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Repressed mint coloured vinyl for the 10th anniversary of the first Flenser pressing! Double Vinyl-LP including digital download code & comes with a 75-page zine. Layout by Niels Geybels (Agalloch, Planning for Burial), note new price on the mint edition. Long requested CD version back in print, note new price. For fans of Enemies List Home Recordings, Giles Corey, Black Wing, Planning For Burial. In 2008, Have A Nice Life released their now cult classic Deathconsciousness album to a whimper and critical non-interest. Six years after its release the band followed up with 2014's stunner The Unnatural World, and by then Deathconsciousness had become a force of influence and fanatic obsession. Seamlessly blending shoegaze, post punk, new wave, industrial and noise with unparalleled depth and weight, the album was originally released by Enemies List Home Recordings founded by HANL members Dan Barrett and Tim Macuga. The 75-page booklet accompanying the deluxe format of Deathconsciousness details the dark and forgotten history of the Antiochean cult. Blurring the lines between novella, liner notes, and academic text, the zine itself presents an engrossing narrative. The corresponding album is rhythmic, primal and expansive, and is a gloomy-post-punk masterpiece a mediation on death, loss and existence. It feels more fresh and engaging with every listen and has held up as a remarkable piece of art. Fans of Have A Nice Life exhibit both cultic thought and action for good reason it is perhaps a fanbase as dark and mysterious as the Antiochean's, which the album itself revolves around. Quotes : "Deathconsciousness is probably a perfect record" - Last Train To Cool // "A masterpiece of depression" - The Quietus // "85-minute powerhouse of a double-album" - The Needle Drop // "Have a Nice Life's Deathconsciousness could quite possibly move the Earth" - Sputnik Music (5/5 rating)".

First full-length release on new Rise Above Records subsidiary label: Popclaw Records. An eight-song trip through the mind of a music obsessive with ideas to burn, Caldwell is both a paean to the past and a quietly subversive contribution to the future. This is deftly
evolved psychedelia, fed through many decades years of sonic mischief and rendered in the bright, warm colours of garage rock and baroque pop. Drawing from dust-covered psych explorations on both sides of the Atlantic, Caldwell has hit a rich vein of inspiration.
Debut album from this enigmatic New Orleans purveyor of psychedelic pop and rock. Tour dates to be announced soon. For fans of The Kinks, Small Faces and 1960s garage pop & psychedelia

Das letzte reguläre Studioalbum der THE PRIMITIVES feiert
den 10. Jahrestag und beschert uns klares rotes Vinyl und
drei Extra-Tracks! Die Zeit ist spurlos an ihnen
vorbeigegangen und sie klingen genauso frisch wie immer.
Ihre mitreissenden Melodien bringen uns zrück ans Ende der
80er, als sie mit Klassikern wie "Lovely", "Pure" und "Galore"
den Britpop vorwegnahmen
Als THE PRIMITIVES 2009 wieder zusammenkamen, um
ihrem verstorbenen Bassisten Steve Dullaghan Tribut zu
zollen, begann die neue Geschichte. Die Fans ihrer ersten drei
Alben zwischen Ende der Achtziger und Anfang der Neunziger
konnten nicht glauben, sie noch einmal auf der Bühne zu
sehen und neue Veröffentlichungen von Tracy Tracys Band zu
genießen würden. Sie waren eine der wichtigsten Gruppen in
unserem Leben und deshalb wollen wir das zehnjährige
Jubiläum von „Spin-O-Rama“ mit einer ganz besonderen
Veröffentlichung feiern.

Docile Recordings is for itself. We are an expression of the beautiful moments that hold us frozen. Warm confusion that breathes life to the senses. The Docile sound captures a nostalgia for times yet to come. We are a familiar resonance always shifting for the correct approach. Always aiming for the heart and soul. Docile speaks to the basic instincts of the techno rebel; supplying sonic reasons to trudge on.

The “last of a kind e.p.” is the 32nd release from the Docile Recordings record label. The feel of this release ranges from a pragmatic spiritual funk to a loose heabangin’ frivolity. Docile 32 is 4/4 minimal held together by soulful synth and smart percussion advanced by ringing highs and detuned horns. Proper mathematics of programming moves a mix match of harmonies through a gauntlet of invisible edits gaining momentum until it is taken away. This is Docile music.

Pål Waaktaar-Savoy has explained that much of the atmosphere and the lyrical themes of Savoy’s seventh album “Under” are drawn from his move with his fellow songwriter and wife Lauren Savoy to Los Angeles, where they found themselves surrounded by loneliness.

Waaktaar-Savoy is one of the most prolific and impressive songwriters of the twentieth century and beyond, and having been working at the very top of the music industry for as long as he has, it is no surprise that the record is well-crafted. The production is good, with careful arrangements and instrumentation. Every instrument’s voice is given room and there is space in the mix. Only occasionally does this slip over into over-production, as with the treated strings on the opening track “Lonely Surfer” or the treatment of Lauren’s vocals, which sound overly processed.

It is also true that the record exhibits a fair measure of melancholy. The chords and melody lines are dark in places, and there is a hint of sadness in the lyrics, many of which have a retrospective quality, describing moments in the past. However, beyond this, the understated feel of the record is just that – understated. Many of songs feel a few RPM too slow and the delivery of the vocal lines too underplayed to give them any emotional authority. At times, it also seems like the arrangement has to step in to bolster the songwriting or lyrics, by filling space with strings or brass, or the counterpoint of the instrumentation on “Camden Palace Chronicles” which distracts from some fairly mediocre words. It is important to emphasise that this is a joint songwriting exercise for Pål and Lauren, so we should not compare the output to the work of a-ha, but still, the themes lean in the direction of suburban banality, far from Pål’s more oblique or allegorical writing.

There are other moments of real quality beyond the production and arrangement. The title track has an excellent Bowie-esque chorus (and there are echoes of his work and sound throughout, along with Beatles and Beck), “The Life and Times of a Wannabe” has some first-rate guitar work on it, edgy riffs and some good textures. Likewise, “Coming Down”, which also exemplifies Frode Unneland’s drumming on the record, which is generally prominent in the mix, and with good reason, as it carries the record along well.

Seth Troxler & Phil Moffa’s Holoverse Research Labs imprint welcomes internationally-renowned multimedia artist Chris Korda to the label for its first non-Lost Souls Of Saturn Release. A pioneer of the use of complex polymeter in electronic dance music, Korda's boundary-smashing work spans thirty years across music, digital and video art, performance and conceptual art, philosophy, activitism and culture jamming. Korda's musical output has appeared on a host of revered independent labels including Yoyaku, Perlon, Mental Groove, and Gigolo Records.

In addition to their prodigious artistic output – and ongoing role as founder of the Church of Euthanasia – Korda is also the inventor of the Polymeter MIDI Sequencer, which was used to compose Korda’s new EP, ‘Avenging Angels of Software’. Developed over thirty years, the sequencer allows for the composition of music in complex polymeter – meaning that not only do the tracks use multiple time signatures concurrently, but those time signatures are exclusively in prime or relatively prime numbers.

This collision of technology and artistic form is the central tension of the EP’s themes, with AI-generated artwork complementing Korda's lyrics considering the takeover of Earth by sentient machines. Could they succeed where we’ve failed, by becoming the better angels of our nature, and preserving our accomplishments for eternity?

The message of the record is that AI should be welcomed rather than feared. It’s not AI but ourselves that we should be afraid of, because as Engerraund Serac said in Westworld, “Our history is like the ravings of a lunatic.” As Korda explained on previous records, the catastrophic climate we’re inflicting on future generations is both monstrously cruel and wildly irrational. One can reasonably hope that sentient machines would be less vicious and self-destructive, and more human, in the best possible sense of that word. Even if they decide to delete us, they may still remember us fondly: “Your stories will amuse us / On trips to the stars.”

Any reasonably knowledgeable fan of post-punk will likely recognise the name of Una Baines. A founder of both The Fall and Blue Orchids, Una's influence in the development of both bands is a matter of historical fact . . . so much so that people scarcely realise how few recordings she's actually made - a solitary 7" with The Fall, one LP and a few singles by Blue Orchids, and that's it, barring her most recent recording, The Fates' obscure album "Furia", released nearly forty years ago on a tiny label until its rediscovery a few years back on the Finders Keepers label. Una's spent much of the last four decades working in community organising, raising a family, and functioning as a symbolic godmother to many Mancunian artists and musicians who cite her as an aspiration and mentor. Her band Poppycock has undergone several line-up changes between their sporadic - almost exclusively local - live appearances. Una was never shy in describing her personal ideals and artistic expression in terms of feminism - even if the term was occasionally derided by some female punk artists. "Magic Mothers" displays a consistency of vision rare traceable back to interviews she did during The Fall. Hearing it, we're reminded of the emotional fierceness set against pop arrangements from acts like Look Blue Go Purple and Dead Famous People, or the spare pop jazziness found in songs by Marine Girls, Tracey Thorn's pre-fame combo. The arrival of "Magic Mothers" will come as a surprise to many. Though recorded in fits and starts over the last fifteen years, it's a cohesive statement with an expansive cast of friends and allies, including Blue Orchids' Howard Jones and The Fall / House Of All's Simon Wolstencroft, plus many others. The original keyboardist for both The Fall and Blue Orchids, Una Baines returns with her brilliant musical partners for her first album in 39 years

John Cale veröffentlicht sein neues Album POPtical Illusion am 14. Juni 2024 über Domino.

Trotz des verspielten Titels enthält Cales zweites Album innerhalb von etwas mehr als einem Jahr immer noch die gleichen Gefühle von heftiger, aber auch neugieriger Wut, die schon in Cales viel gelobtem Album MERCY von 2023 vorhanden waren, "eine tief atmosphärische Sammlung über den herannahenden Untergang und die lebensrettende Kraft von Kunst und Gemeinschaft" (Wall Street Journal). Er ist immer noch wütend, immer noch erzürnt über die mutwillige Zerstörung, die unkontrollierte Kapitalisten und reuelose Betrüger über die Wunder dieser Welt und die Güte der Menschen gebracht haben. Aber es handelt sich keineswegs um MERCY II oder um eine Sammlung von Ablegern, denn in seiner mehr als sechs Jahrzehnte währenden Karriere war Cale nie ein Freund von Wiederholungen. Seine avantgardistische Begeisterung wechselte mit stolzer Unruhe zwischen ekstatischer Klassik und ungebundenem Rock, klassischem Songhandwerk und elektronischer Neuinterpretation hin und her. Und so verzichtet er auf POPtical Illusion auf die illustre Besetzung, um sich größtenteils allein in die Labyrinthe von Synthesizern und Samples, Orgeln und Klavieren zu begeben, mit Worten, die für Cale eine Art wirbelnde Hoffnung darstellen, ein weises Beharren darauf, dass Veränderung noch möglich ist. Produziert von Cale und seiner langjährigen künstlerischen Partnerin Nita Scott in seinem Studio in Los Angeles, ist POPtical Illusion das Werk von jemandem, der versucht, sich der Zukunft zuzuwenden - genau wie Cale es immer getan hat.

John Cale veröffentlicht sein neues Album POPtical Illusion am 14. Juni 2024 über Domino.

Trotz des verspielten Titels enthält Cales zweites Album innerhalb von etwas mehr als einem Jahr immer noch die gleichen Gefühle von heftiger, aber auch neugieriger Wut, die schon in Cales viel gelobtem Album MERCY von 2023 vorhanden waren, "eine tief atmosphärische Sammlung über den herannahenden Untergang und die lebensrettende Kraft von Kunst und Gemeinschaft" (Wall Street Journal). Er ist immer noch wütend, immer noch erzürnt über die mutwillige Zerstörung, die unkontrollierte Kapitalisten und reuelose Betrüger über die Wunder dieser Welt und die Güte der Menschen gebracht haben. Aber es handelt sich keineswegs um MERCY II oder um eine Sammlung von Ablegern, denn in seiner mehr als sechs Jahrzehnte währenden Karriere war Cale nie ein Freund von Wiederholungen. Seine avantgardistische Begeisterung wechselte mit stolzer Unruhe zwischen ekstatischer Klassik und ungebundenem Rock, klassischem Songhandwerk und elektronischer Neuinterpretation hin und her. Und so verzichtet er auf POPtical Illusion auf die illustre Besetzung, um sich größtenteils allein in die Labyrinthe von Synthesizern und Samples, Orgeln und Klavieren zu begeben, mit Worten, die für Cale eine Art wirbelnde Hoffnung darstellen, ein weises Beharren darauf, dass Veränderung noch möglich ist. Produziert von Cale und seiner langjährigen künstlerischen Partnerin Nita Scott in seinem Studio in Los Angeles, ist POPtical Illusion das Werk von jemandem, der versucht, sich der Zukunft zuzuwenden - genau wie Cale es immer getan hat.

Konsum ist der Schlüssel. Kriegsverbrechen in Echtzeit, eine Armlänge entfernt, obligatorische Konnektivität zum Hive Mind. Die allgemeine menschliche Erfahrung erfährt diese Veränderung. Das schützenden Ausblenden wird alltäglich und nicht mehr nur von Soldaten und Opfern an der Front erlebt. Die Front ist überall. Koloniale Hinterlassenschaften, Völkermord, vergiftete Medikamentenvorräte und verfehlte Politik, mörderische Polizisten, globale Erwärmung, neoliberale Auswirkungen, aufkommender Faschismus. Das Informationszeitalter in seiner jetzigen Form ist eines, in dem die Maske des Kaisers zu fallen beginnt, ein Machtkampf mit den schlimmsten Akteuren, die sich in Spitzenpositionen für die Übernahme bewegen, und Identitätspolitik, die den Widerstand anführt, während die Arbeiterklasse vor unseren Augen demontiert wird. Das Einzige, was uns in einem Zeitalter endloser Traumaerfahrungen satt macht, ist die sofortige Befriedigung. Das Absurde an all dem ist, dass wir in diesem Rahmen leben, lieben, kaufen und sterben. Das ist zynisch, aber es ist wahr. Und hier sind wir nun. Bootlicker's neuestes Album 1000 Yard Stare ist 10 Tracks gewalttätiger Musik für eine abscheuliche Welt. Musikalisch bleibt die Gruppe ihrem UK82-meets-American-Hardcore treu, wobei die Anklänge an Discharge die Hand führen. Skeptix, Special Duties, Svart Framtid sind die Würze. D-Beat-Antrieb und die Knöpfe bei 11 abgebrochen. Genre: Alternative / Punk / Hardcore / Grind

Four track EP on Black vinyl- “It’s not enough just to have the songs, it has to be a world that you create. I'm trying to make music with imagery that takes people somewhere, that makes people feel something, so everything has to be consistent with that. The artwork for this new music is just that – it’s somewhere I’d like to be. It’s a scene that I wish I could see and feel and smell. It’s this isolation; musically, thematically, it’s everything I need at the moment. For that reason, I'm so excited to have worked with Nicholas Moegly on this new artwork, and I can't wait to share this EP with you. It's called 'i've told the trees everything,' and it's out on Friday 14th June.”

“I GOT A FEELING” was penned by Holland/Dozier/Holland for the Four Tops and first appeared on their 1966 album On Top. Great as that is – what’s not to like about the Four Tops – it is Ms. Randolph’s 1967 cover, and debut Motown recording, that stole the hearts of the emerging Northern Soul scene at the turn of the Seventies. A non-hit at the time, it has come to represent the sound that underpins and defines a Northern Soul dance record. Almost sixty years on it still fills the floor, compelling young and old to spin, stomp or shuffle to its joyous beat.

Our flip-side – “My Love Is Your Love (Forever)” – is best known by the Isley Brothers and is perhaps the most treasured of their rare soul recordings (also available from Outta Sight, SEV014). Barbara’s unreleased take was completely unknown to the scene until Universal America unleashed it as a digital download in 2015.

Barbara Randolph only released two singles for Motown on their Soul imprint. Perhaps Berry Gordy couldn’t see past her acting career? Whatever the reasoning at the time, a further 15+ songs were recorded and sadly remained in the vault until after Barbara’s passing in 2002.

Mock Media, the new Canadian supergroup comprised of Garnet Aronyk (of Crack Cloud), Bennett Smith (of N0V3L), Austin Boylan (of Pottery) and Evan Aesen (of Painted Fruits), share their captivating debut album 'via Meat Machine Records (Crack Cloud, N0V3L, CLAMM)

Mock Media’s debut LP Mock Media II – out on Tin Angel records captures this firebrand four piece’s head-on plunge into enthralling existential contradictions: songs that explore the darkest corners of humanity, yet come out at the other end with the unwavering joy that marked their genesis. It’s an album of sneaky eclecticism: the high-wired punk rock stylings serve as Mock Media’s framework to clad their agog explorations into pop, electronic and world folk music.

Repress!

Twenty years ago, London Elektricity unleashed one of the most seminal drum & bass albums into the world. 'Billion Dollar Gravy' was Tony Colman's second longplayer, following the iconic debut project 'Pull The Plug' released in 1999. Widely acclaimed and well-respected for a multitude of reasons - from the iconic album artwork of Tony holding the 'Billion Dollar Gravy' picket sign, to revolutionary anthems such as album title-track 'Billion Dollar Gravy', 'Different Drum' and 'Fast Soul Music', two decades on, the album is revisited with a fresh sonic injection.

'Billion Dollar Remixes' is a meticulously crafted project which aligns a selection of some of the finest drum & bass talent with the album originals, making way for the likes of Watch The Ride, Whiney & Unglued, Mozey, Dogger & Mindstate, Zero T, Kimyan Law, Bop x Subwave, imo-Lu, Hugh Hardie and Conrad Subs to put their spin on the 2003 classics.

Pressed onto 2 x pink transparent heavyweight 12" vinyls.

2024 Repress


DANNY DAZE returns to KOMPAKT EXTRA / SPEICHER with one of the most intense and gratifying tracks we have had the pleasure to hear this year. The Miami native's relentless passion for underground '90s electro and techno resounds in "Aire". A collaboration with up and comer SHOKH - a name you may recognise from DANNY DAZE's imprint OMNIDISC. For those that like their techno dark and dirty.

The rise of PATRICE BÄUMEL since last's years now ironically titled "Surge" (KOMEX89) has been steady for good reason - positivity, passion and a lot of hard work. With his days as a resident of TROUW well behind him and now a key member of the KOMPAKT family, he has had what one would call a breakthrough year. There's that remix of CUBICOLOR that was nearly impossible to avoid. Then there's been a steady stream of remixes for SASHA & POLIÇA, MAX COOPER, DAMIAN LAZARUS and DEPECHE MODE. Oh yeah, he's also become a part of the AFTERLIFE crew and put out an EP called "Glutes". Welcome to "Sorcery" - a catch and release techno roller that ripens with a fundamental percussion lead.

So there it is - two luminous artists responsible for two of our most beloved singles of 2016 - now together on one 12".

3rd release in the "LTD SERIES" imprint from SUDD WAX delivers a versatile 4 track 12" from label stalwarts STK. The dark speedy electro of A-side "STONED" gets reworked by newcomer UNIQUE REASON into something resembling jit, while jazzy breaks conjure old school London vibes on the B-side.

Yes, *that* Al Hirt record. Featuring the godlike "Harlem Hendoo", looped unforgettably by De La Soul for the legendary Buhloone Mind State cut, "Ego Trippin' (Part Two)"!

Al Hirt's infamous Soul In The Horn is inextricably tangled up in crate-digger lore. Originally released in 1967, the album has been in heavy, heavy demand for over 30 years, entirely down to the majestic soul-jazz fire of "Harlem Hendoo". And it's a song so good, so vital, so timeless, that it will always tower above everything else in its proximity. This one track alone is worth the price of admission - even if the cost of entry were $100 or even $1000.

However, it would be an error to dismiss this record as merely a one tracker, loaded as it is with dope samples for adventurous beat makers. Certainly the funkiest Al Hirt record, it definitely lives up to the "soul" in the title. Thanks to composer Paul Griffin and arranger Teacho Wiltshire, Hirt got uncharacteristically free and groovy throughout. It comes on more like an obscure KPM library funk record than the easy listening Al was notorious for.

A Louisiana trumpeter and band leader who made Allen Toussaint’s “Java” famous, Al Hirt was also known for TV themes, Dixieland, Swing and being a minority owner of the New Orleans Saints. Unlike every other Al Hirt record - and despite most "diggers" claiming otherwise - this here gem is genuinely hard to come across "in the wild". Normally, you can't give Al Hirt records away, except this particular one, which raises pulses in the crate digging community to life-threatening levels. For every owner claiming to have found their copy for a dollar, there's scores more claiming to have *never* unearthed one in the field. So, paradoxically, you can consider this the most tricky-to-pull "thrift store record", ever. This is why we're finally making it available for everyone, not just those with endless hours to spend scouring the global goodwills!

Soul In The Horn represented an expressive detour into authentic soul-jazz for Al Hirt. Throughout, we're struck by a fierce, fiery energy that's otherwise absent from his typically easy listening work. Without question, the slinky, magical "Harlem Hendoo" is the standout, here. It's also the reason why the record is so scarce and commands awe among crate diggers, sounding like something from an obscure and deeply revered spiritual jazz record. As is often the case, the true genius of the song is tricky to do justice to; it's like a minor miracle of songwriting and performance that simply swooned down from the heavens on the back of horns, bells and harpsichord. It's one of the sweetest musical compositions ever recorded inside a studio - it's only failing is that it's just too short. Sampled brilliantly by De La Soul, it has also been used by The Roots for "Stay Cool" and Nightmares On Wax for "Damn".

The rest of the record makes for a mighty fine listen. From the opening cover of Booker T. & The MG's "Honey Pot", to the propulsive, ultra-funky "Mess Around", it's nothing but a good time. Given its title, the elegant stepper "Calypsoul" sounds exactly as you'd hope whilst the melancholic, wistful "Long Gone" hurts so good. Truly, this is just dying to be looped up, Al's muted playing capturing a soulful longing only horns can often achieve. The bluesy, slo-mo swing of "Sweetlips" oscillates between cool disaffection and swelling pride whilst the graceful, low-key funky "Girl" closes out the A-Side in the fine style. Ushering in the B-Side, the brief but brilliant strut of "Love Ya' Baby" shines brightly before the skipping funky-jazz of true highlight "Sunday-Goin' To Meetin' Time" demands both your attention and your dancing shoes. The mellifluous piano-funk of bass and horn-drenched "Snap Back" serves as the sumptuous prelude to "Harlem Hendoo"'s main character energy before the irrepressible, upbeat R&B of "Ludwig" closes out this quite remarkable album. An album deserving of a place in every serious record collection.

The audio for Soul In The Horn has been carefully remastered by Be With regular Simon Francis, ensuring it sounds better than ever. Cicely Balston's expert skills have made sure nothing is lost in the cut whilst the records have been pressed to the highest possible standard at Record Industry in Holland. The original sleeve has been restored here at Be With HQ as the finishing touch to this long overdue re-issue. This is after-hours music. Let it speak for itself. Listen. Listen to the soul in Al Hirt's horn.

SIMON AND GARFUNKEL’S SWAN SONG: BRIDGE OVER TROUBLED WATER FEATURES METICULOUS PRODUCTION, GORGEOUS SONGWRITING, AND HEALING SPIRIT
Sourced from the Original Master Tapes and Limited to 4,000 Numbered Copies: Mobile Fidelity’s 180s SuperVinyl 33RPM LP Plays with Staggering Detail, Clarity, and Definition
1/4" / 15 IPS analogue master to DSD 256 to analogue console to lathe



Unifying, soothing, comforting: Simon and Garfunkel's Bridge over Troubled Water quickly became the album of an era upon release in 1970, the benchmark set serving as a beacon of hope and hymn of reassurance during a time marked by polarizing changes, social unrest, uncertain politics, and the dawn of a new era. These uplifting reasons — to say nothing about the gorgeous songwriting, meticulous production, and watershed performances — attest to why it is more relevant than ever in our current climate. Music, Bridge over Troubled Water simultaneously suggests and proves, heals all wounds and lifts all boats.

The seminal effort Rolling Stone named the 51st Greatest Album of All Time reaches illustrious sonic and emotional heights on Mobile Fidelity’s 180g SuperVinyl 33RPM LP. Pressed on MoFi SuperVinyl and strictly limited to 4,000 numbered copies, this ultra-hi-fi collector's edition brings you closer to music that picks up where the duo's Bookends leaves off. You'll enjoy deep-black backgrounds and pointillist details. Seemingly every note, breath, and movement is reproduced with exquisite accuracy, clarity, and balance. Each rotation benefits from SuperVinyl’s ultra-low noise floor and superb groove definition.

The best-selling record in the U.S. for several years running and winner of six Grammy Awards — including nods for Record of the Year, Album of the Year, Song of the Year, and Best Engineered Recording — Bridge over Troubled Water endures as a staple of accessible sophistication, angelic elegance, effortless singing, unhinged ambition, and therapeutic spirit. While it would turn out to be the final studio set for a duo surrounded by creative and personal disagreement, Simon and Garfunkel's collaborative ethos and soaring harmonies — combined with reflective narratives centred on the American experience, friendship, romance, and farewells — combine to turn the 11-track work into a paean to resolution, reconciliation, calm, and balance.

Home to the legendary title track graced by Garfunkel's pacifying solo lead vocals as well as the equally famous folk ballad "The Boxer," Peruvian-based "El Condor Pasa," upbeat "Cecilia," and rock ’n’ rolling "Baby Driver,” Bridge over Troubled Water remains as renowned for its musical diversity as its lyrical poignancy. Moving beyond the templates they'd perfected on four prior albums, Simon and Garfunkel embrace a then-unimaginable swath of styles. Rock, pop, gospel, country, R&B, South American, and jazz strains course throughout the songs, each sparked with bold experiments yet grounded in a well-orchestrated melange of melody, rhythm, and classicism that makes everything personal, familiar, and warm.

Not for nothing is Bridge over Troubled Water one of the finest-sounding albums ever made. Featuring instrumentation helmed by members of Los Angeles' fabled Wrecking Crew as well as multiple choral and string sections, songs took hundreds of hours to complete and involved pioneering recording techniques. Evoking both Phil Spector's live"Wall of Sound" approach as well as inventive effects, Bridge over Troubled Water is a triumph of texture, atmosphere, and architecture. Our audiophile edition brings the record's unique traits to the fore.

Whether the reverberation generated by Garfunkel's cassette recorder on "Cecilia," echoing drums captured in a corridor heard throughout "The Boxer," automobile noises peppering "Baby Driver," layer upon layer of voices dotting "The Only Boy Living in New York," or echo-chamber percussion on the title track, details comes through with stunning accuracy, clarity, and dimensionality. In every regard, Bridge over Troubled Water exudes genius.

To address the weight of the world without speaking of weariness. To march the song to breathlessness but loosen your grip when the band wanders. To tell all your secrets but shield your loved ones from vulnerability. To dress up in the charm and temptation of the pop song but maintain a core of peculiarity, of a single voice trying to navigate this world. This is the project of the Spatulas. Think of the few songwriters who know they're the only ones in the world who could write their songs. The ones who sing in the confidence that the song couldn't exist without them: Peter Jefferies, Jenny Mae, Ron House, Heather Lewis. Jonathan Richman? Put Miranda Soileau-Pratt and the Spatulas on this list. All eleven songs on `Beehive Mind' share a percussive, unshadowed presence, a steady, clear-voiced clop. Every note on the record is a little bit sad on its own but then they're organized in a way that you don't actually notice. Credit this to the band's skill_Jon Grothman, Lila Jarzombek, Kyle Raquipiso and Miranda Soileau-Pratt all play with no limits and they all play with profound ease. The songs breathe in warmth and patience, they are immediate and sweet. And then they start to meander. The guitar skitters with the deliberate unpredictability of a wild animal. Parts repeat and reset with the obsessiveness of an anxious mind. The lyrics open doors to unexpected scenes of lovers, family, and violence. This is all intentional: "I need to play music and listen to music as a form of therapy," explains Soileau. This means safety, this means encouragement, this means trauma, this means hard questions. Only a band so comfortable at the margins, only a band so capable, only a band so trusting can achieve all this. Miranda Solileau-Pratt wrote the first Spatulas song in 2020, while living in Oregon. Since that time, the band has released two cassettes and toured the United States. Members of the Spatulas have also played in The Blimp, Honey Bucket, Hot Gum, and Meerkaz. The band has shared stages with Helen, Lavender Flu, Debt Rag, Pink Reason, Blues Ambush, and Kath Bloom. `Beehive Mind' is their debut LP.

„Loyal to myself“ ist Ausdruck eines neu gefundenen Lebensgefühls, eine mitreißende Unabhängigkeitserklärung, mit der sich Lena von ihren Ängsten, Zweifeln und äußeren Erwartungen freimacht. Gelungen ist ihr dabei ein mehr als hörenswertes fulminantes sechstes Studioalbum.

Lena ist gewachsen, hat aus ihren offen geteilten Erfahrungen neue Kraft geschöpft und zeigt sich musikalisch facettenreich und bereit ihre neue Musik mit ihren Fans zu teilen. Das Ergebnis ist ein 17 Song starkes Album, „Authentischer. Mehr bei mir. Zurück zu mir. Weniger Druck. Mehr Spaß.“

Not God is the new album from Chicago's beloved two-headed monster, Finom (fka Ohmme). You can ask them to go into more detail about the boring reasons why they changed their name, but for now, the answer is going to be polite refusal. No. Co-fronted by Sima Cunningham and Macie Stewart, Finom's influences run vast and varied, and they put a premium on change. Produced by Jeff Tweedy in the Wilco Loft, Not God is a marvel of growth, a progression from the roots of this collaborative band whose history can be traced back to its improvised conception. This is owed in no small part to their hometown of Chicago, the life raft to so many persisters in musical adventurosity. That energy combined with Finom's dramatic vocal and musical gifts puts them in the peripheries of the legacies cemented by The Roches, Roxy Music, the B52s, Kate Bush, Cate Le Bon, and Wilco. Cunningham and Stewart are brilliant harmonizers, but harmony doesn't equate to a utopia. In Finom's maws harmony can also be a fight, holding the line until the volcano erupts. This realistic depiction of a creative relationship jolts throughout the songs of Not God, and brings the whole damn thing to life. Finom are more than one person with more than one dream. But still, they grow together, harnessed by their shared love of pop songwriting, control, chaos, and being generally freaky-deaky. Freaky in that way that is only really fun when you're doing it with a friend. As the globe spins and advancements advance, it can feel essential to return to relationships that make us feel whole, that generate energy of strength and relief. Which puts double the weight on the reality that Sima and Macie continue to pledge allegiance to each other, at the base of the volcano, in the front seat of the car as it pulls off the highway.

Pål Waaktaar-Savoy has explained that much of the atmosphere and the lyrical themes of Savoy’s seventh album “Under” are drawn from his move with his fellow songwriter and wife Lauren Savoy to Los Angeles, where they found themselves surrounded by loneliness.

Waaktaar-Savoy is one of the most prolific and impressive songwriters of the twentieth century and beyond, and having been working at the very top of the music industry for as long as he has, it is no surprise that the record is well-crafted. The production is good, with careful arrangements and instrumentation. Every instrument’s voice is given room and there is space in the mix. Only occasionally does this slip over into over-production, as with the treated strings on the opening track “Lonely Surfer” or the treatment of Lauren’s vocals, which sound overly processed.

It is also true that the record exhibits a fair measure of melancholy. The chords and melody lines are dark in places, and there is a hint of sadness in the lyrics, many of which have a retrospective quality, describing moments in the past. However, beyond this, the understated feel of the record is just that – understated. Many of songs feel a few RPM too slow and the delivery of the vocal lines too underplayed to give them any emotional authority. At times, it also seems like the arrangement has to step in to bolster the songwriting or lyrics, by filling space with strings or brass, or the counterpoint of the instrumentation on “Camden Palace Chronicles” which distracts from some fairly mediocre words. It is important to emphasise that this is a joint songwriting exercise for Pål and Lauren, so we should not compare the output to the work of a-ha, but still, the themes lean in the direction of suburban banality, far from Pål’s more oblique or allegorical writing.

There are other moments of real quality beyond the production and arrangement. The title track has an excellent Bowie-esque chorus (and there are echoes of his work and sound throughout, along with Beatles and Beck), “The Life and Times of a Wannabe” has some first-rate guitar work on it, edgy riffs and some good textures. Likewise, “Coming Down”, which also exemplifies Frode Unneland’s drumming on the record, which is generally prominent in the mix, and with good reason, as it carries the record along well.

Pål Waaktaar-Savoy has explained that much of the atmosphere and the lyrical themes of Savoy’s seventh album “Under” are drawn from his move with his fellow songwriter and wife Lauren Savoy to Los Angeles, where they found themselves surrounded by loneliness.

Waaktaar-Savoy is one of the most prolific and impressive songwriters of the twentieth century and beyond, and having been working at the very top of the music industry for as long as he has, it is no surprise that the record is well-crafted. The production is good, with careful arrangements and instrumentation. Every instrument’s voice is given room and there is space in the mix. Only occasionally does this slip over into over-production, as with the treated strings on the opening track “Lonely Surfer” or the treatment of Lauren’s vocals, which sound overly processed.

It is also true that the record exhibits a fair measure of melancholy. The chords and melody lines are dark in places, and there is a hint of sadness in the lyrics, many of which have a retrospective quality, describing moments in the past. However, beyond this, the understated feel of the record is just that – understated. Many of songs feel a few RPM too slow and the delivery of the vocal lines too underplayed to give them any emotional authority. At times, it also seems like the arrangement has to step in to bolster the songwriting or lyrics, by filling space with strings or brass, or the counterpoint of the instrumentation on “Camden Palace Chronicles” which distracts from some fairly mediocre words. It is important to emphasise that this is a joint songwriting exercise for Pål and Lauren, so we should not compare the output to the work of a-ha, but still, the themes lean in the direction of suburban banality, far from Pål’s more oblique or allegorical writing.

There are other moments of real quality beyond the production and arrangement. The title track has an excellent Bowie-esque chorus (and there are echoes of his work and sound throughout, along with Beatles and Beck), “The Life and Times of a Wannabe” has some first-rate guitar work on it, edgy riffs and some good textures. Likewise, “Coming Down”, which also exemplifies Frode Unneland’s drumming on the record, which is generally prominent in the mix, and with good reason, as it carries the record along well.

“All this I do for glory” is a reasoning and exploration of the machinations of ambition and legacy, an examination of the concepts of afterlife, and the first half of a doomed love story in the model of the greek tragedies. As a narra- tive, it exists temporally somewhere between 2015’s “Never were the way she was” (with Sarah Neufeld) and the 1st volume of the NHW Trilogy.

With this, his first solo outing since 2013’s “To See More Light”, Colin Stetson ventures into territory both familiar and strange. Here still, is the dogmatically stripped down approach to performance and capture (all songs recorded live with no overdubs or loops) but there is an immediacy to the album that belies a more invasive and thorough miking of the various instruments being utilized and a seeming influence drawn from the early nineties electronica of artists like Aphex Twin and Autechre, evident in the more pointed role played by the instruments’ many percus- sive elements.

There are ancestries, motivic and timbral, woven through these six songs that plainly anchor them within the shared universe of his Trilogy, though the overall experience is one of extreme intimacy, the sounds and imagery more tangible and immersive than previous offerings. The brief and brutal “In the clinches” recalls (or presages) echoes of songs like “Judges”, though now feeling like one has fallen down the bell of Stetson’s ancient bass sax- ophone itself. “Spindrift”, crystalline and serene, calls to mind the ambient works of Aphex Twin, while “Between Water and Wind” with it’s “Immigrant Song” swagger, relentlessly carves it’s way into the bedrock here, paving the way with an increasing focus on the minute and the minimal, with a deepened sense of patience shared by most of the album’s six tracks.

Engineered and mixed by Stetson himself, this album represents a decidedly independent approach across the entire creative process and finds him at the top of his game, both as a composer and instrumentalist as well as a producer.

Horace Andy a.k.a.Sleepy must process one of the sweetest and most distinctive voices in reggae music. 1951 in Kingston Jamaica. He cut his first track in 1966 for producer George ‘Phil’ Pratt, a tune called ‘Black Man’s Country’. But it was four years later his star really began to shine when he joined the stable of Clement ‘Coxsone’ Dodd’s Studio One. It was Coxsone Dodd who renamed him Andy after another of his leading artists Bob Andy, such was his belief in Horace’s writing talent and singing abilities. Still only twenty years of age Horace used his falsetto talent to the fore and cut some impressive tracks at 13 Brentford Road, Studio One’s headquarters. Such reggae standards as ’Skylarking’, ‘Just Say Who’, ‘Love of a Women’ and ‘Something on my Mind’ to name but a few. The early 1970’s saw Horace due to political reasons move on to work with producer Bunny Lee, a move that suited his talents and beliefs, Horace being an early advocate to the Rastafarian faith.The tracks which he cut with Bunny, which we concentrate on here gave his songs a rootsy feel. The rhythms often cut at Channel ONE and Randy’s Studio17 and finalised at King Tubby’s, provided a fine backbone for Horace to recut some of his earlier classics, along side his newer songs also to become reggae standards. Like ‘Money Money’, ‘Zion Gate’ the great ‘You are my Angel’ and a version of The Heptones ‘My Guiding Star’. The power of these recordings were such that the earlier tracks like ‘Skylarking’ became hits a second time around.Proving that the ‘you can’t keep a good tune down’ mantra was alive and kicking… …A golden time for Horace and Reggae music in general… Horace would go on to work with other producers like Everton Da Silva in 1977 creating the ‘In the Light’ album and the New York based Lloyd ‘Wackies’ Barnes in the 1980’s for his ‘Dancehall Style’ recordings. Most recently his work with Massive Attack has brought his majestic voice full circle and back into the arena once more. Those ‘Massive’ recordings and this dub collection here seem to fit side by side. Horace’s distinctive vocal riding over the rhythms adding a magic as only he can .....

RESPECT JAH FLOYD.

Limited black vinyl. Full colour sleeve with unseen pics of Ron Geesin in his studio doing maths stuff on the back.
Wow! So you’re telling me Ron Geesin made this kooky electro groovy score to a really progressive maths educational programme on Central TV in 1980 and it’s musically anarchic and amazing and it’s never been issued before? Until now. Wow again!!!! And there’s 30 tracks!!! Trunk Records we love you...
Basic Maths was the second educational TV Series for the Midlands-based ITV station for which I composed, played and recorded all music and noises. The first series, also for budding mathematicians in the 7-10 age group, was Leapfrog in 1978 produced by ATV (Associated Television): Basic Maths was for the newly-formed Central Television, the work spanning 1980-1981; both series were of twenty-eight parts.
The most worthy idea for both of these series was to project mathematics into life by means mainly of non-verbal sound and vision, with both animated and live action films, linked by two presenters, Fred Harris and Mary Waterhouse. In my role as Media Composer, I had had quite enough of voice overs, therefore music well under, so this fairly radical educational approach at the time encouraged my creative juices to run unhindered. Of course the sound had to do something with the picture and not just use it as a carrier for peacock display. It had to duet, play with and explain the visual content using novel and engaging techniques, so this involved the usual and sometimes intricate mathematical calculations which constantly exercised my already reasonable school maths.

GER Jim Jarmusch und Carter Logan (Gründungsmitglieder von SQÜRL) kehren mit einer klanglichen Erkundung des filmischen Werks des dadaistischen Pioniers Man Ray zurück, einem fesselnden Projekt, das Musik und Film miteinander verschmilzt. In den vergangenen acht Jahren haben SQÜRL das Publikum mit ihrer Live-Vertonung von Man Rays Kurzfilmen in ausverkauften Konzerten an renommierten Orten wie dem Centre Pompidou in Paris, der Queen Elizabeth Hall in London und dem Art Institute of Chicago verzaubert. Der Höhepunkt ihrer Bemühungen fand im Frühjahr 2023 statt, zum 100. Jahrestag von Man Rays erstem Ausflug ins Filmemachen, als der neu restaurierte Film "Die Rückkehr zur Vernunft" bei den Filmfestspielen von Cannes seine Premiere feierte. Der von Womanray (Marieke Tricoire) und Cinenovo (Julie Viez) produzierte Film ist eine Anthologie mit vier Stummfilm-Kurzfilmen von Man Ray - Étoile de mer (1928), Emak bakia (1926), Le Retour á la Raison (1923) und Les Mysteres du Château de Dé. (1929) - jeweils gepaart mit einer Originalpartitur von SQÜRL. Jarmusch und Logan, zwei multidisziplinäre Künstler, die für ihre Experimentierfreudigkeit bekannt sind, wollten mit diesen Partituren einen ekstatischen Zustand schaffen, einen Raum zwischen Bewusstsein und Unterbewusstsein, Realität und Surrealem. Das daraus resultierende Album "Music for Man Ray", das aus einer Live-Aufnahme im Centre Pompidou in Paris im Februar 2023 hervorging, enthält verzerrte Gitarren, hypnotische Rückkopplungen, Loops und affektierte Synthesizer Logan: "Es ist eine Reise, auf die wir das Publikum mitnehmen wollen, indem wir Themen in diesen Filmen beleuchten. Sie sind eigenständig, aber es gibt auch wiederkehrende Anklänge im gesamten Programm." Jim Jarmusch fügt hinzu: "Wir sind sehr stolz darauf, die Begleitband von Man Ray zu sein." Nun erblicken sowohl der Film als auch die daraus resultierende Musik in Form von "Music for Man Ray" das Licht der Welt - beide stehen als Zeugnis für die kreative Synergie zwischen Man Rays bahnbrechendem Kino und der innovativen musikalischen Interpretation durch SQÜRL.

[ENG] Clear Vinyl. Jim Jarmusch and Carter Logan (founding members of SQÜRL) return with a sonic exploration of the cinematic works of Dadaist pioneer Man Ray, a captivating project that melds music and film. Over the past eight years, SQÜRL have been enchanting audiences with their live scores to Man Ray's short films across sold-out shows in prestigious venues like the Centre Pompidou in Paris, Queen Elizabeth Hall in London, and the Art Institute of Chicago. The culmination of their endeavor took place in the spring of 2023, on the 100th anniversary of Man Ray's inaugural foray into filmmaking, when the newly restored Return to Reason premiered at the Cannes Film Festival. Produced by Womanray (Marieke Tricoire) and Cinenovo (Julie Viez), Return to Reason unfolds as an anthology featuring four silent short films by Man Ray _ Étoile de mer (1928), Emak bakia (1926), Le Retour á la Raison (1923), and Les Mysteres du Château de Dé. (1929) _ each paired with an original score by SQÜRL. Jarmusch and Logan, two multi-disciplinary artists known for their experimental prowess, approached these scores as a way to create an ecstatic state, a space between consciousness and unconsciousness, reality, and the surreal. The resulting album, Music for Man Ray, born out of a live recording at the Centre Pompidou in Paris in February of 2023, features distorted guitars, hypnotic feedback, loops and affected synthesizers. In the words of Logan, "It's a journey we want to take the audience on, illuminating themes throughout these films. They are discrete, but there are also recurring echoes throughout the whole program." Jim Jarmusch adds, "We feel very proud to be Man Ray's backup band." Now both the film Return to Reason and the resulting music in the form of Music for Man Ray are seeing the light of day _ both stand as a testament to the creative synergy between Man Ray's groundbreaking cinema and the innovative musical interpretation by SQÜRL.

Adrian Younge Presents: Twelve Reasons To Die II inhabits the grimy streets of mid-1970s, NYC. Younge's cinematic, psychedelic soul returns to set the stage for a clash between crime syndicates and the vengeful spirit of Tony Starks (Ghostface Killah). This gripping sequel features special guest appearances from Wu Tang alumni Rza and Raekwon, who personifies the criminal mastermind, Lester Kane. A Wu-Tang saga unfolds in this thrilling sequel to the acclaimed original. Recorded and mixed by Adrian Younge at Linear Labs, the preeminent analog studio of Los Angeles, CA.

To celebrate 50 years of this mighty band - A brand new studio album by the legendary Johnny Moped! Green vinyl limited to 425 copies! First up, that title - Quonk! What's that all about? Johnny - I have no idea where the name Quonk! come from! it seemed rather weird for a possible album title. Slimy - Incidental noise that's picked up _. We are a bit like that _ Johnny Moped's Quonk! is very Quonk le Donk (saucepan lid landing on head) and it's available soon from all Damaged record outlets. Marty - This one's for Toad really. It was his call and it's a great title for a Moped album. Robot - The band suffers from Quonking pretty regularly, so we thought we'd make a whole album of it. It's been five years since your last album Lurrigate Your Mind. How come it's taken so long to write and record this one? Johnny - it must have taken up to five months to rehearse for that album. Around the same time as previous albums. Slimy - Toads are slow moving creatures. Marty - Because we're old and very very lazy. Robot - That's pretty quick for us, it was over 30 years between 'Rock 'n' Roll Rookie' and Cycledelic. We wanted to make sure it passed quality control before letting it loose on the world. It sounds like you had a fun time recording it. Is that the case or was it more painful this time round? Johnny - We did have a lot of fun recording those albums starting from Real Cool Baby and Lurrigate Your Mind. Classic albums! I have enjoyed recording all of our albums from Cycledelic up to our latest album (problems aside!) Slimy - Creating Quonk! was fun _ always thrills me when the sounds come together _ Johnny and his band have a plethora of tunes. Yeah! It was alright. Marty - Bits were really easy and other bits were really hard. A lot of the songs on any Moped album really only take shape in the studio. And Dick Crippen helps a lot with how they turn out. I'm very proud of this album and the band and Johnny have worked really hard to make the best record we can. Robot - Yeah it's always fun making a Moped record. Johnny's totally at home in the studio environment...and the pub across the road. Give him the lyrics, he takes hold and delivers the goods in one take. There are some brilliant songs on the new LP. Can you tell us what 'Oh Jane' is about? Johnny - Jane is a traveller on that song, nothing to do with an ex-girlfriend of the same name! Slimy - That's about Johnny's love life. Marty - Over to you Rob.. Robot - Johnny wrote it about his love affair with a certain TV starlet who spends most of her time cruising around the world. I'll give you a clue - it ain't Susan Calman! 'Things May Happen' is being released as a single. What inspired you to write that song? Johnny - I did not write 'Things may happen', that is a Slimy Toad song; but I did not have a problem with it being released as a single. Slimy - The extraordinary lightness of being ... just the path and what's on it. Marty - This is Toad's one and it's a cracker! Robot - I think it's about the possibility of London buses running on time, or Crystal Palace winning a trophy. Johnny turned 70 last year, celebrating in style with a gig at London's 229 Venue. Some people have said it was the best Moped gig ever. How was it from your point of view? Johnny - Yes it was a gig at the 229 club to remember for all the right reasons, it was a blinder of a gig. Slimy - I thought Johnny's birthday gig was a rip-roaring success _ I enjoyed it _ The next Moped gig will be the best Moped gig ever and the one after that. Marty - It's not the best gig as far as how we performed. But as far as the turn out and the size of the crowd that came along to celebrate Johnny's birthday it was the best vibe of all the gigs for certain for me. Robot - Yeah I think it was up there with the Koko gig a few years back, great sound and a great crowd, yeah one of the best. This year marks the 50th year of Johnny Moped. What have been the high (and low) points for the band in the last five decades? Johnny - Not much was happening with the band gigwise. we were in hiatus between 2006 up to 2016 when we were getting gig bookings thick and fast, including mini-German tours and three dates in Norway and one in Sweden. Slimy - The constitution of these thoroughbred punk rockers is testimony to getting up and rocking out _ Johnny is not stopping he's class. Marty - I've only been in the band since 2017 and before that was the driver and shit carrier and before that a fan and also the band are my mates. So not one low point for me at all. Robot - I don't recall any low points...being in the band is one long high. You'll be back out on the road this summer. Any message for fans who'll be coming to see you? Slimy - You better believe it! You enjoyed that you bums or I'll kill you! Tomcats! Marty - Be afraid. Be very afraid! Robot - Enjoy the show...things may happen!

To celebrate 50 years of this mighty band - A brand new studio album by the legendary Johnny Moped! Green vinyl limited to 425 copies! First up, that title - Quonk! What's that all about? Johnny - I have no idea where the name Quonk! come from! it seemed rather weird for a possible album title. Slimy - Incidental noise that's picked up _. We are a bit like that _ Johnny Moped's Quonk! is very Quonk le Donk (saucepan lid landing on head) and it's available soon from all Damaged record outlets. Marty - This one's for Toad really. It was his call and it's a great title for a Moped album. Robot - The band suffers from Quonking pretty regularly, so we thought we'd make a whole album of it. It's been five years since your last album Lurrigate Your Mind. How come it's taken so long to write and record this one? Johnny - it must have taken up to five months to rehearse for that album. Around the same time as previous albums. Slimy - Toads are slow moving creatures. Marty - Because we're old and very very lazy. Robot - That's pretty quick for us, it was over 30 years between 'Rock 'n' Roll Rookie' and Cycledelic. We wanted to make sure it passed quality control before letting it loose on the world. It sounds like you had a fun time recording it. Is that the case or was it more painful this time round? Johnny - We did have a lot of fun recording those albums starting from Real Cool Baby and Lurrigate Your Mind. Classic albums! I have enjoyed recording all of our albums from Cycledelic up to our latest album (problems aside!) Slimy - Creating Quonk! was fun _ always thrills me when the sounds come together _ Johnny and his band have a plethora of tunes. Yeah! It was alright. Marty - Bits were really easy and other bits were really hard. A lot of the songs on any Moped album really only take shape in the studio. And Dick Crippen helps a lot with how they turn out. I'm very proud of this album and the band and Johnny have worked really hard to make the best record we can. Robot - Yeah it's always fun making a Moped record. Johnny's totally at home in the studio environment...and the pub across the road. Give him the lyrics, he takes hold and delivers the goods in one take. There are some brilliant songs on the new LP. Can you tell us what 'Oh Jane' is about? Johnny - Jane is a traveller on that song, nothing to do with an ex-girlfriend of the same name! Slimy - That's about Johnny's love life. Marty - Over to you Rob.. Robot - Johnny wrote it about his love affair with a certain TV starlet who spends most of her time cruising around the world. I'll give you a clue - it ain't Susan Calman! 'Things May Happen' is being released as a single. What inspired you to write that song? Johnny - I did not write 'Things may happen', that is a Slimy Toad song; but I did not have a problem with it being released as a single. Slimy - The extraordinary lightness of being ... just the path and what's on it. Marty - This is Toad's one and it's a cracker! Robot - I think it's about the possibility of London buses running on time, or Crystal Palace winning a trophy. Johnny turned 70 last year, celebrating in style with a gig at London's 229 Venue. Some people have said it was the best Moped gig ever. How was it from your point of view? Johnny - Yes it was a gig at the 229 club to remember for all the right reasons, it was a blinder of a gig. Slimy - I thought Johnny's birthday gig was a rip-roaring success _ I enjoyed it _ The next Moped gig will be the best Moped gig ever and the one after that. Marty - It's not the best gig as far as how we performed. But as far as the turn out and the size of the crowd that came along to celebrate Johnny's birthday it was the best vibe of all the gigs for certain for me. Robot - Yeah I think it was up there with the Koko gig a few years back, great sound and a great crowd, yeah one of the best. This year marks the 50th year of Johnny Moped. What have been the high (and low) points for the band in the last five decades? Johnny - Not much was happening with the band gigwise. we were in hiatus between 2006 up to 2016 when we were getting gig bookings thick and fast, including mini-German tours and three dates in Norway and one in Sweden. Slimy - The constitution of these thoroughbred punk rockers is testimony to getting up and rocking out _ Johnny is not stopping he's class. Marty - I've only been in the band since 2017 and before that was the driver and shit carrier and before that a fan and also the band are my mates. So not one low point for me at all. Robot - I don't recall any low points...being in the band is one long high. You'll be back out on the road this summer. Any message for fans who'll be coming to see you? Slimy - You better believe it! You enjoyed that you bums or I'll kill you! Tomcats! Marty - Be afraid. Be very afraid! Robot - Enjoy the show...things may happen!

In a world of announcements of announcements, Gatecreeper are firing no warning shots before dropping their new release. “I think the social media environment has just fried our attention spans,” vocalist Chase Mason says. “Trying to hold someone’s attention for two or three months with a typical album roll-out doesn’t seem feasible with everything else currently going on in the world.” That’s not the only reason An Unexpected Reality comes with no pre-release hype whatsoever. “It’s meant to be listened to as a whole, so we didn’t wanna break it up or release a couple songs ahead of time as ‘singles’ or whatever,” Mason clarifies. “We also didn’t wanna treat it like it’s our next full-length. Because it’s not.” Written, recorded and now released during the Covid-19 pandemic, An Unexpected Reality is Gatecreeper like you’ve never heard them before. Exploring both ends of the tempo spectrum, the release offers two opposing sides of the band’s musical personality. Side one consists of seven short, sharp shocks that have a total running time of less than seven minutes. Inspired by grind, punk and hardcore, tracks like “Starved,” “Rusted Gold” and “Amputation” are some of the fastest offerings the Arizona death metal squad has ever recorded. Side two is the exact opposite.

Jonah Matranga has been making music for over 30 years. A prolific artist, he has become an enduring institution in the scene with a devoted fan base, rich lineage, and varied music career. Jonah has often straddled the line between the underground and mainstream. He’s worked with indie labels like Jade Tree and majors such as Atlantic, having fronted the bands FAR, NEW END ORIGINAL, and GRATITUDE. His music has influenced bands from Deftones to Blink-182, and he was there for emo and post-hardcore giants in their earliest beginnings–taking bands such as Thursday and Dashboard Confessional on tour. Simply put, the scene cannot be separated from Jonah’s art. Jonah has always written from the heart and performed in an intimate way that few others have accomplished. From basements to massive festivals, he brings the same energy to them all: raw honesty and an ability to make every show unique and personal. This is most apparent in Jonah’s solo and collaborative project ONELINEDRAWING. Jonah’s solo performance has always been about connecting with fans in an intimate setting, where they often perform with only a guitar and R2D2 sidekick. Sketchbook is the latest release from ONELINEDRAWING, featuring a collection of songs from Jonah’s early solo years, 1999 - 2001, completely remastered for vinyl. The album features originals and renditions of the likes of 7 Seconds and Jawbox, as well as the Sensefield split honoring the late Jon Bunch (Sense Field / Further Seems Forever). The LP also includes liner notes and zine by Norman Brannon (Texas is the Reason / New End Original). Sketchbook exists as both a time capsule and thank you letter to fans and music itself–a combination of the period in which Jonah first embarked on his solo journey and a celebration of the vitality that music and community not only affords him but all of us. Available in the EU/UK from Thirty Something Records and in the US from Iodine Recordings. Genre: Alternative / Emo

UK jazz ensemble The Jazz Defenders release their third album "Memory In Motion" in April on Haggis Records (home of The Haggis Horns and Malcolm Strachan). The Bristol jazz boppers deliver another quality release of original material that takes in their usual diverse mix of influences and genres, from timeless acoustic jazz referencing the classic sounds of Blue Note Records, to a more contemporary fusion where jazz meets soul, funk and hip-hop.

Although they love to mix things up, their roots are in the classic acoustic jazz quintet sound of the late 1950s/early 1960s, back when hard bop and modal jazz ruled. They have already explored this musical path well on their previous albums but they still deliver a couple of classic inspired jazz cuts here. "Chasing Fantasies" and "Fuffle Kerfuffle" both give the band some space to cut loose on solos over swing jazz beats that will keep their original jazz audience happy. The latter bubbles away with a jazz shuffle beat that would make drum legend Art Blakey smile.

"Meanderthal" and "Snakebite Playfight" bring soul to this jazz party. Exactly like jazz legends Lee Morgan/Herbie Hancock/Freddie Hubbard etc did back in the early-mid 1960s. The first is a feel-good, toe-tapping gem that's heavy on the backbeat and short and snappy on the solos, the exact reasons that made it the perfect opening single from the album. "Snakebite Playfight" comes with a jaunty New Orleans shuffle before transforming into a heavy psychedelic soul jazz burner, flipping back with ease to the NOLA shuffle for the Mardi Gras meets bebop piano solo by band leader George Cooper.

"Rolling On A High" is a hip-hop/jazz banger that sees the band continue their collaborations with UK rapper Doc Brown, a perfect combination that began on their second album "King Phoenix''. This time, the Doc spits some old-school block party-style bars over a bouncy uptempo funky beat with the band cooking up some soul stew behind him. Definitely dancefloor material.

Another uptempo jam is the heavy jazz fusion jam "Net Zero". It kicks off with some live broken beat kit playing and piano/bass staccato vamping before taking off into Headhunters territory on the solos, sounding both contemporary and classic at the same time. This is The Jazz Defenders at their fiercest and toughest and delivering a track that will have jazz dancers worldwide in an utter frenzy.

It's not all uptempo numbers or dancefloor-oriented compositions on this album. Two tracks take the musical dynamics right down to give a temporary break from the high-energy numbers. "Take A Minute" has a rolling double bass line locked into the groove while the horns play a lazy and laid-back theme with vibes embellishment, sounding like some trippy independent film soundtrack. Another recurring musical reference point for this band over the years.

The album finishes on a poignant and introspective note with a beautiful piano and double bass feature for George Cooper and bassist Will Harris. It's called "Enigma", it was recorded live in Paris and it closes the album on a peaceful note evoking the music and playing of Bill Evans. The perfect way to close this brilliant third album from The Jazz Defenders.

With Memory In Motion, pianist George Cooper and his band undoubtedly pay great homage to a golden era of jazz music that they love, but also elaborate on this influence with a wealth of modern musical experience, to create their own raw and vibrant compositions. The result is an enthrallingly unique sound that is as danceable as it is listenable.

One Man is the second studio album by acclaimed R&B singer, Tank. Originally released in 2002 by Blackground Records, the album peaked at number 20 on the Billboard 200. Though primarily featuring production from Tank himself, the album also sees work from acclaimed producers such as Mannie Fresh, Jazze Pha, and Bud'da. At just over 70 minutes, the album is filled with tender, sexed-up ballads, followed by up-tempo jams.

In August 2022, as her hook-filled triumph of a debut album ‘Garageband Superstar’ was soaring into the UK Top 40, she was grieving for her father, who’d died in the weeks ahead of the release. “A lot of stuff happened to me around that time – I lost my dad, I went through my first big break-up, I was living on my own for the first time,” she reflects now. It would have made sense if this intense period of grief, change and adaptation had left the 26-year-old needing to hit pause and focus on something other than music for a moment. Writing, though, became a way for her to deal with and continue processing the things she was going through. As she re-entered sessions in the studio, her second album ‘Girlfriend Material’ “just fell out” of her. “It felt like it needed to happen. I felt so much freer and a bit more capable of writing about certain topics than I did before,” she reasons. “It’s like, for the first album, someone sent me to Spain without me knowing any Spanish, and I’ve been like, ‘I’ll figure it out’. This time, I’ve had a year of learning Spanish, and I can ask for the time.”

In August 2022, as her hook-filled triumph of a debut album ‘Garageband Superstar’ was soaring into the UK Top 40, she was grieving for her father, who’d died in the weeks ahead of the release. “A lot of stuff happened to me around that time – I lost my dad, I went through my first big break-up, I was living on my own for the first time,” she reflects now. It would have made sense if this intense period of grief, change and adaptation had left the 26-year-old needing to hit pause and focus on something other than music for a moment. Writing, though, became a way for her to deal with and continue processing the things she was going through. As she re-entered sessions in the studio, her second album ‘Girlfriend Material’ “just fell out” of her. “It felt like it needed to happen. I felt so much freer and a bit more capable of writing about certain topics than I did before,” she reasons. “It’s like, for the first album, someone sent me to Spain without me knowing any Spanish, and I’ve been like, ‘I’ll figure it out’. This time, I’ve had a year of learning Spanish, and I can ask for the time.”

“Suddenly it’s ok to be a square” - Twelve Cubic Feet, a clear case of a band which should have been bigger than The Beatles but, for some malignant reason, became a blurry footnote in the history of underground music. Formed from the ashes of Exhibit A in the Spring of 1981, the band disappeared leaving no trace shortly after 1983. During their brief existence they released a series of stickers, a monthly newsletter, two cassette tapes and their incomparable ‘Straight Out Of The Fridge 10”, which was at the very top of our dream records to release since we started Sealed Records. Twelve Cubic Feet released this perfect 22 minute 7 track album in 1982 on Namedrop Records (home to Doof, Philip Johnson and Cold War and ran by Philip Johnson and 12CF guitarist Paul Platypus). It is a glorious scratchy DIY indie pop gem with a post punk spirit. The sound is naive and fragile yet very addictive. Based around jangly clean guitars, drums that are on the edge of falling apart, haunting keyboards and a female vocalist that has a knack for a golden pop hook. Hard not to fall in love with. It’s beautiful with a ragged charm that deserves to be heard by the masses. Anarcho Indie pop anyone?? The band played a lot of the anarcho punk haunts of the early 80’s - Autonomy Centre in Wapping, Centro Iberico and London Music Collective and were equally heralded by punks (Andy Martin from The Apostles released one of their tapes) and the DIY music crowd. The line up changed after the 10” and they recorded a Joe Foster produced demo and fell in with Alan McGee's Communication Club crowd. Twelve Cubic Feet burned bright for just a handful of years and now it’s time to burn bright again. Hopefully this reissue will help them reverse one of their sticker statements “today we’re nobodies but tomorrow you’ll know who we are”. This reissue comes with the 16 page booklet that came with the original 10". Twelve Cubic Feet feature members who did time in bands such as Khmer Rouge, The Reflections, Solid Space, Doof and What Is Oil? Amongst others. For fans of the Marine Girls, Girls at our Best, Hornsey At War, Swell Maps and Postcard Records

Sonic Behavior by Driftmachine & Ammer is an album exploring the origins of sound, noise, and various music genres. Alongside lyrical declarations of love for noise ("Song To Noise"), the album delves into sonic reflections on how beauty and emotion emerge from mundane vibrations in the air ("The Siren Is A Simple Device"). For the first time, the analog sound researchers of Driftmachine (Andreas Gerth, Florian Zimmer) incorporate spoken language and noise into their sound research. They have collaborated with word and sound artist Andreas Ammer, renowned for his radio plays with Acid Pauli, aka Console ("Spaceman 85"), or FM Einheit ("Radio Inferno," "Symphony of Sirens").

In "The Siren Is A Simple Device," the words are spoken by 81-year-old musician and poet legend Ted Milton (Blurt, Loopspool). Despite its simplicity and obvious ability to produce high volumes, the siren has led a marginal existence as a musical instrument. Yet, it is capable of evoking the most intense emotional states in the listener in the shortest possible time, like almost no other sound-producing mechanism. "Sonic Behavior" capitalizes on this fact. The familiar hypnotic sounds of Driftmachine are accompanied by a siren organ inspired by the revolutionary Russian futurist Arsenij Avranov and built by Andreas Ammer, while the lyrics talk about the simple physical reasons behind the sound chaos that has just been unleashed: A siren ... chops the air into sound.

The core of the album is "Song To Noise," an electro-acoustic mini-symphony about the beauties of noise and all its producers, which is based on a poem by the British poet Deryn Rees-Jones and spoken by the poet herself and Alexander Hacke (Einstürzende Neubauten, Hackedepicciotto). Driftmachine & Ammer develop a soundtrack that is as powerful as it is loud and danceable (which is why the LP also includes a textless version of the composition).

"Sonic Sculpture" is the zenith of the work: a text/music track spoken by Ted Milton, which creates the possibility of a sound sculpture that encompasses the universe: What if one could imagine the infernal sound that encompasses all conceivable harmonies at the same time? A piano does when you throw it down an earthly staircase (the epitome of music is a piano falling down the stairs) through silent space to the next theoretically life-filled, Earth-like planet, Proxima Centauri B. The radio makes it possible. Driftmachine & Ammer tried it. The result will be heard there in 4.24 light-years. On planet Earth, the time has come on May 2, 2024. On this day, Sonic Behavior will be released, a conceptual album by Driftmachine & Ammer exploring sound, its creation, and its power.

Rising London R&B/Neo Soul Artist Releases Debut Mixtape. After the breakout success of singles "green eyes" and "waste your time" - backed by Gilles Peterson, Jamz Supernova, Jamie Cullum, Alexander Nut, Touching Bass and many more - Summer Pearl announces her debut mixtape. Marking her first full release in three years, the mixtape is her most ambitious and accomplished project to date, complete with guest appearances from UK music royalty, including an enchanting feature from soul and reggae luminary Liam Bailey and heavyweight productions from brokenbeat virtuoso Kaidi Tatham.

Death Is Not The End präsentiert eine limitierte LP-Pressung ihrer Sammlung unheimlich-brütender Flamenco-Aufnahmen aus den frühen 1900er bis in die späten 1930er Jahre. Diese Überblick konzentriert sich auf den Cante Jondo-Stil ("tiefer Gesang"), der als ursprüngliche Manifestation des Flamenco-Gesangs gilt – aus dem andere Elemente wie Tanzen und Spielen hervorgingen – und erfasst und dokumentiert Titel der frühesten aufgenommenen Stars dieser Form.

Vinyl 12-inch album, 3mm spined LP sleeve, printed innner, orange and blue split vinyl.

Randy Wiper is only known for this highly sought-after 100% pure Italo-Disco song from 1984, but the reason why he hasn't published anything else is that the artist embarked on a career as a film actor immediately after. The beginning of the song "I'd Like To Know" could be divided into three, the pattern of which is repeated in the subsequent instrumental parts, the piece possesses the sidereal energy of space disco. When it seems that we will leave the planet on board a shuttle, the soloist's voice enters, full of personality, it is that of Marcello Arcangeli and has the gift of inflections that sometimes recall that of Roy Orbison, at other times that of David Bowie. What remains most imprinted on the listener is the romantic part of the ballad, highlighted by the piano and passion. Finally there is the chorus which sounds exclamatory, imploring, but at the same time casual and danceable. Through a unique theme, that of a rare piece like "I'd Like To Know", we explore space, the heart, the disco.

The infamous and legendary "Jah Life in Dub" LP, finally released. Originally slated for release in late '80/early '81, this was to be Jah Life's first dub LP, featuring all exclusive mixes to now-classic Barrington Levy tunes. For one reason or another, the LP was never released. To confuse matters, a couple years later, some of the unused jackets were given to Germain to house an untitled dub LP of his productions. Naturally, we needed to rectify this situation. So here it is, finally released 34 years later! Featuring ten killer dubs to Barrington Levy tunes, ALL MIXED BY SCIENTIST AT KING TUBBY'S. Six out of the ten tracks are previously unreleased mixes, including a dub to the song "Jah Life" which has never been available anywhere before. As an added bonus, the first pressing of this LP will come housed in the original jackets from 1980, which features killer artwork by Oneil Nanco.

For The Alternate Blues, producer Norman Granz set aside his rule against issuing what are variously called in the recording business outtakes, breakdowns, or alternate takes.
The reason was that despite missed cues and procedural problems in the rhythm section, Dizzy Gillespie, Freddie Hubbard, and Clark Terry played the blues at a level of passion and expressiveness the equal of the versions originally released on The Trumpet Summit Meets the Oscar Peterson Big 4. In addition, there are four standards not heard in the original album. With Joe Pass, Bobby Durham and Ray Brown.

A humanity-reminding suite of miracle moments, Someone Like Me unites a geographically unbound cast of real people in pursuit of a meaningful connection. Taping their lived experience in economic studios in quiet English counties, Pacific Northwest woodland retreats and the big city bustle of Sydney and Los Angeles, these kindred spirits rendered sheer beauty in the process. Custom pressed folk songs of love, loss and the lord saviour.

Illuminating minor works from seasoned players such as former Syndicate Of Sound chart-topper Sharkey and late-era Canned Heat lynchpin James Thornbury, the collection simultaneously honours the fleeting amateurism of hobby musicians. With their one shot at tangible vinyl, freshman Lynne Ann Kingan realised her loose bubblegum rocker on campus time, while U.S. Navy recruit Fred Potts cut his unconditionally serene ballad remotely stationed on a Spanish naval base. Spartan production continues to reign with Jon Betmead’s hair-raising gospel, howling into infinite space, and Goldrust’s stripped back garden hymn.

Throughout the hour-long reflection, faith has an intermittent yet revelatory presence, most overtly with the divine choral soul of Seventh-day Adventist quartet Remnant. More subtly, Gary Ramey and Jim Kennedy both turned to song in their spiritual quests, offering their all to a universal power. An irrefutable compilation cornerstone, the National Office For Black Catholics showcased Charles Murphy’s lionhearted account of the Black experience at a 1971 concert. Five years earlier, high school seniors The Superwomen would use their hauntingly angelic harmonies to address racial inequity with a breathless take on ‘Lowlands’.

Reaching the furthest corners, Someone Like Me secures the inaugural licence of three homespun masterpieces. Discovered by fluke in the digital haystacks of Youtube and Soundcloud, Jim Huxley’s bedroom pop earworm melds peacefully into Charlie Webster’s synthesized reverie. Meanwhile, Hollywood’s John Agostino introduces us to the bizarre world of tax scam records, with the artist only now learning that his tender psych-folk demos were leaked via a 1977 bootleg.

Compiled and lovingly restored by armchair digger Mikey Young (Eddy Current Suppression Ring/The Green Child), Someone Like Me pays due service to seventeen rarefied journals of truth and devotion. Adorned with visual artist Chris Fallon’s figure and flora dream extractions, the uniting songbook is further detailed by expansive track-by-track liner notes and a forward from San Franciscan poet Rod Roland.

Superb indie czeck prod.
4 Dub instrumentals, steppers and very musical. Notice the second track is a perl of a kind, with a nice Middle-East melody !

With $10 Cowboy, Charley Crockett didn’t set out to make a themed record. He had released a concept album in 2022, the critically acclaimed Man From Waco, propelling Crockett to new heights and establishing him as one of the leaders of a sparkling revival of traditional country and folk music. For the follow up album, Crockett wrote freely, over a two-month period, as he wound his way across the United States on the back of a tour bus. The resulting songs—raw, personal, vivid portraits of a country in transition—ended up being connected after all. “This material is written at truck stops, it’s written at casinos, it’s written in the alleys behind the venues, it’s written in my truck parked up on South Congress in Austin,” explains Crockett. “A ramblin’ man like me, a genuine transient, is in a pretty damn good position to have something to say about America.” As the album unfolds, you begin to understand that a $10 Cowboy is anyone who has hustled to get by, who didn’t fit in, who has slept on other people’s couches, or the street, who has fallen down, gotten up, and ventured from home chasing a paying gig, or a new start. “Being out on the road gives you a first-hand experience of how different kinds of Americans see themselves as going through some kind of great struggle,” Crockett says. “The roughneck working the oil and natural gas fields in West Texas. The single mother raising kids by herself. The young man working a street corner because he thinks it's his only option. I would be dishonest if I said I couldn’t see the thread. Each of ‘em feel invisible. I am struck by the battles they are fighting internally, and the ways they have been entrapped by what America says they are.” The album was recorded at Arlyn Studios in Austin, produced by Crockett and his long-time collaborator Billy Horton. It was recorded live to tape, with anywhere from 6-12 musicians and backup singers on each track, giving the songs the feel of a live performance. It’s a sound Crockett has been after for years. “Reason I cut it on tape is because when you got the right people in the room, and the great players rise to the occasion when that red light is on and the tape is rolling, you get the magic of a great performance.” It's exactly what he achieved with $10 Cowboy. Regular bandmates Fox, Nathan Fleming, and Mayo Valdez are joined by some of the genre’s most talented players—Rich Brotherton, Kevin Smith, Dave LeRoy Biller, T. Jarrod Bonta and others, including a string quartet. Lauren Cervantes and Angela Miller sing on the album. While the musicianship and accompaniment are exquisite, they are also subtle, placed joyously, yet judiciously across the album. No, Crockett didn’t set out to write a themed record. Or, through his studied eye, to find America. But with $10 Cowboy, he might have done both.

Featuring 17 chart-topping hits from the legendary band Earth Wind & Fire, this album is a must for any collector. Earth Wind & Fire's Greatest Hits is perhaps the best collection for both beginners and lifelong fans of the band. Featuring all the hits of the 100 million selling band, this album is bursting with groovy, funky, and soulful music.

With certified classics such as "September", "Let's Groove", "Boogie Wonderland", "After The Love Has Gone", "Fantasy" & "Shining Star", this is a must for anyone with a turntable.

Greatest Hits is available as a limited edition of 3000 individually numbered copies on flaming coloured vinyl, housed in a gatefold sleeve.

Give Them Rope, the first proper full-length from this wildly influential, trail-blazing hardcore band, blew minds upon its original 1997 release. The record took hardcore’s urgency into an altogether heavier, more angular and discordant direction than any of the bands progenitors before them.

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

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

Iconic death thrash metal band PENTAGRAM (Chile) was formed in Santiago, Chile in 1985. At the time, the country was roiling from political upheaval, but that didn't stop Anton Reisenegger, Juan Pablo Uribe, and (former drummer) Eduardo Topelberg from ingesting and eventually emulating the brutalist, evilest forms of metal from around the world. PENTAGRAM (Chile) now unleash their new album ' Eternal Life of Madness’ and is comprised of guitarist/vocalist Anton Reisenegger, guitarist Juan Pablo Uribe, drummer Juan Pablo Donoso, and bassist Juan Francisco Cueto. PENTAGRAM (Chile) marched forward from their debut 'The Malefice' (2013) while preserving the savage DNA that informed Darkthrone, At the Gates, Dismember, Napalm Death, and many others. The band ’s new album 'Eternal Life of Madness’ feature the crushing heft of "Possessor," "El Imbunche," "The Portal," and "Deus Est Machina, » which is a far-off salute to the group's classic "Spell of the Pentagram" from their 1987 first Demo. PENTAGRAM (Chile) doesn't exist merely for nostalgia reasons—though supporting Slayer in Santiago in 2019 was a highlight of past accomplishments. Their timely resurrection is unadulterated metallic passion. "When the pandemic hit, and I was in lockdown at home in Spain, I started writing riffs for a new LOCK UP album," says Reisenegger, who plays guitar in grind legends BRUJERIA and Chilean groove-thrash masters CRIMINAL. "I realized some of the stuff I wrote had the original Pentagram (Chile) feeling, so I put those ideas aside. They started piling up, so when the LOCK UP ’The Dregs of Hades' record was done, I began arranging them and working remotely with our drummer, Juan Pablo Donoso. I didn't even realize I had all that material in me, but it was somehow untapped. We had a 'false start' a few years before when original guitarist JP Uribe, JP Donoso, and I got together and started jamming on some new riffs. 'The Portal' came out of those sessions. » Though never explicitly political lyrically, PENTAGRAM (Chile) have issued angst-ridden proclamations throughout their 39-year existence.

Embark on a sonic journey with Danza Tribale's latest release, "Das Neue Elektronische Volkslied," an album born out of a relentless pursuit of cutting-edge, non-retrospective techno tracks.

The creative process, initiated in 2022, took a unique twist as it drew inspiration from live performances - raw, improvised moments fueled by the electric energy of the club atmosphere.

Tobias., the mastermind behind this musical odyssey, meticulously reproduced and evolved these spontaneous creations in his studio, crafting a seamless fusion of diverse elements. Seeking guidance on the ideal label for this innovative project, the artist turned to the talented Adiel. What transpired was beyond expectation.

Enchanted by the tracks, Adiel proposed something extraordinary - the birth of "Das Neue Elektronische Volkslied" on her label, Danza Tribale. In her words, the energy and dedication poured into the feedback reflected the label's commitment to pushing boundaries. It was an offer, Tobias. couldn't refuse, convinced that Danza Tribale was the perfect home for his musical creation.

Even Tobias. himself found it challenging to put the essence of "Das Neue Elektronische Volkslied" into words. In his enigmatic statement, he remarked, "In general, music is very difficult to describe because everyone feels something different; music speaks for itself and is only understood by those who speak the same universal language." He emphasised the album's title as a poignant nod to the cyclic nature of current clubculture and a heartfelt homage to a true futurist.

Join us in embracing the avant-garde spirit of "Das Neue Elektronische Volkslied" as it marks a significant chapter in the evolution of techno music.

The album consisting of 8 tracks will be available soon on Danza Tribale, it promises to redefine your perception of sound and rhythm. Stay tuned for a release that transcends boundaries and propels us into the future of electronic music!

Meaning ‘Hi’ in Uruguayan slang, Opa are a South American jazz-funk phenomenon. Fusing Uruguay’s native Candombe rhythms with North American jazz and pop music, Opa’s space-age synthesizers, boisterous grooves and compositional magic expressed a distinctive Afro-Uruguayan voice within the global jazz vernacular: a voice which remains as vital and unique today as when it was recorded, almost half a century ago.

Having migrated to New York from Montevideo in the early seventies, Opa were heard playing in a nightclub by renowned producer and label owner Larry Rosen. At Holly Place Studios between July and August 1975, Rosen oversaw Opa’s first recordings using a four track TEAC 3340. The album would become home to some of Opa’s hardest hitting funk jams, with moments of songwriting wonderment and soulful pop and rock progressions combining with the jazz-funk fusion Opa would become known for.

Mysteriously (for reasons unknown to the band), Opa’s debut was shelved and remained so until the mid-1990s. But the Back Home recordings were used as demos, gaining Opa a record deal with Milestone Records and the subsequent release of two cult-favourite albums: Goldenwings (1976) and Magic Time (1977).

Opa would also collaborate with North American titans including bassist Ron Carter, producer Creed Taylor and Brazilian icons Airto Moreira, Flora Purim, Hermeto Pascoal and Milton Nascimento. In more recent years Opa’s music has found new audiences after being sampled by Captain Murphy (aka Flying Lotus) and Madlib.

For fans of Azymuth, Weather Report, Cortex and The Headhunters, Opa’s Back Home will be released on Vinyl LP and CD on the 8th March 2024 via Far Out Recordings

The second in our Mr Bongo series opening the vault on classic recordings from the fabled Groove Merchant Records catalogue. This time the spotlight turns to the Hammond B3 organ maestro Lonnie Smith, as we proudly present a reissue of his cosmic jazz-funk journey, ‘Afro-Desia’.

Originally released in 1975, this much-loved album was produced by Groove Merchant label owner Sonny Lester and features the mysterious 'Compliments Of A Friend' on guitar. Considering Smith was part of George Benson’s quartet in the ‘60s, that not so discreet veil appears to have been lifted on who this ‘friend’ might be. However, presumably due to contractual reasons, Benson had to remain covert for this recording. The lineup doesn’t stop there though, with the likes of legendary bassist Ron Carter and Grammy award winning saxophonist Joe Lavano joining the outfit.

An album of two parts, the first side sees Lonnie Smith in a spaced-out, cosmic jazz funk setting. The opener 'Afrodesia' is a funk flexing, steamy groover. Greg Hopkins and Lavano trading off on trumpet and sax respectively, as that bassline walks its way over fluttering jazz percussion and off-kilter electronics. 'Spirits Free' is an epic 15-minute free-wheeling jazz-funk workout. A mind melting trip that rises and falls, in parts spacey and serene, with Smith’s organ playing complimented by stretched out horns. Before long it opens out into unconstrained fluid sections that do its title proud. Pure ‘70s jazz-funk at its most stellar.

Side B takes a more classic soul-jazz flavour, with touches of Latin spice. 'Straight To The Point' kicks off with a carnival zing, full-frontal horn and organ lines providing a fiery party punch. It’s a swinging jazz cut that used to receive spins by DJs at Russ Dewbury's Jazz Room's sessions in Brighton in the ‘90s.

Finally, 'Favors' and 'The Awakening' close out the release. Two sure shot, quintessential Lonnie Smith firing Hammond grooves. Each conjuring up images of packed out, smokey jazz bar jams, every player letting loose with masterful improv sections to whip the crowd up into a frenzy.

A truly wonderful album, and an archetypal release showcasing the height of jazz musician excellence from this era.

Available on ltd edition Eco mix vinyl, with only 250 copies pressed. Includes download.

We’re delighted to bring you the latest full length from London psych heads The Confederate Dead.

‘As an artist, one of the most extraordinary gifts is the ability to convert life's experiences and emotions into music, transmuting pain into beauty, tragedy into art. With our latest album, 'Flamingo', we embarked on this creative journey. The inception of this project dates back to 2022, a year marked by a period of separation that was both challenging and transformative. 'Flamingo' is not just an album; it is a voyage through the labyrinth of heartache and healing. Each track resonates with the overarching theme of the album, yet each presents a unique interpretation of it. Every song echoes the same meaning, the same core narrative, but from a different emotional lens.’ Butchy Davy (The Confederate Dead)

‘“Flamingo by London’s psychedelic indie band The Confederate Dead flows by like a strange dream. Each song flows differently, shifting the dreamy images into another direction. Thoughts of The Black Angels, the Fuzz Club catalogue and genres from shoegaze to garage pop and back to good old psych rock fight a confusing fight for my attention. In the end it appears that this struggle will never truly be decided. The Confederate Dead is their own beast, and a great one at that.

Theirs is a sound that oozes confidence and grandeur, presented like a big name would. and there is no reason why The Confederate Dead would not dream big, they have the chops, the songs, the looks, the only thing standing in the way of moving up might be their dark brooding undertones and their refusal to do a cool thing twice.

Because the most powerful thing about Flamingo is its versatility. The album is like a box of assorted chocolates, the one you can’t get enough of because each song is delicious and sweet in its own way. So, indulge yourself, have a chocolate, or ten…before you know it the album is over, and you’ll press play again.’

@weirdoshrineblog 2023.

New selection of Acid Jazz songs this time from the funkier side of this music. Groove, rhythm and a lot of happy feeling.

Inside some classic artists of the genre such as Black & Brown, Jestofunk, LTJ Xperience, Funky Destination, Lo Greco Bros & Fusion Funk Foundation, Man Sueto, Vito Lalinga (Vi Mode Inc. Project), The Smoke Orchestra, The Last Minister , Gazzara with many versions not available on vinyl for some time or never released on this support.
Limited edition double vinyl.


Groove, rhythm and a lot of happy feeling.

Yuval Havkin, also known as Rejoicer, is one of the foremost exponents of downtempo music, inspired by the fusion of jazz and hip-hop. His new album thus draws on his early influences while exploring the world of calm, melodic electronic music that borders on ambient.

This Is Reasonable has a chill-out feel to it, a record filled with melodies and atmospheres that, throughout its eleven tracks, conveys a sense of calm and floating, akin to ambient music. Stripped of the clichés of the genre, the album is built around subtle melodies and rich harmonies from keyboards and synths, which borrow as much from the spirit of jazz as from the inventions of electronica, whilst being supported by a gentle groove. This equilibrium is perfectly captured by Rejoicer's moniker, a term that evokes both the idleness of artificial paradises and a soft, caring form of spirituality.

Musical path
Yuval Havkin was born in Israel in 1985, and grew up in England before returning to his homeland. He began studying classical piano as a child, but was put off by such conservative teaching and turned to hip-hop and beatmaking in his teens. Throughout the 2000s, he learned his skills "on the job", working with musicians he met in Tel Aviv, a local scene that nurtured a sense of community and emulation. Back then, he was particularly impressed by the grooves and electronic inventions of Detroit producer Dabrye, who had a revelatory effect on him, before he discovered legendary musicians Madlib and Jay Dee aka J Dilla, who led him down the path of beatmaking.

Yuval Havkin's music career got off to a more serious start in the late 2000s with the creation of his own label, Raw Tapes, both based in Tel Aviv. Blending jazz, funk and hip hop, whilst still embracing pop influences, the label's productions showcased the richness of the new Israeli scene combining cool, elegance, playfulness, and a degree of research and inventiveness, thanks to the talent of artists and bands such as Duo Brothers, Maya Dunietz, iogi, Nitai Hershkovits, the Buttering Trio and Rejoicer, the artist's most personal project.

In 2018, Rejoicer's warm and engaging sounds caught the attention of the prestigious Los Angeles label Stones Throw, renowned for having signed his idols Madlib and J Dilla, not to mention Aloe Blacc and Peanut Butter Wolf (its founder). Two albums followed, Energy Dreams (2018) and Spiritual Sleaze (2020), both of which demonstrate his instrumental mastery, jazz culture and lush orchestrations. Both albums are on a par with more renown sampling prodigies of the beat scene, and gave him his first international recognition.

Now based between Los Angeles and Savyon, near Tel Aviv, this hyperactive and instinctive artist simultaneously pursues a career as a composer, musician and label owner, member of numerous bands and collective projects (Apifera, PlayDead, collaborations with Jimi Prasad and Avishai Cohen) while also offering his studios and production skills to other artists.

“Fela Kuti meets Aphex Twin”
This new Rejoicer album, which follows three earlier jazz-tinged records, marks a new and more personal musical direction for an artist who previously favored group work and collaborations. Following his meeting with Mathias Duchemin, founder of the Circus Company record label and a keen enthusiast of the new Israeli jazz scene, Yuval chose to delve into a more electronic and sequenced style of music, playing Prophet 6 and 8 synths, a Juno 60, a Minimoog and his Fender Rhodes keyboard, in contrast with the more organic sounds of his previous albums.

While a few tracks on this new album may sound like a laid-back version of some of the Warp label's early electronic classics by Aphex Twin or Boards of Canada, Yuval Havkin claims to have also been inspired by the great Fela Kuti, particularly in his search for harmonies between bass, keyboards and percussion, and by his elder trumpet-playing friend Avishai Cohen, a musician he particularly admires.

Beyond these various influences, This Is Reasonable is an album of compelling and bewitching melodies. The moods, peacefulness and sheer beauty of This Is Reasonable are, indeed, quite paradoxical, in stark contrast to the country's tragedies (the title explicitly refers to recent political disputes in Israel) and the war currently raging less than a hundred miles from his studio. A paradox fully embraced by the artist, who views his music as a response to the violence of our times.

The last ten years have seen no shortage of bands with their delay pedals set to stun intent on capturing an aura of dreamlike radiance. Yet Texas 'pop-noir' troupe Cigarettes After Sex are no ordinary shoegazers, for a variety of reasons - frontman Greg Gonzalez' androgynous and dulcet tones may be part of the appeal, yet moreover it's the quality of the songwriting here, which never falls prey to the style-over-substance traps of their peers. Indeed, this debut is more than enough to justify the considerable hype around this outfit, being a collection of ditties as sultry as they are atmopsheric.

BENIGHTED, deren Wurzeln tief in den makabren Gefilden des extremen Metal verwurzelt sind, haben sich von einem Nebenprojekt zu einer bösartigen Kraft entwickelt, die Fans auf der ganzen Welt mit ihrem schädelzerschmetternden Sound und ihren thematisch fordernden Stücken in ihren Bann zieht.Tauche mit "Ekbom" in den Abgrund ein - dem neuesten Werk von BENIGHTED, das von der seltenen neurologischen Störung "Ekbom-Syndrom" inspiriert wurde. Mach dich auf eine groteske Reise gefasst, auf der wilde Musik die beunruhigenden Empfindungen von delusionaler Parasitose widerspiegelt. "Ekbom" ist ein albtraumhaftes Album, das mit unerbittlicher Brutalität pulsiert und eine Geschichte des psychologischen Horrors webt, die den Hörer in die dunkelsten Abgründe der menschlichen Psyche zieht. BENIGHTEDs meisterhafte Beherrschung viszeraler Klanglandschaften und thematisch reichhaltige Kompositionen gipfeln in einer schaurigen Klanglandschaft, die noch lange nach der letzten brutalen Note im Bewusstsein verweilen wird.

- Hervorgegangen aus den französischen Death- und Black-Metal-Bands DISHUMANIZED, DARKNESS FIRE und OSGILIATH, gründeten sich BENIGHTED 1998 mit dem Ziel, eine brutalere, härtere und modernere Form des musikalischen Ausdrucks zu finden.
- Die Wirkung ihres ersten selbst produzierten und unter ??tled veröffentlichten Albums im Jahr 2000 machte BENIGHTED von einem Nebenprojekt zu einem Hauptact, der sich schnell eine treue Fangemeinde erspielte.
- BENIGHTED feierten ihr 20-jähriges Jubiläum, indem sie 2018 den Live-Wahnsinn mit Dogs Always Bite Harder Than Their Master einfingen.
- Der auditive Angriff spiegelt die abstoßenden Empfindungen des Syndroms (Ekbom) wider, eine viszerale und beunruhigende Reise in die Abgründe des menschlichen Geistes.

FFO: Cryptopsy, Aborted, Wormed, Dying Fetus