Buscar:sad

The short, mysterious career of the female French duo Deux Filles is bookended by tragedy. Gemini Forque and Claudine Coule met as teenagers at a holiday pilgrimage to Lourdes, during which Coule's mother died of an incurable lung disease and Forque's mother was killed and her father paralyzed in an auto accident. The two teens bonded over their shared grief and worked through their bereavement with music. However, after recording two critically acclaimed albums and playing throughout Europe and North America, Forque and Coule disappeared without a trace in North Africa in 1984 during a trip to visit Algiers. The short and terribly unhappy lives of Forque and Coule are at the root of the small but fervent cult following the mysterious duo have gained since their disappearance, not least because the placid, largely instrumental music on the duo's albums betrays no hint of the sorrow that framed their personal lives.

This would be a terribly sad story if a word of it were true. In reality, Deux Filles were Simon Fisher Turner, former child star/teen idol and future soundtrack composer, and his mate Colin Lloyd Tucker. Turner and Tucker left an early incarnation of The The in 1981 to pursue another musical direction. Turner claims that the idea of Deux Filles came to him in a dream, and he and Tucker strictly maintained the fiction throughout the duo's career. Not only did they pose in drag for the album covers, the duo once even played live without the audience realizing that the tragic French girls on-stage were actually a pair of blokes from south London. Deux Filles released two albums through Turner and Tucker's Papier Mache label, 1982's Silence & Wisdom' and 1983's Double Happiness'. Both albums are included here and blend watery piano, occasionally ghostly vocals, sheets of synthesizers, heavily processed guitars and the barest minimum of percussion. Drifting and wistful, they're a pair of lost ambient gems from a time when the genre had yet to mature, an excellent example of post-Eno, pre-Orb ambient music.

All songs have been remastered for vinyl by George Horn at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley. The vinyl comes housed in gatefold sleeve with original front covers of both albums, and a centerfold of archive images and the original liner notes. Each LP includes a sticker of the Lino cuts by Adrian Gill that was included with the original pressing.

"Like an early French film soundtrack with melodramatic overtones, the sound is jagged and disjointed but never harsh. Lilting guitars and ample use of echo smack of Vini Reilly, relying on the hypnotic qualities of the sound rather than abrasive noise" (Sounds, 03/1983)

The Mountain is Gorillaz’ ninth studio album, a collection of 15 new tracks featuring a stellar list of artists and collaborators. Jamie Hewlett’s album artwork captures the four much-loved animated band members - Murdoc, Noodle, Russel and 2D – in a series of beautifully intricate, hand-drawn illustrations.

The Mountain is Gorillaz 9th studio album. The album is a collection of 15 new tracks featuring artists and collaborators including: Ajay Prasanna, Anoushka Shankar, Asha Bhosle, Asha Puthli, Bizarrap, Black Thought, Gruff Rhys, Idles, Jalen Ngonda, Johnny Marr, Kara Jackson, Omar Souleyman, Paul Simonon, Sparks, Trueno and Yasiin Bey; as well as the voices of Bobby Womack, Dave Jolicoeur, Dennis Hopper, Mark E. Smith, Proof and Tony Allen. Produced by Gorillaz, James Ford, Samuel Egglenton, Remi Kabaka Jr. and Bizarrap (Orange County), The Mountain was recorded in London, Devon, Miami, Jaipur, Mumbai, New Delhi and Rishikesh; and features artists performing in five languages: Arabic, English, Hindi, Spanish and Yoruba. The artwork for The Mountain sees Jamie Hewlett’s distinct, yet ever-evolving, style illustrate the world of Gorillaz with an ever more detailed and beautiful intricacy across a series of hand-drawn illustrations. Circumstances find Murdoc Niccals, Russel Hobbs, 2D and Noodle in India, where our heroes are immersed in the rhythms of mystical music-making as they navigate the mountainous terrain of this thing called life.

Somewhere between heaven and hell…there is Fallen Angel. Dark Entries continues its mission of shining light on a generation of composers and musicians lost to AIDS with Brandy Dalton’s Fallen Angel, his soundtrack work for the award-winning Fallen Angel series. Brandy was known for many years in the LA underground for his performances with his boyfriend, Robert Woods, who was the resident DJ at Club Fuck. Eventually, they recruited John Munt to form the band Drance, becoming infamous for their high-energy performances and songs that tackled taboo topics like sadomasochism. While Drance explored the aggressive sounds of industrial and EBM, Dalton continued to produce a wide range of electronica, from abstract sonic textures to techno bangers. The Fallen Angel album collects 16 sweaty, sticky cuts composed for the pornographic series Fallen Angel, a trio of leather-focused films released by Titan Studios. The sounds here span from the fractured cyberpunk-rave of “Swelled” to the tabla-laced trance of “FA2,” taking listeners on a journey through hedonistic recesses chock full of crunchy digital drum machines and wailing FM synths.

This album was originally released on CD in 1999 by Titan Studios, capitalizing on the success of the film franchise. It will be reissued on LP as well as CD, featuring 6 bonus tracks. Artwork for the album, designed by Eloise Shir-Juen Leigh, features stills from the Fallen Angel film. Also included is an insert with liner notes and photographs. This album is dedicated to Brandy, who passed away from AIDS-related illness in 2006, after battling with the disease for 17 years. Brandy’s passing was preceded by his best friend and Drance co-founder Robert’s death in 1995. Documenting a sonic shift in the 90s bathhouse music, Fallen Angel provides a hardcore BDSM ride, building upon the analogue archival soundtracks that Dark Entries has previously released.

Hotel Lux announce their second album 'The Bitter Cup', which will be released October 31st. News of the album comes alongside the outlining of an extensive UK winter tour and new single, Costermonger. The band's 2023 debut album Hands Across The Creek won an abundance of press support, from the likes of: Dork, The Guardian, Mojo, Uncut, DIY L&Q, Clash, So Young, NME. BBC 6 Music playlists were also achieved. Recent single Another One Gone marked the start of new chapter for the band, after talking time to rediscover their identities, both as musicians and as a bunch of mates heading into their late twenties.

On new single, Hotel Lux say: "Costermonger is a musical translation of a BBC documentary detailing the rise and the fall of Deptford Market, High Street and the surrounding housing. The title itself refers to a Cockney word for a market trader. Sadly, the subject matter of the lyrics are as relevant now as they would’ve been back in ‘67 when Lewisham council first started pulling down the council housing.

On ‘The Bitter Cup’, Hotel Lux took it upon themselves to self-produce. “Something that felt completely natural, but also entirely necessary” Recorded at Big Jelly Studios, the band had enough confidence to lead on carving their own sound for this new record. Written completely collaboratively, and recorded live to replicate the emotional intensity of their live shows, this new record finds the band at their most vulnerable, while, also, at their most confident.

Buoyed by an ever-evolving collage of pop influences, Mumble Tide’s work has regularly swung between the sweet and savage, the grungy and glistening. But at its heart is the meeting of two minds; singer-songwriter Gina Leonard and multi-instrumentalist Ryan Rogers. Over the last few years they have honed their distinctive brand of kaleidoscopic indie, all anchored by Leonard’s crystalline, plaintive voice.

Now, following a series of acclaimed singles and EPs, they return with new single ‘Pea Soup’, the third to be previewed from their upcoming debut album ‘Might As Well Play Another One’, to be released on the 1st May via Breakfast Records. Produced by Stew Jackson (Massive Attack), it’s their most self-assured and compelling work to date, a sweeping, orchestral vision of struggle, sadness, and the beauty in between.

Alex Rex, the project of acclaimed musician and former Trembling Bells bandleader Alex Neilson, is set to release his fourth and final studio album, The National Trust, on March 28th. Written in the wake of the sudden death of his younger brother, Alastair, the album is a poignant reflection on loss, love, and renewal, deeply rooted in the landscape of Carbeth—a cabin community in the Scottish countryside that Alastair called home. For Neilson, the cabin became both a physical and emotional project, a symbol of restoration and reconnection.

"For the first four years after Alastair died, his cabin lay empty and exposed to the remorseless Scottish weather. It came to look like a rotten tooth in a beautiful mouth. Cladding was dropping off its veneer, the ashen baubles of dead wasps nests clung to the rafters, all his possessions were just as he'd left them but eaten by mice, moths and time. Ashtrays still carried the crushed centimetres of his old tab ends. The cabins are so joyfully animated by their host's specific personality and this one looked like a haunted house. Guilt, unrealised hopes and encroaching nature yoked together in a wandering sadness. Combined with the fact that I didn't know the right way round to hold a hammer made the project of its restoration seem hopeless.”

Neilson, however, gradually began chipping away at the task, determined to transform the cabin into something he hoped would resemble “a National Trust site occupied by a psychopath,” with a little help from some friends, including Lavinia Blackwall and Marco Rea.

“They poured love into the cabin and helped restore Alastair's original vision. The project also helped restore my relationship with Lavinia which had fractured after Trembling Bells broke up in 2017. Alongside long-term Rex lieutenant Rory Haye, we applied the same intensity of dedication that we did in renovating the cabin, into creating The National Trust.”

As with Neilson’s previous albums, the recording process was intentionally unpolished, with songs presented in the studio with no rehearsals and captured in just a few takes. This raw, immediate approach amplifies the emotional weight of the album, which Neilson describes as being at a “personal apex of sour self-reflection, mock misanthropy, and self-exposure.” Longtime collaborators Lavinia Blackwall, Marco Rea, and Rory Haye return, alongside guest musicians like Jill O’Sullivan (Jill Lorean) and Trembling Bells guitarist Mike Hastings, to bring Neilson’s vision to life. The result is a deeply personal and multifaceted work, blending acid wit with haunting introspection.

The songs on The National Trust traverse a wide emotional and thematic range. The title track opens the album with a sharp and confessional edge, exploring love, loathing, and cultural critique with Neilson’s signature wit. “Boss Morris” pays tribute to the all-female Morris dancing troupe that reinvents British folk with vibrant energy, while “Two Kinds of Song” turns self-referential humour into an avalanche of remorse, culminating in the unforgettable chorus: “I’ve got two kinds of song. Which one will it be; one where I hate myself or one where you hate me?” Elsewhere, tracks like “Psychic Rome” draw from the decadence and hysteria of ancient Rome, while “The Coward in the Tower” breaks new ground as the only song Neilson has composed on an instrument before recording.

Throughout the album, Neilson’s lyricism is as vivid as ever, transforming personal tragedy into poignant and often darkly humorous art. Yet, there is a sense of finality to this work. "Songwriting has encouraged me to see the whole world as a resource. The things people say and throw away can be chiselled and polished and plopped into a lyric. It’s the same with building the cabin- scouring the edges of society for pallets, discarded wood, ornaments for the garden. But while song writing brings to life orphaned parts of my personality, the cabin is a synthesis of all my interests – nurturing my emotional health instead of exploiting it. With that in mind, I think this will be my last album as Alex Rex.”

With The National Trust, Neilson closes a significant chapter of his career, blending masterful musicianship with deeply personal storytelling. Known for his collaborations with artists such as Bonnie "Prince" Billy, Shirley Collins, and Current 93, as well as his decade-long tenure leading the psych-folk outfit Trembling Bells, Neilson has long been celebrated for his eclectic and uncompromising vision. This final album serves as a fitting culmination of his journey as Alex Rex, capturing the essence of his artistry while offering a profound exploration of loss, renewal, and the enduring power of love.

Das 2020 erschienene Album ,I Feel Alive" markiert das fulminante Comeback der Indie-Pop-Band TOPS aus Montreal, die ihren charakteristischen weichen Synthesizer-Sound, ihre hellen Gitarrenriffs und Jane Pennys emotional direkten Gesang zu ihrem bisher lebhaftesten Werk verschmelzen. Das Album schafft eine Balance zwischen glänzender Pop-Wärme und introspektiver Lyrik und beschäftigt sich mit Themen wie Sehnsucht, Verwandlung und Selbstverwirklichung. Mit einem Sound, der sowohl nostalgisch als auch erfrischend modern wirkt, zeigt ,I Feel Alive" die Band auf einem neuen kreativen Höhepunkt - üppig, intim und mühelos cool, was TOPS erneut als eine der überzeugendsten Stimmen des zeitgenössischen Dream-Pop bestätigt. ,Die Melodien sind durchweg so sanft und wunderschön wie die Traumschiffe, denen Penny zuzwinkert oder über deren Polaroids sie weint. TOPS sind jetzt zusammen mit Phoenix die Meister des modernen Softrocks." - The Guardian ,TOPS haben mit ihrem bisher klarsten Album ihre Berufung gefunden. Vollgepackt mit glitzernden Melodien, blitzsauberem Vintage-Pop und sehnsüchtigen Texten hält sich das Quartett aus Montreal nicht zurück." - Clash

21 songs are barely enough to show the "Many Faces of Memphis Electronic"! From less than a minute twisted psych pop and heartbreaking ballads to two minutes something fuzzy rockers, electronic r'n'r and sexy glam, you'll find all you need and much more in this incredible album! It takes at least 21 songs - and 30 Polaroids on the cover! - to show the "Many Faces of Memphis Electronic"! On the XYZ, Dum Dum Boys and NON! guitar player third solo album, entirely home recorded, you will find plenty of fuzzy bangers, trashy rockers, electronic r'n'r, lo fi disköpunk, sexy glam, twisted psych pop and heartbreaking ballads, 21 different faces on just 2 album sides! With the help of 60s fuzz pedals, analog synths, a wild organ, an out-of-space Theremin, raw drum machines and tons of delay, reverb and strange noises, all used to maximize the minimalism of the tracks, Memphis Electronic manages to create an orgy of arousing sounds, an overdose of aural pleasure, an irresistible avalanche of exciting songs, all ranging from 49 seconds snapshots to 2 minutes something instant classics!

The Final album by Music Legend Brian James ( Founder member and songwriter of both The Damned & Lords of the New Church and writer of the first British Punk single New Rose ) who sadly passed away earlier this year.
Brian was awarded The Pioneer award for lifetime achievements by Uk rock magazine Vive Le Rock last year and his song New Rose was voted best punk single of all time this year in the same magazine . Limited pressing on Yellow Vinyl with printed inner sleeves. Cover art by Graham Humphries famous for his horror poster artwork Evil Dead / …as well as designing Lp covers for Brian and Lords of the new church. Guest Vocalists include Dirty Al from the Dirty Strangers and Ramona from the Mo-Dettes
• Reviews in Record Collector , Vive le Rock , R2 & Shindig already confirmed

The Gun were a late 1960s British rock guitar trio who had a single British Top Ten hit, “Race with the Devil”. Brothers Adrian (guitar) and Paul (bass) Gurvitz teamed up with drummer Louis Farrell to create some energetic music. They founded a crossroads between blues rock, progressive and metal. The power trio created one of the best kept secrets from the sixties.

Nach zwei erfolgreichen Demo-Tapes, »Bloody Karnage« (1984) sowie »Surrender Or Die« (1985), begaben sich Torontos Slaughter im Februar 1986 erneut ins Studio, um ihre Debüt-Single »Nocturnal Hell« aufzunehmen, die aus dem Titeltrack, “One Foot In The Grave” und “Tortured Souls” bestand. Die Besetzung bestand aus dem Gitarristen und Sänger Dave Hewson, Bassist Terry Sadler sowie Schlagzeuger Ron Sumners. Die Originalpressung der 7“ Single erschien auf Brian Taylors Label Diabolic Force in einer limitierten Auflage von 1.000 Stück. Der hektische Death/Thrash Metal von Slaughter traf voll den Zeitgeist wurde von den Fans sofort ins Herz geschlossen. 1987 folgte auf »Nocturnal Hell« das legendäre Debütalbum von Slaughter, »Strappado« (ebenfalls auf Diabolic Force veröffentlicht). „Sämtliche Stücke von »Nocturnal Hell« wurden schon in der Session zum »Strappado«-Album mit aufgenommen“, erklärt Dave Hewson heute. „Die Aufnahmen und der Mix nahmen insgesamt ganze zwei Tage in Anspruch und kosteten lächerliche 500 US-Dollar. Eine 7“ war eigentlich nie geplant. Aber ich glaube mich erinnern zu können, dass Diabolic Force/Fringe Records in finanziellen Schwierigkeiten steckten und deswegen die Single vor der »Strappado«-LP herausbrachten, die dann ein Jahr auf sich warten ließ. Das Album wurde im Februar 1986 aufgenommen, kam aber erst 1987 heraus. Wir waren sehr froh darüber, wie die Scheibe geklungen hat, super heavy nämlich. Das Schlagzeug ist im Mix vielleicht ein wenig zu laut gewesen, aber insgesamt waren wir wirklich zufrieden mit dem Sound.“ Rechtzeitig zum 40-jährigen Jubiläum legen High Roller Records nun die inzwischen sehr gesuchte »Nocturnal Hell«-Single in ihrer ursprünglichen Fassung noch einmal neu auf.

At the start of this summer, following a three-year hiatus for Daphni (punctuated only by his first ever collaborative Daphni track ‘Unidos’ alongside Sofia Kourtesis), he dropped ‘Sad Piano House’. The track represented something of a continuation in the Daphni catalogue, its roots growing from Cherry’s ‘Cloudy’ and its subsequent Kelbin remix, something in that song’s makeup having a profound effect when played on dancefloors by Snaith and countless others. ‘Sad Piano House’ deployed more intangibly irresistible bendy piano to equally satisfying effect and continues to achieve similarly rhapsodic dancefloor saturation.
Though a sizeable gap for Daphni releases, between Cherry and Butterfly however of course sits Honey, the latest Caribou album and one that saw the more instantaneous and dancefloor leaning traits of Daphni peaking through the cracks more than ever before. This blurring of the lines leads to an intriguing collaboration in Butterfly’s lead single ‘Waiting So Long (feat. Caribou)’. An unlikely duo - in that both artists are the same man, Dan Snaith - ‘Waiting So Long’ is not so much an identity crisis, ego trip, or the result of a chemical spill in the Snaith laboratory. It’s simply a track that Snaith felt for the first time belongs to both aliases, and might appeal to fans of both. He has never sung on a Daphni track before, and did not set out with the intention to do so this time, and yet this strange billing was born.

Daphni music has always been Snaith’s way of hitting directly to the core of the dancefloors he spends so much of his time playing to, and those dancefloors have been steadily expanding as his name grows, with the music following suit. This album however also draws from further back with a definite kinship to the very first Daphni album, the invigorating bag of ideas that was Jiaolong.
Butterfly is a showcase of the wonderful variety and surprising twists and turns that made that album such an exciting new prospect and that still to this day make Snaith such an intriguing DJ. There are more heavy hitters here, tracks that fill those dancefloors better than anyone, like ‘Clap Your Hands’ which picks up the energy of ‘Sad Piano House’ and flips it, exposing the gritty and intoxicating underbelly of Snaith’s hitmaking side, while retaining the playful urgency that runs through all of his work of late. Meanwhile ‘Hang’’s comic-strip horns are unpinned by gleeful force, unrelenting and thrillingly unshakeable. Elsewhere though comes a clutch of other tunes that might creep out somewhere more off the beaten path, a path Snaith has never stopped seeking in amongst his larger billings. ‘Lucky’ is squirmy and elusively intoxicating, ‘Invention’ skitters down meandering, inviting corridors, ‘Talk To Me’ grumbles and broods in the murk, and ‘Miles Smiles’ could roll on endlessly, so confident in its groove. There are no obvious peaks in these tracks or unifying moments, in fact many of them really have no business being on the dancefloor at all, and yet in the right setting, they could be the most fun to be had all night.

One such club is a good microcosm for the ethos of Butterfly as a whole. “Around the time I was finishing up this album I played a long set in a club called Open Ground in Wuppertal, Germany.” Snaith recalls, “It’s kind of, in one sense, the platonic ideal of the kind of club I’d want to play in. Every single decision has been taken, at great expense, with the aim of making the perfect sounding medium sized club room. But on top of it being the perfect acoustic environment it also is run by an amazing collection of people in a way that gives it a sense of community that dance music at its best provides. It is an absolute pleasure to play in that room to a crowd of people who come from all over. Playing in there you feel like you can play anything, and I played works in progress of pretty much every track on this album in my set there. Don’t get me wrong, I love playing a short set at a festival or in a more raw warehouse kind of club where you bang it out and only really functional music works but on record I guess the point of these Daphni records is to keep in mind a more expansive idea of dance music where the parameters are broad and the church is broad. I think that actually, putting really functional stuff next to weirder tracks (both on an album and in a dj set) might be the thing that’s still most interesting to me.”
This is the feeling that’s most palpable on Butterfly, and in every single time you see Snaith DJ. Right from the inception of the Daphni alias - and even before that – the thrill of trying stuff out, pushing at the boundaries has always been there and on Butterfly is present in all its twists and turns. It leaps all over the place and yet it hangs together, never feeling like a grab bag of dancefloor utilities but rather a distillation of all the strings to Snaith’s bow, exhilaratingly human and unified by one singular concept – simple and joyful exploration.

Minority Records is releasing a unique boxset Politique du silence with three early albums from Sylvain Chauveau, French composer of minimalist neoclassical music.
“When I made my first albums as a composer, I was obsessed with minimalism, and this quote from the film director Robert Bresson summed up my state of mind. I set myself three principles: 1) Use silence as a starting point, 2) Only add sound when it's absolutely essential, 3) Don't imitate the Anglo-Saxon musicians I admired, but draw on the musical culture of my country, France which lead me to listen intensively to Satie, Debussy and Ravel.” Chauveau explains the background to his work.

The collection Politique du silence contains the recordings of Des plumes dans la tête (2004), Un autre Décembre (2003) and Nocturne impalpable (2001) on coloured 180 gram vinyls. The cover features artwork by French photographer Valéry Lorenzo.

“When I discovered the simple and powerful black and white pictures by Valéry Lorenzo, in the 90s, I immediately fell in love with them. We became good friends and since then I ask him to let me use one of his photos for most of my album covers, or to make my portrait for press shots. It has become a real collaboration, music and images, for more than 25 years. It was then logical to ask him again for the cover of this boxset, like a gentle reflection on my piano and strings era. It's a true honour for me to see my early music recollected, repackaged, remastered after all this time. Which gives me hope that this music, in which I've put all my soul and heart during the years 2001 to 2003, is maybe not forgotten yet.” Chauveau himself adds of his collaboration with Valéry Lorenzo.
Nocturne impalpable and Un autre Décembre were re-issued by Minority Records in 2014 and 2015 and both titles completely sold out. This year’s release also includes the album Des plumes dans la tête in its world premiere on vinyl.

Nocturne Impalpable is a world of minimalism, abstraction, and contemporary rendition of classical music with variations for the piano, clarinet, strings, and accordion which are often compared to the compositions of composers Harold Budd and Claude Debussy. Here, Chauveau partially reveals his versatility as a composer by connecting electronic elements, noises, and ambient planes with monumental strings and piano preludes. The
album of piano variations Un autre Décembre is interspersed with field recordings and electronic noises. The inspiration for the recording of the album and for its name was the song Jaurès by the Belgian singer and composer Jacques Brel. This song tells the story of the grandparents’ generation who toiled in the mines. “Comfort and health won’t protect our generation from sadness and discontent. We also live through winter times, even if these are slightly warmer due to the current climate.” An album of 20 short instrumental sketches with several delicate intermezzos for the piano, string quartet, and the clarinet, Des plumes dans la tête, was composed for the eponymous film by director Thomas de Thier.
Sylvain Chauveau was born in 1971 in the French town of Bayonne and currently lives in Barcelona. His extensive discography of mainly meditative neo-classical recordings for the music labels FatCat, Sub Rosa, Sonic Pieces, and Flau is enriched by several collaborations and his participation in the Ensemble 0, Arca, and On projects. Chauveau has also composed many film soundtracks as well as music for the theatre. He has presented his works in Prague several times, most recently in the spring of 2024 at the Spectaculare festival. His compositions get tens of millions of streams on streaming services, and he’s been called the French king of minimalism.

Much more than just another punk band, Ideal Victim is a wildfire fueled by fury, grit, and defiance. Formed in Porto in 2022, this young outfit proposes a seemingly improbable formula that proves to be both unique and cohesive: over the raw, unyielding energy of 1980’s British hardcore, they layer the hypnotic vibes of surf rock and the nervous tension of rockabilly—crafting a taut and irresistible balance between atmosphere and aggression.​
At the forefront stands the fierce and outspoken roar of vocalist Mariana, supported by the driving cadence of drums and bass, and by a guitar that writhes as it drowns in distortion.​

Ideal Victim belong to a lineage of bands that never asked for permission to exist: from Discharge to Bikini Kill, from The Cramps to Dead Kennedys, their influences are undeniable. Yet, Ideal Victim refuse to echo them in exercises of nostalgia. Their music is urgent, combative, and strikingly current—a visceral response to the shackles of patriarchy and the open wounds of a world in accelerated collapse.​

Propelled by the impact of their demo Diary of a Pig and a considerable amount of stage experience, Ideal Victim now presents Rage Letters, a debut album that reflects the band's evolution through a set of six brief tracks—where nothing is left unsaid, nor unshouted.​
With Rage Letters, Ideal Victim extend us an invitation to insubordination—and it's one we can't help but accept.

Me vs Me, Vol. 1 is the debut album by Joe Allotta, a drummer, singer, and multi-instrumentalist active as a session musician for various
artists (Davide Shorty, Johnny Marsiglia, Funk Shui Project, Mario Biondi, Nick The Nightfly, etc.). The album was conceived in London,
Trapani, and Bologna and features performances by various musicians Joe has worked with in recent years.
The EP embodies a sound rich with emotion, expressed through four tracks that blend jazz with cutting-edge urban rhythms, with drums as
the central element of his compositions.
The four tracks on the EP thus have distinct personalities inspired by soul, breakbeat, and funk, souls that coexist in the artist's emotional
experience: the song "Lullaby" is a hip-hop beat with a funk flavor, while "The Mess You Left" moves through dreamlike sounds that crystallize
into a drum 'n' bass storm. House Party is very reminiscent of UK club sounds, it is full of synths and with a square drumming, it closes the
EP She Sad, a sort of skit that leaves room for an improvisation of guitar and drums.

Acoustic Bass: Nobuyoshi Ino
Acoustic Piccolo Bass: Isao Suzuki
Alto Saxophone: Sadao Watanabe
Arranged, Conducted, and Piano: Masahiko Satoh
Drums: Motohiko Hino
Guitar: Sadanori Nakamure

The beautiful new world that master bassist Isao Suzuki built with the support of a diverse group of musicians finally returns to life after nearly 50 years!

With his deep musical insight and collaboration among some of Japan’s finest jazz artists, Isao Suzuki created a work of timeless beauty that now resonates
once again in the modern era.

Iconic hip-hop duo The High & Mighty, composed of rapper Mr. Eon and producer DJ Mighty Mi, make their long-awaited return with Sound of Market, their first studio album in over twenty years. The release marks a powerful comeback for one of underground hip-hop’s most celebrated duos — a project steeped in nostalgia, boom-bap grit, and the timeless energy of East Coast rap.

Named in honor of Sound of Market Street, the legendary Philadelphia record store that served as a hub for crate diggers, DJs, and hip-hop heads for decades, the album pays homage to the culture that shaped The High & Mighty’s sound and identity. Much like the store itself, the record celebrates deep cuts, rare finds, and the shared love of vinyl that connects generations of hip-hop fans.

Across 17 tracks, Sound of Market revives the duo’s trademark wit and sharp lyricism while showcasing an impressive lineup of collaborators, including Kool Keith, The Alchemist, Your Old Droog, Large Professor, O.C., Chubb Rock, King T, Skillz, and many more. The result is a cohesive, sample-driven experience that bridges the classic and contemporary — reaffirming The High & Mighty’s status as true architects of independent hip-hop.

From the opening anthem “Two Man Crew” and the surreal swagger of “Pinky Tuskadero” with Kool Keith, to the cinematic boom of “Mighty’s Big 5 (Live from The Palestra)”, the record moves effortlessly through sharp lyricism, layered production, and a shared reverence for the foundations of the genre. Sound of Market is both a return and a reminder — a record that feels timeless in its authenticity.

Collecting Orders For 2026 Repress

As Soul Capsule, Baby Ford and Thomas Melchior made some of minimal techno's most accomplished records. It has been many years since they stopped turning out new material - sadly - but their archive tracks are still in hot demand and undeniably relevant. While 1999's 'Lady Science' might be their most famous offering, this EP from 2001 on Aspect Music is no less vital and it will currently cost you well over L250 on second-hand markets. It is Ford's Trelik label who reissues it here in all its glory: the entirety of the a-side is taken up with 'Law Of Grace,' a delightfully deep and breezy minimal dub house roller with pensive chords draped over the frictionless drums. 'Meltdown' has a more experimental feel with brushed metal drums beneath a wordless vocal musing. The cult 'Lady Science' (Tek Mix) is also inched with the whole package being remastered by D&M to make this one utterly essential.

“The blueprint was simple: Hot Chocolate rhythms, George Murray bass lines, classical music instruments with pop sensibilities. We, the architects, however, were complicated.” Paul Simpson, 2025 Needle Mythology, the label founded by music writer, author and broadcaster Pete Paphides, is thrilled to announce the release of the much-mythologised ‘lost’ album by CARE – the group made up of IAN BROUDIE and PAUL SIMPSON Prior to forming Care, Ian and Paul had been very active in the Liverpool post-punk scene. Ian played alongside Holly Johnson, Jayne Casey, Budgie and Bill Drummond in Big In Japan, before joining the Original Mirrors. He also produced several early records by Echo and the Bunnymen, most notably the albums Crocodiles and Porcupine. Paul had played with school friend and future Bunnyman Will Sergeant in Industrial Domestic and the founding line-up of The Teardrop Explodes, before going on to form The Wild Swans. CARE were brought together late in 1982 by mutual friend Will Sergeant, when Paul was looking for someone to play a guitar part for a new song he had written. Ian obliged and asked him to return the favour by singing on one of his songs Tall Ships. When Bunnymen manager Bill Drummond heard the result, now retitled My Boyish Days (Drink To Me), he secured the pair a deal with Arista on the back of it. Care would go on to release three acclaimed singles over the course of a twelve-month period between 1983 and 1984 – My Boyish Days (Drink To Me), Flaming Sword and Whatever Possessed You – before Simpson, still struggling to come to terms with the break-up of his previous band decided not to continue. Although top 40 success eluded Care in the UK, the group quickly found an adoring fanbase in the Philippines, where all three singles became huge hits. Love Crowns and Crucifies marks the first vinyl release of the previously unheard songs gathered together on 1997’s Diamonds and Emeralds CD. Working closely with Paul Simpson and with the approval of Ian Broudie, Needle Mythology has been given access to the original quarter-inch tapes which housed everything that Broudie and Simpson recorded together.