Laura Nyro's third Columbia effort is easily the equal of her previous two. The overwhelming strength of her song writing and distinctive arrangements fuel Christmas and the Beads of Sweat. Her unmistakable style of delivery maintains the continual examination of herself as a performer. The results are uniformly interesting and provocative as she continues to draw upon her love of jazz, folk, and R&B. Conceptually, this album is as potent as her previous effort, New York Tendaberry, but in a much different way. Rather than hanging together thematically, Christmas and the Beads of Sweat features two inclusive and distinctive sides of music -- with different musicians and producers for each. The first five tracks feature Nyro backed by the Swampers from Muscle Shoals, AL, and include the talents of Roger Hawkins (drums), Eddie Hinton (guitar), Dave Hood (bass), Barry Becket (vibraphone), and Jack Jennings (percussion), with Arif Mardin producing. While this pairing might seem initially incongruous, the quintet had been concurrently working with the likes of Dusty Springfield and Cher and had gained a rightful reputation as a consummate backup band. The final four pieces are steeped in noir more atypical of her previous efforts. The all-star cast of New York City session heavyweights are led by Felix Cavaliere (producer) and features fellow Rascals member Dino Danelli (drums), Ralph McDonald (percussion), Chuck Rainey (bass), Cornell Dupree (guitar), Duane Allman (guitar), and Alice Coltrane (stringed harp), among others. As with all of Nyro's recordings, at the heart of this effort are her ageless compositions and arrangements. A motif connecting such disparate tunes as the upbeat "When I Was a Freeport and You Were the Main Drag" to the hauntingly beautiful "Christmas in My Soul" and "Beads of Sweat" is the aching hollowness that came with the disillusionment that Vietnam, Kent State, and racial relations brought upon America in 1970. As she had done with "Save the Country" some four years earlier, Nyro's cathartic expressionism is captured at its most fervent on this album.
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Did we reach lucky number 13 already?
Well then, let's celebrate all together with our chef de partie, Matalo! and pour out the oven-cooked agave aka mezcal.
These four tunes are cheerfully stacked, very pleasingly engineered and prime examples of the craft Matalo! handles so well.
A euphoric and energised feeling from start to finish.
Here comes a new Balkantek from Romanian musican "Pneumatix".
This is avinyl only realese.
The new travbellers plays electro !
Superb ambiances... perfect morning awaker.
beautyful tunes !
Originally released on the Ovide label from Houston, Texas in 1970 and currently going for around £175, if you can find a copy.
‘Get Your Point Over’ is a brass-led funky dancer that beautifully compliments Sebastian Williams’ soulful vocal style, while the flipside, ‘I Don't Care What Mama Said (Baby I Need You)’, is a slower
groove that lets that vocal really soar, arriving complete with a groovy psychedelic guitar break before Williams testifies to his lady amid some punchy brass stabs.
Two stellar tunes from Sebastian Williams (aka Roger Williams of no-hit wonders The Quarter Notes), whose solo recording career amounted to just three 45s, all five years apart, along with a couple of releases as Sebastian And The House Rockers and finally, in 1975, just Sebastian.
Imagine vintage Tavares lead singer Chubby Tavares at his gritty best with a funky brass section in a soulful Harold Melvin And The Blue Notes styled blast.
Both tracks mastered from the original sound source for maximum soul sound.
Comet Records presents the Tony Allen & Afrika 70 reissue series with the classic late seventies first four solo albums of Tony Allen remastered and restored: Jealousy, Progress, No Accomodation for Lagos & No Discrimination, all coming in an heavy Deluxe Tip-On Jacket.
Tony's solo album, No Discrimination, marks an important turning point in Tony Allen's musical life. Tony had recently left Fela's band, which was clearly an emotional yet necessary change as Allen sings of love and brotherhood throughout his fourth solo album. No Discrimination, both in composition and sound, is a blueprint for the future of Afrobeat, decades ahead of its time. The songs are a mixture of old and new - fusing the classic Afrobeat compositional style with modern production and ideas. Classic tunes like "No Discrimination" and "Ariya" pushed boundaries for what Afrobeat could be, which a wave of Afrobeat bands would pick up on decades later.
With No Discrimination, Tony begins to move Afrobeat into the future, which he would continue doing for the rest of his career.
Tony Allen was a musical and compositional visionary, and this album finds him beginning to explore that vision outside of Fela's immense gravitational pull. They are the start of a new era in Tony's fruitful career as a solo artist, opening the floodgates for his distinctive Afro-Funk sound and laying the foundation for the next generation of Afrobeat musicians to come.
Warm welcome to Manuel Tur, who debuts on Lossless with his captivating Digital Fabrics EP. Expect three stripped back, warm and analogue sounding techno-ish cuts unmistakably referring to Detroit in a reminiscent yet forward thinking way.
Lossless bossmen Mathias Schober and Thomas Herb are big fans - and supporters - of Manuel Tur’s music. Naturally the excitement level was high when the guys received the Digital Fabrics demos from
Manuel and even went up to ecstatic while listening to the three tunes.
Masterfully stripped back productions, made with attention to all the details and a perfect interplay of rhythm and sound. These tracks just triggering all the right spots!
Fast forward this EP is now on Lossless and we couldn’t be happier that Manuel agreed on releasing it with us right away.
We also had a chat with Manuel about the creative process behind Digital Fabrics in which he revealed that at the time the EP came to life he had just added a new toy at his Islenyo Studios in Essen. Namely
a Korg SQ-1 sequencer which was triggering some of his analogue synths. Over the course of a week or so those jams culminated in building the backbone of the Digital Fabric EP. By further adding some
euphonic digital pads, Manuel set an antipode that’s blending and supplementing perfectly.
Yours sincerely,
LOSSLESS
Jimmy Tamborello returns with a collection of 10 pop-infused vocal hymns – simultaneously perfect dance floor fillers and lullabies. "Away" is the second of two Dntel albums to be released in 2021 by Morr Music in collaboration with Les Albums Claus. While "The Seas Trees See" showcased Tamborello's more intricate and quiet side, "Away" embraces his love for pop music. A genre which like no other has been resonating the advancements of technology from the very beginning. Songwriting was sequenced and computerized on such a large scale that it would change the sonic aesthetics of the charts forever.
Dntel is a musician who changed pop music forever – and still works in this never-ending labour of love, both effortless and highly focused, constantly tweaking the universe of our musical perception. Whether beatless or uncompromisingly embracing the limelight of collective ecstasy with one of his most remembered tunes "(This Is) The Dream Of Evan And Chan", his almost forgotten anthem "Don’t Get Your Hopes Up" or his work as James Figurine. "Away" features 10 of these extravaganzas – uniting his audience once more in hope and future-bound optimism.
"I grew up with 80s techno-pop – these influences always come through in my music", Jimmy writes from Los Angeles. For this album, though, "I was thinking more of 80s indie pop or labels like 4AD. It is a mix of those influences along with trying to figure out what elements of my own discography I still connect with. I wanted it to reflect old Dntel records as well as the techno-pop band Figurine I used to be in. I have always considered my music basically being techno-pop, but not referring to pop as popular music – I just like pretty melodies. But with the Dntel moniker, I never had the ambition to produce music for a really big audience.”
It is exactly that looseness in approaching music which makes Tamborello’s style of composing so unique. On "Away" he combines a healthy dose of distortion with the most-sticking melodies, vocals and bitter-sweet lyrics he ever came up with – performing all vocals himself, with the help of technology. "My voice has a limited range. When I applied this vocal processing it seemed to bring out the emotions more. I don’t see it as the same as the more artificial, autotuned style of modern pop music. I think it still sounds like it could be a real person singing, just not me."
Using this technique, Dntel disembodies himself from his own art, welcoming all kinds of interpretations re. his current state as an artist. "Somehow this processed voice feels closer to how I see myself than my normal voice, for better or worse…", he writes. Pop music is a fragile entity, making its kingpins vulnerable. Many emotions reveal a lot of the originator’s personality –this is something one has to be prepared for. On "Away", Jimmy Tamborello finds the perfect way of marrying his unique musical personality with both the demands and possibilities of pop music. Just listen to "Connect" and you’ll know what we’re talking about. A perfect, yet timeless album for less than perfect times.
Freiburg based Italian stallion Enea releases his 2nd longplayer "Overview" on his own, soulful South-German imprint, Beatalistics Records.
The 10 track album once again showcases the versatile background of the former Bass-Player, who grew up on the picturesque Lake Constance. Having been a familiar name in the international Drum'n Bass scene for more than a decade, Enea now also takes us beyond the classic 170+ bpm rhythm structures to give us a proper "Overview" of his musical philosophy.
Comprising his typical softer rolling, Liquid based tunes like "Wonders" featuring label partner MC Fava, "Earthrise" with "Freebird" or "Moon" alongside the vocal talent Vavunettha, he additionally presents various influential styles throughout the album. "Interstellar Dub" and the dub remix of "Nuh Smile" featuring Kyrad from Switzerland lead us off the beat on dubby paths, whereas the title track "Overview", "Clouds" or the remix of "Fly High" with Meks Sample & El Tronic show his affinity for smoother Trip-HipHop grooves. By the way, you might recognize an organic and pulsating bass here and there, of course played by the maestro himself! This is warm and beautiful music for sophisticated and open minded souls. Enea!
We have the honour to welcome the German based Johannes Volk. Johannes debuts on Eternal Friction Records with a 4 track EP called "Mutable Motor Units". The result is a powerful EP, that clearly demonstrates Johannes Volk unique and personal approach to techno.
"Mutable Motor Units" is filled with powerful grooves, smooth leads and uplifting rhythms. We're very happy to welcome Johannes Volk to Eternal Friction Records. Who knows what the future will bring us. Hopefully these banging tunes can destroy some dancefloors.
Two powerduos in charge for SPT005: Norwegian artist Filip Storsveen alias Oprofessionell teamed up with local buddy Mikkel Rev - as Omformer - and Vienna based producer Alpha Tracks - as Kineta - to deliver four cosmic Trance tunes for intense dancefloor moments.
The trackname B2 Kineta - Clone Drone has been changed to Carbon Based - Cyclone (Kineta Remix) for copyright reasons.
Canadian collective The Hello Darlins, dubbed “the Broken Social Scene of
Americana”, release their first full-length LP Go By Feel on June 11, 2021.
With over 500,000 combined Spotify streams for their initial three singles, it’s
safe to say there’s a lot of anticipation for their debut album. The buzz began
building almost immediately after the Calgary, Alberta-based Americana collective debuted on the scene in early 2020, with American Songwriter calling the
group “the product of a talented pool of session musicians craving more,” while
Americana UK stated, “It’s great to see a band put together by the talented
folks who would usually be ‘behind the scenes.’”
So, who exactly are The Hello Darlins? The seeds of the band took root in 2016
when vocalist/producer Candace Lacina crossed paths again with keyboardist/
producer Mike Little after first meeting at a recording studio years earlier. Once
reconnected, they soon found themselves making music together in between
their work with other artists, an impressive list that ranges from Shania Twain
to Charlie Major, The Road Hammers to George Canyon as well as the late B.B.
King.
In short order, the couple began inviting others within their circle to participate, including Murray Pulver (Crash Test Dummies), Clay- ton Bellamy (The
Road Hammers), Matt Andersen, Dave and Joey Landreth (aka The Bros. Landreth), Russell Broom (Jann Arden), and ace fiddler Shane Guse.
On Go By Feel, this incredible collection of talent has forged a hybrid of country,
gospel and blues like no other, from the heart-wrenching ballads “Aberdeen”
and “Prayer For A Sparrow” to the classic country-rocker “Mountain Time” and
the album’s soulful title track.
Making music influenced by times of joy and sorrow is natural for Candace and
Mike, as both come from families with long musical traditions within Canada.
It all adds up to The Hello Darlins preferring to add “North” to the Americana
genre, a more than symbolic gesture that’s in line with a musical vision that will
continue to evolve as soon as the band gets a chance to play live with a lineup that could potentially consist of anywhere between five to nine players on
stage.
Until then, audiences will now be able to fully savour the tunes, musicianship
and production of Go By Feel, proof positive that teamwork ultimately leads to
exceptional results.
Bored At My Grandma's House is the moniker of 19-year old Leeds-based Amber Strawbridge, starting out as an exercise in passing time when she was quite literally bored at her Grandma's place. First single & EP opener 'Showers' is about time alone & listening to your mind - “Do you ever think of showers as like a new beginning?“ is a poignant opening line, about that therapeutic space for you to really think and let your thoughts surface. In Amber's own words "showers are a kind of therapy in my opinion, they give you time to reflect and think without influence from anything external."
Born in Whitehaven, Cumbria to musical family, and raised on the likes of Bowie & Pink Floyd there was always plenty of opportunity to mess around on the various instruments lying around the house. Attempts at proper music lessons went awry as Amber shunned the rules & rigidity, and so instead she gradually taught herself piano, guitar & drums. After time travelling in Cambodia, teaching English & helping with projects in various villages, Amber stayed with her Grandma & began to use the aeons of spare time to make tunes on Garageband & upload them to soundcloud. As a wave of BBC Introducing support rolled in, coupled with a move to Leeds to study music, the bedroom set-up evolved & a full EP began to take shape.
Playing all the instruments & self-recording most of the EP at home, Amber took the tracks to Alex Greaves (Working Men's Club, Bdrmm) at the Nave studio for live drums & some final mixing flourishes, leaving an EP full of lo-fi charm but with a studio feel. Inspired by Slowdive, Wolf Alice & Alvvays, Sometimes I Forget You're Human Too showcases Amber's singular vision of indie-pop, on an EP that deals with topics like humanity, nostalgia & the current refugee crisis.
Speaking on the EP title Amber says "Sometimes I forget you’re human too is the realisation that everyone is the same. In the sense that we are all human, everyone has issues and problems to face, everyone makes mistakes and has success. I used to compare myself to others a lot and think ‘wow they have their life together’ or ‘how are they so happy all of the time’ but that’s not the case it’s just what you can see on the outside ...so it’s kind of an EP of self assurance and reminding myself that it’s ok to not have it together all the time because no one does as we’re all just human after all"
The EP is just the start for Bored At My Grandmas House "I’ve already got a few tracks which I’m thinking could be potentially for an album, I’d definitely like to do a bigger project next and have the sound I’d like in mind. I’ve recently just got a band together so hopefully when live shows are resurrected I’ll have a few of those!" 2021 is looking to be anything but boring for Amber Strawbridge.
Albums often try to evoke a time and place, few manage to do that with such startling effect as the unlikely collaboration, Leave the Bones, between the multi-generational Haitian band Lakou Mizik, and Grammy-winning electronic music artist Joseph Ray. “Haiti'' is a word that conjures up a lot of images, it is a country judged by many, most of whom have never set foot on its shores. But its history is rich, its people proud and defiant, and nowhere is that more evident than in its music. Culture is what defines the country - its drums and Vaksins (traditional horns) are symbols of freedom and pride, liberty and struggle, and represent the escapist joy of dancing. Leave the Bones paints a musical portrait, a fresh glimpse of an oft misrepresented country, that through Vodou chants, chest-pounding Rara dance tunes and contemporary protest songs, conveys the listener to Haiti’s spiritual heart, a place that remains a compelling mystery for foreigners and a source of pride for every Haitian.
In James McMurtry’s new effort, ‘The Horses and
the Hounds’, the acclaimed songwriter backs
personal narratives with effortless elegance
(‘Canola Fields’) and endless energy (‘If It Don’t
Bleed’).
This first collection in seven years spotlights a
seasoned tunesmith in peak form as he turns
toward reflection (‘Vaquero’) and revelation (closer
‘Blackberry Winter’). Familiar foundations guide
the journey. “There’s a definite Los Angeles vibe to
this record,” McMurtry says. “The ghost of Warren
Zevon seems to be stomping around among the
guitar tracks. Don’t know how he got in there. He
never signed on for work for hire.”
‘The Horses and the Hounds’ is a reunion of sorts.
McMurtry recorded the new album with legendary
producer Ross Hogarth (Ozzy Osbourne, John
Fogerty, Van Halen, Keb’ Mo’) at Jackson
Browne’s Groovemaster’s in Santa Monica,
California. Hogarth recorded McMurtry’s first two
albums - ‘Too Long in the Wasteland’ and
‘Candyland’ - and later mixed McMurtry’s first selfproduced album, ‘Saint Mary of the Woods’.
Another veteran of those three releases, guitarist
David Grissom (Joe Ely, John Mellencamp, Dixie
Chicks), returns with some of his finest work.
- A1: Jacidorex - Bronson
- A2: Blaame Collectif Tetrabass - Frenetic
- B1: Tha Touffaz Collectif Tetrabass - Alchemy
- B2: Tseu Collectif Tetrabass - Bélias
- B3: Aspiratek Collectif Tetrass - Prophecy
- C1: Dark Confidence - Slave
- C2: Les Fûts Méchaniques Collectif Tetrabass - Bernie Skills
- D1: Sparks - Transcription
- D2: Le Troll À Roulettes Collectif Tetrabass - Obscured Breaker
- D3: Nkod Oqp Crew _ Collectif Tetrabass - Hey Cid
Tetrabass factory double LP compliation of praised unreleasqed tunes on vinyl !
Massive dancefloor weapon !
Gondwana Records are delighted to announce '7" Series', our first ever 7" vinyl collection series. Featuring bespoke artwork from Gondwana Records designer Daniel Halsall, cut at Calyx in Berlin, and manufactured at Optimal, each 7" is limited to strictly 300 copies and housed in a reverse board printed sleeve with classic 'dinked' centre holes.
To launch this collectable series, we are excited to share new and previously unreleased music from Mammal Hands and two catalogue favourites from Matthew Halsall. Over the next coming months, we will share series part 3 and 4 and beyond.
Mammal Hands — Chaser/Prism 7" (GOND07001)
Captivating, ethereal and majestic, Mammal Hands are driven by their unique line-up of drums, piano and saxophone. Their hypnotic music draws on a rich well of influences from Sufi trance and West African music to folk music, contemporary classical, spiritual jazz and electronica to produce something uniquely their own. Their 7" features two brand new, previously unreleased tunes.
Side A Chaser is a punchy, hypnotic tune with an enchanted melody that'll take you on a magical journey. All in less than 4 minutes
Side B Prism is a mysterious ear-worm, ethereal but catchy, it sounds like nothing else the band have ever recorded.
After a first tune of a pure mental Hard techno acid, you'll get a banger (what a kick !!) Doom Hardcore downtempo dark tune...
The flip brings 2 acid Doom tunes.
The fi(r)st one is sophisticated complex tune : the beat, the breakbeats, the structure : everything is original... and the last track is an acidcore graveyard digger with a cool breakbeat drop.
FAT !
Superb Tribe dancefloor offering 4 Tribe/Hardtek tunes, classic and well done.
bullet-proof packing with inner sleeves and 3mm black Spinned.
Latin-infused Hip-Hop project by The Breed and Richard Holzmann feat. FLKS, Cy Leo, Kid Taro, Phlocalyst and Franz. Cover photo by the legendary Estevan Oriol (Netflix / LA Originals)
It all started in 2020 when producer The Breed and guitarist Richard Holzmann decided to start their own project called PAPI CHURRO. The two german musicians came up with a unique combination of latin-folk and HipHop Sounds. Almost like a Lo-Fi Beat version of guys like João Gilberto or Carlos Jobim. But also the typical Mexican sounds of Druglord Movies like „Narcos“ are part of their soundcollage. In very short time PAPI CHURRO gained a fanbase and millions of streams on the net. Since all the instruments are played live the songs are not your average Samplebeat but come with some more complex arrangements. But still producer The Breed clearly references those „Chops and Breaks Roots“ on the songs.
Now it’s time for their first full-length LP. El Clásico features all of their recently released tunes but also comes with a bunch of new material. It features a lot of talented guest musicians. Blue-note artists Phlocalyst on some trumpet parts, Harmonica world champion Cy Leo from Hongkong. Lo-Fi producer Kid Taro and Bassplayer and producer FLKS appear throughout the record.
There has always been a Reggae inuence in the music of El Michels Affair. From their cover of "Hung Up On My Baby" done in a Reggae style, to the general sound and approach that permeates Leon's production style. While recording Bailey's 2020 Ekundayo album, they did some straight forward reggae tunes inspired by different eras alongside some modern R&B tracks that would t more comfortably next to Frank Ocean than Jacob Miller. It is this same notion that old and new can live so comfortably together that birthed the idea of Ekundayo Inversions. Traditional dub came out of reggae in the late 60s and early 70s when pioneers like King Tubby and Lee Perry started taking the multi track recordings of songs and running them back through the board adding effects and additional instrumentation. These recordings are called "dubs" or "versions" and are typically instrumentals with ourishes of vocals from the original tracks. El Michels decided to use the blueprints left behind and make something using the inuences of today. He wound up straying so far from the traditional format that it didn't seem right to use the word `Dub', hence Ekundayo Inversions. All the songs are tied together by WhatsApp messages between Leon and Liam that perfectly narrate the story of this record and their working relationship. One of the highlights on Ekundayo Inversions is a guest appearance from the legendary Lee "Scratch" Perry on the "Ugly Truth" version. L$P switches between singing and talking, proclaiming his powers one minute and playing with the track's title the next. On "Awkward take. 2" Leon takes one of the most experimental songs from Ekundayo and actually straightens it out. A track that once seemed to be oating in space has now been anchored by the addition of drums and bass. "Faded", a version of "Paper Tiger", is given the full EMA treatment with the addition of emotive horns over an uncomfortably sparse rhythm track peppered with Liam's voice drenched in delay and echo. "Champions" features a verse from Black Thought of The Roots and halfway through, El Michels sends the rhythm section 50 years back. At the end of the day, Ekundayo Inversions is a testament to how strong the original songs are. Whether they're in a R&B style, reggae style, stripped down to their bare bones, or loaded with production, the songs will move you.




















