quête:ree vo

The legendary 1964 rehearsal collaboration receives its first official issue Restoration and Mastering by Grammy®-winning engineer Michael Graves Packaging contains rare photos plus liner notes from Jorma Kaukonen Jorma Kaukonen (later of Jefferson Airplane and Hot Tuna) met a singer named Janis Joplin at a hootenanny in San Jose, California, in the fall of 1962. Over the following years, Janis would call on Jorma to accompany her at gigs. As they continued to play together, the Bay Area was changing musically and developing into the legendary San Francisco scene to which both Janis and Jorma would be integral. During a rehearsal for a show in North Beach, Jorma started his reel-to-reel machine to capture what they were working on. For decades, this recording was the stuff of legend, with inferior, multi-generational transfers making their way through select collector’s circles. Now, for the very first time, it is available officially, with the blessing and cooperation of both the Janis Joplin Estate and Jorma Kaukonen. The Legendary Typewriter Tape: 6/25/64 Jorma’s House contains this legendary recording, featuring Restoration and Mastering from acclaimed, Grammy®-winner Michael Graves. The tracks include Joplin on vocals, Kaukonen on guitar, and Jorma’s wife Margareta typing away intermittently in the background. This may have just been a rehearsal, but it is so much more. Featuring Joplin originals, as well as blues classics, The Legendary Typewriter Tape is an intimate glimpse into two major artists at the beginnings of what would become highly influential careers. As Jorma says in his liner notes: “This is indeed a window into a simpler time when the music truly was everything.” Available on CD and Digital December 2, 2022, the release will also be available on vinyl exclusively for Record Store Day Black Friday, November 25, 2022 Enjoy being a fly on the wall and revel in the magic of The Legendary Typewriter Tape.

Ygrok brings a long-awaited fourth release to its catalog. René Audiard's Sakhalin' takes things a step away from traditional club music.
The A side, Vox Out' opens with the skeleton of a rhythm. Scattered tom drums and barely detectable whirs, fading and reeling in the background. When the distorted voices begin their story behind a hissing, grinding off-shaker, you know this will not be your traditional club track. A story develops. The barest hint of a shuffling beat, a subtle reminder of Soren's previous work, pins down the journey into the darkest psychic territory. The title track Sakhalin steps even further into darkness. Crackling electrics and disjointed atmospheres change at a glacial pace over a submerged hydraulic beat. Sakhalin Audiard experimental territory.

After the pandemic hit, and the people of the world grew wary and
suspicious of one another, Iguana Death Cult, one of Europe's most
exciting rock exports, became more than just a band to its members--it became therapy - "I think for the first ten times we went to jam," says guitarist/vocalist Tobias Opschoor, speaking about the making of the new album Echo Palace, "we just drank wine and talked about it for hours--and then were like, 'OK, I have to go because I have to work tomorrow.

Taking place at frontman Jeroen Reek's apartment in Rotterdam, these
gatherings slowly shifted from talking about this surreal chapter of their lives--the days of quiet streets and cramped buildings--to making music about it.
Armed with the talents of Justin Boer on bass and Arjen van Opstal on drums, and tapping the keys work Jimmy de Kok for the first time on album, the band took their trademark melodic garage-rock style and expanded it to make it vibier and looser, with each member contributing ideas to develop the sound palette in full. When it came time to record the album, the band headed to PAF Studio in
Rotterdam, and subsequently it was mixed by Joo- Joo Ashworth (Sasami, Dummy) at Studio 22 in Los Angeles and mastered by Dave Cooley (Tame Impala, Yves Tumor).

The album is a big swing, stretching Iguana Death Cult beyond its garage rock origins and taking them to a new realm. The end result of Echo Palace is an appropriately worldly album from a group breaking past the confines of its home country.

"Dutch band Iguana Death Cult's rip- roaring melodies are built to jettison far beyond their homebase of Rotterdam." - FADER

"Frenetic, intense sonic assaults, they turn psych punk into astonishingly concise three-dimensional documents." - CLASH

Celebrating 10 years at the top of their game, Quantize Recordings unleash a real collectors edition 12'' bringing together four of their biggest tracks to date all of which make their much anticipated debut on vinyl.

Featuring hand-picked, choice cuts from DJ Spen, Michele Chiavarini, Emmaculate, Terry Hunter, Reelsoul, Tasha LaRae & Rona Ray this is a timeless snapshot of Quantize’s undeniable impact on house music to date.

Marvin Gaye at his very best! Two classics from Gaye’s esteemed catalogue, ‘I Wanna Be Where You Are’ and ‘I Want You’ with alternative mixes that have never been on 12 inch before. Plucked from the Deluxe Edition of the spellbinding ‘I Want You’ album that was mixed Kevin Reeves & remastered by Ellen Fitton, these two cuts have always called out for loud and proud pressing on either side of a 12.

Up first, ‘I Wanna Be Where You Are’ written by the magical pairing of Leon Ware and Arthur 'T-Boy' Ross with Ware also behind the production controls. An abbreviated cover of Michael Jackson’s hit, it sees Gaye take a brief respite from his usual steamy and sensual swooning to express his love for his family. Jackson would then return the favour, taking influence from Marvin’s 1977 hit ‘Got to Give it Up’ to make ‘Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough’.

Originally a 1:17 minute segue on the album, the Unedited version clocks in at over 6 minutes, turning it from a transitionary passage to a standalone gem. Extending those delectable grooves, building and breaking with a sun-kissed, funk channelling feeling that washes over like a warm wave. With the 7 inch release trading hands for over £75 on Discogs this ain’t one to miss.

On the flip, ‘I Want You’ written by the same duo as the A, with Leon Ware once again on the production and released as part of the same ’76 album. It was an LP that introduced a change in musical styles for Gaye, songs such as this giving him a disco audience thanks to Leon Ware. The Jam-Alternate version leaves Gaye’s vocals till the final section, letting that sweet soaring soundtrack sing to its absolute emotive peak. Sunrise or sunset, this one is not to be used lightly - tears of joy on the dancefloor guaranteed.

Die deutsche Post-Metalformation THE OCEAN veröffentlicht ihre neuen Albums "Holocene" im Mai 2023! Mit Holocene fügen The Ocean das neue und abschließende Kapitel in ihrer paläontologisch inspirierten Albumserie hinzu. Erweitert wird die Härte des Kollektivs diesmal um einige elektronische Dimensionen. Gegründet zu Beginn des Jahrtausends, hat die Gruppe von Musikern um den Gitarristen Robin Stapps auch nach über 20 Jahren nicht an Intensität eingebüßt. The Ocean kommen jedesmal zusammen mit der gemeinsamen Vision von grenzenloser Klangforschung, niemals stillstehend, genießt die Band einen hervorragenden Ruf in den Genres des Postrock, Progressive Metal und sogar Hardcore. Robin Staps kommentierte das abschließende Werk der paleontologischen Albumserie: "Holocene is an appendix to the 2 Phanerozoic albums and Precambrian, or the final and concluding chapter, making it a quadrilogy if you want so. It's tackling the Holocene epoch, which is the current and shortest chapter in earth's history, but it is essentially an album about the angst, alienation, loss of reason and critical thinking, rise of conspiracy theories and deconstruction of values in the modern age." Zum Entstehungsprozess und der elektronischen Basis der neuen Songs fügt er hinzu: "The writing process of every album we've ever made started with me coming up with a guitar riff, a drumbeat or a vocal idea. This album is different since every single song is based on a musical idea that was originally written by Peter (Voigtmann, synths). He came up with these amazing synth parts that were already sounding huge in pre-production, and he sent me some of those raw, unfinished ideas during mid lockdown 2020... and while it was all electronic, it had that definite Ocean vibe to it. It made me want to pick up my guitar instantly_ and so I did, and it didn't take long until we had an inspiring creative exchange that was heading towards totally unforeseen but very exciting places." Für Fans von Massive Attack, Lorn, Archive, Trentemöller, early Moderat, Portishead, Isis, Mastodon, Katatonia, The Pineapple Thief Gatefold aus schwarzem Spezialpapier mit Stanzungen, metallic inks und UV Spot Lack, Insert mit Kupferfolienprägung, 20seitiges Booklet, printed inner sleeve

Die deutsche Post-Metalformation THE OCEAN veröffentlicht ihre neuen Albums "Holocene" im Mai 2023! Mit Holocene fügen The Ocean das neue und abschließende Kapitel in ihrer paläontologisch inspirierten Albumserie hinzu. Erweitert wird die Härte des Kollektivs diesmal um einige elektronische Dimensionen. Gegründet zu Beginn des Jahrtausends, hat die Gruppe von Musikern um den Gitarristen Robin Stapps auch nach über 20 Jahren nicht an Intensität eingebüßt. The Ocean kommen jedesmal zusammen mit der gemeinsamen Vision von grenzenloser Klangforschung, niemals stillstehend, genießt die Band einen hervorragenden Ruf in den Genres des Postrock, Progressive Metal und sogar Hardcore. Robin Staps kommentierte das abschließende Werk der paleontologischen Albumserie: "Holocene is an appendix to the 2 Phanerozoic albums and Precambrian, or the final and concluding chapter, making it a quadrilogy if you want so. It's tackling the Holocene epoch, which is the current and shortest chapter in earth's history, but it is essentially an album about the angst, alienation, loss of reason and critical thinking, rise of conspiracy theories and deconstruction of values in the modern age." Zum Entstehungsprozess und der elektronischen Basis der neuen Songs fügt er hinzu: "The writing process of every album we've ever made started with me coming up with a guitar riff, a drumbeat or a vocal idea. This album is different since every single song is based on a musical idea that was originally written by Peter (Voigtmann, synths). He came up with these amazing synth parts that were already sounding huge in pre-production, and he sent me some of those raw, unfinished ideas during mid lockdown 2020... and while it was all electronic, it had that definite Ocean vibe to it. It made me want to pick up my guitar instantly_ and so I did, and it didn't take long until we had an inspiring creative exchange that was heading towards totally unforeseen but very exciting places." Für Fans von Massive Attack, Lorn, Archive, Trentemöller, early Moderat, Portishead, Isis, Mastodon, Katatonia, The Pineapple Thief Gatefold aus schwarzem Spezialpapier mit Stanzungen, metallic inks und UV Spot Lack, Insert mit Kupferfolienprägung, 20seitiges Booklet, printed inner sleeve

Die deutsche Post-Metalformation THE OCEAN veröffentlicht ihre neuen Albums "Holocene" im Mai 2023, wie üblich gibt es auch eine rein instrumentale Version des Werkes. Mit Holocene fügen The Ocean das neue und abschließende Kapitel in ihrer paläontologisch inspirierten Albumserie hinzu. Erweitert wird die Härte des Kollektivs diesmal um einige elektronische Dimensionen. Gegründet zu Beginn des Jahrtausends, hat die Gruppe von Musikern um den Gitarristen Robin Stapps auch nach über 20 Jahren nicht an Intensität eingebüßt. The Ocean kommen jedesmal zusammen mit der gemeinsamen Vision von grenzenloser Klangforschung, niemals stillstehend, genießt die Band einen hervorragenden Ruf in den Genres des Postrock, Progressive Metal und sogar Hardcore. Robin Staps kommentierte das abschließende Werk der paleontologischen Albumserie: "Holocene is an appendix to the 2 Phanerozoic albums and Precambrian, or the final and concluding chapter, making it a quadrilogy if you want so. It's tackling the Holocene epoch, which is the current and shortest chapter in earth's history, but it is essentially an album about the angst, alienation, loss of reason and critical thinking, rise of conspiracy theories and deconstruction of values in the modern age." Zum Entstehungsprozess und der elektronischen Basis der neuen Tracks fügt er hinzu: "The writing process of every album we've ever made started with me coming up with a guitar riff, a drumbeat or a vocal idea. This album is different since every single song is based on a musical idea that was originally written by Peter (Voigtmann, synths). He came up with these amazing synth parts that were already sounding huge in pre-production, and he sent me some of those raw, unfinished ideas during mid lockdown 2020... and while it was all electronic, it had that definite Ocean vibe to it. It made me want to pick up my guitar instantly_ and so I did, and it didn't take long until we had an inspiring creative exchange that was heading towards totally unforeseen but very exciting places." Für Fans von Massive Attack, Lorn, Archive, Trentemöller, early Moderat, Portishead, Isis, Mastodon, Katatonia, The Pineapple Thief Gatefold aus schwarzem Spezialpapier mit Stanzungen, metallic inks und UV Spot Lack, Insert mit Kupferfolienprägung, printed inner sleeve

Die deutsche Post-Metalformation THE OCEAN veröffentlicht ihre neuen Albums "Holocene" im Mai 2023, wie üblich gibt es auch eine rein instrumentale Version des Werkes. Mit Holocene fügen The Ocean das neue und abschließende Kapitel in ihrer paläontologisch inspirierten Albumserie hinzu. Erweitert wird die Härte des Kollektivs diesmal um einige elektronische Dimensionen. Gegründet zu Beginn des Jahrtausends, hat die Gruppe von Musikern um den Gitarristen Robin Stapps auch nach über 20 Jahren nicht an Intensität eingebüßt. The Ocean kommen jedesmal zusammen mit der gemeinsamen Vision von grenzenloser Klangforschung, niemals stillstehend, genießt die Band einen hervorragenden Ruf in den Genres des Postrock, Progressive Metal und sogar Hardcore. Robin Staps kommentierte das abschließende Werk der paleontologischen Albumserie: "Holocene is an appendix to the 2 Phanerozoic albums and Precambrian, or the final and concluding chapter, making it a quadrilogy if you want so. It's tackling the Holocene epoch, which is the current and shortest chapter in earth's history, but it is essentially an album about the angst, alienation, loss of reason and critical thinking, rise of conspiracy theories and deconstruction of values in the modern age." Zum Entstehungsprozess und der elektronischen Basis der neuen Tracks fügt er hinzu: "The writing process of every album we've ever made started with me coming up with a guitar riff, a drumbeat or a vocal idea. This album is different since every single song is based on a musical idea that was originally written by Peter (Voigtmann, synths). He came up with these amazing synth parts that were already sounding huge in pre-production, and he sent me some of those raw, unfinished ideas during mid lockdown 2020... and while it was all electronic, it had that definite Ocean vibe to it. It made me want to pick up my guitar instantly_ and so I did, and it didn't take long until we had an inspiring creative exchange that was heading towards totally unforeseen but very exciting places." Für Fans von Massive Attack, Lorn, Archive, Trentemöller, early Moderat, Portishead, Isis, Mastodon, Katatonia, The Pineapple Thief Gatefold aus schwarzem Spezialpapier mit Stanzungen, metallic inks und UV Spot Lack, Insert mit Kupferfolienprägung, printed inner sleeve

Die deutsche Post-Metalformation THE OCEAN veröffentlicht ihre neuen Albums "Holocene" im Mai 2023! Mit Holocene fügen The Ocean das neue und abschließende Kapitel in ihrer paläontologisch inspirierten Albumserie hinzu. Erweitert wird die Härte des Kollektivs diesmal um einige elektronische Dimensionen. Gegründet zu Beginn des Jahrtausends, hat die Gruppe von Musikern um den Gitarristen Robin Stapps auch nach über 20 Jahren nicht an Intensität eingebüßt. The Ocean kommen jedesmal zusammen mit der gemeinsamen Vision von grenzenloser Klangforschung, niemals stillstehend, genießt die Band einen hervorragenden Ruf in den Genres des Postrock, Progressive Metal und sogar Hardcore. Robin Staps kommentierte das abschließende Werk der paleontologischen Albumserie: "Holocene is an appendix to the 2 Phanerozoic albums and Precambrian, or the final and concluding chapter, making it a quadrilogy if you want so. It's tackling the Holocene epoch, which is the current and shortest chapter in earth's history, but it is essentially an album about the angst, alienation, loss of reason and critical thinking, rise of conspiracy theories and deconstruction of values in the modern age." Zum Entstehungsprozess und der elektronischen Basis der neuen Songs fügt er hinzu: "The writing process of every album we've ever made started with me coming up with a guitar riff, a drumbeat or a vocal idea. This album is different since every single song is based on a musical idea that was originally written by Peter (Voigtmann, synths). He came up with these amazing synth parts that were already sounding huge in pre-production, and he sent me some of those raw, unfinished ideas during mid lockdown 2020... and while it was all electronic, it had that definite Ocean vibe to it. It made me want to pick up my guitar instantly_ and so I did, and it didn't take long until we had an inspiring creative exchange that was heading towards totally unforeseen but very exciting places." Für Fans von Massive Attack, Lorn, Archive, Trentemöller, early Moderat, Portishead, Isis, Mastodon, Katatonia, The Pineapple Thief Gatefold aus schwarzem Spezialpapier mit Stanzungen, metallic inks und UV Spot Lack, Insert mit Kupferfolienprägung, 20seitiges Booklet, printed inner sleeve

Die deutsche Post-Metalformation THE OCEAN veröffentlicht ihre neuen Albums "Holocene" im Mai 2023, wie üblich gibt es auch eine rein instrumentale Version des Werkes. Mit Holocene fügen The Ocean das neue und abschließende Kapitel in ihrer paläontologisch inspirierten Albumserie hinzu. Erweitert wird die Härte des Kollektivs diesmal um einige elektronische Dimensionen. Gegründet zu Beginn des Jahrtausends, hat die Gruppe von Musikern um den Gitarristen Robin Stapps auch nach über 20 Jahren nicht an Intensität eingebüßt. The Ocean kommen jedesmal zusammen mit der gemeinsamen Vision von grenzenloser Klangforschung, niemals stillstehend, genießt die Band einen hervorragenden Ruf in den Genres des Postrock, Progressive Metal und sogar Hardcore. Robin Staps kommentierte das abschließende Werk der paleontologischen Albumserie: "Holocene is an appendix to the 2 Phanerozoic albums and Precambrian, or the final and concluding chapter, making it a quadrilogy if you want so. It's tackling the Holocene epoch, which is the current and shortest chapter in earth's history, but it is essentially an album about the angst, alienation, loss of reason and critical thinking, rise of conspiracy theories and deconstruction of values in the modern age." Zum Entstehungsprozess und der elektronischen Basis der neuen Tracks fügt er hinzu: "The writing process of every album we've ever made started with me coming up with a guitar riff, a drumbeat or a vocal idea. This album is different since every single song is based on a musical idea that was originally written by Peter (Voigtmann, synths). He came up with these amazing synth parts that were already sounding huge in pre-production, and he sent me some of those raw, unfinished ideas during mid lockdown 2020... and while it was all electronic, it had that definite Ocean vibe to it. It made me want to pick up my guitar instantly_ and so I did, and it didn't take long until we had an inspiring creative exchange that was heading towards totally unforeseen but very exciting places." Für Fans von Massive Attack, Lorn, Archive, Trentemöller, early Moderat, Portishead, Isis, Mastodon, Katatonia, The Pineapple Thief Gatefold aus schwarzem Spezialpapier mit Stanzungen, metallic inks und UV Spot Lack, Insert mit Kupferfolienprägung, printed inner sleeve

Drumcode’s beloved A-Sides compilation makes a welcome return after a two-year absence, with a mammoth 25-track feast covering every shade of the techno spectrum split across seven, 12 inch parts. The project was devised in 2012 as a way of showcasing the wealth of strong material Adam Beyer receives each year, which due to Drumcode’s busy release schedule, might not otherwise find a home on the label. Since then, it’s grown to become an essential fixture on the techno release schedule and a marker for where the genre stands in any given year.

First up on part 6, Jay Lumen hits with an interplanetary excursion that will take you to another dimension courtesy of ‘Astronaut’. LAAT follows with an acid laden, glitched out roller, ‘Call of the Tribes’ before Mark Reeve provides a remake of the massive ‘Run Back’ and Zimmz delves deep for the closer ‘Qualia’.

Born from the party of the same name held at Manchester’s storied White Hotel, the increasingly essential Bakk Heia label has consistently put out thrilling 12”s from co-founders schuttle and low-key cult favourit Jorg Kuning since 2019.

Stepping up for the imprint’s sixth release, schuttle brings four tripped-out cuts of contemporary dance music, showcasing his production chops across four stellar tracks, already getting an airing from Ben UFO on the Hessle Audio Rinse FM show, as well as support from Joe Delon, Kiernan Laveaux, Om Unit, K Means, Barker, Pariah & Terry Francis.

“schuttle’s latest offering begins with ‘Shadout’. Fractured celestial voices materialize from a mist of frosted percussion while a merciful kickdrum splutters above the surface, bringing with it the viscous, swampy murk. ‘Souvlaki’ follows with playful impish chatter that stumbles over the moss-covered bassline, whilst cascading snare hits tumble down abandoned wells, a gentle guiding presence through the forest.

‘Swords Dance’ is a 10-minute display of cosmic glory, where conventional momentum is abandoned in favour of complete ecstatic, unbridled chaos. After the dust settles on this fiendish bacchanalia, ‘Junkman’ creeps into the fore. Caustic mire oozes into focus, mist rising sluggishly from the reeds while an elemental pad sweeps across the terrain.”

Blue Room: The 1979 VARA Studio Sessions in Holland features two recordings of trumpet/vocal icon Chet Baker captured in glorious stereo at the legendary VARA studio 2 in Hilversum, the Netherlands for the KRO radio program Nine O’Clock Jazz. The April 10, 1979 session features pianist Phil Markowitz, bassist Jean-Louis Rassinfosse, and drummer Charles Rice; and the November 9th session features pianist Frans Elsen, bassist Victor Kaihatu, and drummer Eric Ineke. Both sessions were originally produced by Edwin Rutten, and are produced for release officially for the first time by “jazz detective” Zev Feldman and Frank Jochemsen. The limited-edition 2-LP set (and deluxe 2-CD edition) includes an elaborate booklet with photos by Veryl Oakland, Jean-Pierre Leloir, Christian Rose and others; liner notes by Dutch journalist Jeroen de Valk, plus essays by Feldman, Jochemsen, and Rutten; and interviews with Baker bandmates Phil Markowtiz, Jean-Louis Rassinfosse and Eric Ineke, as well as trumpeters Randy Brecker and Enrico Rava, and pianist Enrico Pieranunzi. Transferred from the original KRO radio tape reels and mastered for vinyl by legendary mastering engineer Bernie Grundman

Harlem & Irving label partner Brian Kelly assumes his Supplement alias here for a new and limited edition 12" that features two of his tasteful and challenging sounds. Kelly is always out to disrupt and subvert and does so with aplomb here as the a-side title track starts with a whisper but soon grows with layers of found sound, piano, percussion, and ethereal voices. It then collapses before reemerging with melodic and tonal guitars and pulses. On the flip, the same tune comes 'Revisioned' but is much more cold and distorted, edgy and urgent. This record also comes with s the published essay, Revision: Composing an Aesthetics of Performance Pedagogy (Kelly & Wooda, 2016).

clear vinyl

Sneaky DJ cuts from the original Paling Trax posse (take no imitations!) - pressed on limited edition clear transparant 12". Volendam waar lech dat dan?

DJ Sofa has been making waves with tunes on labels as Future Retro, Myor Massiv and Straight Up Breakbeat.

The A-side track "Dilemma" brings us excellent break editing in combination with melancholic strings and piano, whistling birds, digi dancehall basslines and a massiv reese. Smooooth and lovely vibes!

B-side is by TufStuf head honcho Arkyn. "Together" brings melancholic vibes with R&B vocal snippets combined with uplifting breaks builds up to a goosebumps inducing breakdown in true Arkyn fashion.

Liverpool-born drummer Aynsley Dunbar was one of the most respected musicians on the international rock scene of the late ‘60s. His work with trailblazers such as John Mayall, David Bowie, Lou Reed and Frank Zappa, with whom he had a lengthy association, have assured his place in history. But Dunbar also laid down a marker as a bandleader in his own right. His debut album, Doctor Dunbar’s Prescription was a confident set of electric blues that was full of snappy tunes and high energy riffing. Recorded in 1971, Blue Whale is considerably more experimental, though. It is really a case of Dunbar drifting towards a hybrid of progressive rock and pyschedelia not far removed from Zappa’s surreally comic, bitingly sardonic world. And indeed the cover of his seminal ‘Willie The Pimp’ is one of the highlights of the set. Accompanied by excellent rhythm section players and soloists such as guitarists Ivan Zagni and Roger Sutton, bassist Peter Friedberg, pianist-organist Tommy Eyre, and vocalist Paul Williams, Dunbar hit a creative peak here that is emphatically maintained elsewhere on the album, which has mostly long pieces full of notable light and shade. This newly re-mastered version of Blue Whale puts one of the highpoints of Aynsley Dunbar’s illustrious career back under the spotlight. He was rightly inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame in 2017 and there could be no more fitting example of his achievement than an album that sounds impressively fresh 50 years after it was made.

Gargantuan volcanoes erupting with primal force, fountains of molten lava bursting sky high and massive boulders hurtling capriciously through the air. These potent and violently alluring images in the documentary series The Living Planet captivated Raoul Björkenheim's imagination in 1986. The search for a band name had come to an end. -”I was mesmerised. The name Krakatau sounded like a drum fill to me”. After studying at the Helsinki Conservatory for a year and the Berklee College of Music in Boston for three, Björkenheim relocated to Finland where he played in bands with Jone Takamäki, Antti Hytti and Tom Nekljudow, and later went on to work with composer and drummer Edward “Eetu” Vesala (1945-1999). His always original and highly demanding Sound & Fury workshops were a pivotal hotbed in the local improvised music scene, but after four years of Vesala's strict leadership Björkenheim felt a need to leave Sound & Fury behind and direct all of his attention towards Krakatau. The lineup on the first album “Ritual” consisted of reed virtuosos Jorma Tapio and Tapani Rinne, the bassist Sampo Lassila and two drummers, Michel Lambert and Heikki “Lefty” Lehto. “Krakatau’s debut album was very challenging to make, as I felt that it might be my one and only chance to record my own music, so I wanted it to be as intense and effective as possible”, says Björkenheim, “I was lucky enough to work with an incredibly talented cast of musicians. I can still listen to the album and feel satisfied that it really works. The first guitar solo illustrates what was to become my modus operandi: to try and play the electric guitar in unexpected ways.” Svart Records will release an expanded double LP version of Krakatau’s Ritual. Limited to 500 copies and due out on March 24th, the album contains an album’s worth of previously unheard material recorded in 1987 in Studio Helsinki and at the Finnish Broadcasting Corporation studio.