Buscar:reason

Celebrating a Decade of Dark Entries with a compilation titled ‘Tens Across The Board’. We revisit our roster and chose 10 songs from 10 bands from 10 different countries spanning the years 1981-1993. The songs flow in chronological order and have never appeared on vinyl, with 7 of the songs previously unreleased.

The compilation begins in 1981 with Parade Ground from Belgium, the duo of brothers Pierre and Jean-Marc Pauly with help from Patrick Codenys and Jean-Luc of Front 242. “The Light’s Gone” was one of their earliest experiments and employs a stark minimalism with modular synthesizers, guitar reverb and tape delay. Next we venture to Granada, Spain in 1982 to meet the trio of Diseño Corbusier. Influenced by Cabaret Voltaire and Dadaism, “La Esperanza está en Antenas” was the band’s take on melancholic pop fueled by a robotic DR-55 bass-line. Sailing the Mediterranean Sea to Athens to meet Greek electronic goddess Lena Platonos who shares a demo from 1983. “Μια Γάτα Σασ Περιμένει Στη Γωνία” translates to “A Cat Is Waiting On The Corner” and is possibly the witchiest sounds we’ve shared yet, ending with a blood curdling scream. Frozen in 1983 we cross Ionian Sea to Messina, Italy and visit Victrola, the duo of Antonino “Eze” Cuscinà and Carlo Smeriglio. They’ve unearthed a melodic instrumental version of “Luca” fueled by a Korg Polysix and TB-303. Traveling across the Adriatic to Slovenia circa 1984, where Borghesia are working on their album ‘Ljubav Je Hladnija Od Smrti’. “Magla” translates to “Fog” fitting for the thick, somber electronics of Aldo Ivancic providing a dense atmosphere for the baritone vocals of Dario Seraval.

On Side B we go down under to Sydney and excavate a hidden Tom Ellard song recorded in 1984 under the alias Lord Metal, an anagram of his name for copyright reasons. “Ga Duum Blitzfonika” is a slow-motion, unadulterated dance groove originally released on the cassette compilation "Independent World”. Skipping ahead to 1986 in Tours, France we salute X-Ray Pop the minimum new wave duo of Didier "Doc" Pilot and Zouka Dzaza. They contribute the hypnotically fragile “Corto Maltese” that originally appeared on the cassette compilation ‘Plop’. Crossing the German boarder we arrive in Dortmund at the apartment of Andreas Sippel of Second Decay who recorded the instrumental demo “Lübeckerstrasse” in 1988 with partner Christian Purwien. Utilizing an TR-808, SH-101 and Arp Odyssey this cold slice of futurism was named after the street Andreas lived on. Traveling westward to England, specifically Basildon, Essex to the teenage bedroom of From Nursery To Misery, the trio of identical twin sister vocalists Gina and Tina Fear and keyboard player Lee Stevens. “Contentment” is an introspective, ethereal pop song with child-like vocals that originally appeared on the Belgian tape compilation ‘Heartbeat Vol.4’ in 1989. Finally, we return home to San Francisco and close out the compilation with Cyrnai the moniker of multi-instrumentalist Carolyn Fok. “Digital Grit Box (Demo)” was an outtake from the ‘Transfiguration’ album sessions recorded in 1993, utilizing dark dance drum beats made with MIDI sequencer programs Studio Vision and Sample Cell.

All songs have been remastered by George Horn at Fantasy Studios. The vinyl is housed in a custom designed jacket by Eloise Leigh featuring our label’s colors black-white-red with connect-the-dots pattern linking the 10 songs via maps/timeline/location, all relating to the reissue process, plus source images from San Francisco, our hometown. For this landmark release we've also printed a 2-sided fold-out wall poster that includes every artist we've released in our first 10 years 2009-2019 in black, red and silver metallic ink, plus an 8x11 insert with lyrics, notes and photos.

Percussionist Jamie Muir was a member of King Crimson during the recording of Larks' Tongues In Aspic, in 1973. Staying less than a year with Robert Fripp, the Scot had already cut his teeth with another master guitarist, Derek Bailey, as part of the Music Improvisation Company, along with Evan Parker, Hugh Davies and Christine Jeffrey, whose eponymous 1970 album was one of the first releases on ECM. Muir and Bailey recorded Dart Drug eleven years later, in 1981.There's no shortage of great percussionists in the brief history of free improvised music but on the strength of Dart Drug alone Jamie Muir deserves a place at High Table. Unlike for example Han Bennink and John Stevens, though, you can't hear echoes of any particular jazz drummer in Muir's playing, even if he has expressed appreciation for Milford Graves (who himself sounded like nobody else who'd come before him).What on earth did Muir's kit consist of Some instruments are clearly identifiable (bells, gongs, chimes, woodblocks); others could be... well, anything. Old suitcases thwacked with rolled up newspapers Tin cans and hubcaps inside a washing machine Who cares It sounds terrific - but if you're the kind of person who faints at the sound of nails scraping a blackboard, you might want to nip out and put the kettle on towards the end of the title track.Dart Drug is consistently thrilling, and often very amusing - but it's certainly not easy listening. In music we talk about playing with other musicians, whereas in sport you play against another opponent (or with your team against another team). Why not play against in music, too That's precisely what happens very often in improvised music, and Bailey was particularly good at it. How can a humble acoustic guitar hope to compete with a Muir in full flight Sometimes Bailey's content to sit on those open strings, teasing out yet another exquisite Webernian constellation of ringing harmonics and wait for the dust to settle in Muir's junkyard, but elsewhere he sets off into uncharted territory himself.'The way to discover the undiscovered in performing terms is to immediately reject all situations as you identify them (the cloud of unknowing) - which is to give music a future.' Bailey evidently concurred with this spoken statement by Muir, including it in his book Improvisation.Derek Bailey is no longer with us, of course, and Muir gave up performing music back in 1989. All the more reason for seeking out this magnificent, wild album.

KHT 008 is coming from no less than the man who is called The Prince of Techno' by his peers.
And that is for a reason: Blake was part of the first wave of Detroit techno artists and dis and contributed to the techno movement from the mid 80s. Tracks like When a dream becomes U' or Our love' are milestones of electronic music, his style, which he calls Poetry and Rhythm' is distinctive. For Killekill House Trax he delivers the Acid Life EP which comes along with two strong, acid driven tracks, the A-side darker and more chicago-oriented with its rhythmical focus and the punchy kick, the B-side more Detroit-ish with its uplifting chords.
Timeless!

Music has always coursed through Roman Lindau's blood. Even if he weren't the accomplished producer and respected DJ he is today, the German audiophile would still be spending all his money on the stuff; giving over all his time to the art form. ''I'm a music junkie. I need music to live'' he states matter-of-factly. ''For me it's the elixir of life.''

Good job, then, that he gets to spend his ..

Roman Lindau is a German techno DJ, artists and producer, as well as being a core member of the infamous Fachwerk Records from Berlin.

Music has always coursed through Roman's veins ever since he was a young boy so it is no suprise that he became the accomplished producer and highly respected DJ that he is today.

In the late 2000´s Lindau became active in the Berlin electronic music scene, beginning to play music in clubs as well as producing his own music.
The first track he released in 2008 on his home label Fachwerk Records appeared in one the world famous Berghain Mix Compilations, mixed by Len Faki.
Following from this Berghain invited Roman to contribute an exclusive Track for Ben Klock´s Berghain Mix in 2009. After this success the gates opened for him to play regularly as a DJ at Berghain.

At the same time he continued to work on music for Fachwerk Records. He produced dance floor smashers like ´Crasse´ in 2011 and ´Rave on´ in 2014, which were charted by the likes of Ben Klock, Sven Väth & Chris Liebing, afirming his deserved place amongst the techno elite.

More recently in 2015 the well known Victor Calderone from NYC invited Roman to release on his label Matter+.

The reason why Roman is such a great DJ is because of the fact he knows what the people want! ''I love to dance and that's very important: as DJ you need to feel what the crowd want so you can help them to party and have fun.''
Combining a varied selection of raw house and techno in his sets, recent bookings have taken Roman across the world; from the hallowed techno Mecca that is Berghain to dark underground clubs as part of the recent Fachwerk label tour.
He has performed at every legendary Berlin venue, past and present from Tresor to Berghain, and it is this that gives Roman the edge above the rest. If you can do it there, you can do it anywhere!
From 2014 Till the closing he was a resident DJ at Stattbad, one of Berlins findest adress for Electronic Music.

the tale of the mythic pentaki mountain has been engraved on a two-sided circular piece of wax. the north face of the peak is steep, abrasive, and has been the subject of many legends in the region. it is said that whoever would manage to climb it would find a plateau, leading to a place called "the single source of truth". considered as the ultimate goal by both psychedelic gurus and database optimization corporations, and as an ideal retirement destination for a couple of lost souls in search for coherence and objectivity, the source diffuses endless loops of haunted voices, apparently sampled from a discarded call center, running low on power, encouraging listeners to shorten cycles, deliver requests and improve user experience. it is also said that anyone climbing from the south side would never reach the summit or find his way to the plateau, and would always end up on a lower altitude than where he started. this topographical anomaly is probably the reason why the south face of the pentaki has always been favorited by locals, with its sunny weather and its luxurious vegetation flourishing along the soft downward slope, leading to a slow and peaceful end.

With its second release, Fleur Sauvage stays true to its opening premise: no calculated moves, no outside logic, only work that could not reasonably exist anywhere else. Danieli has been part of the La Nature and NoName fabric for years, as co-curator, resident, and crew, one of those people whose presence shapes a space long before a set begins. This album is the natural continuation of that relationship, extended now into a more permanent form.
Where FS001 captured the charge of a live moment, FS002 turns inward. Seven studio compositions, built at a remove from the dance floor, without urgency or performance. The kind of record that needed time to be what it is.


Daniel
The B-side loosens further. Reverie does exactly what the word promises, without apology. Anew carries a quiet kind of relief, not triumphant but settled. Heavenly closes the record differently: a long, unhurried progression, organic sounds swelling and receding in waves, building toward something that never quite resolves, and doesn't need to.
Throughout, the sound is precise without being cold, textured without ornament. Ambient in the truest sense, music that holds a room, and asks nothing back.

Nach ihrem Debütalbum ,I" im Jahr 2023, das ihnen nationale Radiopräsenz, Auftritte bei großen Festivals und Europatourneen einbrachte, erweitert das Montrealer Art-Pop-Trio Bye Parula mit seinem zweiten Album ,Something Out of Nothing" seinen ästhetischen Horizont und widmet sich einem eher introspektiven Songwriting. Wie sein Vorgänger wurde ,Something Out of Nothing" von Robbie Kuster von Patrick Watson produziert und von Warren Spicer von Plants and Animals gemischt, aber das neue Album präsentiert auch ein Team von Mitwirkenden - darunter die Inuk-Sängerin und Songwriterin Elisapie, Adèle Trottier-Rivard von Bibi Club, Morgan Moore und Karkwa-Keyboarder François Lafontaine -, das von der wachsenden Bedeutung von Bye Parula in der kanadischen Indie-Szene zeugt. Das Ergebnis ist eine vielseitige Mischung, die sich aus dem orchestralen Funk von Serge Gainsbourg, den melancholischen Melodien von Elliott Smith, den weltlichen Rhythmen von Talking Heads und dem bodenständigen R&B von Dijon speist, allesamt durchdrungen von einer cineastischen Sensibilität der 70er Jahre, die die Grenze zwischen sonnendurchfluteter, weichgezeichneter Fantasie und urbaner Raffinesse verwischt. Doch die vergnügungssüchtigen Klänge von ,Something Out of Nothing" können die unter der Oberfläche lauernde Not nicht verdecken - dies ist ein Album, das Ihre Schultern musikalisch massiert, während es Ihnen textlich in die Magengrube schlägt.

In 1979, the Soviet label Melodiya released a record that immediately stood apart from most Soviet jazz of its time and perhaps for that very reason never became widely known. Oriental Suite by Oleg Gotskosik Quintet is a rare example of jazz, Eastern musical tradition, and compositional thinking coming together not as an exotic stylization but as a fully formed artistic statement.

This is not “Oriental colour” used as decoration, nor folklore treated as an ornament. Oriental Suite grows from within another musical tradition, with its monody, modal logic, slow unfolding of form, and focus on inner states rather than outward effect. The music is calm and concentrated. It does not try to impress, but gradually draws the listener into its own space.
Oleg Gotskozik was born in Tashkent in 1951, a city where Eastern music was part of everyday life rather than something distant or exotic. That may explain why his engagement with traditional material sounds so natural. He does not quote or stylize; he thinks in the same musical categories. By temperament, he was closer to a composer than to a jazz musician in the conventional sense. For him, jazz was not a style but a way of working with form and improvisation.There is no standard “theme and solos” logic in Oriental Suite. Improvisation is woven into the fabric of the music itself and unfolds in the same way as in oral traditions, gradually, with rising tension and a clear sense of arrival. Individual sections refer to traditional Uzbek genres such as lullabies, lyrical songs, and funeral laments, but these are not genre sketches. They are states of being. The music unfolds slowly, avoiding familiar harmonic drama and relying instead on modal scales and subtle internal movement.

A special role is played by trumpeter Yuri Parfyonov. His approach, with delayed vibrato, micro-glissandi, and melismatic phrasing, sounded unexpected at the end of the 1970s and still feels remarkably fresh today. This is not expressive jazz virtuosity but a focused, almost meditative voice, where improvisation becomes a form of inner speech.
It is also important to note that the original recording was not without technical flaws. Like many Soviet jazz releases of the time, Oriental Suite was captured under far from ideal conditions, and the master contained audible imperfections that were never part of the music itself. For this edition, the restoration was approached with great care and respect, working through the recording moment by moment to remove unwanted artifacts while preserving the character and atmosphere of the original. The aim was simple: to make sure nothing stands in the way of fully experiencing the music.

In the early 1980s, Oleg Gotskozik left the Soviet Union, and after that his name virtually disappeared from Soviet music journalism and literature. There were no official bans or public statements. He was simply no longer mentioned. Oriental Suite continued to exist on its own, without an author and without context. The record never entered the canon, received no continuation, and was never officially reissued. It seemed to fall out of time.
The original vinyl pressing was released in a run of around 32,000 copies, but most of them remained within the republic and never reached wide circulation. Today, original copies are hard to find and have long become objects of interest for collectors. There have been no official reissues, only attempts that never went beyond test pressings.
Today, Oriental Suite sounds surprisingly contemporary. It is music that can be described as deep ethno-jazz and even, in a certain sense, spiritual jazz. There is no exoticism here, no decorative borrowing, only a complete immersion in another musical way of thinking. It does not require explanations and does not need to be justified by its time.
This is not a forgotten curiosity revived for collectors’ sake. It is music that simply waited for the moment when it could be heard without ideological filters or genre expectations. Now it is returning quietly, without noise or hype, but with the clear sense that this is not an artifact of an era, but a living and genuinely rare artistic statement.

Exactly four years and one day after ''All That Has Never Been True'' Ultha releases their fifth full-length studio album entitled ''A LIGHT SO DIM''.
It features 10 original new songs at a combined length of 74 minutes, with guest appearances by Pieter Uyttenhoven & Annelies van Dinter (TAKH), Pardis Latifi (DAEVAR), Danni Kann and the ''Chor Der Damen Ohne Namen'', a 40-women choir from Cologne.
Recorded, engineered and mastered at GOBLIN SOUND STUDIOS (Cologne) by ANDY ROSCZYK, who also contributed guitars and keys to various tracks. Artwork was done by TOBIAS HAHN, featuring photography by MAX HECKMANN.
After the conclusion of the trilogy consisting of Converging Sins, The Inextricable Wandering & All That Has Never Been True, the question was: where do you go when you've lost everything? You either accept defeat and die - or you start fighting. This is an album about hope in the darkest of times. It's a call to arms for the inner self, to find a rope of light in a world of mist. ''A Light So Dim'' is another concept album, with a narrative spinning from beginning to end. The unnamed narrator wakes up and tries to make sense of a world gone absolutely mad, where truth is nothing more than an empty shell of its once great self.
''IT'S THE STRUGGLE FOR AMBITION IN AN OCEAN OF DEFEAT. LIKE A FOREST FOR A GARDEN IN A WORLD YOU'LL NEVER SEE''.
This is for all of you!
Viva reason, viva love.

There are two versions of this album:

1. numbered 100 copies of limited black 180g vinyl made in collaboration with U JAZZ ME Records

2. transparent orange 180g vinyl

LINER NOTES:

" When AJ Lee stepped back into the ring in September 2025 - after a ten-year break - she introduced herself to a new generation of fans with the words: 'If you haven't heard of me, I am your favorite wrestler’s favorite wrestler.' That is exactly what came to my mind as a lead for this blurb when Pokusa asked me to write it. Because that’s what they are: your favorite indie darlings' favorite indie darlings (even though no one uses that term anymore, let alone identifies as such). They are your favorite cool jazzcats’ favorite jazzcats. And they are probably your favorite young jazz act - if you don’t usually (or ever) listen to jazz.

This, I always thought, is their greatest strength. Half the battle (in my eyes) is recording a sick jazz album - one that a jazz magazine would fawn over. The real win is getting someone wearing a heavy metal T-shirt into it; someone who’s never listened to jazz and has never stepped foot in a place like Pardon, To Tu, but heard Pokusa and decided to change that. I am such a person. I didn't learn about jazz because of them, but they’re definitely the reason I started rating it.
Głowy (Heads) is, in a way, a classic album. If someone played it for me and - relying on my lack of knowledge and gullibility - tried to convince me that it was recorded in the Polish Radio Studios in 1975, at Akwarium Club in Warsaw in 1985, at Club Rura in 1989, somewhere in Tri-City in '94, or at Mózg in Bydgoszcz, I would probably believe it. Its 'classicness' goes hand in hand with its timelessness. I could write about how the album fits into the catalogs of Lado ABC, GOWI, or Biodro Records. I could dig for connections to Yass, Tzadik, or a number of other things.
But what Teo, Natan, and Tymek create here is as important in its experience as it is in its music. For me - an artist active in a similar time - each Pokusa album, including this newest release, is a record of a period of time and the experiences hidden between the notes. The Indian spices in food served before a show in Mózg. A headache from all the cigarettes smoked listening to tapes in Eufemia. Marveling at the graffiti over the sink in Młodsza Siostra. The narrow steps at Chłodna 25. The wider but slippery steps to Pogłos. The quirky and uncomfortable steps in Ziemia. The mosquitoes at Ladomek. The dilemma of whether to wear a nice polo instead of a T-shirt to SPATiF. The wonder of turning off Monciak into Dwie Zmiany. Why is a club like this on such a strip? Why is Pokusa playing here? And why do they sound so good?
On one hand, you can find journalists writing that Pokusa grew out of the classic free jazz of the 1960s; some might mention Albert Ayler. On the other hand, there’s Unsound Festival and young critics writing about 'post-jazz.' All of them are correct. This is universalism. This is that timelessness. Whether you pick up this album the day it comes out or in the year 2046, it will be good. In twenty years, people will still reach for it. Of that, I am certain."
Michał Turowski

There are two versions of this album:

1. numbered 100 copies of limited black 180g vinyl made in collaboration with U JAZZ ME Records

2. transparent orange 180g vinyl

LINER NOTES:

" When AJ Lee stepped back into the ring in September 2025 - after a ten-year break - she introduced herself to a new generation of fans with the words: 'If you haven't heard of me, I am your favorite wrestler’s favorite wrestler.' That is exactly what came to my mind as a lead for this blurb when Pokusa asked me to write it. Because that’s what they are: your favorite indie darlings' favorite indie darlings (even though no one uses that term anymore, let alone identifies as such). They are your favorite cool jazzcats’ favorite jazzcats. And they are probably your favorite young jazz act - if you don’t usually (or ever) listen to jazz.

This, I always thought, is their greatest strength. Half the battle (in my eyes) is recording a sick jazz album - one that a jazz magazine would fawn over. The real win is getting someone wearing a heavy metal T-shirt into it; someone who’s never listened to jazz and has never stepped foot in a place like Pardon, To Tu, but heard Pokusa and decided to change that. I am such a person. I didn't learn about jazz because of them, but they’re definitely the reason I started rating it.
Głowy (Heads) is, in a way, a classic album. If someone played it for me and - relying on my lack of knowledge and gullibility - tried to convince me that it was recorded in the Polish Radio Studios in 1975, at Akwarium Club in Warsaw in 1985, at Club Rura in 1989, somewhere in Tri-City in '94, or at Mózg in Bydgoszcz, I would probably believe it. Its 'classicness' goes hand in hand with its timelessness. I could write about how the album fits into the catalogs of Lado ABC, GOWI, or Biodro Records. I could dig for connections to Yass, Tzadik, or a number of other things.
But what Teo, Natan, and Tymek create here is as important in its experience as it is in its music. For me - an artist active in a similar time - each Pokusa album, including this newest release, is a record of a period of time and the experiences hidden between the notes. The Indian spices in food served before a show in Mózg. A headache from all the cigarettes smoked listening to tapes in Eufemia. Marveling at the graffiti over the sink in Młodsza Siostra. The narrow steps at Chłodna 25. The wider but slippery steps to Pogłos. The quirky and uncomfortable steps in Ziemia. The mosquitoes at Ladomek. The dilemma of whether to wear a nice polo instead of a T-shirt to SPATiF. The wonder of turning off Monciak into Dwie Zmiany. Why is a club like this on such a strip? Why is Pokusa playing here? And why do they sound so good?
On one hand, you can find journalists writing that Pokusa grew out of the classic free jazz of the 1960s; some might mention Albert Ayler. On the other hand, there’s Unsound Festival and young critics writing about 'post-jazz.' All of them are correct. This is universalism. This is that timelessness. Whether you pick up this album the day it comes out or in the year 2046, it will be good. In twenty years, people will still reach for it. Of that, I am certain."
Michał Turowski

Daniel Akbar is a Constant Black regular and for good reason: his blend of house, minimal, tech and garage is a perfect fit. He continues his hot streak with this latest missive, starting with 'The Night', which marries Jaydee-style darkness with New York house bounce. 'The Walls' has a rugged, dirty minimal bump to it and a sci-fi synth edge. 'Trippin' is another sleazy and low slung house vibe, 'Care For You' brings a bit of garage shuffle and throwback bass filth, then 'Afraid' pulls back to a more seductive late night tease with hella catchy grooves and pure heads down energy.

Kaum zu fassen - Gimp Fist sind nun schon seit 21 Jahren eine feste Größen der britischen Oi!-Szene. Das Trio hat sich als eine der angesehensten Street-Punk-Bands Großbritanniens etabliert, mit einem einzigartigen Songwriting-Stil fernab der üblichen Klischees, treffsicherem Gespür für mitreißende Songs und eigenem Sound, in Europa ebenso beliebt wie in Großbritannien. Und ihre Street-Punk-Hymnen füllen jedes Jahr den Empress Ballroom mit einer Kapazität von 3.000 Plätzen beim Rebellion Festival in Blackpool. Die Band stammt ursprünglich aus Bishop Auckland, County Durham, und hat seit ihren Anfängen im Jahr 2005 elf Alben, ein halbes Dutzend Singles und drei EPs veröffentlicht. Auch wenn es nicht immer leicht ist auch Anerkennung bei der größtenteils auf London fokussierten Musikpresse zu finden, haben sie doch eine treue Anhängerschaft in UK und ganz Europa gewonnen und sind vor allem dem Publikum des Rebellion Festivals bekannt, wo sie seit 2008 jedes Jahr auftreten. Zwei Jahre nach dem letzten Album "Losing Streak" erscheint nun das 12. Album "Take the Power Back", produziert von Jamie Wilson, mit insgesamt 15 brandneuen Titeln. "Wir haben das Gefühl, dass wir auf diesem Album viele unserer Einflüsse und Stile miteinander verschmolzen haben, ohne dabei das typische Gimp-Fist-Feeling zu verlieren", sagt Sänger und Gitarrist Jonny. Von der Auseinandersetzung mit der aktuellen Wirtschaftslage und den Kämpfen der Arbeiterklasse in Songs wie "Give Me A Reason" bis hin zu den angstgeladenen, an die frühen Rancid erinnernden Tiraden gegen Faschisten und Tyrannen in "Waiting For The Punchline". Mit einer Mischung aus Street-Punk, Ska und Dirty Reggae wird "Take The Power Back" alle alten Fans begeistern und ohne Frage neue Anhänger gewinnen. Als Digipak CD, LP klassisch schwarze (limitiert) oder zweifarbiges "Atomic" Vinyl erhältlich.

Kaum zu fassen - Gimp Fist sind nun schon seit 21 Jahren eine feste Größen der britischen Oi!-Szene. Das Trio hat sich als eine der angesehensten Street-Punk-Bands Großbritanniens etabliert, mit einem einzigartigen Songwriting-Stil fernab der üblichen Klischees, treffsicherem Gespür für mitreißende Songs und eigenem Sound, in Europa ebenso beliebt wie in Großbritannien. Und ihre Street-Punk-Hymnen füllen jedes Jahr den Empress Ballroom mit einer Kapazität von 3.000 Plätzen beim Rebellion Festival in Blackpool. Die Band stammt ursprünglich aus Bishop Auckland, County Durham, und hat seit ihren Anfängen im Jahr 2005 elf Alben, ein halbes Dutzend Singles und drei EPs veröffentlicht. Auch wenn es nicht immer leicht ist auch Anerkennung bei der größtenteils auf London fokussierten Musikpresse zu finden, haben sie doch eine treue Anhängerschaft in UK und ganz Europa gewonnen und sind vor allem dem Publikum des Rebellion Festivals bekannt, wo sie seit 2008 jedes Jahr auftreten. Zwei Jahre nach dem letzten Album "Losing Streak" erscheint nun das 12. Album "Take the Power Back", produziert von Jamie Wilson, mit insgesamt 15 brandneuen Titeln. "Wir haben das Gefühl, dass wir auf diesem Album viele unserer Einflüsse und Stile miteinander verschmolzen haben, ohne dabei das typische Gimp-Fist-Feeling zu verlieren", sagt Sänger und Gitarrist Jonny. Von der Auseinandersetzung mit der aktuellen Wirtschaftslage und den Kämpfen der Arbeiterklasse in Songs wie "Give Me A Reason" bis hin zu den angstgeladenen, an die frühen Rancid erinnernden Tiraden gegen Faschisten und Tyrannen in "Waiting For The Punchline". Mit einer Mischung aus Street-Punk, Ska und Dirty Reggae wird "Take The Power Back" alle alten Fans begeistern und ohne Frage neue Anhänger gewinnen. Als Digipak CD, LP klassisch schwarze (limitiert) oder zweifarbiges "Atomic" Vinyl erhältlich.

Kaum zu fassen - Gimp Fist sind nun schon seit 21 Jahren eine feste Größen der britischen Oi!-Szene. Das Trio hat sich als eine der angesehensten Street-Punk-Bands Großbritanniens etabliert, mit einem einzigartigen Songwriting-Stil fernab der üblichen Klischees, treffsicherem Gespür für mitreißende Songs und eigenem Sound, in Europa ebenso beliebt wie in Großbritannien. Und ihre Street-Punk-Hymnen füllen jedes Jahr den Empress Ballroom mit einer Kapazität von 3.000 Plätzen beim Rebellion Festival in Blackpool. Die Band stammt ursprünglich aus Bishop Auckland, County Durham, und hat seit ihren Anfängen im Jahr 2005 elf Alben, ein halbes Dutzend Singles und drei EPs veröffentlicht. Auch wenn es nicht immer leicht ist auch Anerkennung bei der größtenteils auf London fokussierten Musikpresse zu finden, haben sie doch eine treue Anhängerschaft in UK und ganz Europa gewonnen und sind vor allem dem Publikum des Rebellion Festivals bekannt, wo sie seit 2008 jedes Jahr auftreten. Zwei Jahre nach dem letzten Album "Losing Streak" erscheint nun das 12. Album "Take the Power Back", produziert von Jamie Wilson, mit insgesamt 15 brandneuen Titeln. "Wir haben das Gefühl, dass wir auf diesem Album viele unserer Einflüsse und Stile miteinander verschmolzen haben, ohne dabei das typische Gimp-Fist-Feeling zu verlieren", sagt Sänger und Gitarrist Jonny. Von der Auseinandersetzung mit der aktuellen Wirtschaftslage und den Kämpfen der Arbeiterklasse in Songs wie "Give Me A Reason" bis hin zu den angstgeladenen, an die frühen Rancid erinnernden Tiraden gegen Faschisten und Tyrannen in "Waiting For The Punchline". Mit einer Mischung aus Street-Punk, Ska und Dirty Reggae wird "Take The Power Back" alle alten Fans begeistern und ohne Frage neue Anhänger gewinnen. Als Digipak CD, LP klassisch schwarze (limitiert) oder zweifarbiges "Atomic" Vinyl erhältlich.

Maybe it was inevitable that Vilhelm Bromander and Fredrik Rasten would find each other. A symbiotic musical alliance of suggestive combinatory magic that stretches back to the interstitial two day space that separates their dates of birth and manifests here as the movement between ‘perfect’ or ‘just’ intonation and the ragged, psychoactive energy of the slippages from and towards that togetherness that render otherwise simple patterns or generally understood repetitions as wildly other and alive.

Astral Twins shares ‘twin’ works by each composer. The patiently unfolding real time retuning of Fredrik Rasten’s guitars on the a-side’s Sojourns and Vilhelm Bromander’s quickened steps and spry looping melodies on the flip’s Partially Dancing.

Both artists have history of going deep into the aesthetic and acoustic impact of intonation (how you think about what is ‘in tune’). Where their first LP (...for some reason that escapes us, 2019, Differ Records) shared a gorgeous set of sustained tone colour fields, this time they lean more explicitly into the folk music traditions of Scandinavia and further afield, whilst echoing the zoned minimalist atmosphere of Arthur Russell’s classic Instrumentals.

Recorded up close and in real time at Fylkingen’s soon-to-be-abandoned temporary location in Stockholm’s southern suburb of Bredäng, Astral Twins sings with the possibility that one plus one can equal more than two.

Fredrik Rasten:
 Sojourns explores the live retuning of guitar and double bass in a sequence of just intonation harmonies. A guitar ostinato runs throughout the piece where the retuning becomes an integral part of the composition. The slow pace reveals every detail in the transition from one harmonic arpeggio to another — how interfering waves emerge and disappear as the tonal interactions settle in electric clarity. The double bass shadows the guitar's process and comments with occasional pizzicato tones and register jumps, at times providing a low foundation for the sound and sometimes soaring together with the guitar. This is music that is deeply listening; experimental and at the same time humbly inviting many kinds of being with sound.

Vilhelm Bromander: 
As the title suggests, this song has a partially dancing character. The title also has a double meaning with reference to the partials and harmonics that dance together. The basic idea was to write music in just intonation that instead of being drone-based is reminiscent of a lightly dancing folk music, where the joyous feeling of just being in the music — “musicking" — is allowed to lead the way.

The double bass plays repeated overtone double stops in an open harmonic progression with subtle modulations that is inspired in equal parts by Steve Lacy's persistent repetition of phrases as east-asian khaen music. The guitars and mandolin have a freer role, with plucked retuned strings that enhance the bass's modulations and provide forward movement. The music invites to both melodic and spectral listening, suddenly halting so that other focal points can reveal themselves. For example, a chord sequence suddenly transitions to a more spectral part where Fredrik is playing a bowed guitar with a chain, several plucking guitars, voices, and pitch pipes. I wanted to make something ‘orchestral’ with just two people and no overdubs: a dance of overtones and open resonant strings, where we seamlessly take turns standing in the foreground.

Welcome to the modern 'Spaghetti Western' revolution. Never before pressed to vinyl, Sydney-based indie band The Slims will release both their EP's on a special double EP vinyl record release. Off the back of touring with Jet, The Slims are looking to release their debut LP Nov 2026.

Singer/Songwriter Joshua Ray Walker’s made a name for himself with poignant, human portraits of flawed, fascinating characters. Now, on his latest album, Ain’t Dead Yet, Walker’s telling a more personal story – his own. “Human beings are super multi-faceted, and part of the reason I wrote about characters in the first place was because I could explore things about myself that I didn't feel comfortable exploring if I were to admit that it was really about me,” Walker says. “All my songs are about parts of me, I just didn't try to stick them on another fictional character this time.” Beneath the album’s flippant title resides some of Walker’s heaviest storytelling yet. Three years ago, when he started writing Ain’t Dead Yet (his sixth studio album, to be released May 29 via Thirty Tigers/East Dallas Records), Walker hadn’t yet received the cancer diagnosis that rearranged and threatened his life (he currently has a clean bill of health). But that year was still uncommonly fraught with mental, physical, and career stresses. Pulling the songs out of the can to finalize them for the album – including re-writing and re-working almost all the songs – Walker, who was then undergoing and recovering from cancer treatment, was surprised by their prescience.

Born Neville Beckford in Kingston, he first gained recognition as a sound system deejay before breaking through with the powerful single "Angela Davis." During the mid 1970s, he recorded extensively for producers including Rupie Edwards, Clive Chin, Keith Hudson, and Channel One, releasing a string of influential singles and albums. His debut LP Jah Woosh reached number one in the reggae album charts and established him as a leading voice of the era. The album Rebellion also features vocalist Sis Bee, whose spirited responses to Jah Woosh add a unique dynamic. Later, through his work with Adrian Sherwood and the Creation Rebel collective, Jah Woosh remained an important figure in roots reggae

Forever Records

Music springs eternal. Recognising the enduring power of timeless albums to guide us through life, Forever Records is a reissue series dedicated to rediscovering lost musical treasures from across the spectrum of head-feeding, heart-rending electronic music.

Established by Rush Hour co-founder Christiaan Macdonald and Delsin founder Marsel van der Wielen, Forever Records places heartfelt faith in a carefully curated sequence of seminal, largely forgotten records from disparate eras, scenes and spaces within electronic music history. Tipped towards the mellow and introspective, these are albums that stop time when the needle hits the groove, stirring only when it's time to flip over before you sink back into the experience. That's what albums were always meant to be about, back then, right now, always and forever.


The Release:
Dancing on the wildest edge of the 90s outsider techno zeitgeist while proudly independent of any so-called scene, Ov Biospheres And Sacred Grooves: A Document Ov New Edge Folk Classics is both of its time and out of time. Rooted in the experiments of electronic music pioneers, industrial culture and ethnic music from around the globe while responding to the house and techno explosion, Robbert Heynen, Reinier Brekelmans, Reinoud van den Broek and Tim Freeman's freewheeling masterpiece takes in lush electronica and murky abstraction on its singular voyage through parts unknown.

Forever Records presents an extensive reissue edition of the first 'fully released' Psychick Warriors Ov Gaia album. Originally released in 1992, this is the first time the full, previously CD-only, version of Ov Biospheres and Sacred Grooves will be pressed on vinyl. The original LP and CD artwork from the various editions released in the early 90s has been combined and designed by the band, and the audio has been remastered with their full approval. As well as a new LP edition of the album, there will also be a uniquely numbered, limited edition available housed in a gatefold sleeve that comes with a bonus 10" featuring two previously unreleased tracks.

Press response to Ov Biospheres and Sacred Grooves - A Document Ov New Edge Folk Classics:

“That’s Magick! The Psychick Warriors Ov Gaia are Holland’s best kept secret.”
Sherman, NME, UK 1992

“PWOG’s debut LP is an organic invocation rite — the soundtrack to a new world coming to life, an odyssey. Cross-cultural rhythms, ambiences and environmental samples segue into one another like a fluid relay, and unlike the majority of dance records, it never settles into a routine. It’s always evolving, always unpredictable, an indefinitely religious experience.”
John Selzer, Melody Maker, UK 1992.

"Grown men, who snorted their first ecstasy to this record, stammered with tears in their eyes about divine experiences and the cosmos, man."
Peter Erik Hillenbach, Marabo Magazine, Germany 1992.

Sacred Grooves’ introduces tribal dance music for the mind, body music leaning on the avant garde. Its ripples of sound drift through tranced out ritualistic beats into ambience and serenity resembling something akin to The Orb meeting Klaus Schulze at a brain tuning session.
Sherman, NME, UK 1992

"There's still dance for a moment, in the opening track "The Challenge," then Psychick Warriors roam the earth, where African drummers, tropical sounds, and science-fiction chords have found their place in a spiralling interplay of rhythms and sounds. A captivating, almost magical ritual." Corné Evers, Oor Magazine, Netherlands 1992.

"It's truly astonishing what these Dutchmen have come up with for their first LP. Their roots might explain the enigma, for Psychick Warriors are more in the tradition of Psychic TV than in the desolate temples of techno-house fetishists, to which they are wrongly relegated. Here, chromosomes dance, not instincts." CMK, Tip, Germany 1992.

"The transcendental essence of this album is spread throughout, with musical gravitations emerging unexpectedly from sonic experiments that are sometimes primitive, sometimes
futuristic in intention… But there is always an aura of cosmic magic that constantly puts all the parts involved in conflict and which, upon closer analysis, ends up being the main reason for the final result." Blitz Magazine, Portugal 1992.