Camp Trash seemingly burst out of nowhere with their debut EP Downtiming at the beginning of 2021, armed with catchy riffs and infectious vo- cals that earwormed their way into your head and wouldn’t let go. It landed on several prominent playlists from NPR, Stereogum, and the cover/ feature track of Spotify’s official editorial list, ‘Fresh Finds- Rock’.
Vinyl now gone back to June. RIYL: Slowdive, DIIV, Electric Youth, The Cure, My Bloody Valentine. Solo project of Los Angeles based Matthew Doty (ex-Saxon Shore). For Matthew Doty, Deserta has always been about exploring a sonic universe that allows him to express a kaleidoscope of emotions, without having to say much at all. Through a patchwork of reverb-tinged textures – drone guitars, lingering synths and driving percussion – the Los Angeles-based singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist weaves together stories of care, frustration and catharsis that ultimately stretch to a gentle resolve. On new album Every Moment, Everything You Need, Doty chronicles the kind of year we all fear, full of uncertainty, tension and sustained pressure, and transforms it into a celebration of perseverance. It’s an essential reminder that we have the power to shape the stories we tell. The pandemic meant that Doty had to give up his studio and downsize a lot of his gear and instead, carve out a space in his two-bedroom apartment to craft the next chapter of Deserta. Sharing the space with his wife and son, Doty and his partner are also essential healthcare workers, which meant the couple would often have to tag-team childcare, along with 13-hour shifts in PPE and people constantly calling with questions about the ever changing guidelines and protocols. Once the blueprint for Every Moment, Everything You Need was set, Doty reached out to a number of collaborators to stitch together his vision for the sonic landscape. James McAlister (Sufjan Stevens, The National, Taylor Swift) came onboard to perform and record drums, while Caroline Lufkin (Mice Parade) wrote and performed vocals on the ethereal “Where Did You Go.” Elsewhere, the LP was mixed by Dave Fridmann (Tame Impala, Mogwai, Interpol), with Beach House and Slowdive producer Chris Coady engineering and co-producing, making this the first time Fridmann and Coady had worked together on a project. While the vocals are more prominent than Deserta’s previous albums, it’s their amalgamation with the instrumental aspects that secures Every Moment, Everything You Need as Deserta’s most confident and assured release to date. An affecting emotional candor teamed with persistent riffs and tenacious rhythms sees Doty unafraid to dive deeper; an unrestrained approach that ushers in a lustrous purging of agitation and anxiety. Showcasing those dark, exhaustive thoughts through crucial swells and looped, electronic soundscapes, it’s an LP that’s infinitely layered, with something new to discover with each and every enchanting listen.
Four years in making, Voyeurs In the Dark is Toronto artist Barzin’s fifth studio album. That the album is more cinematic in its scope and conceptual in feel than his previous studio albums can be attributed to the time he spent over the past several years composing the soundtrack for the independent film, Viewfinder. Voyeurs In the Dark retains that cinematic quality, and at the same time infuses the music with elements taken from Jazz, electronica, rock and pop. Having primarily explored the quiet side pop and folk in his previous four albums, Barzin has expanded his musical palate, broadening his sound towards a more an experimental direction, while still retaining his preoccupation with exploring the internal landscape. The uniformity of sound that characterized the previous albums has been abandoned for the expression of differing aspects of the self that at times hold opposing views and desires. This is best represented in the image chosen for the cover of the album, which depicts three figures in one body. The album seems to be the expression of not one unified self, but the various aspects of the self. Voyeurs In the Dark sees the artist plot a seductive, contemplative route through city haze, shuttling between graceful glimmering interludes, with wonderfully atmospheric songs at every stop. From opener Voyeurs In the Dark’s first guitar strums and the fizz of its drum machine, the record envelopes itself in a glorious shadow, as shown in the slow waltz of I Don’t Want To Sober Up, dancing around its own swirling guitar chords. On Watching, Barzin plunges himself deeper into a wash of cyclic bass, guitar and synth riffs, as the gloom grooves into light. It’s Never Too Late To Lose Your Life has a much more affirming and urgent tone, shade turning into shapes and motion, while To Be Missed In the End builds its own smoke in a cloud of saxophone and sparse guitar notes, closing out a record full to the brim with scatterbrain beauty and eclectic dusk. Voyeurs In the Dark will be released worldwide on Monotreme Records on May 6th on CD and limited edition180 g black vinyl LP with printed inner discobag and digital download card. Press highlights so far: Video premiere and feature interview on Rumore.IT. Airplay on BBC 6Music, Amazing Radio (UK and US), Glastonbury FM, Shoreditch Radio, Indie Music Discovery, Listen to Discover, Norfolk Radio. Press coverage in V13, Skope, Whisperin and Hollerin, Fame Magazine, High Violet, Indie Midlands, Beehive Candy, Music Won’t Save you. Feature confirmed for Wonderland Magazine. PUBLICITY - UK and North America press and radio Cannonball PR. Europe Five Roses Press
THE DEBUT STUDIO ALBUM OF EERIE DEATH/DOOM METAL DEPRAVITY
FROM GREG WILKINSON & CHRIS REIFERT OF US GORELORDS,
AUTOPSY
Static Abyss is the new mouthpiece for a rotten age consisting of the duo of Greg
Wilkinson (Guitars/ bass) & Chris Reifert (drums/ vocals), both members of
legendary American masters of sickness Autopsy, with Greg (also of cult act
Deathgrave) recently welcomed as new bass player for the long-running US act's
next studio opus & beyond.
Static Abyss' debut studio album, 'Labyrinth of Veins', presents an unnerving,
multi-layered eerie concoction of dirty doom & death, including themes exploring
the echoes of insanity manifested through human existence. The result, a sinister
onslaught of at times slow & bludgeoning brutal metal whilst at others whipped
into a storm of chaotic vile hysterics. The spirit of Autopsy is at times present in
the truly titanic riffs swathed in chilling atmospheric guitar leads, whilst Chris'
seemingly bottomless pit of morbid inspiration from the dark & twisted corners of
life permeate the release with his highly distinguishable delivery to further the
descent into madness.
'Labyrinth of Veins' was recorded at Earhammer Studios in Oakland, CA, & Great
American Music Hall, with engineering, mixing & mastering overseen by Greg
himself. Cover art appears courtesy of All Things Rotten.
Shadow Kingdom Records is proud to present Tyrant 'Too Late To Pray on
Bloody Grave colored vinyl
In the 80's they were on the classic Metal Blade Records!
Released two years after "Legions of the Dead", this album is Tyrant's second full
length. Bursting of brilliant, heavy/ power metal riffs, mixed with some slower
cuts; it has a totally unique sound that will draw you back again and again.
Highlights of the record are the fist- pumping heavy metal anthems such as
""Valley of Death"" and the crushing ""Eve of Destruction"". With Glen May's cryptic
screams and Rocky Rockwell's heavy Sabbath influences, you too will be drawn in
this epic heavy metal gem!"
International musicgroup SexJudas feat.Ricky returns to Optimo Music this Winter with a new album: Night Songs. The eight track LP draws inspiration from the night and features Malian percussionist Sidiki Camara,jazz clarinetist Andreas Røysum and noise rocker Linn Nystadnes. Making their own blend of disco, post punk and African music.
“It’s the return of Sex Judas feat.Ricky, this time as a six piece in fully fledged band mode. We’re here to take you on a journey through suburban psychedelia, forming our own brew of postpunk, disco and electronic, as well as traditional music from Mali. Night Songs is a meditation on the night time. The excess, the dreams, the highs and lows of night time activity.”-Sex Judas feat. Ricky.
“Black Cat In A Black Room” begins proceedings, taking the form of a psychedelic six-minute offering packed full of tribal drums and desert-like percussion. “A Man Without Purpose” comes next with its African-inspired vocal, before “Hab Mich Lieb” soon arrives. The six-minute cut is hypnotic, trippy and relaxing all in one, as is “Slow Down” feat. Linn Nystadnes. Taking on more of a funk-rock feel, there’s plenty of groove in the guitar-laced bassline, whilst in “Cold Clementine”, Sex Judas tells the sad tale of rave casualty over a dark and funky groove.
We’re taken down a spiritual path on The Light You Saw Was Not For Real, as Andreas Røysum’s clarinet solos sit underneath shamanic vocal offerings that open neatly into The Night Within The Night. Aslow-burning cut, riffs and hats serenade us before When You Wake Up Everything Will Be Fine brings proceedings to a close. Dream-like chords wrap us in a warm and glowing hue, with the harp-like sounds from Sidiki’s Ngoni, leaving us in a starry-eyed state to finish.
The calming nature of the album is a nod to the band’s influences: they were inspired by the great meditative records of the past, setting off on a musical trip that saw them record the whole release at legendary Norwegian studio Athletic Sound. This happened during lockdown and whilst the LP was never meant to be comment on the pandemic, there remains a brooding intensity to each track because of it. Sex Judas feat. Ricky originally began life as the solo project of Tore Gjedrem (from electronic duo Ost & Kjex), but has since grown into a steady six piece involving the talents of Sidiki Camara (djembe/ngoni/balafon), Ivar Winther (guitar/keys), Tracee Meyn (vocals), Tore Brevik (drums/percussion) and Kristian Edvardsen (bass). Centre stage is also illustrator and comic artist Sindre Goksøyr, this time portraying each character as they paddle their way into the sunset and uncharted territories.
Malian-born, Norwegian-based percussionist Sidiki Camara has played a pivotal role in promoting “Night Songs” to world music circles. Having lived in Norway since 2006, he has helped bring WestAfrican rhythms into the country’s wider jazz scene.
From the shadows of Slovenia, Shadow Universe is an instrumental music project, creating breathtaking cinematic soundscapes from post-rock, neoclassical/ambient and post-metal elements. Their third album, Subtle Realms, Subtle Worlds is released on 11 March 2022 worldwide on Monotreme Records. Formed in 2017 by Peter Dimnik and Žan Šebrek, Shadow Universe merge contrasting textures of shimmering ambient soundscapes and heavy anxious darkness to portray the diversity of nature and life on earth and beyond. Subtle Realms, Subtle Worlds: Every person experiences the world differently, which puts us into our own unique bubbles, subtle worlds. Subtle Realms, Subtle Worlds finds the band turning their songs into living, breathing ecosystems, carefully dissecting every moment of peace and chaos alike. The album sees the building particles of the universe as separate worlds, with their own story, perception, rules and individual inner realm. Opening track Organism, which portrays the coherence of forming organisms; from a vast universe itself down to the tiniest building particles of it, sets the tone with its slow, tense build to crushing, exhilarating peaks. Don’t Look at It and You’ll See It evokes free-flowing spontaneity through beautiful cascading piano and emotive violin, towering guitars, and soaring synths. Masterfully harnessing both the quiet and the loud, Hymn for the Giants glorifies our almighty and precious trees, with moments of calm cut apart by vast swathes of brutal, yet considered, cacophony. Losing Home’s portentous, droning synths and trumpet ratchet up the suspense, while on Antares Goes Supernova the band carve out layer upon layer of affirming and effecting riffs, each one more powerful than the last. Season of Eternal Maze wraps up the album with a meditative piano and harmonium, wide guitar driven melodies and guides you to your inner maze.
Oh Yeah" - Charles Mingus (p, voc); Booker Ervin (ts); Roland Kirk (fl, ts, siren, manzello, stritch); Jimmy Knepper (tb); Doug Watkins (b); Dannie Richmond.
Commenting on this album in 1962, Billboard magazine wrote: »He seems to be everywhere, everywhere that is but on his usual instrument«. Charles Mingus, one of the most impressive musicians in the history of jazz, doesn’t play a single note on the bass for a change, but leads the band from his (blues-)piano – the instrument that he always used for composing. He hits the keys, he sings the blues, he shouts and he encourages – apparently Mingus really found the need to express himself loudly in this album. (Doug Watkins stood in for him on the contrabass.) "Oh Yeah" is definitely Mingus’s most powerful and passionate album. He calls on two hot, intensive saxophonists – Roland Kirk and Booker Ervin – as well as Jimmy Knepper on the trombone. Kirk is the main soloist, but all three wind-players deliver expressive improvisations, carrying out a non-stop dialogue with one another, and pushing one other to achieve maximum energy. The music is wild and ecstatic, but it’s not free jazz, remaining – as it does – grounded in blues and gospel. "Hog Callin’ Blues" is an enthralling shuffle with a wealth of riffs, "Devil Woman" a clever slow blues with inventive wind figures. "Ecclusiastics", with its constant change of rhythm and expression alternating between gospel and blues has the most complex form. Blues has always been a part of a black church service, said Mingus. "Eat That Chicken" (a homage to Fats Waller and his favourite food) even plays around with an old-time, Dixie feeling. Humour is never far away. Even in the atomic bomb song (this too, a sort of churchy blues) one hears the words: »Don’t let ’em drop it! Stop it! Be-bop it!«
First and foremost, deathcrash approached the task of putting together their debut album as music lovers. To all four members, a good album seemed to stamp out periods of their life, capturing a time, a feeling, a mood. This was their approach when trying to make whole two-years-worth of fragmented songwriting. Their songs may differ from each other in certain ways, but they manage to conjure similar feelings. ‘Return’ captures many of the difficult moments of the last couple years in the band members’ personal lives and yet, as a whole its complexity emerges as a beautiful and hopeful message. Amongst other things, writing the album was a cathartic process for the band, and so it can be for the listener too. The first parts of ‘Return’ came from quite a dark and jaded place. To get better can be a path marred by self-sabotage and a desire to hide. It can be easier to have no faith in something new, and rely on the comfort of an old feeling, even if it hurts. There is a reassurance in pain, a familiarity in its narrative. Return asks when things heal, where does the wound go? deathcrash recorded Return with their close friend and producer Ric James, who they’ve worked with since their early recordings. The album was recorded live, with an emphasis on dynamics, bringing together tense intimacy with atmospheric vastness. The members brought things to light they previously hadn’t, and shared words, riffs, ideas and thoughts for the first time. Each band member is able to see something that the others can’t, and write something unique. For deathcrash that is where the magic of making the album happens, when it clicks for everyone. As the album took form, a lot went on, and in many ways deathcrash got back in touch with a newer, more open feeling, sometimes happy, sometimes fearful. Something good returned that had previously been lost, and this is captured on the album. The album aims not to romanticise a dark place however, being equally about hope and renewal.
On his aptly-titled Mascot Records’ debut, What Happens Next, roots singer-songwriter and guitarist Davy Knowles boldly steps forward with timeless and cohesive songwriting; sleek modern production; and a lyrical, play-for-the-song guitar approach informed from soul, folk, rock, and blues. The 12-song album is just as influenced by The Black Keys, Fantastic Negrito, Gary Clark Jr., as it is Muddy Waters, Junior Kimbrough, and R.L. Burnside. It is a cohesive body of work rather than a collection of disparate songs. On What Happens Next, Knowles’s poetic songwriting, and his soulfully emotive singing steal the show. The 12-song body of work offers forth a peaks-and-valleys album experience winding through brawny riffs, jazzy blues balladry, and vintage soul before concluding with one of Knowles’s most personal songs released to date. Throughout it all, his guitar playing is brilliantly understated, his rhythm work is deft and dynamic—beefy on the rockers, and subtly supportive on the slower tunes—and his leads are economical but feature juicy blues bends and thick as molasses lead guitar tones."What Happens Next" is released on CD and digitally on October 22, 2021 and on vinyl on December 3, 2021 via Mascot Label Group/Provogue Records.
Emerging like and ornate relic, Austin-based power trio Grivo combine
slow, methodical hooks and warm tube amplifers to artfully re-establish
the line between heavy guitars and downtempo pop
Grivo's tones and effects are utilised as active compositional elements, crafting
and pacing their infectious riffs to allow the saturated guitars and bruising lowend to fully bloom. Within the tidal sound waves and bleak timbre, Grivo forges a
distinctive personal connection that challenges the modern defnitions of doom
metal and shoegaze.Shipping on or around 28th January 2022.
Life is slowly but surely returning to “normal”. From festivals to clubs,
many countries have begun to allow cultural events to take place with an audience again. It feels great - if occasionally still unfamiliar - to
rediscover and experience the way we used to live, love and party.
Janefondas’ new release “French love” is the perfect dancefloor weapon for this year’s summer season. This disco-house tune is driven by optimistic, uplifting vibes and funky guitar riffs. Strings full of desire and a touch of melancholy put smiles on faces whenever and wherever it gets played. Fortunea Records is proud to contribute this little treasure to the summer season of 2021.
"Ode To David”, the B-side track, rolls out darker vibes. It´s a thrilling
house tune that combines raw, crunchy disco-loop filter madness and
acid elements that let you forget the sorrow of the past.
Have fun this summer, be respectful, and stay safe.
Yours truly, Fortunea Records team.
This Release is limited to 300 vinyl copies.
Strictly no repress!
Bossk are a metallic post-everything band from Ashford, Kent, England. In many ways all of us are migrating. To who, or from, is unique to the individual. "Migration" from Bossk is a soundtrack to that herculean journey we all take. Opener "White Stork" is a haunting swirl of analog synth noise and guitars, painting an ominous and fantastic atmosphere. "Menhir" then kicks open the door as a sludge-metal giant of a track, featuring guest vocalist Johannes Persson of Cult Of Luna. Machine-like "Iter" serves as an otherworldly interlude, a pathway to the post-metal masterpiece "HTV-3". Featuring Palm Reader vocalist Josh Mckeown, the song conjures the spirit of Tool and even late-era Faith No More in its sonic twists and turns. Experimental "Kibo" offers a deeper glimpse before fading into the horizon. "Lira" then emerges, a towering giant of a song (nearly 10 minutes in length) that contains one of their most unforgettable riffs to date. All of this leads to the epic "Unberth". A beautiful slow-build closer that brings to mind Pink Floyd in its vast sonic expanse.
Whether it be on the banks of the Mississippi River or deep in the heart of the English countryside, rock 'n' roll lives, breathes, and burns on the outskirts. Hailing from Rome, GA, at the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, The Georgia Thunderbolts rise up with a scorching signature style steeped in soulful southern swagger. On, Can We Get A Witness, their full-length debut for Mascot Records, the quintet—TJ Lyle vocals, harp, piano, Riley Couzzourt [guitar], Logan Tolbert [guitar], Zach Everett [bass, keys], and Bristol Perry [drums]—conjure a tried-and-true spirit through a fresh fire.
“We all grew up on rock music,” Riley says. “Rock ‘n’ roll comes back around, but longevity depends on grinding it out. That’s what we want to do. We try to put in the work our favorite bands did. If I could think of three words to describe us, they would be ‘Hardworking, Determined, and Humble’.”
Gigging tirelessly, they cut their teeth by playing with Black Stone Cherry, The Kentucky Headhunters, Blackberry Smoke, Tyler Bryant & The Shakedown, Atlanta Rhythm Section, Molly Hatchet and The Cadillac Three. The band began when Bristol and Riley initially bonded over rock ‘n’ roll in high school. By sophomore year, they had a regular jam schedule, and eventually joined up Zack, TJ, and Logan to round out the group. They share a wide swath of inspirations, ranging from southern gospel to Hank Williams, Jr., Neil Young, Little Feet, Waylon Jennings, Ray Charles, Merle Haggard to the hard rock of Ozzy Osbourne, Audioslave, Bad Company and of course, The Allman Brothers & Lynyrd Skynyrd.
The band recorded at the iconic Barrick Recording Studio in Glasgow, KY, with producer Richard Young. The album comprises of thirteen undeniable anthems, beginning with opener “Take It Slow.” Distilling whisky-soaked riffs, wild harmonica, and pulse-pounding drums into a simmering groove, it struts out of the gate with confidence and charisma. “There’s a message to what we’re doing,” Bristol leaves off. “It’s okay to be yourself. If you’re going through hard times, the music will always be there. We’d love to remind everyone of that.” The Georgia Thunderbolts embody the blue-collar working man who has put their foot down on the accelerator towards the rock ‘n roll American dream.
White Vinyl
Returning to continue Shall Not Fade's Season Series with a second LP, Joe Newham serves up harmonious and glimmering jazz infusions under his Gavinco moniker. The Brighton-based producer saw success with his Dumont LP earlier this year, and fans will recognise his smooth composition immediately on Beriza.
"West Horizon" begins the record, an expansive slow burner with haunting vocals, leaving room for a club beat that sets the tone going forward. Field recordings feature prominently on the title track, a laid back style which evokes tropical heat and lazy evenings, easing you into "Savoy's" dance floor grooves complemented by syncopated hand percussion. Hints of sax and strings provide the ear candy on
"Momento", a gentle poolside jazz exploration. "Like This" is punchier, tight funk riffs contrasting discordant piano bits which swirl to an uptempo rhythm. "Creative Times" centres its flute melodies while the rumble of sub bass slowly swells into a perfect pairing of dance music and jazz. The closing track continues this energy.
Hypnotic sax solos and sparkling piano arps take the record to a hazey, housey end.
Blackpool based quartet Blanket release their 2nd full length album on October 8th via Music for Nations. 'Modern Escapism' takes the post rock blueprint of the band’s 2018 debut full length 'How To Let Go' and infuses it with reverberating waves of shoegaze eclecticism and sudden outbursts of savage metal. The record’s sonic palette takes the ethereal fluidity of Slowdive, the vicious down tuned riffs of Deftones and the epic euphoria of Mogwai and coalesced them together into something far more cohesive. A 10 track transparent orange LP.
Two years ago the Swedish band Mammoth Storm
debuted on Argonauta Records with the
impressive ‘Alruna’ album.
Now the label reissue the band’s cast-in-stone
doomy and very sought after debut mini album
‘Rite Of Ascension’, originally released on Napalm
Records back in 2014.
This 2021 edition is pressed on oxblood vinyl.
“The oppressive and filthy atmosphere provided by
these two tracks are in the vein of Electric Wizard
and Sleep. A psychedelic mix of stoner, sludge and
doom, with very heavy, slow, continuous and
down-tuned mantra-alike riffs.” - Metal Archives
Spirits Having Fun records are ones made from and for shows and spaces—arrangements rooted in a deeply collaborative process, that come to life through intuitive and locked-in live improvisation. Following their 2019 debut Auto-Portrait, Two finds the New York and Chicago based four-piece continuing to challenge ideas of what a rock band can be, pulling apart their musical experiences and reimagining them as kinetic compositions, equally studied but palpably organic.
Two is constructed around gut feelings and strong grooves, elastic rhythms and playful pacing. Its twelve songs expand, contract, and make sharp turns between melodies under singer-guitarist Katie McShane’s meditative lyrics. “Broken Cloud,” which was also released last year on a compilation in support of Chicago Community Jail Support, offers a glimpse into her reflections on the natural world: "A city grew out of the ground / to a mountain it's only a blur."
True to its name, the internal logic of the band is also just a lot of fun, built on trust and deep-rooted musical relationships. Before there was Spirits Having Fun, McShane, bassist Jesse Heasly, guitarist-vocalist Andrew Clinkman, and drummer Phil Sudderberg had performed together in various arrangements over the years. McShane, Heasly and Clinkman met in a specific corner of the Boston underground in 2013, a time when a scene had coalesced around students from local music conservatories frequently collaborating with punk bands and noise artists, exchanging ideas and warping musical worldviews. Heasly and Clinkman played together in Cowboy Band, making mutant, free jazz-inspired takes on old country tunes. When Clinkman moved to Chicago, Heasly and McShane played in experimental groups like EKP and Listening Woman; in Chicago, Clinkman met Sudderberg playing in projects like jazz scene fixture Ken Vandermark’s high-powered band Marker.
Spirits first came together as an attempt at a long-distance collaboration among friends in 2016, driven by the simple feeling of missing each other; they’d meet up for marathon weekends here and there to practice, playing small loops through dive bars and art spaces around the Midwest—just enough for McShane and Heasly to afford plane tickets back home. Being split between Chicago and New York forced the project into a deliberate pace. “We tried to take it slow and let it be what it was,” said McShane. That sense of patience unexpectedly prepared them for March of 2020, when their planned tours and the release of Two were indefinitely delayed.
Two was mostly recorded in the summer of 2019 with the help of omnipresent Chicago engineer Dave Vettraino and DPCD’s Alec Watson, whose contributions on organ, synths, and piano are laced throughout the record. The album reflects a synthesis of solitary and communal songwriting processes—each song drawing on fragments written by individuals, which McShane threaded together and shaped through her distinct compositional lens, making the songs whole before returning to them to the band to mature collectively. When composing, McShane writes first on the keyboard before adapting parts for guitars played by herself and Clinkman. Their dueling approaches to guitar are complementary: McShane, being a newer guitarist, brings a freshness to the project (“I'm just discovering the whole time,” she says) while Clinkman has been playing since childhood.
“There's a lot more collaboration on this record,” says Clinkman, “in terms of all of us letting stuff bloom a little bit more.” The record’s first single, “Hold The Phone” is a good example of this process—it started with a playful intro riff from Clinkman, a melody and bridge added by McShane, a wobbly outro groove added by Heasly, which Sudderberg brought to life. Another single, the dynamic “See a Sky,” written primarily by Heasly, underscores the rhythm section chemistry at play across the record, the song ebbing and flowing around Heasly and Sudderberg’s eclectic percussive palettes.
“Entropy Transfer Partners” is the only song on the record with lyrics by Clinkman, and the album’s most politically direct—a call for solidarity in the face of systemic failures, an acknowledgment of the shared material devastation caused by our country’s ongoing healthcare and housing crises: “These are not things we're experiencing individually. We struggle through them collectively. And we could actually declare, all of us, that it doesn't have to be this way, and fight and organize to ameliorate some of those conditions.” (“We won't work to create the shit you monetize, to run our lives,” they sing.)
From front to back, Two is an absorbing listen simply for its impressive range. But as the members explain themselves, the complexity of the record is about more than its intricate riffs, or how often they count out an odd time signature, but how they reject the notion of boxing the songs in, letting the melodies take on lives of their own. “Making music that feels alive is important to us,” says Clinkman. “Music feels most powerful to me when it deepens our sensation of feeling alive and connected to other humans. It’s so easy to feel worn down and isolated; that your life’s value is fixed to your productivity at your job, or the things that you have or don’t have. Making music that feels joyful and fun seems like one effective antidote to that feeling.”
New York City 4-piece deliver a modern blues rock masterclass on their feisty debut album.
“A timeless classic rock sound that revels in lean riffs and raw emotion.” – Afropunk
In an age where artistic merit is awarded to those who shout the loudest, Dakota Jones pride themselves on an unwavering ability to leave a lasting impression. Spearheaded by Tristan Carter-Jones fierce and unashamedly uncensored songwriting, the band’s fast-growing reputation as formidable live act has stamped Dakota Jones with the hell-hath-no-fury power of Chaka Khan, the wild spontaneity of Janis Joplin, and the honey-dripping sensuality of Marvin Gaye. Their debut album’s message of proud black heritage and triumphant queerness manifests itself in Carter-Jones’ ability to challenge norms of adulthood and femininity as she takes a deep dive into some of life’s most visceral emotions.
Tristan Carter-Jones: “I’m a black, queer woman expressing myself through love and music. Some folks still find that to be a transgressive act in and of itself. I work to fight that idea. I write a lot about my
Continued over…
sexuality and the ways in which I express it. Songs about sex and love bounce back and forth between songs about heartache, hangovers and self-medication, and the pleasure and pain of truly finding yourself. I don’t think we get to hear these things from a woman’s mouth as often as we should.”
Serving as an instant tone setter, the album opens with the line "Stretch marks from growing pains" with Carter-Jones lamenting the woes of adjusting to adulthood on lead single ‘Did It To Myself’ - her husky and commanding vocal instantly asserting its place in the spotlight. The atmosphere soon turns steamy on the flirtatious title track ‘Blacklight,’ whilst fantasising over a modern-day Bonnie & Clyde love affair the funk-laden ‘We Playin Bad Games’ packs a punch with its tale of free spirits entwined in a haze of late-night revelry.
Elsewhere, stories of caustic heartache twist the knife into wounded blues guitar riffs on ‘Like That’ and ‘Black Magic (That Power)’, in which Carter-Jones’s stoical voice never once faulters as she mourns the memories of a previous flame. Personal prayer ‘Lord Please’ recites empowered words of reassurance, and solidarity in the face of injustice erupts into a rallying cry for change on the classic sounding ‘Noise’ – written as a reaction to the 2016 US election. “I woke up after the election feeling pure panic and fear in my body,” remembers Tristan. “I wanted people in a place of privilege to stand up for what I was feeling, stand up for injustice, stand up for all of the things we need to change as a country. I wanted their rage, and I wanted their noise.”
Finally, the band’s tender tropes of togetherness eventually boil into gritty, guitar-slung balladry on hidden bonus track, ‘California,’ where, knees buckling under the weight of past trials and tribulations, Carter-Jones sets out on one final journey of self-discovery, hastily pulling out from reality and leaving only a dust cloud in her wake.
Production comes courtesy of the Grammy-winning John Wooler, ex Virgin Records A+R and founder of the Blues label Pointblank who has worked with everyone from John Lee Hooker and John Hammond to Isaac Hayes and Van Morrison. The album also features a wealth of hugely talented and accomplished musicians, including backing vocalist Kudisan Kai, former backing vocalist for the likes of Elton John, Chaka Khan, Anita Baker, Natalie Cole, Beck, Sting, Mary J. Blige and Jill Scott. Also present; Grammy winning keyboardist Jon Gilutin, who has spent years working with some of the industry’s most respected and iconic artists including Linda Ronstadt, James Taylor, Lady Gaga, Willie Nelson, Aretha Franklin, Diana Ross, Jackson Browne, Celine Dion, Bonnie Rait and Carole King. You’ll also hear the talents of acclaimed guitarist Michael Toles. Most well-known for being a part of the Stax Records group The Bar Kays, and for his contributions on famous records by Issac Hayes, Al Green, BB King, Johnny Taylor, Rufus Thomas, Albert King to name just a few.
Dakota Jones are a rising funk, soul and blues rock band from Brooklyn, New York City. Comprising of Tristan Carter-Jones (vocals), Scott Kramp (bass) Steve Ross (drums), and acclaimed musician Randy Jacobs (guitar) - former member of Was(Not Was) who has recorded for Seal, Bonnie Raitt, Tears for Fears, Elton John and many others. Though Carter-Jones and Ross first met in 1999 whilst at primary school, the band formed years later following a series of home jam sessions in 2016. The band’s collective alias originates from Carter-Jones’s middle name, ‘Dakota’. Dakota Jones have since released a string of acclaimed singles and EPs as well as received international attention for their track, ‘Have Mercy’ after it featured on Netflix’s 2019 film, Always Be My Maybe starring Ali Wong and Randall Park – and now after years of hard work and determination, the band are finally set to reveal their long awaited debut album. “We’d been regularly releasing EPs, waiting for our chance to come, and wondering what that would look like,” says Carter-Jones. “We didn’t realise until we started making this record that we needed to stop waiting for some break to come along, and just do it ourselves, independently.”
“Black Light really dives into a place of funk soul and everything that comes with it. There’s joy and dancing, sleek guitar licks and funky bass slaps. There’s pain and longing, and there’s the feeling of relief when you come out of that place and find your joy and purpose again. Black Light is my story.”
Originally released on cassette by Good Person Recordings in 2016, Impressive Almanac is the culmination of Dan Shaw's bedroom experiments making minimalist post-punk. The entire album was tracked by himself at home shortly after moving from Seattle to his hometown of Holyoke, Massachusetts. Dan did not yet have any backing band at the time. The album shines with his raw and unfettered creativity, repetitive DI'ed guitars, and disaffected yet deeply personal lyrics about the banality of modern life.
Shaw says of the record: "Sharing this tape with friends in the Western Mass DIY scene soon led to the formation of Landowner as a full band. Even though we're a real band now with a real drummer and everything, the drum machines and repetitive riffs of these songs still serve as an important reference point for the vibe we strive to attain in our music today."
The album was quite formative for Born Yesterday Records. Co-owner and now Deeper bass player Kevin Fairbairn met Dan at a show in Western Massachusetts. Dan gave him a cassette of Impressive Almanac. When Kevin returned from tour, he was eager to show it to me and I quickly became obsessed with it. A year or so later when we were discussing starting a record label, we both knew that Landowner had to be one of the bands we talked to first. This release will roughly mark the three year anniversary of Born Yesterday's first release, Landowner's Blatant.
Slaughter in the Vatican is the debut studio album by American heavy metal band Exhorder. It was released on October 23, 1990 through Roadrunner Records. The album received favourable reviews, and saw the band being compared to heavy metal legends Pantera. AllMusic noted Exhorder’s “death metal-style double kick drums, chugging guitar riffs played at both slow and blistering tempos, and, to top it all off, the gruff but very expressive lead vocals of frontman Kyle Thomas”. The album was inducted into the Decibel Magazine Hall of Fame in 2018.
The debut album of the singer-composer Rita Ray from Estonia packs powerful, warm vocals and crisp production to go with it. "Old Love Will Rust" contributes 8 soul-heavy cuts to the current scene: it's got that slower, classic R&B side of affairs, as well as an uptempo disco delight, that keeps things tight. While miss Ray herself has credits in almost all aspects of the LP, it's a certified Solid Gold Production, led by Martin Laksberg of Lexsoul Dancemachine. Blue-eyed soul hasn't sounded so strong in ages! Rita Ray is a small-town girl whose vocal chords are hardened by a decade in choir singing, spirit toughened by the city life and a foundation built in jazz studies. She's the first contemporary soul diva to rise from the post-Soviet state. Her soul-stirring shows have yet to leave a heart cold - she'll have you in her palm to deliver tender melodies, irony-filled lyrics, catchy riffs and disco-stomping sessions.
The debut album of the singer-composer Rita Ray from Estonia packs powerful, warm vocals and crisp production to go with it. "Old Love Will Rust" contributes 8 soul-heavy cuts to the current scene: it's got that slower, classic R&B side of affairs, as well as an uptempo disco delight, that keeps things tight. While miss Ray herself has credits in almost all aspects of the LP, it's a certified Solid Gold Production, led by Martin Laksberg of Lexsoul Dancemachine. Blue-eyed soul hasn't sounded so strong in ages! Rita Ray is a small-town girl whose vocal chords are hardened by a decade in choir singing, spirit toughened by the city life and a foundation built in jazz studies. She's the first contemporary soul diva to rise from the post-Soviet state. Her soul-stirring shows have yet to leave a heart cold - she'll have you in her palm to deliver tender melodies, irony-filled lyrics, catchy riffs and disco-stomping sessions.
"Certain loud guitar rock records serve as brain erasers, a form of shock therapy zapping through aural inputs and (to mix metaphors) cleaning the proverbial clock. Lightning Bolt is one such thing." - LA Times Since their first moment it seems like they've been as electric as their name suggests. Lightning Bolt, their first album, captures that energy in a raw form. Famously lo-fi, this is the album that's been described as most feeling like being at one of their shows. It's difficult to listen and not want to jump with the crowd it feels like must be huddled around the amp producing an incredible wave of noise, astonishingly coming from just two musicians. You can hear the threads of their later work; use of repetition, a sense of grinding and building, noise melting to guitar solos. This album is loud, and the riffs repeated become mesmerizing as they warp slowly thru the songs. Long saught after, this record has not been available new on vinyl since it's first pressing. This edition includes songs which have never before been released on vinyl. A must have for any Lightning Bolt fan, or really anyone who loves noise.
Shifted offers the latest distillation of his trademark sound.
Following on from the recent release of “The Dirt On Our Hands” – Guy Brewer’s fourth studio album and the first to arrive on his own Avian imprint, “Constant Blue Light” – another full length, explores new avenues in caustic minimalism.
Eschewing the booming effervescence of his own more plosive dance floor material – Shifted takes a no less nuanced, but decidedly more introspective angle on this new LP. At the centre of Brewer’s practice as an artist, there has always been a sense of dedication to the refinement of a singular idea. In some ways “Constant Blue Light” represents a move closer to the apex of this approach.
Opener “Slowly Counting Backwards” creates the framework for the record – reduced and meditative, owing somewhat to previous work, but still crisper and more precise. “Natural Elevation” riffs on airy patches that hiss and bend while “The Weight of It” transmits an unsettling hysteria with flanging leads and untethered rhythmic components. On the B side, the ominous dirge of “Soft Palate” brings a kind of uncanny energy to proceedings before “Into Your Ocean” utilises exquisite FM tones to create a captivating sonic montage. “Several Instances” hinges on dense low end and scattering white noise, before giving way to the machinations of “Clotting Time”. Closing piece “This I Know” offers a stunning, crystalline finish to the LP – upping the ante in its final minutes before giving way to a hiss of delay trails.
A continued exploration from a focused and diligent artist that provides yet another fully formed and beautifully articulated component to his own discography and that of the Avian label.
Leo Ceccanti should be a familiar name to all followers of the Claremont 56 label. Alongside sometime studio partner Gianluca Salvadori, he was responsible for two delightfully distinctive Almunia albums released on the label, 2011’s New Moon and 2013’s Pulsar. Both sets were filled with golden, sun-kissed sounds, psychedelic grooves and immersive, life-affirming soundscapes.
Now he’s decided to go it alone as Leo Almunia, delivering a debut album for Claremont 56 that’s every bit as alluring, wide-eyed and evocative as those he made with Salvadori. In keeping with his previous work, the album blends layered acoustic and electric guitars with toasty bass, dreamy synthesizers and grooves that variously touch on hypnotic house, chugging mid-tempo disco, sunset-ready Balearic beats and, on the glistening, life-affirming album highlight ‘Wishing Star’, loose-limbed jazz breaks.
What’s most significant about Ceccanti’s personal musical style is not the blend of stylistic influences he draws on – think psychedelic rock, progressive rock, jazz-rock, new age ambient and slow-motion disco – but rather the way he uses it to paint vivid aural images that genuinely linger long in the memory.
After opening with the duelling guitars and chunky dub disco grooves of ‘Sinking Fields’, Ceccanti sashays between magical moments of rush-inducing positivity, heart-tugging poignance and heady nostalgia.
Along the way, you’ll find numerous sonic highlights. On the intoxicating 21st century psychedelia of ‘Panerea’, jangling chords and eyes-closed psych-rock guitar solos ride a chugging, thickset electronic bassline, while ‘Il Cormorano’ is a metronomic, flash-fried workout rich in fuzz-tone guitar motifs, bluesy riffs and echoing instrumental touches.
He cannily joins the dots between Mid-West Americana and throbbing, psychedelic disco-chug on ‘Loveblind’, while ‘Minor Circle’ sits somewhere between Santana, the Pat Metheny Band and sunrise-ready Balearic blues. Arguably even better is the saucer-eyed brilliance of ‘Brillo De Luna’, where a dubbed-out electronic beat becomes enveloped in life-affirming acoustic guitar chords, exotic slide guitar motifs and string-bending solos. If John Lennon had ingested MDMA rather than LSD before writing ‘Across The Universe’, it would probably sound like this.
Then there’s the album’s crowning moment, closer ‘Can’t Hold a Lover’. A heart-aching, largely ambient instrumental that channels the loneliness and anguish felt by many of those separated from their nearest and dearest during the pandemic, it sees Ceccanti brilliantly wrap a variety of sun-bright guitar textures and solos around some of the loveliest synthesizer chords you’re every likely to hear. On an album packed with effervescent, mood-enhancing musical highs, it’s a rare moment of bittersweet bliss.
The rich sounds of Maloya and Séga music, originating from the Réunion island (as well as Mauritius and Seychelles for Séga), have recently been brought to the ears of the Northern hemisphere's music lovers. Hailing from the French Alps, where Réunion-natives and young "metropolitan" French youngsters have been sharing parties, food and music for years, Les Pythons De La Fournaise are a flavoursome electric "Séga" band and they have already put out a couple of albums over the last decade.
This time, they are interpreting Séga and Maloya songs under the form of a - nearly – all-acoustic orchestra : "L'Orchestre Du Piton" !
This Long-Player has got a particular sound and character, starting with a powerful four-woman choir (often sung in unison, in accordance with the Maloya tradition). The "lead" is a different singer on almost every song, which brings a variety of tone and vocal texture to the album.
Instead of keys, organ or synth, Les Pythons went for accordion ; they also brought into the studio an array of percussion, ranging from classic bongos and bells to typical instruments of the Indian Ocean : theKayamb, the Pikeur, the Sati and most notably the Roulèr– the king of them all, majestic barrel-shelled bass drum.
On songs like "Anon Manz Demiel" (Let's go and eat honey), two crazy electric guitars with intertwined riffs add a fresh element to the sound – somewhat echoeing with Esquivel's exotica and Congolese rumba at the same time !
And the most unusual fact on this record : there is no bass guitar. Perhaps the band had a statement to make; in our modern music culture where bass plays a central role, they prove that one can move to other sounds – and appreciate the more organic deepness of percussion.
Whether or not you look into the meaning of the songs (mostly from the Réunion repertoire with a couple of Mauritian exceptions and one original "Pythons" composition), you will feel the mood of the Creole lyrics – a deep love story in "Maloya Tantine", an hymn to slowness and indolence in "Tou Dou", a clumsy chat-up scene in "Malbaraise"...
And overall, a joyful, fresh and sparkly energy emanates from this "Orchestre" sound, from this exceptionally talented crew. Oté !
A decade on from their first record, Iceage continue to harness their lives together through music. This journey, in music and life, has never progressed in a linear fashion. Seek Shelter — Iceage’s fifth LP and first for Mexican Summer — is proof that their lives are still happening through their music, and that they remain determined to harness it. Enrolling Sonic Boom (Pete Kember of Spacemen 3) to produce, Seek Shelter sees Iceage’s propulsive momentum pushing them in new, expansive, ecstatic directions. The sound of an emotional core unwound, Seek Shelter radiates warmth and a profound desire for salvation in a world that’s spinning further and further out of control. In an extraordinary and unexpected run following the release of their debut LP, Iceage went from the fertile hyperlocal Copenhagen scene to stages all over the world. Their recordings reflect their journey: 2012’s You’re Nothing was hard, fast and raw, a bold doubling-down on the aggression of youth in the first record as well as the weight of expectation. Plowing Into the Field of Love (2014) and Beyondless (2018) saw a softening of the band’s hardest edges and the arrival of a certain world-weary vaudeville in the Iceage sound. The band’s past two records — all filtered twangy guitar riffs, sparse piano arrangements, and slinky, slow-moving rhythms — ventured into an intoxicated but knowing swirl, surveying the party at the end of the night. They’d seen it all, at least once, and their music rode the crest of that chaos. Seek Shelter, the band’s first record made with an outside producer, is the place they have been called to next. The LP was recorded at Namouche, a dilapidated wood-paneled Lisbon radio studio of 1960s vintage where the band set up for 12 days. It is the longest time they have spent recording a record. Steady rain dripped through the ceiling; they had to arrange their equipment around puddles and slowly-filling buckets covered in cloth so that the sound of droplets wouldn’t reach the mics. Sonic Boom arranged garden lamps from a nearby party store for mood lighting in the high-ceiling space. A choir, the Lisboa Gospel Collective, joined the band for two tracks on the final day in the studio providing a new scale to Rønnenfelt’s incantations. Singer and primary songwriter Elias Rønnenfelt casts their new producer as a sparring partner, another wayward mind to bounce ideas off of. “We wanted a partner that had some noise that we didn’t have, more a wizard than a producer. “When we started, I think we were just lashing out, completely blindfolded with no idea as to why and how we were doing anything. For Seek Shelter, we had a definite vision of how we wanted the album to be carved out, yet still the end result came as a surprise in terms of where we sonically were able to push our boundaries.” He’s speaking of the new record and also of their entire existence as a band, a travelogue that has catapulted these four friends far past the horizons of punk. “Some of that we wanted to remain intact. We try to keep the mystery. If there's no sense of mystery in it for us, then it's not fun.” Seek Shelter is a record that now exists at a moment of a collective unknown, when every beating heart wonders what will happens next.
Despite the troubles globally faced in 2020, it's safe to say that The Allergies bucked the trend and came back by ultimately having a rather glorious year. Releasing their fourth stu-dio album, achieving the 'A List' on BBC Radio 6 Music and Radio Eins in Berlin, climbing high in the NACC US college charts, and generally receiving critical acclaim from a world that had an understandable appetite for some joyful and fun music in their lives.
2021 shows no signs of things slowing down. The heat continues for their 2020 album Say The Word with Pioneer, Liptons and IAMS all taking Allergies tracks for their global advertis-ing campaigns. Rather than rest on their laurels, though, the guys went full lockdown crea-tive and have their fifth album due for release in September, 2021.
"Jumping Off" was the first new track from the album to be debuted at the end of 2020 – A self-sampling version of their 2018 track "Main Event". As with all Allergies tracks of late, the limited 7" release caused a Discogs feeding frenzy.
Now, The Allergies power forward with the first single of the 2021 album campaign – An absolute dancefloor destroyer featuring legend of the mic, Dynamite MC, entitled "Lean On You".
The Allergies first hooked up with Dyna on previous album Say The Word for the fan favour-ite "Hot Sensation". But, scheduling clashes with Dynamite's own album release meant that a single outing for that track was not possible.
No such issues this time round means The Allergies kick off their 2021 album with a serious club and radio contender to move things to the next level.
It's a stylistic new lane for the Bristol-based beatmakers. Their trademark heavy drum chops now flowing on half time tempos, with blues guitars riffs front and centre. The perfect back-ing, then, for the UK rap legend to find his theme and raise the roof.
The 7" is backed by "Working On Me" – A classic Allergies-style screamer with a taste of funky swamp rock, updated for your favourite dancefloor/kitchen/outside space, with five other people…
Surrender is the debut full length from DJ, producer, and songwriter Endgame. Stepping out for the first time as a vocalist, and lyricist, Surrender is his most ambitious and vulnerable work to date; a striking statement of intent, with moments of beauty and brutality. Endgame has carved an iconoclastic niche in club culture. Breaking into the scene as co-founder of the legendary collective Bala Club, and resident of the radical club-night Endless. Whilst continuing almost a decade hosting his infamous NTS radio show (and now label) Precious Metals, he has forged a path against the tide of formulaic club music. A visionary DJ and producer, Surrender sees Endgame continue this trajectory, with a project that both amplifies the ferocious club constructions he's known for, whilst making space to open up wounded memories and with sombre unfeigned requiems. Having previously released records on Hyperdub, PTP, Golden Mist and Infinite Machine, Endgame's first release on his own Precious Metals imprint, is him at his most reflective. Surrender is a deeply personal record, about loss and finding meaning in despair. Death is a prevailing theme, with the passing of his father a totemic subject. The recollection of his father's torturous final moments leaves him to mournfully contemplate temporality. Using this sense of anguish, he blurs reality-creating a world where angels and demons are among us in a decaying cityscape; akin to the work of Todd McFarlane. The opener Faithless, propels us into this world, with the slow build of industrial precision amidst the sombre build of harsh melodic synths. We descend deeper into this vision with Barbed Heart, featuring a defining vocal from scene staple and long time collaborator Yayoyanoh, as 808's and skittering hi hats ricochet off one another beneath his bass driven vocal. No Heroes continues our journey into the unknown with a chaotic rush of acidic riffs, pounding percussion, and a reference to the brutalist anthem from hardcore punk band Converge (where the track borrows its name). Requiem acts as the turning point of the record as Endgame steps into the foreground as a vocalist. As the name suggests, this lament is a sombre reflection of grief; its minimalist instrumental allows Endgame's haunted verse to rise into the foreground, like an apparition amidst the smoke in the depths of a dimly lit club. The dark clouds fade into the distance in Exhumed, as the elegant melancholic vocal of Bala Club affiliate and gifted vocalist Organ Tapes reflects off Endgame's sanguine verses bringing hope into the heartfelt instrumental filled with melodic flourishes and bass-bin rattling subs. The thematic haze thickens in Abyss, as the pulsating and doom laden instrumental interweaves with Endgame's sepulchral vocal. Like a message from the void, his words act as an agnostic hymn that pulls apart his sense of self. The contrast of his plaintive verse with the intensity of the instrumental creates a contrast that is symbolic of the record itself, a duality that presents moments of soft reflection against a severe sonic palette to create moments of transcendence.
Slaughter in the Vatican is the debut studio album by American heavy metal band Exhorder. It was released on October 23, 1990 through Roadrunner Records. The album received favourable reviews, and saw the band being compared to heavy metal legends Pantera. AllMusic noted Exhorder’s “death metal-style double kick drums, chugging guitar riffs played at both slow and blistering tempos, and, to top it all off, the gruff but very expressive lead vocals of frontman Kyle Thomas”. The album was inducted into the Decibel Magazine Hall of Fame in 2018.
Slaughter in the Vatican is available as a limited edition of
2000 numbered copies on silver coloured vinyl.
Master craftsman James Welburn’s new LP, Sleeper in the Void, marks the 50th Miasmah release.The six years after his monumental debut have bred six tracks Welburn brings to fruition with the help of past co-conspirators from the Norwegian underground scene - Tomas Järmyr (Motorpsycho, Zu, Barchan), Hilde Marie Holsen (Hubro Records), and vocal artist Juliana Venter (W/V, Phil Winter).
On Sleeper in the Void, Welburn expands the domain of his sound, unveiling surprises until the very end of the album’s 36 minute playtime. While the character of the record is unmistakably his own, the tracks veer into many different territories, including a banging foray to the dancefloor.
The LP begins slowly with Raze, where Järmyr’s ritualistic cymbals introduce layers of Welburn’s signature sculpted bass drones and noise, building into a heart-wrenching epic of a track. This is perhaps the closest we ever get to Hold - Welburn’s previous LP. Falling from Time immediately surprises with it’s subdued mechanical techno beat, stark and cold as a glacier. Welburn’s texture-work is the star of the show, creating curious nooks and crannies of drone adorned with eerie melodies straight out of oblivion. This sense of wonder shines through to the album’s title track as well, where Welburn and Järmyr build another patient, echoing, and deeply cinematic piece, the drum patterns slowly shifting around a metallic hum that evokes the vision of church bells, ringing out under tonnes of seawater.
Sleeper in the Void feels like a story in two parts, rising lethargically, but with gargantuan power. The second begins with the momentous In and out of Blue, where Juliana Venter’s disembodied, spectral dirge takes center stage among the furious drums and bassy riffs, reaching a full crescendo with seconds to go. Parallel marks a release - Hilde Marie Holsen’s nostalgic soundscapes, pristine as glass, meeting the distant thunder of Welburn’s strings on the horizon. And finally, Fast Moon ends the record in a most surprising way - a tribal industrialized banger, complete with vile distorted beats and every other spice in demand on a blackened dancefloor.
Welburn’s Sleeper in the Void is a generous shapeshifter. Every inch of its soundwave breathes emotion and imagery - an invitation to take a dive and linger.
Hell Yeah welcomes the Italian musical collective Aura Safari for a debut EP on the label.
The band, who are at the forefront of a new Italian fusion sound that blends jazz-funk, electronic and world sounds, is made up of acclaimed house devotee Nicholas Iammatteo, plus Alessandro Deledda, Lorenzo Lavoratori, Daniele Melloni and Andrea Moretti. They contributed a standout track to the Buena Onda - Balearic Beats compilation last year as well as releasing a full length LP on UK label Church to critical acclaim.
Opener 'Dreams of Music' is a lush, new age groove with rich musicality, wind instruments and live drums all glowing warmly as you roll into sundown. 'Oasis' then sinks into a reflective mood, with lazy drums and sensuous late night chords sounding like Roy Ayers all loved up and super stoned. The noodling keys really melt your heart before the excellent 'Slow Divers' pairs more majestic bass riffs with wet claps and splashing cymbals as a wandering lead drifts up to the heavens. It has a dubby swagger to it that is superbly subtle.
Closing out the EP 'Libra', is a heartwarming, slow motion, jazz-funk fusion packed with detail and life affirming synth playing.
These are gloriously heartfelt tracks that showcase this collective's supreme musical ability as well as their unquestionable understanding of jazz, funk and soul, past, present and future.
MJN RECORDS Trondheim Jazz Orchestra & The MaXx / Live ‘Live’ with
Trondheim Jazz Orchestra & The MaXx is really a story of three young
Swedes, Oscar Gr nberg, Petter Kraft and Tomas J rmyr meeting in college
before starting their formal jazz education in Trondheim.
When The MaXx won the prestigious Jazz talent award (JazZtipendiatet) at
Molde International Jazz Festival in 2017, they decided to use the opportunity
to invite some of their best friends and amazing musicians from their college
years, both guitarist Anton Toorell and trombone player Petter H ngsel met the
guys from The MaXx at Fridheim Folkh gskola in 2006. A few years later Oscar,
Petter and Tomas reunited in Trondheim, and The MaXx was born.
The MaXx developed the music on ‘Live’ through hours of jamming in their
studio in an old German bunker in Trondheim. Simultaneously with the music
slowly taking shape, a theme dealing with the youth’s fascination for dystopian
sci-fi, involuntary heroes and time travels evolved. Combined with their love
for rhythmical riffs and extreme musical shifts a new piece of music appeared.
Some people have called it an abstract rock opera. The MaXx tells us that what
this project is really about is to amplify the undisguised energy and joy that
always has been the core of band.
Advice: Live is grasping the steaming atmosphere in the theatre a hot summer
night in Molde, and should be played on a high volume!
TJO & The MaXx:
Oscar Gr nberg - keyboards; Petter Kraft - guitar, tenor saxophone and vocals;
Tomas J rmyr - drums; Mia Marlen Berg - vocals; Thomas Johansson - trumpet;
Petter H ngsel - trombone and recorder; Mette Rasmussen - alto saxophone;
Kjetil M ster - tenor saxophone; Anton Toorell - electric guitar; Anja Lauvdal -
keyboards; Mattis Kleppen - electric bass; Recorded by Tor Breivik Mixed by H
vard Soknes.
Distressed of sound and disturbed of subject matter, “Down-Faced Doll” sees the classic indie outfit connect with their dark-sides to deliver a cacophonous alt/folk stomp unlike anything they’ve released before. Based on a chilling true story told through the eyes of a discarded toy, its lyrics like clues, begin to lay evidence to a scene enough to turn anyone’s blood blue.
As vocalist Ian H. says:
“By far the most disturbing song I’ve ever written. Some songs seem to have a strange compelling energy which no one can rightly claim authorship to. They ‘write themselves’ but of course a great deal of working and shaping occurs too… A true story - well the first two verses are. The last two verses are my attempt to imagine “how did it ever get to this”…”
Customised with discomposing Eastern-inspired guitar riffs and clamouring percussive rhythms, “Down-Faced Doll” instils an unshakable feeling of paranoia, pursuit and unsease to match its haunting storyline. “Ewan and Stephen immediately tuned into its unsettling vibrations to create sounds and dark corners as you are unwillingly dragged through the scenario.” Ian adds.
Created & produced by Bradford (Ian Hodgson, Ewan Butler & Stephen Street), “Down-Faced Doll” was mixed by Stephen Street (Blur/New Order/ Kaiser Chiefs) and mastered by John Davies. It is taken from what will be Bradford’s first new studio album in over three decades: ‘Bright Hours’ - set for release early-on in 2021.
Bradford are a revered indie band formed in Blackburn in 1988. Championed by Morrissey, the band earned a cult status with their acclaimed debut album 'Shouting Quietly' in 1990, a record as-produced at the time by Stephen Street. Touring with the likes of Joe Strummer, The Sugarcubes, Morrissey and more, the band burned brightly and brilliantly. Fading away against the neon glow of the Madchester era, the band split in 1991.
Fast forward to 2018 and a re-mastered 30 song collection entitled ‘Thirty Years Of Shouting Quietly’ was released on Turntable Friend Records. The album was re-appraised as a 'lost English classic'. This rekindling of belief slowly re-ignited the magic and chemistry that always existed between the band now Ian H and Ewan Butler and Stephen Street. So much so, that Stephen decided to join forces with them and become a fully fledged member of the band.
With a new look line-up on illuminating form, as a trio Bradford have lovingly crafted a jewel of a new album: ‘Bright Hours’ to be released early in 2021.
Directly following “Like Water”, their latest single “Down-Faced Doll” is a definitive signal that ‘Bright Hours’ will be every bit worth the long wait...
‘Del Rio’ is the third album from the Austin triumvirate of guitarist Craig Clouse (Shit and Shine), bassist Nate Cross (Marriage, Expensive Shit) and drummer King Coffey (Butthole Surfers) and the band’s first release to feature vocals from Colby Brinkman (Taverner). While their two prior albums (2017’s ‘Laredo’ and 2019’s ‘Matamoros’) were somewhere on the periphery of rock music , ‘Del Rio’ is a step or several beyond and a real testament to human imagination (maybe you’re impressed by Tesla Powerwall batteries but that’s because you’ve not heard “Soft Taco”, yet)
Coming off a pair of records their respective labels could barely keep in stock and critical assessments that put reviewers’ own chops to the test (see below), USA/Mexico have delivered their most fully realized statement to date.
Prior praise for ‘Matamoros’ :
“Laredo was a bent-out sunstroke of processed vocals and noise-laden riffs, and its follow up Matamoros is slower, freakier, and somehow louder…too defiantly weird and alien for pigeonholing, that’s how they fit inside Austin’s storied noise rock and experimental music scenes: by refusing to fit exactly in anywhere.” Andy O’Connor, Pitchfork
“Monolithic without being monotone: dirty sounds and gritty textures sliding over each other like sandpaper wiped across a chalkboard.” Marc Masters, Bandcamp
“The amplifiers sound broken, the vocals suggest someone's got their leg caught in a mantrap while deep in the woods trying to poach fat brown hares, and the mixing desk squeals as if it is undergoing physical tort
- Rare P-Funk album from 1983 - Funkadelic/Parliament All-Star Line-Up - First ever vinyl reissue - Comes with a repro of the original insert - 180g Black Vinyl Edition - Limited to 500 copies, comes with obi strip // Jerome "Bigfoot" Brailey is an American drummer who started performing in the early 1970s with several R&B groups from the likes of The Unifics, The Chambers Brothers and The Five Stairsteps where he developed his unique style and finesse on drums. Later in 1975 he joined George Clinton's P-Funk collective and has appeared on many of Parliament & Funkadelic's most popular recordings (some of which he also co-wrote). Brailey played on classic albums like `Mothership Connection' and `One Nation Under A Groove'. Samples from that body of work (and his drum arrangements) have since then appeared on hundreds of hip hop and contemporary R&B songs by renowned artists such as Kendrick Lamar and Childish Gambino. Jerome Brailey is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (inducted in 1997) and part of their `50 greatest drummers in the Hall' list (stating that his drum style kept Parliament-Funkadelic rooted in the old-school `James Brown-style funk')_next to this achievement, he was proclaimed by Rolling Stone as one of the `100 Greatest Drummers of All Time' for his steady kick drum, shifty hi-hat action and intricately unpredictable snare patterns. Brailey earned numerous Gold and Platinum records with the P-Funk Organization and has worked as a session drummer for many talented artists such as Herbie Hancock, Buddy Miles, Snoop Dogg and Pharoah Sanders. George Clinton's funk empire was not without its disagreements and Jerome Brailey's `Mutiny' project was a direct result of just such a disagreement (as well as one of the more notable offshoots of the P-Funk axis). Mutiny performed in a style not far removed from the classic P-Funk style and with a lot of emphasis on the dual lead guitar work, but what makes them unique compared to their contemporaries is that at times their recordings also emit a darker, more sinister feeling. Besides Brailey on drums (and on most of the lead vocals) Mutiny featured a funk-alumni line-up and released three amazing and collectible albums: `Mutiny On The Mammaship' (CBS, 1979), `Funk Plus The One' (Columbia, 1980) and `A Night Out With the Boys' (J. Romeo, 1983)_these were followed by two comeback albums: `Aftershock' (Rykodisc 1995) and `Funk Road' (Catbone, 2013). The `Mutiny' album we are proudly presenting you today (A Night Out With The Boys) is an underrated gem made by musicians who defined the funk scene of the '70s and '80s! Featuring an all-star line-up that includes Rodney Curtis (Fred Wesley, Maceo Parker), Michael Hampton (Funkadelic-Parliament, Deee-Lite), Kenni Hairston (Cameo) and Maceo Bond of Osiris/Afrika Bambaataa fame! `A Night Out With The Boys' has it all: Jerome's trademark drumbeats, funky bass grooves, driving riffs accented by stinging synth parts, slow spacey (and prominently featured) guitars, top-notch lead vocals and chants that recall Sly Stone's "Loose Booty". The whole album is a hot dance jam with crisp percussion_an extremely infectious, locked-in-the-pocket bass-heavy monster-funk-bomb that any serious self-respecting funk fanatic must have in his/her collection!
Thinking about a fox face may give many warm, fuzzy feelings,
but don’t forget that foxes have teeth.While Milwaukee quartet
Fox Face may not bite one’s face, their new album End Of Man
might just melt it off.
Featuring players drawn from various corners of the Brewtown
music scene, Fox Face came together organically ahead of the
recording sessions for their November 2017 debut album, Spoil
+ Destroy. Main songwriter Lindsay DeGroot (The Olives)
started working on her songs with multi-instrumentalist Lydia
Washechek (Static Eyes). Eventually fellow Olives member
Mary Hickey joined up on bass, and the final piece of the band
was found with the addition of drummer Christopher Capelle
(Midwest Beat, Long Line Riders). Spoil + Destroy was one of
the best garage punk albums of 2017-2018, taking on science
deniers, misogynists and other jerks with songs anchored by
fiery guitar playing and rock-solid ensemble playing.
End Of Man bumps up the furious guitar sound of Spoil +
Destroy a few more notches. It’s not hard rock, per se, but the
album’s sound edges in that direction. And one can tell that Fox
Face has been playing together for several years now, because
these recordings are tight AF. There’s no filler or extraneous
padding; the arrangements and playing make for a cohesive
whole, and lyrically the songs are direct and to the point while
still remaining universal enough to be met on personal terms by
the listener.
End Of Man may not be a party record … at least, once letting
the lyrics filter past the lizard brain enjoyment of the blazing
riffs. But art is not supposed to be all fun and games. Standing
up and speaking truth may not be the easiest path for a band or
its listeners, but there is much to be said for catharthis. Anyone
feeling despair and helplessness about the current political and
societal breakdown should find some common ground to rage
along with these new songs from Fox Face.
Ending the season on a breezy note, our new VA 'Boogie Angst, Edition Three' delivers the ideal wares for a buoyant last stretch to an otherwise trying year. Spanning a brightly hued kaleidoscope of pop-infused house and mellifluous boogie, Edition Three pushes forth a selection of our choicest grooves from the past year as well as a batch of unheard and exclusive gems to keep you in the warmest, most positive mindset for the winter to come. Through fifteen cuts covering a wide but cohesive spectrum of balmy sonics, the compilation once again offers a much spitting image of what the label's been up to in recent times.
HIGH HØØPS playful revamp of Secret Rendezvous' fresher-than-fresh RnB joint 'Back In The Day' sets the tone right away, followed closely by Moods & Two Another's lush coastal disco number 'Control' and Snacks & Eric Biddines neo-big band style house treat 'All Night' - a singular chunk of ballroom bop tinged with soulful blues tropes and Caribbean melodic accents, sure to have the dancers jiving without further ado.
Here comes Inkswel's synth-splattered mix of 8-bit pixelation and Run DMC-esque hip-hop 'Too Late' (ft. Stan Smith) and Saux's dream folk excursion 'You're Not Wrong'. A highlight of the package and mesmerizing piece of wistful, kosmische-laced disco, Kraak & Smaak 'Centro De Placer' ushers us in a realm of velveteen ingenuousness and sun-streaked utopianism, steering us away from the tar-scented gloom of soulless metropolises into an all engulfing prism of hope, love and grace.
Utrecht-based vibist Feiertag punches the clock with 'Encino Boogie' - a four minute-odd slab of buoyant funk sprinkled with laid-back house tropes and brass-heavy, loungey dub tonalities, perfect for drawing out the pleasure of dreamlike summer boogie sessions. Clear your mind and shuffle your feet to that solar-powered mix of fevered drums, slap bass and sensually aqueous groove.
Next, Kraak & Smaak's add their easily identifiable, almost Beck-ian spin to Jean Tonique's lysergic pop hit-en-puissance 'Too Bad' whilst Bondax lo-slung remix of Moods' sense-awakening soul tune 'Slow Down' (ft. Damon Trueitt) eases you into a place of inviting suavity.
Inkswel's funky robot chugger 'The People' (ft. Dave Aju) picks up the torch next, followed by Flevans, your go-to man for proper electroid floor traction. The UK-based producer has you covered with 'Everything I See' - a surefire, bass-driven roller inbound for severe club impact with its infectious mix of fiery riffs, mangled female vox slivers and racing groove. Next, Secret Rendezvous' sun-beamy ballad 'Your Love' takes us on a gently bouncy, romantic ride.
Last but not least, Vhyce's smooth hybrid of synth-strewn RnB and lo-velocity funk 'Lose Our Minds' (ft. Yves Paquet), David Harks' metronomic disco-pop anthem 'Twice' and Saux's sleek-textured synthpop exponent 'Night Is All There Is' round off the package on a typically smooth and vibrant sentimental touch.
For the wax heads out there, a limited 9-track vinyl sampler will be issued alongside the digital compilation, featuring some of the tracks on the album + a few alternative versions, and furthermore a vinyl exclusive of Kraak & Smaak's remix of Izo FitzRoy's 'When The Wires are Down', initially released only digitally via Jalapeño Records.
h 08 | Inkswel The People (Cody Currie Remix) feat Dave Aju
feat Wolfgang Valbrun
studio mule is back with another amazement, opening the roster towards sophisticated spiritual sounds on the crossroads of electrified jazz, oriental fourth-world spheres and deeply composed experimental sounds. this time the label welcomes japanese artist ya-sukazu sato aka yas-kaz, a university-trained percussionist, that gained global success as a composer for the internationally known butoh dance troupe sankai juku, that tours around the world since 1975. his infrequent musical amalgamation of ancient eastern genres, airy soundscapes, and ritualistic dance percussions perfectly accompanied the modern dance movements of an avantgarde dance group that is known for slow, mesmerizing dance passages, whose repetitive body movements sometimes focusing only on the feet or fingers. besides his theatre work, yas-kaz composed scores for japanese movies, performed live along stars like us-american jazz saxophonist wayne shorter or legendary japanese new-age musical group himekami and recorded a number of collabo-rative and solo albums.
with “virgo indigo”, studio mule reissues his third solo album, originally published on the japanese label canyon in 1986. the album opens with “djidanda”, a composition whose melodic drive and percussive groove reminds on moondog’s spirit. melancholic strings, loose guitar riffs, spiritual cowbells and wild, yet mild rhythms form a repetitive maelstrom that is made for all sorts of acrobatic body movements. it gets followed by the album’s title track “virgo indigo”, a spiritual jazz leaning arrangement featuring wayne shorter on the soprano saxophone, delivering a crystal-clear performance above tribal rhythms and traces of gamelan. the story-arc of the ten-minute long composition brings also minimalistic percussive moments, oriental ambient zones and some electronic drones, all calm and lively at the same time.
a versatileness, that marks the other four arrangements on the album, too. “kara-kira ~windscape iii~” comes around as an airy spiritual illusionist, that melds joyful flute notes with gentle chime melodies. the b-side’s epic opener “wadji” starts industrial, just to break down into a manic, again moondogish atmosphere full of darkish sounds and nebulous ambient deepness. subsequent yas-kaz enters with “notarinotari” the oriental zones, seducing with a jazz-laden romantic soundtrack mood. the final tune is yet another surprise, as “jasmin” is percussive driven neon cocktail bar pop, that features a hum-ming female voice and mesmerizing synth and guitar melodies. six tracks that introduce six different locations of yas-kaz’s ramified artistic work, which combines sweetish melodies, dynamic percussions, statuesque minimalism and world music traditions in spacious compositions that stay surprising until the very last second.
