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Africamore: The Afro-Funk Side of Italy (1973-1978)

Continuing Four Flies' dedication to delving into lesser-explored periods of Italian music, Africamore takes us on a captivating journey into the intersection of Afro-funk and the Italian soundscape during the six years between 1973 and 1978 - a time when disco was looming on the horizon and the nightclub market was rapidly expanding.

Before reaching Italian shores, the infectious sound originating from African and Afro-Caribbean roots traversed both the Mediterranean and the Atlantic, landing on New York dancefloors, where DJ Dave Mancuso discovered "Soul Makossa" by Manu Dibango. In 1973, from Mancuso's Loft parties, the song's hypnotic groove spread to the rest of the globe, including in Italy, where it sparked a wave of imitations and variations.


Tribal influences thus found their way into Italian soul-funk and early-disco productions released between 1973 and 1978 – from psychedelic-tinged tunes like Jean Paul & Angelique's "Africa Sound" to the Afrobeat-inspired club banger "Kumbayero" by composer/producer Albert Verrecchia (aka Weyman Corporation); and from groundbreaking Afro-cosmic songs like Chrisma's "Amore", co-written by Vangelis and featuring the rhythms of Ghanaian-British Afro-rock band Osibisa, to mind-blowing floor-fillers like Beryl Cunningham's "Why O", a re-write of Nat King Cole's "Calypso Blues" arranged by Paolo Ormi, with percussion breaks that sound pretty much like what would later become known as techno.


Combining feel-good vibes with driving rhythms, world-style percussion, and even synths, all these productions pushed the boundaries of dance music at a time when disco had not yet taken over. In doing so, they sowed many of the seeds of the later Italian cosmic scene and its unique mixture of African elements, disco-funk and electronic music.

This was a brief but nuanced period in Italian music history, one that deserves to be rediscovered, with love.

Africamore is due out on March 22nd and will be available as a gatefold 2LP and digipak CD. Both formats come with stunning artwork by Kathrin Remest and liner notes by Pierpaolo De Sanctis and Elena Miraglia.

Cardinal Fuzz and Little Cloud Records bring to you the new LP from a band we hold dear, Firefriend – ‘Decreation Facts’ – From São Paulo in Brazil and now close to two decades of creating and honing what has become their trademark, a heavy reverb, minimalistic slow-burn menace which sends chills down your bones. If you don't know Firefriend from somewhere along the last decade, you must cut a safe course through music. ‘Decreation’ is the undoing of creation, something destructive and primal and that Firefriend carry through on all the twelve songs written for this LP. Yury explained that the album "is a commentary on our 21st century, so violent and radical. We live in times of accelerated transformation. We wrote and recorded this album between the pandemic and WW3 – times of ground-breaking changes – and somehow that uneasy feeling got into our songs. Reality is the most crazy trip, isn it? And we are always trying to explore new territories: we want a new album to take you to new places, so we were chasing the sounds, structures and moods to make this a truly new album to match this wild new world’ ‘Decreation Facts’ is all this as they simply inject you with a liquid paranoia for their dark conjuring’s that is hugely dark and foreboding – Julia and Yury’s uber cool stoned and detached delivery creates a seriously dark menace with Julia’s delivery having echoes of Nico – all the while THAT claustrophobic reverb and tremolo encloses and swirls around the inside of your head and vibrates your inner core. This is HEAVY shit. Decreation Facts’ is an unsettling sonic fuck you to those that seek to destroy this planet for their love of money and power and we think it is a stunning achievement. As Terence McKenna might once have said – ‘Firefriend should be consumed alone, in the dark, in silence, with your eyes closed’. Firefriend advises, “Express yourself through any method you want. That is how you become a transmitter, generating waves that will open connections with others vibrating on the same frequencies. That energy field will change the game.” Now that is a truly psychedelic perspective if there ever was one. RCKNRLL, FUZZ, FEED YOUR HEAD

My debut studio album. Recorded at Yawn Studios, West Kirby with Bill Ryder-Jones. A collection of songs I have written over the past few years of travelling far and wide with some fresh versions of familiar favourites and newer tracks too.

The album is also available on yellow and spatter Vinyl via slinky.to/btmatm

I would love for you to buy a copy. This really has been a labour of love and I have poured my heart, soul and bank account into it

My debut studio album. Recorded at Yawn Studios, West Kirby with Bill Ryder-Jones. A collection of songs I have written over the past few years of travelling far and wide with some fresh versions of familiar favourites and newer tracks too.

The album is also available on yellow and spatter Vinyl via slinky.to/btmatm

I would love for you to buy a copy. This really has been a labour of love and I have poured my heart, soul and bank account into it

The music contained on "Blut, Milch und Thränen" was recorded somewhat unconventionally as two separate tracks, which were subdivided into several movements to correspond with the album's gripping narrative. With regard to this narrative, Kvelgeyst recounts the tale of an alchemist, beset by visions that leads him to search for an adept who in turn shall serve as the victim in a sinister ritual, hoping to achieve unio mystica. Initially, he is pleased, as he discovers an adept soon enough in the gutters. Regrettably for him, however, he is finally confronted with the realization that he has fatally misinterpreted his visions, and it is not he who sacrifices the adept in his pursuit of revelation, but rather he must serve as the sacrificial lamb in ritual slaughter, thus enabling the adept to achieve unio mystica. This, in turn, drives the adept into utter madness, rendering him free of all his senses and forcing him to the gutters from whence he emerged.

Suffolk-based singer songwriter James Varda’s fourth and final album before his death from a long battle with cancer in 2015, Chance And Time, set for a vinyl only reissue on Unspun Heroes is an astonishing aural document of a creative, forward -thinking musician coming to terms with a life slowly evaporating away. There is hubris, melancholy and an undeniable weight of sadness in these ten songs but, miraculously, there is also a stoic realisation and acceptance from Varda that is both heart-wrenching and deeply affecting. On Chance And Time Varda reconnects the human spirit to the land, a heavy, fearful heart to an optimistic soul, and in a beautiful poetic flourish gives a real tangible sense of loving and hope to his family and friends offering genuine reassurance and even, at times, a green light for celebration.

Carrying a certain air of mystique, that same sense of a ‘other worldliness’ if you will of say a Karen Dalton or a Jeff Buckley, Varda’s delivery and tone carries huge emotional weight here and an unique ability to add an honest perspective and warmth to the starkest of realities. The hard hitting impact of the opening tracks is blunt and sharply defined. There is pain, hardship, and fear wrapped in these tales - ‘The Doctor Spoke, Two Hearts Broke” - made all the more hitting as this is a real life journey in the here and now being catalogued. As we move towards the second half of the record there is something even deeper and truly incredible at play. Varda’s whole demeanor is one of understanding and acceptance - hear the celebratory shamanic vibe of the extraordinary ‘Pass It On’ and the poignantly reflective, chokingly sad finale ‘We Won’t Dream’ - bringing to an end a record that will leave a mark on everyone who hears it. Real art is both timeless and omnipresent, these songs from James Varda will hang in the air forever and be there for those who look to find understanding, joy and a sense of hope. Chance And Time is both an extraordinary record and poignant study of life and living, of death and what comes after.

James Varda released four albums between 1988 and his death in 2015. A fledgling career beginning on the singer-songwriting folk scene where his arrival was met with both curiosity and critical acclaim as was his debut, the John Leckie produced Hunger. Any momentum was lost however as it would be ten years before the next, In The Valley was met with a ruffle of applause. Cancer took hold of the troubadour and for a number of years Varda lived life and wrote songs until The River And The Stars appeared like a phoenix from the flames as he began to wrestle with the realities of his situation. It’s a record that beautifully lays the ground for this his masterpiece that was to follow.

Unspun Heroes, a new label set up by Simon White, has the sole purpose of finding and reissuing albums that he considers both undervalued and seemingly ignored.  All releases will be on vinyl only complete with Obi strip and extensive liner notes. Each will be individually numbered and limited.

Smallville Record sub-label Fuck Reality returns in March 2024 with Fossar’s ‘Make Me Feel’ EP.

The Fuck Reality imprint founds it origins in 2015 as a sub label of the widely lauded Smallville label with a heavy focus on classic House music. The label kicked off with the reissue of Westbam and Nena’s iconic ‘Oldschool Baby’ with remixes from Smallpeople and Gerd Janson before going on to release music from Smallville staple Moomin, Frantzvaag – who also release the first album on the label last year - and more. Here the label welcomes Fossar, co-founder of the Feuilleton imprint, onto the imprint with his new EP.
‘Good 2 Me’ opens with airy chords, robust toms, flickers of resonant synth stabs and soulful vocals running atop snappy drums before ‘Free’ embraces a classic 90’s New York aesthetic with heavily swung percussion a jazzy bass groove, emotive piano lines and warm vocal chants.
The B-side is then kicked off with ‘Make Me Feel’, diving deep with shimmering, expansive leads, looped vocal, swirling string melodies and a classic bumpy bass and snare combination. The ‘Aeriel (Windy City Version)’ then rounds things out, as the name would suggest nodding to the Chicagoan roots of House and employing all the classic tropes from slick flutes, intertwined keys, glistening piano melodies and shuffled 909 drums.


All tracks written, produced and mixed by Pchris Gruber
Mastering by Lopazz / Mixmastering, vinyl Cut by Helmut Erler / Lathesville
Artwork and Typography by Stefan Marx
Distributed by Wordandsound

Axis of Time is the stunning debut album from Philadelphia mallet percussionist and poet Angelo Outlaw. Featuring Eraserhood Sound's signature synth & soul production, Axis of Time is a dazzling blend of jazz, rare groove, funk, soul and r&b. According to Outlaw, the album is meant to transport the listener to a dream-like state, where space and time slowly fade away and reality is merely a distant memory. Each song sets a unique scene, as the pace of the music swells and sways_from the euphoric highs of lead single "Free My Mind" and uninhibited groove of "Speed of Light" to the trance-like meditation of "Dreams" and mournful melodies of "Invisible Clock," Angelo and the Eraserhood Sound house band truly go to the cosmos and back. The record is an extraordinary debut from Outlaw, a young gay Black man who hopes to serve as an inspiration to others who might be perceived as different or other. His work transcends race, creed, religion, and politics, and has the power to speak to the universality of time, space, and human connection.

Axis of Time is the stunning debut album from Philadelphia mallet percussionist and poet Angelo Outlaw. Featuring Eraserhood Sound's signature synth & soul production, Axis of Time is a dazzling blend of jazz, rare groove, funk, soul and r&b. According to Outlaw, the album is meant to transport the listener to a dream-like state, where space and time slowly fade away and reality is merely a distant memory. Each song sets a unique scene, as the pace of the music swells and sways_from the euphoric highs of lead single "Free My Mind" and uninhibited groove of "Speed of Light" to the trance-like meditation of "Dreams" and mournful melodies of "Invisible Clock," Angelo and the Eraserhood Sound house band truly go to the cosmos and back. The record is an extraordinary debut from Outlaw, a young gay Black man who hopes to serve as an inspiration to others who might be perceived as different or other. His work transcends race, creed, religion, and politics, and has the power to speak to the universality of time, space, and human connection.

"Memories Of Love" is the fourth full length album by soul singer & songwriter Myles Sanko following the acclaimed "Born In Black & White" (2013), "Forever Dreaming" (2014) and "Just Being Me" (2016). In ten stylishly recorded and arranged new songs "Memories Of Love" Myles Sanko captures the uplifting spirit from his numerous outstanding stage performances on the European jazz festival & club circuit of the last few years and transforms them into a stunning collection of modern soul music.

"This album is my most personal album yet", says Myles Sanko. "Each song is a memory of love, a story of love, good or bad, happy or sad. Love is not always as we picture it in fairy tales but a work in progress for as long as we choose to love. Over the years I have written love songs and most of them have some reality in them but also a lot of fiction. Maybe this was because I wasn't truly ready to share that part of me in a way that I am defiantly more comfortable doing now. I'd say becoming a father has changed my outlook and made me a little more brave and accepting of myself". One of the main reasons for the positive balance in sound and spirit of "Memories Of Love" are the musicians. Myles Sanko recorded the album together with the same band he was touring with over the last eight years. He produced it himself and co-wrote most music with long time bandmate Tom O'Grady (Resolution 88).

Near Future Residence is music for an imagined place based on real ideas; the soundtrack for an ecologically sustainable housing development somewhere in a not-too-distant future Britain. The eleven instrumental pieces here come from a place of optimism, imagining a future that is based on cooperation, community and ecological urbanism. It's music intended to sit in this imagined environment rather than impose upon it, similar in principle to the function of Kankyō Ongaku (Japanese environmental music). The ideas contained on Near Future Residence laid the groundwork for - and can be seen as a companion piece to - the album Your Wilderness Revisited, released to critical acclaim in 2019. Doyle explains how the pieces “were composed in entirely generative ways using samples of instruments, synthesisers and field recordings I've collected and developed throughout 2018. In generative composition, rules are set and parameters are chosen and then put into motion, the results constantly changing and surprising.”

Inmitten des kosmischen Echos hallt ein eindringlicher Schrei durch die unendlichen Weiten, der vom wachsamen Sonar eines Satelliten in der Umlaufbahn aufgefangen wird. DARKSPACE, das aus Wroth, Yhs und Zharaal bestehende Dreigestirn, wendet sich an die Bewohner der Erde. Sie sind in die Kategorien I bis III I eingeteilt und haben die Menschheit in den letzten Jahrzehnten seit ihrer Gründung mit ihren Übertragungen aus dem Weltall in ihren Bann gezogen.

DARKSPACE nimmt erneut Kontakt zu den Erdbewohnern auf - einedunkle Manifestation des Black Metals, scheinbar aus den Tiefen eines stellaren Schwarzen Lochs entsprungen, präsentiert eine jenseitige Reise durch den Kosmos. Mit einer eiskalten Umarmung und psychedelischer Leitfähigkeit präsentieren die mysteriösen Gestalten ein einzigartiges Album mit atmosphärischem Black Metal jenseits des menschlichen Verständnisses. Fraktale elektronische Samples schneiden sich durch Schichten von außerirdischen Drones und manifestieren eine immersive Erfahrung, die die Grenzen des konventionellen Black Metal-Genres sprengt. Gesangsübertragungen, die wie ein Flüstern aus dem All klingen, sind nahtlos in den Mix eingeflochten und verleihen den außerweltlichen Klängen eine eindringliche Dimension.

Menschen, macht euch bereit für eine Reise jenseits der bekannten Gefilde. DARKSPACE lädt euch ein, in die rätselhaften Weiten von "Dark Space -II" einzutauchen, wo sich die Grenzen der Realität auflösen und die jenseitigen Spuren des Black Metal mit unvergleichlicher Intensität erklingen.

ORANGE VINYL

Daniel Boeckner understands the grit and gravel that accumulates in the heart and that it takes an unwavering courage to crack through that clutter and burrow to the other side. And in Boeckner's hands, that quest comes via post-apocalyptic synth and guitar heroism, a rallying cry for those always coming home through the scorched clouds. Throughout his work with Wolf Parade, Handsome Furs, Divine Fits, Operators, Atlas Strategic, and more, the iconic Canadian indie rocker recognizes that few feelings are more gratifying-more memorable, more generative, more abundant-than hope. But it takes getting the hell out of your own way. A culmination of that deep library of musical reference, Boeckner is set to release his first album under his own name: Boeckner! No matter where his genre exploration has taken him, there's something about growing up in punk and DIY spaces that puts collaboration in Boeckner's blood. Composed of a collection of intimately familiar elements, Boeckner! elicits the same thrill of young passion and discovery. It's a jet-powered chase through a tech-noir cityscape-fueled by a dream and that special someone in the passenger seat. That urgency and passion have always been a trademark of Boeckner's, and writing on his own pushes those feelings further into the center of the scope. But while Boeckner may be the clear driving force behind the album, he's not without collaborators for his solo debut. After meeting producer Randall Dunn while contributing to the soundtrack to the Nicolas Cage-starring psychedelic horror film Mandy, Boeckner knew he'd found the perfect counterpart for his solo debut. "I'd been a fan of his forever, especially the Sunn0))) records he produced," Boeckner says. "Working with Randall really unlocked some suppressed musical urges, things that I enjoy in my private life but don't normally weave into what I'm releasing-like occult synth, pseudo-metal, krautrock, and heavy psych influences." That base allows Boeckner to thoughtfully weave between emotional imagism and more grounded storytelling. Throughout the record, his imagery delves into science fiction, but it's charged first and foremost by experience. The trio of Boeckner, Dunn, and drummer Matt Chamberlain (Pearl Jam, David Bowie, Fiona Apple) formed a sort of dark engine for the album, and Chamberlain's ingenious approach of triggering a vintage Arp synthesizer simultaneously with each drum track helped Boeckner shape the record's atmosphere. That tense futurism was influenced by Boeckner's time staying in Dunn's Circular Ruin studio, a dusky, electronic aura burned into every track. By the end of the album, Boeckner! eases from sci-fi epic into something more akin to a torched VHS copy of a John Cassevetes film, the chemtrails and nuclear fallout fading long in the distance. Like all good sci-fi, the emotion and pain hits home for the author and listener alike, and the genre flourishes bolster the human experience. In revealing more than ever before, Boeckner! ratchets up the musical intensity to unforeseen levels and hopes to find some peace at the end of the journey.

Stix Records, a sub-label of Favorite Recordings, presents the 3rd release from its new Mellow Reggae Series project. Following two stunning covers of Bobby Caldwell and Player alongside label mates Ethel Lindsey, Mato is now taking over the famous hit by Sylvia Striplin, this time inviting his longtime friend and singing partner, Lady Gatica.

Produced by Roy Ayers in the early 80s , “You Can’t Turn Me Away” belong to this kind of title recognized by everyone, while Sylvia Striplin remains a name known by just a few. Like always, Mato production skills perfectly fits with the original and his Reggae rendition sounds like coming out straight from Kingston.

While with her long experience singing Soul, Funk and Disco, Lady Gatica is also a perfect match for the vocals. Starting his reggae production career in 2006, Thomas Blanchot (aka Mato) has released music through various projects on EDR Records, Big Singles or Makasound... In the meantime, he developed a real trademark: taking over classic French, Hip-Hop, OST, Classical or Pop songs, into roots reggae-dub new versions. His 15 years collaboration with Stix Records and label honcho Pascal Rioux gave life to many masterpieces and the story seems far from the end…

Grand Canyon

the trip of a lifetime.

You're locked in beauty, the memories of the limestone, the secrets of the mountains.

When you approach them, you have the distinct impression that you're facing castles, monasteries, cities;

but they suddenly disappear, like fantastical dreams, illusions, or mirages.

You become a traveller in the land of dreams and Fata Morgana.

It's a place, where only Silence speaks.

And it was this Silence that inspired me to compose
"Melancholy".

Zbigniew Preisner

Nur wenige Wochen nach seinem Kollaborationsalbum mit der langjährigen Thievery Corporation-Sängerin Natalia Clavier liefert Thievery-Mitbegründer Eric Hilton mit dem neuen Solowerk 'Sound Vagabond' eine atemberaubende 14-Track-Klangreisereportage ab. Für Hilton, der Jahrzehnte damit verbracht hat, verschiedene globale Genres zu einer einzigartigen Musikvision zu verschmelzen, ist 'Sound Vagabond' die ultimative Umsetzung dieses Ethos, bei der jeder Titel eine Audio-Fotopostkarte eines realen oder imaginären Ortes ist.

Jards Macalé’s biography is a testament to the electrifying energy of music and the unwavering spirit of artistic rebellion. Macalé has remained true to his vision, unapologetically embracing the unconventional and challenging the status quo. His music, a conduit of emotion and a mirror to society, continues to weave a sonic tapestry that resonates with the souls of listeners.

In 2022, Macalé celebrated the momentous 50th anniversary of his debut solo album, a groundbreaking masterpiece released by Philips in 1972. This iconic record gifted us timeless tracks such as “Vapor Barato”, “Mal Secreto”, “Farinha do Desprezo”, “Revendo Amigos”, and “Hotel das Estrelas”. Its sheer brilliance united the realms of Brazilian music, infusing samba and bossa nova with the fiery essence of rock, classical harmonies, and the improvisational spirit of jazz. As the years passed, a new generation of musicians and fans discovered this gem, fueling its resurgent popularity and inspiring fresh collaborations.

Last year, Jards Macalé assembled a formidable new band, igniting stages across Brazil with a tour that now sets its sights on Europe. Together with Gui Held on guitar, the Paulo Emmery on bass, and Thomas Harres on drums, Macalé conjures an exhilarating homage to his illustrious body of work. This live performance embodies the untamed spirit and boundless musical freedom that define this visionary artist, transporting audiences to a realm where the past intertwines with the present in a breathtaking display of artistic prowess.

Los Angeles duo crushed announce their signing to Ghostly International and the first vinyl pressing of their 2023 debut EP, extra life. A love letter to `90s radio, the first collaboration from musicians Bre Morell and Shaun Durkan finds them tuning a shared taste for maximalist dream pop. Open-hearted hooks and melodic riffs move through a haze of breakbeats, spliced sound design, and distortion. Faithful yet fluid in its channeling of golden age alt-rock, Britpop, trip-hop, and electronica, there's a refreshing freedom to the sound, which quickly resonated with fans and critics upon initial release. Pitchfork called it "effortless, widescreen dream pop that's serene without being sentimental," and NPR cited its "deep sense of place and time." The music also struck Ghostly, and the first measure for crushed and their new label home is to give extra life a wider physical release paired with remixes from band favorites Real Lies and DJ Python. The story of crushed is written across midnight transmissions. In the early 2010s, Morell, who fronts the band Temple of Angels (Run For Cover Records), hosted a graveyard shift college radio show and used to play music from Durkan's former band Weekend (Slumberland Records). In 2020, Durkan, having focused on production work (Tamaryn, Young Prisms) following Weekend's run as a formidable shoegaze act, hosted a late-night program on a community radio station in San Francisco. Driving one day, he heard Temple of Angels by chance and was immediately drawn to Morell's voice. He added a song that night to his on-air tracklist. Morell saw it and reached out to thank him and point to that connection made a decade earlier. The exchange sparked a long-distance project. First, they filled an audible moodboard with `90s classics from the likes of Natalie Imbruglia, Sneaker Pimps, and The Sundays. Songs that transported them back to places of comfort and discovery; Morell's memories of a metallic, lavender boombox that dispatched past sounds from a world beyond her Houston suburbia, and Durkan, in his mom's car on the way to band practice. These touchpoints provided a palette for crushed to experiment without expectations, purely for the fun of it. A creative intimacy emerged; stepping outside the reverb walls of her full band, Morell embraced more clarity and a range of emotions in her vocals, while Durkan looked inward as a producer, collaging fragments from their everyday lives: voice memos, piano recordings, even the panting of Morell's late dog on "milksugar." The wistful ballad embodies extra life's feeling as a whole. "I am home again," sings Morell; her refrain cycles above a drum machine beat as Durkan colors their universe with star-lit strums, synth swells, and the crackle of fireworks in the distance. Elsewhere, the duo's uptempo mode is equally effective, like the super-charged duet "coil" or the propulsive opener "waterlily," which sets a cinematic tone for the set. Bold, bright, and replayable, extra life presents crushed as a project of immense promise, two artists unlocking something special within themselves, a space to hold both melancholy and bliss. Durkan adds, "To me, extra life is true and pure - in a way I haven't felt about music in a really really long time."