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“Challenge” was released in 1981 on Bootleg, a record label born inside a record store in Pavia with the same name. “Challenge” keeps the original and uncompromising punk attitude alive. 3 groups: No Suicide (from the Udine province), Mercenary God (from Gemona), No Submission (from Treviso), all sick children of the industrious, rich and Christian Democratic north-eastern part of Italy. I read about them in “New Fahrenheit” (a controversial article about local rivalries, common backgrounds and eventually separate roads.) but I don’t know their music. Something tells me that “Challenge” is the record I was looking for, perhaps because of its very powerful cover with no slogans, and a circled “A”. I send the money in a sealed envelope and wait. When the package arrives, I open it, I put the record on the turntable and let the needle go. The first listen is enough to realize that this is a crucial release, a real “challenge”.

The challenge is against an indifferent market. The instrument is a sound that is already changing skin. No Suicide, Mercenary God and No Submission have nothing to do with Great Complotto, they are the other face of the northeastern underground. Punk is their background, (read “hardcore” for No Suicide) but for all of them there is a progressive detachment from the original material, including a common attitude towards the caustic sound coming from the harshest side of British wave. A classic example of “work in progress” able to generate great songs like “The Degraded Men” by No Submission (the band that later evolved into Wax Heroes), one of the peaks of Italian post-punk. Mercenary God will give birth to The Sex, while No Suicide with their tight hypnotic hardcore will disbanded soon. It’s 1981 when the rain clouds on the “Challenge” front cover seem to remind us that the wind is going to change soon.

3 bands, 11 songs, an unearthed piece of history 43 years after its first release. Thanks to this reissue, “Challenge” is now back on track. A different disc, today as then. (Luca Frazzi)

“The Missing Boys” is a film born from the need to tell the story of the emergence and affirmation of a forgotten music scene, like much of the youth movement that spread in metropolitan areas as well as in the provinces more than forty years ago, dealing with the same critical issues of everywhere. It’s a story of mostly unknown bands, who from Sardinia, especially from Cagliari and Sassari, interrupt the blissful isolation of an island, only apparently distant from that revolution that ignited wherever there was a stage and a power socket. The birth of a path that began with punk and quickly transformed into a magmatic picture where research, experimentation, sound subversions and slivers of darkness, shape a multifaceted and unique scene in balance between affinities and divergences with its whole surroundings. The examined period between 1979 and 1989 marks a seminal decade, a ten years time-frame linked to an indelible generational transition, like an imaginary journey “from the ants to the clouds”, an invisible thread suspended between those kids and their great dream. This album contains music from a vibrant and uncompromising season, just like all that cannot be recognized as industrial product and maintains an independent spirit. (Davide Catinari)

KULA SHAKER"s new album "Natural Magick" finds the band harnessing the power to cast their most potent spell yet, incorporating blazing psychedelic sermons, raga rave-ups, stardust-coated pop pearls and mood-enhancing mantras. "This chapter in the band"s life is very much driven by live energy and that spiritual connection with the audiences which comes with it. We all agreed that the songs should be no longer than three minutes. There are no epics." (says Crispian) Reformed permanently in 2021 due to the return of keyboard wizard Jay Darlington, reuniting all four members of the band"s classic line-up for the first time since 1999.The band became UK chart-toppers with 1996"s debut album "K" and "99"s follow-up "Peasants Pigs & Astronauts" saw them push the creative envelope prior to their premature dissolution. Having made a welcome return in 2007 with the self-funded "Strangefolk", Kula Shaker have built towards the sonic summit.

Pink & Green Pinwheel Vinyl. Celebrate the 10 Year Anniversary of Pity Sex' breakthrough debut full-length record Feast of Love with this commemorative anniversary edition LP. This reissue features the album in full along with three bonus tracks: 'Euclid,' 'Acid Reflux' and a cover of Pixies' classic 'Gigantic.' The anniversary edition also features a gatefold jacket previously unavailable in the United States and an updated lyric sheet.Walking the razor's edge between overdriven navel gazing bliss and perfect pop sensibility, Ann Arbor's Pity Sex have crafted a breathtaking debut LP in 'Feast of Love' that's both awesomely beautiful and deftly evocative. Massive, harmonically distorted guitars and airy dual male/female vocals are hallmarks of Feast of Love, all drenched in warm, dreamy reverb. Most impressive however, is how the band utilizes pop conventions - both vocal and instrumental melody, and a strong and pounding rhythm section - while delving deep into the ethereal power of textured soundscapes. Guitars fuzz and flange, weaving between distinct, identifiable parts and simple brushes of colored noise. The voices similarly drift between carrying delicate melodies and delivering evocative feeling. Calling on the infectious, hooky inclinations of the Pixies, dreary melodies of the Breeders and sonic mass of My Bloody Valentine, Pity Sex's Feast of Love twists and churns with these beautiful yet fleeting vignettes captured in sound.

‘Live At The Greek’ is the debut live album from global pop sensations The Driver Era.

Fans can now experience the raw energy, passion, and talent that have made the band one of the most exciting and dynamic live acts in the music scene today.

The album was recorded at the Greek Theatre in LA and features live performance versions of hit singles through the ages, including ‘Afterglow’, ‘A Kiss’, ‘Fantasy’ & ‘Preacher Man’. This record is a testament to the power of independent artistry and the unbreakable bond between a band and their devoted fans.

"Live At The Greek" by The Driver Era comes as a 2xLP including a Booklet.

Sky Blue Vinyl with Inserts "3", sometimes referred to as Emerson, Berry and Palmer, were a powerful but short-lived prog rock band who are still touring. They released "To the Power of Three" and in 1988 support of that release, toured through 1988 but never released another album. While touring, they were supplemented by Paul Keller on guitar and Jennifer Steele as backup vocalist.

Sky Blue Vinyl with Inserts "3", sometimes referred to as Emerson, Berry and Palmer, were a powerful but short-lived prog rock band who are still touring. They released "To the Power of Three" and in 1988 support of that release, toured through 1988 but never released another album. While touring, they were supplemented by Paul Keller on guitar and Jennifer Steele as backup vocalist.

This is the new 20th anniversary edition of one of Soul Jazz Records’ classic Studio One releases, now available as a one-off special blue vinyl very limited-edition pressing (2000 copies worldwide). 


Studio One Roots set the standard for Soul Jazz Records’ long-standing series of Studio One collections and features many of the classic artists from Clement 'Sir Coxsone’ Dodd’s mighty roster of reggae. This album includes Freddie McGregor, Willie Williams, Cornell Campbell, Alton Ellis, Devon Russell alongside some of the defining crack-session men groups of Jamaican reggae history – The Sound Dimension, Brentford All-Stars, The Skatalites, New Establishment and more. As ever the album is filled with a mixture of
seminal cuts and super-rarities from the vast vaults of 13 Brentford Road. 
Stand-out tracks include Alton Ellis’s Blackish White, a surreal and powerful Afro-centric dream, Count Ossie Nyabinghi and Rastafarian drummers genre-defying interpretation of Booker
T and The MGs ‘Meditation’, Willie Williams awe-inspiring versioning of the Skatalites seminal Rastafari anthem Addis Ababa and many, many more.
 This album has been fully digitally remastered, analog cut and packaged complete with the following: Original sleevenotes by Lloyd Bradley (author of When Reggae Was King),
compiled by Mark Ainley (Hones Jons), high-quality Soul Jazz mastering, wicked images of Count Ossie and the Mystic Revelation of Rastafari on the cover, and a rare image of Clement Dodd and musicians inside the studio at Studio One on the full colour inner
sleeves.
 “The music of this compilation is of a rare, rare beauty and is essential to anyone's reggae collection” All Music

Extremely sought after and supported by the likes of DERRICK MAY, TIMMY REGISFORD, THEO PARRISH, DANNY KRIVIT and BOO WILLIAMS, the next SJU MUZIC release GU'S JAZ COLLECTIVE's "AFRO GENTE" and "FUEGO DE SANGRE" are 2 powerful percussive modern Latin fusion classics!

Our third release and first vinyl release is the EP ‘Hell’ from the french producer and live performer OKKOTO.

Producing for more than 10 years, he already has a solid reputation on the hardcore scene with his duo Iridium both for their releases (The Third Movement/Heresy) and live performances (X-Massacre,
Hardkase, Heresy, Konkoly Open Air…)


For his solo project, he delivers a powerful industrial hardtechno with hardcore and metal influences.

The EP includes two remixes by Métaraph and 6EJOU.

Georgia Claire Flipo, known professionally as G Flip and informally referred to as G, is an Australian singer, songwriter, producer, drummer, and musician from Melbourne, Victoria. 'Originally a session drummer by trade, their music starts from the drums up. Lyrically, G Flip writes of relationships, heartbreak, and acceptance. Authentic, relatable, and always energetic, G Flip is a bonafide powerhouse. “When I was searching for an idol as a kid I couldn’t find someone that resonated with me. All the females on the screen were sexy or sexualised. I struggled with my sexual identity and gender identity for years and years because there wasn’t representation for me when I was younger. “The singer, songwriter and drummers second album is a booming, big-hearted record guided by raw feeling and the instrument that started it all for them…. What’s most striking about ‘DRUMMER’ is how Flipo wields the sheer visceral power of drumming”. – NME.

KNMDK records proudly presents Urban Art Orchestra, a powerful and lush sonic experience that celebrates the music and culture of Detroit, the Renaissance City.

As a continuation of Volume 1, Volume 2 keeps that same energy of celebration with arrangements and originals that represent the legacy of Detroit while pointing towards the future of what is to come. This project was produced, arranged, and conducted by 2x Grammy nominated composer De‘Sean Jones.

"SUPERCALIDEEPSTATE encapsulates the transformative power of music born from deep introspection and a heightened state of consciousness. Composed over the course of may and june 2022 in the heart of an Iraq base camp. These four tracks emerged as a result of intense meditation sessions, fueled by inspiration and a profound connection to inner peace.

The creative process was marked by an unshakable sense of flow, as if the music itself were a channel for the artist's heightened awareness.

The resulting tracks are a mesmerizing blend of ambient, experimental, and electronic sounds. Each composition is an invitation to explore altered states of consciousness, with the music serving as a portal to uncharted territories of the mind. The album offers a glimpse into Andrea's inner world, where sound, inspiration, and introspection create a deeply moving and spiritually enriching musical journey."

Vinyl Pressing by AFG Media Company.
Produced and mixed by Andrea Carolini.
Mastered by MaSpaventi Studio.
Graphic Project by Studio Natale.

Analogue Productions (Atlantic 75 Series) Celebrating the 75th Anniversary of Atlantic Records! 180-gram 45 RPM double LP Mastered by Bernie Grundman from the original analog tape Contains Otis Redding's posthumous hit "Sittin' On the Dock Of the Bay" Appeared on Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time, rated 161/500! Pressed at Quality Record Pressings Gatefold old-style "tip-on" jacket by Stoughton Printing Hybrid Mono SACD Mastered directly from the original master tape by Bernie Grundman The guts of the story are this: While on tour with the Bar-Kays in August 1967, Otis Redding's popularity was rising, and he was inundated with fans at his hotel in downtown San Francisco. Looking for a retreat, he accepted rock concert impresario Bill Graham's offer to stay at his houseboat at Waldo Point in Sausalito, California. Inspired, Redding started writing the lines, "Sittin' in the morning sun, I'll be sittin' when the evening comes" and the first verse of a song, under the abbreviated title "Dock of the Bay." He had completed his famed performance at the Monterey Pop Festival just weeks earlier. While touring in support of the albums King & Queen (a collaboration with female vocalist Carla Thomas) and Live in Europe, he continued to scribble lines of the song on napkins and hotel paper. In November of that year, he joined producer and esteemed soul guitarist Steve Cropper at the Stax recording studio in Memphis, Tennessee, to record the song. Cropper remembers: "Otis was one of those the kind of guy who had 100 ideas. ... He had been in San Francisco doing The Fillmore. And the story that I got he was renting boathouse or stayed at a boathouse or something and that's where he got the idea of the ships coming in the bay there. And that's about all he had: 'I watch the ships come in and I watch them roll away again.' I just took that... and I finished the lyrics. If you listen to the songs I collaborated with Otis, most of the lyrics are about him. ... Otis didn't really write about himself but I did. Songs like 'Mr. Pitiful,' 'Fa-Fa-Fa-Fa-Fa (Sad Song)'; they were about Otis and Otis' life. 'Dock of the Bay' was exactly that: 'I left my home in Georgia, headed for the Frisco Bay' was all about him going out to San Francisco to perform." Redding and Cropper completed the song in Memphis on Dec 7, 1967 with tragedy, unknowingly, looming. Just two days later Redding lost his life on a routine commute to a performance when the small plane he was in crashed. The other victims of the disaster were four members of the Bar-Kays — guitarist Jimmy King, tenor saxophonist Phalon Jones, organist Ronnie Caldwell, and drummer Carl Cunningham; their valet, Matthew Kelly and pilot Fraser. Cropper and bassist Donald "Duck" Dunn completed the music and melancholic lyrics of "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay' which was taken from the sessions — Redding's final recorded work. Cropper added the distinct sound of seagulls and waves crashing to the background. This is what Redding had wanted to hear on the track according to Cropper who remembered Redding recalling the sounds he heard when he wrote the song on the houseboat. One of the most influential soul singers of the 1960s, Redding exemplified to many listeners the power of Southern "deep soul" — hoarse, gritty vocals, brassy arrangements, and an emotional way with both party tunes and aching ballads. At the time of his tragic death he was 26. ‘(Sittin’ On) The Dock of the Bay’ was released just a month following Redding’s death and became his only ever single to reach number one on the Billboard Hot 100 in January 1968. The album, which shared the song's title, became his largest-selling to date, peaking at No. 4 on the pop albums chart. "Dock of the Bay" was popular in countries across the world and became Redding's most successful record, selling more than 4 million copies worldwide. The song went on to win two Grammy Awards: Best R&B Song and Best Male R&B Vocal Performance. With the album, Redding confirmed himself as a talent lost far too soon. All the hallmarks of a top-notch Analogue Productions reissue are here for you to savor: Mastered directly from the original master tape by Bernie Grundman and cut at 45 RPM. Pressed on 180-gram vinyl at Quality Record Pressings, and housed in tip-on old style gatefold double pocket jackets with film lamination by Stoughton Printing.

FOLLOWING THEIR RECENT REUNION, THE DELGADOS REISSUE THEIR FOURTH STUDIO ALBUM HATE ON COLOURED VINYL AND CD TO MARK ITS 21st ANNIVERSARY

Ushering in a new era of emotionally vulnerable and cinematic songwriting for celebrated Glasgow group The Delgados, 2002’s Hate is the group’s most ambitious recorded statement to date. Recorded amidst a backdrop of personal change and international crisis, Hate’s internal alchemy transmogrifies darkness into light. It’s an enclosed universe full of tragedy and magic, a swirling galaxy of lush orchestration, misanthropy dealt with kindness and black humour. Above all it showed a band coming to terms with their fragility with a new power and grace.

In Hate, the band’s ambition saw them striving to reflect the breadth of human experience, both the joy and tragedy of living in tumultuous times. Initially commissioned by The Barbican in London to compose music for a film about artist Joe Coleman, the instrumental music that instigated Hate was laden with darkness from the outset. The Delgados’ worldview has always been informed by nuance, an oblique but incisive lyrical perspective but on Hate a new rawness is woven throughout the songs. Coleman’s original subject matter - portraits of troubled historical figures like Ed Gein, Mary Bell and Jayne Mansfield - influenced the tonality of the music but the songs were written against a backdrop of international tumult and personal life changes for the band members. Beginning writing sessions following a family bereavement in drummer Paul Savage’s family, Hate was then recorded while both Alun Woodward and co-singer/guitarist Emma Pollock were expecting new additions to their young families, the latter with drummer Paul Savage. In the background to the recording process were the attacks on the World Trade Center of September 2001 and their aftermath. In this context, it’s remarkable that an album was made at all, let alone one so grand and compassionate. It’s a masterclass in restraint and imagination.

Hate sounds like the world in all its ugly glory. Recorded in Glasgow and New York with Tony Doogan, Dave Fridmann and the band as producers and using over 20 additional musicians, Hate grabs the baton from the group’s breakthrough critical and commercial success The Great Eastern. Bolder, broader and more all-encompassing than anything the band had previously attempted, the album’s palette is furnished by a string section, brass and reed instrumentation, a choir and electronic elements augmenting the core group of Emma Pollock, Alun Woodward, Paul Savage and Stewart Henderson. Far from being over the top, the group’s skill is in attention to detail, in honing and refining each arrangement, allowing each element its space.

It’s a fine balancing act that pays massive dividends. Woodward’s new lyrical vulnerability is spotlighted on tracks like The Drowning Years, which throws elegiac string arrangements against the narrative of characters living in darkness, punctuated by couplets that bring a real-life documentary feel to the narrative. All Rise brings a black comedy to the idea of a confessional before a transcendent, choir-led refrain brings ecstatic resolution to Woodward’s vocal in its highest register. On the single All You Need Is Hate, Woodward’s trick of subverting the Beatles standard showcases the dark humour at the centre of Hate. Here The Delgados’ perversity is in full flow, nurturing a glowing light from darkness, the resolving melody and Fridmann production recalling contemporaries The Flaming Lips (whose Michael Ivins assisted in mixing) or Mercury Rev. The perversity is the surging serotonin induced by the group while singing the lines “Hate is everywhere, inside your mother’s heart and you will find it there. You ask me what you need? Hate is all you need.”

It’s a dark magic that pervades Hate, indeed it’s almost the driving force throughout the album. Flipping minor to major and back again, Favours is fuelled by fear and violence before blasting into the heavens with the gauche line “and you’re feeling fine,” operating in stark contrast to the verses’ tone. Album opener The Light Before We Land finds Emma Pollock in the aftermath of recent family trauma. Her vocal is effortless; a study in steady restraint against the massive, Fridmann-patented drum sound powering Savage’s playing and Henderson’s instantly recognisable melodic basslines. Coming In from the Cold is Pollock in full flight, lifted to the heavens by wide-screen, instrumental texture. Her presence on Hate highlights her knack for lyrical impressionism, the timbre of her voice lending itself to drama while always retaining a mystique. Never Look At The Sun, inspired by the Coleman painting The Big Bang Theory (itself an explosives-themed study), revels in paranoia, her performance ringing out in the eye of the storm conjured by the swirling arrangements. It reaches the peak of a redemptive arc while seemingly parodying the very idea of redemption.

Hate was the sound of The Delgados completely fulfilling their potential, a fully realised vision buoyed by the weight of coming through a darkness into light. For its 21st anniversary, the album is being reissued on the band’s own Chemikal Underground on coloured vinyl and CD. Hate is all you need

Very limited vinyl pressing, 500 copies, housed in a full colour sleeve & printed inner sleeve & download. CD in a 4 panel digipack with a 4 page lyric booklet. New Heavy Sounds are always on the lookout for new bands that are looking to push the boundaries of what is considered as inhabiting the ‘heavy’ or ‘metal’ spectrum’. Stuff that pricks up the ears, a bold new voice within a maelstrom of genres and sub-genres. We believe we have found such a band. New York-based GUHTS (pronounced ‘guts’) declare themselves to be an ‘avant-garde post-metal project, delivering larger than life sounds through, deeply emotional music’. We are thrilled to be able to deliver that statement in the form of their debut album ‘Regeneration’. By their own admission, GUHTS' musical style is influenced not only by iconic metal bands like Gojira, Cult of Luna, YOB and Deftones, but more unconventional acts like Bjork, Subrosa, Isis, Julie Christmas, and even PJ Harvey. It’s undoubtedly heavy, with a strong feminist streak, it’s cathartic and weighty, a formidable debut for such a new band. Founded in 2020 as a passion project by Scott Prater (Witchkiss), and Amber Burns (Witchkiss) and then Dan Shaneyfelt (Black Mountain Hunger), GUHTS became its members’ main focus following the release of their first EP 'Blood Feather' which itself received rave reviews from the likes of Decibel Magazine, Invisible Oranges, The Obelisk, Cvlt Nation, and more. Brian Clemens Sleaping Dreaming) & Daniel Martinez (Nefariant) joined GUHTS in 2022 and the band swiftly started booking tours and making plans to record 'Regeneration'. Since then GUHTS have been steadily making a name for themselves with their powerful live performances., sharing stages with the likes of Yob, Cave in, Marissa Nadler, plus appearances at the Maryland Doom Fest, Crucial Fest and Ohio Doomed and Stoned Fest. ‘Regeneration’ is set to cement their status as one of the coolest and most interesting bands on the scene. Of the album, vocalist Amber says. "Regeneration" symbolizes the power of self-renewal, often overlooked. Embracing it means shedding old layers and welcoming new beginnings. Without this, life stagnates and is “sustaining”. Through regeneration, change becomes empowering, allowing new facets to emerge. It's a courageous, transformative process, inspiring others to overcome fear and embrace change. The album embodies the human spirit's resilience and capacity for growth. Musically ‘Regeneration’ is a powerful and intense series of songs, topped off by some seriously powerhouse and expressive vocal performances. It’s slow-moving chords, moving like sheets through sludge. High guitar lines above, ranging from piercing and shimmering to nasty. Drums pound but not without groove. There are strings, pianos and synths widening the palette. Atmospheric sludge, Metalgaze, maybe, but there’s also that link to the New York Noise lineage from The Velvets and Sonic Youth, becoming a type of post-hardcore in the process, while gaining a connection to metal partly due to the sheer heaviness. A raft of creative experimentation that pushes beyond the realm of post-metal. And then of course, the very first thing that hits you is Amber Gardner's unbelievable, hypnotising vocals - as scary as a banshee while also intimate and persuasive. Amber means it for sure and almost dominates the proceedings. Her lyrics are eclectic, thoughtful. Immersed in women's narratives frombooks like "Women Who Run With the Wolves" or works like "On Our Best Behavior" by Elise Loehnen. Amber advocates stepping beyond comfort zones, believing it's transformative for individuals and vital for Earth's future. Hokey occult rock it is not. In short ‘Regeneration’ is a bold and startling debut, that will reward and enthral listeners the deeper they delve into its many layers.

Repress!

After the roaring success of the Gallery’s launch, stand back, take a swig of that free champers and admire the 2nd exhibition of Art masterpieces to grace these walls.

Exhibit A - an intergalactic acid workout, heavy on the synths and delicately finished with a masterstroke of alluring vocals.

Exhibit B – another rare work of art, restored and rejuvenated, cosmic credentials in check. An extensive palate of pulsating arps and blistering bass mixed with stratospheric keys and a powerful Italo vocal that’s had collectors the world over baying to put in a bid.


Both exhibits are now up for auction. Bid big!

Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark (OMD) return with their 14th studio album Bauhaus Staircase, over six years after the triumph of their Top 4-charting record The Punishment of Luxury. The album was born from the impetus to kickstart new explorations during lockdown when as Andy McCluskey admits: “I rediscovered the creative power of total boredom.”

The album’s first offering as a single is the title track which serves as a nod both to Andy McCluskey’s love of the Bauhaus era & the power of protest art. “I am a huge lover of visual arts especially mid 20th century movements” Andy comments. “The song is a metaphor for strength and artist passion in the face of criticism and adversity. When times are hard there is a tendency for Governments to look at cutting funding for creativity just at the moment when the arts are most needed to nourish our souls. It seems appropriate that the song and its eponymous album were created during Covid Lockdown.”

Ranging further from the beautiful film noir ballad of ‘Veruschka’ and the dance stylings of ‘Anthropocene’ - a term for the current epoch in Earth’s evolution to the sinister ‘Evolution Of Species’ and the hectic ‘Kleptocracy’ - OMD’s greatest straight-up protest song - the new album is a broad electronic sonic masterpiece that lyrically tackles the topics of the future. The record closes on ‘Healing’ - a moment of reflective calm.

By rights OMD should be in semi-retirement performing classics like Enola Gay and Maid Of Orleans on the nostalgia festival circuit like so many peers. Instead they’ve created a landmark album worthy of their finest work. Bauhaus Staircase remains unmistakably the work of a duo who are still perfectly in sync 45 years after their first gig at legendary Liverpool club Eric’s.


“I’m very happy with what we’ve done on this record" McCluskey summarises. “I’m comfortable if this is OMD’s last statement.”

Platz 2 Powermetal SOUNDCHECK 01/24
Die aus Brisbane stammende Band Caligula's Horse hat sich seit ihrer Gründung im Jahr 2011 zu einer der führenden Progressive-Metal-Bands der Welt entwickelt. Mit Charcoal Grace, ihrem 6. Studioalbum, kehrt die Gruppe mit einer Kombination aus roher Rock-Power und immenser emotionaler Tiefe zurück. Charcoal Grace ist aus der statischen Hoffnungslosigkeit geboren, die die Pandemie der Band und einem Großteil der Welt in den letzten Jahren aufgezwungen hat. Es ist ein Album, das mit den Erfahrungen und Ergebnissen dieser Zeit abrechnet und letztlich auf eine Katharsis abzielt - auf eine hoffnungsvollere Zukunft. Der Titel Charcoal Grace wird von der Band als "die düstere Anziehungskraft und seltsame Schönheit von Stille, Schweigen und Verlust" beschrieben. Das kann man im 10-minütigen Eröffnungstrack "The World Breathes With Me" hören, einem Mission Statement für die Hauptthemen des Albums. Musikalisch ist es ein Werk der Kontraste, das sich von der leichtesten Ebbe bis zum schwersten Fluss bewegt. Der zweite Track und die erste Singleauskopplung des Albums, "Golem", befasst sich mit dem Kampf mit der Last der Erwartung durch die Pandemie. Es ist ein schwerer Song mit Schwerpunkt auf Riffs und treibenden Rhythmen. Im Mittelpunkt des Albums steht die vierteilige Suite des Titeltracks, ein 24-minütiges Werk, das die grundlegenden Themen des Albums vertieft: Verbindung, Entfremdung und die Art und Weise, wie die Menschheit unter Zwang handelt. Musikalisch deckt es alle Facetten des Vokabulars der Band ab, von schwerer und dichter, orchestral begleiteter Intensität, die die dunkelsten lyrischen Ideen der Songs verkörpert, bis hin zu sanften, akustisch geprägten Momenten und Introspektion. Nachdem Caligula's Horse in den letzten Jahren nicht in der Lage waren, ihr letztes Album Rise Radiant der Welt zu präsentieren, sind sie nun bereit, Charcoal Grace auf schonungslose Art und Weise unter die Leute zu bringen. Mit diesem Album hat Caligula's Horse ein Statement abgegeben, und sie sind bereit, dass die Welt zuhört. Charcoal Grace ist erhältlich als Gatefold 180g 2LP

Thrash, Prog, Power, Black, Death, reiner Heavy Metal und alles, was das Metalherz begehrt, in einem Album vereint- das ist MANTICORA. Die Band,
die 1997 (seit dem wurden neun Alben veröffentlicht) als Power-Metal-Band anfing, hat sich entwickelt und dabei ihren eigenen, einzigartigen Stil des
Heavy Metal kreiert. Sie vereinen in sich alles, was man als echter Metal-Fan hören möchte. Willkommen bei "Mycelium".Nach ihrem grandiosem,
von der Kritik gefeierten, Zwei-Alben-Konzept von 2018/2020, plus einem 334-seitigen Roman (geschrieben vom Sänger der Band, Lars F. Larsen), auf
dem die Alben basierten, haben die Dänen ein wenig heruntergeschraubt und ein weiteres majestätisches Konzeptalbum geschrieben. Dieses Mal mit
einer Gesamtlaufzeit von "nur" 48 Minuten."Mycelium" ist weniger symphonisch und schlägt einen wütenderen, raueren Weg ein, bei dem die
Aggression im Mittelpunkt steht. Manticora hat ein echtes DIY-Album geschaffen, bei dem der einzige äußere Einfluss das Mastern war (das von Jacob
Hansen in den Hansen Studios durchgeführt wurde). Alles andere wurde von der Band selbst produziert. Vom Konzept über die Texte, die Musik, die
Produktion bis hin zum Artwork - Manticora hat alles selbst gemacht. High-Octane-Metal, der nur für Hartgesottene zu empfehlen ist.

The MENZINGERS are an absolute institution. The Philadelphia punk legends’ multi-decade reputation as road warriors with an unbeatable catalog is cemented as hard truth—and their seventh album, Some Of It Was True , stands as their most immediate-sounding and energetic record to date. The follow-up to 2019’s sensational Hello Exile accomplishes the daunting task of capturing The MENZINGERS’ distinctive live energy in the confines of the studio, resulting in a sound that’s both rich, raw, and complementary to the group’s increasingly prismatic songwriting approach. More than 15 years in, the MENZINGERS are still holding their listeners square in the immediate present, and Some Of It Was True documents that power in thrilling fashion. “We wanted to make a fun record and write songs that we wanted to play live, and that’s exactly what we did,” co-vocalist/guitarist Greg Barnett says “We’ve always said that we want every album to sound live, but we never recorded an album live before. This was the first time we committed to that idea. We wanted to sound like how our band sounds onstage.” Making the process easier: Grammy-nominated producer Brad Cook (Bon Iver, the War on Drugs, Waxahatchee), who joined The MENZINGERS in El Paso’s legendary Sonic Ranch studios and lent his incredible ear for raw, immediate sound to help the band achieve Some Of It Was True‘s in-the-room live feel. “ T H E M E N Z I N G E R S are as real as it gets,” Cook says on his time in the studio with the band. “I had an absolute blast working with these guys and was moved to tears many times. They are truly dedicated to artistic growth, and to each other, in ways I found both refreshing and beautiful. I am now a lifer.”

The MENZINGERS are an absolute institution. The Philadelphia punk legends’ multi-decade reputation as road warriors with an unbeatable catalog is cemented as hard truth—and their seventh album, Some Of It Was True , stands as their most immediate-sounding and energetic record to date. The follow-up to 2019’s sensational Hello Exile accomplishes the daunting task of capturing The MENZINGERS’ distinctive live energy in the confines of the studio, resulting in a sound that’s both rich, raw, and complementary to the group’s increasingly prismatic songwriting approach. More than 15 years in, the MENZINGERS are still holding their listeners square in the immediate present, and Some Of It Was True documents that power in thrilling fashion. “We wanted to make a fun record and write songs that we wanted to play live, and that’s exactly what we did,” co-vocalist/guitarist Greg Barnett says “We’ve always said that we want every album to sound live, but we never recorded an album live before. This was the first time we committed to that idea. We wanted to sound like how our band sounds onstage.” Making the process easier: Grammy-nominated producer Brad Cook (Bon Iver, the War on Drugs, Waxahatchee), who joined The MENZINGERS in El Paso’s legendary Sonic Ranch studios and lent his incredible ear for raw, immediate sound to help the band achieve Some Of It Was True‘s in-the-room live feel. “ T H E M E N Z I N G E R S are as real as it gets,” Cook says on his time in the studio with the band. “I had an absolute blast working with these guys and was moved to tears many times. They are truly dedicated to artistic growth, and to each other, in ways I found both refreshing and beautiful. I am now a lifer.”

Today, less than two months following the final tour date of their As Long As You Are tour, Future Islands announce the details of their new album People Who Aren"t There Anymore which will be released January 26, 2024. The seventh album from the band - Samuel T. Herring (vocals, lyrics), William Cashion (bass, guitars), Gerrit Welmers (keyboards, programming), and Michael Lowry (drums) - follows 2020"s As Long As You Are. People Who Aren"t There Anymore heralds a new chapter for Future Islands who, despite having formed nearly two decades ago, continue to challenge themselves and each other. Where they"ve pursued ever-higher energy anthems in the past, they"ve turned inward this time, and unlocked a new level of ferocity, delivering some of their most inspiring and most heartbreaking tracks by doing the opposite: taking their time, making each breath, each syllable, each cymbal crash count. The result is a powerful, defining statement from a group of musicians that have made the best album of their career. People Who Aren"t There Anymore was co-produced by Future Islands and Steve Wright, and mixed by Steve Wright and Chris Coady (who returns to working with the band for the first time since 2014"s Singles).

Today, less than two months following the final tour date of their As Long As You Are tour, Future Islands announce the details of their new album People Who Aren"t There Anymore which will be released January 26, 2024. The seventh album from the band - Samuel T. Herring (vocals, lyrics), William Cashion (bass, guitars), Gerrit Welmers (keyboards, programming), and Michael Lowry (drums) - follows 2020"s As Long As You Are. People Who Aren"t There Anymore heralds a new chapter for Future Islands who, despite having formed nearly two decades ago, continue to challenge themselves and each other. Where they"ve pursued ever-higher energy anthems in the past, they"ve turned inward this time, and unlocked a new level of ferocity, delivering some of their most inspiring and most heartbreaking tracks by doing the opposite: taking their time, making each breath, each syllable, each cymbal crash count. The result is a powerful, defining statement from a group of musicians that have made the best album of their career. People Who Aren"t There Anymore was co-produced by Future Islands and Steve Wright, and mixed by Steve Wright and Chris Coady (who returns to working with the band for the first time since 2014"s Singles).

Tschechiens berühmt-maskierte Modern-Metal-Band veröffentlicht ihr neues Album "Five Angry Men". Der Name ist Programm! Tschechiens berühmt-maskierte Modern-Metal-Band veröffentlicht ihr neues Album "Five Angry Men". Der Name ist Programm! Dieses brutale Meisterwerk überrollt einen wie eine Dampfwalze und reiht sich in die Riege von Five Finger Death Punch, Disturbed und Stone Sour ein! Während DYMYTRY in den letzten Jahren mehrere Alben auf Tschechisch veröffentlicht haben, ist "Five Angry Men" ihr zweites Album mit englischen Texten und gleichzeitig Teil ihres Weges sich auf dem internationalen Markt zu etablieren. Produziert und gemixt wurde die Platte von Kristian "Kohl" Kohlmannslehner, der auch internationale Metal-Bands wie Powerwolf, Hämatom, Crematory oder Benighted produziert. Verpasse nicht deine Chance und schnappe dir das“ neue Album Five Angry Men" als limitierte Splatter-Vinyl, CD-Digipak oder digitale Version, welches am 26. Januar 2024 erscheint!

After Releasing Amazing Music on Labels Such as Skylax, Amsem, Kitsune or Hard Fist, Through an Exploration of a Wide Range of Electronic Sounds, Joe Lewandoski Delivers a New Ep Full of His Eclecticism and Sharpness. We Are Very Happy at Friendsome Records to Join Force With Him to Deliver a Beautiful 4 Tracker That Will Make You Travel ! This Ep Is the Perfect Demonstration of Joe’s Ambivalence as a Producer. That’s Why We Divided It in Two Distinct Sides, Clair & Obscur, Reflecting on Side One a Club Driven Housy and Acid Vibe to Make Dancefloors Sweat. Cosmic & Acid Nap Are Two Tracks Driven by Lewandowski’s Capacity to Get Things Straight Forward, Bangy and Dreamy, Made for a Pictime Crowd. on Side Two Where Joe Explores a More Dark and Intimate Approach to His Music, as Well as Where He Comes From, You Will Find Nick and Play the Game. They Are Much More Dark Disco and Rock Inspired, Full of Heavy Basses and Guitar Riffs, Perfect to Get to the Bottom of It !...

The first remix EP of Noema's new album, ONE, contains five exciting tracks reimagined by rising producers Kalabrese, Lauer, Mehmet Aslan, Panthera Krause, and Shubostar. Noema's ONE is a comprehensive art piece that includes music, remixes, interactive performance installations, videos, costumes, and choreography. In ONE, Noema tells the story of his interdimensional space explorations, in which he manifests as four different entities. Because of the energetic state of humanity, these entities became trapped in our dimension and now put on performances to re-power their portal, so that we can all be interdimensional again! During the performances five actors invite up to 120 people from the audience to join the action. Sun Ra meets Steve Reich meets Larry Levan - imagine it as a "happening" from the 70s.

Frank Carter & The Rattlesnakes kehren mit ihrem fünften Studioalbum "Dark Rainbow" zurück
Die Rattlesnakes haben sich einen Namen gemacht für rasante Hymnen, die sowohl dem grüblerischen Wüstenrock als auch dem Hardcore und
Power-Pop zu verdanken sind. Sie definieren den Punk-Rock neu, mit einem Sound, der Epochen und Genres überspannt und The Rattlesnakes in eine
ganz eigene Kategorie katapultiert, während sie gleichzeitig müde Klischees herausfordern und die Welt zurechtrücken.

'Why Black Man Dey Suffer', aufgenommen 1971, wurde von Fela Kuti's damaligen Label EMI ursprünglich als zu kontrovers für eine Veröffentlichung angesehen. Geprägt von der amerikanischen Black-Power-Bewegung und einer neuen panafrikanischen Weltsicht, diente dieses Album Fela als musikalisches Vehikel, um die kolonialen Ungerechtigkeiten und die Korruption der herrschenden Eliten seiner Zeit aufzudecken und herauszufordern.

Der Titelsong "Why Black Man Dey Suffer" ist eine Geschichtsstunde über die Unterdrückung des afrikanischen Menschen. Er beschreibt die Litanei des Missbrauchs, den Schwarze erlitten haben - von der Versklavung bis hin zur Auferlegung einer neuen Kultur durch ein fremdes Volk, das ihnen ihr Land wegnahm, sie bekämpfte und sie gegeneinander aufbrachte.

Der folgende Track, 'Ikoyi Mentality', bringt Felas Identifikation mit den unterdrückten Massen und seine Ablehnung der Lebensweise der herrschenden Klasse im Stadtteil Ikoyi in Lagos deutlich zum Ausdruck.

'Why Black Man Dey Suffer' ist Teil des von Chris Martin und Femi Kuti zusammengestellten Box Sets #5 und ist jetzt endlich auch einzeln erhältlich auf transparent gelbem Vinyl. Inkl. einer bedruckten Innenhülle.

Geneva-based duo Bound By Endogamy delivers a heavy blend of rave, synth-punk, and industrial music. Shlomo Balexert and Kleio Thomaïdes are both prominent figures in the local squat and punk scene, having been involved in numerous projects over the past decade.

Following several cassette releases and a remarkable debut 7'' on Lux Records, the band presents a self-titled album that combines raw, growling basslines, crisp analog rhythms, and passionate vocals ranging from breathy to fiercely cutting.

On stage, the project consists of drums, a sampler, and vocals. Shlomo handles the drums alongside sharp synthesizers, while Kleio delivers powerful vocals reminiscent of a professional boxer. Expect a fusion of DAF and Kleenex with a hardcore edge

'Why Black Man Dey Suffer', aufgenommen 1971, wurde von Fela Kuti's damaligen Label EMI ursprünglich als zu kontrovers für eine Veröffentlichung angesehen. Geprägt von der amerikanischen Black-Power-Bewegung und einer neuen panafrikanischen Weltsicht, diente dieses Album Fela als musikalisches Vehikel, um die kolonialen Ungerechtigkeiten und die Korruption der herrschenden Eliten seiner Zeit aufzudecken und herauszufordern.

Der Titelsong "Why Black Man Dey Suffer" ist eine Geschichtsstunde über die Unterdrückung des afrikanischen Menschen. Er beschreibt die Litanei des Missbrauchs, den Schwarze erlitten haben - von der Versklavung bis hin zur Auferlegung einer neuen Kultur durch ein fremdes Volk, das ihnen ihr Land wegnahm, sie bekämpfte und sie gegeneinander aufbrachte.

Der folgende Track, 'Ikoyi Mentality', bringt Felas Identifikation mit den unterdrückten Massen und seine Ablehnung der Lebensweise der herrschenden Klasse im Stadtteil Ikoyi in Lagos deutlich zum Ausdruck.

'Why Black Man Dey Suffer' ist Teil des von Chris Martin und Femi Kuti zusammengestellten Box Sets #5 und ist jetzt endlich auch einzeln erhältlich auf transparent gelbem Vinyl. Inkl. einer bedruckten Innenhülle.

"Cross My Heart" is a tribute to the harmonica player and singer James Cotton, one of Boney Fields" heroes and companions on the road, is certainly the most representative track of this thrilling groove mood that authentic blues musicians know how to infuse. Boney Fields possesses that almost funk tone matured enough to tickle our ears and make us tap our feet. By revitalizing, for example, "The Thrill Is Gone" in the spirit of its original author (Roy Hawkins), Boney Fields perpetuates the tradition of spirited orchestras of yesteryears without compromising the modernity of its irresistible tempo. Much more personal than all his previous albums, "Just Give Me Some Mo" is also the expression of introspection, that of a man who remembers without drowning in dark nostalgia. He thinks of the courage of his mother bravely facing obstacles in an unequal America. "Back in the Day" is not a sad song. It makes one stronger and nurtures faith in the future. This melody is certainly the most touching of the six compositions written by Boney Fields. From "Control of you" to "Something" holding me" or "I know yes I Know" he invites us into his intimate biography, the story of a large family shaken by inevitable upheavals that must be faced, the destiny of a combative musician who resists adversity. Boney Fields chose to let his soul speak. This effort of truth had to be supported by the artistic direction of a master. By enlisting Sebastian Danchin for the production of this album, Boney Fields turns to a historian of African-American culture whose keen ear has already won over Little Milton, Mighty Mo Rodgers, Toni Green, and Jean-Jacques Milteau, among others... Their exchanges uncovered a perfect understanding of "Chicago Blues" the brassy vigor of which they experienced firsthand 40 years ago. Surrounding oneself with the right people is quite a challenge. Fortunately, Boney Fields knows how to spot true talents. He was convinced that the Senegalese guitarist Hervé Samb would also be a good musical director. Hadn"t he been the first to highlight the expressive power of this luminous composer and arranger? The enduring vitality of the blues, when narrated with precision and insight, always manages to find its legitimacy. The months of reflection, of questioning, will not have been in vain. They have given substance and depth to this thrilling record which, we wager, will be a milestone. Boney Fields has waited long enough. Does he want more? We will give him more! "Just Give Me Some Mo" will now be a shared leitmotif, that of an insatiable conductor and that of enlightened admirers.

The most political music is often the most explicit, battering its audience with its beliefs. But that isn't always the case; sometimes it embeds its ideas in subtler, more successful ways. Take The Hotelier (previously The Hotel Year), whose second full-length Home, Like Noplace Is There is comprised of what can only be described as anthemic, cathartic rock songs, sent occasionally to delicate and destructive extremes. Singer Christian Holden pushes his clean voice until it crumbles, on "The Scope of All of This Rebuilding" against a strutting pace, and on the furious "Life in Drag", but most powerfully during the chorus of "Your Deep Rest" where his words are heart-wrenching and haunting. As drummer Sam Frederick stamps out an enormous beat and chords - strummed by Cody Millet, Scott Ayotte, and Chris Hoffman - clamor around him, Holden sings, "I called in sick from your funeral / tradition of closure made it feel impossible... / I should have never kept my word to you / Not a cry not a sound / Might've learned how to swim but never taught how to drown /You said remember me for me, I need to set my spirit free." By making political statements through personal explorations, The Hotelier has not only make a uniquely political record, but also a subtler, more successful one.

"Flower power psych pop that’ll blow you away! Exploring the jangly folk and garage sounds of the late ‘60s, the Superfine Dandelion picks a wide variety of colorful folk, country and jug band influences and puts a psychedelic tint on their all-original compositions. Our favored stereo mix, pressed on blue vinyl!

Formed in 1967, this Phoenix, AZ band would only last for a year before parting ways, leaving behind just one album – a fate many Mainstream artists ultimately faced, no matter how quality their style and sound was. The Superfine Dandelion features Mike McFadden (formerly of the garage rockin’ Mile Ends) and Rick Anderson (founding member of the Tubes) showcasing the sound of the Summer of Love – kaleidoscopic, sunny & groovy!

“While the cheeriest cuts have the sunny folk-pop/rock feel of, say, some of the L.A. folk-rock issued by the Dunhill label (‘Don't Try to Call Me’ recalls P.F. Sloan) or the Monkees, their self-titled LP had a good deal of sub-Jefferson Airplane folk-psych-rock, with plenty of minor chords, harmonies, and wistful lyrics. Then ‘Janie's Tomb’ and ‘It's Raining’ have a jokey jug band vibe, like a cross between the Charlatans and the Lovin' Spoonful.” – Richie Unterberger (AllMusic)"

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"Known for their unique blend of punk rock, post-punk, folk, alternative rock and all kinds of musical sub-cultures, New Model Army refuses to belong to any club or style. Formed in Bradford in 1980, the band's lineup has changed over the years, with Justin Sullivan being the constant and central figure. They have released numerous albums and continue to tour and record music, maintaining a dedicated fanbase. Their music often addresses themes related to social and political issues, personal struggles, and the human condition, making them a significant presence in the alternative rock and post-punk music scenes. The 2019 studio album “From Here” ranked # 13 in the UK Album charts, and the 2023 live album “Sinfonia” hit #1 in the UK Music Video-Charts, making it the highest charting album in the band’s history.
Described as ""Dark Motown"" by Justin himself, “Unbroken” features a diverse collection of tracks that touch on topics ranging from social and political commentary to deeply personal reflections. The album is a powerful and emotionally intense body of work ranging from rebellious tracks as “I Did Nothing Wrong”, to contemplative songs like “First Summer After”. With this album, the band continues to push the boundaries of their signature sound while staying true to the themes that have made them a force to be reckoned with in the music world. “Unbroken” is the first studio album since 2019’s long-player “From Here” and the 16th studio album of the band. It will is available in as a CD Hardcover Mediabook, Heavyweight Black LP Gatefold"

Negative Time! The new 12" vinyl EP of Xenomorph has a name that suits our global crisis. The best way to face these dark times is through the therapeutic powers of music. This 3-track 12" EP is the harbinger for the upcoming album "Netherverse" in early 2024. Fans of Mark Petrick know what to expect for sure. Goa-trance with a darker twist, but still filled with powerful melodies, unique kicks and psychedelic effects

The opening track, Negative Time, is a musical interpretation of zero point energy creation and quantum physics. Cutting, yet melodic goa-riffs take the listener on a journey backward in time through a mix of darkness leading to a positively melodic final. Danger on the High Seas is a deeper, more straightforward technoish track where light and dark are doing a wonderful mating dance between the crests of the high waves. The song was inspired by the mysterious vanishing of flight-19 in the bermuda triangle. The last track, Lost In An Old Junkyard, is known to the people that bought the Carpe Noctem compilation on Suntrip. But now it is available on vinyl as well as a different mix: the Tow Hook Mix! This track is the most classic Xenomorph track. Alienated tearing effects, mixed with exalted melodies.

Straight from the island of X-Coast, Riviera Records is back -
this time introducing Villa, an emerging duo from Frankfurt.
A side features their fast tribal infused techno killa beats
with ltered disco vocals. To spice things up even more, its
the Get On Up remixes by electro powerhouse DJ Mell G and
XL Traxx (Lag & X-Coast) on the ipside. This music is
meant to be played off of a record!

All true improvisation involves an element of chance: the coming together of a nexus of influences impulses and actions that result in spontaneous creation. Often in the world of jazz these creative sparks blaze briefly in performance, and then disappear as the sonic vibrations fade from the air, but sometimes chance intervenes again, and moments thought to be gone forever can resurface in unexpected ways. As master drummer Jeff Williams sorted through his archive of cassette tapes from his extensive international career, he had no idea that hidden within it would be a recording of a 1991 evening when he joined storied NYC legend David Liebman for a set of spontaneous performances. Reunited together fifteen years after the breakup of their seminal band Lookout Farm in 1976, the two players reaffirmed their deep musical bond with a set of free-flowing exploratory dialogues in front of a receptive audience. Believed lost for many years, these performances can now be experienced again, with all their fearless freshness and pure committed musicianship undimmed by the passage of time.

Jeff Williams has established a formidable reputation as a drummer, composer, educator and bandleader on both sides of the Atlantic. His relationship with Liebman was forged in the exciting, expansive atmosphere of the New York scene in the early 70s: the meeting of Williams, the laid back Midwesterner, and Liebman, the mercurial, quintessential New Yorker, was an inspired coming together of opposites that always made the creative sparks fly. Williams remembers the journey that led to the Bar Room 432 on that 1991 evening:

“Just as I was leaving my home town of Oberlin, Ohio to move to New York City in 1971, I was given David Liebman’s phone number by someone who told me that Dave had started an organisation for jazz musicians there. I knew of Dave, from Ten Wheel Drive and John McLaughin’s My Goals Beyond, but I couldn’t have imagined what a significant role he would play in my musical life. Shortly afterwards, Dave would leave Elvin Jones and Miles Davis to start his own band, with Richie Beirach, Frank Tusa, and myself, (later adding Badal Roy), naming it Lookout Farm. We released two albums on ECM and one on A&M to wide critical acclaim, and toured across Europe, Japan, India and the US.”

“Following the dissolution of Lookout Farm, Dave and I embarked on a short duo tour opening for Gary Burton. That would be the last time the two of us would play until the occasion of this recording, fifteen years later.”

“Fast forward to 1991 when I discovered an attractive bar located on the far West Side of 14th Street in Manhattan. Bar Room 432 would become a six night a week jazz club for a few years, providing me, and many others, with the opportunity to perform our music. Catching wind of this, Dave suggested we do a duo performance there.”

“Luckily, I recorded it.There was no preparation, no set music to be played - we simply improvised, picking up where we’d left off. David’s mastery of the soprano saxophone is in full bloom here, as well as his incredibly resourceful musical mind.”

The performances are revelatory, moving in pure improvisation from clear, songlike melody to furious density, from ambience to pulsing groove, from light into darkness and back again. Cleaned up and remastered by Alex Bonney, the sound of the tape captures the warm, wood-lined ambience of the room, allowing the full power and dynamics of William’s drums and the warmth and fullness of Liebmans’ soprano sax to sing out, engaging the contemporary listener just as it engaged the hip Manhattan crowd thirty three years ago.

MRG223LP is black vinyl in a jacket + printed sleeve + printed insert for full album download. File Under: Alternative. In 2003, everything broke open for Ward with the release of Transfiguration of Vincent. Critically lauded and long beloved, Pitchfork hailed it as an album that “broadcasts timelessness and defies genre constraints,” and Slant placed it on their list of the best albums of the 2000s.

On Transfiguration of Vincent, Ward’s elegant fingerpicking, evocative croon, and heartrending lyricism came into full bloom, casting a spell so powerful that even a song as universal as David Bowie’s “Let’s Dance” felt not only new but irrevocably his.

One of the most cherished albums in the Merge catalog, Transfiguration of Vin- cent is both a great place to begin your love affair with M. Ward and a deep, stunningly realized work that listeners have returned to over and over again for 20 years. Tracklisting: SIDE A. 1 Transfiguration No. 1 2. Vincent O’Brien 3. Sad, Sad Song 4. Undertaker 5. Duet for Guitars No. 3 6. Outta My Head 7. Involuntary. SIDE B. 8. Helicopter 9. Poor Boy, Minor Key 10. Fool Says 11. Get to the Table on Time 12. A Voice at the End of the Line 13. Dead Man 14. Let’s Dance 15. Transfiguration No. 2

Some Female:Pressure right here with the latest NVST release; Silence Itself Is Noise! This is her debut for SSPB delivering a 6 track ep which are a reflection of her adventurous club sets, a well-balanced mix of powerful beats and expansive atmospheres haunted by skittering echoes of the dancefloor. Each track feels like fleeting memories of the club filtered through the human experience - flickering moments illuminated by strobes and shrouded in smoke, laced with the tang of sweat and psychedelics. Opener "Tiny Mistakes Feeling HOT (Hellisnotamyth version)" coalesces from curling vapors into infernal acid lines and rhythmic fragments that evaporate almost as soon as they appear. "The Devil Loves The Detail (Lucifer's Fire Version)" builds into an inescapable pulse amidst frayed synthesizers, pressure building to fever pitch before "The Danger Zone Of GFY (Freedom Version)" opens out into icy, astral synths. "Monster of Business (Style Edition)" shifts closer to the dancefloor with a slinking, syncopated groove, conversations from the smoking area or studio creeping in at the edges, before erupting into the frazzled bounce of "The Goat and the Night." "The Silence Itself is Noise (Nonstop Bass Version)" loops back once again to more cavernous atmospheres, warped bells and strafing melodic flourishes ringing out amidst fizzing distortion and skeletal percussion. Silence Itself is Noise doesn't clamour for attention, it necessitates it. Once again, NVST proves herself unafraid to challenge club orthodoxy, and unwilling to patronize listeners, instead making deft use of tension and release to create genuine moments of surprise and transcendence.

Hard salsa with rocking tropical electric guitar! Príncipe's 1967 debut album, featuring powerful Afro-Latin rhythms like guaguancó and pachanga played with youthful exuberance and originality. Truly unique sound from the dawn of salsa in Venezuela. Príncipe y Su Sexteto, from Caracas, Venezuela, were early pioneers of "salsa con guitarra eléctrica" (salsa with electric guitar), a subset of the salsa genre where the electric guitar is the main melodic rhythm instrument, often taking the spotlight in place of the piano and brass section. They were the perfect combination arriving at the right moment, when salsa spontaneously emerged as a new musical movement coming from working-class youth of the barrios in Caracas. All the compositions are original to the band, and hold up really well more than 50 years later. Though the arrangements and playing are deceptively simple, the effect is both mesmerizing and energizing, like early rock 'n' roll fed through a Caribbean filter. This first time reissue has been remastered directly from the original tapes and licensed from Discomoda. With in-depth liner notes it has also been augmented by three smoking bonus tracks that were never released during Príncipe y Su Sexteto's existence as a band. 180g vinyl.

This is a welcome return to the label for Amazingblaze who released his Can't Stop EP in January this year and his Venture EP in 2022. Since then he has continued to innovate with his heavy-hitting trance, techno and hardstyle influenced sounds. His ever evolving studio skills see him mix up old school influences with new school sound design that is perfect for engaging dance floors. His signature imprint is all over these four new cuts with their mix of big synths, bigger drums and all consuming grooves.

“Believe EP says it itself. All I wanted to say is that you have to believe in yourself”, Amazingblaze says. “This brand new EP contains 4 full-power tracks that definitely goes through your heart. Massive trance synths combined with vocals make it sound really mysterious and groovy. Hope you enjoy it, and believe in yourself.”

Charlotte de Witte adds: “It’s no secret that to me, Amazingblaze is one of the purest talents out there. This guy really understands what music is about and manages to create dancefloor bombs time after time. I’m super proud to have him on board for another EP on KNTXT and to watch him grow and become one of the top level artists out there.”

'Believe' kicks off with intense drum patterns and smart vocal samples that are lit up with bright and electric synths full of euphoric energy. 'Strange Candy' is a bulky and physical mix of clipped techno funk and throwback rave sounds with strobe-like lasers shooting across the face of the track. There is more peak time brilliance in the hard drums and hands-in-the air synth magic of 'It Happened Again' while 'Boyz Makin Noiz' shuts down with twitchy stabs and twisted acid lines and dark vocals appear from the shadows.

Amazingblaze delivers yet another exceptional EP, seamlessly blending forward-thinking techno and trance elements.

Trystero comprises Scottish/Luxembourgish producer Thomas Lea Clarke (aka MR TC) and Low Bat, otherwise known as one half of the formidable duo Jean-Luc. Their debut album, Sfumare e Vedere, was conceived over three days aboard Urban Boat, a 1960s barge transformed into an arts and performance space. Moored along the river just outside of Paris, the duo embarked on a joint residency, discovering their complementary creative energies and a mutual passion for all things strange and psychedelic.

As frontman, Low Bat is a fire-powered poet, his unparalleled stage presence resonating through Trystero's music. The French native and fluent German speaker has a natural flair for languages. For this project, he sings in a combination of Italian and English about love, loss, and class struggle, constructing surreal wordplay about pelicans and puttanesca. Meanwhile, Clarke's drone-lead electronic accompaniment takes its cues from sizzling acid, 1990s snap rhythms, post-punk, krautrock and shoegaze. Firmly rooted in these tripped-out genres, Trystero journeys to entirely new cosmic dimensions.

Attention Banger Alert! Parissior Is a Spanish Dj Producer Who Has Been Producing Countless Tracks for Many Years Now. His Style Could Be Described as a Mix of Dark Disco, Indie Dance, Italo, Trance but Personally We Think It Goes Much Further. He Has a Total Mastery of the Art of Production (Something We Have Rarely Seen), It Looks More Like Sound Design It Sounds So Huge. His Tracks Are Not Just Dj Tools to Be Played but Bangers to Send in Pick Time. It Is Extremely Powerful, We Have Already Verified This During Our Recent Skylax Evenings (Especially for Our Event &Ldquo;série Noire”) and We Can Tell You That the Effect Is Devastating. for Us, He Managed the Perfect Ep, the One That All the Italian Indie Dance Producers, Even the Biggest Names in the Genre, Failed to Create. There's Nothing Cheesy About It, We've Been Listening to His Music Non-Stop Since We Received It, No Weariness in Sight. This Guy Is Monstrous. the 12 Inch Begins With the Brilliant Antennae, Which Is the Perfect Mix of Italo New Wave & Trance, Followed by Canes Venatici Which Could Have Been Created by Daft Punk if They Had Chosen to Be Less Commercial and Put Their Balls on the Table Instead of Hiding Behind Masks. Ceres and Alpha Apodis Follow the Same Line. We Miss Words So Much This Maxi Is Gigantic. a F%c$ing Masterpiece. to Add a Final Touch, Just Note That Many of His Recent Productions Have Been Recently Played a Lot by Pablo Bozzi & Soft Crash at Hör Berlin....

Immerse yourself in the musical universe of ONE PIECE MOVIES - BEST SELECTION! Enjoy over 70 minutes of music from the One Piece films for the first time on vinyl, taking you on a journey through the adventures of the famous Straw Hat crew.

Fully licensed.

Luffy, a mischievous boy, dreams of becoming the king of the pirates by finding the "One Piece", a fabulous and mysterious treasure. But, inadvertently, Luffy one day swallowed a "magical devil fruit" that turned him into a rubber man. Since then, he is able to contort his elastic body in all directions, but he has lost the ability to swim, the height for a pirate! Over the course of ever more incredible adventures and chance encounters, Luffy will gradually compose his crew and multiply friendships with the peoples he discovers, while facing formidable enemies.

Kohei Tanaka worked on the composition and arrangement of this album.

Joseph Omicil, Jr, a.k.a. Jowee Omicil, is a Haitian-Canadian jazz musician. He has worked in the past with artists such as Roy Hargrove, Pharoah Sanders, Tony Allen, Kenny Garrett, Jacob Desvarieux, Glen Ballard, Harold Faustin, Michel Martell, etc. He hosted Quincy Jones' 85th birthday celebration at Montreux Festival. He also starred in the Netflix series The Eddy, produced by Damien Chazelle, and Le temps d'aimer, directed by Katell Quillévéré (Cannes Festival 2023). The Bois- Caïman ceremony was Haiti's first major collective uprising against slavery. On his new album, SpiriTuaL HeaLinG: Bwa KaYimaN FreeDoM SuiTe, Jowee performs his ancestors' revolution in his own way. Joweebroughttogetherallhisinnertubes,soprano,alto,tenor,wood,clarinets, piccolo flute, cornet, that blows, that winds, that rumbles. Thisrecord is an incantation, a therapy, it cleanses the world by drawing onthe fantasized memory of the Haitian revolution. There are FreedomSuites by Sonny Rollins, Max Roach and others. Prayer music, music tobreak the chains in your head and on your wrists, music of black powerandwhitemagic.ForJowee,akidfromMontreal,sonofaHaitianpastor, who sang Jesus in all the tones, and then Michael Jackson, andthen2Pac,wholearnedjazzfromOrnetteColeman,theceremonynecessarilyhasthetasteoffree.Thisrecordisahealinghour-longimprovisation.

The post-garage-punk and psychedelic power pop anomaly Chemtrails return with their upcoming third album - their boldest yet with a more danceable and rhythm-driven style, armed with their trademark fuzzy guitars and playfully sinister melodies. Working with producer Margo Broom (Fat White Family, Goat Girl) this time around, the group has traded in their DIY approach for a more hi-fi studio sound, remaining just as raw and wild as ever, but with a whole new level of focus and intensity.

Good things take time. What’s 17 years? Not even a quarter of Keith Richards! 17 years lay between Heiko Voss’ debut album “Call Me Killer” and the incredible follow-up “3:30 Minutes To Live”, which saw the light of day in 2022 on Michael Mayer’s “other label” IMARA. There are serious voices saying that the 80s were only really complete with the release of this album. Now it took the blink of an eye of a year for the remixes to be finished. And they turned out so well that Michael Mayer from KOMPAKT licensed the “3 Remixes for Heiko Voss” without further ado.

Running back guru GERD JANSON was an early adopter of the album. Highly motivated, he twirls “Follow Your Line” rhythmically somehow in the direction of Kate Bush’s “Running Up That Hill”. How did he do that? Never mind. It grooves like crazy and keeps even larger floors moving.

ADA, the Hamburg grand dame of techno pop, has taken on the in tongue speaking funk banger “Talking Man” and dipped it in fairy dust. The result is probably the most sensational, soulful club track ever. Honestly.

The package is rounded off with a powerful Dub Version of “Follow Your Line” by the IMARA and KOMPAKT boss himself. Because he can do it.

Open your heart, let the remixes in.

Gut Ding will Weile haben. Was sind schon 17 Jahre? Nicht mal ein Viertel Keith Richards! 17 Jahre lagen zwischen Heiko Voss’ Debutalbum “Call Me Killer” und dem unglaublichen Nachfolger “3:30 Minutes To Live”, der 2022 auf Michael Mayers “anderem Label” IMARA das Licht derWelt erblickte. Es gibt ernstzunehmende Stimmen, die besagen, dass die 80er Jahre eigentlich erst mit der Veröffentlichung dieses Albums vollendet waren. Nun hat es einen kurzen Wimpernschlag von einem Jahr gedauert, bis die Remixe fertig waren. Und die sind so gut geworden, dass Michael Mayer von KOMPAKT die “3 Remixe für Heiko Voss” kurzerhand lizenziert hat.

Ein “early adopter” des Albums war Running Back Obermotz GERD JANSON. Top motiviert zwirbelt er “Follow Your Line” rhythmisch irgendwie in Richtung Kate Bush’s “Running Up That Hill”. Wie hat er das nur gemacht? Egal. Es groovt wie Bolle und hält auch größere Floors in Bewegung.

ADA, die Hamburger Grand Dame des Techno Pop hat sich des in Zungen sprechenden Funk Kloppers “Talking Man” angenommen und ihn ordentlich in Feenstaub getunkt. Dabei entstand der wohl sensationellste, soulfulste Club Track ever. Ehrlich.

Abgerundet wird das Paket mit einer kräftigen Dub Version von “Follow Your Line” vom IMARA bzw. KOMPAKT Boss selbst. Weil er’s kann.

Herzklappen auf, Remixe rein.

Opaque Lime vinyl. The Loneliest Girl is the third studio album by New Zealand musician Chelsea Nikkel, better known as Princess Chelsea. It was recorded by Chelsea between 2016 and 2017 in her home studio in West Auckland, New Zealand. The Loneliest Girl examines the loneliness and ultimately the artistic satisfaction a strong work ethic can bring, the result of which is this eclectic collection of pop songs. As a studio based artist Chelsea was conscious of not wanting to fall too deep into a production hole for her third album and wanted to more than ever before capture moments of inspiration, madness and spontaneity on record. Chelsea's trademark arrangements featuring classic 80s Synths (Yamaha DX7, Roland D-50), ambient guitars, and orchestral instruments are all here but are presented in a more refined and simple manner than on her previous releases. Stylistically The Loneliest Girl moves away the more uniform synth sounds of The Great Cybernetic Depression to more eclectic territory similar to her first release Lil' Golden Book and certainly sounds like a record made by a lover of pop music across all genres from 60s girl groups to 80s power ballads, and late 80s acid house to 90s pop. Like her earlier work, adult issues are presented in a humorous and sometimes childlike manner, and this juxtaposition rather than softening the blow makes jarring social commentary hit harder.

Die kratzigen Gitarrenhooks, das eingängige Schlagzeugspiel und die ausgedehnten Codas klingen eindeutig nach Großstadt, doch bei WIDOWSPEAK gesellt sich ein trockener Minimalismus und eine an die Atmosphäre von David Lynch Filmen erinnernde Düsternis, die aus der Kleinstadt der Bandmitglieder stammt. Während der Grunge Seattle berühmt machte und die Riot Grrl und die DIY Einstellungen synonym mit Olympia sind, steht Tacoma für etwas Raueres und Düsteres. Berühmt-berüchtigt für den beißenden Gestank der Papiermühlen hat die Stadt es dennoch geschafft, eine fruchtbare Musikszene ihr Eigen zu nennen - nur wenige Außenstehende wissen das. Drei Jahre, nachdem sie schon bei einem kurzlebigen Sampler Label Projekt aufeinander getroffen waren, fragte Michael Molly, ob es nicht Zeit wäre, eine neue Band zu gründen. Molly fing trotz Bühnenangst an, zu schreiben und kurz darauf lud Michael den Gitarristen Robert Earl Thomas zu einer ersten Probe ein. Obwohl Robert seine Gitarre über die Musikanlage spielen musste und Michael auf nur zwei Trommeln spielte, zeigte die erste Stunde, dass alles passte. Sie suchten einen Namen aus, den Molly sich schon Monate vorher ausgedacht hatte und der Sound von WIDOWSPEAK begann, Form anzunehmen. Im Herbst hatte das Trio sechs Songs für eine Kassette names ,October Tape" zusammen, die sie nur mit einem Laptop Mikrophon und Garageband aufgenommen hatten. Das Tape fiel in die Hände von Captured Tracks und hier ist das selbstbetitelte Debüt. Aufgenommen mit Jarvis Taveniere von WOODS bekamen die noch zittrigen Probetracks im Studio Luft zum Atmen. ,Widowspeak" erschafft eine unheimliche Atmosphäre, die sich manchmal auf den Jukebox Pop der Fünfziger oder auf die Psychedelia der Sechziger gründet. Während WIDOWSPEAK mit ruhigeren Acts wie MAZZY STAR oder CAT POWER verglichen wurden, haben sie einen Sound definiert, der ernsthaft nostalgisch und zunehmend selbstbewusst ist.

ASA

Arturo Lanz Saverio Evangelista AtomTM

are the last three futurists on earth.

»Radial« is the result of a vivid creative merge between Esplendor Geométrico and AtomTM. A transparent diamond formed by a heavy implosion. Its underlying massive mechanics are covered by a crystal surface made to cut reality in half. Just one letter short of “radical”, this album is no less than exactly that – an orgy of powerful, blunt repetition and hyperbolic simplicity, a profound evocation of nothingness and its surroundings.

Die Band feiert ihr 20-jähriges Album Jubiläum.
Spiritualized und Fat Possum Records kündigen die Wiederveröffentlichung von Amazing Grace an, als Teil der zweiten Ausgabe des The Spaceman
Reissue Program: Kuratiert von J Spaceman. Die 180-Gramm-Vinyl-Album Version wurde in London von Ton-Ingenieur Matt Colton für Vinyl neu
gemastert und wird in einem von Mark Farrow gestalteten Gatefold Cover präsentiert.
Zusätzlich zur Wiederveröffentlichung werden Spiritualized im November eine US-Ostküsten-Tournee anführe, bevor sie im Dezember im
Vorprogramm von Queens of the Stone Age auftreten.

Musician/sound artist Mariske Broeckmeyer (MARIS) and author/poet Astrid Haerens found each other in their shared love of experimental music, improvisation and jazz. They discovered common ground in their artistic work, in their thinking, in their love for art and literature, and started a conversation that has not ceased.

They both make work that focuses on physicality, femininity and (the failure of) the voice, among other things. Their work revolves around the knowledge that a body carries, and how you can start from there instead of just the cerebral and analytical, aspects that are seen as predominantly masculine and often central to literature.

In 2022, the two worked together for the first time on their literary jazz project around the effects of power structures on a woman's body, bringing a breath of fresh air to the predominantly male jazz scene. MARIS and Astrid invited Jasmijn Lootens, a hybrid cellist who combines classical training with electronic music, to dive even deeper into the research and crossover between poetry, spoken word, performance, sound art and music together.

Saxon proudly release their latest album Hell, Fire And Damnation on January 19th 2024, and when internationally-renowned actor Brian Blessed OBE delivers a proclamation for opening track, “The Prophecy”, expectations are automatically high. Have no fear and make no mistake, Saxon meet and exceed them on their 24th studio release, creating a superlative British Heavy Metal classic which strides the perfect line between confident, current power, and gloriously irreverent flexing of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal muscle which Saxon co-created.

The heavyweight trio of Keiji Haino, Jim O’Rourke and Oren Ambarchi return with their 12th and most epic release to date, the triple LP With pats on the head, just one too few is evil one too many is good that's all it is. Documenting the entirety of their final performance at the dearly departed Roppongi home of Tokyo underground institution SuperDeluxe in November 2018, the music spread across these six sides splits the difference between the guitar-bass-drums power trio moves and experiments with novel instrumentation that have defined the trio’s decade of working together. Containing some of the most delicate music the three have committed to wax since the gorgeous 12-string acoustic guitar and dulcimer tones of Only wanting to melt beautifully away is it a lack of contentment that stirs affection for those things said to be as of yet unseen (BT011), this wide-ranging release also offers up some of their most blistering free rock performances yet.

The side-long opening piece finds Haino on a single snare drum in duet with O’Rourke on unamplified electric guitar, playing in the lovely post-Bailey vein heard on his classic 90s recordings with Henry Kaiser and Mats Gustafsson. Spiky dissonance and ringing harmonics interweave with flowing melodic fragments as Haino single-mindedly explores the resonance of the snare like an untutored Han Bennink. On ‘Right brain, left brain; right, left; right wing, left wing. Just how many combinations can be made from these?’, O’Rourke moves to synth and electronics, joined by Ambarchi on drums, who at first focuses on sizzle cymbals before hypnotic cycles of gentle tom rhythms combine with electronic burbles and flutters to suggest a dream collaboration between Masahiko Togashi and Jean Schwarz. Ambarchi’s percussion is then joined by Haino on wandering, overblown flute, before the man in black switches back to the snare for a bizarre, stuttering drum duet.

For the first trio performance, Haino makes another new addition to his seemingly infinite catalogue of instruments, this time a homemade contraption he refers to as ‘Strings of Dubious Reputation’. Joined by O’Rourke on increasingly spaced-out electric guitar and Ambarchi on skittering percussion, Haino’s wonky, slack strings adds a definite ‘musique brut’ edge to this side-long performance, certainly one of the most enchantingly odd in the trio’s discography. When the group reconvene for the second set, spread out across the final three sides, they seem ready to breathe fire from the first instant. O’Rourke slashes distorted chords on the six-string bass, Ambarchi breaks into his signature irregular caveman thump, and Haino squeals and squawks on heavily delayed oboe before unleashing an overpowering electrical storm when he first picks up the guitar. For over half an hour, the trio pound out one of their most relentless performances, a constantly rearranging kaleidoscope of tortured fuzz guitar, insanely busy bass riffing and propulsive, tumbling drums. A hushed atmosphere initially reigns on the final long piece, given the mournful title ‘There are always things I wish to say but I can only convey them in this language August 6 August 9’. Haino’s clean guitar strumming calls up the shimmering tones of his PSF classic Affection, gradually building to a surging wall of sound, bass and drums lumbering through a roar of jet-engine guitar. Arriving in a deluxe trifold package with photos by Lasse Marhaug alongside inner sleeves with extensive live images, this epic release is perhaps the most remarkable document yet of this unique trio’s stamina and continuing inventiveness.

An independent hip-hop fixture for more than 15 years, famed Los Angeles emcee Blu has mastered the lost art of the album, imbuing each new project with unique themes and often recruiting a single producer to craft a cohesive sonic experience. This has lead to full-length collaborations with the likes of Exile, Madlib, Shafiq Husayn, Oh No, Damu The Fudgemunk, and more, along with the 2018 classic Gods In The Spirit, Titans In The Flesh, produced by Virginia beatsmith Nottz. With major credits dating back to the late 1990s, Nottz is a production icon who has worked with Busta Rhymes, Snoop Dogg, 50 Cent, Scarface, The Game, Pusha T, Slaughterhouse, Ghostface Killah, Rapsody, Asher Roth, Little Brother, Talib Kweli, and many more. Now, Blu and Nottz are reuniting for the new album Afrika, a celebration of the rich history and culture of their ancestral homeland. With Swahili song titles and thunderous beats from Nottz, the collection finds Blu proudly embracing his roots, connecting black struggles in the U.S. to those of African peoples worldwide. "I hope this project inspires many others to speak on the father and home of humanity, Afrika,” Blu explains. This powerful message is reinforced by a legion of talented guests, as Afrika features appearances by Quelle Chris, Mickey Factz, Shad, Ill Camille, Scienze, Cashus King, and more.

Out of print for quite a few years now, this album is a stunning power-pop gem recorded at a time when this kind of girl group pairing with punk rock was unusual.b This is one of the most iconic albums released on Greg Shaw's Bomp! Records. It now includes bonus tracks on top! Definitely stood the test of time. Check out the titles, these young ladies were wearing their collective hearts on those sleeves of theirs. This kind of girl group pairing with punk rock was unusual at the time and it provided a much-needed antidote to the male dominated skinny tie brigade. Nikki looked like Pam Dawber (Mindy from Mork and Mindy) and sounded like Clare Grogan (of Altered Images) what was not to be instantly smitten by. Born and bred in Detroit, Miss Corvette reportedly ran away from home at age 16 because her mother refused to allow her to attend an MC5 show. Greg Shaw wrote the following in the liner notes to the 20th Anniversary label compilation, Destination Bomp! "Nikki was a tireless worker. Like some coalminer's daughter, she'd travel around the country with her band. Playing 200 shows a year. She knew everybody and was a lot of fun to hang out with so, I figured that if all her friends bought the record... so I signed her. The girl had style and attitude galore plus, she had master guitarist/songwriter and former Romantic Peter James. One of Detroit's most savvy cats." The lady herself kindly supplied the following summary. "We went to LA and signed with Bomp in maybe 1979 but Greg wasn't sure what to do with us. We did the Honey Bop single with Ronny Weiser at Rollin Rock and a couple songs with the Kessel Brothers. We started something with Kim Fowley that did not work out. They kept trying different producers until we finally decided to go back to Detroit and do the album on our own. We didn't have a lot of experience but we knew what we wanted and Detroit was part of that so we recorded the album and had a blast doing it. Peter wanted us to be poppier and I wanted to be more punk. We sort of met in the middle with what I've always called Bubblegum Punk. I can't believe it's been 43 years since this came out and there are still kids discovering it and people who grew up with it that still listen to it. I constantly hear from people all different ages, all over the world about how much they love it album and that really means so, so much to me!" Hear the phenomenon for yourself.

Into the void hits from second one. Strong beats lead the way into this dreamlike soundscape, where metallic drum elements and effortless reverb tails take us on a journey. We get lost in a slow build and an unassuming bass-line drives us home, until the track collapses just to hit twice as hard coming back in. Dreamy vocals float over dirty synth lines, melodies that feel familiar guide the way to continuous build ups, where we can’t help but move our bodies to the gritty, thumping bass-line pushing us forward relentlessly.

Tempest is all about the beat. Simple, yet endearing, it reels us in and guides us on an endless rise where fragile synth swells and powerful percussion elements tease our ears. High-pitched glimmers dance across the soundscape with ease. A track that rises again and again, yet never quite implodes in-between. Instead it builds, in the most natural way, skilfully and exquisitely, whilst sirens add a well-rounded urgency, that’s hard to resist.

To coincide with The Courettes' first US tour, Damaged Goods put out this special compilation album. Boom! Dynamite includes singles, deep cuts from their studio albums, with B-sides and rarities thrown in for good measure! First pressing on orange vinyl is limited to 1000 copies only! The Courettes are two souls in love with each other and in love with rock 'n' roll. They've been touring nonstop throughout Europe since 2015, bringing their "perfect blend of garage rock, '60s Girl Group, Wall of Sound, surf music and doo wop" to the delight of any audience even remotely interested in rock 'n' roll. Expect excitement, danger, sweat, explosive performances, and most importantly, GREAT tunes! The "hardest working band in showbiz" now venture further away - After visiting the Land of the Rising Sun in 2022, The Courettes are thrilled to tour the USA for the first time in 2023. Described as "The Ronettes meet The Ramones at a wild party at Gold Star Studios echo chamber", The Courettes have released four fantastic albums on the legendary label Damaged Goods Records, each one praised by magazines such as MOJO and Shindig!, most notably the Back In Mono album in 2021, a true milestone in their career. This new compilation, Boom! Dynamite, released exclusively for the US market, guides you through their albums from the very beginning, from the early raw power garage rock onto their present Spector/Levine Wall of Sound Gold Star sound, made using complex recording techniques at StarrSound Studios in Denmark with top producer Soren Christensen and mixing genius Seiki Sato from Japan. Featuring Brazilian Flavia Couri on guitars and vocals, and Danish Martin Couri on drums, The Courettes were born international. For them there are no nations or borders. Their mission is to connect, cherish, and inspire rock 'n' roll souls around the world, including now, in the USA. The Courettes are pure dynamite! Turn up the volume and fuzz out! BOOM!

New pressing on limited orange vinyl. In the early days of Pinback, they were known mostly as two lauded musicians who spent their spare time away from their primary projects (Three Mile Pilot, Thingy, Heavy Vegetable) to hone their home recording skills while experimenting with ideas, tones, and instrumentation that didn’t quite fit into those primary projects. Pinback hadn’t yet become their day job; it hadn’t yet become a well-oiled 5-piece touring machine; and it had no idea where it was going to go. In retrospect, that earnest curiosity is what makes those early Pinback recordings so resonant and so unique, and what separated them from every indie rock band of this century. Every bit as powerful and expressive as their first two albums, the 1999 EP, Some Voices, and the 2003 EP, Offcell, famously bucked the perception of EPs as outtakes and toss-offs. What were ostensibly minor stopgaps between albums became massive fan favorites and staples of Pinback’s live show. Having never been released on vinyl, it’s only fitting that we revisit these poignant recordings – and take the opportunity to painstakingly remaster and repackage them into the full-length album that never was, the aptly named Some Offcell Voices

The old is dying and the new cannot be born; in this interregnum a great
variety of morbid symptoms appear"
-Antonio Gramsci, Prison Notebooks.

Iskandr's latest offering "Spiritus Sylvestris" appears to be a radical
statement in both content and form Signifying a departure from the black metal roots of the project, the psychedelic folk doom of the new album builds upon the directions of where both "Vergezicht" and "Glas" were already moving towards.

"Spiritus Sylvestris" is cinematic in scope: majestic and threatening in its aura of sublime grandeur. The Latin title translates to "spirit of the wild" and also refers to the early modern alchemical name for carbon dioxide - when the spirit of the wilderness is released into the
aether through the burning of wood and charcoal. The songs tell impressionistic stories of natural elements personified; when powerful spirits that linger in the earth are stirred, those elemental forces will be forced to haunt our world.

In an era of irreversible damage to our planet and anthropogenic climate change, Iskandr aims to offer funeral dirges for the world that we have already lost.

"Spiritus Sylvestris" embraces a limitless approach to translate this vision into musical form. Employing musical elements from a broad array of genres; easily moving between the martial stomp of early Laibach and the ethereal melodics of Dead Can Dance.

Recorded and mixed by the legendary Pieter Kloos (The Devil's
Blood, Motorpsycho) at The Void Studio in Eindhoven, the new Iskandr record has broadened the scope and sound of the project beyond any confines, resulting in the most open soundscapes from Iskandr to date. The heavy baritone guitar riffs that form the backbone of the record provide a pitch-black canvas in which huge percussive rhythms and psychedelic layers of Hammond organ, Mellotron as well
as subtle acoustics move in and out of focus. If this world is at an end it deserves a requiem for that what is lost.

Almost two years on from his last EP offering, Veerus returns for another double shot of groove-inflected techno power.

The Italian artist has been a stellar contributor to Drumcode since his debut in 2019 with the outstanding ‘Hypnosis’ EP. From the ‘System’, to ‘Recovery’ and his most recent EP offering ‘Yard’ in early 2022, we’ve been given a sense of his deft touch for crafting dramatic techno, that’s equal parts exquisite and dynamic.

His latest work ‘Cycle’ reinforces the passion he imbues each production with. “These two tracks perfectly express my vision of techno nowadays,” he shares. “Not fast, groovy, with researched sounds and a crazy impact on the dancefloor.”

The title track balances tension and release on a knife’s edge, as it builds deliciously via a menacing array of synths, before dropping down into an all-out laser-focused march. A powerful cut that’s been a go-to for Adam Beyer at Awakenings, Loveland and Resistance Ultra in Croatia, among others.

‘It’s Funky’ was two months in the making and bring bags of energy and atmosphere as it explores funky terrain, not in the bottom end, but rather Veerus’ colourful approach to writing melodies. A great track for building excitement throughout a set.

On Natura Morta, Sven Wunder is exploring art as a bridge between nature and the human ability to judge and observe in eleven musical compositions with brightly colored textures and an emphasis on vibrant melodies.

Throughout human history, we have depicted the world we live in through art. By reworking what we see in the world, the simplest things have helped us understand the beauty of nature and to evaluate the material world that we have created around us, as a window to a constantly changing reality, through our own perception. It is that absolute reality that appears in the seam of human and nature and that can be revealed through art.

Still life painting, also referred to as Natura Morta (”dead nature”) in Italian, stretches back to ancient times. Some of the earliest works, found in Pompeii, depict commonplace objects such as fresh autumn fruits alongside man-made objects such as a small amphora and a small terracotta heap with dried fruits. These two-thousand-year-old paintings give a snapshot of Roman life, and also creates a link to time and space. A slice of life has been created by binding the earth’s pigments with extracts of oil, made from nuts and seeds, painted with brushes, made from a variety of fibers, such as trees and hair from animals. While life wanes with each brushstroke, by shifting reality into the past, art exists to make us come alive, being a living image of a dead thing, a surface and a symbol with symbolic powers of its own. Still life works celebrate material and ephemeral pleasures by returning to nature as the ultimate source for our standards in art as well as in life itself.

Natura Morta collects pieces from a continuous variety of melodies — supported by a decisive rhythm section — creating a musical kaleidoscope of ever-changing colors. Sven Wunder brings life into this rich assortment of musical implications by fusing and combining melodic instruments with each other in a setting that spans from a classical to a modern idiom. The author evokes this panoramic portrait by articulating an instrumental dialog between a chamber orchestra and a jazz ensemble. The result is a musical celebration of material pleasures that also serves as a reminder of the brevity of human life. This album was produced with financial support from the Swedish Arts Council.

Recorded over a four-week period in early 2022, Freedom Lapse is the debut solo release of Australian multi-instrumentalist and composer Adam Halliwell. A versatile improviser and lover of performance, Halliwell has been an active contributor to numerous musical communities in recent years. The release of Freedom Lapse marks an exciting stage in Halliwell’s journey as an artist with the culmination of several important musical facets that are now becoming foundational to his practice.

As Halliwell tells us, Freedom Lapse owes its genesis to an epiphanic moment experienced whilst traversing a mountainous passage in Mexico, a place where ‘the past present and future stretch out in one place’. Entranced by this environment, its colours, the villages and local life, Halliwell listened to music that inspires him (he cites Jon Hassell here). The result: ‘complete aural, visual and spiritual completeness’, a moment of discovery, he explains. Shortly after, the material that now comprises Freedom Lapse was recorded, distilling this powerful sensorial experience into a body of music that he has now invited the world to share with him.

Throughout these recordings restrained improvised phrases and melodic ideas feature, often appearing as long refrains that soar above idiosyncratic beds of fractured percussion and junkyard bass-work. This use of contrast, which is central to the work, allows Freedom Lapse to tap the lucidity-chaos juxtapositional-style that lies at the heart of all good music in the ‘fourth-world’ idiom. Halliwell’s sensitivity to dynamics, form and narrative is potent on these recordings, which allow his winding, free-improvisations the space to unfold and extend patiently. All instruments on Freedom Lapse were written and recorded by Haliwell, with additional trumpet on Cygon Dance supplied by regular-collaborator Reuben Lewis. Freedom Lapse was mixed and produced by Halliwell and Jim Rindfleish.

The release is the first studio collaboration from longtime friends Sam Cumming (Italiks) and Ben Dudding (Deep Fried Dub), with the former providing the rhythm and vocals, and the latter on mixing and melodica duties.

With introspective lyrics born in the depths of a Fiordland forest, Crown considers the challenge of facing your inner demons and dealing with insecurity, ably assisted by the healing power of music. The result is a heavy roots cut that will soothe your soul while rattling your ribcage.

2001, Yorkshire, England. SUBDUB is in full strength shaking down Leeds' city walls with regular parties, community events & sound system sessions. Active since 1998, the devoted crew push UK Dub music forward, inviting key players of the scene to play at their events powered by the mighty Iration Steppas sound system. Session after session, the SUBDUB imprint nurtures a loyal community of skankers while building close ties top artists in the field. A solid reputation that resonates amongst dub-heads around the globe. After 3 years of existence and having already put out 3 singles on their Tandori Space Records label, the idea of putting out a SUBDUB compilation album sparks. Producers get involved and the ‘Digital Africa’ project takes shape! But when the test presses finally arrive, the difficult financial situation and bleak state of the vinyl market at the time force the project to get shelved…

22 years on, while on a pilgrimage to SUBDUB and stopover at the Tribe Records HQ, the Dubquake team see the dusty test presses emerge from the record store vaults and get a taste of the incredible music through the shop's speakers… Unreleased & exclusive tracks by Iration Steppas, Jah Warrior, D.BO General, Vibronics, The Disciples, Tena Stelin, Nucleus Roots, The Bush Chemists & Freedom Masses. 12 undiluted UK Dub cuts from the 90s pressed on to 2x12” vinyl discs, with a 13th bonus digital track. Pure sound system business, raw dubs inna vanguard style!

‘Digital Africa’ is finally coming out on Dubquake Records in time to celebrate SUBDUB’s 25th birthday. A forgotten compilation full of history, curated by Simon Scott & Mark Iration. Guaranteed to bring back sweet memories to veterans of the dance, a great piece of dub music education for the rest of us!

Drumskull returns to Hooversound with a powerful new EP, featuring an official remix from Dwarde who makes his debut on the Hooversound imprint.

Drumskull operates at the intersection of the aggressive sonics of modern jungle, footwork, breaks and the more soulful atmospheres of deep house, UKG and broken beat. The versatile and seasoned DJ released his ‘Muscle Memory EP’ which was unleashed by SHERELLE and NAINA's Hooversound Recordings in 2023, which included remixes from Lone and LMajor. He now returns to Hooversound with another unique body of work, which brings in jungle affiliate Dwarde in for a remix. Having gained support across the electronic dance music scene and radio play on BBC, NTS and Rinse FM, plus glowing reviews in DJ Mag and Bandcamp, Drumskull begins the year with this inimitable release on Hooversound, setting the pace for the rest of 2024.

Enlisting the help of Eric Drew Feldman, the sessions for the album were
happening concurrently in Los Angeles, California, at Wild Hamster, while Ash
was recording their album Meltdown (2004). Described as a pop punk and power
pop record, Hatherley's vocals on Grey Will Fade earned her comparisons to Bjork,
Tanya Donelly, and PJ Harvey. Label Last Night From Glasgow have reissued the
album on transparent vinyl.
Hatherley came to prominence as guitarist for rock band Ash. She
has released solo work since 2004 and has worked as a touring
nstrumentalist for KT Tunstell, Bryan Ferry, Bats for Lashes, among
others.

Das legendäre US-Metal-Meisterwerk ist nach fast 40 Jahren endlich auf luxuriösem 180 Gramm Vinyl erhältlich!
Wir glauben nicht, dass es ein einziges Wort gibt, das diesem Album außer Perfektion gerecht werden könnte. Und wenn man sich dieses Album
einmal angehört hat, wird einem sofort klar, dass dies Vicious Rumors sind. Das ist ihr Stil, ihr eigenes Genre und ihr Sound, ihre Formel.
"Soldiers of the Night" setzte den Ton an, welches sie für den Rest ihrer Karriere gefolgt haben. Es gibt genug Geschwindigkeit, um sie dem
Speed/Power Metal-Genre zuzuordnen, es gibt genug Emotion und Vielfalt, um sie dem progressiven Genre zuzuordnen, es gibt genug technisches
Können, um sie unter dem Dach von Shrapnel Records landen zu lassen.
Alles, was Vicious Rumors ausmacht, ist hier in Stein gemeißelt. Die total abgehobene Atmosphäre zieht sich durch das ganze Album und steigt
manchmal ins Düstere. Das ganze Album ist qualitativ konsistent- Lückenfüller Tracks gibt es hier keine. Obendrein ist die Produktion für die damalige
Zeit phänomenal und es gibt immer noch eine raue Kante. Fans von klassischem Heavy, Speed, Thrash, Power, progressivem, technisch versiertem
Metal sollten sich sofort in dieses Album verlieben.

As one of the most influential rock groups in the late eighties, Living Colour proved that blending Hard Rock with Funk, Soul, Rap and Punk can be a very successful undertaking. Their debut Vivid (1988) took some time to build up steam, but eventually turned heads worldwide as the sheer quality of this album inevitably rose to the surface. A combination of intelligent lyrics dealing with personal emotions and social/political issues, laid on top of eleven groovy and diverse songs enriched by Vernon Reid’s monster riffs is what makes Vivid a highly powerful album. Vivid spawned the hits “Glamour Boys” and “Cult Of Personality”, which was awarded a Grammy for Best Hard Rock Performance in 1989.

Available as a limited edition of 1000 individually numbered copies on
transparent pink coloured vinyl. The package includes an insert.

Shed Seven will return with their first album in more than six years. For "A Matter of Time", Shed Seven"s core members - vocalist Rick Witter, guitarist Paul Banks and bassist Tom Gladwin - reconnected with the classic albums that first inspired them to form a band. The resulting record sparkles with the liberated exuberance and full-throttle rock "n" roll attitude of a group who are making music for the sheer joy of expressing themselves and performing together. While the album broadens the Shed Seven sonic palette a touch, it"s full of the towering, arms-in-the-air anthems and yearning melancholia that fans have come to love them for. The trio enlisted a new line-up for the album, calling upon drummer Rob "Maxi" Maxfield (Audioweb) and keyboardist Tim Willis (Ian Brown). The album was produced by the Grammy Award-winning Youth (The Verve, Pink Floyd) at El Mirador Studios in Andalucia, Spain, before being completed by leading mixer Cenzo Townshend (Florence + The Machine, Inhaler). "A Matter of Time" flows from adrenalised punky power-pop right through to epic slow-burners, complete with some special guests: Happy Mondays" legend Rowetta contributing fervent gospel vocals to "In Ecstasy", Laura McClure of Reverend & The Makers on the folky-pop of "Tripping With You" and Peter Doherty, who duets with Witter on the dramatic closer "Throwaways". Shed Seven emerged as one of the big hitters during the heyday of Britpop, their catalogue of classic singles leading to seven Top 20 hits including "Going For Gold", "Chasing Rainbows", "Disco Down" and "On Standby" as well as four Top 10 albums. Their popularity has continued since reforming in 2007, with 2017"s "Instant Pleasures" album debuting at #8 - their highest-charting record in eighteen years. 2024 will mark 30 years since Shed Seven"s debut, Change Giver, and A Matter Of Time demonstrates that the band are at the very top of their game and the journey is far from nearing its end.

The eyes cannot see without varying the perception.

Thought dwells over rapid, constant change.

There is no moment in which any power of the soul remains the same; senses and faculties in their nature instinctively stimulate the alteration of the state.

No simplicity at any given time, nor identity at different times.

Distinct scenes make their appearance, pass and repass, slip and mix with an infinite variety of attitudes and situations: the mind opens the curtain, becoming theatre.

Bullet Train is the 2022 American action-comedy film by the Deadpool 2-director David Leitch and is based on the 2010 novel Maria Beetle, written by Kōtarō Isaka. In Bullet Train, Brad Pitt stars as Ladybug, an unlucky assassin determined to do his job peacefully after one too many gigs gone off the rails. Fate, however, may have other plans, as Ladybug's latest mission puts him on a collision course with lethal adversaries from around the globe - all with connected, yet conflicting, objectives - on the world's fastest train...and he's got to figure out how to get off.

The film features a number of original tracks. Most notably, the film contains Japanese language covers of "Stayin' Alive" by Bee Gees and "Holding Out for a Hero" by Bonnie Tyler. Composer Dominic Lewis noted that the film's soundtrack represents "all vibe and no technique".

For the first time, the soundtrack for Bullet Train is available on vinyl and comes in different editions, all based on the characters in the movie. All editions include a 4-page booklet, but each edition contains an exclusive Bullet Train boarding pass with corresponding picture of the character. This is the limited edition on Lemon coloured vinyl.

a A1. アヴちゃん (AVU-CHAN QUEEN BEE) - STAYIN' ALIVE

[a] A1. アヴちゃん (AVU-CHAN [QUEEN BEE]) - STAYIN' ALIVE

The debut release from MINING, a collective of sound designers, programmers, improvisational musicians, graphic designers and photographers. Graphic designer Oli Bentley and generative artist Sock Baeus Redding took the storm data used in the composition of the music to produce an edition of limited double vinyl LPs and CDs. Chimetis a record to lose yourself in. Like the sea itself, it doesn"t give up its secrets easily. The listening experience seems to change dependingon yourstate of mind, and resonates on a primal level which belies its data led compositional approach. For generations, artists and musicians have been drawn to the sea for their inspiration. That emotional response to the vastness of the ocean is a powerful force. While the origins of Chimetlie in the numbers, theresultant record sits proudly in that artistic tradition. Music to watch the horizon to.

When Leo Pesci submitted his outstanding nujazz LP, ‘Impolite’ to Jo at Ramrock Records, there was absolutely no hesitation in saying ‘yes please’ to his refreshing, contemporary collection of tracks which aim to transcend the limitations of genre and speak out on matters that are unpalatable and difficult to swallow. Leo addresses current global issues such as politics and corruption, climate change and overpopulation, capitalism and the misery it brings to society, but also toxic masculinity and relationships.

This is Leo’s first new release since his highly acclaimed EP ‘Community’ in 2021, which featured well-known artists of the London jazz scene like Jas Kayser, Ella Knight, Nicola Guida, Johnny Woodham, Simon JNR and Dani Diodato amongst others. ‘Impolite’ continues


to steer the listener through Jazz, HipHop, Soul, Alternative R&B and Rap with some exceptional collaborations featuring 15 different jazz/hip hop artists including Jackson Mathod, Moeazy, John Swana, Dylan Jones, Jay Phelps and Tendayi to name but a few.

Alice In Chains’ “Rainier Fog” is a haunting auditory journey that immerses listeners in a dense atmosphere of introspection and melancholy. Released in 2018, the album’s title track, “Rainier Fog,” encapsulates the band’s signature grunge sound, blending gritty guitar riffs with Layne Staley’s successor William DuVall’s soulful vocals. The music unfolds like a misty landscape, mirroring the album’s title inspired by the ominous Seattle weather. The lyrics evoke a sense of longing and reflection, weaving a narrative that navigates through personal struggles and the passage of time. The song’s dynamic shifts create an emotional ebb and flow, accentuated by Jerry Cantrell’s masterful guitar work. “Rainier Fog” stands as a testament to Alice In Chains’ ability to capture the essence of the Pacific Northwest’s moody ambience while delivering a powerful and resonant musical experience.

2011 als Gyze gegründet, veröffentlicht die japanische Samurai Metal Band RYUJIN am 12. Januar 2024 über Napalm Records ihr erstes selbst
betiteltes Album Ryujin unter neuem Bandnamen. Nach dem sie bereits vier erfolgreiche Alben veröffentlicht haben und weltweit auf großen
Festivals aufgetreten sind, haben RYUJIN ihren ganz eigenen Sound entwickelt, der Melodic Death Metal mit Power Metal und traditioneller
japanischer Musik verbindet. Benannt nach dem japanischen Drachengott des Meeres, lässt das Trio um den Leadgitarristen Ryoji Shinomoto
japanische Instrumente wie Shamisen, Drachenflöten, Erhu und Taiko auf rohes Guitar Shredding und reißende Vocals treffen, womit sie dem
Drachengott eine würdige musikalische Huldigung bieten. Auch auf dem neuen Album treffen High Speed Riffs und atemberaubende Gitarrenlinien
auf traditionelle japanische Elemente und erzeugen einen Sound, der stark an alten orchestralen Gagaku bis hin zu modernen Anime-Themen
erinnert. Ryujin wurde von Matthew Kiichi Heafy (Trivium) produziert und von Mark Lewis gemischt und gemastert und enthält Gastbeiträge von
Heafy (Gesang und Mitwirkung auf verschiedenen Tracks) und Mukai Wataru vom Kansai Philharmonic Orchestra (Cello). Die Texte von RYUJIN sind
durch die Sprache des Ainu-Volkes von Hokkaido (Heimatregion der Band) geprägt, thematisieren die Kraft des Meeres und sind unter anderem von b

Anybody who has witnessed a live performance of Anna von Hausswolff and band can attest to the extraordinary and commanding nature of the experience. The distinctive music, as captured across five full-length albums, comes to life, shifting from hypnotic and mantra-like moods to thunderous drama, dissonance and cacophony. The musicians master playful dynamics and wield immense power.

"Ultra-textured arrangements that radiate quiet power, locking listeners into a distorted landscape before evaporating without any fanfare."
Resident Advisor

"Both reflective and rapturous...focuses on altering the DNA of traditional Japanese instruments and building something new from it, without losing the essence."
Bandcamp Daily Acclaimed Japanese musician 99LETTERS joins Phantom Limb for new album Zigoku / 地獄, seamlessly processing traditional Japanese instrumentation into pitch-black techno and quasi-industrial sound design.

“This album is made with the theme of human death,” 99LETTERS (Osaka producer Takahiro Kinoshita) writes of Zigoku / 地獄 Eng: hell, his first album for Phantom Limb. “Even if I eventually end up in hell when I die, it might be a more peaceful place than I had imagined. The whole album may represent the world of death that I desire.”

Though the music of Zigoku / 地獄 is ostensibly programmed with dark, disorientating, disturbing sound design, 99LETTERS continues his now-characteristic practice of sampling, processing and disguising traditional Japanese instrumentation to develop a sound world both organic and unsettling. The very real presence of beauty, culture, and folklore remains throughout the record, in attendance as a kind of heaven to offset the willful hell of Kinoshita’s craft.

Appropriately - and in his typically cryptic language - Kinoshita speaks of human interference with reality and morality as key themes of the album: “Everyone has a good and bad person within them, which can be deceived by misinformation and superstition. The bad side can be ferocious and can easily hurt people. Sometimes I think that the present age is a complicated and difficult era to live in, and that this era may be hell.”