Buscar:spell

It seems KPM have long been fans of Smith and Mudd and, after being introduced to each other by mutual friend Andy Allday, the peerless Balearic maestros were invited to contribute to the library label’s digital-only “Album Shorts” project. The results are predictably wonderful.

With past projects under our belt working with everyone involved so far it made perfect sense for Be With to take on the vinyl release of this instant library classic. But why is it called “Tea With Holger”?

“Holger” is of course Holger Czukay and the whole LP is dedicated to Smith and Mudd’s time spent with him and Ursa Major at Can’s famous Inner Space Studio in Weilerswist, near Cologne.

When not recording it seems they spent a great deal of time sat around being entertained by Holger’s stories and drinking many cups of different sorts of tea from all over the world. These moments provide some their fondest memories of their visits:

“Looking back, it was pretty incredible that we spent part of our lives with Holger in one of the most magical places we’ve ever known, Inner Space Studio. We have our memories and, of course, the Bison album we made with him. But to honour the time we spent with him, we wanted to dedicate an album to him called ‘Tea With Holger’. The names of the tracks are about that time.”

The album was recorded over several years in London, Margate and Gorthleck, a small hamlet in the Scottish Highlands. Mike Piggott, who played with Bert Jansch, handled the strings and played violin whilst Sam Creer lent his virtuoso cello work to the proceedings. The sessions employed a key recording technique from their time with Holger: hit record and play. They wanted to capture magical improvisational moments live and not do the work later on in editing.

In their own words (and in classic library record sleeve style) these tracks are collectively described as “Balearic themes including breezy soul, sun-dappled melodies, warm pianos and sweeping strings”. You want to hear this, right?

The album is vintage Smith and Mudd. The gentle piano ushering in opening track “The Gardener” is soon joined by low, bubbling drums. When the time is just right, lush guitars glisten above a Welsh language vocal that floats like silk. Easy as a sea breeze. “Innerspace” is of course a nod to Can’s aforementioned studio. Dark, heavy piano meets rolling drums before warm chords and luscious strings take over, gliding over moody grooves to drive you home. Closing out side A, “Weilerswist” delivers more beautifully rolling piano and guitars over thumping cellos and building drums.

Side B opens with the full, string-enhanced version of “Away From Me”. This is Smith and Mudd’s prefered version and it’s only available here on this vinyl issue. For us it’s the standout on this all-highlight album. Tribal tones, piano and cello set a melodic staccato for violin to soar over while rolling piano lines and gospel organ chords descend into a drum drop that leads to a glorious vocal lead finale.

Distant synths introduce sun-drenched guitars and uplifting strings in “Kölner Street”, before a spacey Moog solo leads to a spellbinding, sci-fi drop. The sunshine returns before the track ends. The album closes with “Tea With Holger”. Airy vocal swells are punctuated by plucked cellos and picked guitars, all wonderfully warmed by a soulful piano.

Cut by Pete Norman and pressed in the Netherlands by Record Industry, “Tea With Holger” comes in a classic KPM green sleeve complete with track descriptions from Smith and Mudd themselves. The finishing visual touches come courtesy of Richard Robinson. We’ve given this record the same care and attention as we give to each our KPM re-issues, and it’s just as essential.

Nice 1 Records launches with a sublime slice of deep house geared towards tender moments in the dance. We Are Syd's "Gently" in its original form is a smoky downtempo cut riding on a laid back broken beat, honey-coated keys and a powerful vocal turn from accomplished singer Shea Seger. The emphasis on this record is on the two stellar mixes from Baby Ford & Dazmos, leading on the A side with the hazy, old-school groove of the "Backroom Mix". Seger's husky delivery lingers in a mellifluous bed of pads and a classic, understated drum machine funk. On the flip, the "Frontroom Mix" bring the rhythm section to the forefront, letting the undulating bassline carry the track and splashing dubbed out flourishes in the mix for a spellbinding, club-ready end result.

In-demand deep modal jazz tune from Belgium featuring Babs Roberts!

The lesser-spotted jazz atoms that formed the fusion of Futurist Flanders! It might sound like an ambitious claim but having been a firm fixture at the top of many European jazz collector want lists over the past decade Finders Keepers wouldn’t be alone when proclaiming this extremely rare, lesser-known two-track 7” from 1969 as one of the best jazz 45s of all time! Alongside Polish pianist Krzysztof Komeda’s soundtrack 7” for the film Cul-De-Sac and ranking closely with François Tusques’ commemorative Le Corbusier exhibition 45 (featuring Don Cherry) this format-specific release known only as Brussels Art Quintet might well sit at the top of the podium while striking similarities and arguably combining the best stylistic traits of both aforementioned contenders.

This is all speculative and clearly a matter of individual opinion but it’s not often that one should find a recording from this era, comprising such high production qualities, keen compositional values and robust craftsmanship spread across two equally spellbinding individual tracks, all of which awards this record justified hyperbole albeit subject to a 50 year delay. It is safe to say that this unique release is “rare” on many levels. Like all privately pressed art projects this 45 comprises some serious outsider art trappings. However, on closer inspection it also stands as a pivotal record in the micro-genre of Belgian jazz, pin-pointing an early axis for some vital progressive jazz players who went on to become sturdy pillars of the central European happening.

Essentially as a five-piece, the short-lived Brussels Art Quintet neatly combines members of both the mythical Babs Robert Quartet (early exponents of Belgian spiritual jazz) and key players from the leading progressive jazz/rock/funk unit known as COS (formally Classroom) who would stand as close affiliates of the likes of Marc Moulin, Kiosk and Placebo through the 1970s. Reproduced in close collaboration with COS leader Daniel Schell, who, under the early guise of Daniel “Max” Schellekens, authored both tracks that make up this facsimile 45 single, this one-off single includes the only known output by the Brussels Art Quintet thus marking the essential in-road to instantly start and complete your entire BAQ collection not without reliving the early germination of the froward-thinking jazz fusion that came to shape Belgium’s truly unique movement.

Juan MacLean and Man Power debut as Juan Power for Life and Death

Life and Death continue to serve up brilliantly unpredictable releases with a new one that brings together American DFA stalwart Juan MacLean with the UK’s Me Me Me label head Man Power, plus an edit from the boss, DJ Tennis.

Juan MacLean is a multi-faceted artist who has a history of everything from playing in post hardcore bands to producing some of DFA’s most celebrated releases. He does classy house bangers with synth pop and disco layers like no one else. Man Power, meanwhile, is someone who is fantastically eclectic in what he does on all fronts as a DJ, label boss and producer. He’s made corrugated acid, hands in the air house and machine disco and plenty in between on his own label, but also cult outlets like Correspondent and ESP Institute. The coming together of these two undoubted studio wizards, then, is a fascinating prospect.

And so it proves right from the off: opener ‘Crescendo’ is a nine minute masterpiece with rickety house drums making you move while the shuffling percussion builds the pressure. Gorgeously warm chords eventually join the fray and have a blissful effect that sets you off dreaming and keeps you in a trance until the end.

DJ Tennis himself then steps up with an edit of ‘Excuse Me Daddy’ that is deep and cavernous. Next to the suspensory pads is an intricate synth line that takes you in on yourself in perfectly melancholic ways.

Closer ‘Praise The Toad’ then picks up the pace with more live sounding drums and a sparkling lead synth that rises and falls to cosmic effect. Drawn out over the full length of the track, and in amongst some chattery claps and smart effects, it makes for a journey to the stars that will cast a real spell on all who hear it.

This is an innovative collaboration between two masters of their craft.

It had taken him almost three years to record, but in 1985 Jake Hottell finally finished his debut solo album, Break The Chains. Inspired by his opposition to fracking, anger at government corruption and a series of profound spiritual experiences, a hundred copies of the album were pressed and given away to radio stations, friends and local business interests in Hottell’s home state of New Mexico.



The album would have remained an obscure footnote in musical history had it not been for the efforts of DJs Danny McLewin and Jeremy Spellacey. Between them, they tracked down Hottell to hear his story, offering the former electronics engineer and Nashville-based music producer the chance to get his music to a whole new audience. Now, some 34 years after the private press edition was produced, Spacetalk is giving Break The Chains a full release for the very first time. Hottell began recording the album in 1982 after reading Your Body’s Many Cries For Water, a best-selling book by Dr Fereydoon Batmanghelidj about the health benefits of clean, purified water. Remembering the poisonous, methane-laden water that came out of his mother’s taps in the 1970s – a by-product of extensive fracking activity in the area around the family farm – Hottell wanted to create a set of tracks that registered his concerns, reflected his recent spiritual experiences (many of which he still finds it difficult to discuss today) and offered a meditative listening experience.



The resultant set is suitably cosmic and emotive, with Hottell cannily fusing gentle drum machine rhythms and dreamy synthesizer motifs – influenced, he says, by a love of the contemporaneous new age output of former jazz label Windham Hill Records – with his own glistening guitar passages, which sit somewhere between the homespun riffs of country music and the classical guitar solos that have long been a sonic staple of Spanish styles such as Flamenco. Many of the tracks have stories attached. “Horizon” features a profound spoken word vocal from local man Darald McCabe – whose homemade purified water helped Hottell recover from serious illness – while “El Rio dos les Delores” was composed after discovering that fracking was taking place on a local Native American reservation. “The Truth Is All I Want”, meanwhile, reflects Hottell’s growing exasperation at the extent of corporate greed and government corruption in the United States.



This new edition of Break The Chains has been painstakingly re-mastered from the original master tapes, while extensive new liner notes shed light on the remarkable musical and personal experiences that inspired Hottell to create an obscure, overlooked classic.

Straight out of one of the UK’s most innovative bass music hotspots, Bristol, two of the scenes fastest rising stars Glume and Phossa join the Subaltern roster with their massive debut split EP.
A - Glume & Phossa - IMHK A collaborative effort from the two talented producers, the EP opener IMHK packs double the punch as well as showing a lot of love for the details. Setting the eerie vibe of the release straight off the bat, IMHK is a surprisingly refreshing track that will light up any dance. Waterfalls of melodies meet hard bass hits, all surrounded by a masterfully-composed, rich-in-details and continuously-evolving drum beat. Get ready to walk into a medieval world of wizards, spells, castles and dragons - Glume and Phossa will be your guides.
B1 - Glume - Shriek Time to enter the dungeon and follow our loyal conductors deep underground. Relentless is the term that comes to mind when indulging in this stone cold, yet somewhat uplifting banger. Glume’s solo piece on the EP delivers pulsating bass waves accentuated by tonal percussion lines, embedded into a horror-movie-like atmosphere.
B2 - Phossa - Deathly Stare It’s Phossa’s time to tell the tale on the third track of the vinyl, showcasing some of his signature style synth lines embedded in an ever-creeping atmosphere. Heavy standing bass walls accompany the trippy cascade of sound, ever enchanting and luring the listener deeper into the maze. Will we find our way out?

These versions are taken from Marc’s own tapes. All royalties go to the ‘Light of Love Foundation’ for the Marc Bolan School of Music & Film. ℗ 2019 Easy Action Recordings Ltd © 2019 Easy Action Recordings Ltd. 700 copies pressed on cream vinyl. Rare and unheard versions of these songs remastered from Marc’s own personal copies, recently repatriated with the estate. Presented in high quality reverse board 3 mm spined sleeve with photo from Peter Sanders

Following the release of Encores 1 on June 1st, Nils Frahm releases of Encores 2, the second in a series of EPs following the release of the universally acclaimed album, All Melody, released in January of this year.

While Encores 1 focused on an acoustic pallet of sounds with just a solo piano and harmonium, Encores 2 explores a more ambient landscape from the All Melody sessions, the pinnacle of which is the astral 12 minute showpiece Spells. Recorded through an amplified stone well Frahm found on Mallorca, Encores 2 is at once unique but familiar; orbiting the universe of All Melody while inhabiting its own world.

'The idea behind Encores is one we had from before All Melody; to separate releases each with their own distinct musical style and theme, perhaps even as a triple album. But All Melody became larger than itself and took over any initial concepts. I think the idea of Encores is like musical islands that compliment All Melody'

Nils Frahm wraps up an exultant year with two shows at London's Hammersmith Apollo on December 4th and 5th, followed by a sold out four night residency where it all began at Funkhaus Berlin, December 11th-14th. The All Melody world tour continues apace in 2019 across Europe and the US, for all dates and tickets.

Patience began as bedroom synth project for songwriter Roxanne Clifford after the break up of her acclaimed indie pop band Veronica Falls. Born out of a desire to experiment with a new sound and analogue synthesizers, the project has since grown to become an all-encompassing persona and serves as the main vehicle for the full emotional spectrum always latent in Clifford’s songwriting. From her first long-sold-out 7” singles on Night School, her knack for melodic hooks and oblique emotional stances already contained a glistening sheen of promise. ‘Dizzy Spells’ serves as an intimate portrait of Clifford’s creative adventure, almost diaristic, conceived and recorded in her home studio, as well as with collaborators Todd Edwards (Daft Punk/Uk Garage fame), Lewis Cook (Free Love/Happy Meals) and engineer Misha Hering (Virginia Wing). Dizzy Spells delivers a debut album that twists Clifford’s songwriting into new shapes and ecstasies. The album dances around melancholy, thrown to the floor like a bad dream to be circled, emerging bright-eyed into the early morning full of hope. The Girls Are Chewing Gum (produced by Todd Edwards) bursts open Dizzy Spells like fresh fruit: sweet and rich with a synth-bass line beamed down from Chicago House heaven. Exquisitely sung by Clifford, it’s a wonderful, funky, instant-classic hinting at sexuality and memories dredged from our bodies’ secrets. The bouncy production expertly renders the addictive power of our ephemeral pleasures. Living Things Don’t Last chases themes of longing and loss, opening up into a life affirming chorus that sings of transience, the passing of time and railing against inertia. It’s the perfect example of a song formula that Roxanne Clifford has almost patented: simple and cutting straight to the point. There are shades of Strawberry Switchblade or French synth pop pioneer Jacno in the happy/sad dichotomy and it is all the better for it. Dizzy Spells features all three long-sold out singles, embedded in the full depth of Patience’s soundworld they fit like pieces of a puzzle. White Of An Eye, The Church and The Pressure—all recorded in Clifford’s former home of Glasgow—crackle with razor sharp melodies and dancefloor-ready dynamics. There are exciting additions to Patience’s sonic palette, brought into sharp relief on Voices In The Sand. In this song, a plaintive Clifford enunciates a heart-torn plea to the antagonist, a mournful cascade of synths and haunting vocals evocative of AC Marias, a sepia-toned ode to anxiety, “a storm is on the way”. On No Roses, a Vince Clarkesque production belies a sunburnt sadness. Clifford defiantly sings “you would go out tonight, but there’s nowhere you like,” describing a disenchantment with her adopted city of Los Angeles, she longs for home in a singular refrain “No roses… no roses for us.” An ode to English folk singer Shirley Collins, a surprising yet innate influence throughout Clifford’s work. On Moral Damage, former Veronica Falls bandmate Marion Herbain joins Clifford on an anglo-french duet that feels instant and spontaneous, a cutting comment on emotional accountability. More than a vehicle for Roxanne Clifford’s songwriting prowess, Patience is holding our hand through the night, dancing with tears in our eyes, dizzy and spellbound.

WRWTFWW Records is blissful to announce the expanded reissue of one of the most fascinating Japanese ambient/environmental albums ever made, NOVA + 4 by Yutaka Hirose. The double LP includes the album known as Soundscape 2: Nova, sourced from its original masters, as well as 50 minutes of never-released-before recordings. It comes in a beautiful gatefold sleeve, packed with liner notes from the artist in English and Japanese. NOVA + 4 is also available on double digipack CD.

Initially released in 1986 as part of the Soundscape series* commissioned by Misawa Home Corporation for use in their prefabricated houses, Yutaka Hirose's NOVA has grown to become a mythical piece of the Japanese minimalist/ambient/environmental scene of the eighties. Initiated around the enchanting landscapes of the two first tracks recorded for the project, "Nova" and "Epilogue", Yutaka Hirose's magnum opus serenely blends vintage synth with nature sounds, exploring soothing palettes and organic backdrops. For "Slow Sky", Hirose explains he "went for a pointillism-like sound, and tried to express a scenery of awakening, where the portal of a heart is opening up", while on "Humming The Sea", he "tried to compose a kind of music that expresses the daily, lazy life of child-like innocence in a summer vacation in some small town."

The bonus LP gathers four long unreleased pieces created around the same period of time for installations, described by Yutaka Hirose as "not music per se but rather sound sculptures", and including the haunting "Shadow Of A Water Droplet" which was recorded for an Ikebana exhibition.

All in all, NOVA + 4 is a transcendent experience of nature in the urban context, an oeuvre which, much like Midori Takada's Through The Looking Glass or Satoshi Ashikawa's Still Way, holds the power to appease the soul in turbulent times. As one inspired YouTube commenter once said when describing Yutaka Hirose's masterstroke: "I can't tell if the birds are singing inside or outside! Thank you!"

*The Soundscape series also includes Hiroshi Yoshimura's Surround album.

Rotciv is the Brasilian born, Berlin based man behind Mister Mistery records. This prolific producer has been out there for quite a long time and you might remember "The Rimshooters", the long lasting collaboration with Massimiliano Pagliara himself. Now it is time for Rotciv to offer a piece of his synthesisers' craftsmanship to Funnuvojoere Records. This five tracker EP expresses Rotciv's skills with harmony and music progression. A1 AWAKENING starts off with a piano house arpeggio and slowly evolves into a trance acid-tinged explosive motive. Organic feeling drums develop giving it a disco touch that will put a smile on the crowded dance floor. A2 GOOD SPELL combines a pure cosmic style with a New Beat-like dissonance and uplifting vocals. B1 KNOW THE UNKNOWN keeps the experimentation levels high with distortions and an 8bit dialogue that drifts into a progressive-kind of sound. Deeper than the rest B2 puts on stage a dark landscape that reminds of a black and white vampire movie. B3 INTERMISSION follows up and gives the final ambient touch to this delightful EP.

Aggelos Baltas is a veteran of the global electronic music scene, responsible for a handful of celebrated EBM 12”s as Dream Weapons, and a particularly heady and open-ended brand of krautrock as Fantastikoi Hxoi. His newest project, Anatolian Weapons, was conceived as a way to bring together these two seemingly mismatched concepts, with the polyrhythmic percussion and wailing tones of Greek folk music serving as their unlikely bonding agent. His output garners praise particularly around the Golden Pudel scene, such as Vladimir Ivkovic, and Phuong Dan. Lena Willikens, from the same circle, included Baltas’ track “Disillusioned” on her Dekmantel Selectors compilation in 2018.

But where much of what Baltas has released as Anatolian Weapons is instantly recognizable as dance music, To The Mother Of Gods—Baltas’ debut album for Beats In Space—is something else entirely. Created in tandem with Greek folk musician Seirios Savvaidis, it is a work of simultaneous collaboration and subtraction whose meticulous construction becomes more apparent with every listen. An album-length exploration of what happens when the principles of dance music are applied to pre-digital musical modalities. It is a record of psychedelic folk music that has more in common with Kikagaku Moyo, Minami Deutsch, and the Habibi Funk label than it does with anything else Baltas has produced under any alias. It’s difficult to imagine this music in any kind of club setting.

And yet, it’s very much the work of a DJ. Baltas initially heard Savvaidis’ music through a friend, and was absolutely amazed. “It was his very esoteric, pagan [music and] beautiful lyrics that grabbed me,” he writes. Seirios is a composer and performer of traditional Greek folk music with a growing discography of regional psych-rock gems. Baltas reached out to collaborate and the seeds of To The Mother Of Gods were sown.

Savvidis contributed stems of ten songs, which Baltas deconstructs and rearranges with appreciation of the ancestry of their lineage and of the deceptively ancient eerie, droning qualities inherent in the style. Occasionally augmenting Savvaidis’ recordings with his own, Baltas treats these elements as if raw materials for an architectural process.

To The Mother Of Gods showcases Baltas’ arrangement skills. He treats Savvaidis’ songs as landscapes, filling them with slanted, droning light and setting the singer’s vocals in dead center. His years behind the decks have given him an intuitive understanding of dynamics—drums crest and recede like tides, snippets of bassline repeat and swirl. He knows how to entrance, and when to push the music from the head to the body. Opener “Taratchi Katarratchi” (“Stormy Cataract”) is sung as a spell to ward off the fear of death, but Baltas’ orchestration demonstrates that dancing is an equally effective way of dispelling the darkness. The beat he assembles from Savvaidis’ playing recalls the late-night ecstasies of Primal Scream circa Screamadelica.

To The Mother Of Gods is a reminder that folk music and dance music are both powered by their audience as much as the musicians themselves. Savvaidis’ lyrics echo pagan Greek themes, touching on what Baltas calls “the magic of nature.” At times, as on “Kalesma” (“Invitation”), this can feel incantatory. Savvaidis chisels his vocal melodies into hard, clipped syllables, their cadence recalling Gregorian chant, and yet Baltas cloaks these details in washes of distortion. “Ston Stavraito” (“In Stavraithos”) is delivered with a lamentive tenderness that Baltas swells into a prideful stomp, immersing Savvaidis in marching drums and distant vocals that form a resilient protest-song. To The Mother Of Gods is a testament to the ongoing and innate truth that music can take us beyond ourselves. That repetition and drone can shepherd us to a liminal space beyond thought and rationality, where the wall between perception and reality does not exist. Call it spirit, if you want, and watch as it courses its way through modern-day dance music, mid-century psych, and the ancient sounds of the anatol.

Anatolian Weapons’ To The Mother Of Gods will be available from Beats In Space on June 14, 2019 in limited vinyl and unlimited digital forms.

Artist Highlights
• Aggelos Baltas is an Athenian music producer creating and Djing under the monikers of Anatolian Weapons, Fantastikoi Hxoi, and Dream Weapons.
• The Anatolian Weapons moniker is an outlet for Baltas to explore global music—from African to Anatolian and Middle Eastern, while also incorporating sounds from his home country of Greece.

Am 21.Juni 2019 veröffentlichen Hot Chip ihr siebtes Studioalbum „A Bath Full Of Ecstasy“

A Bath Full of Ecstasy vereint den Sound, für den die Band berühmt geworden ist - Euphorie und Melancholie verschmelzen mit bunten Melodien, eigenwilligen Gesangslinien und pumpenden elektronischen Pop-Rhythmen. Für die Produktion holten sie Philippe Zdar, den französische Maestro, der die Magie von Cassius und Phoenix geprägt hat, und Rodaidh McDonald, der mit The XX, David Byrne, Sampha, u.a. zusammen-gearbeitet hat, ins Boot. Es geht zurück auf das, was Taylor als Inbegriff von Hot Chip versteht: "Eine musikalische Formulierung dessen, was gesagt werden muss, oft aber nicht ausgesprochen werden kann".

Welcome to the deeper end of the Hugh Mane spectrum. Mane’s third outing on Running Back captures his love for the spirit of early Detroit techno, IDM’s ambient aspects, the philosophy of the acid house experience and a natural production flow. Four tracks for fans of Larry Heard, Jungle Sounds, Nu Groove and the very early British response to that. Emotions electric. Vintage voodoo with modern spells. Equipment used:
Child Of Love: Lots of Alpha Juno 2 - which with the editor is such an underrated gem of a synth.
Everything Question: 808, Juno 60, Matrix brute. a big f*ck off vintage reverb
Vintage Voodoo: Alpha Juno 2, Oberheim DX for snare & toms, 909 claps, Korg DD1 hats
Free To Spend: Korg DD1 congas, snare and hats 808, Alpha Juno 2

Nach zahlreichen Releases auf Ninja Tune, Anticon oder Planet Mu erscheint das dritte Studioalbum des britischen Electronic-Produzenten Greg Feldwick aka Slugabed auf seinem eigenen Imprint Activia Benz und trägt den rekordverdächtigen Titel: "Any Attempt To Control The Environment Or The Self By Means Which Are Either Untested Or Untestable, Such As Charms Or Spells".

Spell PETS backwards to get STEP. Spell STEP forwards and you get PETS going back to basics. STEP is the new vinyl-only label from the founders of PETS – Catz n Dogz – with a focus on the rawest forms and root functions of dance music. STEP searches for the fundamentals with under-theradar house and techno that’s not afraid to be rough around the edges. It’s all about the music.

Initially a duo formed in Berlin, FITH have since multiplied and expanded to become a revolving collective of musicians and poets spread out across a Paris/Manchester/Berlin axis. The project, currently comprised of members Dice Miller, Enir Da, Rachel Margetts, ChrIs Lmx, & Arnaud Mathé gesture towards notions of the literary salon, expanded cinema happenings, and the ancient traditions of Greek oratory and religious sermons. Driven by the spell of the spoken word, minimal percussive refrains, oneiric textures & deep melodic synths, FITH channel cinematic imagery, enigmatic narratives & spiritual frenzy.

Their self-titled debut 12' album was released via their collectively run imprint Wanda Portal in November 2016, a 'quietly alluring debut of post punk tempered avant-pop songs' (Boomkat) that laid out the project's foreboding mystique and intoxicating dream sequences with a lurking, devastating sense of purpose and (mis)direction. Other outings have included myriad solo collections of poetry, a two-track release of lurid dissonance and elegiac elevation (Signs / Cornerstone, December 2016) and an extraordinary reinterpretation of the soundtrack for cult film & iconic document of modern alienation Wanda (1971, dir. By Barbara Loden)

With Swamp, their sequel to this activity and their first appearance on Outer Reaches, FITH become a refined force, on a record where all their compelling pluralities and attributes are honed and augmented; everything dilated to delirium. The atmosphere here is one of veiled dread and psychic disturbance, a haunting and macabre psychedelia strewn with echo and dub FX, fragmentary fever dream poetics, elemental drum patterns and volatile synthetic interference. Although the collective conserve the raw crux of their earlier material their execution is, in this special instance, heightened by an intent to broaden and prolong their unique strain of intensity.

Emphatically sinister openers like Forest and Pound present sidereal sequences before building to barrelling, corrosively processed percussion, paroxysmal free jazz and a baleful, concrète-inflected score of electronics, while Swamp introduces phasing currents and a vocal evocative of a chorale from some forgotten giallo film. Elsewhere l'au delà (the beyond) presents a stunning, sombre passage to another state entirely, like some desolate new inflection on Coil's Going Up, before Bialystok shifts into a finale of transportive and meditative evaporation. Together these tracks make for an incredibly immersive and congruous conception; an utterly complete and mesmerising document.

In Swamp's various dimensions perhaps there's comparisons to be drawn with the ritualistic krautrock of Conny Plank and Holger Czukay's Les Vampyrettes, with the hallucinatory, tribal rhythm cycles of Shackleton & Anika's Behind The Glass collaboration, with the primeval drone of Jeremie Sauvage, Mathieu Tilly and Yann Gourdon's France project, with the echoic, disquieting chamber intimacies of Tuxedomoon's Pink Narcissus material and with Lucrecia Dalt's eerie free verse abstractions. But really, we've not heard anything like this before.

Discussing their own inspirations and touchstones the collective cites Franz Kafka, Dario Argento, Lucrecia Martel's La Ciénaga (The Swamp - the film the record is named after) and Yiddish ghost theatre as figures, works and artforms that were prominently drawn upon during the making of Swamp. Yet whilst their imprints could be traced by some, they resemble more of a covert presence within a nuanced whole rather than obvious aspects which moor this record to any familiar setting.

Instead, the acutely unsettling yet poignant spoken word of Miller and the mercurial nocturnes and visitations produced by Margetts, Lmx, Mathé and Da make for a record of strange, novel and striking energies. In revealing the remarkable location and period in which Swamp was recorded Margetts and Miller give a vivid indication as to how these energies are so potently invoked:

'The record was mostly recorded in a caretaker's wing of a 17th century castle in Normandy. It was early March 2018, and our first encounter with the Spring. We had no idea how everything would unfold. There was a lot of tension. Some of us felt compelled to get out the attic room where we had set up our makeshift recording studio and just walk and walk down the vast flat meadows and explore the relics of the wartime barracks, others wanted to keep recording. The outside was serene and inviting, and even though we had been cooped up indoors recording for long stretches of time, we could see from the corner of our eyes, the branches of the trees quivering; an impersonal energy blew through us and then things just happened.'

Hard Fist comes back stronger than ever with a sixth release, this time from Pletnev with a remix from Sascha Funke.

Extra prolific Russian born Alex Pletnev has been making music under various aliases and in a number of live bands. Now settled in Vilnius he explores stellar chugging rhythms, afro and oriental vibes for labels like Media Fury and Bahnsteig23 and more atmospheric, dark and industrial EPs on Le Temps Perdu records. This new one is “the tale of an imaginary world, a babel myth of when human beings were together as one because they spoke a single language. It is an allusion of No Border movement supporting freedom of mobility and fighting human immigration control.”

This fantastic release is the most club focussed music Pletnev has ever produced with instrumental, heady opener ‘Guest from Bangkok’ really locking you in a groove. Loose percussion and churning drums make for dark disco of the highest order. Then comes ‘Peep of Dawn,’ an almost frightening, long and slow ceremony of menacing electronic music. A voice resonates while powerful bass sends shivers down your spine and the whole atmospheric and absorbing affair really casts a spell.

Excellent punchy guitar riffs and shamanic rhythms on ‘Red Shoes’ reminds you of a run to catch the setting sun. It’s another spellbinding and rock-laced disco track that oozes grit and rawness. With the closing track, BPitch Control man Sascha Funke remixes ‘My Word Against Yours' into a cosmic and jerky affair that alludes to a journey into outer space. It’s sparse and creepy and brilliantly evocative.

Once again here, the Hard Fist label—which has its own residency at Paris’s mighty Rex Club—tells its unique story with forward thinking club music full of a wide array of influences.

Limited edition unreleased 12" containing two italo disco and proto house classics anthems : Who, What, Where, When & Why on the side A and No Promises on the flip side.
Both taken from the Magic Spell Album produced by Mario Boncaldo & Tony Carrasco in 1983, the same guys from Klein & MBO, Plastic Mode, Amnesie and Ris. This unreleased 12" contains for the first time the extended disco versions of these two precious gems taken and re-mastered from the archive collection of the legendary Tony Carrasco.

By the late '70s, Alice Coltrane had largely gravitated away from jazz, incorporating Hindu chants and hymns into her music to reflect a newfound sense of creative omnipotence. However, in April 1978, she would return to her roots, performing at University of California, Los Angeles to make her first and only live album.

Transfiguration, featuring drummer Roy Haynes and bassist Reggie Workman, showcases Alice's many compositional talents and fierce improvisatory abilities. Throughout this double LP set, her playing evokes the time spent in her late husband John Coltrane's band and the avant-garde music of her earlier years.

As biographer Franya J. Berkman writes, "Her up-tempo keyboard work here is the most exciting of her commercial career. With its rapid-fire transpositions of short figures; its long modal passages, rhythmic play, and timbral inventiveness; its sustained energy and burning pace; and the unrelenting support of Haynes and Workman, she takes leave of the jazz business with a truly breathtaking swan song."

Alice Coltrane would not revisit jazz on record for another 26 years, turning instead to spiritual music made with students at her Vedantic Center and self-releasing a series of cassettes under her Sanskrit name, Turiyasangitananda. It is hard to imagine a better farewell than the intense and spellbinding Transfiguration.

To happiness through simplicity. Rendering a very personal tribute to well understood minimalism, the same that is based on simplicity and conceptual refinement and that is adapted to the creation and musical production -respecting that electronic maximum canonical of "less is more" - in terms of its compositional process, instrumentation, mixing, effects, etc. 'Simple Things' can be danced throughout the night. It is a collection of tracks with punch, made from the clarity and personality that characterize Nacho Marco, susceptible to being played at very different times and places. Exhale, from beginning to end, a natural love towards the dancefloor. From the simplicity of the search for this objective, its author -in his Warm Studio in Valencia- has used different rhythm boxes -programmed internally- for each track in order to, also based on a raw mix - especially in percussion and basses - to provide the tracklist with a varied air -between digital and analogue- through which to enjoy traveling through deep-house, nu-disco, acid, etc. and, therefore, in funk, soul, jazz, etc. From Chicago to Valencia, passing through N.Y. and Detroit. And all this avoiding arguments and essays of style. From a maximum freedom of creation and enjoyment. Yes, we are facing a "100% Nacho Marco" job.

German duo Avidus bring their spellbinding style to Crosstown this March. The pair have conceived a four track EP that serves to showcase their unique sound.

Avidus have produced a mesmerising EP that submerges the listener in an intriguing sonic soundscape. On title track XII prominent drums arise alongside dramatic strings that create a track full of suspense. Psalm 23 opens with an ethereal vocal sample that bleeds into a high-octane beat that's pacing and intense. On the flip, Lux is a dreamy and emotive number, calmer than its predecessors with a breathtaking breakdown, whilst last year's Revenge Of The Whales gets a rework for Crosstown.

Hailing from Kiel in North Germany Fritz Wagner and Marc Wolf, aka Avidus, have forged a strong partnership over the years. Fritz began producing music in the late 90s, making Hip Hop beats and pop music before moving on to house. During his early years, Marc produced backing tracks for hardcore bands before DJ'ing at illegal, outdoor raves. He started his own night ENDVR at Kiel's Luna Club, where he invited guest such as Âme, Roman Flügel, Barnt and Marcus Worgull. Their diverse musical tastes and influences are apparent in their music, which refuses to be confined to any one genre. The duo launched their own imprint Empore Music in 2014 that has charted releases from Johannes Albert amongst others.

In 1959 Michel Giacometti moved to Portugal and dedicated the following thirty years of his life recording traditional music all over the country. In the present decade Portuguese music has been thriving and finally travelling abroad, long gone are the days those hidden gems were kept in secret in this distant corner of Europe. The discovery of current Portuguese music sparked an interest to Portuguese music, past and present.
With both of those ideas in mind, Giacometti and the interest in Portuguese music, 'Antologia de Música Atípica Portuguesa' creates an anthology of current sounds to the future. You can see it as history being made or a broad catalog of sounds that live and breathe the experimental and electronic that is happening in Portugal. The first step happened two years ago with the releasing of the first volume on this anthology, 'O Trabalho' ('The Labour') and we now move onto Vol. 2, 'Regiões' ('Regions'), with each track connecting with a different province from Portugal.
Some names return to this volume, like Live Low with the beautifully haunting 'Montemor' or Gonzo (our own Gonçalo F. Cardoso), affirming his path in building detailed and processed field recordings music. More than a list of names, or songs, this second volume of 'Antologia de Música Atípica Portuguesa' recreates a passage throughout different landscapes of Portugal, constantly leaving a trail of past, present and future. The trail doesn't limit itself to the music, but to the traditions contained in the sounds and the stories spelled by the words.
The beautifully slowed haunting-waltz 'Por Riba', by Síria (Diana Combo), sets everything in motion and builds the way to Random Gods' upbeat march 'Gazulo à Estronca da Santosa'. 'Malta Inquieta' (Ondness) embraces the most modern/contemporary side of this volume, proving that 'Regiões' goes beyond the idea of catalog or even its own concept of 'anthology' and provides music that's hard to categorize or even judge by modern standards. We are not afraid to say it: 'Malta Inquieta' is an experimental jazz-electronic modern gem.
It's followed by the guitar of Rui Carvalho, aka Filho da Mãe, with 'Manta', closing the A side with one of his enchantments. B side strikes with the aforementioned 'Montemor', setting the tone for a different trip, building up on more abstract and freeform music by Banha da Cobra ('Asylo'), Fantama ('Lamento das Beiras') and the track by Gonzo. 'Regiões' finishes with the right tone, fields recordings worked by Luís Antero, that tie the connection between Giacometti and the now - with the now still happening and building up on the story of the future 'Antologia de Música Atípica Portuguesa'.

Cardinal Fuzz and Eiderdown Records are pleased to bring forth Prana Crafter and 'MindStreamBlessing' An electric mantra from the deep heart of the Pacific Northwest woods, "MindStreamBlessing" beckons you to relax and crack open your mind for a little while. Prana Crafter is Will Sol, practitioner of fine guitar spell-casting and audio fortune telling. A heady brew of guitar, drums, and organ that traces its majestic lineage from both the wayward strains of a cosmic Americana blues and the rustling sunshine daydreams of a future primitive past. The tunes contained herein drift and sway through the windmills of your mind, leaving the sweet aftertaste of pine and ocean mist. Accept this MindStreamBlessing as a balm for these troubled times.

Fifth part of the Strata-East Dolphy Series, Glass Bead Games is arguably the crown jewel of the Strata East movement, an amorphous genre that treads an unusual path between post-bop, 70's avant-garde and spiritual jazz, with a groove.

Glass Bead Games is full of revelations at many levels. First, the decade of the 1970s did produce genuinely creative, "human" new music flowing from the jazz mainstream; second, Bill Lee was more than Spike's dad: he was a superlative bassist, a team player of the first order, a powerful catalyst who, if anything, deserves to be better known than his son; third, Billy Higgins was, as so many musicians insist, a once-in-a-lifetime drummer—the bellows inspiriting the collective flame.

Most importantly, Clifford Jordan was an artist of the first order, his playing so effortless and unforced, unselfconscious and focused, mature and wise that, at a time when altissimo fury was all the rage, it's small wonder his authentic voice frequently went unheard. His musical rhetoric is so personally expressive, its substance so compelling, the listener couldn't care less about the extraordinary technique required to convey its captivating message. Compared to some of his more acclaimed peers he's a less aggressive yet paradoxically more directive and shaping influence. The climaxes, rather than spelled out, are merely suggested, registering with deep and lasting impact on the listener. It all comes down to learning the language, those precious little beads. Not every player, including Jordan or the listener, can use it like Shakespeare, but all can learn to read Shakespeare and understand its principles of arbitrariness and serendipity, of invariance and transformation.

Jordan, no less than Shakespeare, requires a like-minded cast of players—in this case four musicians of such redoubtable proficiency that each remains committed to keeping the beads in play. He's not a man content with a mere musical "dialogue" with his fellow musicians nor is he about to take the initiative in pulling his troops up to his level. Instead he begins to tell a musical story that's so compelling his three comrades are inspired equally to contribute to a collaborative narrative. This is brilliant music-making by a Coltrane- influenced successor who feels no obligation to mime the predecessor. It may be the most significant saxophone performance on record since Coltrane and, providing the listener stays with it for any length of time, the most deeply satisfying. Jordan's game—so effortless, unforced, and "level"—erases distinctions between composed and improvised, soloist and ensemble, narrator and narrative, the dancer and the dance. It seems incapable of wearing out its welcome.

By Samuel Chell/All About Jazz

Already having garnered support from the likes of Mixmag and other vital taste makers around the globe, Overdue's continued onslaught is led on by none other than the highly talented, US based artist Dalek One. Keeping the torch brightly lit, the eerie soundscapes and forward-minded arrangements, spellbound within the "Witchcraft EP" serve as a perfect follow-up and yet another example of superb quality.

Going straight for the flip-side, "Witchcraft" lunges straight into a tribal encantation of overdriven tape - rhythms like water luring you towards mammoth bass surges - ecstatically driven forward by bold drums and unparalleled groove. Swaths of low
frequencies hitting your every fibre alongside enthralling percussive movements - danger of high impact on sound systems guaranteed.

Lowering the needle on the other side, "Breakthrough" does literally that. As it sets off with a rainy storm - industrious drone and thunder - metallic clangs propelling us onward into what turns out to be an absolute destroyer, full-on armageddon kind of banger. Heavily overdriven bass surges kick some sense into you as the off-kilter drums and experimental switch-ups keep you yearning for more. Minimal sound system
music executed at its finest.

Finishing off this highly combustible collection of music, "Terror Strike" leaves no prisoners as its tribal atmosphere baits unsuspecting listeners into a low frequency rapture, showcasing Dalek One's intricate sound design once again.

WRWTFWW Records is immensely happy to announce the reissue of impossible-to-find cult album Lady Maid by Japanese outfit Normal Brain, available on vinyl, digipack CD (for the first time ever), cassette, and digital, with liner notes by acclaimed sound artist and mastermind behind the project, Yukio Fujimoto.

Originally released in 1981 as a limited vinyl pressing of 300 copies on Agi Yuzurus fabled experimental label Vanity Records (R.N.A. Organism, Dada, Sympathy Nervous, Tolerance), Lady Maid is a testament to the creativity of the early 80s Japanese electronic and experimental scene, encapsulating a prolific era when audio gear became affordable for musicians to explore sounds in the comfort of their home, free from studio time pressure and major label rules.

Entirely imagined and brought to life by an inspired Yukio Fujimoto, the 6-track opus was conceived with a Korg MS-20, a Korg SQ-10, a Boss Dr. Rhythm DR-55, anda Texas Instruments Speak & Spell! Its elegantly minimalist, honest and witty, very playful, cleverly pop, and downright fascinating. The a-side captures the fun side of avant-garde electronica, lo-fi wave, proto-glitch, and IDM, a joyful ride beautifully interrupted by the cinematic mood switch of the b-side - a 20 minute ambient piece flirting with sci-fi, melancholy, and hints of metallic darkness. Unclassifiable and marvelous!

PRG/M releasing previously on Midgar as member of r2p collective, is now on duties with an extended solo EP of 6 spellbinding techno cuts. 4 on Vinyl and 2 in free download via XLR8R and Monument.

Spellbinding techno by PRG/M

PLOINK regular Christian Tilt drops 'Live EP' this April featuring three murky techno cuts and a remix from Gra°tone founder +plattform.

Much like PLOINK founder Thomas Urv, Bergen-based producer Christian Tilt is a long-time stalwart of Norway's techno scene. The pair have been DJing together since the 90s, enthusiastically flying the flag for Norwegian techno whilst also proving themselves as driving forces in pushing it forward.

Echoing stabs and rattling drums introduce 'Dinner With The Devil' as ominous elements fade into the mix generating a brooding aesthetic. Heavy atmospherics and a skipping beat then make up 'Clearly Innocent' before the intricately produced 'The Wedding' combines a cacophony of percussion with sinister drones and twisted effects. Finally, +plattform, who was recently nominated for a Norwegian grammy ('Spellemannprisen') for his 'Twelve LP' on PLOINK, concludes the release with a meandering remix of 'Dinner With The Devil' that's exemplary of his esoteric approach to techno.

Italian sound designer and Soma alum Roberto Clementi steps up with a MOC-worthy release comprised of three original tracks with BNJMN on remix duties.

Standout track ' Plebiscite' makes a statement from the first bar with a pounding bassline. It's a clae peak time heavy-hitter that energizes with its shriek, alarm-like highs and understated yet powerful percussion.

Just off the stride of releasing his third studio album, BNJMN puts on his remixer hat to take on the leading track, adding an ethereal dimension through evocative pads and percussive rattles.

On the flipside, ' Evocate' skewes dark and minimalist with a simple lead and eerie-laden somber sequences. Simplicity proves itself just as compelling as more complex layering, rendering an overall dance-inducing atmosphere.

Acid-laced ' Cription' spells techno in a more experimental, non-kickdrum reliant manner. It's a refreshing take on the genre in a piece that is reminiscent of early rave days.

Paul DeMarinis is a key figure in the history of electronic music since the 1970s. Collaborator with the likes of Robert Ashley, David Behrman, and David Tudor, DeMarinis is a pioneer in the development of gallery sound installation and digital music technologies. Black Truffle is thrilled to announce the release of a double-LP collection, selected in collaboration with the artist, focussing on DeMarinis's exploration of synthesized voice and the digital analysis and manipulation of speech sounds. Drawing together tracks dispersed on compilations along with a number of pieces previously unheard in any form, Songs Without Throats offers a revelatory look into DeMarinis's alternately accessible and uncompromising production between 1978 and 1995. Opening with a mesmerizing piece from 1978 pairing the voice and tamboura playing of Anne Klingensmith with strings of letters spat out by a Speak n' Spell to the accompaniment of the randomised melodic patterns of DeMarinis's homebuilt electronic instrument 'The Pygmy Gamelan', the record then dispenses with the live human voice in favour of its recorded and synthetic doubles. We follow DeMarinis's restless probing of the possibilities of new technologies, from the hacked Speak n' Spell (which gives us the austere 'Et Tu, Klaatu' 1979, another duet with Klingensmith, this time on bowed psaltery, in which the toy's synthetic voice is stretched into an alien song) through to the use of digital audio samples manipulated with home computer technology in the early 1990s (including a remarkable dream-like collage piece that weaves a rare recording of Stalin's voice and bird-like electronic twittering derived from its formant-glides into a rich tapestry of samples reflective of the dictator's musical life). In between we get a rich sampling of DeMarinis's signature work with speech melodies - usually unnoticed melodic inflections that lie within speech patterns - which he analyses and translates into synthesized musical accompaniment. These pieces draw on a wide variety of textual and vocal sources, which range from the hilarious to the menacing ('Cincinatti (1830-1850)' sets a detailed description of butchering techniques, for example) and an equally broad range of musical conceptions, combining elements as seemingly unlikely as Beethoven's Opus 31 pianos sonatas and the sounds of 80s synth pop. The results are an extraordinary combination of the alien and the familiar. As DeMarinis himself characterises his work with vocal synthesis, this is 'a kind of signal that simultaneously carried and obscured meaning and ideation, even as it created a sound world totally alien in esthetic'. Presented in a deluxe gatefold sleeve with archival images and liner notes by Paul DeMarinis. Design by Stephen O'Malley. Mastered and cut by Rashad Becker at D&M, Berlin

Intergalactic cosmic soul featuring ebony rose and members of the spellbinder project.

The B side is a spiritual jazz instrumental with a soprano sax lead.

After a spell on the disco sidelines, Dublin label Fatty Fatty Phonographics are back with the 2nd instalment of their 'International Disco Mafia' series.

Extending its reach around Ireland and then again over the sea to Italy, it begins with a 13 minute disco trip by a young man called The Crown Prince of Waterford, with the wirey Catholic white boy spirit of Walter Gibbons in his veins.
The immortally titled 'Getting Fingered On The Waltzers' is overloaded with fizzing disco-rock dynamics, crazy organs and driving endless drum breaks that keep on pushing you all the way to an inevitable, gushing disco climax. Phew!

On the flip we have another Irish up and comer, Island Times, and his chunky disco driver 'Together'.
Just like his debut on the first volume, this one comes up trumps with a big, drum driven sound and a loose, live feel.

Last but not least, we're travelling up along the Adriatic from Trieste with Umberto Lumber, who takes a classic slow jam and pitches it down Baldelli style to a sweet cosmic sludge.
Perfect as a mood setter or as a spaced out bump and grind to finish the night off, it rounds off this 3 tracker in some style...

Beautiful 1 Lp Edition 140g Vinyl, Heavy 350gsm Sleeve, Sticker

- Official Reissue Of Hard-to-find Favorite L'univers De La Mer By Dominique Guiot, Considered By Some The Greatest Library Album Ever Recorded. Available On Vinyl For The First Time Since 1978 And For The First Time Ever On Vinyl And Digital.
- For Fans Of Synthesizers, Library Music, Prog-rock, Experimental, Ambient, Folk, Medieval, Movie Soundtracks, Sci-fi, Schicke Führs Fröhling (sff), Tangerine Dream, Mike Oldfield, King Crimson, Didier Bonin, Claude Perraudin, Jacques Wyrs, Oceanic Vibes And Giant Squids.

Wrwtfww Records Is Honored To Announce The Official Reissue Of Super Rare And Fabled Prog-rock/library/synth Album L'univers De La Mer By French Composer Dominique Guiot. The Full Length Release Is Sourced From Original Masters, Available On Vinyl Lp For The First Time Since 1978 And Housed In A 350g Sleeve With A Spellbinding Artwork By Surrealist Sci-fi Artist Jacques Wyrs. It It Also Available On Cd And Digital Formats For The First Time Ever.

Written, Composed And Played By Dominique Guiot With His Mellotron, Minimoog, Clavinet, Organ, And Guitar, L'univers De La Mer Draws Its Inspiration From Deep Sea Exploration, Oceanic Creatures, And Underwater Kingdoms. The 12-track Album Navigates Organically Through Diverse Mutations Of The Prog-rock And Synth Kind, From Scenic Meditation Pieces ("wind Surf Ballad"), To Medieval Electronica ("une Ballade Pour Une Goélette"), Spacey Smooth Jazz ("les Deux Poissons"), Funked Out Fantasy Folk ("l'univers De La Mer"), Or Even Incredible Sega Mega-cd Vibes ("la Danse Des Méduses") - Altogether Painting A Fascinating World Of Eerie Magic And Subaquatic Sensuality. It's Escapism At Its Best With Subtle Overtones Of Schicke Führs Fröhling, Mike Oldfield, And Claude Perraudin.

The Sound Of The Album Is Brilliantly Captured By Its Surreal Cover Art, The Work Of Legendary Artist Jacques Wyrs, Whose Memorable Record Sleeves Include Klaus Schulze's Picture Music, Eloy's Floating, Ange's Le Cimetière Des Arlequins, And The 1974 Reissue Of Larry Coryell's Spaces.

A while back Pratt & Moody hit the global soul scene with their Stylart debut 7" "Lost Lost Lost", leaving many exclaiming the words "FIRME ROLA" on its tracks. Some even mistook it for a forgotten oldie. Now this vocal/guitar duo gets together with Cold Diamond & Mink for another dose of grade A soul music.

Not breaking the spell of tautology started with the first 45, "Words Words Words" picks up the tempo from ballad territory into the beat heavy group soul category. The pulsing drum track is laced with majestic horn riffs, tremolo guitar, penny arcade organ, and over everything hover the beautiful lyrics by Pratt and his mysterious harmony singers.

If the first single by Pratt and Moody left you yearning for more soul, this one should blow away the rest of your corporal existence.

Tropical Disco plucks out a spellbinding salvo of heaters for Tropical Disco Volume. 7, dished out on suitably heavy wax.

Moodeena's 'The Horns' boldly kicks off the record, effortlessly weaving together elements of funk, soul and afro, influenced by a myriad of far-reaching regions. The earworm of a bassline subtly leads the piece, morphing, dipping and then reassembling as the brass resurfaces, creating a tender, palpable sound palette. On the flip 'What Da Funk's playful track title doesn't reflect its cultivated build, and no doubt lethal functionality on a dancefloor.

Titillating strings are the driving force for Tropical Disco newcomer Sammy Deuce's input, bringing a burning, high-energy ode to golden-era disco with 'Smack My Strings Up'. Hot on the heels of a series of well received releases on labels such as Glasgow Underground, Club Session and Big Love, Sammy deuce offers up a rare guest track on the label that pairs perfectly with a recipe Sartorial and Moodena have refined so successfully.

Sartorial closes the EP with 'Little Love', a carefully plotted symphony and formidable sign off for the release. Hustling a creamy bass and slowly swooning vocal, this audio aphrodisiac will have dancers headed straight to the bedroom...

Tropical Disco's back-catalogue of quality nu-disco obscurities is building thick and fast, and the latest package is a diamond in a gleaming gold mine.

Support across Mi Soul & House FM.

With a hypnotic spell-bound deep tech groove, Artresia kicks off this three-tracker with hints of the past as well as echoes from the future. Nima Khak then offers two tracks for the release, the hypnotic, intense and effective techno remix of Artresia that takes us even further down the proverbial rabbit hole, landing us comfortably in the warm embrace of "Beach 2015", an ambient, nostalgic daytrip to the seaside.

Russian producer Nocow returns to Rekids with an enthralling full-length album entitled 'Atoner' this November.

Real name Aleksei Nikitin, Nocow is known for his versatility, producing a large body of genre spanning work on labels like Clone Royal Oak, Figure, Fauxpas Musik, Gost Zvuk and Styrax. The St. Petersburg-based producer debuted on Rekids last year with his 'Samaya Dolgaya Noch' EP, a mellow release complete with vocal driven cuts as well as 2-step rhythms, and now returns with a myriad of productions in a fourteen track album entitled 'Atoner'.

'Atoner' opens with an eponymous track that gently unravels with soaring synths and subtle percussion before Nocow's voice emerges alongside twinkling atmospherics in 'Complie'. Throughout the long player are also intricately produced short tracks sitting between the two and three-minute mark such as looping vocal number 'Dancerecter', the melodic and rattling 'Leto' and ominous 'Delore'.

Ostanovitsa' is a murky offering featuring a meandering organ riff, leading into the pitter-patter drums and serene chords of 'Starveme (feat. Tayut Ogni)'. 'Come Along' is a crystalline and otherworldly experience from start to finish, whilst 'Melting Lights' is comprised of echoing, subterranean sounds, making way for reverberating snares and metallic stabs in 'Standalone'.

Husky murmurs and soothing notes then make up 'Neva', moving into the syncopated beat and idyllic chord sequences in 'Can't Get Enough' ahead of 'Stonecold' and its icy aesthetic. Finally, the album reaches a mesmerising conclusion with the spellbinding 'Footer'.

As she continues to make UK chart history with her 7th #1 single 'I'll Be There', Jess Glynne announces her glittering new album 'Always In Between'.
It's been 3 years since the release of Jess Glynne's momentous debut album 'I Cry When I Laugh'. Selling over 2 million copies worldwide and including a mass of smash hit singles including 'Hold My Hand', 'Take My Home' and 'Don't Be So Hard On Yourself', it consolidated Jess as one of the most important British popstars and a formidable songwriter.
Celebrated for her intimate yet universally appealing themes, Jess has connected with millions of people across the globe - demonstrating her peerless ability to tell the truths young women want to hear; about the loves that build them up and let them down; the aspirations and dreams that might turn sour but you'll smile through them anyway. These themes are passionately continued in 'Always In Between'.
'Always In Between' finds Jess on a breath-taking journey of self-acceptance as she comes to terms with her new-found fame, heartbreak and the well-known pressure of writing a second album. The result is a triumph that captures the heart of what being a 28-year old woman in 2018 can feel like - trying to balance real life with everything that you want it to be. With a tone of joyful harmony and acceptance set by 'I'll Be There' already, Thursday (co-written with Ed Sheeran), explores our many insecurities and the idea that sometimes stripping everything back can make you feel most yourself, while 'All I Am' attempts to answer the niggling voice inside so many people's head asking if they are enough. There's no doubt that 'Always In Between' will capture many under its spell as Jess Glynne once again reaches out her hand, and offers love and friendship and unity to all that can hear her.

In the sweltering North-Eastern Brazilian state of Pernambuco lies the coastal city of Recife, where Amaro Freitas is pioneering the new sound of Brazilian jazz. For the prodigious young pianist, the spirit of his hometown runs deep. From the Afro-Brazilian maracatu born on the sugar plantations of slavery, to the high intensity carnival rhythms of frevo and baião, Amaro's heavily percussive approach to jazz is as indebted to these Pernambuco traditions as it is to Coltrane, Parker and Monk.

As with many of the greats before him, Amaro began playing piano in church aged 12, under the instruction of his father, leader of the church band. As his natural talents became obvious, the young prodigy quickly outgrew his father's instruction. He won a place at the prestigious Conservatório Pernambucano de Música but had to drop out as his family could not spare the money for the bus fare. Undeterred, Amaro gigged in bands at weddings and worked in a call centre to fund his tuition. The transformative moment came at age 15 when Amaro stumbled across a DVD of Chick Corea concert, 'he completely blew my mind, I'd never seen anything like it but I knew that's what I wanted to do with a piano'.

Despite not actually owning a piano, Amaro devoted himself to studying day and night - he would practice on imaginary keys in his bedroom, until eventually striking a deal with a local restaurant to practice before opening hours. By the age of 22 Amaro was one of the most sought-after musicians in Recife and resident pianist at the legendary jazz bar Mingus. It was during this time he met and begun collaborating with bassist Jean Elton and the pair went in search of a drummer. 'We kept hearing about this crazy kid who was playing in 7/8 or 6/4, we knew we had to meet him'. Hugo Medeiros joined, and the Amaro Freitas Trio was born.

'I want to show the simplicity of music, to break the stigma that the piano is for a particular social class. Yes, it's a difficult instrument, which many people do not have access to, but with it you can express everything.'

Following his critically acclaimed debut album Sangue Negro (black blood), the title of his sophomore release Rasif is a colloquial spelling of Amaro's home town. A love letter to his native northeast, Amaro explores its traditional rhythms through the jazz idiom, employing complex mathematical patterns reminiscent of some of the most challenging works by fellow Brazilian masters Hermeto Pascoal, Egberto Gismonti and Moacir Santos.

Preferring to see the piano as a though it were a drum with 88 unique tones, Amaro's intelligence and emotion intertwine on every track, from album opener 'Dona Eni': a scorching reconstruction of the baião rhythmic structure, played in seven measures instead of two, to the serene homage to the coastal reef and its ecosystems on the title track 'Rasif'. 'Aurora' is a suite of three parts, representing the sun's journey from the light and soft of the rise, to the aggressive dissonance at its midday zenith and descending chromatic cadences as the sun sets.

Due for an Autumn release on Far Out Recordings, Rasif sees Amaro Freitas take a deserved step onto the world stage. Having already made a name for himself in Brazil, Amaro and his phenomenal band will embark on their first European tour later this year.

Amaro Freitas - Piano

Hugo Medeiros - Drums & Percussion

Jean Elton - Double Bass

Henrique Albino - Baritone Sax, Flutes & Clarinet

All compositions by Amaro Freitas

Produced by Amaro Freitas

Recorded by Bruno Giorgi @ Carranca Studio, Recife, Brazil

Mixed and mastered by Bruno Giorgi @ Quarto Studio, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Executive producer and management: Laercio Costa

Portland, Oregon resident Mary Sutton's solo debut materialized in the wake of a performance she gave at a clothing-optional soaking-pool sauna: 'I had never composed for synth before but wanted to make something people sitting motionless and naked in hot bubbly water would want to hear.'
It was while in this headspace that she reconnected with Satie's entrancing cyclical motifs, particularly the way 'he subtly spins melodic fragments, and pivots harmonies and phrases so the repetitions feel new and surprising yet soothingly familiar, as if casting a spell.'
The nine intuitive instrumentals comprising The Deep End accomplish exactly that, threading complementary shades of soft-hued hypnosis, dazed modal introspection, icy amusement park reverie, and lunar lullaby into a prismatic suite of contemplative melody and synthetic communion.
Sutton's songs are active rather than ambient yet their structure is more suggestive than scripted, full of lulls, asymmetries, and daydreams. Each track was written specifically to be played live on an analog synthesizer, with no overdubs or post-production wizardry. The sound of Saloli is one of warm-blooded wiring, turned on and tapped into, emotive and electric, storied machines speaking through all too human hands.

Continually pushing the boundaries of jazz, funk, electronic music and disco, as expressed through their signature samba swing, the Brazilian mavericks have recreated the energy of those spellbinding seventies' sessions which would launch them into international recognition and confirm their status as one of Brazil's most successful bands. Since the passing of keyboard maestro Jose Roberto Bertrami in 2012, remaining members Ivan Conti and Alex Malheiros have worked tirelessly to keep the spirit of Azymuth alive, and to continue the legacy of Bertrami's genius. But Fênix also marks a new era as the Azymuth trio is complete once again, by special guest keyboardist Kiko Continentino. A hugely talented pianist, composer and arranger, Kiko has worked with the likes of Milton Nascimento, Gilberto Gil and Djavan, and the fresh energy and inspiration he has brought to the group is undeniable. The album also features Brazilian percussion legend Robertinho Silva, one of Brazil's most important and influential players.

From the disco-carnival title track to sunny jazz-funk head-nodder Orange Clouds, through to the deep-space samba Corumbá, Azymuth have drawn upon five decades of consummate craftsmanship - which coupled with their endless desire for experimentation and improvisation - has resulted in a 10-track journey encapsulating the full spectrum of Azymuth's brilliantly coloured expressionist fusion. With all the cosmic energy and masterful musicianship you'd expect from the three-man orchestra, Azymuth rise from the ashes!

Recorded in Rio De Janeiro in May 2016 with producers Daniel Maunick and Joe Davis the official release date is set for December 2016, on super-heavyweight vinyl.

- Beautiful 1 LP Edition 140g Vinyl, Heavy 350gsm Sleeve, Sticker WRWTFWW Records is extremely excited to present the official reissue of cult album Lingua Franca-1 (originally released in 1983) by groundbreaking Kyoto band EP-4, available on vinyl housed in heavy 350gsm sleeve and digipack CD. Straight from the delirious minds of unconventional geniuses Kaoru Sato (who had previously released an album as R.N.A. Organism on legendary Osaka label Vanity Records) and Yuji 'Banana' Kawashima, Lingua Franca-1 is a seamless voyage of spellbinding mutant funk grooves, joyful post-punk explorations, synth fantasies, sexy distortions, and fluid cool-no-sweat vocals. Constantly mutating in an almost biological way (similarly to Colored Music's self-titled album), always mysterious and seductive, sometimes reminiscing of a freaky cross between PiL, Liquid Liquid, Bowie and Yello, EP-4's debut is hard to label, although 'Debonair Wave' could be a legitimate way to describe this Japan's best-kept-secret of an album. Defying the rules wasn't limited to sonic experimentations for band leader Kaoru Sato. To promote Lingua Franca-1, he and his crew plastered gigantic (illegal) billboards all over Shibuya and Harajuku, announcing performances in four different cities on odd hours of the same day (May 5th 1983). Other of his notable antics included originally sub-titling the album Death to the Emperor Showa causing a controversy (which led to censorship and a title-change), trying to release two albums on the same day without the concerned labels being aware of the plan or, in the R.N.A. Organism days, fooling Vanity Records into believing the demo he sent them came from a foreign band (it worked). Unique personality, unique music!

Leifur James will release his debut album in October through Late Night Tales' artist label Night Time Stories.
A Louder Silence is the London-based producer and multi-instrumentalist's first proper release; his two earlier singles feature on the record, after gaining support from Gilles Peterson's Worldwide FM with a live airing and interview in 2017, plus continued backing from XLR8R, Stamp the Wax, and BBC Radio 6 Music DJ's.
The album is both spacious and thought-provoking, energetic yet restrained, brimming with nuanced electronic instrumentals, dubby synths, and jazz breaks — creating an array of rich textures, complemented occasionally by James' own soulful vocals.
While James' early unreleased work was singularly electronic, A Louder Silence focuses on analog synths and warm acoustic instruments, all played by his own hand. It's the product of a two-year spell in James' home studio, with additional live drums recorded with Jim Macrae at London's Old Paradise Audio.
James' rich musical influences are laced through the release. Encouraged by his mother, a classically trained pianist, he learned to play the cello and developed adeep understanding of rhythm and melody that informs his approach to writing electronic music. James playsthe piano he grew up listening to in 'Mumma Don't Tell' and samples an indefinable percussive element to drive forward 'Suns Of Gold.' 'Night and Day' sees cello plucks and long melodic strokes interlink with a grooving synth line. He also field records the atmospheric Moroccan sea in 'Red Sea.' Inspiration stems from the experimentation of modern day electronic producers, fused with the Jazz, Classical, Blues, and Soul music that soundtracked his youth.
Central to the album is the idea of space. James recalls the early advice of his uncle, a jazz guitarist, who features on 'Uncle Blue': 'I remember him saying to me: "What goes in comes out' James says. 'Every detail should be a worthy detail; sometimes nothing is better than something.' Moments of blissful, structured intensity are juxtaposed with stillness and near silence — dark and light; loud and quiet. This also forms the foundation for the album title: A Louder Silence reflects the dichotomy of finding pockets of stillness in a noisy world.
The result is 10 distinct tracks delivered as one coherent and well-structured long-player debut, set for release on LP, CD, and digital, on 5th October 2018.
Live dates follow a debut live show earlier this year at the Jazz Café with Yazz Ahmed, including an album launch at London's Ghost Notes in October.

After 5 years of silence, Dadub are summoning their magic spell on BAS006. - Rituals of Resistance" makes use of tribal drums, ghostly echoing samples taken from the collective consciousness. Emotive techno in it's dubbiest prime evokes scenes of territories uncharted by global repression. Dadub present their very own vision of techno politics. Not shy to tap into a glitch, familiar sounds emerge from a well orchestrated chaos. An acutely bass driven sense for rhythm combines with the inevitable esoteric beauty of hand-crafted Italian techno. This is the sound track for all those who yearn for an inner revolution.

Tropical Disco Records are back with their fifth release of the year, bringing you four killer edits from the Tropical Disco Volt.

Moodena introduces Volume 5 in fine style, mustering another spellbinding composition with Gil's Groove. Sounding as swagged out as ever, it's evident form & flair comes naturally to the artist.

TD comrades Moodena & Sartorial present their first collaboration on Turn It Up, neatly entwining their distinct styles, rolling basslines, cascading guitars and sultry Sax. The result is a piece of pure energy - it's hard not to do exactly what the track tells you.
The disco wizard, Sartorial continues his ever growing solo output with 6 million, a righteous slab of soulful dance music that can make a dancefloor bang, as well as weep.

Feel The Heat rolls effortlessly with a lush vocal that melts the loins and lays out a sonic smorgasboard of what epitomises Tropical Disco Records - soul!

'Garage bands suddenly obtain cult status and become the antithesis of their initial appeal'

Garage Class were a group of reluctant outliers who produced one of the finest contributions to the wave of UK DIY music that emerged during the late 70s and early to mid-80s.

Hailing from Alsager in North West England and comprised of Tim Shutt (vocals) Phil Murphy (lead guitar) Clive Williams (guitar) Lynne Sanders (bass) and Phil Bourne (drums / bass on studio recordings) Garage Class originally went by the name of The Pits before their then manager Steve Hurt imposed an alias which, though unpopular within their ranks, would nevertheless reflect the shambolic art they would eventually capture on their first and only single.

As The Pits the group offered a loutish inflection on glam-punk flamboyance, evoking Johnny Thunder hitting the north and remaining disowned yet undeterred in a dreary old boozer. But as Garage Class the group distilled a roughcast and homespun primitivism that felt quintessentially their own. In this they proved too unruly to be assimilated into any wider scene. Early gigs descended into acrimony and recognition proved elusive. Yet what they managed to make back then now sounds like an extraordinary article of underdog ambition.

Released in 1984, four years after it was originally recorded, the Terminal Tokyo single is an unlikely triumph of exceptional messthetic punk. Though raw and unpolished the songs here are precariously pop-minded and indisputably anthemic. The titular A-side reveals the dry and detached drawl of Shutt aka The Subliminal Kid, a sharp, jaded and poetic voice that has some of the most iconic lines never heard in punk. Accompanied by second-hand guitars, on-the-fly handclaps and a chorus like a terrace chant this is the cult hit that never was, a heroically artless masterpiece that has all the ragged character and misfit euphoria of Swell Maps and The Buzzcocks if they were more impulsive and boisterous, and left to their own devices in the remote margins of a Cheshire town. The original B-side is here substituted for I Got Standards, a track that, until now, has somehow remained unreleased. An ideal twin to Terminal Tokyo there's the same brusque and dog-eared quality to the band's delivery, as well as the same upfront emphasis on strong hooks and insistent momentum. Yet again, Shutt is on impeccable form, perfecting an inflated, adolescent antagonism that has all the sardonic, malcontented charm of similarly 'shirty' buggers like Dan Treacy (Television Personalities), Patrik Fitzgerald and Mark Perry (Alternative TV).

Although never accepted in their own time both tracks represent a brief but inspired moment of fervent imperfection, one that epitomized the best of a diffuse and autonomous underground movement spearheaded by The Desperate Bicycles and built upon by the likes of Amos & Sara, The Homosexuals, The Cleaners From Venus and Family Fodder. Like them Garage Class were situated at a point where punk, art, humour and a sense of stubborn independence all intersected.

In the years since Terminal Tokyo has accumulated a retrospective appeal among certain trusted circles, with Jon Dale celebrating the single in his exhaustive and essential Story of UK DIY for Fact Magazine, and original copies regularly changing hands for a foolish forty quid or so. With this inaugural release on the Outer Reaches label Terminal Tokyo is not only restored for the very first time but given a worthy expansion courtesy of JD Twitch (Optimo).

Continuing his own fascination with the fringe history of UK DIY - documented on his own outstanding compilation Cease & Desist: DIY! (Cult Classics From The Post Punk Era 1978-1982) and in his re-edits of Crass Records classics for an early release on RVNG INTL - Twitch reinterprets I Got Standards as an incisive, dubwise outing that pictures Jaki Liebezeit and Muslimgauze on a bender in England's provinces, tasked with remixing the raw product of local punks. A new slant on Garage Class' crude magnificence, built to play loud on contemporary soundsystems.

Although the latter part of 1980 spelled the end for Garage Class with members moving on to other projects (Bourne fell in with The Colours Out of Time, Murphy went on to front The Regular Guys and Shutt eventually left to form Happy Refugees) this reissue attempts to give their fleeting time together and the unique single statement they made the treatment it deserves. If this means Garage Class have obtained cult status, their initial appeal remains. Just listen for yourself.

Luciano has arranged a special series of four releases as part of the celebrations for the fifteen years anniversary of his own Cadenza Records, launching the first one to begin the festivities. Each episode is coming out in a different season of the year; the first one, with the catalogue number 118, is the chapter dedicated to the summertime and contains 5 enchanting tracks with an exquisite sound. Thisseries is just one of the astonishing surprises that Luciano has set aside for the birthday of his beloved label.
The show begins with "The Amazing Lilou", a crispy ariose tune with elaborated percussions and calypso-flavored synthesizers. "Hiding Hearts" is a latin prelude with pleasant guitars and restful melodies, flowing with joy and peace. "Nabusima" is another Caraibic spell, with noteworthy carefullymixed drums and elevating harmonies. "Magik Mechanics" explores complex broken beats andelectronic textures, drawing a colored narration in between a fairy tale and a sci-fi movie. Finally,"Tirana del Oriente", as disclosed by the title, is a trip into the Oriental ardent magic. A collection offive long summery compositions to accompany our hot pleasing days from the dawn till the dusk,holding our hands during a never ending daydream.

Apart from being known for founding the infamous vinyl imprint Subaltern Records and for his residency on SUB.FM, Gabriele Romeo aka. Mentha has made quite a name for himself with his Jazz-influenced bass music productions. This LP is a selection of tracks from his vault, showcasing his musical abilities and tasteful compositions in this self-release.

1 - All Or Nothing
Greeting the listener with melancholic yet optimistic vibes is the first track of the LP, 'All Or Nothing'. Setting the loungey and open space feeling for the release, captivating chords and soothing melodies join a potent sub-bass in this introspective overture.

2 - Same Spot ft. Vale
'Same Spot' picks it right up where the first track left it, emerging further into a vast ethereal space. Charming guitars pave the way to uplifting trumpet lines, masterfully executed by Vale. A meditative bass-line seamlessly merges all elements together into a seductive modal composition.

3 - Sunflower
Showing off his instrumental skills yet again, Mentha delivers a sunny and laid-back masterpiece with an apt title, rounded off by a perfectly executed contrast between bumping subs, crispy drums and radiant spaces. Bossa-inspired rhythms bond with Rhodes, jazzy horns and crystal guitars shifting through the realms of major and minor.

4 - Natural Rain
Natural Rain maintains the meditative vibe while entering mysterious spheres of consciousness. Like sunrise in an enchanted forest, this track is magically captivating and keeps the listener under its spell throughout. Oneiric melodies encounter pads and polyrhythms, leading to a climax which completes this mystical journey.

5 - Water March
Like a light breeze on a hot day, Water March takes it easy. Marked by Mentha's very own signature guitar and trumpet, this peaceful march unfolds playfully. While surprising with energetic bass frequencies and instrumental intricacies, this piece shows an insight of the artist's musical roots.

6 - In My Head ft. Aphty Khéa
A psychedelic masterpiece, 'In My Head' sets a strong statement at the end of the release. The unsettling atmosphere of the track is tastefully matched by Aphty Khéa's pristine voice. Creating an eerie yet soothing vibe, this track lets the mind roam freely through time signature changes, dynamic transformations and instrumental layers which remind of Steve Reich.

Originally Hailing From Columbus, Ohio, Where He Was Born In July 1948, Bill Mason, The Son Of A Baptist Minister, Had First Learnt Music In Church. Starting Out On Piano He Switched To Organ In His Late Teens. Mason Had Come To Bob Porter's Attention When As Part Of The Bryant Group He Recorded At Prestige On Two Sessions In 1971. Bill Mason Proves Himself A Formidable Leader With His Solo Album, The Aptly Titled Jazz-funk Outing gettin' Off'. The Album's Physicality Is Astounding, Mason Is An Extraordinary Soulful Hammond Organist, Conjuring Spiraling, Spellbinding Grooves That Seem To Grow Deeper And More Relentless With Each Successive Track. He Also Proves His Talent As A Composer With Originals Like "mister Jay" And The Scorching Title Cut Standing Tall Alongside Covers Highlighted By Al Green's Immortal "let's Stay Together".
Gettin' Off Features Idris Muhammad On Drums, Which Means A Frenzy Of Funky Jb-influenced Over-the-top Soul-jazz Drumming. Featured On Bass Is The Legendary Gordon Edwards (known For His Work With James Brown, Weldon Irvine, Funk Inc., Aretha Franklin, Etc.) And Saxophone Duties Are Handled By Hubert Laws (quincy Jones, Gil Scott Heron, Moondog).
All Of The Above Is Carefully Overseen By Engineer Rudy Van Gelder & Producer Bob Porter (known For Their Work With Herbie Hancock, Coltrane, Thelonious Monk, Miles Davis...and Many Others). Bill Mason's First (and Only) Album Was Originally Released In 1972 On Eastbound Records, Super Rare And Fetching Large Sums On The Collectors Market, Now Finally Back Available As A Limited Deluxe Vinyl Edition (500 Copies). This Album Also Comes With The Original 1972 Art By Prestige Records Photographer Al Johnson.

Always Seen With A Smile On His Face, Inja The Poet, Lyricist, Storyteller And Unparalleled Master Of Ceremonies Presents His Debut Album On Hospital Records. His First Drum & Bass Focussed Long-player 'blank Pages' Flexes His Lyrical Style With Heartfelt Sentiment, Roughneck Flows And Quick-fire Wordsmith Wizardry. All Partnered With Heavyweight Productions From Pete Cannon, Nu:tone, Logistics, Serum, Whiney And Anile.
Inja's Back With Partner-in-crime Pete Cannon On 'war Games'. A Funky Bassline Lays The Foundations For This Fear-fighting Tale. As The Breaks Roll Out Inja's Militant And Deep Rhetoric Puts This Track On A New Level, With Signature Percussive Flair From The Sought After Hip-hop Beatmaker.
Inja's Spoken-word Piece For Amnesty International 'she Just Wanna Dance' Was A Viral Online Hit In 2017. It's Now Been Given A Turbo-charged Re-work By Med School Young-gun Whiney. Inja's Poignant Commentary On The Prolific Problem Of Harassment In Club Culture Sits Atop A Grimey Half-time Stepper That Switches Up Into A Lethal Upfront Roller.
Inja Proves He Can 'juk' Any Riddim In 'samurai'. Serum's Steppy Beat And Woofing Bassline Balances Inja's Story Of The Samurai, Slicing Through The Tune Like The Lyrical Sensei He Is.
even With A White Page And Black Ink, You Can Spell Out More Colour Than The Eye Can See.' - Inja

As naturally as X-Altera came to be, the music itself is a unique refraction of styles and bold, contradictory approaches. But it all blends together uncannily well—maybe because of the decades of production experience that went into it, or the holistic mindset Mullinix took from the beginning. The name itself reflects as much. "X-Altera references two things. It comes from Latin—ex altera—which means 'from or of the other side.' Which could be a metaphysical thing, or you could say it's jungle ethics brought into the techno world. And I spelled it this way as a reference to X-101 and X-102, the Underground Resistance project of Je- Mills, Mike Banks, and Robert Hood." Detroit meets London, deep techno meets drum & bass, old meets new—X-Altera unites these threads in order to take them in unknown directions.A fresh debut from one of the most vital electronic producers of the last 20 years, Tadd Mullinix (Dabrye, JTC, Charles Manier), who looks to the past of techno and jungle to find a new ways forward.

Out-ER sub-label Pregnant Void is proud to announce the release of hi.mo's debut album Urtiis. Landing on double vinyl in June 2018, it is a fantastically absorbing showcase of the Italian's weird and wonderful fusion of various strains of sound from jazz to hip hop to classical. "The alteration of conventional musical patterns thrills me," says the artist who is classically trained in piano and uses that knowledge to play with rules, structures and forms. Influenced by IDM, African drums, jazz and the interplay of chords, rhythm and harmony, hi.mo infuses his electro-acoustic productions with found sound samples and analogue and digital tools. This is a spelling-binding and intimate album that is filled with invention, but never at the expense of the overall experience, which is beautiful and beguiling throughout.

Favorite Recordings presents this new official album reissue of State of Emmergency by French band The Fizz: A real underrated, complete and intriguing album, originally released in 1986 as a private-press LP and quite hard to find in good conditions nowadays.

The Fizz is mostly the result of Patrick Jouanneau, a French musician, composer and producer who's still active today. He remembers: In the early 80's I had a recording studio allowing me to easily fulfil my desire to create songs. It was then that I began to compose and write songs, in French or in English in this case. State Of Emergency (spelling on the LP is a mistake), is born from a fierce will on my part, and the other four have followed, but it was not easy, the musicians, you have to get them out of bed! I have to say that Richard Larozé, the pianist, was a very strong guy with harmonies, and has somewhat changed my first version, much more oriented in Soul and R&B.'

And when asked about his main influences, Patrick says: It's always difficult for me to speak about influences, out of respect, and humility especially, but they nourished us and nourished this project, Stevie Wonder, Al Jarreau, Earth, Wind & Fire, and so on, were and still are important to me and this was the case for the entire FIZZ group.'

At the end, State of Emmergency by The Fizz is a very interesting and brilliant album with great inspiration in melodies and compositions. And who knows, listening to the title "A So Called Being", it could even have inspired a certain King of Pop'...

Mehmet Aslan returns to his own Fleeting Wax imprint, in order to deliver the first in a series of releases as part of a new project, ghost station, including a collaboration with fellow Turkish singer, songwriter and vocal producer, Idil Mese.


Efsun, translating to enchantment in Farsi, is the sound of Idil Mese transforming an understated, somewhat folksy instrumental of Aslan's into a bewitching and subtle musical spell. Initially tense,
Idil Mese's vocal spell wraps beautifully around a brittle guitar motif, inches above a sea of atmospheric ambience. In it's second half, synthesis and sitar unite, taking efsun into more revelatory territory, employing a playful melody and warm, cosmic textures.

Meanwhile, on 'ghost station', from which the project takes its name, layers of meaning and recording slowly unravel, revealing a compelling soundscape. Recorded in one take, and completed across one night, 'ghost station' began with Aslan and his sampler surfing the busy radio waves of Berlin, eventually settling on a beautiful score broadcast on one of the city's classical stations. Just as soon as Aslan had the frequency on lockdown, the signal disappeared unable to be retrieved quickly enough, if ever. Loosely inspired by the work of Swiss visual artist and musician Pipilotti Rist, the track instead unfolds woozily like a dream, undulating through offbeat bleeps, ghostly voices and improvised swells of noise, while still maintaining it's own quietly propulsive groove.

Sounding more like himself than ever on his own Fleeting Wax outlet and incorporating an impressive range of musical techniques over just two tracks, 'ghost station' further establishes Mehmet Aslan as a restlessly inventive musical talent. -Text by John Thorp

Brother And Sister Eric And Arrontette Mcclinton Had Been Recording For Many Years. Around 1976 They Did A 45 Release Together On Honey Records Called "where You Are" Under The Their Christian Names, Although Eric Was Spelled Eryke! The Single Didn't Have Much Success But Both Brother And Sister Still Went On To Be Amazing Backing Singers Working For Legendary Producers Mike Theodore And Dennis Coffey. Whilst They Were Under The Watchful Eye Of The Production Team They Recorded Some Material Again And A Duo For Theo/coff In A Bid To Get Them Another Record Deal And Show Their Capabilities. These Songs Never Got Releases. Eric Became And Prolific Song Writer And Also Joined The Group High Fashion .
We Are Super Pleased To Finally Release The Shelved Songs From 1978.
This In One Of Two Releases By The Duo.

Presenting 'Envelope'. Album written, produced & mixed by Milan W. and pressed on 180g vinyl, by Ekster. Coming out on the 6th of June 2018, with foil-stamped cover-drawing by Gerard Herman. Mastered & cut by Helmut Erler at Dubplates & Mastering.
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Milan W (AKA Milan Warmoeskerken) is an Antwerp-based musician. In 2015 he released the Slo Mo cassette, on local label JJ Funhouse. The Intact LP a year later. Compositions constructed from gentle, yet persistent, rhythms. Intricately textured downtempo echoes. Brain-dancing, rather than four-to-the-floor raving. 2017`s split with Ekolalis, for The Hague`s BAKK, made clear the direction Milan`s headed in. His contribution being a seventeen minute float. The kick largely removed. The textures cut-up, expanded and magnified. Envelope, for Ekster, builds on this work.

The harlequin turns the handle. The contraption sucks in air, and breathes. Blows out tone poems. Wordless ballads that soundtrack enchanted scenarios. Issues forth magic. A sorcerer`s apprentice casting its spell. Animating the inanimate. To everything a life. Sets the frozen fluttering. Pirouetting in red shoes. Illuminates what was dark. Astma sings a Gamelan lullaby. Summons comforting angels to a post-Industrial landscape. Glaasjes has Jazz ghosts inhabit an empty bar room. Spirits stealing excuse-me`s under its deserted spot. In Limbo amplifies their whispers. Lead soldiers court jewellery-box ballerinas behind shuttered shop fronts. On Heraldic Snippets, a tin infantry marches. Ten thousand men up to the top, and back down again. Keys make-believing that they are massed brass and fife.

The bellows pump, and the pipes all the while wheezing. An automaton philharmonic at the bidding of a steam-punk master. Analogue and digital. Clockwork and glitch. Malady finds sounds isolated, extrapolated, mutated. Orchestral`s organ-grinder moves with urgency, and alchemy. Spinning straw into gold. Snare rolls become bubbling mercury. Metallic, yet fluid. Racing at the speed of flight and escape. Slope is the music of water chasing through crystal caves. Slow Runner, a funeral crawl. Shoved into motion by a drama of strings remembered.
Like the charismatic Rat-Catcher of Hamelin, the harlequin turns the handle, and we bang the cup.

Italian club staple and producer Kaiser turns to MOC for his Debris EP, showcasing three agile Techno slices and a remix from Exploration Records chief Johannes Volk.

'Parachute' opens up the release in a spellbinding, energy-heavy manner, with its whirlwind groove and lead taking no prisoners. Next up is 'Debris', showing off an equally energetic prowess channeling zig zagging synths and a more melodic, yet still heavy strung bassline. 'Esplosione Di Colori', translated as 'color explosion' aptly translates into sound what is usually only possible for a paint canvas. A lighthearted, arpegio-ridden track in original, Johannes Volk works his magic, turning it into a versatile piece of raw, dubby Techno.

Everyone loves "Why Can't We Live Together" by Timmy Thomas: how could one resist such a strong music vibe coming with a message more relevant today than ever! It has been covered by the most creative artists more than a few times...

Recorded in Paris and Kingston, the Soul Sugar crew & Leonardo Carmichael make it their own with a sultry reggae groove. Jahno on drums and syndrums, Thomas Naim on guitar, and Guillaume "Gee" Metenier on keyboards and production duties, are delivering the classic hit in all its majesty, in the superior categories of both extended Discomix, and Dub version under the spell of Dubmaster extraordinaire Dennis Bovell!

What to say about the breathtaking interpretation of Leonardo Carmichael Growing up in Jamaica, Leonardo learnt many a song from his father Glendon Joseph McFarlane, who would sing to his mother Geraldine, who sang in a choir. Leonardo grew up as a drummer and a singer in churches. Through a mutual friend, he met Nastassja Hammond, daughter of Beres Hammond, with whom he started writing and releasing music for various artists including Courtney John and Kreesha Turner. Leonardo has a wide appreciation for diverse genres but keep an International Reggae and Dancehall feel at the core of his music. It can be said Leonardo has faith & soul to the bone...

Musique Pour La Danse takes a short break from reissuing rare and essential music to bring you a selection of four new and exclusive tracks from the French underground entitled Equipe de Danse. Curated by label co-manager Ed Isar, a DJ and promoter active in the Paris underground since more than a decade, this EP brings together different producers and styles, highlighting the diversity and the creativity currently flowing through the French scene and providing DJs and ravers with quality tunes to work with and dance to.

Automat - Disco Trax
Everyone has a story about how one electronic music experience changed their lives forever, for Ed it was seeing Automat live in Paris in 2006 when he was 18. Automat's Electrospectif LP is still one of the best and most underrated French electro albums of the 21st century. Hearing Disco Trax many years later and realizing this fast-paced banger never got pressed on vinyl was the spark that encouraged Ed to work on this EP. This is irresistible jakbeat with electro and italo influences, timeless and compelling.

Cuften - bgt55ujp0
Cuften is a unique artist from Normandy who prefers being called a musician rather than a producer: he creates and records all his music live on a 100% hardware setup with absolutely no computers involved. With IDM and acid influences as well as a passion for hardcore, his music bridges the gaps between Aphex Twin, Marc Acardipane and Legowelt. This track is a perfect introduction to his world where hard hitting kicks get bodies moving while acid madness gets minds melting and it's actually his first tune ever released on vinyl. Keep an eye out for Purusu, Cuften's own record label which he runs with the help of Ed, a strictly underground affair that is already gathering support from established DJs around the world.

Sina - Faith
This is the very first track by Sina pressed on vinyl and what a belter it is! He is part of the new wave of electronic music activists in Paris with his Subtyl parties that were among the first to encourage today's ravers to side-step the clubs and go party in warehouses half a decade ago. We immediately signed Faith upon hearing it for the first time, spellbound by pounding and dreamy atmosphere, full of dramatic and ecstatic moments. This track exists in a techno universe of its own, as gritty as it is melodic. It never fails to get a reaction from the crowds and has been a staple of Ed's peak time sets lately.

Raymond D Barre - I Don't Know Dave
He's an up and coming producer and live performer from Paris who released a great EP on Nocta Numerica in 2016 and has several projects in the works. Clocking at 108 BPM, this tune is the downtempo cut on the EP. Driven by an 808, structured by FM bass and embellished with some lovely acid touches, this track could be described as 21st century orientalist New Beat or perhaps Egyptian Lover on codeine. Either way, this nod to Belgian vibes and BPM did not go unnoticed by both label managers and this fun and quirky track is often the highlight of downtempo sets.

Points of interest
- Four essential and totally exclusive tracks outside the beaten path and the usual formulas, a great snapshot of the French underground in 2018
- Various Artists, different vibes, something for everyone
- A Musique Pour La Danse release (Frankie Bones, Orlando Voorn, Cron aka Todd Sines, Break The Limits aka Bay B Kane, ..), a label founded and curated by Olivier Ducret of Mental Groove (Miss Kittin, Orbe, Donato Dozzy, Brodinksi...) and Ed Isar (33RPM +8% and Radio Belleville in Paris), releasing forgotten and unforgettable dance music of yesterday and tomorrow.

Born in Cameroon, Vicky began banging the drums at the age of 9. By 13 he had moved onto bass and within a couple of years he was playing every night from 10pm to 5am in the Castel Douala Cabaret. At the age of 19 Vicky moved to Paris to study Banking and Commerce and cram in even more music. He took classes at Épinay-sur-Seine Conservatoire music school and it was here that he met Bandmates of his Dikalo project.

Word spreads and he soon becomes one of the most sought after bass players in the Afro arena. His session work features on many scenes stars, Manu Dibango, Eko Tala AM, Kemayo, Sammy Massamba, Toto Guillaume and many more. A chance meeting with the Gibson brothers also see him play on two of their hit albums. In the 80's Vicky moved to the US for spell and excels as a session bassist and touring musician.

We pick up the story in 1981. With his stature as a musician and bass player riding high he takes a detour to Nigeria to record with the Afrodisia label in Lagos. The "Thank U Mamma" album is the result. It is repressed for the first time, here in 2018 on the revitalised Afrodisia label.

Musical proceedings open up with the heartfelt ode to his mother "Thank U Mamma", smooth pop meets afrobeat boogie. "Marina Drive" slows things down with its smoldering jazz. Side Two opens with "Its Not Serious" a catchy vocal number underpinned with funky guitars and striding basslines. "Stormy Rain" is lazy guitar jazz swansong. We close off the album with the ever so funky "You". Slick funk grooves powered along with a dose of slap bass. As a side note Vicky actually plays left handed but with a "upside down" right handed bass. This upside-down precursor making his effortless slap playing even more impressive.

Vicky went on to record a two other albums and still tours and plays as an ever-in-demand session musician.

* Brazilian producer L-Side releases his highly anticipated new album 'Carnal Mind' on the 6th April.

* Featuring American rapper Jeru The Damaja, British rapper DRS, dancehall/grime artist Lady Chann, and drum and bass vocalists MC Fats, MC Darrison and MC Conrad, the release is via the legendary drum and bass record label, V Recordings.

* Taking his influence from Hip Hop artists such as Jazz Liberatorz, The Pharcyde and Tribe Called Quest, L-Side is making his mark in the world of raw dancefloor focused drum and bass. Originally producing hip-hop beats before branching into Drum and Bass, he is known for his meticulous mix of upfront and aggressive sounds merged with funk and soul styles, forging a flawlessly fresh take on drum and bass.

* Leonardo de Jesus Silva, aka L-Side, began his career as a DJ and Producer in 2008 and the Sao Paulo born producer has gone on to cement himself as one of the most formidable producers to hail from the flourishing and highly respected Brazilian drum and bass scene, which is home to some of the most inventive and funkiest contributors to drum & bass this century.

* As a nation bursting at the seams with prolific and highly talented producers, L-Side has managed to emerge as one of the most exceptional and 'Carnal Mind' proves the point.

* 'Holding On' ft. Lady Chann, is a dark, brooding, half time number, full of menacing atmosphere - infusing elements of dancehall and grime, complemented perfectly by Lady Chann's ferocious, trademark vocal delivery while tracks like 'High Times' unleash unrelenting breakbeat right from the gate. Pulsating synths add momentum, channelling subterranean depths as MC Fats patois-tinged vocals ride overhead. The dark storm clouds clear briefly, allowing celestial pads to momentarily reset the atmosphere before hurling the listener straight back into the thick of it.

* Having released music on such labels as Philly Blunt, Chronic, Celsius and Soul Deep, his music has been supported by DJs from around the world, including DJ Marky, Bryan Gee, LTJ Bukem, Bailey and Doc Scott, while new single 'Holding On' received it's first official play from Mista Jam on BBC Radio 1Xtra.

* In addition to his solo recordings, L-Side has collaborated with fellow V producers, Subsid, Andrezz and Critycal Dub among others.

* The legendary drum and bass record label, V Recordings, was set up in 1993 by Jumpin' Jack Frost and Bryan Gee. Few record labels can claim to have changed the face of their respective scene. Celebrating their 25th anniversary in 2018, since its birth, the label has released over 100 cuts from the likes of Marky & XRS, Krust and Die, Adam F, Lemon D, Scorpio, Dillinja and Roni Size

Moss Co. kicks off 2018 with the 'Indivisual' EP from the supremely talented Mariano Mateljan. Mariano and label boss, Archie Hamilton have been talking about an EP on Moss Co. for a number or years, and it is a tribute to both of their perfectionism that it finally lands in all good stores April 6th.

Made in his home studio in Split, the record came together from several analogue jam sessions. Aimed squarely at the small hours, the deeply trippy and haunting tracks take influence from the micro house of the 90s; labels like Cabinet and Perlon and producers like Schatrax and Matthew Johnson.

The record is a fine example of Mariano's ever-maturing sound; timeless minimalistic house music that will cast a spell over dance floors the world over.

Returning to Giallo after the as-played-by-Helena-Hauff et al split 'Black Gloves II', Bogdan Dražic is back with 'Four Trax On Black Wax'. Three new blisteringly blown out grained to fuck voodoo bangers plus a remix from the mighty Dmitry Distant. Haunted organs, lost jungle tribes, hot cannibal nights... all documented under piles of dirt and ancient spells. Not to be missed!

LP There's been an air of hypnagogic mystery surrounding Acid Test's sublabel Avenue 66 from the start. Joey Anderson's oblique, Prince-inspired incantation "Above The Cherry Moon" set the tone for a label that's sound that has found beauty in the furthest recesses of the dance floor, in the murkiest decay of kick drums and rave stabs. Fitting then, that the first album on the imprint comes from Trux, an artist who has chosen to reveal nearly nothing about themselves. Following a cult classic mini-LP for Office Recordings, "Orbiter" bears out the anonymous producer as a master of liminal, conceptual dance music. "Orbiter's" ten tracks have a vaporous, shape-shifting quality, threatening to topple over into full-on kick drum bliss or vanish into ambience. Opener, "With It," moves from heady ambient rush to skeletal piano, while "Blinko" and "Roy's Garage" spell out a hazy memoriam for the UK continuum. Forlorn pianos ring out amongst the field recordings, excitable toms and jungle bass all softened in the enveloping gauze. "Orbiter" positions Trux as an unknown auteur who puts evocative world of tone and echo into dizzying motion, content to watch from the wings.

Berg Jaar takes control of Room to produce a powerful & creative techno. That new imprint and his rave spirit will put a spell on you.

Ilija Rudman presents Andre Espeut 'Tears To Sound'
featuring Ron Trent Mix
Over the last decade and a half, Ilija Rudman has been responsible for many high quality releases, delivering distinctly warm, sun-kissed, analogue-rich material on labels including Bearfunk, Instruments Of Rapture, Compost , 20/20 Vision, Electric Minds, Is It Balearic Recordings, Rong Music , Classic Music Company and of course, his own Red Music imprint.
Even so, the Croatian has rarely made anything quite as deep and sensual as the material showcased on this first full EP for NuNorthern Soul. Top billing must go to the "Aquapella" version of "Tears To Sound", a spellbinding acapella cut that puts the enchanting vocals of storied soul man Andre Espeut front and centre.When Rudman sent the track to old friend Phil Cooper, the NuNorthern Soul boss thought it sounded like something he'd hear from US deep house legend Ron Trent. So, he approached the Prescription co-founder to see if he fancied remixing it. As you might expect, the results are astonishingly good.
Rich in rising and falling new age melodies, darting synthesizer motifs, languid piano flourishes and heavy analogue bass, Trent's wonderfully ultra-deep interpretation naturally gives pride of place to Espeut's seductive vocal. Even by the Chicagoan's infamously high standards, his epic Vocal Mix is incredibly special.
All versions of the single also feature two other original Rudman productions, both of which are wonderfully deep and dreamy. "Distant Feelings" is fluid, deep and yearning, with twinkling electric piano motifs and dreamy chords reclining over sizzling drum machine cymbals, no-nonsense beats and a gently pulsing analogue bassline. Those who enjoy the Balearic side of Rudman's work should also check out "Deep Sensation", a jazzy and breezy fusion of tumbling, vibraphone style melodies, rolling electric piano riffs and rubbery boogie bass. Both tracks are every bit as magical in their own way as the producer's thrilling Andre Espeut collaboration.

Under the alias of Zanov we find the works of French electronic pioneer Pierre Salkazanov, who had started playing guitar in the 1960s in a Shadows styled band, Les Ambassadors. Instrumental rock was not enough for Salkazanov, he was always looking for evolution, so when a meeting with French synth player Serge Ramses (of "Secret" fame) got him into the world of synthesizers he just dived deep into the bourgeoning world of electronic music. He got himself his first syths and started producing works into a 4-track Teac tape machine. French music was at its best, it was the time of Jean Michel Jarre, Didier Bocquet, Richard Pinhas and Heldon, Alain Meunier... Even Gong's Tim Blake was living in France at that time. And so Zanov soon caught the attention of Polydor, who released Green Ray in 1976. It is a work made with minimal equipment if compared to other French sythetists, not to mention their German peers, he worked on the EMS VCS3 synth and used a 4-track Teac and a Revox A77 Mk IV reel to reel tape recorders obtaining huge sound results. You can appreciate an influence from the Berlin school, Green Ray walks the same path of what artists like Tangerine Dream and the likes were producing at the time, Zanov had felt under the spell of Ricochet, but his head was boiling with ideas which gave the recordings a very personal, unique touch.

Zanov's three albums met with unanimous critical acclaim for the sound quality as well as for the originality of this very personal universe.

Moody 6 track compilation from this excellent Berlin based imprint.

Acid Jazz are pleased to announce details of the definitive Leroy Hutson compilation - Anthology : 1972-1984 on 20th October. Erstwhile Impression, Leroy Hutson's catalogue has become increasingly coveted over the years and this compilation collects his Curtom recordings together with two newly discovered tracks including Positive Forces which is available as an instant grat track when pre-ordering the album.

Native of Newark New Jersey, Leroy Hutson grew up In a part of the world that spawned many of Soul's all-time groups, amongst them, The Parliaments and the Manhattens. Smitten by the music he was to join a local quartet, The Nu-Tones and despite never recording the youthful Hutson experienced the thrill of being a singer. On splitting up, Hutson found himself studying in Washington DC and once more in the company of supremely talented artists including Carla Thomas and future collaborator Don Hathaway. Various recordings came and went with little chart success before, along with Hathaway he became central to a group of singer, songwriters and players under the tutelage of Curtis Mayfield at his Curtom label a relationship that initiated Hathaway's chart topping career when the pair co wrote the all-time classic and million seller The Ghetto.

Early 1971 saw Hutson replace Mayfield in the Impressions as he left to concentrate on his solo career, the transition was seamless and although relatively brief saw the band in the pop and R&B charts. His debut on the Billboard chart as a solo artist arrived with Love Oh Love, the first of a dozen Curtom singles he recorded during an exciting and turbulent decade for black American music.

The seven albums Hutson released on Curtom between 1973 and 1979 are a legacy that remain highly respected, almost revered amongst soul cognoscenti, an untold influence on an entire generation of musicians throughout the eighties. The demise of Curtom in the early eighties saw Hutson relocate to Elektra, where in 1982 he released Paradise - highly acclaimed and much loved for a time it looked like that release may spell the end but some twenty-seven years later, the newly monikered 'Lee' Huston unveiled Soothe You Groove You.

* 2017 year marks TEN YEARS OF INTEGRAL RECORDS and looking back upon the label's incredible back catalogue, what a decade it has been for drum & bass music that we hold so close.

* Initially set up as a passion project and a platform for showcasing future talent, the label has been consistently releasing cutting edge drum and bass since 2007. The ethos of the label has always been about quality control and finding those special vibes that no question capture heart and soul. Honing their unique musical language, selections are carefully handpicked by head honchos Artificial Intelligence and more recently in collaboration with label manager Emma G that fit with the forward thinking, original spirit we know as Integral.

* Now 40-odd releases deep and renowned for breaking some of the most exciting artists on the roster today, the label also boasts signature classics from some of the scenes most prolific residents. Names include the likes of Lenzman, Lomax (one half of Loadstar), Alix Perez, Calibre, System, Zero T, Technicolour & Komatic (Technimatic), LSB, Steo, Dawn Wall, Mohican Sun, Phil Tangent, Satl and just recently, A.I. themselves.

* Celebrating the seminal journey thus far, a double album will mark this very special occasion. Part One will showcase a selection of the finest from over the years in a chronological journey of the label's sound (for digitial release.) A second curation will simultaneously launch across all formats of entirely new and most exclusive material to date, reinforcing Integral's place at the round table of bass.

* A perfect teaser for what's to follow, the Album Sampler will drop this November featuring two stunning tracks. First up, '1000 Souls' comes courtesty of A.I. - tones of the deep, lush and soulful set the sultriest of grooves. Beautifully moody keys entice, chill and soothe. On the flip, 'Defiance' from Mohican Sun follows suit. With a gritty percussive edge, haunting melodies and a desperately emotional vocal to boot, this music will draw you all into the most mesmerising of dancefloor spells.

* Mark November 24 as the official release of the TEN YEARS OF INTEGRAL Album Sampler across all formats. Bag your limited vinyl copy now.

Having been endorsed by Andrew Weatherall on his June 2017 NTS radio show, the band were inspired to release this four-track vinyl EP on their own label Big Shanty Records.

A heady mix of influences colour The Spellbinder Project sound, with elements of jazz, post punk, psych and funk in the blend. These tracks were produced by Malcom Catto, head instigator of the Heliocentrics and collaborator with DJ Shadow, together with Mike Burnham, who has worked extensively with Little Barrie.

The core band of Sean Pereira Summers (guitar), Michael Levison (bass) and Michael Rathbone (drums) are joined live by Lascelle Gordon from Vibration Black Finger on percussion and Chris Williams from Led Bib on saxophone.

Idle Hands continues its quest to support new talent coming out of Bristol with a fresh 12" from local beatsmith Crump. Up to this point, he's been quietly slipping out razor sharp reduced house cuts on various artist releases for Extended Play and Banoffee Pies, but it's high time he had a 12" of his to truly showcase his sound.

The two tracks on this single tap into a consistent thread on Idle, fusing the minimal sensibilities of contemporary European house music with a swung, dub-weighted presence fit for soundsystem consumption in the fair city we call home. Much like previous releases from Leif, Christian Jay and Matt Karmil, this is a demonstration of stripped down music loaded with swagger.

"Ice & Spheres" pivots around an ear-snagging 2-step shuffle that cuts through any mix, but there's scores of subtlety woven in between the drums to reward the attentive listener. Snatches of vocal, distant field recordings, low-blowing synth licks and other unidentifiable sonic matter lurk quietly in the mix to cast a spell on the sleep-deprived twitcher and warm-up head-nodder alike.

Sporting a brighter disposition thanks to the sheen of its chords, "Mechanisms" provides a different vibe on the flip. The beat throws down with a rugged nod to West London broken styles while still tapping into that aforementioned continental 4/4 sensibility, injecting a refreshing variation into the densely populated minimal house landscape while maintaining the meditative qualities that keep the genre close to our hearts.

Soundway Records presents the debut solo album from the ever-energetc Diron Animal, lead singer of the band Throes + The Shine. Born and raised in the ghetos of Cazenga in the Angolan capital of Luanda, the Portugal-based artst is known for his incredible stage presence and unique fashion sense. Infuenced by traditonal African music, Diron brings modern electronic producton and multlingual vocals to his album, which explores the realites of growing up in harsh conditons. The impact of such a life on himself and his local community is thematcally apparent: pessimism, greed, and ambiton feature - and yet the overarching message is that of opportunity, hope and channelling one's struggles into creatvity. Spell-binding rhythms, bass hooks and original lyrics abound, spanning Portuguese, Kimbundu and English. Lead single Don't Stop', out 7 July, is a fast-paced funked up anthem with a contagious saxophone rif, to be followed by an equally mesmerising video to boot.

Munich's Martin Matiske started his recording career at fifteen with his stunning ep Stars & Galaxy for DJ Hell's Gigollo Records back in 2002. Here he dons 4 fresh tracks for the Vivod label with his trademark electro sound, somewhere between Dopplereffekt, classical & wave. Kicking off the ep is Die Nibelungen, a sort of speak & spell classical piece with an electro backing track. A2 - Bayerischer Wald is a chord heavy majestic bomb in a 5/4 time signature, maybe a stretch too far for the linear techno dj but that's what makes this ep so interesting. B2 - Virtuosic Mechanic harks back to his previous work on Gigollo Records, a more club orientated track which should do some effective damage on the floor. Rounding things off is Kammermusik, a subtle electro ballad. If you like your electro with a heavy classical influence then this is your ep.

With the label's 10th anniversary celebrations now done and dusted, Claremont 56 returns to action with something rather special: a magical debut single from a previously unknown talent.
There's not much we can tell you about Ferdi Schuster, other than that he is a talented young producer from Augsburg in Germany. As Claremont 56 is one of his favourite labels, he speculatively submitted some tracks for consideration. Label founder Paul Murphy was astonished by what he heard and believes the two tracks showcased on this 12' are amongst the best things the label has released for some time.
A-side 'Little River' is breathtakingly good. Opening with the sound o a babbling brook, it sees Schuster wrap plucked, sun-kissed acoustic guitar licks and jaunty vintage synthesizer motifs around a languid, samba-infuenced groove. As the track progresses, further magical musical elements come to the fore, including blissful electric piano solos and more mazy synthesizer solos, seemingly played on battere old equipment from the turn of the '80s. Schuster's love of the acoustic guitar is explored further on similarly impressive B-side 'Befreit'. Here, gently strummed chords and fuid Spanish guitar motifs catch the ear, as hushed cymbals and gentle hand percussion lap at your feet like the sea at sunrise. The German producer adds atmosphere through a combination of leisurely Hammond organ solos and a touch of Jew's Harp. When all of these immaculate elements combine, the results are little less than spellbinding.
Schuster may be taking his frst steps into releasing music, but his
compositional, playing and production skills are already fnely tuned. We can surely expect to hear more inspired music from him in the years to come.

No-one else makes music like this: devilishly complex but warm and intuitive, stirring together a dizzying assembly of outernational and outerspace influences, whilst retaining the subby funk-and-hot-breath pressure of Shackleton's soundboy, club roots.The result is an evolutionary, truly alchemical music — great shifting tides of dub, minimalist composition and choral song (Five Demiurgic Options), ritual spells to ward off the darkness (Before The Dam Broke, The Prophet Sequence), radiophonia and zoned-out guitar improv (Seven Virgins), even the febrile, freeform psychedelia of eighties noise rock (Sferic Ghost Transmits / Fear The Crown). Over the five years since Music For The Quiet Hour, Vengeance's vocal and lyrical range has rolled out across this new terrain. Throughout these six transmissions he's hoarse preacher, sage scholar and ravaged bluesman, blind man marching off to war, and exhausted time-traveller warning of impending socio-ecological catastrophe. Six dialogic accounts of our conflicted times, then, expanding beyond the treacly unease of the duo's early collaborative work into something subtler and more emotionally shattering — its shades of brightness more dazzling, and its darkness even murkier. "We almost didn't hear it when the foundations went."

This record is meant to be enjoyed like a seascape. It offers a Mediterranean journey, one that Ulysses, Aeneas, and Jason with his Argonauts charted first and Valencian artist, Pep Llopis, retraced and retread — from the islands of Menorca to Santorini. All of his experiences are aboard this vessel of sound: no format in mind, no course but the chasm within self. While Poiemusia La Nau Dels Argonautes materializes at this moment as an album, another object suits Pep's project: Lewis Carroll's Map of the Ocean' from his The Hunting of the Snark. It's a simple illustration: the thin outline of a blank rectangle that represents the sea with no trace of land. Carroll offers this empty space as an object that all can understand, a container for possibility. Likewise, Poiemusia offers a musical language that any listener can understand. Untethered to the meaning of words, one is set adrift and free in minimalist sound and traditional music. Llopis, who often composed for dance, originally wrote Poiemusia for a performance at the Poiemusia festival (the Greek contraction of poetry and music). Peer composers, Carles Santos and Wim Mertens, also participated in the festival, which took place over several days at the Teatro Princesa in Valencia. Llopis paired his newly formed avant-garde compositions with the poems of fellow Valencian, Salvador Jàfer.

In the studio presentation of Poiemusia, voices softly converse, only to evaporate. The poetry is incanted by the poet himself. Jàfer enunciates at the verge of song, drawing dimension from his Mediterranean travels. He is accompanied by Montse Anfruns' vaporous voice. She extends the roll of her r's and the hiss of each s as if casting a spell of Salacia. Pep bathes their conversational performance in slight delays and reverb, allowing their voices to dissolve into an ocean of sound.

Llopis was influenced by minimal American composers like Steve Reich and La Monte Young. He embraces the melodic sides of these masters in the winds of El Vell Rei De La Serp' and the tender piano on Nits de cristall.' You will find yourself submerged in tonality on tracks like Jardins Aquàtics' and La Nau Dels Argonautes' which have a kinship to Philip Glass or Daniel Lentz. Each piece extends from 5 to almost 14 minutes. The music gently laps against listening skin— sometimes placid, sometimes shimmering. Ripples of sound swell and quicken. Flutes like schools of fish. The spray of chimes. Taught strings break like the shore. Tingling, undulating synths. The record cover acts as a map, tracing the forms of the original art and providing the poems in Catalana and Spanish. Once bathed in these sounds one will emerge like Carroll's map: a perfect and absolute blank.' Poiemusia La Nau Dels Argonaute emerges in vinyl and digital formats on May 19, 2017 through Freedom To Spend.

After dropping their first various, Figures, Slowciety is about to release Guru, Sunrom's next EP. The artist has already worked with prestigious labels like Kompakt, Ancient Future Now and The Bricks. The EP lays down four organic tracks for a blend of deep house, world music and techno. The title track sounds like a ride on acid and is followed by Quirigua, a rich track conjuring transcendent Mayan rituals. The B side opens with Elephant's deep muffled kicks and takes off with Utopia's elegant arpeggiator for a final flight. This strange and personal EP will cast a spell on the dance floor.

This is the second 12" from Taken, the duo effort of Elias Landberg and Nihad Tule.
The duo has done a local show at Under Bron in Stockholm as well as Herrensauna in Berlin, this new EP sounds inspired and fresh as their live sets, setting the course straight away.
The reminiscent sounds of Techno's adolescence goes everything but unnoticed as the reduced and powerful 'Cluster' on the A-side showcases Taken's ambitions.
Going into deeper territories, the B-side 'Elysia' almost smells of strobes and smoke machines for the eye-opening moments of a proper party.
With this new EP from Taken, the sounds have really developed and show their excitement for things to come, from their almost three year debut on Skudge Records.
This is a keeper!

Patrick Schütz (Groove Magazine) '

'both good tracks''



Objekt

''cluster is nice and subtle''



Shifted

''Both track are sick. and its great to see the Skudge sound evolving!''



Anastasia Kristensen

''I dig Elysia a lot, good job

thanks!''



Markus Suckut

''both tracks a sick!''



Jonas Kopp

''Top release , thanks''



Ben Sims

''cluster def my fave, thx!''



Albert Van Abbe

''Taken for President!''



Henning Baer

''CLUSTER!!!!''



Cosmin TRG

''Deep, driving, euphoric, well done Elias and Nihad!''



Anthony Parasole

''dope as fuck''



Eric Cloutier

''"cluster" is massive! love it!!''



Norman Nodge

''Proper relaxed holiday techno, many thanks!''



Blue Hour

''Sounds dope''



Baikal

''cluster is dope''



Matrixxman

''great release''



Mark Broom

''Thumbs up from the Broom''



Mano Le Tough

''nice one. thanks''



Anthony 'Shake' Shakir

''Cluster has a dope groove for the entire track.

Elysia has a spell binding feel that is unrelenting
d
Skudge brings it all the time''

Mercury Prize-nominated Portico Quartet has always been an impossible band to pin down. Sending out echoes of jazz, electronica, ambient music and minimalism, the group created their own singular, cinematic sound over the course of three studio albums, from their 2007 breakthrough 'Knee-Deep in the North Sea', and 2010 John Leckie produced 'Isla', to the self titled record 'Portico Quartet' in 2012. Now rebooted as Portico Quartet after a brief spell as the three-piece Portico, the group are set to release their fourth studio album Art In The Age Of Automation this August on Manchester's forward thinking indy jazz and electronica label Gondwana Records. It's an eagerly anticipated return, with the band teasing both a return to their mesmeric signature sound and fresh new sonic departures in their new music. So much so that their four-night run at Archspace E8 (June 22-25) sold out in less than an hour as fans from around the world scrambled for tickets to hear the return of Portico Quartet. Support from Gilles Peterson, Jamie Cullum and similar minded DJs around the world. Airplay from TSF France. Features in Jazzism, Jazzthing, Jazzwise and beyond. Reviews in the Guardian, Mojo, Uncut and more. Full servcing to the Gondwana Records international DJ and radio mailing list.