And while a traditional folk influence colors several songs, even those possess the indelible stamp of Fox’s charismatic voice and personality. Although nearly entirely acoustic and with minimal percussion, these eighteen songs cycle through a remarkable variety of textures and moods.While much has quite rightly been written about the god-tier songwriting here (“Song of a Drunken Nightingale,” “My Baby Crying,” “I’ll Give It Away” for starters), it should also be noted that this is a guitar player’s record, though more in terms of conception than flash. Lines of harmony and counterpoint wander between parts, sublime in their invention though sometimes crudely documented.

DAUW present the release of What the Fog, the second album of David Allred & Peter Broderick. The album is a follow-up of their first full-length LP Find the Ways, which was released through Erased Tapes in 2017.

The music itself was originally composed as a soundtrack for an 11-hours slow motion journey in the Louvre museum in Paris. The title, #monalisa, can be interpreted as a new way of perceiving art through technology and social media such as Twitter or Instagram. The movie is directed by Jennifer Anderson and Vernon Lott and tries to make us more aware of the presence of technology in our lives as well as the way we experience an exhibition or art itself. The album is a 42-minutes extraction of the 11-hours journey they went through. Each track is built in a way that makes it possible for the listener to travel from one place to the other, as if you were walking in the museum yourself. In that way, the record can even be perceived as a music documentary.

Being completely instrumental, What the Fog distinguishes itself from their first album in which the voices of both artists held a central place. Nevertheless, in line with an earlier observation from Clash Magazine, the music still combines minimalism and serenity to construct intense pieces of music.

“It presents a moment of calm that uses sparsity to create something quietly intense.” (Clash Magazine on their debut album)

Born in Maine, raised in Oregon, Peter Broderick learned to play several instruments such as piano, banjo and violin. In 2007 he joined the Danish ensemble Efterklang on their tour and had numerous collaborations with artists such as Machinefabriek and Nils Frahm. His most recent release Blackberry was released this August through Erased Tapes. It marked his first vocal album in 5 years and once again showed the variety in his ever growing repertoire.

In a relatively short period of time, Portland-based musician and multi-instrumentalist David Allred showed his songwriting capabilities through several releases on Oscarson and Erased Tapes. Besides his own music, he played as a session musician for several artists and ensembles such as Heather Woods Broderick, Masayoshi Fujita and The Beacon Sound Choir. His most recent album Felt the Transition sees the light late December 2020 through Erased Tapes.

Amsterdam based Spill Gold ( who previously released on Portland's Beacon Sound) with a jaunty 7 track mini album for Knekelhuis. sleeve art from Jacob Hoving.

The label say:
"The summer breeze has gradually turned into a cold wind and the trees showcase their typical variegated color palette; autumn has clearly arrived in all its golden glory, a transition exemplary for Spill Gold’s work. The Amsterdam duo’s music is every bit as colorful and moving as its seasonal counterpart, where one moment a cold and stormy wind swarms the air and other times calm and stillness prevail.

On Highway Hypnosis, their first album on vinyl, Spill Gold masterfully juxtaposes darkness and light, playfulness and control, enhancing the transcendental character of the material at hand. Based on strong pop structures, the songwriting here traverses a world of Krautrock and cosmic influences at once catchy and alienating, opening the possibility for catharsis.

They’re a wonderful addition to the versatile nature of Knekelhuis. And they’re crazy good live as well."

It's back-to-backhits with the new Names You Can Trust split single series, the first of which features two up-and-coming acts in the blossoming Latin music scene of the Pacific Northwest. From Seattle via Argentina and Miami is Terror/Cactus, a futuristic electronic cumbia project from musician Martín Selasco. Selasco's machine-forward audio/visual performances combine a mixture of bugged out digital folklore, live percussion and the omnipresent sounds inspired by the canon of South American chicha concoctions. That balance is on display in the group's debut vinyl release "Churro vs Crow." A field recording of a Mexico City street scene playfully intermingles with the track's heavy production, an innocuous battle between a crow and a churro vendor breathes a little outdoor analog into an avant digital landscape.

On the other side of the spectrum, down south in neighboring Oregon, lies Portland's Orquestra Pacifico Tropical, an 11-piece ensemble formed by a crew of talented musicians from the lush local offerings of the Willamette Valley. The band's big sound is an explosive expression of their own roots, representing the heyday of tropical music that graced stages for decades in Central and South America. Clarinet, brass, electric guitars and that familiar percussive pulse are all alive on their NYCT debut "Regreso." Imagine a return to the cross-pollinated sounds of the psychedelic '70s, an echo from the Andes, the Amazon, through the central isthmus and back to the present, only this time landing in the City of Roses.

Steve Von Till has charted an extraordinary musical path over the last several decades, from his main duties as singer and guitarist of the boundary-breaking Neurosis to the psychedelic music of his Harvestman project and the gothic Americana he's released under his own name. But No Wilderness Deep Enough is truly like nothing you've ever heard from him before—an album that's devastatingly beautiful and overwhelming in its scope, reminiscent of the tragic ecstasy of Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds' recent work as well as the borderless ambient music pioneered by Brian Eno, late composer Jóhann Jóhannsson's glacial compositions, and the electronic mutations of Coil. 

FOR FANS OF : MARK LANEGAN/MICHAEL GIRA/NICK CAVE.

Over the course of recent time, an aching, growing void has developed where our normal way of life has resided. Uncertainty abounds, and Steve Von Till's No Wilderness Deep Enough provides a voice of existential wisdom and experience to offer comfort and perspective in an era of uncharted territory. These six pieces of music shape a hallucinatory landscape of sound that plumbs the depths of the natural world's mysteries and uncertainties—questions that have vexed humanity since the dawn of time asked anew amidst a backdrop that's as haunting as it is holistic.

Von Till’s fifth solo album is a swirling and iridescent blend of ambient, neo-classical, and gothic Americana that swan-dives into the darkness of modern life, with the resulting emergence a sonic document of rural psychedelia that transcends the physical world—towards a greater spiritual acceptance that connects naturalism, spiritualism, and the corporeal form.

With a foundation of simple melancholy piano chord progressions embellished with mellotron, cello, french horn and electronic treatments Von Till's scorched ache spreads across the terrain of No Wilderness Deep Enough like a brushfire, adding a tactile level to his sonic creation as well as an inviting level of friction to the burning beauty painted across the album's framework.

With a foundation of simple melancholy piano chord progressions that came to fruition during jetlagged nights in his wife’s childhood home in Germany, No Wilderness Deep Enough was further embellished with mellotron and electronic treatments in Von Till’s home studio in North Idaho.  Viewing the emerging result as an ambient instrumental album, he consulted friend and engineer Randall Dunn (Marissa Nadler, Earth) about adding live cello and french horn and piano in a proper studio.  After enlisting Brent Arnold on cello and Aaron Korn on french horn, he challenged Von Till to sing over the music and make it his next solo album—which is exactly what happened, with final work being completed at Tucker Martine’s (the Decemberists, Neko Case) Flora Recording and Playback in Portland.

In the late 90’s, east-side LA was in the throws of a post-indie explosion; a network of stoned bands ranging from neo-psychedelia to pseudo-country overran Spaceland (our generation’s Troubadour) and the local Silverlake Lounge. I was playing freakbeat records twice a week in dive bars, half of Spacemen 3 was crashing at my house (my drop-out roomate was Sonic Boom’s tour drummer) and it was during this blur that I met Raymond Richards, a clean-cut all-American pedal steel guitarist playing in Mojave 3 (the country-tinged side project of 4AD shoegaze royalty, Slowdive). I was instantly swept off my feet, head over heals in love with Raymond's weeping tone—the most chill-inducing, emotionally responsive dialog I’d had with music since discovering Satie as a child—it was then and it is now, truly haunting. After a year of personnel trials, my roomate and I stole Raymond for our own band, and not only did he smother our songs with his enchanting steel, he was virtuosic with a variety of atypical instruments such as baritone guitar and theremin, he utilized them all. The band was short-lived—I joined Ariel Pink, Raymond fled to Portland and me subsequently to New York City—but in founding the ESP Institute years later, there was always a recurring mental note; we must make Raymond’s pedal steel album. I had managed to wrangle his blessed performance on a remix for Project Club’s El Mar Y La Luna, but it took almost a decade until I once again wore the producer hat and we began working on The Lost Art Of Wandering, a title borrowed from Sam Shepard’s Stories. Spiritually candid, expansive yet enveloping, this is the strung-out, visceral country music that simply radiates from Raymond. Each song is his set of coordinates in a vast open terrain, holding a sentimental familiarity, a truthful longing for the simple comforts that diffuse life’s complications, a place to get lost. –Lovefingers

"ALEATORY CHAOS" is coming back with the third chapter, a very special edition because it will include the unreleased 1984 original version of “No Words” by 'XYMOX' , a very awaited “truly wet dream” for any early post-punk vinyl collector.

The record becomes just indispensable thanks to the contribution of actual proposals as Vacant Stares (Portland/USA), Oby Wolf (New York/USA) and Abu Nein (Malmö/SWEDEN). It's a delicious white wax.
All tracks have been specially remastered for 'LONG CUT' vinyl by Daniel Hallhuber at Young and Cold Studios (Germany).

Michael Edgehill aka Mikey Melody was born in the parish of Portland, Jamaica. As a youth he constantly raised his voice in song and performing with sound system in the neighborhood community. Known by his sweet voice, his friends gave him the nickname «Mikey Melody».

Mikey Melody was influenced by 60’s and 70’s US R&B icons and Jamaican singers like Bob Marley, Sugar Minott, Burning Spear, Dennis Brown, Bob Andy and Half Pint. In the 1980’s he went to Kingston and was identified early by Lord Sassafrass, who gave him his first recording single “Under Mi Fat Thing” that was covered by many reggae artists. He was then signed by Black Scorpio Corporation which he was a singer on the sound system and recording label. He did songs like “World Is A Disaster”, “Jumbo Mi Jumbo”, “Romance For The Moment”, “Ragga Muffin”, “Unemployment”.

He then moved on to Dennis Star Label which he did songs like “Mona Lisa”, “Maranda” and the hit song “Soldier In Town”. Released in 1988 on Dennis Star International records, ‘’Soldier In Town’’ by Mikey Melody is a pure late 80’s dancehall vocal over heavy digital rhythm by Firehouse Crew.

Southern Lord is proud to present reissues of the first two albums from iconic Portland-by-way-of-Nashville-based hardcore punk icons, From Ashes Rise.

Alongside related acts His Hero Is Gone and Tragedy, From Ashes Rise are one of the most iconic pioneer acts of the gloom-heavy American crust/hardcore sound born of the late 1990s.

Following their EPs on Clean Plate Records and Partners In Crime Records, the debut full-length Concrete & Steel was initially released through Feral Ward Records in 2000, followed by the release of their second album, Silence, through the same label later that same year.

Staples of the band’s catalogue, these two seminal LPs have not only stood the test of time, but lie as markers at the beginning of a now well-trodden path, making From Ashes Rise one of the founding acts of the sound so many modern acts continue to draw influence from.

The reissues of Concrete & Steel and Silence have been fully remastered by the band’s Brad Boatright at his revered Audiosiege in Portland, Oregon, the LP’s original covers formatted to tip-on jackets.

Southern Lord is proud to present reissues of the first two albums from iconic Portland-by-way-of-Nashville-based hardcore punk icons, From Ashes Rise.

Alongside related acts His Hero Is Gone and Tragedy, From Ashes Rise are one of the most iconic pioneer acts of the gloom-heavy American crust/hardcore sound born of the late 1990s.

Following their EPs on Clean Plate Records and Partners In Crime Records, the debut full-length Concrete & Steel was initially released through Feral Ward Records in 2000, followed by the release of their second album, Silence, through the same label later that same year.

Staples of the band’s catalogue, these two seminal LPs have not only stood the test of time, but lie as markers at the beginning of a now well-trodden path, making From Ashes Rise one of the founding acts of the sound so many modern acts continue to draw influence from.

The reissues of Concrete & Steel and Silence have been fully remastered by the band’s Brad Boatright at his revered Audiosiege in Portland, Oregon, the LP’s original covers formatted to tip-on jackets.

the first remixed release from studio mule/bgm. our portland friend visible cloaks made remix for 2 songs. the original songs of both tracks are his all time fav japanese music. check his amazing compilation “kankyo Mongaku” !! the result is simply beautiful ambient music.

FETISH features legendary POISON IDEA members Steve “Thee Slayer Hippy” Hanford and Eric “Vegetable” Olson, and later-era Poison Idea guitarist Brandon Bentley.
Engineered by legendary producer Billy Anderson (Melvins, Neurosis, Cattle Decapitation, Sick of it All, High on Fire, etc.)
It also includes 3 of the members of the Portland punk rock machine that is LONG KNIFE, Colin Jarrell, Scott Goto, and Chris Reid.
With a single already out and a vicious onslaught of new material put together, we here at Blackhouse are honored to be putting out their debut full length album, “WORLD EATER” in its entirety in physical form.

Beacon Sound and Jacktone Records are pleased to announce a limited edition joint vinyl release by Hugo RA Paris titled Threaded Habitat. The new LP from Paris follows two of Jacktone’s most popular releases: Mystique Youth (2015) and Horizons Beneath The Surface (2016), which appeared under his alias, Lavender.

The transition to the Hugo RA Paris moniker with this album marks a more personal shift in approach. Threaded Habitat combines ambient textures and techno rhythms to reflect tension between humanity and nature—particularly the cyclical nature of collapse and renewal. It also marks Jacktone's first collaborative release with the record store and label Beacon Sound, which has put out works from veteran experimental musicians like Terry Riley and Colleen. Beacon Sound is an important node in Portland, where Paris also lives and developed the flagship modular product for leading Eurorack manufacturer 4MS: the SWN.

The album's closing track was entirely composed on a SWN prototype and recorded in one take. In fact, much of his work is done in layers of single takes with minimal processing to preserve its raw emotion and embrace minor imperfections. As an MIT-trained engineer and physicist, working with hardware—from modulars to guitar pedals and tape loops—is essential to his process of not only making but exploring sound.

Threaded Habitat captures moments of claustrophobia and bliss in seven tracks and three accompanying videos directed by New Zealand artist Sam Hamilton. Visual art plays a central role in many of Paris’s projects, which include intricate audio-visual performances and scores for full-length films like The Modern Jungle (La Selva Negra) and its forthcoming follow-up.

The LP will be available to pre-order on July 1st with a limited, exclusive content sample pack. The handmade vinyl package features photography by Sam Hamilton and will be released July 19 through Jacktone and Beacon Sound’s webshops, with worldwide sales beginning August 2nd. A remix release will arrive later in the Fall.

This is the first in a series of remixes of tracks from Dubkasm’s acclaimed 2018 LP, Rastrumentals. The 10” opens with Alter Echo and Zam Zam/Khaliphonic label head E3, who have an impressive list of previous collaborators including Lee Perry, Pinch and The Bug. The Portland, Oregon duo have taken the driving roots energy of ‘Lei Áurea’ and used pounding drums, flurries of aggressive foley and veering synth attacks to flip it into an apocalyptic dancehall banger.

Side B comes courtesy of recent Bristol arrival Om Unit, a truly unique producer and DJ, headlining shows around the world, and collaborating with artists as diverse as Goldie, Joker, and Machinedrum. Always impossible to classify, his remix of LP opener ‘Eco do Jongo’, , dives deep into dub territory, its ethereal, stripped-back nyabinghi drumming, crystallised synths, and a slipstream of horns bringing Ras B’s righteous message to the fore

This release has been expertly mastered via 1/2” tape by Lewis at StarDelta, and is backed and distributed by Unearthed.

In an era of boundless self promotion, anonymity is a rare and precious thing. Listening to Trevor Jackson's NTS show one night we heard a glorious piece of music by something called Elite Beat. A quick search found 10 years worth of recorded material but not a single photo or youtube clip. They had made a record with Niger born guitarist Mdou Moctar but were based in Portland, Oregon. More questions than answers but we knew we had just heard one helluva cosmic link up!

We still don't know what they look like but we can tell you Elite Beat is a 6 piece ensemble now in their 12th year as a musical collective. Their sound is non prescribed rhythm music with an emphasis on live playing, free form expression and dubbing techniques. Players who have absorbed the plethora of global grooves from dub, Ethiopoques and Tuareg guitar music (probably the odd Dead bootleg too). They aren't retromaniacs or here to revive a genre. Just some cats from Oregon talking that universal language, fueled by laugher and a vision of the eternal.

"By The Light Of The Pyramids" and "Postcards From Gortupal" are their latest and greatest offerings, birthed out of live sessions.

*The vinyl versions are shorter edits of the original / digital to preserve sound quality.

JK Flesh is the electronics-only project of Justin K. Broadrick
(Godflesh, Techno Animal, Zonal, The Blood of Heroes). He is a
absolute master of high quality, prolific electronic composition, and has
released JK Flesh on Downwards Records, Hydra Head, and Hospital
Productions. Submerged is the leader and founder of Ohm Resistance.
DJing internationally for 20 years, he has pioneered the sounds of hard
drum & bass and played in the furthest reaches of the globe.
Blacktacular is one of Portland’s most prominent MCs and promoters of
electronic music, dropping articulate, inspiring rhymes over every
Pacific Northwest drum & bass event spanning the last two decades.
Limited Edition Print by Pascuale Belvito

Performing throughout the 1980s as Art Carnage to the gloomy hipsters of Portland, Attilio Panissidi III decided he needed a vacation. The result of his creative escape became Art Takes A Holiday, an album of fabricated FM synthscapes and MIDI environments that embrace elements of smooth jazz, new age, and pop.

Attilio had been playing in bands since he was thirteen, and had opened live shows for countless acts, from The Shangri-Las to Bruce Hornsby. The experience of producing, performing, as well as years spent writing for local music magazine The Downtowner, earned Attilio a gig to score a commercial film for a home security systems company. The opportunity allowed him to explore softer elements in his writing, and he created a suite of songs much deeper than the commission warranted. These instrumentals caught the attention of Marlon McClain (Gap Band, Shock), who invited Attilio to produce and release the music on his fledgling Nu-Vision label. Thus Art Takes A Holiday found its commercial release on cassette and CD in 1989. Although originally intended as soundtrack music, the album retains its own momentum, narrative and evocative imagery that betrays Attilio's years of crafting songs. Attilio found a perfect ambience on this mythic retreat, somewhere between William Aura's summer cottage on Half Moon Bay and DJ Alfredo's Balearic island getaway.

serenitatem, the fifteenth installment of FRKWYS, RVNG Intl.'s collaboration series pairing intergenerational artists in creative conversation, joins Visible Cloaks with Yoshio Ojima and Satsuki Shibano, two trailblazers of the Japanese avantgarde music and visual arts scenes of the 1980s and 90s.

Yoshio Ojima began his career as a composer of environmental and ambient music, with a particular interest, and optimism, in the possibilities of generative software. His compositional pursuit of human synthesis with computerized forms was realized in its fullest potential alongside Satsuki Shibano, a pianist renowned for her interpretations of Erik Satie and Claude Debussy. Together, they were among a handful of influential Japanese artists whose innovations still resonate, if not more vibrantly than ever, well beyond the tightly-knit scene's original core. In the early 90s, Ojima was among the programmers of the influential satellite radio experiment St. Giga, a constantly-evolving sonic landscape that combined field recordings and sound collage with occasional readings of Japanese poetry. Satsuki was a regular reader for the station. This musical terrarium bloomed out of sight in a small Tokyo studio, a greenhouse of sound with no set start or finish time that audiences could tune into, absorb, and immerse.

The perpetual flow state of St. Giga — recordings of which Ojima shared with Visible Cloaks — would be highly influential to serenitatem's constitution. As Visible Cloaks, the Portland, Oregon duo of Spencer Doran and Ryan Carlile have developed their own set of creative strategies that form an aesthetic fuse point between human intention, aleatoric composition, and improvisation.

These are notions most recently reflected in 2017's Reassemblage and Lex, a respective album and EP in which the duo combined generative software and virtual representations of global instruments into lacy, interlocking patterns. Long time admirers of Ojima's work on albums like 1988's Une Collection Des Chainons, Doran and Carlile discovered after an online introduction that they shared with Yoshio and Satsuki an abiding interest in pre-classical composers, the Lovely Music, Ltd. label, and the British avant-garde, as well as a mutual respect for one another's techniques and processes.

The four musicians met in Tokyo, Japan at Sounduno Studios in December 2017, at the tail end of Visible Cloaks' first Japanese tour, to commence work on serenitatem. Leading up to the studio sessions, Doran and Carlile sent Ojima processed sound sketches recorded while on a European tour, which Yoshio would add to and return. Visible Cloaks would then fold Yoshio's edits back into the original compositions, which Doran and Carlile brought to the exploratory recording session. During that week together in Tokyo, the quartet made use of a number of creative strategies — 'echoing sound together,' as Yoshio puts it. Among the strategies, MIDI randomization gave the quartet melodic lines and what Doran calls 'randomized clouds,' or 'tightly grouped notes that become smeared tonal clusters functioning more like chords in themselves.' Carlile would also feed Ojima and Satsuki's text into Wotja, a generative music software which produced a MIDI language around which the quartet expanded their compositions.

'The aim,' Doran says of serenitatem, 'was to make a work that was not specifically ambient (or environmental), but something more multi-hued, weaving these deconstructive concepts into an album that has a deeper architecture underpinning it.' Accordingly, serenitatem is a marvelously sharp record, its sutures between human and machine virtually impossible to find but suggested everywhere you turn. The collaboration among Ojima, Satsuki, and Visible Cloaks is both musically and conceptually inseparable from the technology that made it possible. Throughout the album, Shibano's playing resonates like Satie's, her rhythms cascading like drops from leaves an hour after the rain. Overtones are stretched and warped like modeling clay, then spun around and shown off from multiple angles.

A single soaring note might seem to be suddenly plunged underwater, its richness of sound made shallow and its sharp edges blunted. Pittering chimes and rapidly warping vocal samples hang in the luxuriously glossy space, water trickles from ear-toear, familiar melodies rise from nothing and dissolve before they can be traced. With the depth of its emotional charge, serenitatem burns away the easy cynicism of the day, presenting itself as the kind of delocalized work of art the internet promised us decades ago — a synthesis of artistic visions, technological sophistication, futurist ambition, and, occasionally, ancient polyphony. Listening to it can feel a bit like tuning in to a 21st Century version of St. Giga: It's a place where the future still grows.

Visible Cloaks, Yoshio Ojima, and Satsuki Shibano's serenitatem, FRKWYS Vol. 15, will be available across LP, CD, and digital formats on April 5, 2019. The quartet will perform select live shows throughout 2019.

The body never lies. Every dance is a graph of the heart. Nothing is more revealing than movement.

These are the words of Martha Graham, one of the greatest American dancers and choreographers of the 20th century. Massimiliano Pagliara might as well have them tattooed on his chest, close to his heart, being an accomplished dancer, too. He has studied contemporary dance in Milan and Berlin, and went on to dedicate his life to transforming experience into movement, be it musical, physical, or spiritual. Massimilano's message is clear: Don't stand still. Don't keep looking back. Know where you are coming from, but don't remain petrified by the past. Take a chance at Endless Change, instead. Move on! Just like Massimilano did.

Stemming from Lecce province, an area at the south-eastern-most tip of Italy, Massimilano has been based in Berlin for several years where he's been one of the main forces behind recombining the city's hardboiled techno scene with an often overlooked sensibility for the soft and the tender. Call it underground disco passion. Massimilano's last and sophomore album, With One Another, released in 2014, was about celebrating the joy of human encounters and in parts seemed like a big get-together with like-minded artists and friends (among them nd_baumecker, Lee Douglas, and Credit 00). The record quickly hit the number one spot in Groove magazine's album chart - and its creator hit the road.

Besides his busy DJ schedule and far from the usual club circuit routines, Massimilano dedicated himself to intense travelling and exploring the world anew. 'I felt like I have lived more than ever,' he states. 'Getting to discover all these beautiful places around the world and meeting so many lovely interesting people, has inspired me in many different ways. I feel enriched.'

The result of these experiences is Feel Live, Massimiliano's third full-length endeavour. It was recorded in several intimate, sometimes improvised studio settings between Los Angeles, Portland, and Massimiliano's homebase in Berlin as well as at airports and on intercontinental flights high up in the sky. Featuring vocals by Private Agenda, Peaking Lights, Kim Anh and instrumental contributions by Fort Romeau, Tim K, and Jules Etienne, Feel Live is Massimilano's most playful and imaginative work to date. It's as emotional as sensual, as vibrant as the first ray of light after a thunderstorm has cleared the air.

Is it awkward or odd to call this record jazzy Presumptuous to pinpoint its spacial, almost orchestral qualities Unfair on the ruling Cosmic powers to highlight its aspirations of founding a new land of Balearic Harmonia and getting down at a huge fertility rite with electro enthusiasts and house lovers Not one bit. Feel Live is pure grandeur and elegance. It feels like an eternal movement.

Martha Graham has dedicated her whole life to dancing. 'It's permitting life to use you in a very intense way,' she said. 'Sometimes it is not pleasant. Sometimes it is fearful. But nevertheless it is inevitable.' Massimilano couldn't agree more. His advice when facing the inevitable: 'Live what you are feeling, feel what you are experiencing, good or bad, it is an experience.'