Suche:ro

This exciting new collaboration between Cara Tolmie and Rian Treanor is a highly kinetic and playful endeavour. Body-centric vocal explorations merge with intricate rhythmic systems forming a deliciously disorientating, hypersurreal space of semantic modulations, concrete poetry, cut-up beats and mimicked samples. Their sound is singular and tactile: dissociative dance music that reassembles contorting vocal lines and knotting biomechanics in an explorative network of unstable forms. It's a blur of bodily fragility and ecstatic disruption, where swells of meaning rise and fall through clouds of synthetic buzz, fleeting breath, and stream-of-consciousness imagery.The duo first performed together when Counterflows Festival paired them for a new commission at the historic Arches venue in 2023. Glasgow-born, Stockholm-based vocalist and performance artist Cara Tolmie brought her hypnotic vocal technique, Internal Singing _ an intimate practice using breath, movement, and touch that explores the subtle binds between voice and body in an unsettling, engrossing sonic space. Treanor's richly innovative work provided a compounding counterpart: radical, rave-infused structures that bent and contorted around Tolmie's incantation.Growing out of a series of charged, improvisational performances, Body Lapse was recorded between Stockholm and Rotherham in 2024. Echoes of their live energy run throughout _ a voice shaking through the body, responding to touch and physical modulation, translating performance into something tactile and immediate. Body Lapse marks their debut release together, it conjures a sound of unsettling beauty and frictional intensity _ a playful, physical mesh of computer music, voice, and speculative storytelling. In this gnawing, dreamlike space, breath and body become sites of both connection and disruption, sparking thrilling encounters with the unexpected, the playful, and the decisively weird

Bringing together the elder statesman of the Zulu guitar Madala Kunene and internationally acclaimed Sibusile Xaba, kwaNTU pulls two generations of South African guitar mastery into a single point of focus. Under-represented on recordings outside of South Africa, Madala Kunene (b. 1951), the ‘King of the Zulu Guitar’, is revered as the greatest living master of the Zulu guitar tradition. Sibusile Xaba, whose collaboration with Mushroom Hour Half Hour reaches back to his first recording in 2017 (Open Letter To Adoniah/Unlearning), has garnered international acclaim for his unique voice and virtuoso guitar stylings, which bring together multiple South African guitar lineages in an original, spiritualised fusion. Collaborating with Mushroom Hour and New Soil for kwaNTU, the two players come together to weave a filigree sonic fabric which reaches down to the heartwood of Zulu guitar music but moves resolutely outward, building on the past to create a deeply rooted statement about present conditions and future travels. kwaNTU – which can be roughly translated ‘the place of the life-spirit’ – is also conclave of teacher and student, as Xaba has been taught by Kunene for the last decade. Meditative, rich and sonically sui generis, kwaNTU finds these two musicians linking up within the inimitable space of sound and spirit that they share through Kunene’s teaching.

The great masters of South African music have not all had equal exposure. For many years the generation of musicians who were exiled during apartheid took centre stage, as the regime made it very difficult for those at home to be heard. More recently, a new cohort of important voices, especially in jazz, has broken through to international consciousness. But for the generation of musicians in between – those who shone like beacons in the most difficult final years of apartheid and immediately afterward – international recognition has been slow in coming.

Madala Kunene, ‘the King of the Zulu Guitar’, is among this number. A revered figure for current generations of South African musicians, Kunene began his recording career in 1990, at the bitter end of apartheid, with a now classic self-titled LP for David Marks’ storied Third Ear imprint. Born in 1951 in Cato Manor, near Durban, he had determined to be a musician from early childhood, and by the time he first entered a recording studio he had already had a long career as a popular performer. His virtuoso absorption and transformation of the venerable Zulu maskanda guitar tradition and his richly spiritualised approach to music immediately marked him out as someone special, and in the years that followed, Kunene cemented his position as one of South Africa’s musical elders. He is without doubt the grand master of the Zulu guitar tradition, but his sound and sensibility ranges far beyond it into varied sonic terrain, and he has collaborated with a wide range of musicians both at home and abroad. Now in his mid-seventies, he remains a shining light for those that are making music in contemporary South Africa.

‘He is really an amazing person,’ says the guitarist Sibusile Xaba, who has been mentored by Kunene for over a decade, and now invites a collaboration with him on kwaNTU. ‘As a mentor, he's really powerful in showing us the way. For us to have this opportunity to make music together and have a project together is really a blessing to me.’

Xaba himself grew up in Newcastle, KwaZulu-Natal, where his mother had been in a band and his father sang in a church choir, and from early childhood Xaba played homemade tin guitars. He only later realised that music was his calling. ‘I just loved music. I was fortunate. My parents loved music. And when it was time for me to leave home and go to study outside Newcastle, I knew that music was what I wanted to do. There was no second option. It was just music.’ Moving to Pretoria to study music formally, Xaba committed himself to his craft, developing a unique style that draws on both US jazz masters such as Wes Montgomery and Jim Hall, and the rich and varied heritage of the South African guitar, from inspirational jazz players such as Allen Kwela and Enoch Mthalane, to the music of the Malombo groups and Dr. Philip Tabane (Xaba has previously collaborated with Dr. Tabane’s late son, Thabang), and the Zulu guitar tradition embodied by Kunene.

‘I was really in love with the jazz guitar, I really admired it, and I was digging a lot in that direction,’ says Xaba, recalling his first encounter with Kunene’s music, over a decade ago. ‘And then one day on my timeline, Kunene popped up, and I was like – “What's this sound?” I was so connected to it. It really touched me deep. I started checking out his records, and then I found out he's from the same region as I am, which is Zululand.’ After Kunene played a show at the Afrikan Freedom Station in Johannesburg, Xaba make contact with him, and visited him at home in Durban. They struck up a friendship, and Xaba became the elder’s student, as Kunene began to pass on his knowledge and his inimitable way of playing.

kwaNTU is a tribute to this relationship and the deep learning that has defined it. The album was recorded in Zululand in the town of Utrecht, at a cultural centre called Kwantu Village, which gives its name to the album. ‘It's such a broad word,’ Xaba says, ‘but the elders teach us that Ntu is basically an energy, almost chi, an energy, a force that all living beings have within them. It's a living energy, so kwaNTU is like, almost the place of this energy.’ The two men sequestered themselves for five days of jamming, improvising and planning, and then the session was recorded in one take over a single night, with Gontse Makhene joining on percussion and backing vocals and Fakazile on vocals. Other voices and overdubs were later added in the studio in Johannesburg.

The result is a rich and meditative recording that finds two generations in a deeply engaged dialogue. Teaching and passing on his knowledge, the elder Kunene has brought Xaba into a space of sound and knowledge that they now share; Xaba’s own practice of deep communion with nature and his dedication to his musical craft make him the perfect interlocutor for Kunene. The result is an album that foregrounds the two musicians engaged at the highest levels of responsive listening, sympathetic unity, and collaborative concentration. Bringing an elder statesman of South African music to an international listening audience for the first time in decades by pairing him with one of South Africa’s most important new voices, kwaNTU is a meeting of generations and a powerful demonstration of musical lineage and continuity.

‘Before music, there is sound,’ Xaba observes, speaking of Kunene’s unique approach to music. ‘And sound is like a common compartment…it's not restricted to particular people or particular geographic places, you know what I mean? It's sound. Everybody can hear it. So when he constructs that sound into music, I think everybody resonates with the energy behind his construction of sound into song. Here at home, we really love him for preserving our history through the guitar, through his stories as well the music, the songs that he writes. We really, really admire him.’

In October 2025, Västkransen Records releases its 10th output — a milestone double 12" vinyl compilation featuring eight dance tracks from some of Stockholm’s finest producers and DJs. A celebration of the city’s underground electronic music scene, Västkransen 10 brings together familiar names from the label’s past as well as producers making their record debut. What they all share is a vital role in the sound and spirit of Stockholm’s dance music today.



Launched in 2017, Västkransen Records grew out of Gården – a seasonal open-air party held beneath a highway on the border between the neighborhoods of Västberga and Midsommarkransen. Set in a place where industrial landscapes meet nature, this location has shaped both the party’s unique atmosphere and its blend of groovy sounds and rawer beats. Starting a label was a way to keep that energy going and showcase artists and selectors with few outlets in a city, at the time, often drawn to darker and harder strains of dance music.

Leeds based IMAGINARIUM announce their record label delivering a four track EP featuring music from residents Pete Melba (Planet Orange), Phil Warner (Plant & Deck / Pic N’ Mix), and Roya Brehl (Creatures of the night / Last days of Rome). Joining the crew is rising star and one half of duo Le Frequency, James Geeson.

Pete Melba kicks things off in his signature style of groovy tech house with skipping percussion, twinkling melodies and a touch of darkness. Phil Warner takes the A2 into techno leaning tech house territory sporting spacey pads, acid licks and spooky vocal snippets. On the B1, Roya Brehl moves into darker realms utilising cascading synths, eerie vocals and jangling percussion. Closing out the EP James Geeson continues the dark theme of the B-side warping the classic moonraker vocal into a deep dance floor chugger.

A well-rounded EP for cultured diggers bound to scintillate dance floors and after parties across the globe.

Gramrcy and John Loveless return to Phantasy with a double-A single, ‘Lucid / Feel So’. Three years on from their festival-rupturing hit ‘Highdive’, which found regular rotation in the sets of 2ManyDJs, Peggy Gou and Daniel Avery alongside soundtracking shows for Moschino and Hugo Boss, two new tracks expand the sound of the Berlin pair’s studio partnership.

‘Lucid’ features a unique vocal turn from Tony Morris, a former teacher, taxi driver and contemporary cult figure in Glasgow’s underground scene. Having begun DIY production only in his late sixties, he has since released on the city’s peerless Optimo Music and has been profiled by the BBC and NPR, alternately described by The Scottish Herald as “Scotland’s most unlikely pop sensation” and by himself as “a deviant cabaret artist”.

Morris’s hypnotic repetitions prove to be an earworming anchor for Gramrcy and Loveless’s pressure-cooker arrangement, a bubbling concoction that represents their most formative influences, combining the sheer bassweight of FWD-era UK dance with the ISDN-line scramble of the most out-there electroclash. Rich in rhythm and textural weirdness, ‘Lucid’ captures the sound of a deeply satisfying intersection of rave outsiders.

Eschewing the dreamy psychedelia of its counterpart, ‘Feel So’ instead tips the scales back toward the outright ecstatic. The influence of esoteric disco and post-punk percussion rides on a throbbing bassline that builds toward supreme dancefloor release, paying tribute to a legacy of hi-NRG, spanning Chicago to Rimini.

Gramrcy & John Loveless - ‘Lucid / Feel So’ will be available to download & stream on October the 10th via Phantasy There will also be a limited-edition run of just 200 hand-stamped 12” vinyl records, including the instrumental cut of ‘Lucid’, available to pre-order from Bandcamp and the Phantasy store.

Composer and arranger of Hiroshi Suzuki's "Romance" and Jiro Inagaki's "Breeze," Hiromasa Suzuki is a musician who had worked extensively in the Japanese entertainment industry, not only in jazz, but also in pops, cinema, television, and animation music production. This album is a pre-fusion/crossover masterpiece produced by Jiro Inagaki and recorded with talented players such as Shuichi Murakami, Akira Okazawa, and Masayoshi Takanaka.

Great Vacation! are just that: a momentary escape from a crazy world. Sunshine permeates every note, with good times abound when the band throws down. Both “Yellow Gold Diamond Fire” and “You Make It Look Easy” were recorded old school style with the whole band live in the studio to capture that special magic.

Artist Bio:
Great Vacation! was formed by Riley Geare in 2023. The lineup has rotated a bit but always includes Riley and guitarist Topher Mohr. Currently the group includes drummer Sheldon Reed (who appears on Yellow Gold Diamond Fire). Dedicated to an old school aesthetic, the band performs together live in the studio and has only ever done 2 takes of a song. Every track is recorded to tape for maximum stank. We thrive in the Southern California climate- lots of sunshine, classic cars, palm trees and love vibrations pervade the vibe.

“Round and Round” is a tale of depression and the brooding repetitious inner thoughts that drain us. Dubbed by producer Daniel David as “emo boogie”–partly as a joke–this newfound genre illustrates familiar personal struggles of the current age. This A-side rides the fine line of unraveling deep emotions, ultimately coaxing you to FEEL the groove.

Conversely, the B-side “Finely” feat. B.Bravo is a smooth rolling vocoder jam, a laid-back anthem perfect for a cruise or warming up a fresh dancefloor: a high to offset the low.

Zackey Force Funk
Born into this wild world in Tucson, AZ 1974, Zackey Force Funk found himself in and out of prison at the age of 17. Once released for good, Zackey ditched a life of crime to focus on raising his family and writing music. He thrived in the golden era of Myspace, producing eerie, gritty music on pirated software, and swiftly grabbed the attention of Kutmah–soon to be followed by a plethora of formidable producers. Zackey forged many collaborations later with the likes of XL Middleton, The Egyptian Lover, Salva, Lazer Sword, Lorn, Brian Ellis, Baron Zen, Daedelus and B. Bravo, as well as forming the group Demon Queen with Tobacco, and Delta Weapon with his brother N8NOFACE. As these tunes were scattered across various labels and on their respective collaborator's projects, ZFF continued to hone his style, delving deeper into the psychedelic future funk realm of which he has created for himself.

Daniel David
Daniel David is a Bay Area born multi-instrumentalist, producer, and singer based in Dallas, Texas. 1/2 of boogie funk duo The Pendletons, Daniel’s solo music is a genre defying mix of organic and electronic elements including psych, dirty analog funk, hyphy, jazz, and more.
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BLOOMY MEADOWS comes with deep and introspective melodic flows over INKSWEL's hard knock groovy boom bap on this fresh & organic 10 track collab hip hop album. Amazing features from LYRICS BORN, REGGIE B, PEOPLE WITHOUT SHOES, LEONARD CHARLES, ERIN BUKU, KULTAR AHLUWALIA, LEVEL MTINDO, and more.

Her New Knife ist eine Shoegaze-/Alternative-Band aus Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Zu den Mitgliedern der Gruppe gehören Edgar Atencio (Gitarre und Gesang), Ben Kachler (Gitarre), Carolina Schooley (Bass) und Elijah Ford (Schlagzeug). Die Band veröffentlichte letztes Jahr ,chrome is lullaby" über das einflussreiche Label Julia's War Recordings. Die EP besticht durch ihren rohen, verletzlichen Charme und bietet Fans von Shoegaze und Post-Punk eine tiefe Verbindung zu ihrem einzigartigen Sound. Nach einer einmaligen Björk-Coverversion (,Pagan Poetry") kehrt die Band nun mit einer 6-Song-Remix-EP zurück, die Remixe von TAGABOW, Sword II, Frost Children und anderen. Die physische Version der Veröffentlichung ,Chrome is Lullaby Deluxe" enthält auf Seite A die EP ,Chrome is Lullaby" und auf Seite B die entsprechenden Remixe.

Shall Not Fade welcomes Mia Lily to the label for her debut release "Hydrated But Drunk EP".

Northern raised and London based, Mia is already well known for her high-energy DJ sets and her monthly residencies on Balamii and Foundation FM. As a selector Mia's sound is rooted in rave, but she also has a background in classical piano and family roots in jazz. All this becomes immediately clear as Mia effortlessly & expertly steps into the producer, composer & vocalist roles to deliver five refined, emotive & highly musical tracks that navigate trance, techno, UKG and house and feature vocal and piano performances from Mia.

"Hydrated But Drunk" opens Mia's Discogs entry with a bang. Vinyl & Digital drop 17th Oct 2025 on Shall Not Fade. Artwork by James Lacey.

Demi Riquísimo welcomes esteemed Amsterdam based producer & DJ Retromigration to Semi Delicious for the label’s 24th edition. The 'Half Fried’ EP is a perfect union of the sounds synonymous with both the label and artist. Littered with playful nods to the roots of house and techno that’ are sleekly assembled with all the modern trimmings. Deepness in 2025 at it’s finest with finely tuned dynamics ready to rattle bassbins throughout the autumn and beyond.

Parallel Visions - PV002 | ORIGINS 01 Parallel Visions launches its new ORIGINS series with a heavy first instalment, showcasing a roster of rising and established talent pushing raw, driving techno.

PV002 brings together six powerful cuts from Lars Huismann, Frazi.er, LPV, Primal, Jehra, and marks the debut release of Liam Cappello. Expect pulsing grooves, stripped-back intensity, and nods to old-school techno roots, all designed for maximum impact on the floor. The ORIGINS series sets the tone for Parallel Visions: forward- thinking techno built with authenticity, energy, and an uncompromising underground edge.