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Clock DVA is one of the pivotal groups of industrial music. Founded more than forty years ago, the instrumental outfit has seen a contemporary partnership of electronic experimentation forged between Adi Newton and Maurizio Martinucci since 2010. It is their source material that proves fertile ground for two remixes, remixes by two heavyweights of electronic music. Atom™ delivers his re-imagining of “De-Konstructor.” A lone string is met by snapping snares as an alluring, yet cold, melody unfolds. Newton’s raspy throaty words rise, a stark prescient poetry countered by angular acid-twisted keys before samples buckle and loop. The second stalwart of electronics drafted in is Scanner for his reframing of “Rayonist Refraction #1.” A ghostly female voice haunts a backdrop of electrical fizz and voluminous cracks of shuddering thunder. Guitar strings tremble in this eerie landscape with a smattering of spoken text bringing solace to this hostile environment. Music for an all to immediate reality.

Repress of the 2020 album on aqua blue vinyl. The power of a Winter song is hard to describe, like how the delicate world building of a good book can be more compelling than real life. There's a make-believe, fairy tale surrealism that sets Winter's blend of shoegaze and psychedelia apart while existing in the same universe as the ethereal dream pop of Cocteau Twins and Melody's Echo Chamber. Samira Winter grew up in Curitiba, Brazil, where her Brazilian mother filled their home with the gentle melodies of MPB (música popular brasileira), and her father introduced her to the distorted sounds of American punk. At 18, she moved to Boston where she first released music as Winter, eventually moving to LA's Echo Park. Winter has built a cult following with a stream of bilingual releases and national tours supporting Boogarins, Broncho and Cherry Glazerr, not to mention dates in Mexico, South America and Europe. Three videos to promote album. First digital single premiering on Fader 4/17. Features guest vocalist Dinho Almeida from South American psych legends Boogarins. “Winter’s breathy voice is pretty magical.” Brooklyn Vegan // “Winter makes cosmic dream-pop fit for stargazing. The languid motion of their soaring tunes are filtered through fuzzy sounds of slowly writhing guitar work

Second album, dark and mysterious, dream mix of somber psychedelia and melancholic sweetness. Voices wrapped in echo singing chained and captivating, at the same time, and careful acid guitar, with solos that make perfect foils. This album could be an ideal soundtrack for daydreaming.

Entering the world of MOOON is like entering a time machine. The young Brabant power trio, consisting of brothers Tom and Gijs de Jong and their cousin Timo van Lierop, takes the listener to the Golden Age of pop music: the heyday of psychedelia in the 60s and 70s.

Following up their recently released LP "III", here comes a brand-new 7" by MOOON. Featuring a mono-version of "Hurtin' My Heart", taken from their latest album "III" and on the B-side an unreleased song from the same session; "How I Learned (To Say Goodbye)".

"Hurtin' My Heart" is a fuzz & Farfisa driven tune, that everybody on the dancefloor will dig. "How I Learned (To Say Goodbye)" is a jangly 3 part harmony pop song but with a high energy twist!

This is a 7" that both sounds and looks 60's-stylish (with flap outer sleeve) and every DJ will need in their box!

Mammoth Penguins are a 3-piece indie powerhouse, showcasing the songwriting and vocal talents of Emma Kupa (Standard Fare) backed up by the noisiest rhythm section in indie pop. May 2024 sees the release of their fourth album Here on Fika Recordings. After 2019’s big, bold and confident There’s No Fight We Can’t Both Win, and the initial shock of the global pandemic cancelling a trip to SXSW in 2020, the band returned to the studio in the summer of 2021 to start recording. The new record leans into a raw pop-punk power-trio sound more than ever, with a deep growl in layered guitars and bursts of percussion and harmony. The songs and artwork explore themes about finding a place for yourself and familiarity with people and places. Although it turns back towards a classic three-piece sound, the band weren’t restricted by that palette, adding finishing touches of percussion, extra guitars and backing vocals in short bursts in a garden shed, and also bringing in gorgeous strings to sweeten the title track. The sound builds on the band’s first album, Hide and Seek, which was released with the much-loved and sorely missed Fortuna POP! in 2015. The follow-up LP John Doe in 2017 was an ambitious concept album, exploring the feelings of loss and anger at a man who fakes his own death only to return years later, expanding well beyond the 3-piece rock‘n’roll template, with washes of strings, synths and samples. The ‘Penguins have been smashing it at some high-profile support slots in the lead up to this album release, including at Allo Darlin’s joyous reunion at Islington Assembly Hall (Oct 2023) and Muncie Girls last ever London show (Dec 2023). They play the Leicester Indiepop all-dayer and Wales Goes Pop in March, before heading out on tour in support of the new album in May. Those big singalong choruses need your voice shouting back from the crowd with joy and defiance. Mammoth Penguins are Emma Kupa (guitar, vocals), Mark Boxall (bass, vocals) and Tom Barden (drums, vocals). Reminiscent of the pop melodies of The Beths, the indie dissonance of Land of Talk, and the guitar forward slacker rock of Weezer, Mammoth Penguins marry heart-ache indiepop with spiky guitars and Emma’s frank confessional songwriting. “wonderfully awkward indie pop with a literate flair, sounding a lot like a Weezer record or even a more feminine Wedding Present” Clash // “eminently relatable earworms” Brooklyn Vegan // “one of the finest examples of simple and true indie rock around” All Music // “her characterful voice still carrying masses of charm and the messier, grungey approach bringing a strength all of its own, aided by a clutch of cheerful hooks and riffs that contrast nicely with lyrics dealing mostly with heartbreak and misery” Drowned In Sound

White Scar returns with "The Witch's Fingers". Introducing 4 new producers to the label.

The A1 is by Jucid from South Korea with a deep and progressive journey called "Essential to our Life". "Are You Neutralised?" asks Leeds based Zuul in his signature melodic techno style on the A2.

B1 continues the pace with "Electro Samurai" by the talented Argentinean born, now Berlin based, Desiree Falessi. Last but not least on the B2 is the first released track by unknown producer, Boheme. "Spiral" closes out this EP perfectly with its swirling and catchy melody.

A resident of Berlin's long-running Gegen, a multifaceted queer techno and performance art event, Samantha Togni has seen her profile rising with appearances on Mixmag's Lab series in London and a heavy release schedule on established and upcoming labels: Stay Up Forever, Noise Manifesto, her own Boudica, and others, quickly accumulating a significant discography since her 2019 debut. Her latest is the Lunaversal EP on Rant & Rave, representing another edgy release from upcoming female techno talent. It leads off with the title track, not exactly as cosmic as implied with buried, indecipherable vocals and buzzsaw synth riffs seesawing between intermittent breakdowns which only serve to increase tension 'Minor Goddess' takes an old school rave approach with abrasive, rising stabs and dissected vocals against a hammering framework of kicks and crushing bass pressure. With its lilting ambient chopped vocal samples slightly counterbalancing the surging forward motion of the rhythm, 'Pit of Truth' hits deeper, but the pit in the title obviously leans more towards dungeon or grave. 'Jesters Have a Heart Too' rubs unstable synth sweeps against blasts of industrial noise and jackhammer percussion, reaching peak intensity in its brutally chopped final run.

In 2023, Death Cult returned and reunited for a handful of performances. In 2024, to celebrate 40th Anniversary of The Cult, Ian Astbury and Billy Duffy have curated the previously released Death Cult collection Ghost Dance, and recompiled the tracks for a 2024 release titled Paradise Now. The release will be available on clear splatter vinyl with a white and black splatter. Southern Death Cult formed in 1981, releasing their sole, self-titled album posthumously in 1983. That same year, Death Cult formed, with Astbury joining forces with Duffy for a musical partnership that has endured for 40-plus years. The band released two 12-inches that same year, one being the Death Cult EP, which were subsequently combined and released as a CD. Death Cult is a vital transmission from the generation of Shamanic post-punk gothic futurists.

2024 Repress

Mannequin Records is proud to present a full length by the Philly minimal-synth princess Void Vision.
Void Vision is a Philadelphia-based electronic project helmed by Shari Vari. It began around 2009 at a time when a wave of synth-revivalists were materializing, but the quality of the songwriting and intense vocals set the band apart from the pack. In a rare instance, Void Vision has managed to combine vintage dance elements with melodic structures, haunting melancholy, and lyrics that have a palpable soul. The songs themselves are dynamic, referencing a cross-section of the last 30 years of electronic music, while simultaneously retaining a uniqueness all their own.

The infamous Wierd Records weekly club night in New York, which showcased a variety of talented electronic and coldwave artists, served as an incubator for Void Vision in it's early stages. After a standout debut performance at the club, they immediately caught the attention of Blind Prophet Records, who consequently released their first 7" single, 'In 20 Years', which received excellent reviews.

Vari has continued performing and recording steadily over the last few years, releasing songs on compilations for various labels, including Rough Trade, and in 2012 the song 'Everything is Fine' was selected for Artforum magazine's 'Best of 2012' issue. In 2013, Void Vision toured the West Coast and later that year released a split 12" with Portland-based band, Vice Device. The first official full-length album, entitled 'Sub Rosa' is set to debut on Berlin-based Mannequin Records, followed by a European tour in 2015.

Shari Vari formed Void Vision in 2009 originally as a duo, during the explosion of the new minimal synth and cold wave scene in United States. Sharing the same scene of the Wierd Records associates like Led Er Est, Martial Canterel, Xeno & Oaklander, Automelodi, in 2010 VV released 'In Twenty Years' on Blind Prophet (Sean Ragon's Cult Of Youth record label), receiving also the attention of the Rough Trade dudes, who asked to put out a track for one of their synth wave compilations.
After other split vinyls, tapes and compilations, Mannequin approached Shari with the intention to continue what Wierd Records started, giving a proper shape to her beautiful and youthful dark electronic sound. The result is 10 hypnotic cold analog tracks dominated by the warm and fragile Shari's voice, some more 'pop orientated' some others belonging to the original 'cold wave' atmosphere.

"Sub Rosa" is an edition of 400 copies on 160 gram black vinyl and 100 copies on 160 gram white vinyl.

Pull the Rope, the new record by Ibibio Sound Machine, casts the Eno Williams and Max Grunhard-led outfit in a new light. The hope, joy, and sexiness of their music remain, but, further honing the edge of their acclaimed 2022 album Electricity, the connection they aim to foster has shifted venues from the sunny buoyancy of a sunlit festival to a sweat-soaked, all-night dance club. Williams and Grunhard attribute this shift to a matter of collaborators, recording Pull the Rope with Sheffield-based producer Ross Orton (Arctic Monkeys, M.I.A.) over the course of two weeks. The way the pair wrote songs changed significantly_rather than Eno penning lyrics to music generated by Max and company's jamming, Orton started with Eno and Max writing together before adding the band. With less time in the studio and a new way of considering how they built songs, the duo found making decisions about Pull the Rope's sound quicker and more instinctual than before. "Ross is from Sheffield, which has an edgier, more industrial vibe than London," Grunhard explains. "He hears things differently than us, is more grounded in rave and grungier sounds, and knew when to add drums or push the instrumentation more. It was very different for us, but it lends itself to where Ibibio Sound Machine is going." In melding their songwriting process, Grunhard and Williams have, impossibly, pulled the trick of making Ibibio Sound Machine a tighter band than ever before, building out from their core in a way that highlights the electrifying group of musicians they play with. Rather than recording with the full band in the room, Pull the Rope was sculpted, elements added and shaped by Grunhard, Williams, and Orton along the way. As a result, Pull the Rope is a nimble, sleek machine that's thrilling from the first note of the opening title track, Eno's otherworldly voice and PK Ambrose's throbbing bass driving through a kaleidoscopic array of house, post-punk, funk, Afrobeat and disco, bangers and ballads, making an argument for unity that begins on the dancefloor. "We are the places we grew up, the places we've been, and the people we've met along the way," Williams says. "Hopping around the globe, we've found that people are fundamentally the same_they're people. Opposing sides push and pull, but there is an alternative to war, violence, and suffering." Lead single "Got to Be Who U Are" literally globetrots, name checking locales across the world that would feel disparate were it not for how well-traveled they are. Eno growing up in the musical melting pot of the Ibibio region of Nigeria and Max being a conservatory-trained musician from Australia, one could call their meeting in London and formation of Ibibio Sound Machine predestined. "Mama Say" and "Let My Yes Be Yes" touch themes of female empowerment. They're indicative of the band's depth as they push further into the electronic; "Mama Say" hits notes of electropop while "Let My Yes Be Yes" fuses electro to Afrobeat. Ibibio Sound Machine have always imbued their music with political consciousness, and the light that shines through in Williams' vocals and voice has never felt more necessary. The sound of Pull the Rope, then, is hope in darkness, bliss in spite of bleakness. Once again, Ibibio Sound Machine are here to provide the soundtrack to the best night of your life, and the better world to come.

Ice Cream Vinyl

Since the release of their debut studio album Do Hollywood (on 4AD) in 2016, The Lemon Twigs_the New York City rock band fronted by brothers Brian (27) and Michael D'Addario (25)_have waved the same revivalist torch as Alex Chilton and his Big Star crew, working to prove that archaic music from the `60s and `70s can still be relevant in digital world. Alongside peers like Foxygen and Drugdealer, The Lemon Twigs have explicitly documented a synchronistic blend of contemporary narrative motifs, old-school recording techniques, and flawless, consistent attitudes collaged from various crucial stages of rock 'n' roll. After a whirlwind 2023, the D'Addarios are continuing the momentum of their own evolving vision and voice, distilling a history lesson of baroque and power pop into A Dream Is All We Know (out May 3 on Captured Tracks). Garnering the top-to-bottom critical acclaim the brothers have long deserved, their 2023 LP Everything Harmony was spearheaded by an impressive string of singles, including "Corner Of My Eye" and "Any Time of Day." It was the kind of record that put all of Brian and Michael's talents on display, be it the former's multi-instrumentalist gifts or the latter's boyish, explosive pop-rock charisma and eye for engineering and vocal layering. But A Dream Is All We Know is not the acoustic, nylon string-based project that Everything Harmony was. Instead, it's a return to the form the Lemon Twigs first introduced on Do Hollywood_an electric guitar-centric, anthemic assemblage of, really, everything the band does great. These two companion records are an immediate example of a band capitalizing on their fire-in-the-belly appetite to make tunes that boast ubiquitous chemistry. A Dream Is All We Know is grandiose yet grounded; meticulous, yet wild and glowing. Made with analog precision, the album was finished in the immediate months after the band completed Everything Harmony during a vibrant, prolific period split between three studios on separate coasts. A Dream Is All We Know is a profoundly dense and charged album, rife with string arrangements and a sonic thesis statement that has quaked through phases of glam, conceptualism, baroque, and Mustang-loud, stone-cold rock `n' roll for more than half-a-century. A Dream Is All We Know sounds like it's lived a thousand lives already.

Hana Vus "kontemplativer Indie-Pop fängt die Desillusionierung des jungen Erwachsenseins ein", schreibt der NME. Ihre neue LP Romanticism unterstreicht dieses Gefühl als ein Coming-of-Age-Werk, das die Vergänglichkeit der Jugend betrauert und nach einem Sinn sucht. Die in LA geborene Songwriterin macht seit der High School Musik und hat bereits ein Debütalbum und mehrere EPs mit glühenden, grüblerischen Hymnen voller Abstraktion und Emotionen veröffentlicht. Bei ihren früheren Arbeiten hat Vu immer wieder Feedback erhalten, aber für die Entwicklung von Romanticism hat sie sich von der Außenwelt abgeschirmt, um ihre eigene Vision zu bewahren. Das Ergebnis ist eine einheitliche Sammlung von Songs, die vor Tiefe und Intimität nur so strotzen. Die üppigen und lauten Songs erinnern sowohl an gitarrenlastigen Indie-Rock der späten Achtzigerjahre als auch an futuristisch anmutende Synthie-Bass-Schichten. Sie pulsieren vor Bedeutung und schütteln sich vor Verspieltheit, getragen von ihrer kraftvollen, sonoren Stimme und unterstrichen durch das von der Romantik inspirierte Artwork der Platte.

Introducing 'Planet SP1200' by KLIM. KLIM, the producer and beatmaker based in Kyiv, draws inspiration from classic hip-hop, chill music, and boombap to craft music that combines fresh soulful vibes with a hard-knocking style. With over 4 million streams across various platforms, including lo-fi beat staples such as 'Night Café' and 'Butterfly,' KLIM returns with fifteen tracks created using the EMU SP-1200 and Akai S900 samplers, infusing a '90s vibe throughout the project.

Influenced by artists like Pete Rock, Lord Finesse, Jay Dee, George Fields, and Mr. Brown, KLIM's music is a reflection of the magic found in everyday moments that surround him. It's a product of the emotions that stir within him, where the world serves as his artistic canvas, and each sound and melody is a heartfelt attempt to capture his experiences and thoughts. In his words, "My music is a bridge between my soul and the world, and I hope it can touch the hearts of others, just as it touches mine". Join KLIM on this musical journey, where the past and present harmonize in a symphony of emotions and experiences.

Today, the Toronto-born-and-raised singer, songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist Charlotte Day Wilson announces her highly-anticipated sophomore album Cyan Blue out May 3rd via Stone Woman Music / XL Recordings Along with the announcement of her new album comes the release of first single, "I Don"t Love You", a stark and devastatingly beautiful confessional, highlighting Wilson"s immaculate production skills and chill inducing vocals laid atop smooth groove piano chords and soft drums. The track also arrives with a visual directed by Dani Aphrodite featuring layered low fi footage of the artist and producer performing at home, living every day life and having moments of solitude in her car, a theme that comes up throughout the album. Cyan Blue finds Wilson crafting a smoothly woven cyan tapestry of her eternal influences; thumping gospel piano, warm soul basslines, atmospheric electronics, and penetrating R&B melodies. Yet, it possesses a sense of vastness that rings in a new era for Wilson, one in which she"s embracing collaboration and newfound creative openness tinged with wistfulness and yearning and a reflection on youthful innocence. "I want to look through the unjaded eyes of my younger self again," Wilson explains of making Cyan Blue. "Before there wasn"t as much baggage, before so much life was lived. But I also wish that my younger self could see where I am now. It would be nice to be able to impart some of the wisdom and clarity that I have now onto her." Working with producers like Leon Thomas (SZA, Ariana Grande, Post Malone), and Jack Rochon (HE.R, Daniel Caesar), Cyan Blue demonstrates Wilson"s sonic expertise while also showcasing the next evolution of her time-bending songwriting. Through 13 hypnotizing tracks, she continues to use music as a vessel for unpacking relationships, which in turn allows her to meet and understand herself in life-spanning, panoramic focus. But, on Cyan Blue, she challenged herself to kick her perfectionist tendencies. "Before, I was extremely intentional about creating music with a strong foundation, a bed of artistic integrity," Wilson reflects. "But that was a bit stifling, like, "Let me just make a great piece of art that will stand the test of time, no pressure." Now, I think I"m getting out of this frozen state of needing everything to be perfect. I"m more interested in capturing feelings in the moment as they happen and leaving them in that moment." While this is only her second album, Wilson"s influence in music has made a major mainstream impact. Wilson broke out in 2016 with her critically acclaimed EP, CDW, followed by 2018"s Stone Woman and made her debut studio album an official coming out moment in 2021 with the critically acclaimed, self-released Alpha. Over the past decade, she"s been sampled by Drake, John Mayer, and James Blake, while Patti Smith has recently praised and covered Wilson"s 2016 breakout single "Work." Additionally, she"s collaborated with artists like Kaytranada, BADBADNOTGOOD, and SG Lewis, demonstrating that there"s no sound Wilson can"t adapt to and sprinkle her cyan-colored magic over.

Elevating, uplifting and beautifully arranged. Jasmine Myra's sophomore album Rising builds on the success of her

breakthrough album Horizons to deliver a major statement from one of UK Jazz's rising stars. Produced by Matthew Halsall and mixed by Greg Freeman (Hania Rani, Matthew Halsall, Portico Quartet), Rising delivers a confident and vibrant follow up that joins the musical dots between Myra’s influences Kenny Wheeler, Bonobo and Shabaka Hutchings while delivering something unique, beautiful and profound.

Rising is also the sound of a composer and performer growing in stature and adding extra layers of confidence and poise to both her playing and composing. Aided and abetted by Matthew Halsall who once again lends his production skills, Rising is fuller, richer and deeper as Myra develops her uniquely uplifting sound.



Much like my first album, Rising is a reflection of a period of my life. It is a continuation from Horizons, which was all about my experience during lockdown, and entailed overcoming my struggles with mental health. Following on from that experience, I set out to continue building my self-confidence. This album has an uplifting and spiritual sound, drawing influence from artists such as Makaya McCraven, Bonobo and Shabaka Hutchings.



Rising features the same core of musicians as Myra’s debut album Horizons (Gondwana records GOND052): guitarist Ben Haskins, drummer George Hall pianist Jasper Green, harpist Alice Roberts (who both also perform with Matthew Halsall) and bassist Sam Quintana who collectively bring a deft understating of the subtle textures of Myra’s music and perform with a collective empathy and drive that really pushes the music on a radiant journey. And a string quartet add gently elevating textures to Still Waters, Knowingness, From Embers and How Tall The Mountains.

Bobby Hutcherson’s 1968 album Total Eclipse was the vibraphonist’s first recording to feature saxophonist Harold Land who would become a key collaborator for years to come. Rounding out the band were pianist Chick Corea, bassist Reggie Johnson, and drummer Joe Chambers on this impassioned post-bop set. This stereo Tone Poet Vinyl Edition was produced by Joe Harley, mastered by Kevin Gray from the original analog master tapes, pressed on 180g vinyl at RTI, and packaged in a deluxe gatefold tip-on jacket.

Deep Inspiration Show Records presents to you the Global Essence Sampler Part 2; created and curated with purpose, these 6 ¦ne delicacies nourish the mind and soul- on the A side we have Barce (Spain) featuring Roger Versey, Dan Piu (Zurich) and Zarenzeit (Valencia), providing a tour de force of style from blissfully jazzy & vocal Detroit House guides to paradise class deep vibes where late Nite Mediterranean meets Chicago auras arise. Melchior Sultana (Malta) introduces the Bside of the ride with instant club magic, remixing A1 in his own elegant & Profound way, followed by Dan Piu traversing the mind and ears through introspective Detroit Techno with soul permeating atmosphere, leading to the conclusion of this tour de force as He and Roger Versey (Ozarks,Arkansas) arrive as Passport bringing an eclectic collage of arcade funk sensibilities and warm analogue House to the occasion for the deeper persuasion. They say there is no genre, just the essence…Welcome and enjoy, the Global Essence Sampler Part 2. Mastered with passion by maestro Sven Weisemann.

Sonic Behavior by Driftmachine & Ammer is an album exploring the origins of sound, noise, and various music genres. Alongside lyrical declarations of love for noise ("Song To Noise"), the album delves into sonic reflections on how beauty and emotion emerge from mundane vibrations in the air ("The Siren Is A Simple Device"). For the first time, the analog sound researchers of Driftmachine (Andreas Gerth, Florian Zimmer) incorporate spoken language and noise into their sound research. They have collaborated with word and sound artist Andreas Ammer, renowned for his radio plays with Acid Pauli, aka Console ("Spaceman 85"), or FM Einheit ("Radio Inferno," "Symphony of Sirens").

In "The Siren Is A Simple Device," the words are spoken by 81-year-old musician and poet legend Ted Milton (Blurt, Loopspool). Despite its simplicity and obvious ability to produce high volumes, the siren has led a marginal existence as a musical instrument. Yet, it is capable of evoking the most intense emotional states in the listener in the shortest possible time, like almost no other sound-producing mechanism. "Sonic Behavior" capitalizes on this fact. The familiar hypnotic sounds of Driftmachine are accompanied by a siren organ inspired by the revolutionary Russian futurist Arsenij Avranov and built by Andreas Ammer, while the lyrics talk about the simple physical reasons behind the sound chaos that has just been unleashed: A siren ... chops the air into sound.

The core of the album is "Song To Noise," an electro-acoustic mini-symphony about the beauties of noise and all its producers, which is based on a poem by the British poet Deryn Rees-Jones and spoken by the poet herself and Alexander Hacke (Einstürzende Neubauten, Hackedepicciotto). Driftmachine & Ammer develop a soundtrack that is as powerful as it is loud and danceable (which is why the LP also includes a textless version of the composition).

"Sonic Sculpture" is the zenith of the work: a text/music track spoken by Ted Milton, which creates the possibility of a sound sculpture that encompasses the universe: What if one could imagine the infernal sound that encompasses all conceivable harmonies at the same time? A piano does when you throw it down an earthly staircase (the epitome of music is a piano falling down the stairs) through silent space to the next theoretically life-filled, Earth-like planet, Proxima Centauri B. The radio makes it possible. Driftmachine & Ammer tried it. The result will be heard there in 4.24 light-years. On planet Earth, the time has come on May 2, 2024. On this day, Sonic Behavior will be released, a conceptual album by Driftmachine & Ammer exploring sound, its creation, and its power.

About S. Raekwon & Steven "Steven is the sound of me holding a mirror up to and critically reflecting on who I am: the good, the bad, the ugly. It's about trying to understand the multitudes within me." - S. Raekwon Steven Raekwon Reynolds performs as S. Raekwon, but his second LP is simply called Steven. Across ten tracks of furious and subtly strumming guitars, plodding bass riffs, and whispering revelations, S. Raekwon's newest album strips back sonic and personal layers to present his most vulnerable, yet authentic self. Born in Buffalo and now based in the East Village of New York City, Steven wrote, produced, engineered, and mixed everything on the record, in addition to playing every instrument except the drums. He packed up a rental car with all his gear and returned to his fiancée's parents' home in Southern Illinois, where they rode out the pandemic and where he recorded half of Where I'm at Now. The house proved to be a nontraditional recording space, but one that provided plenty of physical space as well as spiritual room for experimentation. Steven and drummer Mario Malachi, longtime friends since their days at college in Cleveland, Ohio, spent a week in July 2023 transforming the living room into a makeshift studio, rearranging furniture, sitting face-to-face in front of a mic, and taping songs in single takes. It was a new way of working together, with no demoing or pre-production; Mario hadn't even heard the songs before getting there, which created a sense of spontaneity and improvisation. Where his debut explored his past - longing for a connection to his father and the Black side of his family and wrestling with his identity while being raised in a household by a single, white mother - Steven looks inward. Steven is loosely structured in three parts: Part 1 is fast and energetic, exploring the concepts of rage, anger, jealousy. Part 2 is slow and dynamic, with themes of ugliness, disappointment, embarrassment. Part 3 is something gentler, a moment of contentment and clarity. Steven is a portrait of strengths and weaknesses, flaws and fulfillments.

Atlanta's leading deep house outlet NDATL welcomes the always on from DJ Aakmael for its next outing and as always with this producer the results are smoky and seductive. His signature sound is all about cuddly, dusty drums with deft little melodies, horns or gospel samples that lodge in your mind while you move to his compelling grooves. That's true again here with a Latin-jazz-infused opener in the form of 'Track 109.' 'Imagination' is a truly hypnotic house sound and on the flip are 'This Is Not A Game,' a killer collab with label head Kai Alce, and '102.5' which has a bassline smoother than chocolate. Another doozy from Aakmael, then.