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Southern Italian sociologist, DJ and electronic music producer Simone Gatto is about to release his second album, 'Heaven Inside Your Frequencies', in December 2017. Recorded and produced between his motherland and other significant spaces and cities the Ionian coast and natural parks of Lecce, his second home Berlin, the Whitney Museum in New York City and other significant places 'Heaven Inside Your Frequencies' represents a complete excursus of his personal and professional paths combining Gatto's theoretical background with personal and artistic maturity, achieved in the last decade.

Southern Italian sociologist, DJ and electronic music producer Simone Gatto is about to release his second album, 'Heaven Inside Your Frequencies', in November 2017.

Gatto's second album represents a complete excursus of his personal and professional paths, into which he combines music, words, studies, researches and experiments. Along with the album, split in two parts and to be released on both his labels Out-ER and Pregnant Void, the artist is also releasing his first essay, named as the album; the latter offers a theoretical and practical analysis on the use of sounds and frequencies in diverse areas of interest, dedicating space to music therapy and primordial techniques as well as their application in the current digital and virtual era.

Both the album and the essay result from Gatto's personal experiences as well as his ten-year's artistic career: the love of his motherland and his parents, the first approach to clubs, the studies about the potentiality of frequencies, the electroacoustic experimentation and last but not least, the aesthetic sonorous research.

The the first part of the album showcases Gatto's experimental inclination for electronic and electroacoustic music; as such, the upcoming on his label Pregnant Void, has been created to enhance the sounds of the environment and personal panoramas by agglomerating artists, projects and publications. The second part definitely focusses on Gatto's dance personality and club vision, even so, it stays strongly connected to its first part as complementary for the artist's objective.

Ranging in between his favourite club niches, and collaborating with producers with whom he has shared embryonic projects, DJ booths or vinyl releases, Gatto prepares the audience for a complete journey into his idea of club music and grooves, featuring wide aesthetics and emotional resonance. It goes from the gentle tidiness of ambient and deep techno - 'No Te Olvides De Acordarte', 'Today Will Be Tomorrow ft. Kaelan', 'When I Was With You' and 'Limbo' to the intrinsic vitality of break beat, dub and funk tracks 'Caronte' and 'Holographic Drama' continuing with the dynamism of a typical Detroit techno brand of sound reinterpreted in a modern context, like in 'Forbidden Area' and 'Amazonia ft. Aubrey', and finishing with the joyful wildness of distorted sounds, in 'Jamming On The Couch ft. The Analogue Cops, OL047' in collaboration with long-time friends OL047 and The Analogue Cops; the last track, 'Il Canto Dell'Anima', is a partial excursion into the electroacoustic sound, articulated by ethereal soundscapes and piano arpeggios. The whole work is enriched by samples, field recordings and filtered vocals, sound elements which have been deeply explored in the first part of the album, confirming Gatto's aesthetical aptitude as for the club's universe as for the aesthetic sonorous research dimension.

'Heaven Inside Your Frequencies', recorded and produced between his motherland and other significant spaces and cities - the Ionian coast and natural parks of Lecce, his second home Berlin, the Whitney Museum in New York City and other significant places - 'Heaven Inside Your Frequencies' combines Gatto's theoretical background with personal and artistic maturity, achieved in the last decade. Simone Gatto's life, culture and emotions translate into a sonorous and written project, among sounds, frequencies and attempts to achieve empathetic communication with people. Specifically, the second part of the album in meant to increase the sensibility about potential interaction between performer and audience as for club contexts. The album listening and the essay reading are therefore complementary and equally functional to the achievement of the artist's goal: the empathetic communication through sounds.

needs is a not-for-profit record label & collective lovingly curated by Bobby Pleasure. We believe in people. The concept of the label is to use music as a medium to spread love, unity and the idea of giving back. Promoting harmony and togetherness rather than isolation and estrangement, each release and accompanying event will act as a support stream to various issues within society such as mental health, homelessness and equality. For the first release we have tracks from Hubie Davison, Johannes Albert, DJ Swagger and Bobby Pleasure. Four artists from different countries of the world who all have the needs factor, and have very kindly donated their music to the dancedloor.

All Greg Beato productions! A compilation of sorts - the tunes THEY didn't want you to hear. Strong stuff!

Limited Edition gear on Mr Beato's on NI UN PERO label...

The wait is finally over. The greatest living female voice in African music, Oumou Sangare releases a new album "Mogoya" (meaning "people today") on a new record label with an all-new production team and a wonderful new set of songs.

The power of Oumou's voice and the potency of her message remain as strong as ever and, while her sound is rooted deep in the continuity of Malian tradition, Mogoya has a strong new sound. Co-produced by Andreas Unge in Stockholm and by the French production collective A.l.b.e.r.t. (who have worked with among others Air, Tony Allen, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Beck, Franz Ferdinand) in Paris, it draws on a rich musical heritage whilst also looking to the future.

"We wanted to emphasise the raw power of Oumou's voice and songs. We wanted to find a new modernity" says co-producer Ludovic Bruni, one of the three members of A.l.b.e.r.t. with Vincent Taurelle and Vincent Taeger.

On the album, traditional African instruments - the kamele n'goni (harp), karignan (metal scraper) and calabash percussion - are augmented by electric guitar, bass, keyboards and synths with Tony Allen on drums. As Oumou puts it, "This time round I wanted to go for more of a modern sound, to satisfy young people in Mali but being careful, all the while, to respect my culture and tradition".

The songs describe what Oumou knows best human relationships. She addresses difficult topics with incredible frankness - jealousy, ingratitude and betrayal never afraid to sing about the day-to-day problems faced by African society, particularly women.

Oumou has a high international profile, touring all over the world, collaborating with artists such as Alicia Keys, Tracy Chapman, Bela Fleck and Dee Dee Bridgewater and featuring on the soundtrack of Toni Morrison's Beloved. She is a Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organisation and has three businesses in Mali a range of SUVs called 'Oum-Sang', a hotel in Bamako and 'Oumou Sangare 769, Rice', grown in her own fields.

She has released six albums on the World Circuit label: Moussolou, meaning "women"(1990), Ko Sira (1993), Worotan (1996), Oumou (2003), Seya (2009) and Kounadi (2012).

Music is at the absolute centre of Oumou's life: "without it I'm nothing and nothing can take it from me" and Mogoya represents an exciting new chapter in her career, something which she approaches with a mixture of boldness, humility and confidence."It was new for me because my music has never had this kind of arrangement and sound before. I've been totally in the tradition for years now so to get out of that and have a look around elsewhere was a total pleasure," Oumou Sangare.

Two of Hospital Record's most electrifying artists have formed an allegiance for a true coming together of titans. Bournemouth's Krakota and Sao Paulo's Urbandawn have combined their production talents to create the five-track 'Focus Shift' EP - a real drum & bass mash up of styles and sonic sequences.
The aptly named 'Coyote' is an absolute howler, unashamedly powerful and loaded with energy, distorting and plunging itself into new streams of audio chaos throughout.
'Laguna' fits with their alter-egos - sweet, pensive and majestic. Operating within a more classic Hospital framework, this rolling stroke of musical bliss will leave no party unsatisfied.
Sitting in the middle of this concerted creation is title track 'Focus Shift'. Informed by both liquid-funk and tech styles, it's gelled together with scathing bass riffs and high profile percussive chops.
'Epigram' has all the bassweight you'd expect from such a monolith collision of production powerhouses. Crisp and sinful, with a consistently militant atmosphere this song is pure depth, darkness and danger, with a genuinely intriguing sonic progression that renders this track as devastating as weapons grade plutonium.
Seeing the release home is 'Paladin'. An ardent dancefloor destroyer that fuses the power of the stepper with the groove of a roller, that even angels would find themselves bustin' a skank. Uplifting and powerful with cosmic subtleties in the low end twinned with sombre melodies and skittering drum-work all tempered in unison to create a certified banger.

In 2017, the musical term electronic' is nearly obsolete given the ubiquity of computerized processes in producing music. Even so, the prevailing assumption is that musicians working under this broad umbrella must be inspired by concepts equally as electrified as their equipment. Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith has demonstrated in her still-blooming discography that this notion couldn't be further from the truth, and that more often than not, rich worlds of synthesized
sound are born from deep reverence of the natural world. Smith (who by no coincidence, cites naturalist David Attenborough as a contemporary muse) has embodied such an appreciation on
The Kid in as direct and sincere a way as possible by sonically charting the phases of life itself.
The album, which punctually follows up her 2016 breakthrough EARS, chronicles four defining cognitive and emotional stages of the human lifespan across four sides of a double LP.
The first side takes us through the confused astonishment of a newborn, unaware of itself, existing in an unwitting nirvana. Smith's music has always woven a youthful thread befitting of the
aforementioned subject. Here she articulates it in signature fashion on the track An Intention,' which serves not only as a soaring spire on The Kid, but on her entire output. There is playfulness here, but it's elevated by an undertone of gravity into something compelling and majestic that is fast becoming Smith's watermark. The emotional focus of side two is the vital but underreported moment in early youth when we cross the threshold into self awareness. The subject is profound enough to fill an entire album, but rarely makes its way into a single track, indicating Smith's ambition to broach subtler and deeper subjects than the average composer. This side offers up another highlight in the form of In The World But Not Of The World' which serves its subject well with epiphanic, climbing strings and decidedly noisy textures over a near-Bollywood low end pulse.

Side three emphasizes a feeling of being confirmed enough in one's own identity to begin giving back to the formative forces of one's upbringing, which is arguably the duty that all great artists
aim to fulfill. This side ends with the exploratory album cut Who I Am & Why I Am Where I Am' recorded in a single take without overdubs on the rare EMS Synthi 100 synthesizer. This humble
piece of sound design serves as a contrast to side four's verdant orchestral moments, all written and arranged for the EU-based Stargaze quartet by Smith herself. This final side represents a
return to pure being, the kind of wisdom and peace that eludes most of us until the autumn of life. On To Feel Your Best' this concept is voiced in the bittersweet refrain one day I'll wake up
and you won't be there' which Smith intended to be a grateful acknowledgement of life rather than a melancholy resentment of loss. The song has both effects depending on the mood of the
listener, and both interpretations are equally moving.
Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith belongs to an ilk of modern musicians who are defined by their commitment to creating experiential albums despite the singles-oriented habits of modern listeners,
and here she represents her kind proudly. The subjects on The Kid are not simple to convey, and yet through both emotional tone and lyrical content, Smith does just that. There is a similar
gravity to both birth and death, and rarely is that correlation as accurately and enthusiastically mapped as it is here.

Alan Watts, another logical inspiration of Smith's, once expounded that people record themselves to confirm their own existence, and as such, echoes and resonance are reminders that we are alive. You're not there unless you're recorded,' Watts muses, if you shout, and it doesn't come back and echo, it didn't happen.' The Kid speaks to this idea directly. As Kaitlyn Aurelia
Smith explores her existence through music, she guides us in gleefully contemplating our own.

'Shays Vacation House' is a work that feels suspended in time - both ancient and modern -- a microcosm that ceases to exist in any particular time or space...exceptional acousmatic sound design animates amorphous creatures and entities, whose movements echo on dripping walls, yet the eerie, mysterious environment remains entirely ambiguous. hovering above the post-apocalyptic landscape of a scorched planet regenerating. Emra Grid's second Opal Tape is a profoundly beautiful work, loaded with emotional weight

A leading figure and respected elder in the Teklife family, Traxman has waited patientlywhile releases from young upstarts like Taso and Dj Earl have been enjoyed by footwork lovers all over the world. Now the time has come for Traxman to take centre stage, presenting a collection of new material that demonstrates his mastery of the footwork sound. Tekvision arrives hot on the heels of Teklife 005: Greenlight by DJ Manny, bringing an interesting contrast of production methods and styles. A prodigious crate digger, Traxman has provided the sample sources for many of Footwork's classic tracks over the years. So while DJ Manny recorded the majority of the vocals on Greenlight himself, Traxman uses his expert sample flipping techniques to add the human element to his productions. Traxman is a mainstay of the Chicago underground, with a discography stretching back to the golden era of Dance Mania Records in the 1990s. Ghetto House was an important precursor to Footwork, and Traxman was a key figure during this transition.

Echoes of the Ghetto House sound resonate through Tekvision, with tracks like Drop It Down and Twist The Party Out paying homage to the origins of Juke and Footwork music. Be Gagen feat DJ Earl is a beautiful opening track, with a soulful, melancholic synth unfolding patiently over a half-speed beat. When the bass kicks in after 1 minute 10 seconds it has a profoundly uplifting effect, and the late arriving vocal rounds off the composition perfectly.

Many of the tracks demonstrate brilliant and playful manipulation of vocal snippets, with Let Me Get Up and Control Ya Bitchezzz among the finest examples of this art. Finally,Tone Deaf and Whop Line show yet another side to Traxman's sound with an intoxicating and angular mix of bass and bleeps.

Silencio celebrates the first year of the label with a double-pack vinyl aptly titled Uno.
Comprising of new and established artists, the tracks on Uno collectively summarize the the feel of this label's year, while giving us a hint of what to expect in the year to come.
Click Box & Stefan Dichev kick off the release with 'Memories'. Presenting a collaborative production that will prove over and over again why sound is one of the strongest senses tied to memory. Engineered with emotionally responsive rhythms that roll into a rocksteady baseline, this track evokes feelings with finesse. "Memories" also features funky squiggle sounds and trailing even-tempered tones to punctuate its procession. This is one you'll want to relive every time the opportunity arises.
New comer Wave Particle Singularity has done it again. 'Virtue' is a tremendous track that will quickly establish itself as one of your new favorite things. The drum sequence, accented by beguiling background sounds and curious vocals, gallops throughout this selection with all its feet off the ground together in each smooth stride. Plus, it also comes fully equipped with a pleasingly unpredictable pace in the form of some moody, well-orchestrated changes that result in a perfectly adjusted attitude. Never a dull moment on the dance floor.
Guaranteed.
Kepler.'s latest offering 'Tool A' possess all the qualities one would normally associate with a fine wine because the taste left on the palate after its consumption is both complex and satisfying. During its ascent, effects that compress a thousand echoes into a single sample ride alongside an active baseline that ripples accordingly. Subtle, flavorful snippets bleep and bloop in complete balance, giving this cut a coordinated, contemplative vibe that brings everything into focus.
With his first track on Silencio, Yuuki Hori's 'Scene 5' is truly a unique item. This electromechanicaly exotic sounding export from Japan makes an impression with layers that are neatly stacked and minimal to the max. Its main feature, a sample that seemingly mimics the mating call of a male bullfrog, rhythmically ribbits in harmony with the beat, bellowing over the entirety of this track. All the various elements of this composition come together in a natural way that feels symbiotic and sounds superb.
Another Silencio first, Jorge Ciccioli's 'TD8' has a deliberate intention to create momentum, with a deep, penetrating baseline that rises to the occasion by descending the darkest depths of its own digital horizon. In the midst of the mix the listener is greeted with a clever chorus that effectively sounds like air vibrating, or in layman's terms "blowing", within an empty glass bottle. As it goes through the motions, observe how every note is noticeably nuanced in an effort to reflect the subtle changes that take place.
Closing out the release and year for Silencio, is Laughing Man with 'Reach Out'. Hard, heavyand heavenly are all terms that could be used to express the sentiment of this selection.
Notice how right from the get go this production profoundly pounds out its agenda with a solid, speedy beat that relentlessly rocks throughout the recording. Accompanied by aseries of wavy, spirited vocal layers, ringing bells and an inspired intersection of cymbals,this track is one hell of a ride that will enable you to make contact with the other side.

Marco Bailey's 5th full-length album, one that he personally claims to be the best overall representation of his sound. With seventeen tracks comprising almost an hour and a half of music, he has ample room to stretch out and to give listeners an excellent portable version of his potent live show.

By maintaining a consistently high-quality output that does not merely ride the wave of current trends, multi-faceted producer Marco Bailey has managed to survive through decades of mercilessly shifting adjustments to popular taste in dance music. From his beginnings in the late '80s spinning eclectic sets comprised of everything from punk to old school hip-hop, to his present interest in pure unadulterated techno, the Belgium-based DJ and producer has won over audiences with his keen knowledge of how to squeeze the greatest physical and emotional impact out of a few well-placed elements, along with his instinct for seeking out the most innovative and resilient kindred spirits (his impressive number of professional friendships includes artists as diverse as Markus Suckut, Jonas Kopp, Alex Bau, Edit Select, Speedy J, Steve Rachmad and many more). These combined talents have led to his formation of several different labels: MB Electronics in 2001, the 'limited edition' label MBR in 2013, and lastly the new Materia Music label begun last year. His similiarly named event series, Materia, has also been a truly worldwide 'state of the art' summit for advanced techno artists.



The full-length personal releases by Marco Bailey, which stretch back to his mid-'90s period as a trance producer, have been gracefully arcing and anthemic affairs composed of individual tracks that follow that same blueprint. He is now about to drop his 5th full-length album overall, one that he personally claims to be the best overall representation of his sound. With seventeen tracks comprising almost an hour and a half of music, he has ample room to stretch out and to give listeners an excellent portable version of his potent live show. Of course, an epic running time alone is not the marker of a great audio experience, but an epic running time in which one loses track of time completely is - Bailey accomplishes this feat by never rushing the payoff; by organically building up each track until listeners are fully immersed in his alternate universe.



This skill can be heard on banging, sweat-saturated tracks like 'Ash', 'Genetix' and 'Hasai,' but also on comparitively gentle pieces like 'Klauth' (which straddles the line between disciplined electro and something more dreamlike and weightless), or the blissed out 'Suoh,' which feels like a fresh snowfall in audio form. Low-key cuts like 'Rex,' driven by echo FX and other windswept sounds, form natural counterparts to busier tracks like 'Ruth,' with its spring-loaded sequencer attacks, or 'Reboot That Device,' which is ingeniously driven by a psychedelic organ whose sound evolves with various filter settings. Minimalist vocals are occasionally injected into the mix - i.e. on the 'The Darkness' - to impart a subtle message of constant, ongoing expansion into unexplored galaxies without and within. It's as good a definition of the artist's musical mission as any.

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These songs were not born in the club, nor were they written by producers' algorithms. So where did these hits come from Maybe from poolside changing rooms (Aldona Orlowska is the Polish champion in butterfly style swimming) Or maybe from opera singing lessons with Professor Olga Olgina, the melodist born at the beginning of the 20th century in Tsarist Russia She feels as good in performing on yachts as in beautiful churches. Aldona marries the virtues of an opera singer and a disco star. She creates together with her husband, an outstanding instrumentalist and unconventional producer. They don't care about trends, they go where the music is. For a quarter of a century they've been splitting their lives between Malmö
and Mallorca, Swedish piano houses and beaches. Aldona Orlowska. WOW!

Grammy-winning singing sensation Gregory Porter - one of the most successful jazz artists of his generation - is back with a new album, 'Nat King Cole & Me', to be released on Decca/Blue Note on 27th October. It is a deeply personal tribute to Nat King Cole - the legendary crooner who ignited Gregory's love of music. It's only natural that I go to the root of my inspiration and where I come from. And that root would be my mother and gospel music and Nat King Cole,' he says.

Recorded at London's AIR Studios, the 12-track album features some of Gregory's favourite Nat King Cole tunes including 'Smile', 'L-O-V-E' and 'Nature Boy'. There is also a Nat-inspired arrangement of Gregory's own song 'When Love Was King', originally released on his million-selling hit album, 'Liquid Spirit'.

For Gregory Porter, the influence of Nat King Cole on his life and music runs deep, a through-line that reaches back into some of his earliest childhood memories, and culminates in the release of his new album 'Nat King Cole & Me'. Gregory explains, At five or six years old, Nat's music filled a void in me. My father wasn't in my life and wasn't showing interest in me or raising me and Nat's words were the life lessons, words of wisdom and fatherly advice I needed.'

Gregory's love for Nat's music blossomed so much that he wrote a semi-autobiographical musical, also called 'Nat King Cole & Me', which premiered in 2004. After the play, I felt a lighter feeling about my father and a deeper appreciation for both my mother and the great music of Nat King Cole,' says Gregory. He also found his voice through his own songwriting - It wasn't until I wrote the musical that I was fit to call myself a songwriter. Before that, I would write different poems but they had no music.'

'Nat King Cole & Me' is the follow-up to his Grammy-winning albums 'Liquid Spirit' (2013) and 'Take Me to the Alley' (2016). 'Liquid Spirit' took Gregory from being the biggest name on the jazz scene to being one of the most sought-after singers around today, performing sell-out shows across the UK and being invited to perform on high profile TV programmes including The Graham Norton Show, Strictly Come Dancing and the BBC Music Awards. He has become an adopted national treasure in the UK, having sung for the Queen multiple times, as well as major music festivals including Glastonbury, where he performed on the Pyramid Stage alongside the likes of Muse, Adele and Coldplay. Gregory's ability to transcend genres even extends to his surprise dance hit 'Liquid Spirit Claptone Remix' which became one of the most popular tracks in Ibiza.

After winning over audiences with his rich and soulful voice, there can be no better time for Gregory to return to the music which first inspired him to become a singer. On Nat's legacy and influence Gregory affirms, He was one of a kind. He left such great music - such beautiful things to listen to that you can't help but be influenced by that extraordinary timbre, style, and ultimate cool.'

Despite his low profile, Ken Karter might be one of Berlin's most influential artists in the techno scene. Karter is known as a mastering engineer for the seminal M_REC LTD, however his own productions have gone largely unnoticed until his 2015 EP on Stroboscopic Artefact's Monad series. His EP turned heads and gained him well-deserved attention. Two years later, his follow-up EP on Escapism exemplifies his focus on quality over quantity. His passion for mathematical formulas combined with his intricate knowledge of sound created an outstanding record set to satisfy both fans of experimental and dancefloor techno.

Juris Boiko (1954-2002) and Hardijs Ledinš (1955-2004) were the core members of the NSRD, which is best known as Latvian avant-garde, postmodern, experimental and underground music group active in 1980s. BIG TIP! STROOM BRINGING IT...! comes with download code.
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Their activities were widely multidisciplinary and they can not be considered as purely musicians since none of them had a professional musical education. Their creativity was manifested through variety of media - music, performance and action art, visual arts, poetry, samizdat, the introduction video art in Latvia etc. NSRD also made a significant contribution to the explanation of the theoretical aspects of art in the interpretation of the postmodernist movement, and developed the independent concept of 'Approximate Art'. At the end of the 80s, NSRD got connected and performed with several artists and musicians living in West Germany, including Indulis Bilzens, Micky Remann and Maximilian Lenz aka Westbam and others.

Aula Magna Records presents Atmen by Mekas, a storming record that reveals the artist's latest techno explorations in
full effect, featuring Stockholm LTD label boss P r Grindvik as guest remixer. A techno statement shaped by melodic
and rhythmic interactions that draw the listener into the artist's profound sound world.
The A-side opens with the powerful beat of Clark Nova, a cut that moves forward with a modulating synth line and simple
but cleverly designed percussions. This is followed by Unknown Soldier, an intense techno weapon that reflects the
distinctive sound of Mekas.
The B-side features both versions of Atmen, starting off with P r Grindivik's dance-floor rework of the title track that
combines a fresh arpeggiated motif and a powerful groove with the emotional spirit of the original. Atmen closes the
record, an epic ambient techno track built with deep atmospheric synth lines on an intelligent stripped down breakbeat.

Professor Rhythm is the production moniker of South African music man Thami Mdluli. Throughout the 1980's, Mdluli was member of chart-topping groups Taboo and CJB, playing bubblegum pop to stadiums. Mdluli became an in-demand producer for influential artists (like Sox and Sensations, among many others) and in-house producer for important record companies like Eric Frisch and Tusk. During the early '80s, Mdluli projects usually featured an instrumental dance track. These hot instrumentals became rather popular. Fans demanded to hear more of these backing tracks without vocals, he says, so Mdluli began to make solo instrumental albums in 1985 as Professor Rhythm. He got the name before the recordings began, from fans, and positive momentum from audiences and other musicians drove him to invest himself in a full-on solo project. It was the era just before the end of apartheid and house music hadn't taken over yet. There wasn't instrumental electronic music yet in South Afric a. As the '80s came to a close, that was about to change. Professor Rhythm productions mirror the evolution of dance music in South Africa. They grew out of the bubblegum mold - which itself stems from band's channeling influences like Kool & the Gang and the Commodores - into something based on music for the club. His early instrumental recordings First Time Around and Professor 3 mostly distilled R&B, mbaqanga and bubblegum grooves into vocal-less pieces for the dance floor. Musically, these were a success and commercially the albums all went gold. There were countless bubblegum albums flooding the marketplace, with nearly disposable vocalists backed by mostly similar-sounding rhythm tracks. Most of the lyrical content was light and apolitical. But the keyboards used formed the musical basis for what would come next. By the time Professor 4 and this recording Bafana Bafana - the name references South Africa's national soccer team - were released in the mid-1990s, k waito had fully emerged. Access to instruments and freedom of expression helped its rise in influence among youth. According to Mdluli, "Once Mandela was released from prison and people felt more free to express themselves and move around town, kwaito was becoming the thing." Lyrically, kwaito championed the local township lingo while adapting "international music," house music, into the local context. "International Music," as house music and early kwaito were interchangeably known, in many ways reflects the sounds coming from America. But South Africans made it their own. Today, the largest part of the music industry is occupied by house music and its relatives.

"In The Midst Of The Storm" brings together two exceptional talents and two generations of reggae musicians. Jah9's previous release "9" was critically heralded as one of the most re-freshing reggae albums of 2016. And now, fans will get the fully de-constructed, dubwise version of the album with nine newly recorded dub sessions from the legendary dub master, Mad Professor. He's renown for hundreds of productions with the who's who of jamaican veteran artist like i.e. Lee Perry, U-Roy, The Congos, Horace Andy, and did also great dub re-mixes for Massive Attack, Sade, Depeche Mode, Grace Jones and many more. This release marks the first Mad Professor title with VP Records as well as the first commercial recording of Mad Professor and Jah9 together. The press and media coverage will include interviews with Mad Professor and Jah9. The great original cover illustration is by artist Richard Nattoo!

Somne debuts on Just This.
The Italian producer, whose real name is Federico Maccherone, presents his first release of 2017 - a solo EP marrying the same ethereal, wide-angle synthesis and intricate drum programming that appears on standout work for Boddika's Nonplus imprint and the Afterlife label. More than ever, Maccherone shows his range - rolling, meditative recordings sit comfortably alongside some more overtly dance floor material, with both approaches bound by the same high-end production values listeners and DJ's alike have come to expect from the Somne project.
In various ways, the EP offers a certain degree of insight into Maccherone's dual identity as a producer of both clinical, dance-floor fare as well as a cerebral, leftfield work - and in turn, how the artist draws together these two strands of creative endeavour to craft unique and profoundly emotive electronic music. Nods to classic IDM and Ambient sit at the periphery of the recordings, although the main focus is on the propulsive, contemporary Techno derivatives - from warping, half-time opener Divided Love, with its crisp, white noise washes and clinical use of distortion - through to Endgame's exacting, peak-time drive. And whilst the form shifts across the EP from half-time, polyrhythmic work to more direct 4x4 compositions - everything remains bound by the same exquisite, otherworldly atmosphere that touches on the grandiose whilst maintaining a gloriously introspective bent.
Balance comes across as a principle theme on the record, both in terms of production aesthetic and track sequencing, but there is a wonderful contrast between the elements - with the sounds ringing strong and true. The two versions of lead Metropolis that perhaps appear to illustrate in the best way the powerful dichotomy within Maccherone's work, with the A side version conjuring up a distinctly brooding sentiment - a quintessential example of rolling, contemporary Electronica, whilst the Alternate Mix of the B side offers a more direct, cathartic interpretation - expertly executed for maximum dance-floor effectiveness.
Mature and accomplished, Metropolis is a fine addition to the growing Somne discography. The record paints a picture of a producer in full control of his art, definitely working to create a powerful three-dimensional space of his own within the genre.

Robyn announces the RMX/RBN vinyl series along with a new remix of Be Mine by Mark E. The limited vinyl will roll out in pairs every week from September 29th. See below for schedule.

The RMX/RBN project saw Robyn invite some of her favourite artists in dance music from across the globe to remix key tracks from throughout her career.

Set of 5 limited Remix 12"s, with remixes coming from Cassius, Joakim, Axel Boman, Zhala & Heal The World, The Black Madonna, Mr Tophat, Wolfgang Voigt, Mad Professor Harry Romero & Mark E

With a new single just released ("Roadside"), accompanied by a groovy video, and a "Greatest Hits" album in the pipeline, it is time to look at Torpedo Boyz from a new perspective.

After more than 10 years in the business, four acclaimed albums in the discography ("Headache Music", "Cum On Feel The Boyz", "Return Of The Ausländers" and "Don't Cry") a collection of "Greatest Hits" will be released in October 2017 featuring all time classics and never out of fashion tunes like "Gimme A Bassline", "Ich Bin Ausländer (Leider Zum Glück)" or "The Disco Song".

Right in time for this release Légère Recordings asked Boca 45, their favourite 7inch DJ and remix expert, to deliver his versions of the Torpedo Boyz favourites "Any Trash, Professor Abacus" and "Are You Talking To Me". The Boca 45 remixes will now be released on two different 45s, including the original versions on the flipside.

Selwa Abd (originally from Morocco, currently residing in Brooklyn) uses the fictional character Bergsonist, from Brooklyn, Slovakia, as her musical guise. Derived from Deleuze's Bergsonism, Bergsonist uses intuition as a method to deliver her/his instinctive psychoanalytic theories.

A blend of different audio sources and samples are used as a way to capture the essence of the 'present' moment, manipulating found sounds along with self-concocted digital fragments to combine in in the span of a set, given time. Bergsonist allows inspiration to come from anywhere, yet she/he limits themselves by the gear/tools that are used. The approach consists of inhaling all the energy of the city - influenced by trips to museums, galleries, shows, talking to people. and sensing nature - and exhaling it sonically. Bergsonist reacts to this energy and inspiration without any specific rules, styles, or genres - extending the array of possibilities by always pushing preconceived uses of the tools.

Following a slew of cassette-only releases from labels across the global map and a split 12" with Isabella on Borft Records last year, Selwa shares her most twisted and considered compositions to date with Mutation. Four fire-stoking tracks of electro convulsions sparked from indecipherable depths inflame new terrains for an artist whose output is inextinguishable - prolific barely covers the rapidity with which Bergsonist shares new jams to a lucky few - proffering Mutation as an indelible moment in Selwa's blossoming career. Mutation features a ripped / thrashed remix from in-the-cut edit wizard, Murray CY. Mutation will be available in a limited vinyl edition of 200 with artwork designed and conceived by Selwa and Benoit Canaud Studio.

Step Time Orchestra was the collaborative work of producers Jori Hulkkonen and Toumas Salmela, who began producing music together in the nineties whilst studying in Oulu, Finland. Whilst all their friends would be getting up early to go to university, they would only just be going to bed, having spent the night listening to house records from New York, drinking Whiskey and programming their MPC 2000!

Step Time produced a slew of tracks during this time, some of which were licensed and pressed on 12" singles during the late nineties/early noughties on labels operating in North America and Europe, but not everything they made saw the light of day. Heavily influenced by labels like Ibadan and Spiritual Life Music at the height of the New York House Scene, 'Jazz Error NYC' and '2am in Africa' were never signed, not fitting the profile of their other releases at the time, they were left in the drawer and sadly forgotten!

Skip forward to Winter 2016, and FBNM's Lorenzo, whilst over on a DJ excursion, visits Jori in Finland. Keen to keep working together, he presses him for something uniquely special. Magically, the Ajos E.P jumps out of the drawer into Hulkkonen's hand, and as it turns out, it has aged with a rather remarkable grace. Written using a combination of MPC sequencing and an Atari ST powering vanilla Cubase for some midi programming duties, it features the sounds of the Italian made Siel Opera 6, an Alesis S4 Rompler and other vintage Roland, Yamaha and Kawai Synths. They went full out on this one, even finally learning to play keys for that jazzy piano action. It was recorded live through a soundcraft analog board with outboard Fx, creating a sound that transcended it's time to feel remarkably fresh today!

The Ajos EP is named after an area in their native city of Kemi, Northern Finland, which is where they wrote and produced it in 1999.

Robyn announces the RMX/RBN vinyl series along with a new remix of Be Mine by Mark E. The limited vinyl will roll out in pairs every week from September 29th. See below for schedule.

The RMX/RBN project saw Robyn invite some of her favourite artists in dance music from across the globe to remix key tracks from throughout her career.

Set of 5 limited Remix 12"s, with remixes coming from Cassius, Joakim, Axel Boman, Zhala & Heal The World, The Black Madonna, Mr Tophat, Wolfgang Voigt, Mad Professor Harry Romero & Mark E

the italian duo boot & tax got already one lp and four eps under their wings who all deliver house and techno that stands out.
so far their records been published by glasgow's finest optimo music and meant records from paris.
now the two give their debut for endless flight and release three tunes that listen to the name 'dimension'.
they all got funk, they all love mesmerising melodies. you can feel the power of disco coming in with heavy seducing strings.
you can get lost in echoed drums, trippy sounds and some oriental tones. and you also can march to cosmic techno that loves krautrock without embracing it.
a multi-coloured ep that spreads deepness in an uncommon sense. if moves the heart and soul profound, while staying edgy and catchy.

For someone who went from growing up in a secluded Norwegian forest to producing for some of the biggest hip-hop and pop megastars on the planet, Peder Losnegård has had quite the journey.



It was through a series of remixes that Lido catapulted into the sets of the most high-profile DJs around the globe, capturing the ears of numerous notable tastemakers. Reworking acts like Disclosure and Bill Withers, the producer set the Internet ablaze with talk of his four-note piano tag and speculation as to who was underneath the moniker. While his playful, restless musicality saw him adopt an array of aliases — but he'll keep those under wraps for now.

Debuting on Pelican Fly with 2014's 'I Love You' EP, followed by the 'Superspeed' EP, and remixes of Banks, Alt-J and MØ, Lido's anti-formulaic style emerged. His tracks bounce from one idea to another voraciously, but always with that clear Lido stamp. You don't just get a drum and a bassline on a track of his; you're more likely to get an entire string or brass section that elevates his sound to cinematic heights.

children are laughing and playing in the back, a baby screams happily: handsome field recordings welcome the listener to the final chapter of fred p's fp-oner trilogy for mule musiq.
the opening tune is called smiles, so children's laughter fit the mode. the idea is that smiles and cries are natural for children and as they grow to adulthood the reality becomes more, therefore the duality of life itself is obvious in the mood of the song.
the new york city native that is working on his very own music for almost 20 years explains about the beginning of his new album that features eleven tunes for deep meditative club use and beyond.
it brings the listener house music full of cosmic realities, odd jazzing moments, japanese spoken word pop, synth spheres for ambient use and an overall outer-national atmosphere, that handsomely dances between roughness and subtle tuned in deepness.
i chose to base this project on numbers in order to impart a bit of depth and substance. 5, 6 and 7 have a meaning in both the literal and esoteric sense. we as a species are a combination of matter and energy, so it is a matter of relating the two in harmony.
my experience as an artist expresses this. it's like a testimony to the human condition and how we relate to treat and mistreat one another. this view is the base of a philosophy that is close to me, be-cause art imitates life.
so rather than doing a project that highlights ego posture, my intent is more about what can i give to the listener. as a human being, as an artist, what can i share it's a part of a philosophical tug of war that goes a lot deeper than the expectation of what one might think a dance album or rather an elec-tronic music album should be.
it's food for thought, not candy and a soft drink, but real substance that stays with you.he reveals about the profundity of his trilogy. at large it is a journey inward, compelling, mesmerising and en-chanting.
for the final chapter fred p mostly produced in his studio in berlin on various synths and with a bunch of mysterious samples, all later organized and programmed in ableton. this project has a beginning mid-dle and end. the record 5 was intended to introduce a meditative energy within a rhythmic construct as the number 5 represents the dynamic and unpredictable.
the whole album carries the energy of that ilk. the album 6 is of an earthly and more harmonious dis-cord. i attempt to bring the inner conflict in the form of natural unnaturalness. the raw energy of the search in this project i think is self explanatory, which is the point i believe to show how flawed one can be but express very specific themes honestly.
finally, with 7 my goal is to merge the two into balance, as one focused state of mind as 7 is the thinker beyond understanding or beyond the illusion. this is my hope people take away from this: a feeling of growth, optimism and positive energy. we are dealing with vibrations every person resonates with, so the idea is where do you want to take that
what do you want to do with that as an artist you can do some good or some harm. for me i choose to give the best that i can and i hope that the people that participate get a sense of that.' true words by a kind and gentle soul that loves to speak in music.
they explain much and then leave things in the dark too, as he basically says: let the music play. so listen deeply, open your doors of perception, dance the atomic mess around, stay small, be true and don't forget: fp oner's music is a traveling zone with a universal meaning. it can mean many things to different people. but thus is the purpose of art.

Cardiff's Chain of Flowers return to Alter with their first new material since 2015's self-titled debut album. A double A sided single, 'Let Your Light In' and 'Flesh, Blood and Bone' are two tracks which see the band moving beyond the dense shoegaze sonics of their debut, bringing forward a more spacious and streamlined sound that emphasises the powerful urgency of their live performances.

Despite 'Let Your Light In' offering a more optimistic tone to what fans of their debut may be used to, the charismatic guitar hooks, hazy vocals and fist-to-the-horizon anthemic qualities of the group are no less present. On this new found optimism, vocalist Josh explains: "Relationships of all kinds keep this world moving. We live in times of profound darkness, though I somehow find myself lucky enough to be surrounded by people that pour some light and inspiration back in to my life and this is not to be taken for granted. This song is an ode to love and companionship around the world, a gratuitous nod to the better aspects of the human race. A thank you for being you."

'Flesh, Blood and Bone' on the other side appears to follow a darker and more pensive path at first with Josh singing at his most baritone and ominous. However when the chorus hits with its searing synthesiser melody, a switch is flipped. Musically it channels perfectly the bombastic new wave ambition of early Simple Minds, alongside the dramatic post-punk melancholy of the Chameleons. With this, Chain of Flowers are evidently making an effort to find a light within the darkness of the world and their own collective souls.

Limited to 75 Tapes

Hippie Priest returns to Argot to release his second album, See It Through. Having made great strides at dialing in his production and strengthening his songwriting since the release of Gaia Variants in 2016, the young Champaign-based producer focuses his sophomore longplayer around a narrative approach. 'See It Through is a day in the life of a lioness", says Hippie Priest, 'Beginning with the soft ambience of waking up in the morning, leading up to an intense hunt in the middle, and into evening revelry and eventual slumber". The album's 11 tracks cover a large stretch of sonic ground to tell this story. Its glowing opener, 'Umbrella Keeper' gives way to widescreen stompers 'Thorn' and 'Quicksand' that clear the way for more contemplative moments like 'Crystal' or 'Cherry Blossom". One can't help but imagine a dramatic hunt while listening to 'Are You Okay' or carnivorous displays on 'Desire". Even tender scenes are possible with closers 'Tanuki' and 'Tired Lioness", gorgeous movements in which Hippie Priest's melodic profficiencies shine brightest. Vital Sales Points: - Second album from the up-and-coming young producer from central Illinois

Tadd Mullinix's Charles Manier project returns with a third double-LP, Luxus Steroid Abamita, an edict of nine new amorphous transmissions and clustered, clangorous, hemi-synthetic funk. This is experimental machine music: it's inspired by the fringes of dance, but skirts petrified arpeggios and other stock Wave and Technopop emblems. Its spirit elicits Sheffield Post-Punk and Düsseldorfer NDW desiderata, but exploits are crisp, psychedelic, and expansive. Lyrics come as laconic Dada, sociopolitical impressions—in counterpoint to concrète tape smears, echoing guitar deluges, and entrenched in ever-shifting grime. A wide spectrum of density is proffered. Atmospheric zones are submerged, modulating knells. When tempos increase, sample & hold mutations make synthesizers sputter and writhe. The title track and opus, Yopo (Calcium Tree)' carry this with heavy pulses—storming like locomotives.

Repressed !
The Argentinian team brings the power of their knowledge back to our imprint with this split EP, a six track musical journey from drones to heavy kicks, with a bunch of intelligent techno in the middle.

The release starts with Jonas Kopp's "Grey Area", a floating intro exploring the deepest frequencies in the sound spectrum. Next comes "Intelligent seeker", with grooved synth toms, sharp hats and a naive oscillating sequence that runs free in the arrangement. Profound and aggressive at the same time.

The following number is "Akut": dry kick, reverberated and panned continuous sequences, spiced with classic 909 workout.

Pfirter provides his intro with "Another Dimension", a dreamy ambient piece to warm up for what comes next: "Euritmia". Based on distorted kicks and sequences, "Euritmia" creates an obsessive rhythm that grows alongside the white noise washes during the whole track.

Closing the release is "Rising", which starts with a cleaner beat approach, and once again works with white noises and modular lines to create tension and expectation. Micro percussions run along the groove, nicely adding spice to the hypnosis.

For our fourth release, we're pleased to welcome The Showfa inside the Excursions kitchen, to cook us up something sizzling for your mind, body & soul. Wielding a nifty set of disco scissors, he's selected the finest of gospel cuts and brought them neatly to the boil, serving up three delectable dishes of hot spiritual gumbo. Soul food of the highest calibre.

Taking us to church straight off the bat, 'Thankful' builds and builds along an infectiously uplifting piano-heavy hook, an edit that bubbles away effortlessly akin to a Moodyman-esque disco groove, perfectly crafted for the dancefloor.

'He'll Answer' drops the tempo and tone to something slower & lower, lending its sound to that of the most proficient beat-masters, incorporating moody synths and haunting strings, in a true future gospel style and pattern.

The last serving on the plate is 'Jus' A Little Talk' - a cheeky flip of a classic that's destined to make the AOR diggers and connoisseurs salivate profusely. This retro yacht rock bumper closes out this joyously ethereal platter perfectly.

Already finding its way into the crates of selectors such as Gilles Peterson, Horse Meat Disco and Patrick Forge, it's also received love in Mixmag and across the airwaves, from NTS to Mi-Soul to Rinse FM.

Another essential Excursion on wax, and one that will never leave the box.

Mini Album with very high quality packaging. printed clear pvc sleeve over printed outer wich creates a stunning grafic effect when pulled out!

shadowy multidisciplinary artist & videographer denial.of.service returns to FILM for an extended EP of wrought iron electronics, channeling the spirit of classic electro, Industrial & Noise. the artist, active since the 1980's producing video work for a host of high profile names - including not least david bowie, currently transmits sporadically from an undisclosed location, though contemporary work has appeared on the creators project, as well as making the vimeo staff picks on an almost regular basis. recently, video commissions for minimal wave & jealous god affiliate In aeternam vale have ap-peared online, showcasing the artist's trademark crushed, hallucinatory visual aesthetic. If 2015's sensou EP communicated a more brooding, emotive side to denial.of.service - then contour & shape works in stark contrast. the palette remains relatively unchanged, with the 808 providing the back-bone for most of the compositions, paired with the same warped vox and heady synth leads - but this time around the production aesthetic is harsh and abrasive and there's a powerful, burning immediacy to the work. gone are the delicate, introspective leads & gently saturated drums, and in their place bursts of caustic, high energy noise and twisted drum machine strikes - and though much of the more tentatively dance floor material sticks to a stepping half time rhythm, 4x4 moments make a welcome appearance. contour & shape is bold and direct - a thunderous, high-energy salvo from a true creative with a rich and unique electronic music heritage.

Celebrating the imprint's 10th anniversary, Mike Dehnert returns to his own Fachwerk label with a new full length LP available in 2x12" and digital, following a striking 12" on DJ Koze's Pampa Records at the end of 2016. Across 10 tracks, here Dehnert explores new territory with a restrained and subtle sound while retaining his commanding touch when it comes to creating deep club music. Intro sets the tone of the album, providing an profusion of tidal tones and textures that soak the listener in sound. Before long though, you're listening to the percussive stabs and pensive drums of Between No Words. Here we hear for the first time on the record the subtle but remarkable vocals of Albert Vogt, who returns throughout the LP. Listeners will also be reminded of Dehnert's skill for crafting complex and emotional music with very few elements, which becomes only more evident as this LP opens up. From here Dehnert traverses through dubbed out techno, deep house and downtempo, all with an experimental playfulness and a lightness of touch that only a producer with his talent and raw experience could pull off. The album peaks with the storming Providing Home 2. With swirling, unpredictable arpeggios, hard hitting drums and a sparingly used vocal hook, this is the track that'll ignite ecstasy across dancefloors for years to come. From here, Dehnert quickly cleanses the palette with the beatless Starground, a ringing and pulsing synth piece, pierced by all manner of klangs and bleeps. This perfectly sets up the album's final epic, Laxwax. Another one aimed squarely at the club, but this time it's for darker dancefloors. In stark contrast to its predecessors on the record, this track is insular, hypnotic and raw. Not content to end on such a note, Dehnert provides one last exertion. Outro is bombastic and pounding, with a rave inspired synth line and heavily swung percussion. Topped with cut up and percussive vocals, the track lives up to it's name summing up the LP and adding to it at the same time. This thoughtful record takes elements of modern pop music and extrapolates them with a patience rarely found within the genre itself. Backed by Dehnert's exceptional experience when it comes to producing club music, the result is an album that's simultaneously poppy and experimental, yet fundamentally rooted in techno. It's for that reason that this will surely be such a crossover hit; it has a palette that is broad yet refined, that will undoubtedly reach new ears while appeasing and surprising familiar ones.

Much may have changed over a two-decade period, but Drumcode's commitment to releasing the scene's most cutting-edge and refined techno remains resolute. 2016 saw releases from heavy hitters such as Adam Beyer, Alan Fitzpatrick, Dense & Pika, Sam Paganini and Joseph Capriati, as well as a much coveted Moby remix package. The label pushes forwards again in 2017; bringing fail-safe, club-ready music to the techno community. 2016 was a standout year for Alan Fitzpatrick, with the Drumcode stalwart racing out of the gates in spectacular fashion with the release of his fabric 87 mix. A substantial amount of high profile shows followed, including appearing at the inaugural Junction 2 festival and closing the car park to a packed-to-the-rafterscrowd at Drumcode Halloween.
He returns to Drumcode with 'Brian's Proper Dun One', marking his first appearance on the label since late 2016 when he remixed Moby's seminal 'Porcelain'. The release opens with 'Brian's Proper Dun One', a track which caused a Twitter meltdown on Alan's profile when he first started playing it at the tail end of 2016. Loaded with sharp and pounding drums, this is an ethereal experience from start to finish and packs a real punch. It's a no holds barred, certified main room anthem. 'Wait A Second' feat. mc r1bbz has been a staple of Adam Beyer's sets of late and has been getting a lot of air time on Drumcode Radio.
This rave inspired track takes a raw, stripped back approach and delivers a real killer blow. Alan sampled the vocals of mc r1bbz from an LTJ Bukem tape pack from the early 90s and the record tips its cap to early jungle raves around the M25.
The release closes with 'Trance, Init'; A homage to Alan's days first and foremost as a raver before he became a DJ, with his non-purist attitude when it comes to electronic music shining through. The breakdown is sure to be a hands in the air moment at festivals all over the globe this summer.

GOMORRA

Gomorra is a passionate DJ and producer from Basel, Switzerland. As an 8 year old boy playing the drums he realized that music might play a bigger role in his future life. After a while, he got his hands on the first pair of turntables and started to experiment with mixing HipHop music. Experiencing a broad variety of music and nightlife culture during those formative years he developed a deeper interest for driving rhythms and repetitive patterns. Soon he got pulled into the pulsating scene that emerged nearly 30 years ago in an industrial and rough urban area at the shore of lake Michigan well known as Detroit, the Motor City. As he already made his first steps in music production while digging HipHop, the obvious development then was to exchange the MPC with Synths and Drum Machines and explore the aesthetics of Techno on a much more profound level.

OMNIBUS IDEM

Omnibus Idem - we are one. The Saga begins. We inhabit each moment to be our own good morning. Everybody else is the same in a different ghetto. What happens when all awareness overlaps to create an Ambient. After dawn in the subway. Submission. A new impression: St. Clair. Where the mechanic meets the organic. To end up alone in suffocation. Buena Noche. Omnibus Idem is process and creation.

Profusion (noun): an abundance of something rich.

The sonic partnership of K15 and Emeson originated in the days of MySpace. A future of combining their skills was inevitable, and now in 2017, it's time to unleash their debut studio album into the ether.

The solo-projects of Tottenham-raised Kieron Ifill (aka K15) date back a decade, but were truly kick-started on labels such as Kyle Hall's Wild Oats and WotNot Music, with a number of genre-crossing releases dropping ever since, including the WU15 project (along with Yussef Kamaal's Henry Wu, on Eglo Records). Additionally to his production work, he has established himself internationally as a DJ, from the Jazz Cafe to the CoOp parties.

Partner in Profusion, Emeson, has many skills to his bow - singing, songwriting, producing, promoting, DJing (under the alias Ed Nice) and acting. As a musician, his varied skill-set has seen him work with Chico Hamilton, Carla Duke, Karmasound, Uzo Madu and Chris Jerome. A frontman for soul-jazz groups LifeSize, The One and Saturn's Children, he has featured on releases for BBE and Tokyo Dawn, and appeared live on stage at the likes of Ronnie Scott's.

The debut single was supported by tastemaker blogs Wonderland, XLR8R and Stamp The Wax, has been bumped by selectors such as Lefto and Jazzie B, and played on NTS, Worldwide FM, Mi-Soul, LeMellotron, Balamii Radio, Itch FM, Invader FM, Soho Radio and various stations across Europe and the US.

This album is full to the brim with summery sun-soaked synths, drifting across the warmest of basslines and heavyweight beats. Emeson's rich vocals gracefully ride atop of K15's delectably bruk twist on neo-soul sonics and electronics, this is some seriously classy contemporary London soul music, that manages to incorporate flashes of various dance music techniques, sound-system etiquette and jazz-tinged rhythms. As future-thinking as it is subtly retrospective, it doesn't lend itself to one genre, it intentionally embodies the best of many. An array of everything that is great about British black music in 2017. The message the album conveys itself couldn't have come at a more poignant time. Where do we begin

Profusion - an abundance of something rich indeed.

Panorama Bar resident Nick Ho¨ppner gets to Work on his second solo album on Ostgut Ton, connecting the territories of House music with the ease of Alt-Pop.
Work as in labor. An axiom that fuels the capitalist system just as the Techno/House scene economy says that one needs to keep oneself busy to make a living. As a musician, things are complicated of course. It's a long way from the romantic idea of creating music simply for the sake of art to becoming a full time musician. Those who have accomplished this feat often find themselves in a professional loop of writing the music, producing it, promoting it (with an info text like this), releasing it and then hopefully selling it. After leaving his full time job as Ostgut Ton's label manager in 2012, Nick Ho¨ppner went fully freelance, focusing on his musically diverse, deep and dynamic DJing in and outside Berghain's Panorama Bar, but more importantly spending more time in the studio. The result was his critically acclaimed debut album Folk (Ostgut Ton, 2015), various 12' releases and remixes, and now his sophomore LP, Work, which, more than ever, lays out his refined production skills and his talent to work the machines until they reveal their inner ghosts: nine new songs that now dodge the dance floor, then fully embrace it.
Work as in body of work. A record is more than the sum of clocked up hours at the studio, but the result of an artistic-creative process. On Work, Ho¨ppner shows his everlasting lust for musical detail, his increasing technical skills and compositional finesse. Work is a very personal, soulful and deep record that breaks through the usual club/dancefloor narrative by documenting Nick's interest for hybrid sounds and combining elements from varying musical genres. Work's lead single 'All By Themselves (My Belle)' is a very atmospheric, intimate and steadily unfurling IDM piece with ethereal synth and vocal pads; on the album it's contrasted by 'Clean Living' with Tram 78, a modern Ho¨ppner club classic: powerful, kick-heavy, muscular, cheerful and uplifting. It's a very personal track resulting from a recent reencounter with an old friend. Having spent countless hours together in Berlin's clubs in ever changing states of mind a decade ago or longer, things have since changed for both towards a more - clean living'. Connecting to this musical vibe 'In My Mind' follows with a slightly darker tone putting emphasis on bassline, percussion and squeaky sound detailing. 'Hole Head' pays tongue-in-cheek homage to Nick's love for UK club music, when a dashing melody of synths and vibraphone is matched with clattering breaks and syncopation. The dubby, mesmerizing 'The Dark Segment' not only impresses with its hypnotic synth figurines, but also by morphing to a shuffling Jazz rhythm towards it's middle part; 'Forced Resonance' uses Oberheim synth brass stabs to dramatic effect; the percussion- and clap-laden 'Fly Your Colours' comes with an irresistible piano melody atop an energetic kick; and finally the album-closing, shuffling but rhythmic, noisy yet bluesy 'Three Is A Charm' featuring the duo Randweg on clarinet, cajo´n and acoustic guitar is a coherent departure heading towards Indie Pop territory. It sees Nick collaborating with acoustic instrumentalists for the first time in his ten-year- spanning Ostgut Ton release catalogue.
Work as in artwork. Staying in line with the Folk album, the visual companion for this record comes from German collage artist Frank Bubenzer. As with the artwork at hand, Bankentsunami, and his other works, Bubenzer cuts up print magazine advertisements and recontextualizes them into new motifs, removing all human depiction from the source material, here as a commentary on the world of business, big money and the banking crisis.
Work as in work it. As a slogan 'work' has always been one of the genre's most utilized paroles, coined and put on wax by pioneers like LNR, Blake Baxter or Steve Poindexter, to name a few. Not only calling for the crowds to get moving on the floor but also to fully express themselves and their unique individuality inside an all embracing environment. A mindset rooted in House Music that has been an integral part of Nick Ho¨ppner's identity as a DJ and producer from the beginning and all through his decade-spanning residency at Panorama Bar. Work it!

"Alpha percussion", recorded in 1985, is a cult groovy ambient album of acoustic percussion, pleasant to listen to and full of samples and break known very well by Djs and artists likes Danny Brown (which uses a sample in "Really Doe", a song of his latest album on Warp Records).
Giovanni Cristiani is one of the most prepared and complete Italian percussionists. Born in Rome in 1952 he graduated in percussion in young age and began playing professionally in Italy and abroad. In 1979, after years of activity at the side of the most popular jazz musicians, constitutes the Music Workshop A.D.E.L., playing drums and percussion courses. Pentaflowers (BEAT Records sub-label and publisher) asked him to make a solo percussion library music album in full artistic freedom that was pressed in limited edition for insiders; so was born "Alpha Percussion", a gem now finally accessible to all thanks to Mondo Groove label.

Some try it with mouth-to-mouth insufflation and cardiac massage. Others with
psychopharmaceuticals or group therapy. Still others with divorce. By going cold turkey. With a new profile pic and a matching hairstyle. Seen it all at Robert Johnson, already endorsed everything - at least as long as it helps: as a lifesaving measure.
But since the year dot, the Offenbach-based club with its affiliated label recommends to all which are undecided or have doubts particularly one thing: Music. And dance.
Every two years, when life newly blossoms during spring, Live At Robert Johnson opens its windows widely, lets new music out and fresh air into the house. The beguiling scent of nature and aviation fuel blends with the scent of sweat and dry ice fog - and causes sundry healing confusion. As soon as the first tone of the Lifesaver Compilation 3 is heard, the swelling grunt of Vincent Feit's 'X04', the scenery of the dancefloor right at the Main river appears before one's eyes.
On Saint Monday Iconoclasts rebel against the age of self-optimization. A crack goes through the parquet of the dance floor (or the dancing party itself). The post-unambiguities era is beginning. The images become blurred. Bass case. Alternative facts. Resonance hole. No reception. And then it's only the queue answering the club emergency hotline. Finally there is a buzz on the line. 'Just drop the images!', it says.

'It's all not that tragic.' This helps.
The Lifesaver 3 Compilation, the yet most comprehensive package of the lifesaver history, sounds like electro, sharp-edged like the vault in a Hague bunker (Lauer), provides data pop with piano crescendo (Fort Romeau), brings the style characteristics of German Schlager music to the breakdance mat (Rolande Garros), lets the bulky lily-of-the-valley bells clang and sends the reverb tails away with the wind (Benedikt Frey). There are several new names to discover: Felix Strahd, Benjamin Milz, Vincent Feit; and of course there a many old acquaintances: Massimiliano Pagliara, Orson Wells, TCB, Chinaski. Roman Flügel brings us 'Good News', however: 'From Another Planet.' And Fort Romeau feels 'Lost, Again', but in such somnambulistically beautiful manner that you want to get lost with him instantly and jointly find the great joy.
Again and again there are mysterious chants. It's not required to decipher the specific words in order to get the message: Salvation is near. Salvation is here:









[)] e1 | Roman Fügel - Chang