Search:soul of man

Dressed in a powder blue suit with the frilly shirt to match, DJ Yoda invites you to be his +1 for ‘Prom Nite’, his new album promising retro Americana full of daydreaming reverie, international megastar guests, trip hop acknowledging the likes of Morcheeba and Nightmares on Wax, and the turntable extraordinaire’s bread and butter of cuts, beats and rhymes.

Certainly no stranger to retro sounds having famously peppered his DJ and AV sets with the unexpected the world over, and his ‘How to Cut n Paste’ mix series going all the way back to the 30s, Yoda’s harp-laden puppy love vibe spreads from the sweet and mellow sound of 2019’s ‘Home Cooking’, an album described as ‘boundary-breaking’ by Mojo upon slotting nicely into the UK’s blooming jazz canon. Think deliciously harmonised doo-wop murmuring ‘Goodnight Sweetheart’ with an eye for dreamboats en route to Makeout Point – on ‘My Energy’, Eva Lazarus takes the form of an earth angel, with Yoda on jukebox cut-ups, taking it back to starry-eyed, clean cut days of wonder (or more recently, Little Mix’s ‘Love Me Like You’).

Beginning enigmatically with the assistance of Hollywood A-lister (and former next-door neighbour) Lily James, ‘Breathe’ demonstrate Yoda’s continued evolution as a musician (not to mention shrewd decision maker), with James’ vocal confidence - a little Lana del Rey to her breathiness - returning on the velvet-smooth ‘Airplane Mode’. It’s a smartly executed soundclash accentuated by LA rapper Choosey, the star of the album’s straightest hip-hop shooter ‘Harder I Rock’. Homeboy Sandman adds some kick to the prom punch with typical wordplay sent down ‘Coconut Grove’, and Liam Bailey is perfectly cast for the darkly cinematic sway of ‘Don’t Even Try It’.

On an album of many talking points, the LP’s crowning glory is opening single ‘Feel Like Home’: featuring the vocal comforts of the House Gospel Choir, it’s your go–to pick-me-up when the chips are down, targeting the hairs on the backs of necks like a softer focus version of Jamie xx’s ‘Loud Places’. Extended into an alternative, equally uplifting form by Beardyman’s ‘Don’t Mean Thing’, summer festival season already has its homecoming anthem.

With tongues wagging, the twists and turns step away from Heartbreak Ridge when O Love tucks into the mouthwatering shopping list funk of ‘Way Home’; and ‘Lesson 1956’, featuring Jamie Cullum and DJ Woody, jauntily pays homage to classic Cut Chemist alchemy, Yoda’s celebrated turntable tomfoolery back in full effect and extending the flavours found in ‘Home Cooking’.

Again maximising the experience and enjoyment gained from recording live instruments and prioritising songs over beats, Yoda continues to progress with a mixture of risk-taking, elite musicianship, nostalgia brought bang up to date, and ultimately, good clean fun capable of stirring your soul, making ‘Prom Nite’ a date to remember.

Magpie artwork supplied by London’s ENDLESS, whose signature style has tagged Liberty and Lagerfeld as but two high profile clients, Yoda again maximises the experience and enjoyment gained from recording live instruments and prioritising songs over beats. His continued progress mixes risk-taking, elite musicianship, nostalgia brought bang up to date, and ultimately, good clean fun capable of stirring your soul, making ‘Prom Nite’ a date to remember.

Featured 7” Vinyl singles:
Feel Like Home (feat. The House Gospel Choir)/ Don’t Mean A Thing (feat. Beardyman)
My Energy (feat. Eva Lazarus)/Lesson 1956 (feat. Jamie Cullum & DJ Woody)

Italian The Villains Inc. moves up a gear with its fourth release to date and already the second in less than a year!

Conscious “Time To Go Back EP” introduces the exclusive collaboration between label owner Gab.Gato (Dominance Electricity, Drivecom, SolarOne) and his partner in crime Jack Bags (La Sabbia) from Milan.
Together, they drop an untouchable dancefloor oriented five tracker based upon a terrific concept.
Coming from the year 2106 with a preventive message to save Earth from manhandled destruction, scientist Dr Boomer understands how much it’s too late to prevent the planet from Armageddon.

A side opens with insane “Man Of The Future”: a pure analogical time machine merging whispers a la Egyptian Lover to heading vocoder sequences over a sharp 808 programming.
Luminous and hypnotizing at the same, this oldschool anthem is instantly followed by enthusiastic “No Permission”.

A groovy bassline melt with acidic loops turns the song into a masterpiece enhanced by funny vocal scanding “You Have No Permission To Get Into My Head”.
Top notch! With its fierce rhythm and relentless beats, title track “Time To Go Back” coming next signs an ode to the glorious days of West Coast electro sound.
Vintage sonorities fuse into cutting-edge drums while a funky atmosphere will propel you through time and space. Ace!

The flipside goes deeper into the realm serving up what appears as the climax of the EP. Combining gloomy strings to progressive swirls and ethereal chords, well named “Darkness” delivers a scary yet prophetic message from the future that will spread guilty feelings to any listener: “There Will Be No Light, No Hope…”. You have been warned! Last cut “The Bad Place” concludes the 12” on a soulful note regarding the state of our world controlled by government and technology.
Completed by a fantastic comic style artwork, awaken and despair “Time To Go Back EP” offers an outstanding retrofuturist release from which no one will come out unscathed.

One of the best outings in The Villains Inc. so far, rush on it!

The Mansion were initially a prison group formed by Charles Lorenzo Blakely in 1970 while serving time in the Green Bay Reformatory at Allouez, Wisconsin. The Mansion’s line up included at different times Michael Locke, Stanley Newburn, Carl Anderson, John Crawford, Michael Smith, Larry Moses, Ronald Hardin, Jerome Wagner, Larry Lister, Maurice Payne and Charles himself. One day while rehearsing in the prison chapel, the Mansion attracted the attention of the warden’s wife who happened to be showing some local dignitaries around. Impressed by what she heard the warden’s wife was instrumental in the Mansion being invited to perform for the city’s television station WBAY, where they recording two holiday programs. The warden later gave them permission to perform outside the prison which brought them to the attention of a Milwaukee neighbourhood program adviser by the name of Al Dunlap of the Commando Project One. It was through Dunlap that the Mansion recorded their solitary 45 release in 1974 “The Girl Next Door /Stop! Let Your Heart Be Your Guide” for a local Milwaukee label Gibbs (406). The label’s owner Bill Gibbs held the release back until some of the members of the Mansion were granted their release papers as at that time prisoners were unable to sign any contract agreements while still incarcerated. Although Charles Blakely remained incarcerated, he was later moved to a medium security prison in Fox Lake County, Wisconsin. While there he formed a gospel group, called the ‘Bell Tones’ who’s line up included Charles, Mayweather Lee, Joe Hayes, and Levell Rudd. The formation of this group was seen as major factor in Charles’s rehabilitation which led to his eventual parole in 1976. Once on the outside Charles with former ‘Bell Tone” member Mayweather Lee were joined by Charles (Sonny) Bryant and Jimmy Taylor to form a new ensemble by the name of The “Final Chapter”. As the final Chapter they recorded a solitary release for Marvel Love’s New World Label “Now I Know/Get Down For Your Action” (NW800) during 1980, a brief association that for several reasons was to eventually brake down. Although Jimmy Taylor left to pursue a career as a blues musician the remaining three members of the ‘Final Chapter’ continued to perform until they finally disbanded in 1987. Three previously unissued Final Chapter songs can be found on Soul Junction Various Artists CD compilation “We Got A Sweet Thing going On” Volume II. The Mansion’s Gibbs 45 is now is a highly prized and sort after item amongst Sweet and Group Soul collectors.

Eugene Lamont Johnson a.k.a E Lamont Johnson or Lamont Johnson holds the distinction of being the first internationally recognized fretless bassist in R&B music. Born April 20th 1955 in Highland Park, Michigan. Lamont rose to prominence as a session musician on Gloster Williams &The King Vision’s 1977 gospel album project “Together” (Gospel Roots -5005). In the same year Lamont featured as part of the celebrated Detroit based band Brainstorm their best-selling 1977 album “Stormin’” for Tabu Records. Brainstorm was initially formed during 1975 by bandleader and saxophonist Charles ‘Chuck’ Overton, and included lead vocalist Belita Woods, Lamont Johnson on Fretless bass, Renell Gonsalves on drums, Trenita ‘Treaty’ Womack on percussion, flute and backing vocals, Bob Ross (a.k.a Professor RJ Ross) on keyboards, Gerald ‘Jerry’ Kent on guitar, Jeryl Bright on trombone and ‘Leaping’ Larry Sims on trumpet and flugelhorn. The album was recorded during 1976 and released the following year. It contained the disco hit “Loving Is Really My Game” the popular “Wake Up And Be Somebody” and the radio hit “This Must Be Heaven” a beautifully crafted ballad featuring the lead vocals of Lamont which still receives continued airplay to this day. Lamont did not feature on the band’s two subsequent album projects “Journey To The Light” (Tabu 35327) in 1978 and “Funky Entertainment” (Tabu 35749) in 1979.

The year1978 was to prove to be one of the most prolific of Lamont’s recording career, playing bass on three studio albums. Firstly, on Hamilton Bohannon’s “On My Way” (Mercury SRM-i-3710), Jimmy McKee’s “First Time Out” (Champion- 8083N5) and Keith Barrows “Physical Attraction” (Columbia JC-35597) albums respectively. The final project of that year would be Lamont’s own album project “Music Of The Sun” (Tabu-35455) featuring Lamont on both bass guitar and vocals, the album also spawned two lead 45’s “Sister Fine/Yours Truly, Discreetly” and “Hey Girl/Differently”.

During 1979 Lamont would feature as a guest bassist on a further two studio album projects, firstly the self-titled debut album of fellow Detroit musicians Chapter 8 (Ariola 50056) followed by another self-titled album “Nightflyte” (Ariola 50060) who’s line-up included Howard Johnson prior to him embarking on a solo career. During 1980 Lamont began work on a second solo album for Tabu. Two lead 45 singles were recorded “Rock You Baby/Something More” (Tabu ZS9-5521) followed by the album’s title song “Rhumba” backed with the modern soul favourite “Masta Luva” (ZS9-5525) for whatever reason CBS/Tabu decided to shelve the remainder of the project. Later recording projects to feature Lamont instrumental talents were Was Not Was ‘s “Tell Me I’m Dreaming and Robert Lowe’s “Double Dip” jazz funk album. Later solo CD album projects from Lamont, “This Must Be Heaven” arrived in 2004 and “Amore’ Dance” in 2001 both on his own Allee Records Label. From the mid 70’s through to the present day, Lamont has been a notable electric bass instructor in the Detroit area and beyond. As well as the previously mentioned projects, Lamont and many of his prot’eg’es work can be found on many other world renown artists recording projects the most notable being, Earth Wind & Fire, The Dramatics, Anita Baker, Lady Gaga, Alicia Keys, Phyllis Hyman, Beyonce, Howard Johnson, David T. Walker, Aretha Franklyn, Stevie Wonder, Herbie Hancock, George Duke, The Temptations, The Winans amongst others.

Fast forward to the present and Soul Junction have licensed two previously unissued dance orientated Lamont Johnson produced compositions for this 45sinlge release with more to come. Under the project/artists name of “Lamont Johnson & Eugene” the recordings feature several different local Detroit musicians and vocalists. The a-side is a male vocally led early 90’s mid-tempo feel good dance number. While the b-side in contrast is a more synthesized bass driven 80’s female dancer which should appeal to the Boogie crowd,

Enjoy.

dreamcastmoe is the recording project of singer, songwriter, producer, and DJ Davon Bryant, a lifelong resident of Washington, DC. His music moves freely between moods and modes, hypnotic, romantic, traversing electronic, R&B, funk, soul, and hip-hop... Resident Advisor dubs it "soulful, cross-genre dance music." This ability to adapt and finesse, to twist in different directions while staying true and coherent in vision, can be traced to his home city and its complex cultural history. "Most Black kids in DC don't ever get to this point," he says. "This is what I am making this music for, in the DC tradition of soul and empathy and love that is rooted in this city. My music is for real people dealing with shit every day." A versatile, modern artist and collaborator, dreamcastmoe has thrived in the underground since his first uploads to Soundcloud and Bandcamp in 2017 and subsequent releases with labels like People's Potential Unlimited, Trading Places, and In Real Life Music. Bryant's laid-back personality, emotional honesty, and infectious energy shine through his work and how he talks about it, as Crack Magazine notes in their 2021 Rising feature: "a steady combination of confidence, creativity, and calmness." He grew up playing drums in church; he's worked dead-end jobs, had ups and downs, even sold off all his gear one time, but never stopped reinvesting in himself. He is quick to praise his co-producers, rattle off influences _ the visual feel of NBA 2K, the comedic timing of Bernie Mac, the savvy legacy of Duke Ellington, for starters _ and credit resourceful DC breakouts like Ankhlejohn that showed him the roadmap. His voice, a steady instrument, seemingly connects it all, capable of slow falsetto flow, swaggering talk-rap, and outright croon. His storytelling style is choppy yet fluid, like a mixtape, which is how Bryant sees Sound Is Like Water, his debut on Ghostly's International's freeform label, Spectral Sound. The two-part project culminates as a full-length LP release in November 2022. The first side, released as Part I, opens on the blurred beats of "El Dorado," which dreamcastmoe dedicates to his journey. It's a head-nodder, an off-kilter earworm co-produced by Max D (Future Times, RVNG Intl, etc.), with Bryant harmonizing hooks with synth jabs and a pitched-down presence. "Complicated" is the slow jam, delivered smoothly from a Saturday night crossroads. dreamcastmoe is contemplative and committed... gliding and locking ad-libs into skittering rhythms courtesy of co-producer Zackary Dawson _ but also willing to let something go, "acknowledging that everything in life IS NOT easy." "RU Ready" takes off from the jump as a tribute, challenge, and promise to his partner and his city ("The times you sat with me when I needed you the most / Told me the things that I needed to see / Young black man, really trying to be what I can be / And I'm really from DC). In its potent two-plus minutes, the sonics (co-produced by ZDBT) press the message, all cymbal crashes, breakbeats, and serrated synth lines. "Cloudy Weather, Wear Boots" is a blitzing dance-punk track made in collaboration with Jordan GCZ on Bryant's first trip to Amsterdam. The album's flipside opens on "Much More," the first of two synth-and-beat ballads co-produced by ZDBT. Later on "Long Songz," he claims, "I'm not writing love songs no more," prioritizing the vibe with "all my day ones." He calls it "a cry for more normal moments. Everything doesn't have to be a fantasy love story, more time spent getting to the money, growing, and making a way." He saves two of his most propulsive cuts for the finale, co-produced by Sami, co-founder of DC dance label 1432 R. As their titles suggest, "Take A Moment" and "Make Ya Mind" operate as anthems for movement, with Bryant free-flowing commands above wildly-styled percussion. Per Bryant, the latter is both "wake & bake jam" and a "dance floor bomb." His parting line: "Action / You got to show me action / Reaction." The world of dreamcastmoe straddles virtual reality and the realness of DC, images both imagined and lived-in. Bryant has a knack for unexpected melodies but what makes his music so exciting is his capacity to defy the expectations of genre and image. A fluid ingenuity and vulnerability bottled by Sound Is Like Water, and this is just the beginning.

Bubbling up from the psychedelic tar pits of L.A., Frankie and the Witch Fingers have been a constant source of primordial groove for the better part of the last decade. Formed and incubated in Bloomington, IN before moving west to scrap with Los Angeles’ garage rock rabble, the band evolved from cavern-clawed echo merchants to architects of prog-infected psych epics that evoke a shift in reality. After a stretch on Chicago/LA flagship Permanent Records the band landed at yet another fabled enclave of garage and psychedelia - Brooklyn’s Greenway Records, now working in tandem with psych powerhouse LEVITATION and their label The Reverberation Appreciation Society, the groups latest effort is dually supported by a RAS / Greenway co-release. After years of searching for the specific alchemy that would tear open the cosmos, they found the formula with the addition of Shaughnessy Starr on drums in the summer of 2018. They began a new cycle and tripped into tip-on double gatefold territory, flesh-ing out their lysergic impulses into a monolith of sound that closes in from all sides. The band reached new levels of grandiosity and utilized every minute to manifest their psych-soul Sabbath in four dimensions, spilling psychic blood on a populace ready and eagerly waiting. Yet, as expansive, inventive, and immersive as any studio album might be, the band is born for the stage. As their live prowess caught the ears of some legends in their own right, the band practically lived on the road last year with stints opening for Oh Sees, Cheap Trick and ZZ Top. Along the way the constant pulpit of the stage would form ZAM into a transformative experience while plotting their next permutation of space and time. That transformation, Monsters Eating People Eating Monsters... (repeated infinitely,) rises like a Phoenix from the road tar, van exhaust, and ozone crackle of amps in heat. Once off the road it was recorded in just five blistering days. Though, while the tour may have hammered the album into shape and brought about a wind of change, those changes stretched to the band itself as well. In the wake of the tour the band’s longtime bassist Alex Bulli made his exit, with the majority of bass parts on the album being written and played by multi-instrumental magician Josh Menashe with occasional pitch in from songwriter Dylan Sizemore. Stripped to their core the band has created their most ambitious work to date, an album that takes the turbulence of ZAM and crafts it into a beast more insidious and singular than anything in their catalog. Moving forward, the band has taken on new blood. Completing their lineup, Nikki Pickle (of Death Valley Girls) will join them working the new album out roadside on bass. A new horizon of Frankie and the Witch Fingers draws near and we’re all set to follow them into the unknown.

Welcome to ‘STR4TASFEAR, Bluey and Gilles’ second STR4TA album released.

A collection of songs, melodies, grooves and sounds that sit perfectly in the brand new music world it’s part of. Gilles and Bluey are both men who emerged into the Brit funk world. They were both part of this truly thrilling chapter in the story of homegrown music; which manifests itself here in a sumptuous mixture of twanging basslines, spacey synth melodies, clicking beats and wispy, ethereal voices.

And for this new set, they’ve got a few like-minded souls along to join the party. Multi-talented Neo-soul Godfather Omar, and celebrated vocalist, Valerie Etienne, both represent Brit funk’s first bounce. Also welcomed in to the fold is musical polymath, Emma-Jean Thackray, Brighton duo Anushka and Floridian trumpeter/vocalist Theo Croker. ‘STR4TASFEAR’ is Gilles and Bluey’s wide-open window into a timeless, wonderful world of Brit funk (Words by Mark Webster, 2022).

STR4TA has received a rapturous reception, with standout tracks ‘We Like It’ achieving over 1 million streams on Spotify and ‘Rhythm In Your Mind’ exceeding 12 weeks on Jazz FM’s playlist. They have been heavily supported by BBC 6Music, The Guardian, Wax Poetics, The Vinyl Factory, CLASH, Télérama (FR), Radio Nova (FR), Rolling Stones Italy & Japan. Most recent singles “When You Call Me” & “Night Flight”, taken from the upcoming album, has already received support from Rampage (BBC 1Xtra), Jamz Supernova (BBC 6 Music), Deb Grant (Jazz FM) plus NTS, Mi-Soul, Solar Radio, KCRW (US), KEXP (US), Concrete Islands, CRACK Magazine, and Nu-Funk (Spotify).

Welcome to ‘STR4TASFEAR, Bluey and Gilles’ second STR4TA album released.

A collection of songs, melodies, grooves and sounds that sit perfectly in the brand new music world it’s part of. Gilles and Bluey are both men who emerged into the Brit funk world. They were both part of this truly thrilling chapter in the story of homegrown music; which manifests itself here in a sumptuous mixture of twanging basslines, spacey synth melodies, clicking beats and wispy, ethereal voices.

And for this new set, they’ve got a few like-minded souls along to join the party. Multi-talented Neo-soul Godfather Omar, and celebrated vocalist, Valerie Etienne, both represent Brit funk’s first bounce. Also welcomed in to the fold is musical polymath, Emma-Jean Thackray, Brighton duo Anushka and Floridian trumpeter/vocalist Theo Croker. ‘STR4TASFEAR’ is Gilles and Bluey’s wide-open window into a timeless, wonderful world of Brit funk (Words by Mark Webster, 2022).

STR4TA has received a rapturous reception, with standout tracks ‘We Like It’ achieving over 1 million streams on Spotify and ‘Rhythm In Your Mind’ exceeding 12 weeks on Jazz FM’s playlist. They have been heavily supported by BBC 6Music, The Guardian, Wax Poetics, The Vinyl Factory, CLASH, Télérama (FR), Radio Nova (FR), Rolling Stones Italy & Japan. Most recent singles “When You Call Me” & “Night Flight”, taken from the upcoming album, has already received support from Rampage (BBC 1Xtra), Jamz Supernova (BBC 6 Music), Deb Grant (Jazz FM) plus NTS, Mi-Soul, Solar Radio, KCRW (US), KEXP (US), Concrete Islands, CRACK Magazine, and Nu-Funk (Spotify).

What It Means To be Human is the second in a series of four albums from Jasper Høiby’s Planet B, featuring saxophonist Josh Arcoleo and drummer Marc Michel, that focus on global topics of vital importance - Humanity, Climate Change, Artificial intelligence and Monetary Reform. This album seeks connection. A connection between humanity and the planet, between the problems we all face and about an opportunistic optimism to fix them. The mastermind is Jasper Høiby, the esteemed and revered Danish bassist and the deeply reflective, expressive and visionary artist. Whilst there are many moments that display the virtuosity and hard-hitting grooves of Phronesis, the long-standing band that shot Jasper to the limelight, Planet B offers additional rewards of subtle expression. The music is captivating and highly absorbing, enhanced by soundscapes of electronics and interspersed with powerful, emotive speech by some unique and forward-thinking female minds including Grace Lee Boggs, Ruby Sales and Jane Goddall. They all share a profound understanding of the world, only achievable through practical wisdom, each offering their individual take on where we are as a species and what we can do to improve. At the heart of the album is the trio. A group of like-minded and creative souls where the focus is all about the collective sound. As a whole, the music is a powerful, mesmerising and poignant display of musicianship, integrity and storytelling. What it Means To Be Human is an album at the forefront of the creative European scene.

For more than four decades, and despite all of the critical acclaim he's
received during that time, Nick Lowe has been making music that flies
right under most people's radar - And that's a shame, because it's hard to
imagine a soul so hard-hearted and melody-challenged who wouldn't find
a lot to love in The Old Magic
Paste Magazine says, '...when many people begin to consider retirement, Nick
Lowe has put out his best album in many years.' The album has been completely
remastered from the original tapes.

On April 29, MCC Magna Carta Cartel broke the 5 years silence with the
new speaker-breaking single "Silence", the first from their long awaited
second album "The Dying Option" - An album best described as rock
music from the world of dreams
Led by Martin Persner, one of the Nameless Ghouls of Ghost. MCC create
cinematic sounding themes with captivating melodies and poetic lyrics. Their
upcoming album "The Dying Option" offers a ticket into a state of mind seldom
seen or heard in modern music. Here they manage to use classic rock to create
an ambience beyond the regular riffs of today's rock and deliver ten fantastic
songs far beyond what anyone could have expected. "The Dying Option" is
produced by Niels Nielsen (In Flames, Ghost, Dead Soul) together with MCC. The
album artwork is created by the renowned film director Claudio Marino
(Behemoth, Watain, King Dude) and David M. Brinley (Ghost). MCC teamed up
with acclaimed Swedish film director Sebastian Jern for the Silence-video.

HDIGH (acronym for How Did I Get Here) by Dave East x Mike & Keys is now available on vinyl format. The album was produced entirely by frequent East collaborators Mike & Keys and features Method Man, Musiq Soulchild, Anthony Hamilton, Benny The Butcher, Trae Tha Truth and Steven Young. On HDIGH, Mike & Keys bring their “A-Game”, incorporating heavy boom bap and smooth melodic instrumentation into their production throughout the album, providing the perfect backdrop for East to spit his patented braggadocios bars. HDIGH is the first project to come from the East Harlem rapper since he linked up with Harry Fraud in 2021 for HOFFA, and has East reflecting on his upbringing and rise in the music industry.

HDIGH is available in your choice of a blue and pink splatter or black vinyl pressing

HDIGH (acronym for How Did I Get Here) by Dave East x Mike & Keys is now available on vinyl format. The album was produced entirely by frequent East collaborators Mike & Keys and features Method Man, Musiq Soulchild, Anthony Hamilton, Benny The Butcher, Trae Tha Truth and Steven Young. On HDIGH, Mike & Keys bring their “A-Game”, incorporating heavy boom bap and smooth melodic instrumentation into their production throughout the album, providing the perfect backdrop for East to spit his patented braggadocios bars. HDIGH is the first project to come from the East Harlem rapper since he linked up with Harry Fraud in 2021 for HOFFA, and has East reflecting on his upbringing and rise in the music industry.

HDIGH is available in your choice of a blue and pink splatter or black vinyl pressing

The album is a very eccentric ride, from one feeling and world to the opposite, reflecting a life spent thirsting for experience, discovery, and a little chaos. It is my hope that through sharing my “life on earth” with others, they will get the inspiration to walk their own path, reflect on the Truths they uncover, and enjoy the trip of it all.. The album was produced by Mikey Mike and Dave Cobb.

Michele Manzo is an esteemed producer, musician and DJ who has collaborated with a fine list of globally recognised talents such as Omar Lye-Fook, Georgia Anne Muldrow and Declaime, and Yancey Boys, amongst many others. His new EP on Detroit don Wajeed's Dirt Tech Rack label showcases his original house style with opener 'Around Brasilia' bring that South American flair. The bird claps, shuffling samba beats and lively percussion all bring the heat. Wajeed then remixes it into a tougher, more drum lead rhythm. The flip side offers the deep but metallic percussive workout that is 'A Minha Vida' and the soul drenched grooves of 'Brilhante's Anthem.'

Beatservice Records are thrilled to present the hotly-anticipated third album from Oslo-based production maestro, Third Attempt. 'The Novel Sound' follows on from the widely acclaimed 'Beats From The Quarantine' album released in April 2021, and further compliments the young artist's deserved reputation as one of the dance underground's most exciting talents to emerge in recent years.

Third Attempt (aka Torje Fagertun Spilde) has been dazzling us with his far-reaching music since arriving in the Beatservice fold with 'Shoreline' back in 2018, and since then his ever-evolving repertoire has continued to serve up immaculate sonic surprises. The fast-rising 23-year old artist has wasted no time making his indelible mark, displaying a frenetic work rate alongside an impeccable ear for constructing compelling leftfield grooves.

'The Novel Sound' opens with the rolling deviance of 'Freak Out', where a dusty string sample makes way for vocal samples, scratches, and searing sirens permeating a bass-heavy groove, setting the tone magnificently for the music that's primed to unfold. Next, we arrive in the mid-tempo chug of 'Age Of Steam'. Evolving over a crisp, club-ready rhythm, heavy funk guitars, dancing keys and distant vocal stabs cascade over driving bass before soaring strings herald the arrival of a slick breakdown section. The icing on the cake arrives as bubbling acid joins sensational horn motifs, breaking down once again for a starry-eyed beatless passage that leaves us yearning for a reprise.

'My Girl' features amorous vocal samples hovering over an irresistible disco beat, with alluring rhythm guitars and dreamy e-piano chords setting the scene for rousing horns to blast off into blissful summer skies. Before we've found time to catch our breath, 'Nu Funk' arrives with snappy hip hop samples scratched over tight beats and a delectable bass guitar hook. The groove pauses for dubbed-out space delays to echo into the night before a singing lead guitar joins the rhythm elements to burst back into life, with flute motifs, elegant strings, and otherworldly sweeps elegantly meandering across the panorama.

Set over a groove that arrives like a cool summer breeze, 'Sunbeam Symphony' drifts over soul-soothing chords, weighted bass and slick, rolling beats. Hypnotic keys guide us into position as the drums build energy and the bass notes power us forward. Third Attempt's dextrous keyboard solo dazzles momentarily before subsiding for a dub-infused break, with spaced-out vocal chops and rising sweeps building tension before the groove resumes and the virtuoso solo once again majestically soars. Maintaining the sun-kissed meditations, 'Definite' effortlessly floats through waves of thick bass, funk guitar chops and elegantly fused samples, with seductive chords, hypnotic horns and laser-tight drums combining to create a near overpowering dream state.

The heavy trip-hop rhythms of 'Nightfall' enrapture the listener as rich chords discreetly beckon, with cascading congas, mysterious melodies and exotic refrains building before the glorious lead vocal appears like a hyper-luminous flash of light. The chords disappear into the nothingness, before the carefully selected sample of 'Working Man' drifts in to fill the empty space. Smokey drums soon arrive, joined by weighted bass, foggy chords and an enigmatic whistle lead, fusing to conjure a half-lit world lifted from the pages of an evocative film noir novel.

The enlivening tablas, glitchy effects and saucer-eyed sweeps of 'Greed' hide subliminal messages casting a knowing eye over the consumer-driven society and self-help culture that pervade our society, before we arrive at the album's charmed finale. 'Last Winter Of My Childhood' yet again manages to transport the listener into a gently hallucinatory realm, with drowsy bass notes, tripped out pads and emotive strings building to a profound and rush-inducing crescendo.

'The Novel Sound' once again sees Third Attempt dextrously merging expansive musical aesthetics that fuse trip-hop, funk, soul and disco to deliver a sound that – although endowed with vintage sensibilities – feels proudly up to date. Continuing his breathtaking development in dazzling style, the album feels destined to echo over blissed-out sunsets, back-room excursions and twilight skies for many years to come.

Akae Beka's inimitable style of rich, deep, multi-layered songwriting, uncompromising devotion to RasTafari and soulful healing melodies developed over decades performing with St. Croix based band Midnite and countless recordings. At the point of his untimely passing in 2019, he had released over 70LP's. He is without a doubt one of the most prolific reggae artists ever known.

The stellar production trinity that is Zion I Kings have been involved collectively and individually in creating some of the most highly regarded contributions to the vast Akae Beka catalogue. The timeless songs of 'Mek A Menshun' amply reward the listener who can penetrate into the mystical musical realms of Rastafari. Longtime fans of Midnite and Akae Beka will note that Vaughn Benjamin's singing on 'Mek a Menshun' reached new heights of melodic delivery and emotional intensity. Coupled with his always poetic and insightful lyrics, these 10 original songs rank among his best recordings to date. The title track 'Mek A Menshun' includes vocals by Protoje Grammy (R)-nominated artist.

Mek A Menshun features the stellar musicianship of the ZIK distinguished in typical fashion by the rock-solid drumming of Lloyd "Junior" Richards. On this album, his playing is complemented by Aston Barrett Jr. ("By Day", "Only Now") and Kirk Bennett ( "Kagm Mystory", "Mek A Menshun"). The signature stylings of the other core ZIK musicians are augmented by horns (Andrew "Drew Keys" Stoch -trombone, Donald "Jahbless" Toney -saxophone), flute- Sheldon "Attiba" Bernard, kette- Andrew "Bassie" Campbell, and the guitar of Chet Samuel. ZIK guitarist Andrew "Moon" Bain contributes a string arrangement on "Only Now". Throughout the album, Laurent "Tippy I" Alfred's spot-on organ shuffle bubbles the rhythm forward. Many of the 'Mek A Menshun' tracks were among the last recordings done by the veteran engineer Gary Woung.

Originally released digitally and on CD, this LP is now being released for the first time on as a 12" vinyl LP courtesy of Before Zero Records.

Repress expected. Date TBA

By 1980 when this was originally released Pharoah Sanders was solidly entrenched with his own voice on tenor. The passing of John Coltrane and Sanders's fruitful years of playing with the prolific saxophone genius resulted with an unmistakable influence on his sound and explorations of the instrument. Beginning with "Greetings to Idris" the structure of the music is one that follows tradition yet opens up for the musicians to improvise within the arrangements. "Greetings to Idris" is in reference to the featured drummer Idris Muhammad who also played with Coltrane during his late period. Naturally Sanders is featured as the main instrument and his horn can be bold and demanding of your full attention. Always interested in other instruments from other cultures, much like Trane, he incorporates the Japanese instrument the koto, a beautifully harmonic stringed instrument to counter his soft rich blowing on tenor with only wind chimes and a harmonium for a delicious peaceful bit of music on "Kazuko"(Peace Child) that has the qualities of a meditative offering. Most of the music, eight tracks, is composed and arranged by Sanders and demonstrates his leadership. There is one John Coltrane composition entitled "After The Rain" that gets the Tranesque treatment by Sanders that makes it hard for even the most discerning listener to distinguish between the original version and Sanders impression. It is a bluesy duet featuring only sax and piano and leaves you wanting to hear it over and over again because of it's simple and haunting melodies. Another song that Coltrane recorded entitled "Easy To Remember" has a gentle swing to it built around a classic quartet (drums, bass, piano, sax) like that employed by Coltrane that results in a superb standard. Sanders incorporates the use of another "foreign" instrument to jazz by working in a tabla and sitar on "Soledad " that takes center stage before Sanders joins in on the music. The result is a thing of genius as the East and West merge and interface for composition that is peaceful. Sanders music on this LP fluctuates between the tranquil sounds of his mellow horn to the outer limits where he left off with the explorations of Trane's late period. What separates this LP from others is that it is a group playing under his leadership where he gives all others close to equal billing. The uptempo, "You've Got To Have freedom" is one such song where Sanders gets out there on some of his solos but works within the group structure as the other musicians, most notably Eddie Henderson on flugelhorn, bring the music back home. There is a chorus sung much of the time throughout where the the proclamation "Ya gotta have peace and love, ya gotta have freedom" is presented in Manhattan Transfer style but with much more soul. The use of vocalists is done again on the track entitled "Think About The One." The chorus features vocalese specialist Bobby McFerrin. This LP shows the different sides of Pharoah Sanders, a man always willing to explore the music, explore his soul and share it with you. The closing track "Bedria" is a mellow exploration of the various ranges of the tenor. It is a ten minute song that displays all the grace of his being, a gentle giant who can manipulate the horn to do extraordinary things, reverberating out and back in undulating waves of harmonic bliss. Sanders on this LP is next to perfect. One of his best recording from his post Impulse career. It belongs in your jazz collection right next to John Coltrane.

Available again. Note price increase. The contributions of the late Detroit producer James DeWitt Yancey –better known to the world as J Dilla to the world of hip-hop can't be overstated, and nowhere is his legacy more apparent than his work as a member of Slum Village. A founding member of the trio, (Alongside rappers T3 and Baatin) Dilla provided the group's distinctly esoteric, free-wheeling sound, built around winding basslines, quirky drumbeats, subtle low-end frequencies, and classic jazz & soul samples. Against the backdrop of Dilla's rich production, T3 and Baatin's free-flowing style of rhyming would also earn wide critical praise, leading to comparisons as the successors to A Tribe Called Quest. (A label they themselves have rejected.) It's on Slum Village's 1997 studio debut, Fan-Tas-Tic Vol. 1, that all these elements come together in the most proficient manner. An instant hit among Detroit's underground hip-hop scene, the album seemed to combine all the best elements of the reigning alternative and gangsta styles of hip-hop into one cohesive style that was a hit among critics. Fan-Tas-Tic's influence extended far beyond Detroit, as its sound heavily influenced the sounds of D'Angelo, Erykah Badu, and The Roots just to name a few. (Roots drummer ?uestlove has even declared that: "Hands down this album birthed the neo-soul movement.") Ne'Astra Media Group now presents the album reissued on vinyl, for the first time in several years. Every wobbling bass note of J Dilla's production has been preserved and every freestyle line of T3 and Baatin has been re-created, to maintain the legacy of a late-90s rap classic, and the legend of one of hip-hop's greatest beatsmiths.

Billy Preston was an American musician, who encompassed R&B, rock, soul, funk and gospel. He worked as a top session musician during the Sixties, backing artists such as Little Richard, Sam Cooke, The Rolling Stones and the Beatles amongst others. He is even the only non-Beatle musician to be given a credit on a Beatles recording at the band’s request. His solo career took off during the first half of the Sixties, but it was his early Seventies soul work that put him on the permanent musical map.

You Can’t Keep A Good Man Down was one of Preston’s final studio albums and originally came out in 1986. “What About The Love” was released as a single. The album is available as a limited edition of 750 individually numbered copies on pink & purple marbled vinyl.

Before Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes even had an album on the shelves, they were being played on the radio in Cleveland. That’s how far back the New Jersey band’s relationship goes with the city. As the “Jukes” part of their name would suggest, Southside Johnny and his group were spiritually a band from another time. They had a big sound (and a full horn section, courtesy of The Miami Horns) that conjured a vision of a large band, jammed together on the bandstand. Which was hardly far from the truth on a number of nights. Mixing carefully chosen blues and soul covers with their own originals (and some choice songwriting contributions from Bruce Springsteen), they had a live show that was even more potent than what had been laid to tape in the studio. This 1977 performance at the Cleveland Agora was the group’s second outing at the legendary venue in less than a year. Live in Cleveland ‘77, the recorded evidence of that night, presented here for the first time by Cleveland International Records, shows exactly why they would become frequent visitors and really, honorary Clevelanders. Songs like “I Don’t Want to Go Home,” Springsteen’s “The Fever,” “Havin’ a Party” and “Without Love” were already well-loved favorites with the local audience, thanks to frequent airplay on WMMS long before they even had an album. Cleveland got a special bonus round that other cities would have killed for. Ronnie Spector had joined the group in the studio as they recorded that debut and came to Cleveland to share the stage with the Jukes, sharing her soon-to-be-legendary take on Billy Joel’s “Say Goodbye to Hollywood” with the Agora crowd. As she did with so many songs, Spector made it her own. Southside Johnny and the Jukes continue to thrill audiences with their live performances worldwide to this day. Now, thanks to the release of Live in Cleveland ‘77, you can be in the audience to hear a bit of the early magic as they were on their way to the top.

Ein Konzeptalbum über das Bewusstsein, in dem die US-norwegische Künstlerin Okay Kaya ihre charakteristische Kombination aus Abstraktion und Witz konzentriert. Nach der Veröffentlichung ihres Jagjaguwar-Debüts "Watch This Liquid Pour Itself" 2020 zog Kaya von New York nach Europa, um ihre verschiedenen interdisziplinären Ausstellungen zu gestalten und zu zeigen. U.a. schuf sie eine Installation, die Unterwassermusik verstärkte, und eine interaktive Skulptur, die auf der Jung'schen Sandspieltherapie für Kinder basiert. Zwischen ihren Kunstausstellungen und Museumsperformances nahm Kaya in den von ihren Freunden großzügigerweise zur Verfügung gestellten Studios neue Musik auf. Das Album wurde außerdem von Ketamin-Therapien inspiriert. Während Kaya mit dem Tod ihres Egos experimentierte, schrieb sie mit den Stimmen fiktiver Charaktere, denen sie in den Geschichten anderer Leute begegnet war. OKAY KAYAs Erkundungen von Geist und Körper kommen mit verführerischen Dance-Beats, unvorhersehbar ineinandergreifenden Synthesizern, zarten Gitarren und R&B-Geflüster daher. Aber Kaya mag es, wenn ihr Falsetto bröckelt und ihre vom Soul inspirierten Hooks wild umherschwirren - ein schönes Chaos, das irgendwie zusammenpasst. Als sie jedoch nach New York zurückkehrte, freute sich Kaya darauf, wieder mit Freunden zusammenzuarbeiten. Sie lud zahlreiche davon in die Gaia Studios in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, ein, wie man der umfangreichen Tracklist des Albums entnehmen kann. So wie der Aufnahmeprozess von "SAP" mit der Isolation zusammenfiel und im Kreis ihrer Freunde endete, beginnt auch das Album mit einer Innenschau und öffnet sich im Verlauf immer weiter nach außen zu einer Romanze, zu Liebhabern, die als Spiegel dienen und Kaya aus verschiedenen Blickwinkeln auf sich selbst zurückwerfen.

Ein Konzeptalbum über das Bewusstsein, in dem die US-norwegische Künstlerin Okay Kaya ihre charakteristische Kombination aus Abstraktion und Witz konzentriert. Nach der Veröffentlichung ihres Jagjaguwar-Debüts "Watch This Liquid Pour Itself" 2020 zog Kaya von New York nach Europa, um ihre verschiedenen interdisziplinären Ausstellungen zu gestalten und zu zeigen. U.a. schuf sie eine Installation, die Unterwassermusik verstärkte, und eine interaktive Skulptur, die auf der Jung'schen Sandspieltherapie für Kinder basiert. Zwischen ihren Kunstausstellungen und Museumsperformances nahm Kaya in den von ihren Freunden großzügigerweise zur Verfügung gestellten Studios neue Musik auf. Das Album wurde außerdem von Ketamin-Therapien inspiriert. Während Kaya mit dem Tod ihres Egos experimentierte, schrieb sie mit den Stimmen fiktiver Charaktere, denen sie in den Geschichten anderer Leute begegnet war. OKAY KAYAs Erkundungen von Geist und Körper kommen mit verführerischen Dance-Beats, unvorhersehbar ineinandergreifenden Synthesizern, zarten Gitarren und R&B-Geflüster daher. Aber Kaya mag es, wenn ihr Falsetto bröckelt und ihre vom Soul inspirierten Hooks wild umherschwirren - ein schönes Chaos, das irgendwie zusammenpasst. Als sie jedoch nach New York zurückkehrte, freute sich Kaya darauf, wieder mit Freunden zusammenzuarbeiten. Sie lud zahlreiche davon in die Gaia Studios in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, ein, wie man der umfangreichen Tracklist des Albums entnehmen kann. So wie der Aufnahmeprozess von "SAP" mit der Isolation zusammenfiel und im Kreis ihrer Freunde endete, beginnt auch das Album mit einer Innenschau und öffnet sich im Verlauf immer weiter nach außen zu einer Romanze, zu Liebhabern, die als Spiegel dienen und Kaya aus verschiedenen Blickwinkeln auf sich selbst zurückwerfen.

Ein Konzeptalbum über das Bewusstsein, in dem die US-norwegische Künstlerin Okay Kaya ihre charakteristische Kombination aus Abstraktion und Witz konzentriert. Nach der Veröffentlichung ihres Jagjaguwar-Debüts "Watch This Liquid Pour Itself" 2020 zog Kaya von New York nach Europa, um ihre verschiedenen interdisziplinären Ausstellungen zu gestalten und zu zeigen. U.a. schuf sie eine Installation, die Unterwassermusik verstärkte, und eine interaktive Skulptur, die auf der Jung'schen Sandspieltherapie für Kinder basiert. Zwischen ihren Kunstausstellungen und Museumsperformances nahm Kaya in den von ihren Freunden großzügigerweise zur Verfügung gestellten Studios neue Musik auf. Das Album wurde außerdem von Ketamin-Therapien inspiriert. Während Kaya mit dem Tod ihres Egos experimentierte, schrieb sie mit den Stimmen fiktiver Charaktere, denen sie in den Geschichten anderer Leute begegnet war. OKAY KAYAs Erkundungen von Geist und Körper kommen mit verführerischen Dance-Beats, unvorhersehbar ineinandergreifenden Synthesizern, zarten Gitarren und R&B-Geflüster daher. Aber Kaya mag es, wenn ihr Falsetto bröckelt und ihre vom Soul inspirierten Hooks wild umherschwirren - ein schönes Chaos, das irgendwie zusammenpasst. Als sie jedoch nach New York zurückkehrte, freute sich Kaya darauf, wieder mit Freunden zusammenzuarbeiten. Sie lud zahlreiche davon in die Gaia Studios in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, ein, wie man der umfangreichen Tracklist des Albums entnehmen kann. So wie der Aufnahmeprozess von "SAP" mit der Isolation zusammenfiel und im Kreis ihrer Freunde endete, beginnt auch das Album mit einer Innenschau und öffnet sich im Verlauf immer weiter nach außen zu einer Romanze, zu Liebhabern, die als Spiegel dienen und Kaya aus verschiedenen Blickwinkeln auf sich selbst zurückwerfen.

Paving the way for independent artists with songs about love, loss and life, Low Island release their highly anticipated sophomore album, Life In Miniature, promising more ‘delicious alt pop’ (Clash) as the group follow in the footsteps of fellow ‘Oxford bands Glass Animals, Radiohead and Foals’ (Rolling Stone Germany).

It comes fresh off the back of their debut album, If You Could Have It All Again, which placed #17 in the Official UK Album Sales Chart and won them plaudits from Gigwise (‘truly engrossing’), Line of Best Fit (‘arena ready’), Double J, KCRW, Radio1, 6music and Zane Lowe, who described the bands ‘intellectual, soulful creativity.’ Their second album, Life In Miniature, sees Low Island continue to broaden the scope of their ambition, with a record that exquisitely balances stirring electronics, euphoric indie and infectious pop. It’s a record described by the band as a ‘timecapsule, a sonic photo album that captures three years of accelerated change that felt like a lifetime. Leaving home, falling in love, losing loved ones, trying to capture full complexity of emotion that all of those experiences engender.’

Setting that heartfelt lyricism against such a diverse range of sonic backdrops is something that Low Island have been devotedly fine-tuning over the years, firmly rooted in an independence that extends to everything from managing themselves and releasing their music on their own label, Emotional Interference. Its lead to an electrifying live show, which has seen them play festivals from Glastonbury to Lollapalooza Berlin, support synthpop legends Hot Chip and pack out their own shows everywhere from London to Berlin, Prague and Paris, prompting 6music’s Tom Robinson to prophesise that ‘we’ll have them rocking the Pyramid Stage yet, mark my words’.

Storyville Records is proud to present Michel Petrucciani – Solo in
Denmark

This album features French piano prodigy Michel Petrucciani in a solo recording
from Silkeborg Church, 1990. MP was one of the most popular pianists in the
1990’s due to his extraordinary technique, his astounding musical outlook and
extremely dynamic playing style. His music is simply timeless and magical,
seemingly coming straight from his soul. As he is often quoted: “I’m not playing
to your head, but to your soul. When I play, I’m like a bird flying over the landscape,
and I can land anywhere.” Recorded on June 23, 1990 at the Riverboat Jazz
Festival in Silkeborg, Denmark, this album is a tour de force that leads the listener
through a series of the most iconic motifs in jazz, all of which are deconstructed
and transformed by an outstanding craftsman and embellished along the way by
a true master. And he also allows himself to insert unexpected twists and turns
that are guaranteed to make the listener smile. Pay special attention to his small
rhythmic and melodic tags, little hints for the well- trained ear. They reveal a
musician who never grows complacent or takes himself too seriously. Here, the
totality of MP’s talents are exhibited in an intimate setting, where he stuns the
crowd with his inventive and blindingly rapid playing. The music emanating from
the man simply grabs everybody’s attention. Arrangements by jazz legends like
Duke Ellington, Thelonious Monk and Miles Davis gets the cheeky Petrucciani
treatment with his rather audacious approach to ‘established’ jazz standards. MP
had the ability to effortlessly travel through the history of jazz on his piano,
fascinating his audience in the process. This church concert clearly displays why
MP quickly developed into a truly exceptional member of the international jazz
scene. For MP, joyful playing with the music was a necessity of life. He lived and
breathed for the opportunity to show it his love and respect. And all we have to do
is open our ears, mind and soul and accept the gems from a musical individualist,
who has made an indelible impression on millions of jazz listeners around the
world. Solo in Denmark is simply another chapter in the remarkable story of a
man, who perceived himself as a servant of the music. BIOGRAPHY Michel
Petrucciani was a highly charismatic and high- spirited character, despite being
hindered by a genetic disease called osteogenesis imperfecta or brittle bone
disease. He was extremely short, standing at three feet. Luckily, his hands were
perfectly normal, but he had special modifications to reach the piano’s pedals. He
started playing in the family band with his guitarist father and bassist brother. At
the age of 15, he had the opportunity to play with Kenny Clarke and Clark Terry,
and at 17 he made his first recording. MP moved to the US in 1982, where he
convinced Charles Lloyd to get out on the road again, and tour with his quartet.
Behind the grand piano, MP was a giant with h

This compilation pays tribute to the soul music of Boston that was
originally captured on tape by legendary Boston record store owner,
turned label owner and curator, Skippy White
This release is a labor of love for all involved in compiling it, especially Eli
Paperboy Reed. In addition to being a songwriter and performer, Eli is an avid
record collector, especially of obscure R&B, soul and gospel 45s from the early
1960s. Many of the recordings on this compilation are from Eli's private collection
of 45s and acetates. Extensive liner note in the package written by Peter
Guralnick, Peter Wolf and Eli Paperboy Reed & Noah Schaffer provide the context
for the music, the time, and the impact that Skippy White, his stores and the
music he discovered and released on his own labels have had on those who
frequented his stores, loved the music he released and were influenced by it all.
The album includes songs from The Precisions, Earl Lett. Junior Washington and
the Lynn Harmonizers among others. It serves as the perfect introduction to
Boston Soul.Packaging: LP Liner notes by Peter Guralnick, Peter Wolf and Eli
Paperboy Reed

CHIARA CIVELLO'S NEW SINGLE ADDS NEAPOLITAN VIBES TO BRAZILIAN FUNK TO CELEBRATE DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION

Four Flies is proud to present a new, exciting single by internationally acclaimed Italian singer, multi-instrumentalist and songwriter Chiara Civello. Co-produced with Neapolitan pianist, beatmaker and producer Dario Bassolino and with lyrics by Civello and Sicilian artist Kaballà, "Sono Come Sono" is the first Italian adaptation of the Brazilian song "Olhos Coloridos", a celebration of diversity, mixed roots and inclusion written by Macau and made famous by singer Sandra de Sa. To respect the spirit of the original and its soul-funk sound, Civello decided to produce the song in Naples, a city with many similarities to Rio de Janeiro, including its multicultural history. The result is an irresistible eighties-inspired boogie-funk track brimming with positivity and joy.

"Sono Come Sono" comes out on 21 October 2022 as a 12" VINYL MAXI SINGLE containing the song plus three fantastic remixes by eclectic Neapolitan DJ/producer Whodamanny that add groovy and tribal influences to the mix and further enhance its dancefloor potential.

Civello's adaptation has been praised by the writer and singer of the original, as well as by another great name in Brasilian popular music:

"Cada Qual com seu Cada Qual, e muito Respeito pra Liberar Geral…" Chiara has expressed this idea truthfully, beautifully and with dignity. I'm very excited, proud and happy! This is a fantastic version of "Olhos Coloridos". "Limitar…, é humilhar o Infinito…" Thank you, sister" – Sandra de Sá

"Chiara, I couldn't contain my emotion when I listened to your Italian version of "Olhos Coloridos". Beautiful vocals… a beautiful brass arrangement… pure black-Rio! You put colors into my eyes and light into my soul with your magical performance, I have no words. I must really thank you for the joy you gave me. "somos o que somos", Olhos Coloridos, Sarará Crioulo"" – Macau

"Another smooth and super groovy creation by Chiara Civello, this is a perfect Italian version of the classic Rio de Janeiro soul-funk song, "Olhos Coloridos", made famous by Sandra de Sá. It respects the spirit of Black pride contained in the original lyrics but adds to it new sounds and meanings. Well done, Chiara!" – Nelson Motta

Reggie B returns with his much awaited NBN release "Tinky's Jam.” This is his first full length album since “Soulofunkaquarian” released with INnatesounds. The album was most definitely worth the wait. It takes the listener through a personal and musical journey inspired by the birth of his son, who he affectionately calls “Tinky,” and the connection they share. Tinky was a major part of this album, oftentimes found in the studio during the conceptions of many of the songs. This album is unlike any other record released by the Kansas born producer, multi instrumentalist, singer and arranger. After the birth of his son, he was inspired and encouraged to get back into the musical game by the head of NBN, Onra. "Tinky's Jam" is something of a family affair with friends and old collaborators playing their part.

Born into a musical family to parents who were two sides of the same coin, a father who was one of the most renowned drummers in Topeka, Kansas funk and jazz fusion scenes and a mother who was one of the most prominent gospel singers in the city. The apple didn't fall far from the tree and Reggie has spent his life performing and playing with a healthy slew of releases.

This album is the result of countless days in the studio which yielded scores of a dozen slabs of head nodding funk.

Mostly instrumental and showcasing Reggie's many styles from the heavy bounce of "Futuristic Slow", to the George Clinton nod on "P For Life", and the crafted soul of "Gone Fishing" with Dominique Sanders to the cool street jazz feel of "Realize" with Donald Hates's sax adding flare as well as the beat of "Nose Dive" providing the nod factor for the heads.

Closing out the LP ``Tinky's Dance" - a raw soulful jam that lies somewhere between Prince and Larry Heard - for Reggie "the whole project felt like a gift to me and my baby boy Tinky! I wanted to let him know he’s always in my heart and soul and I love my Tinky man infinitely! It’s a children's album for the elevated child like Tinky!”

Freedom is both an integral and multi-layered topic for improvised music, describing its mechanics, aesthetics, and values and often an underlying political dimension as well. In the case of free jazz specifically, the word carries additional weight given the music's deep connection to the black liberation movement of the 1960's and 70's.

The passionate and unclassifiable work of Calgary-based improviser Jairus Sharif embraces each of these definitions of freedom and others, albeit strictly on its own personal and idiosyncratic terms. Since early 2020, the 34 year-old autodidact has been generating a steady stream of homespun solo recordings that forge unprecedented connections between hip-hop abstraction, cosmic skronk, outsider jazz, and staunch post-punk DIY ethos.

Leading up to the pandemic, Sharif's immersion in spiritual and exploratory jazz had culminated in him deciding to purchase an alto saxophone. Unbeknownst to him this instrument would be a catalyst for him to discover his own ardently individualistic artistic voice.

Prior to that point, he had always been somewhat of a solitary musical traveler. In 2002, he acquired his first instrument—a pair of Technics 1200s — but struggled to find local collaborators that had equal investment in hip hop culture. Ultimately, Sharif picked up the guitar, turning to the resilient local punk community, that had also nurtured both of his mothers some time earlier.

As Black Lives Matter gained momentum in the wake of George Floyd's murder, Sharif was suddenly flooded with an acute awareness of his own identity. It compelled him to zealously plunge headlong into open-ended spontaneous solo creation. Water & Tools, his strange and stirring debut for Toronto's Telephone Explosion Records (home to full-lengths from the likes of Brodie West's Eucalyptus, Mas Aya, and Joseph Shabason), offers a glimpse into this ongoing hermetic journey.

As Sharif dedicated himself to uncovering his own deeper musical truths, he assembled a home studio in his basement, cobbling together a drum kit from bits his bandmate had left at his house pre-pandemic, chaining effects together and outfitting the entire space with microphones. Somewhere between the chaos of child's treehouse and the tidy import of a shrine, this space (pictured on the album's back cover) consecrated his own imagination. He laid it out to maximize access to any and every tool in his arsenal, providing him a freedom to explore that he had never permitted himself to consummate before.

Within this cozy private universe, his recent purchase—the saxophone—assumed new meaning. It furnished a tangible connection to the black radicalism that mobilized free jazz, but also something far more personal. From a technical standpoint, the instrument was completely unfamiliar to him, yet rather than this being a hindrance to Sharif, his inexperience opened fruitful path forward, unencumbered by preconceptions. Resolving to shirk formal training, convention, and build his own understanding of it from scratch, allowed him to access his most raw, fundamental creative impulses. The Saxophone's inseverable bond with breath compounded this effect, echoing revelatory discoveries he had been making about breathing through yoga, research, and psychotherapy. Of course, the parallels with BLM's harrowing rallying cry—“I can't breathe”—were not lost on him either.

Water & Tools is a dense, contradictory statement with a blustery surface that shelters a soulful heart. It's generous music, exuding profound vulnerability—grappling with the loss of one his mothers, Lisa—all the while brimming with electric wide-eyed wonder. Almost every one of the nine pieces seems to carry some semblance of a groove, while remaining completely untethered from pulse. For Sharif, this collection is an expression of newfound lucidity, however for the listener his sonic concoctions act as powerful psychotropics. At points, there's a timelessness that's conveyed through the music's processional, ritualistic tenor, and yet there's an endless amount of wild, futuristic detail waiting to unspool at any given moment. Similarly, while this recording emerges from Sharif's private pilgrimage and personal emancipation, he also leaves room for collaboration. Woven throughout Sharif's one-man-ensemble textures, one finds Maxmilian Turnbull (of Badge Epoque, U.S. Girls, and Cosmic Range infamy) providing sundry keyboards and treatments, as well as his mixing skills.

Whether conjuring effusive psychedelia or plumbing introspective depths, the music that Jairus Sharif produces is singular, visceral, and wondrously unpredictable. Water & Tools sketches a raw, firsthand account of his nascent explorations within his own unbridled imagination.

Pressed On Clear Vinyl! 1991 was the year that it all broke loose for producer Pete Rock and his rhyme partner, CL Smooth. But the duo was far from an overnight sensation. The two friends had been on the grind since high school in Mt. Vernon, NY in the mid-'80s, and Pete had been building up to his big moment since he first manned the decks on WBLS's hugely influential 'In Control With Marley Marl' radio show, starting in 1987. In '91, Pete's talent finally forced him from the studio shadows into the spotlight, and after remixes and co-productions for Heavy D (1989's Big Tyme album); Johnny Gill ('Rub You The Right Way,' 1990); and Elektra label-mates Brand Nubian ('Slow Down,' 1990); it was time for top billing. As Pete's rep skyrocketed with a revolutionary remix to Public Enemy's 'Shut 'Em Down' in 1991, the stage was set. The duo's debut EP, 'All Souled Out', was the perfect set-up - and bridge to - their flawless LP, Mecca & The Soul Brother, which appeared only one year later. Fans new (thanks to a recent revival, resulting from the song's use in a Google / Android commercial) and old are sure to know the EP's only single, 'The Creator.' The cut is a perfect slice of early '90s hip-hop - jumpy, funky and rolling along at a sprinter's pace, with killer horns that sew up the chorus. Interestingly, it's the only song on the EP where Pete Rock rhymes (and solo at that, with lines written by Brand Nubian's Grand Puba). The remaining five of the EP's songs, with CL Smooth in full charge of the mic, are no less impressive. The sleeper is perhaps 'Go With The Flow,' a kinetic groover with an egregiously thick, muted bassline, surgical cuts and never-endingly captivating lines by the liquid-tongued CL. 'All Souled Out' boasts all of the Pete Rock trademarks - a jumpy, filtered bassline; beautifully stitched horn samples on the hook; and this time with a faster tempo. CL has no issues with Pete's BPM challenge, proving he can drop knowledge at any speed. And of two different versions of 'Good Life' on the platter, the EP's final cut, the 'Group Home Mix,' is perhaps the winner, with an abundance of musical action to back up CL's lyrical musings on ways to achieve success and comfort in life. 25 years after its initial impact, 'All Souled Out' sounds as heavy and essential as ever, and will remind fans how important this duo was to the artform.

Following the Kota Motomura and Exterior debuts earlier this year, it’s another first from Hobbes Music. Maastricht Research is a brand new project from Scottish artist Jonathan Hunter producing ambient/drone style material. Jonathan was part of the quartet behind the much-loved Slabs Of The Tabernacle parties at Glasgow's now-legendary La Cheetah club back in the late 00s/early 10s. He's also one half of The Three Lives, whose debut EP, Mud & Flame and follow-up Across & Beyond were released recently by Glasgow's Full Dose label.

Written and recorded over a number of years, whilst living in Amsterdam, Glasgow and Dublin, the Maastricht Research vibe is about as horizontal as it gets and is the perfect soundtrack to long, lazy days and balmy eves in the park, by the pool, in the bath etc! There are zero beats. It's proper ambient / drone music and could well have been beamed in from another dimension, planet or century altogether, including field recordings, atmospheric fx, lush and eerie pads, with the occasional snatch of a weird vocal and generally other-worldly sounds.

The record owes a debt to the likes of Manuel Gottsching, Cluster, Susumu Yokota, Detroit Escalator Company, Astral Industries and Alessandro Cortini, among others…

Mastered by Keith 'Radioactive Man' Tenniswood, Idle Animation will now be out at the end of October on extremely limited edition 12" vinyl, with CMYK printed labels, contained in a plain white sleeve with 3mm spine (reverse board for natural finish) including full colour artwork plus titles* printed using a Risograph on 135gsm ‘Context Natural’ A3 paper and finally all packaged in a polyurethane bag. *printed on the ‘Obi flap’ - excess paper folded around the spine.

"Loving it. Beautiful stuff here - all tracks doing it for me" ROLANDO (UR)

"This is great! Will use in on Ambient Flo" AUNTIE FLO

"Really diggin the MaastrichtResearch release" INTERGALACTIC GARY

"Love this, thanks for sending" DOMENIC (Sub Club)

"This sounds fantastic!" NICK CRADDOCK (Gateway To Zen)

"Really liking the sound of the record. Dublin air tugging on his emotive side by the sounds :)" JOHN HECKLE

"Mesmerizing music, something we all need to listen to because of so much chaos and stress in the world...with this, just sit back and zone out for a bit and regain balance...." DAN CURTIN

"This is nice music, thank you for sharing it with me. A3 is the one for me, really nice vibe" ARIO (Astral Industries)

"More emotive and soulful ambience and drone from this red hot label. Maastricht Research have been reviving the Poolside revellers at Pikes morning sessions this summer" DRIBBLER (Pikes, Café del Mar, Ibiza)

Positive Disintegration was DIÄT’s sophomore album in which they expanded their post punk to a new pop level, reaching their songwriting peak. DIÄT sound builds upon the FALLOUT/ SIX MINUTE WAR / CRISIS skeletal sound adding muscular marching drums and sparsely using synths and drums machines. Their trademark dead pan vocals is at the center of the mix narrating the inane existence of a soul under the dreads of late capitalism. Questioning your own existence in a sea of depression, low paid jobs, borders, information, lack of sleep and a fast moving world that threatens to leave you behind. All too familiar. Positive Disintegration was originally released in 2019. Re-released with a totally new mix on time for DIÄT’s rare appearance at Static Shock Weekend in London. Marking the 10 years since their first London show. Remastered by Guitarist Tobias Lill at Dong Xuan Productions the new edition sounds deeper and highlights many parts of the album buried in previous editions, breathing new life to it. This edition keeps the same artwork of previous presses. With sleeve artwork by Yuta Matsumura and including a lyric insert and poster by Nada Ollosp.

This what we call a Killer Modern Soul Dancer!

Curtis Lee, real name Curtis Lee Lindsey of Canton OH, sadly passed away much too young at the age of 58 in June 2012. He was a really special man & a really talented singer and musician. Curt worked for Canton City Schools as a crossing guard. He was also a social member of VFW Post #3747 (Military Veteran organisation). He loved to sing and was runner-up for Canton Idol in 2007, and he also sang at the Fair Grounds and for some Hall of Fame events. We’ve managed to track down his family and licensed those two amazing songs that he recorded in 1979 on his own label Spade Record recorded at Kopperhead studio North Canton OH for your pleasure. One in every home!

Debbie Gibson is thrilled to announce the release of her first ever holiday
album, 'Winterlicious
' Ranging from a mix of sparkling originals and beautiful reimagined covers,
Gibson has enlisted her dream team of Sean Thomas ('The Body Remembers'/
Hallmark), Fred Coury (Cinderella/ Emmy award winning composer/ producer),
Sylvia MacCalla (Selena Gomez), Joey Melotti (Barry Manilow), Joey Finger
(Donny & Marie) and musicians Lydia Ansel (electric violin) and indie artist
BONZIE (accordion), to create an album that is sure to become a holiday classic.
This spirited and soulful album, Gibson's first in this genre in 36 years, features a
magical collaboration with her pop soulmate Joey McIntyre, who co- wrote the
new holiday anthem "Heartbreak Holiday" for those missing that special someone
during the holidays. Gibson's Daddy Joe joins her on a stunning new rendition of
"White Christmas" and her infectious, up- tempo, original song "Christmas Star,"
which came out in 2021, is also included.

A new pressing, limited to 500 copies on red vinyl. Joy Division live at the Leigh Rock Festival in 1979. It has a gatefold sleeve with previously unseen Leigh festival images. This item will only be manufactured for a short period of time so will be very limited. Order now. The Leigh Rock and Music Festival was a 3-day mini-festival co-hosted by Zoo Records and Factory Records, held in Leigh on 25, 26 & 27 August 1979. Factory gave the event the catalogue number Fac 15 and the title 'Zoo Meets Factory Half-way'. The roster included A Certain Ratio, Joy Division, Crawling Chaos, The Teardrop Explodes, OMD, and Echo and the Bunnymen. The event was so titled because the town Leigh is Half-way between Liverpool (the home of Zoo) and Factory. Catalogue number also allocated to a poster for the event which was designed by Peter Saville. Tracklisting : Side One : 1 Disorder/ Stage Announcements 2 Leaders Of Men 3 Colony 4 Insight 5 Digital. Side Two : 6 Dead Souls 7 Shadow Play 8 She’s Lost Control 9 Transmission 10 Interzone 11 Sound Of Music- Intro.

The Vee-Gees (previously known as the Versatile Gents) were from Greensboro, N.C. The versalite Gents started the Group in 1967 originally as "the African Americans" performed at a talent show at Gillespie Park School, Geensboro, North Carolina. Soon After Virginia Massey a Senior Music Major at A&T joined the group and the name was changed to Gin And The Gents. After one year Massey left the Band and their name was changed to The Versatile Gents. They reformed and called themselves the Vee Gees in the early 70’s. The Members are Robert Evans (Vince Evans of the NFL's brother), Nathaniel Herring, Anthony Quick, CC Stewart, Cecil Young.In their band. Carlton Morales that wrote "Vallotte" and played with Julian Lennon on guitar. Kevan Tynes on drums. Walter Carlton on bass. They recored a beautiful sweet soul side call It’s hard to say so long on Jump in 1973. They came back to the studio in 1974 and cut the incredible Talkin on Jump off records. Vee Gees Talkin is the ultimate crossover tune, Spun by some of the best deejays in the world in the last 3 decades including Arthur Fenn, Keith Money, Andy Burns, Buey, Andy Dawes, Alexander Dimitriades Bentley, Jens Chreisti, Steven Clancy and many others. We’re sure you will be singing all day “Hey brother, brother, just had a talk with the man yesterday.. what did he saaaaaay? “