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Grounded in a season of life that has been earned rather than borrowed, Benjamin Tod speaks with the ease of someone no longer running from himself. There is joy now - a steadiness that comes from commitment. With the recent arrival of his son and a deep well of new music on the horizon, Tod is firmly rooted in both purpose and possibility. That clarity is evident in Vengeance and Grace, the Lost Dog Street Band frontman's forthcoming and most expansive solo album to date. Conceived as a "dual-version" release, the project presents two parallel worlds: (Alone) is a stripped solo-acoustic version, along with its full band counterpart.

Together, the two versions form the full range of what Tod is capable of: restraint on one side, force on the other. At the core of Tod's writing is a simple conviction: music should serve something larger than the moment. His writing speaks to mind, body, and soul, shaped by faith, discipline, and a hard-earned understanding of consequence. The darkness that once defined him is neither denied nor indulged. It is understood and no longer in control. Today, Tod moves with a sense of calm that wasn't always there. He is grateful, settled, and intentional, continuing to follow the compass that's guided him from the beginning. Rooted in traditional country and folk, his work stands firmly in the modern music landscape, shaped by experience, restraint, and the life he's built around it.

¡NO PASARAN! is the extension to Extrawelt's DYSTORTION, from brooding tension to playful relief, the album took listeners on a six-year-crafted exploration. Their next EP picks up where this epic chapter left off and is clearly related. It's a hypnotic dive into shadow and dream, darkness and melancholy with subtle flashes of light.
The title track of the EP, already known from the album (D1 - Extrawelt - ¡No Pasaran!) carries a commanding presence, pulses with a rolling, insistent bassline that anchors shifting rhythmic currents and evolving sonic layers. Between tension and release, shadows and melody, it's a track that moves like a living entity.
Arctic Dead Run hits like a surge of raw energy. Acid lines roll relentlessly, building tension that feels alive. Then a melody sneaks in - soft, almost fragile - cutting through the intensity, until hi-hats erupt and the groove snaps into full focus. Maximal yet controlled, every element finds its place.
Clipping Me Softly dissolves the pressure with a dark, playful groove. Precise rhythms meet spacious pads, opening into a dreamlike state where night slowly gives way to warmth and light.
A focused and uncompromising continuation of Extrawelt's sonic language: Dense grooves, acid pressure, and dreamlike relief collide in a release built for deep listening and late-night floors.

Even in these most turbulent of times, dub musician and fatigued onlooker Elijah Minnelli remains an inexplicable stalwart on the lower rungs of the Breadminster County Council.

His latest record ‘Clams As A Main Meal’ continues his astute siphoning of council funds, this time with help from the Breadminster Board of Abstinence. As a further mark of respect, the original head of the Board, Dr. K'houldoux, graces the cover art in his infamous ‘Looming Moon of Desire’ guise.*

As fine a backdrop as any for Minneli’s off-brand dub experiments, and ‘Clams...’ is the truest representation of his varied wheelhouse yet...

We find vocal appearances from dub goliath Dennis Bovell and Welsh-language singer Carwyn Ellis. A pair of tracks which build on 2024’s acclaimed ‘Perpetual Musket’, a collection of folk songs reworked alongside reggae vocalists, released by FatCat Records. It garnered glowing reviews, with nods from The Guardian and The Quietus concluding with prominent appearances on their respective yearly round-up lists.

Elsewhere, the album finds Minnelli in a more experimental mode, all wheezing contraptions and cockeyed bass, creaking with the weight of creation, a satisfying tactility laid seam-side up.

As well as ‘Perpetual Musket’, the new album follows years of sold out 7" singles, handmade and self-released. Online, the tracks have amassed global streams numbering in the millions. His tracks have found play across an eclectic range of radio mixes and dance floors, most notably the likes of Andrew Weatherall, Batu, Optimo and Zakia Sewell (BBC6Music).

It is perhaps worth mentioning that this everbuilding interest in his work is at great odds with the growing suspicions amongst his fellow townsfolk, who see his Breadminster County Council Music Initiative as nothing more than an empty cash-grab.

Further Reading on the Breadminster Board of Abstinence

In the late 70s, Breadminster was awash with the last vestiges of the hippy era. Though the flared silhouette of the lower leg remained, the utopian ideals that had once flowed merrily around the youth's shaded ankles had begun to wane. LSD and free love had led to a sharp spike in population and a generation of children raised by air-headed psychonauts unprepared for the bleary-eyed strictures of parenthood.

Aware of the crisis, the County Council entrusted Dr. Paulinque K'houldoux to spearhead a pushback, and it was his pro-abstinence movement - a mixture of education initiatives and radical renutrition campaigns - that came to impact Breadminster's census deep into the new millennium.

Being a pseudo-archipelago Breadminster has fundamentally limited resources, however deep-seated ties to distant coastal villages meant that oysters were a regular part of the local diet. K'houldoux pinpointed this as a factor in the town's overpopulation, and believed that simply replacing these with clams (a “lesser mollusk”) would help lower the erotic urges of the people. It was his “anti-aphrodesia” movement that first championed the idea of “Clams As A Main Meal,” and the slogan “Consider Abstinence” carried the message yet further.

The Breadminster Board of Abstinence soon became involved in all cultural happenings in the area, with K'houldoux MCing at prominent festivals and performances, sometimes dressed as the “Looming Moon of Desire” - an idea of his relating to the tide, seafood, menstrual cycles, and his privately held celestial predilections.

It was in 1981 that it was revealed Dr. K'houldoux had never fully qualified as a doctor and was seeking exile in Breadminster due to a series of botched bracelet heists in which he had previously been involved. K'houldoux was subsequently extradited to Basingstoke, where he served 3 of a 12-year sentence, owing to the lunar-oriented prisoner health campaigns he helped implement.

It has been a strange twist of bureaucratic fate that the Breadminster Board of Abstinence has never stopped receiving public funding, despite its lack of clear utility. And while its roots are tied to a rose-tinted past, the Board continues to sponsor cultural events and projects to this day.

An extract from: Eugeniq Schooner's article in Sydney Parishioner: “Clams, Breadminster and Countercultural Abstinence Trends” (2008)

Ten years ago, Anderson .Paak didn't just release an album; he staged a full-scale takeover of the soul and hip-hop landscape. Released on January 15, 2016, Malibu served as the definitive arrival of an artist who had spent years grinding in the underground before a star-making turn on Dr. Dre’s Compton. While his previous work hinted at his potential, Malibu was the moment the world met the "Cheeky Andy" persona in full—a virtuosic drummer, a raspy-voiced crooner, and a sharp-witted rapper all rolled into one. The album is a sprawling, sun-drenched journey through the Southern California coast, blending 1970s funk, church-reared gospel, and gritty boom-bap into something that feels both nostalgic and entirely futuristic. With a heavyweight production lineup including 9th Wonder, Madlib, Kaytranada, and Hi-Tek, the record maintains a warm, analog texture that was a breath of fresh air in an increasingly digital era. It’s an album that breathes, full of intentional imperfections and the kind of "in-the-pocket" groove that can only come from a seasoned live performer. Beyond the infectious, dance-floor-ready energy of tracks like "Am I Wrong" and "Come Down," the album is a deeply autobiographical masterwork. .Paak uses the 65-minute runtime to unpack his life story with startling clarity, touching on his mother’s gambling addiction, his father’s incarceration, and his own brushes with homelessness with a sense of resilience that never feels heavy-handed. He weaves these heavy themes through a lens of triumph, grounded by vintage surfing documentary samples that give the project its cinematic, coastal atmosphere. It’s a celebratory record born out of struggle, anchored by his impeccable technicality on the drums and a guest list—featuring ScHoolboy Q, Rapsody, and The Game—that feels hand-picked to complement his specific brand of West Coast swagger. A decade later, Malibu stands as a modern classic and the blueprint for the soulful revivalism that would eventually lead .Paak to global superstardom and Grammy-winning heights. It remains a testament to the idea that the most profound music often comes from the most personal places, proving ten years on that the best way to move forward is to stay rooted in the groove.

Ten years ago, Anderson .Paak didn't just release an album; he staged a full-scale takeover of the soul and hip-hop landscape. Released on January 15, 2016, Malibu served as the definitive arrival of an artist who had spent years grinding in the underground before a star-making turn on Dr. Dre’s Compton. While his previous work hinted at his potential, Malibu was the moment the world met the "Cheeky Andy" persona in full—a virtuosic drummer, a raspy-voiced crooner, and a sharp-witted rapper all rolled into one. The album is a sprawling, sun-drenched journey through the Southern California coast, blending 1970s funk, church-reared gospel, and gritty boom-bap into something that feels both nostalgic and entirely futuristic. With a heavyweight production lineup including 9th Wonder, Madlib, Kaytranada, and Hi-Tek, the record maintains a warm, analog texture that was a breath of fresh air in an increasingly digital era. It’s an album that breathes, full of intentional imperfections and the kind of "in-the-pocket" groove that can only come from a seasoned live performer. Beyond the infectious, dance-floor-ready energy of tracks like "Am I Wrong" and "Come Down," the album is a deeply autobiographical masterwork. .Paak uses the 65-minute runtime to unpack his life story with startling clarity, touching on his mother’s gambling addiction, his father’s incarceration, and his own brushes with homelessness with a sense of resilience that never feels heavy-handed. He weaves these heavy themes through a lens of triumph, grounded by vintage surfing documentary samples that give the project its cinematic, coastal atmosphere. It’s a celebratory record born out of struggle, anchored by his impeccable technicality on the drums and a guest list—featuring ScHoolboy Q, Rapsody, and The Game—that feels hand-picked to complement his specific brand of West Coast swagger. A decade later, Malibu stands as a modern classic and the blueprint for the soulful revivalism that would eventually lead .Paak to global superstardom and Grammy-winning heights. It remains a testament to the idea that the most profound music often comes from the most personal places, proving ten years on that the best way to move forward is to stay rooted in the groove.

Ten years ago, Anderson .Paak didn't just release an album; he staged a full-scale takeover of the soul and hip-hop landscape. Released on January 15, 2016, Malibu served as the definitive arrival of an artist who had spent years grinding in the underground before a star-making turn on Dr. Dre’s Compton. While his previous work hinted at his potential, Malibu was the moment the world met the "Cheeky Andy" persona in full—a virtuosic drummer, a raspy-voiced crooner, and a sharp-witted rapper all rolled into one. The album is a sprawling, sun-drenched journey through the Southern California coast, blending 1970s funk, church-reared gospel, and gritty boom-bap into something that feels both nostalgic and entirely futuristic. With a heavyweight production lineup including 9th Wonder, Madlib, Kaytranada, and Hi-Tek, the record maintains a warm, analog texture that was a breath of fresh air in an increasingly digital era. It’s an album that breathes, full of intentional imperfections and the kind of "in-the-pocket" groove that can only come from a seasoned live performer. Beyond the infectious, dance-floor-ready energy of tracks like "Am I Wrong" and "Come Down," the album is a deeply autobiographical masterwork. .Paak uses the 65-minute runtime to unpack his life story with startling clarity, touching on his mother’s gambling addiction, his father’s incarceration, and his own brushes with homelessness with a sense of resilience that never feels heavy-handed. He weaves these heavy themes through a lens of triumph, grounded by vintage surfing documentary samples that give the project its cinematic, coastal atmosphere. It’s a celebratory record born out of struggle, anchored by his impeccable technicality on the drums and a guest list—featuring ScHoolboy Q, Rapsody, and The Game—that feels hand-picked to complement his specific brand of West Coast swagger. A decade later, Malibu stands as a modern classic and the blueprint for the soulful revivalism that would eventually lead .Paak to global superstardom and Grammy-winning heights. It remains a testament to the idea that the most profound music often comes from the most personal places, proving ten years on that the best way to move forward is to stay rooted in the groove.

Ten years ago, Anderson .Paak didn't just release an album; he staged a full-scale takeover of the soul and hip-hop landscape. Released on January 15, 2016, Malibu served as the definitive arrival of an artist who had spent years grinding in the underground before a star-making turn on Dr. Dre’s Compton. While his previous work hinted at his potential, Malibu was the moment the world met the "Cheeky Andy" persona in full—a virtuosic drummer, a raspy-voiced crooner, and a sharp-witted rapper all rolled into one. The album is a sprawling, sun-drenched journey through the Southern California coast, blending 1970s funk, church-reared gospel, and gritty boom-bap into something that feels both nostalgic and entirely futuristic. With a heavyweight production lineup including 9th Wonder, Madlib, Kaytranada, and Hi-Tek, the record maintains a warm, analog texture that was a breath of fresh air in an increasingly digital era. It’s an album that breathes, full of intentional imperfections and the kind of "in-the-pocket" groove that can only come from a seasoned live performer. Beyond the infectious, dance-floor-ready energy of tracks like "Am I Wrong" and "Come Down," the album is a deeply autobiographical masterwork. .Paak uses the 65-minute runtime to unpack his life story with startling clarity, touching on his mother’s gambling addiction, his father’s incarceration, and his own brushes with homelessness with a sense of resilience that never feels heavy-handed. He weaves these heavy themes through a lens of triumph, grounded by vintage surfing documentary samples that give the project its cinematic, coastal atmosphere. It’s a celebratory record born out of struggle, anchored by his impeccable technicality on the drums and a guest list—featuring ScHoolboy Q, Rapsody, and The Game—that feels hand-picked to complement his specific brand of West Coast swagger. A decade later, Malibu stands as a modern classic and the blueprint for the soulful revivalism that would eventually lead .Paak to global superstardom and Grammy-winning heights. It remains a testament to the idea that the most profound music often comes from the most personal places, proving ten years on that the best way to move forward is to stay rooted in the groove.

Ever since the late 1950s bossa-nova revolution, Brazil’s influence on French music has been undeniable. Pierre Barouh, Georges Moustaki and a vast array of lesser known artists, all made the Musica Popular Brasileira (MPB) an axis of promotion at the service of a cool and metaphysical, modern and mixed Brazilian lifestyle. Some were seduced by the poetic languors of the bossa, some were looking for fun, and others just loved the American hybridization of jazz-bossa, jazz-samba.



What is bossa nova? One of its creators, Joao Gilberto said: "Its style, cadence, everything is samba. At the very start, we didn't call it bossa nova, we sang a little samba made up of a single note - Samba de uma nota so .... The discussion around the origins of bossa nova is therefore useless”. It is nevertheless useful to remember that these magnificent Brazilian songs, which the guitarist describes as samba, were shifted and balanced around improbable chords. "I like things that lean, the in-betweens that limp with grace," said Pierre Barrouh, quoting Jean Cocteau.



With emotion, arrangements for violin and supple guitar licks, bossa nova rapidly changed. A transformation that can be heard in the Tchic, tchic, French Bossa Nova 1963-1974 compilation, the result of a cultural reappropriation, which traveled through the United States and supplemented itself in France.

A musical revolution that has remained significant, bossa nova was born in Rio. From 1956 to 1961, Brazil lived through its golden years. In five years, the country had invented its modernist style. Elected president in 1956, Juscelino Kubitschek de Oliveira, an elegant man with a broad forehead, brandished a promising slogan: "Fifty years of progress in five years". He quickly got to work. Not worried about increasing debt, he launched the project for a new federal capital, Brasilia, designed by the communist architect Oscar Niemeyer. Volkswagen opened state-of-the-art factories and created the “fusquinha”, the Beetle. In Rio, the Vespa made its first appearance. The Arpoador Surf Club crew run into the “girl” from Ipanema, Helô Pinheiro - the tanned garota ("chick"), between a flower and mermaid, who at 17 walked by the Veloso bar, where the fiery author and composer, Tom Jobim and Vinicius de Moraes, were getting drunk on whiskey. From then on, bossa symbolized cool.

In 1958, Joao Gilberto recorded Chega de Saudade, which the directors of Philips denied, calling it "music for fagots". The marketing director, who believed in it, secretly pressed 3000 78-inch vinyls and distributed them at schools around Rio, creating a tidal wave.

American jazzmen then took over. In particular, trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie and guitarist Charlie Byrd. In November 1962, the Brazilian Ministry of Foreign Affairs funded a "Bossa-Nova" concert at Carnegie Hall in New York, inviting the genre’s pioneers. Unprepared, the show soon turned to disaster. But the troupe was invited to the White House by Jackie Kennedy. The first lady loved "the new beat" and in particular Maria Ninguem, a song by Carlos Lyra, later covered by Brigitte Bardot.

In Brazil, the 1964 military coup quickly ended this euphoria. The destructive atmosphere that ensued pushed many Brazilian musicians to leave, if not to exile. Thus, Tom Jobim, Sergio Mendes and Joao Gilberto arrived to the United States. In New York, Joao Gilberto met saxophonist Stan Getz. At the time, he was married to the Bahianese Astrud Weinert Gilberto, who had a German father. She had never sung before, but she knew how to speak English. Getz therefore asked her to replace her husband on The Girl From Ipanema. The Getz/Gilberto record with Tom Jobim on piano, was released in March 1964. Phil Ramone, the "pope of pop" was in charge of sound.

Bossa nova arrived in Paris through the classic “guitar-voice” channel (Pierre Barouh, Baden Powell, Moustaki…) But France loved jazz and Paris had already welcomed its American contributors. All these good people were to pass through Saint-Germain-des-Prés. The cabaret l'Escale became the Mecca of Latin American sound where one could find Pierre Barrouh and his friends, such as the Camara Trio, samba-jazz aces, whose only record was published by the Saravah label. With a band strangely called Les Masques (a band that included Nicole Croisille and Pierre Vassiliu, among others), the Camara Trio recorded an interesting Brazilian Sound, including the track Il faut tenir which is present on this tasty compilation of rarities.

Other enlightened musicians can also be found on the compilation, such as Jean-Pierre Sabar (songwriter for Hardy, Auffray, Leforestier ...) and the French pop rock organist Balthazar. In 1975, Sabar recorded Aurinkoinen Musiikkimatka on a Finnish label, which featured the crazy Vai, Vai, included on this record. We are now following the footsteps of Brazilian electronic musicians such as Sergio Mendes, Eumir Deodato or Marcos Valle who created funk and disco sounds on their keyboards and synthesizers. A style that influenced Véronique Sanson when she wrote Jusqu’à la Tombée de la nuit in 1969 for Isabelle de Funès, the niece of Louis and a great friend of Michel Berger - Sanson did end up singing this track on her 1992 Sans Regret record.


The pinnacle of exoticism and travel, Sylvia Fels’ Corto Maltese includes bongos, sea mist and ocean sounds. The title was taken from Jacky Chalard’s concept album written in 1974, Je suis vivant, mais j’ai peur (I am alive, but I am scared), based on Gilbert Deflez’s science fiction novel.


However, bossa nova extended the scope of popularity. "In the 1970s, I was a fan of Sergio Mendes, Getz / Gilberto. I fell in love with this music that I knew because I had been an orchestral singer, " explained Isabelle Aubret, who in 1971 delivered a composite record of covers by the very funky Jorge Ben, Orfeu Negro, Tom Jobim, Vinicius de Morais and Jean Ferrat. "I recorded this album for Meys Records in Paris, far from Brazil, with wonderful musicians, François Raubert, Roland Vincent, Alain Goraguer...". The latter wrote the arrangements for Casa Forte, a very percussive title borrowed from Edu Lobo, one of the initiators of the bossa who spent time in California. "Jazz and bossa came together and produced very rhythmic music. I love singing, it allows me to dream, to have fun, to feel a high on stage, and these songs brought me joy, made me swing, my singing felt like a dance.”


The world tours of French singers and their desire for the tropics, often brought them to Rio with its hills, forests, caipirinhas and tanned bodies. There are surprises though, like this Iemenja (Iemenja is the goddess of the sea in the Afro-Brazilian candomblé religion). Not unlike the composer and musician Jean-Pierre Lang, based in Sao Paulo, Claire Chevalier taught Brazil to Brazil. In 1970, the singer and painter published a 45-inch vinyl, Mon mari et mes amants (My husband and my lovers), under the improbable pseudonym of Clarinha (little Claire). She was then living in Rio, with her husband, Joël Leibovitz, who founded a band called Azimuth, and who owned a record label specialized in "sambas enredos" songs for samba school parades.


For its B side, she asked Pierre Perret to come up with lyrics for a song composed by Carlos Imperial: "Oh goddess of the sea, o goddess Iemenja, I bring a white rose to adorn your long hair ..." . "Perret came to see us, and we had fun, remembers Joël Leibovitz. We wrote Lemenja for fun, we recorded it at the Havaí studio, behind the Central do Brasil the central station. Erlon Chaves, the arranger who worked with Elis Regina, joined us" adding his share of Afro-Brazilian percussions and funky brass to the mix.

There is a common misunderstanding in Franco-Brazilian history: that bossa, admittedly hedonistic, is perceived as funny, even though the poets who wrote the texts are often philosophizing on the human condition. Its French interpreters pull it towards a carnival inspired universe, far removed from its fundamental essence. Thus, Jean Constantin covered the famous Samba da minha terra, an ode to the art of samba written by the classic Bahian composer Dorival Caymmi, renaming it with the enticing title of Pas tant de tchi tchi pompon: "On your pier there is no tchi tchi / when you arch your back, you know everything is alright ”(lyrics by Gérard Calvi). This expedited bossa aims for the absurd, but retains a certain elegance.

Indeed, Jean Constantin was not an idiot, the rather large man had a huge mustache and liked fantasy, (Les pantoufles à papa, Le pacha, inspired by cha-cha-cha-cha, salsa and jazz) but he was also the lyricist of Mon manège à moi interpreted by Edith Piaf, the composer of Mon Truc en plume by Zizi Jeanmaire and the soundtrack of François Truffaut’s 400 Blows. Le Poulpe, published in 1970, from which this bossa is extract, was arranged by Jean-Claude Vannier, an accomplice of Serge Gainsbourg’s Melody Nelson. In short: "There is enough of samba / By looking at the parasol / Because my poor cabeza / Is going to die in the sun".

Even the American actress Marpessa Down, who was at the heart of the bossa nova revolution with her role as Euridyce in Marcel Camus’ film Orfeu Negro, winner of the 1959 Cannes Palme d'or, fed the clichée with Je voudrais parler au petit cuica - "Tell me how you manage to always make people want to dance / It's true, I must admit that I cannot resist your magic" - in consequence, once can hear the cuica, a little drum inherited from the Bantu.


But bossa nova had many angles. Societal, of course, pushing actresses who were symbols of women's liberation like Brigitte Bardot, Jeanne Moreau, or Sophia Loren to engage in the exercise of accelerated bossa. In February of 1963, Sophia Loren made a record in French in Rome, Je ne t'aime plus, featuring the song De jour en jour, a bossa written by two Italians, Armando Trovajoli and Tino Fornai, which was released a little later by Barclay. Bossa accompanied the 1960s, a decade of moral liberation. Ann Sorel, who interpreted La Poupée des favellas, caused a sensation with L’amour à plusieurs, a provocative song written by Frédéric Bottom and Jean-Claude Vannier. As for the actress Andrea Parisy, she displayed her bourgeois cheekiness in Marcel Carné's Les Tricheurs before interpreting Les mains qui font du bien. And Magalie Noël, the friend of Boris Vian, who sung Johnny fais-moi mal, was hired to sing Une énorme Samba, composed by Alain Goraguer (arranger to Gainsbourg, Bobby Lapointe and Jean Ferrat) with lyrics by Frédéric Botton.

But in the end, of what wood is bossa nova made of? The answer is given by Christianne Legrand, daughter of Raymond the conductor, and sister to Michel the composer: "With me, with jà" - jà means "immediately" in Portuguese. In 1972, the singer, an expert in vocal jazz and a member of the Double Six, published Le Brésil de Christianne Legrand. Two songs included on the Tchic Tchic compilation that demonstrate how bossa, jazz, funk, rock, etc. work like a swiss army knife: the music is used to denounce broken systems, or miracles, HLM et ciné roman, Cent mille poissons dans ton filet, two songs from the O Cafona soundtrack, a successful telenovela broadcast, at the time in black and white, on TV Globo. The first was adapted in French by the fighter and friend of the Legrand tribe, Agnès Varda. The second is content with a play on words, jostling them into a summer fun.



Véronique Mortaigne

Marking his vinyl debut on Lowpass, Berlin-based producer APRS steps forward after a run of striking releases on labels such as Soma, ARTS and Sungate.

“Drift” explores human emotions through drums, melodies and textures with five pieces that refuse to settle into one shape. Each track bends the EP in a new direction without breaking its thread, holding onto a sense of vastness, detail and intimacy. Andy Martin closes the record with a remix that widens the palette even further, pushing the material into heavier terrain while keeping its spirit intact.

LWP001 is less a declaration than a first gesture. Intuition over uniformity; a label shaped by instinct, variation and space; a place for artists to wander and for sound to evolve freely.

Tapping into the otherworldly frequencies of the UFO series, UK-born, Lisbon-based prodigy Rene Wise arrives on Dekmantel with an assured demonstration of his position at the cutting edge of real techno.

Andrew Shobeiri appeared in the cut and thrust of the scene fully-formed around 2017, instantly bringing his Rene Wise alias to top-tier labels with a razor-sharp combination of functional minimalism and mind-warping flair. There's no grey area fluctuation in his hypnotic, intentional sound — this is deep, captivating techno for the long haul, music to submit yourself to.

True to his sound, Rene Wise makes his presence felt on Dekmantel UFO with a varied spread of sounds, leading with the melancholic charm of the melodic sequences weaving through 'Johnson's Theme' before sinking into the engrossing folds and low-end rumble of 'Granite Skin'. There's a lighter atmosphere at play in the vaporous impulses that mark out 'Flow' before rolling into the rhythmic urgency and strafing bleeps of 'Kanga'.

This is the Dekmantel UFO experience as expressed by one of the leading lights in modern techno — an artist who understands the psychoactive power contained within the subtleties of production and pursuit of the ultimate loop.

BRA (Big Room Ambient) is a new label dedicated to ambient and experimental sound, a space for open sonic exploration where electronics and distant musical traditions converge to create evolving soundscapes.

The label’s first release is Harmograph by Matteo Scaioli, a hypnotic and deeply organic work shaped by self-built synthesizers, experimental electronics and masterfully performed tablas. The album, with a run time over 35 minutes, unfolds as a fluid sonic journey, where rhythm and texture interact in a subtle balance between structure and improvisation.

With Harmograph, BRA begins its catalogue by looking toward unexplored territories of contemporary sound.

“III” is an intimate, cinematic and dream-like body of work — written, produced and mixed by Morita Vargas, and recorded in Buenos Aires between 2014 and 2025. The album was mastered by Rafael Anton Irisarri at Black Knoll Studio (NY), adding depth and clarity to its carefully built sonic landscape.

The visual world of the record is an essential part of the release. The cover artwork was crafted by Juliana Guglielmi, Ariadna Aylen Barrios, and Noelia Garreffa, whose combined vision creates a unified visual narrative that reflects the album’s emotional depth and atmospheric essence. The LP layout and full manufacturing realization were carefully executed by Ilja Tulit, translating the complex design ideas into their final tangible form of a vinyl release.

“III” marks a special release for Hidden Harmony Recordings. Morita Vargas was among the first artists released when the label began in 2020–2021, and her work played an important role in shaping the spirit and direction of Hidden Harmony.

Out Loud is the debut solo album from Gary Klebe, guitarist/vocalist of the power-pop band Shoes. Formed in Zion, Illinois in 1974, Shoes was influenced by British Invasion groups of the 1960s and artists like Big Star, Bowie, the Move, Todd Rundgren, Nils Lofgren. The band first gained attention by self-releasing records on their own Black Vinyl Records label before signing to Elektra Records. Albums like Black Vinyl Shoes, Present Tense, and Tongue Twister earned them critical acclaim and cult-favorite status, with songs such as “Too Late,” “Tomorrow Night,” and “Your Imagination” becoming genre touchstones. Shoes’ melodic craftsmanship and independent spirit have made them hugely influential, inspiring generations of power-pop and indie rock bands.

Stepping up for Punctuality number 8 is the dynamic duo of Ciel and Matthis Ruffing. Needing little introduction, both artists are prolific producers and collaborators across tempos and genres. Toronto-based Ciel has released music on labels like NAFF, Peach Discs, and !K7, while Berliner Matthis Ruffing’s work can be found on International Chrome, Infinite Drift, and Strictly Strictly, to name just a few.

Bonding over a shared love for the techno stylings of Claude Young and early 2000s tech/prog house from labels like Future Groove and Slide, the duo’s collaboration began with a spontaneous jam in Ruffing’s Berlin studio during the summer of 2022. With an organic studio chemistry, the pair continued to jam over the following years. Hot Squid is the result of these studio experiments: five tracks of sleek, muscular, contemporary tech house that fluidly distill the creative visions of both artists—slick, shimmering grooves, heavily weighted for the dancefloor.

The title track, Hot Squid, weaves dubbed-out waves of FX and low-end sonics around metallic, staccato drum bursts, sci-fi pads, stuttered vocals, and syncopated snares that flit and flicker around a rolling bassline reminiscent of golden-era UK tech house from the late ’90s. Roza Terenzi’s remix flips the original into a modern, low-stepping tek roller—a mind-bending re-fix that puts more focus on the snaking vocal groove and a sparser percussion arrangement, filled out with lustrous textures and razor-precise sound design.

On Little Voice, glossy synths and spiraling atmospherics cascade around a mesmeric vocal line, while tightly wound, minimal drum loops give way to a swaggering bassline that barely relents throughout the track. The result is a satisfyingly boshy, groove-driven roller, fit for the dancefloor at any time of day.
Late Summer maintains the EP’s high-grade production standard in the form of a dreamy, electro-leaning tech house number, resplendent with deep, pummeling kick drums, woozy low-end, and organic sonics. Its plucked melody and introspective pads nod to halcyon-era IDM and the Detroit techno that inspired the duo in creating Hot Squid.

The release culminates in Bong Bong—a meditative dancefloor tool suffused with ASMR-like nature documentary samples that lend the track a psychedelic intimacy. Careening percussion lines and swooning chord stabs anchor the rhythm, while the title’s “Bong Bong” mantra hums beneath the surface, carried along by barely perceptible sub fills and ultra-processed percussion. A cohesive, unique, and enduring take on seminal tech house and Detroit techno from Ciel and Matthis Ruffing.

Back To Life EP marks the rebirth of a seasoned artist stepping into a fresh chapter as
Just Marco. This first record in the Bending Body series comes after a long run of
exploration and self-reset, chasing raw honesty and identity built for vinyl-only cuts.
The record links past and present: rough drum work, evocative pads, bright acid lines, all
pressed on wax to echo the moments and people that shaped Marco along the way.
Musically, Back To Life it’s a blend where nothing is forced, where unusual choices and
imperfections are embraced as part of a renewed creative philosophy. It’s a return to the
music life where intuition leads and authenticity sets the tone.
Enjoy.

Four heavyweight cuts. Zero mercy. Due to leave dancefloor's destroyed - a relentless, floor-shaking display of Wrong'uns at their finest.

"On its Various 2 compilation, Altered Circuits returns with a gripping four-track selection by an equal number of distinct-voiced artists. Perrax En La Calle sees tINI merge sturdy drums, arpeggiated basslines, and ominous synth work. She knows what makes the floor tick blindfolded, and keeps the energy high here, channelling electronic body music and Italo into a contemporary club knockout. Up next is Ionic, a fusion of quirky, pointillist hooks that play call and response, driven by 909 kicks and a sub pattern underneath. Mogwaa spellbinds, and often pulls the rug only to reveal more intricate melodic needlework -- it's done so nimbly and enticingly, there's no way not to get drawn in. On the flip side, rising talent Desiree Falessi joins with the peak time Scandal. Statically-charged basslines mesh with reverb-drenched percussion salvos, and as slinky pads and subtle theme variations emerge, the intensity builds toward a tipping point. Closer Flex features a sharp arpeggiated bassline that funnels through misty, LFO-steered synths, scattered alarm-like melodies, muffled vocals, and gated-reverb snares. When classic high-pass modulation intermezzos are introduced, Monile demonstrates how sparse means, when deployed precisely, can sustain considerable tension."

Non Series welcomes Erik Luebs with a four-track EP of warm, minimalistic and groove-focused material.

Cedofeita Records returns with CDFT004, a limited run of 150 numbered 12”s cut for DJs who like their records to do the work: five tracks across house, electro and breaks, sequenced with a clean sense of tension and release. Based in Porto, the label stays close to a simple rule — not where artists are from, but where the work happens. These tracks were written and shaped while the artists were living in the North of Portugal, tied into the local circuit and its night-time pace.

Miguel Rendeiro opens with “Love Me Too” — direct, fast and warm at the bottom end. Mike Morales follows with “Outta Shine”, modern and controlled, built on crisp rhythm and a steady forward push. On the flip, Bruno, Erp & Rompante hit heavier with “Parking Place” — bold stabs, sampling grit, room-holding weight. Sector Relay shifts the colour with “Social Distortion”, stripped electro pressure for late hours. Tasc’oTau feat. João Pedro Dias closes with “Magnificent City” — liquid break swing and soft detail, a final chapter that resets the room without losing the thread.

Between electronic shadows and cinematic textures, this new album from QUENUM draws its influences from the likes of Massive Attack, Archive, and Burial. Started and produced in London, it reflects a change of time — both in the climate and within.

This project represents a personal and artistic turning point for QUENUM. He wanted to experiment with new ideas, not necessarily music for the club. The album was created in close collaboration with his son Zac, a talented musician who contributed both as a singer and instrumentalist on several tracks. They shared wonderful moments creating this album together.

He also worked hand in hand with his long-time friend Christophe Calpini, who played a key role in mixing and in developing the textures and atmospheres that shape the album’s sound. The result is an intimate, personal, and timeless journey, deeply rooted in the now.

Quenum elaborates: “The idea for my album was born during Covid in London, when concerts, museums, and social activities suddenly stopped. To cope, I started running daily and spending hours in the studio creating music. In our garden cabin I worked alongside my son Zac who was practicing piano, preparing for his entry into Trinity Laban Conservatoire. He listened to my tracks, and eventually contributed vocals with his ex-partner on two songs, ‘Blue Sky’ and ‘Never Like Before’. The album’s dark atmosphere reflects that period. Once it was complete, I asked my longtime friend Christophe Calpini to handle arrangements and mixing.”

A true pioneer of electronic music, QUENUM has been shaping the global techno and house scene for over two decades. One of his most celebrated tracks, “Orange Mistake”, co-produced with Luciano in 2001, became a turning point in his career. The success of this collaboration led them to launch the legendary Cadenza label, which rapidly grew into one of the most recognisable and respected imprints in the scene, known for its vital releases and unforgettable parties worldwide.

Over the years, QUENUM has continued to explore new creative paths and refine his artistic identity, constantly reinventing his sound while maintaining his unique musical signature. His insatiable curiosity and openness to new influences have kept him consistently in demand, from intimate underground venues to the world’s most respected festivals and clubs.

Natural Goofy & TC80, two close friends and respected producers, have been spending time together in the studio in Barcelona.

No rules, no timeline, just jamming with machines and letting the sound flow in the moment.

The result is NO PLAN EP: a snapshot of instinct over intent, a record shaped by presence rather than plans. A raw dialogue between friends, gear and the dancefloor.

Made with love, for the music.

Released as a limited vinyl-only edition within the Planka Records series, continuing the label’s mission of capturing underground sounds and sharing them with those who listen deep.

Some grooves don’t rush to the dancefloor — they crawl there, slow and heavy, like smoke wrapping around a bassline. With Fragments of Reality, The Balek Band sculpt an electronic funk that lives between shadow and light — an end-of-the-world fever dream, a Barjavel-style Ravage where chaos turns nihilistic.

No sequencer grid here — just four musicians sharing the same room, shaping air and tension together: drums locked tight with a slap bass, a guitar dripping with echo and heat, and a one-man orchestra behind his machines, weaving acid lines and synth arpeggios while mixing the band live — drenching it in delay, reverb, and saturation, like a dub producer in a Kingston studio, Lee Scratch Perry or King Tubby conjuring ghosts through smoke.

This isn’t fusion — it’s friction. A living ritual where the TB-303 hums, and machines don’t dominate but converse with the human pulse. Each track feels like a night that refuses to end — that humid in-between where trance slips into languor, and the body starts to think for itself.

The record recalls the cosmic jazz of Alain Mion or Eddy Louiss meeting the fiery energy of West African afrobeat musicians freshly arrived in a smoky Belleville basement in the mid-’80s. When The Balek Band summon ghosts, it’s only to reshape them — bending the past into something futuristic, alive, and strangely refreshing. Both disciplined and delirious, Fragments of Reality feels like a promise at dawn: dark funk for the late hours, slow acid for warm blood.

This EP isn’t nostalgic, though it remembers. It’s a transmission from a parallel past — a moment when jazz players met drum machines and decided never to stop playing. Each note sweats, each rhythm breathes. You can almost see the light cutting through the haze, faces half-awake, half-possessed.

The Balek Band aren’t recreating a moment — they’re keeping it alive.
Flesh and cables. Impulse and patience.
A band, not a loop.
A trip, not a format.

Backwoodz Studioz is excited to announce the release of Crayola Circles, a collaboration between rapper Fatboi Sharif and producer Child Actor. While both artists have long standing connections to Backwoodz, this album marks their first collaboration of any kind and breaks new artistic ground for all parties.


Sharif’s previous album, Decay, released on Backwoodz in 2023, was a haunting experimental rap masterpiece, an acid trip in a mental hospital. On Crayola Circles Sharif trades menacing psychedelia for a simmering stew of blacklight expressionism, his verses slipping effortlessly through the swells and tides of Child Actor’s masterful production. No matter how uneasy the waves grow, Sharif is at ease, a truth teller whispering anti-riddles in your ear. This album feels like a new chamber for Child Actor, as well. The producer has been on an impressive run since dropping CINE- a collaboration with rapper Cavalier- on Backwoodz in late 2024. Child Actor has shown up in the liner notes of everyone from Navy Blue (The Sword & The Soaring) to Earl Sweatshirt (Live, Laugh, Love) to ELUCID (Revelator) to Open Mike Eagle (Neighborhood Gods Unlimited), to Ghais Guevara (A Quest to Self-Mythologize), amongst others. On Crayola Circles Child Actor’s production is dynamic, shifting and sliding into new phases and movements in an instant. The beats are full and knotty, leaning into jazz and folk, while remaining tethered to the tender minimalism that is his signature. It’s a difficult balance for any producer, and here it is executed perfectly, placing us in a world of wood and brass, cowhide and undersea piano. On any other record, this soundscape would steal the show — and it very nearly does — but Sharif’s command never wavers, ever in control; a lucid dreamer in an induced coma.
There are no guests, no skits, and no interludes. There might not even be songs, instead Crayola Circles seems akin to a great river; singular, traversing forest and jungle, mountain and valley, running from mouth to endless sea.

Backwoodz Studioz is excited to announce the release of Crayola Circles, a collaboration between rapper Fatboi Sharif and producer Child Actor. While both artists have long standing connections to Backwoodz, this album marks their first collaboration of any kind and breaks new artistic ground for all parties.


Sharif’s previous album, Decay, released on Backwoodz in 2023, was a haunting experimental rap masterpiece, an acid trip in a mental hospital. On Crayola Circles Sharif trades menacing psychedelia for a simmering stew of blacklight expressionism, his verses slipping effortlessly through the swells and tides of Child Actor’s masterful production. No matter how uneasy the waves grow, Sharif is at ease, a truth teller whispering anti-riddles in your ear. This album feels like a new chamber for Child Actor, as well. The producer has been on an impressive run since dropping CINE- a collaboration with rapper Cavalier- on Backwoodz in late 2024. Child Actor has shown up in the liner notes of everyone from Navy Blue (The Sword & The Soaring) to Earl Sweatshirt (Live, Laugh, Love) to ELUCID (Revelator) to Open Mike Eagle (Neighborhood Gods Unlimited), to Ghais Guevara (A Quest to Self-Mythologize), amongst others. On Crayola Circles Child Actor’s production is dynamic, shifting and sliding into new phases and movements in an instant. The beats are full and knotty, leaning into jazz and folk, while remaining tethered to the tender minimalism that is his signature. It’s a difficult balance for any producer, and here it is executed perfectly, placing us in a world of wood and brass, cowhide and undersea piano. On any other record, this soundscape would steal the show — and it very nearly does — but Sharif’s command never wavers, ever in control; a lucid dreamer in an induced coma.
There are no guests, no skits, and no interludes. There might not even be songs, instead Crayola Circles seems akin to a great river; singular, traversing forest and jungle, mountain and valley, running from mouth to endless sea.

The Rhythm Of Nature’ is the stunning new masterpiece from Andy Compton (The Rurals) and Shamrock!

Written between Andy’s tours in South Africa and Shamrock’s extended UK trip in the summer of 2025, this album embodies their shared mission: to spread positive, joyful vibrations with LOVE.

Here, Soul, Jazz, and African music blend seamlessly through the talents of these two cosmic brothers, connected deeply by their love of making music.

When Andy and Shamrock jam and record, music flows so freely, creating a powerful, spiritual energy.

This follow-up to their 2023 debut album, Soul & Spirit — which still touches hearts worldwide — includes magical songs like ‘Bunny Chow’ and ‘Rosa Mziki’, originally created in Johannesburg and previously released on the Bunny Chow EP, Along with super fresh, unheard gems.

The album also features incredible musicians such as Nekoye Ommeh (Vocals), Pete Morris (Keys), Bongani Sessionist (Percussion), Kafele Bandele (Trumpet), and Charlie Hearnshaw (Sax), adding their magical energies to the soundscape.

Allow yourself to experience the full journey, feel and enjoy every note!

For its eighth release, Distant Gaze welcomes Ruksby with Phosphene Cognition, the artist’s debut EP on the label. Known for his hypnotic acid energy and cold, driving groove, Ruksby has developed a distinct sonic signature resonating with both classic rave devotees and listeners of indie-leaning electronic music.

The EP opens with two original cuts. “Imagination” moves in a trancy and hypnotic direction, where slow pulsating TB-303 lines and drifting acid leads unfold through a dark, steady groove. “Illusion” follows with a sharper, more aggressive edge, pushing acid frequencies and overdriven synths into tighter late-night territory. Both tracks stand as focused dancefloor pieces driven by Ruksby’s balance of tension and intensity.

On the B-side, two remixes expand the release. Long-time label friend Mike Sacchetti delivers an acid-driven dancefloor weapon built around a relentless pulsating bassline. Closing the record, Rambal Cochet offers a Goa-inspired chill-out reinterpretation, providing a calm and spacious conclusion.

In discotheques and dark rooms across Europe, Boys’ Shorts have earned the trust of the queer and wider clubbing communities as generous stewards of a timeless sound that, like themselves, never stops moving forward. The duo of Vangelis and Tareq initially met at an underground club in their native Greece. Sensing a rare sonic connection, the pair became friends, forming Boys’ Shorts to meet again and again, travelling from their adopted cities of Thessaloniki and London to appear as far afield as Berlin’s Panorama Bar and New York’s Le Bain, as well as supporting Goldfrapp and Hot Chip on tour. Their motivation? In their own words, “we make people dance!”

Following years of gradual, thoughtful studio sessions, and EP releases on tastemaking electronic labels including Phantasy Sound and Live At Robert Johnson, Boys’ Shorts establish their own imprint, ALL SORTS, in order to deliver a fantastically ambitious debut album, ‘What Does It Take To Make These Men Happy?’

The LP opens with the grandiose, cosmic vista of ‘The Space Between Us’, a classic passage of strings and synthesis, before the shared Boys’ Shorts vision falls back to earthier territory with deep groove of ‘Let’s Fall In Love’, mixing universal sentiment with a patient vision of human potential and the voice of Greek electronic pioneer, K.BHTA. ‘Come’ aligns with NYC’s Michael Cignarale, offering an excitable invitation to the mind and body sculpted by the way of a throbbing, warehouse-sized statement of nineties house sensuality. Channeling heroes Lowe and Tennant at their most introspective, ‘Short Life’ maintains the dance, yet dares to ask, “what if the parties aren’t enough anymore… Can you ask for something more?”

Out of the pet shop and straight into the strobe lights, ‘Disco Romantica’ makes true on the promise of its title, a lovelorn monologue giving way and slipping into rave stabs and whirring synthesis that looks forward to a memorable, emotionally-charged night ahead. Underpinning this feeling of anticipation, ‘Going Out Hoping To See You’ introduces the voice of Justin Strauss to Boys’ Shorts' musical world. A certified icon of club culture, spinning from The Mudd Club to modern day DJ booths, Strauss’s generation spanning experience of nightlife leans into the fundamentals of human connection and the pleasure of musical discovery, wrapped in irresistible chug.

Another transformative figure in club music, Fischerspooner’s own Casey Spooner dips into French for the Motorik cyber sleaze of ‘MECANIMAUX’, their own vocals pitching up and down with playful EBM abandon. ‘Montage’ offers a different kind of composition, conjuring an ecstatic club banger that finds inspiration in nineties indie rock motifs alongside the rave scene, while ‘Run’ promises to blow out sound systems before its weighty electro bassline succumbs to waves of glistening synths.

Such bombast into beauty perfectly sets up the record’s blissful conclusion; ‘The Stars Are Out For You’ is electro-pop so delicate as to heal aching feet (and mend broken hearts), while offering the final tender moments of the album as a form of tribute on ‘Untitled (For Mitsi)’. It’s a thoughtful ending to a thrilling trip through a shared passion for electronic and pop music in all its glorious potential. What does it take to make these men happy? It’s a pleasure to find out.

Tony Njoku returns with All Our Knives Are Always Sharp, a sonically expansive and emotionally charged second album that brings together a remarkable cast of black British voices. Featuring powerful collaborations with Tricky, GAIKA, Ghostpoet, Coby Sey, James Massiah Space Afrika and Labi Junior, the record serves as a landmark moment for Njoku, a culmination of both the singular musical style and nuanced, socially-engaged storytelling he’s been crafting throughout his career.

Rooted in themes of spiritual preparedness, cultural resistance and emotional clarity, the album unfolds through Njoku’s signature blend of electronic abstraction, falsetto-led songwriting and cinematic composition. It’s a work that cuts deep. Philosophical, political and personal, each guest brings a vital new layer to the conversation.





“ALL OUR KNIVES….” will be the first release on Tony’s new imprint ‘Studio Njoku’, which Tony says will serve as a space to facilitate his collaborations with his wider creative community. In addition the album will be pressed on heavyweight 180g vinyl limited-edition, with 300 copies worldwide. It will be the first run of physical production for Studio Njoku

Shall Not Fade welcomes Pugilist for SNF140 "Maternal".

If you don't already know (and love!) Pugilist's prolific output, you need to get to know! The Naarm/Melbourne based DJ, producer and Rinse resident has released on Martyn's 3024, Melbourne's killer Modern Hypnosis, Silent Era's Of Paradise, Samurai, Rupture, ZamZam, J:Kenzo's Artikal, Sub Basics' Temple of Sound, Whities/AD93, Al Wooton's Trule, Banoffee Pies, Best Intentions and now his own buy on sight Ruff Kutz imprint.

'Maternal' is four blissey dubwise house blurring cuts. Embracing, medicinal, lush & corrective. Vibrations for heads and feet.

'Title track 'Maternal' is deep grooving infectious and honeyed house. Hypnotic, pulsating with head-meltingly warm padwork. 'Bona Fide' sees Pugilist team up with UK duo Mystic State. Drums sidestep with jazz swing while graceful piano and an ensemble of pads are topped with an introspective vocal sample dialing for your subconscious. The B1 'Anomaly' is a stepper - FWD charging drums backed with sub low pulses all brought together by trumpet echoes and woozy melodics. Finally comes 'Marigold', a soulful jungle excursion > early hours business, caressed nostalgic percussion, brushed rhythms, fleeting guitar licks and undulating vibes.

Die XKatedral Anthology Series III ist die dritte Ausgabe einer Reihe von Archivveröffentlichungen, die Musik von Komponisten zeigen, die sich mit langsam sich entwickelnder harmonischer und klanglicher Musik beschäftigen. Die hier vorgestellten Stücke konzentrieren sich auf die Verwendung von synthetischen und akustischen Klängen sowie auf algorithmische Komposition als Werkzeuge für präzises Arbeiten im Bereich der spektralen Erforschung. Dieses Doppel-Vinyl-Set erscheint anlässlich des zehnjährigen Jubiläums des Labels und enthält Werke aus den Jahren 2014 bis 2025. Es wird zusammen mit Neuauflagen der XKatedral Anthology Series I-II veröffentlicht. "My Falling Sinks" von Kali Malone ist eine sparsame, absteigende Melodie für justierte Orgel, Cello und Akustikgitarre mit Lucy Railton und Stephen OüfMalley. Das Stück ist eine kompositorische Skizze in septimaler reiner Stimmung, die 2021 während eines Aufenthalts in La Becque auf einer experimentellen Stimmorgel in La Temple de La Tour-de-Peilz entstanden ist. ,Empyrean Flare" von Maria W Horn wurde 2022 für ,The Dawn Chorus" der Choreografin Stina Nyberg komponiert. Dieses Stück nutzt die von Arvo Pärt entwickelte Tintinnabuli-Technik, um vier Supersaw-Oszillatoren in langsamen diatonischen Arpeggios zu animieren, die um eine Moll-Tonika-Dreiklang kreisen, und destabilisiert das harmonische Gerüst durch Glissandi und verstärkt die Summe seiner Teile durch analoge Bandsättigung. ,Tessellation" von David Granstrom wurde im Sommer 2017 mit generativen Synthesemethoden komponiert. Die musikalische Periodizität und harmonische Bewegung, die in dem Stück zu hören sind, entstehen durch feste synthetisierte Bandschleifen, die einen Raum zwischen gegensätzlichen Welten erkunden. "To Whoever Shall Inherit the Earth" ist das erste Solostück von Jessica Ekomane und entstand laut der Komponistin fast zufällig. Das Werk wurde vor einem Jahrzehnt spät in der Nacht aufgenommen und fängt einen flüchtigen, zerbrechlichen und unwiederholbaren Moment ein, der genau so festgehalten wurde, wie er sich ereignet hat. Smoking Mother von Stephen OüfMalley wurde für Gisele Vienneüfs Der Teich / LüfEtang von Robert Walser geschaffen. Es wurde 2018 während eines Aufenthalts im SMEM-Synthesearchiv in Freiburg komponiert und im August 2020 bei EMS produziert. Das Stück greift auf Werke von Zia Mohuiddin Dagar, Krzysztof Penderecki und Popol Vuh zurück und erkundet gleichzeitig die Wurzeln des Minimalismus. ,Att boja sjalarna" von Mats Erlandsson wurde 2018 komponiert und ist Teil von ,On Eternity", einer Sammlung von vier Texten und vier zehnminütigen Kassettenloops, die 2021 von Irrlicht Forlag als limitierte Box-Set-Edition veröffentlicht wurde. Dieses Werk enthält Darbietungen von Gaianeh Pilossian und Sara Fors, jeweils auf der Violine und mit Gesang. This will be my last piece for organ wurde 2025 von Theodor Kentros komponiert und nutzt Gruppen von Cluster-Oszillatoren durch resonante Rückkopplung, um die schwankenden Frequenzen zu synthetisieren, die beim Verstimmen einer Orgel im physischen Raum zu hören sind. "Fault Lines" wurde von Daniel M Karlsson mit generativen Methoden komponiert, wobei ein deterministischer und endlicher Output für diese Veröffentlichung festgelegt wurde. Dieses Stück enthält Gesangsdarbietungen von Sara Fors, Ansis B.ti. und Art.rs C.ukurs.

Regal delivers his first full EP on Backspin, marking a defining moment for the label he founded. More than just another release, the Forgotten Heroes EP captures the essence of Regal's vision: groovy, forward-moving techno that balances raw club energy with atmosphere, emotion and narrative.

The title track 'Forgotten Heroes' sets the EP in motion with a sense of controlled urgency. A rolling, slightly breaktinged groove pushes forward relentlessly, while an eerie, almost nostalgic synth melody hovers in the background, giving the track an emotional pull. 'Concentrate' shifts the focus inward_ bleeping motifs, tight claps and restless hihats circle around spoken fragments that feel like thoughts caught between the peak of the night and the quiet hours before sunrise.

On the B-side, 'Forte' accelerates into pure momentum: sharp, bleep-led sequences and forward pressure combine into a rush that feels like racing through the city at night. 'Soft Killer' deepens the mood with a darker, dominant edge, its stripped back power and razor-sharp sounds cutting clean through the mix. Closing track 'Wild Magic' offers a final release of tension, slowing the pace into a lighter, more house-leaning groove. Warm pads and a catchy, uplifting melody bring a sense of air and openness, letting the EP drift out on a hopeful, almost euphoric note.

Regal's comeback EP 'Forgotten Heroes' stands as a personal statement and a cornerstone release for Backspin. It's techno built on groove, contrast and character, made to leave a lasting impression on the dancefloor.

NOW That’s What I Call 70s Soul brings together 50 era-defining tracks from one of the most powerful decades in soul music, featuring classics from Motown legends, Philly Soul pioneers, smooth balladeers and funk innovators – all pressed across 3LPs on beautiful blue vinyl… Out April 24th!

LP1 opens with one of the decade’s most recognisable love songs: Al Green’s ‘Let’s Stay Together’, a US #1 and UK Top 10 hit that became his signature recording. It’s followed by Marvin Gaye’s ‘What’s Going On’, the socially conscious masterpiece and title track from his landmark 1971 album, and Diana Ross’ Ain’t No Mountain High Enough’, which topped the US chart and became her first solo #1. Stevie Wonder’s ‘Signed, Sealed, Delivered (I’m Yours)’ remains one of Motown’s most joyful recordings and comes before Commodores’ ‘Easy’ introducing Lionel Richie’s smooth ballad vocals. The side also includes Bill Withers’ timeless ‘Ain’t No Sunshine’, a Grammy-winning classic, and The Stylistics’ lush ballad ‘You Make Me Feel Brand New’, a UK Top 3 smash, before closing with Rose Royce’s beautiful ‘Wishing On A Star’, one of the most loved soul ballads of the era.

Flip the LP over and The Jackson 5’s ‘I Want You Back’ – the group’s explosive debut single opens the side. Smokey Robinson & The Miracles’ ‘The Tears Of A Clown’ became a UK #1 and is followed by The Supremes’ Nathan Jones’ showcasing the group’s evolving psychedelic-soul sound. Northern Soul classics from Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons with ‘The Night’, Chairmen Of The Board’s Top 3 smash ‘Give Me Just A Little More Time’ and The Trammps’ ‘Hold Back The Night’. The O’Jays’ joyous ‘Love Train’ leads to The Blackbyrds’ Walking In Rhythm’, before the side closes with the romantic classic ‘Always And Forever’ from Heatwave.

LP2 opens with The Temptations’ epic ‘Papa Was A Rollin’ Stone’, a Grammy-winning US #1 remains one of the most stunning recordings from the Motown catalogue, is followed by Isaac Hayes’ ‘Theme From “Shaft”’, an Academy Award-winner and a US #1 smash. More funk follows from Ike & Tina Turner, James Brown with one of his key tracks ‘Get Up (I Feel Like Being A) Sex Machine’, Edwin Starr’s powerful anti-Vietnam protest song ‘War’, and Sly & The Family Stone’s hugely influential ‘Family Affair’. The Delfonics’ sublime ‘Didn’t I (Blow Your Mind This Time)’ comes ahead of Billy Paul’s timeless ‘Me And Mrs. Jones’ which closes the side…the other side begins with the 1977 #1 from The Floaters with ‘Float On’, before the breathtaking vocals of Minnie Riperton on ‘Lovin’ You’. The Isley Brothers’ Summer Breeze’ and William DeVaughn’s ‘Be Thankful For What You Got’ have become enduring classics and are followed by a run of ‘80s pop-chart crossover hits completing LP2 from Detroit Emeralds, The Moments Raydio and The Tymes’ #1 ‘Ms. Grace’.

LP3 opens with the unmistakable voice of Barry White and his US #1 hit ‘Can’t Get Enough Of Your Love, Babe’, before Aretha Franklin’s ‘Until You Come Back To Me (That’s What I’m Gonna Do)’, delivers one of her smoothest performances. Al Green’s ‘Tired Of Being Alone’ and Gladys Knight & The Pips’ ‘Midnight Train To Georgia’ are followed by minimalist soul classic ‘Why Can’t We Live Together’ from Timmy Thomas, and the side closes with a trio of defining ballads:- George Benson’s ‘The Greatest Love Of All’ Diana Ross’ ‘Theme From Mahogany (Do You Know Where You’re Going To)’ and The Jackson 5’s ‘I’ll Be There’, their biggest hit…while over on the final side…Freda Payne’s #1 ‘Band Of Gold’, opens alongside Ann Peebles’ influential and much covered ‘I Can’t Stand The Rain’.Marvin Gaye’s sensual ‘Let’s Get It On’ became another US #1, while Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes featuring Teddy Pendergrass deliver the contemporary standard ‘If You Don’t Know Me By Now’. Three massive UK #1s are next…The Stylistics with ‘Can’t Give You Anything (But My Love)’, The Three Degrees’ peerless ‘When Will I See You Again’ and Deniece Williams’ ‘Free’. This amazing collection closes with two timeless ballads: Earth, Wind & Fire’s ‘After The Love Has Gone’, a Grammy-winning classic, along with ‘Three Times A Lady’, a huge worldwide #1 for the Commodores.


NOW That’s What I Call 70s Soul, 50 defining tracks from one of music’s greatest decades. Out April 24th.

Chronicle continues his journey through the cosmos on Spatial bringing a stunning array of inspired atmospheric bliss with Aqua Pura. A1 - Pure Alchemy Chronicle opens his latest EP for Spatial with a sprightly track, introduced with purposeful synthwork, echoing effects and a wonderful 808 bassline reminiscent of the late 90's Progression Sessions era. Energetic, layered breaks drive and build throughout Pure Alchemy with joyous vigor, while a cluster of subtle melodies intertwine across a varied and memorable mix from the label regular. A2 - Endless Ocean Next up Chronicle treats us to an amazing array of atmospheric synthwork with Endless Ocean, notes yoyoing across the soundscape through a gorgeous intro. Flecked with shimmering, buoyant melodies and bringing an immediate injection of pace, the breaks drop delivering a driving, distinctively head-nodding energy punctuated by a blippy micro melody and suitably deep bass. AA1 - Shared Consciousness Opening with a playful intro featuring subtle hi hats, twisted bells and a classic film sample, Chronicle deftly juggles excitable effects with his inimitable cheery atmospheric style before a real feast for the ears and the feet arrives - breaks reminiscent of those long lost nights at Shepherd's Bush in 1998 bring an essential hypnotic energy to a track simply dripping with style and rhythm. AA2 - Water World Straight into the action with crisp two-step breaks, Water World needs no introduction as a myriad of atmospheric effects, samples and quirky melodies seize your attention for a decidedly dancefloor-friendly track for 160bpm heads. Beautiful breakdowns play their part as well as the subtle yet room-filling 808 bass, rumbling persistently beneath another remarkable track from one of Bristol's finest.

Getreu seinem Namen ,Extraordinary" erweitert Gareth Donkins zweites Album die Bandbreite seines virtuosen Soul-Pop-Songwritings nicht nur auf akustischer Ebene, sondern auch auf einer zutiefst persönlichen Ebene. Ein Schritt weiser und selbstbewusster, frisch aus einem Feature auf dem neuen Album von De La Soul, lässt der in London lebende Singer-Songwriter und Produzent vergangene Konstrukte hinter sich, um die Gegenwart mit seinem bisher ausgereiftesten, umfangreichsten und beeindruckendsten Werk zu feiern, das mit verspieltem Charisma und modernem Glanz an Disco-, R&B- und Funk-Größen anknüpft. Er sagt: ,Bei ,Extraordinary` geht es darum, sein Leben selbst in die Hand zu nehmen, neue Erfahrungen und Abenteuer anzunehmen." Donkins bahnbrechendes Debütalbum ,Welcome Home" aus dem Jahr 2023 fand von BBC Radio bis Billboard (,ein Soul-Genie") großen Anklang und brachte ihn zum ersten Mal zum SXSW. Dennoch war die Saison von Rückschlägen und Herzschmerz geprägt. Zunächst streckte er seine Hände nach der Fantasie aus mit der kathartischen Suite Escape EP. Dann, mit klarem Kopf, engagierte er ein Traumensemble, um seine nächste Vision zu verwirklichen, darunter ESME, Kiefer, UHMEER, Shaan Ramaprasad und Howard Lawrence von Disclosure . Donkin hat sich einen Namen als Old Soul gemacht, als Ein-Mann-Band in der Tradition von Prince und Stevie Wonder, der oft in den sozialen Medien zu sehen ist, wie er mit verblüffender Leichtigkeit Songs zusammenstellt. Wie seine früheren Werke fängt auch ,Extraordinary" dieses unbestreitbare Talent und seinen Charme ein. Was das Album auszeichnet, ist die Weite, in der diese Tugenden zum Tragen kommen. ,Es klingt einfach größer, aktueller", fügt er hinzu. Von vereinenden Hymnen bis hin zu dramatischen Erklärungen entfaltet Donkin eine Art von Optimismus, der nur durch harte Arbeit an sich selbst entstehen kann.

Wondrous ethereal folk songs by a reclusive pen pal of Maxine Funke, first introduced to A Colourful Storm by Funke while sharing music and ideas during her Australian tour. Ghost faced pansies. A moth coloured cat. Cauliflowers, cabbages undying. I hear the spine of the dictionary crack. Is what they call a creature who only wakes at dusk. And turning backs. My afternoon has turned pitch black. For a trace. For a shape. I wipe the steam from the window like the bloom on a grape. Ghost faced pansies. A moth coloured cat. Light of stars long since died.

Bahamadia’s 1996 debut album Kollage is rightly regarded as one of the greatest rap albums of the 1990s. For the first time ever, Be With present the definitive double LP version of this eternal hip-hop classic, including the legendary "Path To Rhythm" which never appeared on the original LP or on vinyl, anywhere. An indelible VIBE from start-to-finish, Kollage presents Bahamadia's swirling rhymes delivered with an irresistibly butter flow and razor-sharp assuredness over a steady slew of smoothed-out, jazzed-up, blunted beats. Achingly cool and effortlessly funky throughout, it's an absolute must for true 90s hip-hop fanatics.

The entire Kollage project was recorded at D&D Studios and the ties to Gang Starr are keenly felt, with DJ Premier producing five tracks in addition to the killer songs Guru had already produced with her. Working with the cream of the mid-90s East Coast sound, Kollage is, accordingly, a record that demonstrates a varied musical taste with disparate influences, as Bahamadia has previously stated: “The title Kollage was a reflection of my state of mind. I first got interested in music from playing my parents’ and grandparents’ records, as well what I heard on the radio. I wanted Kollage to reflect that diversity both lyrically and sonically."

With intelligent, poetic lyricism and a laconic verbal style bursting with both warm texture and deceptive energy, Bahamadia’s flow was as inspired by Aretha and Nancy Wilson as it was Q-Tip, Schoolly D and Lady B. Swaggering out the gate, "WordPlay" finds Bahamadia confidently showcasing her considerable old-school battle-rhyme skills over a Guru beat that utilises an infectiously bouncy bassline with splashes of sultry jazz horns and a Jeru vocal snatch for the hook. Up next, the quietly shimmering and ruggedly beautiful "Spontaneity" is one of the most alluring on the record, Da Beatminerz crafting a brilliantly soulful and jazzy soundscape for Bahamadia's effortless vocals to float across. It's followed by "Rugged Ruff", where the rapper carefully constructs a swift off-beat flow over Premier's raw jazzy fire.

With smooth spacey synth vibes overseen by former Geto Boys producer N.O. Joe, "I Confess" is, without question, a fly love song and soothing (p)-funk groove. "UKNOWHOWWEDU" is an airy, chilled tribute to her hometown. Produced by Ski Beatz & DJ Redhanded, it rides a gloriously mellow break. It's a true Philly anthem, shouting out a who’s who of the entire city’s scene. Early banger "Total Wreck" follows, presenting a murky Guru instrumental elevated by jazzy horns. Bahamadia invokes the title's suggestion, firing her brilliant bars more aggressively than we’re accustomed to. More Beatminerz-brilliance comes in the way of "Innovation", an opportunity for the MC to invoke Freestyle Fellowship in her forward-thinking and literary verses. "Da Jawn" features hometown buddies The Roots, with Black Thought gliding into a back-and-forth with Bahamadia over ?uestlove’s warm, snapping percussion. With the strut club banger "True Honey Buns (Dat Freak Sh*t)", DJ Premier provides some laidback vibrant boom bap for Bahamadia to share a wild, cautionary tale about a night out with her girl, Kia.

Fan favourite "3 Tha Hard Way" is a hypnotically sinister cut, with Bahamadia, K-Swift and Mecca Star taking star turns to coast over DJ Premier’s raw beat whilst the tender "Biggest Part Of Me" is a heartfelt stunner dedicated to her son. Incredibly, only the European and Japanese CD versions of Kollage was released with the brilliantly breezy “Path To Rhythm”, featuring Ursula Rucker. Whilst ostensibly a "bonus track", it's anything but, to our ears. Very much in sonic conversation with KRS-One's stretched-out sleeper classic "Higher Level", it's absolutely essential so we had to include it, appearing on wax for the first time here, exclusively. Quite a coup.

Somewhat predictably, whilst Kollage was released to significant critical acclaim, it suffered from disappointing sales. In the intervening years - and for far too long - it was a criminally underrated record, an increasingly hidden gem. We hope this double LP reissue - which looks and sounds amazing - will go some way to correct this. This 2024 Be With double LP re-issue has been mastered for vinyl by Simon Francis, cut by Cicely Balston and pressed at Record Industry. It's too bold and beautiful to remain overlooked and underserved.

Julia Cumming’s solo debut Julia opens with an unadorned declaration of independence: her voice and a piano uniting for a liberating proclamation of self that rejects doubt, misogyny, and the notion of being “too much.” Julia unlocks a creative door years in the making for the New York–born multi-instrumentalist and Sunflower Bean bassist, culminating after nearly two decades of bands, releases, labels, and relentless touring. As Sunflower Bean’s Headful of Sugar era ended in 2023, Cumming decamped to Los Angeles, where a two-year, deeply healing collaboration with producer Brian Robert Jones — her “second artistic puberty” — took shape. Drawing freely from formative influences: Burt Bacharach, Carole King, Joni Mitchell, Carly Simon, and Brian Wilson. Julia emerges as a joyful, anti-cool coming-out: a celebration of the dorks, the misfits, and the enduring truth of being enough.

Julia Cumming’s solo debut Julia opens with an unadorned declaration of independence: her voice and a piano uniting for a liberating proclamation of self that rejects doubt, misogyny, and the notion of being “too much.” Julia unlocks a creative door years in the making for the New York–born multi-instrumentalist and Sunflower Bean bassist, culminating after nearly two decades of bands, releases, labels, and relentless touring. As Sunflower Bean’s Headful of Sugar era ended in 2023, Cumming decamped to Los Angeles, where a two-year, deeply healing collaboration with producer Brian Robert Jones — her “second artistic puberty” — took shape. Drawing freely from formative influences: Burt Bacharach, Carole King, Joni Mitchell, Carly Simon, and Brian Wilson. Julia emerges as a joyful, anti-cool coming-out: a celebration of the dorks, the misfits, and the enduring truth of being enough.

Atjazz presents his long-awaited 27-track long player "Starbase 17" — an epic odyssey through song and sound, offering a rich tapestry of styles that draws listeners into a wondrous sonic realm where rhythm, harmony, and imagination intertwine.

Taking inspiration from his extensive body of work, Martin "Atjazz" Iveson fuses his signature deep musicality with cutting-edge production to reach new creative heights. This time, he brings an exceptional ensemble of world-renowned collaborators aboard his cosmic vessel, each adding their own distinct brilliance to the voyage

Together, this stellar lineup consisting of Fred Everything, Nathan Haines, Sio, Karizma, LyricL, Peacey, Pete Simpson, OVEOUS, Charles Webster, Kaidi Tatham, Clyde Beats, Natasha Watts, Omar, Max Beesley, Josh Milan, Rona Ray, Osunlade, and Clara Hill joins Atjazz on a journey through sound, space, and emotion — where each track is a world of its own, yet all are united by a shared creative vision and boundless imagination.

London's PRESTi lands on Shall Not Fade's Time is Now imprint with four dancefloor weapons that feel like they forked from the hardcore continuum at the point El-B, Horsepower and Artwork's dark garage was becoming proto dubstep.

EP title Track 'As We Move' is everything that is special about that time; bassweight, space and rudeboy swing. On "Big Ting" PRESTi reaches for more classic UKG groove but fuses it with yet more spacious wobbling low end precision. "Baile Pulse" pivots... channeling in grimey pulse basslines and 4/4 baile funk techno this time. "Get Back" is just the fait accompli for a producer clearly enjoying such fertile ground, a peak time speed garage warper ready to cause damage at any function.

Essential dancefloor gear from a producer growing tall and widening the cracks.